The Catholic Public Domain Version, completed March 28th, 2009, translated by Ronald L. Conte Jr. from the Sixtus V and Clement VIII Latin Vulgate edition. The Challoner Douay-Rheims Version of the Bible was used as a guide in translating the Latin text into English.
{1:1} In the beginning, God created heaven and earth.
{1:2} But the earth was empty and unoccupied, and darknesses were over the face of the abyss; and so the Spirit of God was brought over the waters.
{1:3} And God said, “Let there be light.” And light became.
{1:4} And God saw the light, that it was good; and so he divided the light from the darknesses.
{1:5} And he called the light, ‘Day,’ and the darknesses, ‘Night.’ And it became evening and morning, one day.
{1:6} God also said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide waters from waters.”
{1:7} And God made a firmament, and he divided the waters that were under the firmament, from those that were above the firmament. And so it became.
{1:8} And God called the firmament ‘Heaven.’ And it became evening and morning, the second day.
{1:9} Truly God said: “Let the waters that are under heaven be gathered together into one place; and let the dry land appear.” And so it became.
{1:10} And God called the dry land, ‘Earth,’ and he called the gathering of the waters, ‘Seas.’ And God saw that it was good.
{1:11} And he said, “Let the land spring forth green plants, both those producing seed, and fruit-bearing trees, producing fruit according to their kind, whose seed is within itself, over all the earth.” And so it became.
{1:12} And the land brought forth green plants, both those producing seed, according to their kind, and trees producing fruit, with each having its own way of sowing, according to its species. And God saw that it was good.
{1:13} And it became evening and the morning, the third day.
{1:14} Then God said: “Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven. And let them divide day from night, and let them become signs, both of the seasons, and of the days and years.
{1:15} Let them shine in the firmament of heaven and illuminate the earth.” And so it became.
{1:16} And God made two great lights: a greater light, to rule over the day, and a lesser light, to rule over the night, along with the stars.
{1:17} And he set them in the firmament of heaven, to give light over all the earth,
{1:18} and to rule over the day as well as the night, and to divide light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.
{1:19} And it became evening and morning, the fourth day.
{1:20} And then God said, “Let the waters produce animals with a living soul, and flying creatures above the earth, under the firmament of heaven.”
{1:21} And God created the great sea creatures, and everything with a living soul and the ability to move that the waters produced, according to their species, and all the flying creatures, according to their kind. And God saw that it was good.
{1:22} And he blessed them, saying: “Increase and multiply, and fill the waters of the sea. And let the birds be multiplied above the land.”
{1:23} And it became evening and morning, the fifth day.
{1:24} God also said, “Let the land produce living souls in their kind: cattle, and animals, and wild beasts of the earth, according to their species.” And so it became.
{1:25} And God made the wild beasts of the earth according to their species, and the cattle, and every animal on the land, according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
{1:26} And he said: “Let us make Man to our image and likeness. And let him rule over the fish of the sea, and the flying creatures of the air, and the wild beasts, and the entire earth, and every animal that moves on the earth.”
{1:27} And God created man to his own image; to the image of God he created him; male and female, he created them.
{1:28} And God blessed them, and he said, “Increase and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and the flying creatures of the air, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.”
{1:29} And God said: “Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing plant upon the earth, and all the trees that have in themselves the ability to sow their own kind, to be food for you,
{1:30} and for all the animals of the land, and for all the flying things of the air, and for everything that moves upon the earth and in which there is a living soul, so that they may have these on which to feed.” And so it became.
{1:31} And God saw everything that he had made. And they were very good. And it became evening and morning, the sixth day.
{2:1} And so the heavens and the earth were completed, with all their adornment.
{2:2} And on the seventh day, God fulfilled his work, which he had made. And on the seventh day he rested from all his work, which he had accomplished.
{2:3} And he blessed the seventh day and sanctified it. For in it, he had ceased from all his work: the work whereby God created whatever he should make.
{2:4} These are the generations of heaven and earth, when they were created, in the day when the Lord God made heaven and earth,
{2:5} and every sapling of the field, before it would rise up in the land, and every wild plant, before it would germinate. For the Lord God had not brought rain upon the earth, and there was no man to work the land.
{2:6} But a fountain ascended from the earth, irrigating the entire surface of the land.
{2:7} And then the Lord God formed man from the clay of the earth, and he breathed into his face the breath of life, and man became a living soul.
{2:8} Now the Lord God had planted a Paradise of enjoyment from the beginning. In it, he placed the man whom he had formed.
{2:9} And from the soil the Lord God produced every tree that was beautiful to behold and pleasant to eat. And even the tree of life was in the midst of Paradise, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
{2:10} And a river went forth from the place of enjoyment so as to irrigate Paradise, which is divided from there into four heads.
{2:11} The name of one is the Phison; it is that which runs through all the land of Hevilath, where gold is born;
{2:12} and the gold of that land is the finest. In that place is found bdellium and the onyx stone.
{2:13} And the name of the second river is the Gehon; it is that which runs through all the land of Ethiopia.
{2:14} Truly, the name of the third river is the Tigris; it advances opposite the Assyrians. But the fourth river, it is the Euphrates.
{2:15} Thus, the Lord God brought the man, and put him into the Paradise of enjoyment, so that it would be attended and preserved by him.
{2:16} And he instructed him, saying: “From every tree of Paradise, you shall eat.
{2:17} But from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat. For in whatever day you will eat from it, you will die a death.”
{2:18} The Lord God also said: “It is not good for the man to be alone. Let us make a helper for him similar to himself.”
{2:19} Therefore, the Lord God, having formed from the soil all the animals of the earth and all the flying creatures of the air, brought them to Adam, in order to see what he would call them. For whatever Adam would call any living creature, that would be its name.
{2:20} And Adam called each of the living things by their names: all the flying creatures of the air, and all the wild beasts of the land. Yet truly, for Adam, there was not found a helper similar to himself.
{2:21} And so the Lord God sent a deep sleep upon Adam. And when he was fast asleep, he took one of his ribs, and he completed it with flesh for it.
{2:22} And the Lord God built up the rib, which he took from Adam, into a woman. And he led her to Adam.
{2:23} And Adam said: “Now this is bone from my bones, and flesh from my flesh. This one shall be called woman, because she was taken from man.”
{2:24} For this reason, a man shall leave behind his father and mother, and he shall cling to his wife; and the two shall be as one flesh.
{2:25} Now they were both naked: Adam, of course, and his wife. And they were not ashamed.
{3:1} However, the serpent was more crafty than any of the creatures of the earth that the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Why has God instructed you, that you should not eat from every tree of Paradise?”
{3:2} The woman responded to him: “From the fruit of the trees which are in Paradise, we eat.
{3:3} Yet truly, from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of Paradise, God has instructed us that we should not eat, and that we should not touch it, lest perhaps we may die.”
{3:4} Then the serpent said to the woman: “By no means will you die a death.
{3:5} For God knows that, on whatever day you will eat from it, your eyes will be opened; and you will be like gods, knowing good and evil.”
{3:6} And so the woman saw that the tree was good to eat, and beautiful to the eyes, and delightful to consider. And she took from its fruit, and she ate. And she gave to her husband, who ate.
{3:7} And the eyes of them both were opened. And when they realized themselves to be naked, they joined together fig leaves and made coverings for themselves.
{3:8} And when they had heard the voice of the Lord God taking a walk in Paradise in the afternoon breeze, Adam and his wife hid themselves from the face of the Lord God in the midst of the trees of Paradise.
{3:9} And the Lord God called Adam and said to him: “Where are you?”
{3:10} And he said, “I heard your voice in Paradise, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and so I hid myself.”
{3:11} He said to him, “Then who told you that you were naked, if you have not eaten of the tree from which I instructed you that you should not eat?”
{3:12} And Adam said, “The woman, whom you gave to me as a companion, gave to me from the tree, and I ate.”
{3:13} And the Lord God said to the woman, “Why have you done this?” And she responded, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
{3:14} And the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, you are cursed among all living things, even the wild beasts of the earth. Upon your breast shall you travel, and the ground shall you eat, all the days of your life.
{3:15} I will put enmities between you and the woman, between your offspring and her offspring. She will crush your head, and you will lie in wait for her heel.”
{3:16} To the woman, he also said: “I will multiply your labors and your conceptions. In pain shall you give birth to sons, and you shall be under your husband’s power, and he shall have dominion over you.”
{3:17} Yet truly, to Adam, he said: “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the tree, from which I instructed you that you should not eat, cursed is the land that you work. In hardship shall you eat from it, all the days of your life.
{3:18} Thorns and thistles shall it produce for you, and you shall eat the plants of the earth.
{3:19} By the sweat of your face shall you eat bread, until you return to the earth from which you were taken. For dust you are, and unto dust you shall return.”
{3:20} And Adam called the name of his wife, ‘Eve,’ because she was the mother of all the living.
{3:21} The Lord God also made for Adam and his wife garments from skins, and he clothed them.
{3:22} And he said: “Behold, Adam has become like one of us, knowing good and evil. Therefore, now perhaps he may put forth his hand and also take from the tree of life, and eat, and live in eternity.”
{3:23} And so the Lord God sent him away from the Paradise of enjoyment, in order to work the earth from which he was taken.
{3:24} And he cast out Adam. And in front of the Paradise of enjoyment, he placed the Cherubim with a flaming sword, turning together, to guard the way to the tree of life.
{4:1} Truly, Adam knew his wife Eve, who conceived and gave birth to Cain, saying, “I have obtained a man through God.”
{4:2} And again she gave birth to his brother Abel. But Abel was a pastor of sheep, and Cain was a farmer.
{4:3} Then it happened, after many days, that Cain offered gifts to the Lord, from the fruits of the earth.
{4:4} Abel likewise offered from the firstborn of his flock, and from their fat. And the Lord looked with favor on Abel and his gifts.
{4:5} Yet in truth, he did not look with favor on Cain and his gifts. And Cain was vehemently angry, and his countenance fell.
{4:6} And the Lord said to him: “Why are you angry? And why is your face fallen?
{4:7} If you behave well, will you not receive? But if you behave badly, will not sin at once be present at the door? And so its desire will be within you, and you will be dominated by it.”
{4:8} And Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let us go outside.” And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel, and he put him to death.
{4:9} And the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” And he responded: “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”
{4:10} And he said to him: “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to me from the land.
{4:11} Now, therefore, you will be cursed upon the land, which opened its mouth and received the blood of your brother at your hand.
{4:12} When you work it, it will not give you its fruit; a vagrant and a fugitive shall you be upon the land.”
{4:13} And Cain said to the Lord: “My iniquity is too great to deserve kindness.
{4:14} Behold, you have cast me out this day before the face of the earth, and from your face I will be hidden; and I will be a vagrant and a fugitive on the earth. Therefore, anyone who finds me will kill me.”
{4:15} And the Lord said to him: “By no means will it be so; rather, whoever would kill Cain, will be punished sevenfold.” And the Lord placed a seal upon Cain, so that anyone who found him would not put him to death.
{4:16} And so Cain, departing from the face of the Lord, lived as a fugitive on the earth, toward the eastern region of Eden.
{4:17} Then Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and gave birth to Enoch. And he built a city, and he called its name by the name of his son, Enoch.
{4:18} Thereafter, Enoch conceived Irad, and Irad conceived Mahujael, and Mahujael conceived Mathusael, and Mathusael conceived Lamech.
{4:19} Lamech took two wives: the name of one was Adah, and the name of the other was Zillah.
{4:20} And Adah conceived Jabel, who was the father of those who live in tents and are shepherds.
{4:21} And the name of his brother was Jubal; he was the father of those who sing to the harp and the organ.
{4:22} Zillah also conceived Tubalcain, who was a hammerer and artisan in every work of brass and iron. In fact, the sister of Tubalcain was Noema.
{4:23} And Lamech said to his wives Adah and Zillah: “Listen to my voice, you wives of Lamech, pay attention to my speech. For I have killed a man to my own harm, and an adolescent to my own bruising.
{4:24} Sevenfold vengeance will be given for Cain, but for Lamech, seventy-seven times.”
{4:25} Adam also knew his wife again, and she gave birth to a son, and she called his name Seth, saying, “God has given me another offspring, in place of Abel, whom Cain killed.”
{4:26} But to Seth also was born a son, whom he called Enos. This one began to invoke the name of the Lord.
{5:1} This is the book of the lineage of Adam. In the day that God created man, he made him to the likeness of God.
{5:2} He created them, male and female; and he blessed them. And he called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
{5:3} Then Adam lived for one hundred and thirty years. And then he conceived a son in his own image and likeness, and he called his name Seth.
{5:4} And after he conceived Seth, the days of Adam that passed were eight hundred years. And he conceived sons and daughters.
{5:5} And all the time that passed while Adam lived was nine hundred and thirty years, and then he died.
{5:6} Seth likewise lived for one hundred and five years, and then he conceived Enos.
{5:7} And after he conceived Enos, Seth lived for eight hundred and seven years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{5:8} And all the days of Seth that passed were nine hundred and twelve years, and then he died.
{5:9} In truth, Enos lived ninety years, and then he conceived Cainan.
{5:10} After his birth, he lived eight hundred and fifteen years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{5:11} And all the days of Enos that passed were nine hundred and five years, and then he died.
{5:12} Likewise, Cainan lived seventy years, and then he conceived Mahalalel.
{5:13} And after he conceived Mahalalel, Cainan lived for eight hundred and forty years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{5:14} And all the days of Cainan that passed were nine hundred and ten years, and then he died.
{5:15} And Mahalalel lived sixty-five years, and then he conceived Jared.
{5:16} And after he conceived Jared, Mahalalel lived for eight hundred and thirty years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{5:17} And all the days of Mahalalel that passed were eight hundred and ninety-five years, and then he died.
{5:18} And Jared lived for one hundred and sixty-two years, and then he conceived Enoch.
{5:19} And after he conceived Enoch, Jared lived for eight hundred years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{5:20} And all the days of Jared that passed were nine hundred and sixty-two years, and then he died.
{5:21} Now Enoch lived for sixty-five years, and then he conceived Methuselah.
{5:22} And Enoch walked with God. And after he conceived Methuselah, he lived for three hundred years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{5:23} And all the days of Enoch that passed were three hundred and sixty-five years.
{5:24} And he walked with God, and then he was seen no more, because God took him.
{5:25} Likewise, Methuselah lived for one hundred and eighty-seven years, and then he conceived Lamech.
{5:26} And after he conceived Lamech, Methuselah lived for seven hundred and eighty-two years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{5:27} And all the days of Methuselah that passed were nine hundred and sixty-nine years, and then he died.
{5:28} Then Lamech lived for one hundred and eighty-two years, and he conceived a son.
{5:29} And he called his name Noah, saying, “This one will console us from the works and hardships of our hands, in the land that the Lord has cursed.”
{5:30} And after he conceived Noah, Lamech lived for five hundred and ninety-five years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{5:31} And all the days of Lamech that passed were seven hundred and seventy-seven years, and then he died. In truth, when Noah was five hundred years old, he conceived Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
{6:1} And when men began to be multiplied upon the earth, and daughters were born to them,
{6:2} the sons of God, seeing that the daughters of men were beautiful, took to themselves wives from all whom they chose.
{6:3} And God said: “My spirit shall not remain in man forever, because he is flesh. And so his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.”
{6:4} Now giants were upon the earth in those days. For after the sons of God went in to the daughters of men, and they conceived, these became the powerful ones of ancient times, men of renown.
{6:5} Then God, seeing that the wickedness of men was great upon the earth and that every thought of their heart was intent upon evil at all times,
{6:6} repented that he had made man on the earth. And being touched inwardly with a sorrow of heart,
{6:7} he said, “I will eliminate man, whom I have created, from the face of the earth, from man to other living things, from animals even to the flying things of the air. For it grieves me that I have made them.”
{6:8} Yet truly, Noah found grace before the Lord.
{6:9} These are the generations of Noah. Noah was a just man, and yet he was predominate among his generations, for he walked with God.
{6:10} And he conceived three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
{6:11} Yet the earth was corrupted before the eyes of God, and it was filled with iniquity.
{6:12} And when God had seen that the earth had been corrupted, (indeed, all flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth)
{6:13} he said to Noah: “The end of all flesh has arrived in my sight. The earth has been filled with iniquity by their presence, and I will destroy them, along with the earth.
{6:14} Make yourself an ark from smoothed wood. You shall make little dwelling places in the ark, and you shall smear pitch on the interior and exterior.
{6:15} And thus shall you make it: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits.
{6:16} You shall make a window in the ark, and you shall complete it within a cubit of the top. Then you shall set the door of the ark at its side. You shall make in it: a lower part, upper rooms, and a third level.
{6:17} Behold, I shall bring the waters of a great flood upon the earth, so as to put to death all flesh in which there is the breath of life under heaven. All things that are on the earth shall be consumed.
{6:18} And I shall establish my covenant with you, and you shall enter the ark, you and your sons, your wife and the wives of your sons with you.
{6:19} And from every living thing of all that is flesh, you shall lead pairs into the ark, so that they may survive with you: from the male sex and the female,
{6:20} from birds, according to their kind, and from beasts, in their kind, and from among all animals on earth, according to their kind; pairs from each shall enter with you, so that they may be able to live.
{6:21} Therefore, you shall take with you from all the foods that are able to be eaten, and you shall carry these with you. And these shall be used as food, some for you, and the rest for them.”
{6:22} And so Noah did all things just as God had instructed him.
{7:1} And the Lord said to him: “Enter the ark, you and all your house. For I have seen you to be just in my sight, within this generation.
{7:2} From all the clean animals, take seven and seven, the male and the female. Yet truly, from animals that are unclean, take two and two, the male and the female.
{7:3} But also from the birds of the air, take seven and seven, the male and the female, so that offspring may be saved upon the face of the whole earth.
{7:4} For from that point, and after seven days, I will rain upon the earth for forty days and forty nights. And I will wipe away every substance that I have made, from the surface of the earth.”
{7:5} Therefore, Noah did all things just as the Lord had commanded him.
{7:6} And he was six hundred years old when the waters of the great flood inundated the earth.
{7:7} And Noah entered into the ark, and his sons, his wife, and the wives of his sons with him, because of the waters of the great flood.
{7:8} And from the animals both clean and unclean, and from the birds, and from everything that moves upon the earth,
{7:9} two by two they were brought into the ark to Noah, male and female, just as the Lord had instructed Noah.
{7:10} And when seven days had passed, the waters of the great flood inundated the earth.
{7:11} In the six hundredth year of the life of Noah, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, all the fountains of the great abyss were released, and the floodgates of heaven were opened.
{7:12} And rain came upon the earth for forty days and forty nights.
{7:13} On the very same day, Noah and his sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and his wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered the ark.
{7:14} They and every animal according to its kind, and all the cattle in their kind, and everything that moves upon the earth in their kind, and every flying thing according to its kind, all the birds and all that can fly,
{7:15} entered the ark to Noah, two by two out of all that is flesh, in which there was the breath of life.
{7:16} And those that entered went in male and female, from all that is flesh, just as God had instructed him. And then the Lord closed him in from the outside.
{7:17} And the great flood occurred for forty days upon the earth. And the waters were increased, and they lifted the ark high above the land.
{7:18} For they overflowed greatly, and they filled everything on the surface of the earth. And then the ark was carried across the waters.
{7:19} And the waters prevailed beyond measure across the earth. And all the lofty mountains under the whole heaven were covered.
{7:20} The water was fifteen cubits higher than the mountains which it covered.
{7:21} And all flesh was consumed which moved upon the earth: flying things, animals, wild beasts, and all moving things that crawl upon the ground. And all men,
{7:22} and everything in which there is the breath of life on earth, died.
{7:23} And he wiped away all substance that was upon the earth, from man to animal, the crawling things just as much as the flying things of the air. And they were wiped away from the earth. But only Noah remained, and those who were with him in the ark.
{7:24} And the waters possessed the earth for one hundred and fifty days.
{8:1} Then God remembered Noah, and all living things, and all the cattle, which were with him in the ark, and he brought a wind across the earth, and the waters were diminished.
{8:2} And the fountains of the abyss and the floodgates of heaven were closed. And the rain from heaven was restrained.
{8:3} And the waters were restored to their coming and going from the earth. And they began to diminish after one hundred and fifty days.
{8:4} And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, upon the mountains of Armenia.
{8:5} Yet in truth, the waters were departing and decreasing until the tenth month. For in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tips of the mountains appeared.
{8:6} And when forty days had passed, Noah, opening the window that he had made in the ark, sent forth a raven,
{8:7} which went forth and did not return, until the waters were dried up across the earth.
{8:8} Likewise, he sent forth a dove after him, in order to see if the waters had now ceased upon the face of the earth.
{8:9} But when she did not find a place where her foot might rest, she returned to him in the ark. For the waters were upon the whole earth. And he extended his hand and caught her, and he brought her into the ark.
{8:10} And then, having waited a further seven days, he again sent forth the dove out of the ark.
{8:11} And she came to him in the evening, carrying in her mouth an olive branch with green leaves. Noah then understood that the waters had ceased upon the earth.
{8:12} And nevertheless, he waited another seven days. And he sent forth the dove, which no longer returned to him.
{8:13} Therefore, in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, the waters were diminished upon the earth. And Noah, opening the cover of the ark, gazed out and saw that the surface of the earth had become dry.
{8:14} In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was made dry.
{8:15} Then God spoke to Noah, saying:
{8:16} “Go out of the ark, you and your wife, your sons and the wives of your sons with you.
{8:17} Bring out with you all the living things that are with you, all that is flesh: as with the birds, so also with the wild beasts and all the animals that move upon the earth. And enter upon the land: increase and multiply upon it.”
{8:18} And so Noah and his sons went out, and his wife and the wives of his sons with him.
{8:19} Then also all living things, and the cattle, and the animals that move upon the earth, according to their kinds, departed from the ark.
{8:20} Then Noah built an altar to the Lord. And, taking from each of the cattle and birds that were clean, he offered holocausts upon the altar.
{8:21} And the Lord smelled the sweet odor and said: “I will no longer curse the earth because of man. For the feelings and thoughts of the heart of man are prone to evil from his youth. Therefore, I will no longer pierce every living soul as I have done.
{8:22} All the days of the earth, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, night and day, will not cease.”
{9:1} And God blessed Noah and his sons. And he said to them: “Increase, and multiply, and fill the earth.
{9:2} And let the fear and trembling of you be upon all the animals of the earth, and upon all the birds of the air, along with all that moves across the earth. All the fish of the sea have been delivered into your hand.
{9:3} And everything that moves and lives will be food for you. Just as with the edible plants, I have delivered them all to you,
{9:4} except that flesh with blood you shall not eat.
{9:5} For I will examine the blood of your lives at the hand of every beast. So also, at the hand of mankind, at the hand of each man and his brother, I will examine the life of mankind.
{9:6} Whoever will shed human blood, his blood will be poured out. For man was indeed made to the image of God.
{9:7} But as for you: increase and multiply, and go forth upon the earth and fulfill it.”
{9:8} To Noah and to his sons with him, God also said this:
{9:9} “Behold, I will establish my covenant with you, and with your offspring after you,
{9:10} and with every living soul that is with you: as much with the birds as with the cattle and all the animals of the earth that have gone forth from the ark, and with all the wild beasts of the earth.
{9:11} I will establish my covenant with you, and no longer will all that is flesh be put to death by the waters of a great flood, and, henceforth, there will not be a great flood to utterly destroy the earth.”
{9:12} And God said: “This is the sign of the pact that I grant between me and you, and to every living soul that is with you, for perpetual generations.
{9:13} I will place my arc in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the pact between myself and the earth.
{9:14} And when I obscure the sky with clouds, my arc will appear in the clouds.
{9:15} And I will remember my covenant with you, and with every living soul that enlivens flesh. And there will no longer be waters from a great flood to wipe away all that is flesh.
{9:16} And the arc will be in the clouds, and I will see it, and I will remember the everlasting covenant that was enacted between God and every living soul of all that is flesh upon the earth.”
{9:17} And God said to Noah, “This will be the sign of the covenant that I have established between myself and all that is flesh upon the earth.”
{9:18} And so the sons of Noah, who came out of the ark, were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Now Ham himself is the father of Canaan.
{9:19} These three are the sons of Noah. And from these all the family of mankind was spread over the whole earth.
{9:20} And Noah, a good farmer, began to cultivate the land, and he planted a vineyard.
{9:21} And by drinking its wine, he became inebriated and was naked in his tent.
{9:22} Because of this, when Ham, the father of Canaan, had indeed seen the privates of his father to be naked, he reported it to his two brothers outside.
{9:23} And truly, Shem and Japheth put a cloak upon their arms, and, advancing backwards, covered the privates of their father. And their faces were turned away, so that they did not see their father’s manhood.
{9:24} Then Noah, awaking from the wine, when he had learned what his younger son had done to him,
{9:25} he said, “Cursed be Canaan, a servant of servants will he be to his brothers.”
{9:26} And he said: “Blessed be the Lord God of Shem, let Canaan be his servant.
{9:27} May God enlarge Japheth, and may he live in the tents of Shem, and let Canaan be his servant.”
{9:28} And after the great flood, Noah lived for three hundred and fifty years.
{9:29} And all his days were completed in nine hundred and fifty years, and then he died.
{10:1} These are the generations of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and of the sons who were born to them after the great flood.
{10:2} The sons of Japheth were Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras.
{10:3} And then the sons of Gomer were Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah.
{10:4} And the sons of Javan were Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Rodanim.
{10:5} The islands of the Gentiles were divided by these into their regions, each one according to his tongue, and their families in their nations.
{10:6} And the Sons of Ham were Cush, and Mizraim, and Put, and Canaan.
{10:7} And the sons of Cush were Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabteca. The sons of Raamah were Sheba and Dadan.
{10:8} And then Cush conceived Nimrod; he began to be powerful on the earth.
{10:9} And he was an able hunter before the Lord. From this, a proverb came forth: ‘Just like Nimrod, an able hunter before the Lord.’
{10:10} And so, the beginning of his kingdom was Babylon, and Erech, and Accad, and Chalanne, in the land of Shinar.
{10:11} From that land, Assur came forth, and he built Nineveh, and the streets of the city, and Calah,
{10:12} and also Resen, between Nineveh and Calah. This is a great city.
{10:13} And truly, Mizraim conceived Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, Naphtuhim,
{10:14} and Pathrusim, and Casluhim, from whom came forth the Philistines and the Caphtorim.
{10:15} Then Canaan conceived Sidon his firstborn, the Hittite,
{10:16} and the Jebusite, and the Amorite, the Girgashite,
{10:17} the Hivite, and the Arkite: the Sinite,
{10:18} and the Arvadian, the Samarite, and the Hamathite. And after this, the peoples of the Canaanites became widespread.
{10:19} And the borders of Canaan went, as one travels, from Sidon to Gerar, even to Gaza, until one enters Sodom and Gomorrah, and from Admah and Zeboiim, even to Lesa.
{10:20} These are the sons of Ham in their kindred, and tongues, and generations, and lands, and nations.
{10:21} Likewise, from Shem, the father of all the sons of Heber, the elder brother of Japheth, sons were born.
{10:22} The sons of Shem were Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram.
{10:23} The sons of Aram were Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash.
{10:24} But truly, Arphaxad conceived Shelah, from whom was born Eber.
{10:25} And to Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth became divided, and his brother’s name was Joktan.
{10:26} This Joktan conceived Almodad, and Sheleph, and Hazarmaveth, Jerah
{10:27} and Hadoram, and Uzal and Diklah,
{10:28} and Obal and Abimael, Sheba
{10:29} and Ophir, and Havilah and Jobab. All these were the sons of Joktan.
{10:30} And their habitation extended from Messa, as one sojourns, even to Sephar, a mountain in the east.
{10:31} These are the sons of Shem according to their kindred, and tongues, and the regions within their nations.
{10:32} These are the families of Noah, according to their peoples and nations. The nations became divided according to these, on the earth after the great flood.
{11:1} Now the earth was of one language and of the same speech.
{11:2} And when they were advancing from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt in it.
{11:3} And each one said to his neighbor, “Come, let us make bricks, and bake them with fire.” And they had bricks instead of stones, and pitch instead of mortar.
{11:4} And they said: “Come, let us make a city and a tower, so that its height may reach to heaven. And let us make our name famous before we are divided into all the lands.”
{11:5} Then the Lord descended to see the city and the tower, which the sons of Adam were building.
{11:6} And he said: “Behold, the people are united, and all have one tongue. And since they have begun to do this, they will not desist from their plans, until they have completed their work.
{11:7} Therefore, come, let us descend, and in that place confound their tongue, so that they may not listen, each one to the voice of his neighbor.”
{11:8} And so the Lord divided them from that place into all the lands, and they ceased to build the city.
{11:9} And for this reason, its name was called ‘Babel,’ because in that place the language of the whole earth became confused. And from then on, the Lord scattered them across the face of every region.
{11:10} These are the generations of Shem. Shem was one hundred years old when he conceived Arphaxad, two years after the great flood.
{11:11} And after he conceived Arphaxad, Shem lived for five hundred years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{11:12} Next, Arphaxad lived for thirty-five years, and then he conceived Shelah.
{11:13} And after he conceived Shelah, Arphaxad lived for three hundred and three years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{11:14} Likewise, Shelah lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Eber.
{11:15} And after he conceived Eber, Shelah lived for four hundred and three years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{11:16} Then Eber lived for thirty-four years, and he conceived Peleg.
{11:17} And after he conceived Peleg, Eber lived for four hundred and thirty years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{11:18} Likewise, Peleg lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Reu.
{11:19} And after he conceived Reu, Peleg lived for two hundred and nine years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{11:20} Then Reu lived for thirty-two years, and then he conceived Serug.
{11:21} Likewise, after he conceived Serug, Reu lived for two hundred and seven years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{11:22} In truth, Serug lived for thirty years, and then he conceived Nahor.
{11:23} And after he conceived Nahor, Serug lived for two hundred years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{11:24} And so Nahor lived for twenty-nine years, and then he conceived Terah.
{11:25} And after he conceived Terah, Nahor lived for one hundred and nineteen years, and he conceived sons and daughters.
{11:26} And Terah lived for seventy years, and then he conceived Abram, and Nahor, and Haran.
{11:27} And these are the generations of Terah. Terah conceived Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Next Haran conceived Lot.
{11:28} And Haran died before his father Terah, in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldeans.
{11:29} Then Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai. And the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah.
{11:30} But Sarai was barren and had no children.
{11:31} And so Terah took his son Abram, and his grandson Lot, the son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and he led them away from Ur of the Chaldeans, to go into the land of Canaan. And they approached as far as Haran, and they dwelt there.
{11:32} And the days of Terah that passed were two hundred and five years, and then he died in Haran.
{12:1} Then the Lord said to Abram: “Depart from your land, and from your kindred, and from your father’s house, and come into the land that I will show you.
{12:2} And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and magnify your name, and you will be blessed.
{12:3} I will bless those who bless you, and curse those who curse you, and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”
{12:4} And so Abram departed just as the Lord had instructed him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.
{12:5} And he took his wife Sarai, and Lot, the son of his brother, and all the substance which they had come to possess, and the lives which they had acquired in Haran, and they departed in order to go to the land of Canaan. And when they arrived in it,
{12:6} Abram passed through the land even to the place of Shechem, as far as the famous steep valley. Now at that time, the Canaanite was in the land.
{12:7} Then the Lord appeared to Abram, and he said to him, “To your offspring, I will give this land.” And there he built an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.
{12:8} And passing on from there to a mountain, which was opposite the east of Bethel, he pitched his tent there, having Bethel to the west, and Hai on the east. He also built an altar there to the Lord, and he called upon his name.
{12:9} And Abram traveled, going out and continuing further on, toward the south.
{12:10} But a famine occurred in the land. And Abram descended to Egypt, to sojourn there. For famine prevailed over the land.
{12:11} And when he was close to entering Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai: “I know you to be a beautiful woman.
{12:12} And when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘She is his wife.’ And they will put me to death, and retain you.
{12:13} Therefore, I beg you to say that you are my sister, so that it may be well with me because of you, and so that my soul may live by your favor.”
{12:14} And so, when Abram had arrived in Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was exceedingly beautiful.
{12:15} And the princes reported it to Pharaoh, and they praised her to him. And the woman was inducted into the house of Pharaoh.
{12:16} In truth, they treated Abram well because of her. And he had sheep and oxen and male donkeys, and men servants, and women servants, and female donkeys, and camels.
{12:17} But the Lord scourged Pharaoh and his house with great wounds because of Sarai, the wife of Abram.
{12:18} And Pharaoh called Abram, and he said to him: “What is this that you have done to me? Why did you not tell me she was your wife?
{12:19} For what reason did you claim her to be your sister, so that I would take her to me as a wife? Now therefore, behold your mate, receive her and go.”
{12:20} And Pharaoh instructed his men about Abram. And they led him away with his wife and all that he had.
{13:1} Therefore, Abram ascended from Egypt, he and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, toward the southern region.
{13:2} But he was very wealthy by the possession of gold and silver.
{13:3} And he returned by the way that he came, from the meridian into Bethel, all the way to the place where before he had pitched his tent, between Bethel and Hai.
{13:4} There, at the place of the altar he had made before, he again called upon the name of the Lord.
{13:5} But Lot also, who was with Abram, had flocks of sheep, and cattle, and tents.
{13:6} Neither was the land able to contain them, so that they might dwell together. Indeed, their substance was so great that they could not live in common.
{13:7} And then there also arose a conflict between the shepherds of Abram and of Lot. Now at that time the Canaanite and the Perizzite lived in that land.
{13:8} Therefore, Abram said to Lot: “I ask you, let there be no quarrel between me and you, and between my shepherds and your shepherds. For we are brothers.
{13:9} Behold, the entire land is before your eyes. Withdraw from me, I beg you. If you will go to the left, I will take the right. If you choose the right, I will pass to the left.”
{13:10} And so Lot, lifting up his eyes, saw all the region around the Jordan, which was thoroughly irrigated, before the Lord overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It was like the Paradise of the Lord, and it was like Egypt, approaching toward Zoar.
{13:11} And Lot chose for himself the region around the Jordan, and he withdrew by way of the east. And they were divided, one brother from the other.
{13:12} Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan. In truth, Lot stayed in the towns that were around the Jordan, and he lived in Sodom.
{13:13} But the men of Sodom were very wicked, and they were sinners before the Lord beyond measure.
{13:14} And the Lord said to Abram, after Lot was divided from him: “Lift up your eyes, and gaze out from the place where you are now, to the north and to the meridian, to the east and to the west.
{13:15} All the land that you see, I will give to you, and to your offspring even forever.
{13:16} And I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth. If any man is able to number the dust of the earth, he will be able to number your offspring as well.
{13:17} Arise and walk through the land in its length, and breadth. For I will give it to you.”
{13:18} Therefore, moving his tent, Abram went and dwelt by the steep valley of Mamre, which is in Hebron. And he built an altar there to the Lord.
{14:1} Now it happened in that time that Amraphel, king of Shinar, and Arioch, king of Pontus, and Chedorlaomer, king of the Elamites, and Tidal, king of the Nations,
{14:2} went to war against Bera, king of Sodom, and against Birsha, king of Gomorrah, and against Shinab, king of Admah, and against Shemeber, king of Zeboiim, and against the king of Bela, that is Zoar.
{14:3} All these came together in the wooded valley, which is now the Sea of Salt.
{14:4} For they had served Chedorlaomer for twelve years, and in the thirteenth year they withdrew from him.
{14:5} Therefore, in the fourteenth year, Chedorlaomer arrived, and the kings who were with him. And they struck the Rephaim at Ashteroth of the two horns, and the Zuzim with them, and the Emim at Shaveh-Kiriathaim.
{14:6} and the Chorreans in the mountains of Seir, even to the plains of Paran, which is in the wilderness.
{14:7} And they returned and arrived at the fountain of Mishpat, which is Kadesh. And they struck the entire region of the Amalekites, and the Amorites who dwelt in Hazazontamar.
{14:8} And the king of Sodom, and the king of Gomorrah, and the king of Admah, and the king of Zeboiim, and indeed the king of Bela, which is Zoar, went forth. And they directed their point against them in the wooded valley,
{14:9} namely, against Chedorlaomer, king of the Elamites, and Tidal, king of the Nations, and Amraphel, king of Shinar, and Arioch, king of Pontus: four kings against five.
{14:10} Now the wooded valley had many pits of bitumen. And so the king of Sodom and the king of Gomorrah turned back and they fell there. And those who remained, fled to the mountain.
{14:11} Then they took all the substance of the Sodomites and the Gomorrhites, and all that pertained to food, and they went away,
{14:12} along with both Lot, the son of Abram’s brother, who lived in Sodom, and his substance.
{14:13} And behold, one who had escaped reported it to Abram the Hebrew, who lived in the steep valley of Mamre the Amorite, who was the brother of Eshcol, and the brother of Aner. For these had formed an agreement with Abram.
{14:14} When Abram had heard this, namely, that his brother Lot had been taken captive, he numbered three hundred and eighteen of his own armed men and he went in pursuit all the way to Dan.
{14:15} And dividing his company, he rushed upon them in the night. And he struck them and pursued them as far as Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus.
{14:16} And he brought back all the substance, and Lot his brother, with his substance, likewise the women and the people.
{14:17} Then the king of Sodom went out to meet him, after he returned from the slaughter at Chedorlaomer, and the kings who were with him at the valley of Shaveh, which is the valley of the king.
{14:18} Then in truth, Melchizedek, the king of Salem, brought forth bread and wine, for he was a priest of the Most High God;
{14:19} he blessed him, and he said: “Blessed be Abram by the Most High God, who created heaven and earth.
{14:20} And blessed be the Most High God, through whose protection the enemies are in your hands.” And he gave him tithes from everything.
{14:21} Then the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me these souls, and take the rest for yourself.”
{14:22} And he responded to him: “I lift up my hand to the Lord God, the Most High, the Possessor of heaven and earth,
{14:23} that from one thread within a blanket, even to a single shoelace, I will not take anything from that which is yours, lest you say, ‘I have enriched Abram,’
{14:24} except that which the young men have eaten, and the shares for the men who came with me: Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre. These will take their shares.”
{15:1} And so, these things having been transacted, the word of the Lord came to Abram by a vision, saying: “Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your protector, and your reward is exceedingly great.”
{15:2} And Abram said: “Lord God, what will you give to me? I may go without children. And the son of the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus.”
{15:3} And Abram added: “Yet to me you have not given offspring. And behold, my servant born in my house will be my heir.”
{15:4} And immediately the word of the Lord came to him, saying: “This one will not be your heir. But he who will come from your loins, the same will you have for your heir.”
{15:5} And he brought him outside, and he said to him, “Take in the heavens, and number the stars, if you can.” And he said to him, “So also will your offspring be.”
{15:6} Abram believed God, and it was reputed to him unto justice.
{15:7} And he said to him, “I am the Lord who led you away from Ur of the Chaldeans, so as to give you this land, and so that you would possess it.”
{15:8} But he said, “Lord God, in what way may I be able to know that I will possess it?”
{15:9} And the Lord responded by saying: “Take for me a cow of three years, and a she-goat of three years, and a ram of three years, also a turtle-dove and a pigeon.”
{15:10} Taking all these, he divided them through the middle, and placed both parts opposite one another. But the birds he did not divide.
{15:11} And birds descended upon the carcasses, but Abram drove them away.
{15:12} And when the sun was setting, a deep sleep fell upon Abram, and a dread, great and dark, invaded him.
{15:13} And it was said to him: “Know beforehand that your future offspring will be sojourners in a land not their own, and they will subjugate them in servitude and afflict them for four hundred years.
{15:14} Yet truly, I will judge the nation that they will serve, and after this they will depart with great substance.
{15:15} But you will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age.
{15:16} But in the fourth generation, they will return here. For the iniquities of the Amorites are not yet completed, even to this present time.”
{15:17} Then, when the sun had set, there came a dark mist, and there appeared a smoking furnace and a lamp of fire passing between those divisions.
{15:18} On that day, God formed a covenant with Abram, saying: “To your offspring I will give this land, from the river of Egypt, even to the great river Euphrates:
{15:19} the land of the Kenites and the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites
{15:20} and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, likewise the Rephaim,
{15:21} and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
{16:1} Now Sarai, the wife of Abram, had not conceived children. But, having an Egyptian handmaid named Hagar,
{16:2} she said to her husband: “Behold, the Lord has closed me, lest I give birth. Enter to my handmaid, so that perhaps I may receive sons of her at least.” And when he agreed to her supplication,
{16:3} she took Hagar the Egyptian, her handmaid, ten years after they began to live in the land of Canaan, and she gave her to her husband as a wife.
{16:4} And he entered to her. But when she saw that she had conceived, she despised her mistress.
{16:5} And Sarai said to Abram: “You have acted unfairly against me. I gave my handmaid into your bosom, who, when she saw that she had conceived, held me in contempt. May the Lord judge between me and you.”
{16:6} Abram responded to her by saying, “Behold, your handmaid is in your hand to treat as it pleases you.” And so, when Sarai afflicted her, she took flight.
{16:7} And when the Angel of the Lord had found her, near the fountain of water in the wilderness, which is on the way to Shur in the desert,
{16:8} he said to her: “Hagar, handmaid of Sarai, where have you come from? And where will you go?” And she answered, “I flee from the face of Sarai, my mistress.”
{16:9} And the Angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and humble yourself under her hand.”
{16:10} And again he said, “I will multiply your offspring continuously, and they will not be numbered because of their multitude.”
{16:11} But thereafter he said: “Behold, you have conceived, and you will give birth to a son. And you shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has heard your affliction.
{16:12} He will be a wild man. His hand will be against all, and all hands will be against him. And he will pitch his tents away from the region of all his brothers.”
{16:13} Then she called upon the name of the Lord who had spoken to her: “You are the God who has seen me.” For she said, “Certainly, here I have seen the back of the one who sees me.”
{16:14} Because of this, she called that well: ‘The well of the one who lives and who sees me.’ The same is between Kadesh and Bered.
{16:15} And Hagar gave birth to a son for Abram, who called his name Ishmael.
{16:16} Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael for him.
{17:1} In truth, after he began to be ninety-nine years of age, the Lord appeared to him. And he said to him: “I am the Almighty God. Walk in my sight and become complete.
{17:2} And I will set my covenant between me and you. And I will multiply you very exceedingly.”
{17:3} Abram fell prone on his face.
{17:4} And God said to him: “I AM, and my covenant is with you, and you will be the father of many nations.
{17:5} No longer will your name be called Abram. But you will be called Abraham, for I have established you as the father of many nations.
{17:6} And I will cause you to increase very greatly, and I will set you among the nations, and kings will come forth from you.
{17:7} And I will establish my covenant between me and you, and with your offspring after you in their generations, by a perpetual covenant: to be God to you and to your offspring after you.
{17:8} And I will give to you and to your offspring, the land of your sojourn, all the land of Canaan, as an eternal possession, and I will be their God.”
{17:9} Again God said to Abraham: “And you therefore shall keep my covenant, and your offspring after you in their generations.
{17:10} This is my covenant, which you shall observe, between me and you, and your offspring after you: All the males among you shall be circumcised.
{17:11} And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, so that it may be a sign of the covenant between me and you.
{17:12} An infant of eight days will be circumcised among you, every male in your generations. So also servants born to you, as well as those bought, shall be circumcised, even those who are not of your stock.
{17:13} And my covenant shall be with your flesh as an eternal covenant.
{17:14} The male, the flesh of whose foreskin will not be circumcised, that soul shall be eliminated from his people. For he has made my covenant void.”
{17:15} God said also to Abraham: “Your wife Sarai, you shall not call Sarai, but Sarah.
{17:16} And I will bless her, and from her I will give you a son, whom I will bless, and he will be among the nations, and the kings of the peoples will rise from him.”
{17:17} Abraham fell on his face, and he laughed, saying in his heart: “Do you think a son can be born to a one hundred year old man? And will Sarah give birth at the age of ninety?”
{17:18} And he said to God, “If only Ishmael would live in your sight.”
{17:19} And God said to Abraham: “Your wife Sarah shall give birth to a son, and you shall call his name Isaac, and I will establish my covenant with him as a perpetual covenant, and with his offspring after him.
{17:20} Likewise, concerning Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I will bless and enlarge him, and I will multiply him greatly. He will produce twelve leaders, and I will make him into a great nation.
{17:21} Yet in truth, I will establish my covenant with Isaac, to whom Sarah will give birth for you at this time next year.”
{17:22} And when he had finished speaking with him, God ascended from Abraham.
{17:23} Then Abraham took his son Ishmael, and all who were born in his house, and all whom he had bought, every male among the men of his house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskin promptly, the very same day, just as God had instructed him.
{17:24} Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he circumcised the flesh of his foreskin.
{17:25} And his son Ishmael had completed thirteen years at the time of his circumcision.
{17:26} On the very same day, Abraham was circumcised with his son Ishmael.
{17:27} And all the men of his house, those born in his house, as well as those who were bought, even the foreigners, were circumcised with him.
{18:1} Then the Lord appeared to him, in the steep valley of Mamre, when he was sitting at the door of his tent, in the very heat of the day.
{18:2} And when he had lifted up his eyes, there appeared to him three men, standing near him. When he had seen them, he ran to meet them from the door of his tent, and he reverenced them on the ground.
{18:3} And he said: “If I, O lord, have found grace in your eyes, do not pass by your servant.
{18:4} But I will bring a little water, and you may wash your feet and rest under the tree.
{18:5} And I will set out a meal of bread, so that you may strengthen your heart; after this you will pass on. It is for this reason that you have turned aside to your servant.” And they said, “Do as you have spoken.”
{18:6} Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah, and he said to her, “Quickly, mix together three measures of the finest wheat flour and make loaves baked under the ashes.”
{18:7} In truth, he himself ran to the herd, and he took a calf from there, very tender and very good, and he gave it to a servant, who hurried and boiled it.
{18:8} Likewise, he took butter and milk, and the calf which he had boiled, and he placed it before them. Yet truly, he himself stood near them under the tree.
{18:9} And when they had eaten, they said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” He answered, “Behold, she is in the tent.”
{18:10} And he said to him, “When returning, I will come to you at this time, with life as a companion, and your wife Sarah will have a son.” Hearing this, Sarah laughed behind the door of the tent.
{18:11} Now they were both old, and in an advanced state of life, and it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.
{18:12} And she laughed secretly, saying, “After I have grown old, and my lord is elderly, shall I give myself to the work of delight?”
{18:13} Then the Lord said to Abraham: “Why did Sarah laugh, saying: ‘How can I, an old woman, actually give birth?’
{18:14} Is anything difficult for God? According to the announcement, he will return to you at this same time, with life as a companion, and Sarah will have a son.”
{18:15} Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh.” For she was terribly afraid. But the Lord said, “It is not so; for you did laugh.”
{18:16} Therefore, when the men had risen up from there, they directed their eyes against Sodom. And Abraham traveled with them, leading them.
{18:17} And the Lord said: “How could I hide what I am about to do from Abraham,
{18:18} since he will become a great and very robust nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed?
{18:19} For I know that he will instruct his sons, and his household after him, to keep to the way of the Lord, and to act with judgment and justice, so that, for the sake of Abraham, the Lord may bring about all the things that he has spoken to him.”
{18:20} And so the Lord said, “The outcry from Sodom and Gomorrah has been multiplied, and their sin has become exceedingly grievous.
{18:21} I will descend and see whether they have fulfilled the work of the outcry that has reached me, or whether it is not so, in order that I may know.”
{18:22} And they turned themselves from there, and they went toward Sodom. Yet in truth, Abraham still stood in the sight of the Lord.
{18:23} And as they drew near, he said: “Will you destroy the just with the impious?
{18:24} If there were fifty of the just in the city, will they perish with the rest? And will you not spare that place for the sake of fifty of the just, if they were in it?
{18:25} Far be it from you to do this thing, and to kill the just with the impious, and for the just to be treated like the impious. No, this is not like you. You judge all the earth; you would never make such a judgment.”
{18:26} And the Lord said to him, “If I find in Sodom fifty of the just in the midst of the city, I will release the entire place because of them.”
{18:27} And Abraham responded by saying: “Since now I have begun, I will speak to my Lord, though I am dust and ashes.
{18:28} What if there were five less than fifty of the just? Would you, despite the forty-five, eliminate the entire city?” And he said, “I will not eliminate it, if I find forty-five there.”
{18:29} And again he said to him, “But if forty were found there, what would you do?” He said, “I will not strike, for the sake of the forty.”
{18:30} “I ask you,” he said, “not to be angry, Lord, if I speak. What if thirty were found there?” He responded, “I will not act, if I find thirty there.”
{18:31} “Since now I have begun,” he said, “I will speak to my Lord. What if twenty were found there?” He said, “I will not put to death, for the sake of the twenty.”
{18:32} “I beg you,” he said, “not to be angry, Lord, if I speak yet once more. What if ten were found there?” And he said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten.”
{18:33} And the Lord departed, after he had ceased speaking to Abraham, who then returned to his place.
{19:1} And the two Angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting at the gate of the city. And when he had seen them, he rose up and went to meet them. And he reverenced prone on the ground.
{19:2} And he said: “I beg you, my lords, turn aside to the house of your servant, and lodge there. Wash your feet, and in the morning you will advance on your way.” And they said, “Not at all. But we will lodge in the street.”
{19:3} He pressed them very much to turn aside to him. And when they had entered his house, he made a feast for them, and he cooked unleavened bread, and they ate.
{19:4} But before they went to bed, the men of the city surrounded the house, from boys to old men, all the people together.
{19:5} And they called out to Lot, and they said to him: “Where are the men who entered to you in the night? Bring them out here, so that we may know them.”
{19:6} Lot went out to them, and blocking the door behind him, he said:
{19:7} “Do not, I ask you, my brothers, do not be willing to commit this evil.
{19:8} I have two daughters who as yet have not known man. I will bring them out to you; abuse them as it pleases you, provided that you do no evil to these men, because they have entered under the shadow of my roof.”
{19:9} But they said, “Move away from there.” And again: “You have entered,” they said, “as a stranger; should you then judge? Therefore, we will afflict you yourself more than them.” And they acted very violently against Lot. And they were now at the point of breaking open the doors.
{19:10} And behold, the men put out their hand, and they pulled Lot in to them, and they closed the door.
{19:11} And they struck those who were outside with blindness, from the least to the greatest, so that they were not able to find the door.
{19:12} Then they said to Lot: “Do you have here anyone of yours? All who are yours, sons-in-law, or sons, or daughters, bring them out of this city.
{19:13} For we will eliminate this place, because the outcry among them has increased before the Lord, who sent us to destroy them.”
{19:14} And so Lot, going out, spoke to his sons-in-law, who were going to receive his daughters, and he said: “Rise up. Depart from this place. For the Lord will destroy this city.” And it seemed to them that he was speaking playfully.
{19:15} And when it was morning, the Angels compelled him, saying, “Arise, take your wife, and the two daughters that you have, lest you also should perish amid the wickedness of the city.”
{19:16} And, since he ignored them, they took his hand, and the hand of his wife, as well as that of his two daughters, because the Lord was sparing him.
{19:17} And they brought him out, and placed him beyond the city. And there they spoke to him, saying: “Save your life. Do not look back. Neither should you stay in the entire surrounding region. But save yourself in the mountain, lest you also should perish.”
{19:18} And Lot said to them: “I beg you, my lord,
{19:19} though your servant has found grace before you, and you have magnified your mercy, which you have shown to me in saving my life, I cannot be saved on the mountain, lest perhaps some misfortune take hold of me and I die.
{19:20} There is a certain city nearby, to which I can flee; it is a little one, and I will be saved in it. Is it not a modest one, and will not my soul live?”
{19:21} And he said to him: “Behold, even now, I have heard your petitions about this, not to overturn the city on behalf of which you have spoken.
{19:22} Hurry and be saved there. For I cannot do anything until you enter there.” For this reason, the name of that city is called Zoar.
{19:23} The sun had risen over the land, and Lot had entered into Zoar.
{19:24} Therefore, the Lord rained upon Sodom and Gomorrah sulphur and fire, from the Lord, out of heaven.
{19:25} And he overturned these cities, and all the surrounding region: all the inhabitants of the cities, and everything that springs from the land.
{19:26} And his wife, looking behind herself, was turned into a statue of salt.
{19:27} Then Abraham, rising up in the morning, in the place where he had stood before with the Lord,
{19:28} looked out toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and the entire land of that region. And he saw embers rising up from the land like smoke from a furnace.
{19:29} For when God overthrew the cities of that region, remembering Abraham, he freed Lot from the overthrow of the cities, in which he had dwelt.
{19:30} And Lot ascended from Zoar, and he stayed on the mountain, and likewise his two daughters with him, (for he was afraid to stay in Zoar) and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters with him.
{19:31} And the elder said to the younger: “Our father is old, and no man remains in the land who can enter to us according to the custom of the whole world.
{19:32} Come, let us inebriate him with wine, and let us sleep with him, so that we may be able to preserve offspring from our father.”
{19:33} And so they gave their father wine to drink that night. And the elder went in, and she slept with her father. But he did not perceive it, neither when his daughter lay down, nor when she rose up.
{19:34} Likewise, the next day, the elder said to the younger: “Behold, yesterday I slept with my father, let us give him wine to drink yet again this night, and you will sleep with him, so that we may save offspring from our father.”
{19:35} And then they gave their father wine to drink that night also, and the younger daughter went in, and slept with him. And not even then did he perceive when she lay down, or when she rose up.
{19:36} Therefore, the two daughters of Lot conceived by their father.
{19:37} And the elder gave birth to a son, and she called his name Moab. He is the father of the Moabites, even to the present day.
{19:38} Likewise, the younger gave birth to a son, and she called his name Ammon, that is, ‘the son of my people.’ He is the father of the Ammonites, even today.
{20:1} Abraham advanced from there into the southern land, and he lived between Kadesh and Shur. And he sojourned in Gerar.
{20:2} And he said about his wife Sarah: “She is my sister.” Therefore, Abimelech, the king of Gerar, sent for her and took her.
{20:3} Then God came to Abimelech through a dream in the night, and he said to him: “Lo, you shall die because of the woman that you have taken. For she has a husband.”
{20:4} In truth, Abimelech had not touched her, and so he said: “Lord, would you put to death a people, ignorant and just?
{20:5} Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister,’ and did she not say, ‘He is my brother?’ In the sincerity of my heart and the purity of my hands, I have done this.”
{20:6} And God said to him: “And I know that you have acted with a sincere heart. And therefore I kept you from sinning against me, and I did not release you to touch her.
{20:7} Now therefore, return his wife to the man, for he is a prophet. And he will pray for you, and you will live. But if you are not willing to return her, know this: you shall die a death, you and all that is yours.”
{20:8} And immediately Abimelech, rising up in the night, called all his servants. And he spoke all these words in their hearing, and all the men were very afraid.
{20:9} Then Abimelech called also for Abraham, and he said to him: “What have you done to us? How have we sinned against you, so that you would bring so great a sin upon me and upon my kingdom? You have done to us what you ought not to have done.”
{20:10} And remonstrating him again, he said, “What did you see, so that you would do this?”
{20:11} Abraham responded: “I thought to myself, saying: Perhaps there is no fear of God in this place. And they will put me to death because of my wife.
{20:12} Yet, in another way, she is also truly my sister, the daughter of my father, and not the daughter of my mother, and I took her as a wife.
{20:13} Then, after God led me out of my father’s house, I said to her: ‘You will show this mercy to me. In every place, to which we will travel, you will say that I am your brother.’ ”
{20:14} Therefore, Abimelech took sheep and oxen, and men servants and women servants, and he gave them to Abraham. And he returned his wife Sarah to him.
{20:15} And he said, “The land is in your sight. Dwell wherever it will please you.”
{20:16} Then to Sarah he said: “Behold, I have given your brother one thousand silver coins. This will be for you as a veil for your eyes, to all who are with you and wherever you will travel. And so, remember that you were taken.”
{20:17} Then when Abraham prayed, God healed Abimelech and his wife, and his handmaids, and they gave birth.
{20:18} For the Lord had closed every womb of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah, the wife of Abraham.
{21:1} Then the Lord visited Sarah, just as he had promised; and he fulfilled what he had spoken.
{21:2} And she conceived and gave birth to a son in her old age, at the time that God had foretold to her.
{21:3} And Abraham called the name of his son, whom Sarah bore for him, Isaac.
{21:4} And he circumcised him on the eighth day, just as God had instructed him,
{21:5} when he was one hundred years old. Indeed, at this stage of his father’s life, Isaac was born.
{21:6} And Sarah said: “God has brought laughter to me. Whoever will hear of it will laugh with me.”
{21:7} And again, she said: “Hearing this, who would believe Abraham, that Sarah breast-fed a son, to whom she gave birth, despite being elderly?”
{21:8} And the boy grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the day of his weaning.
{21:9} And when Sarah had seen the son of Hagar the Egyptian playing with her son Isaac, she said to Abraham:
{21:10} “Cast out this woman servant and her son. For the son of a woman servant will not be heir with my son Isaac.”
{21:11} Abraham took this grievously, for the sake of his son.
{21:12} And God said to him: “Let it not seem harsh to you concerning the boy and your woman servant. In all that Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice. For your offspring will be invoked in Isaac.
{21:13} Yet I will also make the son of the woman servant into a great nation, for he is your offspring.”
{21:14} And so Abraham arose in the morning, and taking bread and a skin of water, he placed it upon her shoulder, and he handed over the boy, and he released her. And when she had departed, she wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.
{21:15} And when the water in the skin had been consumed, she set aside the boy, under one of the trees that were there.
{21:16} And she moved away and sat in a distant area, as far as a bow can reach. For she said, “I shall not see the boy die.” And so, sitting opposite her, he lifted up his voice and wept.
{21:17} But God heard the voice of the boy. And an Angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, saying: “What are you doing, Hagar? Do not be afraid. For God has heeded the voice of the boy, from the place where he is.
{21:18} Rise up. Take the boy and hold him by the hand. For I will make of him a great nation.”
{21:19} And God opened her eyes. And seeing a well of water, she went and filled the skin, and she gave the boy to drink.
{21:20} And God was with him. And he grew, and he stayed in the wilderness, and he became a young man, an archer.
{21:21} And he lived in the desert of Paran, and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.
{21:22} At the same time, Abimelech and Phicol, the leader of his army, said to Abraham: “God is with you in everything that you do.
{21:23} Therefore, swear by God that you will do no harm to me, and to my posterity, and to my stock. But according to the mercy that I have done to you, you will do to me and to the land, to which you have turned as a newcomer.”
{21:24} And Abraham said, “I will swear.”
{21:25} And he reproved Abimelech because of a well of water, which his servants had taken away by force.
{21:26} And Abimelech responded, “I do not know who did this thing, but you also did not reveal it to me, nor have I heard of it, before today.”
{21:27} And so Abraham took sheep and oxen, and he gave them to Abimelech. And both of them struck a pact.
{21:28} And Abraham set aside seven female lambs from the flock.
{21:29} Abimelech said to him, “What purpose have these seven female lambs, which you have caused to stand separately?”
{21:30} But he said, “You will receive seven female lambs from my hand, so that they may be a testimony for me, that I dug this well.”
{21:31} For this reason, that place was called Beersheba, because there both of them did swear.
{21:32} And they initiated a pact on behalf of the well of oath.
{21:33} Then Abimelech and Phicol, the leader of his army, rose up, and they returned to the land of the Palestinians. In truth, Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and there he called upon the name of the Lord God Eternal.
{21:34} And he was a settler in the land of the Palestinians for many days.
{22:1} After these things occurred, God tested Abraham, and he said to him, “Abraham, Abraham.” And he answered, “Here I am.”
{22:2} He said to him: “Take your only begotten son Isaac, whom you love, and go into the land of vision. And there you shall offer him as a holocaust upon one of the mountains, which I will show to you.”
{22:3} And so Abraham, getting up in the night, harnessed his donkey, taking with him two youths, and his son Isaac. And when he had cut wood for the holocaust, he traveled toward the place, as God had instructed him.
{22:4} Then, on the third day, lifting up his eyes, he saw the place at a distance.
{22:5} And he said to his servants: “Wait here with the donkey. I and the boy will hurry further ahead to that place. After we have worshipped, will return to you.”
{22:6} He also took the wood for the holocaust, and he imposed it upon his son Isaac. And he himself carried in his hands fire and a sword. And as the two continued on together,
{22:7} Isaac said to his father, “My father.” And he answered, “What do you want, son?” “Behold,” he said, “fire and wood. Where is the victim for the holocaust?”
{22:8} But Abraham said, “God himself will provide the victim for the holocaust, my son.” Thus they continued on together.
{22:9} And they came to the place that God had shown to him. There he built an altar, and he set the wood in order upon it. And when he had bound his son Isaac, he laid him on the altar upon the pile of wood.
{22:10} And he reached out his hand and took hold of the sword, in order to sacrifice his son.
{22:11} And behold, an Angel of the Lord called out from heaven, saying, “Abraham, Abraham.” And he answered, “Here I am.”
{22:12} And he said to him, “Do not extend your hand over the boy, and do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, since you have not spared your only begotten son for my sake.”
{22:13} Abraham lifted up his eyes, and he saw behind his back a ram among the thorns, caught by the horns, which he took and offered as a holocaust, instead of his son.
{22:14} And he called the name of that place: ‘The Lord Sees.’ Thus, even to this day, it is said: ‘On the mountain, the Lord will see.’
{22:15} Then the Angel of the Lord called out to Abraham a second time from heaven, saying:
{22:16} “By my own self, I have sworn, says the Lord. Because you have done this thing, and have not spared your only begotten son for my sake,
{22:17} I will bless you, and I will multiply your offspring like the stars of heaven, and like the sand which is on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the gates of their enemies.
{22:18} And in your offspring, all the nations of the earth will be blessed, because you obeyed my voice.”
{22:19} Abraham returned to his servants, and they went to Beersheba together, and he lived there.
{22:20} After these things occurred, it was reported to Abraham that Milcah, likewise, had borne sons for his brother Nahor:
{22:21} Uz, the firstborn, and Buz, his brother, and Kemuel, the father of the Syrians,
{22:22} and Chesed, and Hazo, likewise Pildash, and Jidlaph,
{22:23} as well as Bethuel, of whom was born Rebekah. These eight Milcah bore for Nahor, the brother of Abraham.
{22:24} In truth, his concubine, named Reumah, bore Tebah, and Gaham, and Tahash, and Maacah.
{23:1} Now Sarah lived for one hundred and twenty-seven years.
{23:2} And she died in the city of Arba, which is Hebron, in the land of Canaan. And Abraham came to mourn and weep for her.
{23:3} And when he had risen up from the funeral duties, he spoke to the sons of Heth, saying:
{23:4} “I am a newcomer and a sojourner among you. Give me the right of a sepulcher among you, so that I may bury my dead.”
{23:5} The sons of Heth responded by saying:
{23:6} “Hear us, O lord, you are a leader of God among us. Bury your dead in our chosen sepulchers. And no man shall be able to prohibit you from burying your dead within his memorial.”
{23:7} Abraham arose, and he reverenced the people of the land, namely, the sons of Heth.
{23:8} And he said to them: “If it pleases your soul that I should bury my dead, hear me, and intercede on my behalf with Ephron, the son of Zohar,
{23:9} so that he may give me the double cave, which he has at the far end of his field. He may transfer it to me for as much money as it is worth in your sight, for the possession of a sepulcher.”
{23:10} Now Ephron dwelt in the midst of the sons of Heth. And Ephron responded to Abraham in the hearing of everyone who was entering at the gate of his city, saying:
{23:11} “Let it never be so, my lord, but you should pay greater heed to what I say. The field I will transfer to you, and the cave that is in it. In the presence of the sons of my people, bury your dead.”
{23:12} Abraham reverenced in the sight of the people of the land.
{23:13} And he spoke to Ephron, standing in the midst of the people: “I ask you to hear me. I will give you money for the field. Take it, and so I will bury my dead in it.”
{23:14} And Ephron responded: “My lord, hear me.
{23:15} The land that you request is worth four hundred shekels of silver. This is the price between me and you. But how much is this? Bury your dead.”
{23:16} And when Abraham had heard this, he weighed out the money that Ephron had requested, in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, of the approved public currency.
{23:17} And having confirmed that the field, in which there was a double cave overlooking Mamre, formerly belonged to Ephron, both it and the sepulcher, and all its trees, with all its surrounding limits,
{23:18} Abraham took it as a possession, in the sight of the sons of Heth and of everyone who was entering at the gate of his city.
{23:19} So then, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the double cave of the field that overlooked Mamre. This is Hebron in the land of Canaan.
{23:20} And the field was confirmed to Abraham, with the cave that was in it, as a memorial possession before the sons of Heth.
{24:1} Now Abraham was old and of many days. And the Lord had blessed him in all things.
{24:2} And he said to the elder servant of his house, who was in charge of all that he had: “Place your hand under my thigh,
{24:3} so that I may make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live.
{24:4} But that you will proceed to my land and kindred, and from there take a wife for my son Isaac.”
{24:5} The servant responded, “If the woman is not willing to come with me into this land, must I lead your son back to the place from which you departed?”
{24:6} And Abraham said: “Beware that you never lead my son back to that place.
{24:7} The Lord God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house, and from the land of my nativity, who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land,’ himself will send his Angel before you, and you will take from there a wife for my son.
{24:8} But if the woman is not willing to follow you, you will not be held by the oath. Only do not lead my son back to that place.”
{24:9} Therefore, the servant placed his hand under the thigh of Abraham, his lord, and he swore to him on his word.
{24:10} And he took ten camels from his lord’s herd, and he went forth, carrying with him things from all of his goods. And he set out, and continued on, to the city of Nahor, in Mesopotamia.
{24:11} And when he had made the camels lie down outside of the town, near a well of water, in the evening, at the time when women are accustomed to go out to draw water, he said:
{24:12} “O Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, meet with me today, I beg you, and show mercy to my lord Abraham.
{24:13} Behold, I stand near the fountain of water, and the daughters of the inhabitants of this city will go forth to draw water.
{24:14} Therefore, the girl to whom I will say, ‘Tip your pitcher, so that I may drink,’ and she will respond, ‘Drink. In fact, I will give your camels a drink also,’ the same one is she whom you have prepared for your servant Isaac. And by this, I will understand that you have shown mercy to my lord.”
{24:15} But he had not yet completed these words within himself, when, behold, Rebekah went out, the daughter of Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, the brother of Abraham, having a pitcher on her shoulder.
{24:16} She was an exceedingly elegant girl, and a most beautiful virgin, and unknown by man. And she descended to the spring, and she filled her pitcher, and then was returning.
{24:17} And the servant ran to meet her, and he said, “Provide me with a little water to drink from your pitcher.”
{24:18} And she responded, “Drink, my lord.” And she quickly brought down the pitcher on her arm, and she gave him a drink.
{24:19} And after he drank, she added, “In fact, I will draw water for your camels also, until they all drink.”
{24:20} And pouring out the pitcher into the troughs, she ran back to the well to draw water; and having drawn, she gave it to all the camels.
{24:21} But he was contemplating her silently, wanting to know whether the Lord had caused his journey to prosper or not
{24:22} Then, after the camels drank, the man took out gold earrings, weighing two shekels, and the same number of bracelets, ten shekels in weight.
{24:23} And he said to her: “Whose daughter are you? Tell me, is there any place in your father’s house to lodge?”
{24:24} She responded, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, to whom she gave birth for Nahor.”
{24:25} And she continued, saying, “There is very much straw and hay with us, and a spacious place to stay.”
{24:26} The man bowed himself down, and he adored the Lord,
{24:27} saying, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, who has not taken away his mercy and truth from my lord, and who has led me on a direct journey to the house of the brother of my lord.”
{24:28} And so the girl ran, and she reported all that she had heard in the house of her mother.
{24:29} Now Rebekah had a brother, named Laban, who went out quickly to the man, where the spring was.
{24:30} And when he had seen the earrings and bracelets in his sister’s hands, and he had heard all the words being repeated, “This is what the man spoke to me,” he came to the man who stood by the camels and near the spring of water,
{24:31} and he said to him: “Enter, O blessed of the Lord. Why do you stand outside? I have prepared the house, and a place for the camels.”
{24:32} And he brought him into his guest quarters. And he unharnessed the camels, and he distributed straw and hay, and water to wash his feet and that of the men who arrived with him.
{24:33} And bread was set out in his sight. But he said, “I will not eat, until I have spoken my words.” He answered him, “Speak.”
{24:34} Then he said: “I am the servant of Abraham.
{24:35} And the Lord has blessed my lord greatly, and he has become great. And he has given him sheep and oxen, silver and gold, men servants and women servants, camels and donkeys.
{24:36} And Sarah, the wife of my lord, has given birth to a son for my lord in her old age, and he has given him all that he had.
{24:37} And my lord made me swear, saying: ‘You shall not take a wife for my son from the Canaanites, in whose land I dwell.
{24:38} But you shall travel to my father’s house, and you shall take a wife of my own kindred for my son.’
{24:39} But truly, I answered my lord, ‘What if the woman is not willing to come with me?’
{24:40} ‘The Lord,’ he said, ‘in whose sight I walk, will send his Angel with you, and he will direct your way. And you shall take a wife for my son from my own kindred and from my father’s house.
{24:41} But you will be innocent of my curse, if, when you will arrive at my close relatives, they will not grant this to you.’
{24:42} And so, today I arrived at the well of water, and I said: ‘O Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, if you have directed my way, in which I now walk,
{24:43} behold, I stand next to the well of water, and the virgin, who will go forth to draw water, will hear from me, “Give me a little water to drink from your pitcher.”
{24:44} And she will say to me, “You drink, and I will also draw for your camels.” Let the same be the woman, whom the Lord has prepared for the son of my lord.’
{24:45} And while I thought over these things silently within myself, Rebekah appeared, arriving with a pitcher, which she carried on her shoulder. And she descended to the spring and drew water. And I said to her, ‘Give me a little to drink.’
{24:46} And she quickly let down the pitcher from her arm, and said to me, ‘You drink, and to your camels I will also distribute drinking water.’ I drank, and she watered the camels.
{24:47} And I questioned her, saying, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ And she responded, ‘I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Nahor, whom Milcah bore to him.’ And so, I hung the earrings on her, to adorn her face, and I put the bracelets on her hands.
{24:48} And falling prostrate, I adored the Lord, blessing the Lord, the God of my lord Abraham, who has led me along the straight path so as to take the daughter of my lord’s brother to his son.
{24:49} For this reason, if you would act according to mercy and truth with my lord, tell me so. But if it pleases you otherwise, say that to me also, so that I may go either to the right, or to the left.”
{24:50} And Laban and Bethuel responded: “A word has proceeded from the Lord. We are not able to speak anything else to you, beyond what pleases him.
{24:51} Lo, Rebekah is in your sight. Take her and continue on, and let her be the wife of the son of your lord, just as the Lord has spoken.”
{24:52} When Abraham’s servant had heard this, falling down to the ground, he adored the Lord.
{24:53} And bringing forth vessels of silver and gold, as well as garments, he gave them to Rebekah as a tribute. Likewise, he offered gifts to her brothers and her mother.
{24:54} And a banquet began, and they feasted and drank together, and they lodged there. And rising up in the morning, the servant said, “Release me, so that I may go to my lord.”
{24:55} And her brothers and mother responded, “Let the girl remain for at least ten days with us, and after that, she will continue on.”
{24:56} “Do not be willing,” he said, “to delay me, for the Lord has directed my way. Release me, so that I may journey to my lord.”
{24:57} And they said, “Let us call the girl, and ask her will.”
{24:58} And when, having been called, she arrived, they wanted to know, “Will you go with this man?” And she said, “I will go.”
{24:59} Therefore, they released her and her nurse, and the servant of Abraham and his companions,
{24:60} wishing prosperity for their sister, by saying: “You are our sister. May you increase to thousands of thousands. And may your offspring possess the gates of their enemies.”
{24:61} And so, Rebekah and her maids, riding upon camels, followed the man, who quickly returned to his lord.
{24:62} Then, at the same time, Isaac was walking along the way that leads to the well, whose name is: ‘of the One who lives and who sees.’ For he dwelt in the southern land.
{24:63} And he had gone out to meditate in the field, as daylight was now declining. And when he had lifted up his eyes, he saw camels advancing from afar.
{24:64} Likewise, Rebekah, having seen Isaac, descended from the camel.
{24:65} And she said to the servant, “Who is that man who advances to meet us through the field?” And he said to her, “That is my lord.” And so, quickly taking up her cloak, she covered herself.
{24:66} Then the servant explained to Isaac all that he had done.
{24:67} And he led her into the tent of Sarah his mother, and he accepted her as wife. And he loved her so very much, that it tempered the sorrow which befell him at his mother’s death.
{25:1} In truth, Abraham took another wife, named Keturah.
{25:2} And she bore to him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah.
{25:3} Likewise, Jokshan conceived Sheba and Dedan. The sons of Dedan were Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummim.
{25:4} And truly, from Midian was born Ephah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the sons of Keturah.
{25:5} And Abraham gave everything that he possessed to Isaac.
{25:6} But to the sons of the concubines he gave generous gifts, and he separated them from his son Isaac, while he still lived, toward the eastern region.
{25:7} Now the days of Abraham’s life were one hundred and seventy-five years.
{25:8} And declining, he died in a good old age, and at an advanced stage of life, and full of days. And he was gathered to his people.
{25:9} And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the double cave, which was situated in the field of Ephron, of the son of Zohar the Hittite, across from the region of Mamre,
{25:10} which he had bought from the sons of Heth. There he was buried, with his wife Sarah.
{25:11} And after his passing, God blessed his son Isaac, who lived near the well named ‘of the One who lives and who sees.’
{25:12} These are the generations of Ishmael, the son of Abraham, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s servant, bore to him.
{25:13} And these are the names of his sons according to their language and generations. The firstborn of Ishmael was Nebaioth, then Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam,
{25:14} likewise Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa,
{25:15} Hadad, and Tema, and Jetur, and Naphish, and Kedemah.
{25:16} These are the sons of Ishmael. And these are their names throughout their fortresses and towns: the twelve princes of their tribes.
{25:17} And the years of the life of Ishmael that passed were one hundred and thirty-seven. And declining, he died and was placed with his people.
{25:18} Now he had lived from Havilah as far as Shur, which overlooks Egypt as it approaches the Assyrians. He passed away in the sight of all his brothers.
{25:19} Likewise, these are the generations of Isaac, the son of Abraham. Abraham conceived Isaac,
{25:20} who, when he was forty years old, took Rebekah, the sister of Laban, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian from Mesopotamia, as a wife.
{25:21} And Isaac beseeched the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was barren. And he heard him, and he gave conception to Rebekah.
{25:22} But the little ones struggled in her womb. So she said, “If it was to be so with me, what need was there to conceive?” And she went to consult the Lord.
{25:23} And responding, he said, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples will be divided out of your womb, and one people will overcome the other people, and the elder will serve the younger.”
{25:24} Now the time had arrived to give birth, and behold, twins were discovered in her womb.
{25:25} He who departed first was red, and entirely hairy like a pelt; and his name was called Esau. At once the other departed and he held his brother’s foot in his hand; and because of this he was called Jacob.
{25:26} Isaac was sixty years old when the little ones were born to him.
{25:27} And as adults, Esau became a knowledgeable hunter and a man of agriculture, but Jacob, a simple man, dwelt in tents.
{25:28} Isaac was fond of Esau, because he was fed from his hunting; and Rebekah loved Jacob.
{25:29} Then Jacob boiled a small meal. Esau, when he had arrived weary from the field,
{25:30} said to him, “Give me this red stew, for I am very tired.” For this reason, his name was called Edom.
{25:31} Jacob said to him, “Sell me your right of the firstborn.”
{25:32} He answered, “Lo, I am dying, what will the right of the firstborn provide for me?”
{25:33} Jacob said, “So then, swear to me.” Esau swore to him, and he sold his right of the firstborn.
{25:34} And so, taking bread and the food of lentils, he ate, and he drank, and he went away, giving little weight to having sold the right of the firstborn.
{26:1} Then, when a famine arose over the land, after that barrenness which had happened in the days of Abraham, Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Palestinians, in Gerar.
{26:2} And the Lord appeared to him, and he said: “Do not descend into Egypt, but rest in the land that I will tell you,
{26:3} and sojourn in it, and I will be with you, and I will bless you. For to you and to your offspring I will give all these regions, completing the oath that I promised to Abraham your father.
{26:4} And I will multiply your offspring like the stars of heaven. And I will give to your posterity all these regions. And in your offspring all the nations of the earth will be blessed,
{26:5} because Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my precepts and commandments, and observed the ceremonies and the laws.”
{26:6} And so Isaac remained in Gerar.
{26:7} And when he was questioned by the men of that place about his wife, he answered, “She is my sister.” For he was afraid to confess her to be his mate, thinking that perhaps they would put him to death because of her beauty.
{26:8} And when very many days had passed, and he had remained in the same place, Abimelech, king of the Palestinians, gazing through a window, saw him being playful with Rebekah, his wife.
{26:9} And summoning him, he said: “It is clear that she is your wife. Why did you falsely claim her to be your sister?” He answered, “I was afraid, lest I might die because of her.”
{26:10} And Abimelech said: “Why have you burdened us? Someone from the people could have lain with your wife, and you would have brought a great sin upon us.” And he instructed all the people, saying,
{26:11} “Whoever will touch the wife of this man will die a death.”
{26:12} Then Isaac sowed in that land, and he found, in that same year, one hundredfold. And the Lord blessed him.
{26:13} And the man was enriched, and he continued prospering as well as increasing, until he became very great.
{26:14} Likewise, he had possessions of sheep and of herds, and a very large family. Because of this, the Palestinians envied him,
{26:15} so, at that time, they obstructed all the wells that the servants of his father Abraham had dug, filling them with soil.
{26:16} It reached a point where Abimelech himself said to Isaac, “Move away from us, for you have become very much more powerful than we.”
{26:17} And departing, he then went toward the torrent of Gerar, and he dwelt there.
{26:18} Again, he dug up other wells, which the servants of his father Abraham had dug, and which, after his death, the Philistines had formerly obstructed. And he called them by the same names that his father had called them before.
{26:19} And they dug in the torrent, and they found living water.
{26:20} But in that place also the shepherds of Gerar argued against the shepherds of Isaac, by saying, “It is our water.” For this reason, he called the name of the well, because of what had happened, ‘Calumny.’
{26:21} Then they dug up yet another one. And over that one also they fought, and he called it, ‘Enmity.’
{26:22} Advancing from there, he dug another well, over which they did not contend. And so he called its name, ‘Latitude,’ saying, “Now the Lord has expanded us and caused us to increase across the land.”
{26:23} Then he ascended from that place into Beersheba,
{26:24} where the Lord appeared to him on the same night, saying: “I am the God of Abraham your father. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bless you, and I will multiply your offspring because of my servant Abraham.”
{26:25} And so he built an altar there. And he invoked the name of the Lord, and he stretched out his tent. And he instructed his servants to dig a well.
{26:26} When Abimelech, and Ahuzzath, his friend, and Phicol, the leader of the military, had arrived from Gerar to that place,
{26:27} Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, a man whom you hate, and whom you have expelled from among you?”
{26:28} And they responded: “We saw that the Lord is with you, and therefore we said: Let there be an oath between us, and let us initiate a pact,
{26:29} so that you may not do us any kind of harm, just as we have touched nothing of yours, and have not caused any injury to you, but with peace we released you, augmented by the blessing of the Lord.”
{26:30} Therefore, he made them a feast, and after the food and drink,
{26:31} arising in the morning, they swore to one another. And Isaac sent them away peacefully to their own place.
{26:32} Then, behold, on the same day the servants of Isaac came, reporting to him about a well which they had dug, and saying: “We have found water.”
{26:33} Therefore, he called it, ‘Abundance.’ And the name of the city was established as ‘Beersheba,’ even to the present day.
{26:34} In truth, at forty years of age, Esau took wives: Judith, the daughter of Beeri, the Hittite, and Basemath, the daughter of Elon, of the same place.
{26:35} And they both offended the mind of Isaac and Rebekah.
{27:1} Now Isaac was old, and his eyes were cloudy, and so he was not able to see. And he called his elder son Esau, and he said to him, “My son?” And he responded, “Here I am.”
{27:2} His father said to him: “You see that I am old, and I do not know the day of my death.
{27:3} Take your weapons, the quiver and the bow, and go out. And when you have taken something by hunting,
{27:4} make from it a small meal for me, just as you know I like, and bring it, so that I may eat and my soul may bless you before I die.”
{27:5} And when Rebekah had heard this, and he had gone out into the field to fulfill his father’s order,
{27:6} she said to her son Jacob: “I heard your father speaking with your brother Esau, and saying to him,
{27:7} ‘Bring to me from your hunting, and make me foods, so that I may eat and bless you in the sight of the Lord before I die.’
{27:8} Therefore, now my son, agree to my counsel,
{27:9} and go straight to the flock, and bring me two of the best young goats, so that from them I may make meat for your father, such as he willingly eats.
{27:10} Then, when you have brought these in and he has eaten, he may bless you before he dies.”
{27:11} He answered her: “You know that my brother Esau is a hairy man, and I am smooth.
{27:12} If my father should lay hands on me and perceive it, I am afraid lest he think me willing to mock him, and I will bring a curse upon myself, instead of a blessing.”
{27:13} And his mother said to him: “Let this curse be upon me, my son. Yet listen to my voice, and go directly to bring what I said.”
{27:14} He went out, and he brought, and he gave to his mother. She prepared the meats, just as she knew his father liked.
{27:15} And she clothed him with the very fine garments of Esau, which she had at home with her.
{27:16} And she encircled his hands with little pelts from the young goats, and she covered his bare neck.
{27:17} And she gave him the small meal, and she handed him the bread that she had baked.
{27:18} When he had carried these in, he said, “My father?” And he answered, “I’m listening. Who are you, my son?”
{27:19} And Jacob said: “I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done as you instructed me. Arise; sit and eat from my hunting, so that your soul may bless me.”
{27:20} And again Isaac said to his son, “How were you able to find it so quickly, my son?” He answered, “It was the will of God, so that what I sought met with me quickly.”
{27:21} And Isaac said, “Come here, so that I may touch you, my son, and may prove whether you are my son Esau, or not.”
{27:22} He approached his father, and when he had felt him, Isaac said: “The voice indeed is the voice of Jacob. But the hands are the hands of Esau.”
{27:23} And he did not recognize him, because his hairy hands made him seem similar to the elder one. Therefore, blessing him,
{27:24} he said, “Are you my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.”
{27:25} Then he said, “Bring me the foods from your hunting, my son, so that my soul may bless you.” And when he had eaten what was offered, he also brought forth wine for him. And after he finished it,
{27:26} he said to him, “Come to me and give me a kiss, my son.”
{27:27} He approached and kissed him. And immediately he perceived the fragrance of his garments. And so, blessing him, he said: “Behold, the smell of my son is like the smell of a plentiful field, which the Lord has blessed.
{27:28} May God give to you, from the dew of heaven and from the fatness of the earth, an abundance of grain and wine.
{27:29} And may the peoples serve you, and may the tribes reverence you. May you be the lord of your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down before you. Whoever curses you, may he be cursed, and whoever blesses you, may he be filled with blessings.”
{27:30} Scarcely had Isaac completed his words, and Jacob departed, when Esau arrived.
{27:31} And he brought his father foods cooked from his hunting, saying, “Arise, my father, and eat from your son’s hunting, so that your soul may bless me.”
{27:32} And Isaac said to him, “But who are you?” And he answered, “I am your firstborn son, Esau.”
{27:33} Isaac became frightened and very astonished. And wondering beyond what can be believed, he said: “Then who is he that a while ago brought me the prey from his hunting, from which I ate, before you arrived? And I blessed him, and he will be blessed.”
{27:34} Esau, having heard his father’s words, roared out with a great outcry. And, being confounded, he said, “But bless me also, my father.”
{27:35} And he said, “Your twin came deceitfully, and he received your blessing.”
{27:36} But he responded: “Justly is his name called Jacob. For he has supplanted me yet another time. My birthright he took away before, and now, this second time, he has stolen my blessing.” And again, he said to his father, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me also?”
{27:37} Isaac answered: “I have appointed him as your lord, and I have subjugated all his brothers as his servants. I have reinforced him with grain and wine, and after this, my son, what more shall I do for you?”
{27:38} And Esau said to him: “Have you only one blessing, father? I beg you, bless me also.” And when he wept with a loud wail,
{27:39} Isaac was moved, and he said to him: “In the fatness of the earth, and in the dew of heaven from above,
{27:40} will your blessing be. You will live by the sword, and you will serve your brother. But the time will arrive when you will shake off and release his yoke from your neck.”
{27:41} Therefore, Esau always hated Jacob, for the blessing with which his father had blessed him. And he said in his heart, “The days will arrive for the mourning of my father, and I will kill my brother Jacob.”
{27:42} These things were reported to Rebekah. And sending and calling for her son Jacob, she said to him, “Behold, your brother Esau is threatening to kill you.
{27:43} Therefore, now my son, listen to my voice. Rise up and flee to my brother Laban, in Haran.
{27:44} And you will dwell with him for a few days, until the fury of your brother subsides,
{27:45} and his indignation ceases, and he forgets the things that you have done to him. After this, I will send for you and bring you from there to here. Why should I be bereaved of both my sons in one day?”
{27:46} And Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth. If Jacob accepts a wife from the stock of this land, I would not be willing to live.”
{28:1} And so Isaac called for Jacob, and he blessed him, and he instructed him, saying: “Do not be willing to accept a mate from the family of Canaan.
{28:2} But go, and journey to Mesopotamia of Syria, to the house of Bethuel, your mother’s father, and there accept for yourself a wife from the daughters of Laban, your maternal uncle.
{28:3} And may God almighty bless you, and may he cause you to increase and also to multiply, so that you may be influential among the people.
{28:4} And may he give the blessings of Abraham to you, and to your offspring after you, so that you may possess the land of your sojourning, which he promised to your grandfather.”
{28:5} And when Isaac had dismissed him, setting out, he went to Mesopotamia of Syria, to Laban, the son of Bethuel, the Syrian, the brother to Rebekah, his mother.
{28:6} But Esau, seeing that his father had blessed Jacob and had sent him into Mesopotamia of Syria, to take a wife from there, and that, after the blessing, he had instructed him, saying: ‘You shall not accept a wife from the daughters of Canaan,’
{28:7} and that Jacob, obeying his parents, had gone into Syria,
{28:8} having evidence also that his father did not look with favor upon the daughters of Canaan,
{28:9} he went to Ishmael, and he took as a wife, beside those he had before, Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebaioth.
{28:10} Meanwhile Jacob, having departed from Beersheba, continued on to Haran.
{28:11} And when he had arrived at a certain place, where he would rest after the setting of the sun, he took some of the stones that lay there, and placing them under his head, he slept in the same place.
{28:12} And he saw in his sleep: a ladder standing upon the earth, with its top touching heaven, also, the Angels of God ascending and descending by it,
{28:13} and the Lord, leaning upon the ladder, saying to him: “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac. The land, in which you sleep, I will give to you and to your offspring.
{28:14} And your offspring will be like the dust of the earth. You will spread abroad to the West, and to the East, and to the North, and to the Meridian. And in you and in your offspring, all the tribes of the earth shall be blessed.
{28:15} And I will be your guardian wherever you will journey, and I will bring you back into this land. Neither will I dismiss you, until I have accomplished all that I have said.”
{28:16} And when Jacob had awakened from sleep, he said, “Truly, the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”
{28:17} And being terrified, he said: “How terrible this place is! This is nothing other than the house of God and the gateway of heaven.”
{28:18} Therefore, Jacob, arising in the morning, took the stone which he had placed under his head, and he set it up as monument, pouring oil over it.
{28:19} And he called the name of the city, ‘Bethel,’ which before was called Luz.
{28:20} And then he made a vow, saying: “If God will be with me, and will guard me along the way by which I walk, and will give me bread to eat and clothing to wear,
{28:21} and if I will return prosperously to my father’s house, then the Lord will be my God,
{28:22} and this stone, which I have set up as a monument, will be called ‘the House of God.’ And from all the things that you will give to me, I will offer tithes to you.”
{29:1} And so Jacob, setting out, arrived in the eastern land.
{29:2} And he saw a well in a field, and also three flocks of sheep reclining near it. For the animals were watered from it, and its mouth was closed with a great stone.
{29:3} And the custom was, when all the sheep were gathered together, to roll away the stone. And when the flocks had been refreshed, they placed it over the mouth of the well again.
{29:4} And he said to the shepherds, “Brothers, where are you from?” And they answered. “From Haran.”
{29:5} And questioning them, he said, “Do you know Laban, the son of Nahor?” They said, “We know him.”
{29:6} He said, “Is he well?” “He is very well,” they said. “And behold, his daughter Rachel approaches with his flock.”
{29:7} And Jacob said, “There is still much daylight remaining, and it is not time to return the flocks to the sheepfold. Give the sheep to drink first, and then lead them back to pasture.”
{29:8} They responded, “We cannot, until all the animals are gathered together and we remove the stone from the mouth of the well, so that we may water the flocks.”
{29:9} They were still speaking, and behold, Rachel arrived with her father’s sheep; for she pastured the flock.
{29:10} When Jacob had seen her, and he realized that she was his maternal first cousin, and that these were the sheep of his uncle Laban, he removed the stone which closed the well.
{29:11} And having watered the flock, he kissed her. And lifting up his voice, he wept.
{29:12} And he revealed to her that he was a brother of her father, and the son of Rebekah. And so, hurrying, she announced it to her father.
{29:13} And when he had heard that Jacob, his sister’s son, had arrived, he ran to meet him. And embracing him, and kissing him heartily, he brought him into his house. But when he had heard the reasons for his journey,
{29:14} he responded, “You are my bone and my flesh.” And after the days of one month were completed,
{29:15} he said to him: “Though you are my brother, will you serve me for nothing? Tell me what wages you would accept.”
{29:16} In truth, he had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah; and truly the younger was called Rachel.
{29:17} But while Leah was bleary-eyed, Rachel had an elegant appearance and was attractive to behold.
{29:18} And Jacob, loving her, said, “I will serve you for seven years, for your younger daughter Rachel.”
{29:19} Laban responded, “It is better that I give her to you than to another man; remain with me.”
{29:20} Therefore, Jacob served for seven years for Rachel. And these seemed like only a few days, because of the greatness of love.
{29:21} And he said to Laban, “Give my wife to me. For now the time has been fulfilled, so that I may go in to her.”
{29:22} And he, having called a great crowd of his friends to the feast, agreed to the marriage.
{29:23} And at night, he brought in his daughter Leah to him,
{29:24} giving his daughter a handmaid named Zilpah. After Jacob had gone in to her, according to custom, when morning had arrived, he saw Leah.
{29:25} And he said to his father-in-law, “What is it that you intended to do? Did I not serve you for Rachel? Why have you deceived me?”
{29:26} Laban responded, “It is not the practice in this place to give the younger in marriage first.
{29:27} Complete a week of days with this mating. And then I will give this one to you also, for the service that you will provide to me for another seven years.”
{29:28} He agreed to his pleading. And after the week had passed, he took Rachel as a wife.
{29:29} To her, the father had given Bilhah as her servant.
{29:30} And, having at last obtained the marriage he desired, he preferred the love of the latter before the former, and he served with him another seven years.
{29:31} But the Lord, seeing that he despised Leah, opened her womb, but her sister remained barren.
{29:32} Having conceived, she gave birth to a son, and she called his name Reuben, saying: “The Lord saw my humiliation; now my husband will love me.”
{29:33} And again she conceived and bore a son, and she said, “Because the Lord heard that I was treated with contempt, he has also given this one to me.” And she called his name Simeon.
{29:34} And she conceived a third time, and she gave birth to another son, and she said: “Now likewise my husband will unite with me, because I have borne him three sons.” And because of this, she called his name Levi.
{29:35} A fourth time she conceived and bore a son, and she said, “Only now will I confess to the Lord.” And for this reason, she called him Judah. And she ceased from child-bearing.
{30:1} Then Rachel, discerning that she was infertile, envied her sister, and so she said to her husband, “Give me children, otherwise I will die.”
{30:2} Jacob, being angry, responded to her, “Am I in the place of God, who has deprived you of the fruit of your womb?”
{30:3} But she said: “I have a handmaid Bilhah. Go in to her, so that she may give birth upon my knees, and I may have sons by her.”
{30:4} And she gave him Bilhah in marriage.
{30:5} And when her husband had gone in to her, she conceived and bore a son.
{30:6} And Rachel said, “The Lord has judged for me, and he has heeded my voice, giving me a son.” And because of this, she called his name Dan.
{30:7} And conceiving again, Bilhah bore another,
{30:8} about whom Rachel said, “God has compared me with my sister, and I have prevailed.” And she called him Naphtali.
{30:9} Leah, perceiving that she had desisted from child-bearing, delivered Zilpah, her handmaid, to her husband.
{30:10} And she, after having borne a son with difficulty,
{30:11} said: “Happiness!” And for this reason, she called his name Gad.
{30:12} Likewise, Zilpah bore another.
{30:13} And Leah said, “This one is for my happiness. Indeed, women will call me blessed.” Because of this, she called him Asher.
{30:14} Then Reuben, going out into the field at the time of the wheat harvest, found mandrakes. These he brought to his mother Leah. And Rachel said, “Give me a portion of your son’s mandrakes.”
{30:15} She responded, “Does it seem like such a small matter to you, that you have usurped from me my husband, unless you will also take my son’s mandrakes?” Rachel said, “He will sleep with you this night because of your son’s mandrakes.”
{30:16} And when Jacob returned from the field in the evening, Leah went out to meet him, and she said, “You will enter to me, because I have hired you for the reward of my son’s mandrakes.” And he slept with her that night.
{30:17} And God heard her prayers. And she conceived and bore a fifth son.
{30:18} And she said, “God has given a reward to me, because I gave my handmaid to my husband.” And she called his name Issachar.
{30:19} Conceiving again, Leah bore a sixth son.
{30:20} And she said: “God has endowed me with a good dowry. And now, at this turn, my husband will be with me, because I have conceived six sons for him.” And therefore she called his name Zebulun.
{30:21} After him, she bore a daughter, named Dinah.
{30:22} The Lord, likewise remembering Rachel, heeded her and opened her womb.
{30:23} And she conceived and bore a son, saying, “God has taken away my reproach.”
{30:24} And she called his name Joseph, saying, “The Lord has added to me another son.”
{30:25} But when Joseph was born, Jacob said to his father-in-law: “Release me, so that I may return to my native country and to my land.
{30:26} Give me my wives, and my children, for whom I have served you, so that I may depart. You know the servitude with which I have served you.”
{30:27} Laban said to him: “May I find grace in your sight. I have learned by experience that God has blessed me because of you.
{30:28} Choose your wages, which I will give you.”
{30:29} But he responded: “You know how I have served you, and how great your possession became in my hands.
{30:30} You had little before I came to you, and now you have achieved riches. And the Lord has blessed you since my arrival. It is just, therefore, that at some time I also should provide for my own house.”
{30:31} And Laban said, “What shall I give to you?” But he said, “I want nothing. But if you will do what I ask, I will feed and guard your sheep again.
{30:32} Go around through all your flocks and separate all the sheep of variegated or spotted fleece; and whatever will be darkened or blemished or variegated, as much among the sheep as among the goats, will be my wages.
{30:33} And my justice will answer on my behalf tomorrow, when the time of settlement arrives before you. And all that is not variegated or blemished or darkened, as much among the sheep as among the goats, these will prove me to be a thief.”
{30:34} And Laban said, “I hold favor for this request.”
{30:35} And on that day he separated the she-goats, and the sheep, and the he-goats, and the rams with variegations or with blemishes. But every one of the flock which was of one color, that is, of white or of black fleece, he delivered into the hands of his sons.
{30:36} And he established a distance of three days journey between himself and his son-in-law, who pastured the remainder of his flock.
{30:37} Then Jacob, taking green branches of poplar, and almond, and sycamore trees, debarked them in part. And when the bark was pulled off, in the parts that were stripped, there appeared whiteness, yet the parts that were left whole, remained green. And so, in this way the color was made variegated.
{30:38} And he placed them in the troughs, where the water was poured out, so that when the flocks had arrived to drink, they would have the branches before their eyes, and in their sight they might conceive.
{30:39} And it happened that, in the very heat of joining together, the sheep looked upon the branches, and they bore the blemished and the variegated, those speckled with diverse color.
{30:40} And Jacob divided the flock, and he set the branches in the troughs before the eyes of the rams. Now whatever was white or black belonged to Laban, but, in truth, the others belonged to Jacob, for the flocks were dispersed among one another.
{30:41} Therefore, when the first to arrive were climbing on the ewes, Jacob placed the branches in the troughs of water before the eyes of the rams and the sheep, so that they might conceive while they were gazing upon them.
{30:42} Yet when the late arrivals and the last to conceive were let in, he did not place these. And so those that arrived late became Laban’s, and those that arrived first became Jacob’s.
{30:43} And the man was enriched beyond limit, and he had many flocks, women servants and men servants, camels and donkeys.
{31:1} But afterwards, he heard the words of the sons of Laban, saying, “Jacob has taken all that was our father’s, and being enlarged by his ability, he has become famous.”
{31:2} Likewise, he observed that Laban’s face was not the same toward him as it was yesterday and the day before.
{31:3} Most importantly, the Lord was saying to him, “Return to the land of your fathers and to your generation, and I will be with you.”
{31:4} He sent and called for Rachel and Leah, in the field where he pastured the flocks,
{31:5} and he said to them: “I see that your father’s face is not the same toward me as it was yesterday and the day before. But the God of my father has been with me.
{31:6} And you know that I have served your father with all my strength.
{31:7} Even so, your father has circumvented me, and he has changed my wages ten times. And yet God has not permitted him to harm me.
{31:8} Whenever he said, ‘The speckled will be your wages,’ all the sheep gave birth to speckled newborns. Yet truly, when he said the contrary, ‘You will take whatever is white for your wages,’ all the flocks gave birth to white ones.
{31:9} And it is God who has taken your father’s substance and given it to me.
{31:10} For after the time had arrived for the ewes to conceive, I lifted up my eyes, and I saw in my sleep that the males climbing on the females were of variegated, and spotted, and diverse colors.
{31:11} And the Angel of God said to me in my sleep, ‘Jacob.’ And I responded, ‘Here I am.’
{31:12} And he said: ‘Lift up your eyes, and see that all the males climbing on the females are variegated, spotted, and also speckled. For I have seen all that Laban has done to you.
{31:13} I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the stone and made a vow to me. Now therefore arise, and depart from this land, returning to the land of your nativity.’ ”
{31:14} And Rachel and Leah responded: “Have we anything left behind among the resources and inheritance of our father’s house?
{31:15} Has he not considered us as foreigners, and sold us, and consumed our price?
{31:16} But God has taken our father’s riches and handed these to us and to our sons. Therefore, do all that God has instructed you.”
{31:17} And so Jacob rose up, and having placed the children and his wives upon camels, he went forth.
{31:18} And he took all his substance and flocks, and whatever he had acquired in Mesopotamia, and he journeyed to his father Isaac, in the land of Canaan.
{31:19} At that time, Laban had gone to shear the sheep, and so Rachel stole her father’s idols.
{31:20} And Jacob was not willing to confess to his father-in-law that he was fleeing.
{31:21} And when he had gone away with all such things that were justly his, and, having crossed the river, was continuing on toward Mount Gilead,
{31:22} it was reported to Laban on the third day that Jacob had fled.
{31:23} And taking his brothers with him, he pursued him for seven days. And he overtook him at Mount Gilead.
{31:24} And he saw in a dream, God saying to him, “Beware that you not speak anything harsh against Jacob.”
{31:25} And now Jacob had pitched his tent at the mountain. And when he, with his brothers, had overtaken him, he set his tent at the same place at Mount Gilead.
{31:26} And he said to Jacob: “Why have you acted this way, departing from me in secret, with my daughters like captives of the sword?
{31:27} Why would you want to flee without my knowledge and without telling me, though I might have led you forward with gladness, and songs, and timbrels, and lyres?
{31:28} You have not permitted me to kiss my sons and daughters. You have acted foolishly. And now, indeed,
{31:29} my hand has power to repay you with harm. But the God of your father said to me yesterday, ‘Beware that you not speak anything stern against Jacob.’
{31:30} It may be that you desired to go to your own, and that you longed for the house of your father. But why have you stolen my gods?”
{31:31} Jacob answered: “I set out, unknown to you, because I feared that you might take away your daughters by violence.
{31:32} But, since you accuse me of theft, with whomever you will find your gods, let him be slain in the sight of our brothers. Search; anything of yours that you will find with me, take it away.” Now when he said this, he did not know that Rachel had stolen the idols.
{31:33} And so Laban, entering the tent of Jacob, and of Leah, and of both the handmaids, did not find them. And when he had entered the tent of Rachel,
{31:34} she quickly hid the idols under the camel’s bedding, and she sat upon them. And when he had searched the entire tent and found nothing,
{31:35} she said: “Do not be angry, my lord, that I am unable to rise up in your sight, because it has now happened to me according to the custom of women.” So his careful search was thwarted.
{31:36} And Jacob, being inflated, said with contention: “For which fault of mine, or for what sin of mine, have you become so enraged against me
{31:37} and searched all the items of my house? What have you found from all the substance of your house? Place it here before my brothers, and your brothers, and let them judge between me and you.
{31:38} For what reason have I been with you for twenty years? Your ewes and she-goats were not barren; the rams of your flocks I did not consume.
{31:39} Neither did I reveal to you what was seized by the wild beast. I replaced all that was damaged. Whatever was lost by theft, you collected it from me.
{31:40} Day and night, I was burned by heat and by frost, and sleep fled from my eyes.
{31:41} And in this way, for twenty years, I have served you in your house: fourteen for your daughters, and six for your flocks. You have also changed my wages ten times.
{31:42} If the God of my father Abraham and the fear of Isaac had not been close to me, perhaps by now you would have sent me away naked. But God looked kindly on my affliction and the labor of my hands, and he rebuked you yesterday.”
{31:43} Laban answered him: “My daughters and sons, and your flocks, and all that you discern are mine. What can I do to my sons and grandchildren?
{31:44} Come, therefore, let us enter into a pact, so that it may be a testimony between me and you.”
{31:45} And so Jacob took a stone, and he set it up as a memorial.
{31:46} And he said to his brothers, “Bring stones.” And they, gathering together stones, made a tomb, and they ate upon it.
{31:47} And Laban called it, ‘Tomb of Witness,’ and Jacob, ‘Pile of Testimony;’ each of them according to the fitness of his own language.
{31:48} And Laban said: “This tomb will be a witness between me and you this day.” (And for this reason, its name has been called Gilead, that is, ‘Tomb of Witness.’)
{31:49} “May the Lord consider and judge between us, when we will have withdrawn from one another.
{31:50} If you afflict my daughters, and if you bring in other wives over them, no one is a witness of our words except God, who understands beforehand.”
{31:51} And again he said to Jacob. “Lo, this tomb and the stone that I have set up between me and you,
{31:52} will be a witness. This tomb,” I say, “and the stone, they are for testimony, in case either I cross beyond it going toward you, or you cross beyond it thinking to harm me.
{31:53} May the God of Abraham, and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” Therefore, Jacob swore by the fear of his father Isaac.
{31:54} And after he had immolated sacrifices on the mountain, he called his brothers to eat bread. And when they had eaten, they lodged there.
{31:55} In truth, Laban rose up in the night, and he kissed his sons and daughters, and he blessed them. And he returned to his place.
{32:1} Likewise, Jacob continued on the journey that he had begun. And the Angels of God met him.
{32:2} When he had seen them, he said, “These are the Encampments of God.” And he called the name of that place Mahanaim, that is, ‘Encampments.’
{32:3} Then he also sent messengers before him to his brother Esau, in the land of Seir, in the region of Edom.
{32:4} And he instructed them, saying: “You shall speak in this way to my lord Esau: ‘Your brother Jacob says these things: “I have sojourned with Laban, and I have been with him until the present day.
{32:5} I have oxen, and donkeys, and sheep, and men servants, and women servants. And now I send an ambassador to my lord, so that I may find favor in your sight.” ’ ”
{32:6} And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We went to your brother Esau, and behold, he rushes to meet you with four hundred men.”
{32:7} Jacob was very afraid. And in his terror, he divided the people who were with him, likewise the flocks, and the sheep, and the oxen, and the camels, into two companies,
{32:8} saying: “If Esau goes to one company, and strikes it, the other company, which is left behind, will be saved.”
{32:9} And Jacob said: “God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, O Lord who said to me: ‘Return to your land, and to the place of your nativity, and I will do well for you.’
{32:10} I am less than any of your compassions and your truth, which you have fulfilled to your servant. With my staff I crossed over this Jordan. And now I go back with two companies.
{32:11} Rescue me from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am very afraid of him, lest perhaps he may come and strike down the mother with the sons.
{32:12} You did say that you would do well by me, and that you would expand my offspring like the sand of the sea, which, because of its multitude, cannot be numbered.”
{32:13} And when he had slept there that night, he separated, from the things that he had, gifts for his brother Esau:
{32:14} two hundred she-goats, twenty he-goats, two hundred ewes, and twenty rams,
{32:15} thirty milking camels with their young, forty cows, and twenty bulls, twenty she-donkeys, and ten of their young.
{32:16} And he sent them by the hands of his servants, each flock separately, and he said to his servants: “Pass before me, and let there be a space between flock and flock.”
{32:17} And he instructed the first, saying: “If you happen to meet my brother Esau, and he questions you: “Whose are you?” or, “Where are you going?” or, “Whose are these which follow you?”
{32:18} you shall respond: “Your servant Jacob’s. He has sent them as a gift to my lord Esau. And he is also coming after us.”
{32:19} Similarly, he gave orders to the second, and the third, and to all who followed the flocks, saying: “Speak these same words to Esau, when you find him.
{32:20} And you will add: ‘Your servant Jacob himself also follows after us, for he said: “I will appease him with the gifts that go ahead, and after this, I will see him; perhaps he will be gracious to me.” ’ ”
{32:21} And so the gifts went before him, but he himself lodged that night in the camp.
{32:22} And when he had arisen early, he took his two wives, and the same number of handmaids, with his eleven sons, and he crossed over the ford of Jabbok.
{32:23} And having delivered over all the things that belonged to him,
{32:24} he remained alone. And behold, a man wrestled with him until morning.
{32:25} And when he saw that he would not be able to overcome him, he touched the nerve of his thigh, and immediately it withered.
{32:26} And he said to him, “Release me, for now the dawn ascends.” He responded, “I will not release you, unless you bless me.”
{32:27} Therefore he said, “What is your name?” He answered, “Jacob.”
{32:28} But he said, “Your name will not be called Jacob, but Israel; for if you have been strong against God, how much more will you prevail against men?”
{32:29} Jacob questioned him, “Tell me, by what name are you called?” He responded, “Why do you ask my name?” And he blessed him in the same place.
{32:30} And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, “I have seen God face to face, and my soul has been saved.”
{32:31} And immediately the sun rose upon him, after he had crossed beyond Peniel. Yet in truth, he limped on his foot.
{32:32} For this reason, the sons of Israel, even to the present day, do not eat the nerve that withered in Jacob’s thigh, because he touched the nerve of his thigh and it was obstructed.
{33:1} Then Jacob, lifting up his eyes, saw Esau arriving, and with him four hundred men. And he divided the sons of Leah and Rachel, and of both the handmaids.
{33:2} And he placed the two handmaids and their children at the beginning. Truly, Leah and her sons were in the second place. Then Rachel and Joseph were last.
{33:3} And advancing, he reverenced prostrate on the ground seven times, until his brother approached.
{33:4} And so Esau ran to meet his brother, and he embraced him. And drawing him by his neck and kissing him, he wept.
{33:5} And lifting up his eyes, he saw the women and their little ones, and he said: “What do these want for themselves?” and “Are they related to you?” He responded, “These are the little ones that God has given as a gift to me, your servant.”
{33:6} Then the handmaids and their sons approached and bowed down.
{33:7} Likewise Leah, with her sons, came near. And when they had reverenced similarly, last of all, Joseph and Rachel reverenced.
{33:8} And Esau said, “What are these companies that I have been meeting?” He responded, “So may I find favor before my lord.”
{33:9} But he said, “I have plenty, my brother; let these be for yourself.”
{33:10} And Jacob said: “I beg you, let it not be so. But if I have found favor in your eyes, receive a small present from my hands. For I have looked upon your face as I would look upon the countenance of God. Be gracious to me,
{33:11} and take the blessing which I have brought to you, and which God, who bestows all things, has given as a gift to me.” Accepting it reluctantly, at the insistence of his brother,
{33:12} he said, “Let us go on together, and I will accompany you on your journey.”
{33:13} And Jacob said: “My lord, you know that I have with me tender little ones, and sheep, and cows with young. If I cause these to labor too much in walking, all the flocks will die in one day.
{33:14} May it please my lord to go before his servant. And I will follow gradually in his steps, as much as I see my little ones to be able, until I arrive to my lord in Seir.”
{33:15} Esau responded, “I beg you, that at least some of the people who are with me may remain to accompany you on the way.” But he said, “There is no need. I have need of one thing only: to find favor in your sight, my lord.”
{33:16} And so Esau returned that day, by the way that he had arrived, to Seir.
{33:17} And Jacob went to Succoth, where, having built a house and pitched tents, he called the name of that place Succoth, that is, ‘Tents.’
{33:18} And he crossed over to Salem, a city of the Shechemites, which is in the land of Canaan, after he returned from Mesopotamia of Syria. And he lived near the town.
{33:19} And he bought the part of the field in which he had pitched his tents from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, for one hundred lambs.
{33:20} And erecting an altar there, he invoked upon it the most strong God of Israel.
{34:1} Then Dinah, the daughter of Leah, went out to see the women of that region.
{34:2} And when Shechem, the son of Hamor the Hivite, the leader of that land, had seen her, he fell in love with her. And so he seized her and slept with her, overwhelming the virgin by force.
{34:3} And his soul was closely bound to her, and, since she was sorrowful, he soothed her with flattery.
{34:4} And going on to Hamor, his father, he said, “Obtain this girl for me as a mate.”
{34:5} But when Jacob had heard this, since his sons were absent and he was occupied in pasturing the cattle, he remained silent until they came back.
{34:6} Then, when Hamor, the father of Shechem, had gone out to speak to Jacob,
{34:7} behold, his sons arrived from the field. And hearing what had happened, they were very angry, because he had done a filthy thing in Israel and, in violating a daughter of Jacob, had perpetrated an unlawful act.
{34:8} And so Hamor spoke to them: “The soul of my son Shechem has become attached to your daughter. Give her to him as a wife.
{34:9} And let us celebrate marriages with one with another. Give us your daughters, and receive our daughters.
{34:10} And live with us. The land is in your power: cultivate, trade, and possess it.”
{34:11} And Shechem even said to her father and to her brothers: “May I find favor in your sight, and whatever you will appoint, I will give.
{34:12} Increase the dowry, and request gifts, and I will freely bestow what you will ask. Only give me this girl as a wife.”
{34:13} The sons of Jacob answered Shechem and his father with deceit, being enraged at the rape of their sister:
{34:14} “We are not able to do what you ask, nor to give our sister to an uncircumcised man. For us, this is unlawful and abominable.
{34:15} But we may succeed in this, so as to be allied with you, if you are willing to become like us, and if all the male sex among you will be circumcised.
{34:16} Then we will mutually give and receive your daughters as well as ours; and we will live with you, and we will become one people.
{34:17} But if you will not be circumcised, we will take our daughter and withdraw.”
{34:18} Their offer pleased Hamor and his son Shechem.
{34:19} Neither did the young man cause any delay; in fact he immediately fulfilled what was requested. For he loved the girl very much, and he was well-known throughout his father’s house.
{34:20} And entering at the gate of the city, they spoke to the people:
{34:21} “These men are peaceful, and they want to live among us. Let them trade in the land and cultivate it, for, being spacious and broad, it is in need of cultivation. We will receive their daughters as wives, and we will give them ours.
{34:22} There is one thing that prevents so great a good: whether we will circumcise our males, imitating the ritual of their nation.
{34:23} And their substance, and cattle, and all that they possess, will be ours, if only we will acquiesce to this, and so, in living together, will form one people.”
{34:24} And they all agreed to circumcise every one of the males.
{34:25} And behold, on the third day, when the pain of the wound was greatest, two of the sons of Jacob, Simeon and Levi, the brothers of Dinah, boldly entered the city with swords. And they put to death all of the males.
{34:26} They killed Hamor and Shechem together, taking their sister Dinah from the house of Shechem.
{34:27} And when they had departed, the other sons of Jacob rushed over the slain, and they plundered the city in vengeance for the rape.
{34:28} Taking their sheep, and herds, and donkeys, and laying waste to everything else that was in their houses and in their fields,
{34:29} they also took their little ones and their wives captive.
{34:30} When they had boldly completed these acts, Jacob said to Simeon and Levi: “You have troubled me, and you have made me hateful to the Canaanites and the Perizzites, the inhabitants of this land. We are few. They, gathering themselves together, may strike me down, and then both I and my house will be wiped away.”
{34:31} They responded, “Should they abuse our sister like a prostitute?”
{35:1} About this time, God said to Jacob, “Arise and go up to Bethel, and live there, and make an altar to God, who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.”
{35:2} In truth, Jacob, having called together all his house, said: “Cast away the foreign gods that are in your midst and be cleansed, and also change your garments.
{35:3} Arise, and let us go up to Bethel, so that we may make an altar there to God, who heeded me in the day of my tribulation, and who accompanied me on my journey.”
{35:4} Therefore, they gave him all the foreign gods which they had, and the earrings which were in their ears. And then he buried them under the terebinth tree, which is beyond the city of Shechem.
{35:5} And when they had set out, the terror of God invaded all the surrounding cities, and they dared not pursue them as they withdrew.
{35:6} And so, Jacob arrived at Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, also named Bethel: he and all the people with him.
{35:7} And he built an altar there, and he called the name of that place, ‘House of God.’ For there, God appeared to him when he fled from his brother.
{35:8} About the same time, Deborah, the nurse of Rebekah, died, and she was buried at the base of Bethel, under an oak tree. And the name of that place was called, ‘Oak of Weeping.’
{35:9} Then God appeared again to Jacob, after he returned from Mesopotamia of Syria, and he blessed him,
{35:10} saying: “You will no longer be called Jacob, for your name shall be Israel.” And he called him Israel,
{35:11} and he said to him: “I am Almighty God: increase and multiply. Tribes and peoples of nations will be from you, and kings will go forth from your loins.
{35:12} And the land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac, I will give to you, and to your offspring after you.”
{35:13} And he withdrew from him.
{35:14} In truth, he set up a monument of stone, in the place where God had spoken to him, pouring out libations over it, and pouring oil,
{35:15} and he called the name of that place, ‘Bethel.’
{35:16} Then, departing from there, he arrived in springtime at the land that leads to Ephrath. And there, when Rachel was giving birth,
{35:17} because it was a difficult birth, she began to be in danger. And the midwife said to her, “Do not be afraid, for you will have this son also.”
{35:18} Then, when her life was departing because of the pain, and death was now imminent, she called the name of her son Benoni, that is, the son of my pain. Yet truly, his father called him Benjamin, that is, the son of the right hand.
{35:19} And so Rachel died, and she was buried in the way that leads to Ephrath: this place is Bethlehem.
{35:20} And Jacob erected a monument over her sepulcher. This is the monument to Rachel’s tomb, even to the present day.
{35:21} Departing from there, he pitched his tent beyond the Tower of the Flock.
{35:22} And when he was living in that region, Reuben went out, and he slept with Bilhah the concubine of his father, which was not such a small matter as to be hidden from him. Now the sons of Jacob were twelve.
{35:23} The sons of Leah: Reuben the first born, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun.
{35:24} The sons of Rachel: Joseph and Benjamin.
{35:25} The sons of Bilhah, handmaid of Rachel: Dan and Naphtali.
{35:26} The sons of Zilpah, handmaid of Leah: Gad and Asher. These are the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Mesopotamia of Syria.
{35:27} And then he went to his father Isaac in Mamre, the city of Arba: this place is Hebron, where Abraham and Isaac sojourned.
{35:28} And the days of Isaac were completed: one hundred and eighty years.
{35:29} And being consumed by old age, he died. And he was placed with his people, being old and full of days. And his sons, Esau and Jacob, buried him.
{36:1} Now these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom.
{36:2} Esau took wives from the daughters of Canaan: Adah the daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Oholibamah the daughter of Anah, the daughter of Zibeon the Hivite,
{36:3} and Basemath, the daughter of Ishmael, sister of Nebaioth.
{36:4} Then Adah bore Eliphaz. Basemath conceived Reuel.
{36:5} Oholibamah conceived Jeush, and Jalam, and Korah. These are the sons of Esau, who were born to him in the land of Canaan.
{36:6} Then Esau took his wives, and sons, and daughters, and every soul of his house, and his substance, and cattle, and whatever he was able to obtain in the land of Canaan, and he went into another region, withdrawing from his brother Jacob.
{36:7} For they were very wealthy and were not able to live together. Neither was the land of their sojourn able to sustain them, because of the multitude of their flocks.
{36:8} And Esau lived at mount Seir: he is Edom.
{36:9} So these are the generations of Esau, the father of Edom, at mount Seir,
{36:10} and these are the names of his sons: Eliphaz the son of Adah, the wife of Esau, likewise Reuel, the son of Basemath, his wife.
{36:11} And Eliphaz had sons: Teman, Omar, Zepho, and Gatam, and Kenez.
{36:12} Now Timna was the concubine of Eliphaz, the son of Esau. And she bore him Amalek. These are the sons of Adah, the wife of Esau.
{36:13} And the sons of Reuel were Nahath and Zerah, Shammah and Mizzah. These are the sons of Basemath, the wife of Esau.
{36:14} Likewise, these were the sons of Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah, the daughter of Zibeon, the wife of Esau, whom she bore to him: Jeush, and Jalam, and Korah.
{36:15} These were leaders of the sons of Esau, the sons of Eliphaz, the firstborn of Esau: leader Teman, leader Omar, leader Zepho, leader Kenez,
{36:16} leader Korah, leader Gatam, leader Amalek. These are the sons of Eliphaz, in the land of Edom, and these the sons of Adah.
{36:17} Likewise, these are the sons of Reuel, the son of Esau: leader Nahath, leader Zerah, leader Shammah, leader Mizzah. And these were the leaders of Reuel, in the land of Edom. These are the sons of Basemath, the wife of Esau.
{36:18} Now these are the sons of Oholibamah, the wife of Esau: leader Jeush, leader Jalam, leader Korah. These were the leaders of Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah and the wife of Esau.
{36:19} These are the sons of Esau, and these were their leaders: this is Edom.
{36:20} These are the sons of Seir, the Horite, the inhabitants of the land: Lotan, and Shobal, and Zibeon, and Anah,
{36:21} and Dishon, and Ezer, and Dishan. These were the leaders of the Horites, the sons of Seir, in the land of Edom.
{36:22} Now Lotan produced sons: Hori and Heman. But the sister of Lotan was Timna.
{36:23} And these are the sons of Shobal: Alvan, and Manahath, and Ebal, and Shepho, and Onam.
{36:24} And these are the sons of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah. This is the Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness, when he was pasturing the donkeys of his father Zibeon.
{36:25} And he had a son Dishon, and a daughter Oholibamah.
{36:26} And these are the sons of Dishon: Hemdan, and Esheban, and Ithran, and Cheran.
{36:27} Likewise, these are the sons of Ezer: Bilhan, and Zaavan, and Akan.
{36:28} Then Dishan had sons: Uz and Aran.
{36:29} These were the leaders of the Horites: leader Lotan, leader Shobal, leader Zibeon, leader Anah,
{36:30} leader Dishon, leader Ezer, leader Disan. These were leaders of the Horites who ruled in the land of Seir.
{36:31} Now before the sons of Israel had a king, the kings who ruled in the land of Edom were these:
{36:32} Bela the son of Beor, and the name of his city was Dinhabah.
{36:33} Then Bela died, and Jobab, the son of Zerah from Bozrah, reigned in his place.
{36:34} And when Jobab was dead, Husham of the land of the Temanites reigned in his place.
{36:35} Likewise, this one having died, Hadad the son of Bedad reigned in his place. He struck down Midian in the region of Moab. And the name of his city was Avith.
{36:36} And when Adad was dead, Samlah of Masrekah reigned in his place.
{36:37} Likewise, this one being dead, Shaul of the river Rehoboth, reigned in his place.
{36:38} And when he also had passed away, Baal-hanan, the son of Achbor, succeeded to the kingdom.
{36:39} Likewise, this one being dead, Hadar reigned in his place; and the name of his city was Pau. And his wife was called Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, daughter of Mezahab.
{36:40} Therefore, these were the names of the leaders of Esau, by their families, and places, and in their vocabulary: leader Timna, leader Alvah, leader Jetheth,
{36:41} leader Oholibamah, leader Elah, leader Pinon,
{36:42} leader Kanez, leader Teman, leader Mibzar,
{36:43} leader Magdiel, leader Iram. These were the leaders of Edom living in the land of their rule: this is Esau, the father of Idumea.
{37:1} Now Jacob lived in the land of Canaan, where his father sojourned.
{37:2} And these are his generations. Joseph, when he was sixteen years old, was pasturing the flock with his brothers, when he was still a boy. And he was with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, the wives of his father. And he accused his brothers to their father of a most sinful crime.
{37:3} Now Israel loved Joseph above all his sons, because he had conceived him in his old age. And he made him a tunic, woven of many colors.
{37:4} Then his brothers, seeing that he was loved by his father more than all his other sons, hated him, and they were not able to say anything peacefully to him.
{37:5} Then it also happened that he recounted the vision of a dream to his brothers, for which reason a greater hatred began to be nurtured.
{37:6} And he said to them, “Listen to my dream that I saw.
{37:7} I thought we were binding sheaves in the field. And my sheaf seemed to rise up and stand, and your sheaves, standing in a circle, reverenced my sheaf.”
{37:8} His brothers responded: “Would you be our king? Or will we be subject to your dominion?” Therefore, this matter of his dreams and words provided kindling to their envy and hatred.
{37:9} Likewise, he saw another dream, which he explained to his brothers, saying, “I saw by a dream, as if the sun, and the moon, and eleven stars were reverencing me.”
{37:10} And when he had related this to his father and brothers, his father rebuked him, and he said: “What does it mean to you, this dream that you have seen? Should I, and your mother, and your brothers reverence you upon the earth?”
{37:11} Therefore, his brothers were envious of him. Yet truly, his father considered the matter silently.
{37:12} And while his brothers were lodging at Shechem, pasturing their father’s flocks,
{37:13} Israel said to him: “Your brothers are pasturing the sheep at Shechem. Come, I will send you to them.” And when he answered,
{37:14} “I am ready,” he said to him, “Go, and see if everything is prospering with your brothers and the cattle, and report to me what is happening.” So, having been sent from the valley of Hebron, he arrived at Shechem.
{37:15} And a man found him wandering in a field, and he asked him what he was seeking.
{37:16} So he responded: “I seek my brothers. Tell me where they pasture the flocks.”
{37:17} And the man said to him: “They have withdrawn from this place. But I heard them saying, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’ ” Therefore, Joseph continued on after his brothers, and he found them at Dothan.
{37:18} And, when they had seen him from afar, before he approached them, they decided to kill him.
{37:19} And they said one to another: “Behold, the dreamer approaches.
{37:20} Come, let us kill him and cast him into the old cistern. And let us say: ‘an evil wild beast has devoured him.’ And then it will become apparent what his dreams will do for him.”
{37:21} But Reuben, on hearing this, strove to free him from their hands, and he said:
{37:22} “Do not take away his life, nor shed blood. But throw him into this cistern, which is in the wilderness, and so keep your hands harmless.” But he said this, wanting to rescue him from their hands, so as to return him to his father.
{37:23} And so, as soon as he came to his brothers, they very quickly stripped him of his tunic, which was ankle-length and woven of many colors,
{37:24} and they cast him into an old cistern, which held no water.
{37:25} And sitting down to eat bread, they saw some Ishmaelites, travelers coming from Gilead, with their camels, carrying spices, and resin, and oil of myrrh into Egypt.
{37:26} Therefore, Judah said to his brothers: “What will it profit us, if we kill our brother and conceal his blood?
{37:27} It is better that he be sold to the Ishmaelites, and then our hands will not be defiled. For he is our brother and our flesh.” His brothers agreed to his words.
{37:28} And when the Midianite merchants were passing by, they drew him from the cistern, and they sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And these led him into Egypt.
{37:29} And Reuben, returning to the cistern, did not find the boy.
{37:30} And rending his garments, he went to his brothers and said, “The boy is not present, and so where shall I go?”
{37:31} Then they took his tunic, and they dipped it in the blood of a young goat, which they had killed,
{37:32} sending those who carried it to their father, and they said: “We found this. See whether it is the tunic of your son or not.”
{37:33} And when the father acknowledged it, he said: “It is the tunic of my son. An evil wild beast has eaten him; a beast has devoured Joseph.”
{37:34} And tearing his garments, he was clothed in haircloth, mourning his son for a long time.
{37:35} Then, when all of his sons gathered together to ease their father’s sorrow, he was not willing to accept consolation, but he said: “I will descend in mourning to my son in the underworld.” And while he persevered in weeping,
{37:36} the Midianites in Egypt sold Joseph to Potiphar, a eunuch of Pharaoh, instructor of the soldiers.
{38:1} About the same time, Judah, descending from his brothers, turned toward an Adullamite man, named Hirah.
{38:2} And he saw there the daughter of a man called Shua, of Canaan. And taking her as a wife, he entered to her.
{38:3} And she conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Er.
{38:4} And conceiving offspring again, having given birth to a son, she called him Onan.
{38:5} Likewise, she bore a third, whom she called Shelah, after whose birth, she ceased to bear any more.
{38:6} Then Judah gave a wife to his first born Er, whose name was Tamar.
{38:7} And it also happened that Er, the first born of Judah, was wicked in the sight of the Lord and was killed by him.
{38:8} Therefore, Judah said to his son Onan: “Enter to the wife of your brother, and associate with her, so that you may raise offspring to your brother.”
{38:9} He, knowing that the sons to be born would not be his, when he entered to the wife of his brother, he spilled his seed on the ground, lest children should be born in his brother’s name.
{38:10} And for this reason, the Lord struck him down, because he did a detestable thing.
{38:11} Because of this matter, Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Be a widow in your father’s house, until my son Shelah grows up.” For he was afraid, lest he also might die, just as his brothers did. She went away, and she lived in her father’s house.
{38:12} Then, after many days had passed, the daughter of Shua, the wife of Judah, died. And when he accepted consolation after his mourning, he went up to the shearers of his sheep at Timnah, he and Hirah, the herdsman of the Adullamite flock.
{38:13} And it was reported to Tamar that her father-in-law had gone up to Timnah to shear the sheep.
{38:14} And storing away the garments of her widowhood, she took up a veil. And changing her clothing, she sat at the crossroad that leads to Timnah, because Shelah had grown up, and she had not received him as a husband.
{38:15} And when Judah saw her, he thought her to be a harlot. For she had covered her face, lest she be recognized.
{38:16} And entering to her, he said, “Permit me to join with you.” For he did not know her to be his daughter-in-law. And she responded, “What will you give to me, to enjoy me as a concubine?”
{38:17} He said, “I will send you a young goat from the flock.” And again, she said, “I will allow what you want, if you give me a pledge, until you may send what you promise.”
{38:18} Judah said, “What do you want to be given for a pledge?” She responded, “Your ring and bracelet, and the staff that you hold in your hand.” Thereupon, the woman, from one sexual encounter, conceived.
{38:19} And she arose and went away. And storing away the garments that she had taken up, she was clothed in the garments of her widowhood.
{38:20} Then Judah sent a young goat by his shepherd, the Adullamite, so that he might receive the pledge that he had given to the woman. But, when he had not found her,
{38:21} he questioned the men of that place: “Where is the woman who sat at the crossroad?” And they all responded, “There has been no harlot in this place.”
{38:22} He returned to Judah, and he said to him: “I did not find her. Moreover, the men of that place told me that a prostitute had never sat there.”
{38:23} Judah said: “Let her hold herself to blame. Certainly, she is not able to accuse us of a lie. I sent the young goat that I had promised, and you did not find her.”
{38:24} And behold, after three months, they reported to Judah, saying, “Tamar, your daughter-in-law, has committed fornication and her abdomen appears to be enlarged.” And Judah said, “Produce her, so that she may be burned.”
{38:25} But when she was led out to the punishment, she sent to her father-in-law, saying: “I conceived by the man to whom these things belong. Recognize whose ring, and bracelet, and staff this is.”
{38:26} But he, acknowledging the gifts, said: “She is more just than I am. For I did not deliver her to my son Shelah.” However, he knew her no more.
{38:27} Then, at the moment of birth, there appeared twins in the womb. And so, in the very delivery of the infants, one put forth a hand, on which the midwife tied a scarlet thread, saying,
{38:28} “This one will go out first.”
{38:29} But in truth, drawing back his hand, the other came out. And the woman said, “Why is the partition divided for you?” And for this reason, she called his name Perez.
{38:30} After this, his brother came out, on whose hand was the scarlet thread. And she called him Zerah.
{39:1} Meanwhile, Joseph was led into Egypt. And Putiphar, a eunuch of Pharaoh, a leader of the army, an Egyptian man, purchased him from the hand of the Ishmaelites, by whom he was brought.
{39:2} And the Lord was with him, and he was a man who prospered in everything that he did. And he lived in the house of his lord,
{39:3} who knew very well that the Lord was with him, and that all the things that were done by him were directed by his hand.
{39:4} And Joseph found favor in the sight of his lord, and he ministered to him. And, having been placed in charge of everything by him, he governed the house that was entrusted to him and all the things that had been delivered to him.
{39:5} And the Lord blessed the house of the Egyptian, because of Joseph, and he multiplied all his substance, as much in the buildings, as in the fields.
{39:6} Neither did he know anything other than the bread that he ate. Now Joseph was beautiful in form, and stately in appearance.
{39:7} And so, after many days, his mistress cast her eyes on Joseph, and she said, “Sleep with me.”
{39:8} And without consenting at all to the wicked act, he said to her: “Behold, my lord has delivered all things to me, and he does not know what he has in his own house.
{39:9} Neither is there anything which is not in my power, or that he has not delivered to me, except you, for you are his wife. How then can I do this evil act and sin against my God?”
{39:10} With such words as these, throughout each day, the woman was pestering the young man, and he was refusing the adultery.
{39:11} Then it happened, on a certain day, that Joseph entered the house, and he was doing something, without any witnesses.
{39:12} And she, grasping the hem of his garment, said, “Sleep with me.” But he, leaving behind the cloak in her hand, fled and went outside.
{39:13} And when the woman saw the garment in her hands and herself being treated with disrespect,
{39:14} she called to herself the men of her house, and she said to them: “Lo, he has brought in a Hebrew man to abuse us. He entered toward me, in order to join with me; and when I had shouted out,
{39:15} and he had heard my voice, he left behind the cloak that I held, and he fled outside.”
{39:16} As a proof, therefore, of her fidelity, she retained the cloak, and she showed it to her husband, when he returned home.
{39:17} And she said: “The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought in to me, approached me to abuse me.
{39:18} And when he had heard me cry out, he left behind the cloak that I held, and he fled outside.”
{39:19} His lord, upon hearing these things, and having excessive trust in the words of his mate, was very angry.
{39:20} And he delivered Joseph into prison, where the prisoners of the king were kept, and he was enclosed in that place.
{39:21} But the Lord was with Joseph, and, having mercy on him, he gave him favor in the sight of the leader of the prison,
{39:22} who delivered into his hand all the prisoners who were held in custody. And whatever was done, was under him.
{39:23} Neither did he himself know anything, having entrusted all things to him. For the Lord was with him, and he directed everything that he did.
{40:1} While these things were going on, it happened that two eunuchs, the cupbearer of the king of Egypt, and the miller of grain, offended their lord.
{40:2} And Pharaoh, being angry with them, (now the one was in charge of the cupbearers, the other of the millers of grain)
{40:3} sent them to the prison of the leader of the military, in which Joseph also was a prisoner.
{40:4} But the keeper of the prison delivered them to Joseph, who ministered to them also. Some little time passed by, while they were held in custody.
{40:5} And they both saw a similar dream on one night, whose interpretations should be related to one another.
{40:6} And when Joseph had entered to them in the morning, and had seen them sad,
{40:7} he consulted them, saying, “Why is your expression sadder today than usual?”
{40:8} They responded, “We have seen a dream, and there is no one to interpret it for us.” And Joseph said to them, “Doesn’t interpretation belong to God? Recount for me what you have seen.”
{40:9} The chief cupbearer explained his dream first. “I saw before me a vine,
{40:10} on which were three shoots, which grew little by little into buds, and, after the flowers, it matured into grapes.
{40:11} And the cup of Pharaoh was in my hand. Therefore, I took the grapes, and I pressed them into the cup that I held, and I handed the cup to Pharaoh.”
{40:12} Joseph responded: “This is the interpretation of the dream. The three shoots are the next three days,
{40:13} after which Pharaoh will remember your service, and he will restore you to your former position. And you will give him the cup according to your office, as you were accustomed to do before.
{40:14} Only remember me, when it will be well with you, and do me this mercy, to suggest to Pharaoh to lead me out of this prison.
{40:15} For I have been stolen from the land of the Hebrews, and here, innocently, I was cast into the pit.”
{40:16} The chief miller of grain, seeing that he had wisely unraveled the dream, said: “I also saw a dream: that I had three baskets of meal above my head,
{40:17} and in one basket, which was the highest, I carried all foods that are made by the art of baking, and the birds ate from it.”
{40:18} Joseph responded: “This is the interpretation of the dream. The three baskets are the next three days,
{40:19} after which Pharaoh will carry away your head, and also suspend you from a cross, and the birds will tear your flesh.”
{40:20} The third day thereafter was the birthday of Pharaoh. And making a great feast for his servants, he remembered, during the banquet, the chief cupbearer and the chief miller of grain.
{40:21} And he restored the one to his place, to present him the cup;
{40:22} the other he hanged on a gallows, and thus the truth of the interpreter of dreams was proven.
{40:23} And although he advanced with so much prosperity, the chief cupbearer forgot his interpreter of dreams.
{41:1} After two years, Pharaoh saw a dream. He thought himself to be standing above a river,
{41:2} from which ascended seven cows, exceedingly beautiful and stout. And they pastured in marshy places.
{41:3} Likewise, another seven emerged from the river, filthy and thoroughly emaciated. And they pastured on the same bank of the river, in green places.
{41:4} And they devoured those whose appearance and condition of body was so wonderful. Pharaoh, having been awakened,
{41:5} slept again, and he saw another dream. Seven ears of grain sprung up on one stalk, full and well-formed.
{41:6} Likewise, other ears of grain, of the same number, rose up, thin and struck with blight,
{41:7} devouring all the beauty of the first. Pharaoh, when he awakened after his rest,
{41:8} and when morning arrived, being terrified with fear, sent to all the interpreters of Egypt and to all of the wise men. And when they were summoned, he explained to them his dream; but there was no one who could interpret it.
{41:9} Then at last the chief cupbearer, remembering, said, “I confess my sin.
{41:10} The king, being angry with his servants, ordered me and the chief miller of grain to be forced into the prison of the leader of the military.
{41:11} There, in one night, both of us saw a dream presaging the future.
{41:12} In that place, there was a Hebrew, a servant of the same commander of the military, to whom we explained our dreams.
{41:13} Whatever we heard was proven afterwards by the event of the matter. For I was restored to my office, and he was suspended on a cross.”
{41:14} Immediately, by the king’s authority, Joseph was led out of prison, and they shaved him. And changing his apparel, they presented him to him.
{41:15} And he said to him, “I have seen dreams, and there is no one who can unfold them. I have heard that you are very wise at interpreting these.”
{41:16} Joseph responded, “Apart from me, God will respond favorably to Pharaoh.”
{41:17} Therefore, Pharaoh explained what he had seen: “I thought myself to be standing on the bank of a river,
{41:18} and seven cows climbed up from the river, exceedingly beautiful and full of flesh. And they grazed in a pasture of a marshy greenery.
{41:19} And behold, there followed after these, another seven cows, with such deformity and emaciation as I had never seen in the land of Egypt.
{41:20} These devoured and consumed the first,
{41:21} giving no indication of being full. But they remained in the same state of emaciation and squalor. Awakening, but being weighed down into sleep again,
{41:22} I saw a dream. Seven ears of grain sprang up on one stalk, full and very beautiful.
{41:23} Likewise, another seven, thin and struck with blight, rose up from the stalk.
{41:24} And they devoured the beauty of the first. I explained this dream to the interpreters, and there is no one who can unfold it.”
{41:25} Joseph responded: “The dream of the king is one. What God will do, he has revealed to Pharaoh.
{41:26} The seven beautiful cows, and the seven full ears of grain, are seven years of abundance. And so the force of the dreams is understood to be the same.
{41:27} Likewise, the seven thin and emaciated cows, which ascended after them, and the seven thin ears of grain, which were struck with the burning wind, are seven approaching years of famine.
{41:28} These will be fulfilled in this order.
{41:29} Behold, there will arrive seven years of great fertility throughout the entire land of Egypt.
{41:30} After this, there will follow another seven years, of such great barrenness that all the former abundance will be delivered into oblivion. For the famine will consume all the land,
{41:31} and the greatness of this destitution will cause the greatness of the abundance to be lost.
{41:32} Now, as to what you saw the second time, it is a dream pertaining to the same thing. It is an indication of its firmness, because the word of God shall be done, and it shall be completed swiftly.
{41:33} Now therefore, let the king provide a wise and industrious man, and place him over the land of Egypt,
{41:34} so that he may appoint overseers throughout all the regions. And let a fifth part of the fruits, throughout the seven fertile years
{41:35} that now have already begun to occur, be gathered into storehouses. And let all the grain be stored away, under the power of Pharaoh, and let it be kept in the cities.
{41:36} And let it be prepared for the future famine of seven years, which will oppress Egypt, and then the land will not be consumed by destitution.”
{41:37} The counsel pleased Pharaoh and all his ministers.
{41:38} And he said to them, “Would we be able to find another such man, who is full of the Spirit of God?”
{41:39} Therefore, he said to Joseph: “Because God has revealed to you all that you have said, would I be able to find anyone wiser and as much like you?
{41:40} You will be over my house, and to the authority of your mouth, all the people will show obedience. Only in one way, in the throne of the kingdom, will I go before you.”
{41:41} And again, Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Behold, I have appointed you over the entire land of Egypt.”
{41:42} And he took the ring from his own hand, and he gave it into his hand. And he clothed him with a robe of fine linen, and he placed a necklace of gold around his neck.
{41:43} And he caused him to ascend upon his second swift chariot, with the herald proclaiming that everyone should bend their knee before him, and that they should know that he was governor over the entire land of Egypt.
{41:44} Likewise, the king said to Joseph: “I am Pharaoh: apart from your authority, no one will move hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.”
{41:45} And he changed his name and called him, in the Egyptian tongue: ‘Savior of the world.’ And he gave him as a wife, Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of Heliopolis. And so Joseph went out into the land of Egypt.
{41:46} (Now he was thirty years old when he stood in the sight of king Pharaoh.) And he traveled throughout the regions of Egypt.
{41:47} And the fertility of the seven years arrived. And when the grain fields were reduced to sheaves, these were gathered into the storehouses of Egypt.
{41:48} And now all the abundance of grain was stored away in every city.
{41:49} And there was such a great abundance of wheat that it was comparable to the sands of the sea, and its bounty exceeded all measure.
{41:50} Then, before the famine arrived, Joseph had two sons born, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of Heliopolis, bore for him.
{41:51} And he called the name of the firstborn Manasseh, saying, “God has caused me to forget all my labors and the house of my father.”
{41:52} Likewise, he named the second Ephraim, saying, “God has caused me to increase in the land of my poverty.”
{41:53} And so, when the seven years of fertility that occurred in Egypt had passed,
{41:54} the seven years of destitution, which Joseph had predicted, began to arrive. And the famine prevailed throughout the whole world, but there was bread in all the land of Egypt.
{41:55} And being hungry, the people cried out to Pharaoh, asking for provisions. And he said to them: “Go to Joseph. And do whatever he will tell you.”
{41:56} Then the famine increased daily in all the land. And Joseph opened all of the storehouses and sold to the Egyptians. For the famine had oppressed them also.
{41:57} And all the provinces came to Egypt, to buy food and to temper the misfortune of their destitution.
{42:1} Then Jacob, hearing that food was being sold in Egypt, said to his sons: “Why are you negligent?
{42:2} I have heard that wheat is being sold in Egypt. Go down and buy necessities for us, so that we may be able to live, and not be consumed by destitution.”
{42:3} And so, when ten brothers of Joseph went down to buy grain in Egypt,
{42:4} Benjamin was kept at home by Jacob, who said to his brothers, “Lest perhaps he may suffer harm on the journey.”
{42:5} And they entered into the land of Egypt with the others who traveled to buy. For the famine was in the land of Canaan.
{42:6} And Joseph was governor in the land of Egypt, and grain was sold under his direction to the people. And when his brothers had reverenced him
{42:7} and he had recognized them, he spoke harshly, as if to foreigners, questioning them: “Where did you come from?” And they responded, “From the land of Canaan, to buy necessary provisions.”
{42:8} And although he knew his brothers, he was not known by them.
{42:9} And remembering the dreams, which he had seen in another time, he said to them: “You are scouts. You have come in order to see which parts of the land are weaker.”
{42:10} And they said: “It is not so, my lord. But your servants have arrived in order to buy food.
{42:11} We are all sons of one man. We have come in peace, nor do any of your subjects devise evil.”
{42:12} And he answered them: “It is otherwise. You have come to examine the unguarded parts of this land.”
{42:13} But they said: “We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan. The youngest is with our father; the other is not living.”
{42:14} He said: “This is just as I have said. You are scouts.
{42:15} I will now continue to put you to the test. By the health of Pharaoh, you will not depart from here, until your youngest brother arrives.
{42:16} Send one of you and bring him. But you will be in chains, until what you have said is proven to be either true or false. Otherwise, by the health of Pharaoh, you are scouts.”
{42:17} Therefore, he delivered them into custody for three days.
{42:18} Then, on the third day, he brought them out of prison, and he said: “Do as I have said, and you will live. For I fear God.
{42:19} If you are peaceful, let one of your brothers be bound in prison. Then you may go away and carry the grain that you have bought to your houses.
{42:20} And bring your youngest brother to me, so that I may be able to test your words, and you may not die.” They did as he had said,
{42:21} and they spoke to one another: “We deserve to suffer these things, because we have sinned against our brother, seeing the anguish of his soul, when he begged us and we would not listen. For that reason, this tribulation has come upon us.”
{42:22} And Reuben, one of them, said: “Did not I say to you, ‘Do not sin against the boy,’ and you would not listen to me? See, his blood is exacted.”
{42:23} But they did not know that Joseph understood, because he was speaking to them through an interpreter.
{42:24} And he turned himself away briefly and wept. And returning, he spoke to them.
{42:25} And taking Simeon, and binding him in their presence, he ordered his ministers to fill their sacks with wheat, and to replace each one’s money in their sacks, and to give them, in addition, provisions for the way. And they did so.
{42:26} Then, having loaded their donkeys with the grain, they set out.
{42:27} And one of them, opening a sack to give his beast of burden fodder at the inn, looked upon the money at the sack’s mouth,
{42:28} and he said to his brothers: “My money has returned to me. See, it is held in the sack.” And they were astonished and troubled, and they said to one another, “What is this that God has done to us?”
{42:29} And they went to their father Jacob in the land of Canaan, and they explained to him all the things that had befallen them, saying:
{42:30} “The lord of the land spoke harshly to us, and he considered us to be scouts of the province.
{42:31} And we answered him: ‘We are peaceful, and we do not intend any treachery.
{42:32} We are twelve brothers conceived of one father. One is not living; the youngest is with our father in the land of Canaan.’
{42:33} And he said to us: ‘Thus will I prove that you are peaceful. Release one of your brothers to me, and take necessary provisions for your houses, and go away,
{42:34} and bring your youngest brother to me, so that I may know that you are not scouts. And this one, who is held in chains, you may be able to receive again. And thereafter, you shall have permission to buy what you want.’ ”
{42:35} Having said this, when they poured out their grain, each found his money tied to the mouth of his sack. And all were terrified together.
{42:36} Their father Jacob said, “You have caused me to be without children. Joseph is not living, Simeon is held in chains, and Benjamin you would carry away. All these evils have fallen back upon me.”
{42:37} And Reuben answered him, “Put my two sons to death, if I do not lead him back to you. Deliver him into my hand, and I will restore him to you.”
{42:38} But he said: “My son will not go down with you. His brother is dead, and he is left alone. If any adversity will befall him in the land to which you travel, you would lead my grey hairs down with sorrow to the grave.”
{43:1} Meanwhile, the famine pressed heavily on all the land.
{43:2} And having consumed the provisions that they had brought out of Egypt, Jacob said to his sons, “Return and buy us a little food.”
{43:3} Judah answered: “The man himself declared to us, under the attestation of an oath, saying: ‘You will not see my face, unless you bring your youngest brother with you.’
{43:4} If therefore you are willing to send him with us, we will travel together, and we will buy necessities for you.
{43:5} But if you are not willing, we will not go. For the man, as we have often said, declared to us, saying: ‘You will not see my face without your youngest brother.’ ”
{43:6} Israel said to them, “You have done this for my misery, in that you revealed to him that you also had another brother.”
{43:7} But they responded: “The man questioned us in order, concerning our family: whether our father lived, if we had a brother. And we answered him respectively, according to what he demanded. How could we know that he would say, ‘Bring your brother with you?’ ”
{43:8} Likewise, Judah said to his father: “Send the boy with me, so that we may set out and be able to live, lest we and our little ones should die.
{43:9} I accept the boy; require him at my hand. Unless I lead him back and restore him to you, I will be guilty of a sin against you for all time.
{43:10} If a delay had not intervened, by now we would have returned here a second time.”
{43:11} Therefore, their father Israel said to them: “If it is necessary to do so, then do what you will. Take, in your vessels, from the best fruits of the land, and carry down gifts to the man: a little resin, and honey, and storax ointment, oil of myrrh, turpentine, and almonds.
{43:12} Also, take with you double the money, and carry back what you found in your sacks, lest perhaps it was done in error.
{43:13} But also take your brother, and go to the man.
{43:14} Then may my Almighty God cause him to be pleased by you. And send your brother, whom he holds, back with you, along with this one, Benjamin. But as for me, without my children, I will be like one who is bereaved.”
{43:15} Therefore, the men took the gifts, and double the money, and Benjamin. And they went down into Egypt, and they stood in the presence of Joseph.
{43:16} And when he had seen them and Benjamin together, he instructed the steward of his house, saying: “Lead the men into the house, and kill victims, and prepare a feast, because they will be eating with me at midday.”
{43:17} He did what he had been ordered to do, and he brought the men into the house.
{43:18} And there, being terrified, they said one to another: “Because of the money, which we carried back the first time in our sacks, we have been brought in, so that he may unleash a false accusation against us, and by violence subjugate both us and our donkeys into servitude.”
{43:19} For this reason, approaching the steward of the house at his door,
{43:20} they said: “We beg you, lord, to hear us. We came down once before to buy food.
{43:21} And having bought it, when we arrived at the inn, we opened our sacks and found the money in the mouths of the sacks, which we now have carried back in the same amount.
{43:22} But we have also brought other silver, so that we may buy those things that are necessary for us. It is not on our conscience who had placed it in our bags.”
{43:23} But he responded: “Peace be with you. Do not be afraid. Your God, and the God of your father, has given you the treasure in your sacks. As for the money that you gave to me, I held it as a test.” And he led Simeon out to them.
{43:24} And having led them into the house, he brought water, and they washed their feet, and he gave fodder to their donkeys.
{43:25} But they also prepared the gifts, until Joseph entered at midday. For they had heard that they would eat bread there.
{43:26} And so Joseph entered his house, and they offered him the gifts, holding them in their hands. And they reverenced prone on the ground.
{43:27} But he, gently greeting them again, questioned them, saying: “Is your father, the old man about whom you spoke to me, in good health? Is he still alive?”
{43:28} And they answered: “Your servant, our father, is safe; he is still alive.” And bowing, they reverenced him.
{43:29} Then Joseph, lifting up his eyes, saw Benjamin, his brother of the same womb, and he said, “Is this your little brother, about whom you spoke to me?” And again, he said, “May God be compassionate to you, my son.”
{43:30} And he hurried out, because his heart had been moved over his brother, and tears gushed out. And going into his chamber, he wept.
{43:31} And when he had washed his face, coming out again, he composed himself, and he said, “Set out bread.”
{43:32} And when it was set out, separately for Joseph, and separately for his brothers, likewise separately for the Egyptians, who ate at the same time, (for it is unlawful for Egyptians to eat with Hebrews, and they consider feasting in this way to be profane)
{43:33} they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his state of life. And they wondered exceedingly,
{43:34} taking the portions that they received from him. And the greater portion went to Benjamin, so much so that it exceeded five parts. And they drank and became inebriated along with him.
{44:1} Then Joseph instructed the steward of his house, saying: “Fill their sacks with grain, as much as they are able to hold. And place each one’s money at the top of the sack.
{44:2} But place my silver bowl, and the price that he gave for the wheat, in the mouth of the sack of the youngest.” And so it was done.
{44:3} And when morning arose, they were sent away with their donkeys.
{44:4} And now they had departed from the city and had set out a short distance. Then Joseph, sending for the steward of his house, said: “Rise up and pursue the men. And when you have overtaken them, say: ‘Why have you returned evil for good?
{44:5} The cup that you have stolen, it is that from which my lord drinks, and in which he is accustomed to discern signs. You have done a very sinful thing.’ ”
{44:6} He did as he had been ordered. And having overtaken them, he spoke to them according to the order.
{44:7} And they responded: “Why does our lord speak in this way, as though your servants had committed such a shameful act?
{44:8} The money, which we found at the top of our sacks, we carried back to you from the land of Canaan. So in what way does it follow that we would steal, from the house of your lord, gold or silver?
{44:9} Whichever of your servants will be found to have what you seek, may he die, and we shall be the servants of my lord.”
{44:10} And he said to them: “Let it be according to your verdict. With whomever it will be found, let him be my servant, but you will be unharmed.”
{44:11} And so, they quickly placed their sacks down to the ground, and each one was opened.
{44:12} And when he had searched, beginning with the oldest, all the way to the youngest, he found the cup in Benjamin’s sack.
{44:13} But they, tearing their garments and burdening their donkeys again, returned to the town.
{44:14} And Judah, first among his brothers, entered to Joseph (for he had not yet departed from the place) and together they all fell down before him to the ground.
{44:15} And he said to them: “Why would you choose to act in this way? Could you be ignorant that there is no one like me in the knowledge of discerning signs?”
{44:16} And Judah said to him, “What could we answer to my lord? And what would we be able to say, or to justly claim? God has discovered the iniquity of your servants. See, we have all become servants to my lord, both we, and he with whom the cup was found.”
{44:17} Joseph responded: “Far be it from me that I should act in this way. He who stole the cup, he will be my servant. But you may go away free to your father.”
{44:18} Then Judah, approaching closer, said confidently: “I beg you, my lord, let your servant speak a word in your ears, and do not be angry with your servant. For you are next to Pharaoh.
{44:19} My lord, you questioned your servants before: ‘Do you have a father or a brother?’
{44:20} And we answered you, my lord: ‘There is our father, an old man, and a young boy, who was born in his old age. His brother of the same womb has died, and he alone is left to his mother and father, who truly love him tenderly.’
{44:21} And you said to your servants, ‘Bring him to me, and I will set my eyes on him.’
{44:22} We suggested to my lord: ‘The boy is not able to leave his father. For if he sends him away, he will die.’
{44:23} And you said to your servants: ‘Unless your youngest brother arrives with you, you will not see my face any more.’
{44:24} Therefore, when we had gone up to your servant our father, we explained to him all that my lord had spoken.
{44:25} And our father said: ‘Return and buy us a little wheat.’
{44:26} And we said to him: ‘We cannot go. If our youngest brother descends with us, we will set out together. Otherwise, in his absence, we do not dare to see the face of the man.’
{44:27} To which he responded: ‘You know that my wife conceived twice by me.
{44:28} One went out, and you said, “A beast devoured him.” And since then, he has not appeared.
{44:29} If you take this one also, and anything happens to him on the way, you will lead my grey hairs down with grief to the grave.’
{44:30} Therefore, if I would have gone to your servant, our father, with the boy not present, (though his life depends upon the life of him)
{44:31} and if he were to see that he is not with us, he would die, and your servants will lead his grey hairs down with sorrow to the grave.
{44:32} Let me be your very own servant, for I accepted this one into my trust, and I promised, saying: ‘Unless I lead him back, I will be guilty of a sin against my father for all time.’
{44:33} And so I, your servant, will remain in place of the boy, in ministry to my lord, and then let the boy go up with his brothers.
{44:34} For I cannot return to my father without the boy, lest I appear as a witness to the calamity that will oppress my father.”
{45:1} Joseph was unable to restrain himself any longer, standing before so many. Therefore, he instructed that all should go outside, and that no stranger should be among them as they recognized one another.
{45:2} And he lifted up his voice with weeping, which the Egyptians heard, along with the entire house of Pharaoh.
{45:3} And he said to his brothers: “I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?” His brothers were unable to respond, being terrified by a very great fear.
{45:4} And he said to them mildly, “Approach toward me.” And when they had approached close by, he said: “I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into Egypt.
{45:5} Do not be afraid, and let it not seem to you to be a hardship that you sold me into these regions. For God sent me before you into Egypt for your salvation.
{45:6} For it is two years since the famine began to be upon the land, and five years more remain, in which there can be neither plowing, nor reaping.
{45:7} And God sent me ahead, so that you may be preserved upon the earth, and so that you would be able to have food in order to live.
{45:8} I was sent here, not by your counsel, but by the will of God. He has caused me to be like a father to Pharaoh, and to be the lord of his entire house, as well as governor throughout all the land of Egypt.
{45:9} Hurry, and go up to my father, and say to him: ‘Your son Joseph commands this: God has caused me to be lord of the entire land of Egypt. Come down to me, do not delay,
{45:10} and you will live in the land of Goshen. And you will be next to me, you and your sons and the sons of your sons, your sheep and your herds, and all that you possess.
{45:11} And there I will pasture you, (for there are still five years of famine remaining) lest both you and your house perish, along with all that you possess.’
{45:12} Behold, your eyes and the eyes of my brother Benjamin can see that it is my mouth speaking to you.
{45:13} You will report to my father about all my glory, and about all that you have seen in Egypt. Hurry, and bring him to me.”
{45:14} And then falling upon the neck of his brother Benjamin, he embraced him and wept. And likewise, Benjamin wept at the same time on his neck.
{45:15} And Joseph kissed all his brothers, and he cried over each one. After this, they were emboldened to speak to him.
{45:16} And it was overheard, and the news spread by word throughout the king’s court. The brothers of Joseph had arrived, and Pharaoh was gladdened along with all his family.
{45:17} And he told Joseph that he should command his brothers, saying: “ ‘Burden your beasts, and go into the land of Canaan,
{45:18} and take from there your father and kindred, and come to me. And I will give you all the good things of Egypt, so that you may eat from the marrow of the land.’ ”
{45:19} “And you may even instruct that they take wagons from the land of Egypt, in order to transport their little ones as well as their wives. And say: ‘Take your father, and come quickly, as soon as possible.
{45:20} You need not give up anything from your household, for all the riches of Egypt will be yours.’ ”
{45:21} And the sons of Israel did just as they were commanded. And Joseph gave them wagons, according to the command of Pharaoh, and provisions for the journey.
{45:22} Likewise, he ordered two robes for each of them to be brought. Yet truly, to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver along with five of the best robes.
{45:23} And he sent just as much money and clothing to his father, adding also ten male donkeys, with which to transport all the riches of Egypt, and as many female donkeys, carrying wheat and bread for the journey.
{45:24} Thus he sent away his brothers, and as they set out he said, “Do not become angry on the way.”
{45:25} And they ascended out of Egypt, and they arrived in the land of Canaan, to their father Jacob.
{45:26} And they reported to him, saying: “Your son Joseph is alive, and he is ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. When Jacob heard this, he was stirred up, as if from a deep sleep, yet he did not believe them.
{45:27} To the contrary, they explained the entire matter in order. And when he had seen the wagons, and all that he had sent, his spirit revived,
{45:28} and he said: “It is enough for me, if my son Joseph is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”
{46:1} And Israel, setting out with all that he had, arrived at the Well of the Oath. And sacrificing victims there to the God of his father Isaac,
{46:2} he heard him, by a vision in the night, calling him, and saying to him: “Jacob, Jacob.” And he answered him, “Behold, here I am.”
{46:3} God said to him: “I am the most strong God of your father. Do not be afraid. Descend into Egypt, for there I will make of you a great nation.
{46:4} I will descend with you to that place, and I will lead you back from there, returning. Also, Joseph will place his hands over your eyes.
{46:5} Then Jacob rose up from the Well of the Oath. And his sons took him, with their little ones and wives, in the wagons that Pharaoh had sent to carry the old man,
{46:6} along with all that he possessed in the land of Canaan. And he arrived in Egypt with all his offspring:
{46:7} his sons and his grandsons, his daughters and all his progeny together.
{46:8} Now these are the names of the sons of Israel, who entered into Egypt, he with his children. The firstborn is Reuben.
{46:9} The sons of Reuben: Hanoch and Pallu, and Hezron and Carmi.
{46:10} The sons of Simeon: Jemuel and Jamin and Ohad, and Jachin and Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite woman.
{46:11} The sons of Levi: Gershon and Kohath, and Merari.
{46:12} The sons of Judah: Er and Onan, and Shelah, and Perez and Zerah. Now Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. And sons were born to Perez: Hezron and Hamul.
{46:13} The sons of Issachar: Tola and Puvah, and Job and Shimron.
{46:14} The sons of Zebulun: Sered and Elon and Jahleel.
{46:15} These are the sons of Leah, whom she bore, along with his daughter Dinah, in Mesopotamia of Syria. All the souls of her sons and daughters are thirty-three.
{46:16} The sons of Gad: Ziphion and Haggi, and Shuni and Ezbon, and Eri and Arodi, and Areli.
{46:17} The sons of Asher: Imnah and Jesua, and Jessui and Beriah, and also their sister Sarah. The sons of Beria: Heber and Malchiel.
{46:18} These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to his daughter Leah. And these she bore to Jacob: sixteen souls.
{46:19} The sons of Rachel, the wife of Jacob: Joseph and Benjamin.
{46:20} And sons were born to Joseph in the land of Egypt, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of Heliopolis, bore for him: Manasseh and Ephraim.
{46:21} The sons of Benjamin: Bela and Becher, and Ashbel and Gera, and Naaman and Ehi, and Rosh and Moppim, and Huppim and Ard.
{46:22} These are the sons of Rachel, whom she bore to Jacob: all these souls are fourteen.
{46:23} The sons of Dan: Hushim.
{46:24} The sons of Naphtali: Jahzeel and Guni, and Jezer and Shillem.
{46:25} These are the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban gave to his daughter Rachel, and these she bore to Jacob: all these souls are seven.
{46:26} All the souls who went into Egypt with Jacob and who went out from his thigh, besides the wives of his sons, were sixty-six.
{46:27} Now the sons of Joseph, who were born to him in the land of Egypt, were two souls. All the souls of the house of Jacob, who went into Egypt, were seventy.
{46:28} Then he sent Judah ahead of himself, to Joseph, in order to report to him, and so that he would meet him in Goshen.
{46:29} And when he had arrived there, Joseph harnessed his chariot, and he went up to meet his father at the same place. And seeing him, he fell upon his neck, and, amid embraces, he wept.
{46:30} And the father said to Joseph, “Now I will die happy, because I have seen your face, and I am leaving you behind alive.”
{46:31} And he said to his brothers and to all his father’s house: “I will go up and report to Pharaoh, and I will say to him: ‘My brothers, and my father’s house, who were in the land of Canaan, have come to me.
{46:32} And these honorable men are pastors of sheep, and they have the task of feeding the flock. Their cattle, and herds, and all that they were able to hold, they have brought with them.’
{46:33} And when he will call you and will say, ‘What is your work?’
{46:34} You will respond, ‘Your servants are pastors of honor, from our infancy even to the present time, both we and our fathers.’ Now you will say this so that you may be able to live in the land of Goshen, because the Egyptians detest all pastors of sheep.”
{47:1} And so Joseph entered and reported to Pharaoh, saying: “My father and brothers, their sheep and herds, and everything that they possess, have arrived from the land of Canaan. And behold, they stand together in the land of Goshen.”
{47:2} Likewise, he stood in the sight of the king five men, the last of his brothers.
{47:3} And he questioned them, “What do you have for work?” They responded: “Your servants are pastors of sheep, both we and our fathers.
{47:4} We came to sojourn in your land, because there is no grass for the flocks of your servants, the famine being very grievous in the land of Canaan. And we petition you that you may order us, your servants, to be in the land of Goshen.”
{47:5} And so the king said to Joseph: “Your father and brothers have come to you.
{47:6} The land of Egypt is in your sight. Cause them to live in the best place, and deliver to them the land of Goshen. And if you know there to be industrious men among them, appoint these as foremen over my cattle.”
{47:7} After this, Joseph brought in his father to the king, and he stood him in his sight. He blessed him,
{47:8} and he questioned him: “How many are the days of the years of your life?”
{47:9} He responded, “The days of my sojourn are one hundred and thirty years, few and unworthy, and they do not reach even to the days of the sojourning of my fathers.”
{47:10} And blessing the king, he went outside.
{47:11} Truly, Joseph gave his father and brothers a possession in Egypt, in the best place of the land, in Rameses, as Pharaoh had instructed.
{47:12} And he fed them, along with all his father’s house, providing portions of food to each one.
{47:13} For in the whole world there was a lack of bread, and a famine had oppressed the land, most of all Egypt and Canaan,
{47:14} from which he gathered together all the money for the grain that they bought, and he took it into the treasury of the king.
{47:15} And when the buyers had run out of money, all Egypt came to Joseph, saying: “Give us bread. Why should we die in your sight, lacking money?”
{47:16} And he responded to them: “Bring me your cattle, and I will give food to you in exchange for them, if you do not have money.”
{47:17} And when they had brought them, he gave them food for their horses, and sheep, and oxen, and donkeys. And he sustained them in that year in exchange for their cattle.
{47:18} Likewise, they came the second year, and they said to him: “We will not conceal from our lord that our money is gone; likewise our cattle are gone. Neither are you unaware that we have nothing left but our bodies and our land.
{47:19} Therefore, why should you watch us die? Both we and our land will be yours. Buy us into royal servitude, but provide seed, lest by the dying off of cultivators the land be reduced to a wilderness.”
{47:20} Therefore, Joseph bought all the land of Egypt, each one selling his possessions because of the magnitude of the famine. And he subjected it to Pharaoh,
{47:21} along with all of its people, from the newest borders of Egypt, even to its furthest limits,
{47:22} except the land of the priests, which had been delivered to them by the king. To these also a portion of food was supplied out of the public storehouses, and, for this reason, they were not compelled to sell their possessions.
{47:23} Therefore, Joseph said to the people: “So, as you discern, both you and your lands are possessed by Pharaoh; take seed and sow the fields,
{47:24} so that you may be able to have grain. One fifth part you will give to the king; the remaining four I permit to you, as seed and as food for your families and children.
{47:25} And they responded: “Our health is in your hand; only let our lord look kindly upon us, and we will serve the king with gladness.”
{47:26} From that time, even to the present day, in the entire land of Egypt, the fifth part is turned over to the kings, and it has become like a law, except in the land of the priests, which was free from this condition.
{47:27} And so, Israel lived in Egypt, that is, in the land of Goshen, and he possessed it. And he increased and was multiplied exceedingly.
{47:28} And he lived in it seventeen years. And all the days of his life that passed were one hundred and forty-seven years.
{47:29} And when he discerned that the day of his death was approaching, he called his son Joseph, and he said to him: “If I have found favor in your sight, place your hand under my thigh. And you shall show me mercy and truth, not to bury me in Egypt.
{47:30} But I shall sleep with my fathers, and you will carry me from this land and bury me in the sepulcher of my ancestors.” And Joseph answered him, “I will do what you have ordered.”
{47:31} And he said, “Then swear it to me.” And as he was swearing, Israel adored God, turning to the head of his resting place.
{48:1} After these things were done, it was reported to Joseph that his father was sick. And taking his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim, he went directly to him.
{48:2} And it was told to the old man, “Behold, your son Joseph is coming to you.” And being strengthened, he sat up in bed.
{48:3} And when he had entered to him, he said: “Almighty God appeared to me at Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, and he blessed me.
{48:4} And he said: ‘I will increase and multiply you, and I will make you influential among the people. And I will give this land to you, and to your offspring after you, as an everlasting possession.’
{48:5} Therefore, your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came here to you, will be mine. Ephraim and Manasseh will be treated by me just like Reuben and Simeon.
{48:6} But the remainder, whom you will conceive after them, will be yours, and they will be called by the name of their brothers among their possessions.
{48:7} As for me, when I came from Mesopotamia, Rachel died in the land of Canaan on the very journey, and it was springtime. And I entered Ephrath and buried her next to the way of Ephrath, which by another name is called Bethlehem.”
{48:8} Then, seeing his sons, he said to him: “Who are these?”
{48:9} He responded, “They are my sons, whom God gave to me as a gift in this place.” “Bring them to me,” he said, “so that I may bless them.”
{48:10} For Israel’s eyes were clouded by reason of his great age, and he was unable to see clearly. And when they were placed up against him, he kissed and embraced them.
{48:11} And he said to his son: “I have not been cheated out of seeing you. Moreover, God has shown me your offspring.”
{48:12} And when Joseph had taken them from his father’s lap, he reverenced prone on the ground.
{48:13} And he placed Ephraim on his right, that is, towards the left hand of Israel. Yet truly Manasseh was on his left, namely, towards his father’s right hand. And he placed them both up against him.
{48:14} And he, extending his right hand, placed it over the head of Ephraim, the younger brother, but the left hand was on the head of Manasseh, who was the elder, so that his hands were crossed.
{48:15} And Jacob blessed the sons of Joseph, and he said: “God, in whose sight my fathers, Abraham and Isaac, walked; God, who pastured me from my youth until the present day;
{48:16} the Angel, who rescues me from all evils: bless these boys. And let my name be invoked over them, and also the names of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac. And may they increase into a multitude across the earth.”
{48:17} But Joseph, seeing that his father had placed his right hand over the head of Ephraim, took it gravely. And grasping his father’s hand, he tried to lift it from Ephraim’s head and transfer it onto the head of Manasseh.
{48:18} And he said to his father: “It should not have come to pass this way, father. For this one is the firstborn. Place your right hand over his head.”
{48:19} But refusing, he said: “I know, my son, I know. And this one, indeed, will be among the people and will be multiplied. But his younger brother will be greater than he. And his offspring will increase among the nations.”
{48:20} And he blessed them at that time, saying: “In you, Israel will be blessed, and it will be said: ‘May God treat you like Ephraim, and like Manasseh.’ ” And he established Ephraim before Manasseh.
{48:21} And he said to his son Joseph: “See, I am dying, and God will be with you, and he will lead you back to the land of your fathers.
{48:22} I give you one part beyond that of your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow.”
{49:1} Then Jacob called his sons, and he said to them: “Gather together, so that I may announce what will happen to you in the last days.
{49:2} Gather together and listen, O sons of Jacob. Listen to Israel, your father.
{49:3} Reuben, my firstborn, you are my strength and the beginning of my sorrow: first in gifts, greater in authority.
{49:4} You are being poured out like water, may you not increase. For you climbed onto your father’s bed, and you defiled his resting place.
{49:5} The brothers Simeon and Levi: vessels of iniquity waging war.
{49:6} Let not my soul go by their counsel, nor my glory be within their meeting. For in their fury they killed a man, and in their self-will they undermined a wall.
{49:7} Cursed be their fury, because it was obstinate, and their indignation, because it was harsh. I will divide them in Jacob, and I will scatter them in Israel.
{49:8} Judah, your brothers will praise you. Your hand will be at the necks of your enemies; the sons of your father will reverence you.
{49:9} Judah is a lion’s young. You have gone up to the prey, my son. While resting, you have lain like a lion. And just like a lioness, who would rouse him?
{49:10} The scepter from Judah and the leader from his thigh will not be taken away, until he who will be sent arrives, and he will be the expectation of Gentiles.
{49:11} Tying his young colt to the vineyard, and his donkey, O my son, to the vine, he will wash his robe in wine, and his cloak in the blood of the grape.
{49:12} His eyes are more beautiful than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk.
{49:13} Zebulun will live at the seashore and by the outpost of ships, reaching as far as Sidon.
{49:14} Issachar will be a strong donkey, reclining between the borders.
{49:15} He saw that rest would be good, and that the land was excellent. And so he bent his shoulder to carry, and he became a servant under tribute.
{49:16} Dan will judge his people just like any other tribe in Israel.
{49:17} Let Dan be a snake in the way, a viper in the path, biting the hooves of horses, so that his rider may fall backward.
{49:18} I will wait for your salvation, O Lord.
{49:19} Gad, being girded, will fight before him. And he himself will be girded backward.
{49:20} Asher: his bread will be fat, and he will provide delicacies to the kings.
{49:21} Naphtali is a stag sent forth, offering words of eloquent beauty.
{49:22} Joseph is a growing son, a growing son and stately to behold; the daughters run back and forth on the wall.
{49:23} But those who held darts, provoked him, and they contend with him, and they envied him.
{49:24} His bow sits in strength, and the bands of his arms and hands have been let loose by the hands of the mighty one of Jacob. From there he went forth as a pastor, the stone of Israel.
{49:25} The God of your father will be your helper, and the Almighty will bless you with the blessings of heaven above, with the blessings of the abyss that lies beneath, with the blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
{49:26} The blessings of your father are strengthened by the blessings of his fathers, until the desire of the hills of eternity shall arrive. May they be at the head of Joseph, and at the summit of the Nazarite, among his brothers.
{49:27} Benjamin is a ravenous wolf, in the morning he will eat the prey, and in the evening he will divide the spoil.”
{49:28} All these are the twelve tribes of Israel. These things their father spoke to them, and he blessed each one with their proper blessings.
{49:29} And he instructed them, saying: “I am being gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the double cave, which is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,
{49:30} opposite Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought, along with its field, from Ephron the Hittite, as a possession for burial.
{49:31} There they buried him, with his wife Sarah.” And there Isaac was buried with his wife Rebekah. There also Leah lies preserved.
{49:32} And having finished these commands by which he instructed his sons, he drew his feet onto the bed, and he passed away. And he was gathered to his people.
{50:1} Joseph, realizing this, fell upon his father’s face, weeping and kissing him.
{50:2} And he instructed his servant physicians to embalm his father with aromatics.
{50:3} And while they were fulfilling his orders, forty days passed. For this was the method of embalming dead bodies. And Egypt wept for him for seventy days.
{50:4} And when the time for mourning was fulfilled, Joseph spoke to the family of Pharaoh: “If I have found favor in your sight, speak to the ears of Pharaoh.
{50:5} For my father made me swear, saying: ‘See, I am dying. You shall bury me in my sepulcher which I dug for myself in the land of Canaan.’ Therefore, I shall go up and bury my father, and then return.”
{50:6} And Pharaoh said to him, “Go up and bury your father, just as he made you swear.”
{50:7} So as he went up, all the elders of the house of Pharaoh went with him, along with every patriarch in the land of Egypt,
{50:8} and the house of Joseph with his brothers, except their little ones and flocks and also the herds, which they left behind in the land of Goshen.
{50:9} Likewise, he had in his company chariots and horsemen. And it became a crowd without restraint.
{50:10} And they arrived at the threshing place of Atad, which is situated beyond the Jordan. There they spent seven full days celebrating the funeral rites with a great and vehement lamentation.
{50:11} And when the inhabitants of the land of Canaan had seen this, they said, “This is a great Lamentation for the Egyptians.” And for this reason, the name of that place was called, “The Lamentation of Egypt.”
{50:12} And so, the sons of Jacob did just as he had instructed them.
{50:13} And carrying him into the land of Canaan, they buried him in the double cave, which Abraham had bought along with its field, from Ephron the Hittite, as a possession for burial, opposite Mamre.
{50:14} And Joseph returned into Egypt with his brothers and all those of his company, having buried his father.
{50:15} Now that he was dead, his brothers were afraid, and they said to one another: “Perhaps now he may remember the injury that he suffered and requite us for all the evil that we did to him.”
{50:16} So they sent a message to him, saying: “Your father instructed us before he died,
{50:17} that we should say these words to you from him: ‘I beg you to forget the wickedness of your brothers, and the sin and malice that they practiced against you.’ Likewise, we petition you to release the servants of the God of your father from this iniquity.” Hearing this, Joseph wept.
{50:18} And his brothers went to him. And reverencing prostrate on the ground, they said, “We are your servants.”
{50:19} And he answered them: “Do not be afraid. Are we able to resist the will of God?
{50:20} You devised evil against me. But God turned it into good, so that he might exalt me, just as you presently discern, and so that he might bring about the salvation of many peoples.
{50:21} Do not be afraid. I will pasture you and your little ones.” And he consoled them, and he spoke mildly and leniently.
{50:22} And he lived in Egypt with all his father’s house; and he survived for one hundred and ten years. And he saw the sons of Ephraim to the third generation. Likewise, the sons of Machir, the son of Manasseh, were born onto Joseph’s knees.
{50:23} After these things happened, he said to his brothers: “God will visit you after my death, and he will make you ascend from this land into the land which he swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”
{50:24} And when he had made them swear and had said, “God will visit you; carry my bones with you from this place,”
{50:25} he died, having completed one hundred and ten years of his life. And having been embalmed with aromatics, he was laid to rest in a coffin in Egypt.
{1:1} These are the names of the sons of Israel, who went into Egypt with Jacob. They entered, each one with his house:
{1:2} Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah,
{1:3} Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin,
{1:4} Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher.
{1:5} Therefore, all the souls of those who went forth from Jacob’s thigh were seventy. Now Joseph was in Egypt.
{1:6} When he had died, along with all of his brothers and all of that generation,
{1:7} the sons of Israel increased, and they multiplied like seedlings. And having been strengthened exceedingly, they filled the land.
{1:8} Meanwhile, there arose a new king over Egypt, who was ignorant of Joseph.
{1:9} And he said to his people: “Behold, the people of the sons of Israel are many, and they are stronger than we are.
{1:10} Come, let us wisely oppress them, lest they multiply; and if any war should advance against us, they may be added to our enemies, and having fought against us, they might depart from the land.”
{1:11} And so he set over them masters of the works, in order to afflict them with burdens. And they built for Pharaoh the cities of the tabernacles: Pithom and Raamses.
{1:12} And the more they oppressed them, so much more did they multiply and increase.
{1:13} And the Egyptians hated the sons of Israel, and they afflicted them and mocked them.
{1:14} And they led their life directly into bitterness, with hard work in clay and brick, and with all kinds of servitude, so that they were being overwhelmed with the works of the land.
{1:15} Then the king of Egypt spoke to the midwives of the Hebrews, (one of whom one was called Shiphrah, another Puah)
{1:16} instructing them: “When you will act as a midwife to the Hebrew women, and the time of delivery has arrived: if it is male, put it to death; if it is female, retain it.”
{1:17} But the midwives feared God, and so they did not act according to the precept of the king of Egypt, but they kept the males safe.
{1:18} And summoning them, the king said, “What did you intend to do, so that you would save the boys?”
{1:19} They responded: “The Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women. For they themselves have the wisdom of a midwife, and so they give birth before we can come to them.”
{1:20} Therefore, God acted favorably toward the midwives. And the people increased, and they were strengthened exceedingly.
{1:21} And because the midwives feared God, he built houses for them.
{1:22} Therefore, Pharaoh instructed all his people, saying: “Whatever will be born of the male sex, cast it into the river; whatever will be born of the female sex, retain it.”
{2:1} After these things, a man from the house of Levi went out, and he took a wife from his own stock.
{2:2} And she conceived and bore a son. And seeing him to be handsome, she hid him for three months.
{2:3} And when she was no longer able to hide him, she took a small basket woven of bulrushes, and she smeared it with pitch as well as tar. And she placed the little infant inside, and she laid him in the sedges by the bank of the river.
{2:4} His sister was standing at a distance and was wondering what would happen.
{2:5} Then, behold, the daughter of Pharaoh descended to wash in the river. And her maids walked along the edge of the cove. And when she had seen the small basket among the papyruses, she sent one of her servants for it. And when it was brought,
{2:6} she opened it; and realizing that within it was a little one crying, she took pity on him, and she said: “This is one of the infants of the Hebrews.”
{2:7} And the sister of the boy said to her: “If you wish, I will go and call to you a Hebrew woman, who will be able nurse the infant.”
{2:8} She responded, “Go.” The maid went directly and called her mother.
{2:9} And the daughter of Pharaoh said to her: “Take this boy and nurse him for me. I will give you your wages.” The woman took and nursed the boy. And when he was mature, she delivered him to the daughter of Pharaoh.
{2:10} And she adopted him in place of a son, and she called his name Moses, saying, “Because I took him from the water.”
{2:11} In those days, after Moses had grown up, he went out to his brothers. And he saw their affliction and an Egyptian man striking a certain one of the Hebrews, his brothers.
{2:12} And when he had looked around this way and that, and had seen no one nearby, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.
{2:13} And going out the next day, he spotted two Hebrews quarrelling violently. And he said to him who was causing the injury, “Why do you strike your neighbor?”
{2:14} But he responded: “Who appointed you as leader and judge over us? Do you want to kill me, just as yesterday you killed the Egyptian?” Moses was afraid, and he said, “How has this word become known?”
{2:15} And Pharaoh heard this talk, and he sought to kill Moses. But fleeing from his sight, he stayed in the land of Midian, and he sat down next to a well.
{2:16} Now there was a priest of Midian with seven daughters, who came to draw water. And having filled the troughs, they desired to water their father’s flocks.
{2:17} The shepherds overcame them and drove them away. And Moses rose up, and defending the girls, he watered their sheep.
{2:18} And when they had returned to their father, Reuel, he said to them, “Why have you arrived sooner than usual?”
{2:19} They responded: “A man of Egypt freed us from the hands of the shepherds. Moreover, he also drew water with us and gave the sheep to drink.”
{2:20} But he said: “Where is he? Why have you dismissed the man? Call him, so that he may eat bread.”
{2:21} Therefore, Moses swore that he would live with him. And he accepted his daughter Zipporah as a wife.
{2:22} And she bore a son to him, whom he called Gershom, saying, “I have been a newcomer in a foreign land.” In truth, she bore another, whom he called Eliezer, saying, “For the God of my father, my helper, has rescued me from the hand of Pharaoh.”
{2:23} In truth, after a long time, the king of Egypt was dead. And the sons of Israel, groaning, cried out because of the works. And their cry ascended to God from the works.
{2:24} And he heard their groaning, and he also remembered the covenant which he formed with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
{2:25} And the Lord looked with favor on the sons of Israel, and he knew them.
{3:1} Now Moses was pasturing the sheep of his father-in-law Jethro, a priest of Midian. And when he had driven the flock into the interior of the desert, he came to the mountain of God, Horeb.
{3:2} And the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. And he saw that the bush was burning and was not burnt.
{3:3} Therefore, Moses said, “I will go and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.”
{3:4} Then the Lord, discerning that he proceeded on to see it, called to him from the midst of the bush, and he said, “Moses, Moses.” And he responded, “Here I am.”
{3:5} And he said: “Lest you should approach here, remove the shoes from your feet. For the place on which you stand is holy ground.”
{3:6} And he said, “I am the God of your father: the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Moses hid his face, for he dared not look directly at God.
{3:7} And the Lord said to him: “I have seen the affliction of my people in Egypt, and I have heard their outcry because of the harshness of those who are over the works.
{3:8} And knowing their sorrow, I have descended in order to free them from the hands of the Egyptians, and to lead them from that land into a good and spacious land, into a land which flows with milk and honey, to the places of the Canaanite, and Hittite, and Amorite, and Perizzite, and Hivite, and Jebusite.
{3:9} And so, the outcry of the sons of Israel has come to me. And I have seen their affliction, with which they are oppressed by the Egyptians.
{3:10} But come, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may lead my people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt.”
{3:11} And Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should lead the sons of Israel out of Egypt?”
{3:12} And he said to him: “I will be with you. And you will have this as a sign that I have sent you: When you will have brought my people out of Egypt, you will offer sacrifice to God upon this mountain.”
{3:13} Moses said to God: “Behold, I will go to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ If they say to me, ‘What is his name?’ What shall I say to them?”
{3:14} God said to Moses, “I AM WHO AM.” He said: “Thus shall you say to the sons of Israel: ‘HE WHO IS has sent me to you.’ ”
{3:15} And God said again to Moses: “Thus shall you say to the sons of Israel: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is the name for me in eternity, and this is my memorial from generation to generation.
{3:16} Go and gather together the elders of Israel, and you shall say to them: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying: When visiting, I have visited you, and I have seen all that has befallen you in Egypt.
{3:17} And I have spoken in order to lead you out of the affliction of Egypt, into the land of the Canaanite, and Hittite, and Amorite, and Perizzite, and Hivite, and Jebusite, into a land flowing with milk and honey.’
{3:18} And they shall hear your voice. And you shall enter, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt, and you shall say to him: ‘The Lord God of the Hebrews has called us. We shall go three days’ journey into the wilderness, in order to offer sacrifice to the Lord our God.’
{3:19} But I know that the king of Egypt will not release you, unless you go out by a powerful hand.
{3:20} For I will extend my hand, and I will strike Egypt with all my wonders that I will do in the midst of them. After these things, he will release you.
{3:21} And I will grant favor to this people in the sight of the Egyptians. And so, when you go forth, you shall not go out empty.
{3:22} But every woman shall ask of her neighbor and of her hostess vessels of silver and of gold, as well as garments. And you shall set them upon your sons and daughters, and you shall despoil Egypt.”
{4:1} Responding, Moses said, “They will not believe me, and they will not listen to my voice, but they will say: ‘The Lord has not appeared to you.’ ”
{4:2} Therefore, he said to him, “What is that you hold in your hand?” He answered, “A staff.”
{4:3} And the Lord said, “Cast it down upon the ground.” He cast it down, and it was turned into a snake, so that Moses fled away.
{4:4} And the Lord said, “Reach out your hand, and take hold of its tail.” He reached out his hand and took hold, and it was turned into a staff.
{4:5} “So may they believe,” he said, “that the Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”
{4:6} And the Lord said again, “Put your hand into your bosom.” And when he had put it into his bosom, he brought it out leprous, resembling snow.
{4:7} “Put your hand back,” he said, “into your bosom.” He put it back and brought it out again, and it was like the rest of his flesh.
{4:8} “If they will not believe you,” he said, “and will not listen to the sermon of the first sign, then they will believe the word of the subsequent sign.
{4:9} But if they will not believe even these two signs, and they will not listen to your voice: take from the water of the river, and pour it upon the dry land, and whatever you will have drawn from the river will be turned into blood.”
{4:10} Moses said: “I beg you, O Lord, I was not eloquent yesterday or the day before. And from the time that you have spoken to your servant, I have a greater impediment and slowness of tongue.”
{4:11} The Lord said to him: “Who made the mouth of man? And who has formed the mute and the deaf, the seeing and the blind? Was it not I?
{4:12} Go on, therefore, and I will be in your mouth. And I will teach you what you shall say.”
{4:13} But he said, “I beg you, O Lord, send whomever else you would send.”
{4:14} The Lord, being angry at Moses, said: “Aaron the Levite is your brother. I know that he is eloquent. Behold, he is going out to meet you, and seeing you, he will rejoice in heart.
{4:15} Speak to him, and put my words in his mouth. And I will be in your mouth and in his mouth, and I will reveal to you what you must do.
{4:16} He will speak for you to the people, and he will be your mouth. But you will be with him in those things that pertain to God.
{4:17} Also, take this staff into your hand; with it you will accomplish the signs.”
{4:18} Moses went forth, and he returned to Jethro, his father in law, and he said to him, “I shall go and return to my brothers in Egypt, so that I may see if they are still alive.” And Jethro said to him, “Go in peace.”
{4:19} And so the Lord said to Moses in Midian: “Go, and return to Egypt. For all those who sought your life have died.”
{4:20} Therefore, Moses took his wife and his sons, and he placed them upon a donkey, and he returned into Egypt, carrying the staff of God in his hand.
{4:21} And the Lord said to him, as he was returning to Egypt: “See that you accomplish, in the sight of Pharaoh, all the wonders that I have placed in your hand. I will harden his heart, and he will not release the people.
{4:22} And you shall say to him: ‘Thus says the Lord: Israel is my firstborn son.
{4:23} I have said to you: Release my son, so that he may serve me. And you were not willing to release him. Behold, I will put to death your firstborn son.’ ”
{4:24} And while he was on the journey, at an inn, the Lord met him, and he was willing to kill him.
{4:25} For this reason, Zipporah took a very sharp stone, and she circumcised the foreskin of her son, and she touched his feet, and she said, “You are a bloody spouse to me.”
{4:26} And he released him, after she had said, “You are a bloody spouse,” because of the circumcision.
{4:27} Then the Lord said to Aaron, “Go into the desert to meet Moses.” And he went directly to meet him on the mountain of God, and he kissed him.
{4:28} And Moses explained to Aaron all the words of the Lord, by which he had sent him, and the signs which he had commanded.
{4:29} And they arrived at the same time, and they gathered together all the elders of the sons of Israel.
{4:30} And Aaron spoke all the words which the Lord had said to Moses. And he accomplished the signs in the sight of the people,
{4:31} and the people believed. And they heard that the Lord had visited the sons of Israel, and that he had looked with favor upon their affliction. And falling prostrate, they worshiped.
{5:1} After these things, Moses and Aaron entered, and they said to Pharaoh: “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Release my people, so that they may sacrifice to me in the desert.”
{5:2} But he responded: “Who is the Lord, that I should listen to his voice and release Israel? I do not know the Lord, and I will not release Israel.”
{5:3} And they said: “The God of the Hebrews has called us, so that we may go three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to the Lord our God. Otherwise, a pestilence or the sword may befall us.”
{5:4} The king of Egypt said to them: “Why do you, Moses and Aaron, distract the people from their works? Go back to your burdens.”
{5:5} And Pharaoh said: “The people of the land are many. You see that the turmoil has increased: how much more if you give them rest from the works?”
{5:6} Therefore, on the same day, he instructed the overseers of the works, and the taskmasters of the people, saying:
{5:7} “You shall no longer give chaff to the people to form bricks, as before. But they may go and gather straw.
{5:8} And you shall impose upon them the same quota of bricks that they made before. Neither will you lessen anything, for they are idle, and therefore they cry out, saying: ‘We shall go and sacrifice to our God.’
{5:9} They shall be oppressed with works, and these shall occupy them, so that they may not agree to lying words.”
{5:10} And so the overseers of the works and the taskmasters went out and said to the people: “Thus says Pharaoh: I give you no chaff.
{5:11} Go, and collect it wherever you are able to find it. Neither will anything of your work be diminished.”
{5:12} And the people were dispersed through all the land of Egypt, in order to gather straw.
{5:13} Likewise, the overseers of the works pressured them, saying: “Complete your work each day, just as you were accustomed to do before, when straw was given to you.”
{5:14} And those who were first in the works of the sons of Israel were scourged by Pharaoh’s taskmasters, saying: “Why have you not filled the quota of bricks, neither yesterday, nor today, just as before?”
{5:15} And the first among the sons of Israel came, and they cried out to Pharaoh, saying: “Why do act against your servants in this way?
{5:16} Straw is not given to us, and yet the same amount of bricks is commanded. So we, your servants, are cut up by scourging, and injustice is done against your people.”
{5:17} And he said: “You are idle. And for this reason you say, ‘We shall go and sacrifice to the Lord.’
{5:18} Therefore, go and work. Straw will not be given to you, and you will return the customary number of bricks.”
{5:19} And the first among the sons of Israel saw themselves in a crisis, because it was said to them, “Nothing at all will be lessened from the bricks throughout each day.”
{5:20} And they met with Moses and Aaron, who stood opposite them as they departed from Pharaoh.
{5:21} And they said to them: “May the Lord see and judge, because you have caused our odor to become foul before Pharaoh and his servants, and you have provided him with a sword, in order to kill us.”
{5:22} And Moses returned to the Lord, and he said: “Lord, why have you afflicted this people? Why have you sent me?
{5:23} For from the time that I entered to Pharaoh, so as to speak in your name, he has afflicted your people. And you have not freed them.”
{6:1} And the Lord said to Moses: “Now you will see what I shall do to Pharaoh. For through a strong hand he will release them, and by a mighty hand he will cast them from his land.”
{6:2} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “I am the Lord,
{6:3} who appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob as Almighty God. And I did not reveal to them my name: ADONAI.
{6:4} And I formed a covenant with them, in order to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their sojourning, in which they were newcomers.
{6:5} I have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel, with which the Egyptians have oppressed them. And I have remembered my covenant.
{6:6} For this reason, say to the sons of Israel: I am the Lord who will lead you away from the work house of the Egyptians, and rescue you from servitude, and also redeem you with an exalted arm and great judgments.
{6:7} And I will take you to myself as my people, and I will be your God. And you will know that I am the Lord your God, who led you away from the work house of the Egyptians,
{6:8} and who brought you into the land, over which I lifted up my hand in order to grant it to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And I will grant it to you as a possession. I am the Lord.”
{6:9} And so, Moses explained all these things to the sons of Israel, who did not agree with him, because of their anguish of spirit and very difficult work.
{6:10} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{6:11} “Enter and speak to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, so that he may release the sons of Israel from his land.”
{6:12} Moses responded in the sight the Lord: “Behold, the sons of Israel do not listen to me. And how will Pharaoh listen to me, especially since I am of uncircumcised lips?”
{6:13} And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, and he gave them a commandment for the sons of Israel, and for Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, that they should lead the sons of Israel away from the land of Egypt.
{6:14} These are the leaders of the houses by their families. The sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel: Hanoch and Pallu, Hezron and Carmi.
{6:15} These are the kindred of Reuben. The sons of Simeon: Jemuel and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jachin, and Zohar, and Shaul, the son of a Canaanite women. These are the progeny of Simeon.
{6:16} And these are the names of the sons of Levi by their kindred: Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari. Now the years of the life of Levi were one hundred and thirty-seven.
{6:17} The sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei, by their kindred.
{6:18} The sons of Kohath: Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron and Uzziel. Likewise, the years of the life of Kohath were one hundred and thirty-three.
{6:19} The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the kindred of Levi by their families.
{6:20} Now Amram took as a wife Jochebed, his paternal aunt, who bore for him Aaron and Moses. And the years of the life of Amram were one hundred and thirty-seven.
{6:21} Likewise, the sons of Izhar: Korah, and Nepheg, and Zichri.
{6:22} Likewise, the sons of Uzziel: Mishael, and Elzaphan, and Sithri.
{6:23} Now Aaron took as a wife Elizabeth, the daughter of Amminadab, sister of Nahshon, who bore for him Nadab, and Abihu, and Eleazar, and Ithamar.
{6:24} Likewise, the sons of Korah: Assir, and Elkanah, and Abiasaph. These are the kindred of the Korahites.
{6:25} And truly Eleazar, the son of Aaron, took a wife from the daughters of Putiel. And she bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the Levitical families by their kindred.
{6:26} These are Aaron and Moses, whom the Lord instructed to lead the sons of Israel away from the land of Egypt by their companies.
{6:27} These are those who speak to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, in order to lead the sons of Israel out of Egypt. These are Moses and Aaron,
{6:28} in the day when the Lord spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt.
{6:29} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “I am the Lord. Speak to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, all that I speak to you.”
{6:30} And Moses said in the sight of the Lord: “Lo, I am of uncircumcised lips, how will Pharaoh listen to me?”
{7:1} And the Lord said to Moses: “Behold, I have appointed you as the god of Pharaoh. And Aaron, your brother, will be your prophet.
{7:2} You will speak to him all that I command you. And he will speak to Pharaoh, so that he may release the sons of Israel from his land.
{7:3} But I will harden his heart, and I will multiply my signs and wonders in the land of Egypt,
{7:4} and he will not listen to you. And I will send my hand over Egypt, and I will lead my army and my people, the sons of Israel, from the land of Egypt, through very great judgments.
{7:5} And the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord, who has extended my hand over Egypt, and who has led the sons of Israel from their midst.”
{7:6} And so, Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord had instructed. And so it was done.
{7:7} Now Moses was eighty years old, and Aaron eighty-three, when they spoke to Pharaoh.
{7:8} And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron:
{7:9} “When Pharaoh will say to you, ‘Show signs,’ you shall say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff, and cast it down before Pharaoh, and it will be turned into a snake.’ ”
{7:10} And so Moses and Aaron entered to Pharaoh, and they did just as the Lord had commanded. And Aaron took the staff in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants, and it was turned into a snake.
{7:11} Then Pharaoh called the wise men and the sorcerers. And they also, by Egyptian incantations and certain secrets, did similarly.
{7:12} And each one cast down their staffs, and they were turned into serpents. But the staff of Aaron devoured their staffs.
{7:13} And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had instructed.
{7:14} Then the Lord said to Moses: “The heart of Pharaoh has been hardened; he is not willing to release the people.
{7:15} Go to him in the morning; behold, he will go out to the waters. And you will stand to meet him above the bank of the river. And you will take, in your hand, the staff that was turned into a serpent.
{7:16} And you will say to him: ‘The Lord God of the Hebrews sent me to you, saying: Release my people in order to sacrifice to me in the desert. And even until the present time, you were not willing to listen.
{7:17} Therefore, thus says the Lord: In this you will know that I am the Lord. Behold, I will strike, with the staff that is in my hand, the water of the river, and it will be turned into blood.
{7:18} Also, the fishes that are in the river will die, and the waters will be polluted, and the Egyptians will be afflicted when they drink the water of the river.’ ”
{7:19} The Lord also said to Moses: “Say to Aaron: ‘Take your staff; and extend your hand over the waters of Egypt, and over their rivers and streams and marshes and all the pools of waters, so that they may be turned into blood. And let there be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, as much in vessels of wood as in those of stone.’ ”
{7:20} And Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord had instructed. And lifting up the staff, he struck the water of the river in the sight of Pharaoh and his servants. And it was turned into blood.
{7:21} And the fishes that were in the river died, and the river was polluted, and the Egyptians were not able to drink the water of the river, and there was blood throughout the entire land of Egypt.
{7:22} And the sorcerers of the Egyptians, with their incantations, did similarly. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had instructed.
{7:23} And he turned himself away, and he entered his house, neither did he apply his heart to this turn of events.
{7:24} Then all the Egyptians dug along the borders of the river for water to drink. For they were not able to drink from the water of the river.
{7:25} And seven days were completed, after the Lord struck the river.
{8:1} The Lord also said to Moses: “Enter to Pharaoh, and you will say to him: ‘Thus says the Lord: Release my people in order to sacrifice to me.
{8:2} But if you are not willing to release them, behold, I will strike all your coasts with frogs.
{8:3} And the river will seethe with frogs, which will go up and enter into your house, and your bedroom, and upon your bed, and into the houses of your servants and your people, and into your ovens, and into the remains of your foods.
{8:4} And to you, and to your people, and to all your servants, the frogs will enter.’ ”
{8:5} And the Lord said to Moses: “Say to Aaron: ‘Extend your hand over the rivers, and also over the streams and the marshes, and bring forth frogs over the land of Egypt.’ ”
{8:6} And Aaron extended his hand over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt.
{8:7} Then the sorcerers also, by their incantations, did similarly, and they brought forth frogs upon the land of Egypt.
{8:8} But Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron, and he said to them: “Pray to the Lord, so as to take away the frogs from me and from my people. And I will release the people, so as to sacrifice to the Lord.”
{8:9} And Moses said to Pharaoh: “Appoint for me a time, when I should petition on behalf of you, and your servants, and your people, so that the frogs may be driven away from you, and from your house, and from your servants, and from your people, and so that they may remain only in the river.”
{8:10} And he responded, “Tomorrow.” Then he said, “I will act according to your word, so that you may know that there is no one like the Lord our God.
{8:11} And the frogs will withdraw from you, and from your house, and from your servants, and from your people. And they will remain only in the river.”
{8:12} And Moses and Aaron departed from Pharaoh. And Moses cried out to the Lord on behalf of the promise that he had made to Pharaoh concerning the frogs.
{8:13} And the Lord acted according to the word of Moses. And the frogs died out of the houses, and out of the villages, and out of the fields.
{8:14} And they gathered them together into immense piles, and the land was polluted.
{8:15} Then Pharaoh, seeing that relief had been provided, hardened his own heart, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had instructed.
{8:16} And the Lord said to Moses: “Say to Aaron: ‘Extend your staff and strike the dust of the earth. And let there be stinging insects throughout the entire the land of Egypt.’ ”
{8:17} And they did so. And Aaron extended his hand, holding the staff, and he struck the dust of the earth, and there came stinging insects upon men and upon beasts. All the dust of the earth was turned into stinging insects through all the land of Egypt.
{8:18} And the sorcerers, with their incantations, did similarly, in order to bring forth stinging insects, but they were not able. And there were stinging insects, as much on men as on beasts.
{8:19} And the sorcerers said to Pharaoh: “This is the finger of God.” And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord had instructed.
{8:20} The Lord also said to Moses: “Arise at first light, and stand in the sight of Pharaoh, for he will go out to the waters. And you will say to him: ‘Thus says the Lord: Release my people to sacrifice to me.
{8:21} But if you will not release them, behold, I will send upon you, and upon your servants, and upon your people, and into your houses, diverse kinds of flies. And the houses of the Egyptians will be filled with diverse kinds of flies, as well as the whole land in which they will be.
{8:22} And in that day, I will cause a miracle in the land of Goshen, where my people are, so that flies will not be there. And you will know that I am the Lord in the midst of the earth.
{8:23} And I will set a division between my people and your people. Tomorrow this sign will be.’ ”
{8:24} And the Lord did so. And there came very grievous flies into the houses of Pharaoh and of his servants, and into all the land of Egypt. And the land was polluted, in this way, by the flies.
{8:25} And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron, and he said to them, “Go and sacrifice to your God in this land.”
{8:26} And Moses said: “It cannot be so. For we will immolate the abominations of the Egyptians to the Lord our God. For if we slaughter those things which the Egyptians worship, in their presence, they will stone us.
{8:27} We will sojourn three days’ journey into the wilderness. And we will sacrifice to the Lord our God, just as he has instructed us.”
{8:28} And Pharaoh said: “I will release you in order to sacrifice to the Lord your God in the desert. Yet you may only go so far. Petition for me.”
{8:29} And Moses said: “After departing from you, I will pray to the Lord. And the flies will withdraw from Pharaoh, and from his servants, and from his people, tomorrow. Yet do not be willing to deceive any longer, so that you would not release the people to sacrifice to the Lord.”
{8:30} And Moses, departing from Pharaoh, prayed to the Lord.
{8:31} And he acted according to his word. And he took away the flies from Pharaoh, and from his servants, and from his people. There was not even one left behind.
{8:32} And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, so that, even at this turn, he would not release the people.
{9:1} Then the Lord said to Moses: “Enter to Pharaoh, and say to him: ‘Thus says the Lord God of the Hebrews: Release my people, to sacrifice to me.
{9:2} But if you still refuse, and you retain them,
{9:3} behold, my hand will be over your fields. And a very grievous pestilence will be upon the horses, and the donkeys, and the camels, and the oxen, and the sheep.
{9:4} And the Lord will cause a miracle between the possessions of Israel and the possessions of the Egyptians, so that nothing at all will perish from those things which belong to the sons of Israel.”
{9:5} And the Lord appointed a time, saying: “Tomorrow, the Lord will accomplish this word in the land.”
{9:6} Therefore, the Lord accomplished this word the next day. And all the animals of the Egyptians died. Yet truly, of the animals of the sons of Israel, nothing at all perished.
{9:7} And Pharaoh sent to see; neither was there anything dead of those things that Israel possessed. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not release the people.
{9:8} And the Lord said to Moses and to Aaron: “Take handfuls of ashes from the oven, and let Moses sprinkle it into the air, in the sight of Pharaoh.
{9:9} And let there be dust upon all the land of Egypt. For there will be sores and swelling pustules on men and on beasts, throughout the entire land of Egypt.”
{9:10} And they took ashes from the oven, and they stood in the sight of Pharaoh, and Moses sprinkled it in the air. And there came sores with swelling pustules on men and on beasts.
{9:11} Neither could the sorcerers stand in the sight of Moses, because of the sores that were on them and on all the land of Egypt.
{9:12} And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he did not listen to them, just as the Lord said to Moses.
{9:13} And the Lord said to Moses: “Rise up in the morning, and stand in the sight of Pharaoh, and you will say to him: ‘Thus says the Lord God of the Hebrews: Release my people to sacrifice to me.
{9:14} For at this turn, I will send all my plagues upon your heart, and upon your servants, and upon your people. So may you know that there is no one like me in all the earth.
{9:15} For now, extending my hand, I shall strike you and your people with pestilence, and you will perish from the earth.
{9:16} But it was for this reason that I appointed you, so that I may reveal my strength by you, and so that my name may be described throughout all the earth.
{9:17} Do you still retain my people, and are you still unwilling to release them?
{9:18} So then, tomorrow, at this same hour, I will rain down exceedingly great hail, such as has not been in Egypt from the day that it was founded, even until this present time.
{9:19} Therefore, send immediately and gather together your cattle, and all that you have in the field. For men and beasts, and all things that will be found outside, not gathered in from the fields, and on which the hail will fall, shall die.’ ”
{9:20} He who feared the word of the Lord among the servants of Pharaoh caused his servants and cattle to flee together into the houses.
{9:21} But he who neglected the word of the Lord released his servants and cattle into the fields.
{9:22} And the Lord said to Moses: “Extend your hand into the sky, so that there may be hail in the entire land of Egypt, on men, and on beasts, and on every plant of the field in the land of Egypt.”
{9:23} And Moses extended his staff into the sky, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and also lightning dashing across the earth. And the Lord rained down hail upon the land of Egypt.
{9:24} And the hail and intermingled fire drove on together. And it was of such magnitude as had never before been seen in the entire land of Egypt, from the time when that nation was formed.
{9:25} And the hail struck, throughout all the land of Egypt, everything that was in the fields, from man even to beast. And the hail struck down every plant of the field, and it broke every tree of the region.
{9:26} Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, did the hail not fall.
{9:27} And Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron, saying to them: “I have sinned even until now. The Lord is just. I and my people are impious.
{9:28} Pray to the Lord, so that the thundering of God and the hail may cease, so that I may release you, and so that you may by no means remain here any longer.”
{9:29} Moses said: “When I have departed from the city, I will extend my hands to the Lord, and the thunders will cease, and the hail will not be, so that you may know that the earth belongs to the Lord.
{9:30} But I know that both you and your servants do not yet fear the Lord God.”
{9:31} And so, the flax and the barley were damaged, because the barley was growing, and the flax was already developing grains.
{9:32} But the wheat and the spelt were not damaged, because they were late.
{9:33} And Moses, departing from Pharaoh out of the city, reached out his hands toward the Lord. And the thunders and hail ceased, neither did there drop any more rain upon the land.
{9:34} Then Pharaoh, seeing that the rain, and the hail, and the thunders had ceased, added to his sin.
{9:35} And his heart was weighed down, along with that of his servants, and it was hardened exceedingly. Neither did he release the sons of Israel, just as the Lord had instructed by the hand of Moses.
{10:1} And the Lord said to Moses: “Enter to Pharaoh. For I have hardened his heart, and that of his servants, so that I may accomplish these, my signs, in him,
{10:2} and so that you may describe to the ears of your sons and your grandsons how often I opposed the Egyptians and wrought my signs among them, and so that you may know that I am the Lord.”
{10:3} Therefore, Moses and Aaron entered to Pharaoh, and they said to him: “Thus says the Lord God of the Hebrews: How long will you be unwilling to be subject to me? Release my people to sacrifice to me.
{10:4} But if you resist, and you are unwilling to release them, behold, tomorrow I will bring locusts into your borders.
{10:5} And they shall cover the face of the earth, lest any part of it be seen. Yes, and what remains from the hail shall be eaten. For they will gnaw away all the trees that spring up in the fields.
{10:6} And they will fill your houses, and those of your servants and of all the Egyptians: so many as your fathers and ancestors have not seen, from the time that they rose up over the earth, even until this present day.” And he turned himself away, and he departed from Pharaoh.
{10:7} Then the servants of Pharaoh said to him: “How long must we endure this scandal? Release the men, in order to sacrifice to the Lord their God. Do you not see that Egypt is perishing?”
{10:8} And they called back Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh, who said to them: “Go, sacrifice to the Lord your God. Who are they who would go?”
{10:9} Moses said: “We will travel with our little ones and our elderly, with our sons and daughters, with our sheep and herds. For it is a solemnity of the Lord our God.”
{10:10} And Pharaoh responded: “So let the Lord be with you. But if I were to release you and your little ones, who would doubt that you intend some great wickedness?
{10:11} It will not be so. However, go only with the men, and sacrifice to the Lord. For this, too, is what you yourselves requested.” And immediately they were cast out from the sight of Pharaoh.
{10:12} Then the Lord said to Moses: “Extend your hand over the land of Egypt, toward the locusts, so that they may rise up over it, and devour every plant which remains from the hail.”
{10:13} And Moses extended his staff over the land of Egypt. And the Lord brought a burning wind all that day and night. And when morning came, the burning wind lifted up the locusts.
{10:14} And they ascended over the entire land of Egypt. And they settled into all the parts of the Egyptians: innumerable, such as had not been before that time, nor ever would be thereafter.
{10:15} And they covered the entire face of the land, laying waste to all things. And the plants of the land were devoured, along with whatever fruits were on the trees, which the hail had left behind. And nothing at all of the greenery remained on the trees or on the plants of the earth in all of Egypt.
{10:16} For this reason, Pharaoh hurriedly called Moses and Aaron, and he said to them: “I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you.
{10:17} But now, release me from my sin even this time, and petition the Lord your God, so that he may take this death away from me.”
{10:18} And Moses, departing from the sight of Pharaoh, prayed to the Lord.
{10:19} And he caused a very strong wind to blow from the west, and, seizing the locusts, it cast them into the Red Sea. There remained not so much as one in all the parts of Egypt.
{10:20} And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh; neither did he release the sons of Israel.
{10:21} Then the Lord said to Moses: “Extend your hand into the sky. And let there be a darkness over the land of Egypt, so dense that they may be able to feel it.”
{10:22} And Moses extended his hand into the sky. And there came a horrible darkness in the entire land of Egypt for three days.
{10:23} No one saw his brother, nor moved himself out of the place where he was. But wherever the sons of Israel were living, there was light.
{10:24} And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron, and he said to them: “Go, sacrifice to the Lord. Only let your sheep and herds remain behind. Your little ones may go with you.”
{10:25} Moses said: “You must also permit us victims and holocausts, which we may offer to the Lord our God.
{10:26} All the flocks shall travel with us. Not one hoof of them shall remain behind. For they are necessary for the worship of the Lord our God, especially since we do not know what ought to be immolated, until we arrive at the very place.”
{10:27} But the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, and he was not willing to release them.
{10:28} And Pharaoh said to Moses: “Withdraw from me, and beware that you no longer see my face. On whatever day you will appear in my sight, you shall die.”
{10:29} Moses responded: “So be it, just as you have said. I will no longer see your face.”
{11:1} And the Lord said to Moses: “I will touch Pharaoh and Egypt with one more plague, and after these things he will release you, and he will compel you to go out.
{11:2} Therefore, you will tell all the people to ask, a man of his friend, and a woman of her neighbor, for vessels of silver and of gold.
{11:3} Then the Lord will grant favor to his people in the sight of the Egyptians.” And Moses was a very great man in the land of Egypt, in the sight of the servants of Pharaoh and of all the people.
{11:4} And he said: “Thus says the Lord: ‘In the middle of the night I will enter into Egypt.
{11:5} And every firstborn in the land of the Egyptians shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the handmaid, who is at the millstone, and all the firstborn of the beasts of burden.
{11:6} And there will be a great outcry throughout the entire land of Egypt, such as has not been before, nor ever will be afterward.
{11:7} But among all the sons of Israel there shall not be even a mutter from a dog, from man, even to cattle, so that you may know how miraculously the Lord divides the Egyptians from Israel.’
{11:8} And all these, your servants, shall descend to me and shall reverence me, by saying: ‘Depart, you and all the people who are subject to you.’ After these things, we will depart.”
{11:9} And he went out from Pharaoh exceedingly angry. Then the Lord said to Moses: “Pharaoh will not listen to you, so that many signs may be accomplished in the land of Egypt.”
{11:10} Now Moses and Aaron did all the wonders that are written, in the sight of Pharaoh. And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh; neither did he release the sons of Israel from his land.
{12:1} The Lord also said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt:
{12:2} “This month will be for you the beginning of the months. It will be first in the months of the year.
{12:3} Speak to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, and say to them: On the tenth day of this month, let everyone take a lamb, by their families and houses.
{12:4} But if the number is less than may suffice to be able to consume the lamb, he shall accept his neighbor, who has been joined with his house according to the number of souls that may suffice to be able to eat the lamb.
{12:5} And it shall be a lamb without blemish, a one year old male. According to this rite, you shall also take a young goat.
{12:6} And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month. And the entire multitude of the sons of Israel shall immolate it toward evening.
{12:7} And they shall take from its blood, and place it on both the door posts and the upper threshold of the houses, in which they will consume it.
{12:8} And that night they shall eat the flesh, roasted by fire, and unleavened bread with wild lettuce.
{12:9} You shall not consume anything from it raw, nor boiled in water, but only roasted by fire. You shall devour the head with its feet and entrails.
{12:10} Neither shall there remain anything from it until morning. If anything will have been left over, you shall burn it with fire.
{12:11} Now you shall consume it in this way: You shall gird your waist, and you shall have shoes on your feet, holding staves in your hands, and you shall consume it in haste. For it is the Passover (that is, the Crossing) of the Lord.
{12:12} And I will cross through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from man, even to cattle. And I will bring judgments against all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord.
{12:13} But the blood will be for you as a sign in the buildings where you will be. And I will see the blood, and I will pass over you. And the plague will not be with you to destroy, when I strike the land of Egypt.
{12:14} Then you shall have this day as a memorial, and you shall celebrate it as a solemnity to the Lord, in your generations, as an everlasting devotion.
{12:15} For seven days, you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day there shall be no leaven in your houses. Whoever will consume anything leavened, from the first day, even until the seventh day, that soul shall perish from Israel.
{12:16} The first day shall be holy and solemn, and the seventh day shall be venerated with the same festivity. You shall do no work in these days, except that which pertains to the eating.
{12:17} And you shall observe the feast of unleavened bread. For on this same day, I will lead your army out of the land of Egypt, and you shall keep this day, in your generations, as a perpetual ritual.
{12:18} In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, toward evening, you shall consume the unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the same month, toward evening.
{12:19} For seven days, there shall not be found leaven in your houses. Whoever will eat leaven, his soul will perish from the assembly of Israel, as much with the newcomers as with the natives of the land.
{12:20} You shall not consume any leaven. In all your dwelling places, you shall eat unleavened bread.”
{12:21} Then Moses called all the elders of the sons of Israel, and he said to them: “Go, taking an animal by your families, and sacrifice the Passover.
{12:22} And dip a little bundle of hyssop in the blood which is at the entrance, and sprinkle the upper threshold with it, and both of the door posts. Let none of you go out of the door of his house until morning.
{12:23} For the Lord will cross through, striking the Egyptians. And when he will see the blood on the upper threshold, and on both the door posts, he will pass over the door of the house and not permit the Striker to enter into your houses or to do harm.
{12:24} You shall keep this word as a law for you and for your sons, forever.
{12:25} And when you have entered into the land that the Lord will give to you, just as he has promised, you shall observe these ceremonies.
{12:26} And when your sons will say to you, ‘What is the meaning of this religious observance?’
{12:27} You shall say to them: ‘It is the victim of the crossing of the Lord, when he passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt, striking the Egyptians, and freeing our houses.’ ” And the people, bowing down, worshipped.
{12:28} And the sons of Israel, departing, did just as the Lord had instructed Moses and Aaron.
{12:29} Then it happened, in the middle of the night: the Lord struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the captive woman who was in prison, and all the firstborn of the cattle.
{12:30} And Pharaoh rose up in the night, and all his servants, and all of Egypt. And there arose a great outcry in Egypt. For there was not a house in which no one lay dead.
{12:31} And Pharaoh, calling Moses and Aaron in the night, said: “Rise up and go forth from among my people, you and the sons of Israel. Go, sacrifice to the Lord, just as you say.
{12:32} Your sheep and herds take along with you, as you requested, and as you go away, bless me.”
{12:33} And the Egyptians urged the people to go away from the land quickly, saying, “We will all die.”
{12:34} Therefore, the people took bread dough before it was leavened. And tying it in their cloaks, they placed it on their shoulders.
{12:35} And the sons of Israel did just as Moses had instructed. And they petitioned the Egyptians for vessels of silver and of gold, and very many garments.
{12:36} Then the Lord granted favor to the people in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they bestowed on them. And they despoiled the Egyptians.
{12:37} And the sons of Israel set out from Rameses to Soccoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides little ones.
{12:38} But also an innumerable mix of common people ascended with them, sheep and herds and animals of diverse kinds, exceedingly many.
{12:39} And they baked the bread, which a little while ago they had taken out of Egypt as dough. And they made unleavened bread baked under ashes. For it was not able to be leavened, with the Egyptians compelling them to leave and not permitting them to cause any delay. Neither did they have occasion to prepare any meat.
{12:40} Now the habitation of the sons of Israel, while they remained in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years.
{12:41} Having been completed, on the same day all the army of the Lord departed from the land of Egypt.
{12:42} This night is a worthy observance of the Lord, when he led them out of the land of Egypt. This all the sons of Israel must observe in their generations.
{12:43} And the Lord said to Moses and to Aaron: “This is the religious observance of the Passover. No foreigner shall eat from it.
{12:44} But every bought servant shall be circumcised, and so he may eat from it.
{12:45} The newcomer and the hired hand shall not eat from it.
{12:46} In one house it shall be eaten; you shall not carry its flesh outside, nor shall you break its bone.
{12:47} The entire assembly of the sons of Israel shall do this.
{12:48} And if any sojourner will be willing to cross over into your settlement, and to keep the Passover of the Lord, all his males shall first be circumcised, and then he shall celebrate the rite. And he shall be just like a native of the land. But if any man is not circumcised, he shall not eat from it.
{12:49} The law shall be the same for the native born and for the settler who sojourns with you.”
{12:50} And all the sons of Israel did just as the Lord had instructed Moses and Aaron.
{12:51} And on the same day, the Lord led the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their companies.
{13:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{13:2} “Sanctify to me every firstborn which opens the womb among the sons of Israel, as much of men as of cattle. For they are all mine.”
{13:3} And Moses said to the people: “Remember this day, on which you were taken away from Egypt and from the house of servitude. For with a strong hand the Lord has led you away from this place. Thus, you shall eat no leavened bread.
{13:4} Today, you go forth in the month of new grain.
{13:5} And when the Lord has brought you into the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, which he swore to your fathers that he would give to you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you will celebrate this manner of sacred rites in this month.
{13:6} For seven days, you shall feed on unleavened bread. And on the seventh day, it will be the solemnity of the Lord.
{13:7} You shall consume unleavened bread for seven days. There shall not be seen anything leavened with you, nor in all your parts.
{13:8} And you will explain to your son in that day, saying: ‘This is what the Lord did for me when I was taken away from Egypt.’
{13:9} And it will be like a sign in your hand and like a memorial before your eyes. And so may the law of the Lord be always in your mouth. For with a strong hand, the Lord led you away from the land of Egypt.
{13:10} You will keep this observance, at the established time, from day to day.
{13:11} And when the Lord has brought you into the land of the Canaanite, just as he swore to you and to your fathers, and when he will give it you,
{13:12} then you shall set aside for the Lord all that opens the womb and all that is first to go forth among your cattle. Whatever you will have of the male sex, you shall consecrate to the Lord.
{13:13} The firstborn of a donkey you will exchange for a sheep. And if you will not redeem it, you shall put it to death. But every firstborn of man among your sons, you shall redeem with a price.
{13:14} And when your son will question you tomorrow, saying, ‘What is this?’ you will respond, ‘With a strong hand the Lord led us away from the land of Egypt, from the house of servitude.
{13:15} For when Pharaoh had been hardened and was unwilling to release us, the Lord killed every firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of man, even to the firstborn of beasts. For this reason, I immolate to the Lord all of the male sex that opens the womb, and all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’
{13:16} Therefore, it will be like a sign in your hand and like something hanging between your eyes as a remembrance, because with a strong hand the Lord has led us away from Egypt.”
{13:17} And so, when Pharaoh had sent the people away, God did not lead them by the way of the land of the Philistines, which is nearby, considering that perhaps they might relapse, if they saw wars rise up against them, and then they might return to Egypt.
{13:18} But he led them around by the way of the desert, which is next to the Red Sea. And so the sons of Israel ascended, armed, out of the land of Egypt.
{13:19} Also, Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, because he had sworn to the sons of Israel, saying: “God will visit you. Carry my bones away from here with you.”
{13:20} And setting out from Soccoth, they encamped at Etham, in the most distant parts of the wilderness.
{13:21} Now the Lord preceded them to show them the way, by day with a pillar of cloud, and by night with a pillar of fire, so that he might be the leader of their journey at both times.
{13:22} These never failed: a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night, in the sight of the people.
{14:1} Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{14:2} “Speak to the sons of Israel. Let them turn back and encamp away from the region of Pihahiroth, which is between Migdol and the sea, opposite Baal-zephon. In its sight you shall place your camp, above the sea.
{14:3} And Pharaoh will say about the sons of Israel, ‘They have been confined by the land; the desert has enclosed them.’
{14:4} And I will harden his heart, and so he will pursue you. And I will be glorified in Pharaoh, and in all his army. And the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” And they did so.
{14:5} And it was reported to the king of the Egyptians that the people had fled. And the heart of Pharaoh and of his servants was changed about the people, and they said, “What did we intend to do, so that we released Israel from serving us?”
{14:6} Therefore, he harnessed his chariot, and he took all his people with him.
{14:7} And he took six hundred chosen chariots, and whatever chariots were in Egypt, and also the leaders of the whole army.
{14:8} And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he pursued the sons of Israel. But they were taken away by an exalted hand.
{14:9} And when the Egyptians followed the footsteps of those who preceded them, they found them in a camp above the sea. All the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, and the entire army, were in Pihahiroth, opposite Baal-zephon.
{14:10} And when Pharaoh had drawn near, the sons of Israel, lifting up their eyes, saw the Egyptians behind them. And they were very afraid. And they cried out to the Lord.
{14:11} And they said to Moses: “Perhaps there were no graves in Egypt, for which reason you took us to die in the wilderness. What is it that you intended to do, in leading us out of Egypt?
{14:12} Is this not the word that we spoke to you in Egypt, saying: Withdraw from us, so that we may serve the Egyptians? For it was much better to serve them, than to die in the wilderness.”
{14:13} And Moses said to the people: “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and see the great wonders of the Lord, which he will do today. For the Egyptians, whom you now see, will never again be seen, forever.
{14:14} The Lord will fight on your behalf, and you will remain silent.”
{14:15} And the Lord said to Moses: “Why cry out to me? Tell the sons of Israel to continue on.
{14:16} Now, lift up your staff, and extend your hand over the sea and divide it, so that the sons of Israel may walk through the midst of the sea on dry ground.
{14:17} Then I will harden the heart of the Egyptians, so as to pursue you. And I will be glorified in Pharaoh, and in all his army, and in his chariots, and in his horsemen.
{14:18} And the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord, when I will be glorified in Pharaoh, and in his chariots, as well as in his horsemen.”
{14:19} And the Angel of God, who preceded the camp of Israel, lifting himself up, went behind them. And the pillar of cloud, together with him, left the front for the rear
{14:20} and stood between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. And it was a dark cloud, yet it illuminated the night, so that they could not succeed at approaching one another at any time all that night.
{14:21} And when Moses had extended his hand over the sea, the Lord took it away by an intense burning wind, blowing throughout the night, and he turned it into dry ground. And the water was divided.
{14:22} And the sons of Israel went in through the midst of the dried sea. For the water was like a wall at their right hand and at their left hand.
{14:23} And the Egyptians, pursuing them, went in after them, along with all of the horses of Pharaoh, his chariots and horsemen, through the midst of the sea.
{14:24} And now the morning watch had arrived, and behold, the Lord, looking down upon the camp of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of cloud, put to death their army.
{14:25} And he overturned the wheels of the chariots, and they were carried into the deep. Therefore, the Egyptians said: “Let us flee from Israel. For the Lord fights on their behalf against us.”
{14:26} And the Lord said to Moses: “Extend your hand over the sea, so that the waters may return on the Egyptians, over their chariots and horsemen.”
{14:27} And when Moses had extended his hand opposite the sea, it was returned, at first light, to its former place. And the fleeing Egyptians met with the waters, and the Lord immersed them in the midst of the waves.
{14:28} And the waters were returned, and they covered the chariots and horsemen of the entire army of Pharaoh, who, in following, had entered into the sea. And not so much as one of them was left alive.
{14:29} But the sons of Israel continued directly through the midst of the dried sea, and the waters were to them like a wall on the right and on the left.
{14:30} And so the Lord freed Israel on that day from the hand of the Egyptians.
{14:31} And they saw the Egyptians dead on the shore of the sea and the great hand that the Lord had exercised against them. And the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in Moses his servant.
{15:1} Then Moses and the sons of Israel sang this song to the Lord, and they said: “Let us sing to the Lord, for he has been gloriously magnified: the horse and the rider he has cast into the sea.
{15:2} The Lord is my strength and my praise, and he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I shall glorify him. He is the God of my father, and I shall exalt him.
{15:3} The Lord is like a fighting man. Almighty is his name.
{15:4} The chariots of Pharaoh, and his army, he has cast into the sea; his elect leaders have been submerged in the Red Sea.
{15:5} The abyss has covered them. They descended into the depths like a stone.
{15:6} Your right hand, O Lord, has been magnified in strength. Your right hand, O Lord, has struck down the enemy.
{15:7} And in the multitude of your glory you have put down your adversaries. You sent out your wrath, which devoured them like stubble.
{15:8} And by the breath of your fury, the waters were gathered together. The flowing waves stood still. The abyss was gathered into the midst of the sea.
{15:9} The enemy said: ‘I will pursue and overtake them. I will divide the spoils. My soul will be filled. I will unsheathe my sword. My hand will put them to death.’
{15:10} Your breath blew, and the sea covered them. They were submerged like lead into the mighty waters.
{15:11} Who is like you in strength, O Lord? Who is like you: magnificent in sanctity, terrible and yet praiseworthy, accomplishing miracles?
{15:12} You extended your hand, and the earth devoured them.
{15:13} In your mercy, you have been a leader to the people whom you have redeemed. And in your strength, you have carried them to your holy dwelling place.
{15:14} Peoples rose up and became angry. Sorrows took hold of the inhabitants of Philistia.
{15:15} Then the leaders of Edom were stirred up, and trembling took hold of the robust of Moab. All the inhabitants of Canaan were petrified.
{15:16} Let fear and dread fall upon them, by the magnitude of your arm. Let them become immobilized like stone, until your people cross through, O Lord, until this, your people whom you possess, cross through.
{15:17} You shall lead them in and plant them, on the mountain of your inheritance, in your most firm dwelling place, which you have formed, O Lord, your sanctuary, O Lord, which your hands have made firm.
{15:18} The Lord will reign in eternity and beyond.
{15:19} For the rider Pharaoh, with his chariots and horsemen, was brought into the sea. And the Lord brought back upon them the waters of the sea. But the sons of Israel walked across dry ground in its midst.”
{15:20} And so Miriam, the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took up a timbrel in her hand. And all the women followed her with timbrels and dancing.
{15:21} And she prophesied, saying: “Let us sing to the Lord, for he has been gloriously magnified. The horse and its rider, he has thrown into the sea.”
{15:22} Then Moses took Israel from the Red Sea, and they went forth into the desert of Shur. And they wandered for three days through the wilderness, and they found no water.
{15:23} And they arrived at Marah. They were unable to drink the waters of Marah because they were bitter. Therefore, he also established a name befitting the place, calling it ‘Marah,’ that is, bitterness.
{15:24} And the people murmured against Moses, saying: “What shall we drink?”
{15:25} So he cried out to the Lord, who showed him a tree. And when he had cast it into the waters, they were turned into sweetness. In that place, he established instructions for him, and also judgments. And he tested him there,
{15:26} saying: “If you will listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in his sight, and obey his commands, and keep all his precepts, I will not bring upon you any of the distress that I imposed on Egypt. For I am the Lord, your healer.”
{15:27} Then the sons of Israel arrived in Elim, where there were twelve fountains of water and seventy palm trees. And they camped next to the waters.
{16:1} And they set out from Elim. And the entire multitude of the sons of Israel arrived at the desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month, after they departed from the land of Egypt.
{16:2} And the entire congregation of the sons of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.
{16:3} And the sons of Israel said to them: “If only we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat around bowls of meat and ate bread until filled. Why have you led us away, into this desert, so that you might kill the entire multitude with famine?”
{16:4} Then the Lord said to Moses: “Behold, I will rain down bread from heaven for you. Let the people go out and collect what is sufficient for each day, so that I may test them, as to whether or not they will walk in my law.
{16:5} But on the sixth day, let them prepare what they use for carrying, and let there be double what they were accustomed to collect on a single day.”
{16:6} And Moses and Aaron said to the sons of Israel: “In the evening, you will know that the Lord has led you away from the land of Egypt.
{16:7} And in the morning, you will see the glory of the Lord. For he has heard your murmuring against the Lord. But as for us, truly what are we, that you would whisper against us?”
{16:8} And Moses said: “In the evening, the Lord will give you flesh to eat, and in the morning, bread in fullness. For he has heard your murmurings that you have murmured against him. For what are we? Your murmuring is not against us, but against the Lord.”
{16:9} Moses also said to Aaron: “Say to the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, ‘Approach before the Lord. For he has heard your murmuring.’ ”
{16:10} And when Aaron spoke to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, they looked out toward the wilderness. And behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in a cloud.
{16:11} Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{16:12} “I have heard the murmuring of the sons of Israel. Say to them: ‘In the evening, you will eat flesh, and in the morning, you will be filled with bread. And you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’ ”
{16:13} Therefore, it happened in the evening: quails, rising up, covered the camp. Likewise, in the morning, a dew lay all around the camp.
{16:14} And when it had covered the face of the earth, it appeared, in the wilderness, small and as if crushed with a pestle, similar to hoar-frost on the ground.
{16:15} When the sons of Israel had seen it, they said one to another: “Manhu?” which means “What is this?” For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them: “This is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat.
{16:16} This is the word that the Lord has instructed. Let each one collect as much of it as is sufficient to eat. One omer for each head. According to the number of your souls which live in a tent, so will you take of it.”
{16:17} And the sons of Israel did so. And they collected: some more, others less.
{16:18} And they measured by the measure of an omer. He who collected more, did not have too much; nor did he who prepared less, find too little. But each one gathered according to what they were able to eat.
{16:19} And Moses said to them, “Let no one leave any of it behind until morning.”
{16:20} And they did not listen to him, but they left some of it behind until morning, and it began to swarm with worms, and it putrefied. And Moses became angry against them.
{16:21} Then each one collected, in the morning, as much as would be sufficient to eat. And after the sun became hot, it melted.
{16:22} But on the sixth day, they collected a double portion, that is, two omers for each man. Then all the leaders among the multitude came, and they discoursed with Moses.
{16:23} And he said to them: “This is what the Lord has spoken: Tomorrow, the rest day of the Sabbath, has been sanctified to the Lord. Whatever would be done, do it now. And whatever would be cooked, cook it now. Then anything that will have been left over, store it until morning.”
{16:24} And they did just as Moses had instructed, and it did not putrefy, nor were there any worms found in it.
{16:25} And Moses said: “Eat it today, because it is the Sabbath of the Lord. Today it will not be found in the field.
{16:26} Gather for six days. But on the seventh day, it is the Sabbath of the Lord, for which reason it will not be found.”
{16:27} And the seventh day arrived. And some of the people, going out to collect it, did not find it.
{16:28} Then the Lord said to Moses: “How long will you be unwilling to keep my commandments and my law?
{16:29} See how the Lord has given you the Sabbath, and, because of this, on the sixth day he distributes to you a double portion. Let each one remain with his own, and let no one go forth from his place on the seventh day.”
{16:30} And the people kept the Sabbath on the seventh day.
{16:31} And the house of Israel called its name ‘Manna.’ It was like white coriander seed, and its taste was like wheat flour with honey.
{16:32} Then Moses said: “This is the word that the Lord has instructed: Fill an omer of it, and let it be kept for future generations hereafter, so that they may know the bread, with which I nourished you in the wilderness, when you had been led away from the land of Egypt.”
{16:33} And Moses said to Aaron, “Take one vessel, and put manna into it, as much as an omer is able to hold. And store it in the sight of the Lord, to keep for your generations,
{16:34} just as the Lord instructed Moses.” And so, Aaron placed it in the tabernacle, in reserve.
{16:35} Now the sons of Israel ate manna for forty years, until they arrived in a habitable land. With this food they were nourished, even until they touched the borders of the land of Canaan.
{16:36} Now an omer is a tenth part of an ephah.
{17:1} And so, the entire multitude of the sons of Israel, having set out from the desert of Sin in stages, according to the word of the Lord, made camp at Rephidim, where there was no water for the people to drink.
{17:2} And arguing against Moses, they said, “Give us water, so that we may drink.” And Moses answered them: “Why argue against me? For what reason do you tempt the Lord?”
{17:3} And so the people were thirsty in that place, due to the scarcity of water, and they murmured against Moses, saying: “Why did you cause us to go out of Egypt, so as to kill us and our children, as well as our cattle, with thirst?”
{17:4} Then Moses cried out to the Lord, saying: “What shall I do with this people? A little while more and they will stone me.”
{17:5} And the Lord said to Moses: “Go before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Israel. And take in your hand the staff, with which you struck the river, and advance.
{17:6} Lo, I will stand in that place before you, on the rock of Horeb. And you shall strike the rock, and water will go forth from it, so that the people may drink.” Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.
{17:7} And he called the name of that place ‘Temptation,’ because of the arguing of the sons of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying: “Is the Lord with us, or not?”
{17:8} And Amalek came and fought against Israel at Rephidim.
{17:9} And Moses said to Joshua: “Choose men. And when you go out, fight against Amalek. Tomorrow, I will stand at the top of the hill, holding the staff of God in my hand.”
{17:10} Joshua did as Moses had spoken, and he fought against Amalek. But Moses and Aaron and Hur ascended to the top of the hill.
{17:11} And when Moses lifted up his hands, Israel prevailed. But when he released them a little while, Amalek overcame.
{17:12} Then the hands of Moses became heavy. And so, taking a stone, they placed it beneath him, and he sat on it. Then Aaron and Hur sustained his hands from both sides. And it happened that his hands did not tire until the setting of the sun.
{17:13} And Joshua put to flight Amalek and his people by the edge of the sword.
{17:14} Then the Lord said to Moses: “Write this, as a memorial in a book, and deliver it to the ears of Joshua. For I will wipe away the memory of Amalek from under heaven.”
{17:15} And Moses built an altar. And he called its name, ‘The Lord, my Exaltation.’ For he said:
{17:16} “The hand of the throne of the Lord, and the war of the Lord, will be against Amalek from generation to generation.”
{18:1} And when Jethro, the priest of Midian, the kinsman of Moses, had heard all that God had done for Moses, and for his people Israel, and that the Lord had led Israel away from Egypt,
{18:2} he brought Zipporah, the wife of Moses, whom he was to return to him,
{18:3} and her two sons, of whom one was called Gershom, (for his father said, “I have been a newcomer in a foreign land,”)
{18:4} and the other in truth was Eliezer, (“For the God of my father,” he said, “is my helper, and has rescued me from the sword of Pharaoh.”)
{18:5} And so Jethro, the kinsman of Moses, with his sons and his wife, came to Moses in the desert, where he was encamped next to the mountain of God.
{18:6} And he sent word to Moses, saying: “I, Jethro, your kinsman, have come to you, with your wife, and your two sons with her.”
{18:7} And going out to meet his kinsman, he reverenced and kissed him. And they saluted each other with peaceful words. And when he had arrived at the tent,
{18:8} Moses explained to his kinsman all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians on behalf of Israel, and all the hardships which had befallen them on the journey, and how the Lord had freed them.
{18:9} And Jethro was gladdened over all the good that the Lord had done for Israel, because he had rescued them from the hand of the Egyptians.
{18:10} And he said: “Blessed is the Lord, who has freed his people from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of Pharaoh; he has rescued his people from the hand of Egypt.
{18:11} Now I know that the great Lord is above all gods. This is why they acted arrogantly against them.”
{18:12} And so Jethro, the kinsman of Moses, offered holocausts and sacrifices to God. And Aaron arrived with all the elders of Israel, in order to eat bread with him in the sight of God.
{18:13} Then, the next day, Moses sat down in order to judge the people, and they stood beside Moses from morning, even until evening.
{18:14} And when, of course, his kinsman saw all that he did among the people, he said: “What is this that you do among the people? Why do you sit alone, while all the people stand before you, from morning, even until evening?”
{18:15} And Moses answered him: “The people come to me seeking the verdict of God.
{18:16} And when any kind of dispute occurs among them, they come to me to judge between them, and to reveal the precepts of God and of his laws.”
{18:17} But he said, “This is not good, what you are doing.
{18:18} You will be consumed by foolish efforts, both you and this people who are with you. The task is beyond your strength; you will not be able bear it alone.
{18:19} But listen to my words and counsels, and then God will be with you. Be available to the people in that which pertains to God, so as to refer what they say to him,
{18:20} and to reveal to the people the ceremonies, and the rituals of worship, and the way by which they should progress, and the work that they should do.
{18:21} Then provide, from all of the people, men capable and fearing God, in whom there is truth and who hate avarice, and appoint from them tribunes, and leaders of hundreds, and of fifties, and of tens,
{18:22} who may judge the people at all times. Then, when anything greater will have occurred, they may refer it to you, and let them judge the lesser matters only. And so it may be lighter for you, the burden being divided among others.
{18:23} If you will do this, you will fulfill the orders of God, and you will be able to uphold his precepts. And this entire people will return to their places in peace.”
{18:24} Having heard this, Moses did everything that he had suggested to him.
{18:25} And choosing virtuous men from all of Israel, he appointed them as leaders of the people: tribunes, and leaders of hundreds, and of fifties, and of tens.
{18:26} And they judged the people at all times. But whatever was more serious, they referred to him, and they judged easier matters only.
{18:27} And he dismissed his kinsman, who, turning back, went to his own land.
{19:1} In the third month of the departure of Israel from the land of Egypt, in that day, they arrived in the wilderness of Sinai.
{19:2} Thus, setting out from Raphidim, and going directly to the desert of Sinai, they encamped in the same place, and there Israel pitched their tents away from the region of the mountain.
{19:3} Then Moses ascended to God. And the Lord called to him from the mountain, and he said: “This you shall say to the house of Jacob, and announce to the sons of Israel:
{19:4} ‘You have seen what I have done to the Egyptians, in what way I carried you upon the wings of eagles and how I have taken you for myself.
{19:5} If, therefore, you will hear my voice, and you will keep my covenant, you will be to me a particular possession out of all people. For all the earth is mine.
{19:6} And you will be to me a priestly kingdom and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you will speak to the sons of Israel.”
{19:7} Moses went, and calling together those greater by birth among the people, he set forth all the words which the Lord had commanded.
{19:8} And all the people responded together: “Everything that the Lord has spoken, we shall do.” And when Moses had related the words of the people to the Lord,
{19:9} the Lord said to him: “Soon now, I will come to you in the mist of a cloud, so that the people may hear me speaking to you, and so that they may believe you continuously.” Therefore, Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord,
{19:10} who said to him: “Go to the people, and sanctify them today, and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments.
{19:11} And let them be prepared on the third day. For on the third day, the Lord will descend, in the sight of all the people, over Mount Sinai.
{19:12} And you will establish limits for the people all around, and you will say to them: ‘Take care not to ascend to the mountain, and that you do not touch its parts. All who touch the mountain, shall die a death.’
{19:13} Hands shall not touch him, but he shall be crushed with stones, or he shall be pierced through with darts. Whether it be a beast or a man, he shall not live. For when the trumpet begins to sound, perhaps they might go up toward the mountain.”
{19:14} And Moses came down from the mountain to the people, and he sanctified them. And when they had washed their garments,
{19:15} he said to them, “Be prepared on the third day, and do not draw near to your wives.”
{19:16} And now, the third day arrived and the morning dawned. And behold, thunders began to be heard, and also lightning flashed, and a very dense cloud covered the mountain, and the noise of the trumpet resounded vehemently. And the people who were in the camp were fearful.
{19:17} And when Moses had led them out to meet God, from the place of the camp, they stood at the base of the mountain.
{19:18} Then all of Mount Sinai was smoking. For the Lord had descended over it with fire, and smoke ascended from it, as from a furnace. And the entire mountain was terrible.
{19:19} And the sound of the trumpet gradually increased to be louder, and extended to be longer. Moses was speaking, and God was answering him.
{19:20} And the Lord descended over Mount Sinai, to the very top of the mountain, and he called Moses to its summit. And when he had ascended there,
{19:21} he said to him: “Descend, and call the people to witness, lest they might be willing to transgress the limits, so as to see the Lord, and a very great multitude of them might perish.
{19:22} Likewise, the priests who approach toward the Lord, let them be sanctified, lest he strike them down.”
{19:23} And Moses said to the Lord: “The people are not able to ascend to Mount Sinai. For you testified, and you commanded, saying: ‘Set limits around the mountain, and sanctify it.’ ”
{19:24} And the Lord said to him, “Go, descend. And you shall ascend, and Aaron with you. But let not the priests or the people transgress the limits, nor ascend to the Lord, lest perhaps he may put them to death.”
{19:25} And Moses descended to the people, and he explained everything to them.
{20:1} And the Lord spoke all these words:
{20:2} “I am the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt, out of the house of servitude.
{20:3} You shall not have strange gods before me.
{20:4} You shall not make for yourself a graven image, nor a likeness of anything that is in heaven above or on earth below, nor of those things which are in the waters under the earth.
{20:5} You shall not adore them, nor shall you worship them. I am the Lord your God: strong, zealous, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the sons to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,
{20:6} and showing mercy to thousands of those who love me and keep my precepts.
{20:7} You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. For the Lord will not hold harmless one who takes the name of the Lord his God falsely.
{20:8} Remember that you are to sanctify the day of the Sabbath.
{20:9} For six days, you will work and accomplish all your tasks.
{20:10} But the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. You shall not do any work in it: you and your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant, your beast and the newcomer who is within your gates.
{20:11} For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and the sea, and all the things that are in them, and so he rested on the seventh day. For this reason, the Lord has blessed the day of the Sabbath and sanctified it.
{20:12} Honor your father and your mother, so that you may have a long life upon the land, which the Lord your God will give to you.
{20:13} You shall not murder.
{20:14} You shall not commit adultery.
{20:15} You shall not steal.
{20:16} You shall not speak false testimony against your neighbor.
{20:17} You shall not covet the house of your neighbor; neither shall you desire his wife, nor male servant, nor female servant, nor ox, nor donkey, nor anything that is his.”
{20:18} Then all the people considered the voices, and the lights, and the sound of the trumpet, and the smoking mountain. And being terrified and struck with fear, they stood at a distance,
{20:19} saying to Moses: “Speak to us, and we will listen. Let not the Lord speak to us, lest perhaps we may die.”
{20:20} And Moses said to the people: “Do not be afraid. For God came in order to test you, and so that the dread of him might be with you, and you would not sin.”
{20:21} And the people stood far away. But Moses approached toward the mist, in which was God.
{20:22} Thereafter, the Lord said to Moses: “This you shall say to the sons of Israel: You have seen that I have spoken to you from heaven.
{20:23} You shall not make gods of silver, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold.
{20:24} You shall make an altar from the earth for me, and you shall offer upon it your holocausts and peace-offerings, your sheep and oxen, in every place where the memory of my name shall be. I will come to you, and I will bless you.
{20:25} And if you make an altar of stone for me, you shall not build it from cut stones; for if you lift up a tool over it, it will be defiled.
{20:26} You shall not ascend by steps to my altar, lest your nakedness be revealed.”
{21:1} “These are the judgments which you shall place before them:
{21:2} If you buy a Hebrew servant, six years shall he serve you; in the seventh, he shall depart freely, without charge.
{21:3} With whatever clothing he arrived, with the like let him depart. If he has a wife, his wife also shall depart, at the same time.
{21:4} But if his lord gave him a wife, and she has borne sons and daughters, the woman and her children shall belong to her lord. Yet still, he himself will go out with his clothing.
{21:5} And if the servant will say, ‘I love my lord, and my wife and children, I will not depart freely,’
{21:6} then his lord shall make an offering for him to the heavens, and it shall be applied to the door and the posts, and he will pierce his ear with an awl. And he shall be his servant in perpetuity.
{21:7} If anyone sells his daughter to be a servant, she shall not depart as a female servant is accustomed to go out.
{21:8} If she displeases the eyes of her lord, to whom she had been delivered, he shall dismiss her. But he shall have no authority to sell her to a foreign people, even if he despises her.
{21:9} But if he has betrothed her to his son, he shall treat her according to the custom with daughters.
{21:10} And if he takes another for him, he shall provide to the maiden a marriage, and clothing, and he shall not refuse the price of her chastity.
{21:11} If he does not do these three things, she shall depart freely, without money.
{21:12} Whoever strikes a man, intending to murder, shall be put to death.
{21:13} But if he did not lie in wait for him, but God delivered him into his hands, then I will appoint for you a place to which he must flee.
{21:14} If someone murders his neighbor with deliberation, by lying in wait, you shall tear him away from my altar, so that he may die.
{21:15} Whoever strikes his father or mother shall die a death.
{21:16} Whoever will have stolen a man and sold him, having been convicted of the crime, shall be put to death.
{21:17} Whoever speaks evil of his father or mother shall die a death.
{21:18} If men will have quarreled, and one of them has struck his neighbor with a stone or a fist, and he does not die, but lies in bed,
{21:19} if he gets up again and can walk outside on his staff, he who struck him will be innocent, but only if he makes sufficient restitution for his deeds and for the cost of the physicians.
{21:20} Whoever strikes his male or female servant with a staff, and if they have died by his hands, he shall be guilty of a crime.
{21:21} But if he survives for one day or two, he shall not be subject to punishment, because it is his money.
{21:22} If men will have quarreled, and one of them has struck a pregnant woman, and as a result she miscarries, but she herself survives, he shall be subject to as much damage as the husband of the woman shall petition from him, or as arbitrators shall judge.
{21:23} But if her death will have followed, he will repay a life for a life,
{21:24} an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot,
{21:25} a scrape for a scrape, a wound for a wound, a bruise for a bruise.
{21:26} If anyone will have struck the eye of his male or female servant, having left them with one eye, he shall release them freely, because of the eye that he has put out.
{21:27} Likewise, if he knocks out a tooth of his male or female servant, he shall similarly release them freely.
{21:28} If an ox has struck a man or a woman with his horn, and if they die, it shall be stoned. And its flesh shall not be eaten; also, the owner of the ox will be innocent.
{21:29} But if the ox had been pushing with his horn, from yesterday and the day before, and they warned his owner, but he did not confine it, and it will have killed a man or a woman, then the ox shall be stoned, and his owner shall be killed.
{21:30} But if they have imposed a price on him, he shall give, in exchange for his life, whatever is asked.
{21:31} Likewise, if it has struck a son or a daughter with its horns, it shall be subject to a similar verdict.
{21:32} If it attacks a male or female servant, he shall give thirty shekels of silver to their lord, yet truly the ox shall be stoned.
{21:33} If a man digs or opens a cistern, and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,
{21:34} then the owner of the cistern shall repay the price of the beasts, and what is dead will belong to him.
{21:35} If the ox of a stranger wounds the ox of another, and it has died, then they shall sell the live ox and divide the price, but the carcass of the dead one they shall distribute between them.
{21:36} But if he knew that his ox had pushed with its horns, yesterday and the day before, and its owner did not confine it, then he shall repay an ox for an ox, and he will receive the whole carcass.”
{22:1} “If anyone will have stolen an ox or a sheep, and if he kills it or sells it, then he will restore five oxen for one ox, and four sheep for one sheep.
{22:2} If a thief will have been discovered breaking into a house, or digging under it, and he has received a mortal wound, he who struck him down will not be guilty of blood.
{22:3} But if he did this when the sun was risen, he has perpetrated a homicide, and he shall die. If he does not have the means to make restitution for the theft, he shall be sold.
{22:4} If whatever he stole should be found with him, a living thing, either an ox, or a donkey, or a sheep, he shall repay double.
{22:5} If there is any damage to a field or a vineyard, when he has released his cattle to pasture on the land of a stranger, he shall repay the best of what he has in his own field, or in his own vineyard, according to the estimation of the damage.
{22:6} If a fire will have been discovered departing from brush, and taking hold in stacks of grain, or in crops standing in the fields, whoever ignited the fire shall repay the damages.
{22:7} If anyone will have entrusted money, or a container, to his friend to keep, and if these have been stolen from the one who received them: if the thief is found, he shall repay double.
{22:8} If the thief is unknown, the lord of the house will be brought before the heavens to swear that he did not lay his hand on the goods of his neighbor,
{22:9} so as to perpetrate any fraud, such as with an ox, or a donkey, or a sheep, or clothing, nor to do anything that would be able to cause damage. The case of both shall be brought before the heavens. And if they give judgment against him, he shall repay double to his neighbor.
{22:10} If anyone will have entrusted a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any animal to the keeping of his neighbor, and it will have died, or become disabled, or have been captured by enemies, and no one saw it,
{22:11} then there shall be an oath between them, that he did not lay his hand on the goods of his neighbor. And the owner shall accept the oath, and he will not be compelled to make restitution.
{22:12} But if it will have been taken away by theft, he shall repay the damages to the owner.
{22:13} If it has been eaten by a wild beast, let him carry what was killed to him, and then he shall not make restitution.
{22:14} If anyone borrows from his neighbor any of these things, and it has died or been disabled when the owner was not present, he shall be compelled to make restitution.
{22:15} But if the owner was present, he shall not make restitution, especially if it had been brought for hired work.
{22:16} If a man has led astray a virgin not yet betrothed, and he has slept with her, he shall pay her dowry and have her as a wife.
{22:17} If the father of the virgin is not willing to give her, he shall pay money according to manner of a dowry, which virgins are accustomed to receive.
{22:18} You shall not permit practitioners of the black arts to live.
{22:19} Whoever has sexual intercourse with an animal shall be put to death.
{22:20} Whoever immolates to gods, other than to the Lord, shall be killed.
{22:21} You shall not harass the newcomer, nor shall you afflict him. For you yourselves were once newcomers in the land of Egypt.
{22:22} You shall not harm a widow or an orphan.
{22:23} If you hurt them, they will cry out to me, and I will hear their cry.
{22:24} And my fury will be enraged, and I will strike you down with the sword. And your wives will become widows, and your sons will become orphans.
{22:25} If you lend money to the poor of my people who live among you, you shall not coerce them like a collector, nor oppress them with usury.
{22:26} If you take a garment from your neighbor as a pledge, you shall return it to him again before the setting of the sun.
{22:27} For it is all that he has to cover himself, to clothe his body; nor does he have anything else in which to sleep. If he cries out to me, I will hear him, because I am compassionate.
{22:28} You shall not disparage the heavens, and you shall not speak evil of the leader of your people.
{22:29} You shall not delay in paying your tithes and your first-fruits. You shall give the firstborn of your sons to me.
{22:30} You shall do likewise with those of the oxen and the sheep. For seven days, let it be with its mother; on the eighth day you shall repay it to me.
{22:31} You shall be holy men for me. The flesh, from which beasts will have tasted, you shall not eat, but you will throw it to the dogs.”
{23:1} “You shall not accept a lying voice. Neither shall you join your hand so as to give false testimony on behalf of the impious.
{23:2} You shall not follow the crowd in doing evil. Neither shall you go astray in judgment, by agreeing with the majority opinion, apart from the truth.
{23:3} Likewise, you shall not show pity in judgment of the poor.
{23:4} If you come across an ox or a donkey of your enemy, which has gone astray, lead it back to him.
{23:5} If you see the donkey of one who hates you, fallen under its burden, you shall not pass by without lifting it up with him.
{23:6} You shall not deviate in judgment of the poor.
{23:7} You shall flee from lies. The innocent and the just you shall not kill. For I shun the impious.
{23:8} Neither shall you accept bribes, which blind even the prudent and subvert the words of the just.
{23:9} You shall not harass a sojourner, for you know the life of a newcomer. For you yourselves also were sojourners in the land of Egypt.
{23:10} For six years, you shall sow your land and gather its produce.
{23:11} But in the seventh year, you shall release it and cause it to rest, so that the poor of your people may eat. And whatever remains, let the beasts of the field eat it. So shall you do with your vineyard and your olive grove.
{23:12} For six days, you shall work. On the seventh day, you shall cease, so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and so that the newcomer and the son of your handmaid may be refreshed.
{23:13} Preserve all that I have said to you. And by the names of foreign gods you shall not swear; neither shall these be heard from your mouth.
{23:14} Three times in each year, you shall celebrate feasts to me.
{23:15} You shall keep the solemnity of unleavened bread. For seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, just as I instructed you, at the time of the month of new grain, when you departed from Egypt. You shall not appear empty-handed in my sight,
{23:16} for it is the solemnity of the harvest of the first-fruits of your work, of whatever you have sown in the field. Likewise, it is a solemnity at the end of the season, when you will have gathered in all your crops from the field.
{23:17} Three times a year, all your males shall appear before the Lord your God.
{23:18} You shall not immolate the blood of my victim over leaven, nor shall the fat of my solemnity remain until morning.
{23:19} You shall carry the first grain of the land to the house of the Lord your God. You shall not cook a young goat in the milk of its mother.
{23:20} Behold, I will send my Angel, who will go before you, and preserve you on your journey, and lead you into the place that I have prepared.
{23:21} Heed him, and hear his voice, and do not hold him in disregard. For he will not release you when you have sinned, and my name is in him.
{23:22} But if you listen to his voice and do all that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies, and I will afflict those who afflict you.
{23:23} And my Angel will go before you, and he will bring you to the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Canaanite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, whom I will crush.
{23:24} You shall not adore their gods, nor worship them. You shall not do their works, but you shall destroy them and break apart their statues.
{23:25} And you shall serve the Lord your God, so that I may bless your bread and your waters, and so that I may take away sickness from your midst.
{23:26} There will not be fruitless or barren ones in your land. I will fill up the number of your days.
{23:27} I will send my terror to run ahead of you, and I will kill all the people to whom you will enter. And I will turn the backs of all your enemies before you,
{23:28} sending wasps ahead, so that they will put to flight the Hivite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, before you enter.
{23:29} I will not cast them out from your face in one year, lest the land be reduced to a wilderness and the wild beasts increase against you.
{23:30} I will expel them little by little from your sight, until you have expanded and may possess the land.
{23:31} Then I will set your limits to be from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Palestinians, and from the desert all the way to the river. I will deliver into your hands the inhabitants of the land, and I will cast them out from your sight.
{23:32} You shall not enter into a pact with them, nor with their gods.
{23:33} They may not live on your land, lest perhaps they may cause you to sin against me, if you serve their gods, which certainly would be a temptation for you.”
{24:1} He also said to Moses: “Ascend to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy elders out of Israel, and adore from a distance.
{24:2} And only Moses will ascend to the Lord, and these shall not approach. Neither shall the people ascend with him.”
{24:3} Therefore, Moses went and explained to the people all the words of the Lord, as well as the judgments. And all the people responded with one voice: “We will do all the words of the Lord, which he has spoken.”
{24:4} Then Moses wrote all the words of the Lord. And rising up in the morning, he built an altar at the base of the mountain, with twelve titles according to the twelve tribes of Israel.
{24:5} And he sent youths from the sons of Israel, and they offered holocausts, and they immolated calves as peace-offerings to the Lord.
{24:6} And so Moses took one half part of the blood, and he put it into bowls. Then the remaining part he poured over the altar.
{24:7} And taking up the book of the covenant, he read it in the hearing of the people, who said: “All that the Lord has spoken, we will do, and we will be obedient.”
{24:8} In truth, taking up the blood, he sprinkled it on the people, and he said, “This is the blood of the covenant, which the Lord has formed with you concerning all these words.”
{24:9} And Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel ascended.
{24:10} And they saw the God of Israel. And under his feet was something like a work of sapphire stone, or like the sky, when it is serene.
{24:11} Neither did he lay his hand upon those of the sons of Israel who were at a distance. And they saw God, and they ate and drank.
{24:12} Then the Lord said to Moses: “Ascend to me on the mountain, and be there. And I will give to you tablets of stone, and the law and the commandments that I have written. So may you teach them.”
{24:13} Moses rose up, with Joshua his minister. And Moses, ascending on the mountain of God,
{24:14} said to the elders: “Wait here, until we return to you. You have Aaron and Hur with you. If any question arises, you shall refer it to them.”
{24:15} And when Moses had ascended, a cloud covered the mountain.
{24:16} And the glory of the Lord dwelt upon Sinai, covering it with a cloud for six days. And on the seventh day, he called to him from the middle of the mist.
{24:17} Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a burning fire over the summit of the mountain in the sight of the sons of Israel.
{24:18} And Moses, entering into the midst of the cloud, ascended the mountain. And he was there for forty days and forty nights.
{25:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{25:2} “Speak to the sons of Israel, so that they may take the first-fruits to me. You shall accept these from every man who offers of his own accord.
{25:3} Now these are the things that you must accept: Gold, and silver, and brass,
{25:4} hyacinth and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine linen, the hair of goats,
{25:5} and the skins of rams, dyed red, and skins of violet, and setim wood,
{25:6} oil to prepare lights, aromatics as ointments and sweet-smelling incense,
{25:7} onyx stones and gems to adorn the ephod as well as the breastplate.
{25:8} And they shall make a sanctuary for me, and I will live in their midst.
{25:9} According to exact likeness of the tabernacle, and all of the vessels for its rituals, that I will reveal to you, so shall you make it.
{25:10} Join together an ark of setim wood, whose length shall hold two and one half cubits; the width, one and one half cubits; the height, likewise, one and one half cubits.
{25:11} And you shall overlay it with the finest gold, inside and out. And over it, you shall fashion a gold crown all around,
{25:12} and four gold rings, which you shall set into the four corners of the ark. Let two rings be on one side and two on the other.
{25:13} Likewise, you shall make bars of setim wood and cover them with gold.
{25:14} And you shall put them through the rings that are in the sides of the ark, so that it may be carried on them.
{25:15} These must always be in the rings, neither shall they ever be drawn out of them.
{25:16} And you shall place the testimony, which I will give to you, in the ark.
{25:17} You shall also make a propitiatory of the finest gold. Its length shall hold two and one half cubits, and the width, one and one half cubits.
{25:18} Likewise, you shall make two Cherubim of formed gold, on both sides of the oracle.
{25:19} Let one Cherub be on the one side, and the other be on the other.
{25:20} And let them cover both sides of the propitiatory, spreading their wings and covering the oracle, and let them look out toward one another, their faces being turned toward the propitiatory, with which the ark is to be covered,
{25:21} in which you will place the testimony that I will give to you.
{25:22} From there, I will warn you and speak to you, above the propitiatory and from the middle of the two Cherubim, which will be over the ark of the testimony, about everything that I will command of the sons of Israel through you.
{25:23} You shall also make a table of setim wood, having two cubits of length, and one cubit in width, and one cubit and one half cubits in height.
{25:24} And you shall overlay it with the purest gold. And you shall make it with a gold lip all around,
{25:25} and for the lip itself an engraved crown, four fingers high, and above it another little gold crown.
{25:26} Likewise, you shall prepare four gold rings and set them in the four corners of the same table, over each foot.
{25:27} Under the crown, there shall be gold rings, so that the bars may be put through them and the table may be carried.
{25:28} Likewise, the bars themselves you shall make of setim wood, and surround them with gold, to lift up the table.
{25:29} You shall also prepare small cups, as well as bowls, censers, and measuring cups, with which the libations shall be offered, out of the purest gold.
{25:30} And you shall place upon the table the bread of the presence, in my sight always.
{25:31} You shall also make a lampstand, formed from the finest gold, along with its stem and arms, its bowl and little spheres, as well as the lilies proceeding from it.
{25:32} Six branches shall go out from the sides: three out of one side and three out of the other.
{25:33} Three bowls, the size of nuts, shall be on each branch, and a little sphere with it, and a lily. And three similar bowls, in the likeness of nuts, shall be on the other branch, and a little sphere with it, and a lily. This shall be the form of the six branches, which are to proceed from the stem.
{25:34} Then, in the lampstand itself, there shall be four bowls, the size of nuts, and each with little spheres and lilies.
{25:35} Little spheres under two branches in three places, which together make six, shall proceed from one of the stems.
{25:36} Thus both the little spheres and the branches shall be made out of the same thing: entirely formed from the purest gold.
{25:37} You shall also make seven lamps, and you shall place them upon the lampstand, so that they may give light in every direction.
{25:38} Likewise, the candle snuffers, and the place where the candles will be extinguished, shall be made from the purest gold.
{25:39} The entire weight of the candlestick, with all its parts, shall hold one talent of the purest gold.
{25:40} Observe, and then make it according to the example that was shown to you on the mountain.”
{26:1} “Truly, thus shall you make the tabernacle: You shall make ten curtains of fine twisted linen, and hyacinth as well as purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, with diverse embroidery.
{26:2} The length of one curtain shall have twenty-eight cubits. The width shall be four cubits. The entire set of curtains shall be of one measure.
{26:3} Five curtains shall be joined to one another, and the other five shall be similarly coupled together.
{26:4} You shall make loops of hyacinth on the sides at the edges of the curtains, so that they will be able to be joined to one another.
{26:5} A curtain shall have fifty loops on each of two sides, inserted in such a manner that loop may come against loop, and one can be fitted to the other.
{26:6} You shall also make fifty rings of gold, with which the veils of the curtains are to be joined, so that it shall be one tabernacle.
{26:7} You shall also make eleven haircloth canopies to cover the roof of the tabernacle.
{26:8} The length of one canopy shall hold thirty cubits, and the width, four. The measure of all the canopies shall be equal.
{26:9} Five of these you shall join by themselves, and six of these you shall couple to one another, in such a manner as to double the sixth canopy at the front of the roof.
{26:10} You shall also make fifty loops along the edge of one canopy, so that it may be able to be joined with the other, and fifty loops along the edge of the other canopy, so that it may be coupled with the other.
{26:11} You shall also make fifty brass buckles, with which the loops may be joined, so that there may be one covering out of all.
{26:12} Then what will be left over of the canopies which are prepared for the roof, that is, one canopy which is in excess, from half of it you shall cover the back of the tabernacle.
{26:13} And one cubit will hang down on one side, and another on the other side, which is more than the length of the curtains, protecting both sides of the tabernacle.
{26:14} You shall also make another covering for the roof from the skins of rams, dyed-red, and above that again, another covering of violet-colored skins.
{26:15} You shall also make the standing panels of the tabernacle from setim wood.
{26:16} Of these, each shall have ten cubits in length, and in width, one and one half.
{26:17} At the sides of the panels, there shall be made two dovetails, by which one panel may be connected to another panel; and in this way all the panels shall be prepared.
{26:18} Of these, twenty shall be at the meridian, which lies toward the south.
{26:19} For these, you shall cast forty bases of silver, so that two bases will lie under each panel at its two corners.
{26:20} Likewise, at the second side of the tabernacle, which lies to the north, there shall be twenty panels,
{26:21} having forty bases of silver; two bases shall support each panel.
{26:22} Truly, toward the western part of the tabernacle, you shall make six panels,
{26:23} and again another two, which will be raised at the corners, behind the back of the tabernacle.
{26:24} And these shall be joined together from bottom to top, and one joint shall retain them all. Likewise, two of the panels, which will be set at the corners, shall be served by similar joints.
{26:25} And together these will be eight panels, and their bases of silver, sixteen, counting two bases for each panel.
{26:26} You shall also make five bars of setim wood, to connect the panels on one side of the tabernacle,
{26:27} and five others on the other side, and the same number toward the western part.
{26:28} These shall be set along the middle of the panels, from one end all the way to the other end.
{26:29} Likewise, the panels themselves you shall overlay with gold, and you shall establish rings of gold in them, by which the bars of the panels may be connected. These you shall cover with layers of gold.
{26:30} And you shall raise the tabernacle according to the example which was shown to you on the mountain.
{26:31} You shall also make a veil of hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine twisted linen, wrought with a diversity of continuous and beautiful embroidery.
{26:32} And you shall suspend it before four columns of setim wood, which themselves certainly shall be overlaid with gold, and have heads of gold, but bases of silver.
{26:33} Then the veil shall be inserted through the rings. Beyond the veil, you shall place the ark of the testimony, where both the Sanctuary and the Sanctuary of Sanctuaries shall be divided.
{26:34} And you shall place the propitiatory over the ark of the testimony, in the Holy of Holies.
{26:35} And the table shall be outside the veil. And opposite the table shall be the lampstand, in the meridian of the tabernacle. For the table shall stand at the north side.
{26:36} You shall also make a tent at the entrance of the tabernacle from hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine twisted linen, wrought with embroidery.
{26:37} And you shall overlay with gold five columns of setim wood, over which the tent shall be drawn. The heads of these shall be of gold, and the bases of brass.”
{27:1} “You shall also make an altar of setim wood, which will have five cubits in length, and the same in width, that is, four equal sides, and three cubits in height.
{27:2} Now there shall be horns at the four corners of it, and you shall cover it with brass.
{27:3} And you shall make, for its uses, pans to receive the ashes, and tongs as well as small hooks, and receptacles for fire. You shall fabricate all of its vessels from brass,
{27:4} along with a grating of brass in the manner of a net. At its four corners there shall be four rings of brass,
{27:5} which you shall place under the base of the altar. And the grating will extend even to the middle of the altar.
{27:6} You shall also make, for the altar, two bars of setim wood, which you shall cover with layers of brass.
{27:7} And you shall lead them through the rings, and they will be on both sides of the altar to carry it.
{27:8} You shall not make it solid, but empty and hollow at the interior, just as it was shown to you on the mountain.
{27:9} You shall also make the atrium of the tabernacle, at the southern part of which, opposite the meridian, there shall be hangings of fine twisted linen: one side extending for one hundred cubits in length.
{27:10} And you shall make twenty columns with the same number of bases of brass, the heads of which, with their engravings, shall be made of silver.
{27:11} In like manner also, throughout the length of the north side, there shall be hangings of one hundred cubits, and twenty columns, and the same number of bases of brass, and their heads with their engravings of silver.
{27:12} Yet truly, along the width of the atrium that looks out toward the west, there shall be hangings of fifty cubits, and ten columns, and the same number of bases.
{27:13} Likewise, along the width of the atrium that looks out toward the east, there shall be fifty cubits,
{27:14} along which there shall be assigned hangings of fifteen cubits for one side, and three columns, and the same number of bases.
{27:15} And, along the other side, there shall be hangings occupying fifteen cubits, with three columns and the same number of bases.
{27:16} Yet truly, at the entrance of the atrium, there shall be made a hanging of twenty cubits, of hyacinth and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine twisted linen, wrought with embroidery. It shall have four columns, with the same number of bases.
{27:17} All the columns surrounding the atrium shall be clothed with layers of silver, with silver heads, and with bases of brass.
{27:18} In length, the atrium shall occupy one hundred cubits, in width, fifty; the height shall be of five cubits. And it shall be made of fine twisted linen, and it shall have bases of brass.
{27:19} All the vessels of the tabernacle, for all uses and ceremonies, even to the tent pegs for its atrium, you shall make of brass.
{27:20} Instruct the sons of Israel so that they may bring you the purest oil of the olive trees, crushed with a pestle, so that a lamp may always burn
{27:21} in the tabernacle of the testimony, outside of the veil that enshrouds the testimony. And Aaron and his sons shall arrange it, so that it may give light in the presence of the Lord, until morning. This shall be a perpetual observance among the sons of Israel, throughout their successions.”
{28:1} “Also, join to yourself your brother Aaron, with his sons from the midst of the sons of Israel, so that they may exercise the priesthood for me: Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.
{28:2} And you shall make a holy vestment for Aaron, your brother, with glory and elegance.
{28:3} And you shall speak to all the wise of heart, whom I have filled with the spirit of prudence, so that they may make the vestments of Aaron, in which, having been sanctified, he may minister to me.
{28:4} Now these shall be the vestments that they shall make: A breastplate and an ephod, a tunic and a close-fit linen garment, a headdress and a wide belt. They shall make the holy vestments for your brother Aaron and his sons, so that they may exercise the priesthood for me.
{28:5} And they shall receive gold, and hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine linen.
{28:6} Then they shall make the ephod of gold, and hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine twisted linen, wrought with diverse colors.
{28:7} It shall have two edges joined at the top on both sides, so that they may respond as one.
{28:8} Likewise, the weaving and all the detail work shall be of gold, and hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine twisted linen.
{28:9} And you shall take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel:
{28:10} six names on one stone, and the remaining six on the other, according to the order of their birth.
{28:11} By the work of a sculptor and the skill of a jeweler, you shall engrave them with the names of the sons of Israel, enclosed and encompassed with gold.
{28:12} And you shall place them on both sides of the ephod, as a memorial to the sons of Israel. And Aaron shall carry their names before the Lord, upon both shoulders, as a remembrance.
{28:13} You shall also make hooks of gold,
{28:14} and two little chains of the purest gold, linked to one another, which you shall insert into the hooks.
{28:15} Likewise, you shall make the breastplate of judgment, wrought with diverse colors according to the weaving of the ephod: of gold, hyacinth and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine twisted linen.
{28:16} It shall have four corners and be doubled. It shall have the measure of the palm of a hand, both in length and in width.
{28:17} And you shall set within it four rows of stones. In the first row, there shall be a sardius stone, and a topaz, and an emerald.
{28:18} In the second, there shall be a garnet, a sapphire, and a jasper.
{28:19} In the third, there shall be a zircon, an agate, and an amethyst.
{28:20} In the fourth, there shall be a chrysolite, an onyx, and a beryl. They shall be set in gold by their rows.
{28:21} And these shall have the names of the sons of Israel. With twelve names shall they be engraved: each stone with one name from the twelve tribes.
{28:22} You shall make chains of the purest gold, linked one to another, on the breastplate,
{28:23} and two rings of gold, which you shall place at both ends of the breastplate.
{28:24} And the golden chains, you shall join to the rings, which are at its edges.
{28:25} And the ends of the chains themselves, you shall couple with two hooks, on both sides of the ephod, which looks toward the breastplate.
{28:26} You shall also make two rings of gold, which you shall place at the ends of the breastplate, at the borders which are away from the region of the ephod and which look toward its back.
{28:27} And then you shall also make two other rings of gold, which are to be suspended on both sides at the bottom of the ephod, which looks out opposite the face of the lower juncture, so that the breastplate can be fitted to the ephod.
{28:28} And it shall be drawn tight to the rings of the breastplate, by the rings of the ephod, with a hyacinth band, so that the well-constructed juncture will remain in place, and the breastplate and the ephod will not be able to be separated from one another.
{28:29} And Aaron shall carry the names of the sons of Israel on the breastplate of judgment upon his chest, when he enters into the Sanctuary, as a memorial in the presence of the Lord in eternity.
{28:30} Then you shall place in the breastplate of judgment, Doctrine and Truth, which shall then be upon Aaron’s chest, when he enters before the Lord. And he shall wear the judgment of the sons of Israel on his chest, in the sight of the Lord always.
{28:31} And you shall make the tunic for the ephod entirely of hyacinth,
{28:32} and the head will be above its middle, with a hem woven around it, just as is usually made at the end parts of a garment, so that it may not be easily broken.
{28:33} Yet truly, beneath it, at the base of the same tunic, all around, you shall make something like pomegranates, from hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, with little bells set in their midst.
{28:34} So then, there shall be a little golden bell and a pomegranate, and again another golden bell and a pomegranate.
{28:35} And Aaron will be vested with it during the office of his ministry, so that the sound may be heard when he enters and exits the Sanctuary, in the sight of the Lord, and so that he may not die.
{28:36} And you shall make a plate of the purest gold, in which you shall engrave, with the skill of a sculptor, ‘Holy to the Lord.’
{28:37} And you shall fasten it with a band of hyacinth, and it shall be upon the headdress,
{28:38} hanging in front of the high priest. And Aaron shall carry the iniquities of that which the sons of Israel have offered and sanctified, in all their gifts and donations. But the plate will always be at his forehead, so that the Lord may be well pleased with them.
{28:39} And you shall draw the tunic tight with fine linen, and you shall make a headdress of fine linen, and a wide belt, wrought with embroidery.
{28:40} Furthermore, for the sons of Aaron, you shall prepare linen tunics, and wide belts as well as headdresses, with glory and elegance.
{28:41} And with all these you shall vest your brother Aaron, and his sons with him. And you shall consecrate all their hands, and you shall sanctify them, so that they may exercise the priesthood for me.
{28:42} You shall also make linen undergarments, in order to cover the flesh of their nakedness, from the kidneys all the way to the thighs.
{28:43} And Aaron and his sons will use them when they enter the tabernacle of the testimony, and when they approach toward the altar, in order to minister in the sanctuary, lest, being guilty of iniquity, they may die. It shall be a law forever for Aaron, and for his offspring after him.”
{29:1} “But you shall also do this, so that they may be consecrated to me in the priesthood: Take a calf from the herd, and two immaculate rams,
{29:2} and unleavened bread, and a crust without leaven that has been sprinkled with oil, likewise, unleavened cakes smeared with oil. You shall make them all from the same wheat flour.
{29:3} And, having placed them in baskets, you shall offer them, along with the calf and the two rams.
{29:4} And you shall bring forward Aaron and his sons, to the door of the tabernacle of the testimony. And when you will have washed the father with his sons in water,
{29:5} you shall clothe Aaron in his vestments, that is, with the linen, and the tunic, and the ephod, and the breastplate, which you shall draw together with the wide belt.
{29:6} And you shall place the headdress on his head and the holy plate upon the headdress.
{29:7} And you shall pour the oil of unction over his head. And so, by this rite, he shall be consecrated.
{29:8} Likewise, you shall bring forward his sons, and you shall clothe them in the linen tunics, and wrap them with the wide belt:
{29:9} Aaron, certainly, as well as his sons. And you shall impose headdresses upon them. And they shall be priests to me by a perpetual ordinance. After you have initiated their hands,
{29:10} you shall bring forward also the calf, in the presence of the tabernacle of the testimony. And Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands upon its head.
{29:11} And you shall sacrifice it in the sight of the Lord, beside the door of the tabernacle of the testimony.
{29:12} And taking some of the blood of the calf, you shall place it upon the horns of the altar with your finger, but the remainder of the blood you shall pour next to its base.
{29:13} And you shall take all the fat which covers its intestines, and the mesh of the liver, as well as the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, and you shall offer them as a burnt offering upon the altar.
{29:14} Yet truly, the flesh of the calf, and the hide and the dung, you shall burn outside, beyond the camp, because it is for sin.
{29:15} Likewise, you shall take one ram, and upon its head Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands.
{29:16} And when you will have sacrificed it, you shall take from its blood and pour it around the altar.
{29:17} Then you shall cut the ram into pieces, and, having washed its intestines and feet, you shall place these upon the cut-up flesh and upon its head.
{29:18} And you shall offer the entire ram as a burnt offering upon the altar. It is an oblation to the Lord, a most sweet odor of the victim of the Lord.
{29:19} Likewise, you shall take the other ram, upon whose head Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands.
{29:20} And when you will have immolated it, you shall take of its blood, and place it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron and his sons, and on the thumbs and big toes of their right hand and right foot, and you shall pour the blood upon the altar, all around.
{29:21} And when you have taken from the blood that is on the altar, and from the oil of unction, you shall sprinkle Aaron and his vestment, his sons and their vestments. And after they and their vestments have been consecrated,
{29:22} you shall take the fat of the ram, and the rump, and the lard that covers the internal organs, and the mesh of the liver, and the two kidneys along with the fat that is on them, and the right shoulder, because it is the ram of consecration,
{29:23} and one turn of bread, a crust sprinkled with oil, and a cake from the basket of unleavened bread, which was placed in the sight of the Lord.
{29:24} And you shall place all these in the hands of Aaron and his sons, and you shall sanctify them, lifting them up in the sight of the Lord.
{29:25} And you shall take all these things from their hands and burn them upon the altar as a holocaust, as a most sweet odor in the sight of the Lord, because it is his oblation.
{29:26} Likewise, you shall take the chest of the ram, with which Aaron was initiated, and you shall sanctify it, lifting it up in the sight of the Lord, and it will fall to your share.
{29:27} And you shall sanctify both the consecrated chest and the shoulder that you separated from the ram,
{29:28} with which Aaron was initiated with his sons, and these will fall to the share of Aaron and his sons, as a perpetual oath by the sons of Israel. For these are the greatest and the first of their victims of peace, which they offer to the Lord.
{29:29} But the holy vestment, which Aaron shall use, his sons shall possess after him, so that they may be anointed in it and their hands may be consecrated.
{29:30} For seven days, he who is high priest in his place and who enters the tabernacle of the testimony to minister in the Sanctuary shall use it.
{29:31} But you shall take the ram of consecration and cook its flesh in the holy place.
{29:32} And Aaron and his sons shall feed on it. Likewise, the loaves which are in the basket, they shall consume in the vestibule of the tabernacle of the testimony,
{29:33} so that it may be an appeasing sacrifice, and so that the hands of those who offer may be sanctified. A stranger shall not eat from these, for they are holy.
{29:34} And what may remain until morning, of the consecrated flesh or of the bread, you shall burn these remnants with fire. These shall not be eaten, because they have been sanctified.
{29:35} All that I have instructed you concerning Aaron and his sons, you shall do. For seven days shall you consecrate their hands,
{29:36} and you shall offer a calf for sin on each day, as an atonement. And you shall cleanse the altar when you will have immolated the victim of expiation, and you shall anoint it for sanctification.
{29:37} For seven days, you shall expiate and sanctify the altar, and it shall be the Holy of holies. All those who will touch it must be sanctified.
{29:38} This is what you shall acquire for the altar: Two one-year-old lambs, each day continually,
{29:39} one lamb in the morning, and the other in the evening;
{29:40} for the one lamb, a tenth part of fine flour sprinkled with crushed oil, which shall have the measure of the fourth part of a hin, and wine for a libation, of the same measure;
{29:41} truly, the other lamb you shall offer in the evening, according to the ritual of the morning oblation, and according to what we have said, as an odor of sweetness.
{29:42} It is a sacrifice to the Lord, by a perpetual oblation among your generations, at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony before the Lord, where I resolve to speak to you.
{29:43} And there I will instruct the sons of Israel, and the altar shall be sanctified by my glory.
{29:44} I will also sanctify the tabernacle of the testimony with the altar, and Aaron with his sons, to exercise the priesthood for me.
{29:45} And I will live in the midst of the sons of Israel, and I will be their God.
{29:46} And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who led them away from the land of Egypt, so that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God.”
{30:1} “You shall also make an altar, for the burning of incense, from setim wood,
{30:2} having one cubit in length, and another in width, that is, four equal sides, and two cubits in height. Horns shall proceed from the same.
{30:3} And you shall clothe it with the purest gold, both its grating and the walls around it, and also the horns. And you shall make for it a crown of gold in a circle,
{30:4} and two gold rings under the crown on each side, so that the bars may be set in them and the altar may be carried.
{30:5} Also, you shall make its bars of setim wood, and you shall overlay them with gold.
{30:6} And you shall set the altar opposite the veil, which hangs in front of the ark of the testimony, before the propitiatory with which the testimony is covered, where I will speak to you.
{30:7} And Aaron shall burn incense upon it, a sweet fragrance, in the morning. When he lights the lamps, he shall burn it.
{30:8} And when he assembles them in the evening, he shall burn an everlasting incense before the Lord throughout your generations.
{30:9} You shall not offer upon it incense of another composition, nor an oblation, nor a victim; neither shall you offer libations.
{30:10} And Aaron shall pray over its horns once a year, with the blood of what was offered for sin. And he shall make atonement over it in your generations. It shall be the Holy of holies to the Lord.”
{30:11} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{30:12} “When you have taken the sum of the sons of Israel, according to their number, each shall give a price for their souls to the Lord, and there will be no scourge among them, when they will be reviewed.
{30:13} Then all those who pass shall give by name: one half shekel, according to the measure at the temple. A shekel has twenty obols. The half part of a shekel shall be offered to the Lord.
{30:14} He who has been numbered from twenty years and above shall give the price.
{30:15} The rich shall not add to the half shekel, and the poor shall diminish nothing.
{30:16} And the money received, which was collected from the sons of Israel, you shall deliver for the uses of the tabernacle of the testimony, so that it may be a memorial of them before the Lord, and he may act favorably toward their souls.”
{30:17} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{30:18} “You shall also make a bronze washtub with its base to wash in; and you shall place it between the tabernacle of the testimony and the altar. And when water has been added,
{30:19} Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and feet in it:
{30:20} when they enter the tabernacle of the testimony, and when they approach to the altar so as to offer incense to the Lord upon it,
{30:21} otherwise, they may die. This shall be an everlasting law to him, and to his offspring, throughout their successions.”
{30:22} And the Lord spoke to Moses,
{30:23} saying: “Take for yourself aromatics: of the first and best myrrh, five hundred shekels, and of cinnamon half as much, that is, two hundred and fifty shekels; of sweet flag similarly two hundred and fifty,
{30:24} but of cassia, five hundred shekels by the weight of the sanctuary, and of the oil of olives the measure of a hin.
{30:25} And you shall make the holy oil of unction, an ointment composed with the skills of a perfumer,
{30:26} and with it you shall anoint the tabernacle of the testimony, and the ark of the testament,
{30:27} and the table with its vessels, and the lampstand and its utensils, the altars of incense
{30:28} and of holocaust, and all the items that pertain to their rituals.
{30:29} And you shall sanctify everything, and they shall be the Holy of holies. He who will touch them must be sanctified.
{30:30} You shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and you shall sanctify them, so that they may exercise the priesthood for me.
{30:31} Likewise, you shall say to the sons of Israel: ‘This oil of unction will be holy to me throughout your generations.
{30:32} The flesh of man shall not be anointed from it, and you shall not make any similar compound, for it has been sanctified and it shall be holy to you.
{30:33} Whatever man will have composed such a thing and have given it to a stranger, he shall be exterminated from his people.’ ”
{30:34} And the Lord said to Moses: “Take to yourself aromatics: stacte, and onycha, galbanum of sweet odor, and the clearest frankincense, all these shall be of equal weight.
{30:35} And you shall make incense composed with the skills of a perfumer, diligently mixed, and pure, and most worthy of sanctification.
{30:36} And when you have crushed all these into a very fine powder, you shall place some of it before the tabernacle of the testimony, in the place where I will appear to you. The Holy of holies shall this incense be to you.
{30:37} You shall not make such a compound for your own uses, because it is holy to the Lord.
{30:38} Whatever man will have made anything similar, so as to thoroughly enjoy its smell, he shall perish from his people.”
{31:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{31:2} “Behold, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, from the tribe of Judah,
{31:3} and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, and understanding, and knowledge in every craft,
{31:4} in order to design whatever must be fabricated from gold, and silver, and brass,
{31:5} from marble, and precious stones, and various woods.
{31:6} And I have given to him, as his associate, Oholiab the son of Ahisamach, from the tribe of Dan. And I have placed wisdom in the heart of every artisan, so that they may make everything as I have instructed you:
{31:7} the tabernacle of the covenant, and the ark of the testimony, and the propitiatory which is over it, and all the vessels of the tabernacle,
{31:8} and the table and its vessels, the most pure lampstand with its vessels, and the altars of incense
{31:9} and of holocaust and all their vessels, the washtub with its base,
{31:10} the holy vestments for the ministry of Aaron the priest, and for his sons, so that they may execute their office of sacred rites,
{31:11} the oil of unction, and the incense of aromatics in the Sanctuary. All the things that I have instructed you, they shall make.”
{31:12} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{31:13} “Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: See that you keep my Sabbath. For it is a sign between me and you among your generations, so that you may know that I am the Lord, who sanctifies you.
{31:14} Keep my Sabbath, for it is holy to you. Whoever will have polluted it, shall die a death. Whoever will have done any work in it, his soul shall perish from the midst of his people.
{31:15} For six days you shall do work. On the seventh day, it is the Sabbath, a rest sanctified by the Lord. All who will have done work on this day shall die.
{31:16} Let the sons of Israel keep the Sabbath, and let them celebrate it throughout their generations. It is an everlasting covenant
{31:17} between me and the sons of Israel, and a perpetual sign. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and in the seventh he ceased from work.”
{31:18} And the Lord, having completed speaking in this way on Mount Sinai, gave to Moses two stone tablets of testimony, written with the finger of God.
{32:1} Then the people, seeing that Moses made a delay in descending from the mountain, gathered together against Aaron, and said: “Rise up, make us gods, who may go before us. But as for this man Moses, who led us away from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has befallen him.”
{32:2} And Aaron said to them, “Take the golden earrings from the ears of your wives, and your sons and daughters, and bring them to me.”
{32:3} And the people did what he had commanded, carrying the earrings to Aaron.
{32:4} And when he had received them, he formed these by the work of a casting furnace, and he made from these a molten calf. And they said: “These are your gods, O Israel, who led you away from the land of Egypt.”
{32:5} And when Aaron had seen it, he built an altar before it, and he cried out with a voice of proclamation, saying, “Tomorrow is the solemnity of the Lord.”
{32:6} And rising up in the morning, they offered holocausts, and peace victims, and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and they rose up to play.
{32:7} Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Go, descend. Your people, whom you led away from the land of Egypt, have sinned.
{32:8} They have quickly withdrawn from the way which you revealed to them. And they have made for themselves a molten calf, and they have worshiped it. And immolating victims to it, they have said: ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who led you away from the land of Egypt.’ ”
{32:9} And again, the Lord said to Moses: “I discern that this people is stiff-necked.
{32:10} Release me, so that my fury may be enraged against them, and I may destroy them, and then I will make of you a great nation.”
{32:11} Then Moses prayed to the Lord his God, saying: “Why, O Lord, is your fury enraged against your people, whom you led away from the land of Egypt, with great strength and with a mighty hand?
{32:12} I beg you, let not the Egyptians say, ‘He cleverly led them away, so that he could put them to death in the mountains and destroy them from the earth.’ Let your anger be quieted and appeased concerning the wickedness of your people.
{32:13} Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your very self, saying: ‘I will multiply your offspring like the stars of heaven. And this entire land, about which I have spoken, I will give to your offspring. And you shall possess it forever.’ ”
{32:14} And the Lord was appeased from doing the evil which he had spoken against his people.
{32:15} And Moses returned from the mountain, carrying the two tablets of the testimony in his hand, written on both sides,
{32:16} and accomplished by the work of God. Also, the writing of God was engraved on the tablets.
{32:17} Then Joshua, hearing the tumult of the people shouting, said to Moses: “The outcry of battle is heard in the camp.”
{32:18} But he responded: “It is not the clamor of men being exhorted to battle, nor the shout of men being compelled to flee. But I hear the voice of singing.”
{32:19} And when he had approached to the camp, he saw the calf and the dances. And being very angry, he threw down the tablets from his hand, and he broke them at the base of the mountain.
{32:20} And seizing the calf, which they had made, he burnt it and crushed it, even to dust, which he scattered into water. And he gave from it to the sons of Israel to drink.
{32:21} And he said to Aaron, “What has this people done to you, so that you would bring upon them the greatest sin?”
{32:22} And he answered him: “Let not my lord be indignant. For you know this people, that they are prone to evil.
{32:23} They said to me: ‘Make gods for us, who may go before us. For this Moses, who led us away from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has befallen him.’
{32:24} And I said to them, ‘Which of you has gold?’ And they took it and gave it to me. And I threw it into the fire, and this calf came out.”
{32:25} Therefore, Moses, seeing that the people were naked (for Aaron had stripped them because of the disgrace of their sordidness, and he had set them naked among their enemies),
{32:26} and standing at the gate of the camp, said: “If anyone is for the Lord, let him join with me.” And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.
{32:27} And he said to them: “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Let a man place his sword at his thigh. Go forth, and then return, from gate to gate, through the midst of the camp, and let each one kill his brother, and friend, and neighbor.”
{32:28} And the sons of Levi did according to the words of Moses, and there fell on that day about twenty-three thousand men.
{32:29} And Moses said: “On this day, you have consecrated your hands to the Lord, each one in his son and in his brother, so that a blessing may be given to you.”
{32:30} Then, when the next day arrived, Moses spoke to the people: “You have sinned the greatest sin. I will ascend to the Lord. Perhaps, in some way, I might be able to entreat him for your wickedness.”
{32:31} And returning to the Lord, he said: “I beg you, this people has sinned the greatest sin, and they have made for themselves gods of gold. Either release them from this offense,
{32:32} or, if you do not, then delete me from the book that you have written.”
{32:33} And the Lord answered him: “Whoever has sinned against me, him I will delete from my book.
{32:34} But as for you, go and lead this people where I have told you. My angel will go before you. Then, on the day of retribution, I will also visit this sin of theirs.”
{32:35} Therefore, the Lord struck the people for the guilt of the calf, which Aaron had made.
{33:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: “Go forth, ascend from this place, you and your people, whom you led away from the land of Egypt, into the land that I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying: To your offspring, I will give it.
{33:2} And I will send an Angel to precede you, so that I may cast out the Canaanite, and the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite,
{33:3} and so that you may enter into a land flowing with milk and honey. For I will not go up with you, since you are a stiff-necked people, lest perhaps I may destroy you on the way.”
{33:4} And upon hearing this very bad news, the people mourned; and no one put on his finery according to custom.
{33:5} And the Lord said to Moses: “Say to the sons of Israel: You are a stiff-necked people. I should at once go up into your midst and destroy you. Now immediately put aside your ornaments, so that I may know what to do to you.”
{33:6} Therefore, the sons of Israel put aside their ornaments before Mount Horeb.
{33:7} Also, Moses took the tabernacle and pitched it beyond the camp at a distance, and he called its name: ‘Tabernacle of the Covenant.’ And all the people, who had any kind of question, went out to the Tabernacle of the Covenant, beyond the camp.
{33:8} And when Moses went out to the tabernacle, all the people rose up, and each one stood at the door of his pavilion, and they beheld the back of Moses until he entered the tent.
{33:9} And when he had gone into the Tabernacle of the Covenant, the pillar of cloud descended and stood at the door, and he spoke with Moses.
{33:10} And all discerned that the pillar of cloud stood at the door of the Tabernacle. And they stood and worshipped at the doors of their tents.
{33:11} But the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, just as a man is used to speaking to his friend. And when he returned to the camp, his minister Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, did not withdraw from the Tabernacle.
{33:12} Then Moses said to the Lord: “You instruct me to lead this people away, and you do not reveal to me whom you will send with me, particularly since you have said: ‘I know you by name, and you have found favor before me.’
{33:13} If, therefore, I have found favor in your sight, show your face to me, so that I may know you and may find grace before your eyes. Look favorably on your people, this nation.”
{33:14} And the Lord said, “My face will precede you, and I will give you rest.”
{33:15} And Moses said: “If you will not yourself precede us, then do not lead us away from this place.
{33:16} For how will we be able to know, I and your people, that we have found grace in your sight, unless you walk with us, so that we may be glorified out of all the people who live upon the earth?”
{33:17} Then the Lord said to Moses: “This word also, which you have spoken, I will do. For you have found grace before me, and I have known you by name.”
{33:18} And he said, “Show me your glory.”
{33:19} He responded: “I will show you all that is good, and I will call out with the name of the Lord before you. And I will take pity on whomever I will, and I will be lenient to whomever it will please me.”
{33:20} And again he said: “You are not able to see my face. For man shall not see me and live.”
{33:21} And again, he said: “Behold, there is a place with me, and you shall stand upon the rock.
{33:22} And when my glory will cross over, I will set you in a cleft of the rock, and I will protect you with my right hand, until I pass by.
{33:23} And I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back. But my face you are not able to see.”
{34:1} And after this he said: “Cut out for yourself two tablets of stone similar to the first ones, and I will write upon them the words which were held on the tablets that you broke.
{34:2} Be prepared in the morning, so that you may immediately ascend onto Mount Sinai, and you shall stand with me on the summit of the mountain.
{34:3} Let no one ascend with you, and do not let anyone be seen throughout the entire mountain. Likewise, do not let the oxen or the sheep pasture up against it.”
{34:4} And so he cut out two tablets of stone, like those that were before. And rising up in the night, he ascended onto Mount Sinai, just as the Lord had instructed him, carrying with him the tablets.
{34:5} And when the Lord had descended in a cloud, Moses stood with him, calling upon the name of the Lord.
{34:6} And as he was crossing before him, he said: “The Ruler, the Lord God, merciful and lenient, patient and full of compassion and also truthful,
{34:7} who preserves mercy a thousand fold, who takes away iniquity, and wickedness, and also sin; and with you no one, in and of himself, is innocent. You render the iniquity of the fathers to the sons, and also to their descendants to the third and fourth generation.”
{34:8} And hurrying, Moses bowed down prostrate to the ground; and worshiping,
{34:9} he said: “If I have found grace in your sight, O Lord, I beg you to walk with us, (for the people are stiff-necked) and take away our iniquities and our sin, and so possess us.”
{34:10} The Lord responded: “I will enter into a pact in the sight of all. I will perform signs which have never been seen on earth, nor among any nation, so that this people, in whose midst you are, may discern the terrible work of the Lord that I will do.
{34:11} Observe everything that I command you this day. I myself will drive out before your face the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite.
{34:12} Beware that you do not ever join in friendship with the inhabitants of that land, which may be your ruin.
{34:13} But destroy their altars, break their statues, and cut down their sacred groves.
{34:14} Do not be willing to worship any strange god. The jealous Lord is his name. God is a rival.
{34:15} Do not enter into a pact with the men of those regions, lest, when they will have fornicated with their gods and worshiped their idols, someone might call upon you to eat from what was immolated.
{34:16} Neither shall you take a wife for your son from their daughters, lest, after they themselves have fornicated, they may cause your sons also to fornicate with their gods.
{34:17} You shall not make for yourselves any molten gods.
{34:18} You shall keep the solemnity of unleavened bread. For seven days, you shall eat unleavened bread, just as I instructed you, in the time of the month of what is new. For in the month of springtime you departed from Egypt.
{34:19} All of the male kind, which open the womb, shall be mine: from all the animals, as much of oxen as of sheep, it shall be mine.
{34:20} The firstborn of a donkey, you shall redeem with a sheep. But if you will not give a price for it, it shall be slain. The firstborn of your sons you shall redeem. You shall not appear empty in my sight.
{34:21} For six days you shall work. On the seventh day you shall cease to cultivate and to harvest.
{34:22} You shall observe the Solemnity of Weeks with the first-fruits of the grain from the harvest of your wheat, and a Solemnity when the time of the year returns and everything is stored away.
{34:23} Three times a year, all your males shall appear in the sight of the Almighty, the Lord God of Israel.
{34:24} For when I will have taken away the nations before your face, and enlarged your borders, no one shall lie in wait against your land when you will go up to appear in the sight of the Lord your God, three times a year.
{34:25} You shall not immolate the blood of my victim over leaven; and there shall not remain, in the morning, any of the victim of the Solemnity of the Passover.
{34:26} The first of the fruits of your land you shall offer in the house of the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in the milk of its mother.”
{34:27} And the Lord said to Moses, “Write these words to you, through which I have formed a covenant, both with you and with Israel.”
{34:28} Therefore, he was in that place with the Lord for forty days and forty nights; he did not eat bread and he did not drink water, and he wrote on the tablets the ten words of the covenant.
{34:29} And when Moses descended from Mount Sinai, he held the two tablets of the testimony, and he did not know that his face was radiant from the sharing of words with the Lord.
{34:30} Then Aaron and the sons of Israel, seeing that the face of Moses was radiant, were afraid to approach close by.
{34:31} And being called by him, they turned back, both Aaron and the leaders of the assembly. And after he had spoken to them,
{34:32} all the sons of Israel also now came to him. And he instructed them in all the things that he had heard from the Lord on Mount Sinai.
{34:33} And having completed these words, he placed a veil over his face.
{34:34} But when he entered to the Lord and was speaking with him, he took it off, until he exited. And then he spoke to the sons of Israel all that had been commanded to him.
{34:35} And they saw that the face of Moses, when he came out, was radiant, but he covered his face again, whenever he spoke to them.
{35:1} Therefore, when all the multitude of the sons of Israel had gathered together, he said to them: “These are the things that the Lord has ordered to be done:
{35:2} For six days you shall do work; the seventh day, the Sabbath and the rest of the Lord, will be holy to you; whoever will have done any work in it shall be killed.
{35:3} You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwelling places throughout the day of the Sabbath.”
{35:4} And Moses said to the entire crowd of the sons of Israel: “This is the word which the Lord has instructed, saying:
{35:5} Separate from among you the first-fruits to the Lord. Let all who are willing and have a ready soul offer these to the Lord: gold, and silver, and brass,
{35:6} hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine linen, the hair of goats,
{35:7} and the skins of rams, dyed red, and violet skins, setim wood,
{35:8} and oil to prepare lights and to produce ointment, and most sweet incense,
{35:9} onyx stones and gems, to adorn the ephod and the breastplate.
{35:10} And whoever among you is wise, let him come and make what the Lord has commanded:
{35:11} the tabernacle, certainly, and its roof, and also the covering, the rings, and the panels with the bars, the tent pegs and the bases,
{35:12} the ark and its bars, the propitiatory, and the veil that is drawn before it,
{35:13} the table with its bars and vessels, and the bread of the presence,
{35:14} the lampstand to hold up the lights, its vessels and lamps, and the oil to the nourish the fire,
{35:15} the altar of incense and its bars, and the oil of unction, and the incense of aromatics, the tent at the door of the tabernacle,
{35:16} the altar of holocaust and its grate of brass, with the bars and vessels, the washtub and its base,
{35:17} the curtains of the atrium, with the columns and the bases, the hanging at the doors of the vestibule,
{35:18} the tent pegs of the tabernacle and the atrium, with their little cords,
{35:19} the vestments, which are to be used in the ministry of the Sanctuary, the vestments of Aaron, the high priest, as well as those of his sons, in order to exercise the priesthood to me.”
{35:20} And all the multitude of the sons of Israel, departing from the sight of Moses,
{35:21} offered the first-fruits to the Lord with a most ready and devout mind, to accomplish the work of the tabernacle of the testimony. Whatever was needed for worship and for the holy vestments,
{35:22} men along with women provided: arm bands and earrings, rings and bracelets. And every vessel of gold was separated, to be donated to the Lord.
{35:23} If anyone had hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, fine linen and the hair of goats, the skins of rams, dyed red, and violet skins,
{35:24} metal of silver and brass, they offered it to the Lord, along with setim wood for various uses.
{35:25} But the skillful women also gave whatever they had spun: hyacinth, purple, and vermillion, as well as fine linen,
{35:26} and the hair of goats, donating everything of their own accord.
{35:27} Yet truly, the leaders offered onyx stones and gems, for the ephod and the breastplate,
{35:28} and aromatics and oil, to maintain the lights, and to prepare ointment, and also to produce incense with a most sweet odor.
{35:29} All the men and women offered donations with a devout mind, so that the works might be done which the Lord had ordered by the hand of Moses. All the sons of Israel dedicated voluntary offerings to the Lord.
{35:30} And Moses said to the sons of Israel: “Behold, the Lord has called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, from the tribe of Judah,
{35:31} and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, and understanding, and knowledge, and all teaching,
{35:32} to design and to fashion, with gold and silver and brass,
{35:33} and with engraving stones, and with the skill of a carpenter. Whatever can be skillfully invented,
{35:34} he has given to his heart. It is likewise with Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach from the tribe of Dan.
{35:35} He has taught both of them wisdom, in order to do the work of carpentry, tapestry, and embroidery, from hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine linen, and every textile, and to discover whatever may be new.”
{36:1} Therefore, Bezalel, and Oholiab, and every wise man, to whom the Lord gave wisdom and intelligence, so as to know how to work skillfully, made that which was necessary for the uses of the Sanctuary and which the Lord had instructed.
{36:2} And when Moses had called them and every man of learning, to whom the Lord had given wisdom, and who, of their own accord, had offered themselves in order to accomplish this work,
{36:3} he handed over to them all the donations of the sons of Israel. And while they were pursuing this work, the people offered what they had vowed each day, in the morning.
{36:4} The artisans were compelled by this to go
{36:5} to Moses and to say, “The people offer more than is needed.”
{36:6} Therefore, Moses ordered this to be recited, with a voice of proclamation: “Let neither man nor woman offer anything further for the work of the Sanctuary.” And so they ceased from offering gifts,
{36:7} because what was offered was sufficient and was more than an abundance.
{36:8} And all those who were wise of heart, in order to accomplish the work of the tabernacle, made ten curtains of fine twisted linen, and hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, with diverse workmanship by the art of embroidery.
{36:9} Each of these was twenty-eight cubits in length, and in width, four. All the curtains were of one measure.
{36:10} And he joined five curtains to one another, and the other five he coupled to one another.
{36:11} He also made loops of hyacinth along the edge of one curtain on both sides, and similarly along the edge of the other curtain,
{36:12} so that the loops might meet against one another and might be joined together.
{36:13} For these, he also cast fifty gold rings, which would retain the loops of the curtains and so make the tabernacle one.
{36:14} He also made eleven canopies from the hair of goats, in order to cover the roof of the tabernacle:
{36:15} one canopy held in length thirty cubits, and in width four cubits. All the canopies were of one measure.
{36:16} Five of these he joined by themselves, and the other six separately.
{36:17} And he made fifty loops along the edge of one canopy, and fifty along the edge of the other canopy, so that they might be joined to one another,
{36:18} and fifty buckles of brass, with which the roof might be woven together, so that from all the canopies there would be made one covering.
{36:19} He also made a covering for the tabernacle from the skins of rams, dyed-red; and another cover above it, from violet skins.
{36:20} He also made the standing panels of the tabernacle, from setim wood.
{36:21} Ten cubits was the length of one panel, and one and one half cubits comprised the width.
{36:22} There were two dovetails along every panel, so that one might be joined to the other. Thus did he make all the panels of the tabernacle.
{36:23} Of these, twenty were toward the meridian area, opposite the south,
{36:24} with forty bases of silver. Two bases were set under one panel at each of two sides at the corners, where the joints of the sides terminate in corners.
{36:25} Likewise, at that side of the tabernacle which looks toward the north, he made twenty panels,
{36:26} with forty bases of silver, two bases for each board.
{36:27} Yet truly, opposite the west, that is, toward that part of the tabernacle which looks out toward the sea, he made six panels,
{36:28} and two others at each corner of the tabernacle at the back,
{36:29} which were joined from bottom to top and held together by one joint. So did he make both corners on that side.
{36:30} So then, there were altogether eight panels, and they had sixteen bases of silver, with, of course, two bases under each panel.
{36:31} He also made bars from setim wood: five to hold together the panels at one side of the tabernacle,
{36:32} and five others to fit together the panels of the other side, and, in addition to these, five other bars toward the western area of the tabernacle, opposite the sea.
{36:33} He also made another bar, which came through the middle of the panels from corner to corner.
{36:34} But the panels themselves he overlaid with gold, casting silver bases for them. And he made their rings from gold, through which the bars might be able to be drawn. And he covered the bars themselves with layers of gold.
{36:35} He also made a veil from hyacinth, and purple, from vermillion as well as fine twisted linen, with varied and distinctive embroidery,
{36:36} and four columns of setim wood, which, along with their heads, he overlaid with gold, casting silver bases for them.
{36:37} He also made a tent at the entrance of the tabernacle from hyacinth, purple, vermillion, and fine twisted linen, wrought with embroidery,
{36:38} and five columns with their heads, which he covered with gold, and he cast their bases from brass.
{37:1} Now Bezalel also made the ark from setim wood, having two and one half cubits in length, and one and one half cubits in width, and the height was also one and one half cubits. And he clothed it with the purest gold, inside and out.
{37:2} And for it he made a crown of gold all around,
{37:3} casting four gold rings at its four corners: two rings on one side, and two on the other.
{37:4} Likewise, he made bars from setim wood, which he clothed with gold,
{37:5} and he placed them into the rings, which were at the sides of the ark, to carry it.
{37:6} He also made the propitiatory, that is, the oracle, from the finest gold, two and one half cubits in length, and one and one half cubits in width,
{37:7} and then two Cherubim of ductile gold, which he positioned at the two sides of the propitiatory:
{37:8} one Cherub at the top of one side, and the other Cherub at the top of the other side. The two Cherubim were at each end of the propitiatory,
{37:9} spreading their wings, and protecting the propitiatory, and gazing toward it and toward one another.
{37:10} He also made the table from setim wood, with a length of two cubits, and a width of one cubit, which had a height of one and one half cubits.
{37:11} And he surrounded it with the finest gold, and for it he made a ledge of gold all around,
{37:12} and for the ledge itself he made a polished crown of gold, four fingers high, and upon the same, another crown of gold.
{37:13} And he cast four gold rings, which he set at the four corners at each foot of the table,
{37:14} opposite the crown. And he placed the bars into them, so that the table could be carried.
{37:15} Likewise, the bars themselves he made from setim wood, and he surrounded them with gold.
{37:16} And he made vessels for the diverse uses of the table, as well as the little cups, and bowls, and measuring cups, and the censers, from pure gold, in which the libations would be offered.
{37:17} He also made the lampstand, formed from the finest gold. The branches, bowls, and little spheres, as well as the lilies, proceeded from its bar:
{37:18} six on the two sides, three branches on one side, and three on the other.
{37:19} Three bowls, the size of a nut, were on each branch, with little spheres and lilies, and three bowls, in the likeness of a nut, were on the other branch, with the little spheres together with the lilies. The workmanship of the six branches, which proceeded from the shaft of the lampstand, was equal.
{37:20} Now on the shaft itself were four bowls, the size of a nut, and little spheres together with each one, and lilies,
{37:21} and little spheres under two branches in three places, which together made six branches proceeding from one bar.
{37:22} Thus, both the little spheres and the branches were from the same thing: all hand-worked from the purest gold.
{37:23} He also made the seven lamps with their candle snuffers, and the vessels where the candles would be extinguished, from the finest gold.
{37:24} The lampstand with all its vessels weighed a talent of gold.
{37:25} He also made the altar of incense from setim wood, having one cubit on each of four sides, and in height, two. From its corners proceeded horns.
{37:26} And he clothed it with the purest gold, with its grating, as well as the sides and the horns.
{37:27} And for it he made a crown of gold all around, and two gold rings under the crown at each side, so that the bars might be put into them, and the altar could be carried.
{37:28} Now the bars themselves he also made from setim wood, and he covered them with layers of gold.
{37:29} He also composed the oil for the ointment of sanctification, and the incense, from the purest aromatics, with the skill of a perfumer.
{38:1} He also made the altar of holocaust from setim wood: five cubits square, and three in height,
{38:2} the horns of which proceeded from the corners. And he covered it with layers of brass.
{38:3} And for its uses, he prepared diverse vessels out of brass: kettles, forceps, little hooks, larger hooks, and receptacles for the fire.
{38:4} And he made its grating of brass, in the manner of a net, and under it, in the midst of the altar, its base,
{38:5} casting four rings at the four ends of the net in order to set the bars, so as to carry it.
{38:6} These bars he also made of setim wood, and he covered them with layers of brass.
{38:7} And he drew them through the rings, which projected from the sides of the altar. But the altar itself was not solid, but hollow, made from panels and empty inside.
{38:8} He also made the washtub of brass, with its base made from the mirrors of the women who kept watch at the door of the tabernacle.
{38:9} He also made the atrium, at the south side of which were hangings of fine twisted linen of one hundred cubits and
{38:10} twenty columns of brass with their bases. The heads of the columns and all of the engraving work were of silver.
{38:11} Equally, at the northern area, the hangings, the columns, and the bases and heads of the columns were of the same measure and work and metal.
{38:12} Yet truly, on that side which looks out toward the west, there were hangings of fifty cubits, and ten columns with their bases of brass. And the heads of the columns and all of the engraving work were of silver.
{38:13} Furthermore, toward the east, he prepared hangings of fifty cubits:
{38:14} of which, there were fifteen cubits, among three columns with their bases, holding up one side,
{38:15} and on the other side, (for between the two he made the entrance of the tabernacle) there were equally hangings of fifteen cubits, and three pillars, and the same number of bases.
{38:16} All the hangings of the atrium were woven from fine twisted linen.
{38:17} The bases of the columns were of brass, but their heads with all of their engravings were of silver. Now he also overlaid the columns of the atrium themselves with silver.
{38:18} And he made, at its entrance, a hanging, wrought with embroidery, of hyacinth, purple, vermillion, and fine twisted linen, which held twenty cubits in length, yet truly it was five cubits in height, as with the measure of all the hangings of the atrium.
{38:19} Now the columns at the entrance were four, with bases of brass, and their heads and engravings were of silver.
{38:20} Likewise, the tent pegs of the tabernacle and the atrium all around he made of brass.
{38:21} These are the instruments of the tabernacle of the testimony, which were enumerated according to the instruction of Moses, with the ceremonies of the Levites, by the hand of Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest,
{38:22} which Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur from the tribe of Judah, had completed, just as the Lord decreed through Moses.
{38:23} He was joined by his associate, Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, from the tribe of Dan, who himself was also an exceptional artisan of wood, and of weaving, as well as of embroidery, with hyacinth, purple, vermillion, and fine linen.
{38:24} All of the gold that was expended in the work of the Sanctuary, and that was offered in donation, was twenty-nine talents and seven hundred thirty shekels, according to the measure of the Sanctuary.
{38:25} Now it was offered by those who were past the numbering of twenty years and above: from six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men able to bear arms.
{38:26} There were, beyond that, one hundred talents of silver, from which were cast the bases for the Sanctuary and for the entrance where the veil hangs.
{38:27} One hundred bases were made from one hundred talents, a single talent being counted for each base.
{38:28} But from one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five, he made the heads of the columns, which he also clothed with silver.
{38:29} Likewise, of brass, there was offered seventy-two thousand talents, and four hundred more shekels,
{38:30} from which were cast the bases at the entrance of the tabernacle of the testimony, and the altar of brass with its grating, and the vessels which pertain to its use,
{38:31} and the bases of the atrium, as much at the circumference as at its entrance, and the tent pegs of the tabernacle and of the atrium all round.
{39:1} Truly, from hyacinth and purple, vermillion and fine linen, he made the vestments with which Aaron was clothed when he ministered in the holy places, just as the Lord instructed Moses.
{39:2} And so he made an ephod of gold, hyacinth, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine twisted linen,
{39:3} wrought with embroidery. And he cut thin strips of gold and drew them into threads, so that they could be twisted into the weave of the first colors.
{39:4} And he made two edges, coupled to one another at the top of both sides,
{39:5} and a wide belt from the same colors, just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{39:6} He also prepared two onyx stones, set and enclosed in gold, and engraved with the skill of a jeweler, with the names of the sons of Israel.
{39:7} And he set them in the sides of the ephod, as a memorial to the sons of Israel, just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{39:8} He also made a breastplate, wrought with embroidery, according to the work of the ephod, from gold, hyacinth, purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine twisted linen:
{39:9} with four equal sides, doubled, of the measure of the palm of a hand.
{39:10} And he set four rows of gems in it. In the first row was a sardius stone, a topaz, an emerald;
{39:11} in the second was a garnet, a sapphire, and a jasper;
{39:12} in the third was a zircon, an agate, and an amethyst;
{39:13} in the fourth was a chrysolite, an onyx, and a beryl, surrounded and enclosed in gold by their rows.
{39:14} And these twelve stones were engraved with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, each one with a single name.
{39:15} They also made, in the breastplate, little chains linked to one another, from the purest gold,
{39:16} and two hooks, and the same number of gold rings. Moreover, they set the rings at both sides of the breastplate,
{39:17} from which two golden chains would hang, which they connected with the hooks that projected from the corners of the ephod.
{39:18} These were both in front and in back so that they met one another, and so that the ephod and the breastplate were woven together,
{39:19} being fastened to the wide belt and strongly coupled with rings, to which a hyacinth band was joined, lest they should shake loose and be moved away from one another, just as the Lord instructed Moses.
{39:20} They also made the tunic of the ephod entirely from hyacinth,
{39:21} with the head in the upper part at the middle, and a woven edge all around the head.
{39:22} Then, at the feet below, they also made pomegranates from hyacinth, purple, vermillion, and fine twisted linen,
{39:23} and little bells from the purest gold, which they set between the pomegranates at the very bottom of the tunic all around.
{39:24} So then, the high priest approached, adorned with gold bell and pomegranate, when he performed his ministry, just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{39:25} They also made fine linen tunics with woven work, for Aaron and his sons,
{39:26} and headdresses with their little crowns of fine linen,
{39:27} and also linen undergarments of fine linen.
{39:28} Truly, they also made a wide band of fine twisted linen, hyacinth, purple, as well as vermillion, twice-dyed, with skillful embroidery, just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{39:29} They also made the plate of sacred veneration from the purest gold, and they wrote on it, with the skill of a jeweler: “Holy to the Lord.”
{39:30} And they fastened it to the headdress with a hyacinth band, just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{39:31} And so all the work of the tabernacle and of the covering of the testimony was completed. And the sons of Israel did all that the Lord had instructed Moses.
{39:32} And they offered the tabernacle, and the covering, and all of the articles: the rings, the panels, the bars, the columns and bases,
{39:33} the cover of the skins of rams, dyed red, and the other cover of violet skins,
{39:34} the veil, the ark, the bars, the propitiatory,
{39:35} the table, with its vessels and the bread of the presence,
{39:36} the lampstand, the lamps, and their utensils with the oil,
{39:37} the altar of gold, and the ointment, and the incense of aromatics,
{39:38} and the tent at the entrance of the tabernacle,
{39:39} the altar of brass, the grating, the bars, and all of its vessels, the washtub with its base, the hangings of the atrium, and the columns with their bases,
{39:40} the hanging at the entrance of the atrium, and their little cords and pegs. Nothing was lacking of the articles that were commanded to be made for the ministry of the tabernacle and for the covering of the covenant.
{39:41} Likewise, the vestments, which the priests, namely, Aaron and his sons, make use of use in the Sanctuary,
{39:42} the sons of Israel offered, just as the Lord had instructed.
{39:43} After this, when Moses saw that everything was completed, he blessed them.
{40:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{40:2} “In the first month, on the first day of the month, you shall raise the tabernacle of the testimony,
{40:3} and you shall place the ark in it, and you shall release the veil before it.
{40:4} And having brought in the table, you shall place the things which were solemnly commanded upon it. The lampstand shall stand with its lamps,
{40:5} and the altar of gold, in which the incense is burned, shall stand before the ark of the testimony. You shall place the tent at the entrance of the tabernacle,
{40:6} and before it, the altar of holocaust.
{40:7} The washtub shall stand between the altar and the tabernacle, and you shall fill it with water.
{40:8} And you shall encompass the atrium and its entrance with hangings.
{40:9} And, having taken up the oil of unction, you shall anoint the tabernacle along with its articles, so that they may be sanctified.
{40:10} The altar of holocaust and all its vessels,
{40:11} the washtub with its base, and all things, you shall consecrate with the oil of unction, so that they may be the Holy of holies.
{40:12} And you shall bring forward Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the tabernacle of the testimony, and, having washed them with water,
{40:13} you shall clothe them in the holy vestments, so that they may minister to me, and so that their unction may accomplish an everlasting priesthood.”
{40:14} And Moses did all that the Lord had instructed.
{40:15} Therefore, in the first month of the second year, on the first day of the month, the tabernacle was put in place.
{40:16} And Moses raised it up, and he positioned the panels as well as the bases and the bars, and he set up the columns,
{40:17} and he stretched out the roof over the tabernacle, imposing a cover above it, just as the Lord had decreed.
{40:18} And he placed the testimony in the ark, applying the bars beneath, and the oracle above.
{40:19} And when he had brought the ark into the tabernacle, he drew the veil before it, in order to fulfill the commandment of the Lord.
{40:20} And he placed the table in the tabernacle of the testimony, at the north side, beyond the veil,
{40:21} arranging before it the bread of the presence, just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{40:22} And he placed the lampstand in the tabernacle of the testimony, away from the table, on the south side,
{40:23} setting the lamps in order, according to the precept of the Lord.
{40:24} He also positioned the altar of gold under the roof of the testimony, opposite the veil,
{40:25} and he heaped upon it the incense of aromatics, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
{40:26} And he positioned the tent at the entrance of the tabernacle of the testimony,
{40:27} and the altar of holocaust in the vestibule of the testimony, offering the holocaust and the sacrifices upon it, just as the Lord had decreed.
{40:28} Likewise, he stationed the washtub between the tabernacle of the testimony and the altar, filling it with water.
{40:29} And Moses and Aaron, along with his sons, washed their hands and feet,
{40:30} whenever they would enter the covering of the covenant, and when they approached to the altar, just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{40:31} And he raised up the atrium around the tabernacle and the altar, drawing the hanging at its entrance. After all these things were perfected,
{40:32} the cloud covered the tabernacle of the testimony, and the glory of the Lord filled it.
{40:33} Neither could Moses enter the covering of the covenant: the cloud was covering all things, and the majesty of the Lord was flashing. For the cloud had covered everything.
{40:34} Whenever the cloud departed from the tabernacle, the sons of Israel set out by their companies.
{40:35} But if it remained hanging over it, they remained in the same place.
{40:36} Certainly, the cloud of the Lord lay over the tabernacle by day, and the fire by night, being seen by all the people of Israel throughout all their resting places.
{1:1} Then the Lord called Moses and spoke to him from the tabernacle of the testimony, saying:
{1:2} Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: The man among you who will offer to the Lord a sacrifice from the cattle, that is, an offering of victims of oxen or sheep:
{1:3} if his offering will be a holocaust, as well as from the herd, he shall offer an immaculate male at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony, to make himself pleasing to the Lord.
{1:4} And he shall place his hand on the head of the sacrifice, and so it shall be acceptable and effective, in its expiation.
{1:5} And he shall immolate the calf in the sight of the Lord. And the priests, the sons of Aaron, shall offer its blood, pouring it all around the altar, which is before the door of the tabernacle.
{1:6} And having pulled away the skin of the victim, they shall cut up the joints into pieces,
{1:7} and they shall toss fire under the altar, having arranged beforehand a stack of wood.
{1:8} And they shall lay the parts which are cut up in order upon it: namely, the head, and all the things that adjoin to the liver,
{1:9} the intestines and feet having been washed with water. And the priest shall burn them on the altar as a holocaust and as a sweet odor to the Lord.
{1:10} But if the offering is from the flocks, a holocaust either of sheep or goats, he shall offer a male without blemish.
{1:11} And he shall immolate it at the side of the altar which looks out toward the north, in the sight of the Lord. Yet truly, the sons of Aaron shall pour its blood upon the altar all around.
{1:12} And they shall divide the limbs, the head, and everything that adjoins to the liver. And they shall place them on the wood, under which the fire is to be thrown.
{1:13} Yet truly, the intestines and the feet they shall wash with water. And the priest, having offered everything, shall burn it upon the altar as a holocaust and as a most sweet odor to the Lord.
{1:14} But if the oblation of a holocaust to the Lord is of birds, either of turtledoves, or young pigeons,
{1:15} the priest shall offer it at the altar: and twisting back the neck with the head, and also rupturing the place of the wound, he shall make the blood run down over the edge of the altar.
{1:16} Yet truly, the craw of the throat and the feathers he shall cast near the altar at the eastern section, in the place where the ashes are usually poured out.
{1:17} And he shall break its wing joints, but he shall neither cut, nor divide it with metal, and he shall burn it upon the altar, placing fire under the wood. It is a holocaust and an oblation of a most sweet odor to the Lord.
{2:1} When a soul will offer an oblation of sacrifice to the Lord, his oblation shall be of fine wheat flour, and he shall pour oil over it, and he shall set down frankincense,
{2:2} and he shall bring it to the sons of Aaron, the priests. One of them shall take a handful of the flour with oil, as well as all the frankincense, and he shall place it as a memorial upon the altar, as a most sweet odor to the Lord.
{2:3} Then what will remain of the sacrifice shall be for Aaron and his sons, the Holy of holies from the oblations of the Lord.
{2:4} But when you will offer a sacrifice baked in the oven from fine wheat flour, specifically: loaves without leaven, sprinkled with oil, and unleavened wafers, rubbed with oil:
{2:5} if your oblation will be from the frying pan, of flour tempered with oil and without leaven,
{2:6} you shall divide it into little pieces and pour oil over it.
{2:7} But if the sacrifice will be from the oven grating, equally the fine wheat flour shall be sprinkled with oil.
{2:8} When you are offering it to the Lord, you shall deliver it into the hands of the priest.
{2:9} And when he has offered it, he shall take a memorial from the sacrifice and burn it upon the altar as a sweet odor to the Lord.
{2:10} But whatever is left shall be for Aaron and his sons, the Holy of holies from the oblations of the Lord.
{2:11} Every oblation that is offered to the Lord shall be made without leaven; neither shall any leaven or honey be burned with the sacrifice to the Lord.
{2:12} You shall offer only the first-fruits of these along with the gifts. Yet truly, these shall not be placed upon the altar as an odor of sweetness.
{2:13} Whatever sacrifice you will offer, you shall season it with salt; neither shall you take away the salt of the covenant of your God from your sacrifice. In all your oblations, you shall offer salt.
{2:14} But if you will offer a gift of the first-fruits of your grain to the Lord, from ears of grain still green, you shall parch it at the fire, and break it open in the manner of meal. And so shall you offer your first-fruits to the Lord:
{2:15} pouring oil over it, and imposing frankincense, because it is an oblation of the Lord.
{2:16} From this, the priest shall burn, as a memorial of the gift, a portion of the cracked grain and the oil, as well as all of the frankincense.
{3:1} But if his oblation will be a sacrifice of peace offerings, and he wishes to offer it from the oxen, whether male or female, he shall offer what is immaculate, in the sight of the Lord.
{3:2} And he shall place his hand upon the head of his victim, which shall be immolated at the entrance of the tabernacle of the testimony. And the sons of Aaron, the priests, shall pour the blood all around the altar.
{3:3} And they shall offer from the sacrifice of peace offerings, as an oblation to the Lord: the fat which covers the vital organs, and whatever fat is interior,
{3:4} the two kidneys with the fat that covers the sides, and the mesh of the liver with the two little kidneys.
{3:5} And they shall burn them upon the altar as a holocaust, placing fire under the wood, as an oblation of a most sweet odor to the Lord.
{3:6} Yet truly, if his oblation and the sacrifice of peace offerings will be from the sheep, whether he will offer a male or a female, they shall be immaculate.
{3:7} If he will offer a lamb in the sight of the Lord,
{3:8} he shall place his hand upon the head of the victim. And it shall be immolated at the vestibule of the tabernacle of the testimony. And the sons of Aaron shall pour its blood all around the altar.
{3:9} And they shall offer from the victim of peace offerings, as a sacrifice to the Lord: the fat, and the entire rump
{3:10} with the kidneys, and the fat that covers the abdomen, and all the vital organs, and both the little kidneys with the fat that is near the sides, and the mesh of the liver with the little kidneys.
{3:11} And the priest shall burn them upon the altar, as fuel for the fire and as an oblation of the Lord.
{3:12} If his oblation will be a goat, and he will offer it to the Lord,
{3:13} he shall place his hand upon its head, and he shall immolate it at the entrance of the tabernacle of the testimony. And the sons of Aaron shall pour its blood all around the altar.
{3:14} And they shall take from it, to feed the Lord’s fire: the fat which covers the abdomen, and that which covers all the vital organs,
{3:15} the two little kidneys with the mesh that is over them near the sides, and the fat of the liver with the little kidneys.
{3:16} And the priest shall burn them upon the altar, as nourishment for the fire and as a most sweet odor. All the fat shall be for the Lord;
{3:17} by a perpetual law, in your generations and in all of your habitations, neither blood nor fat shall you eat at all.
{4:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{4:2} Say to the sons of Israel: The soul which will have sinned through ignorance, and concerning any of the commandments of the Lord that he instructed not to be done, if anything at all has been done:
{4:3} if the priest, who is anointed, will have sinned, causing the people to commit a transgression, he shall offer to the Lord for his sin an immaculate calf.
{4:4} And he shall lead it to the door of the tabernacle of the testimony in the sight of the Lord. And he shall place his hand upon its head, and he shall immolate it to the Lord.
{4:5} Likewise, he shall take from the blood of the calf, carrying it into the tabernacle of the testimony,
{4:6} and having dipped his finger into the blood, he shall sprinkle it seven times in the sight of the Lord, opposite the veil of the Sanctuary.
{4:7} And he shall place some of the same blood over the horns of the altar of most pleasing incense to the Lord, which is in the tabernacle of the testimony. Then he shall pour out the remainder of the blood at the base of the altar of holocaust at the entrance of the tabernacle.
{4:8} And, on behalf of the sin, he shall take the fat of the calf, both that which covers the vital organs and all that is interior,
{4:9} the two little kidneys, and the mesh that is on them near the sides, and the fat of the liver with the little kidneys,
{4:10} just as it is taken from the calf of the sacrifice of peace offerings. And he shall burn them upon the altar of holocaust.
{4:11} Yet truly, the skin and all the flesh, with the head and the feet, and the intestines and the dung,
{4:12} and the remainder of the body, he shall carry away, beyond the camp, to the clean place where the ashes are usually poured out. And he shall burn them upon a stack of wood. There, in the place where the ashes have been poured out, they will be burned.
{4:13} But if all the crowd of Israel will have been ignorant, and through inexperience will have done what is contrary to the commandment of the Lord,
{4:14} and afterwards shall understand their sin: they shall offer a calf on behalf of their sin, and they shall lead it to the door of the tabernacle.
{4:15} And the elders of the people shall place their hands upon its head in the sight of the Lord. And when the calf has been immolated in the sight of the Lord,
{4:16} the priest who is anointed shall carry some of its blood into the tabernacle of the testimony.
{4:17} and he shall dip his finger in it, sprinkling it seven times opposite the veil.
{4:18} And he shall place some of the same blood on the horns of the altar, which is in the presence of the Lord in the tabernacle of the testimony. But the remainder of the blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of holocaust, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony.
{4:19} And he shall take all its fat and burn it upon the altar,
{4:20} doing so with this calf in the same manner as he did before. And while the priest is praying for them, the Lord will forgive them.
{4:21} But the calf itself he shall carry away, beyond the camp, and he shall also burn it, just as with the previous calf, because it is for the sin of the multitude.
{4:22} If a leader will have sinned, and through ignorance will have done one of the many things which the law of the Lord prohibits,
{4:23} and afterwards he shall understand his sin: he shall offer an immaculate he-goat from among the goats, as a sacrifice to the Lord.
{4:24} And he shall place his hand upon its head. And when he will have immolated it, in the place where the holocaust is usually slain, in the sight of the Lord, because it is for sin,
{4:25} the priest shall dip his finger in the blood of the victim for sin, touching the horns of the altar of holocaust, and pouring out the remainder at its base.
{4:26} Yet truly, the fat he shall burn upon it, just as is usually done with the victims of peace offerings. And the priest shall pray for him and for his sin, and he shall be released from it.
{4:27} But if a soul from the people of the land will have sinned through ignorance, so as to have done any of those things that the law of the Lord prohibits, and so commit a transgression,
{4:28} and he shall realize his sin: he shall offer an immaculate she-goat.
{4:29} And he shall place his hand upon the head of the victim which is for sin. And he shall immolate it in the place of the holocaust.
{4:30} And the priest shall take some of the blood with his finger, and touching the horns of the altar of holocaust, he shall pour out the remainder at its base.
{4:31} But taking away all the fat, just as it is usually taken away from the victims of peace offerings, he shall burn it upon the altar as a sweet odor to the Lord. And he shall pray for him, and he shall be released from it.
{4:32} But if instead he will offer from the flock a victim for his sin, specifically, an immaculate female sheep:
{4:33} he shall place his hand upon its head, and he shall immolate it in the place where the victims of holocausts are usually slain.
{4:34} And the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger, and touching the horns of the altar of holocaust, he shall pour out the remainder at its base.
{4:35} Likewise, all of the fat shall be taken away, just as the fat of the ram, which is immolated for peace offerings, is usually taken away. And he shall burn it upon the altar as an incense of the Lord. And he shall pray for him and for his sin, and he shall be released from it.
{5:1} If a soul will have sinned, and heard the voice of one testifying under oath, and he is a witness because either he has seen it himself, or he is aware of it: if he does not reveal it, he shall carry his iniquity.
{5:2} The soul that will have touched anything unclean, either that which has been killed by a beast, or that which has died on its own, or any other creeping thing, and will have forgotten its uncleanness, he is guilty and has committed a transgression.
{5:3} And if he will have touched anything from the uncleanness of man, according to every kind of impurity by which he may be defiled, and having forgotten it, afterwards realizes it, he shall be guilty of committing a transgression.
{5:4} The soul who swears and offers from his own lips that he would do either evil or good, and who will have bound the same with an oath and with his own words, and, having forgotten it, afterwards understands his transgression,
{5:5} let him do penance for his sin,
{5:6} and let him offer from the flocks a female lamb or a she-goat, and the priest shall pray for him and for his sin.
{5:7} But if he is not able to offer a beast, let him offer two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the Lord, one for sin, and the other for a holocaust.
{5:8} And he shall give them to the priest, who, offering the first for sin, shall twist back its head to the little wings, so that it adheres to the neck and is not entirely broken off.
{5:9} And he shall sprinkle some of its blood at the side of the altar. But whatever will remain, he shall cause it to drip down to the base, because it is for sin.
{5:10} Yet truly, the other he shall burn as a holocaust, just as is usually done. And the priest shall pray for him, and for his sin, and he shall be released from it.
{5:11} But if his hand is unable to offer two turtledoves or two young pigeons, he shall offer, for his sin, the tenth part of an ephah of fine wheat flour. He shall not put oil in it, nor place upon it any frankincense, because it is for sin.
{5:12} And he shall deliver it to the priest, who shall take a handful of it, and shall burn it upon the altar as a memorial for him who offered it,
{5:13} praying for him and making atonement. Yet truly, the remaining part he himself shall have as a gift.
{5:14} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{5:15} If a soul, by mistake, shall have transgressed the ceremonies in those things that are sanctified to the Lord, he shall offer for his offense an immaculate ram from the flocks, such as can be bought for two shekels, according to the weight of the Sanctuary.
{5:16} And he shall make restitution for the damage that he has brought, and he shall add a fifth part more, delivering it to the priest, who shall pray for him while offering the ram, and he shall be released from it.
{5:17} If a soul will have sinned through ignorance, and will have done one of those things which the law of the Lord prohibits, and, being guilty of sin, understands his iniquity,
{5:18} he shall offer from the flocks an immaculate ram to the priest, according to the measure and estimation of the sin, who shall pray for him, because he did it unknowingly, and he shall be released from it,
{5:19} because by mistake he transgressed against the Lord.
{6:1} The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{6:2} The soul who will have sinned, and, despising the Lord, will have denied to his neighbor the deposit which he had entrusted to his safekeeping, or who will have extorted anything by force, or who will have made a false accusation,
{6:3} or who will have found a lost thing and then also withheld it by swearing falsely, or who will have done any other of the many things by which men usually sin:
{6:4} being convicted of the offense, he shall restore
{6:5} all that he wanted to obtain by fraud, the whole plus an additional fifth part, to the owner against whom he brought the damage.
{6:6} Then, on behalf of his sin, he shall offer an immaculate ram from the flock, and he shall give it to the priest, according to the estimation and measure of the offense.
{6:7} And he shall pray for him in the sight of the Lord, and he shall be released from any one of those things that he did when he sinned.
{6:8} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{6:9} Instruct Aaron and his sons: This is the law of a holocaust. It shall be burned upon the altar, all night until morning. The fire shall be from the same altar.
{6:10} The priest shall be vested with the tunic and the linen undergarments. And he shall take up the ashes of that which the devouring fire has consumed, and, placing them next to the altar,
{6:11} he shall strip off his former vestments, and being clothed with others, he shall carry them beyond the camp, and he shall cause them to be consumed, even to glowing embers, in a very clean place.
{6:12} But the fire on the altar shall burn always, for the priest shall nourish it by placing wood under it each day in the morning. And, laying down the holocaust, he shall burn the fat of the peace offerings upon it.
{6:13} This is the perpetual fire which shall never fail upon the altar.
{6:14} This is the law of the sacrifice and the libations, which the sons of Aaron shall offer in the sight of the Lord, and before the altar.
{6:15} The priest shall take a handful of fine wheat flour, which has been sprinkled with oil, and all the frankincense, which has been placed upon the flour, and he shall burn it upon the altar as a memorial of most sweet odor to the Lord.
{6:16} And the remaining portion of the flour, Aaron shall eat with his sons, without leaven. And he shall eat it in the holy place, in the atrium of the tabernacle.
{6:17} Yet for this reason, it shall not be leavened, because part of it is offered as an incense of the Lord. The Holy of holies shall it be, just as what is offered on behalf of sin and of transgression.
{6:18} Only the males of the stock of Aaron shall eat it. This shall be an everlasting ordinance in your generations concerning the sacrifices of the Lord. All who will touch these shall be sanctified.
{6:19} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{6:20} This is the oblation of Aaron and of his sons, which they must offer to the Lord in the day of their anointing. They shall offer a tenth part of an ephah of fine wheat flour as a perpetual sacrifice, half of it in the morning, and half of it in the evening.
{6:21} It shall be sprinkled with oil and fried in a frying pan. Then it shall be offered hot, as a most sweet odor to the Lord,
{6:22} by the priest who by law succeeds his father. And it shall be entirely burned on the altar.
{6:23} For every sacrifice of the priest shall be consumed by fire; neither shall anyone eat from it.
{6:24} Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{6:25} Say to Aaron and his sons: This is the law of the victim for sin. In the place where the holocaust is offered, it shall be immolated in the sight of the Lord. It is the Holy of holies.
{6:26} The priest who offers it shall eat it in the holy place, in the atrium of the tabernacle.
{6:27} Whatever will touch its flesh shall be sanctified. If a garment will be sprinkled with its blood, it shall be washed in a holy place.
{6:28} Then the earthen vessel, in which it was soaked, shall be broken. But if the vessel will be of brass, it shall be scoured and washed with water.
{6:29} Every male of priestly descent shall feed on its flesh, because it is the Holy of holies.
{6:30} For the victim that is slain for sin, whose blood is carried into the tabernacle of the testimony, for expiation in the Sanctuary, shall not be eaten, but it shall be consumed by fire.
{7:1} Likewise, this is the law of the sacrifice for a transgression. It is the Holy of holies.
{7:2} Therefore, where the holocaust is immolated, the victim for a transgression shall also be slain. Its blood shall be poured out all around the altar.
{7:3} They shall offer from it: the rump, and the fat that covers the vital organs,
{7:4} the two little kidneys, and the fat that is near the sides, and the mesh of the liver with the little kidneys.
{7:5} And the priest shall burn them upon the altar. It is the incense of the Lord on behalf of a transgression.
{7:6} Every male of priestly descent shall feed on this flesh in a holy place, because it is the Holy of holies.
{7:7} Just as the sacrifice for sin is offered, so also for a transgression; one law shall be for both sacrifices. It shall belong to the priest who offers it.
{7:8} The priest who offers the victim of holocaust shall have its skin.
{7:9} And every sacrifice of fine wheat flour which is baked in the oven, and whatever is prepared on the oven grating or in the frying pan, shall be for the priest who offers it.
{7:10} Whether these will be sprinkled with oil, or left dry, an equal measure shall be divided to each one of the sons of Aaron.
{7:11} This is the law of the victim of peace offerings, which is offered to the Lord.
{7:12} If the oblation will be an act for giving thanks, they shall offer bread without leaven sprinkled with oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with oil, and fine wheat flour fried, and cakes sprinkled and mixed with oil,
{7:13} and also, leavened bread with the sacrifice of thanksgiving, which is immolated for peace offerings.
{7:14} Of these, one shall be offered to the Lord as the first-fruits, and one shall be for the priest who will pour out the blood of the victim.
{7:15} The flesh of it shall be eaten on the same day; neither shall any of it remain until morning.
{7:16} If anyone, by a vow or of his own accord, will have offered a sacrifice, it shall be eaten in a similar manner on the same day. But then if any of it will have remained until tomorrow, it is lawful to eat it.
{7:17} Then whatever will be found on the third day shall be consumed with fire.
{7:18} If anyone will have eaten from the flesh of the victim of peace offerings on the third day, the oblation will be nullified; neither will it benefit the one who offered it. But instead, whatever soul will contaminate itself with such foods will be guilty of a betrayal.
{7:19} The flesh that has touched anything unclean shall not be eaten, but it shall be burnt with fire. He that is clean will feed on it.
{7:20} If a soul which is polluted will have eaten from the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which is offered to the Lord, he shall perish from his people.
{7:21} And whoever will have touched the uncleanness of man, or of beast, or of anything which is able to defile, and who will have eaten from this kind of flesh, shall be cut off from his people.
{7:22} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{7:23} Say to the sons of Israel: The fat of a sheep, and of an ox, and of a goat you shall not eat.
{7:24} The fat of a carcass that has died on its own, or of an animal that has been seized by a wild beast, you shall have for various uses.
{7:25} If anyone will have eaten the fat which ought to be offered as a burnt sacrifice of the Lord, he shall perish from his people.
{7:26} Likewise, you shall not take as food the blood of any animals at all, whether of birds or beasts.
{7:27} Every soul that will have eaten blood shall perish from his people.
{7:28} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{7:29} Speak to the sons of Israel, saying: Whoever offers a victim of peace offerings to the Lord, let him also offer at the same time a sacrifice, that is, its libations.
{7:30} He shall hold in his hands the fat of the victim, and the breast. And when he will have offered and consecrated both to the Lord, he shall deliver them to the priest,
{7:31} who shall burn the fat upon the altar. But the breast shall be for Aaron and his sons.
{7:32} Likewise also, the right shoulder of the victim of peace offerings shall fall to the priest as first-fruits.
{7:33} Among the sons of Aaron, whoever will have offered the blood and the fat, the same one shall also have the right shoulder for his portion.
{7:34} So then, the breast that is lifted up, and the shoulder that is separated, I have taken from the sons of Israel, from their victims of peace offerings, and I have given these to Aaron the priest and to his sons, as a law in perpetuity, from all the people of Israel.
{7:35} This is the anointing of Aaron and his sons, by the ceremonies of the Lord, in the day when Moses offered them, so that they may fulfill the priesthood,
{7:36} and this is what the Lord instructed to be given to them by the sons of Israel, as a perpetual observance in their generations.
{7:37} This is the law of the holocaust, and of the sacrifice for sin, and for transgression, and for consecration, and for the victims of peace offerings,
{7:38} which the Lord appointed to Moses on mount Sinai, when he commanded the sons of Israel to offer their oblations to the Lord in the desert of Sinai.
{8:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{8:2} Take Aaron, with his sons, their vestments, and the oil of anointing, a calf for sin, two rams, and a basket with unleavened bread,
{8:3} and gather together all the assembly at the door of the tabernacle.
{8:4} And Moses did as the Lord had commanded. And when all the crowd was gathered together before the entrance of the tabernacle,
{8:5} he said: “This is the word that the Lord has ordered to be done.”
{8:6} And immediately, he brought forward Aaron and his sons. And when he had washed them,
{8:7} he vested the high priest with the linen undergarment, wrapped him with the wide belt, and clothed him with the hyacinth tunic, and over it he imposed the ephod.
{8:8} And tying it to the belt, he fitted it to the breastplate, on which was Doctrine and Truth.
{8:9} Also, he wrapped the headdress on his head, and over it, opposite the forehead, he placed the plate of gold, consecrated with sanctification, just as the Lord had instructed him.
{8:10} He also took up the oil of anointing, with which he anointed the tabernacle, along with all of its articles.
{8:11} And when he had sprinkled the altar seven times to sanctify it, he anointed it and all its vessels. And the washtub with its base he sanctified with the oil.
{8:12} And pouring the oil over Aaron’s head, he anointed and consecrated him.
{8:13} Likewise, after he had offered his sons, he vested them with linen tunics, and wrapped them with wide belts, and placed headdresses on them, just as the Lord had ordered.
{8:14} He also offered the calf for sin. And when Aaron and his sons had placed their hands upon its head,
{8:15} he immolated it. And drawing the blood, and dipping his finger in it, he touched the horns of the altar all around. And when it was expiated and sanctified, he poured out the remainder of the blood at its base.
{8:16} Yet truly, the fat which was on the vital organs, and the mesh of the liver, and the two little kidneys with their fat, he burned upon the altar.
{8:17} And the calf with the skin, and the flesh, and the dung, he burned beyond the camp, just as the Lord had instructed.
{8:18} He also offered a ram as a holocaust. And when Aaron and his sons had imposed their hands upon its head,
{8:19} he immolated it, and he poured out its blood around the altar.
{8:20} And cutting the ram into pieces, he burned its head, and the limbs, and the fat in the fire,
{8:21} having first washed the intestines and the feet. And then he burned the whole of the ram upon the altar, because it was a holocaust of most sweet odor to the Lord, just as he had instructed him.
{8:22} He also offered the second ram, as a consecration of priests. And Aaron and his sons placed their hands upon its head.
{8:23} And when Moses had immolated it, taking up some of its blood, he touched the tip of Aaron’s right ear, and the thumb of his right hand, and similarly also his foot.
{8:24} He also offered the sons of Aaron. And when, from the blood of the ram which was immolated, he had touched the tip of the right ear of each one, and the thumbs of their right hands, as well as their feet, he poured out the remainder upon the altar all around.
{8:25} Yet truly, the fat, and the rump, and all the fat that covers the intestines, and the mesh of the liver, and the two kidneys with their fat, and the right shoulder, he separated.
{8:26} Then, taking bread without leaven from the basket of unleavened bread, which was before the Lord, and a cake sprinkled with oil, and a wafer, he placed them upon the fat and the right shoulder,
{8:27} delivering all these to Aaron and his sons. And when they had lifted them up in the sight of the Lord,
{8:28} he received them again from their hands, and he burned them upon the altar of holocaust, because it was an oblation of consecration, as a sweet odor of sacrifice to the Lord.
{8:29} And he took his portion from the ram of consecration, and he lifted up its breast in the sight of the Lord, just as the Lord had instructed him.
{8:30} And taking up the ointment, and the blood that was on the altar, he sprinkled it over Aaron and his vestments, and over his sons and their vestments.
{8:31} And when he had sanctified them with their vestments, he instructed them, saying: “Cook the flesh before the entrance of the tabernacle, and eat it there. Likewise, eat the loaves of consecration, which have been placed in the basket, just as the Lord instructed me, saying: ‘Aaron and his sons shall eat them.’
{8:32} Then whatever will remain of the flesh and the loaves shall be consumed with fire.
{8:33} Also, you shall not exit from the door of the tabernacle for seven days, until the day on which the time of your consecration shall be completed. For in seven days the consecration is finished,
{8:34} even as it has begun at this present time, so that the rite of the sacrifice might be accomplished.
{8:35} Day and night you shall remain in the tabernacle, observing the watches of the Lord, otherwise you shall die. For so it has been commanded to me.”
{8:36} And Aaron and his sons did everything that the Lord spoke by the hand of Moses.
{9:1} Then, the eighth day having arrived, Moses called Aaron and his sons, and those greater by birth from Israel, and he said to Aaron:
{9:2} “Take a calf for sin from the herd, and a ram as a holocaust, both immaculate, and offer them in the sight of the Lord.
{9:3} And to the sons of Israel, you shall say: ‘Take a he-goat for sin, and a calf as well as a lamb, both one-year-old and without blemish, as a holocaust.
{9:4} Take also an ox and a ram for peace offerings. And immolate them before the Lord, offering with the sacrifice of each one fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil. For today the Lord will appear to you.’ ”
{9:5} And so they brought everything that Moses had ordered before the door of the tabernacle, where, when all the multitude stood together,
{9:6} Moses said: “This is the word, which the Lord has instructed. Accomplish it, and his glory will appear to you.”
{9:7} And he said to Aaron: “Approach toward the altar, and immolate on behalf of your sin. Offer the holocaust, and pray for yourself and for the people. And when you have slain the victim for the people, pray for them, just as the Lord has instructed.”
{9:8} And immediately Aaron, approaching toward the altar, immolated the calf for his sin.
{9:9} And his sons brought its blood to him, and dipping his finger in it, he touched the horns of the altar, and he poured out the remainder at its base.
{9:10} And the fat, and the little kidneys, and the mesh of the liver, which are for sin, he burned upon the altar, just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{9:11} Yet truly, the flesh and its skins he burned with fire beyond the camp.
{9:12} He also immolated the victim of holocaust. And his sons brought its blood to him, which he poured out all around the altar.
{9:13} And when the victim itself was cut into pieces, they brought him the head and each of the limbs, all of which he burned with fire upon the altar,
{9:14} having first washed the intestines and the feet with water.
{9:15} And making an offering for the sin of the people, he slew the he-goat. And expiating the altar,
{9:16} he accomplished the holocaust,
{9:17} adding to it the sacrifice of the libations, which are to be offered together, and burning them upon the altar, separately from the ceremonies of the morning holocaust.
{9:18} He also immolated the ox, as well as the ram, as peace offerings for the people. And his sons brought him the blood, which he poured out upon the altar all around.
{9:19} Then the fat of the ox, and the rump of the ram, and the two little kidneys with their fat, and the mesh of the liver,
{9:20} they placed upon the breasts. And when the fat had been burned upon the altar,
{9:21} Aaron separated their breasts and the right shoulders, lifting them up in the sight of the Lord, as Moses had instructed.
{9:22} And extending his hands to the people, he blessed them. And so, the victims for sin, and the holocausts, and the peace offerings being completed, he descended.
{9:23} Then Moses and Aaron entered the tabernacle of the testimony, and afterwards came out and blessed the people. And the glory of the Lord appeared to the entire multitude.
{9:24} And, behold, a fire from the Lord devoured the holocaust, and the fat which was on the altar. When the crowd had seen this, they praised the Lord, falling on their faces.
{10:1} And the sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, picking up their censers, placed fire in them and incense upon them, offering in the sight of the Lord a strange fire, such as was not instructed of them.
{10:2} And fire coming out from the Lord destroyed them, and they died in the sight of the Lord.
{10:3} And Moses said to Aaron: “This is what the Lord has spoken: ‘I will be sanctified in those who approach me, and I will be glorified in the sight of all the people.’ ” And upon hearing this, Aaron was silent.
{10:4} Then Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel, the paternal uncle of Aaron, and he said to them, “Go and take your brothers from the sight of the Sanctuary, and carry them beyond the camp.”
{10:5} And moving quickly, they took them as they lay, vested with linen tunics, and cast them outside, just as had been commanded them.
{10:6} And Moses said to Aaron, and to his sons, Eleazar and Ithamar: “Do not uncover your heads, and do not rend your garments, lest perhaps you may die, and indignation may rise up over the entire assembly. Let your brothers, and all the house of Israel, bewail the burning that the Lord has kindled.
{10:7} But you shall not depart from the door of the tabernacle; otherwise, you shall perish. For certainly the oil of holy anointing is upon you.” And they did all things according to the precept of Moses.
{10:8} The Lord also said to Aaron:
{10:9} “You shall not drink wine, nor anything that is able to inebriate you or your sons, when you enter into the tabernacle of the testimony, lest you die. For it is an everlasting precept in your generations.
{10:10} And so may you have the knowledge to discern between holy and profane, between polluted and clean.
{10:11} And so may you teach the sons of Israel all my ordinances, which the Lord has spoken to them by the hand of Moses.”
{10:12} And Moses spoke to Aaron, and to his sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, who were remaining: “Take the sacrifice which remains from the oblation of the Lord, and eat it without leaven next to the altar, because it is the Holy of holies.
{10:13} For you shall eat it in a holy place, which is given to you and to your sons, from the oblations of the Lord, just as has been instructed me.
{10:14} Likewise, the breast which is offered, and the shoulder which is separated, you shall eat in a most clean place, you and your sons, and your daughters with you. For these have been set aside for you and your children from the victims which benefit the sons of Israel.
{10:15} Since they have lifted up in the sight of the Lord, the shoulder, and the breast, and the fat that is burned on the altar, these also belong to you and to your sons as a perpetual law, just as the Lord has instructed.”
{10:16} Meanwhile, when Moses was searching for the he-goat, which had been offered for sin, he discovered it burned up. And being angry against Eleazar and Ithamar, the sons of Aaron who were remaining, he said:
{10:17} “Why did you not eat the sacrifice for sin in the holy place, which is the Holy of holies, and which was given to you, so that you might carry the iniquity of the people, and might pray for them in the sight of the Lord,
{10:18} especially since none of its blood has been brought into the holy places, and since you should have eaten it in the Sanctuary, as was instructed me?”
{10:19} Aaron responded: “This day, the victim for sin has been offered, and the holocaust in the sight of the Lord. But you see what has happened to me. How could I eat it, or please the Lord in the ceremonies, having a sorrowful mind?”
{10:20} But when Moses had heard this, he was satisfied.
{11:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
{11:2} Say to the sons of Israel: These are the animals that you ought to eat out of all the living things of the earth.
{11:3} All that has a divided hoof, and that chews over again, among the cattle, you shall eat.
{11:4} But whatever certainly chews over again, but has a hoof that is not divided, such as the camel and others, these you shall not eat, and you shall consider them to be among what is unclean.
{11:5} The rock rabbit which chews over again, and whose hoof is not divided, is unclean,
{11:6} and so also is the hare, for it too chews over again, yet its hoof is not divided,
{11:7} and also the swine, which, though its hoof is divided, does not chew over again.
{11:8} The flesh of these you shall not eat, nor shall you touch their carcasses, because they are unclean to you.
{11:9} These are the things that breed in the waters, and which it is lawful to eat. All that has little fins and scales, as much in the sea, as in the rivers and ponds, you shall eat.
{11:10} But whatever does not have fins and scales, of those things that live and move in the waters, shall be abominable to you,
{11:11} and detestable; their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall avoid.
{11:12} All that does not have fins and scales in the waters shall be polluted.
{11:13} These are those things among the birds which you must not eat, and which are to be avoided by you: the eagle, and the griffin, and the osprey,
{11:14} and the kite, as well as the vulture, according to their kind,
{11:15} and all that is of the raven kind, according to their likeness,
{11:16} the ostrich, and the owl, and the gull, and the hawk, according to its kind,
{11:17} the owl, and the sea bird, and the ibis,
{11:18} and the swan, and the pelican, and the marsh hen,
{11:19} the heron, and the plover according to its kind, the crested hoopoe, and also the bat.
{11:20} Of all that flies, whatever steps upon four feet shall be abominable to you.
{11:21} But whatever certainly walks upon four feet, and also has longer legs behind, with which it hops upon the earth,
{11:22} you shall eat, such as the beetle in its kind, and the cricket, and grasshopper, and the locust, each one according to its kind.
{11:23} But among flying things, whatever has only four feet shall be detestable to you.
{11:24} And whoever will have touched their carcasses shall be defiled, and he shall be unclean until evening.
{11:25} And if it will be necessary to carry any of these dead things, he shall wash his clothes, and he shall be unclean until the sun sets.
{11:26} Every animal that certainly has a hoof, but which is not divided, nor does it chew over again, shall be unclean. And whoever will have touched it shall be contaminated.
{11:27} Whatever walks upon its hands, out of all the animals that advance on all fours, shall be unclean. Whoever will have touched their carcasses shall be polluted until evening.
{11:28} And whoever will have carried this kind of carcass shall wash his clothes, and he shall be unclean until evening. For all these are unclean to you.
{11:29} Likewise, these shall be considered among the polluted things, out of all that moves upon the earth: the weasel, and the mouse, and the crocodile, each one according to its kind,
{11:30} the shrew, and the chameleon, and the gecko, and the lizard, and the mole.
{11:31} All these are unclean. Whoever will have touched their carcasses shall be unclean until evening.
{11:32} And anything upon which something from their carcasses will have fallen shall be defiled, whether it is a vessel of wood, or a garment, or skins, or haircloths, or anything by which work is done. These shall be dipped in water and shall be defiled until evening, but then afterwards these shall be clean.
{11:33} But an earthen vessel, into which something from these will fall, shall be defiled; and therefore it is to be broken.
{11:34} Any of the foods that you eat, if water from such a vessel will have been poured upon it, it shall be unclean. And every liquid which one may drink from such a vessel shall be unclean.
{11:35} And if anything from among these kinds of dead things has fallen upon it, it shall be unclean, whether it be an oven, or a pot with feet, these shall be unclean and shall be destroyed.
{11:36} Yet truly, fountains and cisterns, and all reservoirs of water shall be clean. Whoever will have touched their carcasses shall be defiled.
{11:37} If it falls upon seed grain, it shall not defile it.
{11:38} But if anyone has poured water upon the seed grain, and afterwards it was touched by the carcasses, it shall be immediately defiled.
{11:39} If any animals will have died, from which it is lawful for you to eat, whoever will have touched its carcass shall be unclean until evening.
{11:40} And whoever will have eaten or carried anything of these shall wash his clothes, and he shall be unclean until evening.
{11:41} All that creeps across the earth shall be abominable, neither shall it be taken up as food.
{11:42} Whatever advances by four feet upon the chest, or that has many feet, or that drags across the soil, you shall not eat, because it is abominable.
{11:43} Do not be willing to contaminate your souls, nor shall you touch any of these, lest you become unclean.
{11:44} For I am the Lord your God. Be holy, for I am Holy. Do not pollute your souls with any creeping thing, which moves across the land.
{11:45} For I am the Lord, who led you away from the land of Egypt, so that I would be your God; you shall be holy, for I am Holy.
{11:46} This is the law of animals and flying things, and of every living soul that moves in the waters or creeps upon the land,
{11:47} so that you may know the difference between clean and unclean, and so that you may know what you ought to eat, and what you ought to refuse.
{12:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{12:2} Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: A woman, if she has received the seed to bear a male, shall be unclean for seven days, just as in the days of separation due to menstruation.
{12:3} And on the eighth day, the little infant shall be circumcised.
{12:4} Yet truly, she herself shall remain for thirty-three days in the blood of her purification. She shall not touch anything holy, nor shall she enter into the Sanctuary, until the days of her purification are completed.
{12:5} But if she will bear a female, she shall be unclean for two weeks, according to the custom of her monthly flow, and she shall remain in the blood of her purification for sixty-six days.
{12:6} And when the days of her purification have been completed, for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the door of the tabernacle of the testimony, a one-year-old lamb as a holocaust, and a young pigeon or a turtledove for sin, and she shall deliver them to the priest.
{12:7} He shall offer them in the sight of the Lord, and he shall pray for her. And so she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood. This is the law for one who bears a male or a female.
{12:8} And if her hand has not obtained or been able to offer a lamb, she shall take two turtledoves or two young pigeons: one as a holocaust, and the other for sin. And the priest shall pray for her, and so she shall be cleansed.
{13:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
{13:2} The man in whose skin or flesh there will have arisen a diverse color, or a pustule, or something that seems to shine, which is the mark of leprosy, shall be brought to Aaron the priest, or to anyone you wish among his sons.
{13:3} And if he sees that leprosy is in his skin, and that the hair has turned a white color, and that the place where the leprosy appears is lower than the rest of the skin and the flesh, then it is the mark of leprosy, and at his judgment he shall be separated.
{13:4} But if there will be a shining whiteness in the skin, but it is not lower than the rest of the flesh, and the hair is of unaffected color, the priest shall seclude him for seven days.
{13:5} And on the seventh day he shall examine him, and if the leprosy certainly has not increased further, and has not spread itself in the skin, he shall seclude him again, for another seven days.
{13:6} And on the seventh day, he shall evaluate him. If the leprosy has become obscured, and has not increased in the skin, he shall declare him clean, because it is a scab. And the man shall wash his clothes, and he shall be clean.
{13:7} But if the leprosy increases again, after he was seen by the priest and restored to cleanness, he shall be brought to him,
{13:8} and he shall be condemned of uncleanness.
{13:9} If the mark of leprosy has been in a man, he shall be brought to the priest,
{13:10} and he shall look upon him. And when there is a white color in the skin, and it has an altered appearance in its hair, and also the same flesh seems alive,
{13:11} it shall be judged a chronic leprosy, which has grown into the skin. And so the priest shall declare him contaminated, and he shall not seclude him, because he is clearly unclean.
{13:12} But if the leprosy will have flourished, coursing through the skin, and will have covered all the skin from the head even to the feet, whatever falls under the sight of the eyes,
{13:13} the priest shall examine him, and he shall judge that the leprosy that he possesses is very clean, because it has all turned to whiteness, and for this reason the man shall be clean.
{13:14} Yet truly, when the living flesh shall appear in him,
{13:15} then by the judgment of the priest he shall be polluted, and he shall be considered to be among the unclean. For the live flesh, if it is spotted with leprosy, is unclean.
{13:16} And if again it will have turned into whiteness, and will have covered the entire man,
{13:17} the priest shall examine him, and he shall discern him to be clean.
{13:18} But when there has been an ulcer in the flesh and the skin, and it has healed,
{13:19} and in the place of the ulcer, there appears a white or reddish scar, the man shall be brought to the priest.
{13:20} And when he will have seen the place of the leprosy lower than the rest of the flesh, and that the hair has turned white, he shall declare him contaminated. For the plague of leprosy has arisen from the ulcer.
{13:21} But if the hair is of the usual color, and the scar is somewhat obscure and is not lower than the nearby flesh, he shall seclude him for seven days.
{13:22} And if it will have certainly increased, he shall judge him to have leprosy.
{13:23} But if it stays in its place, it is the scar of an ulcer, and the man shall be clean.
{13:24} But if flesh and skin has been burned by fire, and, having been healed, now has a white or red scar,
{13:25} the priest shall examine it, and if he sees that it has turned white, and that its place is lower than the rest of the skin, he shall declare him contaminated, for the mark of leprosy has arisen in the scar.
{13:26} But if the color of the hair has not been changed, nor is the mark lower than the rest of the flesh, and the leprosy itself appears to be somewhat obscure, he shall seclude him for seven days,
{13:27} and on the seventh day he shall evaluate him. If the leprosy will have increased further in the skin, he shall declare him contaminated.
{13:28} But if the whiteness stays in its place and is not very clear, it is the mark of a burn, and for this reason he shall be declared clean, because it is only the scar from a burn.
{13:29} If leprosy will have sprung up in the head or the beard of a man or woman, the priest shall look upon them,
{13:30} and if the place is certainly lower than the rest of the flesh, and the hair is golden, and thinner than usual, he shall declare them contaminated, because it is the leprosy of the head and the beard.
{13:31} But if he sees that the place of the spot is equal with the nearby flesh, and that the hair is black, he shall seclude him for seven days,
{13:32} and on the seventh day he shall examine it. If the spot has not increased, and the hair has kept its color, and the place of the mark is equal with the rest of the flesh,
{13:33} the man shall be shaven, except in the place of the spot, and he shall be secluded for another seven days.
{13:34} On the seventh day, if the mark seems to have stayed in its place, and it is not lower than the rest of the flesh, he shall declare him clean, and, his clothes having been washed, he shall be clean.
{13:35} But if, after his cleansing, the spot will have increased again in the skin,
{13:36} he shall no longer inquire as to whether the hair has turned yellow, because he is plainly unclean.
{13:37} Furthermore, if the spot has not increased, and the hair is black, let him know that the man is healed: and let him confidently pronounce him clean.
{13:38} If a whiteness will have appeared in the skin of a man or a woman,
{13:39} the priest shall examine them. If he detects an obscured whiteness shining in the skin, may he know that it is not leprosy, but a white-colored blemish, and that the man is clean.
{13:40} The man whose hair falls off of his head is bald and clean.
{13:41} And if the hair falls off of his forehead, he is bald in front and clean.
{13:42} But if in the bald head or bald forehead there has arisen a white or reddish color,
{13:43} and the priest will have seen this, he shall condemn him without doubt of leprosy, which has arisen in the baldness.
{13:44} Therefore, whoever will have been spotted by leprosy, and who has been separated at the judgment of the priest,
{13:45} shall have his clothes unstitched, his head bare, his mouth covered with a cloth, and he himself shall cry out that he is contaminated and filthy.
{13:46} The entire time that he is a leper and unclean he shall live alone outside the camp.
{13:47} A woolen or linen garment that will have held the leprosy,
{13:48} in the main fibers or in any of the threads, or certainly in a skin, or whatever has been made from a skin,
{13:49} if it has been infected with a white or red spot, it shall be considered to be leprosy, and it shall be shown to the priest.
{13:50} And he, having examined it, shall close it up for seven days.
{13:51} And on the seventh day, having looked at it again, if he detects an increase, it is a persistent leprosy; he shall judge the garment to be polluted, along with everything with which it has been found.
{13:52} And because of this, it shall be burned in flames.
{13:53} But if he will have seen that it has not increased,
{13:54} he shall instruct them, and they shall wash whatever has the leprosy in it, and he shall close it up for another seven days.
{13:55} And when he will have seen that the former appearance has not returned, even if the leprosy has not increased, he shall judge it to be unclean, and he shall burn it with fire, for the leprosy has been infused in the exterior of the garment, or throughout the whole.
{13:56} But if the place of the leprosy has become somewhat darker, after the garment has been washed, he shall tear it away, and separate it from the part that is sound.
{13:57} But if, after this, there will appear in those places which before were immaculate, a flying and wandering leprosy, it must be burned with fire.
{13:58} If it will have ceased, he shall wash with water the parts which are pure for a second time, and they shall be clean.
{13:59} This is the law about leprosy for any woolen or linen garment, in the weave and in the threads, and for all items made from skins, how it must be declared either clean or contaminated.
{14:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{14:2} This is the rite for a leper, when he is to be cleansed. He shall be brought to the priest,
{14:3} who, departing from the camp, when he has found the leprosy to be cleansed,
{14:4} shall instruct him who is to be purified to offer for himself two living sparrows, which it is lawful to eat, and cedar wood, and vermillion, and hyssop.
{14:5} And he shall order that one of the sparrows be immolated in an earthen vessel over living waters.
{14:6} But the other living one, with the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop, he shall dip in the blood of the immolated sparrow.
{14:7} And he shall sprinkle him who is to be cleansed seven times, so that he may be purified justly. And he shall release the living sparrow, so that it may fly away into the field.
{14:8} And when the man will have washed his clothes, he shall shave all the hair from his body, and he shall be washed with water. And having been purified, he shall enter into the camp, only to this extent: that he may remain outside his own tent for seven days.
{14:9} And on the seventh day he shall shave the hair of his head, and his beard, and his eyebrows, as well as the hair of his entire body. And having washed his clothes again, and his body,
{14:10} on the eighth day, he shall take two immaculate lambs, and a one-year-old female sheep without blemish, and three tenths of fine wheat flour, which has been sprinkled with oil, as a sacrifice, and separately, one twelfth hin of oil.
{14:11} And when the priest purifying the man has presented him and all these things in the sight of the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony,
{14:12} he shall take a lamb and offer it for transgression, with the twelfth hin of oil. And having offered all these before the Lord,
{14:13} he shall immolate the lamb, where the victim for sin is usually immolated with the holocaust, that is, in the holy place. For just as with the one for sin, so also the victim for transgression belongs to the priest. It is the Holy of holies.
{14:14} And taking some of the blood of the victim, which was immolated for transgression, the priest shall place it upon the tip of the right ear of him who is being cleansed, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and likewise the foot.
{14:15} And he shall send some of the twelfth hin of oil into his own left hand,
{14:16} and he shall dip his right finger in it, and he shall sprinkle it in the sight of the Lord seven times.
{14:17} But the oil which remains in his left hand, he shall pour over the tip of the right ear of him who is being cleansed, and upon the thumb of his right hand as well as the foot, and upon the blood which was shed for transgression,
{14:18} and upon his head.
{14:19} And he shall pray for him in the sight of the Lord, and he shall accomplish the sacrifice on behalf of sin. Then he shall immolate the holocaust,
{14:20} and place it upon the altar with its libations, and the man will be duly cleansed.
{14:21} But if he is poor, and his hand is not able to find what has been said, he shall take a lamb as an offering for transgression, so that the priest may pray for him, and a tenth part of fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil, as a sacrifice, and a twelfth hin of oil,
{14:22} and two turtledoves or two young pigeons, of which one may be for sin, and the other as a holocaust.
{14:23} And he shall offer them on the eighth day of his purification to the priest at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony in the sight of the Lord.
{14:24} And he, receiving the lamb for transgression, and the twelfth hin of oil, shall lift them up together.
{14:25} And when the lamb has been immolated, he shall place some of its blood upon the tip of the right ear of him who is being cleansed, and upon the thumb of his right hand, as well as the foot.
{14:26} Yet truly, he shall send part of the oil into his own left hand,
{14:27} and dipping the finger of his right hand in it, he shall sprinkle it seven times before the Lord.
{14:28} And he shall touch the tip of the right ear of him who is being cleansed, and the thumb of his right hand, as well as the foot, in the place of the blood which was shed for transgression.
{14:29} But the remaining part of the oil which is in his left hand, he shall send upon the head of the one being purified, to appease the Lord on his behalf.
{14:30} And he shall offer a turtledove or a young pigeon,
{14:31} one for transgression, and the other as a holocaust, with their libations.
{14:32} This is the sacrifice of a leper, who is not able to obtain all of the things concerning his cleansing.
{14:33} And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
{14:34} When you will have entered into the land of Canaan, which I will give to you as a possession, if there is the mark of leprosy in a building,
{14:35} he whose house it is shall go and report to the priest, saying: “It seems to me that the mark of leprosy is in my house.”
{14:36} And he shall instruct them to carry all things out of the house, before he would enter it and see whether it is leprosy, lest all that is in the house become unclean. And after this, he shall enter to examine the leprosy of the house.
{14:37} And when he will have seen in its walls something like little hollows, deformed with paleness or redness, and lower than the remaining surface,
{14:38} he shall exit by the door of the house, and immediately close it up for seven days.
{14:39} And returning on the seventh day, he shall examine it. If he finds that the leprosy has spread,
{14:40} he shall order the stones in which the leprosy is, to be dug out and cast outside the city in an unclean place,
{14:41} and that the house be scraped on the inside all around, and that the dust of the scrapings be scattered outside the city in an unclean place,
{14:42} and that other stones be put back, in place of those which had been taken away, and that the house be plastered with other mortar.
{14:43} But if, after the stones have been dug out, and the dust wiped away, and it is plastered with other clay,
{14:44} the priest, upon entering, will have seen that the leprosy has returned, and that the walls are sprinkled with spots, then it is a persistent leprosy and the house is unclean.
{14:45} And so they shall promptly destroy it, and shall cast its stones and timber, and also all the dust, outside the town in an unclean place.
{14:46} Whoever enters into the house when it is closed up shall be unclean until evening.
{14:47} And whoever will have slept in it, or eaten anything, shall wash his clothes.
{14:48} But if the priest, upon entering, will have seen that the leprosy has not spread in the house, after it had been newly plastered, he shall purify it, restoring it to health.
{14:49} And for its purification, he shall take two sparrows, and cedar wood, and vermillion, as well as hyssop,
{14:50} and, having immolated one sparrow in an earthen vessel over living waters,
{14:51} he shall take the cedar wood, and the hyssop, and the scarlet, and the living sparrow, and he shall dip all these in the blood of the immolated sparrow, and also in the living water, and he shall sprinkle the house seven times.
{14:52} And he shall purify it as much with the blood of the sparrow as with the living water, and with the living sparrow, and the cedar wood, and the hyssop, and the vermillion.
{14:53} And when he has released the sparrow to fly freely away into the field, he shall pray for the house, and it shall be justly cleansed.
{14:54} This is the law of every kind of leprosy and plague:
{14:55} of the leprosy of garments and houses,
{14:56} of scars and erupting pustules, of a shining spot, when the appearance is also variegated,
{14:57} so that it can be known at what time a thing is clean or unclean.
{15:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
{15:2} Speak to the sons of Israel, and say to them: The man who undergoes a flow of seed shall be unclean.
{15:3} And then he shall be judged subject to this fault, if a filthy fluid, at each moment, adheres to his flesh and gathers there.
{15:4} Every bed on which he sleeps shall be unclean, and every place where he sits.
{15:5} If any man has touched his couch, he shall wash his clothes, and having washed with water, he shall be unclean until evening.
{15:6} If he will have sat where that man has sat, he shall also wash his clothes, and having washed with water, he shall be unclean until evening.
{15:7} Whoever has touched his flesh shall wash his clothes, and having washed with water, he shall be unclean until evening.
{15:8} If such a man has cast his spittle upon him who is clean, he shall wash his clothes, and having washed with water, he shall be unclean until evening.
{15:9} The saddle on which he has sat shall be unclean.
{15:10} And whatever has been under him who has undergone a flow of seed shall be polluted until evening. Whoever carries any of these things shall wash his clothes, and having washed with water, he shall be unclean until evening.
{15:11} All whom such a one has touched, not having washed his hands before, shall wash his clothes, and having washed with water, he shall be unclean until evening.
{15:12} If he has touched an earthen vessel, it shall be broken. But if it is a wooden vessel, it shall be washed with water.
{15:13} If he who suffers from this affliction will have been healed, he shall number seven days after his cleansing, and having washed his clothes and his entire body in living water, he shall be clean.
{15:14} Then, on the eighth day, he shall take two turtledoves or two young pigeons, and he shall advance, in the sight of the Lord, toward the door of the tabernacle of the testimony, and he shall give these to the priest,
{15:15} who shall offer one for sin, and the other as a holocaust. And he shall pray for him before the Lord, so that he may be cleansed from the flow of his seed.
{15:16} A man from whom the seed of sexual intercourse goes out shall wash his entire body with water, and he shall be unclean until evening.
{15:17} The garment or skin which he will have, he shall wash with water, and it shall be unclean until evening.
{15:18} The woman with whom he has had sexual intercourse shall be washed with water, and she shall be unclean until evening.
{15:19} The woman who, at the return of the month, undergoes the flow of blood shall be separated for seven days.
{15:20} All who will touch her shall be unclean until evening.
{15:21} And everything on which she sleeps or sits, in the days of her separation, shall be polluted.
{15:22} Whoever will have touched her bed shall wash his clothes, and having washed himself with water, he shall be unclean until evening.
{15:23} Anyone who will have touched any item on which she has sat shall wash his clothes, and having washed himself with water, he shall be polluted until evening.
{15:24} If a man has sexual intercourse with her in the time of her monthly flow of blood, he shall be unclean for seven days, and every bed on which he sleeps shall be polluted.
{15:25} The woman who undergoes a flow of blood many days beyond her time of menstruation, or whose blood does not cease to flow after the menstrual blood, as long as she is subject to this affliction, she shall be unclean, just as if she were in her time of menstruation.
{15:26} Every bed on which she sleeps, and every item on which she sits, shall be polluted.
{15:27} Whoever will have touched these shall wash his clothes, and having washed himself with water, he shall be unclean until evening.
{15:28} If the blood has stopped and has ceased to flow, she shall number seven days for her purification,
{15:29} and on the eighth day she shall offer for herself, to the priest, two turtledoves or two young pigeons, at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony.
{15:30} And he shall offer one for sin, and the other as a holocaust, and he shall pray for her before the Lord, and for the flow of her uncleanness.
{15:31} Therefore, you shall teach the sons of Israel to be cautious of uncleanness, so that they may not die in their filth, when they will have polluted my tabernacle, which is among them.
{15:32} This is the law of him who undergoes a flow of seed, or who is polluted by sexual intercourse,
{15:33} and of her who is separated in the time of menstruation, or who has a continual flow of blood, and of the man who sleeps with her.
{16:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they were destroyed for offering strange fire.
{16:2} And he instructed him, saying: Speak to your brother Aaron, so that he may not, at any time, enter into the Sanctuary, which is within the veil, before the propitiatory by which the ark is covered, so that he may not die, (for I will appear in a cloud above the oracle)
{16:3} unless he will have done these things beforehand. He shall offer a calf for sin, and a ram as a holocaust.
{16:4} He shall be vested with a linen tunic. He shall conceal his nakedness with linen undergarments. He shall be wrapped with a linen belt, and he shall impose a linen headdress on his head. For these are holy vestments. All of these he shall put on, after he has been washed.
{16:5} And he shall receive, from the entire multitude of the sons of Israel, two he-goats for sin, and one ram as a holocaust.
{16:6} And when he has presented the calf, and has prayed for himself and for his own house,
{16:7} he shall cause the two he-goats to stand in the sight of the Lord at the entrance to the tabernacle of the testimony.
{16:8} And casting lots over them both, one is to be offered to the Lord, and the other is to be the emissary goat.
{16:9} The one whose lot fell out to be offered to the Lord, he shall offer for sin.
{16:10} But the one who is to be the emissary goat shall stand before the Lord, so that he may pour the prayers upon him, and may send him away into the wilderness.
{16:11} After these things have been duly celebrated, he shall offer the calf, and praying for himself and for his own house, he shall immolate it.
{16:12} And taking up the censer, which he has filled from the burning coals of the altar, and drawing up with his hands the aromatic compound for incense, he shall enter within the veil, into the holy place,
{16:13} so that when the aromatics are placed upon the fire, its cloud and vapor may cover the oracle, which is above the testimony, and he may not die.
{16:14} Likewise, he shall take some of the blood of the calf, and sprinkle it with his finger seven times opposite the propitiatory, toward the east.
{16:15} And when he has slain the he-goat for the sin of the people, he shall carry its blood within the veil, just as he was instructed to do with the blood of the calf, so that he may sprinkle it away from the area of the oracle,
{16:16} and so that he may expiate the Sanctuary from the uncleanness of the sons of Israel, and from their prevarications and every one of their sins. According to this rite, he shall act toward the tabernacle of the testimony, which is fixed among them in the midst of the filth of their habitation.
{16:17} Let no man be in the tabernacle when the high priest enters the Sanctuary in order to pray for himself, and for his house, and for the entire assembly of Israel, until he exits.
{16:18} And when he has exited to the altar which is before the Lord, let him pray for himself, and taking the blood of the calf, and of the he-goat, let him pour it upon its horns all around.
{16:19} And sprinkling with his finger seven times, let him expiate and sanctify it from the uncleanness of the sons of Israel.
{16:20} After he has cleansed the Sanctuary, and the tabernacle, and the altar, then let him offer the living goat.
{16:21} And placing both hands upon its head, let him confess all the iniquities of the sons of Israel, and all of their offenses and sins. And calling these down upon its head, he shall send it away, by means of a man prepared to do so, into the desert.
{16:22} And when the goat has carried all their iniquities into a solitary land, and has been released into the desert,
{16:23} Aaron shall return into the tabernacle of the testimony. And placing aside the vestments, which he had worn before when he entered into the Sanctuary, and leaving them there,
{16:24} he shall wash his flesh in the holy place, and he shall be clothed in his own garments. And departing afterwards, he shall present his own holocaust and that of the people: he shall pray as much for himself as for the people.
{16:25} And the fat which is offered for sins, he shall burn upon the altar.
{16:26} Yet truly, he who has sent away the emissary goat shall wash his clothes and his body with water, and so he shall enter into the camp.
{16:27} But the calf and the he-goat, which were immolated for sin, and whose blood was brought into the Sanctuary to complete the expiation, these shall be carried outside the camp and be burned with fire: as with their skins, so also with their flesh and dung.
{16:28} And whoever will have burned them shall wash his clothes and flesh with water, and so he shall enter into the camp.
{16:29} And this shall be to you an everlasting ordinance. In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and you shall do no work, neither someone native born, nor the newcomer who sojourns among you.
{16:30} On this day, there shall be atonement for you, and also a cleansing from all your sins. You shall be cleansed in the sight of the Lord.
{16:31} For it is a Sabbath of rest, and you shall afflict your souls as a perpetual observance.
{16:32} And the priest who has been anointed, and whose hands have been consecrated to exercise the priesthood in the place of his father, shall make atonement. And he shall be clothed with the linen robe and the holy vestments.
{16:33} And he shall expiate the Sanctuary and the tabernacle of the testimony and the altar, likewise the priest and all the people.
{16:34} And this shall be to you a perpetual law, that you pray for the sons of Israel, and for all their sins once a year. Therefore, he did just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{17:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{17:2} Speak to Aaron and his sons, and to all the sons of Israel, saying to them: This is the word, which the Lord has commanded, saying:
{17:3} Any man at all of the house of Israel, if he will have killed an ox, or a sheep, or a goat in the camp or beyond the camp,
{17:4} and not have presented it as an oblation to the Lord at the door of the tabernacle, he shall be guilty of blood. It is just as if he had shed blood; so then, he shall perish from the midst of his people.
{17:5} Therefore, the sons of Israel must offer to the priest their victims, which they kill in the field, so that they may be sanctified to the Lord before the door of the tabernacle of the testimony, and so that they may immolate them as peace offerings to the Lord.
{17:6} And the priest shall pour the blood upon the altar of the Lord, at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony, and he shall burn the fat as a sweet odor to the Lord.
{17:7} And they shall no longer immolate their victims to demons, with whom they have committed fornication. It shall be an everlasting ordinance for them and for their posterity.
{17:8} And you shall say to them: The man of the house of Israel, or of the newcomers who sojourn with you, who offers a holocaust or a victim,
{17:9} and who does not bring it to the door of the tabernacle of the testimony, so that it may be offered to the Lord, shall pass away from his people.
{17:10} Any man at all of the house of Israel, or of the newcomers who sojourn among them, if he has eaten blood, I will harden my face against his soul, and I will drive him from his people.
{17:11} For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you, so that you may atone with it upon the altar for your souls, and so that the blood may be for an expiation of the soul.
{17:12} For this reason, I have said to the sons of Israel: No soul among you shall eat blood, nor among the newcomers who sojourn with you.
{17:13} Any man at all from the sons of Israel, or from the newcomers who sojourn with you, whether by hunting or bird-catching, if he seizes a wild beast or a bird, which is lawful to eat, let him pour out its blood and cover the earth with it.
{17:14} For the life of all flesh is in the blood. Therefore, I said to the sons of Israel: You shall not eat the blood of any flesh at all, because the life of the flesh is in the blood, and whoever has eaten it shall perish.
{17:15} The soul who eats what has died on its own, or what has been caught by a beast, whether he is native born or a newcomer, shall wash his clothes and himself with water, and he shall be contaminated until evening. And by this means he shall be made clean.
{17:16} But if he will not wash his clothes and his body, he shall bear his iniquity.
{18:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{18:2} Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: I am the Lord your God.
{18:3} You shall not act according to the custom of the land of Egypt, in which you have lived; nor shall you behave according to the habit of the region of Canaan, into which I will lead you; neither shall you walk in their ordinances.
{18:4} You shall accomplish my judgments, and you shall observe my precepts, and you shall walk in them. I am the Lord your God.
{18:5} Keep my laws and judgments; when a man does these, he shall live by them. I am the Lord.
{18:6} No man shall approach her who is a close blood-relative to him, so as to uncover her nakedness. I am the Lord.
{18:7} You shall not expose the nakedness of your father, or the nakedness of your mother. She is your mother; you shall not uncover her nakedness.
{18:8} You shall not expose the nakedness of your father’s wife; for it is the nakedness of your father.
{18:9} You shall not uncover the nakedness of your sister, whether from father or from mother, whether she was born at home or abroad.
{18:10} You shall not uncover the nakedness of your son’s daughter, or your daughter’s daughter; for it is your own nakedness.
{18:11} You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife’s daughter, whom she bore to your father, and who is your sister.
{18:12} You shall not expose the nakedness of your father’s sister; for she is the flesh of your father.
{18:13} You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, because she is the flesh of your mother.
{18:14} You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s brother, nor shall you approach his wife, who is joined to you by affinity.
{18:15} You shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law, for she is your son’s wife; neither shall you expose her dishonor.
{18:16} You shall not uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife; for it is the nakedness of your brother.
{18:17} You shall not uncover the nakedness of your wife and her daughter. You shall not take her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter, so as to uncover her dishonor; for they are her flesh, and such sexual intercourse is incest.
{18:18} You shall not take your wife’s sister as a rival mistress; nor shall you uncover her nakedness, while your wife is still living.
{18:19} You shall not approach a woman who is undergoing menstruation, nor shall you uncover her foulness.
{18:20} You shall not have sexual intercourse with your neighbor’s wife, nor shall you be defiled by the mingling of seed.
{18:21} You shall not give some of your seed to be consecrated to the idol Moloch, nor to pollute the name of your God. I am the Lord.
{18:22} You shall not commit sexual acts with a male, in place of sexual intercourse with a female, for this is an abomination.
{18:23} You shall not commit sexual acts with any animal, nor shall you be defiled by it. A woman shall not lie down with a beast, nor commit sexual acts with it; for this is wickedness.
{18:24} Do not pollute yourselves with any of these things, by which all of the nations, which I will cast out in your sight, have been contaminated
{18:25} and by which the land has been polluted. I will visit the wickedness of the land, so that it may vomit out its inhabitants.
{18:26} Keep my ordinances and judgments, and do not do any of these abominations: the native born, as well as the settler, who sojourns among you.
{18:27} For all these detestable things were done by the inhabitants of the land who were here before you, and they have polluted it.
{18:28} Therefore, beware, lest in a similar manner, it may vomit you out as well, if you do these same things, just as it vomited out the people who were before you.
{18:29} Every soul who shall commit any of these abominations shall perish from the midst of his people.
{18:30} Keep my commandments. Do not be willing to do the things which have been done by those who were before you, and do not be polluted by these things. I am the Lord your God.
{19:1} The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{19:2} Speak to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: Be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy.
{19:3} Let each one fear his father and his mother. Observe my Sabbaths. I am the Lord your God.
{19:4} Do not be willing to convert to idols, neither should you make molten gods for yourselves. I am the Lord your God.
{19:5} If you immolate a victim of peace offerings to the Lord, so that he may be appeased,
{19:6} you shall eat it on the same day as when it was immolated, and the next day. Then whatever will remain on the third day you shall burn with fire.
{19:7} If anyone, after two days, will have eaten from it, he shall be profane and guilty of impiety.
{19:8} And he shall bear his iniquity, for he has polluted what is holy to the Lord. And that soul shall perish from his people.
{19:9} When you will have harvested the grain fields of your land, you shall not cut it down to the surface of the land, even to the ground, nor shall you gather the remaining ears of grain.
{19:10} Neither shall you gather the clusters or individual grapes which fall down in your vineyard, but you shall leave them for paupers and travelers to take. I am the Lord your God.
{19:11} You shall not steal. You shall not lie. Neither shall anyone deceive his neighbor.
{19:12} You shall not commit perjury in my name, nor shall you pollute the name of your God. I am the Lord.
{19:13} You shall not slander your neighbor, nor shall you oppress him by violence. The wages of a hired hand, you shall not delay with you until tomorrow.
{19:14} You shall not speak evil of the deaf, nor shall you place a stumbling block before the blind, but you shall fear the Lord your God, for I am the Lord.
{19:15} You shall not do what is unjust, nor shall you judge unjustly. You shall not consider the reputation of the poor, nor shall you honor the countenance of the powerful. Judge your neighbor justly.
{19:16} You shall not be a detractor, nor a whisperer, among the people. You shall not stand against the blood of your neighbor. I am the Lord.
{19:17} You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but reprove him openly, lest you have sin over him.
{19:18} Do not seek revenge, neither should you be mindful of the injury of your fellow citizens. You shall love your friend as yourself. I am the Lord.
{19:19} Observe my laws. You shall not cause your cattle to breed with other kinds of animals. You shall not sow your field with diverse seeds. You shall not be clothed with a garment which has been woven from two things.
{19:20} If a man will have slept in sexual intercourse with a woman, who is a servant and who is also able to be married, and yet he has not redeemed her with a price, nor paid to set her free, they both shall be beaten, but they shall not die, for she was not a free woman.
{19:21} But, for his offense, he shall offer a ram to the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony.
{19:22} And the priest shall pray for him, and for his sin, before the Lord, and he shall win his favor again for him, and the sin shall be forgiven.
{19:23} When you will have entered into the land, and will have planted in it fruit trees, you shall take away their first-fruits; the fruit that germinates shall be unclean to you, neither shall you eat from these.
{19:24} But in the fourth year, all their fruit shall be sanctified for the praise of the Lord.
{19:25} And in the fifth year you shall eat the produce, gathering the fruits which are brought forth. I am the Lord your God.
{19:26} You shall not eat with blood. You shall not practice divination, nor the observation of dreams.
{19:27} And you shall not cut the hair of your head circularly, nor shave your beard.
{19:28} You shall not cut your flesh for the dead, and you shall not make other figures or marks on yourself. I am the Lord.
{19:29} Do not prostitute your daughter, lest the land be contaminated and filled with crimes.
{19:30} Observe my Sabbaths, and be apprehensive toward my Sanctuary. I am the Lord.
{19:31} Do not turn aside to astrologers, nor consult with soothsayers, so as to be polluted through them. I am the Lord your God.
{19:32} Rise up in the presence of a gray-haired head, and honor the reputation of an elder, and fear the Lord your God. I am the Lord.
{19:33} If a newcomer lives in your land and abides among you, do not reproach him,
{19:34} but let him be among you like one native born. And you shall love him as yourselves. For you were also newcomers in the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.
{19:35} Do not be willing to accomplish iniquity in judgment, in lengths, in weights, in quantities.
{19:36} Let the scales be just and the weights equal, let the dry measure be just and the liquid measure be equal. I am the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt.
{19:37} Keep all my precepts, and all my judgments, and accomplish them. I am the Lord.
{20:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{20:2} You shall speak these things to the sons of Israel: A man among the sons Israel, or among the newcomers who live in Israel, if he will have given from his seed to the idol Moloch, he shall be put to death: the people of the land shall stone him.
{20:3} And I will set my face against him. And I will cut him down from the midst of his people, because he has given from his seed to Moloch, and he has contaminated my Sanctuary, and polluted my holy name.
{20:4} But if the people of the land, having been neglectful and holding little regard for my authority, release the man who has given from his seed to Moloch, and they are not willing to kill him,
{20:5} I will set my face over that man and over his kindred, and I will cut down both him and all who consented with him to fornicate with Moloch, from the midst of their people.
{20:6} The soul who will have turned aside to astrologers and soothsayers, and who will have fornicated with them, I will set my face against him, and I will destroy him from the midst of his people.
{20:7} Be sanctified and be holy, for I am the Lord your God.
{20:8} Observe my precepts, and do them. I am the Lord, who sanctifies you.
{20:9} Whoever curses his father or mother shall die a death; he has cursed his father and mother. So let his blood be upon him.
{20:10} If anyone will have committed sexual acts with the wife of another, or will have perpetrated adultery with his neighbor’s spouse, they shall die a death, both the adulterer and the adulteress.
{20:11} Whoever will have slept with his stepmother, or will have uncovered the shame of his father, they shall both die a death. So let their blood be upon them.
{20:12} If any man will have slept with his daughter-in-law, both shall die, for they have acted according to wickedness. So let their blood be upon them.
{20:13} If any man has slept with a male in place of sexual intercourse with a female, both have committed a nefarious act, they shall die a death. So let their blood be upon them.
{20:14} If any man, having taken the daughter as a wife, will have married her mother, he has acted according to wickedness. He shall be burnt alive with them. Neither shall so great a nefarious act persist in your midst.
{20:15} Whoever will have committed sexual acts with any animal or cattle, he shall die a death. Likewise, you shall slay the beast.
{20:16} The woman who will have lain under any animal at all shall be destroyed together with it. So let their blood be upon them.
{20:17} Whoever will have taken his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother, and will have seen her nakedness, and she will have looked upon her brother’s shame, they have committed a nefarious act. They shall be slain in the sight of their people, because they have uncovered one another’s nakedness. And they shall bear their iniquity.
{20:18} Whoever has sexual intercourse with a woman in her menstrual flow, and has uncovered her nakedness, and she has opened the fountain of her blood, both shall be destroyed from the midst of their people.
{20:19} You shall not expose the nakedness of your maternal or paternal aunt. Whoever does this has laid bare the shame of his own flesh; both shall bear their iniquity.
{20:20} If any man has had sexual intercourse with the wife of his paternal or maternal uncle, and he has uncovered the shame of his close relative, both shall bear their sin. They shall die without children.
{20:21} Whoever will have married his brother’s wife has done an unlawful thing; he has uncovered his brother’s nakedness. They shall be without children.
{20:22} Observe my laws as well as my judgments, and act according to them, lest the land, into which you will enter and live, may vomit you out, too.
{20:23} Do not be willing to walk by the ordinances of the nations, which I will expel before you. For they have done all these things, and so I abominate them.
{20:24} But I say to you: Possess their land, which I will give to you as an inheritance, a land flowing with milk and honey. I am the Lord your God, who has separated you from the other peoples.
{20:25} Therefore, you must also separate the clean animals from the unclean, and the clean birds from the unclean. Do not pollute your souls with cattle, or birds, or anything that moves upon the earth, and which I have shown you to be unclean.
{20:26} You shall be holy unto me, because I, the Lord, am holy, and I have separated you from the other peoples, so that you would be mine.
{20:27} A man or a woman, in whom there is an oracle-like or a divining spirit, shall be put to death. They shall stone them. So let their blood be upon them.
{21:1} The Lord also said to Moses: Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and you shall say to them: Do not allow a priest to be contaminated by the death of his citizens,
{21:2} except only by his blood-relatives and near-relatives, that is, by a father or mother, or by a son or daughter, or also a brother,
{21:3} or a virgin sister, who is not married to a husband.
{21:4} But not even by the leader of his people shall he be contaminated.
{21:5} Neither shall they shave their head or their beard, and they shall not make incisions in their flesh.
{21:6} They shall be holy to their God, and they shall not pollute his name. For they offer the incense of the Lord and the bread of their God, and because of this they shall be holy.
{21:7} They shall not take as a wife a promiscuous woman, or a prostitute, or her who has been repudiated by her husband. For they are consecrated to their God,
{21:8} and they offer the bread of the presence. Therefore, let them be holy, for I also am holy: the Lord, who sanctifies them.
{21:9} If the daughter of a priest will have been taken into prostitution, and will have violated the name of her father, she shall be consumed by fire.
{21:10} The high priest, that is, the priest who is the greatest among his brothers, upon whose head the oil of anointing has been poured, and whose hands have been consecrated for the priesthood, and who has been vested with the holy vestments: he shall not expose his head; he shall not rend his vestments.
{21:11} And he shall not enter to any dead body whatsoever; likewise, not even by his father or mother shall he be contaminated.
{21:12} Neither shall he exit from the holy places, lest he pollute the Sanctuary of the Lord. For the oil of the holy anointing of his God is upon him. I am the Lord.
{21:13} He shall take a virgin as his wife.
{21:14} But a widow, or one who has been repudiated or defiled, or also a mistress, he shall not accept, but only a maiden from among his own people.
{21:15} He shall not mingle the stock of his family with the common people of his nation. For I am the Lord, who sanctifies him.
{21:16} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{21:17} Say to Aaron: A man from your offspring, throughout their families, who has a blemish, shall not offer the bread to his God.
{21:18} Neither shall he approach to minister to him: if he is blind, if he is lame, if he is small, or large, or has a crooked nose,
{21:19} if his foot or hand is broken,
{21:20} if he has a bulging back or bleary eyes, or if he has a white spot in his eye, or a chronic scab, or a skin disease on his body, or a hernia.
{21:21} Anyone from the offspring of Aaron, the priest, who has a blemish, shall not approach to offer sacrifices to the Lord, nor the bread to his God.
{21:22} Nevertheless, he shall eat from the loaves which are offered in the Sanctuary.
{21:23} But even so, he may not enter within the veil, nor approach to the altar. For he has a blemish, and he must not contaminate my Sanctuary. I am the Lord, who sanctifies them.
{21:24} Therefore, Moses spoke to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all of Israel, everything that had been commanded to him.
{22:1} The Lord also spoke to Moses saying:
{22:2} Speak to Aaron and to his sons, so that they may be careful of those things which have been consecrated for the sons of Israel, and so that they may not contaminate the name of the things sanctified to me, which they offer. I am the Lord.
{22:3} Say to them and to their posterity: Every man of your stock, who approaches toward those things which have been consecrated, and which the sons of Israel have brought forward to the Lord, in whom there is uncleanness, shall perish before the Lord. I am the Lord.
{22:4} The man of the offspring of Aaron, who is a leper or who is suffering a flow of seed, shall not eat of those things which have been sanctified to me, until he is healed. Whoever will have touched what is unclean because of the dead, and he whose seed goes out from him, as if from sexual intercourse,
{22:5} and whoever has touched a creeping thing, or any kind of unclean thing, the touching of which is filthy,
{22:6} shall be unclean until evening, and shall not eat those things which have been sanctified. But when he has washed his flesh with water,
{22:7} and the sun has set, then, having been purified, he shall eat from what has been sanctified, because it is his food.
{22:8} Whatever dies on its own, and whatever has been seized by a wild beast, they shall not eat, nor shall they be polluted by these. I am the Lord.
{22:9} Let them observe my precepts, so that they may not fall under sin, and die in the Sanctuary, when they will have defiled it. I am the Lord, who sanctifies them.
{22:10} No foreigner shall eat from what has been sanctified; a guest of the priests and a hired servant shall not eat from them.
{22:11} But whomever the priest has bought, and whoever has been born into his house, these shall eat from them.
{22:12} If the daughter of a priest has been married to any of the people, she shall not eat from what has been sanctified, nor from the first-fruits.
{22:13} But if she is a widow or divorced, and, being without children, she returns to her father’s house, she shall be nourished by her father’s foods, just as she was accustomed to do as a girl. No foreigner shall have the authority to eat from them.
{22:14} Whoever, through ignorance, eats from what has been sanctified shall add a fifth part to that which he ate, and he shall give it to the priest at the Sanctuary.
{22:15} And they shall not contaminate what has been sanctified from the sons of Israel, which they offer to the Lord,
{22:16} lest perhaps they may suffer the iniquity of their offense, when they will have eaten what has been sanctified. I am the Lord, who sanctifies them.
{22:17} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{22:18} Speak to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: The man from the house of Israel, or from the newcomers who live with you, who would bring forward his oblation, either fulfilling his vows or offering spontaneously, whatever he brings forward as a holocaust for the Lord,
{22:19} in order to be offered through you, shall offer an immaculate male from the oxen, or from the sheep, or from the goats.
{22:20} If it has a blemish, you shall not offer it, and it shall not be acceptable.
{22:21} The man who will have offered a victim of peace offerings to the Lord, either fulfilling his vows or offering spontaneously, whether of oxen, or of sheep, shall offer what is immaculate, so that it may be acceptable. There shall be no blemish in it.
{22:22} If it is blind, or if it is broken, or if it has a scar, or if it is has a boil, or a skin disease or infection, you shall not offer these to the Lord, nor shall you burn any of these upon the altar of the Lord.
{22:23} An ox or a sheep, having an amputated ear or tail, you are able to offer voluntarily, but a vow is not able to be fulfilled by these.
{22:24} You shall not offer to the Lord any animal which has the testicles bruised, or crushed, or cut and taken away, and you shall not cause any of these things in your land.
{22:25} From the hand of a foreigner, you shall not offer bread to your God, nor anything else that he would choose to give; for all this has been corrupted and blemished. You shall not accept them.
{22:26} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{22:27} An ox, a sheep, or a goat, when they have been born, shall be under the udder of their mother for seven days. But on the eighth day and thereafter, they are able to be offered to the Lord.
{22:28} Whether it is an ox, or a sheep, they shall not be immolated on the same day with their newborns.
{22:29} If you immolate a victim as an act of thanksgiving to the Lord, so that he may be pleased,
{22:30} you shall eat it on the same day; none of it shall remain until morning on the next day. I am the Lord.
{22:31} Observe my commandments, and do them. I am the Lord.
{22:32} Do not pollute my holy name, so that I may be sanctified in the midst of the sons of Israel. I am the Lord, who sanctifies you,
{22:33} and who led you away from the land of Egypt, so that I may be to you as God. I am the Lord.
{23:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{23:2} Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: These are the feasts of the Lord, which you shall call holy.
{23:3} For six days you shall do work; the seventh day, because it is the rest of the Sabbath, shall be called holy. You shall do no work on that day; it is the Sabbath of the Lord in all your dwelling places.
{23:4} Therefore, these are the feasts of the Lord, which you must celebrate in their times.
{23:5} The first month, the fourteenth day of the month, at evening, is the Passover of the Lord.
{23:6} And the fifteenth day of this month is the solemnity of the unleavened bread of the Lord. For seven days shall you eat unleavened bread.
{23:7} The first day shall be greatly honored and holy to you; you shall do no servile work in it.
{23:8} But you shall offer a sacrifice with fire, for seven days, to the Lord. Then the seventh day shall be more honored and more holy; and you shall do no servile work in it.
{23:9} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{23:10} Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: When you will have entered into the land which I will give to you, and you will have harvested your grain fields, you shall carry the sheaves of grain, the first-fruits of your harvest, to the priest.
{23:11} He shall lift up a sheaf before the Lord, on the day after the Sabbath, so that it may be acceptable for you, and he shall sanctify it.
{23:12} And on the same day that the sheaf is consecrated, a one-year-old immaculate lamb shall be slain as a holocaust of the Lord.
{23:13} And the libations shall be offered with it: two-tenths of fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil, as an incense and a most sweet odor for the Lord; likewise, libations of wine, the fourth part of a hin.
{23:14} Bread, and parched grain, and boiled grain, you shall not eat from the grain field, until the day when you shall offer from it to your God. It is an everlasting precept in your generations and in all of your dwelling places.
{23:15} Therefore, you shall number from the day after the Sabbath, in which you offered a sheaf of the first-fruits, seven full weeks,
{23:16} all the way to the day after the completion of the seventh week, that is, fifty days, and then you shall offer a new sacrifice to the Lord,
{23:17} from all of your dwelling places: two loaves from the first-fruits, from two-tenths of leavened fine wheat flour, which you shall bake as the first-fruits of the Lord.
{23:18} And you shall offer with the bread: seven immaculate one-year-old lambs, and one calf from the herd, and two rams, and these shall be a holocaust, with their libations, as a most sweet odor to the Lord.
{23:19} You shall also offer a he-goat for sin, and two one-year-old lambs as victims of peace offerings.
{23:20} And when the priest has lifted them up with the loaves of the first-fruits, in the sight of the Lord, they shall fall to his use.
{23:21} And you shall call this day most honored and most holy; you shall do no servile work in it. It shall be an everlasting ordinance in all your dwelling places and generations.
{23:22} And when you will have harvested the grain fields of your land, you shall not cut it down all the way to the ground; neither shall you gather the remnants of the ears of grain, but you shall leave these for paupers and strangers. I am the Lord your God.
{23:23} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{23:24} Say to the sons of Israel: The seventh month, the first day of the month, shall be a Sabbath for you, a memorial, with the sounding of trumpets, and it shall be called holy.
{23:25} You shall do no servile work in it, and you shall offer a holocaust to the Lord.
{23:26} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{23:27} The tenth day of this seventh month shall be the day of atonement; it shall be most honored, and it shall be called holy. And you shall afflict your souls on that day, and you shall offer a holocaust to the Lord.
{23:28} You shall do no servile work in the time of this day; for it is a day of propitiation, so that the Lord your God may be merciful to you.
{23:29} Every soul that has not been afflicted on this day shall perish from his people,
{23:30} and anyone who will have done work, I shall wipe him away from his people.
{23:31} Therefore, you shall do no work on that day. This shall be an everlasting ordinance for you in all your generations and dwelling places.
{23:32} It is a Sabbath of rest, and you shall afflict your souls beginning on the ninth day of the month: from evening until evening you shall celebrate your Sabbaths.
{23:33} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{23:34} Say to the sons of Israel: From the fifteenth day of this seventh month, there shall be the Feast of Tabernacles: seven days for the Lord.
{23:35} The first day shall be called most honored and most holy; you shall do no servile work in it.
{23:36} And for seven days you shall offer holocausts to the Lord. Likewise, the eighth day shall be most honored and most holy, and you shall offer holocausts to the Lord. For it is the day of assembly and gathering. You shall do no servile work in it.
{23:37} These are the feasts of the Lord, which you shall call most honored and most holy, and in them you shall offer oblations to the Lord: holocausts and libations according to the rite of each particular day,
{23:38} aside from the Sabbaths of the Lord, and your donations, and that which you offer by a vow, or which you give to the Lord spontaneously.
{23:39} Therefore, from the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you will have gathered together all the fruits of your land, you shall celebrate the feast of the Lord for seven days. The first day and the eighth day shall be a Sabbath, that is, a day of rest.
{23:40} And you shall take for yourselves, on the first day, the fruits of the most beautiful tree, and branches of palm trees, and branches of trees with thick foliage, and willows from the torrent. And you shall rejoice in the sight of the Lord your God.
{23:41} And you shall celebrate its solemnity for seven days each year. This shall be an everlasting ordinance in your generations. In the seventh month, you shall celebrate the feast,
{23:42} and you shall live under shelters for seven days. All who are of the family of Israel shall dwell in tabernacles,
{23:43} so that your posterity may learn that I caused the sons of Israel to live in tabernacles, when I led them away from the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.
{23:44} And Moses spoke about the solemnities of the Lord to the sons of Israel.
{24:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{24:2} Instruct the sons of Israel, so that they may bring to you clear oil from the purest olives, in order to supply the lamps continuously
{24:3} outside the veil of the testimony in the tabernacle of the covenant. And Aaron shall place these, from evening until morning, before the Lord, as a perpetual worship and ritual in your generations.
{24:4} They shall be placed upon the most pure candlestick in the sight of the Lord always.
{24:5} You shall also receive fine wheat flour, and you shall bake twelve loaves from it, each loaf of which shall have two-tenths.
{24:6} And you shall arrange them, six on each side, upon the most pure table before the Lord.
{24:7} And you shall place upon them the clearest frankincense, so that the bread may be a memorial of oblation for the Lord.
{24:8} On each Sabbath, they shall be changed before the Lord, having been received from the sons of Israel as an everlasting covenant.
{24:9} And they shall be for Aaron and his sons, so that they may eat these in the holy place; for it is the Holy of holies from the sacrifices of the Lord, as a perpetual right.
{24:10} Then, behold, the son of an Israelite woman, whom she had born of an Egyptian man among the sons of Israel, going out, was quarreling in the camp with a man of Israel.
{24:11} And when he had blasphemed the name, and had cursed it, he was led to Moses. (Now his mother was called Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri from the tribe of Dan.)
{24:12} And they sent him to prison, until they might know what the Lord would command,
{24:13} who spoke to Moses,
{24:14} saying: Lead away the blasphemer beyond the camp, and let all who heard him place their hands upon his head, and let the entire people stone him.
{24:15} And you shall say to the sons of Israel: The man who curses his God shall bear his sin,
{24:16} and whoever will have blasphemed the name of the Lord shall be put to death. The entire multitude shall overwhelm him with stones, whether he be a citizen or a sojourner. Whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord shall be put to death.
{24:17} Whoever will have struck and killed a man shall be put to death.
{24:18} Whoever will have struck down an animal shall repay its equivalent, that is, a life for a life.
{24:19} Whoever will have inflicted a blemish on any of his citizens, just as he has done, so shall it be done to him:
{24:20} fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, shall he repay. Whatever degree of blemish he has inflicted, so shall he be compelled to suffer.
{24:21} Whoever strikes down a beast, shall repay another. Whoever strikes a man shall be punished.
{24:22} Let there be equal judgment among you, whether it is a sojourner or a citizen who will have sinned. For I am the Lord your God.
{24:23} And Moses spoke to the sons of Israel. And they led away him who had blasphemed, beyond the camp, and they overwhelmed him with stones. And the sons of Israel did just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{25:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses on mount Sinai, saying:
{25:2} Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: When you will have entered into the land which I will give to you, rest on the Sabbath of the Lord.
{25:3} For six years you shall sow your field, and for six years you shall care for your vineyard, and you shall gather its fruits.
{25:4} But in the seventh year, there shall be a Sabbath of the land, a resting of the Lord. You shall not sow your field, and you shall not care for your vineyard.
{25:5} What the soil shall spontaneously produce, you shall not harvest. And you shall not gather the grapes of the first-fruits as a crop. For it is a year of rest for the land.
{25:6} But these shall be yours for food, for you and for your men and women servants, and for your hired hands, and for the newcomers who sojourn with you:
{25:7} all that grows on its own shall provide food for your beasts and cattle.
{25:8} You shall also number for yourselves seven weeks of years, that is, seven times seven, which together makes forty-nine years.
{25:9} And you shall sound the trumpet in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, at the time of the atonement, throughout all your land.
{25:10} And you shall sanctify the fiftieth year, and you shall proclaim a remission for all the inhabitants of your land: for the same is the Jubilee. A man shall return to his possession, and each one shall go back to his original family,
{25:11} for it is the Jubilee and the fiftieth year. You shall not sow, and you shall not reap what grows in the field of its own accord, and you shall not gather the first-fruits of the crop,
{25:12} due to the sanctification of the Jubilee. But you shall eat them as they present themselves.
{25:13} In the year of the Jubilee, all shall return to their possessions.
{25:14} When you will sell anything to your fellow citizen, or buy anything from him, do not cause your brother grief, but buy from him according to the number of years from the Jubilee,
{25:15} and he shall sell to you according to the computation of the produce.
{25:16} The more years that will remain after the Jubilee, the more the price shall increase, and the less the time is numbered, so much less shall the purchase price be. For he will sell to you the time for the produce.
{25:17} Do not be willing to afflict your countrymen, but let each one fear his God. For I am the Lord your God.
{25:18} Accomplish my precepts, and observe my judgments, and complete them, so that you may be able to live in the land without any fear,
{25:19} and so that the soil may produce its fruits for you, from which you may eat, even to fullness, dreading violence by no one.
{25:20} But if you will say: What shall we eat in the seventh year, if we do not sow and do not gather our produce?
{25:21} I will give my blessing to you in the sixth year, and it shall yield the produce of three years.
{25:22} And in the eighth year you shall sow, but you shall eat from the old produce, until the ninth year, until what is new matures, you shall eat what is old.
{25:23} Also, the land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for it is mine, and you are newcomers and settlers to me.
{25:24} Therefore, every region of your possession shall be sold under the condition of redemption.
{25:25} If your brother, being in need, will have sold his little possession and his close relative is willing, he is able to redeem what he had sold.
{25:26} But if he has no near relative, and he himself is able to find the price to redeem it,
{25:27} the produce shall be calculated from that time when he sold it. And what is lacking, he shall repay to the buyer, and so he shall receive his possession.
{25:28} But if his hand will not have discovered a way to repay the price, the buyer shall have what he bought, until the year of the Jubilee. For in that year all that has been sold shall return to the owner, and to the original possessor.
{25:29} Whoever will have sold a house within the walls of a city shall have the freedom to redeem it, until one year has been completed.
{25:30} If he has not redeemed it, and the year will have turned full circle, the buyer and his posterity shall possess it, in perpetuity, and it is not able to be redeemed, even in the Jubilee.
{25:31} But if the house is in a village, which has no walls, it shall be sold by the law of the fields. If it has not been redeemed beforehand, then in the Jubilee it shall return to the owner.
{25:32} The buildings of the Levites, which are in the cities, are always able to be redeemed.
{25:33} If they have not been redeemed, then in the Jubilee they shall return to the owners, for the houses of the cities of the Levites are for their possession among the sons of Israel.
{25:34} But let not their suburbs be sold, for it is an everlasting possession.
{25:35} If your brother has become impoverished, or infirm of hand, and you take him in, like a newcomer or a sojourner, and he lives with you,
{25:36} do not accept usury from him, nor anything more than what you gave. Fear your God, so that your brother may be able to live with you.
{25:37} You shall not give him your money by usury, nor exact from him an overabundance of produce.
{25:38} I am the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt, so that I might give to you the land of Canaan, and so that I may be your God.
{25:39} If your brother, having been compelled by poverty, will have sold himself to you, you shall not oppress him with the servitude of indentured servants.
{25:40} But he shall be like a hired hand or a settler; he shall work with you, until the year of the Jubilee.
{25:41} And after that, he shall depart with his children, and he shall return to his kindred, to the possession of his fathers.
{25:42} For these are my servants, and I led them away from the land of Egypt; let them not be sold into the condition of servitude.
{25:43} Do not afflict him by power, but be fearful of your God.
{25:44} Let your male and female servants be from the nations which are all around you,
{25:45} and from the newcomers who sojourn with you, or who have been born from them in your land. These you shall have as servants,
{25:46} and, by the right of inheritance, you shall transmit them to your posterity, and you shall possess them forever. But do not oppress your brothers, the sons of Israel, by power.
{25:47} If the hand of a newcomer or a sojourner will have grown strong among you, and your brother, having become impoverished, will have sold himself to him, or to any of his stock,
{25:48} after the sale, he is able to be redeemed. Whoever is willing among his brothers shall redeem him:
{25:49} either the paternal uncle, or the paternal uncle’s son, or his close relative, by blood or by affinity. But if he himself will be able also, he shall redeem himself,
{25:50} considering only the years from the time of his selling until the year of the Jubilee, and calculating the money for which he was sold, according to the number of years and the accounting of a hired hand.
{25:51} If there will have been many years which remain until the Jubilee, according to these shall he also repay the price.
{25:52} If few, he shall determine the accounting with him according to the number of years, and he shall repay to the buyer by what is left remaining of the years;
{25:53} his wages being charged by what served before. He shall not afflict him violently in your sight.
{25:54} But if, by these means, he will not be able to be redeemed, then in the year of the Jubilee he shall depart with his children.
{25:55} For they are my servants, the sons of Israel, whom I led away from the land of Egypt.
{26:1} I am the Lord your God. You shall not make for yourselves an idol or a graven image. Neither shall you erect a monument, or set up a conspicuous stone in your land, in order that you may adore it. For I am the Lord your God.
{26:2} Observe my Sabbaths, and be fearful toward my Sanctuary. I am the Lord.
{26:3} If you will walk in my precepts, and observe my commandments, and accomplish them, I will give to you rain in its time,
{26:4} and the ground shall bring forth its seedlings, and the trees shall be filled again with fruit.
{26:5} The threshing of the harvest shall last until the vintage, and the vintage shall overtake the sowing. And you shall eat your bread to fullness, and you shall live in your land without fear.
{26:6} I will give peace to your most distant regions. You will sleep, and there will be no one to strike you with terror. I will take away harmful wild beasts, and the sword will not cross your borders.
{26:7} You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall down at the sight of you.
{26:8} Five of yours will pursue a hundred foreigners, and a hundred of you will pursue ten thousand. Your enemies will fall by the sword in your sight.
{26:9} I will look with favor upon you, and I will cause you to increase; you will be multiplied, and I will confirm my covenant with you.
{26:10} You will eat the oldest of what is old, and, when what is new arrives, you will throw away what is old.
{26:11} I will set my tabernacle in your midst, and my soul will not cast you out.
{26:12} I will walk among you, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people.
{26:13} I am the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of the Egyptians, lest you serve them, and who broke the chains around your necks, so that you would walk upright.
{26:14} But if you will not listen to me, nor accomplish all of my commandments,
{26:15} if you despise my laws, and disdain my judgments, so that you do not accomplish those things which have been established by me, and so that you lead my covenant away into nullification,
{26:16} then I also will do these things to you. I will quickly visit you with destitution, and burning heat, which will waste away your eyes, and consume your lives. In vain will you sow your seed, which will be devoured by your enemies.
{26:17} I will set my face against you, and you will fall down before your enemies, and you will be subjugated to those who hate you. You will flee, though no one pursues.
{26:18} But if you will not be obedient to me in this way, then I will add sevenfold to your chastisement, because of your sins.
{26:19} And I will crush the pride in your hardness, and I will give to you heaven above like iron, and the earth below like brass.
{26:20} Your labor will be consumed to no purpose; the land will not bring forth seedlings, nor will the trees provide their fruit.
{26:21} If you walk as an adversary to me, and if you are not willing to listen to me, I will add sevenfold to your plagues, because of your sins.
{26:22} And I will send upon you the wild beasts of the field, which will consume you and your cattle, and which will reduce everything to paucity, and cause your roadways to become desolate.
{26:23} But if you are not willing to receive discipline in this way, and you still walk as an adversary to me,
{26:24} likewise, I will advance against you as an adversary, and I will strike you seven times, because of your sins.
{26:25} And I will lead over you the sword that shall avenge my covenant. And when you will have fled into the cities, I will send a pestilence into your midst, and you will be delivered into the hands of your enemies.
{26:26} After this, I will have broken the staff of your bread, so that ten women bake bread in one oven, and distribute it by weight. And you shall eat and not be filled.
{26:27} Then, if you will not listen to me through these things, and you still walk against me,
{26:28} then I also will advance against you, with an opposing fury, and I will chastise you with seven plagues, because of your sins:
{26:29} so much so that you will eat the flesh of your sons and your daughters.
{26:30} I will destroy your high places, and I will break apart your false images. You will fall among the ruins of your idols, and my soul will abominate you:
{26:31} so much so that I will reduce your cities to a wilderness, and I will make your Sanctuaries desolate, and I will no longer accept the most sweet odors.
{26:32} And I will utterly ruin your land, and your enemies shall be stupefied at it, when they will have become its inhabitants.
{26:33} Then I will scatter you among the Gentiles, and I will unsheathe the sword after you. And your land will be deserted, and your cities will be demolished.
{26:34} Then the land will be pleased by her Sabbaths, throughout all the days of her solitude. So, while you will be
{26:35} in the land of the enemy, she will worship and rest in the Sabbath of her solitude, because she will not have rested in your Sabbaths, when you lived in her.
{26:36} And whoever of you will remain, I will send terror into their hearts in the regions of their enemies. The sound of a flying leaf will terrify them, and so they will flee, as if from the sword. They will fall, though no one pursues.
{26:37} And they will each fall upon their brothers, as if they were fleeing from wars; no one among you will dare to resist your foes.
{26:38} You will perish among the Gentiles, and the land of the enemy will consume you.
{26:39} But if some few of these still remain, they shall waste away in their iniquities, in the land of their enemies, and they will be afflicted, because of the sins of their fathers and their own sins,
{26:40} until they confess their iniquities, and those of their ancestors, by which they have transgressed against me and walked as adversaries to me.
{26:41} Therefore, I also will walk against them, and I will lead them into a hostile land, until their uncircumcised mind shall be ashamed. Then shall they pray on behalf of their impiety.
{26:42} And I will remember my covenant, which I formed with Jacob, and Isaac, and Abraham. I will also remember the land,
{26:43} which, when she will be left behind by them, shall be pleased by her Sabbaths, enduring solitude because of them. Yet truly, they shall pray for their sins, because they cast aside my judgments, and they despised my laws.
{26:44} And even after so much, when they were in the land of their enemy, I did not cast them off entirely, and I did not so despise them that they would be consumed, nor so that I would nullify my covenant with them. For I am the Lord their God.
{26:45} And I will remember my original covenant, when I led them away from the land of Egypt, in the sight of the Gentiles, so as to be their God. I am the Lord. These are the judgments, and precepts, and laws, which the Lord has granted between himself and the sons of Israel, on mount Sinai, by the hand of Moses.
{27:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{27:2} Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: The man who will have made a vow and espoused his soul to God shall give the price according to the estimation.
{27:3} If it is a male from twenty years to sixty years, he shall give fifty shekels of silver, by the measure of the Sanctuary;
{27:4} if it is a woman, thirty.
{27:5} But from the fifth year until the twentieth, a male shall give twenty shekels; a female, ten.
{27:6} From one month until the fifth year, for a male, five shekels shall be given; for a female, three.
{27:7} At sixty years and beyond, a male shall give fifteen shekels; a female, ten.
{27:8} If he is poor, and he does not have the means to pay the estimation, he shall stand before the priest, and however much he will value him and see that he is able to pay, so much shall he give.
{27:9} But an animal which could be immolated to the Lord, if anyone has vowed it, shall be holy,
{27:10} and it cannot be exchanged, that is, neither better for worse, nor worse for better. And if he has exchanged it, both that which was exchanged, and that for which it was exchanged shall be consecrated to the Lord.
{27:11} An unclean animal which could not be sacrificed to the Lord, if anyone has vowed it, shall be led before the priest,
{27:12} who, judging whether it is either good or bad, shall set the price.
{27:13} But if he who offers it was willing to give, he shall add a fifth part above the estimation.
{27:14} If a man has vowed his house, and he has sanctified it to the Lord, the priest shall examine it, whether it is good or bad, and it shall be sold according to the price which he will have established.
{27:15} But if he who vowed it was willing to redeem it, he shall give a fifth part beyond the estimation, and he shall have the house.
{27:16} But if he has vowed a field of his possession, and has consecrated it to the Lord, the price shall be estimated according to the measure of the seed. If the land would be sown with thirty measures of barley, then let it be sold for fifty shekels of silver.
{27:17} If he has vowed his field beginning from the current year of Jubilee, as much as it may be worth, so shall it be estimated.
{27:18} But if, after some amount of time, the priest shall evaluate the money according to the number of years that remain until the Jubilee, then the price shall be reduced.
{27:19} But if he who had vowed it, was willing to redeem his field, he shall add a fifth part of the money to the estimation, and then he shall possess it.
{27:20} But if he is not willing to redeem it, then it shall be sold to any other; he who vowed it is no longer able to redeem it.
{27:21} For when the day of Jubilee arrives, it shall be sanctified to the Lord. And as a possession that has been consecrated, it rightfully belongs to the priest.
{27:22} If a field has been bought, and it is not from the possession of ancestors, it shall be sanctified to the Lord.
{27:23} The priest shall evaluate the price according to the number of years until the Jubilee; and the one who had vowed it shall give to the Lord.
{27:24} Then, in the Jubilee, it shall be returned to the former owner, the one who had sold it and who had held it within the lot of his possession.
{27:25} All estimation shall be weighed according to the shekel of the Sanctuary. A shekel has twenty obols.
{27:26} The firstborn, which belong to the Lord, no one is able to sanctify or vow, whether it is an ox, or a sheep, they are for the Lord.
{27:27} But if it is an unclean animal, whoever offers it shall redeem it, according to your estimation, and he shall add a fifth part to the price. If he is not willing to redeem it, it shall be sold to another for whatever amount it was estimated by you.
{27:28} All that is consecrated to the Lord, whether it is a man, or an animal, or a field, shall not be sold; neither is it able to be redeemed. Anything, once it has been consecrated, shall be the Holy of holies to the Lord.
{27:29} And all that has been consecrated, which is offered by man, shall not be redeemed, but shall surely die.
{27:30} All the tithes of the land, whether from the grain, or from the fruits of trees, are for the Lord and are sanctified to him.
{27:31} But if anyone is willing to redeem his tithes, he shall add a fifth part to them.
{27:32} Out of all the tithes of oxen, and sheep, and goats, which cross under the rod of the shepherd, every tenth one that arrives shall be sanctified to the Lord.
{27:33} It shall not be chosen by what is good or bad; neither shall it be exchanged for another. If anyone has exchanged it, both that which was exchanged, and that for which it was exchanged, shall be sanctified to the Lord and shall not be redeemed.
{27:34} These are the precepts, which the Lord commanded Moses for the sons of Israel on mount Sinai.
{1:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses in the desert of Sinai, in the tabernacle of the covenant, on the first day of the second month, in the year after their departure from Egypt, saying:
{1:2} “Take a total of the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, by their families and houses, and the names of each one, of whomever is of the male sex,
{1:3} from twenty years and above, of all the able-bodied men out of Israel, and you shall number them by their companies, you and Aaron.
{1:4} And there shall be with you the leaders of the tribes, as well as of the houses, in their kinships,
{1:5} the names of whom are these: of Ruben, Elizur the son of Shedeur;
{1:6} of Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai;
{1:7} of Judah, Nahshon the son of Amminadab;
{1:8} of Issachar, Nathanael the son of Zuar;
{1:9} of Zebulon, Eliab the son of Helon.
{1:10} And from the sons of Joseph: of Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud; of Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur;
{1:11} of Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni;
{1:12} of Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai;
{1:13} of Asher, Pagiel the son of Ochran;
{1:14} of Gad, Eliasaph the son of Reuel;
{1:15} of Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan.”
{1:16} These are the very noble leaders of the multitude, by their tribes and kinships, and the heads of the army of Israel.
{1:17} Moses and Aaron took these, with all the multitude of the common people,
{1:18} and they gathered them together on the first day of the second month, taking a census of them by kinships, and houses, and families, and heads, and the names of each one from twenty years and above,
{1:19} just as the Lord had instructed Moses. And they were numbered in the desert of Sinai.
{1:20} Of Ruben, the firstborn of Israel, by their generations and families and houses, and the names of each head, of all who were of the male sex, from twenty years and above, capable of going to war,
{1:21} there were forty-six thousand five hundred.
{1:22} Of the sons of Simeon, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, having been counted by the names and heads of each one, of all who were of the male sex, from twenty years and above, capable of going to war,
{1:23} there were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.
{1:24} Of the sons of Gad, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, having been counted by the names of each one, from twenty years and above, of all who could go forth to war,
{1:25} there were forty-five thousand six hundred fifty.
{1:26} Of the sons of Judah, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, by the names of each one, from twenty years and above, of all who were able to go forth to war,
{1:27} there were counted seventy-four thousand six hundred.
{1:28} Of the sons of Issachar, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, by the names of each one, from twenty years and above, of all who could go forth to war,
{1:29} there were counted fifty-four thousand four hundred.
{1:30} Of the sons of Zebulon, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, having been counted by the names of each one, from twenty years and above, of all who were able to go forth to war,
{1:31} there were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.
{1:32} From the sons of Joseph, of the sons of Ephraim, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, having been counted by the names of each one, from twenty years and above, of all who were able to go forth to war,
{1:33} there were forty thousand five hundred.
{1:34} Furthermore, of the sons of Manasseh, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, having been counted by the names of each one, from twenty years and above, of all who were able to go forth to war,
{1:35} there were thirty-two thousand two hundred.
{1:36} Of the sons of Benjamin, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, having been counted by the names of each one, from twenty years and above, of all who were able to go forth to war,
{1:37} there were thirty-five thousand four hundred.
{1:38} Of the sons of Dan, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, having been counted by the names of each one, from twenty years and above, of all who were able to go forth to war,
{1:39} there were sixty-two thousand seven hundred.
{1:40} Of the sons of Asher, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, having been counted by the names of each one, from twenty years and above, of all who were able to go forth to war,
{1:41} there were forty thousand and one thousand five hundred.
{1:42} Of the sons of Naphtali, by their generations and families, and the houses of their kinships, having been counted by the names of each one, from twenty years and above, of all who were able to go forth to war,
{1:43} there were fifty-three thousand four hundred.
{1:44} These are the ones who were numbered by Moses and Aaron and the twelve leaders of Israel, each one by the houses of their kinships.
{1:45} And the entire number of the sons of Israel by their houses and families, from twenty years and above, who were able to go forth to war, were
{1:46} six hundred three thousand five hundred fifty men.
{1:47} But the Levites in the tribes of their families were not numbered with them.
{1:48} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{1:49} “Do not number the tribe of Levi, neither shall you take a total of them with the sons of Israel.
{1:50} But appoint them over the tabernacle of the testimony, and all its vessels, and whatever pertains to the ceremonies. They shall carry the tabernacle and all its articles. And they shall be for the ministry, and they shall encamp all around the tabernacle.
{1:51} When you would depart, the Levites shall take down the tabernacle. When you are to make camp, they shall set it up. Any outsider who will approach it shall be killed.
{1:52} Now the sons of Israel shall make camp, each one by his companies and bands, as well as his army.
{1:53} Moreover, the Levites shall fix their tents all around the tabernacle, lest there be an indignation over the multitude of the sons of Israel. And they shall stand watch as guardians over the tabernacle of the testimony.”
{1:54} Therefore, the sons of Israel acted according to everything that the Lord had instructed Moses.
{2:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
{2:2} “Each one shall make camp, by their troops, as well as by their insignia and standards, and by the houses of their kinships, all around the tabernacle of the covenant.”
{2:3} To the east, Judah shall fix his tents, by the companies of his army. And the leader of his sons shall be Nahshon the son of Amminadab.
{2:4} And the entire total of the fighting men from his stock was seventy-four thousand six hundred.
{2:5} Beside him, those of the tribe of Issachar were encamped, whose leader was Nathanael the son of Zuar.
{2:6} And the entire number of his fighting men was fifty-four thousand four hundred.
{2:7} In the tribe of Zebulon, the leader was Eliab the son of Helon.
{2:8} All the army of fighting men from his stock were fifty-seven thousand four hundred.
{2:9} All who were numbered in the camp of Judah were one hundred eighty-six thousand four hundred. And these, by their companies, shall go forth first.
{2:10} In the camp of the sons of Ruben, toward the south side, the leader shall be Elizur the son of Shedeur.
{2:11} And the entire army of his fighting men, who were numbered, were forty-six thousand five hundred.
{2:12} Beside him, those of the tribe of Simeon were encamped, whose leader was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.
{2:13} And the entire army of his fighting men, who were numbered, were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.
{2:14} In the tribe of Gad, the leader was Eliasaph the son of Reuel.
{2:15} And the entire army of his fighting men, who were numbered, were forty-five thousand six hundred fifty.
{2:16} All who were counted in the camp of Ruben were one hundred fifty thousand and one thousand four hundred fifty, by their companies. These shall advance in the second place.
{2:17} But the tabernacle of the testimony shall be lifted up by the officers of the Levites and their companies. In the manner in which it is set up, so also shall it be taken down. Each one shall advance according to their places and ranks.
{2:18} On the west side, there shall be the camp of the sons of Ephraim, whose leader was Elishama the son of Ammihud.
{2:19} The entire army of his fighting men, who were numbered, were forty thousand five hundred.
{2:20} And with them was the tribe of the sons of Manasseh, whose leader was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.
{2:21} And the entire army of his fighting men, who were numbered, were thirty-two thousand two hundred.
{2:22} In the tribe of the sons of Benjamin, the leader was Abidan the son of Gideoni.
{2:23} And the entire army of his fighting men, who were counted, were thirty-five thousand four hundred.
{2:24} All who were numbered in the camp of Ephraim were one hundred eight thousand one hundred, by their companies. These shall advance third.
{2:25} Toward the north side, the sons of Dan were encamped, whose leader was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.
{2:26} The entire army of his fighting men, who were numbered, were sixty-two thousand seven hundred.
{2:27} Beside him, those of the tribe of Asher fixed their tents, whose leader was Pagiel the son of Ochran.
{2:28} The entire army of his fighting men, who were numbered, were forty thousand and one thousand five hundred.
{2:29} From the tribe of the sons of Naphtali, the leader was Ahira the son of Enan.
{2:30} The entire army of his fighting men were fifty-three thousand four hundred.
{2:31} All who were numbered in the camp of Dan were one hundred fifty-seven thousand six hundred; and these shall advance at the very end.
{2:32} This is the number of the sons of Israel, of their army divided by the houses of their kinships and their companies: six hundred three thousand five hundred fifty.
{2:33} But the Levites were not numbered among the sons of Israel. For so the Lord had instructed Moses.
{2:34} And the sons of Israel acted according to all the things that the Lord had commanded. They were encamped by their companies, and they advanced by the families and houses of their fathers.
{3:1} These are the generations of Aaron and Moses, in the day when the Lord spoke to Moses on mount Sinai.
{3:2} And these are the names of the sons of Aaron: his firstborn Nadab, then Abihu, and Eleazar, and Ithamar.
{3:3} These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the priests who were anointed and whose hands were filled and consecrated in order to exercise the priesthood.
{3:4} For Nadab and Abihu died without children, when they offered, in the sight of the Lord, a strange fire, in the desert of Sinai. And so, Eleazar and Ithamar exercised the priesthood in the sight of Aaron, their father.
{3:5} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{3:6} “Bring forward the tribe of Levi, and cause them to stand in the sight of Aaron the priest, in order to minister to him. And let them keep watch outside,
{3:7} and let them observe whatever pertains to the ritual for the multitude, in front of the tabernacle of the testimony,
{3:8} and let them take care of the vessels of the tabernacle, serving in its ministry.
{3:9} And you shall give the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons; for they have been delivered to them by the sons of Israel.
{3:10} But you shall appoint Aaron and his sons over the service of the priesthood. The outsider who approaches to minister shall be put to death.”
{3:11} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{3:12} “I have taken the Levites from the sons of Israel. For the Levites, and all the firstborn who open the womb among the sons of Israel, shall be mine.
{3:13} For every firstborn is mine. From the time that I struck the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I have sanctified for myself whatever is born first in Israel. From man, even to beast, they are mine. I am the Lord.”
{3:14} And the Lord spoke to Moses in the desert of Sinai, saying:
{3:15} “Number the sons of Levi by the houses of their fathers and their families, every male from one month and above.”
{3:16} Moses numbered them, just as the Lord had instructed,
{3:17} and there were found the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon and Kohath and Merari.
{3:18} The sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei.
{3:19} The sons of Kohath: Amram, and Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel.
{3:20} The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi.
{3:21} From Gershon were two families: the Libnites, and the Shimeites.
{3:22} The people of these were numbered, of the male sex, from one month and above: seven thousand five hundred.
{3:23} These shall encamp behind the tabernacle, toward the west,
{3:24} under the leader Eliasaph the son of Lael.
{3:25} And they shall keep watch over the tabernacle of the covenant:
{3:26} the tabernacle itself, and its covering; the tent that is drawn before the doors of the covering of the covenant; and the curtains of the atrium; likewise, the tent that is suspended at the entrance of the atrium of the tabernacle; and whatever pertains to the ritual of the altar; the cords of the tabernacle and all its implements.
{3:27} The kinship of Kohath includes the peoples of the Amramites and Izharites and Hebronites and Uzzielites. These are the families of the Kohathites, having been counted by their names,
{3:28} all those of the male gender, from one month and above: eight thousand six hundred. They shall keep watch over the Sanctuary,
{3:29} and they shall encamp toward the south side.
{3:30} And their leader shall be Elisaphan the son of Uzziel.
{3:31} And they shall take care of the ark, and the table and the lampstand, the altars and the vessels of the Sanctuary, by which they minister, and the veil, and all the articles of this kind.
{3:32} But the leader of the leaders of the Levites, Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, shall be over those who watch over the care of the Sanctuary.
{3:33} And truly, from Merari are the peoples of the Mahlites and Mushites, having been counted by their names,
{3:34} all those of the male gender, from one month and above: six thousand two hundred.
{3:35} Their leader is Suriel the son of Abihaiel. They shall make camp on the north side.
{3:36} Under their care shall be the panels of the tabernacle, and the bars, and the columns with their bases, and all the things which pertain to service of this kind,
{3:37} and the columns of the surrounding atrium with their bases, and the tent pegs with their cords.
{3:38} Moses and Aaron, with their sons, shall make camp before the tabernacle of the covenant, that is, on the east side, holding the custody of the Sanctuary in the midst of the sons of Israel. Whatever foreigner approaches it shall die.
{3:39} All the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron numbered by their families according to the precept of the Lord, of the male gender, from one month and above, were twenty-two thousand.
{3:40} And the Lord said to Moses: “Number the firstborn of the male sex from the sons of Israel, from one month and above, and you shall take their total.
{3:41} And you shall bring the Levites to me, in place of all the firstborn of the sons of Israel, and you shall bring their cattle to me, in place of all the firstborn of the cattle of the sons of Israel. I am the Lord.”
{3:42} Moses took a census, just as the Lord had instructed, of the firstborn of the sons of Israel.
{3:43} And the males by their names, from one month and above, were twenty-two thousand two hundred seventy-three.
{3:44} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{3:45} “Take the Levites, in place of the firstborn of the sons of Israel, and the cattle of the Levites, in place of their cattle, and so the Levites shall be mine. I am the Lord.
{3:46} But for the price of the two hundred and seventy-three, which exceed the number of the Levites compared to the number of firstborn of the sons of Israel,
{3:47} you shall take five shekels for each head, by the measure of the Sanctuary. A shekel has twenty obols.
{3:48} And you shall give the money to Aaron and his sons as the price of those that are in excess.”
{3:49} Therefore, Moses took the money for those that were in excess, and whom they had redeemed from the Levites
{3:50} in place of the firstborn of the sons of Israel: one thousand three hundred sixty-five shekels, according to the weight of the Sanctuary.
{3:51} And he gave it to Aaron and his sons, according to the word by which the Lord had instructed him.
{4:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
{4:2} “Take a total of the sons of Kohath from the midst of the Levites, by their houses and families,
{4:3} from thirty years and above, even to the fiftieth year, of all who enter so as to stand and minister in the tabernacle of the covenant.
{4:4} This is the service of the sons of Kohath: the tabernacle of the covenant and the Holy of holies.
{4:5} Aaron and his sons shall enter, when the camp is going to move, and they shall take down the veil, which hangs before the entrance, and they shall wrap the ark of the testimony in it,
{4:6} and they shall cover it further with a veil of violet skins, and they shall extend over it a cloth made entirely of hyacinth, and they shall draw in the bars.
{4:7} Likewise, they shall wrap the table of the presence in a cloth of hyacinth, and they shall place with it the censers and little mortars, the cups and bowls for pouring out libations; the bread shall be always on it.
{4:8} And they shall extend over it a cloth of scarlet, which they shall further cover with a veil of violet skins, and they shall draw in the bars.
{4:9} They shall take also a cloth of hyacinth, with which they shall cover the lampstand with the lamps, and its tongs, and the candle snuffers, and all the vessels of oil, which are necessary for the preparation of the lamps.
{4:10} And over all this they shall place a covering of violet skins, and they shall draw in the bars.
{4:11} And certainly they shall wrap the golden altar in a hyacinth garment, and they shall extend over it a covering of violet skins, and they shall draw in the bars.
{4:12} All the vessels with which they minister in the Sanctuary they shall wrap in a cloth of hyacinth, and they shall extend over it a covering of violet skins, and they shall draw in the bars.
{4:13} Moreover, they shall cleanse the altar of ashes, and they shall wrap it in a purple garment,
{4:14} and they shall place it with all the vessels which they use in its ministry, that is, receptacles for fire, small hooks as well as forks, larger hooks and shovels. They shall cover all the vessels of the altar together with a veil of violet skins, and they shall draw in the bars.
{4:15} And when Aaron and his sons have wrapped the Sanctuary and its vessels at the dismantling of the camp, then the sons of Kohath shall enter, so as to carry what has been wrapped. And they shall not touch the vessels of the Sanctuary, lest they die. These are the burdens of the sons of Kohath concerning the tabernacle of the covenant.
{4:16} Over them shall be Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, to whom belongs the care of the oil to prepare the lamps, and the incense compound, and the sacrifice, which is offered continually, and the oil of unction, and whatever pertains to the service of the tabernacle, and all the vessels that are in the Sanctuary.”
{4:17} And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
{4:18} “Do not be willing to lose the people of Kohath from the midst of the Levites.
{4:19} But do this for them, so that they may live, and so that they may not die by touching the Holies of holies. Aaron and his sons shall enter, and they shall assign the work of each one, and they shall determine what each one ought to carry.
{4:20} Let no others, out of curiosity, see the things that are in the Sanctuary before they are wrapped, otherwise they shall die.”
{4:21} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{4:22} “Now also take a total of the sons of Gershon, by their houses and families and kinships,
{4:23} from thirty years and above, even to fifty years. Number all those who enter and minister in the tabernacle of the covenant.
{4:24} This is the duty of the family of the Gershonites:
{4:25} to carry the curtains of the tabernacle, and the roof of the covenant, the other covering, and the veil over everything, and the violet tent, which hangs at the entrance of the tabernacle of the covenant,
{4:26} the curtains of the atrium, and the veil at the entrance, which is before tabernacle. Everything that pertains to the altar, the cords, and the vessels of the ministry
{4:27} the sons of Gershon shall carry, under the orders of Aaron and his sons. And so shall each one know to which burden he ought to surrender.
{4:28} This is the service of the family of the Gershonites, in the tabernacle of the covenant, and they shall be under the hand of Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest.
{4:29} Likewise, you shall take a census of the sons of Merari, by the families and houses of their fathers,
{4:30} from thirty years and above, even to fifty years, of all who enter to the office of their ministry and to the service of the covenant of the testimony.
{4:31} These are their burdens: They shall carry the panels of the tabernacle and its bars, the columns and their bases,
{4:32} also the columns surrounding the atrium, with their bases and tent pegs and cords. They shall accept by number all the vessels and articles, and so shall they carry them.
{4:33} This is the office of the family of the Merarites, and their ministry for the tabernacle of the covenant. And they shall be under the hand of Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest.”
{4:34} Therefore, Moses and Aaron, and the leaders of the assembly, took a census of the sons of Kohath, by the kinships and houses of their fathers,
{4:35} from thirty years and above, even to the fiftieth year, of all who enter to the ministry of the tabernacle of the covenant.
{4:36} And there were found two thousand seven hundred fifty.
{4:37} This is the number of the people of Kohath, who enter the tabernacle of the covenant. These Moses and Aaron numbered according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
{4:38} The sons of Gershon also were numbered by the kinships and houses of their fathers,
{4:39} from thirty years and above, even to the fiftieth year, all who enter so as to minister in the tabernacle of the covenant.
{4:40} And there were found two thousand six hundred thirty.
{4:41} This is the people of the Gershonites, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the word of the Lord.
{4:42} The sons of Merari also were numbered by the kinships and houses of their fathers,
{4:43} from thirty years and above, even to the fiftieth year, all who enter to fulfill the rituals of the tabernacle of the covenant.
{4:44} And there were found three thousand two hundred.
{4:45} This is the number of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron counted according to the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
{4:46} All who were counted from the Levites, and whom, by name, Moses and Aaron, and the leaders of Israel, counted by the kinships and houses of their fathers,
{4:47} from thirty years and above, until the fiftieth year, entering for the ministry of the tabernacle and carrying the burdens,
{4:48} were together eight thousand five hundred eighty.
{4:49} Moses took a census of them, according to the word of the Lord, each one according to their office and their burdens, just as the Lord had instructed him.
{5:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{5:2} “Instruct the sons of Israel to cast out of the camp every leper, and those who have a flow of seed, and those who have been polluted because of the dead;
{5:3} cast out of the camp both male and female, lest they contaminate it while I am dwelling with you.”
{5:4} And the sons of Israel did so, and they cast them out, beyond the camp, just as the Lord had spoken to Moses.
{5:5} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{5:6} “Say to the sons of Israel: A man or a woman, when they have done anything out of all the sins that often befall men, or if, by negligence, they have transgressed the commandment of the Lord, and so have committed an offense,
{5:7} they shall confess their sin, and they shall restore the principle itself, plus a fifth part above it, to any against whom they have sinned.
{5:8} But if there would be no one to receive it, they shall give it to the Lord, and it shall be for the priest, except for the ram, which is offered for expiation, in order to be a pleasing victim.
{5:9} Likewise, all the first-fruits, which the sons of Israel offer, belong to the priest,
{5:10} with whatever is offered by each one at the Sanctuary, and which is delivered into the hands of the priest; it shall be his.”
{5:11} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{5:12} “Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: The man whose wife will have gone astray, and, disdaining her husband,
{5:13} will have slept with another man, and if her husband cannot discover it, but the adultery is secret, and if it cannot be proved by witnesses, because she was not caught in the shameful act,
{5:14} if the spirit of jealousy stirs up the husband against his wife, who either has been polluted or is being assailed with a false suspicion,
{5:15} he shall bring her to the priest, and he shall offer an oblation for her, a tenth part of native barley meal. He shall not pour oil over it, nor shall he place frankincense on it, because it is a sacrifice for jealousy, or an oblation investigating adultery.
{5:16} Therefore, the priest shall offer it, and he shall set it in the sight of the Lord.
{5:17} And he shall take up holy water in an earthen vessel, and he shall cast a little earth from the pavement of the tabernacle into it.
{5:18} And while the woman stands before the Lord, he shall uncover her head, and he shall place over her hands the sacrifice of recollection and oblation of jealousy. But he shall take hold of the most bitter waters, in which he has gathered curses with loathing.
{5:19} And he shall bind her by an oath, and he shall say: ‘If another man has not slept with you, and if you have not been polluted by forsaking the bed of your husband, these most bitter waters, into which I have gathered curses, shall not harm you.
{5:20} But if you have turned away from your husband, and also have been defiled, and have lain together with another man,
{5:21} these curses shall be thrown upon you: May the Lord turn you into a curse and an example among all his people. May he cause your thigh to rot, and may your abdomen swell up and burst out.
{5:22} May the cursed waters enter into your stomach, and may your womb swell and your thigh rot.’ And the woman shall respond: ‘Amen, amen.’
{5:23} And the priest shall write these curses in a little book, and then he shall erase them with the very bitter waters, into which he had gathered the curses,
{5:24} and he shall give it to her to drink. And when she has emptied it,
{5:25} the priest shall take from her hand the sacrifice of jealousy, and he shall elevate it before the Lord, and he shall impose it upon the altar. Yet only after he first
{5:26} takes a handful of the sacrifice from that which is offered, and burns it upon the altar, and then he may give the most bitter waters to the woman as a drink.
{5:27} And when she drinks it, if she has been defiled, and, having despised her husband, is guilty of adultery, the curse shall pass through her, and as her belly swells up, her thigh shall decay, and the woman shall become a curse and an example to all the people.
{5:28} But if she has not been defiled, she shall be unharmed and she shall bear children.
{5:29} This is the law for jealousy. If a woman has turned aside from her husband, and if she has been polluted,
{5:30} and if the husband, being stirred up by the spirit of jealousy, has brought her before the sight of the Lord, and the priest has acted toward her according to all that has been written:
{5:31} then the husband shall be without guilt, and she shall bear her iniquity.”
{6:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{6:2} “Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: A man or a woman, when they have made a vow so that they may be sanctified, and when they are willing to consecrate themselves to the Lord,
{6:3} shall abstain from wine and from anything which is able to inebriate. They shall not drink vinegar made from wine or from any other drink, nor anything pressed from the grape. They shall not eat grapes, neither fresh nor dried.
{6:4} During all the days that they are consecrated to the Lord by vow, they shall not eat whatever may be from the vineyard, from raisins, even to grape seeds.
{6:5} During all the time of his separation, no razor shall pass over his head, even until the completion of the day when he is consecrated to the Lord. He shall be holy, letting the hair of his head grow long.
{6:6} During all the time of his consecration, he shall not enter because of a death,
{6:7} nor shall he contaminate himself, even over the funeral of his father, or his mother, or his brother, or his sister. For the consecration of his God is upon his head.
{6:8} During all the days of his separation, he shall be holy to the Lord.
{6:9} But if anyone will have died unexpectedly before him, the head of his consecration shall be polluted, and he shall shave it in that very place, on the same day of his purification, and again on the seventh day.
{6:10} Then, on the eighth day, he shall offer two turtledoves or two young pigeons, to the priest at the entrance to the covenant of the testimony.
{6:11} And the priest shall effect one for sin, and the other as a holocaust, and he shall pray for him, because he has sinned on account of the dead. And he shall sanctify his head on that day.
{6:12} And he shall consecrate to the Lord the days of his separation, offering a one-year-old lamb for sin, yet in such a manner that the former days will be made null and void, because his sanctification was polluted.
{6:13} This is the law of consecration. When the days that he had decreed by vow have been completed, he shall bring him to the door of the tabernacle of the covenant,
{6:14} and he shall offer his oblation to the Lord: an immaculate one-year-old male lamb as a holocaust, and an immaculate one-year-old female lamb for sin, and an immaculate ram, a peace-offering victim,
{6:15} also, a basket of unleavened bread, which has been sprinkled with oil, and cakes without leaven, anointed with oil, as well as the libations of each one.
{6:16} And the priest shall offer them before the Lord, and he shall perform both the sin offering and the holocaust.
{6:17} Yet truly, the ram he shall immolate as a peace-offering victim to the Lord, offering at the same time the basket of unleavened bread, and the libations which are required by custom.
{6:18} Then the Nazarite shall be shaved of the long hair of his consecration, before the door of the tabernacle of the covenant. And he shall take his hair, and he shall place it upon the fire, which is under the sacrifice of the peace offerings.
{6:19} And he shall take the cooked shoulder of the ram, and one twist of bread without leaven from the basket, and one unleavened cake, and he shall deliver them into the hands of the Nazarite, after his head has been shaven.
{6:20} And receiving them again from him, he shall elevate them in the sight of the Lord. And having been sanctified, these shall be for the priest, as also the breast, which was ordered to be separated, and the leg. After this, the Nazarite is able to drink wine.
{6:21} This is the law of the Nazarite, when he has vowed his oblation to the Lord in the time of his consecration, aside from those things which his hand shall find. According to what he had vowed in his mind, so shall he do, to the perfection of his sanctification.”
{6:22} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{6:23} “Say to Aaron and his sons: Thus shall you bless the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them:
{6:24} ‘May the Lord bless you and keep you.
{6:25} May the Lord reveal his face to you and take pity on you.
{6:26} May the Lord turn his countenance toward you and grant peace to you.’
{6:27} And they shall invoke my name over the sons of Israel, and I will bless them.”
{7:1} Now it happened in the day when Moses completed the tabernacle, and he set it up, and he anointed and sanctified it with all of its vessels, and similarly the altar and all of its vessels,
{7:2} that the leaders of Israel and the heads of the families, who were in each tribe and who were in charge of those who had been numbered, offered
{7:3} their gifts in the sight of the Lord: six covered wagons with twelve oxen. Two leaders offered one wagon, and each offered one ox, and they offered these in the sight of the tabernacle.
{7:4} Then the Lord said to Moses:
{7:5} “Receive these things from them, in order to serve in the ministry of the tabernacle, and you shall deliver them to the Levites, according to the order of their ministry.”
{7:6} And so Moses, having received the wagons and the oxen, delivered them to the Levites.
{7:7} Two wagons and four oxen he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to what they needed.
{7:8} The other four wagons and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merari, according to their offices and service, under the hand of Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest.
{7:9} But to the sons of Kohath he gave no wagons or oxen, because they serve in the Sanctuary and they carry their burdens on their shoulders.
{7:10} Therefore, the leaders offered, at the dedication of the altar on the day when it was anointed, their oblation before the altar.
{7:11} And the Lord said to Moses: “Let each of the leaders, on each of the days, offer their gifts for the dedication of the altar.”
{7:12} On the first day, Nahshon, the son of Amminadab of the tribe of Judah, offered his oblation.
{7:13} And in it were these: a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, according to the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:14} a little mortar made from ten shekels of gold, filled with incense,
{7:15} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and a one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:16} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:17} and for the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Nahshon, the son of Amminadab.
{7:18} On the second day, Nathanael, the son of Zuar, the leader of the tribe of Issachar, offered:
{7:19} a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, according to the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:20} a little mortar of gold having ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:21} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:22} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:23} and for the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Nathanael, the son of Zuar.
{7:24} On the third day, the leader of the sons of Zebulon, Eliab the son of Helon,
{7:25} offered a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:26} a little mortar of gold weighing ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:27} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:28} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:29} and for the sacrifice of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This is the oblation of Eliab the son of Helon.
{7:30} On the fourth day, the leader of the sons of Ruben, Elizur the son of Shedeur,
{7:31} offered a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:32} a little mortar of gold weighing ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:33} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and a one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:34} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:35} and for victims of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Elizur, the son of Shedeur.
{7:36} On the fifth day, the leader of the sons of Simeon, Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai,
{7:37} offered a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:38} a little mortar of gold weighing ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:39} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and a one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:40} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:41} and for victims of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Shelumiel, the son of Zurishaddai.
{7:42} On the sixth day, the leader of the sons of Gad, Eliasaph the son of Reuel,
{7:43} offered a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:44} a little mortar of gold weighing ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:45} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:46} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:47} and for victims of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Eliasaph, the son of Reuel.
{7:48} On the seventh day, the leader of the sons of Ephraim, Elishama the son of Ammihud,
{7:49} offered a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:50} a little mortar of gold weighing ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:51} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:52} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:53} and for victims of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Elishama, the son of Ammihud.
{7:54} On the eighth day, the leader of the sons of Manasseh, Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur,
{7:55} offered a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:56} a little mortar of gold weighing ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:57} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and a one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:58} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:59} and for victims of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Gamaliel, the son of Pedahzur.
{7:60} On the ninth day, the leader of the sons of Benjamin, Abidan the son of Gideoni,
{7:61} offered a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:62} a little mortar of gold weighing ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:63} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and a one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:64} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:65} and for victims of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Abidan, the son of Gideoni.
{7:66} On the tenth day, the leaders of the sons of Dan, Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai,
{7:67} offered a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:68} a little mortar of gold weighing ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:69} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and a one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:70} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:71} and for victims of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Ahiezer, the son of Ammishaddai.
{7:72} On the eleventh day, the leader of the sons of Asher, Pagiel the son of Ochran,
{7:73} offered a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:74} a little mortar of gold weighing ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:75} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and a one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:76} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:77} and for victims of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Pagiel, the son of Ochran.
{7:78} On the twelfth day, the leader of the sons of Naphtali, Ahira the son of Enan,
{7:79} offered a silver dish weighing one hundred thirty shekels, a silver bowl having seventy shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary, and both were filled with fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil as a sacrifice,
{7:80} a little mortar of gold weighing ten shekels, filled with incense,
{7:81} an ox from the herd, and a ram, and a one-year-old lamb as a holocaust,
{7:82} and a he-goat for sin;
{7:83} and for victims of peace offerings: two oxen, five rams, five he-goats, and five one-year-old lambs. This was the oblation of Ahira, the son of Enan.
{7:84} These were the oblations from the leaders of Israel for the dedication of the altar on the day when it was consecrated: twelve dishes of silver, twelve bowls of silver, twelve little mortars of gold,
{7:85} such that each dish had one hundred thirty shekels of silver, and each bowl had seventy shekels, that is, putting all of the vessels from silver together, two thousand four hundred shekels, by the weight of the Sanctuary,
{7:86} and twelve little mortars of gold, filled with incense, weighing ten shekels by the weight of the Sanctuary, that is, all together one hundred twenty shekels of gold,
{7:87} and twelve oxen from the herd as a holocaust, twelve rams, twelve one-year-old lambs, with their libations, and twelve he-goats for sin;
{7:88} and for victims of peace offerings: twenty-four oxen, sixty rams, sixty he-goats, and sixty one-year-old lambs. These were the oblations for the dedication of the altar, when it was anointed.
{7:89} And when Moses entered into the tabernacle of the covenant, to consult the oracle, he heard the voice of One speaking to him from the propitiatory, which is over the ark of the testimony between the two cherubim, and there he also spoke to him.
{8:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{8:2} “Speak to Aaron, and you shall say to him: When you place the seven lamps, let the lampstand be set up on the south side. Therefore, give this instruction: that the lamps should look out from the region opposite the north, toward the table of the bread of the presence; they shall give light opposite that area, toward the area that the lampstand faces.”
{8:3} And Aaron did so, and he placed the lamps on the lampstand, just as the Lord had instructed Moses.
{8:4} Now this was the workmanship of the lampstand: it was of ductile gold, both the main shaft and all that originated from both sides of the branches. According to the example that the Lord revealed to Moses, so did he make the lampstand.
{8:5} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{8:6} “Take the Levites from the midst of the sons of Israel, and you shall purify them
{8:7} according to this ritual: Let them be sprinkled with the water of illumination, and let them shave off all the hairs of their body. And when they have washed their garments and have been cleansed,
{8:8} they shall take an ox from the herd, with its libation of fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil; then you shall receive another ox from the herd for sin.
{8:9} And you shall bring forward the Levites before the tabernacle of the covenant, calling together all the multitude of the sons of Israel.
{8:10} And when the Levites are before the Lord, the sons of Israel shall place their hands upon them.
{8:11} And Aaron shall offer the Levites as a gift in the sight of the Lord, from the sons of Israel, so that they may serve in his ministry.
{8:12} Likewise, the Levites shall place their hands upon the heads of the oxen; you shall make use of one of these for sin, and the other as a holocaust to the Lord, so that you may intercede for them.
{8:13} And you shall set the Levites in the sight of Aaron and his sons, and you shall consecrate those being offered to the Lord,
{8:14} and you shall separate them from the midst of the sons of Israel, so that they may be for me.
{8:15} And after this, they shall enter the tabernacle of the covenant, in order to serve me. And so shall you purify and consecrate them as an oblation to the Lord. For they were given to me as a gift from the sons of Israel.
{8:16} I have accepted them in place of the firstborn which open every womb in Israel.
{8:17} For all the firstborn of the sons of Israel, as much from men as from beasts, are mine. From the day when I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I have sanctified them to myself.
{8:18} And I have taken the Levites in place of all the firstborn of the sons of Israel.
{8:19} And I have delivered them as a gift to Aaron and his sons, from the midst of the people, in order to serve me, for Israel, in the tabernacle of the covenant, and in order to pray for them, lest there be a scourge among the people, if they were to dare to approach to my Sanctuary.”
{8:20} And Moses and Aaron, and all the multitude of the sons of Israel, accomplished all that the Lord had commanded Moses concerning the Levites.
{8:21} And they were purified, and they washed their garments. And Aaron lifted them up in the sight of the Lord, and he prayed for them,
{8:22} so that, having been purified, they might enter to their duties in the tabernacle of the covenant before Aaron and his sons. Just as the Lord had instructed Moses about the Levites, so was it done.
{8:23} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{8:24} “This is the law of the Levites: From twenty-five years and above, they shall enter to minister in the tabernacle of the covenant.
{8:25} And when they will have completed the fiftieth year of age, they shall cease to serve.
{8:26} And they shall be the ministers of their brothers in the tabernacle of the covenant, in order to care for the things that have been commended to them, but not to perform the works themselves. So shall you assign the Levites in their duties.”
{9:1} The Lord spoke to Moses in the desert of Sinai, in the second year after they departed from the land of Egypt, in the first month, saying:
{9:2} “Let the sons of Israel observe the Passover at its proper time,
{9:3} on the fourteenth day of this month, in the evening, according to all of its ceremonies and justifications.”
{9:4} And Moses instructed the sons of Israel, so that they would observe the Passover.
{9:5} And they observed it at its proper time: on the fourteenth day of the month, in the evening, at mount Sinai. The sons of Israel acted according to all the things that the Lord had commanded Moses.
{9:6} But behold, certain ones, who were not able to observe the Passover on that day, being unclean because of the life of a man, approaching Moses and Aaron,
{9:7} said to them: “We are unclean because of the life of a man. Why have we been cheated, in that we are not permitted to offer, at its proper time, the oblation to the Lord among the sons of Israel?”
{9:8} And Moses responded to them: “Remain, so that I may consult the Lord, as to what he will rule about you.”
{9:9} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{9:10} “Say to the sons of Israel: The man who becomes unclean because of a life, or if he is on a distant journey within your nation, let him observe the Passover to the Lord.
{9:11} In the second month, on the fourteenth day of the month, in the evening, they shall eat it with unleavened bread and wild lettuce.
{9:12} They shall not leave behind any of it until morning, and they shall not break a bone of it; they shall observe all the rituals of the Passover.
{9:13} But if any man was both clean, and not on a journey, and yet he did not observe the Passover, that soul shall be exterminated from among his people, because he did not offer the sacrifice to the Lord in its time. He shall bear his sin.
{9:14} Likewise, the sojourner and the newcomer, if they are among you, shall observe the Passover to the Lord according to its ceremonies and justifications. The same precept shall be with you, as much for the newcomer as for the native.”
{9:15} And so, on the day when the tabernacle was raised, a cloud covered it. But over the tabernacle, from evening until morning, there was, as it seemed, the appearance of fire.
{9:16} This was so continually: throughout the day a cloud covered it, and throughout the night, the appearance of fire.
{9:17} And when the cloud that was protecting the tabernacle had been taken up, then the sons of Israel advanced forward, and in the place where the cloud had remained standing, there they made camp.
{9:18} Upon the order of the Lord they advanced, and upon his order they fixed the tabernacle. All the days during which the cloud was standing over the tabernacle, they remained in the same place.
{9:19} And if it happened that it remained for a long time over it, the sons of Israel kept the night watches of the Lord, and they did not advance,
{9:20} during as many days as the cloud remained over the tabernacle. At the command of the Lord they raised their tents, and at his command they took them down.
{9:21} If the cloud remained from evening until morning, and immediately, at first light, it left the tabernacle, they set out. And if it withdrew after a day and a night, they dismantled their tents.
{9:22} Yet truly, whether it remained over the tabernacle for two days, or one month, or a longer time, the sons of Israel remained in the same place, and they did not set out. Then, as soon as it withdrew, they moved the camp.
{9:23} By the word of the Lord they fixed their tents, and by his word they advanced. And they kept the night watches of the Lord, according to his command by the hand of Moses.
{10:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{10:2} “Make for yourself two trumpets of ductile silver, with which you may be able to call together the multitude when the camp is to be moved.
{10:3} And when you sound the trumpets, all the multitude shall gather to you at the door of the tabernacle of the covenant.
{10:4} If you sound it only once, the leaders and the heads of the multitude of Israel shall come to you.
{10:5} But if the sound of the trumpets is prolonged, but with interruptions, those who are toward the east side shall move the camp first.
{10:6} Then, at the second sounding of the trumpet with the same cadence, those who live toward the south shall take up their tents. And the remainder shall act in like manner, when the trumpets shall reverberate for a departure.
{10:7} But when the people are to be gathered together, the sound of the trumpets shall be simple, and the sounds shall not be separated.
{10:8} Now it is the sons of Aaron the priest who shall sound the trumpets. And this shall be an everlasting ordinance, in your generations.
{10:9} If you go forth to war from your land, against the enemies who set out against you, you shall sound the trumpets repeatedly, and there shall be a remembrance of you before the Lord your God, so that you may be rescued from the hands of your enemies.
{10:10} If at any time you will have a banquet, and on feast days, and on the first days of the months, you shall sound the trumpets over the holocausts and the peace-offering victims, so that they may be for you as a remembrance by your God. I am the Lord your God.”
{10:11} In the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth day of the month, the cloud was lifted up from the tabernacle of the covenant.
{10:12} And the sons of Israel set out by their companies from the desert of Sinai, and the cloud rested in the wilderness of Paran.
{10:13} And the first to move their camp, according to the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses,
{10:14} were the sons of Judah by their companies, whose leader was Nahshon the son of Amminadab.
{10:15} In the tribe of the sons of Issachar, the leader was Nathanael the son of Zuar.
{10:16} In the tribe of Zebulon, the leader was Eliab the son of Helon.
{10:17} And the tabernacle was taken down, because the sons of Gershon and Merari, who carry it, were departing.
{10:18} And the sons of Ruben also set out, by their companies and ranks, whose leader was Elizur the son of Shedeur.
{10:19} And in the tribe of Simeon, the leader was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.
{10:20} And in the tribe of Gad, the leader was Eliasaph the son of Reuel.
{10:21} Then the Kohathites also set out, carrying the Sanctuary. The tabernacle was carried, all the while, until they arrived at the place for setting it up.
{10:22} The sons of Ephraim also moved their camp by their companies, and the leader of their army was Elishama the son of Ammihud.
{10:23} And in the tribe of the sons of Manasseh, the leader was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.
{10:24} And in the tribe of Benjamin, the leader was Abidan the son of Gideoni.
{10:25} The last of all the camp to set out were the sons of Dan by their companies, and the leader of their army was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.
{10:26} And in the tribe of the sons of Asher, the leader was Pagiel the son of Ochran.
{10:27} And in the tribe of the sons of Naphtali, the leader was Ahira the son of Enan.
{10:28} These were the camps and departures of the sons of Israel by their companies, when they went forth.
{10:29} And Moses said to Hobab the son of Raguel the Midianite, his kinsman: “We are setting out to the place which the Lord will give to us. Come with us, so that we may do good to you. For the Lord has promised good things to Israel.”
{10:30} And he answered him, “I will not go with you, but I will return to my own land, in which I was born.”
{10:31} And he said: “Do not choose to leave us. For you know in which places in the desert we ought to make camp, and so you shall be our guide.
{10:32} And if you come with us, whatever will be best among the riches which the Lord will deliver to us, we will give to you.”
{10:33} Therefore, they set out from the Mountain of the Lord on a journey of three days. And the ark of the covenant of the Lord preceded them, for three days, in order to provide a place for the camp.
{10:34} Likewise, the cloud of the Lord was over them, throughout the day, while they proceeded.
{10:35} And when the ark was lifted up, Moses said, “Rise up, O Lord, and let your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate you flee from your face.”
{10:36} And when it was set down, he said: “Return, O Lord, to the multitude of the army of Israel.”
{11:1} Meanwhile, there arose a murmur among the people against the Lord, as if they were grief-stricken because of their labors. And when the Lord had heard it, he was angry. And when the fire of the Lord was enflamed against them, it devoured those who were at the extreme end of the camp.
{11:2} And when the people had cried out to Moses, Moses prayed to the Lord, and the fire was consumed.
{11:3} And he called the name of that place, ‘The Burning,’ because the fire of the Lord had burned against them.
{11:4} So then, the mix of common people, who had ascended with them, were enflamed with desire, and sitting and weeping, with the sons of Israel joining them, they said, “Who will give us flesh to eat?
{11:5} We remember the fish that we ate freely in Egypt; we call to mind the cucumbers, and melons, and leeks, and onions, and garlic.
{11:6} Our life is dry; our eyes look out to see nothing but manna.”
{11:7} Now the manna was like coriander seed, but with the color of bdellium.
{11:8} And the people wandered about, gathering it, and they crushed it with a millstone, or ground it with a mortar; then they boiled it in a pot, and made biscuits out of it, with a taste like bread made with oil.
{11:9} And when the dew descended in the night over the camp, the manna descended together with it.
{11:10} And so, Moses heard the people weeping by their families, each one at the door of his tent. And the fury of the Lord was greatly enflamed. And to Moses also the matter seemed intolerable.
{11:11} And so he said to the Lord: “Why have you afflicted your servant? Why do I not find favor before you? And why have you imposed the weight of this entire people upon me?
{11:12} Could I have conceived this entire multitude, or have given birth to them, so that you might say to me: Carry them in your bosom, as a nursemaid usually carries a little infant, and bring them into the land, about which you have sworn to their fathers?
{11:13} From where would I obtain the flesh to give to so great a multitude? They weep against me, saying, ‘Give us flesh, so that we may eat.’
{11:14} I alone am unable to sustain this entire people, because it is too heavy for me.
{11:15} But if it seems to you otherwise, I beg you to put me to death, and so may I find grace in your eyes, lest I be afflicted with such evils.”
{11:16} And the Lord said to Moses: “Gather to me seventy men from the elders of Israel, whom you know to be elders, as well as teachers, of the people. And you shall lead them to the door of the tabernacle of the covenant, and you shall cause them to stand there with you,
{11:17} so that I may descend and speak to you. And I will take from your spirit, and I will deliver it to them, so that, with you, they may sustain the burden of the people, and so that you will not be weighed down alone.
{11:18} You shall also say to the people: Be sanctified. Tomorrow you will eat flesh. For I have heard you say: ‘Who will give us flesh to eat? It was well with us in Egypt.’ So then, may the Lord give you flesh. And you will eat,
{11:19} not for one day, nor for two, nor for five, nor for ten, nor even for twenty,
{11:20} but for up to a month of days, until it exits from your nostrils, and until it turns into nausea for you, because you have slipped away from the Lord, who is in your midst, and because you have wept before him, saying: ‘Why did we go forth out of Egypt?’ ”
{11:21} And Moses said: “There are six hundred thousand footmen of this people, and yet you say, ‘I will give them flesh to eat for a whole month.’
{11:22} Could a multitude of sheep and oxen be slain, so that there would be enough food? Or will the fishes of the sea be gathered together, in order to satisfy them?”
{11:23} And the Lord answered him: “Can the hand of the Lord be ineffective? Soon now, you shall see whether my word will be fulfilled in this work.”
{11:24} And so, Moses went and explained the words of the Lord to the people. Gathering together seventy men from the elders of Israel, he caused them to stand around the tabernacle.
{11:25} And the Lord descended in a cloud, and he spoke to him, taking from the Spirit which was in Moses, and giving to the seventy men. And when the Spirit had rested in them, they prophesied; nor did they cease afterwards.
{11:26} Now there had remained in the camp two of the men, of whom one was called Eldad, and the other Medad, upon whom the Spirit rested; for they also had been enrolled, but they did not go forth to the tabernacle.
{11:27} And when they were prophesying in the camp, a boy ran and reported to Moses, saying: “Eldad and Medad prophesy in the camp.”
{11:28} Promptly, Joshua the son of Nun, the minister of Moses and chosen from many, said: “My lord Moses, prohibit them.”
{11:29} But he said, “Why are you jealous on my behalf? Who decides that any of the people may prophesy and that God may give to them his Spirit?”
{11:30} And Moses returned, with those greater by birth of Israel, into the camp.
{11:31} Then a wind, going out from the Lord and moving forcefully across the sea, brought quails and cast them into the camp, across a distance of one day’s journey, in every part of the camp all around, and they flew in the air two cubits high above the ground.
{11:32} Therefore, the people, rising up, gathered quails all that day and night, and the next day; he who did least well gathered ten homers. And they dried them throughout the camp.
{11:33} The flesh was still between their teeth, neither had this kind of food ceased, and behold, the fury of the Lord was provoked against the people, and he struck them with an exceedingly great scourge.
{11:34} And that place was called, ‘The Graves of Lust.’ For there, they buried the people who had desired. Then, departing from the Graves of Lust, they arrived in Hazeroth, and they stayed there.
{12:1} And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses, because of his wife, an Ethiopian,
{12:2} and they said: “Has the Lord spoken only through Moses? Has he not also spoken similarly to us?” And when the Lord had heard this,
{12:3} (for Moses was a man exceedingly meek, beyond all the men who were living upon the earth)
{12:4} immediately he spoke to him, and to Aaron and Miriam, “Go out, you three only, to the tabernacle of the covenant.” And when they had gone out,
{12:5} the Lord descended in a column of cloud, and he stood at the entrance of the tabernacle, calling to Aaron and Miriam. And when they had advanced,
{12:6} he said to them: “Listen to my words. If there will be among you a prophet of the Lord, I will appear to him in a vision, or I will speak to him through a dream.
{12:7} But it is not so with my servant Moses, who is the most faithful in all my house.
{12:8} For I speak with him mouth to mouth, and plainly. And not through enigmas and figures does he perceive the Lord. Therefore, why were you not afraid to disparage my servant Moses?”
{12:9} And being angry against them, he went away.
{12:10} Likewise, the cloud which was over the tabernacle withdrew. And behold, Miriam appeared to be white with a leprosy, like snow. And when Aaron had looked upon her, and he had seen the spreading of the leprosy,
{12:11} he said to Moses: “I beg you, my lord, not to impose upon us this sin, which we have committed foolishly.
{12:12} Do not let this one be like one who is dead, or like an abortion that has been cast from the womb of her mother. Behold, half of her flesh is already consumed by leprosy.”
{12:13} And Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, “O God, I beg you: heal her.”
{12:14} And the Lord answered him: “If her father had spit on her face, should she not have been filled with shame for at least seven days? Let her be separated, outside the camp, for seven days, and after that, she will be called back.”
{12:15} And so Miriam was excluded from the camp for seven days. And the people did not move from that place, until Miriam was called back.
{13:1} And the people set out from Hazeroth, and they pitched their tents in the desert of Paran.
{13:2} And there, the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{13:3} “Send men, who may examine the land of Canaan, which I will give to the sons of Israel, one from the rulers of each tribe.”
{13:4} Moses did what the Lord had commanded, sending, from the desert of Paran, leading men, whose names are these:
{13:5} from the tribe of Ruben, Shammua the son of Zaccur;
{13:6} from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori;
{13:7} from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh;
{13:8} from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph;
{13:9} from the tribe of Ephraim, Hosea the son of Nun;
{13:10} from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu;
{13:11} from the tribe of Zebulon, Gaddiel the son of Sodi;
{13:12} from the tribe of Joseph, of the scepter of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi;
{13:13} from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli;
{13:14} from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael;
{13:15} from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi;
{13:16} from the tribe of Gad, Guel the son of Machi.
{13:17} These are the names of the men, whom Moses sent to examine the land. And he called Hosea, the son of Nun, Joshua.
{13:18} And so, Moses sent them to examine the land of Canaan, and he said to them: “Ascend by the south side. And when you arrive at the mountains,
{13:19} consider the land, as to what kind it may be, and the people, who are its inhabitants, whether they may be strong or weak, whether they may be few in number or many,
{13:20} and the land itself, whether it is good or bad, what kind of cities, walled or without walls,
{13:21} the soil, rich or barren, forested or without trees. Be strong, and bring us some of the fruits of the land.” Now it was the time when the first ripe grapes were ready to be eaten.
{13:22} And when they had ascended, they explored the land from the desert of Sin, all the way to Rehob, as one enters into Hamath.
{13:23} And they ascended by the south side. And they arrived at Hebron, where there were Ahiman and Shishai and Talmai, the sons of Anak. For Hebron was founded seven years before Tanis, the city of Egypt.
{13:24} And continuing on as far as the Torrent of the Cluster of Grapes, they cut off a vine with its grapes, which two men carried on a board. Likewise, they took from the pomegranates and the figs of that place,
{13:25} which was called Nehel Eshcol, that is, the Torrent of the Cluster of Grapes, because the sons of Israel had carried a cluster of grapes from there.
{13:26} And those exploring the land returned after forty days, having circulated through the entire region.
{13:27} And they went to Moses and Aaron, and to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel in the desert of Paran, which is in Kadesh. And speaking to them, and to the entire multitude, they showed them the fruits of the land.
{13:28} And they explained, saying: “We went into the land, to which you sent us, which, it is true, flows with milk and honey, as one can know by these fruits.
{13:29} But it has very strong occupants, and the cities are great and also walled. We saw the race of Anak there.
{13:30} Amalek lives in the south. The Hethite, and the Jebusite, and the Amorite live in the mountains. And truly, the Canaanite stays near the sea and around the streams of the Jordan.”
{13:31} During these events, Caleb, to restrain the murmuring of the people who rose up against Moses, said, “Let us ascend and possess the land, for we will be able to obtain it.”
{13:32} Yet truly, the others, who had been with him, were saying, “By no means are we able to ascend to this people, because they are stronger than we are.”
{13:33} And before the sons of Israel they disparaged the land, which they had inspected, saying: “The land, which we viewed, devours its inhabitants. The people, upon whom we gazed, were of lofty stature.
{13:34} There, we saw some monsters among the sons of Anak, of the race of giants; by comparison with them, we seemed like locusts.”
{14:1} And so, crying out, the entire crowd wept throughout that night.
{14:2} And all the sons of Israel were murmuring against Moses and Aaron, saying:
{14:3} “If only we had died in Egypt,” and, “If only we would perish in this vast wilderness,” and, “May the Lord not lead us into this land, lest we fall by the sword, and our wives, as well as our children, be led away as captives. Is it not better to return to Egypt?”
{14:4} And they said to one another, “Let us appoint our leader, and so return to Egypt.”
{14:5} And when Moses and Aaron heard this, they fell prone on the ground in the sight of the multitude of the sons of Israel.
{14:6} Yet truly, Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, who themselves had also viewed the land, tore their garments,
{14:7} and they said to the entire multitude of the sons of Israel: “The land that we circled through is very good.
{14:8} If the Lord will be gracious to us, he will lead us into it, and he will give us the land flowing with milk and honey.
{14:9} Do not choose to be rebellious against the Lord. And do not fear the people of this land, for, like bread, so are we able to devour them. All protection has withdrawn from them. The Lord is with us. Do not be afraid.”
{14:10} And when the entire multitude cried out, and they wanted to crush them with stones, the glory of the Lord appeared, over the roof of the covenant, to all the sons of Israel.
{14:11} And the Lord said to Moses: “How long will this people disparage me? How long will they refuse to believe me, despite all the signs that I have wrought before them?
{14:12} Therefore, I will strike them with a pestilence, and so I will consume them. But you I will make the ruler over a great nation, and one which is mightier than this one.”
{14:13} And Moses said to the Lord: “But then the Egyptians, from whose midst you led out this people,
{14:14} and the inhabitants of this land, who have heard that you, O Lord, are among this people, and that you are seen face to face, and that your cloud protects them, and that you go before them with a column of cloud by day, and a column of fire by night,
{14:15} may hear that you have killed so great a multitude, as if they were one man, and they may say:
{14:16} ‘He was not able to lead the people into the land about which he had sworn. Therefore, he slew them in the wilderness.’
{14:17} Therefore, may the strength of the Lord be magnified, just as you swore, saying:
{14:18} ‘The Lord is patient and full of mercy, taking away iniquity and wickedness, and forsaking no one who is harmless. He visits the sins of the fathers upon the sons, to the third and fourth generation.’
{14:19} Forgive, I beg you, the sins of this people, according to the greatness of your mercy, just as you have been gracious to them in their journey from Egypt to this place.”
{14:20} And the Lord said: “I have forgiven them according to your word.
{14:21} Also, as I live, the entire world shall be filled with the glory of the Lord.
{14:22} And yet, all the men who have seen my majesty, and the signs that I have wrought in Egypt and in the wilderness, and who have tested me ten times already, and yet have not obeyed my voice,
{14:23} these shall not see the land, about which I swore to their fathers, neither shall any of those who detracted me gaze upon it.
{14:24} My servant Caleb, who, being full of another spirit, has followed me, I will lead into this land, through which he has wandered, and his offspring shall possess it.
{14:25} For the Amalekites and the Canaanites live in the valleys. Tomorrow, move the camp and return into the wilderness, by the way of the Red Sea.”
{14:26} And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
{14:27} “How long will this very wicked multitude murmur against me? I have heard the complaints of the sons of Israel.
{14:28} Therefore, say to them: As I live, says the Lord, as you spoke in my hearing, so will I do to you.
{14:29} In the wilderness, here shall your carcasses lie. All you who were numbered from twenty years and above, and who have murmured against me,
{14:30} you shall not enter into the land, over which I lifted up my hand to cause you to live there, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
{14:31} But your little ones, about whom you said that they would be a prey to the enemies, I will lead them in, so that they may see the land that has displeased you.
{14:32} Your carcasses shall lie in the wilderness.
{14:33} Your sons shall wander in the desert for forty years, and they shall bear your fornication, until the carcasses of their fathers are consumed in the desert.
{14:34} According to the number of the forty days, during which you examined the land, one year shall be charged for each day. And so, for forty years you shall take back your iniquities, and you shall know my retribution.
{14:35} For just as I have spoken, so shall I do, to this entire most wicked multitude, which has risen up together against me. In the wilderness, here shall it fade away and die.”
{14:36} Therefore, all the men, whom Moses had sent to contemplate the land, and who, having returned, had caused the entire multitude to murmur against him, disparaging the land as if it were evil,
{14:37} suffered death and were struck down in the sight of the Lord.
{14:38} But only Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive, out of all those who had journeyed to examine the land.
{14:39} And Moses spoke all these words to all the sons of Israel, and the people mourned exceedingly.
{14:40} And behold, rising up at first light, they climbed to the top of the mountain, and they said, “We are prepared to ascend to the place, about which the Lord has spoken, for we have sinned.”
{14:41} And Moses said to them: “Why do you transgress the word of the Lord, merely because it will not result in prosperity for you?
{14:42} Do not ascend, for the Lord is not with you, lest you be overthrown before your enemies.
{14:43} The Amalekite and the Canaanite are before you, by whose sword you shall be ruined, for you were not willing to consent to the Lord, and so the Lord is not with you.”
{14:44} But they, having been darkened, ascended to the top of the mountain. But the ark of the testament of the Lord, and Moses, did not withdraw from the camp.
{14:45} And the Amalekites descended, along with those Canaanites who were living in the mountains. And so, striking and cutting them down, they pursued them all the way to Hormah.
{15:1} The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{15:2} “Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: When you will have entered into the land of your habitation, which I will give you,
{15:3} and you make an offering to the Lord, as a holocaust or as a victim, paying your vows, or as a voluntary offering of gifts, or in your solemnities, burning a sweet odor to the Lord, whether from the oxen or from the sheep:
{15:4} whoever immolates the victim shall offer a sacrifice of fine wheat flour, the tenth part of an ephah, sprinkled with oil, which shall have the measure of the fourth part of a hin,
{15:5} and he shall give the same measure of wine, poured out as libations, whether as a holocaust or as a victim.
{15:6} With each lamb and each ram, there shall be a sacrifice of fine wheat flour, of two tenths, which shall be sprinkled with one third part of a hin of oil.
{15:7} And he shall offer the same measure, one third part of wine, for the libation, as a sweet odor to the Lord.
{15:8} Yet truly, when you will offer, from the oxen, a holocaust or a victim, in order to fulfill your vow or for peace-offering victims,
{15:9} you shall give, for each ox, three tenths of fine wheat flour, sprinkled with oil, which has the measure of one half of one hin,
{15:10} and the wine, poured out as libations, shall be of the same measure, as an oblation of most sweet odor to the Lord.
{15:11} So shall you do
{15:12} for each ox, and ram, and lamb, and young goat.
{15:13} Both natives and sojourners
{15:14} shall offer sacrifices by the same rituals.
{15:15} There shall be one precept and one judgment, as much for yourselves as for newcomers to the land.”
{15:16} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{15:17} “Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them:
{15:18} When you will arrive in the land which I will give to you,
{15:19} and when you will eat from the bread of that region, you shall separate the first-fruits to the Lord
{15:20} from the foods that you eat. Just as you separate the first-fruits of your threshing floors,
{15:21} so also shall you give the first-fruits of your cooked grains to the Lord.
{15:22} And if, through ignorance, you neglect any of these things, which the Lord has spoken to Moses,
{15:23} and which he has commanded through him for you, from the day that he began to command and thereafter,
{15:24} and if the multitude will have forgotten to do it, then they shall offer a calf from the herd, a holocaust as a most sweet odor to the Lord, and its sacrifice and libations, just as the ceremonies ask, and a he-goat for sin.
{15:25} And the priest shall pray for the entire multitude of the sons of Israel, and it shall be forgiven them, because they did not sin willfully. Nevertheless, they shall offer incense to the Lord for themselves, and for sin, as well as for their error.
{15:26} And it shall be forgiven all the people of the sons of Israel, as well as the newcomers who sojourn among them, for it is the culpability of all the people through neglect.
{15:27} But if one soul will have sinned by not knowing, he shall offer a one-year-old she-goat for his sin.
{15:28} And the priest shall pray for him, because he sinned unknowingly before the Lord. And he shall obtain pardon for him, and it will be forgiven him.
{15:29} One law shall be for all who sin by ignorance, as much for natives as for newcomers.
{15:30} Yet truly, the soul who commits any of these acts through arrogance, whether he is a citizen or a sojourner, because he has rebelled against the Lord, shall perish from among his people.
{15:31} For he has despised the word of the Lord, and he has nullified his precept. For this reason, he shall be destroyed, and he shall bear his iniquity.”
{15:32} And it happened that, when the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, and they had found a man collecting wood on the day of the Sabbath,
{15:33} they brought him to Moses and Aaron, and to the whole multitude.
{15:34} And they enclosed him in a prison, not knowing what they should do with him.
{15:35} And the Lord said to Moses, “Let that man be put to death; let the entire crowd crush him with stones, outside the camp.”
{15:36} And when they had led him out, they overwhelmed him with stones, and he died, just as the Lord had instructed.
{15:37} The Lord also said to Moses:
{15:38} “Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall tell them to make for themselves hems at the corners of their cloaks, placing in them ribbons of hyacinth,
{15:39} so that, when they see these, they may remember all the commandments of the Lord, and they may not follow their own thoughts and eyes, fornicating in various ways,
{15:40} but instead, they, being more mindful of the precepts of the Lord, may do them and may be holy to their God.
{15:41} I am the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt, so that I may be your God.”
{16:1} Then, behold, Korah the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, with Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and also On the son of Peleth, of the sons of Ruben,
{16:2} rose up against Moses, with two hundred fifty others of the sons of Israel, leading men of the assembly, and who, at the time of a council, would be called by name.
{16:3} And when they had stood against Moses and Aaron, they said: “Let it be sufficient for you that the entire multitude is of holy ones, and that the Lord is among them. Why do you elevate yourselves above the people of the Lord?”
{16:4} When Moses had heard this, he fell prone on his face.
{16:5} And speaking to Korah, and to the entire multitude, he said: “In the morning, the Lord will cause it to be known who belongs to him, and which holy ones he will join to himself. And whomever he will choose, they shall be close to him.
{16:6} Therefore, do this: Each one of you, Korah and all your associates, take your censer,
{16:7} and drawing fire into it tomorrow, place incense upon it before the Lord. And whomever he will choose, the same shall be holy. You sons of Levi have been raised up greatly.”
{16:8} And he said again to Korah: “Listen, sons of Levi.
{16:9} Is it a small thing to you, that the God of Israel has separated you from all the people, and has joined you to himself, so that you would serve him in the rituals of the tabernacle, and stand before gatherings of the people, and minister to him?
{16:10} Was the reason that he caused you and all your brothers, the sons of Levi, to approach him, so that you would even claim for yourselves the priesthood too,
{16:11} and so that your entire group would stand against the Lord? For what is Aaron that you should murmur against him?”
{16:12} Therefore, Moses sent to call for Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, who responded: “We will not come.
{16:13} Is it a small matter to you, that you have led us away from a land that was flowing with milk and honey, so as to kill us in the desert, unless you could also be a ruler over us?
{16:14} You have led us, it is true, to a land that flows with streams of milk and honey, and you have given us possession of fields and vineyards. But will you also tear out our eyes? We will not come.”
{16:15} And Moses, being very angry, said to the Lord: “Do not look with favor on their sacrifices. You know that I have not accepted from them, at any time, so much as a young donkey, nor have I afflicted any of them.”
{16:16} And he said to Korah: “You and your congregation, stand alone before the Lord, and apart from Aaron, tomorrow.
{16:17} Let each one of you take censers, and place incense in them, offering to the Lord two hundred fifty censers. Let Aaron also hold his censer.”
{16:18} When they had done this, Moses and Aaron stood up,
{16:19} and, having crowded the entire multitude close to them at the door of the tabernacle, the glory of the Lord appeared to them all.
{16:20} And the Lord, speaking to Moses and Aaron, said:
{16:21} “Separate yourselves from the midst of this congregation, so that I may suddenly destroy them.”
{16:22} But they fell prone on their faces, and they said, “O most strong One, the God of the spirits of all flesh, should your anger rage against all, for the sin of one?”
{16:23} And the Lord said to Moses:
{16:24} “Instruct the entire people to separate from the tents of Korah, and Dathan, and Abiram.”
{16:25} And Moses rose up and went to Dathan and Abiram. And the elders of Israel followed him,
{16:26} and he said to the crowd, “Withdraw from the tabernacles of these impious men, and touch nothing which pertains to them, lest you become involved in their sins.”
{16:27} And when they had withdrawn from their tents all around, Dathan and Abiram came out and stood at the entrance of their pavilions, with their wives and children, and with all their associates.
{16:28} And Moses said: “By this shall you know that the Lord has sent me to do all that you discern, and that I have not brought these things out of my own heart:
{16:29} If these men pass away by the common death of men, or if they will be visited by a scourge, of a kind by which others are often visited, then the Lord did not send me.
{16:30} But if the Lord accomplishes something new, so that the earth opens its mouth and swallows them whole, along with everything that belongs to them, and they descend alive into the underworld, then you shall know that they have blasphemed the Lord.”
{16:31} Therefore, as soon as he had ceased to speak, the earth broke open under their feet.
{16:32} And opening its mouth, it devoured them with their tabernacles and their entire substance.
{16:33} And they descended alive, the ground closing around them, into the underworld, and they perished from the midst of the multitude.
{16:34} Yet truly, all of Israel, which was standing all around, took flight at the clamor of those who were perishing, saying, “Lest perhaps the earth may swallow us whole also.”
{16:35} Then, too, a fire, going forth from the Lord, put to death the two hundred fifty men who were offering the incense.
{16:36} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{16:37} “Instruct Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, to take up the censers which lie in the burning, and to scatter the fire to one side and another, because they were sanctified
{16:38} in the deaths of these sinners. And let him form them into plates, and affix them to the altar, because incense had been offered in them to the Lord, and they were sanctified, and so that the sons of Israel may discern in them a sign and a memorial.”
{16:39} Therefore, Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers, by which those whom the burning devoured had made an offering, and he formed them into plates, affixing them to the altar,
{16:40} so that the sons of Israel would have, thereafter, something to admonish them, lest any stranger, or anyone who is not of the offspring of Aaron, might approach to offer incense to the Lord, and lest he endure what happened to Korah, and to all his congregation, when the Lord spoke to Moses.
{16:41} Then, the following day, the entire multitude of the sons of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron, saying: “You have put to death the people of the Lord.”
{16:42} And when there arose a sedition, and the tumult increased,
{16:43} Moses and Aaron fled to the tabernacle of the covenant. But after they had entered it, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared.
{16:44} And the Lord said to Moses:
{16:45} “Withdraw from the midst of this multitude, and I will destroy them immediately.” And while they were lying on the ground,
{16:46} Moses said to Aaron: “Take the censer, and draw fire into it from the altar; place incense upon it, and continue on, quickly, to the people, to pray for them. For already wrath has gone forth from the Lord, and the scourge rages.”
{16:47} When Aaron had done this, and he had run into the midst of the multitude, which the burning fire was now destroying, he offered the incense.
{16:48} And standing between the dead and the living, he prayed for the people, and the scourge ceased.
{16:49} But the number of those who were struck down was fourteen thousand men, and seven hundred, aside from those who had perished in the sedition of Korah.
{16:50} And Aaron returned to Moses at the door of the tabernacle of the covenant, after the destruction quieted.
{17:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{17:2} “Speak to the sons of Israel, and receive from each of them a rod by their kinships, from all the leaders of the tribes, twelve rods, and write the name of each one on his rod.
{17:3} But the name of Aaron shall be for the tribe of Levi, and one rod separately shall contain all their families.
{17:4} And you shall place these in the tabernacle of the covenant before the testimony, where I will speak to you.
{17:5} Whomever of these I will choose, his rod will germinate, and so shall I restrain the complaints of the sons of Israel before me, by which they murmur against you.”
{17:6} And Moses spoke to the sons of Israel. And all the leaders gave him rods, one for each tribe. And there were twelve rods, aside from the rod of Aaron.
{17:7} And when Moses had placed these before the Lord, in the tabernacle of the testimony,
{17:8} returning on the following day, he found that the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi, had germinated, and that the swelling buds had opened into flowers, which, spreading their petals, were formed into those of an almond tree.
{17:9} Therefore, Moses brought out all the rods, from the sight of the Lord, to all the sons of Israel. And they saw, and each one received their rods.
{17:10} And the Lord said to Moses: “Carry back the rod of Aaron into the tabernacle of the testimony, so that it may be kept there as a sign of the rebellion of the sons of Israel, and so that their complaints may be quieted before me, lest they die.”
{17:11} And Moses did just as the Lord had instructed.
{17:12} Then the sons of Israel said to Moses: “Behold, we have been consumed; we have been ruined.
{17:13} Whoever approaches to the tabernacle of the Lord dies. Will we all be wiped away, even to total annihilation?”
{18:1} And the Lord said to Aaron: “You, and your sons, and the house of your father with you, shall carry the iniquity of the Sanctuary. And you and your sons together shall bear the sins of your priesthood.
{18:2} But take to yourselves also your brothers from the tribe of Levi, and the scepter of your father, and may they be prepared, and may they minister to you. Then you and your sons shall minister in the tabernacle of the testimony.
{18:3} And the Levites shall stand watch by your precepts, and for all the works of the tabernacle; yet in such a manner that they shall not approach the vessels of the Sanctuary and of the altar, lest both they die, and you perish, at the same time.
{18:4} But they may be with you, and they may watch over the care of the tabernacle and all its ceremonies. A foreigner shall not be mixed with you.
{18:5} Watch over the care of the Sanctuary, and over the ministry of the altar, lest an indignation may rise over the sons of Israel.
{18:6} I have given your brothers, the Levites, to you from the midst of the sons of Israel, and I have delivered them as a gift to the Lord, in order to serve in the ministries of his tabernacle.
{18:7} But as for you and your sons: guard the priesthood. For all that pertains to the service of the altar and of what is beyond the veil shall be exercised by the priests. If any outsider will approach, he shall be killed.”
{18:8} And the Lord said to Aaron: “Behold, I have given you custody of my first-fruits. Everything that is sanctified by the sons of Israel I have delivered to you and your sons, for the office of the priesthood, by everlasting ordinances.
{18:9} Therefore, you shall receive these, from the things that are sanctified and offered to the Lord. Every offering, and sacrifice, and whatever is repaid to me, on behalf of sin and also for offenses, and which becomes the Holy of holies, shall be for you and for your sons.
{18:10} You shall eat it in the Sanctuary. Only the males shall eat from it, because it has been consecrated for you.
{18:11} But the first-fruits, which the sons of Israel shall vow and offer, I have given to you, and to your sons, as well as to your daughters, by a perpetual right. Whoever is clean in your house shall eat them.
{18:12} All the innermost of the oil, and of the wine, and of the grain, whatever first-fruits they offer to the Lord, I have given to you.
{18:13} All the first of the crops, which the soil produces and which are carried to the Lord, shall fall to your use. Whoever is clean in your house shall eat them.
{18:14} All that the sons of Israel shall repay by vow shall be yours.
{18:15} Whatever goes out first from the womb, of all flesh, which they offer to the Lord, whether from men or from cattle, shall be your right; yet only in so far as, for the firstborn of man, you shall accept a price. And every animal that is unclean you shall cause to be redeemed.
{18:16} And its redemption shall be, after one month, five shekels of silver, by the weight of the Sanctuary. A shekel has twenty obols.
{18:17} But the firstborn of a cow, or of a sheep, or of a goat, you shall not cause to be redeemed, because they have been sanctified to the Lord. Thus, their blood you shall pour out upon the altar, and their fat you shall burn as a most sweet odor to the Lord.
{18:18} Yet truly, the flesh shall fall to your use, just as the consecrated breast and the right shoulder shall be yours.
{18:19} All the first-fruits of the Sanctuary, which the sons of Israel offer to the Lord, I have given to you and to your sons as well as to your daughters, as a perpetual right. It is an everlasting covenant of salt before the Lord, for you and for your sons.”
{18:20} And the Lord said to Aaron: “In their land, you shall possess nothing; neither shall you have a portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance in the midst of the sons of Israel.
{18:21} But I have given, to the sons of Levi, all the tithes of Israel as a possession, for the ministry by which they serve me in the tabernacle of the covenant,
{18:22} so that the sons of Israel may no longer approach to the tabernacle, nor commit deadly sin.
{18:23} Only the sons of Levi may serve me in the tabernacle and may carry the sins of the people. It shall be an everlasting ordinance in your generations. They shall possess nothing else;
{18:24} being content with the oblation of tithes, which I have separated for their uses and necessities.”
{18:25} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{18:26} “Instruct the Levites, and also declare to them: When you will receive, from the sons of Israel, the tithes, which I have given to you, offer their first-fruits to the Lord, that is, the tenth part of a tenth,
{18:27} so that it may be accounted to you as an oblation of the first-fruits, as much from the threshing floors as from the oil and wine presses.
{18:28} And offer the first-fruits of everything, from which you receive tithes, to the Lord, and give them to Aaron the priest.
{18:29} Everything which you shall offer from the tithes, and which you shall separate as gifts to the Lord, shall be the finest and most select.
{18:30} And you shall say to them: ‘If you offer the noble and the better of the tithes, it shall be accounted to you as if you had given from the first-fruits of the threshing floor and of the oil and wine presses.’
{18:31} And you shall eat these in all your places, both you and your families, because it is your price for the ministry, by which you serve in the tabernacle of the testimony.
{18:32} And you shall not sin in this way: by reserving the excellent and fat things for yourselves, lest you pollute the oblations of the sons of Israel, and lest you die.”
{19:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:
{19:2} “This is the ritual that the Lord has appointed for a victim. Instruct the sons of Israel, so that they may bring to you a red cow of full maturity, in which there is no blemish, and which has not carried a yoke.
{19:3} And you shall deliver it to Eleazar the priest, who, having led it out beyond the camp, shall immolate it in the sight of all.
{19:4} And dipping his finger in its blood, he shall sprinkle it seven times, opposite the door of the tabernacle.
{19:5} And he shall burn it, while all are watching, delivering into the flame, not only its skin and flesh, but also the blood and dung.
{19:6} Likewise, cedar wood, and hyssop, and twice-dyed scarlet he shall cast into the flame, by which the cow is consumed.
{19:7} And then finally, having washed his garments and his body, he shall enter into the camp, and he shall be deeply stained until evening.
{19:8} Then he also who had burned it shall wash his garments and his body, and he shall be unclean until evening.
{19:9} Then a clean man shall gather the ashes of the cow, and he shall pour them out beyond the camp, in a very pure place, so that they may be preserved for the multitude of the sons of Israel, and for the water of aspersion, because the cow was burned for sin.
{19:10} And when he who had carried the ashes of the cow will have washed his garments, he shall be unclean until evening. The sons of Israel, and the newcomers who live among them, shall have this as a holy and perpetual right.
{19:11} Whoever touches the corpse of a man, and is, because of this, unclean for seven days,
{19:12} shall be sprinkled from this water on the third and seventh days, and so shall he be cleansed. But if he was not sprinkled on the third day, he is not able to be cleansed on the seventh.
{19:13} Anyone who will have touched the dead body of a human life, and who has not been sprinkled with this mixture, pollutes the tabernacle of the Lord, and he shall perish out of Israel. For not having been sprinkled with the water of expiation, he shall be unclean, and his filth shall remain upon him.
{19:14} This is the law of a man who dies in a tent. All who enter into his tent, and all the vessels which are there, shall be polluted for seven days.
{19:15} The vessel that has no cover or binding over it shall be unclean.
{19:16} If anyone in the field will have touched the corpse of a man, who was killed or who died on his own, or his bone, or his grave, he shall be unclean for seven days.
{19:17} And they shall take some of the ashes from the burning and the sin offering, and they shall pour living waters over them into a vessel.
{19:18} And into it a man who is clean shall dip hyssop, and he shall sprinkle from it the entire tent, and all its articles, and the men who were polluted by means of contact.
{19:19} And so, in this manner, what is clean shall purify what is unclean, on the third and seventh days. And having been expiated on the seventh day, he shall wash both himself and his garments, and he shall be unclean until evening.
{19:20} If anyone has not been expiated by this ritual, his soul shall perish from the midst of the Church. For he has polluted the Sanctuary of the Lord, and he has not been sprinkled with purifying waters.
{19:21} This precept shall be an everlasting ordinance. Likewise, the one who has sprinkled the waters shall wash his garments. All who will have touched the waters of expiation shall be unclean until evening.
{19:22} Whatever has been touched by something unclean will itself be made unclean. And the soul who touches any of these things shall become unclean until evening.”
{20:1} And the sons of Israel, and the entire multitude, went into the desert of Sin, in the first month. And the people stayed at Kadesh. And Miriam died there, and she was buried in the same place.
{20:2} And when the people were in need of water, they came together against Moses and Aaron.
{20:3} And as it turned into sedition, they said: “If only we had perished among our brothers in the sight of the Lord.
{20:4} Why have you led away the Church of the Lord, into the wilderness, so that both we and our cattle would die?
{20:5} Why did you cause us to ascend from Egypt, and why have you led us into this most wretched place, which is not able to be sown, which does not produce figs, or vines, or pomegranates, and which, moreover, does not even have water to drink?”
{20:6} And Moses and Aaron, dismissing the multitude, entered the tabernacle of the covenant, and they fell prone on the ground, and they cried out to the Lord, and they said: “O Lord God, listen to the outcry of this people, and open for them, from your storehouse, a fountain of living water, so that, being satisfied, their murmuring may cease.” And the glory of the Lord appeared over them.
{20:7} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{20:8} “Take the rod, and gather the people, you and your brother Aaron, and speak to the rock before them, and it shall bestow waters. And when you have brought forth water from the rock, the entire multitude and their cattle shall drink.”
{20:9} Therefore, Moses took the rod, which was in the sight of the Lord, just as he had instructed him.
{20:10} And having gathered the multitude before the rock, he said to them: “Listen, you who are rebellious and unbelieving. Would we be able to cast out water from this rock?”
{20:11} And when Moses had lifted up his hand, striking the stone twice with the rod, very great waters went forth, so much so that the people and their cattle were able to drink.
{20:12} And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe me, so as to sanctify me before the sons of Israel, you shall not lead this people into the land, which I will give to them.”
{20:13} This is the Water of Contradiction, where the sons of Israel were quarreling against the Lord, and he was sanctified in them.
{20:14} Meanwhile, Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom. They said: “Your brother Israel says this: You know of all the hardships which have overtaken us,
{20:15} how our fathers descended into Egypt, and we lived there for a long time, and the Egyptians afflicted both us and our fathers,
{20:16} and how we cried out to the Lord, and he heeded us and sent an Angel, who led us away from Egypt. Behold, we are situated in the city of Kadesh, which is at the extremity of your borders.
{20:17} And we beg you to permit us to cross through your land. We will not go through the fields, nor through the vineyards; we will not drink the waters of your wells, but we will travel by the public ways, neither turning aside to the right, nor to the left, until we have passed your borders.”
{20:18} Edom responded to them: “You shall not cross through me, otherwise, I will meet you armed.”
{20:19} And the sons of Israel said: “We will travel by the well-trodden path. And if we or our cattle drink from your waters, we will give you what is just. There shall be no difficulty in the price, only let us cross through quickly.”
{20:20} But he answered, “You shall not cross.” And immediately he went out to meet them with a countless multitude and a strong hand;
{20:21} neither was he willing to agree to their petition to concede passage through his borders. For this reason, Israel diverted away from him.
{20:22} And when they had moved the camp from Kadesh, they arrived at mount Hor, which is at the borders of the land of Edom,
{20:23} where the Lord spoke to Moses:
{20:24} “Let Aaron,” he said, “go to his people. For he shall not enter into the land which I have given to the sons of Israel, because he did not believe my mouth at the Waters of Contradiction.
{20:25} Take Aaron, and his son with him, and lead them on to mount Hor.
{20:26} And when you have stripped the father of his vestments, you shall put them on Eleazar, his son. Aaron shall be gathered and shall die there.”
{20:27} Moses did just as the Lord had instructed. And they ascended mount Hor, in the sight of the entire multitude.
{20:28} And when he had despoiled Aaron of his vestments, he clothed his son Eleazar with them.
{20:29} And when Aaron had died at the top of the mountain, Moses came down with Eleazar.
{20:30} And the entire multitude, seeing that Aaron lay dead, wept over him for thirty days, throughout all their families.
{21:1} And when king Arad the Canaanite, who was living toward the south, had heard this, namely, that Israel had arrived by the way of spies, he fought against them. And proving to be the victor, he led away prey from them.
{21:2} But Israel, obliging himself by a vow to the Lord, said: “If you deliver this people into my hand, I will wipe away their cities.”
{21:3} And the Lord heard the prayers of Israel, and he delivered the Canaanite, whom they put to death, overthrowing his cities. And they called the name of that place Hormah, that is, Anathema.
{21:4} Then they set out from mount Hor, by the way that leads to the Red Sea, to circle around the land of Edom. And the people began to tire of their journey and hardships.
{21:5} And speaking against God and Moses, they said: “Why did you lead us away from Egypt, so as to die in the wilderness? Bread is lacking; there are no waters. Our soul is now nauseous over this very light food.”
{21:6} For this reason, the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, which wounded or killed many of them.
{21:7} And so they went to Moses, and they said: “We have sinned, because we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray, so that he may take away these serpents from us.” And Moses prayed for the people.
{21:8} And the Lord said to him: “Make a bronze serpent, and place it as a sign. Whoever, having been struck, gazes upon it, shall live.”
{21:9} Therefore, Moses made a bronze serpent, and he placed it as a sign. When those who had been struck gazed upon it, they were healed.
{21:10} And the sons of Israel, setting out, made camp at Oboth.
{21:11} Having departed from there, they pitched their tents at Iye-abarim, in the wilderness, which looks out toward Moab, opposite the eastern region.
{21:12} And moving from there, they arrived at the Torrent of Zared.
{21:13} Having left that place behind, they then made camp opposite Arnon, which is in the desert, and which juts out at the borders of the Amorite. For certainly Arnon is at the limit of Moab, dividing the Moabites and the Amorites.
{21:14} About this place, it is said in the book of the wars of the Lord: “As he did at the Red Sea, so will he do at the Torrents of Arnon.”
{21:15} The stones of the torrents were bent, so that they might rest in Ar and lie back within the borders of the Moabites.
{21:16} Beyond that place appeared a well, about which the Lord said to Moses: “Gather the people together, and I will give them water.”
{21:17} Then Israel sang this verse: “Let the well rise up.” They sang:
{21:18} “The well, the leaders dug it, and the commanders of the multitude prepared it, at the direction of the lawgiver, and with their staffs.”
{21:19} They went from the wilderness to Mattanah, from Mattanah to Nahaliel, from Nahaliel to Bamoth,
{21:20} from Bamoth, a valley in the region of Moab, to the top of Pisgah, which looks out opposite the desert.
{21:21} Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon, the king of the Amorites, saying:
{21:22} “I beg you to permit me to cross through your land. We will not turn aside into the fields or the vineyards. We will not drink waters from the wells. We will travel by the royal way, until we have passed your borders.”
{21:23} And he was not willing to allow Israel to cross through his borders. But instead, gathering an army, he went out to meet them in the desert, and he arrived at Jahaz and fought against them.
{21:24} And he was struck down by them with the edge of the sword, and they possessed his land from Arnon, even to Jabbok and the sons of Ammon. For the borders of the Ammonites were held by a strong fortress.
{21:25} Therefore, Israel took all his cities and lived in the cities of the Amorite, namely, in Heshbon and its villages.
{21:26} Heshbon was the city of Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who fought against the king of Moab. And he took all the land, which had been under his sovereignty, as far as Arnon.
{21:27} About this, it is said in the proverb: “Enter into Heshbon. Let the city of Sihon be established and built.
{21:28} A fire has gone forth from Heshbon, a flame from the town of Sihon, and it has devoured Ar of the Moabites, and the inhabitants of the heights of Arnon.
{21:29} Woe to you, Moab! You are perishing, O people of Chemosh. He gave flight to his sons, and he gave the daughters into captivity, to the king of the Amorites, Sihon.
{21:30} Their yoke has been scattered from Heshbon even to Dibon. They have passed through, wearily, into Nophah, and as far as Medeba.”
{21:31} And so Israel lived in the land of the Amorite.
{21:32} And Moses sent some to explore Jazer. These captured its villages and possessed its inhabitants.
{21:33} And they turned themselves and ascended, along the way of Bashan. And Og, the king of Bashan, met them with all his people, to fight at Edrei.
{21:34} And the Lord said to Moses: “Do not be afraid of him. For I have delivered him, and all his people, as well as his land, into your hand. And you shall do to him just as you did to Sihon, the king of the Amorites, the inhabitant of Heshbon.”
{21:35} Therefore, they struck him down also, with his sons, and all his people, even to utter destruction, and they possessed his land.
{22:1} And they set out and made camp in the plains of Moab, across the Jordan, where Jericho is situated.
{22:2} Then Balak, the son of Zippor, seeing all that Israel had done to the Amorite,
{22:3} and that the Moabites had great fear of him, and that they were not able to bear his assault,
{22:4} said to those greater by birth of Midian: “So will this people wipe away all those who are dwelling within our borders, in the same way that the ox is accustomed to tear out grass, all the way to the roots.” At that time, he was king of Moab.
{22:5} Therefore, he sent messengers to Balaam, the son of Beor, a seer who lived above the river of the land of the sons of Ammon, to call him, and to say: “Behold, a people has gone forth from Egypt, which has covered the face of the earth. They are encamped opposite me.
{22:6} Therefore, come and curse this people, for they are stronger than I am. If only, in some way, I might be able to strike them and to drive them from my land. For I know that he whom you bless shall be blessed, and he whom you curse shall be cursed.”
{22:7} And the elders of Moab, and those greater by birth of Midian, continued on, holding the price of divination in their hands. And when they had come to Balaam, and had explained to him all the words of Balak,
{22:8} he responded, “Remain for this night, and I will answer with whatever the Lord will say to me.” And while they stayed with Balaam, God came and said to him,
{22:9} “What do these men want with you?”
{22:10} He responded, “Balak, the son of Zippor, the king of the Moabites has sent to me,
{22:11} saying: ‘Behold, a people, which has gone forth from Egypt, has covered the face of the earth. Come and curse them, so that, in some way, I may be able to fight them and drive them away.’ ”
{22:12} And God said to Balaam, “Do not go with them, and do not curse the people, for they are blessed.”
{22:13} And he, rising up in the morning, said to the leaders, “Go into your own land, for the Lord has prohibited me from going with you.”
{22:14} Returning, the leaders said to Balak, “Balaam was not willing to come with us.”
{22:15} Again, he sent many more persons, and these were more noble than those he had sent before.
{22:16} And when these had come to Balaam, they said: “So says Balak, the son of Zippor. Do not hesitate to come to me.
{22:17} For I am ready to honor you, and whatever you would want, I shall give to you. Come and curse this people.”
{22:18} Balaam responded: “Even if Balak were to give to me his own house, filled with silver and gold, I still would not be able to change the word of the Lord my God, neither to say more, nor to say less.
{22:19} I beg you to remain for this night also, so that I may know what the Lord will answer me again.”
{22:20} Therefore, God came to Balaam in the night, and said to him: “If these men have arrived to call you, then rise up and go with them; yet only in so far as you shall do what I will command you.”
{22:21} Balaam rose up in the morning, and saddling his donkey, he set out with them.
{22:22} And God was angry. And an Angel of the Lord stood in the way opposite Balaam, who was sitting on the donkey, and he had two servants with him.
{22:23} The donkey, discerning that the Angel was standing in the way with a drawn sword, turned herself from the road and went through a field. And when Balaam beat her and intended to return her to the path,
{22:24} the Angel stood in a narrow place between the two walls, with which the vineyards were enclosed.
{22:25} And the donkey, seeing this, drew herself close to the wall and scraped the foot of the rider. So he beat her again.
{22:26} And, nevertheless, the Angel passing on to a narrow place, where one would not be able to deviate either to the right or to the left, stood to meet him.
{22:27} And when the donkey had seen the Angel standing there, she fell under the feet of the rider, who, being angry, struck her sides more vehemently with a club.
{22:28} And the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said: “What have I done to you? Why do strike you me, behold now, for the third time?”
{22:29} Balaam responded, “Because you have deserved it, and you have mistreated me. If only I had a sword, so that I might pierce you.”
{22:30} The donkey said: “Am not I your animal, on which you have always been accustomed to sit, even until this present day? Tell me, when did I ever do the same thing to you.” But he said, “Never.”
{22:31} Immediately, the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the Angel standing in the way with a drawn sword, and he reverenced him prone on the ground.
{22:32} And the Angel said to him: “Why did you beat your donkey three times? I have come to be an adversary to you, because your way is perverse and contrary to me.
{22:33} And unless the donkey had turned aside from the way, allowing a place for my opposition, I would have killed you, and she would have lived.”
{22:34} Balaam said: “I have sinned, not knowing that you stood against me. And now, if it displeases you for me to continue on, I will return.”
{22:35} The Angel said, “Go with them, but be careful not to speak anything other than what I shall instruct you.” And so, he went with the leaders.
{22:36} And when Balak had heard it, he went out to meet him in a town of the Moabites, which is situated at the furthest borders of Arnon.
{22:37} And he said to Balaam: “I sent messengers to call you. Why did you not come to me immediately? Was it because I am not able to pay the cost for your arrival?”
{22:38} He answered him: “Behold, here I am. Am I able to speak anything other than what God will put into my mouth?”
{22:39} Therefore, they continued on together, and they arrived at a city, which was at the furthest borders of his kingdom.
{22:40} And after Balak had killed oxen and sheep, he sent the gifts to Balaam, and to the leaders who were with him.
{22:41} Then, when morning arrived, he led him to the heights of Baal, and he gazed upon the most distant portions of the population.
{23:1} And Balaam said to Balak, “Build seven altars here for me, and prepare as many calves, and the same number of rams.”
{23:2} And when he had acted according to the words of Balaam, they placed a calf and a ram together on each altar.
{23:3} And Balaam said to Balak: “Stand for a little while next to your holocaust, until I go, to see if perhaps the Lord will meet with me. And whatever he will command, I shall speak to you.”
{23:4} And after he had quickly departed, God met with him. And Balaam, speaking to him, said: “I have set up seven altars, and I have placed a calf and a ram on each.”
{23:5} Then the Lord placed the word in his mouth, and he said: “Return to Balak, and you shall say this.”
{23:6} Returning, he found Balak standing next to his holocaust, with all the leaders of the Moabites.
{23:7} And taking up his parable, he said: “Balak, king of the Moabites, has led me from Aram, from the mountains of the east. ‘Come forth,’ he said, ‘and curse Jacob. Hurry and condemn Israel.’
{23:8} How shall I curse him, whom God has not cursed? For what reason would I condemn him, whom the Lord does not condemn?
{23:9} I will look upon him from the tops of the stones, and I will consider him from the hills. This people shall dwell alone, and they shall not be counted among the nations.
{23:10} Who can number the dust that is Jacob, and who can know the number of the stock of Israel? May my soul die a just death, and may my end be like theirs.”
{23:11} And Balak said to Balaam: “What is this that you are doing? I called for you, in order to curse my enemies, and to the contrary, you bless them.”
{23:12} He answered him, “How can I say anything other than what the Lord orders?”
{23:13} Therefore, Balak said: “Come with me to another place, from where you may see a portion of Israel, though you cannot see them all. Curse them from there.”
{23:14} And when he had led him to a lofty place, on the top of mount Pisgah, Balaam built seven altars, and placing upon each a calf and a ram,
{23:15} he said to Balak, “Stand here next to your holocaust, while I continue on to meet him.”
{23:16} And when the Lord had met him, and had put the word in his mouth, he said, “Return to Balak, and you shall say this to him.”
{23:17} Returning, he found him standing next to his holocaust, and the leaders of the Moabites were with him. And Balak said to him, “What has the Lord spoken?”
{23:18} But, taking up his parable, he said: “Stand, Balak, and pay attention. Listen, you son of Zippor.
{23:19} God is not like a man, so that he would lie, nor is he like a son of man, so that he would be changed. Therefore, having spoken, will he not act? Has he ever spoken, and not fulfilled?
{23:20} I was led here to bless, and I have no strength to hinder the blessing.
{23:21} There is no idol in Jacob; neither is there a false image to be seen in Israel. The Lord his God is with him, and the resound of royal victory is in him.
{23:22} God has led him away from Egypt; his strength is like that of the rhinoceros.
{23:23} There is no soothsaying in Jacob, nor any divination in Israel. In their times, it shall be told to Jacob and to Israel what God has wrought.
{23:24} Behold, the people will rise up like a lioness, and lie down like a lion. But they will not lie down until they devour the prey and drink the blood of the slain.”
{23:25} And Balak said to Balaam, “Neither curse him, nor bless him.”
{23:26} And he said, “Have I not told you that whatever God would command of me, I would do?”
{23:27} And Balak said to him: “Come and I will lead you to another place. If perhaps it may please God, then you may curse them from there.”
{23:28} And when he had led him on to the top of mount Peor, which looks out toward the wilderness,
{23:29} Balaam said to him, “Build seven altars here for me, and prepare as many calves, and the same number of rams.”
{23:30} Balak did as Balaam had said, and he placed on each altar a calf and a ram.
{24:1} And when Balaam had seen that it was pleasing to the Lord that he should bless Israel, he by no means went out as he had gone before, to seek divination. But directing his face opposite the desert,
{24:2} and lifting up his eyes, he saw Israel dwelling in tents by their tribes. And with the Spirit of God rushing into him,
{24:3} taking up his parable, he said: “Balaam, the son of Beor, the man whose eye has been obstructed,
{24:4} the hearer of the sermon of God, he who has gazed upon a vision of the Almighty, he who falls down and so his eyes are opened, has declared:
{24:5} ‘How beautiful are your tabernacles, O Jacob, and your tents, O Israel!
{24:6} They are like forested valleys, like gardens irrigated next to rivers, like tabernacles which the Lord has fixed, like cedars close to waters.
{24:7} Water shall flow from his jar, and his offspring shall be amid many waters, because Agag, his king, shall be taken, and his kingdom shall be removed.
{24:8} Away from Egypt, God has led him, whose strength is like the rhinoceros. They shall devour the nations that are his enemies, and break their bones, and pierce them with arrows.
{24:9} Lying down, he has slept like a lion, and like a lioness, whom no one would dare to awaken. He who blesses you, shall himself also be blessed. He who curses you, shall be considered cursed.”
{24:10} And Balak, being angry against Balaam, clapped his hands together and said: “I called you to curse my enemies, and, to the contrary, you have blessed them three times.
{24:11} Return to your place. I had decided, indeed, to honor you greatly, but the Lord has deprived you of the designated honor.”
{24:12} Balaam responded to Balak: “Did I not say to your messengers, whom you sent to me:
{24:13} Even if Balak would give me his house, filled with silver and gold, I still could not go away from the word of the Lord my God, so as to offer anything, either good or evil, from my own heart; but whatever the Lord will speak, this, too, I shall speak.
{24:14} Yet truly, as I continue on to my own people, I will give you counsel as to what this people shall do to your people in the end times.”
{24:15} Therefore, taking up his parable, he again spoke: “Balaam the son of Beor, the man whose eye has been obstructed,
{24:16} the hearer of the sermon of God, he who knows the doctrine of the Most High, and who sees the visions of the Almighty, who, falling down, has his eyes opened, has declared:
{24:17} I shall see him, but not presently. I shall gaze upon him, but not soon. A star shall rise out of Jacob, and a rod shall spring up from Israel. And he shall strike down the commanders of Moab, and he shall devastate all the sons of Seth.
{24:18} And he shall possess Idumea; the inheritance of Seir shall fall to their enemies. Yet truly, Israel shall act with strength.
{24:19} From Jacob will be he who shall be ruler. And he shall perish the remnants of the city.”
{24:20} And when he saw Amalek, taking up his parable, he said: “Amalek, first among the Gentiles, whose very end shall be perdition.”
{24:21} Likewise, he saw the Kainites, and taking up his parable, he said: “Robust, indeed, is your habitation. But though you will set your nest in a rock,
{24:22} and you will be elect among the stock of Kain, how long will you be able to remain? For Assur shall take you captive.”
{24:23} And taking up his parable once more he said: “Alas! Who will be able to survive, when God will do these things?
{24:24} They shall arrive in Greek warships from Italy. They shall overcome the Assyrians, and they shall devastate the Hebrews, and yet, at the very end, even they themselves shall perish.”
{24:25} And Balaam rose up, and he returned to his place. Likewise, Balak went back, along the way by which he had arrived.
{25:1} Now Israel, at that time, dwelt in Shittim, and the people were fornicating with the daughters of Moab,
{25:2} who called them to their sacrifices. And they ate, and they adored their gods.
{25:3} And Israel was initiated into Baal of Peor. And so the Lord, being angry,
{25:4} said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people, and hang them on gallows against the sun, so that my fury may be averted from Israel.”
{25:5} And Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Let each one kill his neighbors, who have been initiated into Baal of Peor.”
{25:6} And behold, one of the sons of Israel entered, in the sight of his brothers, to a prostitute of Midian, within view of Moses and of all the crowd of the sons of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle.
{25:7} And when Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, had seen it, he rose up from the midst of the multitude, and, seizing a dagger,
{25:8} he entered after the Israelite man, into the brothel, and he pierced both of them at the same time, specifically, the man and the woman at the location of their genitals. And the scourge ceased from among the sons of Israel.
{25:9} And there were slain twenty-four thousand men.
{25:10} And the Lord said to Moses:
{25:11} “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has averted my wrath from the sons of Israel. For he was moved against them by my zeal, so that I myself, in my zeal, might not wipe away the sons of Israel.
{25:12} Because of this, say to him: Behold, I give to him the peace of my covenant.
{25:13} And the covenant of the everlasting priesthood shall be as much for him as for his offspring. For he was zealous on behalf of his God, and he has made expiation for the wickedness of the sons of Israel.”
{25:14} Now the name of the Israelite man, who was killed with the Midianite woman, was Zimri the son of Salu, a leader from the kinship and tribe of Simeon.
{25:15} Moreover, the Midianite woman, who was put to death together with him, was called Cozbi the daughter of Zur, a most noble leader among the Midianites.
{25:16} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{25:17} “Let the Midianites perceive you as enemies, and strike them down,
{25:18} for they, too, have behaved with hostility against you, and they have deceived you insidiously by means of the idol Peor, and by Cozbi, the daughter of a commander of Midian, their sister, who was struck down in the day of the scourge because of the sacrilege of Peor.”
{26:1} After the blood of the guilty was shed, the Lord said to Moses, and to Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest:
{26:2} “Number the entire sum of the sons of Israel, from twenty years and above, by their houses and kinships, all who are able to go forth to war.”
{26:3} And so, Moses and Eleazar the priest, who were in the plains of Moab, above the Jordan, opposite Jericho, spoke to those who were
{26:4} from twenty years and above, just as the Lord had commanded. And this is their number:
{26:5} Ruben, the firstborn of Israel; his son, Hanoch, from whom is the family of the Hanochites; and Pallu, from whom is the family of the Palluites;
{26:6} and Hezron, from whom is the family of the Hezronites; and Carmi, from whom is the family of the Carmites.
{26:7} These are the families of the stock of Ruben, whose number was found to be forty-three thousand and seven hundred thirty.
{26:8} The son of Phallu: Eliab;
{26:9} his sons, Nemuel and Dathan and Abiram. These are Dathan and Abiram, the leaders of the people, who rose up against Moses and Aaron in the sedition at Korah, when they rebelled against the Lord.
{26:10} And the earth, opening its mouth, devoured Korah, with many others dying, when the fire burned two hundred fifty men. And a great miracle was wrought,
{26:11} so that, when Korah perished, his sons did not perish.
{26:12} The sons of Simeon, by their kinships: Nemuel, from him is the family of the Nemuelites; Jamin, from him is the family of the Jaminites; Jachin, from him is the family of the Jachinites;
{26:13} Sohar, from him is the family of the Soharites; Shaul, from him is the family of the Shaulites.
{26:14} These are the families of the stock of Simeon, whose entire number was twenty-two thousand two hundred.
{26:15} The sons of Gad, by their kinships: Zephon, from him is the family of the Zephonites; Haggi, from him is the family of the Haggites; Shuni, from him is the family of the Shunites;
{26:16} Ozni, from him is the family of the Oznites; Eri, from him is the family of the Erites;
{26:17} Arod, from him is the family of the Arodites; Areli, from him is the family of the Arelites.
{26:18} These are the families of Gad, whose entire number was forty thousand five hundred.
{26:19} The sons of Judah: Er and Onan, who both died in the land of Canaan.
{26:20} And these were the sons of Judah, by their kinships: Shelah, from whom is the family of the Shelahites; Perez, from whom is the family of the Perezites; Zerah, from whom is the family of the Zerahites.
{26:21} Moreover, the sons of Phares were: Hezron, from whom is the family of the Hezronites; and Hamul, from whom is the family of the Hamulites.
{26:22} These are the families of Judah, whose entire number was seventy-six thousand five hundred.
{26:23} The sons of Issachar, by their kinships: Tola from whom is the family of the Tolaites; Puvah, from whom is the family of the Puvahites;
{26:24} Jashub, from whom is the family of the Jashubites; Shimron, from whom is the family of the Shimronites.
{26:25} These are the kinships of Issachar, whose number was sixty-four thousand three hundred.
{26:26} The sons of Zebulon by their kinships: Sered, from whom is the family of the Seredites; Elon, from whom is the family of the Elonites; Jahleel, from whom is the family of the Jahleelites.
{26:27} These are the kinships of Zebulun, whose number was sixty thousand five hundred.
{26:28} The sons of Joseph by their kinships: Manasseh and Ephraim.
{26:29} From Manasseh was born Machir, from whom is the family of the Machirites. Machir conceived Gilead, from whom is the family of the Gileadites.
{26:30} Gilead had sons: Jezer, from whom is the family of the Jezerites; and Helek, from whom is the family of the Helekites;
{26:31} and Asriel, from whom is the family of the Asrielites; and Shechem, from whom is the family of the Shechemites;
{26:32} and Shemida, from whom is the family of the Shemidaites; and Hepher, from whom is the family of the Hepherites.
{26:33} Now Hepher was the father of Zelophehad, who had no sons, but only daughters, whose names are these: Mahlah, and Noa, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah.
{26:34} These are the families of Manasseh, and their number was fifty-two thousand seven hundred.
{26:35} Now the sons of Ephraim by their kinships were these: Shuthelah, from whom is the family of the Shuthelahites; Becher, from whom is the family of the Becherites; Tahan, from whom is the family of the Tahanites.
{26:36} Furthermore, the son of Shuthelah was Eran, from whom is the family of the Eranites.
{26:37} These are the kinships of the sons of Ephraim, whose number was thirty-two thousand five hundred.
{26:38} These are the sons of Joseph by their families: the sons of Benjamin in their kinships: Bela, from whom is the family of the Belaites; Ashbel, from whom is the family of the Ashbelites; Ahiram, from whom is the family of the Ahiramites;
{26:39} Shupham, from whom is the family of the Shuphamites; Hupham, from whom is the family of the Huphamites.
{26:40} The sons of Bela: Arad and Naaman. From Arad, the family of the Aradites; from Naaman, the family of the Naamanites.
{26:41} These are the sons of Benjamin by their kinships, whose number was forty-five thousand six hundred.
{26:42} The sons of Dan by their kinships: Shuham, from whom is the family of the Shuhamites. These are the kinships of Dan by their families.
{26:43} All these were Shuhamites, whose number was sixty-four thousand four hundred.
{26:44} The sons of Asher by their kinships: Imnah, from whom is the family of the Imnahites; Ishvi, from whom is the family of the Ishvites; Beriah, from whom is the family of the Beriahites.
{26:45} The sons of Beriah: Heber, from whom is the family of the Heberites; and Malchiel, from whom is the family of the Malchielites.
{26:46} Now the name of the daughter of Asher was Serah.
{26:47} These are the kinships of the sons of Asher, and their number was fifty-three thousand four hundred.
{26:48} The sons of Naphtali by their kinships: Jahzeel, from whom is the family of the Jahzeelites; Guni, from whom is the family of the Gunites;
{26:49} Jezer, from whom is the family of the Jezerites; Shillem, from whom is the family of the Shillemites.
{26:50} These are the kinships of the sons of Naphtali by their families, whose number was forty-five thousand four hundred.
{26:51} This is the sum of the sons of Israel, who were counted: six hundred thousand and one thousand seven hundred thirty.
{26:52} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{26:53} “The land shall be divided to these, as their possessions, according to the number of their names.
{26:54} To the greater number you shall give a greater portion, and to the lesser number, a lesser portion. To each one, just as they have now been counted, a possession shall be delivered.
{26:55} Yet only in so far as the land is divided by lot to a tribe and to families.
{26:56} Whatever the lot will happen to be, it shall be accepted, either by the greater, or by the lesser.
{26:57} Likewise, this is the number of the sons of Levi by their families: Gershon, from whom is the family of the Gershonites; Kohath, from whom is the family of the Kohathites; Merari, from whom is the family of the Merarites.
{26:58} These are the families of Levi: The family of Libni, the family of Hebroni, the family of Mahli, the family of Mushi, the family of Korah. Yet truly, Kohath conceived Amram,
{26:59} who had a wife, Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, who was born to him in Egypt. She bore, to her husband Amram: sons, Aaron and Moses, as well as their sister, Miriam.
{26:60} From Aaron were born Nadab and Abihu, and Eleazar and Ithamar.
{26:61} Of these, Nadab and Abihu died, when they had offered strange fire before the Lord.
{26:62} And these were all who were numbered: twenty-three thousand of the male gender, from one month and above. For they were not counted among the sons of Israel, neither was a possession given to them with the others.
{26:63} This is the number of the sons of Israel, who were enrolled by Moses and by Eleazar the priest, in the plains of Moab, above the Jordan, opposite Jericho.
{26:64} Among these, not one of them was numbered before, by Moses and Aaron in the desert of Sinai.
{26:65} For the Lord had foretold that all would die in the wilderness. And not one of them remained, except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
{27:1} Then there approached the daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, who was the son of Joseph: and their names are Mahlah, and Noa, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah.
{27:2} And they stood before Moses and Eleazar the priest, and all the leaders of the people, at the door of the tabernacle of the covenant, and they said:
{27:3} “Our father died in the desert, and was not with the sedition, which was stirred up against the Lord under Korah, but he died in his own sin; he had no male sons. Why is his name taken away from his family, because he had no son? Give us a possession among the kinsmen of our father.”
{27:4} And Moses referred their case to the judgment of the Lord.
{27:5} And the Lord said to him:
{27:6} “The daughters of Zelophehad are asking for something just. So give them a possession among the kinsmen of their father, and let them succeed him in his inheritance.
{27:7} And to the sons of Israel, you shall speak these things:
{27:8} When a man dies without a son, his inheritance shall be transferred to his daughter.
{27:9} If he has no daughter, his brothers shall succeed him.
{27:10} But if there were also no brothers, you shall give the inheritance to the brothers of his father.
{27:11} But if he has no paternal uncles, the inheritance shall be given to those who are closest to him. And this shall be, for the sons of Israel, consecrated as a perpetual law, just as the Lord has instructed Moses.”
{27:12} The Lord also said to Moses: “Ascend onto this mountain, Abarim, and contemplate from there the land, which I will give to the sons of Israel.
{27:13} And when you have seen it, you shall then go to your people, just as your brother Aaron went.
{27:14} For you offended me in the desert of Sin at the Contradiction of the multitude; neither were you willing to sanctify me in their sight over the waters. These are the Waters of Contradiction at Kadesh in the desert of Sin.”
{27:15} Moses answered him:
{27:16} “May the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, provide a man, who may be over this multitude,
{27:17} and who may be able to exit and enter before them, and who may lead them out or lead them in: lest the people of the Lord be like sheep without a shepherd.”
{27:18} And the Lord said to him: “Take Joshua, the son of Nun, a man in whom the Spirit is, and place your hand upon him.
{27:19} And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest and the entire multitude.
{27:20} And you shall give him the precepts in the sight of all, and a portion of your glory, so that the entire congregation of the sons of Israel may listen to him.
{27:21} On his behalf, if anything is to be done, Eleazar the priest shall consult the Lord. He, and all the sons of Israel with him, and the rest of the multitude, shall go out and enter in at his word.”
{27:22} Moses did just as the Lord had instructed. And when he had brought Joshua, he set him before Eleazar the priest, and before the entire gathering of the people.
{27:23} And imposing his hands upon his head, he repeated all that the Lord had commanded.
{28:1} The Lord also said to Moses:
{28:2} “Instruct the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: Offer my oblation and bread, and the incense of most sweet odor, at their proper times.
{28:3} These are the sacrifices which you must offer: Two immaculate one-year-old lambs each day as a perpetual holocaust.
{28:4} You shall offer one in morning, and the other in the evening,
{28:5} and the tenth part of an ephah of fine wheat flour, which has been sprinkled with the purest oil, and which has the measure of the fourth part of a hin.
{28:6} It is the continual holocaust which you offered at mount Sinai as a most sweet odor of incense to the Lord.
{28:7} And you shall offer a libation of wine, of the fourth part of a hin for each lamb, in the Sanctuary of the Lord.
{28:8} And you shall offer the other lamb similarly, in the evening, according to all the rites of the morning sacrifice and its libations, as an oblation of most sweet odor to the Lord.
{28:9} Then, on the Sabbath day, you shall offer two immaculate one-year-old lambs, and two tenths of fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil, as sacrifice, as well as the libations
{28:10} that are usually poured out on each Sabbath as a perpetual holocaust.
{28:11} Then, on the first day of the month, you shall offer a holocaust to the Lord: two calves from the herd, one ram, seven immaculate one-year-old lambs,
{28:12} and three tenths of fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil, as sacrifice, for each calf, and two tenths of fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil, for each ram,
{28:13} and one tenth of fine wheat flour with oil, as a sacrifice, for each lamb. It is a holocaust of most sweet odor and also an incense to the Lord.
{28:14} Now these shall be the libations of wine, which are to be poured out for each victim: one half portion of a hin for each calf, one third for a ram, and one fourth for a lamb. This shall be the holocaust for all the months, as they succeed one another in the turning of the year.
{28:15} Likewise, a he-goat shall be offered to the Lord for sin, with the perpetual holocaust and its libations.
{28:16} Then, in the first month, the fourteenth day of the month shall be the Passover of the Lord.
{28:17} And the fifteenth day shall be a solemnity. For seven days, they shall eat unleavened bread.
{28:18} And the first day of these days shall be venerable and holy; you shall not do any servile work in it.
{28:19} And you shall offer the incense of a holocaust to the Lord, two calves from the herd, one ram, seven immaculate one-year-old lambs;
{28:20} and with each sacrifice, from fine wheat flour which has been sprinkled with oil, three tenths for each calf, and two tenths for each ram,
{28:21} and one tenth for each lamb, that is, for the seven lambs;
{28:22} and one he-goat for sin, as an expiation for you,
{28:23} aside from the morning holocaust, which you shall always offer.
{28:24} You shall do this on each day of the seven days, as fuel for the fire, and as a most sweet odor to the Lord, which shall rise up from the holocaust and from each of the libations.
{28:25} Likewise, the seventh day shall be very honored and holy for you. Any servile work, you shall not do in it.
{28:26} And also the day of the first-fruits, after the weeks have been fulfilled, when you shall offer new fruits to the Lord, shall be venerable and holy. You shall not do any servile work in it.
{28:27} And you shall offer a holocaust as a most sweet odor to the Lord: two calves from the herd, one ram, and seven immaculate one-year-old lambs,
{28:28} and also, as their sacrifices, fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil, three tenths for each calf, two for each ram,
{28:29} one tenth for each lamb, which all together are seven lambs; likewise, a he-goat,
{28:30} which is slain for expiation, aside from the perpetual holocaust and its libations.
{28:31} You shall offer only what is immaculate, with their libations.”
{29:1} “Now the first day of the seventh month also shall be venerable and holy to you. In it, you shall not do any servile work, because it is the day of the sounding of the trumpets.
{29:2} And you shall offer a holocaust, as a most sweet odor to the Lord: one calf from the herd, one ram, and seven immaculate one-year-old lambs;
{29:3} and, as their sacrifices, fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil: three tenths for each calf, two tenths for a ram,
{29:4} one tenth for a lamb, which all together are seven lambs;
{29:5} and a he-goat for sin, which is offered as an expiation for the people,
{29:6} aside from the holocaust of the first day of the month with its sacrifices, and the perpetual holocaust with the usual libations. By these same ceremonies, you shall offer incense as a most sweet odor to the Lord.
{29:7} Likewise, the tenth day of this seventh month shall be for you holy and venerable, and you shall afflict your souls. You shall do no servile work in it.
{29:8} And you shall offer a holocaust to the Lord, as a most sweet odor: one calf from the herd, one ram, seven immaculate one-year-old lambs;
{29:9} and for their sacrifices, fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil: three tenths for each calf, two tenths for a ram,
{29:10} one tenth for each lamb, which are all together seven lambs;
{29:11} and a he-goat for sin, apart from those things which are usually offered for offenses as an expiation, and as a perpetual holocaust, with their sacrifice and libations.
{29:12} Yet truly, on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, which shall be for you holy and venerable, you shall not do any servile work in it, but you shall celebrate a solemnity to the Lord for seven days.
{29:13} And you shall offer a holocaust, as a most sweet odor to the Lord: thirteen calves from the herd, two rams, fourteen immaculate one-year-old lambs;
{29:14} and as their libations, fine wheat flour sprinkled with oil: three tenths for each calf, which is all together thirteen calves, and two tenths for each ram, that is, all together two rams,
{29:15} and one tenth for each lamb, which is all together fourteen lambs;
{29:16} and a he-goat for sin, apart from the perpetual holocaust, and the sacrifice and its libation.
{29:17} On the next day, you shall offer twelve calves from the herd, two rams, and fourteen immaculate one-year-old lambs.
{29:18} And the sacrifices and libations for each of the calves and the rams and the lambs, you shall celebrate according to the rite,
{29:19} with a he-goat for sin, apart from the perpetual holocaust, and the sacrifice and its libation.
{29:20} On the third day, you shall offer eleven calves, two rams, and fourteen immaculate one-year-old lambs.
{29:21} And the sacrifices and libations for each of the calves and the rams and the lambs, you shall celebrate according to the rite,
{29:22} with a he-goat for sin, apart from the perpetual holocaust, and the sacrifice and its libation.
{29:23} On the fourth day, you shall offer ten calves, two rams, and fourteen immaculate one-year-old lambs.
{29:24} And the sacrifices and the libations for each of the calves and the rams and the lambs, you shall celebrate according to the rite,
{29:25} with a he-goat for sin, apart from the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation.
{29:26} On the fifth day, you shall offer nine calves, two rams, and fourteen immaculate one-year-old lambs.
{29:27} And the sacrifices and libations for each of the calves and the rams and the lambs, you shall celebrate according to the rite,
{29:28} with a he-goat for sin, apart from the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation.
{29:29} On the sixth day, you shall offer eight calves, two rams, and fourteen immaculate one-year-old lambs.
{29:30} And the sacrifices and libations for each of the calves and the rams and the lambs, you shall celebrate according to the rite,
{29:31} with a he-goat for sin, apart from the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation.
{29:32} On the seventh day, you shall offer seven calves, and two rams, and fourteen immaculate one-year-old lambs.
{29:33} And the sacrifices and libations for each of the calves and the rams and the lambs, you shall celebrate according to the rite,
{29:34} with a he-goat for sin, apart from the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation.
{29:35} On the eighth day, which is most honored, you shall not do any servile work,
{29:36} offering a holocaust as a most sweet odor to the Lord: one calf, one ram, and seven immaculate one-year-old lambs.
{29:37} And the sacrifices and libations for each of the calves and the rams and the lambs, you shall celebrate according to the rite,
{29:38} with a he-goat for sin, apart from the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation.
{29:39} These things you shall offer to the Lord in your solemnities, aside from the vowed and voluntary oblations, as a holocaust, as a sacrifice, as a libation, or as peace-offering victims.”
{30:1} And Moses explained to the sons of Israel all that the Lord had commanded him.
{30:2} And he said to the leaders of the tribes of the sons of Israel: “This is the word, which the Lord has instructed:
{30:3} If any man makes a vow to the Lord, or binds himself by an oath, he shall not make his word null and void, but all that he has promised, he shall fulfill.
{30:4} If a woman, who is in her father’s house, vows anything, or binds herself by an oath, and she is still in a state of childhood, if her father knew of the vow which she has promised or of the oath by which she has obligated her soul, and he kept silent, she shall be liable to the vow:
{30:5} whatever she has promised or swore, she shall complete in deed.
{30:6} But if her father, as soon as he had heard it, had contradicted it, both her vows and her oaths shall be nullified, neither shall she be held liable to the promise, because her father had contradicted it.
{30:7} If she has a husband, and she has vowed anything, then, once the word has gone out of her mouth, she will have obligated her soul by an oath.
{30:8} On the day that her husband will hear of it, and yet not contradict it, she shall be liable to the vow, and she shall repay whatever she has promised.
{30:9} But if, as soon as he hears it, he contradicts it, then he will have caused her promises, and the words by which she had bound her soul, to be null and void. The Lord will be favorable to her.
{30:10} Widows and divorced women shall repay whatever they have vowed.
{30:11} If a wife in the house of her husband has bound herself by a vow or an oath,
{30:12} if her husband heard it and remained silent, and he did not contradict the promise, she shall repay what she had promised.
{30:13} But if he promptly contradicts it, she shall not be held liable to the promise. For her husband has contradicted it. And the Lord will be favorable to her.
{30:14} If she has vowed or bound herself by oath, in order to afflict her soul by fasting, or by abstaining from other things, it shall be for the arbitration of her husband, as to whether or not she may do it.
{30:15} But if the husband, upon hearing it, remains silent, and he delays judgment until another day, whatever she had vowed or promised, she shall repay, because when he first heard it, he remained silent.
{30:16} And if he contradicted it only sometime after he had known about it, he shall bear his iniquity.”
{30:17} These are the laws which the Lord has appointed to Moses, between a husband and a wife, between a father and a daughter, who is still in the state of childhood or who remains in her father’s house.
{31:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{31:2} “First, avenge the sons of Israel from the Midianites, and then you shall be gathered to your people.”
{31:3} And immediately Moses said: “Arm the men among you for a battle, so that they may be able to fulfill the retribution of the Lord on the Midianites.
{31:4} Let one thousand men be chosen from each tribe of Israel, who shall be sent to war.”
{31:5} And they gave one thousand from each tribe, that is, twelve thousand foot soldiers for battle.
{31:6} And Moses sent them with Phinehas, the son of Eleazar the priest; also, he delivered to him the holy vessels, and the trumpets to sound.
{31:7} And when they had fought against the Midianites and had prevailed, they killed all the men.
{31:8} And they put to death by the sword their kings: Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, the five leaders of the nation, and also Balaam the son of Beor.
{31:9} And they seized their women and little ones, and all their cattle, and all their goods; whatever they were able to have, they despoiled.
{31:10} Both their cities and their villages, as well as their fortresses, they burned.
{31:11} And they carried away prey from everything that they had seized, both of men and of beasts.
{31:12} And they led these to Moses and Eleazar the priest, and to all the multitude of the sons of Israel. But the remainder of the articles they carried to the camp on the plains of Moab, next to the Jordan, opposite Jericho.
{31:13} Then Moses, and Eleazar the priest, and all the leaders of the assembly went out to meet them beyond the camp.
{31:14} And Moses, being angry with the leaders of the army, and the tribunes, and the centurions, who had arrived from the battle,
{31:15} said: “Why have you spared the females?
{31:16} Are not these the ones who deceived the sons of Israel at the suggestion of Balaam, and who caused you betray the Lord by the sin of Peor, because of which the people also were struck down?
{31:17} Therefore, put to death all of them: whatever is of the male sex, even among the little ones, and cut the throats of those women who have known men by sexual relations.
{31:18} But the young girls, and all female virgins, reserve for yourselves.
{31:19} And remain beyond the camp for seven days. Whoever has killed a man, or who has touched one that was killed, shall be purified on the third day and on the seventh day.
{31:20} And all of the spoils, whether it is a garment, or a vessel, or another useful thing, made from the pelts or hair of goats, or from wood, shall be expiated.”
{31:21} Likewise, Eleazar the priest spoke in this manner to the men of the army who had fought: “This is the precept of the law, which the Lord has commanded Moses:
{31:22} Gold, and silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin,
{31:23} and all that may be able to pass through fire, shall be purified by fire. But whatever is not able to sustain fire shall be sanctified with the waters of expiation.
{31:24} And you shall wash your garments on the seventh day, and, after having been purified, you shall enter the camp.”
{31:25} And the Lord also said to Moses:
{31:26} “Take the sum of those things which were captured, from man even to beast, you and Eleazar the priest, and the leaders of the common people.
{31:27} And you shall divide the prey equally, among those who went out to war and fought, and among the remainder of the multitude.
{31:28} And you shall separate a portion for the Lord from the portion of those who fought and were in the battle: one soul out of five hundred, as much from humans, as from oxen and donkeys and sheep.
{31:29} And you shall give it to Eleazar the priest, because these are the first-fruits of the Lord.
{31:30} Likewise, from the half of the portion belonging to the sons of Israel, you shall receive the fiftieth head of humans, and of oxen, and donkeys, and sheep, and of all living things, and you shall give these to the Levites who stand watch over the care of the tabernacle of the Lord.”
{31:31} And Moses and Eleazar did just as the Lord had instructed.
{31:32} Now the prey which the army had seized was six hundred seventy-five thousand sheep,
{31:33} seventy-two thousand oxen,
{31:34} sixty-one thousand donkeys,
{31:35} and thirty-two thousand human lives, of the female sex, who had not known men.
{31:36} And one half of the portion was given to those who had been in the battle: three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep.
{31:37} From these, for the portion of the Lord, there were accounted: six hundred seventy-five sheep;
{31:38} and from the thirty-six thousand oxen, seventy-two oxen;
{31:39} from the thirty thousand five hundred donkeys, sixty-one donkeys.
{31:40} From the sixteen thousand human souls, there fell to the portion of the Lord thirty-two souls.
{31:41} And Moses delivered the number of the first-fruits of the Lord to Eleazar the priest, just as had been commanded of him,
{31:42} from the one half portion belonging to the sons of Israel, which he had separated from the portion of those who had been in the battle.
{31:43} Yet truly, from the one half portion which fell to the remainder of the multitude, that is, from the three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep,
{31:44} and from the thirty-six thousand oxen,
{31:45} and from the thirty thousand five hundred donkeys,
{31:46} and from the sixteen thousand persons,
{31:47} Moses took the fiftieth head, and gave it to the Levites who stand watch at the tabernacle of the Lord, just as the Lord had instructed.
{31:48} And when the leaders of the army, and the tribunes, and the centurions had approached Moses, they said:
{31:49} “We, your servants, have taken a census of the number of the fighting men, whom we had under our hand, and indeed not one was lacking.
{31:50} For this reason, we offer as gifts to the Lord whatever gold each one was able to find amid the spoils, in anklets and arm bands, rings and bracelets, and little chains, so that you may intercede for us to the Lord.”
{31:51} And Moses and Eleazar the priest received all the gold in its various kinds,
{31:52} weighing sixteen thousand seven hundred fifty shekels, from the tribunes and the centurions.
{31:53} For whatever each one had taken away in the spoils was his own.
{31:54} And having been accepted, they took it into the tabernacle of the testimony, as a memorial of the sons of Israel before the Lord.
{32:1} Now the sons of Ruben and of Gad had many herds, and their substance in cattle was inestimable. And when they had seen that the lands of Jazer and Gilead were suitable for feeding animals,
{32:2} they went to Moses, and to Eleazar the priest and the leaders of the multitude, and they said:
{32:3} “Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Sebam, and Nebo, and Beon,
{32:4} the land, which the Lord has struck in the sight of the sons of Israel, is a very fertile region for pasturing animals. And we, your servants, have very many cattle.
{32:5} And so we beseech you, if we have found favor before you, that you give it to us, your subjects, as a possession, and that you not cause us cross the Jordan.”
{32:6} And Moses answered them: “Should your brothers go to battle, while you sit here?
{32:7} Why do you subvert the minds of the sons of Israel, so that they might not dare to cross into the place which the Lord will give to them?
{32:8} Did not your fathers act in the same way, when I sent them from Kadesh-Barnea to explore the land?
{32:9} And when they had gone all the way to the Valley of the Cluster of Grapes, having viewed the entire region, they subverted the hearts of the sons of Israel, so that they would not enter into the parts that the Lord gave to them.
{32:10} And being angry, the Lord swore an oath, saying:
{32:11} ‘These men, who ascended out of Egypt, from twenty years and above, will not see the land, which I have promised under an oath to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For they were not willing to follow me,
{32:12} except Caleb, the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, and Joshua the son of Nun; these have fulfilled my will.’
{32:13} And the Lord, being angry against Israel, led them in a course through the desert for forty years, until the entire generation, which had done evil in his sight, was consumed.
{32:14} And behold,” he said, “you have risen up in the place of your fathers, the offshoots and the nurslings of sinful men, in order to augment the fury of the Lord against Israel.
{32:15} But if you are not willing to follow him, he will leave the people behind in the wilderness, and you will have been the cause of all our deaths.”
{32:16} But approaching closer, they said: “We will manufacture sheep pens and cattle stalls, as well as fortified cities, for our little ones.
{32:17} But we ourselves will continue on, armed and girded for battle, before the sons of Israel, until we lead them to their places. Our little ones, and whatever we may be able to have, shall be in walled cities, because of the treachery of the inhabitants.
{32:18} We will not return to our houses, even until the sons of Israel may possess their inheritance.
{32:19} Neither will we seek anything across the Jordan, because we already have our possession on its eastern side.”
{32:20} And Moses said to them: “If you accomplish what you have promised, you may go out, equipped for battle, before the Lord.
{32:21} And let every fighting man cross over the Jordan, until the Lord overthrows his enemies,
{32:22} and all the land is subjected to him. Then you will be guiltless with the Lord and with Israel, and you will obtain the regions which you desire before the Lord.
{32:23} But if you do not do what you have said, no one could doubt that you will have sinned against God. And know this: your sin shall overtake you.
{32:24} Therefore, build cities for your little ones, and pens and stables for your sheep and cattle; and fulfill what you have promised.”
{32:25} And the sons of Gad and of Ruben said to Moses: “We are your servants, we shall do what you, our ruler, orders.
{32:26} We will leave behind our little ones, and our wives, and the sheep and cattle, in the cities of Gilead.
{32:27} And we, your servants, all well-equipped, will go forth to battle, just as you, our ruler, has spoken.”
{32:28} Therefore, Moses instructed Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the princes of the families throughout the tribes of Israel, and he said to them:
{32:29} “If the sons of Gad and the sons of Ruben cross over the Jordan with you, all armed for war before the Lord, and if the land becomes subject to you, give them Gilead as a possession.
{32:30} But if they are not willing to cross with you, armed, into the land of Canaan, then let them receive places among you for their dwellings.”
{32:31} And the sons of Gad and the sons of Ruben responded: “Just as the Lord has spoken to his servants, so shall we do.
{32:32} We will go forth, armed, before the Lord into the land of Canaan; and we acknowledge that we have already received our possession across the Jordan.”
{32:33} And so, Moses gave to the sons of Gad and of Ruben, and to half the tribe of Manasseh, the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon, king of the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og, king of Bashan, and their land with its surrounding cities.
{32:34} Therefore, the sons of Gad built up Dibon, and Ataroth, and Aroer,
{32:35} and Atroth and Shophan, and Jazer, and Jogbehah,
{32:36} and Beth-Nimrah, and Beth-Haran, as fortified cities with pens for their cattle.
{32:37} Yet truly, the sons of Ruben built up Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Kiriathaim,
{32:38} and Nebo, and Baal-meon (their names having been changed) and Sibmah, appointing names for the cities which they had built.
{32:39} Moreover, the sons of Machir, the son of Manasseh, continued on within Gilead, and they devastated it, putting to death its inhabitant, the Amorite.
{32:40} Therefore, Moses gave the land of Gilead to Machir, the son of Manasseh, and he lived in it.
{32:41} But Jair, the son of Manasseh, went out and occupied its villages, which he called Havoth Jair, that is, the Villages of Jair.
{32:42} Likewise, Nobah went forth and captured Kenath with its villages. And he called it by his own name, Nobah.
{33:1} These are the lodging places of the sons of Israel, who departed from Egypt by their companies under the hand of Moses and Aaron,
{33:2} which Moses wrote down according to the places of the encampments, which they changed upon the order of the Lord.
{33:3} Thus the sons of Israel set out from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month, on the day after the Passover, with an exalted hand, being seen by all the Egyptians.
{33:4} And these were burying their firstborn, whom the Lord had struck down (for so, too, did he carry out retribution against their gods).
{33:5} And they made camp at Soccoth.
{33:6} And from Soccoth they went to Etham, which is at the furthest limits of the wilderness.
{33:7} Departing from there, they arrived opposite Pi-hahiroth, which looks out toward Baal-zephon, and they were encamped before Migdol.
{33:8} And setting out from Pi-hahiroth, they crossed through the middle of the Sea into the wilderness. And having walked for three days through the desert of Etham, they made camp at Marah.
{33:9} And setting out from Marah, they arrived at Elim, where there were twelve fountains of water and seventy palm trees. And they set up camp there.
{33:10} But departing from there also, they fixed their tents above the Red Sea. And setting out from the Red Sea,
{33:11} they were encamped in the desert of Sin.
{33:12} Departing from there, they went to Dophkah.
{33:13} And setting out from Dophkah, they made camp at Alush.
{33:14} And departing from Alush, they fixed their tents at Rephidim, where the people lacked water to drink.
{33:15} And setting out from Rephidim, they camped in the desert of Sinai.
{33:16} But departing also from the wilderness of the Sinai, they arrived at the Graves of Lust.
{33:17} And setting out from the Graves of Lust, they were encamped at Hazeroth.
{33:18} And from Hazeroth, they went to Rithmah.
{33:19} And setting out from Rithmah, they made camp at Rimmon-perez.
{33:20} And departing from there, they arrived at Libnah.
{33:21} From Libnah, they made camp at Rissah.
{33:22} And departing from Rissah, they went to Kehelathah.
{33:23} Setting out from there, they were encamped at mount Shepher.
{33:24} Departing from mount Shepher, they went to Haradah.
{33:25} Continuing on from there, they made camp at Makheloth.
{33:26} And setting out from Makheloth, they went to Tahath.
{33:27} From Tahath, they made camp at Terah.
{33:28} Departing from there, they pitched their tents at Mithkah.
{33:29} And from Mithkah, they were encamped at Hashmonah.
{33:30} And setting out from Hashmonah, they went to Moseroth.
{33:31} And from Moseroth, they made camp at Bene-jaakan.
{33:32} And setting out from Bene-jaakan, they went to mount Gidgad.
{33:33} Setting out from there, they were encamped at Jotbathah.
{33:34} And from Jotbathah, they went to Abronah.
{33:35} And departing from Abronah, they made camp at Eziongeber.
{33:36} Setting out from there, they went into the desert of Sin, which is Kadesh.
{33:37} And departing from Kadesh, they encamped at mount Hor, at the furthermost limits of the land of Edom.
{33:38} And Aaron the priest ascended onto mount Hor, by the order of the Lord. And there he died, in the fortieth year of the departure of the sons of Israel from Egypt, in the fifth month, on the first day of the month,
{33:39} when he was one hundred twenty-three years old.
{33:40} And king Arad the Canaanite, who lived toward the south, heard that the sons of Israel had arrived in the land of Canaan.
{33:41} And setting out from mount Hor, they made camp at Zalmonah.
{33:42} Departing from there, they went to Punon.
{33:43} And setting out from Punon, they were encamped at Oboth.
{33:44} And from Oboth, they went to Iye-abarim, which is at the borders of the Moabites.
{33:45} And setting out from Iye-abarim, they fixed their tents at Dibon-gad.
{33:46} Departing from there, they made camp at Almon-diblathaim.
{33:47} And departing from Almon-diblathaim, they went to the mountains of Abarim, opposite Nebo.
{33:48} And setting out from the mountains of Abarim, they crossed over to the plains of Moab, above the Jordan, opposite Jericho.
{33:49} And they made camp there, from Beth-jeshimoth all the way to Abel-shittim, in the level places of the Moabites,
{33:50} where the Lord said to Moses:
{33:51} “Instruct the sons of Israel, and say to them: When you will have crossed over the Jordan, entering into the land of Canaan,
{33:52} destroy all the inhabitants of that land. Break their monuments, and shatter their statues, and lay waste to every exalted thing,
{33:53} cleansing the land and living in it. For I have given it you as a possession,
{33:54} which you shall divide among you by lot. To the greater number you shall give more, and to the lesser number, less. To each one, just as the lot shall fall, so shall the inheritance be distributed. The possession shall be divided by the tribes and families.
{33:55} But if you are not willing to put to death the inhabitants of the land, those who remain shall be to you like spikes in your eyes and lances in your sides, and they shall be adversaries to you in the land of your habitation.
{33:56} And whatever I had decided to do to them, I will do to you.”
{34:1} And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:
{34:2} “Instruct the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: When you will have entered into the land of Canaan, and it has fallen into your possession by lot, it shall be bound by these limits:
{34:3} The southern part shall begin from the wilderness of Sin, which is next to Edom, and it shall have the Sea of Salt as a limit to the east.
{34:4} It shall circle on the south side along the ascent of the Scorpion, by this way crossing into Senna, and passing through, from the south, as far as Kadesh-barnea, from which its confines shall go out to the town called Adar, and extend even to Azmon.
{34:5} And its limits shall go around from Azmon to the Torrent of Egypt, and shall end at the shore of the Great Sea.
{34:6} Then the western region shall begin from the Great Sea, and the same shall be its end.
{34:7} Furthermore, toward the northern region, its limits shall begin from the Great Sea, passing through even to the highest mountain.
{34:8} From there, it limits shall advance into Hamath, as far as the limits of Zedad.
{34:9} And its confines shall go all the way to Ziphron, and to the village of Enan. These shall be the limits on the northern side.
{34:10} From there, its limits shall be measured, facing the east side, from the village of Enan as far as Shepham.
{34:11} And from Shepham, the boundaries shall descend into Riblah, opposite the fountain of Daphnis. From there, the boundaries shall pass through, opposite the east, to the Sea of Chinnereth,
{34:12} and shall extend as far as the Jordan, and, at the furthest extent, shall be enclosed by the Sea of Salt. You shall have this land, with its borders all around.”
{34:13} And Moses instructed the sons of Israel, saying: “This shall be the land which you shall possess by lot, and which the Lord has ordered to be given to the nine tribes, and to the half tribe.
{34:14} For the tribe of the sons of Ruben, by their families, and the tribe of the sons of Gad, according to the number of their kinships, and also one half of the tribe of Manasseh,
{34:15} that is, two and a half tribes, have received their portion across the Jordan, opposite Jericho, toward the eastern side.”
{34:16} And the Lord said to Moses:
{34:17} “These are the names of the men, who shall divide the land for you: Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun,
{34:18} and one leader from each tribe,
{34:19} whose names are these: from the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh;
{34:20} from the tribe of Simeon, Samuel the son of Ammihud;
{34:21} from the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon;
{34:22} from the tribe of the sons of Dan, Bukki the son of Jogli;
{34:23} of the sons of Joseph, from the tribe of Manasseh, Hanniel the son of Ephod;
{34:24} from the tribe of Ephraim, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan;
{34:25} from the tribe of Zebulon, Elizaphan the son of Parnach;
{34:26} from the tribe of Issachar, Paltiel the leader, the son of Azzan;
{34:27} from the tribe of Asher, Ahihud the son of Shelomi;
{34:28} from the tribe of Naphtali, Pedahel the son of Ammihud.”
{34:29} These are the ones that the Lord has ordered to divide the land of Canaan to the sons of Israel.
{35:1} And the Lord also spoke these things to Moses in the plains of Moab, above the Jordan, opposite Jericho:
{35:2} “Instruct the sons of Israel, so that they may give to the Levites, from their possessions,
{35:3} cities as dwelling places, with their surrounding suburbs, so that they may lodge in the towns, and so that the suburbs may be for cattle and beasts of burden.
{35:4} The suburbs shall extend from the outer walls of the cities, all around, for the space of one thousand steps.
{35:5} Facing the east, there shall be two thousand cubits, and facing the south, similarly, there shall be two thousand cubits. Toward the sea, also, which looks out toward the west, there shall be the same measure, and the northern region shall be bounded by equal limits. And the cities shall be in the center, and the suburbs shall be outside.
{35:6} Now, from the towns which you shall give to the Levites, six shall be separated for the assistance of fugitives, so that he who has shed blood may flee to them. And, aside from these, there shall be forty-two other towns,
{35:7} that is, all together forty-eight with their suburbs.
{35:8} And concerning these cities, which shall be given from the possessions of the sons of Israel: from those who have more, more shall be taken, and from those who have less, less shall be taken. Each shall give towns to the Levites according to the measure of their inheritance.”
{35:9} The Lord said to Moses:
{35:10} “Speak to the sons of Israel, and you shall say to them: When you will have crossed the Jordan into the land of Canaan,
{35:11} discern which cities ought to be for the protection of fugitives who have shed blood unwillingly.
{35:12} And when a fugitive is in these, the kinsman of the deceased shall not be able to kill him, until he stands in the sight of the multitude and his case is judged.
{35:13} Then, among those cities which are separated for relief to fugitives,
{35:14} three shall be across the Jordan, and three in the land of Canaan,
{35:15} as much for the sons of Israel as for newcomers and sojourners, so that anyone who has shed blood unwillingly may flee to these places.
{35:16} If anyone will have struck someone with iron, and he who was struck will have died, then he shall be guilty of homicide, and he himself shall die.
{35:17} If he will have thrown a stone, and he who has been struck lies dead, then he shall be punished similarly.
{35:18} If he who has been struck with wood passes away, he shall be avenged by the blood of the one who struck him.
{35:19} The close relative of the deceased shall put to death the murderer; as soon as he apprehends him, he shall put him to death.
{35:20} If, out of hatred, anyone assaults a man, or throws anything at him with ill intent,
{35:21} or, while being his enemy, strikes him with his hand, and so he has died, the attacker shall be guilty of murder. The kinsman of the deceased, as soon as he finds him, shall cut his throat.
{35:22} But if by chance, and without hatred
{35:23} or animosity, he will have done any of these things,
{35:24} and this has been proven in the hearing of the people, and the questions have been aired, between the one who struck and the close relative,
{35:25} then the innocent one shall be freed from the hand of the revenger, and he shall be returned by this judgment into the city to which he had fled, and he shall stay there until the high priest, who has been anointed with the holy oil, dies.
{35:26} If the one who has killed has been found beyond the limits of the cities which have been assigned to the exiled,
{35:27} and he has been struck by him who is avenging blood, he who killed him shall not be harmed.
{35:28} For the fugitive ought to have resided in the city, until the death of the high priest. Then, after he is dead, the one who has killed shall be returned to his own land.
{35:29} These things shall be a perpetual ordinance in all your habitations.
{35:30} The punishment of a murderer shall be based upon testimony; but no one shall be condemned upon the testimony of only one person.
{35:31} You shall not accept money from him who is guilty of blood, and he shall be put to death promptly.
{35:32} Exiles and fugitives, prior to the death of the high priest, are by no means able to be returned to their own cities.
{35:33} Do not pollute the land of your habitation, so as to stain it with the blood of the innocent; neither is it able to be expiated in any way other than by the blood of him who has shed the blood of another.
{35:34} And so shall your possession be cleansed, while I myself am abiding with you. For I am the Lord, who lives among the sons of Israel.”
{36:1} Then the leaders of the families of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, from the stock of the sons of Joseph, approached and spoke to Moses before the leaders of Israel, and they said:
{36:2} “The Lord has instructed you, our ruler, so that you would divide the land by lot to the sons of Israel, and so that you would give to the daughters of Zelophehad, our brother, the possession owed to their father.
{36:3} But if men of another tribe receive them as wives, their possession will follow them, and having been transferred to another tribe, there will be a reduction in our inheritance.
{36:4} And so it may be that, when the Jubilee of remission, that is, the fiftieth year, has arrived, the distribution by lots shall be confounded, and the possession of the one shall be transferred to others.”
{36:5} Moses answered the sons of Israel, and, at the instruction of the Lord, he said: “The tribe of the sons of Joseph has spoken correctly.
{36:6} And so, this is the law which has been promulgated by the Lord about the daughters of Zelophehad: Let them marry whomever they may wish, but only among the men of their own tribe,
{36:7} lest the possession of the sons of Israel become commingled, from tribe to tribe. For all men shall take wives from their own tribe and kinship;
{36:8} and all women shall take husbands from their same tribe, so that the inheritance may remain within the families,
{36:9} and so that the tribes may not be mingled together, but may remain such as they were separated by the Lord.”
{36:10} And the daughters of Zelophehad acted according to what was ordered.
{36:11} And Mahlah, and Tirzah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Noa were wed to the sons of their paternal uncle,
{36:12} from the family of Manasseh, who was a son of Joseph. And the possession which had been distributed to them remained in the tribe and family of their father.
{36:13} These are the commandments and judgments which the Lord ordered by the hand of Moses to the sons of Israel, in the plains of Moab, above the Jordan, opposite Jericho.
{1:1} These are the words which Moses spoke to all of Israel, across the Jordan, in the plain of the wilderness opposite the Red Sea, between Paran and Tophel and Laban and Hazeroth, where gold is very plentiful,
{1:2} eleven days from Horeb, by way of Mount Seir as far as Kadesh-barnea.
{1:3} In the fortieth year, on the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, Moses told the sons of Israel all that the Lord had instructed him. And so he spoke to them,
{1:4} after he had struck down Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon, and Og, the king of Bashan, who resided at Ashtaroth and at Edrei,
{1:5} across the Jordan in the land of Moab. And so, Moses began to explain the law, and to say:
{1:6} “The Lord our God spoke to us at Horeb, saying: ‘You have remained long enough on this mountain.
{1:7} Turn back and go to the mountain of the Amorites, and to the other places which are near it: the plains as well as the mountainous regions, and the low-lying places opposite the south and along the shore of the sea, the land of the Canaanites, and Lebanon, as far as the great river Euphrates.’
{1:8} ‘Lo,’ he said, ‘I have delivered it to you. Enter and possess that which the Lord swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that he would give it to them, and to their offspring after them.’
{1:9} And I said to you, at that time:
{1:10} ‘I alone am not able to sustain you. For the Lord, your God, has multiplied you, and you are today like the stars of heaven, very many.
{1:11} May the Lord, the God of your fathers, add to this number many thousands more, and may he bless you, just as he has said.
{1:12} Alone, I do not have the strength to endure your arbitrations and judgments and disputes.
{1:13} Offer, from among you, wise and experienced men, those whose conversation has been proven within your tribes, so that I may appoint them as your rulers.’
{1:14} Then you responded to me: ‘What you intend to do is a good thing.’
{1:15} And so, I took from your tribes men, wise and noble, and I appointed them as rulers, as tribunes and centurions, and as leaders over fifty and over ten, who would teach you each thing.
{1:16} And I instructed them, saying: ‘Listen to them, and judge what is just, whether he is one of your citizens or a sojourner.
{1:17} There shall be no favoritism to any persons. So you shall listen to the little as well as to the great. And you shall not accept anyone’s reputation, for this is the judgment of God. But if anything seems difficult to you, then refer it to me, and I will hear it.’
{1:18} And I instructed you in all that you were obliged to do.
{1:19} Then, setting out from Horeb, we crossed through a terrible and great wasteland, which you saw along the way of the mountain of the Amorite, just as the Lord our God had instructed us. And when we had arrived at Kadesh-barnea,
{1:20} I said to you: ‘You have arrived at the mountain of the Amorite, which the Lord our God will give to us.
{1:21} Gaze upon the land that the Lord your God gives to you. Ascend and possess it, just as the Lord our God has spoken to your fathers. Do not be afraid, and do not become terrified by anything.’
{1:22} And you all approached me and said: ‘Let us send men who may consider the land, and who may report as to the way by which we ought to ascend, and as to which cities we ought to travel.’
{1:23} And since the word was pleasing to me, I sent from among you twelve men, one from each tribe.
{1:24} These, when they had set out and had ascended the mountains, arrived as far as the valley of the cluster of grapes. And having considered the land,
{1:25} having taken from its fruits in order to show its fertility, they brought these to us, and they said: ‘The land that the Lord our God will give to us is good.’
{1:26} Yet you were not willing to go there. Instead, being incredulous to the word of the Lord our God,
{1:27} you murmured in your tents, and you said: ‘The Lord hates us, and therefore he has led us away from the land of Egypt, so that he might deliver us into the hand of the Amorite and destroy us.
{1:28} To where should we ascend? The messengers have terrified our heart by saying: “The multitude is very great, and taller than us. And the cities are great, and the walls extend even to the sky. We have seen the sons of the Anakim there.” ’
{1:29} And I said to you: ‘Do not be apprehensive, nor should you fear them.
{1:30} The Lord God himself, who is your leader, will fight on your behalf, just as he did in Egypt in the sight of all.
{1:31} And in the wilderness (as you yourselves saw), the Lord your God carried you, like a man who is accustomed to carrying his little son, along all the way that you walked, until you arrived at this place.’
{1:32} And yet, despite all of this, you did not believe the Lord your God,
{1:33} who went before you on the way, and who marked out the place where you should pitch your tents, showing you the way by fire in the night, and by a pillar of cloud in the day.
{1:34} And when the Lord had heard the voice of your words, becoming angry, he swore and said:
{1:35} ‘None of the men of this wicked generation will see the good land, which I have promised by oath to your fathers,
{1:36} except Caleb the son of Jephuneh. For he himself will see it, and I will give the land on which he has walked to him and to his sons, because he has followed the Lord.’
{1:37} Neither is his indignation with the people a wonder, since the Lord also became angry with me because of you, and so he said: ‘Neither will you enter into that place.
{1:38} But Joshua, the son of Nun, your minister, shall himself enter on your behalf. Exhort and strengthen this man, and he himself shall divide the land by lot to Israel.
{1:39} Your little ones, about whom you said that they would be led away as captives, and your sons, who to this day are ignorant of the difference between good and evil, they shall enter. And I will give the land to them, and they will possess it.
{1:40} But as for you, turn back and go out to the wilderness, by way of the Red Sea.’
{1:41} And you responded to me: ‘We have sinned against the Lord. We will ascend and fight, just as the Lord our God has instructed.’ And having been equipped with weapons, when you were setting out for the mountain,
{1:42} the Lord said to me: ‘Say to them: Do not ascend and do not fight. For I am not with you. Otherwise, you may fall in the sight of your enemies.’
{1:43} I spoke, and you did not listen. But, opposing the order of the Lord, and swelling with pride, you ascended onto the mountain.
{1:44} And so, having gone forth, the Amorite, who was living in the mountains, came against you and pursued you, just as a swarm of bees would do. And he struck you down from Seir all the way to Hormah.
{1:45} And when you returned and were weeping in the sight of the Lord, he would not hear you, nor was he willing to agree to your voice.
{1:46} Therefore, you camped at Kadesh-barnea for a long time.”
{2:1} “And setting out from there, we arrived at the wilderness which leads to the Red Sea, just as the Lord had spoken to me. And we encompassed Mount Seir for a long time.
{2:2} And the Lord said to me:
{2:3} ‘You have encompassed this mountain for long enough. Go forth, toward the north.
{2:4} And instruct the people, saying: You shall cross through the borders of your brothers, the sons of Esau, who live at Seir, and they will fear you.
{2:5} Therefore, take care diligently, lest you be moved against them. For I will not give to you from their land even as much as the step that one foot can tread upon, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession.
{2:6} You shall buy food from them for money, and you shall eat. You shall draw water for money, and you shall drink.
{2:7} The Lord your God has blessed you in every work of your hands. The Lord your God, dwelling with you, knows your journey, how you crossed through this great wilderness over forty years, and how you have been lacking in nothing.’
{2:8} And when we had passed through our brothers, the sons of Esau, who were living at Seir by the way of the plain from Elath and from Eziongeber, we arrived at the way which leads to the desert of Moab.
{2:9} And the Lord said to me: ‘You should not fight against the Moabites, nor should you go to battle against them. For I will not give to you anything from their land, because I have given Ar to the sons of Lot as a possession.’
{2:10} The Emim were the first of its inhabitants, a people great and strong, and of such great height, like the race of the Anakim.
{2:11} They were considered to be like giants, and they were like the sons of the Anakim. And, indeed, the Moabites call them: the Emim.
{2:12} The Horites also formerly lived at Seir. When these had been driven out and destroyed, the sons of Esau lived there, just as Israel did in the land of his possession, which the Lord gave to him.
{2:13} Then, rising up so as to cross over the torrent Zered, we arrived at the place.
{2:14} Then, from the time that we advanced from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed over the torrent Zered, there were thirty-eight years, until the entire generation of the men who were fit for war had been consumed out of the camp, just as the Lord had sworn.
{2:15} For his hand was against them, so that they would pass away from the midst of the camp.
{2:16} Then, after all the fighting men had fallen,
{2:17} the Lord spoke to me, saying:
{2:18} ‘Today, you shall cross the borders of Moab, at the city named Ar.
{2:19} And when you have arrived in the vicinity of the sons of Ammon, be careful that you do not fight against them, nor should you be moved to battle. For I will not give to you from the land of the sons of Ammon, because I have given it to the sons of Lot as a possession.’
{2:20} It was reputed to be a land of giants. And giants lived there in times past, those whom the Ammonites call the Zamzummim.
{2:21} They are a people, great and numerous, and of lofty stature, like the Anakim, whom the Lord wiped away before their face. And he caused them to live there in place of them,
{2:22} just as he had done for the sons of Esau, who live at Seir, wiping out the Horites and delivering their land to them, which they possess even to the present time.
{2:23} Likewise the Hevites, who were living in small villages as far as Gaza, were expelled by the Cappadocians, who went forth from Cappadocia, and they wiped them out and lived in their place.
{2:24} ‘Rise up and cross the torrent Arnon! Behold, I have delivered Sihon, the king of Heshbon, the Amorite, into your hand, and so, begin to possess his land and to engage in battle against him.
{2:25} Today I will begin to send the terror and dread of you among the peoples who are living under all of heaven, so that, when they hear your name, they may be afraid, and may tremble in the manner of a woman giving birth, and may be gripped by anguish.’
{2:26} Therefore, I sent messengers from the wilderness of Kedemoth to Sihon, the king of Heshbon, with peaceful words, saying:
{2:27} ‘We will cross through your land. We will advance by the public way. We will not turn aside, neither to the right, nor to the left.
{2:28} Sell us food for a price, so that we may eat. Provide us with water for money, and so we will drink. We only ask that you allow us to pass through,
{2:29} just as the sons of Esau have done, who live at Seir, and the Moabites, who abide in Ar, until we arrive at the Jordan, and we cross to the land which the Lord our God will give to us.’
{2:30} And Sihon, the king of Heshbon, was not willing to grant passage to us. For the Lord your God had hardened his spirit, and had fastened his heart, so that he would be delivered into your hands, just as you now see.
{2:31} And the Lord said to me: ‘Behold, I have begun to deliver Sihon and his land to you. Begin to possess it.’
{2:32} And Sihon went out to meet us with all his people, to battle at Jahaz.
{2:33} And the Lord our God delivered him to us. And we struck him down, with his sons and all his people.
{2:34} And we seized all his cities at that time, putting to death their inhabitants: men as well as women and children. We left nothing of them,
{2:35} except the cattle, which went to the share of those who plundered them. And we seized the spoils of the cities,
{2:36} from Aroer, which is above the bank of the torrent Arnon, a town which is situated in a valley, all the way to Gilead. There was not a village or city which escaped from our hands. The Lord our God delivered everything to us,
{2:37} except the land of the sons of Ammon, which we did not approach, and all that is adjacent to the torrent Jabbok, and the cities in the mountains, and all the places which the Lord our God prohibited to us.”
{3:1} “And so, having turned back, we ascended by the way of Bashan. And Og, the king of Bashan, went forth with his people to meet us in warfare at Edrei.
{3:2} And the Lord said to me: ‘You should not fear him. For he has been delivered into your hand, with all his people as well as his land. And you shall do to him just as you have done to Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon.’
{3:3} Therefore, the Lord our God delivered into our hands, now Og, the king of Bashan, and all his people. And we struck them down unto utter annihilation,
{3:4} laying waste to all his cities at one time. There was not a village which escaped from us: sixty cities, the entire region of Argob, the kingdom of Og, in Bashan.
{3:5} All the cities were fortified with very high walls, and with gates and bars, in addition to innumerable villages which had no walls.
{3:6} And we wiped them out, just as we had done to Sihon, the king of Heshbon, destroying every city, and its men, as well as women and children.
{3:7} But the cattle and the spoils of the cities, we plundered.
{3:8} And at that time, we took the land from the hand of the two kings of the Amorites, who were across the Jordan: from the torrent Arnon as far as Mount Hermon,
{3:9} which the Sidonians call Sirion, and the Amorites call Senir,
{3:10} all the cities that are situated in the plain, and the entire land of Gilead and Bashan, all the way to Salecah and Edrei, cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan.
{3:11} For only Og, the king of Bashan, was left behind out of the race of the giants. His bed of iron is on display, (it is in Rabbah, among the sons of Ammon) being nine cubits in length, and four in width, according to the measure of the cubit of a man’s hand.
{3:12} And we possessed the land, at that time, from Aroer, which is above the bank of the torrent Arnon, as far as the middle of Mount Gilead. And I gave its cities to Ruben and Gad.
{3:13} Then I delivered the remaining part of Gilead, and all of Bashan, the kingdom of Og, which is the entire region of Argob, to one half of the tribe of Manasseh. And all of Bashan is called the land of the giants.
{3:14} Jair, the son of Manasseh, possessed all the region of Argob, as far as the borders of Geshur and Maacath. And he called Bashan by his own name, Havvoth Jair, that is, the villages of Jair, even to the present day.
{3:15} Likewise, to Machir, I gave Gilead.
{3:16} And to the tribes of Ruben and Gad, I gave from the land of Gilead as far as the torrent Arnon, one half of the torrent and its confines, even to the torrent Jabbok, which is along the border of the sons of Ammon,
{3:17} and the plain of the wilderness, as well as the Jordan, and the borders of Chinnereth, all the way to the sea of the desert, which is very salty, to the base of Mount Pisgah toward the east.
{3:18} And I instructed you at that time, saying: ‘The Lord your God gives to you this land as an inheritance. Having armed yourselves, go before your brothers, the sons of Israel, all you strong men.
{3:19} Leave behind your wives and little ones, as well as the cattle. For I know that you have many cattle, and they should remain in the cities which I have delivered to you,
{3:20} until the Lord provides rest to your brothers, just as he has provided for you. And they, too, shall possess the land, which he will give to them beyond the Jordan. Then each one shall return to his possession, which I have allotted to you.’
{3:21} Likewise, I instructed Joshua at that time, saying: ‘Your eyes have seen what the Lord your God has done to these two kings. So also will he do to all the kingdoms through which you shall pass.
{3:22} You should not fear them. For the Lord your God will fight on your behalf.’
{3:23} And I beseeched the Lord at that time, saying:
{3:24} ‘Lord God, you have begun to reveal your greatness and your very strong hand to your servant. For there is no other god, either in heaven or on earth, who is able to accomplish your works, or to be compared to your strength.
{3:25} Therefore, I will cross over, and I will view this excellent land beyond the Jordan, and this singular mountain, and Lebanon.’
{3:26} And the Lord became angry with me because of you, and he would not heed me. But he said to me: ‘It is enough for you. You shall no longer speak to me at all about this matter.
{3:27} Ascend to the summit of Pisgah, and look around with your eyes to the west, and to the north, and to the south, and to the east, and behold it. For you shall not cross this Jordan.
{3:28} Instruct Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him. For he shall go before this people, and he shall distribute to them the land that you will see.’
{3:29} And we remained in the valley, opposite the shrine of Peor.”
{4:1} “And now, O Israel, listen to the precepts and judgments which I am teaching to you, so that, by doing these, you may live, and you may enter and possess the land, which the Lord, the God of your fathers, will give to you.
{4:2} You shall not add to the word which I speak to you, neither shall you take away from it. Preserve the commandments of the Lord your God which I am teaching to you.
{4:3} Your eyes have seen all that the Lord has done against Baal-peor, in what manner he has crushed all of his worshippers from among you.
{4:4} But you who adhere to the Lord your God are all still alive, to the present day.
{4:5} You know that I have taught you precepts as well as justices, just as the Lord my God has commanded me. And so shall you do in the land that you will possess.
{4:6} And you shall observe and fulfill these in practice. For this is your wisdom and understanding in the sight of the peoples, so that, upon hearing all these precepts, they may say: ‘Lo, a wise and understanding people, a great nation.’
{4:7} Neither is there any other nation so great, which has its gods so near to them, as our God is present to all our petitions.
{4:8} For what other nation is there so renowned as to have ceremonies, and just judgments, and the entire law that I will set forth today before your eyes?
{4:9} And so, guard yourself and your soul carefully. You should not forget the words that your eyes have seen, and do not let them be cut away from your heart, throughout all the days of your life. You shall teach them to your sons and to your grandsons,
{4:10} from the day on which you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb, when the Lord spoke to me, saying: ‘Gather the people to me, so that they may listen to my words, and may learn to fear me, throughout all the time that they are alive on earth, and so that they may teach their children.’
{4:11} And you approached the base of the mountain, which was burning even toward heaven. And there was a darkness upon it, and a cloud, and a mist.
{4:12} And the Lord spoke to you from the midst of fire. You heard the voice of his words, but you did not see any form at all.
{4:13} And he revealed his covenant to you, which he instructed you to carry out, and the ten words which he wrote on two tablets of stone.
{4:14} And he commanded me, at that time, that I should teach you the ceremonies and judgments which you must carry out, in the land that you shall possess.
{4:15} And so, guard your souls carefully. You saw no likeness on the day that the Lord God spoke to you on Horeb from the midst of fire.
{4:16} Otherwise, perhaps being deceived, you might have made a graven image, or an image of male or female,
{4:17} a likeness of any of the beasts, which are upon the earth, or of birds, which fly under heaven,
{4:18} or of reptiles, which move across the earth, or of fish, which abide in the waters under the earth.
{4:19} Otherwise, perhaps lifting up your eyes to heaven, you might look upon the sun and the moon and all the stars of heaven, and being deceived by error, you might adore and worship these things, which the Lord your God created for the service of all the nations, which are under heaven.
{4:20} But the Lord has taken you up, and led you away from the iron furnaces of Egypt, in order to have a people of inheritance, just as it is to the present day.
{4:21} And the Lord became angry against me because of your words, and he swore that I would not cross over the Jordan, nor enter into the excellent land, which he will give to you.
{4:22} Behold, I shall die on this soil. I shall not cross over the Jordan. You shall cross it, and you shall possess the singular land.
{4:23} Be careful, lest you at some time forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he has formed with you, and lest you make for yourselves a graven likeness of those things which the Lord has prohibited to be made.
{4:24} For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.
{4:25} When you will have conceived sons and grandsons while abiding in the land, and if, having been deceived, you make for yourselves any likeness, accomplishing evil in the sight of the Lord your God, so as to provoke him to wrath,
{4:26} I call heaven and earth as witnesses this day, that you shall quickly perish from the land, which, when you have crossed over the Jordan, you will possess. You will not live in it for a long time; instead, the Lord will destroy you.
{4:27} And he will scatter you among all the nations, and few of you will remain among those nations, to which the Lord will lead you.
{4:28} And there, you will serve gods which were fabricated by the hands of men: gods of wood and of stone, who neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
{4:29} And when you will seek the Lord your God in that place, you shall find him, if only you seek him with all your heart, and in all the tribulation of your soul.
{4:30} After all these things which have been foretold have found you, in the end time, you shall return to the Lord your God, and you will hear his voice.
{4:31} For the Lord your God is a merciful God. He will not abandon you, nor will he entirely destroy you, nor will he forget the covenant, which he swore to your fathers.
{4:32} Inquire concerning the days of antiquity, which were before you, from the day when God created man upon the earth, from one end of heaven to another, if anything similar has ever occurred, or whether any such thing has ever been known,
{4:33} that a people would hear the voice of God, speaking from the midst of fire, just as you have heard it, and live,
{4:34} whether God has acted so as to enter and take for himself a nation from the midst of the nations, by means of tests, signs, and wonders, by means of fighting, and a strong hand, and an outstretched arm, and terrible visions, in accord with all the things which the Lord your God has accomplished for you in Egypt, in the sight of your eyes.
{4:35} So may you know that the Lord himself is God, and there is no other beside him.
{4:36} He has caused you to hear his voice from heaven, so that he might teach you. And he showed you his exceedingly great fire on earth, and you heard his words from the midst of the fire.
{4:37} For he loved your fathers, and he chose their offspring after them. And he led you away from Egypt, advancing before you with his great power,
{4:38} so as to wipe away, upon your arrival, nations, very great and stronger than you, and so as to lead you in, and to present to you their land as a possession, just as you discern in the present day.
{4:39} Therefore, know on this day and consider in your heart, that the Lord himself is God in heaven above, and on earth below, and there is no other.
{4:40} Keep his precepts and commandments, which I am teaching to you, so that it may be well with you, and with your sons after you, and so that you may remain for a long time upon the land, which the Lord your God will give to you.”
{4:41} Then Moses set aside three cities, across the Jordan toward the eastern region,
{4:42} so that anyone might flee to these if he has killed his neighbor unwillingly, who was not his enemy a day or two earlier, and so that he would be able to escape to one of these cities:
{4:43} Bezer in the wilderness, which is situated in the plains of the tribe of Ruben; and Ramoth in Gilead, which is in the tribe of Gad; and Golan in Bashan, which is in the tribe of Manasseh.
{4:44} This is the law, which Moses set forth before the sons of Israel.
{4:45} And these are the testimonies and ceremonies as well as judgments, which he spoke to the sons of Israel, when they departed from Egypt,
{4:46} across the Jordan, in the valley opposite the shrine of Peor, in the land of Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon, whom Moses struck down. Accordingly, the sons of Israel, having departed from Egypt,
{4:47} possessed his land, and the land of Og, the king of Bashan, the land of the two kings of the Amorites, who were beyond the Jordan, toward the rising of the sun:
{4:48} from Aroer, which is situated above the bank of the torrent Arnon, as far as Mount Zion, which is also called Hermon,
{4:49} the entire plain across the Jordan, from its eastern region, as far as the sea of the wilderness, and even to the base of Mount Pisgah.
{5:1} And Moses summoned all of Israel, and he said to them: “Listen, O Israel, to the ceremonies and judgments, which I am speaking to your ears on this day. Learn them, and fulfill them in deed.
{5:2} The Lord our God formed a covenant with us at Horeb.
{5:3} He did not make the covenant with our fathers, but with us, who are alive and in the present time.
{5:4} He spoke to us face to face on the mountain, from the midst of fire.
{5:5} I was the mediator, for I was in the middle between the Lord and you, at that time, to announce his words to you. For you were afraid of the fire, and so you did not ascend to the mountain. And he said:
{5:6} ‘I am the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt, from the house of servitude.
{5:7} You shall not have strange gods in my sight.
{5:8} You shall not make for yourself a graven image, nor the likeness of anything, which is in heaven above, or on earth below, or which abides in the waters under the earth.
{5:9} You shall not adore and you shall not worship these things. For I am the Lord your God, a jealous God, repaying the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons to the third and fourth generation to those who hate me,
{5:10} and acting with mercy in thousands of ways to those who love me and keep my precepts.
{5:11} You shall not use the name of the Lord your God in vain. For he will not go unpunished who takes up his name over an unimportant matter.
{5:12} Observe the day of the Sabbath, so that you may sanctify it, just as the Lord your God has instructed you.
{5:13} For six days, you shall labor and do all your work.
{5:14} The seventh is the day of the Sabbath, that is, the rest of the Lord your God. You shall not do any work in it, nor shall your son, nor daughter, nor man servant, nor woman servant, nor ox, nor donkey, nor any of your cattle, nor the sojourner who is within your gates, so that your men and woman servants may rest, just as you do.
{5:15} Remember that you also were servants in Egypt, and the Lord your God led you away from that place with a strong hand and an outstretched arm. Because of this, he has instructed you so that you would observe the Sabbath day.
{5:16} Honor your father and mother, just as the Lord your God has instructed you, so that you may live a long time, and so that it may be well with you in the land, which the Lord your God will give to you.
{5:17} You shall not murder.
{5:18} And you shall not commit adultery.
{5:19} And you shall not commit theft.
{5:20} Neither shall you speak false testimony against your neighbor.
{5:21} You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his house, nor his field, nor his man servant, nor his woman servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything out of all that is his.’
{5:22} The Lord spoke these words to the entire multitude of you on the mountain, from the midst of the fire and the cloud and the darkness, with a loud voice, adding nothing more. And he wrote them on two tablets of stone, which he delivered to me.
{5:23} Then, after you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness, and you saw the mountain burning, you approached me, all you leaders of the tribes and those greater by birth. And you said:
{5:24} ‘Behold, the Lord our God has revealed to us his majesty and his greatness. We have heard his voice from the midst of fire, and we have proven today that, though God is speaking with man, man has lived.
{5:25} Therefore, why should we die, and why should this very great fire devour us? For if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any longer, we will die.
{5:26} What is all flesh, that it would hear the voice of the living God, who speaks from the midst of fire, just as we have heard it, and be able to live?
{5:27} Instead, you should approach and listen to all the things that the Lord our God will say to you. And you will speak to us, and we will listen and do these things.’
{5:28} But when the Lord had heard this, he said to me: ‘I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they spoke to you. All this, they have spoken well.
{5:29} Who will grant to them to have such a mind, so that they may fear me, and may keep all my commandments at all times, so that it may be well with them and with their sons forever?
{5:30} Go and say to them: Return to your tents.
{5:31} But as for you, stand here with me, and I will speak to you all my commandments and ceremonies, as well as judgments. These, you shall teach them, so that they may do them in the land, which I will give to them as a possession.
{5:32} And so, keep and do the things which the Lord God has commanded you. You shall not turn aside, neither to the right, nor to the left.
{5:33} For you shall walk in the way that the Lord your God has instructed, so that you may live, and it may be well with you, and your days may be extended in the land of your possession.’ ”
{6:1} “These are the precepts and ceremonies, as well as the judgments, which the Lord your God has commanded that I teach to you, which you shall do in the land to which you will travel in order to possess it.
{6:2} So may you fear the Lord your God, and keep all his commandments and precepts, which I am entrusting to you, and to your sons and grandsons, all the days of your life, so that your days may be prolonged.
{6:3} Listen and observe, O Israel, so that you may do just as the Lord has instructed you, and it may be well with you, and you may be multiplied all the more, for the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you a land flowing with milk and honey.
{6:4} Listen, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord.
{6:5} You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength.
{6:6} And these words, which I instruct to you this day, shall be in your heart.
{6:7} And you shall explain them to your sons. And you shall meditate upon them sitting in your house, and walking on a journey, when lying down and when rising up.
{6:8} And you shall bind them like a sign on your hand, and they shall be placed and shall move between your eyes.
{6:9} And you shall write them at the threshold and on the doors of your house.
{6:10} And when the Lord your God will have led you into the land, about which he swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and when he will have given to you great and excellent cities, which you did not build;
{6:11} houses full of goods, which you did not amass; cisterns, which you did not dig; vineyards and olive groves, which you did not plant;
{6:12} and when you will have eaten and been satisfied:
{6:13} take care diligently, lest you forget the Lord, who led you away from the land of Egypt, from the house of servitude. You shall fear the Lord your God, and you shall serve him alone, and you shall swear by his name.
{6:14} You shall not go after the strange gods of all the Gentiles, who are around you.
{6:15} For the Lord your God is a jealous God in your midst. Otherwise, at some time, the fury of the Lord your God may be enraged against you, and he may take you away from the face of the earth.
{6:16} You shall not tempt the Lord your God, as you tempted him in the place of temptation.
{6:17} Keep the precepts of the Lord your God, as well as the testimonies and ceremonies, which he has instructed to you.
{6:18} And do what is pleasing and good in the sight of the Lord, so that it may be well with you, and so that, when you enter, you may possess the excellent land, about which the Lord swore to your fathers
{6:19} that he would wipe away all your enemies before you, just as he has spoken.
{6:20} And when your son will ask you tomorrow, saying: ‘What do these testimonies and ceremonies and judgments mean, which the Lord our God has entrusted to us?’
{6:21} You shall say to him: ‘We were servants of Pharaoh in Egypt, and the Lord led us away from Egypt with a strong hand.
{6:22} And he wrought signs and wonders, great and very grievous, in Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his house, in our sight.
{6:23} And he led us away from that place, so that he might lead us in and give us the land, about which he swore to our fathers.
{6:24} And the Lord instructed us that we should do all these ordinances, and that we should fear the Lord our God, so that it may be well with us all the days of our life, just as it is today.
{6:25} And he will be merciful to us, if we keep and perform all his precepts, in the sight of the Lord our God, just as he has commanded us.’ ”
{7:1} “When the Lord your God will have led you to the land, which you will enter so as to possess it, and when he will have destroyed many nations before you, the Hittite, and the Girgashite, and the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, seven nations much more numerous than you, and more robust than you,
{7:2} and when the Lord your God will have delivered them to you, you shall strike them down unto utter annihilation. You shall not enter into a pact with them, nor shall you show any pity to them.
{7:3} And you shall not associate with them in marriage. You shall not give your daughter to his son, nor accept his daughter for your son.
{7:4} For she will seduce your son, so that he will not follow me, and so that he will instead serve foreign gods. And the fury of the Lord will be enraged, and he will quickly destroy you.
{7:5} So instead, you shall do this to them: overturn their altars, and break their statues, and cut down their sacred groves, and burn up their graven images.
{7:6} For you are a holy people to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you so that you would be his particular people out of all the peoples who are upon the earth.
{7:7} It is not because you surpass all the nations in number that the Lord has joined with you and has chosen you, for you are the least numerous of any people.
{7:8} But it is because the Lord has loved you, and has kept his oath, which he swore to your fathers. And he has led you away with a strong hand, and he has redeemed you from the house of servitude, from the hand of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt.
{7:9} And you shall know that the Lord your God himself is a strong and faithful God, preserving his covenant and his mercy for those who love him and those who keep his precepts for a thousand generations,
{7:10} and promptly repaying those who hate him, so as to utterly ruin them, without further delay, quickly rendering to them what they deserve.
{7:11} Therefore, keep the precepts and ceremonies as well as the judgments, which I command to you this day, so that you may do them.
{7:12} If, after you have heard these judgments, you keep and do them, the Lord your God will also keep his covenant with you and the mercy that he swore to your fathers.
{7:13} And he will love you and multiply you. And he will bless the fruit of your womb, and the fruit of your land: your grain as well as your vintage, oil, and herds, and the flocks of your sheep, upon the land about which he swore to your fathers that he would give it to you.
{7:14} Blessed shall you be among all peoples. No one will be barren among you of either gender, as much among men as among your herds.
{7:15} The Lord will take all sickness away from you. And the very grievous infirmities of Egypt, which you have known, he will not bring upon you, but upon your enemies.
{7:16} You shall devour all the peoples, which the Lord your God will deliver to you. Your eye shall not spare them, neither shall you serve their gods, lest they be your ruin.
{7:17} If you say in your heart, ‘These nations are more than I am, so how will I be able to destroy them?’
{7:18} do not be apprehensive. Instead, recall what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all the Egyptians:
{7:19} the very great plagues, which your eyes saw, and the signs and wonders, and the powerful hand and outstretched arm, by which the Lord your God led you away. So will he do to all the peoples, whom you dread.
{7:20} Moreover, the Lord your God will also send hornets among them, until he destroys and scatters all who have escaped from you, or who have been able to hide.
{7:21} You shall not fear them, for the Lord your God is in your midst: a great and terrible God.
{7:22} He himself will consume these nations in your sight, a little at a time, by degrees. You will not be able to destroy them all at once. Otherwise, the wild beasts of the earth might increase against you.
{7:23} And so, the Lord your God will present them in your sight, and you shall slay them until they are thoroughly wiped away.
{7:24} And he shall deliver their kings into your hands, and you shall abolish their names from under heaven. No one will be able to withstand you, until you crush them.
{7:25} Their graven images, you shall burn with fire. You shall not covet the silver or gold from which they have been made. And you shall not take for yourself anything from these, lest you offend, because this is an abomination to the Lord your God.
{7:26} Neither shall you carry anything of the idol into your house, lest you become accursed, just as it also is. You shall detest it like dung, and you shall abominate it like defilement and filth, because it is an accursed thing.”
{8:1} “All the commandments which I am entrusting to you this day, take care to observe them diligently, so that you may live and be multiplied, and so that, upon entering, you may possess the land, about which the Lord swore to your fathers.
{8:2} And you shall remember the entire journey along which the Lord your God led you, for forty years through the desert, to afflict you, and to test you, and to make known the things that were turning in your soul, whether or not you would keep his commandments.
{8:3} He afflicted you with need, and he gave you Manna as your food, which neither you nor your fathers knew, so as to reveal to you that it is not by bread alone that man lives, but by every word that goes forth from the mouth of God.
{8:4} Your garment, with which you were covered, has by no means decayed due to age, and your foot has not been worn down, even to this fortieth year,
{8:5} so that you would recognize in your heart that, just as a man educates his son, so has the Lord your God educated you.
{8:6} So may you keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and walk in his ways, and fear him.
{8:7} For the Lord your God will lead you into a good land: a land of brooks and waters and fountains, in which deep rivers burst forth from its plains and mountains,
{8:8} a land of crops, barley, and vineyards, in which fig and pomegranate and olive trees spring up, a land of oil and honey.
{8:9} In that place, without any need, you shall eat your bread and enjoy an abundance of all things: where the stones are like iron, and where ore for brass is dug out of its mountains.
{8:10} So then, when you have eaten and been satisfied, you should bless the Lord your God for the excellent land which he has given to you.
{8:11} Be observant and cautious, lest at some time you may forget the Lord your God, and neglect his commandments, as well as the judgments and ceremonies, which I instruct to you this day.
{8:12} Otherwise, after you have eaten and been satisfied, and have built beautiful houses and have lived in them,
{8:13} and have obtained herds of oxen, and flocks of sheep, and a plentitude of gold and silver and all things,
{8:14} your heart might be lifted up, and you might not remember the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt, from the house of servitude,
{8:15} and who was your leader in the great and terrible wilderness, in which there was the serpent with a burning breath, and the scorpion, and the snake of thirst, and no waters at all. He led streams out of the hardest rock,
{8:16} and he nourished you in the wilderness with Manna, which your fathers had not known. And after he had afflicted and tested you, in the very end, he took pity on you.
{8:17} Otherwise, you might say in your heart: ‘My own strength, and the power of my own hand, have brought forth all these things for me.’
{8:18} But remember the Lord your God, that he himself has provided you with strength, so that he may fulfill his covenant, about which he swore to your fathers, just as the present day reveals.
{8:19} But if you forget the Lord your God, so that you follow foreign gods, and serve and adore them: behold, I now foretell to you that you shall utterly perish.
{8:20} Just like the nations, which the Lord destroyed upon your arrival, so shall you also perish, if you have been disobedient to the voice of the Lord your God.”
{9:1} “Listen, O Israel: You shall cross over the Jordan today, in order to possess nations, very great and stronger than yourself, cities vast and walled even to the sky,
{9:2} a people great and lofty, the sons of the Anakim, whom you yourselves have seen and heard, against whom no one is able to stand.
{9:3} Therefore, you shall know today that the Lord your God himself will pass over before you, like a devouring and consuming fire, to crush and to wipe away and to utterly ruin them before your face, quickly, just as he has spoken to you.
{9:4} You should not say in your heart, when the Lord your God will have destroyed them in your sight: ‘It is because of my justice that the Lord led me in, so that I might possess this land, while these nations have been destroyed because of their impiety.’
{9:5} For it is not because of your justices or the uprightness of your heart that you will enter, so that you may possess their lands. Instead, it is because they have acted wickedly that they are destroyed upon your arrival, and so that the Lord may accomplish his word, which he promised under oath to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
{9:6} Therefore, know that the Lord your God will not give you this excellent land as a possession due to your justices, for you are a very stiff-necked people.
{9:7} Remember, and never forget, how you provoked the Lord your God to anger in the wilderness. You have always contended against the Lord, from the day that you went forth from Egypt, even to this place.
{9:8} For at Horeb also, you provoked him, and, becoming angry, he was willing to destroy you,
{9:9} when I ascended onto the mountain, so that I might receive the tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant which the Lord formed with you. And I persevered on the mountain for forty days and nights, neither eating bread, nor drinking water.
{9:10} And the Lord gave me two tablets of stone, written with the finger of God and containing all the words that he spoke to you on the mountain from the midst of fire, while the people, being stirred up, were assembled together.
{9:11} And when forty days, and as many nights, had passed, the Lord gave me the two tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant.
{9:12} And he said to me: ‘Rise up, and descend quickly from here. For your people, whom you led away from Egypt, have quickly abandoned the way that you have shown to them, and they have made a molten idol for themselves.’
{9:13} And again, the Lord said to me: ‘I discern that this people is stiff-necked.
{9:14} Depart from me, so that I may crush them, and abolish their name from under heaven, and appoint you over a nation, which will be greater and stronger than this one.’
{9:15} And as I was descending from the burning mountain, and I held the two tablets of the covenant with both hands,
{9:16} and I had seen that you had sinned against the Lord your God, and had made a molten calf for yourselves, and had quickly abandoned his way, which he had revealed to you,
{9:17} I threw down the tablets from my hands, and I broke them in your sight.
{9:18} And I fell prostrate before the Lord, just as before, for forty days and nights, not eating bread, and not drinking water, because of all your sins, which you had committed against the Lord, and because you provoked him to anger.
{9:19} For I feared his indignation and wrath, which had been stirred up against you, so that he was willing to destroy you. And the Lord heeded me at this time also.
{9:20} Likewise, he became vehemently angry against Aaron, and he was willing to destroy him, and I prayed for him similarly.
{9:21} But as for your sin which you committed, that is, the calf, taking hold of it, I burned it with fire. And breaking it into pieces, and reducing it entirely to dust, I threw it into the torrent that descends from the mountain.
{9:22} Likewise, at the Burning, and at the Temptation, and at the Graves of Lust, you provoked the Lord.
{9:23} And when he sent you from Kadesh-barnea, saying, ‘Ascend and possess the land, which I have given to you,’ even so, you spurned the command of the Lord your God, and you did not believe him, nor were you willing to listen to his voice.
{9:24} Instead, you were ever rebellious, from the day when I first began to know you.
{9:25} And so, I lay prostrate before the Lord for forty days and nights, as I humbly begged him, lest he destroy you, just as he had threatened to do.
{9:26} And praying, I said: ‘O Lord God, do not destroy your people and your inheritance, whom you have redeemed in your greatness, whom you have led away from Egypt with a strong hand.
{9:27} Remember your servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Do not look upon the stubbornness of this people, nor upon their wickedness and sinfulness.
{9:28} Otherwise, perhaps the inhabitants of the land, out of which you have led us, may say: “The Lord was not able to lead them into the land, which he promised to them. And he hated them; therefore, he led them out, so that he might put them to death in the wilderness.”
{9:29} These are your people and your inheritance, whom you have led out by your great strength, and with your outstretched arm.’ ”
{10:1} “At that time, the Lord said to me: ‘Hew for yourself two tablets of stone, like those that were before, and ascend to me on the mountain. And you shall make an ark of wood.
{10:2} And I will write on the tablets the words which were on those that you broke before, and you shall place them in the ark.’
{10:3} And so, I made an ark of setim wood. And when I had hewn two tablets of stone like the former, I ascended onto the mountain, having them in my hands.
{10:4} And he wrote on the tablets, according to that which he had written before, the ten words, which the Lord spoke to you on the mountain from the midst of fire, when the people were assembled. And he gave them to me.
{10:5} And returning from the mountain, I descended and placed the tablets in the ark, which I had made, and they are still there even now, just as the Lord instructed me.
{10:6} Then the sons of Israel moved their camp, from Beeroth among the sons of Jaakan, into Moserah, where Aaron died and was buried, and where his son Eleazar was installed in the priesthood in his place.
{10:7} From there, they went into Gudgodah. From that place, they set out and camped at Jotbathah, in a land of waters and torrents.
{10:8} At that time, he separated the tribe of Levi, so that he would carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and stand before him in the ministry, and speak blessings in his name, even to the present day.
{10:9} As a result, Levi has no portion or possession with his brothers. For the Lord himself is his possession, just as the Lord your God promised him.
{10:10} Then I stood on the mountain, as before, for forty days and nights. And the Lord heeded me at this time also, and he was not willing to destroy you.
{10:11} And he said to me: ‘Go forth and walk before the people, so that they may enter and possess the land, which I swore to their fathers that I would deliver to them.’
{10:12} And now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? Only that you fear the Lord your God, and walk in his ways, and love him, and serve the Lord your God with your whole heart and with your whole soul,
{10:13} and that you keep the commandments of the Lord, and his ceremonies, which I am instructing to you this day, so that it may be well with you.
{10:14} Lo, heaven belongs to the Lord your God, and the heaven of heaven, and the earth, and all the things that are within these.
{10:15} Now the Lord was closely joined to your fathers, and he loved them, and he chose their offspring after them, that is, you yourselves, out of all the nations, just as is being proven today.
{10:16} Therefore, circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and no longer stiffen your neck.
{10:17} For the Lord your God himself is the God of gods, and the Lord of lords, a God great and powerful and terrible, who favors no person and accepts no bribe.
{10:18} He accomplishes judgment for the orphan and the widow. He loves the sojourner, and he gives him food as well as clothing.
{10:19} Therefore, you also should love sojourners, for you also were new arrivals in the land of Egypt.
{10:20} You shall fear the Lord your God, and him alone shall you serve. You shall cling to him, and you shall swear by his name.
{10:21} He is your praise and your God. He has done for you these great and terrible things, which your eyes have seen.
{10:22} As seventy souls, your fathers descended into Egypt. And now, behold, the Lord your God has multiplied you to be like the stars of heaven.”
{11:1} “And so, love the Lord your God, and observe his precepts and ceremonies, his judgments and commandments, at all times.
{11:2} Acknowledge, on this day, the things that your sons did not know. For they did not see the chastisements of the Lord your God, his great acts, and powerful hand, and outstretched arm,
{11:3} the signs and works that he did in the midst of Egypt, to Pharaoh, the king, and to his entire land,
{11:4} and to the entire army of the Egyptians, and to their horses and chariots: how the waters of the Red Sea covered them as they were pursuing you, and how the Lord wiped them away, even to the present day;
{11:5} and the things that he accomplished for you in the wilderness, until you arrived at this place;
{11:6} and to Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, who was the son of Reuben, those whom the earth, opening its mouth, engulfed with their households and tents, and with their entire substance which they had in the midst of Israel.
{11:7} Your eyes have seen all the great works of the Lord, which he has accomplished,
{11:8} so that you would keep all his commandments, which I entrust to you this day, and so that you would be able to enter and possess the land, toward which you are advancing,
{11:9} and so that you may live, for a long time, in the land which the Lord promised under oath to your fathers, and to their offspring, a land flowing with milk and honey.
{11:10} For the land, which you shall enter and possess, is not like the land of Egypt, from which you departed, where, when seed has been sown, waters are brought in by irrigation, in the manner of gardens.
{11:11} Rather, it has mountainous regions and plains, which lay waiting for rain from heaven.
{11:12} And the Lord your God always visits it, and his eyes are upon it, from the beginning of the year, all the way to its end.
{11:13} So then, if you obey my commandments, which I am instructing to you this day, so that you love the Lord your God, and serve him with your whole heart and your whole soul,
{11:14} he will give to your land the early rain and the late rain, so that you may gather your grain, and your wine, and your oil,
{11:15} and your hay from the fields in order to feed your cattle, and so that you yourselves may eat and be satisfied.
{11:16} Be careful, lest perhaps your heart may be deceived, and you might withdraw from the Lord, and serve strange gods, and adore them.
{11:17} And the Lord, becoming angry, might close up heaven, so that the rain would not descend, nor would the earth produce her seedlings, and then you would quickly perish from the excellent land, which the Lord will give to you.
{11:18} Place these words of mine in your hearts and minds, and hang them as a sign on your hands, and arrange them between your eyes.
{11:19} Teach your sons to meditate on them, when you sit in your house, and when you walk along the way, and when you lie down or rise up.
{11:20} You shall write them upon the doorposts and the gates of your house,
{11:21} so that your days may be multiplied, and the days of your sons, in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, that he would give it to them for as long as heaven is suspended above the earth.
{11:22} For if you keep the commandments which I am entrusting to you, and if you do them, so that you love the Lord your God, and walk in all his ways, clinging to him,
{11:23} the Lord will scatter all these nations before your face, and you shall possess them, though they are greater and stronger than you.
{11:24} Every place upon which your foot shall tread will be yours. From the desert, and from Lebanon, from the great river Euphrates, as far as the western sea, shall be your borders.
{11:25} No one will stand against you. The Lord your God will spread the terror and dread of you over all the land upon which you shall tread, just as he has spoken to you.
{11:26} Behold, I am setting forth in your sight today a blessing and a curse.
{11:27} It will be a blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I am instructing to you this day.
{11:28} It will be a curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but instead you withdraw from the way, which I am revealing to you now, and you walk after foreign gods that you have not known.
{11:29} Yet truly, when the Lord your God will have led you into the land, to which you are traveling for a habitation, you shall place the blessing upon Mount Gerizim, the curse upon Mount Ebal,
{11:30} which are across the Jordan, behind the way which slopes toward the setting of the sun, in the land of the Canaanite, who lives in the plains opposite Gilgal, which is near the valley extending toward and entering a distant place.
{11:31} For you shall cross over the Jordan, so that you may possess the land which the Lord your God will give you, so that you may have it and possess it.
{11:32} Therefore, see to it that you fulfill the ceremonies and judgments, which I am placing in your sight this day.”
{12:1} “These are the precepts and judgments which you must do in the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, will give to you, so that you may possess it during all the days that you shall walk upon the soil.
{12:2} Overturn all the places where the nations, which you will possess, worshipped their gods on lofty mountains, and on hills, and under every leafy tree.
{12:3} Scatter their altars and break their statues. Burn their sacred groves with fire and crush their idols. Abolish their names from those places.
{12:4} But you shall not do the same to the Lord your God.
{12:5} Instead, you shall approach the place which the Lord your God will choose among all your tribes, so that he may set his name there, and may dwell in that place.
{12:6} And you shall offer, in that place, your holocausts and victims, the tithes and first-fruits of your hands, and your vows and gifts, the firstborn of the cattle and of the sheep.
{12:7} And you shall eat it there, in the sight of the Lord your God. And you shall rejoice in all the things to which you shall set your hand: you and your household, which the Lord your God has blessed for you.
{12:8} You shall not do there the things that we are doing here today: each one doing what seems good to himself.
{12:9} For even until the present time, you did not arrive at the rest and the possession, which the Lord your God will give to you.
{12:10} You shall cross over the Jordan, and you shall live in the land which the Lord your God will give to you, so that you may have rest from all the surrounding enemies, and so that you may live without any fear,
{12:11} in the place which the Lord your God will choose, so that his name may be in it. To that place, you shall bring all the things that I instruct you: holocausts, and victims, and tithes, and the first-fruits of your hands, and whatever is best among the gifts that you shall vow to the Lord.
{12:12} In that place, you shall feast before the Lord your God: you, and your sons and daughters, your men and women servants, as well as the Levite who dwells in your cities. For he has no other portion or possession among you.
{12:13} Take care that you do not offer your holocausts in any place that you see.
{12:14} Instead, you shall offer sacrifices in the place which the Lord will choose within one of your tribes, and you shall do whatsoever I instruct you.
{12:15} So, if you wish to eat, and if the eating of flesh pleases you, then kill and eat according to the blessing of the Lord your God, which he has given to you, in your cities: you may eat it whether it is unclean, that is, having blemish or defect, or whether it is clean, that is, whole and without blemish, of the kind which is permitted to be offered, such as the roe deer and the stag.
{12:16} Only the blood you shall not eat. Instead, you shall pour it upon the ground like water.
{12:17} You may not eat in your towns the tithes of your crops, and your wine and oil, the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, nor anything which you will vow, or which you will offer spontaneously, nor the first-fruits of your hands.
{12:18} But you shall eat these before the Lord your God, in the place which the Lord your God will choose: you, and your son, and your daughter, and your man servant and woman servant, and the Levite who dwells in your cities. And you shall rejoice and be refreshed in the sight of the Lord your God by all the things to which you will extend your hand.
{12:19} Be careful, lest you abandon the Levite, at any time while you are living in the land.
{12:20} When the Lord your God will have enlarged your borders, just as he has spoken to you, and when you would eat the flesh that your soul desires,
{12:21} but if the place which the Lord your God will choose, so that his name may be there, is far away, you may kill, from your herds and your flocks which you will have, in the manner I have instructed to you, and you may eat in your towns, as it pleases you.
{12:22} Just as the roe deer and the stag may be eaten, so also may you eat these: you may eat both the clean and the unclean alike.
{12:23} Only beware of this: you may not eat the blood. For their blood is for the soul. And because of this, you must not eat the soul with the flesh.
{12:24} Instead, you shall pour it upon the ground like water,
{12:25} so that it may be well with you, and with your sons after you, when you will do what is pleasing in the sight of the Lord.
{12:26} But the things that you have sanctified and vowed to the Lord, you shall take up and bring to the place which the Lord will choose.
{12:27} And you shall offer your oblations of flesh and of blood upon the altar of the Lord your God. You shall poor out the blood of your victims upon the altar. And you yourself shall eat the flesh.
{12:28} Observe and heed all the things that I instruct to you, so that it may be well with you, and with your sons after you, continually, when you will do what is good and pleasing in the sight of the Lord your God.
{12:29} When the Lord your God will have abolished before your face the nations, which you shall enter so as to possess them, and when you will possess them and live in their land,
{12:30} be careful that you do not imitate them, after they have been overturned at your arrival, and that you do not seek their ceremonies, saying: ‘Just as these nations have worshipped their gods, so also will I worship.’
{12:31} You shall not act in like manner toward the Lord your God. For they have done to their gods all the abominations that the Lord spurns, offering their sons and daughters, and burning them with fire.
{12:32} What I command to you, this only shall you do, for the Lord. You may neither add nor subtract anything.”
{13:1} “If there will have arisen in your midst a prophet, or someone who claims that he had seen a dream, and if he will have predicted sign and portent,
{13:2} and if what he has spoken happens, and he says to you, ‘Let us go and follow strange gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’
{13:3} you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. For the Lord your God is testing you, so that it may become clear whether or not you love him with all your heart and with all your soul.
{13:4} Follow the Lord your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and listen to his voice. Him shall you serve, and to him shall you cling.
{13:5} But that prophet or forger of dreams shall be put to death. For he has spoken so as to turn you away from the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt and who redeemed you from the house of servitude, and so as to cause you to wander from the way that the Lord your God has entrusted to you. And so shall you remove the evil from your midst.
{13:6} If your brother, the son of your mother, or your own son or daughter, or your wife who is in your bosom, or your friend, whom you love like your own soul, were willing to persuade you secretly, saying: ‘Let us go, and serve foreign gods,’ which neither you nor your fathers have known,
{13:7} gods from any of the surrounding nations, whether these are near or far away, from the beginning even to the end of the earth,
{13:8} you should neither agree with him, nor listen to him. And your eye should not spare him so that you take pity on him and conceal him.
{13:9} Instead, you shall put him to death promptly. Let your hand be upon him first, and after that, let the hands of all the people be sent forth.
{13:10} He shall be killed by being overwhelmed with stones. For he was willing to draw you away from the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt, from the house of servitude.
{13:11} So may all of Israel, upon hearing this, be afraid, so that nothing like this will ever be done again.
{13:12} If, in one of your cities which the Lord your God will give to you as a habitation, you hear someone say:
{13:13} ‘The sons of Belial have departed from your midst, and they have persuaded the inhabitants of their city, and they have said: “Let us go, and serve strange gods,” ’ which you have not known:
{13:14} inquire carefully and diligently, seeking the truth of the matter. And if you find that what was said is certain, and that this abomination is a work which has been perpetrated,
{13:15} you shall promptly strike down the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword. And you shall destroy it, along with all the things that are in it, even the flocks.
{13:16} Then all the household goods which are there, you shall gather together in the midst of its streets, and you shall set fire to these, along with the city itself, so that you may consume everything for the Lord your God, and so that it may be an everlasting tomb. It shall no longer be built up.
{13:17} And there shall remain nothing of that anathema in your hand, so that the Lord may turn from the wrath of his fury, and may take pity on you, and may multiply you, just as he swore to your fathers,
{13:18} when you will heed the voice of the Lord your God, keeping all his precepts, which I am entrusting to you this day, so that you may do what is pleasing in the sight of the Lord your God.”
{14:1} “Be sons of the Lord your God. You shall not cut yourselves, nor make yourselves bald, because of the dead.
{14:2} For you are a holy people, for the Lord your God. And he chose you, so that you may be a people particularly his, out of all the nations on earth.
{14:3} You shall not eat the things that are unclean.
{14:4} These are the animals which you ought to eat: the ox, and the sheep, and the goat,
{14:5} the stag and the roe deer, the gazelle, the wild goat, the addax, the antelope, the giraffe.
{14:6} Every beast which has a hoof divided into two parts and which also chews the cud, you shall eat.
{14:7} But those which chew over again, but do not have a divided hoof, you must not eat, such as the camel, the hare, and the hyrax. Since these chew the cud, but do not have a divided the hoof, they shall be unclean to you.
{14:8} The pig also, since it has a divided hoof, but does not chew over again, shall be unclean. Their flesh shall not be eaten, and you shall not touch their carcasses.
{14:9} These you shall eat out of all that dwells in the waters: whatever has fins and scales, you shall eat.
{14:10} Whatever is without fins and scales, you shall not eat, for these are unclean.
{14:11} All the clean birds, you shall eat.
{14:12} You shall not eat those that are unclean: such as the eagle, and the griffin, and the osprey,
{14:13} the crane, and the vulture, and the kite, according to their kind,
{14:14} and any kind of raven,
{14:15} and the ostrich, and the owl, and the gull, and the hawk, according to their kind,
{14:16} the heron, and the swan, and the ibis,
{14:17} and the sea bird, the marsh hen, and the night raven,
{14:18} the pelican and the plover, each in their kind, likewise the crested hoopoe and the bat.
{14:19} And anything which crawls and also has little wings shall be unclean, and shall not be eaten.
{14:20} All that is clean, you shall eat.
{14:21} But whatever has died of itself, you shall not eat from it. Give it to the sojourner, who is within your gates, so that he may eat, or sell it to him. For you are the holy people of the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in the milk of his mother.
{14:22} Each year, you shall separate the tithes out of all your crops which spring forth from the earth.
{14:23} And you shall eat these in the sight of the Lord your God, in the place which he will choose, so that his name may be invoked there: the tenth part of your grain and wine and oil, and the firstborn from the herds and your sheep. So may you learn to fear the Lord your God at all times.
{14:24} But when the way and the place which the Lord your God will have chosen is further away, and he will have blessed you, so that you are not able to carry all these things to it,
{14:25} you shall sell them all, so as to turn them into money, and you shall carry it in your hand, and you shall set out for the place which the Lord will choose.
{14:26} And you shall buy with the same money whatever pleases you, either from the herds or from the sheep, and also wine and liquor, and all that your soul desires. And you shall eat in the sight of the Lord your God, and you shall feast: you and your household.
{14:27} As for the Levite, who is within your gates, take care that you do not abandon him, for he has no other portion within your possession.
{14:28} In the third year, you shall separate another tenth part of all the things which spring forth for you at that time, and you shall store it within your gates.
{14:29} And the Levite, who has no other portion or possession with you, and the sojourner as well as the orphan and the widow who are within your gates, shall approach and eat and be satisfied, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the works of your hands which you shall do.”
{15:1} “In the seventh year, you shall perform a remission,
{15:2} which shall be celebrated according to this order. Anyone to whom anything is owed, by his friend or neighbor or brother, will not be able to request its return, because it is the year of remission of the Lord.
{15:3} From the sojourner and the new arrival, you may require its return. From your fellow countryman and neighbor, you will not have the power to request its return.
{15:4} And there shall not be anyone indigent or begging among you, so that the Lord your God may bless you in the land which he will deliver to you as a possession.
{15:5} But only if you heed the voice of the Lord your God, and keep to all that he has ordered, that which I am entrusting to you this day, will he bless you, just as he has promised.
{15:6} You shall lend money to many nations, and you yourselves shall borrow in return from no one. You shall rule over very many nations, and no one shall rule over you.
{15:7} If one of your brothers, who dwells within the gates of your city, in the land which the Lord your God will give to you, falls into poverty, you shall not harden your heart, nor tighten your hand.
{15:8} Instead, you shall open your hand to the poor, and you shall lend to him whatever you perceive him to need.
{15:9} Take care, lest perhaps an impious thought might creep within you, and you might say in your heart: ‘The seventh year of remission approaches.’ And so you might turn your eyes away from your poor brother, unwilling to lend to him what he has asked. If so, then he may cry out against you to the Lord, and it will be a sin for you.
{15:10} Instead, you shall give to him. Neither shall you do anything craftily while assisting him in his needs, so that the Lord your God may bless you, at all times and in all things to which you will put your hand.
{15:11} The poor will not be absent from the land of your habitation. For this reason, I instruct you to open your hand to your indigent and poor brother, who lives among you in the land.
{15:12} When your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, has been sold to you, and has served you for six years, in the seventh year you shall set him free.
{15:13} And when you grant his freedom, you shall by no means permit him to go away empty.
{15:14} Instead, you shall give to him, for his journey, from your flocks and threshing floor and winepress, with which the Lord your God has blessed you.
{15:15} Remember that you yourself also served in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God set you free. And therefore, I now command this of you.
{15:16} But if he will say, ‘I am not willing to depart,’ because he loves you and your household, and because he feels that it would be good for him to stay with you,
{15:17} then you shall take an awl and pierce his ear, at the door of your house. And he shall serve you even forever. You shall also act similarly toward your woman servant.
{15:18} You should not avert your eyes from them when you set them free, because he has served you for six years, in a manner deserving of the pay of a hired hand. So may the Lord your God bless you in all the works that you do.
{15:19} Of the firstborn, those born from your herds and sheep, you shall sanctify to the Lord your God whatever is of the male sex. You shall not put the firstborn of the oxen to work, nor shall you shear the firstborn of the sheep.
{15:20} In the sight of the Lord your God, you shall eat these, each year, in the place which the Lord will choose, you and your household.
{15:21} But if it has a blemish, or is lame, or is blind, or if it is in any part deformed or debilitated, it shall not be immolated to the Lord your God.
{15:22} Instead, you shall eat it within the gates of your city. The clean as well as the unclean alike shall feed on these, such as the roe deer and the stag.
{15:23} This alone shall you observe: that you do not eat their blood, but pour it upon the ground like water.”
{16:1} “Observe the month of new grain, at the beginning of springtime, so that you may accomplish the Passover to the Lord your God. For in this month, the Lord your God led you away from Egypt in the night.
{16:2} And you shall immolate the Passover to the Lord your God, from sheep and from oxen, in the place which the Lord your God will choose, so that his name may dwell there.
{16:3} You shall not eat it with leavened bread. For seven days you shall eat, without leaven, the bread of affliction. For you departed from Egypt in fear. So may you remember the day of your departure from Egypt, throughout all the days of your life.
{16:4} No leaven shall be present in all your confines for seven days. And by morning, there shall not remain any of the flesh which was immolated on the first day in the evening.
{16:5} You cannot immolate the Passover in any of your cities, which the Lord your God will give to you, that you wish,
{16:6} but only in the place which the Lord your God will choose, so that his name may dwell there. You shall immolate the Passover in the evening, upon the setting of the sun, which is the time when you departed from Egypt.
{16:7} And you shall cook and eat it in the place which the Lord your God will choose, and, rising up in the morning, you shall go into your tent.
{16:8} For six days, you shall eat unleavened bread. And on the seventh day, because it is the assembly of the Lord your God, you shall do no work.
{16:9} You shall number for yourself seven weeks from that day, the day on which you put the sickle to the grain field.
{16:10} And you shall celebrate the Feast of Weeks, to the Lord your God, with a voluntary oblation from your hand, which you shall offer according to the blessing of the Lord your God.
{16:11} And you shall feast in the sight of the Lord your God: you, your son and your daughter, your man servant and your woman servant, and the Levite who is within your gates, and the new arrival as well as the orphan and the widow, who abide with you, in the place which the Lord your God will choose, so that his name may dwell there.
{16:12} And you shall recall that you were a servant in Egypt. And you shall preserve and carry out the things that have been instructed.
{16:13} Likewise, you shall celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days, when you will have gathered your fruits from the orchard and the winepress.
{16:14} And you shall feast at the time of your festival: you, your son and daughter, your man servant and woman servant, likewise the Levite and the new arrival, the orphan and the widow, who are within your gates.
{16:15} For seven days you shall celebrate feasts to the Lord your God in the place which the Lord will choose. And the Lord your God will bless you in all your crops, and in every work of your hands. And you shall be joyful.
{16:16} Three times a year, all your males shall appear in the sight the Lord your God in the place which he will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles. No one shall appear before the Lord empty.
{16:17} But each one shall offer according to what he will have, according to the blessing of the Lord his God, which he will give to him.
{16:18} You shall appoint judges and magistrates at all your gates, which the Lord your God will give to you, throughout each of your tribes, so that they may judge the people with a just judgment,
{16:19} and not so as to show favoritism to either side. You shall not accept a person’s reputation, nor gifts. For gifts blind the eyes of the wise and alter the words of the just.
{16:20} You shall justly pursue what is just, so that you may live and possess the land, which the Lord your God will give to you.
{16:21} You shall not plant a sacred grove, nor shall you plant any tree near the altar of the Lord your God;
{16:22} you shall neither make nor set up for yourself a statue. These things the Lord your God hates.”
{17:1} “You shall not immolate to the Lord your God a sheep or an ox, in which there is a blemish or any defect at all; for this is an abomination to the Lord your God.
{17:2} When there will have been found among you, within one of your gates which the Lord your God will give to you, a man or a woman who is doing evil in the sight of the Lord your God, and who is transgressing his covenant,
{17:3} so as to go and serve foreign gods and adore them, such as the sun and the moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not instructed,
{17:4} and when this will have been reported to you, and, upon hearing it, if you have inquired diligently and have found it to be true, that the abomination is being done in Israel:
{17:5} you shall lead forward the man or the woman who has perpetrated this most wicked thing to the gates of your city, and they shall be stoned to death.
{17:6} By the mouth of two or three witnesses, he who is to be put to death shall perish. Let no one be killed with only one person speaking testimony against him.
{17:7} First, the hands of the witnesses shall be upon him who will be put to death, and lastly, the hands of the remainder of the people shall be sent forth. So may you take away the evil from your midst.
{17:8} If you have perceived that there is among you a difficult and doubtful matter of judgment, between blood and blood, cause and cause, leprosy and leprosy, and if you will have seen that the words of the judges within your gates vary: rise up and ascend to the place which the Lord your God will choose.
{17:9} And you shall approach the priests of the Levitical stock, and the judge, who shall be among them at that time, and you shall inquire of them, and they will reveal to you the truth of the judgment.
{17:10} And you shall accept whatever they will say, those who preside in the place which the Lord will choose, and whatever they will teach you,
{17:11} in accord with his law, and you shall follow their sentence. Neither shall you turn aside to the right or to the left.
{17:12} But whoever will be arrogant, unwilling to obey the order of the priest who ministers at that time to the Lord your God, and the decree of the judge, that man shall die. And so shall you take away the evil from Israel.
{17:13} And when the people hear about this, they shall be afraid, so that no one, from that time on, will swell with pride.
{17:14} When you will have entered into the land which the Lord your God will give to you, and you possess it, and you live in it, and you say, ‘I will appoint a king over me, just as all the surrounding nations have done,’
{17:15} you shall appoint him whom the Lord your God will choose from among the number of your brothers. You cannot make a man of another people king, one who is not your brother.
{17:16} And when he will have been appointed king, he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor lead the people back into Egypt, having been exalted by the number of his horsemen, especially since the Lord has instructed you never to return along the same way.
{17:17} He shall not have many wives, who might allure his mind, and he shall not have immense weights of silver and gold.
{17:18} Then, after he has been seated upon the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself the Deuteronomy of this law in a volume, using a copy from the priests of the Levitical tribe.
{17:19} And he shall have it with him, and he shall read it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the Lord his God, and to keep his words and ceremonies, which are instructed in the law.
{17:20} And so may his heart not become exalted with arrogance over his brothers, nor turn aside to the right or to the left, so that he and his sons may reign for a long time over Israel.”
{18:1} “The priests and the Levites, and all who are from the same tribe, shall have no portion or inheritance with the rest of Israel. For they shall eat the sacrifices of the Lord and his oblations.
{18:2} And they shall receive nothing else from the possession of their brothers. For the Lord himself is their inheritance, just as he said to them.
{18:3} This shall be the recompense for the priests from the people, and from those who offer victims, whether they will immolate an ox or a sheep. They shall give to the priest the shoulder and the breast,
{18:4} the first-fruits of grain, wine, and oil, and a portion of the wool from the shearing of the sheep.
{18:5} For the Lord your God himself has chosen him out of all your tribes, so that he may stand and minister to the name of the Lord, him and his sons, forever.
{18:6} If a Levite departs from one of the cities, throughout all of Israel, in which he lives, and if he wills and desires to go to the place which the Lord will choose,
{18:7} he shall minister in the name of the Lord his God, as do all his brothers, the Levites, who will be standing at that time in the sight of the Lord.
{18:8} He shall receive the same portion of food as the rest also receive, besides that which is due to him in his own city, by succession from his fathers.
{18:9} When you will have entered into the land which the Lord your God will give to you, be careful that you are not willing to imitate the abominations of those nations.
{18:10} Do not let there be found among you one who would purify his son or daughter by leading them through fire, nor one who consults seers, nor one who observes dreams or omens. Do not let there be found among you one who practices the occult,
{18:11} nor one who uses spells, nor one who consults demonic spirits, nor a diviner, nor one who seeks the truth from the dead.
{18:12} For the Lord abominates all these things. And, because of these wicked ways, he will destroy them at your arrival.
{18:13} You shall be perfect and without blemish with the Lord your God.
{18:14} These nations, whose land you shall possess, they listen to soothsayers and diviners. But you have been otherwise instructed by the Lord your God.
{18:15} The Lord your God will raise up for you a PROPHET from your nation and from your brothers, similar to me. You shall listen to him,
{18:16} just as you petitioned of the Lord your God at Horeb, when the assembly was gathered together, and you said: ‘Let me no longer hear the voice of the Lord my God, and let me no longer see this very great fire, lest I die.’
{18:17} And the Lord said to me: ‘They have spoken all these things well.
{18:18} I will raise up a prophet for them, from the midst of their brothers, similar to you. And I will place my words in his mouth, and he will speak to them all the things that I will instruct him.
{18:19} But against anyone who is not willing to listen to his words, which he will speak in my name, I will stand forth as the avenger.
{18:20} But if a prophet, having been corrupted by arrogance, chooses to speak, in my name, things which I did not instruct him to say, or to speak in the name of foreign gods, he shall be put to death.
{18:21} But if, in silent thought, you respond: “How will I be able to recognize a word which the Lord has not spoken?”
{18:22} you shall have this sign. If whatever that prophet predicts in the name of the Lord does not happen, then the Lord has not spoken it. Instead, the prophet has formed it through the swelling of his own mind. And for this reason, you shall not fear him.’ ”
{19:1} “When the Lord your God will have destroyed the nations, whose land he will deliver to you, and when you possess it and live in its cities and buildings,
{19:2} you shall separate for yourselves three cities in the midst of the land, which the Lord will give to you as a possession,
{19:3} paving the road carefully. And you shall divide the entire province of your land equally into three parts, so that he who is forced to flee because of manslaughter may have a place nearby to which he may be able to escape.
{19:4} This shall be the law of the killer who flees, whose life is to be saved. Whoever strikes down his neighbor unwillingly, and who has been proven to have had no hatred against him yesterday and the day before,
{19:5} such that he had gone with him into the forest simply to cut wood, and in cutting down the tree, the axe slipped from his hand, or the iron slipped from the handle, and it struck his friend and killed him: he shall flee to one of the cities stated above, and he shall live.
{19:6} Otherwise, perhaps the near relative of him whose blood was shed, impelled by his grief, might pursue and apprehend him, unless the way is too long, and he might strike down the life of him who is not guilty unto death, since he had demonstrated that he had no prior hatred against him who was slain.
{19:7} For this reason, I instruct you to separate three cities at equal distance from one another.
{19:8} And when the Lord your God will have enlarged your borders, just as he swore to your fathers, and when he will have given to you all the land that he has promised to them,
{19:9} (but this is only so if you will keep his commandments and do the things which I instruct to you this day, so that you love the Lord your God, and walk in his ways at all times) you shall add for yourselves three other cities, and so you shall double the number of the three cities stated above.
{19:10} So may innocent blood not be shed in the midst of the land which the Lord your God will give you to possess, lest you be guilty of blood.
{19:11} But if anyone, having hatred for his neighbor, will have lain in ambush for his life, and, rising up, will have struck him, and he will have died, and if he will have fled to one of the cities stated above,
{19:12} the elders of his city shall send, and they shall take him from the place of refuge, and they shall deliver him into the hand of the relative of him whose blood was shed, and he shall die.
{19:13} You shall not take pity on him, and so shall you take away the blood of the innocent from Israel, so that it may be well with you.
{19:14} You shall not take up or move the landmark of your neighbor, which those before you have placed, in your possession that the Lord your God will give to you, in the land you will receive to possess.
{19:15} One witness shall not stand against another, no matter what the sin or outrage may be. For every word shall stand by the mouth of two or three witnesses.
{19:16} If a lying witness will have stood against a man, accusing him of a transgression,
{19:17} both of those whose case it is shall stand before the Lord in the sight of the priests and the judges who shall be in those days.
{19:18} And when, after a very diligent examination, they will have found that the false witness had told a lie against his brother,
{19:19} they shall render to him just as he intended to do to his brother. And so shall you take away the evil from your midst.
{19:20} Then the others, upon hearing this, will be afraid, and they will by no means dare to do such things.
{19:21} You shall not take pity on him. Instead, you shall require a life for a life, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot.”
{20:1} “If you go out to battle against your enemies, and you see horsemen and chariots, and that the multitude of your adversary’s army is greater than your own, you shall not fear them. For the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt, is with you.
{20:2} Then, as the battle now draws near, the priest shall stand before the front ranks, and he shall speak to the people in this manner:
{20:3} ‘Listen, O Israel! Today you engage in a battle against your enemies. Do not let your heart be overwhelmed with fear. Do not be apprehensive. Do not yield. You should have no dread of them.
{20:4} For the Lord your God is in your midst, and he will contend against your enemies on your behalf, so that he may rescue you from peril.’
{20:5} Likewise, the officers shall proclaim, throughout every company, in the hearing of the soldiers: ‘What man is there who has built a new house, and has not dedicated it? Let him go and return to his house, lest perhaps he may die in the battle, and another man may dedicate it.
{20:6} What man is there who has planted a vineyard, and has not yet caused it to be common, so that all may eat from it? Let him go, and return to his house, lest perhaps he may die in the battle, and another man may carry out his office.
{20:7} What man is there, who has betrothed a wife, and has not taken her? Let him go, and return to his house, lest perhaps he may die in battle, and another man may take her.’
{20:8} After these things have been declared, they shall add the remainder, and shall say to the people: ‘What man is there who is overwhelmed by fear and is fainthearted? Let him go, and return to his house, lest he cause the hearts of his brothers to fear, just as he himself has been thoroughly stricken with fear.’
{20:9} And when the officers of the army have become silent, and have completed their speech, each one shall prepare his unit to wage war.
{20:10} When, at any time, you approach a city to fight against it, you shall first offer peace to it.
{20:11} If they receive it, and open the gates to you, then all the people who are in it shall be saved, and they shall serve you by paying tribute.
{20:12} But if they are not willing to enter into an agreement, and they begin to act against you in warfare, then you shall besiege it.
{20:13} And when the Lord your God will have delivered it into your hands, you shall strike down anyone who is in it, of the male gender, with the edge of the sword,
{20:14} but not the women and young children, nor the cattle and the other things that are within the city. And you shall divide all the plunder to the soldiers, and you shall eat the spoils from your enemies, which the Lord your God will give to you.
{20:15} So shall you do to all the cities which are at a great distance from you, those which are not among the cities that you shall receive as a possession.
{20:16} But among those cities which shall be given to you, you shall not permit anyone at all to live.
{20:17} Instead, you shall put them to death with the edge of the sword, specifically: the Hittite and the Amorite and the Canaanite, the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite, just as the Lord your God has commanded you.
{20:18} Otherwise, they may teach you to do all the abominations which they have committed for their own gods. And then you would sin against the Lord your God.
{20:19} When you will have besieged a city for a long time, and you will have encircled it with fortifications, so that you may fight against it, you shall not cut down trees from which one is able to eat, neither shall you cause devastation with axes to the surrounding region. For it is a tree, and not a man. It is not able to increase the number of those who are fighting against you.
{20:20} But if there are any trees which are not fruitful, but are wild, and if these are fit for other uses, then cut them down, and make machines, until you have captured the city that is contending against you.”
{21:1} “When there will have been found in the land, which the Lord your God will give to you, the corpse of a man who has been killed, and it is not known who is guilty of the murder,
{21:2} your judges and those greater by birth shall go out and measure, from the place of the corpse, the distance to each of the surrounding cities.
{21:3} And in whichever one they perceive to be closer than the others, the elders shall take a calf from the herd, one which has not pulled with a yoke, nor tilled with a plow.
{21:4} And they shall lead it into a rough and stony valley, one which has never been tilled or sown. And in that place, they shall cut the neck of the calf.
{21:5} And the priests the sons of Levi shall approach, those whom the Lord your God has chosen to minister to him, and to bless in his name, and to decide every controversy by their word, and to judge which things are clean and which are unclean.
{21:6} And those greater by birth of that city, nearest to the one who was slain, shall go and shall wash their hands over the calf that was killed in the valley.
{21:7} And they shall say: ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.
{21:8} Be merciful to your people Israel, whom you have redeemed, O Lord, and do not charge them with innocent blood in the midst of your people Israel.’ And so the guilt of the blood will be taken away from them.
{21:9} Then you will be free from the blood that was shed against the innocent, when you will have done as the Lord has instructed you.
{21:10} If you have gone out to fight against your enemies, and the Lord your God has delivered them into your hand, and if, as you are leading away the captives,
{21:11} you see among the number of the captives a beautiful woman, and you love her, and you are willing to have her as a wife:
{21:12} then you shall lead her into your house. And she shall shave off her hair, and cut her nails short,
{21:13} and remove the garment in which she was captured. And she shall sit in your house and weep for her father and mother, for one month. And after that, you shall enter to her and sleep with her, and she shall be your wife.
{21:14} But if afterwards she does not sit well in your mind, you shall set her free. You cannot sell her for money, nor can you oppress her by force. For you have humiliated her.
{21:15} If a man has two wives, one beloved and the other hated, and they have produced children by him, and if the son of the hated wife is the firstborn,
{21:16} and if he wishes to divide his substance among his sons: he cannot make the son of the beloved wife the firstborn, and so prefer him before the son of the hated wife.
{21:17} Instead, he shall acknowledge the son of the hated wife as the firstborn, and he shall give to him a double portion of all that he has. For he is the first among his children, and the rights of the firstborn are owed to him.
{21:18} If a man produces a disobedient and reckless son, who will not listen to the orders of his father or mother, and, having been corrected, shows contempt for obedience:
{21:19} they shall take him and lead him to the elders of the city and to the gate of judgment.
{21:20} And they shall say to them: ‘This our son is reckless and disobedient. He shows contempt when listening to our admonitions. He occupies himself with carousing, and self-indulgence, and feasting.’
{21:21} Then the people of the city shall stone him to death. And he shall die, so that you may take away the evil from your midst. And so may all of Israel, upon hearing it, be very afraid.
{21:22} When a man will have sinned in a matter which is punished by death, and, having been judged unto death, he has been hanged on a gallows:
{21:23} his corpse shall not remain on the tree. Instead, he shall be buried on the same day. For he who hangs from a tree has been cursed by God, and you shall not defile your land, which the Lord your God will give to you as a possession.”
{22:1} “If you see your brother’s ox or sheep wander astray, you shall not pass by. Instead, you shall lead them back to your brother.
{22:2} But if your brother is not near, or you do not know him, you shall lead them to your house, and they shall be with you until your brother seeks them and receives them.
{22:3} You shall act in a similar manner with his donkey, and his clothing, and all the belongings of your brother that have been lost. If you find it, you shall not neglect it, as if it belonged to a stranger.
{22:4} If you see that your brother’s donkey or ox has fallen along the way, you shall not disregard it. Instead, you shall lift it up with him.
{22:5} A woman shall not be clothed with manly apparel, nor shall a man make use of feminine apparel. For whoever does these things is abominable with God.
{22:6} If, as you are walking along the way, you find a bird’s nest, in a tree or on the ground, and the mother is nurturing the young or the eggs, you shall not take her with her young.
{22:7} Instead, you shall permit her to go, retaining the young that you have caught, so that it may be well with you, and you may live for a long time.
{22:8} When you build a new house, you shall make a wall around the roof. Otherwise, someone may slip and fall down violently, and so blood would be shed at your house, and you would be guilty.
{22:9} You shall not sow your vineyard with another seed, lest both the seed that you have sown and what springs forth from the vineyard be sanctified together.
{22:10} You shall not till with an ox and a donkey at the same time.
{22:11} You shall not wear a vestment which has been woven from both wool and linen.
{22:12} You shall make strings along the hem, at the four corners of your cloak, which covers you.
{22:13} If a man takes a wife, and afterwards he has hatred for her,
{22:14} and so he seeks opportunities to dismiss her, imputing a very wicked name to her by saying, ‘I received this woman as a wife, and upon entering to her, I found her not to be a virgin,’
{22:15} then her father and mother shall take her, and they shall bring with them the signs of her virginity, to the elders of the city who are at the gate.
{22:16} And the father shall say: ‘I gave my daughter to this man as a wife. And because he hates her,
{22:17} he accuses her with a very wicked name, by saying: “I did not find your daughter to be a virgin.” But behold, these are the signs of my daughter’s virginity.’ And they shall spread the clothing before the elders of the city.
{22:18} And the elders of that city shall apprehend that man and beat him.
{22:19} Moreover, they shall fine him one hundred shekels of silver, which he will give to the father of the girl, because he has committed slander, with a very wicked name, against a virgin of Israel. And he shall have her as a wife, and he cannot dismiss her throughout all the days of his life.
{22:20} But if what he has claimed is true and virginity is not found in the girl,
{22:21} then they shall throw her down, outside the doors of her father’s house, and the men of that city shall stone her to death, and she shall die. For she has acted wickedly in Israel, in that she fornicated in her father’s house. And so shall you take away the evil from your midst.
{22:22} If a man sleeps with the wife of another, then they shall both die, that is, the adulterer and the adulteress. And so shall you take away the evil from Israel.
{22:23} If a man has betrothed a girl who is a virgin, and if someone finds her in the city and he lies with her,
{22:24} then you shall lead them both out to the gate of that city, and they shall be stoned to death: the girl, because she did not cry out though she was in the city; the man, because he has humiliated the wife of his neighbor. And so shall you take away the evil from your midst.
{22:25} But if a man discovers, in the countryside, a girl who has been betrothed, and, apprehending her, he lies with her, then he alone shall die.
{22:26} The girl shall suffer nothing, nor is she guilty unto death. For just as a robber rises up against his brother and slays his life, so also did the girl suffer greatly.
{22:27} She was alone in the field. She cried out, and there was no one nearby, who might deliver her.
{22:28} If a man finds a girl who is a virgin, who does not have a betrothal, and, taking her, he lies with her, and the matter is brought to judgment,
{22:29} then he who slept with her shall give to the father of the girl fifty shekels of silver, and he shall have her as a wife, because he has humiliated her. He cannot dismiss her, throughout all the days of his life.
{22:30} No man shall take his father’s wife, nor remove her covering.”
{23:1} “A eunuch, one whose testicles have been debilitated or cut off, or whose penis has been cut off, shall not enter into the church of the Lord.
{23:2} The offspring of a harlot, that is, one born of a prostitute, shall not enter into the church of the Lord, until the tenth generation.
{23:3} The Ammonite and the Moabite, even after the tenth generation, shall not enter into the church of the Lord forever,
{23:4} because they were not willing to meet you with bread and water along the way, when you had departed from Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam, the son of Beor, from Mesopotamia in Syria, in order to curse you.
{23:5} But the Lord your God was not willing to listen to Balaam, and he turned his cursing into your blessing, because he loves you.
{23:6} You shall not make peace with them, nor shall you seek their prosperity, throughout all the days of your life forever.
{23:7} You shall not abhor anyone from Idumea, for he is your brother, nor the Egyptian, for you were a new arrival in his land.
{23:8} Those who have been born of them, in the third generation, shall enter into the church of the Lord.
{23:9} When you have gone out to war against your enemies, you shall keep yourself from everything that is evil.
{23:10} If there is a man among you who has been defiled by a dream in the night, he shall depart from the camp.
{23:11} And he shall not return before the evening, after he has washed with water, and then, after the sun sets, he shall return to the camp.
{23:12} You shall have a place beyond the camp to which you may go for the necessities of nature,
{23:13} carrying a small shovel at your belt. And when you would sit down, you shall dig around, and then, with the soil that was dug up, you shall cover
{23:14} that from which you were relieved. For the Lord your God walks in the midst of your camp, in order to rescue you, and to deliver your enemies to you. And so, let your camp be holy, and let nothing filthy appear within it, lest he abandon you.
{23:15} You shall not deliver a servant who has fled to you to his master.
{23:16} He shall live with you in a place that pleases him, and he shall rest in one of your cities. You shall not grieve him.
{23:17} There shall be no prostitutes among the daughters of Israel, nor anyone among the sons of Israel who visits a prostitute.
{23:18} You shall not offer money from a prostitute, nor the price of a dog, in the house of the Lord your God, no matter what you may have vowed. For both of these are an abomination with the Lord your God.
{23:19} You shall not lend money, or grain, or anything else at all, to your brother at interest,
{23:20} but only to a foreigner. For you shall lend to your brother whatever he needs without interest, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all your works in the land, which you shall enter so as to possess it.
{23:21} When you have made a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not be late in paying it. For the Lord your God demands it. And if you delay, it shall be imputed to you as a sin.
{23:22} If you are not willing to make a promise, then it shall be without sin.
{23:23} But as soon as it has departed from your lips, you shall observe and do just as you have promised to the Lord your God and just as you have spoken by your own free will and with your own mouth.
{23:24} Upon entering your neighbor’s vineyard, you may eat as many grapes as you please. But you may not carry any out with you.
{23:25} If you enter into your friend’s grain field, you may break off the ears, and rub them in your hand, but you may not reap them with a sickle.”
{24:1} “If a man takes a wife, and he has her, and she does not find favor before his eyes because of some vileness, then he shall write a bill of divorce, and he shall give it to her hand, and he shall dismiss her from his house.
{24:2} And when, having departed, she has married another,
{24:3} and if he likewise hates her, and has given her a bill of divorce, and has dismissed her from his house, or if indeed he has died,
{24:4} then the former husband cannot take her back as a wife. For she has been polluted and has become abominable in the sight of the Lord. Otherwise, you may cause your land, which the Lord your God will deliver to you as a possession, to sin.
{24:5} When a man has recently taken a wife, he shall not go out to war, nor shall any public office be enjoined upon him. Instead, he shall be free at home without guilt, so that for one year he may rejoice with his wife.
{24:6} You shall not accept an upper or lower millstone as collateral. For then he will have placed his life with you.
{24:7} If a man has been caught soliciting his brother among the sons of Israel, and selling him in order to receive a price, then he shall be put to death. And so shall you take away the evil from your midst.
{24:8} Observe diligently, lest you incur the wound of leprosy. But you shall do whatever the priests of the Levitical stock shall teach you to do, according to what I have instructed them. And you shall fulfill it carefully.
{24:9} Remember what the Lord your God did to Miriam, along the way, as you were departing from Egypt.
{24:10} When you require from your neighbor anything that he owes to you, you shall not enter into his house in order to take away the collateral.
{24:11} Instead, you shall stand outside, and he will carry out to you what he has.
{24:12} But if he is poor, then the collateral shall not remain with you through the night.
{24:13} Instead, you shall return it to him promptly, before the setting of the sun, so that, sleeping in his own garment, he may bless you, and you may have justice in the presence of the Lord your God.
{24:14} You shall not refuse the pay of the indigent and the poor, whether he is your brother, or he is a new arrival who dwells with you in the land and is within your gates.
{24:15} Instead, you shall pay him the price of his labor on the same day, before the setting of the sun. For he is poor, and with it he sustains his life. Otherwise, he may cry out against you to the Lord, and it would be charged to you as a sin.
{24:16} The fathers shall not be put to death on behalf of the sons, nor the sons on behalf of the fathers, but each one shall die for his own sin.
{24:17} You shall not pervert the judgment of the new arrival or the orphan, nor shall you take away the widow’s garment as collateral.
{24:18} Remember that you served in Egypt, and that the Lord your God rescued you from there. Therefore, I am instructing you to act in this way.
{24:19} When you have reaped the grain in your field, and, having forgotten, you leave behind a sheaf, you shall not return to take it away. Instead, you shall permit the new arrival, and the orphan, and the widow to take it away, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the works of your hands.
{24:20} If you have gathered the fruit of your olive trees, you shall not return in order to gather whatever may remain on the trees. Instead, you shall leave it behind for the new arrival, the orphan, and the widow.
{24:21} If you harvest the vintage of your vineyard, you shall not gather the remaining clusters. Instead, they shall fall to the use of the stranger, the orphan, and the widow.
{24:22} Remember that you also served in Egypt, and so, for this reason, I am instructing you to act in this way.”
{25:1} “If there is a case between persons, and they apply to the judges, they shall give the palm of justice to the one whom they perceive to be just, and they shall condemn of impiety the one who is impious.
{25:2} But if they see that the one who has sinned is worthy of stripes, they shall prostrate him and cause him to be beaten before them. According to the measure of the sin, so shall the measure of the stripes be.
{25:3} Even so, these shall not exceed the number of forty. Otherwise, your brother may depart, having been wounded shamefully before your eyes.
{25:4} You shall not muzzle an ox as it is treading out your crops in the field.
{25:5} When brothers are living together, and one of them dies without children, the wife of the deceased shall not marry another. Instead, his brother shall take her, and he shall raise up offspring for his brother.
{25:6} And the first son from her, he shall call by his brother’s name, so that his name will not be abolished from Israel.
{25:7} But if he is not willing to take his brother’s wife, who by law must go to him, the woman shall go to the gate of the city, and she shall call upon those greater by birth, and she shall say: ‘The brother of my husband is not willing to raise up his brother’s name in Israel; nor will he join with me.’
{25:8} And immediately, they shall summon him to be sent, and they shall question him. If he responds, ‘I am not willing to accept her as a wife,’
{25:9} then the woman shall approach him in the sight of the elders, and she shall remove his shoe from his foot, and she shall spit in his face, and she shall say: ‘So shall it be done to the man who was not willing to build up his brother’s house.’
{25:10} And his name shall be called in Israel: The House of the Unshod.
{25:11} If two men have a conflict between themselves, and one begins to do violence to the other, and if the other’s wife, wanting to rescue her husband from the hand of the stronger one, extends her hand and grasps him by his private parts,
{25:12} then you shall cut off her hand. Neither shall you weep over her with any mercy.
{25:13} You shall not have differing weights, greater and lesser, in your bag.
{25:14} Neither shall there be in your house a greater and a lesser measure.
{25:15} You shall have a just and a true weight, and your measure shall be equal and true, so that you may live for a long time upon the land, which the Lord your God will give to you.
{25:16} For the Lord your God abominates him who does these things, and he loathes all injustice.
{25:17} Remember what Amalek did to you, along the way, when you were departing from Egypt:
{25:18} how he met you and cut down the stragglers of the troops, who were sitting down, exhausted, when you were consumed by hunger and hardship, and how he did not fear God.
{25:19} Therefore, when the Lord your God will give you rest, and you will have subdued all the surrounding nations, in the land which he has promised to you, you shall delete his name from under heaven. Take care not to forget this.”
{26:1} “And when you will have entered into the land which the Lord your God will give to you to possess, and when you will have obtained it and are living within it:
{26:2} you shall take the first of all your crops, and place them in a basket, and you shall travel to the place which the Lord your God will choose, so that his name may be invoked there.
{26:3} And you shall approach the priest who will be in those days, and you shall say to him: ‘I profess this day, before the Lord your God, that I have entered into the land about which he swore to our fathers that he would give it to us.’
{26:4} And the priest, taking up the basket from your hand, shall place it before the altar of the Lord your God.
{26:5} And you shall say, in the sight of the Lord your God: ‘The Syrian pursued my father, who descended into Egypt, and he sojourned there in a very small number, and he increased into a great and strong nation and into an innumerable multitude.
{26:6} And the Egyptians afflicted us, and they persecuted us, imposing upon us the most grievous burdens.
{26:7} And we cried out to the Lord, the God of our fathers. He heard us, and he looked with favor upon our humiliation, and hardship, and distress.
{26:8} And he led us away from Egypt, with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, with a mighty terror, with signs and wonders.
{26:9} And he led us into this place, and he delivered to us the land flowing with milk and honey.
{26:10} And because of this, I now offer the first fruits of the land which the Lord has given to me.’ And you shall leave them in the sight of the Lord your God, and you shall adore the Lord your God.
{26:11} And you shall feast on all the good things which the Lord your God will give to you and to your house: you, and the Levite, and the new arrival who is with you.
{26:12} When you will have completed the tithing of all your crops, in the third year of tithes, you shall give it to the Levite, and to the new arrival, and to the orphan, and to the widow, so that they may eat within your gates and be satisfied.
{26:13} And you shall say, in the sight of the Lord your God: ‘I have taken what was sanctified from my house, and I have given it to the Levite, and to the new arrival, and to the orphan and the widow, just as you have commanded me. I have not transgressed your commandments, nor have I forgotten your precepts.
{26:14} I have not eaten from these things in my grief, nor have I separated them due to any kind of uncleanness, nor have I expended any of these things in funerals. I have obeyed the voice of the Lord my God, and I have done all things just as you have instructed me.
{26:15} Look with favor from your sanctuary and from your lofty habitation amid the heavens, and bless your people Israel and the land which you have given to us, just as you swore to our fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey.’
{26:16} Today the Lord your God has instructed you to carry out these commandments and judgments, and to keep and fulfill them, with all your heart and with all your soul.
{26:17} Today, you have chosen the Lord to be your God, so that you may walk in his ways, and keep his ceremonies and commandments and judgments, and obey his command.
{26:18} Today, the Lord has chosen you, so that you may be his particular people, just as he has spoken to you, and so that you may keep all his precepts,
{26:19} and so that he may cause you to be more exalted than all the nations which he has created, for the sake of his own praise and name and glory, in order that you may be a holy people for the Lord your God, just as he has spoken.”
{27:1} Then Moses and the elders of Israel instructed the people, saying: “Keep each commandment that I instruct to you this day.
{27:2} And when you have crossed over the Jordan, into the land which the Lord your God will give to you, you shall erect immense stones, and you shall coat them with plaster,
{27:3} so that you may be able to write upon them all the words of this law, when you have crossed the Jordan so as to enter into the land which the Lord your God will give to you, a land flowing with milk and honey, just as he swore to your fathers.
{27:4} Therefore, when you have crossed over the Jordan, erect the stones, just as I instruct you to do this day, on Mount Ebal. And you shall coat them with plaster,
{27:5} and you shall build, in that place, an altar to the Lord your God out of stones which have not been touched by iron,
{27:6} out of stones which have not been hewn or polished. And you shall offer holocausts on it to the Lord your God.
{27:7} And you shall immolate peace victims. And you shall eat and feast in that place, in the sight of the Lord your God.
{27:8} And you shall write upon the stones all the words of this law, plainly and clearly.”
{27:9} And Moses and the priests of Levitical stock said to all of Israel: “Attend and listen, O Israel! Today you have become the people of the Lord your God.
{27:10} You shall listen to his voice, and you shall do the commandments and justices, which I am entrusting to you.”
{27:11} And Moses instructed the people in that day, saying:
{27:12} “These shall stand upon Mount Gerizim, as a blessing to the people, when you will have crossed the Jordan: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin.
{27:13} And in the opposite region, there shall stand upon Mount Ebal, as a curse: Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.
{27:14} And the Levites shall pronounce and declare to all the men of Israel, with an exalted voice:
{27:15} Cursed be the man who makes a graven or molten idol, an abomination to the Lord, a work of the hands of its maker, and who puts it in a secret place. And all the people shall respond by saying: Amen.
{27:16} Cursed be he who does not honor his father and mother. And all the people shall say: Amen.
{27:17} Cursed be he who removes his neighbor’s landmarks. And all the people shall say: Amen.
{27:18} Cursed be he who causes the blind to go astray on a journey. And all the people shall say: Amen.
{27:19} Cursed be he who subverts the judgment of the new arrival, the orphan, or the widow. And all the people shall say: Amen.
{27:20} Cursed be he who lies with his father’s wife, and so exposes the covering of his bed. And all the people shall say: Amen.
{27:21} Cursed be he who lies with any beast. And all the people shall say: Amen.
{27:22} Cursed be he who lies with his sister, the daughter of his father, or of his mother. And all the people shall say: Amen.
{27:23} Cursed be he who lies with his mother-in-law. And all the people shall say: Amen.
{27:24} Cursed be he who secretly strikes down his neighbor. And all the people shall say: Amen.
{27:25} Cursed be he who accepts gifts in order to strike down the life of innocent blood. And all the people shall say: Amen.
{27:26} Cursed be he who does not remain in the words of this law, and does not carry them out in deed. And all the people shall say: Amen.”
{28:1} “So then, if you will listen to the voice of the Lord your God, so as to keep and do all of his commandments, which I instruct to you this day, the Lord your God will cause you to be more exalted than all the nations which exist upon the earth.
{28:2} And all these blessings shall come to you and take hold of you, but only if you listen to his precepts.
{28:3} Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed in the field.
{28:4} Blessed shall be the fruit of your loins, and the fruit of your land, and the fruit of your cattle, the droves of your herds, and the folds of your sheep.
{28:5} Blessed shall be your barns, and blessed your storehouses.
{28:6} Blessed shall you be entering and departing.
{28:7} The Lord will grant that your enemies, who rise up against you, will fall down in your sight. They will come against you by one way, and they will flee from your face by seven ways.
{28:8} The Lord will send forth a blessing upon your cellars, and upon all the works of your hands. And he will bless you in the land that you shall receive.
{28:9} The Lord will raise you up as a holy people for himself, just as he swore to you, if you will keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and walk in his ways.
{28:10} And all the peoples of the earth shall see that the name of the Lord has been invoked over you, and they shall fear you.
{28:11} The Lord will cause you to be abundant in every good thing: in the fruit of your womb, and in the fruit of your cattle, and in the fruit of your land, which the Lord swore to your fathers that he would give to you.
{28:12} The Lord will open his excellent treasury, the heavens, so that it may distribute rain in due time. And he will bless all the works of your hands. And you shall lend to many nations, but you yourself will borrow nothing from anyone.
{28:13} And the Lord will appoint you as the head, and not as the tail. And you shall be always above, and not beneath. But only if you will listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, which I entrust to you this day, and will keep and do them,
{28:14} and will not turn aside from them, neither to the right, nor to the left, nor follow strange gods, nor worship them.
{28:15} But if you are not willing to listen to the voice of the Lord your God, so as to keep and do all his commandments and ceremonies, which I instruct to you this day, all these curses shall come to you, and take hold of you.
{28:16} Cursed shall you be in the city, cursed in the field.
{28:17} Cursed shall be your barn, and cursed your storehouses.
{28:18} Cursed shall be the fruit of your loins, and the fruit of your land, the herds of your oxen, and the flocks of your sheep.
{28:19} Cursed shall you be entering, and cursed departing.
{28:20} The Lord will send famine and hunger upon you, and a rebuke upon all the works that you do, until he quickly crushes and perishes you, because of your very wicked innovations, by which you have forsaken me.
{28:21} May the Lord join a pestilence to you, until he consumes you from the land, which you shall enter so as to possess.
{28:22} May the Lord strike you with destitution, with fever and cold, with burning and heat, and with polluted air and rot, and may he pursue you until you perish.
{28:23} May the heavens which are above you be of brass, and may the ground upon which you tread be of iron.
{28:24} May the Lord give you dust instead of rain upon your land, and may ashes descend from heaven over you, until you have been wiped away.
{28:25} May the Lord hand you over to fall before your enemies. May you go forth against them by one way, and flee by seven ways, and may you be scattered across all the kingdoms of the earth.
{28:26} And may your carcass be food for all the flying things of the air and the wild beasts of the land, and may there be no one to drive them away.
{28:27} May the Lord strike you with the ulcer of Egypt, and may he strike the part of your body, through which the dung goes out, with disease as well as itch, so much so that you are unable to be cured.
{28:28} May the Lord strike you with frenzy and blindness and a madness of the mind.
{28:29} And may you grope at midday, just as a blind man is accustomed to grope in darkness, and may your paths not be straight. And at all times may you suffer slander and be oppressed with violence, and may you have no one who may free you.
{28:30} May you take a wife, though another sleeps with her. May you build a house, but not live within it. May you plant a vineyard, and not gather its vintage.
{28:31} May your ox be immolated before you, though you do not eat from it. May your donkey be seized in your sight, and not restored to you. May your sheep be given to your enemies, and may there be no one who may help you.
{28:32} May your sons and your daughters be handed over to another people, as your eyes watch and languish at the sight of them throughout the day, and may there be no strength in your hand.
{28:33} May a people you do not know eat the fruits of your land and of all your labors. And may you continually suffer from slander and oppression every day.
{28:34} And may you be stupefied at the terror of the things your eyes will see.
{28:35} May the Lord strike you with a very grievous ulcer in the knees and in the legs, and may you be unable to attain health, from the sole of the foot to the top of the head.
{28:36} May the Lord lead you and your king, whom you will have appointed over yourself, into a nation which you and your fathers have not known. And there you will serve foreign gods, of wood and of stone.
{28:37} And you will become nothing but a proverb and a fable to all the peoples to whom the Lord will lead you.
{28:38} You will sow much seed upon the ground, but you will harvest little. For the locusts will devour everything.
{28:39} You will dig and plant a vineyard, but you will not drink the wine, nor gather anything at all from it. For it will be devastated by worms.
{28:40} You will have olive trees in all your borders, but you will not be anointed with the oil. For the olives will fall off and perish.
{28:41} You will conceive sons and daughters, and you will not enjoy them. For they will be led into captivity.
{28:42} Rot will consume all the trees, as well as the fruits of your land.
{28:43} The new arrival who lives with you in the land will ascend over you, and be higher. But you will descend, and be lower.
{28:44} He will lend to you, and you will not lend to him. He will be as the head, and you will be as the tail.
{28:45} And all these curses shall come to you, and shall pursue you, and shall take hold of you, until you pass away, because you would not listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and you would not serve his commandments and ceremonies, which he has instructed to you.
{28:46} And there will be the signs and portents with you, and with your offspring, forever.
{28:47} Because you did not serve the Lord your God, with gladness and a joyful heart, over the abundance of all things.
{28:48} You will serve your enemy, whom the Lord will send to you, in hunger and thirst and nakedness, and in destitution of all things. And he will place an iron yoke upon your neck, until he has crushed you.
{28:49} The Lord will lead over you a nation from far away, even from the furthest parts of the earth, like an eagle flying with great force, whose language you are not able to understand:
{28:50} a very insolent nation, which will show no deference to elders, nor take pity on little ones.
{28:51} And he will devour the fruit of your cattle, and the fruits of your land, until you have passed away, without leaving behind you wheat, or wine, or oil, or herds of oxen, or flocks of sheep: until he utterly destroys you.
{28:52} And he will crush you in all your cities. And your strong and lofty walls, in which you trusted, will be destroyed throughout all your land. You will be besieged within your gates throughout all your land, which the Lord your God will give to you.
{28:53} And you will eat the fruit of your womb, and the flesh of your sons and of your daughters, which the Lord your God will give to you, due to the anguish and devastation with which your enemy will oppress you.
{28:54} The man who is pampered and very self-indulgent among you will vie with his own brother, and with the wife who lies at his bosom,
{28:55} lest he give to them from the flesh of his sons, which he will eat. For he has nothing else due to the siege and the destitution, with which your enemies will devastate you within all your gates.
{28:56} The tender and pampered woman, who would not walk upon the soil, nor step firmly with her foot due to her very great softness and tenderness, will vie with her husband, who lies at her bosom, over the flesh of son and of daughter,
{28:57} and over the filth of the afterbirth, which goes forth from between her thighs, and over the children who are born in the same hour. For they will eat them secretly, due to the scarcity of all things during the siege and the devastation, with which your enemy will oppress you within your gates.
{28:58} If you will not keep and do all the words of this law, which have been written in this volume, and fear his glorious and terrible name, that is, the Lord your God,
{28:59} then the Lord will increase your plagues, and the plagues of your offspring, plagues great and long-lasting, infirmities very grievous and continuous.
{28:60} And he will turn back upon you all the afflictions of Egypt, which you fear, and these will cling to you.
{28:61} In addition, the Lord will lead over you all the diseases and plagues that are not written in the volume of this law, until he crushes you.
{28:62} And you will remain few in number, though you were before like the stars of heaven in multitude, because you would not listen to the voice of the Lord your God.
{28:63} And just as before, when the Lord rejoiced over you, doing good for you and multiplying you, so shall he rejoice, scattering and overturning you, so as to take you away from the land, which you shall enter in order to possess.
{28:64} The Lord will disperse you among all the peoples, from the heights of the earth to its furthest limits. And there you will serve foreign gods of wood and of stone, which you and your fathers did not know.
{28:65} Similarly, you will not have tranquility, even within those nations, nor will there be any rest for the steps of your feet. For the Lord will give to you in that place a fearful heart, and failing eyes, and a life consumed with grieving.
{28:66} And your life will be as if it were hanging before you. You will be afraid night and day, and you will not have confidence in your own life.
{28:67} In the morning you will say, ‘Who will grant evening to me?’ and at evening, ‘Who will grant morning to me?’ because of the dread of your heart, with which you will be terrified, and because of those things that you will see with your eyes.
{28:68} The Lord will lead you back into Egypt with a fleet of ships, along the way, about which he said to you that you would not see it again. In that place, you will be put up for sale as men and women servants to your enemies, but there will be no one willing to buy you.”
{29:1} These are the words of the covenant which the Lord instructed Moses to form with the sons of Israel in the land of Moab, beside that covenant which he struck with them at Horeb.
{29:2} And Moses called all of Israel, and he said to them: “You have seen all the things that the Lord has done in your sight in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to his entire land:
{29:3} the great trials, which your eyes have seen, those immense signs and wonders.
{29:4} But the Lord has not given you an understanding heart, and seeing eyes, and ears that are able to hear, even to this present day.
{29:5} He led you for forty years through the desert. Your garments have not been worn out, nor have the shoes on your feet been consumed by age.
{29:6} You did not eat bread, nor did you drink wine or liquor, so that you would know that I am the Lord your God.
{29:7} And you arrived at this place. And Sihon, the king of Heshbon, and Og, the king of Bashan, went out to meet us in battle. And we struck them down.
{29:8} And we took their land and delivered it as a possession to Ruben and to Gad, and to half of the tribe of Manasseh.
{29:9} Therefore, keep the words of this covenant, and fulfill them, so that you may understand all that you are doing.
{29:10} Today, you all stand in the sight of the Lord your God: your leaders, and tribes, and those greater by birth, and teachers, all the people of Israel,
{29:11} your children and wives, and the new arrival who dwells with you in the camp, aside from those who cut wood, and those who bring water,
{29:12} so that you may cross into the covenant of the Lord your God, and into the oath which the Lord your God strikes with you today.
{29:13} So shall he raise you up as a people to himself, and so shall he be your God, just as he has spoken to you, and just as he swore to your fathers: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
{29:14} And I am not forming this covenant and confirm these oaths with you alone,
{29:15} but with all those who are present as well as those who are absent.
{29:16} For you know how we lived in the land of Egypt, and how we passed through the midst of nations. And when passing through them,
{29:17} you saw their abominations and filth, that is, their idols of wood and of stone, of silver and of gold, which they worshipped,
{29:18} so that there would not be among you man or woman, family or tribe, whose heart has been turned away this day from the Lord our God, so as to go and serve the gods of those nations. For then there would be among you a root springing forth gall and bitterness.
{29:19} And if he were to hear the words of this oath, he would bless himself in his own heart saying: ‘There will be peace for me, and I will walk in the depravity of my heart.’ And so, the one who is inebriated would consume the one who is thirsty.
{29:20} But the Lord would not ignore him. Instead, at that time, his fury and zealousness would be very greatly enflamed against that man, and all the curses which have been written in this volume would settle upon him. And the Lord would abolish his name from under heaven,
{29:21} and consume him unto perdition out of all the tribes of Israel, according to the curses which are contained in the book of this law and in the covenant.
{29:22} And the subsequent generation would speak out, along with the sons who will be born afterward. And the sojourners, who will arrive from far away, will see the plagues of that land and the infirmities with which the Lord will have afflicted it,
{29:23} having burned it with sulphur and molten salt, so that it can no longer be sown. And certainly no greenery would spring up, as in the example of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the Lord overturned with his wrath and fury.
{29:24} And so, all the nations would say: ‘Why has the Lord acted this way toward this land? What is this immense wrath of his fury?’
{29:25} And they will respond: ‘Because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord, which he formed with their fathers, when he led them away from the land of Egypt.
{29:26} And they have served foreign gods, and adored them, though they did not know them, and though they had not been allotted to them.
{29:27} For this reason, the fury of the Lord was enraged against this land, so as to lead over it all the curses which have been written in this volume.
{29:28} And he has cast them out of their own land, with anger and fury, and with a very great indignation, and he has thrown them into a strange land, just as has been proven this day.’
{29:29} These hidden things of the Lord our God have been revealed to us and to our sons in perpetuity, so that we may accomplish all the words of this law.”
{30:1} “Now when all these things will have fallen over you, the blessing or the curse that I have set forth in your sight, and you will have been led to repentance in your heart among all the nations to which the Lord your God will have dispersed you,
{30:2} and when you will have returned to him, so as to obey his commandments, just as I have instructed you this day, with your sons, with your whole heart and with your whole soul,
{30:3} then the Lord your God will lead you away from your captivity, and he will take pity on you, and he will gather you again from all the nations to which he had dispersed you before.
{30:4} Even if you will have been scattered as far as the poles of the heavens, the Lord your God will retrieve you from there.
{30:5} And he will take you up and lead you into the land which your fathers had possessed, and you shall obtain it. And in blessing you, he will make you greater in number than your fathers ever were.
{30:6} The Lord your God will circumcise your heart, and the heart of your offspring, so that you may love the Lord your God with your entire heart and with your entire soul, so that you may be able to live.
{30:7} And he will turn all these curses upon your enemies, and upon those who hate and persecute you.
{30:8} But you shall return, and you shall listen to the voice of the Lord your God. And you shall carry out all the commandments which I am entrusting to you this day.
{30:9} And the Lord your God will cause you to abound in all the works of your hands, in the progeny of your womb, and in the fruit of your cattle, in the fertility of your land, and with an abundance of all things. For the Lord will return, so that he may rejoice over you in all good things, just as he rejoiced in your fathers:
{30:10} but only if you will listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and keep his precepts and ceremonies, which have been written in this law, and only if you return to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
{30:11} This commandment, which I entrust to you today, is not high above you, nor has it been placed far away.
{30:12} Nor is it in heaven, so that you would be able to say, ‘Which of us can ascend to heaven, so as to carry it back to us, and so that we may hear it and fulfill it in deed?’
{30:13} Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you would excuse yourself by saying, ‘Which of us is able to cross the sea, and to carry it back to us, so that we may be able to hear and to do what has been instructed?’
{30:14} Instead, the word is near to you, in your mouth and in your heart, so that you may do it.
{30:15} Consider what I have set forth in your sight this day, life and good, or, on the opposite side, death and evil,
{30:16} so that you may love the Lord your God, and walk in his ways, and keep his commandments and ceremonies and judgments, and so that you may live, and he may multiply you and bless you in the land, which you shall enter in order to possess.
{30:17} But if your heart will have been turned aside, so that you are not willing to listen, and, having been deceived by error, you adore strange gods and serve them,
{30:18} then I predict to you this day that you will perish, and you will remain for only a short time in the land, for which you shall cross the Jordan, and which you shall enter in order to possess.
{30:19} I call heaven and earth as witnesses this day, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore, choose life, so that both you and your offspring may live,
{30:20} and so that you may love the Lord your God, and obey his voice, and cling to him, (for he is your life and the length of your days) and so that you may live in the land, about which the Lord swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that he would give it to them.”
{31:1} And so, Moses went out, and he spoke all these words to all of Israel.
{31:2} And he said to them: “Today, I am one hundred and twenty years old. I am no longer able to go out and return, especially since the Lord has also said to me, ‘You shall not cross this Jordan.’
{31:3} Therefore, the Lord your God will go across before you. He himself will abolish all these nations in your sight, and you shall possess them. And this man Joshua shall go across before you, just as the Lord has spoken.
{31:4} And the Lord will do to them just as he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, and he will wipe them away.
{31:5} Therefore, when the Lord will have delivered these to you also, you shall act similarly toward them, just as I have instructed you.
{31:6} Act manfully and be strengthened. Do not be afraid, and do not dread at the sight of them. For the Lord your God himself is your commander, and he will neither dismiss nor abandon you.”
{31:7} And Moses called Joshua, and, before all of Israel, he said to him: ‘Be strong and valiant. For you shall lead this people into the land which the Lord swore that he would give to their fathers, and you shall divide it by lot.
{31:8} And the Lord, who is your commander, will himself be with you. He will neither renounce nor abandon you. Do not be afraid, and do not dread.”
{31:9} And so, Moses wrote this law, and he handed it to the priests, the sons of Levi, who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and to all the elders of Israel.
{31:10} And he instructed them, saying: “After seven years, in the year of remission, at the solemnity of the Feast of Tabernacles,
{31:11} when all of Israel has convened in order to appear in the sight of the Lord your God, in the place which the Lord will choose, you shall read the words of this law before all of Israel, in their hearing.
{31:12} And when the people have gathered together, men as well as women and little children, and the new arrivals who are within your gates, they shall listen so that they may learn, and may fear the Lord your God, and may keep and fulfill all the words of this law,
{31:13} and also so that their sons, who are now ignorant, may be able to listen, and may fear the Lord their God all the days that they live in the land to which you will travel, crossing the Jordan in order to obtain it.”
{31:14} And the Lord said to Moses: “Behold, the days of your death draw near. Call Joshua, and stand in the tabernacle of the testimony, so that I may instruct him.” Therefore, Moses and Joshua went and stood in the tabernacle of the testimony.
{31:15} And the Lord appeared there, in a pillar of cloud, which stood at the entrance of the tabernacle.
{31:16} And the Lord said to Moses: “Behold, you shall sleep with your fathers, and this people will rise up and will fornicate after foreign gods, in the land which they will enter so that they may live in it. In that place, they will forsake me, and they will make void the covenant that I have formed with them.
{31:17} And my fury will be enraged against them in that day. And I will abandon them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured. Every evil and affliction will find them, so much so that they will say in that day: ‘Truly, it is because God is not with me that these evils have found me.’
{31:18} But I will hide myself, and I will conceal my face in that day, because of all the evils that they have done, because they have followed strange gods.
{31:19} And so, write this canticle now, and teach it to the sons of Israel, so that they may retain it in memory, and may chant it by mouth, and so that this verse may be a testimony to me among the sons of Israel.
{31:20} For I will lead them into the land, about which I swore to their fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey. And when they have eaten, and have been satiated and fattened, they will turn aside to foreign gods, and they will serve them. And they will disparage me, and they will nullify my covenant.
{31:21} And after many evils and afflictions have overwhelmed them, this canticle will answer them as a testimony; it shall never pass into oblivion, away from the mouths of their offspring. For I know their thoughts and what they are about to do today, even before I lead them into the land which I have promised to them.”
{31:22} Therefore, Moses wrote the canticle, and he taught it to the sons of Israel.
{31:23} And the Lord instructed Joshua, the son of Nun, and he said: “Be strong and valiant. For you shall lead the sons of Israel into the land which I have promised, and I will be with you.”
{31:24} Therefore, after Moses had written the words of this law in a volume, and had finished it,
{31:25} he instructed the Levites, who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying:
{31:26} “Take this book, and place it inside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, so that it may be there as a testimony against you.
{31:27} For I know your contentiousness and your very stiff neck. Even while I am still living and entering with you, you have always acted with contention against the Lord. How much more so when I will be dead?
{31:28} Gather to me all those greater by birth throughout your tribes, as well as your teachers, and I will speak these words in their hearing, and I will call heaven and earth as witnesses against them.
{31:29} For I know that, after my death, you will act with iniquity, and you will quickly depart from the way that I have instructed to you. And so, evils will meet you in the end time, when you will have done evil in the sight of the Lord so as to provoke him through the works of your hands.”
{31:30} Thus did Moses speak, in the hearing of the entire assembly of Israel, the words of this canticle, and he completed it to its very end.
{32:1} “Listen, O heavens, to what I am saying. Let the earth hear the words of my mouth.
{32:2} Let my doctrine accumulate like the rain. Let my eloquence form like the dew, like a mist upon the plants, and like water droplets upon the grass.
{32:3} For I will invoke the name of the Lord. Acknowledge the magnificence of our God!
{32:4} The works of God are perfect, and all his ways are judgments. God is faithful and without any iniquity. He is just and upright.
{32:5} They have sinned against him, and in their filth they are not his sons. They are a depraved and perverse generation.
{32:6} How can this be the return you would offer to the Lord, O foolish and senseless people? Is he himself not your Father, who has possessed you, and made you, and created you?
{32:7} Remember the days of antiquity. Consider each generation. Question your father, and he will declare it to you. Question your elders, and they will tell it to you.
{32:8} When the Most High divided the nations, when he separated the sons of Adam, he appointed the limits of the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel.
{32:9} But the Lord’s portion is his people: Jacob, the lot of his inheritance.
{32:10} He discovered him in a desert land, in a place of horror and a vast wilderness. He led him around and taught him, and he guarded him like the pupil of his eye,
{32:11} just as an eagle encourages its young to fly, and, flying above them, stretches out its wings, and takes them up, and carries them on its shoulders.
{32:12} The Lord alone was his leader, and there was no strange god with him.
{32:13} He stood him upon an exalted land, so that he might eat the fruits of the fields, so that he might eat honey from the rock, and oil from the hardest stone,
{32:14} butter from the herd, and milk from the sheep, with fat from the lambs, and with rams and goats from the sons of Bashan, with the kernel of the wheat, and so that he might drink the undiluted blood of the grape.
{32:15} The beloved grew fat, and he kicked. Having grown fat and thick and wide, he abandoned God, his Maker, and he withdrew from God, his Savior.
{32:16} They provoked him with strange gods, and they stirred him to anger by their abominations.
{32:17} They immolated to demons and not to God, to gods whom they did not know, who were new and recent arrivals, whom their fathers did not worship.
{32:18} You have forsaken the God who conceived you, and you have forgotten the Lord who created you.
{32:19} The Lord saw, and he was stirred to anger. For his own sons and daughters provoked him.
{32:20} And he said: ‘I will hide my face from them, and I will consider their very end. For this is a perverse generation, and they are unfaithful sons.
{32:21} They have provoked me with that which was not God, and they have angered me with their emptiness. And so, I will provoke them with that which is not a people, and I will anger them with a foolish nation.
{32:22} A fire has been kindled in my fury, and it will burn even to the deepest Hell, and it will devour the earth with its produce, and it will burn the foundations of the mountains.
{32:23} I will heap evils upon them, and I will expend my arrows among them.
{32:24} They will be consumed by famine, and birds with a very bitter bite will devour them. I will send forth the teeth of wild beasts among them, along with the fury of creatures that scurry across the ground, and of serpents.
{32:25} Outside, the sword will devastate them; and inside, there will be dread, as much for the young man as for the maiden, and as much for the newborn as for the old man.
{32:26} I said: Where are they? I will cause their memory to cease from among men.
{32:27} But because of the wrath of the enemies, I have delayed it. Otherwise, perhaps their enemies would be arrogant and would say: “Our exalted hand, and not the Lord, has done all these things.”
{32:28} They are a nation without counsel and without prudence.
{32:29} I wish that they would be wise and understanding, and would provide for the very end.’
{32:30} How is it that one pursues a thousand, and two chases ten thousand? Is it not because their God has sold them, and because the Lord has enclosed them?
{32:31} For our God is not like their gods. And our enemies are judges.
{32:32} Their vines are of the vines of Sodom, but from the suburbs of Gomorrah. Their grapes are the grapes of gall, and their grape clusters are most bitter.
{32:33} Their wine is the gall of snakes, and it is the incurable venom of asps.
{32:34} ‘Have not these things been stored up with me, and sealed up amid my treasures?
{32:35} Vengeance is mine, and I will repay them in due time, so that their foot may slip and fall. The day of perdition is near, and the time rushes to appear.’
{32:36} The Lord will judge his people, and he will take pity on his servants. He will see that their hand has been weakened, and that those who have been enclosed have likewise failed, and that those who have been left behind have been consumed.
{32:37} And he shall say: ‘Where are their gods, in whom they had confidence?
{32:38} They ate the fat of their victims, and they drank the wine of their libations. So let these rise up, and bring relief to you, and protect you in your distress.
{32:39} See that I am alone, and there is no other god beside me. I will kill, and I will cause to live. I will strike, and I will heal. And there is no one who is able to rescue from my hand.
{32:40} I will lift up my hand to heaven, and I will say: I live in eternity.
{32:41} When I sharpen my sword like lightning, and my hand takes hold of judgment, then I will render vengeance to my enemies, and I will repay those who hate me.
{32:42} I will inebriate my arrows with blood, and my sword will devour flesh: from the blood of the slain and from the captive, from the exposed head of the enemies.’
{32:43} You nations, praise his people! For he will avenge the blood of his servants. And he will distribute vengeance to their enemies. And he will be merciful to the land of his people.”
{32:44} Therefore, Moses went and spoke all the words of this canticle to the ears of the people, both he and Joshua, the son of Nun.
{32:45} And he completed all these words, speaking to all of Israel.
{32:46} And he said to them: “Set your hearts upon all the words which I am testifying to you this day. So shall you command your sons, to keep, and to do, and to fulfill all the things that have been written in this law.
{32:47} For these things have not been entrusted to you to no purpose, but so that each one would live by them, and so that, in doing these, you may continue for a long time in the land, which you will enter upon crossing the Jordan in order to possess it.”
{32:48} And the Lord spoke to Moses on the same day, saying:
{32:49} “Ascend this mountain, Abarim, (that is, of crossings) onto Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, opposite Jericho, and look upon the land of Canaan, which I will deliver to the sons of Israel to obtain it. And you shall die upon the mountain.
{32:50} After climbing it, you will be joined to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor, and was placed with his people.
{32:51} For you trespassed against me in the midst of the sons of Israel, at the Waters of Contradiction, in Kadesh, in the desert of Sin. And you did not sanctify me among the sons of Israel.
{32:52} You shall see the land opposite you, which I will give to the sons of Israel, but you shall not enter into it.”
{33:1} This is the blessing, with which Moses, the man of God, blessed the sons of Israel before his death.
{33:2} And he said: “The Lord went forth from Sinai, and he arose for us from Seir. He appeared from Mount Paran, and thousands of holy ones were with him. The fiery law was in his right hand.
{33:3} He loved the people; all the holy ones are in his hand. And those who approach his feet shall receive from his doctrine.
{33:4} Moses instructed us in the law, the inheritance of the multitude of Jacob.
{33:5} The king shall have great righteousness, at the gathering of the princes of the people with the tribes of Israel.
{33:6} Let Ruben live, and not die, and may he be small in number.”
{33:7} This is the blessing of Judah. “Hear, O Lord, the voice of Judah, and lead him to his people. His hands shall fight for him, and he shall be his helper against his adversaries.”
{33:8} Likewise, to Levi he said: “Your perfection and your doctrine are for your holy man, whom you have proven by temptation, and whom you have judged at the Waters of Contradiction.
{33:9} He has said to his father and to his mother, ‘I do not know you,’ and to his brothers, ‘I will disregard you.’ And they have not known their own sons. Such as these have kept your word and have observed your covenant:
{33:10} your judgments, O Jacob, and your law, O Israel. They shall place incense before your fury and a holocaust upon your altar.
{33:11} O Lord, bless his strength, and receive the works of his hands. Strike the backs of his enemies, and do not let those who hate him rise up.”
{33:12} And to Benjamin he said: “The most beloved of the Lord will live confidently in him. He shall remain all day long, as if in a bridal chamber, and he shall rest amid her arms.”
{33:13} Likewise, to Joseph he said: “His land shall be from the blessing of the Lord, from the fruits of heaven, and from the dew, and from the abyss which lies below,
{33:14} from the fruits of the crops under the sun and the moon,
{33:15} from the heights of the ancient mountains, from the fruits of the everlasting hills,
{33:16} and from the fruits of the earth with all its plenitude. May the blessing of him who appeared in the bush, settle upon the head of Joseph, and upon the top of the head of the Nazarite among his brothers.
{33:17} His excellence is like that of a first-born bull. His horns are like the horns of a rhinoceros; he shall brandish these against the Gentiles, even to the ends of the earth. These are the multitudes of Ephraim, and these the thousands of Manasseh.”
{33:18} And to Zebulun he said: “Rejoice, O Zebulun, in your departure, and Issachar, in your tabernacles.
{33:19} They shall summon the peoples to the mountain. There, they shall immolate the victims of justice, who feed on the flood of the sea, as if on milk, and on the hidden treasures of the sands.”
{33:20} And to Gad he said: “Blessed is Gad in his breadth. He has rested like a lion, and he has seized the arm and the top of the head.
{33:21} And he has seen his own pre-eminence, which his teacher has stored up as his portion. He was with the princes of the people, and he accomplished the justices of the Lord, and his judgment with Israel.”
{33:22} Likewise, to Dan he said: “Dan is a young lion. He shall flow plentifully from Bashan.”
{33:23} And to Naphtali he said: “Naphtali shall enjoy abundance, and he shall be full of the blessings of the Lord. He shall possess the sea and the Meridian.”
{33:24} Likewise, to Asher he said: “Let Asher be blessed with sons. Let him be pleasing to his brothers, and let him dip his foot in oil.
{33:25} His shoe shall be of iron and of brass. As were the days of your youth, so also shall be your old age.
{33:26} There is no other god like the God of the most righteous one. He who rides upon the heavens is your helper. His magnificence scatters the clouds.
{33:27} His habitation is above, and the everlasting arms are below. He shall cast out the enemy before your face, and he shall say: ‘Be utterly broken!’
{33:28} Israel shall live in confidence and alone, as the eye of Jacob in a land of grain and of wine; and the heavens shall be misty with dew.
{33:29} Blessed are you, O Israel. Who is like you, the people who are saved by the Lord? He is the shield of your assistance and the sword of your glory. Your enemies will refuse to acknowledge you, and so you shall tread upon their necks.”
{34:1} Therefore, Moses ascended from the plains of Moab onto Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, opposite Jericho. And the Lord revealed to him the entire land of Gilead, as far as Dan,
{34:2} and all of Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, and the entire land of Judah, even to the furthest sea,
{34:3} and the southern region, and the breadth of the plain of Jericho, the city of palms, as far as Zoar.
{34:4} And the Lord said to him: “This is the land, about which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying: I will give it to your offspring. You have seen it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over to it.”
{34:5} And Moses, the servant of the Lord, died in that place, in the land of Moab, by order of the Lord.
{34:6} And he buried him in the valley of the land of Moab, opposite Peor. And no man knows where his sepulcher is, even to the present day.
{34:7} Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died. His eye was not dimmed, nor were his teeth displaced.
{34:8} And the sons of Israel wept for him in the plains of Moab for thirty days. And then the days of their wailing, during which they mourned Moses, were completed.
{34:9} Truly, Joshua, the son of Nun, was filled with the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands upon him. And the sons of Israel were obedient to him, and they did as the Lord instructed Moses.
{34:10} And no other prophet rose up in Israel like Moses, one whom the Lord knew face to face,
{34:11} one with all the signs and wonders, which he sent through him, to perform in the land of Egypt, against Pharaoh, and all his servants, and his entire land,
{34:12} nor one with such a powerful hand and such great miracles as Moses did in the sight of all Israel.
{1:1} And after the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, it happened that the Lord spoke to Joshua, the son of Nun, the minister of Moses, and he said to him:
{1:2} “Moses, my servant, has died. Rise up, and cross this Jordan, you and all the people with you, into the land which I will give to the sons of Israel.
{1:3} I will deliver to you every place that the step of your foot will tread upon, just as I said to Moses.
{1:4} From the desert and from Lebanon, even to the great river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, as far as the great sea opposite the setting of the sun, shall be your border.
{1:5} No one will be able to resist you during all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so will I be with you. I will not leave you, nor will I forsake you.
{1:6} Be strengthened and be steadfast. For you shall divide by lot, to this people, the land about which I swore to their fathers that I would deliver it to them.
{1:7} Therefore, be strengthened and be very steadfast, so that you may observe and accomplish the entire law, which Moses, my servant, instructed to you. You may not turn aside from it to the right, nor to the left. So may you understand all that you should do.
{1:8} The book of this law shall not depart from your mouth. Instead, you shall meditate upon it, day and night, so that you may observe and do all the things that are written in it. Then you shall direct your way and understand it.
{1:9} Behold, I am instructing you. Be strengthened, and be steadfast. Do not dread, and do not fear. For the Lord your God is with you in all things, wherever you may go.”
{1:10} And Joshua instructed the leaders of the people, saying: “Cross through the midst of the camp, and command the people, and say:
{1:11} ‘Prepare your food supplies. For after the third day, you shall cross the Jordan, and you shall enter so as to possess the land, which the Lord your God will give to you.’ ”
{1:12} Likewise, he said to the Reubenites and to the Gadites, and to the one half tribe of Manasseh:
{1:13} “Remember the words, which Moses, the servant of the Lord, instructed to you, saying: ‘The Lord your God has given you rest, and has given you all the land.’
{1:14} Your wives and sons, as well as the cattle, shall remain in the land which Moses delivered to you beyond the Jordan. But as for you, pass over with weapons, before your brothers, all you who are strong of hand, and fight on their behalf,
{1:15} until the Lord gives rest to your brothers, just as he has given to you, and until they also possess the land, which the Lord your God will give to them. And so shall you be returned to the land of your possession. And you shall live in the land, which Moses, the servant of the Lord, gave to you beyond the Jordan, opposite the rising of the sun.”
{1:16} And they responded to Joshua, and they said: “All that you have instructed to us, we shall do. And wherever you will send us, we shall go.
{1:17} Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so shall we obey you also. But may the Lord your God be with you, just as he was with Moses.
{1:18} Whoever will contradict your mouth, and whoever will not obey all of your words, which you will instruct to him, let him die. But may you be strengthened, and may you act manfully.”
{2:1} And so Joshua, the son of Nun, sent two men from Shittim to explore in secret. And he said to them, “Go and consider the land and the city of Jericho.” And while traveling, they entered into the house of a harlot woman named Rahab, and they rested with her.
{2:2} And it was reported to the king of Jericho, and it was said: “Behold, men have entered to this place in the night, from the sons of Israel, so that they might explore the land.”
{2:3} And the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying: “Bring out the men who came to you, and who entered into your house. For certainly they are spies, and they have arrived to consider the entire land.”
{2:4} And the woman, taking the men, hid them. And she said: “I admit that they came to me, but I did not know where they were from.
{2:5} And when the gate was closed, they went out together in the darkness. I do not know where they have gone. Pursue them quickly, and you will overtake them.”
{2:6} But she caused the men to ascend to the roof of her house, and she covered them with the stalks of flax that were there.
{2:7} But those who had been sent pursued after them along the way that leads to the ford of the Jordan. And as soon as they went out, the gate was closed.
{2:8} Those who were hiding had not yet fallen asleep, and behold, the woman went up to them, and she said:
{2:9} “I know that the Lord has given this land to you. For the terror of you has fallen upon us, and all the inhabitants of the land have languished.
{2:10} We have heard that the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea upon your arrival, when you were departing from Egypt, and we heard of the things that you did to the two kings of the Amorites, who were beyond the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you put to death.
{2:11} And upon hearing these things, we were very afraid, and our heart languished. Neither did there remain in us any spirit at your arrival. For the Lord your God is the very God in heaven above and on earth below.
{2:12} Now, therefore, swear to me by the Lord that in the same way that I have acted with mercy toward you, so also shall you act toward the house of my father. And may you give me a true sign
{2:13} that you will save my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all that is theirs, and that you may rescue our souls from death.”
{2:14} They responded to her: “May our lives be yours unto death, if only you do not betray us. And when the Lord will have delivered the land to us, we will act toward you with mercy and truth.”
{2:15} Therefore, she sent them down from a window with a rope. For her house was joined to the wall.
{2:16} And she said to them: “Climb up to the mountains; otherwise, they may meet you as they are returning. And lay hidden there for three days, until they return. And then you will go on your way.”
{2:17} And they said to her: “We shall be innocent of this oath, to which you have sworn us,
{2:18} if, when we enter into the land, this scarlet cord has been placed as a sign, and you have tied it at the window by which you let us down. And so, gather your father, and mother, and brothers, and all your family into your house.
{2:19} Whoever will have exited from the door of your house, his blood will be on his own head, and we will be uninvolved. But the blood of all who will be with you in the house shall fall back upon our own head, if anyone touches them.
{2:20} But if you will have betrayed us, so that you spread this word in their midst, we will be free from this oath, to which you have sworn us.”
{2:21} And she responded, “Just as you have spoken, so let it be done.” And sending them to travel on, she hung the scarlet cord at the window.
{2:22} And truly, walking on, they arrived at the mountains, and they stayed there for three days, until those who had been pursuing them returned. For having sought them along the entire way, they did not find them.
{2:23} And when they returned and entered the city, the explorers descended from the mountain. And crossing the Jordan, they went to Joshua, the son of Nun, and they reported to him all that had happened to them.
{2:24} And they said, “The Lord has delivered this entire land into our hands, and all its inhabitants have been struck down by fear.”
{3:1} And so, Joshua arose in the night, and he moved the camp. And they departed from Shittim, and they went to the Jordan: he, and all the sons of Israel, and they remained there for three days.
{3:2} After these things unfolded, announcers passed through the midst of the camp,
{3:3} and they began to proclaim: “When you will see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests of the stock of Levi carrying it, you also shall rise up and follow those who are going before you.
{3:4} And let there be, between you and the ark, the space of two thousand cubits, so that you may be able to see it from far away, and to know along which way you should advance. For you have not walked this way before. And be careful that you do not approach the ark.”
{3:5} And Joshua said to the people: “Be sanctified. For tomorrow the Lord will accomplish miracles among you.”
{3:6} And he said to the priests: “Take up the ark of the covenant, and go before the people.” And they fulfilled the orders, and they took it and walked before them.
{3:7} And the Lord said to Joshua: “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, so that they may know that, just as I was with Moses, so also am I with you.
{3:8} Now instruct the priests, who are carrying the ark of the covenant, and say to them, ‘When you will have entered into a part of the water of the Jordan, stand still in it.’ ”
{3:9} And Joshua said to the sons of Israel, “Approach to here, and listen to the word of the Lord your God.”
{3:10} And again, he said: “By this shall you know that the Lord, the living God, is in your midst, and that he shall scatter in your sight, the Canaanite and the Hittite, the Hivite and the Perizzite, likewise the Girgashite, and the Jebusite, and the Amorite.
{3:11} Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth shall go before you through the Jordan.
{3:12} Prepare twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe.
{3:13} And when the priests who are carrying the ark of the Lord, the God of the entire earth, will have placed the steps of their feet in the waters of the Jordan, the waters that are lower will run down and pass away, and those that are approaching above will stand together in a mass.”
{3:14} And the people departed from their tents, so that they might cross the Jordan. And the priests who were carrying the ark of the covenant were advancing before them.
{3:15} And as soon as they entered into the Jordan, and their feet were dipped in a portion of the water, (now the Jordan, since it was the time of the harvest, had filled the banks of its channel,)
{3:16} the descending waters stood still in one place, and, swelling up like a mountain, they were seen from far away, from the city that is called Adam, even as far as the place of Zarethan. But those that were lower ran down into the Sea of the Wilderness, (which is now called the Dead Sea,) until they entirely passed away.
{3:17} Then the people advanced opposite Jericho. And the priests who were carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord were standing, fully-dressed, upon dry soil in the midst of the Jordan, and all the people passed over, through the channel that was dried up.
{4:1} And when they had crossed over, the Lord said to Joshua:
{4:2} “Choose twelve men, one from each tribe,
{4:3} and instruct them so that they may take from the midst of the channel of the Jordan, where the feet of the priests stood still, twelve very hard stones, which you shall station in the place of the camp, where you will pitch your tents this night.”
{4:4} And Joshua called twelve men, whom he had chosen from the sons of Israel, one from each tribe,
{4:5} and he said to them: “Go before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan, and let each one carry from there one stone on your shoulders, according to the number of the sons of Israel,
{4:6} so that it may be a sign among you. And when your sons will ask you, tomorrow, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’
{4:7} you shall respond to them: ‘The waters of the Jordan failed before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, when the ark crossed over it. For this reason, these stones were placed as a monument for the sons of Israel, even forever.’ ”
{4:8} Therefore, the sons of Israel did as Joshua instructed them, carrying twelve stones from the midst of the channel of the Jordan, just as the Lord had ordered him, according to the number of the sons of Israel, as far as the place where they made camp, and there they stationed them.
{4:9} Similarly, Joshua positioned another twelve stones in the middle of the channel of the Jordan, where the priests stood who were carrying the ark of the covenant; and they are there, even to the present day.
{4:10} Now the priests who were carrying the ark stood in the midst of the Jordan, until everything was accomplished which the Lord had instructed Joshua to speak to the people and which Moses had said to him. And the people hurried, and they passed over.
{4:11} And when they had all crossed, the ark of the Lord also crossed, and the priests advanced before the people.
{4:12} Likewise, the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the one half tribe of Manasseh advanced with weapons before the sons of Israel, just as Moses had instructed them.
{4:13} And forty thousand fighters, by companies and divisions, advanced through the plains and fields of the city of Jericho.
{4:14} In that day, the Lord magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel, so that they would fear him, just as they had feared Moses while he lived.
{4:15} And he said to him,
{4:16} “Command the priests who are carrying the ark of the covenant to ascend from the Jordan.”
{4:17} And he commanded them, saying, “Ascend from the Jordan.”
{4:18} And when those who were carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord had ascended, and they began to step on dry soil, the waters returned to their channel, and they flowed as they usually did before.
{4:19} Now the people ascended from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they encamped at Gilgal, opposite the eastern portion of the city of Jericho.
{4:20} Likewise, the twelve stones that they had taken up from the channel of the Jordan, Joshua stationed at Gilgal.
{4:21} And he said to the sons of Israel: “When your sons will question their fathers, tomorrow, and they will say to them, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’
{4:22} you shall teach them, and you shall say: ‘Israel passed over this Jordan, through the dry channel.’
{4:23} For the Lord your God dried up its waters in your sight, until you crossed over,
{4:24} just as he had done before, at the Red Sea, which he dried up until we crossed over.
{4:25} So may all the peoples of the earth learn of the very powerful hand of the Lord. So may you also fear the Lord your God for all time.”
{5:1} Therefore, after all the kings of the Amorites, who were living across the Jordan toward the western region, and all the kings of Canaan, who possessed the places beside the great sea, had heard that the Lord had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the sons of Israel, until they crossed over it, their heart was broken, and there remained in them no spirit, out of fear at the entrance of the sons of Israel.
{5:2} So at that time, the Lord said to Joshua: “Make for yourself knives of stone, and circumcise the sons of Israel a second time.”
{5:3} He did what the Lord had commanded, and he circumcised the sons of Israel at the hill of the foreskins.
{5:4} Now this is the reason for the second circumcision: All the people who departed from Egypt of the male gender, all the men fit for war, died in the desert during the very long wandering way;
{5:5} all these had been circumcised. But the people who were born in the desert,
{5:6} throughout the forty years of the journey in the very broad wilderness, were uncircumcised, until the ones who had not listened to the voice of the Lord were consumed. For he had sworn to them before, that he would not reveal to them the land flowing with milk and honey.
{5:7} The sons of these ones succeeded to the place of their fathers, and they were circumcised by Joshua. For they were uncircumcised, just as they had been born, and no one had circumcised them along the way.
{5:8} Then, after they were all circumcised, they remained in the same place of the camp until they were healed.
{5:9} And the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have taken away from you the disgrace of Egypt.” And the name of that place was called Gilgal, even to the present day.
{5:10} And the sons of Israel stayed at Gilgal, and they kept the Passover, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, in the plains of Jericho.
{5:11} And on the following day, they ate unleavened bread from the grain of the land, and cooked grain, of the same year.
{5:12} And the manna ceased after they ate from the grain of the land. And the sons of Israel no longer made use of that food. Instead, they ate from the grain of the present year, from the land of Canaan.
{5:13} And when Joshua was in the field of the city of Jericho, he lifted up his eyes, and he saw a man standing opposite him, holding a drawn sword. And he went to him and said, “Are you one of ours, or one of our adversaries?”
{5:14} And he responded: “Not at all. Instead, I am a prince of the host of the Lord, and now I have arrived.”
{5:15} Joshua fell prone on the ground. And reverencing, he said, “What does my lord say to his servant?”
{5:16} He said: “Remove your shoes from your feet. For the place on which you stand is holy.” And Joshua did just as he had been commanded.
{6:1} Now Jericho was closed as well as fortified, out of fear of the sons of Israel, and no one dared to depart or to enter.
{6:2} And the Lord said to Joshua: “Behold, I have given Jericho into your hand, with its king and all the strong men.
{6:3} Have all the warriors circle the city once each day; you shall do so for six days.
{6:4} Then, on the seventh day, the priests shall take the seven trumpets, which are used on the jubilee, and they shall precede the ark of the covenant. And you shall circle the city seven times, and the priests shall sound the trumpets.
{6:5} And when the voice of the trumpet sounds longer and with interruptions, and it increases in your ears, then all the people shall cry out together with a very great shout, and the walls of the city shall fall to the foundation, and they shall enter it, each from a place opposite where they are standing.”
{6:6} Then Joshua, the son of Nun, called the priests, and he said to them, “Take the ark of the covenant, and let seven other priests take the seven trumpets of the jubilee, and advance before the ark of the Lord.”
{6:7} He also said to the people, “Go, and circle the city, armed, preceding the ark of the Lord.”
{6:8} And when Joshua had finished his words, and the seven priests sounded the seven trumpets before the ark of the covenant of the Lord,
{6:9} and all the armed soldiers went ahead, the remainder of the common people followed the ark, and the sound of the trumpets grew louder everywhere.
{6:10} But Joshua had instructed the people, saying, “You shall not cry out, nor shall your voice be heard, and no word at all shall proceed from your mouth, until the day arrives on which I will say to you, ‘Cry out, and shout.’ ”
{6:11} Thus, the ark of the Lord circled the city once each day, and returning to the camp, it remained there.
{6:12} And so, with Joshua, arising in the night, the priests took the ark of the Lord,
{6:13} and seven of them took the seven trumpets, which are used in the jubilee, and they preceded the ark of the Lord, walking and sounding the trumpets. And the armed men went before them, and the remainder of the common people followed the ark, and they were blaring the trumpets.
{6:14} And they circled the city on the second day, once, and they returned to the camp. They did so for six days.
{6:15} Then, on the seventh day, rising at first light, they circled the city, just as had been ordered, seven times.
{6:16} And at the seventh circling, when the priests sounded the trumpets, Joshua said to all of Israel: “Shout! For the Lord has delivered the city to you.
{6:17} And let this city be anathema, with all the things that are within it, before the Lord. May only Rahab the harlot live, with all who are with her in the house. For she hid the messengers whom we sent.
{6:18} But you must be careful that you do not touch any of those things, as you have been instructed, for then you would be guilty of transgression, and all the camp of Israel would be under sin and would be troubled.
{6:19} But whatever gold and silver there will be, and vessels of brass or of iron, let these be consecrated to the Lord and be stored in his treasuries.”
{6:20} Therefore, with all the people shouting, and the trumpets blaring, after the voice and the sound increased in the ears of the multitude, the walls promptly fell to ruin. And each one climbed up at the place which was opposite where he was. And they seized the city.
{6:21} And they put to death all who were in it, from man even to woman, from infant even to elder. Likewise, the oxen and sheep and donkeys, they struck down with the edge of the sword.
{6:22} But Joshua said to the two men who had been sent to explore, “Enter the house of the harlot woman, and bring her out, and all the things that are hers, just as you assured her by oath.”
{6:23} And the youths entered, and they led out Rahab, and her parents, also her brothers, and all her goods and kindred, and they caused them to dwell outside the camp.
{6:24} Then they set fire to the city and all the things that were within it, except the gold and silver, and the vessels of brass or of iron, which they consecrated into the treasury of the Lord.
{6:25} Yet truly, Joshua caused Rahab the harlot, and her father’s household, and all she had, to survive. And they lived in the midst of Israel, even to the present day. For she hid the messengers, whom he had sent to explore Jericho. At that time, Joshua made an invocation, saying:
{6:26} “Cursed before the Lord is the man who will raise up and rebuild the city of Jericho! With his firstborn, may he lay its foundation, and with the last of his children, may he set up its gates.”
{6:27} And so the Lord was with Joshua, and his name was made known throughout all the land.
{7:1} But the sons of Israel transgressed the commandment, and they usurped what was anathema. For Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, took something from what was anathema. And the Lord became angry against the sons of Israel.
{7:2} And when Joshua sent men from Jericho against Ai, which is beside Bethaven, toward the eastern region of the town of Bethel, he said to them, “Go up and explore the land.” And they fulfilled his instruction, and they explored Ai.
{7:3} And returning, they said to him: “Let not the entire people go up. Instead, let two or three thousand men go out and destroy the city. Why should all the people be troubled without cause against enemies that are so very few?”
{7:4} Therefore, they went up with three thousand fighters. And they promptly turned their backs,
{7:5} and were struck down by the men of the city of Ai. And thirty-six men of them fell. And the adversaries pursued them from the gate, even as far as Shebarim. And they felled them as they were fleeing downward. And the heart of the people was struck with fear, and it melted like water.
{7:6} And truly, Joshua tore his garments, and he fell prone on the ground before the ark of the Lord, even until evening, both he and all the elders of Israel. And they cast dust upon their heads.
{7:7} And Joshua said: “Alas, O Lord God! Why would you want to lead this people over the river Jordan, so that you might deliver us into the hand of the Amorite and destroy us? I wish that we had remained beyond the Jordan, as when we began.
{7:8} My Lord God, what shall I say, seeing Israel turning their backs to their enemies?
{7:9} The Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land will hear of it, and coming together as one, they will surround us, and they will wipe our name from the earth. And what will you do concerning your great name?”
{7:10} And the Lord said to Joshua: “Rise up. Why are you lying flat on the ground?
{7:11} Israel has sinned and transgressed my covenant. And they have taken from what is anathema. And they have stolen and lied, and they have hidden it among their goods.
{7:12} Israel is not able to stand before his enemies, and he will flee from them. For he has been defiled by what is anathema. I will no longer be with you, until you destroy him who is guilty of this wickedness.
{7:13} Rise up. Sanctify the people. And you shall say to them: ‘Be sanctified tomorrow. For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: That which is anathema is in your midst, O Israel! You are not able to stand before your enemies, until he who has been contaminated by this wickedness is taken away from you.’
{7:14} And you shall draw near in the morning, each one by your tribes. And whichever tribe will be found by lot shall come forward by its families, and the families by houses, and the house by the men.
{7:15} And whoever he may be that will be found guilty of this deed, he shall be burnt with fire with all his substance. For he transgressed the covenant of the Lord, and he committed a wicked act in Israel.”
{7:16} And so Joshua, rising in the morning, brought forth Israel by their tribes, and the tribe of Judah was found.
{7:17} And when its families had been presented, the family of Zerah was found. Likewise, bringing that one forward by the houses, he discovered Zabdi.
{7:18} And dividing his house by each man, he found Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah.
{7:19} And Joshua said to Achan: “My son, give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, and confess, and reveal to me what you have done. You may not conceal it.”
{7:20} And Achan responded to Joshua, and he said to him: “Truly, I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel, and I have done one thing and another.
{7:21} For I saw among the spoils a very fine scarlet cloak, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a gold bar of fifty shekels. And coveting these, I took and hid them in the ground near the middle of my tent, and I covered the silver with the soil that I had dug.”
{7:22} Therefore, Joshua sent ministers, who, running to his tent, discovered everything hidden in the same place, together with the silver.
{7:23} And taking these from the tent, they brought them to Joshua, and to all the sons of Israel, and they cast them down before the Lord.
{7:24} And so Joshua took Achan, the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the cloak, and the gold bar, also his sons and daughters, the oxen and donkeys and sheep, and even the tent and all his goods, (and all of Israel went with him,) and he brought these to the valley of Achor.
{7:25} There, Joshua said: “Because you have troubled us, the Lord troubles you, on this day.” And all of Israel stoned him. And all the things that were his were consumed by fire.
{7:26} And they gathered upon him a great pile of stones, which remains even to the present day. And the fury of the Lord was averted from them. And the name of that place was called the Valley of Achor, even to this day.
{8:1} Then the Lord said to Joshua: “You should not fear, and you should not dread. Take with you the entire multitude of fighters, and rising up, ascend to the town of Ai. Behold, I have delivered into your hand its king and people, and the city and the land.
{8:2} And you shall do to the city of Ai, and to its king, just as you did to Jericho, and to its king. Yet truly, the spoils, and all the living things, you shall plunder for yourselves. Set an ambush against the city behind it.”
{8:3} And Joshua rose up, and the entire army of warriors with him, so that they might ascend against Ai. And he sent thirty thousand elect strong men in the night.
{8:4} And he instructed them, saying: “Set an ambush behind the city. You shall withdraw not far away, and let everyone be prepared.
{8:5} But I and the remainder of the multitude that is with me will approach from the opposite side of the city. And when they come out against us, we will flee and turn our backs, just as we did before,
{8:6} until, pursuing us, they are drawn away from the city. For they will think that we are fleeing as before.
{8:7} Then, while we are fleeing and they are pursuing, you shall rise up from the ambush, and you shall lay waste to the city. And the Lord your God will deliver it into your hands.
{8:8} And when you have seized it, set it on fire. And you shall do all that I have ordered.”
{8:9} And he sent them away, and they traveled to the place of the ambush, and they settled between Bethel and Ai, toward the western region of the city of Ai. But Joshua remained for that night in the midst of the people.
{8:10} And rising at first light, he reviewed his troops, and he went up, with the elders at the front of the army, surrounded by an auxiliary of fighters.
{8:11} And when they had arrived, and had ascended from the opposite side of the city, they stood toward the northern region of the city. And there was a valley in the middle, between them and the city.
{8:12} Now he had chosen five thousand men, and he had positioned them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, at the western part of the same city.
{8:13} Yet truly, all the remainder of the army was arranged in a line to the north, so that the very end of that multitude reached to the western region of the city. Then Joshua went out that night, and he stood in the middle of the valley.
{8:14} And when the king of Ai had seen this, he hurried in the morning, and he went out with the entire army of the city. And he arranged them in a line opposite the desert, not knowing that an ambush lay hidden behind his back.
{8:15} Yet truly, Joshua, and all of Israel, withdrew from the place, pretending to be afraid, and fleeing along the way of the wilderness.
{8:16} And they pursued them, shouting together and encouraging one another. And when they had withdrawn from the city,
{8:17} and indeed not one remained in the city of Ai and of Bethel who did not pursue after Israel, (leaving the towns open after they had rushed out,)
{8:18} the Lord said to Joshua: “Lift up the shield that is in your hand, toward the city of Ai. For I will deliver it to you.”
{8:19} And when he had lifted up the shield toward the city, the ambush, which lay hidden, rose up quickly. And advancing to the city, they seized it, and set it on fire.
{8:20} Now the men of the city who were pursuing Joshua, looking back and seeing the smoke of the city rising up even to heaven, were no longer able to flee in one direction or another, especially since those who had pretended to flee, and who were heading toward the wilderness, had turned back very strongly against those who were pursuing them.
{8:21} And Joshua, and all of Israel, seeing that the city had been captured, and that the smoke of the city was ascending, returned and struck down the men of Ai.
{8:22} Then too, those who had seized and set the city on fire, departing from the city toward their own men, began to strike the enemies in the middle. Therefore, since the adversaries were cut off from both sides, none of so great a multitude was saved.
{8:23} Also, they apprehended the king of the city of Ai, alive, and they brought him before Joshua.
{8:24} And so, after all were slain who had pursued Israel fleeing toward the wilderness, and after they fell by the sword in the same place, the sons of Israel returned and struck the city.
{8:25} Now there were twelve thousand persons who had fallen on the same day, from man even to woman, the entire city of Ai.
{8:26} Truly Joshua did not draw back his hand, which he had stretched out on high, keeping hold of the shield until all the inhabitants of Ai were put to death.
{8:27} Then the sons of Israel divided among themselves the cattle and the plunder of the city, just as the Lord had instructed Joshua.
{8:28} And he set fire to the city, and he caused it to be a perpetual tomb.
{8:29} Also, he suspended the king on a gallows, until evening and the setting of the sun. And Joshua instructed, and they took down his dead body from the hanging tree. And they cast it at the very entrance of the city, gathering a great pile of stones upon it, which remains even to the present day.
{8:30} Then Joshua built an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel, on Mount Ebal,
{8:31} just as Moses, the servant of the Lord, had instructed to the sons of Israel, and this was written in the book of the law of Moses: truly, an altar of uncut stones, which iron has not touched. And he offered holocausts upon it to the Lord, and he immolated victims as peace-offerings.
{8:32} And he wrote on the stones, the Deuteronomy of the law of Moses, which he had set in order before the sons of Israel.
{8:33} Then all the people, and those greater by birth, and the commanders and judges were standing on both sides of the ark, in the sight of the priests who were carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord, with both the new arrival and the native born, one half part of them beside Mount Gerizim, and one half beside Mount Ebal, just as Moses, the servant of the Lord, had instructed. And first, certainly, he blessed the people of Israel.
{8:34} After this, he read all the words of the blessing and the cursing, and all the things that were written in the book of the law.
{8:35} He left nothing untouched out of those things that Moses had ordered, and he repeated everything before the entire multitude of Israel, with the women and the little ones, and the new arrivals who were staying among them.
{9:1} And when these things were heard, all the kings across the Jordan, who lived among the mountains and plains, along the coastline and shores of the great sea, also those who were living near Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite,
{9:2} gathered themselves together, so that they might fight against Joshua and Israel, with one mind and with the same resolve.
{9:3} But those who were living in Gibeon, hearing all that Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai,
{9:4} planning cleverly, took for themselves provisions, placing old sacks upon their donkeys, and wineskins that had torn and been sewed up,
{9:5} and having very old shoes, which had been sewn with patches indicating their age, and being clothed in old garments, having also loaves, which they carried as food for the journey, which were hard and broken into pieces.
{9:6} And they traveled to Joshua, who at that time was staying in the camp at Gilgal. And they said to him, and to all of Israel with him, “We have come from a far away land, desiring to make peace with you.” And the sons of Israel responded to them, and said,
{9:7} “Perhaps instead, you live in the land which ought to be ours by lot, and we would be unable to form a pact with you.”
{9:8} But they said to Joshua, “We are your servants.” And Joshua said to them: “But who are you? And where are you from?”
{9:9} They responded: “Your servants have arrived, from a very far away land, in the name of the Lord, your God. For we have heard about the fame of his power, all the things that he has done in Egypt,
{9:10} and to the two kings of the Amorites, who were beyond the Jordan: Sihon, the king of Heshbon, and Og, the king of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth.
{9:11} And our elders, and all the inhabitants of our land, have said to us: ‘Take in hand provisions for the very long journey, and meet with them, and say: We are your servants; form a pact with us.’
{9:12} Lo, the loaves were taken up warm when we departed from our houses, so that we might come to you. Now they have become dry and broken, due to age.
{9:13} These wineskins were new when we filled them, now they are torn and broken. The garments we are wearing, and the shoes we have on our feet, due to the great length of the distance, have become worn and are nearly consumed.”
{9:14} And so they accepted this, because of their provisions, and they did not consult the mouth of the Lord.
{9:15} And Joshua made peace with them, and entering into a pact, he promised that they would not be put to death. The leaders of the multitude also swore to them.
{9:16} Then, three days after the pact was formed, they heard that they lived in the vicinity, and that they would soon be among them.
{9:17} And so the sons of Israel moved the camp, and they arrived at their cities on the third day, those which are called: Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim.
{9:18} And they did not strike them, because the leaders of the multitude had sworn to them in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. And so all of the common people murmured against the leaders.
{9:19} And they responded to them: “We have sworn to them in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, and for that reason, we are not able to touch them.
{9:20} But we shall do this to them: Certainly, let them be preserved so that they may live, lest the wrath of the Lord be stirred up against us, since we would have sworn falsely.
{9:21} But though they live, let them serve the entire multitude by cutting wood and carrying water.” And while they were discussing these things,
{9:22} Joshua called the Gibeonites, and he said to them: “Why would you be willing to deceive us by fraud, saying, ‘We live very far away from you,’ when you are in our midst?
{9:23} Therefore, you shall be under a curse, and your stock shall not cease to be cutters of wood and carriers of water, into the house of my God.”
{9:24} And they responded: “It was reported to us, your servants, that the Lord your God had promised his servant Moses that he would give you the entire land, and that he would destroy all its inhabitants. Therefore, we were very afraid, and we made a provision for our lives, compelled by the dread of you, and we undertook this counsel.
{9:25} And now we are in your hand. Act toward us as it seems good and right to you.”
{9:26} Therefore, Joshua did just as he had said, and he freed them from the hand of the sons of Israel, so that they would not be killed.
{9:27} And he decreed on that day, that they would be in the ministry of all the people and of the altar of the Lord, cutting wood and carrying water, even until this present time, in the place which the Lord had chosen.
{10:1} When Adonizedek, the king of Jerusalem, had heard these things, specifically, that Joshua had seized Ai, and had overthrown it, (for just as he had done to Jericho and its king, so did he do to Ai and its king,) and that the Gibeonites had fled over to Israel, and were now their confederates,
{10:2} he was very afraid. For Gibeon was a great city, and was one of the royal cities, and was greater than the town of Ai, and all its warriors were very strong.
{10:3} Therefore, Adonizedek, the king of Jerusalem, sent to Hoham, the king of Hebron, and to Piram, the king of Jarmuth, and also to Japhia, the king of Lachish, and to Debir, the king of Eglon, saying:
{10:4} “Ascend to me, and bring troops, so that we may fight against Gibeon. For it has fled over to Joshua and the sons of Israel.”
{10:5} And so, having assembled, the five kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon, together with their armies, went up and encamped around Gibeon, laying siege to it.
{10:6} But the inhabitants of the city of Gibeon, when it was besieged, sent to Joshua, who was then staying in the camp at Gilgal. And they said to him: “May you not draw back your hands from helping your servants. Come quickly, and free us, and bring troops. For all the kings of the Amorites, who live in the mountains, have gathered together against us.”
{10:7} And Joshua ascended from Gilgal, and the entire army of warriors with him, very strong men.
{10:8} And the Lord said to Joshua: “You should not fear them. For I have delivered them into your hands. None of them will be able to withstand you.”
{10:9} And so Joshua, ascending from Gilgal throughout the night, rushed upon them suddenly.
{10:10} And the Lord set them in disarray before the face of Israel. And he crushed them in a great defeat at Gibeon, and he pursued them along the way of the ascent to Beth-horon, and he struck them down, even as far as Azekah and Makkedah.
{10:11} And while they were fleeing from the sons of Israel, and were on the descent of Beth-horon, the Lord cast great stones from heaven upon them, as far as Azekah. And many more were killed by the hailstones, than were struck down by the swords of the sons of Israel.
{10:12} Then Joshua spoke to the Lord, on the day that he handed over the Amorite in the sight of the sons of Israel, and he said before them: “O sun, you shall not move toward Gibeon! O moon, you shall not move toward the valley of Aijalon!”
{10:13} And the sun and the moon stood still, until the people had avenged themselves of their enemies. Has this not been written in the book of the just? And so the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and it did not hurry to its rest for the space of one day.
{10:14} Never before and never after was there so long a day, as when the Lord obeyed the voice of a man, and fought for Israel.
{10:15} And Joshua returned, with all of Israel, into the camp of Gilgal.
{10:16} For the five kings had fled, and had hidden themselves in a cave, near the city of Makkedah.
{10:17} And it was reported to Joshua that the five kings had been found hidden in a cave, near the city of Makkedah.
{10:18} And he instructed his companions and said: “Roll vast stones to the mouth of the cave, and station attentive men who will keep them closed.
{10:19} But as for you, do not stay here; instead, pursue the enemies, and cut down the lattermost of those who are fleeing. You shall not permit those whom the Lord God has delivered into your hands to enter into the protection of their cities.”
{10:20} Thus, the adversaries were struck down in a great defeat, and having been nearly consumed, even to utter annihilation, those who were able to escape from Israel entered into fortified cities.
{10:21} And the entire army returned to Joshua at Makkedah, where they were then encamped, in good health and in their full numbers. And no one dared to move his tongue against the sons of Israel.
{10:22} And Joshua instructed, saying, “Open the mouth of the cave, and bring forward to me the five kings, who are hidden within it.”
{10:23} And the ministers did just as they had been ordered. And they led out to him the five kings from the cave: the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon.
{10:24} And when they had been led out to him, he called all the men of Israel, and he said to the leaders of the army who were with him, “Go, and place your feet upon the necks of these kings.” And when they had gone and had tread their feet upon the necks of those who were thrown down,
{10:25} he spoke to them again: “Do not be afraid, and do not dread. Be strengthened and be steadfast. For so will the Lord do to all your enemies, against whom you fight.”
{10:26} And Joshua struck them down and killed them, and he suspended them on five gallows. And they hung there until evening.
{10:27} And when the sun had set, he instructed his assistants that they should take them down from the gallows. And having been taken down, they cast them into the cave, where they had lain hidden, and they set vast stones at its mouth, which remain, even to the present.
{10:28} Also on the same day, Joshua seized Makkedah, and he struck it with the edge of the sword, and he put to death its king and all its inhabitants. He did not leave in it even the smallest remains. And he did to the king of Makkedah, just as he had done to the king of Jericho.
{10:29} Then he went on, with all of Israel, from Makkedah to Libnah, and he fought against it.
{10:30} And the Lord delivered it, with its king, into the hands of Israel. And they struck the city with the edge of the sword, and all its inhabitants. They did not leave in it any remains. And they did to the king of Libnah, just as they had done to the king of Jericho.
{10:31} From Libnah, with all of Israel, he went on to Lachish. And taking positions around it with his army, he besieged it.
{10:32} And the Lord delivered Lachish into the hands of Israel, and he seized it on the following day, and he struck it with the edge of the sword, and every soul that was in it, just as he had done to Libnah.
{10:33} At that time, Horam, the king of Gezer, went up so that he might assist Lachish. And Joshua struck him with all his people, even unto utter annihilation.
{10:34} And he went on from Lachish to Eglon, and he surrounded it.
{10:35} And he also defeated it on the same day. And he struck all the souls that were in it with the edge of the sword, in accord with all that he had done to Lachish.
{10:36} He also ascended, with all of Israel, from Eglon into Hebron, and he fought against it.
{10:37} He seized it and struck it with the edge of the sword, likewise with its king, and all the towns of that region, and all the souls that were staying in it. He did not leave any remains in it. Just as he had done to Eglon, so also did he do to Hebron, consuming with the sword all that he found within it.
{10:38} Returning from there to Debir,
{10:39} he seized it and laid waste to it, likewise with its king. And all the surrounding towns, he struck with the edge of the sword. He did not leave in it any remains. Just as he had done to Hebron and Libnah, and to their kings, so did he do to Debir and to its king.
{10:40} And so Joshua struck the entire land, the mountains, and the south, and the plains, and the descending slopes, with their kings. He did not leave in it any remains, but he put to death all that was able to breathe, just as the Lord, the God of Israel, had instructed him,
{10:41} from Kadesh-barnea, as far as Gaza, with all the land of Goshen, as far as Gibeon.
{10:42} And all their kings and their regions, he seized and destroyed with a single attack. For the Lord, the God of Israel, fought on his behalf.
{10:43} And he returned, with all of Israel, to the place of the encampment at Gilgal.
{11:1} And when Jabin, the king of Hazor, had heard these things, he sent to Jobab, the king of Madon, and to the king of Shimron, and to the king of Achshaph,
{11:2} also to the kings of the north, who were living in the mountains, and in the plains opposite the southern region of Chinneroth, and also in the plains and the regions of Dor, beside the sea,
{11:3} also to the Canaanites, from east to west, and to the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Jebusite in the mountains, also to the Hivite who was living at the base of Hermon, in the land of Mizpah.
{11:4} And they all went forth with their troops, a people exceedingly numerous, like the sand that is on the shore of the sea. And their horses and chariots were an immense multitude.
{11:5} And all these kings assembled at the waters of Merom, so that they might fight against Israel.
{11:6} And the Lord said to Joshua: “You should not fear them. For tomorrow, at this same hour, I will deliver all these to be wounded in the sight of Israel. You will hamstring their horses, and you will burn their chariots with fire.”
{11:7} And Joshua, and the entire army with him, came against them suddenly, at the waters of Merom, and they rushed upon them.
{11:8} And the Lord delivered them into the hands of Israel. And they struck them, and they pursued them as far as the great Sidon, and the waters of Misrephoth, and the field of Mizpeh, which is toward the eastern region. He struck them all, so that nothing was left of them to remain.
{11:9} And he did just as the Lord had instructed him. He hamstrung their horses, and he burned their chariots with fire.
{11:10} And turning back, he immediately seized Hazor. And he struck down its king with the sword. For Hazor, from antiquity, held the first position among all these kingdoms.
{11:11} And he struck down all the souls that were staying there. He did not leave in it any remains, but he destroyed everything unto utter annihilation, and he destroyed the city itself with fire.
{11:12} And he seized, struck, and destroyed all the surrounding cities and their kings, just as Moses, the servant of God, had instructed him.
{11:13} And except for the cities that were on hills and in elevated places, the rest Israel burned. One only, highly-fortified Hazor, was consumed with fire.
{11:14} And the sons of Israel divided among themselves all the plunder of these cities, and the cattle, putting to death all persons.
{11:15} Just as the Lord had instructed his servant Moses, so did Moses instruct Joshua, and he fulfilled everything. He did not omit even one word out of all the commandments, which the Lord had commanded Moses.
{11:16} And so Joshua seized the entire land of the mountains, and of the south, and the land of Goshen, and the plains, and the western region, and the mountain of Israel, and its plains.
{11:17} As for the part of the mountain that ascends to Seir, as far as Baalgad, along the plain of Lebanon under mount Hermon, all their kings he seized, struck down, and killed.
{11:18} For a long time, Joshua fought against these kings.
{11:19} There was not a city that delivered itself to the sons of Israel, except the Hivites who were living at Gibeon. For he seized it all in warfare.
{11:20} For it was the sentence of the Lord that their hearts would be hardened, and that they would fight against Israel and fall, and that they did not deserve any clemency, and that they should perish, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
{11:21} In that time, Joshua went and put to death the Anakim from the mountains, from Hebron and Debir and Anab, and from all the mountains of Judah and Israel. And he destroyed their cities.
{11:22} He did not leave any from the stock of the Anakim in the land of the sons of Israel, except the cities of Gaza, and Gath, and Ashdod, which alone were left behind.
{11:23} Thus, Joshua seized all the land, just as the Lord spoke to Moses, and he delivered it as a possession to the sons of Israel, according to their divisions and tribes. And the land rested from battles.
{12:1} These are the kings whom the sons of Israel struck down, and whose land they possessed beyond the Jordan, toward the rising of the sun, from the torrent Arnon as far as mount Hermon, with the entire eastern region that looks out toward the wilderness:
{12:2} Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon, and who had dominion from Aroer, which is situated on the bank of the torrent Arnon, and the valley in the middle, and one half of Gilead, as far as the torrent Jabbok, which is the border of the sons of Ammon,
{12:3} and from the wilderness, as far as the sea of Chinneroth toward the east, and to the Sea of the Wilderness, which is the very salty sea, to the eastern region, along the way that leads to Beth-jeshimoth, and from the southern region that lies under the descending slope of Pisgah,
{12:4} to the border of Og, the king of Bashan; from the remnant of the Rephaim, who lived in Ashtaroth, and at Edrei, and who had dominion on mount Hermon, and at Salecah, and into all of Bashan, even to its limits;
{12:5} with Geshur and Maacati, and one half of Gilead, these were the borders of Sihon, the king of Heshbon.
{12:6} Moses, the servant of the Lord, and the sons of Israel struck them down. And Moses delivered their land into the possession of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the one half tribe of Manasseh.
{12:7} These are the kings of the land, whom Joshua and the sons of Israel struck down across the Jordan, toward the western region, from Baalgad in the field of Lebanon, as far as the mountain, part of which ascends to Seir. And Joshua delivered it as a possession to the tribes of Israel, to each one in their divisions,
{12:8} both in the mountains and in the plains and fields. In the descending slopes, and in the wilderness, and in the south, there too was the Hittite and the Amorite, the Canaanite and the Perizzite, the Hivite and the Jebusite.
{12:9} The king of Jericho, one; the king of Ai, which is beside Bethel, one;
{12:10} the king of Jerusalem, one; the king of Hebron, one;
{12:11} the king of Jarmuth, one; the king of Lachish, one;
{12:12} the king of Eglon, one; the king of Gezer, one;
{12:13} the king of Debir, one; the king of Geder, one;
{12:14} the king of Hormah, one; the king of Arad, one;
{12:15} the king of Libnah, one; the king of Adullam, one;
{12:16} the king of Makkedah, one; the king of Bethel, one;
{12:17} the king of Tappuah, one; the king of Hepher, one;
{12:18} the king of Aphek, one; the king of Lasharon, one;
{12:19} the king of Madon, one; the king of Hazor, one;
{12:20} the king of Shimron, one; the king of Achshaph, one;
{12:21} the king of Taanach, one; the king of Megiddo, one;
{12:22} the king of Kadesh, one; the king of Jokneam of Carmel, one;
{12:23} the king of Dor and of the province of Dor, one; the king of the nations of Gilgal, one;
{12:24} the king of Tirzah, one. All the kings were thirty-one.
{13:1} Joshua was old and advanced in age, and the Lord said to him: “You have grown old, and are aged, and a very wide land remains, which has not yet been divided by lot,
{13:2} specifically, all of Galilee, Philistia, and all of Geshur;
{13:3} from the muddy river, which irrigates Egypt, as far as the border of Ekron toward the north, the land of Canaan, which is divided among the rulers of Philistia: the Gazites, and the Ashdodites, the Ashkelonites, the Gathites, and the Ekronites;
{13:4} truly, to the south are the Hivites, all the land of Canaan, and Mearah of the Sidonians, as far as Aphek and the borders of the Amorite
{13:5} and his confines; also, the region of Lebanon toward the east, from Baalgad, under mount Hermon, until you enter into Hamath;
{13:6} all who live in the mountains from Lebanon, as far as the waters of Misrephoth, and all the Sidonians. I am the One who will wipe them out, before the face of the sons of Israel. Therefore, let their land become a part of the inheritance of Israel, just as I have instructed you.
{13:7} And now, divide the land as a possession to the nine tribes, and to the one half tribe of Manasseh.”
{13:8} With them, Reuben and Gad have possessed the land, which Moses, the servant of the Lord, delivered to them beyond the river Jordan, on the eastern side:
{13:9} from Aroer, which is situated on the bank of the torrent Arnon and in the midst of the valley, and all the plains of Medeba, as far as Dibon;
{13:10} and all the cities of Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, even to the borders of the sons of Ammon;
{13:11} and Gilead, as well as the borders of Geshur and Maacati, and all of mount Hermon, and all of Bashan, as far as Salecah;
{13:12} the entire kingdom of Og in Bashan, who reigned at Ashtaroth and Edrei, (he was among the last of the Rephaim). And Moses struck and destroyed them.
{13:13} And the sons of Israel were not willing to destroy Geshur and Maacati, and so they have lived in the midst of Israel, even to the present day.
{13:14} But to the tribe of Levi, he did not give a possession. Instead, the sacrifices and victims of the Lord, the God of Israel, these are his inheritance, just as he spoke to him.
{13:15} Therefore, Moses gave a possession to the tribe of the sons of Reuben, according to their families.
{13:16} And their border was from Aroer, which is situated on the bank of the torrent Arnon, and in the midst of the valley of the same torrent, with all the flatlands that lead to Medeba;
{13:17} and Heshbon, and all their villages, which are in the plains; also Dibon, and Bamothbaal, and the town of Baalmeon,
{13:18} and Jahaz, and Kedemoth, and Mephaath,
{13:19} and Kiriathaim, and Sibmah, and Zereth-shahar on the mountain of the steep valley;
{13:20} Bethpeor, and the descending slopes of Pisgah, and Beth-jeshimoth;
{13:21} and all the cities of the plain, and all the kingdoms of Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who reigned at Heshbon, whom Moses struck down with the leaders of Midian: Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, the commanders of Sihon, inhabitants of the land.
{13:22} And the sons of Israel killed Balaam, the son of Beor, the seer, with the sword, along with the others who were slain.
{13:23} And the river Jordan was made the border of the sons of Reuben; this is the possession of the Reubenites, by their families, in cities and villages.
{13:24} And Moses gave to the tribe of Gad and his sons, by their families, a possession, of which this is the division:
{13:25} the border of Jazer, and all the cities of Gilead, and one half part of the land of the sons of Ammon, as far as Aroer, which is opposite Rabbah;
{13:26} and from Heshbon as far as Ramath, Mizpeh, and Betonim; and from Mahanaim as far as the borders of Debir;
{13:27} also, in the valley Beth-haram and Beth-nimrah, and Succoth, and Zaphon, the remaining part of the kingdom of Sihon, the king of Heshbon; the limit of this also is the Jordan, as far as the furthest part of the sea of Chinnereth, beyond the Jordan on the eastern side.
{13:28} This is the possession of the sons of Gad, by their families, in their cities and villages.
{13:29} He also gave, to the one half tribe of Manasseh and to his sons, a possession according to their families,
{13:30} the beginning of which is this: from Mahanaim, all of Bashan, and all the kingdoms of Og, the king of Bashan, and all the villages of Jair, which are in Bashan, sixty towns;
{13:31} and one half part of Gilead, and Ashtaroth, and Edrei, the cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan, to the sons of Machir, the son of Manasseh, to one half part of the sons of Machir, according to their families.
{13:32} Moses divided this possession, in the plains of Moab, beyond the Jordan, opposite Jericho on the eastern side.
{13:33} But to the tribe of Levi he did not give a possession. For the Lord, the God of Israel, is himself their possession, just as he spoke to him.
{14:1} This is what the sons of Israel possessed in the land of Canaan, which Eleazar, the priest, and Joshua, the son of Nun, and the leaders of the families, by the tribes of Israel, gave to them,
{14:2} dividing all by lot, just as the Lord had instructed by the hand of Moses, to the nine tribes and to the one half tribe.
{14:3} For to the two and one half tribes, Moses had given a possession beyond the Jordan, aside from the Levites, who received no land among their brothers.
{14:4} For by succession, the sons of Joseph, in their place, were divided into two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. But the Levites did not receive another portion of land, except cities in which to live, and their suburbs, so as to feed their beasts of burden and cattle.
{14:5} Just as the Lord had commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did, and they divided the land.
{14:6} And so, the sons of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal. And Caleb, the son of Jephone, the Kenizzite, spoke to him: “You know what the Lord said to Moses, the man of God, at Kadesh-barnea, about me and you.
{14:7} I was forty years old when Moses, the servant of the Lord, sent me from Kadesh-barnea, so that I might consider the land. And I reported to him what seemed to me to be true.
{14:8} But my brothers, who had ascended with me, broke the heart of the people. And I nevertheless followed the Lord my God.
{14:9} And Moses swore, on that day, saying: ‘The land that your foot has tread upon shall be your possession, and that of your sons, unto eternity. For you have followed the Lord my God.’
{14:10} Therefore, the Lord has granted life to me, just as he promised, even to the present day. It has been forty-five years since the Lord spoke this word to Moses, when Israel was wandering through the wilderness. Today, I am eighty-five years old,
{14:11} being just as strong as I was at that time, when I was sent to explore the land. The fortitude in me at that time continues even until today, as much to fight as to march.
{14:12} Therefore, grant to me this mountain, which the Lord has promised in your hearing also, on which are the Anakim, and cities, great and fortified. Perhaps it may be that the Lord will be with me, and I will be able to destroy them, just as he promised to me.”
{14:13} And Joshua blessed him, and he delivered Hebron to him as a possession.
{14:14} And from then on, Hebron was for Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite, even to the present day. For he followed the Lord, the God of Israel.
{14:15} Previously, the name Hebron was called Kiriath-Arba. Adam, the greatest among the Anakim, was laid there. And the land ceased from battles.
{15:1} And so, the lot of the sons of Judah, by their families, was this: from the border of Edom, to the desert of Sin toward the south, and even to the furthest part of the southern region.
{15:2} Its beginning was from the summit of the very salty sea, and from its bay, which looks toward the south.
{15:3} And it extends toward the ascent of the Scorpion, and it passes on to Sinai. And it ascends into Kadesh-barnea, and it passes through to Hezron, ascending to Addar, and encompassing Karka.
{15:4} And from there, it passes on to Azmon, and reaches to the torrent of Egypt. And its boundary shall be the great sea; this shall be the limit of the southern region.
{15:5} Yet truly, toward the east, the beginning shall be the very salty sea, even to the limit of the Jordan, and that which looks toward the north, from the bay of the sea, even to the same river Jordan.
{15:6} And the border ascends into Beth-hoglah, and it crosses from the north into Beth-Arabah, ascending to the stone of Bohan, the son of Reuben.
{15:7} And it reaches as far as the borders of Debara, from the Valley of Achor, to the north, looking toward Gilgal, which is opposite the Ascent of Adummim, on the southern part of the torrent. And it crosses the waters that are called the Fountain of the Sun. And its exit shall be at the Fountain of Rogel.
{15:8} And it ascends by the steep valley of the son of Hinnom, from the side of the Jebusite, toward the south; this is Jerusalem. And from there, it raises itself to the top of the mountain, which is opposite Geennom to the west, at the top of the Valley of the Rephaim, to the north.
{15:9} And it passes through, from the top of the mountain, even to the fountain of the Water of Nephtoah. And it continues on, as far as the villages of mount Ephron. And it inclines toward Baalah, which is Kiriath-jearim, that is, the City of Forests.
{15:10} And it circles from Baalah, to the west, as far as mount Seir. And it passes by the side of mount Jearim, to the north, into Chesalon. And it descends into Beth-shemesh, and it passes through to Timnah.
{15:11} And it continues on, toward the north, to a region beside Ekron. And it inclines toward Shikkeron, and it crosses to mount Baalah. And it extends into Jabneel, and the last part closes at the west with the great sea.
{15:12} These are the borders of the sons of Judah, in their families, on all sides.
{15:13} Yet truly, to Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, he gave a portion in the midst of the sons of Judah, just as the Lord had instructed him: the City of Arba, the father of Anak, which is Hebron.
{15:14} And Caleb destroyed from it the three sons of Anak, Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai, of the stock of Anak.
{15:15} And ascending further from there, he came to the inhabitants of Debir, which before was called Kiriath-Sepher, that is, the City of Letters.
{15:16} And Caleb said, “Whoever will have struck down Kiriath-Sepher, and will have seized it, I will give to him Achsah, my daughter, as wife.”
{15:17} And Othniel, the son of Kenaz, the younger brother of Caleb, seized it. And he gave him Achsah, his daughter, as wife.
{15:18} And as they were traveling together, she was urged by her husband that she ask her father for a field. And she sighed, as she was sitting on her donkey. And Caleb said to her, “What is it?”
{15:19} But she answered: “Give a blessing to me. You have given to me a southern and dry land; join to it also a watered land.” And so Caleb gave to her the watered land above and below it.
{15:20} This is the possession of the tribe of the sons of Judah, by their families.
{15:21} And the cities, from the furthest parts of the sons of Judah, beside the borders of Edom to the south, were: Kabzeel and Eder and Jagur,
{15:22} and Kinah and Dimonah and Adadah,
{15:23} and Kadesh and Hazor and Ithnan,
{15:24} Ziph and Telem and Bealoth,
{15:25} new Hazor and Kerioth-Hezron, which is Hazor,
{15:26} Amam, Shema, and Moladah,
{15:27} and Hazar-gaddah and Heshmon and Bethpelet,
{15:28} and Hazar-shual and Beersheba and Biziothiah,
{15:29} and Baalah and Iim and Ezem,
{15:30} and Eltolad and Chesil and Hormah,
{15:31} and Ziklag and Madmannah and Sansannah,
{15:32} Lebaoth and Shilhim, and Ain and Rimmon. All the cities were twenty-nine, and their villages.
{15:33} Truly, in the plains, there were: Eshtaol and Zorah and Ashnah,
{15:34} and Zanoah and Engannim, and Tappuah and Enam,
{15:35} and Jarmuth and Adullam, Socoh and Azekah,
{15:36} and Shaaraim and Adithaim, and Gederah and Gederothaim: fourteen cities, and their villages.
{15:37} Zenan and Hadashah and Middalgad,
{15:38} Dilean and Mizpeh and Joktheel,
{15:39} Lachish and Bozkath and Eglon,
{15:40} Cabbon and Lahmam and Chitlish,
{15:41} and Gederoth and Bethdagon, and Naamah and Makkedah: sixteen cities, and their villages.
{15:42} Libnah and Ether and Ashan,
{15:43} Iphtah and Ashnah and Nezib,
{15:44} and Keilah and Achzib and Mareshah: nine cities, and their villages.
{15:45} Ekron, with its towns and villages:
{15:46} from Ekron, as far as the sea, all that inclines toward Ashdod, and its villages.
{15:47} Ashdod, with its towns and villages. Gaza, with its towns and villages, as far as the torrent of Egypt, with the great sea as its border.
{15:48} And on the mountain, Shamir and Jattir and Socoh,
{15:49} and Dannah, and Kiriath-Sannah, which is Debir,
{15:50} Anab and Eshtemoh and Anim,
{15:51} Goshen and Holon and Giloh: eleven cities, and their villages.
{15:52} Arab and Dumah and Eshan,
{15:53} and Janim and Beth-Tappuah and Aphekah,
{15:54} Humtah and Kiriath-Arba, which is Hebron, and Zior: nine cities, and their villages.
{15:55} Maon and Carmel, and Ziph and Juttah,
{15:56} Jezreel and Jokdeam and Zanoah,
{15:57} Kain, Gibeah, and Timnah: ten cities, and their villages.
{15:58} Halhul and Bethzur and Gedor,
{15:59} Maarath and Bethanoth and Eltekon: six cities, and their villages.
{15:60} Kiriath-baal, which is Kiriath-jearim, the City of Forests, and Rabbah: two cities, and their villages.
{15:61} In the desert: Beth-Arabah, Middin, and Secacah,
{15:62} and Nibshan, and the City of Salt, and Engedi: six cities, and their villages.
{15:63} But the sons of Judah were not able to destroy the Jebusite inhabitants of Jerusalem. And so the Jebusite lived with the sons of Judah in Jerusalem, even to the present day.
{16:1} Similarly, the lot of the sons of Joseph fell from the Jordan, opposite Jericho and its waters, to the east, to the wilderness that ascends from Jericho to the mountain of Bethel.
{16:2} And it goes out from Bethel to Luz. And it crosses the border of Archi to Ataroth.
{16:3} And it descends to the west, beside the border of Japhleti, as far as the borders of lower Beth-horon, and to Gezer. And the last parts of its regions are by the great sea.
{16:4} And Manasseh and Ephraim, the sons of Joseph, possessed it.
{16:5} And the border of the sons of Ephraim was made by their families. And their possession toward the east was from Ataroth-addar, as far as upper Beth-horon,
{16:6} and the confines extend to the sea. Yet truly, Michmethath looks toward the north, and it circles around the borders, toward the east, into Taanath-shiloh. And it continues on, from the east, to Janoah.
{16:7} And it descends from Janoah to Ataroth and Naarah. and it continues to Jericho, and it extends to the Jordan.
{16:8} From Tappuah, it passes on, opposite the sea, into the Valley of Reeds. And its exit is at the very salty sea. This is the possession of the tribe of the sons of Ephraim, by their families.
{16:9} And there were cities, with their villages, which were set aside for the sons of Ephraim, in the midst of the possession of the sons of Manasseh.
{16:10} And the sons of Ephraim did not put to death the Canaanite that was living at Gezer. And the Canaanite lived in the midst of Ephraim, even to this day, paying tribute.
{17:1} Now this lot fell to the tribe of Manasseh, since he is the firstborn of Joseph: to Machir, the firstborn of Manasseh, the father of Gilead, who was a fighting man, and he had as a possession Gilead and Bashan;
{17:2} and to the rest of the sons of Manasseh, according to their families: to the sons of Abiezer, and to the sons of Helek, and to the sons of Asriel, and to the sons of Shechem, and to the sons of Hepher, and to the sons of Shemida. These are the sons of Manasseh, the son of Joseph, the males, by their families.
{17:3} Yet truly, Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, had no sons, but only daughters, whose names are these: Mahlah and Noah and Hoglah and Milcah and Tirzah.
{17:4} And they went before the sight of Eleazar, the priest, and Joshua, the son of Nun, and the leaders, saying: “The Lord instructed by the hand of Moses that a possession ought to be given to us, in the midst of our brothers.” And so, he gave to them, in accord with the order of the Lord, a possession in the midst of the brothers of their father.
{17:5} And by lot, there fell ten portions to Manasseh, aside from the land of Gilead and Bashan beyond the Jordan.
{17:6} And so the daughters of Manasseh possessed an inheritance in the midst of his sons. But the land of Gilead fell by lot to the sons of Manasseh that were left.
{17:7} And the border of Manasseh was from Asher to Michmethath, which looks out toward Shechem. And it goes out, to the right, beside the inhabitants of the Fountain of Tappuah.
{17:8} For by lot, there also fell to Manasseh the land of Tappuah, which is beside the borders of Manasseh, and which belongs to the sons of Ephraim.
{17:9} And the border descends to the Valley of Reeds, to the south of the torrent of the cities of Ephraim, which are in the midst of the cities of Manasseh. The border of Manasseh is to the north of the torrent, and its exit extends to the sea.
{17:10} So it is that the possession of Ephraim is in the south, and that of Manasseh is in the north, and both are enclosed by the sea, and they are joined together by the tribe of Asher to the north, and by the tribe of Issachar to the east.
{17:11} And the inheritance of Manasseh, in Issachar and in Asher, was Bethshean and its villages, and Ibleam with its villages, and the inhabitants of Dor, with their towns, likewise the inhabitants of Endor with their villages, and similarly the inhabitants of Taanach with their villages, and the inhabitants of Megiddo with their villages, and one third part of the city of Naphath.
{17:12} The sons of Manasseh were not able to overthrow these cities, and so the Canaanite began to dwell in their land.
{17:13} But after the sons of Israel had grown strong, they subdued the Canaanites, and made them their tributaries, but they did not kill them.
{17:14} And the sons of Joseph spoke to Joshua, and they said, “Why have you given to me as a possession one lot and one portion, while I am of such a great multitude, and the Lord has blessed me?”
{17:15} And Joshua said to them, “If you are a numerous people, go up into the forest, and cut out space for yourself in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, since the possession of mount Ephraim is too narrow for you.”
{17:16} And the sons of Joseph responded to him: “We are not able to ascend to the mountains, since the Canaanites, who live in the plains, in which are situated Bethshean, with its villages, and Jezreel, possessing the middle of the valley, use chariots of iron.”
{17:17} And Joshua said to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and Manasseh: “You are a numerous people, and you have great strength. You shall not have only one lot.
{17:18} Instead, you shall cross to the mountain, and you shall cut down and clear out for yourselves space in which to live. And you shall be able to advance further, when you will have destroyed the Canaanite, who, as you say, has iron chariots and is very strong.”
{18:1} And all the sons of Israel gathered together at Shiloh, and there they stationed the Tabernacle of the Testimony. And the land was subjected to them.
{18:2} But there remained seven tribes of the sons of Israel which had not yet received their possessions.
{18:3} And Joshua said to them: “For how long will you draw back in idleness, and not enter to possess the land, which the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given to you?
{18:4} Select three men from each tribe, so that I may send them, and they may go forth and circle through the land, and may describe it according to the number of each multitude, and may bring back to me what they have written down.
{18:5} Divide the land for yourselves into seven parts. Let Judah be its bounds on the southern side, and the house of Joseph to the north.
{18:6} The land that is in the middle, between these, write it down in seven parts. And you shall come to me, so that I may cast lots for you about this, before the Lord your God.
{18:7} But there is no portion among you for the Levites. Instead, the priesthood of the Lord is their inheritance. And Gad and Reuben, and the one half tribe of Manasseh, have already received their possessions beyond the Jordan in the eastern region, which Moses, the servant of the Lord, gave to them.”
{18:8} And when the men had risen up, so that they might go out to describe the land, Joshua instructed them, saying, “Circle through the land, and describe it, and return to me, so that I may cast lots for you about this, before the Lord, in Shiloh.”
{18:9} And so they went out. And surveying it, they divided it into seven parts, writing it in a book. And they returned to Joshua, to the camp at Shiloh.
{18:10} And he cast lots before the Lord, at Shiloh, and he divided the land to the sons of Israel, in seven parts.
{18:11} And the first lot went to the sons of Benjamin, by their families, so that they would possess the land between the sons of Judah and the sons of Joseph.
{18:12} And their border toward the north was from the Jordan, continuing on, near the side of Jericho in the northern region, and from there, ascending toward the west to the mountains, and extending to the wilderness of Bethaven.
{18:13} And it continues to the south beside Luz, which is Bethel. And it descends into Ataroth-addar, at the mountain which is to the south of lower Beth-horon.
{18:14} And it turns aside, circling toward the sea, to the south of the mountain which looks out toward Beth-horon, toward the southwest. And its exits are toward Kiriath-baal, which is also called Kiriath-jearim, a city of the sons of Judah. This is their region, toward the sea, in the west.
{18:15} But to the south, the border goes on from the part of Kiriath-jearim toward the sea, and it continues as far as the Fountain of the waters of Nephtoah.
{18:16} And it descends to that part of the mountain which looks out toward the Valley of the sons of Hinnom. And it is opposite the northern region, in the furthest part of the Valley of the Rephaim. And it descends into Geennom, (that is, the Valley of Hinnom,) near the side of the Jebusite toward the south. And it extends to the Fountain of Rogel,
{18:17} crossing from there to the north, and going out to En-Shemesh, that is, to the Fountain of the Sun.
{18:18} And it passes through to the hills that are opposite the region of the Ascent of Adummim. And it descends to Abenboen, that is, so the stone of Bohan, the son of Reuben. And it continues on, at the northern side, to the plains. And it descends into the flatlands.
{18:19} And it advances before Beth-hoglah, to the north. And its exits are to the north, opposite the bay of the very salty sea, in the southern region at the end of the Jordan,
{18:20} which is its border to the east. This is the possession of the sons of Benjamin, with their borders all around, and by their families.
{18:21} And their cities were: Jericho and Beth-hoglah and the Abrupt Valley,
{18:22} Beth-arabah and Zemaraim and Bethel,
{18:23} and Avvim and Parah and Ophrah,
{18:24} the town of Ammoni, and Ophni, and Geba: twelve cities, and their villages;
{18:25} Gibeon and Ramah and Beeroth,
{18:26} and Mizpeh and Chephirah and Mozah,
{18:27} and Rekem, Irpeel, and Taralah,
{18:28} and Zela, Haeleph, and Jebus, which is Jerusalem, Gibeah and Kiriath: fourteen cities, and their villages. This is the possession of the sons of Benjamin, according to their families.
{19:1} And the second lot went out, for the sons of Simeon by their families. And their inheritance was,
{19:2} in the midst of the possession of the sons of Judah: Beersheba, and Sheba, and Moladah,
{19:3} and Hazar-shual, Balah, and Ezem,
{19:4} and Eltolad, Bethul, and Hormah,
{19:5} and Ziklag, and Beth-marcaboth, and Hazar-susah,
{19:6} and Bethlebaoth, and Sharuhen: thirteen cities, and their villages;
{19:7} Ain and Enrimmon, and Ether and Ashan: four cities, and their villages;
{19:8} all villages around these cities, as far as Baalath-beer, the high place facing the southern region. This is the inheritance of the sons of Simeon, according to their families,
{19:9} within the possession and lot of the sons of Judah, which was greater. And for this reason, the sons of Simeon had a possession in the midst of their inheritance.
{19:10} And the third lot fell to the sons of Zebulun, by their families; and the limit of their possession was set as far as Sarid.
{19:11} And it ascends from the sea and from Mareal. And it passes on to Dabbesheth, as far as the torrent, which is opposite Jokneam.
{19:12} And it turns back from Sarid, to the east, to the end of Chisloth-tabor. And it goes out to Daberath, and it ascends opposite Japhia.
{19:13} And from there, it continues to the eastern region of Gathhepher and Ethkazin. And goes out to Rimmon, Amthar, and Neah.
{19:14} And it circles to the north at Hannathon. And its exits are at the Valley of Iphtahel;
{19:15} and Kattath and Nahalal, and Shimron and Idalah, and Bethlehem: twelve cities, and their villages.
{19:16} This is the inheritance of the tribe of the sons of Zebulun, by their families, the cities and their villages.
{19:17} The fourth lot went out to Issachar, by their families.
{19:18} And his inheritance was: Jezreel, and Chesulloth, and Shunem,
{19:19} and Hapharaim, and Shion, and Anaharath,
{19:20} and Rabbith and Kishion, Ebez
{19:21} and Remeth, and Engannim, and Enhaddah, and Bethpazzez.
{19:22} And its limit reaches to Tabor and Shahazumah and Beth-shemesh; and its exits shall be at the Jordan: sixteen cities, and their villages.
{19:23} This is the possession of the sons of Issachar by their families, the cities and their villages.
{19:24} And the fifth lot fell to the tribe of the sons of Asher, by their families.
{19:25} And their border was: Helkath, and Hali, and Beten, and Achshaph,
{19:26} and Allammelech, and Amad, and Mishal. And it extends even to Carmel by the sea, and Shihor, and Libnath.
{19:27} And it turns back toward the east at Bethdagon. And it continues on as far as Zebulun and the Valley of Iphtahel, toward the north, at Beth-emek and Neiel. And it goes out to the left of Cabul,
{19:28} and to Ebron, and Rehob, and Hammon, and Kanah, as far as the great Sidon.
{19:29} And it turns back at Ramah, even to the very fortified city of Tyre, and even to Hosah. And its exits shall be at the sea, from the lot of Achzib;
{19:30} and Ummah, and Aphek, and Rehob: twenty-two cities, and their villages.
{19:31} This is the possession of the sons of Asher, by their families, and the cities and their villages.
{19:32} The sixth lot fell to the sons of Naphtali, by their families.
{19:33} And its border begins from Heleph and Elon, into Zaanannim, and Adami, which is Nekeb, and Jabneel, as far as Lakkum. And its exits are as far as the Jordan.
{19:34} And the border turns back to the west at Aznoth-tabor, and it goes out from there to Hukkok. And continues on to Zebulun, in the south, and to Asher, in the west, and to Judah, at the Jordan, toward the rising of the sun.
{19:35} And the most fortified cities are Ziddim, Zer and Hammath, and Rakkath, and Chinnereth,
{19:36} and Adamah and Ramah, Hazor
{19:37} and Kedesh and Edrei, Enhazor
{19:38} and Yiron and Migdalel, Horem and Bethanath, and Beth-shemesh: nineteen cities, and their villages.
{19:39} This is the possession of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali, by their families, the cities and their villages.
{19:40} The seventh lot went out to the tribe of the sons of Dan, by their families.
{19:41} And the border of their possession was Zorah, and Eshtaol, and Ir-shemesh, that is, the City of the Sun,
{19:42} Sha-alabbin, and Aijalon, and Ithlah,
{19:43} Elon, and Timnah, and Ekron,
{19:44} Eltekeh, Gibbethon and Baalath,
{19:45} and Jehud, and Bene and Berak, and Gath-Rimmon,
{19:46} and Mejarkon and Rakkon, with a border that looks toward Joppa,
{19:47} and there the last part is concluded. And the sons of Dan ascended and fought against Leshem, and they seized it. And they struck it with the mouth of the sword, and they possessed it, and they lived in it, calling it by the name of Leshem-Dan, according to the name of their father Dan.
{19:48} This is the possession of the tribe of the sons of Dan, by their families, the cities and their villages.
{19:49} And when he had completed dividing the land by lot to each one by their tribes, the sons of Israel gave a possession to Joshua, the son of Nun, in their midst,
{19:50} in accord with the precept of the Lord, the city he requested, Timnath-Serah, on mount Ephraim. And he built up the city, and he lived in it.
{19:51} These are the possessions which Eleazar, the priest, and Joshua, the son of Nun, and the leaders of the families and tribes of the sons of Israel divided by lot at Shiloh, before the Lord, at the door of the Tabernacle of the Testimony. And so did they divide the land.
{20:1} And the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying: “Speak to the sons of Israel, and say to them:
{20:2} Separate the cities of refuge, about which I spoke to you by the hand of Moses,
{20:3} so that anyone who will have struck down a life unintentionally may flee to them. And so, he may be able to escape from the wrath of a close relative, who is an avenger of blood.
{20:4} And when he will have fled to one of these cities, he shall stand before the gate of the city, and he shall speak to the ancients of that city, the things that prove him innocent. And so shall they receive him, and give him a place in which to live.
{20:5} And if the avenger of blood will have pursued him, they shall not deliver him into his hands. For he struck down his neighbor unknowingly, one who was not proven to have been his enemy two or three days before.
{20:6} And he shall live in that city, until he stands before judgment in order to render the facts of his case, and until the death of the high priest, whoever it will be in that time. Then the one who killed a man may return, and he may enter his own city and house, from which he had fled.”
{20:7} And they decreed Kedesh in Galilee, at mount Naphtali, and Shechem, at mount Ephraim, and Kiriath-Arba, which is Hebron, at mount Judah.
{20:8} And beyond the Jordan, opposite the eastern side of Jericho, they appointed Bezer, which is situated on the plain of the wilderness of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan of the tribe of Manasseh.
{20:9} These cities were established for all the sons of Israel, and for the new arrivals who were living among them, so that whoever had struck down a life unintentionally might flee to these, and not die at the hand of a close relative who desires to vindicate the blood that was shed, until he should stand before the people, in order to present his case.
{21:1} And the leaders of the families of Levi approached Eleazar, the priest, and Joshua, the son of Nun, and the rulers of the extended families of each of the tribes of the sons of Israel.
{21:2} And they spoke to them at Shiloh, in the land of Canaan, and they said, “The Lord instructed, by the hand of Moses, that cities should be given to us as habitations, with their suburbs to nourish our cattle.”
{21:3} And so the sons of Israel gave cities and their suburbs from their possessions, in accord with the order of the Lord.
{21:4} And the lot went out for the family of Kohath, of the sons of Aaron, the priest, from the tribes of Judah and Simeon and Benjamin: thirteen cities.
{21:5} And to the remainder of the sons of Kohath, that is, to the Levites who were left over, there went, from the tribes of Ephraim and Dan, and from the one half tribe of Manasseh, ten cities.
{21:6} And next the lot went out to the sons of Gershon, so that they would receive, from the tribes of Issachar and Asher and Naphtali, and from the one half tribe of Manasseh at Bashan: the number of thirteen cities.
{21:7} And to the sons of Merari, by their families, from the tribes of Reuben and Gad and Zebulun, there went twelve cities.
{21:8} And so the sons of Israel gave cities and their suburbs to the Levites, just as the Lord instructed by the hand of Moses, distributing to each by lot.
{21:9} From the tribes of the sons of Judah and Simeon, Joshua gave cities, whose names are these:
{21:10} to the sons of Aaron, of the families of Kohath of the stock of Levi, (for the first lot went out for them,)
{21:11} the city of Arba, the father of Anak, which is called Hebron, on the mountain of Judah, and its surrounding suburbs.
{21:12} Yet truly, the fields and its villages he had given to Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, as a possession.
{21:13} Therefore, he gave to the sons of Aaron the priest, Hebron as a city of refuge, as well as its suburbs, and Libnah, with its suburbs,
{21:14} and Jattir, and Eshtemoa,
{21:15} and Holon, and Debir,
{21:16} and Ain, and Juttah, and Beth-shemesh, with their suburbs: nine cities from two tribes, just as has been said.
{21:17} Then, from the tribe of the sons of Benjamin, he gave Gibeon, and Geba,
{21:18} and Anathoth, and Almon, with their suburbs: four cities.
{21:19} All the cities together of the sons of Aaron, the priest, were thirteen, with their suburbs.
{21:20} Yet truly, the remainder of the families of the sons of Kohath, of the stock of Levi, were given this possession:
{21:21} from the tribe of Ephraim, Shechem, one of the cities of refuge, with its suburbs, on mount Ephraim, and Gezer,
{21:22} and Kibzaim, and Beth-horon, with their suburbs, four cities;
{21:23} and from the tribe of Dan, Elteke and Gibbethon,
{21:24} and Aijalon and Gath-Rimmon, with their suburbs, four cities;
{21:25} then, from the one half tribe of Manasseh, Taanach and Gath-Rimmon, with their suburbs, two cities.
{21:26} All the cities were ten, with their suburbs; these were given to the sons of Kohath, of the lesser degree.
{21:27} Likewise, to the sons of Gershon, of the stock of Levi, from the one half tribe of Manasseh, went Golan in Bashan, one of the cities of refuge, and Bosra, with their suburbs, two cities;
{21:28} also, from the tribe of Issachar, Kishion, and Daberath,
{21:29} and Jarmuth, and Engannim, with their suburbs, four cities;
{21:30} then, from the tribe of Asher, Mishal and Abdon,
{21:31} and Helkath and Rehob, with their suburbs, four cities;
{21:32} likewise, from the tribe of Naphtali, Kedesh in Galilee, one of the cities of refuge, and Hammoth-Dor, and Kartan, with their suburbs, three cities.
{21:33} All the cities of the families of Gershon were thirteen, with their suburbs.
{21:34} Then, to the sons of Merari, Levites of the lesser degree, by their families, were given, from the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam and Kartah,
{21:35} and Dimnah and Nahalal, four cities with their suburbs;
{21:36} from the tribe of Reuben, beyond the Jordan, opposite Jericho, Bezer in the wilderness, one of the cities of refuge, Misor and Jazer, and Jethson and Mephaath, four cities with their suburbs;
{21:37} from the tribe of Gad, Ramoth of Gilead, one of the cities of refuge, and Mahanaim and Heshbon and Jazer, four cities with their suburbs.
{21:38} All the cities of the sons of Merari, by their families and extended families, were twelve.
{21:39} And so all the cities of the Levites, in the midst of the possession of the sons of Israel, were forty-eight,
{21:40} with their suburbs, each distributed by families.
{21:41} And the Lord God gave to Israel all the land that he had sworn he would deliver to their fathers. And they possessed it, and they lived in it.
{21:42} And he gave them peace with all the surrounding nations. And none of their enemies dared to stand against them; instead, they were brought under their sovereignty.
{21:43} Indeed, not so much as one word that he had promised to provide for them was left empty; instead, everything was fulfilled.
{22:1} In the same time, Joshua called the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the one half tribe of Manasseh.
{22:2} And he said to them: “You have done all that Moses, the servant of the Lord, instructed you. You have also obeyed me in all things.
{22:3} Neither have you forsaken your brothers during this long time, even to the present day, keeping the orders of the Lord your God.
{22:4} Therefore, since the Lord your God has given your brothers peace and quiet, just as he promised: return, and go into your tents and into the land of your possession, which Moses, the servant of the Lord, delivered to you beyond the Jordan.
{22:5} And may you continue to observe attentively, and to work to fulfill, the commandment and the law that Moses, the servant of the Lord, instructed to you, so that you may love the Lord your God, and walk in all his ways, and keep all his commandments, and cling to him, and serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
{22:6} And Joshua blessed them, and he sent them away. And they returned to their tents.
{22:7} Now to the one half tribe of Manasseh, Moses had given a possession in Bashan. And therefore, to the one half that was left over, Joshua gave a lot among the remainder of their brothers across the Jordan, in the western region. And when he had blessed them and dismissed them to their tents,
{22:8} he said to them: “Return to your settlements with much substance and wealth, with silver and gold, brass and iron, and a multitude of garments. Divide the spoils of your enemies with your brothers.”
{22:9} And the sons of Reuben, and the sons of Gad, and the one half tribe of Manasseh returned, and they went away from the sons of Israel at Shiloh, which is situated in Canaan, so that they might enter into Gilead, the land of their possession, which they had obtained according to the order of the Lord, by the hand of Moses.
{22:10} And when they had arrived at the hills of the Jordan in the land of Canaan, they built an altar of immense magnitude beside the Jordan.
{22:11} And when the sons of Israel had heard of it, and certain messengers had reported to them that the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the one half tribe of Manasseh had built an altar in the land of Canaan, upon the hills of the Jordan, facing the sons of Israel,
{22:12} they all assembled at Shiloh, so that they might go up and battle against them.
{22:13} And in the interim, they sent to them, in the land of Gilead, Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the priest,
{22:14} and ten leaders with him, one from each tribe.
{22:15} And they went to the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the one half tribe of Manasseh, in the land of Gilead, and they said to them:
{22:16} “All the people of the Lord declare this: What is this transgression? Why have you forsaken the Lord, the God of Israel, by building a sacrilegious altar, and by withdrawing from the worship of him?
{22:17} Is it a small thing to you that you have sinned with Baal of Peor, and that the stain of that crime continues among us, even to the present day? And many of the people have fallen.
{22:18} And yet you have forsaken the Lord today, and tomorrow his wrath will rage against all of Israel.
{22:19} But if you consider the land of your possession to be unclean, cross over to the land in which is the tabernacle of the Lord, and live among us. But do not withdraw from the Lord, and from our fellowship, by building an altar contrary to the altar of the Lord our God.
{22:20} Did not Achan, the son of Zerah, go against the commandment of the Lord, and so his wrath was laid over all the people of Israel? And he was only one man. If only he had perished in his wickedness alone!”
{22:21} And the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the one half tribe of Manasseh responded to the leaders of the delegation from Israel:
{22:22} “The Lord, the almighty God, the Lord, the almighty God, he knows, and also Israel will understand: If we have constructed this altar with intent of transgression, let him not preserve us, but instead punish us immediately.
{22:23} And if we have acted with a mind so that we might present upon it holocausts, and sacrifice, and victims of peace offerings, let him inquire and judge.
{22:24} Instead, we have acted with this greater thought and design, that we would say: Tomorrow your sons will say to our sons: ‘What is there between you and the Lord, the God of Israel?
{22:25} The Lord has stationed the river Jordan as the border between us and you, O sons of Reuben, O sons of Gad. And therefore, you have no part in the Lord.’ And by this occasion, your sons would turn away our sons from the fear of the Lord. And so we sought something better,
{22:26} and we said: Let us build us an altar, not for holocausts, and not to offer victims,
{22:27} but as a testimony between us and you, and between our descendants and your progeny, so that we may serve the Lord, and so that it may be our right to offer holocausts, and victims, and peace offerings, and so that tomorrow your sons may not say to our sons: ‘You have no part in the Lord.’
{22:28} And if they decide to say this, they shall respond to them: ‘Behold, the altar of the Lord, which our fathers made, not for holocausts, and not for sacrifice, but instead as a testimony between us and you.’
{22:29} May this wickedness be far from us, such that we would withdraw from the Lord, and would forsake his paths, by constructing an altar to offer holocausts, and sacrifices, and victims, contrary to the altar of the Lord our God, which was built before his tabernacle.”
{22:30} And when Phinehas, the priest, and the leaders of the delegation who were with him, had heard this, they were pleased. And they accepted very willingly the words of the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and of the one half tribe of Manasseh.
{22:31} And Phinehas, the priest, the son of Eleazar, said to them: “Now we know that the Lord is with us. For you are a stranger to this transgression. And so you have freed the sons of Israel from the hand of the Lord.”
{22:32} And he returned with the leaders, from the sons of Reuben and of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, into the parts of Canaan, to the sons of Israel. And he reported to them.
{22:33} And the word pleased all who heard it. And the sons of Israel praised God, and they no longer said that they would go up against them, and fight, and destroy the land of their possession.
{22:34} And the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad called the altar that they had built: Our testimony that the Lord himself is God.
{23:1} Now a long time passed, after the Lord had given peace to Israel by subjecting all the surrounding nations. And Joshua was now old and very advanced in age.
{23:2} Joshua called all of Israel, and those greater by birth, and the leaders and rulers and teachers, and he said to them: “I am elderly and advanced in age.
{23:3} And you yourselves discern all that the Lord your God has done with all the surrounding nations, in what manner he himself has fought for you.
{23:4} And now, since he has divided to you by lot all the land, from the eastern part of the Jordan even to the great sea, and yet many nations still remain,
{23:5} the Lord your God will destroy them, and he will take them away before your face, and you shall possess the land, just as he has promised you.
{23:6} Even so, be strengthened and be careful that you observe all the things that have been written in the book of the law of Moses, and that you do not turn aside from them, neither to the right, nor to the left.
{23:7} Otherwise, after you have entered to the Gentiles, who will be among you in the future, you might swear by the name of their gods, and serve them, and adore them.
{23:8} Instead, cling to the Lord your God, just as you have done even to this day.
{23:9} And then the Lord God will take away, in your sight, nations that are great and very robust, and no one will be able to withstand you.
{23:10} One of you shall pursue a thousand men of the enemies. For the Lord your God himself will fight on your behalf, just as he promised.
{23:11} Even so, be very diligent and careful in this: that you love the Lord your God.
{23:12} But if you choose to cling to the errors of these nations that live among you, and to mix with them by marriage, and to join with them by friendship,
{23:13} even now, know this: that the Lord your God will not wipe them away before your face. Instead, they shall be a pit and a snare to you, and a stumbling block at your side, and stakes in your eyes, until he takes you away and scatters you from this excellent land, which he has delivered to you.
{23:14} Lo, today I am entering the way of the entire earth, and you shall know with all your mind that, out of all the words that the Lord has promised to fulfill for you, not one will pass by unfulfilled.
{23:15} Therefore, just as he has fulfilled in deed what he has promised, and all prosperous things have arrived, so will he bring upon you whatever evils were threatened, until he takes you away and scatters you from this excellent land, which he has delivered to you,
{23:16} when you will have transgressed the covenant of the Lord your God, which he has formed with you, and will have served strange gods, and will have adored them. And then the fury of the Lord will rise up quickly and speedily against you, and you will be taken away from this excellent land, which he has delivered to you.”
{24:1} And Joshua gathered together all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, and he called those greater by birth, and the leaders and judges and teachers. And they stood in the sight of the Lord.
{24:2} And he spoke to the people in this way: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Your fathers lived, in the beginning, across the river: Terah, the father of Abraham, and Nahor. And they served strange gods.
{24:3} Then I brought your father Abraham from the parts of Mesopotamia, and I led him into the land of Canaan. And I multiplied his offspring,
{24:4} and I gave to him Isaac. And to him, I gave again Jacob and Esau. And I gave mount Seir to Esau as a possession. Yet truly, Jacob and his sons descended into Egypt.
{24:5} And I sent Moses and Aaron, and I struck Egypt with many signs and portents.
{24:6} And I led you and your fathers away from Egypt, and you arrived at the sea. And the Egyptians pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen, as far as the Red Sea.
{24:7} Then the sons of Israel cried out to the Lord. And he stationed a darkness between you and the Egyptians, and he led the sea over them, and he covered them. Your eyes saw all that I did in Egypt, and you lived in the wilderness for a long time.
{24:8} And I led you into the land of the Amorite, who was living beyond the Jordan. And when they fought against you, I delivered them into your hands, and you possessed their land, and you put them to death.
{24:9} Then Balak, the son of Zippor, the king of Moab, rose up and fought against Israel. And he sent and called for Balaam, the son of Beor, so that he might curse you.
{24:10} And I was not willing to listen to him, but on the contrary, I blessed you through him, and I freed you from his hand.
{24:11} And you crossed over the Jordan, and you arrived at Jericho. And the men of that city fought against you: the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Girgashite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite. And I delivered them into your hands.
{24:12} And I sent wasps before you. And I drove them from their places, the two kings of the Amorites, but not by your sword, and not by your bow.
{24:13} And I gave you a land, in which you did not labor, and cities, which you did not build, so that you might live in them, and vineyards and olive groves, which you did not plant.’
{24:14} Now therefore, fear the Lord, and serve him with a perfect and very sincere heart. And take away the gods that your fathers served in Mesopotamia and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.
{24:15} But if it seems evil to you that you would serve the Lord, a choice is given to you. Choose today what pleases you, and whom you ought to serve above all else, either the gods that your fathers served in Mesopotamia, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you live: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
{24:16} And the people responded, and they said: “Far be it from us that we would forsake the Lord, and serve foreign gods.
{24:17} The Lord our God himself led us and our fathers away from the land of Egypt, from the house of servitude. And he accomplished immense signs in our sight, and he preserved us along the entire way by which we journeyed, and among all the people through whom we passed.
{24:18} And he cast out all the nations, the Amorite, the inhabitant of the land that we entered. And so, we will serve the Lord, for he is our God.”
{24:19} And Joshua said to the people: “You will not be able to serve the Lord. For he is a holy and powerful God, and he is jealous, and he will not ignore your wickedness and sins.
{24:20} If you leave behind the Lord, and you serve foreign gods, he will turn himself, and he will afflict you, and he will overthrow you, after all the good that he has offered to you.”
{24:21} And the people said to Joshua, “By no means will it be as you are saying, but we will serve the Lord.”
{24:22} And Joshua said to the people, “You yourselves are witnesses, that you have chosen the Lord so that you may serve him.” And they answered, “We are witnesses.”
{24:23} “Now therefore,” he said, “take away strange gods from among yourselves, and incline your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.”
{24:24} And the people said to Joshua, “We will serve the Lord our God, and we will be obedient to his precepts.”
{24:25} Therefore, on that day, Joshua struck a covenant, and he set before the people at Shechem the precepts and the judgments.
{24:26} He also wrote all these things in the volume of the law of the Lord. And he took a very great stone, and he stationed it under the oak that was in the Sanctuary of the Lord.
{24:27} And he said to all the people, “Lo, this stone shall be to you as a testimony, which has heard all the words of the Lord that he has spoken to you, lest perhaps, afterward, you might choose to deny it, and to lie to the Lord your God.”
{24:28} And he dismissed the people, each one to their own possession.
{24:29} And after these things, Joshua, the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being one hundred and ten years old.
{24:30} And they buried him within the borders of his possession at Timnath-Serah, which is situated on mount Ephraim, before the northern side of mount Gaash.
{24:31} And Israel served the Lord during all the days of Joshua, and of the elders who lived for a long time after Joshua, and who had known all the works of the Lord that he had accomplished in Israel.
{24:32} And the bones of Joseph, which the sons of Israel had brought from Egypt, they buried at Shechem, in a portion of the field that Jacob had purchased from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, for one hundred young female sheep, and so it was in the possession of the sons of Joseph.
{24:33} Likewise, Eleazar, the son of Aaron, died. And they buried him at Gibeah, which belongs to Phinehas, his son, and which was given to him on mount Ephraim.
{1:1} After the death of Joshua, the sons of Israel consulted the Lord, saying, “Who will ascend before us, against the Canaanite, and who will be the commander of the war?”
{1:2} And the Lord said: “Judah shall ascend. Behold, I have delivered the land into his hands.”
{1:3} And Judah said to his brother Simeon, “Go up with me to my lot, and fight against the Canaanite, so that I also may go forth with you to your lot.” And Simeon went with him.
{1:4} And Judah went up, and the Lord delivered the Canaanite, as well as the Perizzite, into their hands. And they struck down ten thousand of the men at Bezek.
{1:5} And they found Adonibezek at Bezek, and they fought against him, and they struck down the Canaanite and the Perizzite.
{1:6} Then Adonibezek fled. And they pursued him and captured him, and they cut off the ends of his hands and feet.
{1:7} And Adonibezek said: “Seventy kings, with the ends of their hands and feet amputated, have been gathering the remnants of food under my table. Just as I have done, so has God repaid me.” And they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.
{1:8} Then the sons of Judah, besieging Jerusalem, seized it. And they struck it with edge of the sword, delivering the entire city to be burned.
{1:9} And afterward, descending, they fought against the Canaanites who were living in the mountains, and in the south, and in the plains.
{1:10} And Judah, going forth against the Canaanites who were living at Hebron, (the name of which from antiquity was Kiriath-Arba) struck down Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai.
{1:11} And continuing on from there, he went to the inhabitants of Debir, the old name of which was Kiriath-Sepher, that is, the City of Letters.
{1:12} And Caleb said, “Whoever will strike Kiriath-Sepher, and will lay waste to it, I will give to him my daughter Achsah as wife.”
{1:13} And when Othniel, the son of Kenaz, a younger brother of Caleb, had seized it, he gave his daughter Achsah to him in marriage.
{1:14} And as she was traveling on a journey, her husband admonished her, so that she would request a field from her father. And since she had sighed while sitting on her donkey, Caleb said to her, “What is it?”
{1:15} But she responded: “Give a blessing to me. For you have given me a dry land. Also give a watered land.” Therefore, Caleb gave to her the upper watered land and the lower watered land.
{1:16} Now the sons of the Kenite, the relative of Moses, ascended from the City of Palms, with the sons of Judah, into the wilderness of his lot, which is toward the south of Arad. And they lived with him.
{1:17} Then Judah went out with his brother Simeon, and together they struck the Canaanites who were living at Zephath, and they put them to death. And the name of the city was called Hormah, that is, Anathema.
{1:18} And Judah seized Gaza, with its parts, and Ashkelon as well as Ekron, with their borders.
{1:19} And the Lord was with Judah, and he possessed the mountains. But he was not able to wipe out the inhabitants of the valley. For they abounded with chariots armed with scythes.
{1:20} And just as Moses had said, they gave Hebron to Caleb, who destroyed out of it the three sons of Anak.
{1:21} But the sons of Benjamin did not wipe out the Jebusite inhabitants of Jerusalem. And the Jebusite has lived with the sons of Benjamin in Jerusalem, even to the present day.
{1:22} The house of Joseph also ascended against Bethel, and the Lord was with them.
{1:23} For when they were besieging the city, which was previously called Luz,
{1:24} they saw a man departing from the city, and they said to him, “Reveal to us the entrance to the city, and we will act with mercy toward you.”
{1:25} And when he had revealed it to them, they struck the city with the edge of the sword. But that man, and all his relatives, they released.
{1:26} And having been sent away, he went out to the land of the Hittites, and he built a city there, and he called it Luz. And so it is called, even to the present day.
{1:27} Likewise, Manasseh did not destroy Bethshean and Taanach, with their villages, nor the inhabitants of Dor and Ibleam and Megiddo, with their villages. And the Canaanite began to live with them.
{1:28} Then, after Israel had grown strong, he made them tributaries, but he was not willing to destroy them.
{1:29} And now Ephraim did not put to death the Canaanite, who was living at Gezer; instead, he lived with him.
{1:30} Zebulun did not wipe out the inhabitants of Kitron and of Nahalal. Instead, the Canaanite lived in their midst and became their tributary.
{1:31} Likewise, Asher did not destroy the inhabitants of Acco and Sidon, Ahlab and Achzib, and Helbah, and Aphik, and Rehob.
{1:32} And he lived in the midst of the Canaanites, the inhabitants of that land, for he did not put them to death.
{1:33} Naphtali also did not wipe out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and Bethanath. And he lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land. And the Beth-shemeshites and Bethanathites were tributaries to him.
{1:34} And the Amorite hemmed in the sons of Dan on the mountain, and did not give them a place, so that they might descend to the flatlands.
{1:35} And he lived on the mountain at Har-heres, which is translated as ‘resembling brick,’ and at Aijalon and Sha-alabbin. But the hand of the house of Joseph was very heavy, and he became a tributary to him.
{1:36} Now the border of the Amorite was from the Ascent of the Scorpion, to the Rock and the higher places.
{2:1} And an Angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to the Place of Weeping, and he said: “I led you away from Egypt, and I led you into the land, about which I swore to your fathers. And I promised that I would not nullify my covenant with you, even forever:
{2:2} but only if you would not form a pact with the inhabitants of this land. Instead, you should overturn their altars. Yet you were not willing to listen to my voice. Why have you done this?
{2:3} For this reason, I am not willing to destroy them before your face, so that you may have enemies, and so that their gods may be your ruin.”
{2:4} And when the Angel of the Lord spoke these words to all the sons of Israel, they lifted up their voice, and they wept.
{2:5} And the name of that place was called, the Place of Weeping, or the Place of Tears. And they immolated victims to the Lord in that place.
{2:6} Then Joshua dismissed the people, and the sons of Israel went away, each one to his own possession, so that they might obtain it.
{2:7} And they served the Lord, during all his days, and during all the days of the elders, who lived for a long time after him, and who knew all the works of the Lord, which he had done for Israel.
{2:8} Then Joshua, the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being one hundred and ten years old.
{2:9} And they buried him in the parts of his possession at Timnath-Serah, on Mount Ephraim, before the northern side of Mount Gaash.
{2:10} And that entire generation was gathered to their fathers. And there rose up others, who had not known the Lord and the works that he had done for Israel.
{2:11} And the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they served the Baals.
{2:12} And they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers, who had led them away from the land of Egypt. And they followed foreign gods and the gods of the peoples who were living around them, and they adored them. And they provoked the Lord to wrath,
{2:13} forsaking him, and serving Baal and Ashtaroth.
{2:14} And the Lord, having become angry against Israel, delivered them into the hands of plunderers, who seized them and sold them to the enemies that were living on all sides. Neither were they able to withstand their adversaries.
{2:15} Instead, wherever they wanted to go, the hand of the Lord was upon them, just as he said and just as he swore to them. And they were greatly afflicted.
{2:16} And the Lord raised up judges, who would free them from the hands of their oppressors. But they were not willing to listen to them.
{2:17} Fornicating with foreign gods and adoring them, they quickly deserted the way along which their fathers had advanced. And having heard the commandments of the Lord, they did all things to the contrary.
{2:18} And while the Lord was raising up the judges, in their days, he was moved to mercy, and he listened to the groaning of the afflicted, and he freed them from the slaughter of their oppressors.
{2:19} But after a judge had died, they turned back, and they were doing much worse things than their fathers had done, following strange gods, serving them, and adoring them. They did not abandon their pursuits and their very stubborn way, by which they were accustomed to walk.
{2:20} And the fury of the Lord was enraged against Israel, and he said: “For this people has made void my covenant, which I had formed with their fathers, and they have despised listening to my voice.
{2:21} And so, I will not destroy the nations that Joshua left behind when he died,
{2:22} so that, by them, I may test Israel, as to whether or not they will keep the way of the Lord, and walk in it, just as their fathers kept it.”
{2:23} Therefore, the Lord left all these nations, and he was not willing to quickly overthrow them, nor did he deliver them into the hands of Joshua.
{3:1} These are the nations which the Lord left, so that by them he might instruct Israel and all who had not known the wars of the Canaanites,
{3:2} so that afterward their sons might learn to contend with their enemies, and to have a willingness to do battle:
{3:3} the five princes of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hivites who were living on Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal-Hermon as far as the entrance to Hamath.
{3:4} And he left them, so that by them he might test Israel, as to whether or not they would listen to the commandments of the Lord, which he instructed to their fathers by the hand of Moses.
{3:5} And so, the sons of Israel lived in the midst of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite.
{3:6} And they took their daughters as wives, and they gave their own daughters to their sons, and they served their gods.
{3:7} And they did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they forgot their God, while serving the Baals and Ashtaroth.
{3:8} And the Lord, having become angry with Israel, delivered them into the hands of Cushan-Rishathaim, the king of Mesopotamia, and they served him for eight years.
{3:9} And they cried out to the Lord, who raised up for them a savior, and he freed them, namely, Othniel, the son of Kenaz, a younger brother of Caleb.
{3:10} And the Spirit of the Lord was in him, and he judged Israel. And he went out to fight, and the Lord delivered Cushan-Rishathaim, the king of Syria, and he overwhelmed him.
{3:11} And the land was quiet for forty years. And Othniel, the son of Kenaz, died.
{3:12} Then the sons of Israel resumed doing evil in the sight of the Lord, who strengthened Eglon, the king of Moab, against them because they did evil in his sight.
{3:13} And he joined to him the sons of Ammon and the sons of Amalek. And he went forth and struck Israel, and he possessed the City of Palms.
{3:14} And the sons of Israel served Eglon, the king of Moab, for eighteen years.
{3:15} And afterward, they cried out to the Lord, who raised up for them a savior, called Ehud, the son of Gera, the son of Benjamin, who used either hand as well as the right hand. And the sons of Israel sent gifts to Eglon, the king of Moab, by him.
{3:16} And he made for himself a two-edged sword, having a handle, reaching to the middle, the length of the palm of a hand. And he was girded with it under his cloak, on the right thigh.
{3:17} And he offered the gifts to Eglon, the king of Moab. Now Eglon was exceedingly fat.
{3:18} And when he had presented the gifts to him, he followed out his companions, who had arrived with him.
{3:19} And then, returning from Gilgal where the idols were, he said to the king, “I have a secret word for you, O king.” And he ordered silence. And when all those who were around him had departed,
{3:20} Ehud entered to him. Now he was sitting alone in a summer upper room. And he said, “I have a word from God to you.” And immediately he rose up from his throne.
{3:21} And Ehud extended his left hand, and he took the dagger from his right thigh. And he thrust it into his abdomen
{3:22} so strongly that the handle followed the blade into the wound, and was enclosed by the great amount of fat. Neither did he withdraw the sword. Instead, he left it in the body just as he had struck with it. And immediately, by the private parts of nature, the filth of the bowels went out.
{3:23} Then Ehud carefully closed the doors of the upper room. And securing the bars,
{3:24} he departed by a back exit. And the servants of the king, entering, saw that the doors of the upper room were closed, and they said, “Perhaps he is emptying his bowels in the summer room.”
{3:25} And after waiting a long time, until they were embarrassed, and seeing that no one opened the door, they took the key, and opening it, they found their lord lying dead on the ground.
{3:26} But Ehud, while they were in confusion, escaped and passed by the place of the idols, from which he had returned. And he arrived at Seirath.
{3:27} And immediately he sounded the trumpet on Mount Ephraim. And the sons of Israel descended with him, he himself advancing at the front.
{3:28} And he said to them: “Follow me. For the Lord has delivered our enemies, the Moabites, into our hands.” And they descended after him, and they occupied the fords of the Jordan, which cross over to Moab. And they did not permit anyone to cross.
{3:29} And so, they struck down the Moabites at that time, about ten thousand, all strong and robust men. None of them were able to escape.
{3:30} And Moab was humbled in that day under the hand of Israel. And the land was quiet for eighty years.
{3:31} After him, there was Shamgar, the son of Anath, who struck down six hundred men of the Philistines with a plowshare. And he also defended Israel.
{4:1} But after the death of Ehud, the sons of Israel resumed doing evil in the sight of the Lord.
{4:2} And the Lord delivered them into the hands of Jabin, the king of Canaan, who reigned at Hazor. And he had a commander of his army named Sisera, but this man lived at Harosheth of the Gentiles.
{4:3} And the sons of Israel cried out to the Lord. For he had nine hundred chariots with scythes, and he vehemently oppressed them for twenty years.
{4:4} Now there was a prophetess, Deborah, the wife of Lappidoth, who judged the people in that time.
{4:5} And she was sitting under a palm tree, which was called by her name, between Ramah and Bethel, on Mount Ephraim. And the sons of Israel went up to her for every judgment.
{4:6} And she sent and called Barak, the son of Abinoam, from Kedesh of Naphtali. And she said to him: “The Lord, the God of Israel, instructs you: ‘Go and lead an army to Mount Tabor, and you shall take with you ten thousand fighting men from the sons of Naphtali and from the sons of Zebulun.
{4:7} Then I will lead to you, at the place of the torrent Kishon, Sisera, the leader of the army of Jabin, with his chariots and the entire multitude. And I will deliver them into your hand.’ ”
{4:8} And Barak said to her: “If you will come with me, I will go. If you are not willing to come with me, I will not go.”
{4:9} She said to him: “Indeed, I will go with you. But due to this change, the victory shall not be reputed to you. And so Sisera will be delivered into the hand of a woman.” Therefore, Deborah rose up, and she traveled with Barak to Kedesh.
{4:10} And he, summoning Zebulun and Naphtali, ascended with ten thousand fighting men, having Deborah in his company.
{4:11} Now Heber, the Kenite, had previously withdrawn from the rest of the Kenites, his brothers, the sons of Hobab, the relative of Moses. And he had pitched his tents as far as the valley that is called Zaanannim, which was near Kedesh.
{4:12} And it was reported to Sisera that Barak, the son of Abinoam, had ascended to Mount Tabor.
{4:13} And he gathered together the nine hundred chariots with scythes, and the entire army, from Harosheth of the Gentiles to the torrent Kishon.
{4:14} And Deborah said to Barak: “Rise up. For this is the day on which the Lord delivers Sisera into your hands. For he is your commander.” And so, Barak descended from Mount Tabor, and the ten thousand fighting men with him.
{4:15} And the Lord struck Sisera with great fear, and all his chariots and all his multitude with the edge of the sword, in the sight of Barak, so much so that Sisera, leaping from his chariot, fled on foot.
{4:16} And Barak pursued the fleeing chariots, and the army, as far as Harosheth of the Gentiles. And the entire multitude of the enemy was cut down, unto utter annihilation.
{4:17} But Sisera, while fleeing, arrived at the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber, the Kenite. For there was peace between Jabin, the king of Hazor, and the house of Heber, the Kenite.
{4:18} Therefore, Jael went out to meet Sisera, and she said to him: “Enter to me, my lord. Enter, you should not be afraid.” And he entered her tent, and having been covered by her with a cloak,
{4:19} he said to her: “Give me, I beg you, a little water. For I am very thirsty.” And she opened a bottle of milk, and she gave him to drink. And she covered him.
{4:20} And Sisera said to her: “Stand before the door of the tent. And if anyone arrives, questioning you and saying, ‘Could there be any man here?’ you shall respond, ‘There is no one.’ ”
{4:21} And so Jael, the wife of Heber, took a spike from the tent, and also took a mallet. And entering unseen and with silence, she placed the spike over the temple of his head. And striking it with the mallet, she drove it through his brain, as far as the ground. And so, joining deep sleep to death, he fell unconscious and died.
{4:22} And behold, Barak arrived, in pursuit of Sisera. And Jael, going out to meet him, said to him, “Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking.” And when he had entered her tent, he saw Sisera lying dead, with the spike fixed in his temples.
{4:23} Thus did God humble Jabin, the king of Canaan, on that day, before the sons of Israel.
{4:24} And they increased every day. And with a strong hand they overpowered Jabin, the king of Canaan, until they wiped him out.
{5:1} In that day, Deborah and Barak, the son of Abinoam, sang out, saying:
{5:2} “All you of Israel who have willingly offered your lives to danger, bless the Lord!
{5:3} Listen, O kings! Pay attention, O princes! It is I, it is I, who will sing to the Lord. I will sing a psalm to the Lord, the God of Israel!
{5:4} O Lord, when you departed from Seir, and you crossed through the regions of Edom, the earth and the heavens were moved, and the clouds rained down water.
{5:5} The mountains flowed away before the face of the Lord, and Sinai, before the face of the Lord God of Israel.
{5:6} In the days of Shamgar, the son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the paths were quiet. And whoever entered by them, walked along rough byways.
{5:7} The strong men ceased, and they rested in Israel, until Deborah rose up, until a mother rose up in Israel.
{5:8} The Lord chose new wars, and he himself overturned the gates of the enemies. A shield with a spear was not seen among the forty thousand of Israel.
{5:9} My heart loves the leaders of Israel. All you who, of your own free will, offered yourselves during a crisis, bless the Lord.
{5:10} You who ride upon donkeys laboring, and you who sit in judgment, and you who walk along the way, speak out.
{5:11} Where the chariots were struck together, and the army of the enemies was choked, in that place, let the justices of the Lord be described, and let his clemency be for the brave of Israel. Then did the people of the Lord descend to the gates, and obtain leadership.
{5:12} Rise up, rise up, O Deborah! Rise up, rise up, and speak a canticle! Rise up, Barak, and seize your captives, O son of Abinoam.
{5:13} The remnants of the people were saved. The Lord contended with the strong.
{5:14} Out of Ephraim, he destroyed those with Amalek, and after him, out of Benjamin, those of your people, O Amalek. From Machir, there descended leaders, and from Zebulun, those who led the army to war.
{5:15} The commanders of Issachar were with Deborah, and they followed the steps of Barak, who endangered himself, like one rushing headlong into a chasm. Reuben was divided against himself. Contention was found among great souls.
{5:16} Why do you live between two borders, so that you hear the bleating of the flocks? Reuben was divided against himself. Contention was found among great souls.
{5:17} Gilead rested beyond the Jordan, and Dan was occupied with ships. Asher was living on the shore of the sea, and dwelling in the ports.
{5:18} Yet truly, Zebulun and Naphtali offered their lives to death in the region of Merom.
{5:19} The kings came and fought; the kings of Canaan fought at Taanach, beside the waters of Megiddo. And yet they took no spoils.
{5:20} The conflict against them was from heaven. The stars, remaining in their order and courses, fought against Sisera.
{5:21} The torrent of Kishon dragged away their carcasses, the onrushing torrent, the torrent of Kishon. O my soul, tread upon the stalwart!
{5:22} The hoofs of the horses were broken, while the strongest of the enemies fled away with fury, and rushed on to ruin.
{5:23} ‘Cursed be the land of Meroz!’ said the Angel of the Lord. ‘Cursed be its inhabitants! For they did not come to the aid of the Lord, to the assistance of his most valiant men.’
{5:24} Blessed among women is Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite. And blessed is she in her tabernacle.
{5:25} He begged her for water, and she gave him milk, and she offered him butter in a dish fit for princes.
{5:26} She put her left hand to the nail, and her right hand to the workman’s mallet. And she struck Sisera, seeking in his head a place for the wound, and strongly piercing his temples.
{5:27} Between her feet, he was ruined. He fainted away and passed on. He curled up before her feet, and he lay there lifeless and miserable.
{5:28} His mother gazed through a window and wailed. And she spoke from an upper room: ‘Why does his chariot delay in returning? Why are the feet of his team of horses so slow?’
{5:29} One who was wiser than the rest of his wives responded to her mother-in-law with this:
{5:30} ‘Perhaps he is now dividing the spoils, and the most beautiful among the women is being selected for him. Garments of diverse colors are being delivered to Sisera as spoils, and various goods are being collected for the adornment of necks.’
{5:31} O Lord, so may all your enemies perish! But may those who love you shine with splendor, as the sun shines at its rising.”
{5:32} And the land rested for forty years.
{6:1} Then the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, who delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years.
{6:2} And they were greatly oppressed by them. And they made for themselves hollows and caves in the mountains, and very fortified places for defense.
{6:3} And when Israel had planted, Midian and Amalek, and the rest of the eastern nations ascended,
{6:4} and pitching their tents among them, they laid waste to all that was planted, as far as the entrance to Gaza. And they left behind nothing at all to sustain life in Israel, neither sheep, nor oxen, nor donkeys.
{6:5} For they and all their flocks arrived with their tents, and they filled all places like locusts, an innumerable multitude of men and camels, devastating whatever they touched.
{6:6} And Israel was humbled greatly in the sight of Midian.
{6:7} And he cried out to the Lord, requesting assistance against the Midianites.
{6:8} And he sent to them a man who was a prophet, and he said: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘I caused you to ascend from Egypt, and I led you away from the house of servitude.
{6:9} And I freed you from the hand of the Egyptians and from all of the enemies who were afflicting you. And I cast them out at your arrival, and I delivered their land to you.
{6:10} And I said: I am the Lord your God. You shall not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you live. But you were not willing to listen to my voice.’ ”
{6:11} Then an Angel of the Lord arrived, and he sat under an oak tree, which was at Ophrah, and which belonged to Joash, the father of the family of Ezri. And while his son Gideon was threshing and cleaning the grain at the winepress, so that he might flee from Midian,
{6:12} the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and he said: “The Lord is with you, most valiant of men.”
{6:13} And Gideon said to him: “I beg you, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why have these things happened to us? Where are his miracles, which our fathers described when they said, ‘The Lord led us away from Egypt.’ But now the Lord has forsaken us, and he has delivered us into the hand of Midian.”
{6:14} And the Lord looked down upon him, and he said: “Go forth with this, your strength, and you shall free Israel from the hand of Midian. Know that I have sent you.”
{6:15} And responding, he said: “I beg you, my lord, with what shall I free Israel? Behold, my family is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in the house of my father.”
{6:16} And the Lord said to him: “I will be with you. And so, you shall cut down Midian as if one man.”
{6:17} And he said: “If I have found grace before you, give me a sign that it is you who is speaking to me.
{6:18} And may you not withdraw from here, until I return to you, carrying a sacrifice and offering it to you.” And he responded, “I will wait for your return.”
{6:19} And so Gideon entered, and he boiled a goat, and he made unleavened bread from a measure of flour. And setting the flesh in a basket, and putting the broth of the flesh in a pot, he took it all under the oak tree, and he offered it to him.
{6:20} And the Angel of the Lord said to him, “Take the flesh and the unleavened bread, and place them on that rock, and pour out the broth upon it.” And when he had done so,
{6:21} the Angel of the Lord extended the end of a staff, which he was holding in his hand, and he touched the flesh and the unleavened loaves. And a fire ascended from the rock, and it consumed the flesh and the unleavened loaves. Then the Angel of the Lord vanished from his sight.
{6:22} And Gideon, realizing that it had been the Angel of the Lord, said: “Alas, my Lord God! For I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face.”
{6:23} And the Lord said to him: “Peace be with you. Do not be afraid; you shall not die.”
{6:24} Therefore, Gideon built an altar to the Lord there, and he called it, the Peace of the Lord, even to the present day. And while he was still at Ophrah, which is of the family of Ezri,
{6:25} that night, the Lord said to him: “Take a bull of your father’s, and another bull of seven years, and you shall destroy the altar of Baal, which is your father’s. And you shall cut down the sacred grove which is around the altar.
{6:26} And you shall build an altar to the Lord your God, at the summit of this rock, on which you placed the sacrifice before. And you shall take the second bull, and you shall offer a holocaust upon a pile of the wood, which you shall cut down from the grove.”
{6:27} Therefore, Gideon, taking ten men from his servants, did just as the Lord had instructed him. But fearing his father’s household, and the men of that city, he was not willing to do it by day. Instead, he completed everything by night.
{6:28} And when the men of that town had risen up in the morning, they saw the altar of Baal destroyed, and the sacred grove cut down, and the second bull set upon the altar, which then had been built.
{6:29} And they said one to another, “Who has done this?” And when they inquired everywhere as to the author of the deed, it was said, “Gideon, the son of Joash, did all these things.”
{6:30} And they said to Joash: “Bring forward your son here, so that he may die. For he has destroyed the altar of Baal, and he has cut down the sacred grove.”
{6:31} But he responded to them: “Could you be the avengers of Baal, so that you fight on his behalf? Whoever is his adversary, let him die before the light arrives tomorrow; if he is a god, let him vindicate himself against him who has overturned his altar.”
{6:32} From that day, Gideon was called Jerubbaal, because Joash had said, “Let Baal avenge himself against him who has overturned his altar.”
{6:33} And so, all of Midian, and Amalek, and the eastern peoples were gathered together. And crossing the Jordan, they encamped in the valley of Jezreel.
{6:34} But the Spirit of the Lord entered Gideon, who, sounding the trumpet, summoned the house of Abiezer so that he might follow him.
{6:35} And he sent messengers into all of Manasseh, who also followed him, and other messengers into Asher, and Zebulun, and Naphtali, who went to meet him.
{6:36} And Gideon said to God: “If you will save Israel by my hand, just as you have said:
{6:37} I will set this wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there will be dew only on the fleece, and all the ground is dry, I will know that by my hand, as you have said, you will free Israel.”
{6:38} And so it was done. And rising in the night, wringing out the fleece, he filled a vessel with the dew.
{6:39} And again he said to God: “Let not your fury be enkindled against me, if I test once more, seeking a sign in the fleece. I pray that only the fleece may be dry, and all the ground may be wet with dew.”
{6:40} And that night, God did as he had requested. And it was dry only on the fleece, and there was dew on all the ground.
{7:1} And so Jerubbaal, who is also Gideon, rising in the night, and all the people with him, went to the fountain which is called Harod. Now the camp of Midian was in the valley, to the northern region of the high hill.
{7:2} And the Lord said to Gideon: “The people with you are many, but Midian shall not be delivered into their hands, for then Israel might glory against me, and say, ‘I was freed by my own power.’
{7:3} Speak to the people, and proclaim in the hearing of all, ‘Whoever has dread or fear, let him return.’ And twenty-two thousand of the men from the people withdrew from Mount Gilead and returned, and only ten thousand remained.
{7:4} And the Lord said to Gideon: “The people are still too many. Lead them to the waters, and there I will test them. And those about whom I tell you that he may go with you, let him go; he whom I shall forbid to go, let him return.”
{7:5} And when the people had descended to the waters, the Lord said to Gideon: “Whoever will lap the water with the tongue, as dogs usually lap, you shall separate them by themselves. Then those who will drink by bending their knees shall be on the other side.”
{7:6} And so the number of those who had lapped the water, by bringing it with the hand to the mouth, was three hundred men. And all the remainder of the multitude drank by bending the knee.
{7:7} And the Lord said to Gideon: “By the three hundred men who lapped the water, I will free you, and I will deliver Midian into your hand. But let all the remainder of the multitude return to their place.”
{7:8} And so, taking food and trumpets in accord with their number, he instructed all the rest of the multitude to go back to their tents. And with the three hundred men, he gave himself to the conflict. Now the camp of Midian was below, in the valley.
{7:9} In the same night, the Lord said to him: “Rise up, and descend into the camp. For I have delivered them into your hand.
{7:10} But if you dread to go alone, let your servant Purah descend with you.
{7:11} And when you will hear what they are saying, then your hands will be strengthened, and you will descend more confidently to the camp of the enemy.” Therefore, he descended with his servant Purah into a portion of the camp, where there was a watch of armed men.
{7:12} But Midian, and Amalek, and all the eastern peoples lay spread out in the valley, like a multitude of locusts. Their camels, too, were innumerable, like the sand that lies on the shore of the sea.
{7:13} And when Gideon had arrived, someone told his neighbor a dream. And he related what he had seen, in this way: “I saw a dream, and it seemed to me as if bread, baked under ashes from rolled barley, descended into the camp of Midian. And whenever it arrived at a tent, it struck it, and overturned it, and utterly leveled it to the ground.”
{7:14} He to whom he spoke, responded: “This is nothing else but the sword of Gideon, the son of Joash, a man of Israel. For the Lord has delivered Midian into his hands, with their entire camp.”
{7:15} And when Gideon had heard the dream and its interpretation, he worshipped. And he returned to the camp of Israel, and he said: “Rise up! For the Lord has delivered the camp of Midian into our hands.”
{7:16} And he divided the three hundred men into three parts. And he gave trumpets, and empty pitchers, and lamps for the middle of the pitchers, into their hands.
{7:17} And he said to them: “What you will see me do, do the same. I will enter a portion of the camp, and what I do, you shall follow.
{7:18} When the trumpet in my hand blares out, you also shall sound the trumpets, on every side of the camp, and shout together to the Lord and to Gideon.”
{7:19} And Gideon, and the three hundred men who were with him, entered a portion of the camp, at the beginning of the watch in the middle of the night. And when the guards were alerted, they began to sound the trumpets and to clap the pitchers against one another.
{7:20} And when they had sounded their trumpets in three places around the camp, and had broken their water pitchers, they held the lamps in their left hands, and sounded the trumpets in their right hands. And they cried out, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!”
{7:21} And each one was standing in his place throughout the camp of the enemies. And so the entire camp was in confusion; and they fled away, wailing and crying out.
{7:22} And the three hundred men nevertheless continued sounding the trumpets. And the Lord sent the sword into the entire camp, and they maimed and cut down one another,
{7:23} fleeing as far as Bethshittah, and the base of Abelmeholah in Tabbath. But the men of Israel pursued Midian, shouting from Naphtali and Asher, and from all of Manasseh.
{7:24} And Gideon sent messengers throughout all of Mount Ephraim, saying, “Descend to meet Midian, and occupy the waters ahead of them as far as Bethbarah and the Jordan.” And all of Ephraim cried out, and they occupied the waters ahead of them, from the Jordan even to Bethbarah.
{7:25} And having apprehended two men of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb, they put Oreb to death at the Rock of Oreb, and truly, Zeeb, at the Winepress of Zeeb. And they pursued Midian, carrying the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, across the waters of the Jordan.
{8:1} And the men of Ephraim said to him, “What is this, that you wanted to do, so that you would not call us when you went to fight against Midian?” And they rebuked him strongly, and came close to using violence.
{8:2} And he responded to them: “But what could I have done that would be so great as what you have done? Is not one bunch of grapes of Ephraim better than the vintages of Abiezer?
{8:3} The Lord has delivered into your hands the leaders of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb. What could I have done that would be so great as what you have done?” And when he had said this, their spirit, which was swelling up against him, was quieted.
{8:4} And when Gideon had arrived at the Jordan, he crossed over it with the three hundred men who were with him. And they were so weary that they were unable to pursue those who were fleeing.
{8:5} And he said to the men of Succoth, “I beg you, give bread to the people who are with me, for they are greatly weakened, so that we may be able to pursue Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.”
{8:6} The leaders of Succoth answered, “Perhaps the palms of the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna are in your hand, and for this reason, you request that we give bread to your army.”
{8:7} And he said to them, “So then, when the Lord will have delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into my hands, I will thresh your flesh with the thorns and briers of the desert.”
{8:8} And going up from there, he arrived at Penuel. And he spoke to the men of that place similarly. And they also answered him, just as the men of Succoth had answered.
{8:9} And so he said to them also, “When I will have returned as a victor in peace, I will destroy this tower.”
{8:10} Now Zebah and Zalmunna were resting with their entire army. For fifteen thousand men were left out of all the troops of the eastern people. And one hundred twenty thousand warriors that drew the sword had been cut down.
{8:11} And Gideon ascended by the way of those who were dwelling in tents, to the eastern part of Nobah and Jogbehah. And he struck the camp of the enemies, who were confident and were suspecting nothing adverse.
{8:12} And Zebah and Zalmunna fled. And Gideon pursued and overtook them, sending their entire army into confusion.
{8:13} And returning from the war before sunrise,
{8:14} he took a boy from among the men of Succoth. And he asked him the names of the leaders and elders of Succoth. And he described seventy-seven men.
{8:15} And he went to Succoth, and he said to them: “Behold Zebah and Zalmunna, over whom you rebuked me, saying: ‘Perhaps the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna are in your hands, and for this reason, you request that we give bread to men who are languishing and weakened.’ ”
{8:16} Therefore, he took the elders of the city, and, using the thorns and briers of the desert, he threshed them with these, and he cut the men of Succoth to pieces.
{8:17} He also overturned the tower of Penuel, and he killed the men of the city.
{8:18} And he said to Zebah and Zalmunna, “What kind of men were those whom you killed at Tabor?” They responded, “They were like you, and one of them was like the son of a king.”
{8:19} He answered them: “They were my brothers, the sons of my mother. As the Lord lives, if you had preserved them, I would not kill you.”
{8:20} And he said to Jether, his firstborn son, “Rise up, and put them to death.” But he did not draw his sword. For he was afraid, being still a boy.
{8:21} And Zebah and Zalmunna said: “You should rise up and rush against us. For the strength of a man is in accord with his age.” Gideon rose up, and he killed Zebah and Zalmunna. And he took the ornaments and studs, with which the necks of the royal camels are usually adorned.
{8:22} And all the men of Israel said to Gideon: “You should rule over us, and your son, and your son’s son. For you freed us from the hand of Midian.”
{8:23} And he said to them: “I will not rule over you. Neither shall my son rule over you. Instead, the Lord shall rule over you.”
{8:24} And he said to them: “I petition one request from you. Give me the earrings from your spoils.” For the Ishmaelites were accustomed to wear gold earrings.
{8:25} They responded, “We are very willing to give them.” And spreading a cloak on the ground, they cast upon it the earrings from the spoils.
{8:26} And the weight of the earrings that he requested was one thousand seven hundred shekels of gold, aside from the ornaments, and necklaces, and purple garments, which the kings of Midian were accustomed to use, and aside from the gold chains on the camels.
{8:27} And Gideon made an ephod from these, and he kept it in his city, Ophrah. And all of Israel committed fornication with it, and it became a ruin to Gideon and to all his house.
{8:28} But Midian was humbled before the sons of Israel. Neither were they able any longer to lift up their necks. But the land rested for forty years, while Gideon presided.
{8:29} And so Jerubbaal, the son of Joash, went and lived in his own house.
{8:30} And he had seventy sons, who went forth from his own thigh. For he had many wives.
{8:31} But his concubine, whom he had in Shechem, bore him a son named Abimelech.
{8:32} And Gideon, the son of Joash, died in a good old age, and he was buried in the sepulcher of his father, at Ophrah, of the family of Ezri.
{8:33} But after Gideon died, the sons of Israel turned away, and they committed fornication with the Baals. And they struck a covenant with Baal, so that he would be their god.
{8:34} And they did not remember the Lord their God, who rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on all sides.
{8:35} Neither did they show mercy to the house of Jerubbaal Gideon, in accord with all the good that he had done for Israel.
{9:1} Now Abimelech, the son of Jerubbaal, went to Shechem, to his maternal brothers, and he spoke to them, and to all the relatives of the house of his maternal grandfather, saying:
{9:2} “Speak to all the men of Shechem: Which is better for you: that seventy men, all the sons of Jerubbaal, should rule over you, or that one man should rule over you? And consider also that I am your bone and your flesh.”
{9:3} And his maternal brothers spoke about him to all the men of Shechem, all these words, and they inclined their hearts after Abimelech, saying, “He is our brother.”
{9:4} And they gave to him the weight of seventy silver coins from the shrine of Baal-berith. With this, he hired for himself indigent and wandering men, and they followed him.
{9:5} And he went to his father’s house in Ophrah, and he killed his brothers, the sons of Jerubbaal, seventy men, upon one stone. And there remained only Joatham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, and he was in hiding.
{9:6} Then all the men of Shechem gathered together, and all the families of the city of Millo, and they went and appointed Abimelech as king, beside the oak that stood at Shechem.
{9:7} When this had been reported to Jotham, he went and stood at the top of Mount Gerizim. And lifting up his voice, he cried out and said: “Listen to me, men of Shechem, so that God may listen to you.
{9:8} The trees went to anoint a king over themselves. And they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’
{9:9} And it responded, ‘How could I abandon my fatness, which both gods and men make use of, and depart to be promoted among the trees?’
{9:10} And the trees said to the fig tree, ‘Come and accept royal power over us.’
{9:11} And it responded to them, ‘How could I abandon my sweetness, and my very sweet fruits, and depart to be promoted among the other trees?’
{9:12} And the trees said to the vine, ‘Come and reign over us.’
{9:13} And it responded to them, ‘How could I abandon my wine, which gives joy to God and men, and be promoted among the other trees?’
{9:14} And all the trees said to the bramble, ‘Come and reign over us.’
{9:15} And it responded to them: ‘If truly you would appoint me as king, come and rest under my shadow. But if you are not willing, let fire go forth from the bramble, and let it devour the cedars of Lebanon.’ ”
{9:16} So now, if you are upright and without sin in appointing Abimelech as a king over you, and if you have acted well with Jerubbaal, and with his house, and if you have repaid, in turn, the benefits of him who fought on your behalf,
{9:17} and who gave his life to dangers, so that he might rescue you from the hand of Midian,
{9:18} though you now have risen up against my father’s house, and have killed his sons, seventy men, upon one stone, and have appointed Abimelech, the son of his handmaid, as a king over the inhabitants of Shechem, since he is your brother,
{9:19} if therefore you are upright and have acted without fault with Jerubbaal and his house, then you should rejoice on this day in Abimelech, and he should rejoice in you.
{9:20} But if you have acted perversely, may fire go forth from him and consume the inhabitants of Shechem and the town of Millo. And may fire go forth from the men of Shechem and from the town of Millo, and devour Abimelech.”
{9:21} And when he had said these things, he fled and went away to Beer. And he lived in that place, out of fear of Abimelech, his brother.
{9:22} And so Abimelech reigned over Israel for three years.
{9:23} And the Lord put a very grievous spirit between Abimelech and the inhabitants of Shechem, who began to detest him,
{9:24} and to place blame for the crime of the killing of the seventy sons of Jerubbaal, and for the shedding of their blood, upon Abimelech, their brother, and upon the rest of the leaders of the Shechemites, who assisted him.
{9:25} And they stationed an ambush against him at the summit of the mountains. And while they were waiting for his arrival, they committed robberies, taking spoils from those passing by. And this was reported to Abimelech.
{9:26} Now Gaal, the son of Ebed, went with his brothers, and crossed over to Shechem. And the inhabitants of Shechem, uplifted by his arrival,
{9:27} departed into the fields, laying waste to the vineyards, and trampling the grapes. And while singing and dancing, they entered into the shrine of their god. And while feasting and drinking, they cursed Abimelech.
{9:28} And Gaal, the son of Ebed, cried out: “Who is Abimelech, and what is Shechem, that we should serve him? Is he not the son of Jerubbaal, who has appointed Zebul, his servant, as ruler over the men of Hamor, the father of Shechem? Why then should we serve him?
{9:29} I wish that someone would set this people under my hand, so that I might take away Abimelech from their midst.” And it was told to Abimelech, “Gather the multitude of an army, and approach.”
{9:30} For Zebul, the ruler of the city, upon hearing the words of Gaal, the son of Ebed, became very angry.
{9:31} And he sent messengers secretly to Abimelech, saying: “Behold, Gaal, the son of Ebed, has arrived at Shechem with his brothers, and he has set the city against you.
{9:32} And so, rise up in the night, with the people who are with you, and lie hidden in the field.
{9:33} And at first light in the morning, as the sun is rising, rush upon the city. And when he goes out against you, with his people, do to him what you are able to do.”
{9:34} And so Abimelech rose up, with all his army, by night, and he set ambushes near Shechem in four places.
{9:35} And Gaal, the son of Ebed, went out, and he stood at the entrance to the gate of the city. Then Abimelech rose up, and all the army with him, from the places of the ambushes.
{9:36} And when Gaal had seen the people, he said to Zebul, “Behold, a multitude is descending from the mountains.” And he responded to him, “You are seeing the shadows of the mountains, as if they were the heads of men, and so you are being deceived by this error.”
{9:37} Again, Gaal said, “Behold, a people is descending from the middle of the land, and one company is arriving by the way that looks towards the oak.”
{9:38} And Zebul said to him: “Where is your mouth now, with which you said, ‘Who is Abimelech that we should serve him?’ Is this not the people that you were despising? Go out and fight against him.”
{9:39} Therefore, Gaal went out, with the people of Shechem watching, and he fought against Abimelech,
{9:40} who pursued him, fleeing, and drove him into the city. And many were cut down on his side, even to the gate of the city.
{9:41} And Abimelech made camp at Arumah. But Zebul expelled Gaal and his companions from the city, and he would not permit them to remain in it.
{9:42} Therefore, on the following day, the people departed into the field. And when this had been reported to Abimelech,
{9:43} he took his army, and divided it into three companies, and he placed ambushes in the fields. And seeing that the people had departed from the city, he rose up and rushed upon them,
{9:44} along with his own company, assaulting and besieging the city. But the two other companies pursued the enemies scattered in the field.
{9:45} Now Abimelech assaulted the city all that day. And he seized it, and he killed its inhabitants, and he destroyed it, so much so that he scattered salt in it.
{9:46} And when those living in the tower of Shechem had heard about this, they entered the temple of their god, Berith, where they had formed a covenant with him. And it was because of this, that the place had taken its name. And it was greatly fortified.
{9:47} Abimelech, also hearing that the men of the tower of Shechem had joined together,
{9:48} ascended to mount Zalmon, with all his people. And taking an axe, he cut down the branch of a tree. And laying it on his shoulder, and carrying it, he said to his companions, “What you see me do, you must do quickly.”
{9:49} And so, eagerly cutting down branches from the trees, they followed their leader. And surrounding the fortified place, they set it on fire. And so it happened that, by smoke and fire, one thousand persons died, men and women together, the occupants of the tower of Shechem.
{9:50} Then Abimelech, setting out from there, arrived at the town of Thebez, which he surrounded and besieged with his army.
{9:51} Now there was, in the midst of the city, a high tower, to which men and women were fleeing together, with all the leaders of the city. And, having very strongly sealed the gate, they were standing on the roof of the tower to defend themselves.
{9:52} And Abimelech, drawing near the tower, fought valiantly. And approaching the gate, he strove to set it on fire.
{9:53} And behold, one woman, throwing a fragment of a millstone from above, struck the head of Abimelech, and broke his skull.
{9:54} And he quickly called to his armor bearer, and said to him, “Draw your sword and strike me, otherwise it may be said that I was slain by a woman.” And, doing as he was ordered, he killed him.
{9:55} And when he was dead, all those of Israel who were with him returned to their homes.
{9:56} And so did God repay the evil that Abimelech had done against his father by killing his seventy brothers.
{9:57} The Shechemites also were given retribution for what they had done, and the curse of Jotham, the son of Jerubbaal, fell upon them.
{10:1} After Abimelech, a leader rose up in Israel, Tola, the son of Puah, the paternal uncle of Abimelech, a man of Issachar, who lived in Shamir on mount Ephraim.
{10:2} And he judged Israel for twenty-three years, and he died and was buried at Shamir.
{10:3} After him succeeded Jair, a Gileadite, who judged Israel for twenty-two years,
{10:4} having thirty sons sitting upon thirty young donkeys, and who were leaders of thirty cities, which from his name were called Havvoth Jair, that is, the towns of Jair, even to the present day, in the land of Gilead.
{10:5} And Jair died, and he was buried in the place which is called Kamon.
{10:6} But the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, joining new sins to old, and they served idols, the Baals and Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria and Sidon, and of Moab and the sons of Ammon, and the Philistines. And they abandoned the Lord, and they did not worship him.
{10:7} And the Lord, becoming angry against them, delivered them into the hands of the Philistines and the sons of Ammon.
{10:8} And they were afflicted and vehemently oppressed for eighteen years, all who were living beyond the Jordan in the land of the Amorite, which is in Gilead,
{10:9} to such a great extent that the sons of Ammon, crossing over the Jordan, laid waste to Judah and Benjamin and Ephraim. And Israel was exceedingly afflicted.
{10:10} And crying out to the Lord, they said: “We have sinned against you. For we have forsaken the Lord our God, and we have served the Baals.”
{10:11} And the Lord said to them: “Did not the Egyptians, and the Amorites, and the sons of Ammon, and the Philistines,
{10:12} and also the Sidonians, and Amalek, and Canaan, oppress you, and so you cried out to me, and I rescued you from their hand?
{10:13} And yet you have forsaken me, and you have worshipped foreign gods. For this reason, I will not continue to free you any more.
{10:14} Go, and call upon the gods whom you have chosen. Let them free you in the time of anguish.”
{10:15} And the sons of Israel said to the Lord: “We have sinned. You may repay us in whatever way pleases you. Yet free us now.”
{10:16} And saying these things, they cast out all the idols of the foreign gods from their regions, and they served the Lord God. And he was touched by their miseries.
{10:17} And then the sons of Ammon, shouting out together, pitched their tents in Gilead. And the sons of Israel gathered together against them, and they made camp at Mizpah.
{10:18} And the leaders of Gilead said to one another, “Whoever among us will be the first to begin to contend against the sons of Ammon, he shall be the leader of the people of Gilead.”
{11:1} At that time, there was a Gileadite, Jephthah, a very strong man and a fighter, the son of a kept woman, and he was born of Gilead.
{11:2} Now Gilead had a wife, from whom he received sons. And they, after growing up, cast out Jephthah, saying, “You cannot inherit in the house of our father, because you were born of another mother.”
{11:3} And so, fleeing and avoiding them, he lived in the land of Tob. And men who were indigent and robbers joined with him, and they followed him as their leader.
{11:4} In those days, the sons of Ammon fought against Israel.
{11:5} And being steadfastly attacked, the elders of Gilead traveled so that they might obtain for their assistance Jephthah, from the land of Tob.
{11:6} And they said to him, “Come and be our leader, and fight against the sons of Ammon.”
{11:7} But he answered them: “Are you not the ones who hated me, and who cast me out of my father’s house? And yet now you come to me, compelled by necessity?”
{11:8} And the leaders of Gilead said to Jephthah, “But it is due to this necessity that we have approached you now, so that you may set out with us, and fight against the sons of Ammon, and be commander over all who live in Gilead.”
{11:9} Jephthah also said to them: “If you have come to me so that I may fight for you against the sons of Ammon, and if the Lord will deliver them into my hands, will I truly be your leader?”
{11:10} They answered him, “The Lord who hears these things is himself the Mediator and the Witness that we shall do what we have promised.”
{11:11} And so Jephthah went with the leaders of Gilead, and all the people made him their leader. And Jephthah spoke all his words, in the sight of the Lord, at Mizpah.
{11:12} And he sent messengers to the king of the sons of Ammon, who said on his behalf, “What is there between you and me, that you would approach against me, so that you might lay waste to my land?”
{11:13} And he responded to them, “It is because Israel took my land, when he ascended from Egypt, from the parts of Arnon, as far as the Jabbok and the Jordan. Now therefore, restore these to me with peace.”
{11:14} And Jephthah again commissioned them, and he ordered them to say to the king of Ammon:
{11:15} “Jephthah says this: Israel did not take the land of Moab, nor the land of the sons of Ammon.
{11:16} But when they ascended together from Egypt, he walked through the desert as far as the Red Sea, and he went into Kadesh.
{11:17} And he sent messengers to the king of Edom, saying, ‘Permit me to pass through your land.’ But he was not willing to agree to his petition. Likewise, he sent to the king of Moab, who also refused to offer him passage. And so he delayed in Kadesh,
{11:18} and he circled around the side of the land of Edom and the land of Moab. And he arrived opposite the eastern region of the land of Moab. And he made camp across the Arnon. But he was not willing to enter the borders of Moab. (Of course, Arnon is the border of the land of Moab.)
{11:19} And so Israel sent messengers to Sihon, the king of the Amorites, who was living at Heshbon. And they said to him, “Permit me to cross through your land as far as the river.”
{11:20} But he, too, despising the words of Israel, would not permit him to cross through his borders. Instead, gathering an innumerable multitude, he went out against him at Jahaz, and he resisted strongly.
{11:21} But the Lord delivered him, with his entire army, into the hands of Israel. And he struck him down, and he possessed all the land of the Amorite, the inhabitant of that region,
{11:22} with all its parts, from the Arnon as far as the Jabbok, and from the wilderness even to the Jordan.
{11:23} Therefore, it was the Lord, the God of Israel, who overthrew the Amorites, by means of his people Israel fighting against them. And now you wish to possess his land?
{11:24} Are not the things that your god Chemosh possesses owed to you by right? And so, what the Lord our God has obtained by victory falls to us as a possession.
{11:25} Or are you, perhaps, better than Balak, the son of Zippor, the king of Moab? Or are you able to explain what his argument was against Israel, and why he fought against him?
{11:26} And though he has lived in Heshbon, and its villages, and in Aroer, and its villages, and in all the cities near the Jordan for three hundred years, why have you, for such long a time, put forward nothing about this claim?
{11:27} Therefore, I am not sinning against you, but you are doing evil against me, by declaring an unjust war against me. May the Lord be the Judge and the Arbiter this day, between Israel and the sons of Ammon.”
{11:28} But the king of the sons of Ammon was not willing to agree to the words of Jephthah that he commissioned by the messengers.
{11:29} Therefore, the Spirit of the Lord rested upon Jephthah, and circling around Gilead, and Manasseh, and also Mizpah of Gilead, and crossing from there to the sons of Ammon,
{11:30} he made a vow to the Lord, saying, “If you will deliver the sons of Ammon into my hands,
{11:31} whoever will be the first to depart from the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the sons of Ammon, the same will I offer as a holocaust to the Lord.”
{11:32} And Jephthah crossed to the sons of Ammon, so that he might fight against them. And the Lord delivered them into his hands.
{11:33} And he struck them down from Aroer, as far as the entrance to Minnith, twenty cities, and as far as Abel, which is covered with vineyards, in an exceedingly great slaughter. And the sons of Ammon were humbled by the sons of Israel.
{11:34} But when Jephthah returned to Mizpah, to his own house, his only daughter met him with timbrels and dances. For he had no other children.
{11:35} And upon seeing her, he tore his garments, and he said: “Alas, my daughter! You have cheated me, and you yourself have been cheated. For I opened my mouth to the Lord, and I can do nothing else.”
{11:36} And she answered him, “My father, if you have opened your mouth to the Lord, do to me whatever you have promised, since victory has been granted to you, as well as vengeance against your enemies.”
{11:37} And she said to her father: “Grant to me this one thing, which I request. Permit me, that I may wander the hillsides for two months, and that I may mourn my virginity with my companions.”
{11:38} And he answered her, “Go.” And he released her for two months. And when she had departed with her friends and companions, she wept over her virginity in the hillsides.
{11:39} And when the two months expired, she returned to her father, and he did to her just as he had vowed, though she knew no man. From this, the custom grew up in Israel, and the practice has been preserved,
{11:40} such that, after each year passes, the daughters of Israel convene as one, and they lament the daughter of Jephthah, the Gileadite, for four days.
{12:1} And behold, a sedition rose up in Ephraim. Then, while passing by toward the north, they said to Jephthah: “When you were going to fight against the sons of Ammon, why were you unwilling to summon us, so that we might go with you? Therefore, we will burn down your house.”
{12:2} And he answered them: “I and my people were in a great conflict against the sons of Ammon. And I called you, so that you might offer assistance to me. And you were not willing to do so.
{12:3} And discerning this, I put my life in my own hands, and I crossed to the sons of Ammon, and the Lord delivered them into my hands. What am I guilty of, that you would rise up in battle against me?”
{12:4} And so, calling to himself all the men of Gilead, he fought against Ephraim. And the men of Gilead struck down Ephraim, because he had said, “Gilead is a fugitive from Ephraim, and he lives in the midst of Ephraim and Manasseh.”
{12:5} And the Gileadites occupied the fords of the Jordan, along which Ephraim was to return. And when anyone from the number of Ephraim had arrived, fleeing, and had said, “I beg that you permit me to pass,” the Gileadites would say to him, “Could you be an Ephraimite?” And if he said, “I am not,”
{12:6} they would ask him, then say ‘Shibboleth,’ which is translated as ‘ear of grain.’ But he would answer ‘Sibboleth,’ not being able to express the word for an ear of grain in the same letters. And immediately apprehending him, they would cut his throat, at the same crossing point of the Jordan. And in that time of Ephraim, forty-two thousand fell.
{12:7} And so Jephthah, the Gileadite, judged Israel for six years. And he died, and he was buried in his city in Gilead.
{12:8} After him, Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel.
{12:9} He had thirty sons, and the same number of daughters, whom he sent away to be given to husbands. And he accepted wives for his sons of the same number, bringing them into his house. And he judged Israel for seven years.
{12:10} And he died, and he was buried in Bethlehem.
{12:11} After him succeeded Elon, a Zebulunite. And he judged Israel for ten years.
{12:12} And he died, and he was buried in Zebulun.
{12:13} After him, Abdon, the son of Hillel, a Pirathonite, judged Israel.
{12:14} And he had forty sons, and from them thirty grandsons, all riding upon seventy young donkeys. And he judged Israel for eight years.
{12:15} And he died, and he was buried at Pirathon, in the land of Ephraim, on the mountain of Amalek.
{13:1} And again, the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord. And he delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years.
{13:2} Now there was a certain man from Zorah, and of the stock of Dan, whose name was Manoah, having a barren wife.
{13:3} And an Angel of the Lord appeared to her, and he said: “You are barren and without children. But you shall conceive and bear a son.
{13:4} Therefore, take care that you do not drink wine or strong drink. Neither shall you eat anything unclean.
{13:5} For you shall conceive and bear a son, whose head no razor shall touch. For he shall be a Nazirite of God, from his infancy and from his mother’s womb. And he shall begin to free Israel from the hand of the Philistines.”
{13:6} And when she had gone to her husband, she said to him: “A man of God came to me, having the countenance of an Angel, exceedingly terrible. And when I had inquired of him, who he was, and where he was from, and what name he was called, he was not willing to tell me.
{13:7} But he responded: ‘Behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. Take care that you do not drink wine or strong drink. And you shall not consume anything unclean. For the boy shall be a Nazirite of God from his infancy, from his mother’s womb, even until the day of his death.’ ”
{13:8} And so Manoah prayed to the Lord, and he said, “I beg you Lord, that the man of God, whom you sent, may come again, and may teach us what we ought to do about the boy who is to be born.”
{13:9} And the Lord heeded the prayer of Manoah, and the Angel of the Lord appeared again to his wife, sitting in a field. But her husband Manoah was not with her. And when she had seen the Angel,
{13:10} she hurried and ran to her husband. And she reported to him, saying, “Behold, the man appeared to me, whom I had seen before.”
{13:11} And he rose up and followed his wife. And going to the man, he said to him, “Are you the one who spoke to my wife?” And he responded, “I am.”
{13:12} And Manoah said to him: “When will your word be fulfilled. What do you want the boy to do? Or from what should he keep himself?”
{13:13} And the Angel of the Lord said to Manoah: “Concerning all the things about which I have spoken to your wife, she herself should abstain.
{13:14} And let her eat nothing from the vine. She may not drink wine or strong drink. She may consume nothing unclean. And let her observe and keep what I have instructed to her.”
{13:15} And Manoah said to the Angel of the Lord, “I beg you to agree to my petition, and to let us prepare a kid from the goats.”
{13:16} And the Angel answered him: “Even if you compel me, I will not eat from your bread. But if you are willing to offer a holocaust, offer it to the Lord.” And Manoah did not know that he was an Angel of the Lord.
{13:17} And he said to him, “What is your name, so that, if your word is fulfilled, we may honor you?”
{13:18} And he answered him, “Why do you ask my name, which is a wonder?”
{13:19} And so, Manoah took a kid from the goats, and libations, and he placed them upon a rock, as an offering to the Lord, who accomplishes wonders. Then he and his wife watched.
{13:20} And when the flame of the altar ascended to heaven, the Angel of the Lord ascended in the flame. And when Manoah and his wife had seen this, they fell prone on the ground.
{13:21} And the Angel of the Lord no longer appeared to them. And immediately, Manoah understood him to be an Angel of the Lord.
{13:22} And he said to his wife, “We shall certainly die, since we have seen God.”
{13:23} And his wife answered him, “If the Lord wished to kill us, he would not have accepted the holocaust and the libations from our hands. He would not have revealed all these things to us, nor would he have told us the things that are in the future.”
{13:24} And so she bore a son, and she called his name Samson. And the boy grew up, and the Lord blessed him.
{13:25} And the Spirit of the Lord began to be with him in the camp of Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
{14:1} Then Samson descended to Timnah. And seeing there a woman from the daughters of the Philistines,
{14:2} he went up, and he told his father and his mother, saying: “I saw a woman in Timnah from the daughters of the Philistines. I ask that you take her to me as wife.”
{14:3} And his father and mother said to him, “Is there not a woman among the daughters of your brothers, or among all my people, so that you would be willing to take a wife from the Philistines, who are uncircumcised?” And Samson said to his father: “Take this woman to me. For she has pleased my eyes.”
{14:4} Now his parents did not know that the matter was done by the Lord, and that he sought an occasion against the Philistines. For at that time, the Philistines had dominion over Israel.
{14:5} And so, Samson descended with his father and mother to Timnah. And when they had arrived at the vineyards of the town, he saw a young lion, savage and roaring, and it met him.
{14:6} Then the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon Samson, and he tore apart the lion, like a young goat being torn into pieces, having nothing at all in his hand. And he was not willing to reveal this to his father and mother.
{14:7} And he went down and spoke to the woman who had pleased his eyes.
{14:8} And after some days, returning to marry her, he turned aside so that he might see the carcass of the lion. And behold, there was a swarm of bees in the mouth of the lion, with a honeycomb.
{14:9} And when he had taken it in his hands, he ate it along the way. And arriving to his father and mother, he gave them a portion, and they also ate it. Yet he was not willing to reveal to them that he had taken the honey from the body of the lion.
{14:10} And so his father went down to the woman, and he made a feast for his son Samson. For so the young men were accustomed to do.
{14:11} And when the citizens of that place had seen him, they presented to him thirty companions to be with him.
{14:12} And Samson said to them: “I will propose to you a problem, which, if you can solve it for me within the seven days of the feast, I will give you thirty shirts and the same number of tunics.
{14:13} But if you are not able to solve it, you shall give me thirty shirts and the same number of tunics.” And they answered him, “Propose the problem, so that we may hear it.”
{14:14} And he said to them, “Food went forth from that which eats, and sweetness went forth from that which is strong.” And they were unable to solve the proposition for three days.
{14:15} And when the seventh day had arrived, they said to the wife of Samson: “Coax your husband, and persuade him to reveal to you what the proposition means. But if you are not willing to do so, we will burn you and your father’s house. Or have you called us to the wedding in order to despoil us?”
{14:16} And she shed tears before Samson, and she complained, saying: “You hate me, and you do not love me. That is why you do not want to explain to me the problem, which you have proposed to the sons of my people.” But he responded: “I was not willing to reveal it to my father and mother. And so, how can I reveal it to you?”
{14:17} Therefore, she wept before him during the seven days of the feast. And at length, on the seventh day, since she had been troubling him, he explained it. And immediately she revealed it to her countrymen.
{14:18} And they, on the seventh day, before the sun declined, said to him: “What is sweeter than honey? And what is stronger than a lion?” And he said to them, “If you had not plowed with my heifer, you would not have uncovered my proposition.”
{14:19} And so the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him, and he descended to Ashkelon, and in that place he struck down thirty men. And taking away their garments, he gave them to those who had solved the problem. And being exceedingly angry, he went up to his father’s house.
{14:20} Then his wife took as a husband one of his friends and wedding companions.
{15:1} Then, after some time, when the days of the wheat harvest were near, Samson arrived, intending to visit his wife, and he brought her a kid from the goats. And when he wanted to enter her bedroom, as usual, her father prohibited him, saying:
{15:2} “I thought that you would hate her, and therefore I gave her to your friend. But she has a sister, who is younger and more beautiful than she is. And she may be a wife for you, instead of her.”
{15:3} And Samson answered him: “From this day, there shall be no guilt for me against the Philistines. For I will do harm to you all.”
{15:4} And he went out and caught three hundred foxes. And he joined them tail to tail. And he tied torches between the tails.
{15:5} And setting these on fire, he released them, so that they might rush from place to place. And immediately they went into the grain fields of the Philistines, setting these on fire, both the grain that was already bound for carrying, and what was still standing on the stalk. These were completely burned up, so much so that the flame also consumed even the vineyards and the olive groves.
{15:6} And the Philistines said, “Who has done this thing?” And it was said: “Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he took away his wife, and gave her to another. He has done these things.” And the Philistines went up and burned the woman as well as her father.
{15:7} And Samson said to them, “Even though you have done this, I will still fulfill vengeance against you, and then I will be quieted.”
{15:8} And he struck them with a tremendous slaughter, so much so that, out of astonishment, they laid the calf of the leg upon the thigh. And descending, he lived in a cave of the rock at Etam.
{15:9} And so the Philistines, ascending into the land of Judah, made camp at the place which was later called Lehi, that is, the Jawbone, where their army spread out.
{15:10} And some from the tribe of Judah said to them, “Why have you ascended against us?” And they responded, “We have come to bind Samson, and to repay him for what he has done to us.”
{15:11} Then three thousand men of Judah descended to the cave of the rock at Etam. And they said to Samson: “Do you not know that the Philistines rule over us? Why would you want to do this?” And he said to them, “As they have done to me, so I have done to them.”
{15:12} And they said to him, “We have come to bind you, and to deliver you into the hands of the Philistines.” And Samson said to them, “Swear and promise to me that you will not kill me.”
{15:13} They said: “We will not kill you. But we will deliver you tied.” And they bound him with two new cords. And they took him from the rock at Etam.
{15:14} And when he had arrived at the place of the Jawbone, and the Philistines, shouting aloud, had met him, the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him. And just as flax is usually consumed by a hint of fire, so were the ties with which he was bound broken and released.
{15:15} And finding a jawbone which was laying there, that is, the jawbone of a donkey, snatching it up, he put to death a thousand men with it.
{15:16} And he said, “With the jawbone of a donkey, with the jaw of the colt of a donkey, I have destroyed them, and I have struck down a thousand men.”
{15:17} And when he had completed these words, singing, he threw the jawbone from his hand. And called the name of that place Ramath-Lehi, which is translated as ‘the elevation of the jawbone.’
{15:18} And being very thirsty, he cried out to the Lord, and he said: “You have given, to the hand of your servant, this very great salvation and victory. But see that I am dying of thirst, and so I will fall into the hands of the uncircumcised.”
{15:19} And so the Lord opened a large tooth in the jawbone of the donkey, and water went out from it. And having drank it, his spirit was revived, and he recovered his strength. For this reason, the name of that place was called ‘the Spring called forth from the jawbone,’ even to the present day.
{15:20} And he judged Israel, in the days of the Philistines, for twenty years.
{16:1} He also went into Gaza. And there he saw a harlot woman, and he entered to her.
{16:2} And when the Philistines had heard of this, and it had become well known among them, that Samson had entered the city, they surrounded him, placing guards at the gate of the city. And there they were keeping watch all night in silence, so that, in the morning, they might kill him as he was going out.
{16:3} But Samson slept until the middle of the night, and rising up from there, he took both doors from the gate, with their posts and bars. And laying them upon his shoulders, he carried them to the top of the hill that looks toward Hebron.
{16:4} After these things, he loved a woman who was living in the valley of Sorek. And she was called Delilah.
{16:5} And the leaders of the Philistines went to her, and they said: “Deceive him, and learn from him wherein lies his great strength, and how we may be able to overcome him and to impose restraints on him. And if you will do this, each one of us will give you one thousand one hundred silver coins.”
{16:6} Therefore, Delilah said to Samson, “Tell me, I beg you, wherein lies your very great strength, and with what might you be bound, so that you could not break free?”
{16:7} And Samson answered her, “If I will be bound with seven cords, made of sinews not yet dry, but still damp, I will be weak like other men.”
{16:8} And the princes of the Philistines brought to her seven cords, such as he had described. And she bound him with these.
{16:9} And so, those hiding in ambush with her, in the bedroom, were expecting the end of the matter. And she cried out to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he broke the cords, as one would break a thread of flax, twisted for cutting and singed by fire. And so it was not known wherein lay his strength.
{16:10} And Delilah said to him: “Behold, you have mocked me, and you have spoken a falsehood. But at least now, tell me with what you may be bound.”
{16:11} And he answered her, “If I will be bound with new cords, which have never been used, I will be weak and like other men.”
{16:12} Again, Delilah tied him with these, and she cried out, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” For an ambush had been prepared in the bedroom. But he broke the bindings like the filaments of a web.
{16:13} And Delilah spoke to him again: “How long will you deceive me and tell me falsehoods? Reveal with what you ought to be bound.” And Samson responded to her, “If you weave the seven locks of my head with a loom, and if you tie these around a spike and fix it to the ground, I will be weak.”
{16:14} And when Delilah had done this, she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson.” And arising from sleep, he withdrew the spike with the hairs and the weaving.
{16:15} And Delilah said to him: “How can you say that you love me, when your soul is not with me? You have lied to me on three occasions, and you are not willing to reveal wherein lies your very great strength.”
{16:16} And when she had been very troublesome to him, and over many days had continually stayed nearby, giving him no time to rest, his soul was faint, and he was weary, even unto death.
{16:17} Then disclosing the truth of the matter, he said to her: “Iron has never been drawn across my head, for I am a Nazirite, that is, I have been consecrated to God from my mother’s womb. If my head will be shaven, my strength will depart from me, and I will be faint and will be like other men.”
{16:18} Then, seeing that he had confessed to her his whole soul, she sent to the leaders of the Philistines and ordered: “Come up just once more. For now he has opened his heart to me.” And they went up, taking with them the money that they had promised.
{16:19} But she made him sleep upon her knees, and recline his head upon her bosom. And she called a barber, and he shaved his seven locks of hair. And she began to push him away, and to repel him from herself. For immediately his strength departed from him.
{16:20} And she said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And awaking from sleep, he said in his mind, “I will break away and shake myself free, just as I did before.” For he did not know that the Lord had withdrawn from him.
{16:21} And when the Philistines had seized him, they immediately plucked out his eyes. And they led him, bound in chains, to Gaza. And enclosing him in a prison, they made him work a millstone.
{16:22} And now his hair began to grow back.
{16:23} And the leaders of the Philistines convened as one, so that they might offer great sacrifices to Dagon, their god. And they feasted, saying, “Our god has delivered our enemy, Samson, into our hands.”
{16:24} Then, too, the people, seeing this, praised their god, and they said the same, “Our god has delivered our adversary into our hands: the one who destroyed our land and who killed very many.”
{16:25} And rejoicing in their celebration, having now taken food, they instructed that Samson be called, and that he be mocked before them. And having been brought from prison, he was mocked before them. And they caused him to stand between two pillars.
{16:26} And he said to the boy who was guiding his steps, “Permit me to touch the pillars, which support the entire house, and to lean against them, so that I may rest a little.”
{16:27} Now the house was full of men and women. And all the leaders of the Philistines were there, as well as about three thousand persons, of both sexes, on the roof and in the upper level of the house, who were watching Samson being mocked.
{16:28} Then, calling upon the Lord, he said, “O Lord God remember me, and restore to me now my former strength, O my God, so that I may avenge myself against my enemies, and so that I may receive one vengeance for the deprivation of my two eyes.”
{16:29} And taking hold of both the pillars, on which the house rested, and holding one with his right hand and the other with his left,
{16:30} he said, “May my life die with the Philistines.” And when he had shaken the pillars strongly, the house fell upon all the leaders, and the rest of the multitude who were there. And he killed many more in his death than he had killed before in his life.
{16:31} Then his brothers and all his relatives, going down, took his body, and they buried it between Zorah and Eshtaol, in the burying place of his father, Manoah. And he judged Israel for twenty years.
{17:1} In that time, there was a certain man, from mount Ephraim, named Micah.
{17:2} And he said to his mother, “The one thousand one hundred silver coins, which you had separated for yourself, and about which you had sworn in my hearing, behold, I have them, and they are with me.” And she answered him, “My son has been blessed by the Lord.”
{17:3} Therefore, he restored them to his mother. And she said to him: “I have consecrated and vowed this silver to the Lord, so that my son would receive it from my hand, and would make a molten idol and a graven image. And now I deliver it to you.”
{17:4} And when he restored these to his mother, she took two hundred of the silver coins, and she gave them to the silversmith, so that he might make from them a molten idol and a graven image. And it was in the house of Micah.
{17:5} And he also separated in it a little shrine for the god. And he made an ephod and theraphim, that is, a priestly garment and idols. And he filled the hand of one of his sons, and he became his priest.
{17:6} In those days, there was no king in Israel. Instead, each one did what seemed right to himself.
{17:7} Also, there was another young man, from Bethlehem of Judah, one of his relatives. And he himself was a Levite, and he was living there.
{17:8} Then, departing from the city of Bethlehem, he wished to sojourn wherever he would find it beneficial to himself. And when he had arrived at mount Ephraim, while making the journey, he also turned aside for a little while to the house of Micah.
{17:9} And he was asked by him where he came from. And he responded: “I am a Levite from Bethlehem of Judah. And I am traveling so that I may live where I am able, if I perceive it to be useful to me.”
{17:10} And Micah said: “Stay with me. And you shall be to me like a parent and a priest. And I will give to you, each year, ten silver coins, and a double-layered garment, and whatever provisions are necessary.”
{17:11} He agreed, and he stayed with the man. And he was to him like one of his sons.
{17:12} And Micah filled his hand, and he had the young man with him as his priest,
{17:13} saying: “Now I know that God will be good to me, since I have a priest from the stock of the Levites.”
{18:1} In those days, there was no king in Israel. And the tribe of Dan sought a possession for themselves, so that they might live in it. For even to that day, they had not received their lot among the other tribes.
{18:2} Therefore, the sons of Dan sent five very strong men, of their stock and family, from Zorah and Eshtaol, so that they might explore the land and diligently inspect it. And they said to them, “Go, and consider the land.” And after traveling, they arrived at mount Ephraim, and they entered into the house of Micah. There they rested.
{18:3} And they recognized the speech of the youth who was a Levite. And while making use of an inn with him, they said to him: “Who brought you here? What are you doing here? For what reason did you want to come here?”
{18:4} And he answered them, “Micah has offered me one thing and another, and he has paid me wages, so that I may be his priest.”
{18:5} Then they begged him to consult the Lord, so that they might be able to know whether the journey they undertook would be prosperous, and whether the matter would have success.
{18:6} And he responded to them, “Go in peace. The Lord looks with favor on your path, and on the journey that you have undertaken.”
{18:7} And so the five men, going on, arrived at Laish. And they saw the people, living in it without any fear, according to the custom of the Sidonians, secure and peaceful, having hardly anyone to oppose them, and with great wealth, and living separately, far from Sidon and from all men.
{18:8} And they returned to their brothers at Zorah and Eshtaol, who questioned them as to what they had done. And they responded:
{18:9} “Rise up. Let us ascend to them. For we have seen that the land is very wealthy and fruitful. Do not delay; do not refrain. Let us go out and possess it. There will be no difficulty.
{18:10} We shall enter to those who dwell securely, in a very wide region, and the Lord will deliver the place to us, a place in which there is no lack of anything that grows upon the earth.”
{18:11} And so, those of the kindred of Dan set out, that is, six hundred men from Zorah and Eshtaol, girded with the weapons of warfare.
{18:12} And going up, they stayed at Kiriath-jearim of Judah. And so the place, from that time, received the name the Camp of Dan, and it is behind the back of Kiriath-jearim.
{18:13} From there, they crossed over to mount Ephraim. And when they had arrived at the house of Micah,
{18:14} the five men, who before had been sent to consider the land of Laish, said to the rest of their brothers: “You know that in these houses there is an ephod and theraphim, and a molten idol and a graven image. Consider what it may please you to do.”
{18:15} And when they had turned aside a little, they entered the house of the Levite youth, who was in the house of Micah. And they greeted him with peaceful words.
{18:16} Now the six hundred men, who were all armed, were standing before the door.
{18:17} But those who had entered the house of the youth strove to take away the graven image, and the ephod, and the theraphim, and the molten idol. But the priest was standing in front of the door, with the six hundred very strong men waiting not far away.
{18:18} And so, those who had entered took away the graven image, the ephod, and the theraphim, and the molten idol. And the priest said to them, “What are you doing?”
{18:19} And they responded to him: “Be silent and place your finger over your mouth. And come with us, so that we may have you as a father as well as a priest. For which is better for you: to be a priest in the house of one man, or in one tribe and family in Israel?”
{18:20} And when he had heard this, he agreed to their words. And he took the ephod, and the idols, and the graven image, and he set out with them.
{18:21} And while traveling, they had also sent the children, and the cattle, and all that was valuable to go ahead of them.
{18:22} And when they were far from the house of Micah, the men who were living in the houses of Micah, crying out together, followed them.
{18:23} And they began to shout behind their backs. And when they had looked back, they said to Micah: “What do you want? Why are you crying out?”
{18:24} And he responded: “You have taken away my gods, which I made for myself, and the priest, and all that I have. And do you say, ‘What is it that you want?’ ”
{18:25} And the sons of Dan said to him, “Take care that you no longer speak to us, otherwise men with a mind for violence may overwhelm you, and you yourself would perish with all your house.”
{18:26} And so, they continued on the journey that they had begun. But Micah, seeing that they were stronger than he was, returned to his house.
{18:27} Now the six hundred men took the priest, and the things we stated above, and they went to Laish, to a people quiet and secure, and they struck them down with the edge of the sword. And they burned the city with fire.
{18:28} For no one at all sent reinforcements, because they lived far away from Sidon, and they had no association or business with any man. Now the city was situated in the region of Rehob. And building it up again, they lived in it,
{18:29} calling the name of the city Dan, according to the name of their father, who had been born of Israel, though before it was called Laish.
{18:30} And they established for themselves the graven image. And Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses, with his sons, were priests in the tribe of Dan, even until the day of their captivity.
{18:31} And the idol of Micah remained with them during the entire time that the house of God was in Shiloh. In those days, there was no king in Israel.
{19:1} There was a certain man, a Levite, living beside mount Ephraim, who took a wife from Bethlehem of Judah.
{19:2} She left him, and she returned to the house of her father in Bethlehem. And she stayed with him for four months.
{19:3} And her husband followed her, wishing to be reconciled with her, and to speak kindly to her, and to lead her back with him. And he had with him a servant and two donkeys. And she received him, and brought him into the house of her father. And when his father-in-law had heard about this, and had seen him, he met him with joy.
{19:4} And he embraced the man. And the son-in-law stayed in the house of his father-in-law for three days, eating and drinking with him in a friendly manner.
{19:5} But on the fourth day, arising in the night, he intended to set out. But his father-in-law took hold of him, and he said to him, “First taste a little bread, and strengthen your stomach, and then you shall set out.”
{19:6} And they sat down together, and they ate and drank. And the father of the young woman said to his son-in-law, “I ask you to remain here today, so that we may rejoice together.”
{19:7} But getting up, he intended to begin to set out. But nevertheless, his father-in-law pressed him resolutely, and made him remain with him.
{19:8} But when morning came, the Levite was preparing for his journey. And his father-in-law said to him again, “I beg you to take a little food, and to be strengthened, until the daylight increases, and after that, you shall set out.” Therefore, they ate together.
{19:9} And the young man got up, so that he might travel with his wife and servant. And his father-in-law spoke to him again: “Consider that the daylight is declining, and it approaches toward evening. Remain with me also today, and spend the day in gladness. And tomorrow you shall set out, so that you may go to your own house.”
{19:10} His son-in-law was not willing to agree to his words. Instead, he immediately continued on, and he arrived opposite Jebus, which by another name is called Jerusalem, leading with him two donkeys carrying burdens, and his mate.
{19:11} And now they were near Jebus, but day was turning into night. And the servant said to his lord, “Come, I beg you, let us turn aside to the city of the Jebusites, so that we may find lodging in it.”
{19:12} His lord responded to him: “I will not enter into the town of a foreign people, who are not of the sons of Israel. Instead, I will cross over as far as Gibeah.
{19:13} And when I will have arrived there, we will lodge in that place, or at least in the city of Ramah.”
{19:14} Therefore, they passed by Jebus, and continuing on, they undertook the journey. But the sun went down on them when they were near Gibeah, which is of the tribe of Benjamin.
{19:15} And so they diverted to it, so that they might lodge there. And when they had entered, they were sitting in the street of the city. For no one was willing to give them hospitality.
{19:16} And behold, they saw an old man, returning from the field and from his work in the evening, and he was also from mount Ephraim, and he was living as a stranger in Gibeah. For the men of that region were of the sons of Benjamin.
{19:17} And the old man, lifting up his eyes, saw the man sitting with his bundles in the street of the city. And he said to him: “Where have you come from? And where are you going?”
{19:18} He answered him: “We set out from Bethlehem of Judah, and we are traveling to our own place, which is beside mount Ephraim. From there we went to Bethlehem, and now we go to the house of God. But no one is willing to receive us under his roof.
{19:19} We have straw and hay as fodder for the donkeys, and we have bread and wine for the use of myself, and for your handmaid and the servant who is with me. We lack nothing except lodging.”
{19:20} And the old man responded to him: “Peace be with you. I will provide all that is necessary. Only, I beg you, do not stay in the street.”
{19:21} And he led him into his house, and he gave fodder to his donkeys. And after they had washed their feet, he received them with a banquet.
{19:22} And while they were feasting, and were refreshing their bodies with food and drink after the labor of the journey, the men of that city, sons of Belial (that is, without yoke), came and surrounded the old man’s house. And they began to knock at the door, calling out to the lord of the house, and saying, “Bring out the man who entered your house, so that we may abuse him.”
{19:23} And the old man went out to them, and he said: “Do not choose, brothers, do not choose to do this evil. For this man has entered to my hospitality. And you must cease from this senselessness.
{19:24} I have a virgin daughter, and this man has a mate. I will lead them out to you, so that you may debase them and may satisfy your lust. Only, I beg you, do not commit this crime against nature on the man.”
{19:25} But they were not willing to agree to his words. So the man, discerning this, led out his mate to them, and he delivered her to their sexual abuse. And when they had abused her for the entire night, they released her in the morning.
{19:26} But the woman, as darkness was receding, came to the door of the house, where her lord was staying, and there she fell down.
{19:27} When morning came, the man arose, and he opened the door, so that he might complete the journey that he had begun. And behold, his mate was lying before the door, with her hands reaching out to the threshold.
{19:28} And he, thinking that she was resting, said to her, “Get up, and let us walk.” But since she gave no response, realizing that she had died, he took her up, and he laid her on his donkey, and he returned to his house.
{19:29} And when he had arrived, he took up a sword, and he cut into pieces the dead body of his wife, with her bones, into twelve parts. And he sent the pieces into all the parts of Israel.
{19:30} And when each one had seen this, they were crying out together, “Never has such a thing been done in Israel, from the day that our fathers ascended from Egypt, even to the present time. Let a sentence be brought and let us decide in common what ought to be done.”
{20:1} And so all the sons of Israel went out like one man, from Dan to Beersheba, with the land of Gilead, and they gathered together, before the Lord, at Mizpah.
{20:2} And all the chiefs of the people, and every tribe of Israel, convened as an assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand foot soldiers for battle.
{20:3} (But it was not hidden from the sons of Benjamin that the sons of Israel had ascended to Mizpah.) And the Levite, the husband of the woman who was killed, being questioned as to how so great a crime had been perpetrated,
{20:4} responded: “I went to Gibeah of Benjamin, with my wife, and I diverted to that place.
{20:5} And behold, the men of that city, at night, surrounded the house in which I was staying, intending to kill me. And they abused my wife with such an incredible fury of lust that in the end she died.
{20:6} And taking her up, I cut her into pieces, and I sent the parts into all the borders of your possession. For never before was such a nefarious crime, and so great a sin, committed in Israel.
{20:7} You are all present here, O sons of Israel. Discern what you ought to do.”
{20:8} And all the people, standing, responded as if with the word of one man: “We shall not return to our own tents, nor shall anyone enter into his own house.
{20:9} But this we shall do in common against Gibeah:
{20:10} We shall select ten men out of one hundred from all the tribes of Israel, and one hundred out of one thousand, and one thousand out of ten thousand, so that they may transport supplies for the army, and so that we will be able to fight against Gibeah of Benjamin, and to repay it for its crime as it deserves.”
{20:11} And all of Israel convened against the city, like one man, with one mind and one counsel.
{20:12} And they sent messengers to the entire tribe of Benjamin, who said: “Why has so great a wickedness been found among you?
{20:13} Deliver the men of Gibeah, who have perpetrated this deplorable act, so that they may die, and so that the evil may be taken away from Israel.” And they were not willing to listen to the command of their brothers, the sons of Israel.
{20:14} Instead, out of all the cities that were their lot, they convened at Gibeah, so that they might bring them assistance, and so that they might contend against the entire people of Israel.
{20:15} And there were found from Benjamin twenty-five thousand who drew the sword, aside from the inhabitants of Gibeah,
{20:16} who were seven hundred very strong men, fighting with the left hand as well as with the right hand, and casting stones from a sling so accurately that they were able to strike even a hair, and the path of the stone would by no means miss to either side.
{20:17} Then too, among the men of Israel apart from the sons of Benjamin, there were found four hundred thousand who drew the sword and who were prepared for battle.
{20:18} And they rose up and went to the house of God, that is, to Shiloh. And they consulted God, and they said, “Who shall be, in our army, the first to contend against the sons of Benjamin?” And the Lord responded to them, “Let Judah be your leader.”
{20:19} And immediately the sons of Israel, rising up in the morning, made camp near Gibeah.
{20:20} And setting out from there to fight against Benjamin, they began to assault the city.
{20:21} And the sons of Benjamin, departing from Gibeah, slew twenty-two thousand men from the sons of Israel, on that day.
{20:22} Again the sons of Israel, trusting in both strength and number, set their troops in order, in the same place where they had contended before.
{20:23} But first they also went up and wept before the Lord, even until night. And they consulted him and said, “Should I continue to go forth, so as to contend against the sons of Benjamin, my brothers, or not?” And he responded to them, “Ascend against them, and undertake the struggle.”
{20:24} And when the sons of Israel had continued to do battle against the sons of Benjamin on the next day,
{20:25} the sons of Benjamin burst forth from the gates of Gibeah. And meeting them, they made such a frenzied slaughter against them that they struck down eighteen thousand men who drew the sword.
{20:26} As a result, all the sons of Israel went to the house of God, and sitting down, they wept before the Lord. And they fasted that day until evening, and they offered to him holocausts and victims of peace offerings.
{20:27} And they inquired about their state. At that time, the ark of the covenant of the Lord was in that place.
{20:28} And Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, was the first ruler of the house. And so, they consulted the Lord, and they said, “Should we continue to go forth in battle against the sons of Benjamin, our brothers, or should we cease?” And the Lord said to them: “Ascend. For tomorrow, I will deliver them into your hands.”
{20:29} And the sons of Israel stationed ambushes around the city of Gibeah.
{20:30} And they brought out their army against Benjamin a third time, just as they had done on the first and second times.
{20:31} But the sons of Benjamin again burst forth boldly from the city. And since their enemies were fleeing, they pursued them a long way, so that they might wound or kill some of them, just as they had done on the first and second days. And they turned their backs along two paths, one bringing them toward Bethel, and the other toward Gibeah. And they struck down about thirty men.
{20:32} For they thought that they were falling back as they had done before. But instead, skillfully feigning flight, they undertook a plan to draw them away from the city, and by seeming to flee, to lead them along the above stated paths.
{20:33} And so all the sons of Israel, rising up from their positions, set their troops in order, in the place which is called Baaltamar. Likewise, the ambushes that encircled the city began, little by little, to reveal themselves,
{20:34} and to advance upon the western part of the city. Moreover, another ten thousand men from all of Israel were provoking a conflict with the inhabitants of the city. And the war grew heavy against the sons of Benjamin. And they did not realize that, on all sides of them, death was imminent.
{20:35} And the Lord struck them down in the sight of the sons of Israel, and they put to death, on that day, twenty-five thousand of them, along with one hundred men, all warriors and those who drew the sword.
{20:36} But the sons of Benjamin, when they had seen themselves to be the weaker, began to flee. And the sons of Israel discerning this, gave them room to flee, so that they might arrive at the ambushes that were prepared, which they had positioned near the city.
{20:37} And after they had risen up suddenly from hiding, and those of Benjamin had turned their backs to those who cut them down, they entered the city, and they struck it with the edge of the sword.
{20:38} Now the sons of Israel had given a sign to those whom they had stationed in ambushes, so that, after they had seized the city, they would light a fire, and by the smoke ascending on high, they would show that the city was captured.
{20:39} And then, the sons of Israel discerned this sign during the battle (for the sons of Benjamin had thought that they fled, and they pursued them forcefully, cutting down thirty men from their army).
{20:40} And they saw something like a pillar of smoke ascending from the city. Likewise, Benjamin, looking back, discerned that the city was captured, for the flames were being carried on high.
{20:41} And those who before had pretended to flee, turning their faces, withstood them more strongly. And when the sons of Benjamin had seen this, they turned their backs in flight,
{20:42} and they began to go toward the way of the desert, with the adversary pursuing them to that place also. Moreover, those who had set fire to the city also met them.
{20:43} And so it happened that they were cut down on both sides by the enemies, nor was there any respite for the dying. They were killed and struck down on the eastern side of the city of Gibeah.
{20:44} Now those who were put to death in the same place were eighteen thousand men, all very robust fighters.
{20:45} And when those who remained of Benjamin had seen this, they fled into the wilderness. And they were traveling toward the rock which is called Rimmon. In that flight also, among those who were scattering in different directions, they slew five thousand men. And though they scattered all the more, they continued to pursue them, and then they put to death another two thousand.
{20:46} And so it happened that all of those who were slain from Benjamin, in various places, were twenty-five thousand fighters, very willing to go to war.
{20:47} And so there remained from the entire number of Benjamin six hundred men who were able to escape and to flee into the wilderness. And they settled at the rock of Rimmon, for four months.
{20:48} But the sons of Israel, returning, had struck with the sword all that remained in the city, from men even to cattle. And all the cities and villages of Benjamin were consumed with devouring flames.
{21:1} The sons of Israel had also taken an oath at Mizpah, and they said, “None of us shall give his daughters as a wife to the sons of Benjamin.”
{21:2} And they all went to the house of God at Shiloh. And sitting in his sight until evening, they lifted up their voice, and they began to weep, with a great wailing, saying,
{21:3} “Why, O Lord, God of Israel, has this evil happened among your people, so that this day one tribe would be taken away from us?”
{21:4} Then, rising at first light on the next day, they built an altar. And they offered holocausts and victims of peace offerings there, and they said,
{21:5} “Who, out of all the tribes of Israel, did not ascend with the army of the Lord?” For they had bound themselves with a great oath, when they were at Mizpah, that whoever was not present would be slain.
{21:6} And the sons of Israel, having been led to repentance over their brother Benjamin, began to say: “One tribe has been taken away from Israel.
{21:7} From where shall they receive wives? For we have all sworn in common that we will not give our daughters to them.”
{21:8} For this reason, they said, “Who is there, out of all the tribes of Israel, that did not ascend to the Lord at Mizpah?” And behold, the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead were found not to have been among that army.
{21:9} (Likewise, in the time when they had been at Shiloh, not one of them was found to be there.)
{21:10} And so they sent ten thousand very robust men, and they instructed them, saying, “Go and strike down the inhabitants of Jabesh-Gilead with the edge of the sword, including their wives and little ones.”
{21:11} And this shall be what you ought to do: “Every one of the male gender, as well as all the women who have known men, shall be put to death. But the virgins you shall reserve.”
{21:12} And four hundred virgins, who had not known the bed of a man, were found from Jabesh-Gilead. And they brought them to the camp at Shiloh, in the land of Canaan.
{21:13} And they sent messengers to the sons of Benjamin, who were at the rock of Rimmon, and they instructed them, so that they would receive them in peace.
{21:14} And the sons of Benjamin went, at that time, and wives were given to them from the daughters of Jabesh-Gilead. But others were not found, whom they might give in a similar manner.
{21:15} And all of Israel was very saddened, and they did penance for destroying one tribe out of Israel.
{21:16} And those greater by birth said: “What shall we do with the remainder, those who have not received wives? For all the females of Benjamin have been cut down,
{21:17} and we must take great care, and make provision with a very great diligence, so that one tribe may not be wiped away from Israel.
{21:18} As for our own daughters, we are not able to give them, being bound by an oath and a curse, when we said, ‘Accursed is he who will give any of his daughters to Benjamin as a wife.’ ”
{21:19} And they took counsel, and they said, “Behold, there is a yearly solemnity of the Lord at Shiloh, which is situated to the north of the city of Bethel, and on the eastern side of the way that one takes from Bethel to Shechem, and to the south of the town of Lebonah.”
{21:20} And they instructed the sons of Benjamin, and they said: “Go, and hide in the vineyards.
{21:21} And when you will have seen daughters of Shiloh being led out to dance, according to custom, go forth suddenly from the vineyards, and let each one seize one wife from among them, and travel into the land of Benjamin.
{21:22} And when their fathers and brothers arrive, and they begin to complain against you and to argue, we will say to them: ‘Take pity on them. For they have not seized them by right of war or conquest. Instead, begging to receive them, you did not give them, and so the sin was on your part.’ ”
{21:23} And so the sons of Benjamin did just as they had been ordered. And according to their number, they seized for themselves one wife each, out of those who were led out dancing. And they went into their own possession, and they built up their cities, and they lived in them.
{21:24} The sons of Israel also returned, according to their tribes and families, to their tents. In those days, there was no king in Israel. Instead, each one did what seemed right to himself.
{1:1} In the days of one of the judges, when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. And a man from Bethlehem in Judah departed to sojourn in the region of the Moabites with his wife and two children.
{1:2} He called himself Elimelech, and his wife Naomi, and his two sons, the one Mahlon, and the other Chilion, Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. And entering into the region of the Moabites, they stayed there.
{1:3} And Elimelech the husband of Naomi died; and she remained with her sons.
{1:4} They took wives from among the Moabites, of whom one was called Orpah, and the other Ruth. And they lived there ten years.
{1:5} And they both died, namely Mahlon and Chilion, and the woman was left alone, bereaved of her two children and her husband.
{1:6} And she arose so that she might journey to her native land, with both her daughters-in-law, from the region of the Moabites. For she had heard that the Lord had provided for his people and had given them food.
{1:7} And so she departed from the place of her sojourn, with both her daughters-in-law, and having set out upon the way, she was about to return to the land of Judah.
{1:8} She said to them, “Go to the home of your mother. May the Lord deal mercifully with you, just as you have dealt with the dead and with me.
{1:9} May he grant you to find rest in the houses of the husbands, whom you will obtain by lot.” And she kissed them. They lifted up their voice, and began to weep,
{1:10} and to say, “We will journey with you to your people.”
{1:11} But she answered them, “Return, my daughters. Why come with me? Do I have any more sons in my womb, so that you could hope for husbands from me?
{1:12} Return, my daughters, go forth. For I am now exhausted by old age, and not fit for the bond of marriage. Even if I were to conceive on this night, and bear sons,
{1:13} if you were willing to wait until they were grown and had completed the years of adolescence, you would be elderly before you could marry. Do not do so, I beg you, my daughters. For your difficulties weigh upon me greatly, and the hand of the Lord has been set against me.”
{1:14} In response, they lifted up their voice and began to weep again. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, and then turned back. Ruth clung to her mother-in-law.
{1:15} Naomi said to her, “See, your kinswoman returns to her people, and to her gods. Hurry after her.”
{1:16} She answered, “Do not be against me, as if I would abandon you and go away; for wherever you will go, I will go, and where you will stay, I also will stay with you. Your people are my people, and your God is my God.
{1:17} Whichever land will receive you dying, in the same I will die, and there I will have the place of my burial. May God cause these things to happen to me, and add more also, if anything except death alone should separate you and I.”
{1:18} Therefore, Naomi saw that Ruth, being firmly resolved in her soul, was determined to go with her, and that she was unwilling to be dissuaded, and that nothing further could convince her to return to her own.
{1:19} And so they set out together, and they came to Bethlehem. When they had entered the city, the news quickly spread among them all. And the women said, “This is that Naomi.”
{1:20} But she said to them, “Do not call me Naomi (that is, beautiful), but call me Mara (that is, bitter). For the Almighty has greatly filled me with bitterness.
{1:21} I went out full and the Lord led me back empty. So then, why call me Naomi, whom the Lord has humbled and the Almighty has afflicted?”
{1:22} Therefore, Naomi went with Ruth, the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, from the land of her sojourn, and returned to Bethlehem, at the time of the first reaping of the barley.
{2:1} But there was a man related to Elimelech, a powerful man, and very wealthy, named Boaz.
{2:2} And Ruth, the Moabite, said to her mother-in-law, “If you order, I will go into the field and gather the ears of grain which escape the reaping hand, wherever I will find favor with the father of a family, who will be compassionate to me.” She answered her, “Go, my daughter.”
{2:3} And so she went and gathered the ears of grain after the completion of the reaping. But it happened that this field was owned by Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech.
{2:4} And behold, he came out of Bethlehem and said to the reapers, “The Lord be with you.” They answered him, “May the Lord bless you.”
{2:5} And Boaz said to the young man who was in charge of the reapers, “Whose young woman is this?”
{2:6} He answered him, “This is the Moabite woman, who came with Naomi, from the land of the Moabites,
{2:7} and she asked to gather the remnants of the ears of grain, following the steps of the reapers, and from morning until now she has remained in the field, and, indeed, not for one moment has she returned home.”
{2:8} And Boaz said to Ruth, “Listen to me, daughter. Do not go to gather in any other field, nor depart from this place, but join with my young women,
{2:9} and follow where they reap. For I have given orders to my young men, so that no one is to harass you. And so, whenever you are thirsty, go to the vessels, and drink from the waters that the young men also drink.”
{2:10} She, falling on her face and paying homage on the ground, said to him: “How did this happen to me, that I should find favor before your eyes, and that you would condescend to accept me, a foreign woman?”
{2:11} He answered her, “Everything has been reported to me, what things you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband, and how you left your parents, and the land in which you were born, and came to a people you did not know before.
{2:12} May the Lord repay you for your work, and may you receive a full reward from the Lord, the God of Israel, to whom you have come, and under whose wings you have taken refuge.”
{2:13} She said, “I have found favor before your eyes, my lord, who has consoled me, and you have spoken to the heart of your handmaid, who is unlike one of your young women.”
{2:14} And Boaz said to her, “When mealtime begins, come here, and eat bread, and dip your morsel in the vinegar.” And so she sat beside the reapers, and she piled up parched grain for herself, and she ate and was satisfied, and carried off the leftovers.
{2:15} And then she arose from there, so as to gather the ears of grain, according to the custom. But Boaz commanded his servants, saying, “If she is even willing to reap with you, do not prevent her,
{2:16} and purposely let fall some from your bundles, and allow them to remain, so that she may gather without blushing, and let no one rebuke her gathering.”
{2:17} And so she gathered in the field until evening. And striking and threshing with a staff what she had gathered, she found about the measure of an ephah of barley, that is, three measures.
{2:18} Carrying this, she returned into the city and showed it to her mother-in-law. Moreover, she offered it to her and even gave her the leftovers of her food, with which she had been satisfied.
{2:19} And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where have you gathered today, and where have you found work? Blessed is he who took pity on you!” And she informed her with whom she had been working, and she said the man’s name, that he was called Boaz.
{2:20} Naomi answered her, “May he be blessed by the Lord, because the same kindness which he provided for the living, he also kept for the dead.” And again she said: “This man is our near relative.”
{2:21} And Ruth said, “He charged me with this also, that from now on I should join with his reapers until all the crop has been reaped.”
{2:22} And her mother-in-law said to her, “It is better, my daughter, to go out reaping with his young women, lest in a stranger’s field someone may confront you.”
{2:23} And so, she joined with the young women of Boaz, and from then on reaped with them, until the barley and the wheat were stored in the barns.
{3:1} But afterwards, when she returned to her mother-in-law, Naomi said to her: “My daughter, I will seek rest for you, and I will provide so that it may be well with you.
{3:2} This Boaz, whose young women you joined in the field, is our near relative, and this night he will winnow the threshing floor of barley.
{3:3} Therefore, wash and anoint yourself, and put on your decorative garments, and go down to the threshing floor, but do not let the man see you, while he finishes eating and drinking.
{3:4} But when he goes to sleep, observe the place where he sleeps. And you will approach and lift up the covering, the part which covers near his feet, and lay yourself down, and sleep there; but he will tell you what you are obliged to do.”
{3:5} She answered, “I will do everything as you have instructed.”
{3:6} And she went down to the threshing floor, and she did everything that her mother-in-law had commanded her.
{3:7} And when Boaz had finished eating and drinking, and he was merry, and he had gone to sleep by the pile of sheaves, she approached secretly, and, lifting the covering near his feet, she laid herself down.
{3:8} And behold, when it was the middle of the night, the man became frightened and confused, and he saw a woman lying near his feet.
{3:9} And he said to her, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your handmaid. Spread your covering over your servant, for you are a near relative.”
{3:10} And he said, “You are blessed by the Lord, daughter, and you have excelled beyond your earlier benevolence, because you have not followed young men, whether poor or rich.
{3:11} Therefore, do not be afraid, but whatever you decide about me, I will accomplish for you. For all the people, who dwell within the gates of my city, know that you are a virtuous woman.
{3:12} Neither do I deny myself to be a near relative, but there is another nearer than I.
{3:13} Be at peace for this night. And when morning arrives, if he is willing to uphold the law of kinship for you, things will turn out well; but if he is not willing, then, I will take you, without any doubt, as the Lord lives. Sleep until morning.”
{3:14} And so she slept by his feet until the night was ending. And she arose before men could inquire of one another. And Boaz said, “Be careful, lest someone know that you came here.”
{3:15} And again he said, “Spread your mantle that covers you, and hold it with both hands.” As she extended it and held it, he measured six measures of barley and placed it upon her. Carrying it, she went into the city.
{3:16} And she came to her mother-in-law, who said to her: “What have you been doing, daughter?” And she explained to her all that the man had accomplished for her.
{3:17} And she said, “Behold, he gave me six measures of barley, for he said, ‘I am not willing to have you return empty to your mother-in-law.’ ”
{3:18} And Naomi said, “Wait, daughter, until we see how things will turn out. For the man will not rest until he has accomplished what he said.”
{4:1} Then Boaz went up to the gate, and he sat there. And when he had seen the kinsman passing by, whom he had previously discussed, he spoke to him, calling him by his name, “Pause for a little while, and sit down here.” He turned aside and sat down.
{4:2} But Boaz, calling aside ten men among the elders of the city, said to them, “Sit down here.”
{4:3} They settled down, and he spoke to the kinsman, “Naomi, who has returned from the region of the Moabites, is selling part of a field of our brother Elimelech.
{4:4} I wanted you to hear this, and to tell you in front of everyone sitting here, including the eldest of my people. If you will take possession of it by the right of kinship, buy it and possess it. But if it displeases you, you should reveal this to me, so that I will know what I have to do. For there is no near kinsman besides you, who is before me, and I am after you.” But he answered, “I will buy the field.”
{4:5} And Boaz said to him, “When buying the field, you are likewise obliged to accept the hand of the woman Ruth, the Moabite, who was the wife of the deceased, so that you may raise up the name of your near kinsman through his posterity.”
{4:6} He answered, “I yield my right of kinship, for I am obliged not to cut off the posterity of my own family. You may make use of my privilege, which I freely declare I will forego.”
{4:7} Yet it was the custom between kinsmen in this former time in Israel, that if at any time one yielded his right to another, so as to confirm his permission, the man took off his shoe and gave it to his neighbor. This was a testimony of concession in Israel.
{4:8} And so Boaz said to his kinsman, “Take off your shoe.” And immediately he released it from his foot.
{4:9} And he said to the eldest and to all the people, “You are witnesses this day, that I have taken possession of all that belonged to Elimelech and Chilion and Mahlon, and was bequeathed to Naomi.
{4:10} And Ruth, the Moabite, the wife of Mahlon, I have taken in marriage so as to raise up the name of the deceased in his posterity, so that his name will not be cut off from among his family and his brethren and his people. You, I say, are witnesses of this thing.”
{4:11} All the people who were at the gate, along with the eldest, answered, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make this woman, who enters into your house, like Rachel, and Leah, who built up the house of Israel, so that she may be an example of virtue in Ephrathah, and so that her name may be honored in Bethlehem.
{4:12} And may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, of the offspring which the Lord will give to you from this young woman.”
{4:13} And so Boaz took Ruth, and received her as his wife, and he went in to her, and the Lord granted to her to conceive and bear a son.
{4:14} And the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not permitted your family to be without a successor, and may his name be called upon in Israel.
{4:15} And now you may have someone to comfort your soul and to care for you in old age, for he is born of your daughter-in-law, who loves you, and this is much better for you, than if you had seven sons.”
{4:16} And taking up the boy, Naomi placed him on her bosom, and she took on the duties of carrying him and nursing him.
{4:17} And the women of the near future were congratulating her and saying, “There was a son born to Naomi. They called his name Obed. Here is the father of Jesse, the father of David.”
{4:18} These are the generations of Perez: Perez conceived Hezron,
{4:19} Hezron conceived Aram, Aram conceived Amminadab,
{4:20} Amminadab conceived Nahshon, Nahshon conceived Salmon,
{4:21} Salmon conceived Boaz, Boaz conceived Obed,
{4:22} Obed conceived Jesse, Jesse conceived David.
{1:1} There was a certain man from Ramah of Zophim, on Mount Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.
{1:2} And he had two wives: the name of one was Hannah, and the name of the second was Peninnah. And Peninnah had sons. But Hannah did not have children.
{1:3} And this man went up from his city, on the established days, so that he might adore and sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh. Now the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, priests of the Lord, were in that place.
{1:4} Then the day arrived, and Elkanah immolated. And he gave portions to his wife Peninnah, and to all her sons and daughters.
{1:5} But to Hannah he gave one portion with sorrow. For he loved Hannah, but the Lord had closed her womb.
{1:6} And her rival afflicted her and vehemently distressed her, to a great extent, for she rebuked her that the Lord had closed her womb.
{1:7} And she did so every year, when the time returned for them to ascend to the temple of the Lord. And she provoked her in this way. And so, she wept and did not take food.
{1:8} Therefore, her husband Elkanah said to her: “Hannah, why are you weeping? And why do you not eat? And for what reason do you afflict your heart? Am I not better to you than ten sons?”
{1:9} And so, after she ate and drank at Shiloh, Hannah rose up. And Eli, the priest, was sitting on the seat before the door of the temple of the Lord.
{1:10} And since Hannah was bitter in soul, she prayed to the Lord, weeping greatly.
{1:11} And she made a vow, saying, “O Lord of hosts, if, in looking with favor, you will see the affliction of your servant and will remember me, and will not forget your handmaid, and if you will give to your servant a male child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall pass over his head.”
{1:12} Then it happened that, while she multiplied prayers before the Lord, Eli observed her mouth.
{1:13} For Hannah was speaking in her heart, and only her lips moved, and her voice was barely heard. Therefore, Eli considered her to be drunk,
{1:14} and so he said to her: “How long will you be inebriated? You should take only a little wine, but instead you are drenched.”
{1:15} Responding, Hannah said: “By no means, my lord. For I am an exceedingly unhappy woman, and I drank neither wine, nor anything that can inebriate. Instead, I have poured out my soul in the sight of the Lord.
{1:16} You should not repute your handmaid as one of the daughters of Belial. For I have been speaking from the abundance of my sorrow and grief, even until now.”
{1:17} Then Eli said to her: “Go in peace. And may the God of Israel grant to you your petition, which you have begged of him.”
{1:18} And she said, “I wish that your handmaid may find grace in your eyes.” And the woman went on her way, and she ate, and her countenance was no longer changed for the worse.
{1:19} And they rose up in the morning, and they worshipped before the Lord. And they returned and arrived at their own house at Ramah. Then Elkanah knew his wife Hannah. And the Lord remembered her.
{1:20} And it happened that, in the course of days, Hannah conceived and bore a son. And she called his name Samuel, because she had requested him from the Lord.
{1:21} Now her husband Elkanah ascended with his entire house, so that he might immolate to the Lord a solemn sacrifice, with his vow.
{1:22} But Hannah did not go up. For she said to her husband, “I will not go, until the infant has been weaned, and until I may lead him, so that he may appear before the sight of the Lord, and may remain always there.”
{1:23} And her husband Elkanah said to her: “Do what seems good to you, and stay until you wean him. And I pray that the Lord may fulfill his word.” Therefore, the woman remained at home, and she breastfed her son, until she withdrew him from milk.
{1:24} And after she had weaned him, she brought him with her, along with three calves, and three measures of flour, and a small bottle of wine, and she led him to the house of the Lord at Shiloh. But the boy was still a young child.
{1:25} And they immolated a calf, and they presented the boy to Eli.
{1:26} And Hannah said: “I beg you, my lord, as your soul lives, my lord: I am that woman, who stood before you here, praying to the Lord.
{1:27} I prayed for this child, and the Lord granted to me my petition, which I asked of him.
{1:28} Because of this, I have also lent him to the Lord, for all the days when he shall be lent to the Lord.” And they adored the Lord in that place. And Hannah prayed, and she said:
{2:1} “My heart exults in the Lord, and my horn is exalted in my God. My mouth is enlarged over my enemies. For I have rejoiced in your salvation.
{2:2} Nothing is holy as the Lord is holy. For there is no other beside you. And nothing is strong as our God is strong.
{2:3} Do not continue speaking of great things, boasting. Let what is old depart from your mouth. For the Lord is the God of knowledge, and thoughts are prepared for him.
{2:4} The bow of the powerful has been overwhelmed, and the weak have been girded with strength.
{2:5} Those who before were filled, have hired themselves out for bread. And the starving have been filled, so that the barren have given birth to many. But she who had borne many sons has become unable.
{2:6} The Lord brings death, and he gives life. He leads away to death, and he brings back again.
{2:7} The Lord impoverishes, and he enriches. He humbles, and he lifts up.
{2:8} He raises up the indigent from the dust, and he lifts up the poor from filth, so that they may sit with princes, and take hold of a throne of glory. For the hinges of the earth belong to the Lord, and he has placed the globe upon them.
{2:9} He will preserve the feet of his holy ones, and the impious will be silenced in darkness. For no man will prevail by his own strength.
{2:10} The adversaries of the Lord will dread him. And over them, he will thunder in the heavens. The Lord will judge the parts of the earth, and he will give dominion to his king, and he will lift up the horn of his Christ.”
{2:11} And Elkanah went away to Ramah, to his house. But the boy was a minister in the sight of the Lord, before the face of Eli, the priest.
{2:12} But the sons of Eli were sons of Belial, not knowing the Lord,
{2:13} nor the priestly office for the people. And so, no matter who had immolated a victim, the servant of the priest would arrive, while the flesh was still cooking, and he would take a three-pronged hook in his hand,
{2:14} and put it into the vessel, or into the cauldron, or into the cooking pot, or into the pan, and all that the hook lifted up, the priest took for himself. So they did to all of Israel who arrived at Shiloh.
{2:15} In addition, before they burned the fat, the servant of the priest would arrive, and he would say to the one who was immolating: “Give me the flesh, so that I may boil it for the priest. For I will not accept cooked meat from you, but raw.”
{2:16} And the one who was immolating would say to him, “First, allow the fat to be burned today, according to custom, and then take for yourself whatever your soul desires.” But in response, he would say to him: “By no means. For you will give it to me now, otherwise I will take it by force.”
{2:17} Therefore, the sin of the servants was exceedingly great before the Lord. For they drew men away from the sacrifice of the Lord.
{2:18} But Samuel was ministering before the face of the Lord; he was a youth girded with a linen ephod.
{2:19} And his mother fashioned a little tunic for him, which she brought to him on the appointed days, ascending with her husband, so that he might immolate the solemn sacrifice.
{2:20} And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife. And he said to him, “May the Lord repay to you offspring from this woman, on behalf of the loan that you offered to the Lord.” And they went away to their own place.
{2:21} Then the Lord visited Hannah, and she conceived and bore three sons and two daughters. And the youth Samuel was magnified with the Lord.
{2:22} Now Eli was very old, and he heard all that his sons were doing to all of Israel, and how they were sleeping with the women who were waiting at the door of the tabernacle.
{2:23} And he said to them: “Why are you doing these kinds of things, very wicked things, that I have heard from all the people?
{2:24} My sons, do not be willing. For it is no good report that I am hearing, so that you would cause the people of the Lord to transgress.
{2:25} If a man has sinned against a man, God may be able to be appeased over him. But if a man has sinned against the Lord, who will pray for him?” But they did not listen to the voice of their father, that the Lord was willing to kill them.
{2:26} But the youth Samuel advanced, and grew up, and he was pleasing to the Lord, as well as to men.
{2:27} Then a man of God went to Eli, and he said to him: “Thus says the Lord: Was I not revealed openly to the house of your father, when they were in Egypt in the house of Pharaoh?
{2:28} And I chose him out of all the tribes of Israel for myself as priest, so that he might ascend to my altar, and burn incense to me, and wear the ephod before me. And I gave to the house of your father all the sacrifices of the sons of Israel.
{2:29} Why have you kicked away my victims and my gifts, which I instructed to be offered in the temple? And why have you given more honor to your sons than to me, so that you eat the first-fruits of every sacrifice of my people Israel?
{2:30} Because of this, the Lord God of Israel says: I have spoken clearly, so that your house, and the house of your father, may minister in my sight, even forever. But now the Lord says: May this be far from me. Instead, whoever will have glorified me, I will glorify him. But whoever despises me, they will be despised.
{2:31} Behold the days are arriving, when I will cut off your arm, and the arm of the house of your father, so that there will not be an old man in your house.
{2:32} And you will see your rival in the temple, amid all the prosperity of Israel. And there will not be an old man in your house for all days.
{2:33} Yet truly, I will not entirely take away a man of you from my altar, but such that your eyes may fail, and your soul may melt away, and a great part of your house may die out, as it pertains to the state of men.
{2:34} But this will be a sign to you, which will happen to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas: on one day they both will die.
{2:35} And I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who will act in accord with my heart and my soul. And I will build a faithful house for him. And he will walk before my Christ for all days.
{2:36} Then this will be in the future, that whoever will have remained of your house, he will approach so that he may pray on his behalf. And he will offer a coin of silver, and a twist of bread. And he will say: ‘Permit me, I beg you, one part of the priestly office, so that I may eat a mouthful of bread.’ ”
{3:1} Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord before Eli, and the word of the Lord was precious in those days; there was no manifest vision.
{3:2} Then it happened that, on a certain day, Eli was lying in his place. And his eyes had dimmed, so that he was unable to see.
{3:3} And so, to prevent the lamp of God from going out, Samuel was sleeping in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was.
{3:4} And the Lord called Samuel. And responding, he said, “Here I am.”
{3:5} And he ran to Eli, and he said, “Here I am. For you called me.” And he said: “I did not call. Return and sleep.” And he went away, and he slept.
{3:6} And again, the Lord continued to call to Samuel. And rising up, Samuel went to Eli, and he said: “Here I am. For you called me.” And he responded: “I did not call you, my son. Return and sleep.”
{3:7} Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not been revealed to him.
{3:8} And the Lord continued, and he called to Samuel still a third time. And rising up, he went to Eli.
{3:9} And he said: “Here I am. For you called me.” Then Eli understood that the Lord had called the boy. And he said to Samuel: “Go and sleep. And if he calls to you from now on, you will say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’ ” Therefore, Samuel went away, and he slept in his place.
{3:10} And the Lord came, and stood, and he called, just as he had called the other times, “Samuel, Samuel.” And Samuel said, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”
{3:11} And the Lord said to Samuel: “Behold, I am accomplishing a word in Israel. Whoever will hear about it, both his ears will ring.
{3:12} In that day, I will raise up against Eli all the things that I have spoken over his house. I will begin, and I will finish.
{3:13} For I have foretold to him that I will judge his house unto eternity, because of iniquity. For he had known that his sons acted shamefully, and he did not chastise them.
{3:14} For this reason, I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of his house will not be expiated, with victims or with gifts, even forever.”
{3:15} Then Samuel slept until morning, and he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.
{3:16} Then Eli called Samuel, and he said, “Samuel, my son?” And responding, he said, “I am here.”
{3:17} And he questioned him: “What is the word that the Lord has spoken to you? I beg you that you may not conceal it from me. May God do these things to you, and may he add these other things, if you hide from me one word out of all the things that were told to you.”
{3:18} And so, Samuel revealed to him all the words, and he did not hide them from him. And he responded: “He is the Lord. May he do what is good in his own eyes.”
{3:19} And Samuel grew up, and the Lord was with him, and not one of his words fell to the ground.
{3:20} And all of Israel, from Dan even to Beersheba, knew Samuel to be a faithful prophet of the Lord.
{3:21} And the Lord continued to appear in Shiloh. For the Lord had revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh, according to the word of the Lord. And the word about Samuel went forth to all of Israel.
{4:1} And it happened that, in those days, the Philistines assembled to fight. And Israel went out to meet the Philistines in battle, and he made camp beside the Stone of Assistance. But the Philistines went to Aphek,
{4:2} and they positioned their troops against Israel. Then, when the conflict began, Israel turned his back to the Philistines. And they were cut down in that conflict, in various places in the fields, about four thousand men.
{4:3} And the people returned to the camp. And those greater by birth of Israel said: “Why has the Lord struck us today before the Philistines? Let us bring to ourselves the ark of the covenant of the Lord from Shiloh. And let it enter into our midst, so that it may save us from the hand of our enemies.”
{4:4} Therefore, the people sent to Shiloh, and they brought from there the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts, sitting upon the cherubim. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were with the ark of the covenant of God.
{4:5} And when the ark of the covenant of the Lord had arrived in the camp, all of Israel shouted with a great clamor, and the land resounded.
{4:6} And the Philistines heard the voice of the clamor, and they said, “What is this voice of a great clamor in the camp of the Hebrews?” And they realized that the ark of the Lord had arrived in the camp.
{4:7} And the Philistines were afraid, saying, “God has entered into the camp.” And they groaned, saying:
{4:8} “Woe to us! For there was no such great exultation yesterday, or the day before. Woe to us! Who will save us from the hand of these sublime gods? These are the gods who struck Egypt with all the plagues, in the desert.”
{4:9} “Be strengthened, and be manly, O Philistines! Otherwise, you may serve the Hebrews, as they also have served you. Be strengthened and wage war!”
{4:10} Therefore, the Philistines fought, and Israel was cut down, and each one fled to his own tent. And an exceedingly great slaughter occurred. And thirty thousand foot soldiers from Israel fell.
{4:11} And the ark of God was captured. Also, the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, died.
{4:12} Now a man of Benjamin, rushing from the troops, arrived at Shiloh on the same day, with his clothing torn, and with his head sprinkled with dust.
{4:13} And when he had arrived, Eli was sitting on a seat opposite the way, gazing out. For his heart was fearful on behalf of the ark of God. Then, after this man entered the city, he announced it to the city. And the entire city wailed.
{4:14} And Eli heard the sound of the outcry, and he said, “What is this sound, this tumult?” And the man hurried, and he went and announced it to Eli.
{4:15} Now Eli was ninety-eight years old, and his eyes had dimmed, so that he was not able to see.
{4:16} And he said to Eli: “I am the one who came from the battle. And it is I who fled from the troops today.” And he said to him, “What has happened, my son?”
{4:17} And responding, the man reported and said: “Israel has fled before the Philistines. And a great ruin has happened to the people. Moreover, your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, also have died. And the ark of God has been captured.”
{4:18} And when he had named the ark of God, he fell from the seat backwards, toward the door, and, having broken his neck, he died. For he was an old man of great age. And he judged Israel for forty years.
{4:19} Now his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant, and her delivery was near. And upon hearing the news that the ark of God had been captured, and that her father-in-law and her husband had died, she bent down and went into labor. For her pains rushed upon her suddenly.
{4:20} Then, when she was near death, those who were standing around her said to her, “You should not be afraid, for you have given birth to a son.” But she did not respond to them, and she did not notice them.
{4:21} And she called the boy Ichabod, saying, “The glory of Israel has been taken away,” because the ark of God was captured, and because of her father-in-law and her husband.
{4:22} And she said, “The glory has been taken away from Israel,” because the ark of God had been captured.
{5:1} Then the Philistines took the ark of God, and they transported it from the Stone of Assistance into Ashdod.
{5:2} And the Philistines took the ark of God, and carried it into the temple of Dagon. And they stationed it beside Dagon.
{5:3} And when the Ashdodites had risen up at first light on the next day, behold, Dagon was lying prone on the ground before the ark of the Lord. And they took Dagon, and they set him again in his place.
{5:4} And again, on the next day, rising up in the morning, they found Dagon lying on his face upon the ground, before the ark of the Lord. But the head of Dagon, and both palms of his hands had been cut off upon the threshold.
{5:5} Moreover, only the trunk of Dagon remained in its place. For this reason, the priests of Dagon, and all who enter his temple, do not tread upon the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod, even to this day.
{5:6} Now the hand of the Lord weighed heavily upon the Ashdodites, and he destroyed them. And he struck Ashdod and its borders at the inner part of the buttocks. And in the villages and fields, in the midst of that region, mice rose up and burst forth. And this caused a great tumult unto death in the city.
{5:7} Then the men of Ashdod, seeing this kind of plague, said: “The ark of the God of Israel shall not remain with us. For his hand is harsh, over us and over Dagon, our god.”
{5:8} And sending, they gathered together all the princes of the Philistines to them, and they said, “What shall we do about the ark of the God of Israel?” And the Gathites responded, “Let the ark of the God of Israel be led around.” And they led the ark of the God of Israel around.
{5:9} And as they were carrying it around, the hand of the Lord fell upon every single city with an exceedingly great slaughter. And he struck down the men of each and every city, from the small even to the great. And cysts were festering at their buttocks. And the Gathites took counsel, and they made for themselves seat covers from pelts.
{5:10} Therefore, they sent the ark of God into Ekron. And when the ark of God had arrived at Ekron, the Ekronites cried out, saying, “They have brought the ark of the God of Israel to us, so that it may kill us and our people!”
{5:11} And so they sent and gathered together all the princes of the Philistines, and they said: “Release the ark of the God of Israel, and return it to its own place. And let it not kill us, with our people.”
{5:12} For the fear of death fell upon every single city, and the hand of God was very heavy. Also, the men who did not die were being afflicted in the inner part of the buttocks. And the wailing of each city was ascending to heaven.
{6:1} Now the ark of the Lord was in the region of the Philistines for seven months.
{6:2} And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying: “What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? Reveal to us in what manner we should send it back to its place.” And they said:
{6:3} “If you send back the ark of the God of Israel, do not choose to release it empty. Instead, repay to him what you owe because of sin. And then you will be cured. And you will know why his hand did not withdraw from you.”
{6:4} And they said, “What is it that we ought to repay to him because of transgression?” And they responded:
{6:5} “In accord with the number of the provinces of the Philistines, you shall fashion five gold cysts and five gold mice. For the same plague has been upon all of you and your princes. And you shall fashion a likeness of your cysts and a likeness of the mice, which have destroyed the land. And so shall you give glory to the God of Israel, so that perhaps he may lift off his hand from you, and from your gods, and from your land.
{6:6} Why have you hardened your hearts, just as Egypt and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? After he was struck, did he not then release them, and they went away?
{6:7} Now therefore, fashion and take a new cart, with two cows that have given birth, but on which no yoke has been imposed. And yoke them to the cart, but retain their calves at home.
{6:8} And you shall take the ark of the Lord, and you shall place it upon the cart, with the articles of gold that you have paid to him on behalf of transgression. You shall place these in a little box at its side. And release it, so that it may go.
{6:9} And you shall watch. And if, indeed, it ascends by the way of his own parts, toward Beth-shemesh, then he has done this great evil to us. But if not, then we shall know that it is by no means his hand that has touched us, but instead it happened by chance.”
{6:10} Therefore, they did it in this way. And taking two cows that were feeding calves, they yoked them to the cart, and they enclosed their calves at home.
{6:11} And they placed the ark of God upon the cart, with the little box that held the gold mice and the likenesses of the cysts.
{6:12} But the cows went directly along the way that leads to Beth-shemesh. And they advanced only in one direction, lowing as they went. And they did not turn aside, neither to the right, nor to the left. Moreover, the princes of the Philistines followed them, as far as the borders of Beth-shemesh.
{6:13} Now the Beth-shemeshites were harvesting wheat in the valley. And lifting up their eyes, they saw the ark, and they were glad when they had seen it.
{6:14} And the cart went into the field of Joshua, a Beth-shemeshite, and it stood still there. Now in that place was a great stone, and so they cut up the wood of the cart, and they placed the cows upon it as a holocaust to the Lord.
{6:15} But the Levites took down the ark of God, and the little box that was at its side, in which were the articles of gold, and they placed them upon the great stone. Then the men of Beth-shemesh offered holocausts and immolated victims, on that day, to the Lord.
{6:16} And the five princes of the Philistines saw, and they returned to Ekron on the same day.
{6:17} Now these are the gold cysts, which the Philistines repaid to the Lord for transgression: for Ashdod one, for Gaza one, for Ashkelon one, for Gath one, for Ekron one.
{6:18} And there were gold mice, according to the number of the cities of the Philistines, of the five provinces, from the fortified city to the village that was without a wall, and even to the great stone upon which they placed the ark of the Lord, which was, at last in that day, in the field of Joshua, the Beth-shemeshite.
{6:19} Then he struck down some of the men of Beth-shemesh, because they had seen the ark of the Lord. And he struck down some of the people: seventy men, and fifty thousand of the common people. And the people lamented, because the Lord had struck the people with a great slaughter.
{6:20} And the men of Beth-shemesh said: “Who will be able to stand in the sight of the Lord, this holy God? And who will ascend to him from us?”
{6:21} And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim, saying: “The Philistines have returned the ark of the Lord. Descend and lead it back to you.”
{7:1} Then the men of Kiriath-jearim arrived, and they led away the ark of the Lord. And they brought it into the house of Abinadab, in Gibeah. Then they sanctified Eleazar, his son, so that he might care for the ark of the Lord.
{7:2} And it happened that, from that day, the ark of the Lord remained in Kiriath-jearim. And the days were multiplied (for it was now the twentieth year) and all the house of Israel rested, following the Lord.
{7:3} Then Samuel spoke to the entire house of Israel, saying: “If you would return to the Lord with your whole heart, take away strange gods from among you, the Baals and Ashtaroth, and prepare your hearts for the Lord, and serve him alone. And he will rescue you from the hand of the Philistines.”
{7:4} Therefore, the sons of Israel took away the Baals and Ashtaroth, and they served the Lord alone.
{7:5} And Samuel said, “Gather all of Israel at Mizpah, so that I may pray for you to the Lord.”
{7:6} And they convened at Mizpah. And they drew water, and they poured it out in the sight of the Lord. And on that day they fasted, and in that place they said, “We have sinned against the Lord.” And Samuel judged the sons of Israel at Mizpah.
{7:7} And the Philistines heard that the sons of Israel had gathered together at Mizpah. And the princes of the Philistines ascended against Israel. And when the sons of Israel had heard this, they were afraid before the face of the Philistines.
{7:8} And they said to Samuel, “May you not cease to cry out to the Lord our God on our behalf, so that he may save us from the hand of the Philistines.”
{7:9} Then Samuel took one suckling lamb, and he offered it whole, as a holocaust to the Lord. And Samuel cried out to the Lord on behalf of Israel, and the Lord heeded him.
{7:10} Then it happened that, while Samuel was offering the holocaust, the Philistines began the battle against Israel. But the Lord thundered with a great crash, on that day, over the Philistines, and he terrified them, and they were cut down before the face of Israel.
{7:11} And the men of Israel, departing from Mizpah, pursued the Philistines, and they struck them down as far as the place which was below Bethcar.
{7:12} Then Samuel took a single stone, and he placed it between Mizpah and Shen. And he called the name of this place: The Stone of Assistance. And he said, “For in this place the Lord gave assistance to us.”
{7:13} And the Philistines were humbled, and they no longer drew near, so that they might enter into the borders of Israel. And so, the hand of the Lord was over the Philistines during all the days of Samuel.
{7:14} And the cities that the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron as far as Gath, with their borders. And he freed Israel from the hand of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.
{7:15} And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life.
{7:16} And he went each year, traveling around to Bethel, and to Gilgal, and to Mizpah, and he judged Israel in the above-stated places.
{7:17} And he returned to Ramah. For his house was there, and he judged Israel there. And then he built an altar to the Lord there.
{8:1} And it happened that, when Samuel had become old, he appointed his sons as judges over Israel.
{8:2} Now the name of his firstborn son was Joel, and the name of the second was Abijah: judges at Beersheba.
{8:3} But his sons did not walk in his ways. Instead, they turned aside, pursuing avarice. And they accepted bribes, and they perverted judgment.
{8:4} Therefore, all those greater by birth of Israel, having gathered together, went to Samuel at Ramah.
{8:5} And they said to him: “Behold, you are elderly, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Appoint for us a king, so that he may judge us, just as all the nations have.”
{8:6} And the word was displeasing in the eyes of Samuel, for they had said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the Lord.
{8:7} Then the Lord said to Samuel: “Listen to the voice of the people in all that they are saying to you. For they have not rejected you, but me, lest I reign over them.
{8:8} In accord with all their works, which they have done from the day when I led them away from Egypt, even to this day: just as they have forsaken me, and served foreign gods, so now they also do to you.
{8:9} Now therefore, hear their voice. Yet truly, testify to them and foretell to them the rights of the king who will reign over them.”
{8:10} And so, Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people, who had petitioned a king from him.
{8:11} And he said: “This will be the right of the king who will have authority over you: He will take your sons, and place them in his chariots. And he will make them his horsemen and his runners before his four-horse chariots.
{8:12} And he will appoint them to be his tribunes and centurions, and the plowmen of his fields, and the harvesters of the grain, and the makers of his weapons and chariots.
{8:13} Likewise, your daughters he will take for himself as makers of ointments, and as cooks and bakers.
{8:14} Also, he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your best olive groves, and he will give them to his servants.
{8:15} Moreover, he will take one tenth of your grain and of the results of your vineyards, so that he may give these to his eunuchs and servants.
{8:16} Then, too, he will take your servants, and handmaids, and your best young men, and your donkeys, and he will set them to his work.
{8:17} Also, he will take a tenth of your flocks. And you will be his servants.
{8:18} And you will cry out, in that day, from the face of the king, whom you have chosen for yourselves. And the Lord will not heed you, in that day. For you requested a king for yourselves.”
{8:19} But the people were not willing to listen to the voice of Samuel. Instead, they said: “By no means! For there shall be a king over us,
{8:20} and we shall be just like all the Gentiles. And our king will judge us, and he will go out before us, and he will fight our wars for us.”
{8:21} And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he spoke them to the ears of the Lord.
{8:22} Then the Lord said to Samuel, “Listen to their voice, and appoint a king over them.” And Samuel said to the men of Israel, “Let each one go to his own city.”
{9:1} Now there was a man of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a man of Benjamin, strong and robust.
{9:2} And he had a son called Saul, an elect and good man. And there was not a man among the sons of Israel better than he was. For he stood head and shoulders above all the people.
{9:3} Now the donkeys of Kish, the father of Saul, had become lost. And Kish said to his son Saul, “Take with you one of the servants, and rising up, go out and seek the donkeys.” And when they had passed through mount Ephraim,
{9:4} and through the land of Shalishah, and had not found them, they crossed also through the land of Shaalim, and they were not there, and through the land of Benjamin, and they found nothing.
{9:5} And when they had arrived in the land of Zuph, Saul said to the servant who was with him, “Come, and let us return, otherwise perhaps my father may forget the donkeys, and become anxious over us.”
{9:6} And he said to him: “Behold, there is a man of God in this city, a noble man. All that he says, happens without fail. Now therefore, let us go there. For perhaps he may tell us about our way, because of which we have arrived.”
{9:7} And Saul said to his servant: “Behold, let us go. But what will we bring to the man of God? The bread in our sacks has run out. And we have no small gift that we might give to the man of God, nor anything at all.”
{9:8} The servant again responded to Saul, and he said: “Behold, there is found in my hand a coin of the fourth part of a stater. Let us give it to the man of God, so that he may reveal to us our way.”
{9:9} (In past times, in Israel, anyone going to consult God would speak in this way, “Come, and let us go to the seer.” For one who is called a prophet today, in past times was called a seer.)
{9:10} And Saul said to his servant: “Your word is very good. Come, let us go.” And they went into the city, where the man of God was.
{9:11} And as they were ascending the slope to the city, they found some young women going out to draw water. And they said to them, “Is the seer here?”
{9:12} And responding, they said to them: “He is. Behold, he is ahead of you. Hurry now. For he came into the city today, since there is a sacrifice for the people today, on the high place.
{9:13} Upon entering the city, you should find him immediately, before he ascends to the high place for the meal. And the people will not eat until he has arrived. For he blesses the victim, and thereafter those who were called will eat. Now therefore, go up. For you will find him today.”
{9:14} And they ascended into the city. And as they were walking in the midst of the city, Samuel appeared, advancing to meet them, so that he might ascend to the high place.
{9:15} Now the Lord had revealed to the ear of Samuel, one day before Saul had arrived, saying:
{9:16} “Tomorrow, at the same hour that it is now, I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin. And you shall anoint him to be the leader over my people Israel. And he will save my people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have looked with favor upon my people, because their outcry has reached me.”
{9:17} And when Samuel had caught sight of Saul, the Lord said to him: “Behold, the man about whom I spoke to you. This one shall rule over my people.”
{9:18} Then Saul drew near to Samuel, at the middle of the gate, and he said, “Tell me, I beg you: where is the house of the seer?”
{9:19} And Samuel responded to Saul, saying: “I am the seer. Ascend before me to the high place, so that you may eat with me today. And I will send you away in the morning. And I shall reveal to you everything that is in your heart.
{9:20} And concerning the donkeys, which were lost the day before yesterday, you should not be anxious, for they have been found. And all the best things of Israel, for whom should they be? Will they not be for you and for all your father’s house?”
{9:21} And responding, Saul said: “Am I not a son of Benjamin, the least tribe of Israel, and are not my kindred the last among all the families from the tribe of Benjamin? So then, why would you speak this word to me?”
{9:22} And so Samuel, taking Saul and his servant, brought them into the dining room, and he gave them a place at the head of those who had been invited. For there were about thirty men.
{9:23} And Samuel said to the cook, “Present the portion that I gave to you, and which I instructed you to set apart beside you.”
{9:24} Then the cook lifted up the shoulder, and he placed it before Saul. And Samuel said: “Behold, what remains, set it before you and eat. For it was preserved for you intentionally, when I called the people.” And Saul ate with Samuel on that day.
{9:25} And they descended from the high place into the town, and he spoke with Saul in the upper room. And he set out a bed for Saul in the upper room, and he slept.
{9:26} And when they had risen in the morning, and it now began to be light, Samuel called to Saul in the upper room, saying, “Rise up, so that I may send you on.” And Saul rose up. And they both departed, that is to say, he and Samuel.
{9:27} And as they were descending to the very limit of the city, Samuel said to Saul: “Tell the servant to go ahead of us, and to continue on. But as for you, stay here a little while, so that I may reveal the word of the Lord to you.”
{10:1} Then Samuel took a little vial of oil, and poured it on his head. And he kissed him, and said: “Behold, the Lord has anointed you as first ruler over his inheritance. And you shall free his people from the hands of their enemies, who are all around them. And this shall be a sign for you that God has anointed you as ruler:
{10:2} When you will have departed from me this day, you will find two men beside the sepulcher of Rachel, in the parts of Benjamin to the south. And they will say to you: ‘The donkeys have been found, which you had been seeking as you traveled. And your father, forgetting about the donkeys, has been anxious for you, and he says, “What shall I do about my son?” ’
{10:3} And when you will have departed from there, and will have traveled farther, and will have arrived at the oak of Tabor, in that place three men, who are going up to God at Bethel, will find you. One will be bringing three young goats, and another three loaves of bread, and another will be carrying a bottle of wine.
{10:4} And when they will have greeted you, they will give you two loaves. And you shall accept these from their hand.
{10:5} After these things, you shall arrive at the hill of God, where the garrison of the Philistines is. And when you will have entered the city there, you will meet a company of prophets, descending from the high place, with a psaltery, and a timbrel, and a pipe, and a harp before them, and they will be prophesying.
{10:6} And the Spirit of the Lord will spring up within you. And you shall prophesy with them, and you shall be changed into another man.
{10:7} Therefore, when these signs will have happened to you, do whatever your hand will find, for the Lord is with you.
{10:8} And you shall descend before me into Gilgal, (for I will descend to you), so that you may offer an oblation, and may immolate victims of peace. For seven days, you shall wait, until I come to you, and reveal to you what you should do.”
{10:9} And so, when he had turned his shoulder, so that he might go away from Samuel, God changed him to another heart. And all these signs occurred on that day.
{10:10} And they arrived at the above-stated hill, and behold, a group of prophets met him. And the Spirit of the Lord leapt up within him, and he prophesied in their midst.
{10:11} Then all those who had known him yesterday and the day before, seeing that he was with the prophets, and that he was prophesying, said to one other: “What is this thing that has happened to the son of Kish? Could Saul also be among the prophets?”
{10:12} And one would respond to the other, saying, “And who is their father?” Because of this, it turned into a proverb, “Could Saul also be among the prophets?”
{10:13} Then he ceased to prophesy, and he went to the high place.
{10:14} And the uncle of Saul said to him, and to his servant, “Where did you go?” And they responded: “To seek the donkeys. But when we did not find them, we went to Samuel.”
{10:15} And his uncle said to him, “Tell me what Samuel said to you.”
{10:16} And Saul said to his uncle, “He told us that the donkeys would be found.” But the word about the kingdom, which Samuel had spoken to him, he did not reveal to him.
{10:17} And Samuel called the people together, to the Lord at Mizpah.
{10:18} And he said to the sons of Israel: “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: I led Israel away from Egypt, and I rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians, and from the hand of all the kings who were afflicting you.
{10:19} But today you have rejected your God, who alone saved you from all your evils and tribulations. And you have said: ‘By no means! Instead, appoint a king over us.’ Now therefore, stand in the sight of the Lord, by your tribes and by your families.”
{10:20} And Samuel brought near all the tribes of Israel, and the lot fell upon the tribe of Benjamin.
{10:21} And he brought near the tribe of Benjamin, with its families, and the lot fell upon the family of Matri. And then it went to Saul, the son of Kish. Therefore, they sought him, but he was not found.
{10:22} And after these things, they consulted the Lord as to whether he would soon arrive there. And the Lord responded, “Behold, he is hidden at home.”
{10:23} And so they ran and brought him there. And he stood in the midst of the people, and he was taller than the entire people, from the shoulders upward.
{10:24} And Samuel said to all the people: “Certainly, you see the one whom the Lord has chosen, that there is not anyone like him among all the people.” And all the people cried out and said, “Long live the king!”
{10:25} Then Samuel spoke to the people the law of the kingdom, and he wrote it in a book, and he stored it in the sight of the Lord. And Samuel dismissed all the people, each one to his own house.
{10:26} And then Saul went away to his own house at Gibeah. And a portion of the army, whose hearts had been touched by God, went away with him.
{10:27} Yet the sons of Belial said, “How could this one be able to save us?” And they despised him, and they brought him no presents. But he pretended not to hear them.
{11:1} And, about a month afterward, it happened that Nahash the Ammonite ascended and began to fight against Jabesh Gilead. And all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, “Consider a pact with us, and we will serve you.”
{11:2} And Nahash the Ammonite responded to them, “With this will I strike a pact with you: if I may pluck out all your right eyes, and set you as a disgrace against all of Israel.”
{11:3} And the elders of Jabesh said to him: “Grant to us seven days, so that we may send messengers to all the borders of Israel. And if there is no one who may defend us, we will go out to you.”
{11:4} Therefore, the messengers arrived at Gibeah of Saul. And they spoke these words in the hearing of the people. And all the people lifted up their voice and wept.
{11:5} And behold, Saul arrived, following oxen from the field. And he said, “What has happened to the people that they would weep?” And they explained to him the words of the men from Jabesh.
{11:6} And the Spirit of the Lord rose up within Saul when he had heard these words, and his fury was enraged exceedingly.
{11:7} And taking both the oxen, he cut them into pieces, and he sent them into all the borders of Israel, by the hands of messengers, saying, “Whoever will not go out and follow Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen.” Therefore, the fear of the Lord entered into the people, and they went out like one man.
{11:8} And he took a census of them at Bezek. And there were three hundred thousand of the sons of Israel. And there were thirty thousand of the men of Judah.
{11:9} And they said to the messengers who had arrived: “So shall you say to the men who are of Jabesh Gilead: ‘Tomorrow, when the sun will be hot, you shall have salvation.’ ” Therefore, the messengers went and announced it to the men of Jabesh, who became joyful.
{11:10} And they said, “In the morning, we will go out to you. And you may do whatever you please with us.”
{11:11} And it happened that, when the next day had arrived, Saul arranged the people into three parts. And he entered into the middle of the camp at the early morning watch, and he struck down the Ammonites until the day grew hot. Then the remainder were dispersed, so much so that not even two of them were left together.
{11:12} And the people said to Samuel: “Who is the one who said, ‘Should Saul reign over us?’ Present the men, and we will put them to death.”
{11:13} And Saul said: “No one shall be killed on this day. For today the Lord has accomplished salvation in Israel.”
{11:14} Then Samuel said to the people, “Come, and let us go to Gilgal, and let us renew the kingdom there.”
{11:15} And all the people traveled to Gilgal. And there they made Saul king, in the sight of the Lord at Gilgal. And there they immolated victims of peace, before the Lord. And there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced exceedingly.
{12:1} Then Samuel said to all of Israel: “Behold, I have listened to your voice, according to all that you have said to me, and I have appointed a king over you.
{12:2} And now the king advances before you. But I am old and have gray hair. Moreover, my sons are with you. And so, having conversed before you from my youth, even until this day, behold, I am here.
{12:3} Speak about me before the Lord, and before his Christ, as to whether I have taken anyone’s ox or donkey, or whether I have falsely accused anyone, or whether I have oppressed anyone, or whether I have accepted a bribe from the hand of anyone, and I will repudiate the same, this day, and I will restore it to you.”
{12:4} And they said, “You have not falsely accused us, nor oppressed us, nor have you taken anything from the hand of anyone.”
{12:5} And he said to them, “The Lord is a witness against you, and his Christ is a witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.” And they said, “He is the witness.”
{12:6} And Samuel said to the people: “It is the Lord who appointed Moses and Aaron, and who led our fathers away from the land of Egypt.
{12:7} Now therefore, stand, so that I may contend in judgment against you before the Lord, about all the mercies of the Lord, which he has given to you and to your fathers:
{12:8} How Jacob entered into Egypt, and your fathers cried out to the Lord. And the Lord sent Moses and Aaron, and he led your fathers away from Egypt, and he transferred them to this place.
{12:9} But they forgot the Lord their God, and so he delivered them into the hand of Sisera, master of the army of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab. And they fought against them.
{12:10} But afterward, they cried out to the Lord, and they said: ‘We have sinned, because we have forsaken the Lord, and we have served the Baals and Ashtaroth. Now therefore, rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and we will serve you.’
{12:11} And the Lord sent Jerubbaal, and Bedan, and Jephthah, and Samuel, and he rescued you from the hand of your enemies all around, and you lived in confidence.
{12:12} Then, seeing that Nahash, the king of the sons of Ammon, had arrived against you, you said to me, ‘By no means! Instead, a king shall reign over us,’ even though the Lord your God was reigning over you.
{12:13} Now therefore, your king is present, whom you chose and requested. Behold, the Lord has given you a king.
{12:14} If you will fear the Lord, and serve him, and listen to his voice, and not provoke the mouth of the Lord, then both you, and the king who rules over you, will be following the Lord your God.
{12:15} But if you will not listen to the voice of the Lord, but instead you provoke his words, then the hand of the Lord will be over you and over your fathers.
{12:16} Therefore, stand now, and see this great thing, which the Lord will accomplish in your sight.
{12:17} Is it not the harvest of the wheat today? I will call upon the Lord, and he will send thunder and rain. And you will know and see that you have done a great evil in the sight of the Lord, by petitioning for a king over you.”
{12:18} And Samuel cried out to the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain on that day.
{12:19} And all the people feared the Lord and Samuel exceedingly. And all the people said to Samuel: “Pray, on behalf of your servants, to the Lord your God, so that we may not die. For we have added to all our sins this evil, that we would petition for a king.”
{12:20} Then Samuel said to the people: “Do not be afraid. You have done all this evil. Yet truly, do not choose to withdraw from the back of the Lord. Instead, serve the Lord with all your heart.
{12:21} And do not choose to turn aside after vanities, which will never benefit you, nor rescue you, since they are empty.
{12:22} And the Lord will not abandon his people, because of his great name. For the Lord has sworn to make you his people.
{12:23} So then, far be it from me, this sin against the Lord, that I would cease to pray for you. And so, I will teach you the good and upright way.
{12:24} Therefore, fear the Lord, and serve him in truth and from your whole heart. For you have seen the great works that he has done among you.
{12:25} But if you persevere in wickedness, both you and your king will perish together.”
{13:1} When he began to reign, Saul was the son of one year, and he reigned over Israel for two years.
{13:2} And Saul chose for himself three thousand men of Israel. And two thousand were with Saul at Michmash and at mount Bethel. Then one thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah of Benjamin. But the remainder of the people, he sent back, each one to his own tent.
{13:3} And Jonathan struck the garrison of the Philistines, which was in Gibeah. And when the Philistines had heard about it, Saul sounded the trumpet over all the land, saying, “Let the Hebrews listen.”
{13:4} And all of Israel heard this report, that Saul had struck the garrison of the Philistines. And Israel raised himself up against the Philistines. Then the people cried out to Saul at Gilgal.
{13:5} And the Philistines gathered to do battle against Israel, thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and the remainder of the common people, who were very many, like the sand that is on the shore of the sea. And ascending, they encamped at Michmash, toward the east of Bethaven.
{13:6} And when the men of Israel had seen themselves to be in a narrowed position, they hid themselves in caves, and in out of the way places, and in rocks, and in hollows, and in pits (for the people were distressed).
{13:7} Then some of the Hebrews crossed over the Jordan, into the land of Gad and Gilead. And while Saul was still at Gilgal, the entire people who followed him were terrified.
{13:8} But he waited for seven days, in accord with what was agreed with Samuel. But Samuel did not arrive at Gilgal, for the people were scattering away from him.
{13:9} Therefore, Saul said, “Bring me the holocaust and the peace offerings.” And he offered the holocaust.
{13:10} And when he had completed the offering of the holocaust, behold, Samuel arrived. And Saul went out to meet him, so that he might greet him.
{13:11} And Samuel said to him, “What have you done?” Saul responded: “Since I saw that the people were scattering away from me, and you had not arrived after the agreed upon days, and yet the Philistines had gathered together at Michmash,
{13:12} I said: ‘Now the Philistines will descend to me at Gilgal. And I have not appeased the face of the Lord.’ Compelled by necessity, I offered the holocaust.
{13:13} And Samuel said to Saul: “You have acted foolishly. You have not kept the commandments of the Lord your God, which he instructed to you. And if you had not acted in this way, the Lord would, here and now, have prepared your kingdom over Israel forever.
{13:14} But by no means shall your kingdom rise up any more. The Lord has sought for himself a man according to his own heart. And him the Lord has instructed to be the leader over his people, because you have not kept what the Lord has instructed.”
{13:15} Then Samuel rose up and ascended from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benjamin. And the remainder of the people ascended after Saul, to meet the people who were fighting against them, going from Gilgal into Gibeah, to the hill of Benjamin. And Saul took a census of the people, who had been found to be with him, about six hundred men.
{13:16} And Saul, and his son Jonathan, and the people who had been found to be with them, were at Gibeah of Benjamin. But the Philistines had settled in at Michmash.
{13:17} And three companies went out from the camp of the Philistines, in order to plunder. One company was traveling toward the way of Ophrah, to the land of Shual.
{13:18} Then another entered along the way of Beth-horon. But the third turned itself to the way of the border, overhanging the valley of Zeboim, opposite the desert.
{13:19} Now there was no worker of iron to be found in all the land of Israel. For the Philistines had been cautious, lest perhaps the Hebrews might make swords or spears.
{13:20} Therefore, all of Israel descended to the Philistines, so that each man could sharpen his plowshare, or pick axe, or hatchet, or hoe.
{13:21} For their plow blades, and pick axes, and pitch forks, and axes had become blunt, and even the handles needed to be repaired.
{13:22} And when the day of battle had arrived, there was found neither sword nor spear in the hand of the entire people who were with Saul and Jonathan, except for Saul and his son Jonathan.
{13:23} Then the army of the Philistines went out in order to go across Michmash.
{14:1} And it happened that, on a certain day, Jonathan, the son of Saul, said to the youth who bore his armor, “Come, and let us go over to the garrison of the Philistines, which is across from that place.” But he did not reveal this to his father.
{14:2} Moreover, Saul was staying in the furthermost part of Gibeah, below the pomegranate tree that was at Migron. And the people with him were about six hundred men.
{14:3} And Ahijah, the son of Ahitub, the brother of Ichabod, the son of Phinehas, who had been born of Eli, the priest of the Lord at Shiloh, wore the ephod. But the people did not know where Jonathan had gone.
{14:4} Now there were, between the ascents along which Jonathan strove to cross to the garrison of the Philistines, rocks projecting from both sides, and, in the manner of teeth, boulders breaking out from one side and the other. The name of one was Shining, and the name of the other was Thorny.
{14:5} One boulder projected toward the north, opposite Michmash, and the other toward the south, opposite Gibeah.
{14:6} Then Jonathan said to the youth who bore his armor: “Come, let us go across to the garrison of these uncircumcised. And perhaps the Lord may act on our behalf. For it is not difficult for the Lord to save, either by many, or by few.”
{14:7} And his armor bearer said to him: “Do all that is pleasing to your soul. Go wherever you wish, and I will be with you, wherever you will choose.”
{14:8} And Jonathan said: “Behold, we will cross over to these men. And when we will be seen by them,
{14:9} if they have spoken to us in this way, ‘Stay until we come to you,’ let us stand still in our place, and not ascend to them.
{14:10} But if they will say, ‘Ascend to us,’ let us ascend. For the Lord has delivered them into our hands. This will be the sign to us.”
{14:11} And so, both of them appeared before the garrison of the Philistines. And the Philistines said, “See, the Hebrews have come out from the holes in which they had been hiding.”
{14:12} And the men of the garrison spoke to Jonathan and to his armor bearer, and they said, “Ascend to us, and we will show you something.” And Jonathan said to his armor bearer: “Let us ascend. Follow me. For the Lord has delivered them into the hands of Israel.”
{14:13} Then Jonathan ascended, crawling on his hands and feet, and his armor bearer after him. And then, some fell before Jonathan, others his armor bearer killed as he was following him.
{14:14} And the first slaughter was made when Jonathan and his armor bearer struck down about twenty of the men, in the midst of an area of land that a yoke of oxen would usually plow in a day.
{14:15} And a miracle occurred in the camp, out in the fields. And all of the people of their garrison, who had gone out in order to plunder, were stupefied. And the earth trembled. And it happened as a miracle from God.
{14:16} And the watchmen of Saul, who were at Gibeah of Benjamin, looked out, and behold, a multitude was thrown down and dispersed, this way and that.
{14:17} And Saul said to the people who were with him, “Inquire and see who has gone out from us.” And when they had inquired, it was found that Jonathan and his armor bearer were not present.
{14:18} And Saul said to Ahijah, “Bring the ark of the God.” (For the ark of God was, in that day, with the sons of Israel in that place.)
{14:19} And while Saul spoke to the priest, there arose a great tumult in the camp of the Philistines. And it was increasing, little by little, and it was being heard more clearly. And Saul said to the priest, “Withdraw your hand.”
{14:20} Then Saul, and all the people who were with him, cried out together, and they went to the place of the conflict. And behold, each one’s sword had been turned against his neighbor, and there was a very great slaughter.
{14:21} Moreover, the Hebrews who had been with the Philistines yesterday and the day before, and who had ascended with them into the camp, turned back so that they might be with those of Israel who were with Saul and Jonathan.
{14:22} Likewise, all the Israelites who had hidden themselves on mount Ephraim, hearing that the Philistines had fled, joined themselves with their own in the battle. And there were with Saul about ten thousand men.
{14:23} And the Lord saved Israel on that day. But the fight continued as far as Bethaven.
{14:24} And the men of Israel were joined together on that day. And Saul made the people swear, saying, “Cursed be the man who will eat bread, until evening, until I am avenged of my enemies.” And the entire people did not consume bread.
{14:25} And all the common people went into a forest, in which there was honey on the surface of the field.
{14:26} And so the people entered the forest, and there appeared flowing honey, but no one drew his hand near his mouth. For the people were afraid of the oath.
{14:27} But Jonathan had not heard that his father had bound the people to an oath. And so he extended the top of the staff that he was holding in his hand, and he dipped it in a honeycomb. And he turned his hand to his mouth, and his eyes were brightened.
{14:28} And in response, one of the people said, “Your father has bound the people by an oath, saying: ‘Cursed be the man who will eat any bread this day.’ ” (For the people were faint.)
{14:29} And Jonathan said: “My father has troubled the land. You have seen for yourselves that my eyes were brightened, because I tasted a little of this honey.
{14:30} How much more so, if the people had eaten from the plunder that they find with their enemies? Would not a greater slaughter have been accomplished among the Philistines?”
{14:31} Therefore, on that day, they struck down the Philistines, from Michmash as far as Aijalon. But the people were exceedingly wearied.
{14:32} And turning to the spoils, they took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and they slew them on the ground. And the people ate with blood.
{14:33} Then they reported to Saul, saying that the people had sinned against the Lord, eating with blood. And he said: “You have transgressed. Roll a great stone to me, here and now.”
{14:34} And Saul said: “Disperse yourselves among the common people, and tell each one of them to bring to me his ox and his ram, and to slay them upon this stone, and to eat, so that you will not sin against the Lord, in eating with blood.” And so, each one, out of all the people, brought his ox, by his own hand, throughout the night. And they slew them there.
{14:35} Then Saul built an altar to the Lord. And so, it was then that he first began to build an altar to the Lord.
{14:36} And Saul said: “Let us fall upon the Philistines by night, and lay waste to them even until the morning light. And let us not leave behind a man among them.” And the people said, “Do all that seems good in your eyes.” And the priest said, “Let us draw near to God in this place.”
{14:37} And Saul consulted the Lord: “Shall I pursue the Philistines? Will you deliver them into the hands of Israel?” And he did not respond to him on that day.
{14:38} And Saul said: “Bring here every single leader of the people. And we shall know and see by whom this sin was committed this day.
{14:39} As the Lord lives, who is the Savior of Israel, even if it were done by my son Jonathan, without retraction he shall die.” In this, no one among all the people contradicted him.
{14:40} And he said to all of Israel, “Separate yourselves on one side, and I, with my son Jonathan, will be on the other side.” And the people responded to Saul, “Do what seems good in your eyes.”
{14:41} And Saul said to the Lord, the God of Israel: “O Lord, God of Israel, grant a sign: Why is it that you will not respond to your servant this day? If this iniquity is in me, or in my son Jonathan, grant an indication. Or if this iniquity is in your people, grant a sanctification.” And Jonathan and Saul were discovered, but the people were released.
{14:42} And Saul said, “Cast lots between myself and Jonathan, my son.” And Jonathan was caught.
{14:43} Then Saul said to Jonathan, “Tell me what you have done.” And Jonathan revealed to him, and said: “Truly, I tasted a little honey with the top of the staff that was in my hand. And behold, I shall die.”
{14:44} And Saul said, “May God do these things to me, and may he add these other things, for you shall surely die, Jonathan!”
{14:45} And the people said to Saul: “Why should Jonathan have to die, who has accomplished this great salvation in Israel? This is wrong. As the Lord lives, not one hair of his head should fall to the ground. For he has wrought with God this day.” Therefore, the people freed Jonathan, so that he would not die.
{14:46} And Saul withdrew, and he did not pursue the Philistines. And the Philistines went away to their own places.
{14:47} And Saul, his kingdom having been confirmed over Israel, was fighting against all his enemies on all sides: against Moab, and the sons of Ammon, and Edom, and the kings of Zobah, and the Philistines. And wherever he turned himself, he was successful.
{14:48} And gathering together an army, he struck Amalek. And he rescued Israel from the hand of those who would lay waste to them.
{14:49} Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Ishvi, and Malchishua. And as for the names of his two daughters: the name of the firstborn daughter was Merab, and the name of the younger one was Michal.
{14:50} And the name of the wife of Saul was Ahinoam, the daughter of Ahimaaz. And the name of the first ruler of his military was Abner, the son of Ner, the first cousin of Saul.
{14:51} For Kish was the father of Saul, and Ner was the father of Abner, and the son of Abiel.
{14:52} Now there was a powerful war against the Philistines during all the days of Saul. And so, whomever Saul had seen to be a strong man, and fit for battle, he joined him to himself.
{15:1} And Samuel said to Saul: “The Lord sent me, so that I would anoint you as king over his people Israel. Now therefore, listen to the voice of the Lord.
{15:2} ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: I have taken account of all that Amalek has done to Israel, how he stood against him in the way, when he ascended from Egypt.
{15:3} Now therefore, go and strike Amalek, and demolish all that is his. You shall not spare him, and you shall not covet anything out of the things that are his. Instead, kill from man even to woman, and little ones as well as infants, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’ ”
{15:4} And so, Saul instructed the people, and he numbered them like lambs: two hundred thousand foot soldiers, and ten thousand men of Judah.
{15:5} And when Saul had arrived as far as the city of Amalek, he placed ambushes at the torrent.
{15:6} And Saul said to the Kenite: “Go away, withdraw, and descend from Amalek. Otherwise, I will include you with him. For you showed mercy to all the sons of Israel, when they ascended from Egypt.” And so the Kenite withdrew from the midst of Amalek.
{15:7} And Saul struck down Amalek, from Havilah even until you arrive at Shur, which is opposite the region of Egypt.
{15:8} And he apprehended Agag, the king of Amalek, alive. But all the common people he put to death with the edge of the sword.
{15:9} And Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the flocks of sheep, and of the herds, and the garments, and the rams, and all that was beautiful, and they were not willing to destroy them. Yet truly, whatever was vile or worthless, these they demolished.
{15:10} Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, saying
{15:11} “It displeases me that I have appointed Saul as king. For he has forsaken me, and he has not fulfilled the work of my words.” And Samuel was greatly saddened, and he cried out to the Lord, all night long
{15:12} And when Samuel had risen while it was still dark, so that he might go to Saul in the morning, it was reported to Samuel that Saul had arrived at Carmel, and that he had erected for himself a triumphant arch. And, while returning, he had continued on and descended to Gilgal. Therefore, Samuel went to Saul. And Saul was offering a holocaust to the Lord, from the best of the spoils, which he had brought from Amalek.
{15:13} And when Samuel had gone to Saul, Saul said to him: “You are the blessed of the Lord. I have fulfilled the word of the Lord.”
{15:14} And Samuel said, “Then what is this voice of the flocks, which resounds in my ears, and of the herds, which I am hearing?”
{15:15} And Saul said: “They have brought these from Amalek. For the people spared the best of the sheep and of the herds, so that they might be immolated to the Lord your God. Yet truly, the remainder we have slain.”
{15:16} Then Samuel said to Saul, “Permit me, and I will reveal to you what the Lord has said to me this night.” And he said to him, “Speak.”
{15:17} And Samuel said: “Was it not when you were little in your own eyes that you were made the head of the tribes of Israel? And the Lord anointed you as king over Israel.
{15:18} And the Lord sent you on the way, and he said: ‘Go and put to death the sinners of Amalek. And you shall fight against them, even unto utter annihilation.’
{15:19} Why then, did you not listen to the voice of the Lord? Instead, you turned to the spoils, and you did evil in the eyes of the Lord.”
{15:20} And Saul said to Samuel: “On the contrary, I did listen to the voice of the Lord, and I walked in the way along which the Lord sent me, and I led back Agag, the king of Amalek, and I put to death Amalek.
{15:21} But the people took some of the spoils, sheep and oxen, as the first-fruits of those things that were slain, to immolate to the Lord their God at Gilgal.”
{15:22} And Samuel said: “Does the Lord want holocausts and victims, and not instead that the voice of the Lord should be obeyed? For obedience is better than sacrifice. And to heed is greater than to offer the fat of rams.
{15:23} Therefore, it is like the sin of paganism to rebel. And it is like the crime of idolatry to refuse to obey. For this reason, therefore, because you have rejected the word of the Lord, the Lord has also rejected you from being king.”
{15:24} And Saul said to Samuel: “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the word of the Lord, and your words, by fearing the people and obeying their voice.
{15:25} But now, I beg you, to bear my sin, and to return with me, so that I may adore the Lord.”
{15:26} And Samuel said to Saul: “I will not return with you. For you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.”
{15:27} And Samuel turned away, so that he might depart. But Saul took hold of the edge of his cloak, and it tore.
{15:28} And Samuel said to him: “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel away from you this day. And he has delivered it to your neighbor, who is better than you are.
{15:29} Moreover, the One who triumphs within Israel will not spare, and he will not be moved to repentance. For he is not a man, that he should repent.”
{15:30} Then he said: “I have sinned. But now, honor me before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and return with me, so that I may adore the Lord your God.”
{15:31} Therefore, Samuel turned again after Saul. And Saul adored the Lord.
{15:32} And Samuel said, “Bring near to me Agag, the king of Amalek.” And Agag, very fat and trembling, was presented to him. And Agag said, “Does bitter death separate in this manner?”
{15:33} And Samuel said, “Just as your sword caused women to be without their children, so will your mother be without her children among women.” And Samuel cut him into pieces, before the Lord at Gilgal.
{15:34} Then Samuel went away to Ramah. But Saul ascended to his house at Gibeah.
{15:35} And Samuel did not see Saul any more, until the day of his death. Yet truly, Samuel mourned for Saul, because the Lord regretted that he had appointed him as king over Israel.
{16:1} And the Lord said to Samuel: “How long will you mourn for Saul, though I have rejected him, so that he would not reign over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and approach, so that I may send you to Jesse of Bethlehem. For I have provided a king from among his sons for myself.”
{16:2} And Samuel said: “How shall I go? For Saul will hear of it, and he will put me to death.” And the Lord said: “You shall take, by your hand, a calf from the herd. And you shall say, ‘I have arrived in order to immolate to the Lord.’
{16:3} And you shall call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will reveal to you what you should do. And you shall anoint whomever I will indicate to you.”
{16:4} Therefore, Samuel did just as the Lord told him. And he went to Bethlehem, and the elders of the city wondered. And meeting him, they said, “Is your arrival peaceful?”
{16:5} And he said: “It is peaceful. I have arrived in order to immolate to the Lord. Be sanctified, and come with me to the sacrifice.” Then he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and he called them to the sacrifice.
{16:6} And when they had entered, he saw Eliab, and he said, “Could he be the Christ in the sight of the Lord?”
{16:7} And the Lord said to Samuel: “You should not look with favor on his face, nor on the height of his stature. For I have rejected him. Neither do I judge by the appearance of a man. For man sees those things that are apparent, but the Lord beholds the heart.”
{16:8} And Jesse called Abinadab, and he brought him before Samuel. And he said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.”
{16:9} Then Jesse brought Shammah. And he said about him, “And the Lord has not chosen this one.”
{16:10} And so Jesse brought his seven sons before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen any of these.”
{16:11} And Samuel said to Jesse, “Could the sons now be completed?” But he responded, “There still remains a little one, and he pastures the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse: “Send and bring him. For we shall not recline to eat, until he arrives here.”
{16:12} Therefore, he sent and brought him. Now he was ruddy, and beautiful to behold, and with a stately face. And the Lord said, “Rise up, anoint him! For it is he.”
{16:13} Therefore, Samuel took the horn of oil, and he anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord was guiding David from that day and thereafter. And Samuel rose up, and he went away to Ramah.
{16:14} But the Spirit of the Lord withdrew from Saul, and a wicked spirit from the Lord disturbed him.
{16:15} And the servants of Saul said to him: “Behold, an evil spirit from God disturbs you.
{16:16} May our lord order, and your servants, who are before you, will seek a man skillful in playing a stringed instrument, so that when the evil spirit from the Lord assails you, he may play with his hand, and you may bear it more easily.”
{16:17} And Saul said to his servants, “Then provide for me someone who can play well, and bring him to me.”
{16:18} And one of the servants, responding, said: “Behold, I have seen the son of Jesse of Bethlehem, a skillful player, and very strong and robust, a man fit for war, and prudent in words, a handsome man. And the Lord is with him.”
{16:19} Therefore, Saul sent messengers to Jesse, saying, “Send to me your son David, who is in the pastures.”
{16:20} And so, Jesse took a donkey laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid from one of the goats, and he sent them, by the hand of his son David, to Saul.
{16:21} And David went to Saul, and stood before him. And he loved him exceedingly, and he made him his armor bearer.
{16:22} And Saul sent to Jesse, saying: “Let David remain before my sight. For he has found favor in my eyes.”
{16:23} And so, whenever the evil spirit from the Lord assailed Saul, David took up his stringed instrument, and he struck it with his hand, and Saul was refreshed and uplifted. For the evil spirit withdrew from him.
{17:1} Now the Philistines, gathering their troops for battle, assembled at Socoh of Judah. And they made camp between Socoh and Azekah, within the borders of Dammim.
{17:2} But Saul and the sons of Israel, having gathered together, went to the Valley of Terebinth. And they positioned the army so as to fight against the Philistines.
{17:3} And the Philistines were standing on a mountain on the one side, and Israel was standing on a mountain on the other side. And there was a valley between them.
{17:4} And there went out from the camp of the Philistines, a man of illegitimate birth, named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a palm.
{17:5} And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clothed with a breastplate of scales. Moreover, the weight of his breastplate was five thousand shekels of brass.
{17:6} And he had plates of brass on his lower legs, and a small shield of brass was covering his shoulders.
{17:7} Now the shaft of his spear was like the beam used by a weaver. And the iron of his spear held six hundred shekels of iron. And his armor bearer went before him.
{17:8} And standing still, he cried out to the battle lines of Israel, and he said to them: “Why have you arrived, prepared for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose one man from among you, and let him descend to do battle alone.
{17:9} If he is able to fight with me and to strike me down, we will be your servants. But if I will prevail over him, and strike him down, you will be the servants, and you will serve us.”
{17:10} And the Philistine was saying: “I have reproached the troops of Israel today. Present a man to me, and let him undertake a fight against me alone.”
{17:11} And Saul and all the Israelites, hearing these words of the Philistine in this manner, were stupefied and exceedingly afraid.
{17:12} Now David was the son of an Ephrathite man, the one mentioned above, from Bethlehem of Judah, whose name was Jesse. He had eight sons, and during the days of Saul, he was an elderly man, and of great age among men.
{17:13} Now his three eldest sons followed Saul into battle. And the names of his three sons, who went to the battle, were Eliab, the firstborn, and the second, Abinadab, and the third Shammah.
{17:14} But David was the youngest. Therefore, when the three eldest had followed Saul,
{17:15} David went away from Saul, and he returned, so that he might pasture the flock of his father at Bethlehem.
{17:16} Truly, the Philistine advanced morning and evening, and he stood forth, for forty days.
{17:17} Now Jesse said to his son David: “Take, for your brothers, an ephah of cooked grain, and these ten loaves, and hurry to the camp, to your brothers.
{17:18} And you shall carry these ten little cheeses to the tribune. And visit your brothers, to see if they are doing well. And learn with whom they have been stationed.”
{17:19} But they were in the valley of Terebinth, with Saul and all the sons of Israel, fighting against the Philistines.
{17:20} And so, David rose up in the morning, and he commended the flock to the caretaker. And he went away burdened, just as Jesse had instructed him. And he went to the place of the battle line, and to the army, which, in going out to fight, was shouting in the conflict.
{17:21} For Israel had positioned their troops, but the Philistines also had prepared themselves against them.
{17:22} Then, leaving the items that he had brought under the hand of the keeper of baggage, David ran to the place of the conflict. And he was asking if all was going well with his brothers.
{17:23} And while he was still speaking with them, there appeared the man of spurious descent, whose name was Goliath, the Philistine of Gath, ascending from the camp of the Philistines. And he was speaking in these same words, which David heard.
{17:24} Then all the Israelites, when they had seen the man, fled from his face, fearing him greatly.
{17:25} And someone of Israel said: “Have you seen this man, who has risen up. For he ascended in order to reproach Israel. Therefore, the man who will strike him down, the king will enrich with great wealth, and will give to him his daughter, and will cause his father’s house to be free of tribute in Israel.”
{17:26} And David spoke to the men who were standing with him, saying: “What will be given to the man who will have struck down this Philistine, and who will have taken away the disgrace from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should reproach the soldiers of the living God?”
{17:27} Then the people repeated to him the same words, saying, “These things shall be given to the man who will have struck him down.”
{17:28} Now when Eliab, his eldest brother, had heard this, as he was speaking with the others, he became angry against David, and he said: “Why did you come here? And why did you leave behind those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and the wickedness of your heart, that you have come down so that you might see the battle.”
{17:29} And David said: “What have I done? Is there any word against me?”
{17:30} And he turned away from him a little, toward another. And he asked the same question. And the people responded to him as before.
{17:31} Now the words that David had spoken were heard and reported in the sight of Saul.
{17:32} When he had been led to Saul, he said to him: “Let no one lose heart over him. I, your servant, shall go and fight against the Philistine.”
{17:33} And Saul said to David: “You are not able to withstand this Philistine, nor to fight against him. For you are a boy, but he has been a warrior from his boyhood.”
{17:34} And David said to Saul: “Your servant was pasturing the flock of his father. And there approached a lion or a bear, and it took a ram from the midst of the flock.
{17:35} And I pursued after them, and I struck them, and I rescued from their mouth. And they rose up against me. And I caught them by the throat, and I strangled and killed them.
{17:36} For I, your servant, have killed both lion and bear. And so this uncircumcised Philistine, too, will be like one of them. Now I will go and take away the reproach of the people. For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, who has dared to curse the army of the living God?”
{17:37} And David said, “The Lord who rescued me from the hand of the lion, and from the hand of the bear, he himself will free me from the hand of this Philistine.” Then Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you.”
{17:38} And Saul clothed David with his garments. And he placed a helmet of brass upon his head, and he clothed him with a breastplate.
{17:39} Then David, having girded his sword over his armor, began to see if he could walk in the armor. But he was not accustomed to it. And David said to Saul: “I cannot move about in this way. For I am not used to it.” And he put them aside.
{17:40} And he took up his staff, which he held always in his hands. And he chose for himself five very smooth stones from the torrent. And he put them into the shepherd’s bag that he had with him. And he took up a sling in his hand. And he went out against the Philistine.
{17:41} And the Philistine, advancing, went and drew near against David. And his armor bearer was before him.
{17:42} And when the Philistine had seen and considered David, he despised him. For he was a youth, ruddy and of handsome appearance.
{17:43} And the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you approach against me with a staff?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
{17:44} And he said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air, and to the beasts of the earth.”
{17:45} But David said to the Philistine: “You approach me with sword, and spear, and shield. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, which you have reproached.
{17:46} Today, the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down. And I will take your head from you. And today, I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air, and to the beasts of the earth, so that all the earth may know that God is with Israel.
{17:47} And this entire assembly will know that the Lord does not save by sword, nor by spear. For this is his war, and he will deliver you into our hands.”
{17:48} Then, when the Philistine had risen up, and was approaching, and was drawing near against David, David hurried and ran to the fight against the Philistine.
{17:49} And he put his hand into his bag, and took out one stone. And swinging it around, he cast it with the sling and struck the Philistine on the forehead. And the stone became imbedded in his forehead. And he fell on his face, upon the ground.
{17:50} And David prevailed against the Philistine with a sling and a stone. And he struck and killed the Philistine. But since David held no sword in his hand,
{17:51} he ran and stood over the Philistine, and he took his sword, and withdrew it from the sheath. And he killed him and cut off his head. Then the Philistines, seeing that their strongest man was dead, fled away.
{17:52} And the men of Israel and Judah, rising up, shouted and pursued after the Philistines, even until they arrived at the valley and as far as the gates of Ekron. And many wounded among the Philistines fell on the way of Shaaraim, and as far as Gath, and as far as Ekron.
{17:53} And the sons of Israel, returning after they had pursued the Philistines, invaded their camp.
{17:54} Then David, taking up the head of the Philistine, brought it to Jerusalem. Yet truly, he placed his armor in his own tent.
{17:55} Now at the time that Saul had seen David going out against the Philistines, he said to Abner, the leader of the military, “From what stock is this youth descended, Abner?” And Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I do not know.”
{17:56} And the king said, “You shall inquire as to whose son this boy may be.”
{17:57} And when David had returned, after the Philistine had been struck down, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul, having the head of the Philistine in his hand.
{17:58} And Saul said to him, “Young man, from what ancestry are you?” And David said, “I am the son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem.”
{18:1} And it happened that, when he had completed speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan adhered to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him like his own soul.
{18:2} And Saul took him that day, and would not permit him to return to his father’s house.
{18:3} Then David and Jonathan formed a pact. For he loved him like his own soul.
{18:4} And Jonathan took off the coat that he was wearing, and he gave it to David, with the rest of his garments, even to his sword and bow, and even his belt.
{18:5} Also, David went out to do everything whatsoever that Saul sent him to do, and he conducted himself prudently. And Saul set him over men of war. And he was acceptable in the eyes of the entire people, and most of all in the sight of the servants of Saul.
{18:6} Now when David returned, after he had struck down the Philistine, the women went out, from all the cities of Israel, leading the singing and dancing, rejoicing with timbrels and bells, so as to meet king Saul.
{18:7} And the women sang, as they played, saying, “Saul has struck down a thousand, and David ten thousand.”
{18:8} Then Saul became exceedingly angry, and this word was displeasing in his eyes. And he said: “They have given David ten thousand, and to me they gave only one thousand. What is left for him, except the kingdom itself?”
{18:9} Therefore, Saul did not regard David with a good eye, from that day and thereafter.
{18:10} Then, on the next day, the evil spirit from God assailed Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of his house. And David played with his hand, just as at every other time. And Saul held a lance in his hand.
{18:11} And he threw it, thinking that he would be able to fix David to the wall. And David stepped aside twice, from before his face.
{18:12} And Saul feared David, because the Lord was with him, but he had withdrawn from Saul.
{18:13} Therefore, Saul sent him away from himself, and he made him tribune over one thousand men. And he entered and departed in the sight of the people.
{18:14} Also, David acted prudently in all his ways, and the Lord was with him.
{18:15} And so, Saul saw that he was exceedingly prudent, and he began to be wary of him.
{18:16} But all of Israel and Judah loved David. For he entered and departed before them.
{18:17} And Saul said to David: “Behold, my elder daughter, Merab. I will give her to you as wife. Only be a valiant man, and fight the wars of the Lord.” Now Saul was considering within himself, saying, “Let not my hand be upon him, but let the hands of the Philistines be upon him.”
{18:18} Then David said to Saul, “Who am I, and what is my life, and what is my father’s kinship within Israel, that I should be the son-in-law of the king?”
{18:19} Then it happened that, at the time when Merab, the daughter of Saul, was to be given to David, she was given to Adriel, the Meholathite, as wife.
{18:20} Now Michal, the other daughter of Saul, loved David. And this was reported to Saul, and it pleased him.
{18:21} And Saul said, “I will give her to him, so that she may be a stumbling block to him, and so that the hand of the Philistines may be upon him.” And Saul said to David, “In two things, you shall be my son-in-law today.”
{18:22} And Saul commanded his servants to speak to David privately, saying: “Behold, you are pleasing to the king, and all his servants love you. Now therefore, be the son-in-law of the king.”
{18:23} And the servants of Saul spoke all these words to the ears of David. And David said: “Does it seem a small matter to you, to be the son-in-law of the king? I am but a poor and unimportant man.”
{18:24} And the servants reported to Saul, saying, “David has spoken words in this manner.”
{18:25} Then Saul said, “Speak in this way to David: The king does not have need of any dowry, but only one hundred foreskins from the Philistine men, so that he may be vindicated from the enemies of the king.” So did Saul think to deliver David into the hands of the Philistines.
{18:26} And when his servants had repeated to David the words that Saul had spoken, the word was pleasing in the eyes of David, so that he would become son-in-law of the king.
{18:27} And after a few days, David, rising up, went with the men who were under him, and he struck down two hundred men of the Philistines. And he brought their foreskins, and he counted them out for the king, so that he might be his son-in-law. And so, Saul gave to him his daughter Michal as wife.
{18:28} And Saul saw and understood that the Lord was with David. And Michal, the daughter of Saul, loved him.
{18:29} And Saul began to fear David all the more. And Saul became the enemy of David, every day.
{18:30} And the leaders of the Philistines departed. And from the beginning of their departure, David conducted himself more prudently than all the servants of Saul, and his name became exceedingly celebrated.
{19:1} Now Saul spoke to his son Jonathan, and to all his servants, so that they would kill David. But Jonathan, the son of Saul, loved David very much.
{19:2} And Jonathan revealed it to David, saying: “Saul, my father, is seeking to kill you. Because of this, I ask you, take care for yourself in the morning. And you should conceal yourself and remain in hiding.
{19:3} Then I, going out, will be standing beside my father in the field, where you will be. And I will speak about you to my father. And whatever I see, I will report to you.”
{19:4} Then Jonathan spoke good things about David to his father Saul. And he said to him: “You should not sin, O king, against your servant David. For he has not sinned against you, and his works toward you are very good.
{19:5} And he took his life in his own hand, and struck down the Philistine. And the Lord wrought a great salvation for all of Israel. You saw it, and you rejoiced. Why then would you sin against innocent blood by killing David, who is without guilt?”
{19:6} And when Saul had heard this, being pleased by the voice of Jonathan, he swore, “As the Lord lives, he shall not be killed.”
{19:7} And so Jonathan called David, and he revealed to him all of these words. And Jonathan led in David to Saul, and he was before him, just as he had been yesterday and the day before.
{19:8} Then the war was stirred up again. And David went out and fought against the Philistines. And he struck them down with a great slaughter. And they fled from his face.
{19:9} And the evil spirit from the Lord came to Saul, who was sitting in his house and holding a lance. And David was playing music with his hand.
{19:10} And Saul attempted to fix David to the wall with the lance. But David turned aside from the face of Saul. And the lance failed to wound him, and it became fixed in the wall. And David fled, and so he was saved that night.
{19:11} Therefore, Saul sent his guards to David’s house, so that they might watch for him, and so that he might be killed in the morning. And after Michal, his wife, had reported this to David, saying, “Unless you save yourself this night, tomorrow you will die,”
{19:12} she lowered him down through a window. Then he fled and went away, and he was saved.
{19:13} Then Michal took a statue, and placed it on the bed. And she placed the pelt of a goat for the hair at its head. And she covered it with clothes.
{19:14} And Saul sent attendants to seize David. And it was answered that he was sick.
{19:15} And again, Saul sent messengers to see David, saying, “Bring him to me on the bed, so that he may be killed.”
{19:16} And when the messengers had arrived, they found a likeness on the bed, with a goat pelt at its head.
{19:17} And Saul said to Michal, “Why have you deceived me in this way, and released my enemy, so that he may flee?” And Michal responded to Saul, “Because he said to me, ‘Release me, otherwise I will kill you.’ ”
{19:18} Now David was saved by fleeing, and he went to Samuel in Ramah. And he reported to him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went away and stayed at Naioth.
{19:19} Then it was reported to Saul by some, saying, “Behold, David is at Naioth, in Ramah.”
{19:20} Therefore, Saul sent officers to seize David. And when they had seen a company of prophets prophesying, with Samuel presiding over them, the Spirit of the Lord also came to them, and they also began to prophesy.
{19:21} And when this was reported to Saul, he sent other messengers. But they also prophesied. And again, Saul sent messengers a third time. And they also prophesied. And Saul, being exceedingly angry,
{19:22} also went to Ramah himself. And he went as far as the great cistern, which is in Socoh. And he inquired and said, “In which place are Samuel and David?” And it was told to him, “Behold, they are at Naioth, in Ramah.”
{19:23} And he went to Naioth, in Ramah, and the Spirit of the Lord came to him also. And he continued on, walking and prophesying, until he arrived at Naioth, in Ramah.
{19:24} And he also took off his garments, and he prophesied with the others before Samuel. And he fell down naked, throughout that day and night. From this, too, is derived the proverb, “Could Saul also be among the prophets?”
{20:1} Then David fled from Naioth, which is in Ramah, and he went and said before Jonathan: “What have I done? What is my iniquity, or what is my sin, against your father, so that he would seek my life?”
{20:2} And he said to him: “May this not be! You shall not die. For my father will not do anything, great or small, without first revealing it to me. Therefore, has my father concealed this word solely from me? By no means shall this be!”
{20:3} And he swore again to David. And David said: “Your father certainly knows that I have found favor in your sight, and so he will say, ‘Let Jonathan not know this, lest he be saddened.’ So truly, as the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, there is only one step (if I may say it) separating me from death.”
{20:4} And Jonathan said to David, “Whatever your soul will tell me, I will do for you.”
{20:5} Then David said to Jonathan: “Behold, tomorrow is the new moon, and I am accustomed to sit in a seat beside the king to eat. Therefore, permit me that I may be hidden in the field, until the evening of the third day.
{20:6} If your father, looking around, will seek me, you shall respond to him: ‘David asked me if he may hurry to Bethlehem, his own city. For there are solemn sacrifices in that place for all of his tribe together.’
{20:7} If he will say, ‘It is well,’ then your servant will have peace. But if he will be angry, know that his malice has reached its height.
{20:8} Therefore, show mercy to your servant. For you have brought me, your servant, into a covenant of the Lord with you. But if there is any iniquity in me, you may kill me, and you shall not lead me in to your father.”
{20:9} And Jonathan said: “May this be far from you. For certainly, if I ever realized that any wickedness was determined by my father against you, I would not be able to do anything other than report it to you.”
{20:10} And David responded to Jonathan, “Who will repeat it to me, if your father may perhaps answer you harshly about me?”
{20:11} And Jonathan said to David, “Come, and let us go out into the field.” And when they both had gone out into the field,
{20:12} Jonathan said before David: “O Lord, God of Israel, if I will discover a decision by my father, tomorrow, or the day after, and if there will be anything good concerning David, and yet I do not immediately send to you and make it known to you,
{20:13} may the Lord do these things to Jonathan, and may he add these other things. But if my father will have persevered in malice against you, I will reveal it to your ear, and I will send you away, so that you may go in peace, and so that the Lord may be with you, just as he was with my father.
{20:14} And if I live, you shall show the mercy of the Lord to me. Yet truly, if I die,
{20:15} you shall not take away your mercy from my house, even forever, when the Lord will have rooted out the enemies of David, each and every one of them, from the earth. May he take Jonathan from his house, and may the Lord require it from the hands of the enemies of David.”
{20:16} Therefore, Jonathan formed a covenant with the house of David. And the Lord required it from the hands of the enemies of David.
{20:17} And Jonathan continued to swear to David, because he loved him. For he loved him like his own soul.
{20:18} And Jonathan said to him: “Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be sought.
{20:19} For your seat will be empty until the day after tomorrow. Therefore, you shall descend quickly, and you shall go to the place where you are to be hidden, on a day when it is lawful to work, and you shall remain beside the stone that is called Ezel.
{20:20} And I will shoot three arrows near it, and I will cast them as if I were practicing for myself toward a mark.
{20:21} Also, I will send a boy, saying to him, ‘Go and bring the arrows to me.’
{20:22} If I will say to the boy, ‘Behold, the arrows are before you, take them up,’ you shall approach before me, because there is peace for you, and there is nothing evil, as the Lord lives. But if I will have spoken to the boy in this way, ‘Behold, the arrows are away from you,’ then you shall go away in peace, for the Lord has released you.
{20:23} Now about the word that you and I have spoken, may the Lord be between you and me, even forever.”
{20:24} Therefore, David was hidden in the field. And the new moon came, and the king sat down to eat bread.
{20:25} And when the king had sat down on his chair, (according to custom) which was beside the wall, Jonathan rose up, and Abner sat beside Saul, and David’s place appeared empty.
{20:26} And Saul did not say anything on that day. For he was thinking that perhaps something happened to him, so that he was not clean, or not purified.
{20:27} And when the second day after the new moon had begun to dawn, David’s place again appeared empty. And Saul said to Jonathan, his son, “Why has the son of Jesse not arrived to eat, neither yesterday, nor today?”
{20:28} And Jonathan responded to Saul, “He petitioned me earnestly that he might go to Bethlehem,
{20:29} and he said: ‘Permit me. For there is a solemn sacrifice in the city. One of my brothers has summoned me. Now therefore, if I have found favor in your eyes, I will go quickly, and I will see my brothers.’ For this reason, he has not come to the table of the king.”
{20:30} Then Saul, becoming angry against Jonathan, said to him: “You son of a woman wantonly seizing a man! Could I be ignorant that you love the son of Jesse, to your own shame, and to the shame of your disgraceful mother?
{20:31} For all the days that the son of Jesse moves upon earth, neither you, nor your kingdom, will be secure. And so, send and bring him to me, here and now. For he is a son of death.”
{20:32} Then Jonathan, answering his father Saul, said: “Why should he die? What has he done?”
{20:33} And Saul picked up a lance, so that he might strike him. And Jonathan understood that it had been decided by his father that David be put to death.
{20:34} Therefore, Jonathan rose up from the table in a rage of anger. And he did not eat bread on the second day after the new moon. For he was saddened over David, because his father had confounded him.
{20:35} And when the morning had begun to dawn, Jonathan went into the field according to the agreement with David, and a young boy was with him.
{20:36} And he said to his boy, “Go, and bring to me the arrows that I shoot.” And when the boy had run, he shot another arrow away from the boy.
{20:37} And so, the boy went to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot. And Jonathan cried out, from behind the back of boy, and said: “Behold, the arrow is there, farther away from you.”
{20:38} And Jonathan cried out again, from behind the back of the boy, saying, “Go quickly! Do not stand still!” Then Jonathan’s boy collected the arrows, and he brought them to his lord.
{20:39} And he did not understand at all what was happening. For only Jonathan and David knew the matter.
{20:40} Then Jonathan gave his weapons to the boy, and he said to him, “Go, and carry them into the city.”
{20:41} And when the boy had gone away, David rose up from his place, which turned toward the south, and falling prone on the ground, he reverenced three times. And kissing one another, they wept together, but David more so.
{20:42} Then Jonathan said to David: “Go in peace. And let us both keep all that we have ever sworn in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘May the Lord be between me and you, and between my offspring and your offspring, even forever.’ ”
{20:43} And David rose up and went away. But Jonathan entered into the city.
{21:1} Then David went into Nob, to the priest Ahimelech. And Ahimelech was astonished that David had arrived. And he said to him, “Why are you alone, and no one is with you?”
{21:2} And David said to the priest Ahimelech: “The king has instructed to me a word, and he said: ‘Let no one know the matter about which you have been sent by me, and what type of instructions I have given to you. For I have also summoned servants to one and another place.’
{21:3} Now therefore, if you have anything at hand, even five loaves of bread, or whatever you may find, give it to me.”
{21:4} And the priest, responding to David, said to him: “I have no common bread at hand, but only holy bread. Are the young men clean, especially from women?”
{21:5} And David responded to the priest, and said to him: “Indeed, as concerns being with women, we have abstained since yesterday and the day before, when we departed, and so the vessels of the young men have been holy. And although, this journey has been defiled, it will also be sanctified today as concerns the vessels.”
{21:6} Therefore, the priest gave to him sanctified bread. For there was no bread there, but only the bread of the Presence, which had been taken away from before the face of the Lord, so that fresh loaves might be set up.
{21:7} Now a certain man among the servants of Saul was there on that day, inside the tabernacle of the Lord. And his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the most powerful among the shepherds of Saul.
{21:8} Then David said to Ahimelech: “Do you have, here at hand, a spear or a sword? For I did not take my own sword, or my own weapons with me. For the word of the king was urgent.”
{21:9} And the priest said: “Behold, here is the sword of Goliath, the Philistine, whom you struck down in the Valley of Terebinth. It is wrapped up in a cloak behind the ephod. If you wish to take this, take it. For there is nothing else here except this.” And David said, “There is nothing else like this, so give it to me.”
{21:10} And so, David rose up, and he fled on that day from the face of Saul. And he went to Achish, the king of Gath.
{21:11} And the servants of Achish, when they had seen David, said to him: “Is this not David, the king of the land? Were they not singing about him, while dancing, saying, ‘Saul has struck down a thousand, and David ten thousand?’ ”
{21:12} Then David took these words to his heart, and he became exceedingly afraid before the face of Achish, the king of Gath.
{21:13} And he altered his mouth before them, and he slipped down between their hands. And he stumbled against the doors of the gate. And his spit flowed down his beard.
{21:14} And Achish said to his servants: “You saw that the man is insane. Why did you bring him to me?
{21:15} Or do we have need of those who are mad, so that you would bring in this one, to behave madly in my presence? How did this man get into my house?”
{22:1} Then David went away from there, and he fled to the cave of Adullam. And when his brothers and all of his father’s house had heard of it, they descended to him there.
{22:2} And all those left in distress, or oppressed by debt to strangers, or bitter in soul, gathered themselves to him. And he became their leader, and about four hundred men were with him.
{22:3} And David set out from there to Mizpah, which is of Moab. And he said to the king of Moab, “I beg you, let my father and my mother remain with you, until I know what God will do for me.”
{22:4} And he left them before the face of the king of Moab. And they stayed with him for all the days that David was in the stronghold.
{22:5} And the prophet Gad said to David: “Do not choose to stay in the stronghold. Set out and go into the land of Judah.” And so, David set out, and he went into the forest of Hereth.
{22:6} And Saul heard that David, and the men who were with him, had been seen. Now while Saul was staying in Gibeah, and while he was in the forest that is in Ramah, holding a spear in his hand, with all his servants standing around him,
{22:7} he said to his servants who were assisting him: “Listen now, you sons of Benjamin! Will the son of Jesse give to all of you fields and vineyards, and will he make all of you tribunes or centurions,
{22:8} so that you would all conspire against me, and so that there is no one to inform me, especially when even my son has formed a pact with the son of Jesse? There is no one among you who grieves for my situation, or who would report to me. For my son has raised up my servant against me, seeking to betray me, even to this day.”
{22:9} Then Doeg, the Edomite, who was standing near, and who was first among the servants of Saul, responding, said: “I saw the son of Jesse, in Nob, with Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, the priest.
{22:10} And he consulted the Lord for him, and he gave him food. Moreover, he gave him the sword of Goliath, the Philistine.”
{22:11} Then the king sent to summon Ahimelech, the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all of his father’s house, the priests who were in Nob, and they all came before the king.
{22:12} And Saul said to Ahimelech, “Listen, son of Ahitub.” He responded, “Here I am, lord.”
{22:13} And Saul said to him: “Why have you conspired against me, you and the son of Jesse? For you gave him bread and a sword, and you consulted the Lord for him, so that he might rise up against me, continuing as a traitor even to this day.”
{22:14} And responding to the king, Ahimelech said: “But who among all your servants is as faithful as David? And he is the son-in-law of the king, and he goes forth at your order, and he is a glory within your house.
{22:15} Did I begin to consult the Lord for him today? May this be far from me! Let not the king suspect this kind of thing against his servant, nor against anyone in all my father’s house. For your servant did not know anything about this matter, either small or great.”
{22:16} And the king said, “You shall die a death, Ahimelech, you and all your father’s house!”
{22:17} And the king said to the emissaries who were standing around him: “You shall turn, and put to death the priests of the Lord. For their hand is with David. They knew that he had fled, and they did not reveal it to me.” But the servants of the king were not willing to extend their hands against the priests of the Lord.
{22:18} And the king said to Doeg, “You shall turn and rush against the priests.” And Doeg, the Edomite, turned and rushed against the priests. And he massacred, on that day, eighty-five men, vested with the linen ephod.
{22:19} Then he struck Nob, the city of the priests, with the edge of the sword; he struck down men and women, little ones and infants, as well as ox and donkey and sheep, with the edge of the sword.
{22:20} But one of the sons of Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub, whose name was Abiathar, escaping, fled to David.
{22:21} And he reported to him that Saul had slain the priests of the Lord.
{22:22} And David said to Abiathar: “I knew, on that day when Doeg, the Edomite was there, that without doubt he would report it to Saul. I am guilty of all the souls of your father’s house.
{22:23} You should remain with me. Do not be afraid. For he who seeks my life, seeks your life also, but with me you shall be saved.”
{23:1} And they reported to David, saying, “Behold, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah, and they are plundering the grain stores.”
{23:2} Therefore, David consulted the Lord, saying, “Shall I go and strike down these Philistines?” And the Lord said to David, “Go, and you shall strike down the Philistines, and you shall save Keilah.”
{23:3} And the men who were with David said to him, “Behold, we continue in fear here in Judea; how much more so, if we go into Keilah against the troops of the Philistines?”
{23:4} Therefore, David consulted the Lord again. And responding, he said to him: “Rise up, and go into Keilah. For I will deliver the Philistines into your hand.”
{23:5} Therefore, David and his men went into Keilah. And they fought against the Philistines, and they took away their cattle, and they struck them with a great slaughter. And David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.
{23:6} And in that time, when Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, was in exile with David, he had descended to Keilah, having an ephod with him.
{23:7} Then it was reported to Saul that David had gone to Keilah. And Saul said: “The Lord has delivered him into my hands. For he is enclosed, having entered into a city which has gates and bars.”
{23:8} And Saul instructed all the people to descend in order to fight against Keilah, and to besiege David and his men.
{23:9} And when David had realized that Saul had secretly prepared evil against him, he said to Abiathar, the priest, “Bring the ephod.”
{23:10} And David said: “O Lord God of Israel, your servant has heard a report that Saul is planning to go to Keilah, so that he may overturn the city because of me.
{23:11} Will the men of Keilah deliver me into his hands? And will Saul descend, just as your servant has heard? O Lord God of Israel, reveal to your servant.” And the Lord said, “He will descend.”
{23:12} And David said, “Will the men of Keilah deliver me, and the men who are with me, into the hands of Saul?” And the Lord said, “They will deliver you.”
{23:13} Therefore, David, and his men of about six hundred, rose up, and, departing from Keilah, they wandered here and there, aimlessly. And it was reported to Saul that David had fled from Keilah, and was saved. For this reason, he chose not to go out.
{23:14} Then David stayed in the desert, in very strong places. And he stayed on a mount in the wilderness of Ziph, on a shady mount. Nevertheless, Saul was seeking him every day. But the Lord did not deliver him into his hands.
{23:15} And David saw that Saul had gone out, so that he might seek his life. Now David was in the desert of Ziph, in the woods.
{23:16} And Jonathan, the son of Saul, rose up and went to David in the woods, and he strengthened his hands in God. And he said to him:
{23:17} “Do not be afraid. For the hand of my father, Saul, will not find you. And you shall reign over Israel. And I will be second to you. And even my father knows this.”
{23:18} Therefore, they both struck a pact before the Lord. And David stayed in the woods. But Jonathan returned to his house.
{23:19} Then the Ziphites ascended to Saul at Gibeah, saying: “Behold, is not David hidden with us in very secure places in the woods on the hill of Hachilah, which is to the right of the desert?
{23:20} Now therefore, if your soul has desired to descend, then descend. Then it will be for us to deliver him into the hands of the king.”
{23:21} And Saul said: “You have been blessed by the Lord. For you have grieved for my situation.
{23:22} Therefore, I beg you, go forth, and prepare diligently, and act carefully. And consider the place where his foot may be, and who may have seen him there. For he thinks, concerning me, that I craftily plan treachery against him.
{23:23} Consider and seek out all his hiding places, in which he may be concealed. And return to me with certainty about the matter, so that I may go with you. But if he would even press himself into the earth, I will search him out, amid all the thousands of Judah.”
{23:24} And rising up, they went to Ziph before Saul. But David and his men were in the desert of Maon, in the plain to the right of Jeshimon.
{23:25} Then Saul and his allies went to seek him. And this was reported to David. And immediately, he descended to the rock, and he moved about in the desert of Maon. And when Saul had heard of it, he pursued David in the desert of Maon.
{23:26} And Saul went to one side of the mountain. But David and his men were on the other side of the mountain. Then David was despairing that he would be able to escape from the face of Saul. And Saul and his men enclosed David and his men in the manner of a crown, so that they might capture them.
{23:27} And a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Hurry and come, because the Philistines have poured themselves out upon the land.”
{23:28} Therefore, Saul turned back, ceasing in the pursuit of David, and he traveled to meet the Philistines. For this reason, they called that place, the Rock of Division.
{24:1} Then David ascended from there, and he lived in very secure places in Engedi.
{24:2} And when Saul had returned after pursuing the Philistines, they reported to him, saying, “Behold, David is in the desert of Engedi.”
{24:3} Therefore, Saul, taking three thousand elect men from all of Israel, traveled in order to search for David and his men, even upon the most broken rocks, which are passable only to mountain goats.
{24:4} And he arrived at the sheepfolds, which presented themselves along the way. And a cave was in that place, which Saul entered, so that he might ease his bowels. But David and his men were hiding in the interior part of the cave.
{24:5} And the servants of David said to him: “Behold the day, about which the Lord said to you, ‘I will deliver your enemy to you, so that you may do to him as it will be pleasing in your eyes.’ ” Then David rose up, and he quietly cut off the edge of Saul’s cloak.
{24:6} After this, his own heart struck David, because he had cut off the edge of Saul’s cloak.
{24:7} And he said to his men: “May the Lord be gracious to me, lest I do this thing to my lord, the Christ of the Lord, so that I lay my hand upon him. For he is the Christ of the Lord.”
{24:8} And David restrained his men with his words, and he would not permit them to rise up against Saul. And so Saul, going out of the cave, continued to undertake his journey.
{24:9} Then David also rose up after him. And departing from the cave, he cried out behind the back of Saul, saying: “My lord, the king!” And Saul looked behind him. And David, bowing himself face down to the ground, reverenced.
{24:10} And he said to Saul: “Why do you listen to the words of men who say: ‘David seeks evil against you?’
{24:11} Behold, this day your eyes have seen that the Lord has delivered you into my hand, in the cave. And I thought that I might kill you. But my eye has spared you. For I said: I will not extend my hand against my lord, for he is the Christ of the Lord.
{24:12} Moreover, see and know, O my father, the edge of your cloak in my hand. For though I cut off the top of your cloak, I was not willing to extend my hand against you. Turn your soul and see that there is no evil in my hand, nor any iniquity or sin against you. Yet you lie in wait for my life, so that you may take it away.
{24:13} May the Lord judge between me and you. And may the Lord vindicate me from you. But my hand will not be against you.
{24:14} So too, it is said in the ancient proverb, ‘From the impious, impiety will go forth.’ Therefore, my hand will not be upon you.
{24:15} Whom are you pursuing, O king of Israel? Whom are you pursuing? You are pursuing a dead dog, a single flea.
{24:16} May the Lord be the judge, and may he judge between me and you. And may he see and judge my case, and rescue me from your hand.”
{24:17} And when David had completed speaking words in this way to Saul, Saul said, “Could this be your voice, my son David?” And Saul lifted up his voice, and he wept.
{24:18} And he said to David: “You are more just than I am. For you have distributed good to me, but I have repaid evil to you.
{24:19} And you have revealed this day the good that you have done for me: how the Lord delivered me into your hand, but you did not kill me.
{24:20} For who, when he will have found his enemy, will release him along a good path? So may the Lord repay you for this good turn, because you have acted on my behalf this day.
{24:21} And now I know certainly that you shall be king, and you shall have the kingdom of Israel in your hand.
{24:22} Swear to me in the Lord that you will not take away my offspring after me, nor take away my name from the house of my father.”
{24:23} And David swore to Saul. Therefore, Saul went away to his own house. And David and his men ascended to places that were more secure.
{25:1} Then Samuel died, and all of Israel gathered together, and they mourned him. And they buried him at his house in Ramah. And David, rising up, descended to the desert of Paran.
{25:2} Now there was a certain man in the wilderness of Maon, and his possessions were at Carmel. And this man was exceedingly great. And three thousand sheep, and one thousand goats were his. And it happened that he was shearing his sheep at Carmel.
{25:3} Now the name of this man was Nabal. And the name of his wife was Abigail. And she was a very prudent and beautiful woman. But her husband was hard-hearted, and very wicked, and malicious. And he was of the stock of Caleb.
{25:4} Therefore, when David, in the desert, had heard that Nabal was shearing his sheep,
{25:5} he sent ten young men, and he said to them: “Ascend to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name peacefully.
{25:6} And you shall say: ‘Peace be to my brothers and to you, and peace to your house, and peace to whatever you have.
{25:7} I have heard that your shepherds, who were with us in the desert, were shearing. We have never troubled them, nor was anything from the flock missing to them at any time, during the entire time that they have been with us in Carmel.
{25:8} Question your servants, and they will tell you. Now therefore, may your servants find favor in your eyes. For we have arrived on a good day. Whatever your hand will find, give it to your servants and to your son David.’ ”
{25:9} And when the servants of David had arrived, they spoke to Nabal all these words in the name of David. And then they were silent.
{25:10} But Nabal, responding to the servants of David, said: “Who is David? And who is the son of Jesse? Today, servants who are fleeing from their lords are increasing.
{25:11} Therefore, shall I take my bread, and my water, and the meat of the cattle that I have slain for my shearers, and give it to men, when I do not know where they are from?”
{25:12} And so the servants of David traveled back along their way. And returning, they went and reported to him all the words that he had said.
{25:13} Then David said to his servants, “Let each one gird his sword.” And each one girded his sword. And David also girded his sword. And about four hundred men followed David. But two hundred remained behind with the supplies.
{25:14} Then it was reported to Abigail, the wife of Nabal, by one of his servants, saying: “Behold, David has sent messengers from the desert, so that they might speak kindly to our lord. But he turned them away.
{25:15} These men were good enough to us, and were not troublesome. Neither did we ever lose anything, during the entire time that we conversed with them in the desert.
{25:16} They were a wall to us, as much in the night as in the day, during all the days that we were with them, pasturing the sheep.
{25:17} For this reason, consider and realize what you should do. For evil has been decided against your husband and against your house. And he is a son of Belial, so that no one is able to speak to him.”
{25:18} And so Abigail hurried, and she took two hundred loaves, and two vessels of wine, and five cooked sheep, and five measures of cooked grain, and one hundred clusters of dried grapes, and two hundred masses of dried figs, and she set them upon donkeys.
{25:19} And she said to her servants: “Go before me. Behold, I will follow after your back.” But she did not reveal it to her husband, Nabal.
{25:20} And when she had climbed on a donkey, and was descending to the base of the mountain, David and his men were descending to meet her. And she met them.
{25:21} And David said: “Truly, in vain have I preserved all that was his in the wilderness, so that nothing perished out of all that belonged to him. And he has repaid evil to me for good.
{25:22} May God do these things, by the enemies of David, and may he add these other things, if I leave behind until morning, out of all that belongs to him, anything that urinates against a wall.”
{25:23} Then, when Abigail had seen David, she hurried and descended from the donkey. And she fell upon her face before David, and she reverenced on the ground.
{25:24} And she fell at his feet, and she said: “May this iniquity be upon me, my lord. I beg you, let your handmaid speak to your ears, and listen to the words of your servant.
{25:25} Let not my lord, the king, I beseech you, set his heart upon this iniquitous man, Nabal. For in accord with his name, he is senseless, and foolishness is with him. But I, your handmaid, did not see your servants, my lord, whom you had sent.
{25:26} Now therefore, my lord, as your soul lives, and as the Lord lives, who has kept your hand to yourself, and has prevented you from coming to blood: now, let your enemies be like Nabal, and like all those who are seeking evil for my lord.
{25:27} Because of this, accept this blessing, which your handmaid has brought to you, my lord. And give it to the young men who follow you, my lord.
{25:28} Forgive the iniquity of your handmaid. For the Lord will surely make for you, my lord, a faithful house, because you, my lord, fight the battles of the Lord. Therefore, let no evil be found in you all the days of your life.
{25:29} For if a man, at any time, will rise up, pursuing you and seeking your life, the life of my lord will be preserved, as if in the sheave of the living, with the Lord your God. But the lives of your enemies will be spun around, as if with the force of a whirling sling.
{25:30} Therefore, when the Lord will have done for you, my lord, all the good that he has spoken about you, and when he will have appointed you as leader over Israel,
{25:31} this will not be for you a regret or a scruple of the heart, my lord, that you had shed innocent blood, or had taken revenge for yourself. And when the Lord will have done well for my lord, you shall remember your handmaid.”
{25:32} And David said to Abigail: “Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me. And blessed is your eloquence.
{25:33} And blessed are you, who prevented me today from going to blood, and from taking revenge for myself with my own hand.
{25:34} But instead, as the Lord God of Israel lives, he has prevented me from doing evil to you. But if you had not come quickly to meet me, there would not have been left to Nabal by the morning light, anything that urinates against a wall.”
{25:35} Then David received from her hand all that she had brought to him. And he said to her: “Go in peace to your own house. Behold, I have heeded your voice, and I have honored your face.”
{25:36} Then Abigail went to Nabal. And behold, he was holding a feast for himself in his house, like the feast of a king. And the heart of Nabal was cheerful. For he was greatly inebriated. And she did not reveal a word to him, small or great, until morning.
{25:37} Then, at first light, when Nabal had digested his wine, his wife revealed to him these words, and his heart died within himself, and he became like a stone.
{25:38} And after ten days had passed, the Lord struck Nabal, and he died.
{25:39} And when David had heard that Nabal was dead, he said: “Blessed is the Lord, who has judged the case of my reproach at the hand of Nabal, and who has preserved his servant from evil. And the Lord has repaid the malice of Nabal upon his own head.” Then David sent and he spoke with Abigail, so that he might take her to himself as wife.
{25:40} And David’s servants went to Abigail at Carmel, and they spoke to her, saying, “David has sent us to you, so that he might take you to himself as wife.”
{25:41} And rising up, she reverenced prone on the ground, and she said, “Behold, let your servant be a handmaid, to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.”
{25:42} And Abigail rose up and hurried, and she climbed upon a donkey, and five girls went with her, her attendants. And she followed the messengers of David, and she became his wife.
{25:43} Moreover, David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel. And both of them were his wives.
{25:44} Then Saul gave his daughter Michal, the wife of David, to Palti, the son of Laish, who was from Gallim.
{26:1} And the Ziphites went to Saul at Gibeah, saying: “Behold, David is hidden on the hill of Hachilah, which is opposite the wilderness.”
{26:2} And Saul rose up, and he descended into the desert of Ziph, and with him three thousand elect men of Israel, so that he might seek David in the desert of Ziph.
{26:3} And Saul encamped at Gibeah on Hachilah, which was opposite the wilderness on the way. But David was living in the desert. Then, seeing that Saul had arrived after him in the wilderness,
{26:4} he sent explorers, and he learned that he certainly had arrived in that place.
{26:5} And David rose up secretly, and he went to the place where Saul was. And when he had seen the place where Saul was sleeping, and Abner, the son of Ner, the leader of his military, and Saul sleeping in a tent, and the remainder of the common people all around him,
{26:6} David spoke to Ahimelech, the Hittite, and to Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, the brother of Joab, saying, “Who will descend with me to Saul in the camp?” And Abishai said, “I will descend with you.”
{26:7} Therefore, David and Abishai went to the people by night, and they found Saul lying down and sleeping in the tent, with his spear fixed in the ground at his head. And Abner and the people were sleeping all around him.
{26:8} And Abishai said to David: “God has enclosed your enemy this day in your hands. Now therefore, I will pierce him with my lance, through to the ground, once, and there will not need to be a second.”
{26:9} And David said to Abishai: “You shall not kill him. For who may extend his hand against the Christ of the Lord, and yet be innocent?”
{26:10} And David said: “As the Lord lives, unless the Lord himself will strike him, or unless his day to die will have arrived, or unless, descending into battle, he will perish,
{26:11} may the Lord be gracious to me, so that I may not extend my hand against the Christ of the Lord. Now therefore, take the spear that is at his head, and the cup of water, and let us go.”
{26:12} And so, David took the spear, and the cup of water that was at Saul’s head, and they went away. And there was no one who saw it, or realized it, or awakened, but they were all sleeping. For a deep sleep from the Lord had fallen over them.
{26:13} And when David had crossed over to the opposite side, and had stood upon the top of the hill far away, so that there was a great interval between them,
{26:14} David cried out to the people, and to Abner, the son of Ner, saying, “Will you not respond, Abner?” And responding, Abner said, “Who are you, that you would cry out and disquiet the king?”
{26:15} And David said to Abner: “Are you not a man? And who else is like you in Israel? Then why have you not guarded your lord the king? For one of the people entered, so that he might kill the king, your lord.
{26:16} This is not good, what you have done. As the Lord lives, you are sons of death, because you have not guarded your lord, the Christ of the Lord. Now therefore, where is the king’s spear, and where is the cup of water that was at his head?”
{26:17} Then Saul recognized the voice of David, and he said, “Is this not your voice, my son David?” And David said, “It is my voice, my lord the king.”
{26:18} And he said: “For what reason has my lord pursued his servant? What have I done? Or what evil is there in my hand?
{26:19} Now therefore, listen, I beg you, my lord the king, to the words of your servant. If the Lord has stirred you up against me, let him make the sacrifice fragrant. But if the sons of men have done so, they are accursed in the sight of the Lord, who has cast me out this day, so that I would not live within the inheritance of the Lord, saying, ‘Go, serve strange gods.’
{26:20} And now, let not my blood be poured out upon the earth before the Lord. For the king of Israel has gone out, so that he might seek a flea, just as the partridge is pursued amid the mountains.”
{26:21} And Saul said: “I have sinned. Return, my son David. For I will never again do evil to you, because my life has been precious in your eyes this day. For it is apparent that I have acted senselessly, and have been ignorant of very many things.”
{26:22} And responding, David said: “Behold, the king’s spear. Let one of the servants of the king cross over and take it.
{26:23} And the Lord will repay each one according to his justice and faith. For the Lord has delivered you this day into my hand, but I was not willing to extend my hand against the Christ of the Lord.
{26:24} And just as your soul has been magnified this day in my eyes, so let my soul be magnified in the eyes of the Lord, and may he free me from all distress.”
{26:25} Then Saul said to David: “You are blessed, my son David. And whatever you may do, it shall certainly succeed.” And David departed on his way. And Saul returned to his place.
{27:1} And David said in his heart: “At some time, I will one day fall into the hands of Saul. Is it not better if I flee, and be saved in the land of the Philistines, so that Saul may despair and cease to seek me in all the parts of Israel? Therefore, I will flee away from his hands.”
{27:2} And David rose up and went away, he and the six hundred men who were with him, to Achish, the son of Maoch, the king of Gath.
{27:3} And David lived with Achish at Gath, he and his men: each man with his household, and David with his two wives, Ahinoam, the Jezreelite, and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel.
{27:4} And it was reported to Saul that David had fled to Gath. And so, he did not continue to seek him.
{27:5} And David said to Achish: “If I have found favor in your eyes, let a place be given to me in one of the cities of this region, so that I may live there. For why should your servant stay in the city of the king with you?”
{27:6} And so, Achish gave Ziklag to him on that day. And for this reason, Ziklag belongs to the kings of Judah, even to this day.
{27:7} Now the number of days that David lived in the region of the Philistines was four months.
{27:8} And David and his men went up and took plunder from Geshuri, and from Girzi, and from the Amalekites. For in the land long ago, these were the inhabitants of the area, going from Shur as far as the land of Egypt.
{27:9} And David struck the entire land. Neither did he leave alive man or woman. And he took away the sheep, and the oxen, and the donkeys, and the camels, and the garments. And he returned and went to Achish.
{27:10} Then Achish said to him, “Whom did you go out against today?” And David responded, “Against the south of Judah, and against the south of Jerahmeel, and against the south of Keni.”
{27:11} Neither man nor woman was left alive by David. Neither did he lead back any of them to Gath, saying, “Lest perhaps they may speak against us.” David did these things. And this was his decision during all the days that he lived in the region of the Philistines.
{27:12} Therefore, Achish trusted David, saying: “He has worked much harm against his people Israel. And so, he will be a servant to me forever.”
{28:1} Now it happened that, in those days, the Philistines gathered together their troops, so that they might be prepared for war against Israel. And Achish said to David, “I know now, certainly, that you will go out with me to war, you and your men.”
{28:2} And David said to Achish, “You know now what your servant will do.” And Achish said to David, “And so, I will appoint you to guard my head for all days.”
{28:3} Now Samuel was dead, and all of Israel mourned for him, and they buried him in Ramah, his city. And Saul took away the magi and soothsayers from the land.
{28:4} And the Philistines gathered together, and they arrived and made camp at Shunem. Then Saul also gathered all of Israel, and he arrived at Gilboa.
{28:5} And Saul saw the camp of the Philistines, and he was afraid, and his heart was exceedingly terrified.
{28:6} And he consulted the Lord. But he did not respond to him, neither by dreams, nor by priests, nor by prophets.
{28:7} And Saul said to his servants, “Seek for me a woman having a divining spirit, and I will go to her, and consult through her.” And his servants said to him, “There is a woman having a divining spirit at Endor.”
{28:8} Therefore, he changed his usual appearance, and he put on other clothes. And he went, and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night. And he said to her, “Divine for me, by your divining spirit, and raise up for me whomever I will tell you.”
{28:9} And the woman said to him: “Behold, you know how much Saul has done, and how he has wiped away the magi and soothsayers from the land. Why then do you set a trap for my life, so that it will be put to death?”
{28:10} And Saul swore to her by the Lord, saying, “As the Lord lives, nothing evil will befall you because of this matter.”
{28:11} And the woman said to him, “Whom shall I raise up for you?” And he said, “Raise up for me Samuel.”
{28:12} And when the woman had seen Samuel, she cried out with a loud voice, and she said to Saul: “Why have you afflicted me? For you are Saul!”
{28:13} And the king said to her: “Do not be afraid. What have you seen?” And the woman said to Saul, “I saw gods ascending from the earth.”
{28:14} And he said to her, “What appearance does he have?” And she said, “An old man ascends, and he is clothed in a cloak.” And Saul understood that it was Samuel. And he bowed himself upon his face on the ground, and he reverenced.
{28:15} Then Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disquieted me, so that I would be raised up?” And Saul said: “I am greatly distressed. For the Philistines fight against me, and God has withdrawn from me, and he is not willing to heed me, neither by the hand of prophets, nor by dreams. Therefore, I have summoned you, so that you would reveal to me what I should do.”
{28:16} And Samuel said, “Why do you question me, though the Lord has withdrawn from you, and has crossed over to your rival?
{28:17} For the Lord will do to you just as he spoke by my hand. And he will tear your kingdom from your hand. And he will give it to your neighbor David.
{28:18} For you did not obey the voice of the Lord, and you did not carry out the wrath of his fury upon Amalek. For this reason, the Lord has done to you what you are enduring this day.
{28:19} And the Lord also will give Israel into the hands of the Philistines, along with you. Then tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. But the Lord will also deliver the camp of Israel into the hands of the Philistines.”
{28:20} And immediately, Saul fell stretched out on the ground. For he was terrified by the words of Samuel. And there was no strength in him. For he had not eaten bread all that day.
{28:21} And so, the woman entered to Saul, (for he was very troubled) and she said to him: “Behold, your handmaid has obeyed your voice, and I have placed my life in my hand. And I have heeded the words which you spoke to me.
{28:22} And so now, I ask you to heed the voice of your handmaid, and let me place before you a morsel of bread, so that, by eating, you may recover strength, and you may be able to undertake the journey.”
{28:23} But he refused, and he said, “I will not eat.” But his servants and the woman urged him, and after some time, heeding their voice, he rose up from the ground, and he sat upon the bed.
{28:24} Now the woman had a fatted calf in the house, and she hurried and killed it. And taking meal, she kneaded it, and she baked unleavened bread.
{28:25} And she set it before Saul and before his servants. And when they had eaten, they rose up, and they walked all through that night.
{29:1} Then all the troops of the Philistines were gathered together at Aphek. But Israel also made camp, above the spring which is in Jezreel.
{29:2} And indeed, the princes of the Philistines advanced by hundreds and by thousands; but David and his men were in the rear with Achish.
{29:3} And the leaders of the Philistines said to Achish, “What do these Hebrews intend to do?” And Achish said to the leaders of the Philistines: “Could you be ignorant about David, who was the servant of Saul, the king of Israel, and who has been with me for many days, even years, and I have not found within him anything, from the day that he fled to me, even to this day?”
{29:4} Then the leaders of the Philistines became angry against him, and they said to him: “Let this man return, and let him settle in his place, which you appointed for him. But let him not descend with us to battle, lest he become an adversary to us when we begin to fight. For in what other way will he be able to please his lord, except with our heads?
{29:5} Is not this the David, about whom they were singing, while dancing, saying: ‘Saul struck down his thousands, but David his ten thousands?’ ”
{29:6} Therefore, Achish called David, and he said to him: “As the Lord lives, you are good and righteous in my sight, even in your departure and your return with me in the military camp. And I have not found anything evil in you, from the day that you came to me, even to this day. But you are not pleasing to the princes.
{29:7} Therefore, return, and go in peace, so that you do not offend the eyes of the princes of the Philistines.”
{29:8} And David said to Achish, “But what have I done, or what have you found in me, your servant, from the day that I was in your sight to this day, so that I may not go out and fight against the enemies of my lord, the king?”
{29:9} And in response, Achish said to David: “I know that you are good in my sight, like an angel of God. But the leaders of the Philistines have said: ‘He shall not go up with us to the battle.’
{29:10} And so, rise up in the morning, you and the servants of your lord who came with you. And when you have risen up in the night, as it begins to be light, go forth.”
{29:11} And so David rose up in the night, he and his men, so that they might set out in the morning. And they returned to the land of the Philistines. But the Philistines ascended to Jezreel.
{30:1} And when David and his men had arrived at Ziklag on the third day, the Amalekites had made an attack on the south side against Ziklag. And they had struck Ziklag, and burned it with fire.
{30:2} And they had led the women in it away as captives, from the small to the great. And they had not killed anyone, but they led them away with them. And then they traveled on their journey.
{30:3} Therefore, when David and his men had arrived at the city, and had found it burned with fire, and that their wives and their sons and daughters had been led away as captives,
{30:4} David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices. And they mourned until the tears in them failed.
{30:5} For indeed, the two wives of David also had been led away as captives: Ahinoam, the Jezreelite, and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel.
{30:6} And David was greatly saddened. And the people were willing to stone him, because the soul of every man was bitter over his sons and daughters. But David was strengthened by the Lord his God.
{30:7} And he said to the priest Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech, “Bring the ephod to me.” And Abiathar brought the ephod to David.
{30:8} And David consulted the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue these robbers, and will I overtake them, or not?” And the Lord said to him: “Pursue. For without doubt, you will overtake them and find the prey.”
{30:9} Therefore, David went away, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and they arrived as far as the torrent Besor. And certain ones, being weary, stayed there.
{30:10} But David pursued, he and four hundred men. For two hundred stayed, who, being weary, were not able to cross the torrent Besor.
{30:11} And they found an Egyptian man in the field, and they led him to David. And they gave him bread, so that he might eat, and water, so that he might drink,
{30:12} and also a section of a mass of dried figs, and two clusters of dried grapes. And when he had eaten, his spirit returned, and he was refreshed. For he had not eaten bread, nor drank water, for three days and three nights.
{30:13} And so David said to him: “To whom do you belong? Or where are you from? And where are you going?” And he said: “I am a young man of Egypt, the servant of an Amalekite man. But my lord abandoned me, because I began to be sick the day before yesterday.
{30:14} For indeed, we broke forth to the southern side of Cherethi, and against Judah, and to the south of Caleb, and we burned Ziklag with fire.”
{30:15} And David said to him, “Are you able to lead me to this battle line?” And he said, “Swear to me by God that you will not kill me, and that you will not deliver me into the hands of my lord, and I will lead you to this battle line.” And David swore to him.
{30:16} And when he had led him, behold, they were stretched out on the face of the land everywhere, eating and drinking and celebrating, as if it were a feast day, because of all the prey and spoils that they had taken from the land of the Philistines, and from the land of Judah.
{30:17} And David struck them down from evening until the evening of the next day. And no one among them escaped, except four hundred youths, who had climbed on camels and fled.
{30:18} Therefore, David rescued all that the Amalekites had taken, and he rescued his two wives.
{30:19} And nothing was missing, from small even to great, among the sons and daughters, and among the spoils, and among everything whatsoever that they had seized. David returned it all.
{30:20} And he took all the flocks and the herds, and he drove them before his face. And they said, “This is the prey of David.”
{30:21} Then David arrived at the two hundred men, who, being weary, had stayed, for they had not been able to follow David, and he had ordered them to remain at the torrent Besor. And they went out to meet David, and the people who were with him. Then David, drawing near to the people, greeted them peacefully.
{30:22} And all the wicked and iniquitous men, out of the men who had gone with David, responding, said: “Since they did not go with us, we will not give to them anything from the prey that we have rescued. But let his wife and children be enough for each of them; when they have accepted this, they may go back.”
{30:23} But David said: “You shall not do this, my brothers, with these things that the Lord has delivered to us, for he has preserved us, and he has given into our hands the robbers who broke out among us.
{30:24} And so, let no one heed you over these words. But equal shall be the portion of him who descended to the battle, and of him who remained with the supplies, and they will divide it alike.”
{30:25} And this has been done from that day and thereafter. And it was established as a statute, and as if a law, in Israel even to this day.
{30:26} Then David went to Ziklag, and he sent gifts from the prey to the elders of Judah, his neighbors, saying, “Receive a blessing from the prey of the enemies of the Lord,”
{30:27} to those who were in Bethel, and who were in Ramoth toward the south, and who were in Jattir,
{30:28} and who were in Aroer, and who were in Siphmoth, and who were in Eshtemoa,
{30:29} and who were in Racal, and who were in the cities of Jerahmeel, and who were in the cities of Keni,
{30:30} and who were in Hormah, and who were at the lake of Ashan, and who were in Athach,
{30:31} and who were in Hebron, and to the remainder who were in those places where David had stayed, he and his men.
{31:1} Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel. And the men of Israel fled before the face of the Philistines, and they fell down slain on mount Gilboa.
{31:2} And the Philistines rushed upon Saul, and upon his sons, and they struck down Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua, the sons of Saul.
{31:3} And the entire weight of the battle was turned against Saul. And the men who were archers pursued him. And he was severely wounded by the archers.
{31:4} Then Saul said to his armor bearer, “Draw your sword and strike me, otherwise these uncircumcised may come and kill me, mocking me.” And his armor bearer was not willing. For he had been struck with an exceedingly great fear. And so, Saul took his own sword, and he fell upon it.
{31:5} And when his armor bearer had seen this, namely, that Saul had died, he too fell upon his sword, and he died with him.
{31:6} Therefore, Saul died, and his three sons, and his armor bearer, and all his men, on the same day together.
{31:7} Then, seeing that the men of the Israelites had fled, and that Saul had died with his sons, the men of Israel who were across the valley or beyond the Jordan abandoned their cities, and they fled. And the Philistines went and lived there.
{31:8} Then, when the next day arrived, the Philistines came, so that they might despoil the slain. And they found Saul and his three sons lying on mount Gilboa.
{31:9} And they cut off the head of Saul. And they despoiled him of the armor, and they sent it into the land of the Philistines all around, so that it might be announced in the temples of the idols and among their people.
{31:10} And they placed his armor in the temple of Ashtaroth. But his body they suspended on the wall of Bethshan.
{31:11} And when the inhabitants of Jabesh Gilead had heard all that the Philistines had done to Saul,
{31:12} all the most valiant men rose up, and they walked all night, and they took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Bethshan. And they went to Jabesh Gilead, and they burned them there.
{31:13} And they took their bones, and they buried them in the forest of Jabesh. And they fasted for seven days.
{1:1} Now it happened that, after Saul died, David returned from the slaughter of Amalek, and he remained for two days at Ziklag.
{1:2} Then, on the third day, a man appeared, arriving from the camp of Saul, with his garments torn and dust sprinkled on his head. And when he came to David, he fell on his face, and he reverenced.
{1:3} And David said to him, “Where have you come from?” And he said to him, “I have fled from the camp of Israel.”
{1:4} And David said to him: “What is the word that has happened? Reveal it to me.” And he said: “The people have fled from the battle, and many of the people have fallen and died. Moreover, Saul and his son Jonathan have passed away.”
{1:5} And David said to the youth who was reporting to him, “How do you know that Saul and his son Jonathan have died?”
{1:6} And the youth, who was reporting it to him, said: “I arrived by chance on mount Gilboa. And Saul was lying upon his spear. Then the chariots and horsemen drew near to him.
{1:7} And turning behind his back and seeing me, he called to me. And when I had responded, “I am here,”
{1:8} he said to me, “Who are you?” And I said to him, “I am an Amalekite.”
{1:9} And he said to me: “Stand over me, and kill me. For anguish has taken hold of me, and still my whole life is in me.”
{1:10} And standing over him, I killed him. For I knew that he was not able to live after the fall. And I took the diadem that was on his head, and the bracelet from his arm, and I have brought them here to you, my lord.”
{1:11} Then David, taking hold of his garments, tore them, with all the men who were with him.
{1:12} And they mourned, and wept, and fasted until evening, over Saul and over his son Jonathan, and over the people of the Lord and over the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword.
{1:13} And David said to the youth who had reported it to him, “Where are you from?” And he responded, “I am the son of a man who is a new arrival from the Amalekites.”
{1:14} And David said to him, “Why were you not afraid to put forth your hand, so that you would kill the Christ of the Lord?”
{1:15} And calling one of his servants, David said, “Draw near and rush against him” And he struck him, and he died.
{1:16} And David said to him: “Your blood is upon your own head. For your own mouth has spoken against you, saying: ‘I have killed the Christ of the Lord.’ ”
{1:17} Then David mourned a lamentation over Saul and over his son Jonathan, in this way.
{1:18} (And he instructed that they should teach the sons of Judah the bow, just as it is written in the Book of the Just.) And he said: “Consider, O Israel, on behalf of those who are dead, wounded upon your heights:
{1:19} The illustrious of Israel have been killed upon your mountains. How could the valiant have fallen?
{1:20} Do not choose to announce it in Gath, and do not announce it in the crossroads of Ashkelon. Otherwise, the daughters of the Philistines may rejoice; otherwise, the daughters of the uncircumcised may exult.
{1:21} O mountains of Gilboa, let neither dew, nor rain fall over you, and may these not be the fields of the first-fruits. For in that place, the shield of the valiant was cast away, the shield of Saul, as if he had not been anointed with oil.
{1:22} From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the strong, the arrow of Jonathan never turned back, and the sword of Saul did not return empty.
{1:23} Saul and Jonathan, worthy to be loved, and stately in their life: even in death they were not divided. They were swifter than eagles, stronger than lions.
{1:24} O daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, who clothed you with scarlet finery, who offered ornaments of gold for your adornment.
{1:25} How could the valiant have fallen in battle? How could Jonathan have been slain on the heights?
{1:26} I grieve over you, my brother Jonathan: exceedingly stately, and worthy to be loved above the love of women. As a mother loves her only son, so also did I love you.
{1:27} How could the robust have fallen, and the weapons of war have perished?”
{2:1} And so, after these things, David consulted the Lord, saying, “Shall I ascend to one of the cities of Judah?” And the Lord said to him, “Ascend.” And David said, “To where shall I ascend?” And he responded to him, “To Hebron.”
{2:2} Therefore, David ascended with his two wives, Ahinoam, the Jezreelite, and Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel.
{2:3} And as for the men who were with him, David led forth each man with his household. And they stayed in the towns of Hebron.
{2:4} And the men of Judah went and anointed David there, so that he would reign over the house of Judah. And it was reported to David that the men of Jabesh Gilead had buried Saul.
{2:5} Therefore, David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and he said to them: “Blessed are you to the Lord, who has accomplished this mercy with your lord Saul, so that you would bury him.
{2:6} And now, certainly, the Lord will repay to you mercy and truth. But I also will act with favor, because you have accomplished this word.
{2:7} Let your hands be strengthened, and be sons of fortitude. For even though your lord Saul has died, still the house of Judah has anointed me as king over them.”
{2:8} Then Abner, the son of Ner, the leader of the army of Saul, took Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, and he led him around, throughout the camp.
{2:9} And he appointed him as king over Gilead, and over Geshuri, and over Jezreel, and over Ephraim, and over Benjamin, and over all of Israel.
{2:10} Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, was forty years old when he had begun to rule over Israel. And he reigned for two years. For only the house of Judah followed David.
{2:11} And the number of the days, during which David was staying and ruling in Hebron over the house of Judah, was seven years and six months.
{2:12} And Abner, the son of Ner, and the youths of Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, went out from the camp to Gibeon.
{2:13} Therefore, Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and the youths of David, went out and met them beside the pool of Gibeon. And when they had convened together, they sat down opposite one another: these on one side of the pool, and those on the other side.
{2:14} And Abner said to Joab, “Let the youths rise up and play before us.” And Joab answered, “Let them rise up.”
{2:15} Therefore, they rose up and crossed over, twelve in number of Benjamin, from the side of Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, and twelve of the youths of David.
{2:16} And each one, taking hold of his peer by the head, fixed a sword into the side of his adversary, and they fell down together. And the name of that place was called: The Field of the Valiant in Gibeon.
{2:17} And a very harsh war rose up on that day. And Abner, with the men of Israel, was put to flight by the youths of David.
{2:18} Now the three sons of Zeruiah were in that place: Joab, and Abishai, and Asahel. And Asahel was a very swift runner, like one of the deer that lives in the forest.
{2:19} And Asahel pursued Abner, and he did not turn aside to the right, nor to the left, to cease in the pursuit of Abner.
{2:20} And so, Abner looked behind his back, and he said, “Are you not Asahel?” And he responded, “I am.”
{2:21} And Abner said to him, “Go to the right, or to the left, and apprehend one of the youths, and take his spoils for yourself.” But Asahel was not willing to cease from pursuing him closely.
{2:22} And again, Abner said to Asahel: “Withdraw, and do not choose to follow me. Otherwise, I will be compelled to stab you to the ground, and I will not be able to lift up my face before your brother, Joab.”
{2:23} But he disdained to heed him, and he was not willing to turn aside. Therefore, turning, Abner struck him with his spear in the groin, and he pierced him through, and he died in the same place. And all those who would pass by the place, in which Asahel had fallen and died, would stand still.
{2:24} Now while Joab and Abishai were pursuing Abner as he fled, the sun set. And they went as far as the Hill of the Aqueduct, which is opposite the valley on the way of the desert in Gibeon.
{2:25} And the sons of Benjamin gathered themselves to Abner. And being joined in one battle line, they stood at the summit of a hill.
{2:26} And Abner cried out to Joab, and he said: “Will your sword rage unto utter destruction? Are you ignorant that it is perilous to act in desperation? How long will you not tell the people to cease from the pursuit of their brothers?”
{2:27} And Joab said: “As the Lord lives, if you had spoken in the morning, the people would have withdrawn from pursuing their brothers.”
{2:28} Therefore, Joab sounded the trumpet, and the entire army stood still, and they did not pursue after Israel any more, and they did not engage in conflict.
{2:29} Then Abner and his men went away, all that night, through the plains. And they crossed the Jordan, and having roamed throughout all of Beth-horon, they arrived in the camp.
{2:30} But Joab, returning after he had released Abner, gathered together all the people. And of David’s youths, they were missing nineteen men, aside from Asahel.
{2:31} But of Benjamin and of the men who were with Abner, the servants of David had struck three hundred and sixty, who also died.
{2:32} And they took Asahel, and they buried him in the sepulcher of his father at Bethlehem. And Joab, and the men who were with him, walked throughout the night, and they arrived in Hebron at the very break of day.
{3:1} Then a long struggle occurred between the house of Saul and the house of David, with David prospering and growing ever stronger, but the house of Saul decreasing daily.
{3:2} And sons were born to David in Hebron. And his firstborn son was Amnon, from Ahinoam the Jezreelite.
{3:3} And after him, there was Chileab, from Abigail, the wife of Nabal of Carmel. Then the third was Absalom, the son of Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, the king of Geshur.
{3:4} Then the fourth was Adonijah, the son of Haggith. And the fifth was Shephatiah, the son of Abital.
{3:5} Also, the sixth was Ithream, from Eglah, the wife of David. These were born to David at Hebron.
{3:6} Then, while there was a battle between the house of Saul and the house of David, Abner, the son of Ner, was reigning over the house of Saul.
{3:7} Now Saul had a concubine named Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah. And Ishbosheth said to Abner,
{3:8} “Why did you enter to the concubine of my father?” But he, being exceedingly angry at the words of Ishbosheth, said: “Am I the head of a dog against Judah this day? I have shown mercy to the house of Saul, your father, and to his brothers and friends. And I have not delivered you into the hands of David. And yet today you have sought me, so that you might rebuke me over a woman?
{3:9} May God do these things to Abner, and may he add these other things, if, in the same way that the Lord swore to David, I do not do so with him:
{3:10} that the kingdom be transferred from the house of Saul, and that the throne of David be elevated over Israel and over Judah, from Dan to Beersheba.”
{3:11} And he was not able to respond anything to him, because he was in fear of him.
{3:12} Therefore, Abner sent messengers to David for himself, saying, “Whose is the land?” and so that they would say, “Make a friendship with me, and my hand will be with you, and I will lead back all of Israel to you.”
{3:13} And he said: “It is best. I will make a friendship with you. But one thing I ask of you, saying: You shall not see my face before you bring Michal, the daughter of Saul. And in this way, you shall come, and see me.”
{3:14} Then David sent messengers to Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, saying, “Restore my wife Michal, whom I espoused to myself for one hundred foreskins of the Philistines.”
{3:15} Therefore, Ishbosheth sent and took her from her husband Paltiel, the son of Laish.
{3:16} And her husband was following her, weeping, as far as Bahurim. And Abner said to him, “Go and return.” And he returned.
{3:17} Likewise, Abner sent word to the elders of Israel, saying: “As much yesterday as the day before, you were seeking David, so that he might reign over you.
{3:18} Therefore, accomplish it now. For the Lord has spoken to David, saying: ‘By the hand of my servant David, I will save my people Israel from the hand of the Philistines and of all their enemies.’ ”
{3:19} Then Abner also spoke to Benjamin. And he went away, so that he might speak to David in Hebron all that would be pleasing to Israel and to all of Benjamin.
{3:20} And he went to David in Hebron with twenty men. And David made a feast for Abner, and for his men who had arrived with him.
{3:21} And Abner said to David, “I will rise up, so that I may gather all of Israel to you, my lord the king, and so that I may enter into a pact with you, and so that you may reign over all, just as your soul desires.” Then, when David had led Abner away, and he had departed in peace,
{3:22} immediately the servants of David and of Joab arrived, after having slain robbers, with exceedingly great spoils. But Abner was not with David in Hebron. For by then he had sent him away, and he had set out in peace.
{3:23} And Joab, and the entire army that was with him, had arrived afterward. And so, it was reported to Joab, explaining that Abner, the son of Ner, went to the king, and he dismissed him, and he went away in peace.
{3:24} And Joab entered to the king, and he said: “What have you done? Behold, Abner came to you. Why did you dismiss him, so that he has gone and departed?
{3:25} Do you not know, about Abner, the son of Ner, that he came to you for this, so that he might deceive you, and might know of your departure and your return, and so that he might know all that you do?”
{3:26} And so, Joab, going out from David, sent messengers after Abner, and he brought him back from the cistern of Sirah, without David knowing.
{3:27} And when Abner had returned to Hebron, Joab took him alone to the middle of the gate, so that he might speak to him, but with deceit. And there, he stabbed him in the groin, and he died, in revenge for the blood of Asahel, his brother.
{3:28} And when David had heard of it, now that the matter was done, he said: “I and my kingdom are clean before the Lord, even forever, of the blood of Abner, the son of Ner.
{3:29} And may it fall upon the head of Joab, and upon the entire house of his father. And may there not fail to be, in the house of Joab, one who suffers from a flow of seed, or one who is leprous, or one who is effeminate, or one who falls by the sword, or one who is in need of bread.”
{3:30} And so, Joab and his brother Abishai killed Abner, because he had killed their brother Asahel at Gibeon, during the battle.
{3:31} Then David said to Joab, and to all the people who were with him, “Tear your garments, and gird yourselves with sackcloth, and mourn before the funeral procession of Abner.” Moreover, king David himself was following the casket.
{3:32} And when they had buried Abner in Hebron, king David lifted up his voice, and he wept over the burial mound of Abner. And all the people also wept.
{3:33} And the king, mourning and lamenting Abner, said: “By no means has Abner died the way that cowards usually die.
{3:34} Your hands are not bound, and your feet are not weighed down with fetters. But just as men often fall before the sons of iniquity, so you have fallen.” And while repeating this, all the people wept over him.
{3:35} And when the entire multitude had arrived to take food with David, while it was still broad daylight, David swore, saying, “May God do these things to me, and may he add these other things, if I taste bread or anything else before the sun sets.”
{3:36} And all the people heard it, and everything that the king did in the sight of the entire people was pleasing to them.
{3:37} And every common person, and all of Israel, realized on that day that the killing of Abner, the son of Ner, had not been done by the king.
{3:38} The king also said to his servants: “Could you be ignorant that a leader and a very great man has fallen today in Israel?
{3:39} But I am still tender, and yet anointed king. And these men of the sons of Zeruiah are too harsh for me. May the Lord repay whoever does evil in accord with his malice.”
{4:1} Then Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, heard that Abner had fallen in Hebron. And his hands were weakened, and all of Israel was troubled.
{4:2} Now the son of Saul had two men, leaders among robbers. The name of the one was Baanah, and the name of the other was Rechab, sons of Rimmon, a Beerothite from the sons of Benjamin. For indeed, Beeroth, too, was reputed with Benjamin.
{4:3} And the Beerothites had fled into Gittaim. And they were strangers there, until that time.
{4:4} Now Jonathan, the son of Saul, had a son with disabled feet. For he was five years old when the report about Saul and Jonathan arrived from Jezreel. And so, his nurse, taking him up, fled. And while she was hurrying, so that she might flee, he fell and was made lame. And he was called Mephibosheth.
{4:5} And so, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, arrived and entered the house of Ishbosheth, in the heat of the day. And he was sleeping on his bed at midday. And the doorkeeper of the house, who was cleaning the wheat, fell fast asleep.
{4:6} Then they entered the house secretly, taking the ears of grain. And Rechab and his brother Baanah stabbed him in the groin, and they fled away.
{4:7} For when they had entered the house, he was sleeping on his bed in a closed room. And striking him, they killed him. And taking his head, they departed by the way of the desert, walking throughout the night.
{4:8} And they brought the head of Ishbosheth to David in Hebron. And they said to the king: “Behold, the head of Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, your enemy, who was seeking your life. And so, the Lord has avenged my lord the king, this day, from Saul and from his offspring.”
{4:9} But David, responding to Rechab and his brother Baanah, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, said to them: “As the Lord lives who has rescued my soul from all distress,
{4:10} the one who reported to me and said, ‘Saul is dead,’ who was thinking that he announced good news, I apprehended. And at Ziklag I killed him who ought to have been given a reward for the news.
{4:11} How much more so now, when impious men have put to death an innocent man in his own house, upon his bed, shall I not require his blood from your hand, and take you away from the earth?”
{4:12} And so, David commanded his servants, and they put them to death. And cutting off their hands and feet, they suspended them up over the pool in Hebron. But the head of Ishbosheth they took and buried in the sepulcher of Abner at Hebron.
{5:1} And all the tribes of Israel went to David in Hebron, saying: “Behold, we are your bone and your flesh.
{5:2} Moreover, yesterday and the day before, when Saul was king over us, you were the one leading out and leading back Israel. Then the Lord said to you, ‘You shall pasture my people Israel, and you shall be the leader over Israel.’ ”
{5:3} Also, the elders of Israel went to the king at Hebron, and king David struck a pact with them at Hebron in the sight of the Lord. And they anointed David as king over Israel.
{5:4} David was a son of thirty years, when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for forty years.
{5:5} In Hebron, he reigned over Judah for seven years and six months. Then in Jerusalem, he reigned for thirty-three years over all of Israel and Judah.
{5:6} And the king, and all the men who were with him, went away to Jerusalem, to the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land. And it was said to David by them, “You shall not enter here, unless you will take away the blind and the lame, who say, ‘David shall not enter here.’ ”
{5:7} But David seized the stronghold of Zion; the same is the city of David.
{5:8} For David had proposed, on that day, a reward to him who had struck the Jebusites and who had reached to the gutters of the rooftops, and who had taken away the blind and the lame that hated the soul of David. Therefore, it is said in the proverb, “The blind and the lame shall not enter into the temple.”
{5:9} Then David lived in the stronghold, and he called it: the City of David. And he built it up on all sides, from Millo and inward.
{5:10} And he advanced, prospering and increasing, and the Lord, the God of hosts, was with him.
{5:11} Also, Hiram, the king of Tyre, sent messengers to David, with cedar wood, and with builders of wood and builders of stone, in order to make walls. And they built a house for David.
{5:12} And David knew that the Lord had confirmed him as king over Israel, and that he had exalted his kingdom over his people Israel.
{5:13} Then David took more concubines and wives from Jerusalem, after he had arrived from Hebron. And other sons as well as daughters were born to David.
{5:14} And these are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon,
{5:15} and Ibhar, and Elishua, and Nepheg,
{5:16} and Japhia, and Elishama, and Eliada, and Elipheleth.
{5:17} Then the Philistines heard that they had anointed David as king over Israel. And they all ascended, so that they might seek David. And when David had heard of it, he descended to a stronghold.
{5:18} Now the Philistines, arriving, spread themselves out in the Valley of Rephaim.
{5:19} And David consulted the Lord, saying: “Shall I ascend to the Philistines? And will you give them into my hand?” And the Lord said to David: “Ascend. For I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand.”
{5:20} Therefore, David went to Baal-perazim. And he struck them there. And he said, “The Lord has divided my enemies before me, just as the waters are divided.” Because of this, the name of that place was called Baal-perazim.
{5:21} And in that place they left behind their graven images, which David and his men took away.
{5:22} And the Philistines continued still, so that they ascended and spread themselves out in the Valley of Rephaim.
{5:23} Then David consulted the Lord, “Shall I ascend against the Philistines, and will you deliver them into my hands?” And he responded: “You shall not ascend against them; instead, circle behind their back. And you shall come to them from the side opposite the balsam trees.
{5:24} And when you hear the sound of something going forth from the tops of the balsam trees, then you shall begin the battle. For then the Lord will go forth, before your face, so that he may strike the army of the Philistines.”
{5:25} And so, David did just as the Lord had instructed him. And he struck down the Philistines, from Gibeon until you arrive at Gezer.
{6:1} Then David again gathered together all the elect men of Israel, thirty thousand.
{6:2} And David arose and went away, with the entire people who were with him from the men of Judah, so that they might lead back the ark of God, over which is invoked the name of the Lord of hosts, who sits upon the cherubim above it.
{6:3} And they placed the ark of God on a new cart. And they took it from the house of Abinadab, who was in Gibeon. And Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drove the new cart.
{6:4} And when they had taken it from the house of Abinadab, who was in Gibeon, Ahio preceded the ark as the keeper of the ark of God.
{6:5} But David and all of Israel played before the Lord on every kind of musical instrument made of wood, and on harps, and lyres, and timbrels, and bells, and cymbals.
{6:6} And after they had arrived at the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah extended his hand to the ark of God, and he touched it, because the oxen were kicking and had caused it to tip.
{6:7} And the indignation of the Lord was enraged against Uzzah. And he struck him for his temerity. And there he died, beside the ark of God.
{6:8} Then David was saddened because the Lord had struck Uzzah. And the name of that place was called: the Striking of Uzzah, even to this day.
{6:9} And David was very fearful of the Lord on that day, saying, “How shall the ark of the Lord be brought to me?”
{6:10} And he was not willing to send the ark of the Lord to himself in the city of David. Instead, he sent it into the house of Obededom, the Gittite.
{6:11} And the ark of the Lord dwelt in the house of Obededom the Gittite, for three months. And the Lord blessed Obededom, and all his household.
{6:12} And it was reported to king David that the Lord had blessed Obededom, and all that was his, because of the ark of God. Therefore, David went and brought the ark of God, from the house of Obededom, into the city of David with joy. And there were with David seven choirs, and calves for victims.
{6:13} And when those who were carrying the ark of the Lord had traveled six steps, he immolated an ox and a ram.
{6:14} And David danced with all his ability before the Lord. And David was girded with the linen ephod.
{6:15} And David, and all the house of Israel, were leading the ark of the testament of the Lord, with jubilation and the sound of the trumpet.
{6:16} And when the ark of the Lord had entered into the city of David, Michal, the daughter of Saul, looking out through a window, saw king David leaping and dancing before the Lord. And she despised him in her heart.
{6:17} And they led in the ark of the Lord. And they set it in its place in the middle of the tabernacle, which David had pitched for it. And David offered holocausts and peace offerings in the sight of the Lord.
{6:18} And when he had completed offering holocausts and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts.
{6:19} And he distributed to the entire multitude of Israel, as much to men as to women, to each one: one loaf of bread, and one piece of roasted beef, and fine wheat flour fried with oil. And all the people went away, each one to his own house.
{6:20} And David returned, so that he might bless his own house. And Michal, the daughter of Saul, going out to meet David, said: “How glorious was the king of Israel today, uncovering himself before the handmaids of his servants, and being unclothed, as if one of the performers were unclothed.”
{6:21} And David said to Michal: “Before the Lord, who chose me rather than your father, and rather than his entire house, and who commanded me, that I should be the leader over the people of the Lord in Israel,
{6:22} I will both play and demean myself, more so than I have done. And I will be little in my own eyes. And with the handmaids, about whom you are speaking, I will appear more glorious.”
{6:23} And so, there was no child born to Michal, the daughter of Saul, even to the day of her death.
{7:1} Now it happened that, when the king had settled in his house, and the Lord had given him rest on every side from all his enemies,
{7:2} he said to the prophet Nathan, “Do you not see that I live in a house of cedar, and that the ark of God has been placed in the midst of tent skins?”
{7:3} And Nathan said to the king: “Go, do all that is in your heart. For the Lord is with you.”
{7:4} But it happened in that night, behold, the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying:
{7:5} “Go, and say to my servant David: ‘Thus says the Lord: Should you build a house for me as a dwelling place?
{7:6} For I have not lived in a house from the day that I led the sons of Israel away from the land of Egypt, even to this day. Instead, I have walked in a tabernacle, and in a tent.
{7:7} And in all the places that I have crossed through, with all the sons of Israel, did I ever speak a word to anyone from the tribes of Israel, whom I instructed to pasture my people Israel, saying: Why have you not built me a house of cedar?’
{7:8} And now, so shall you speak to my servant David: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pastures, from following the sheep, so that you would be the leader over my people Israel.
{7:9} And I have been with you everywhere that you walked. And I have slain all your enemies before your face. And I have made you a great name, beside the name of the great ones who are upon the earth.
{7:10} And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and I will plant them, and they shall live there, and they shall no longer be disturbed. Neither shall the sons of iniquity continue to afflict them as before,
{7:11} from the day when I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give rest to you from all your enemies. And the Lord foretells to you that the Lord himself will make a house for you.
{7:12} And when your days will have been fulfilled, and you will sleep with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who will go forth from your loins, and I will make firm his kingdom.
{7:13} He himself shall build a house to my name. And I will establish the throne of his kingdom, even forever.
{7:14} I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me. And if he will commit any iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and with the wounds of the sons of men.
{7:15} But my mercy I will not take away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before my face.
{7:16} And your house shall be faithful, and your kingdom shall be before your face, for eternity, and your throne shall be secure continuously.’ ”
{7:17} According to all these words, and according to this entire vision, so did Nathan speak to David.
{7:18} Then king David entered and sat before the Lord, and he said: “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you would bring me to this point?
{7:19} Moreover, this has seemed little in your sight, O Lord God, unless you also will speak about the house of your servant for a long time. For this is the law of Adam, O Lord God.
{7:20} Therefore, what more will David be able to say to you? For you know your servant, O Lord God.
{7:21} Because of your word, and according to your own heart, you have done all these great deeds, so that you would make it known to your servant.
{7:22} For this reason, you are magnified, O Lord God. For there is no one like you. And there is no God except you, in all the things that we have heard with our own ears.
{7:23} But what nation is there upon the earth like your people Israel, because of whom God went forth, so that he might redeem a people for himself, and establish a name for himself, and accomplish for them great and terrible things upon the earth, before the face of your people, whom you redeemed for yourself away from Egypt, the nations and their gods.
{7:24} For you have secured your people Israel for yourself, as an everlasting people. And you, O Lord God, have become their God.
{7:25} Now therefore, O Lord God, raise up forever the word that you have spoken over your servant and over his house. And do just as you have said,
{7:26} so that your name may be magnified even forever, and so that it may be said: ‘The Lord of hosts is the God over Israel.’ And the house of your servant David will be established in the sight of the Lord.
{7:27} For you, O Lord of hosts, God of Israel, have revealed to the ear of your servant, saying, ‘I will build a house for you.’ Because of this, your servant has found it in his heart to pray this prayer to you.
{7:28} Now therefore, O Lord God, you are God, and your words shall be true. For you have spoken to your servant these good things.
{7:29} Therefore, begin, and bless the house of your servant, so that it may be forever before you. For you, O Lord God, have spoken. And so, let the house of your servant be blessed with your blessing forever.”
{8:1} Now after these things, it happened that David struck the Philistines, and he humbled them. And David took the bridle of tribute from the hand of the Philistines.
{8:2} And he struck Moab, and he measured them with a line, leveling them to the ground. Now he measured with two lines, one to kill, and one to keep alive. And Moab was made to serve David under tribute.
{8:3} And David struck Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, the king of Zobah, when he set out to rule over the river Euphrates.
{8:4} And from his troops, David seized one thousand seven hundred horsemen and twenty thousand foot soldiers. And he cut the sinew of the leg in all the chariot horses. But he left aside enough of them for one hundred chariots.
{8:5} And the Syrians of Damascus arrived, so that they might bring reinforcements to Hadadezer, the king of Zobah. And David struck down twenty-two thousand men of the Syrians.
{8:6} And David positioned a garrison in Syria of Damascus. And Syria served David under tribute. And the Lord assisted David in all things whatsoever that he set out to accomplish.
{8:7} And David took the armbands of gold, which the servants of Hadadezer had, and he brought them to Jerusalem.
{8:8} And from Betah and Beeroth, cities of Hadadezer, king David took an exceedingly great amount of brass.
{8:9} Then Toi, the king of Hamath, heard that David had struck down the entire strength of Hadadezer.
{8:10} And so, Toi sent his son Joram to king David, so that he might greet him with congratulations, and give thanks, because he had fought against Hadadezer and had struck him down. For indeed, Toi was the enemy of Hadadezer. And in his hand were vessels of gold, and vessels of silver, and vessels of brass.
{8:11} And king David also sanctified these things to the Lord, with the silver and gold that he had sanctified from all the peoples whom he had subdued:
{8:12} from Syria, and Moab, and the sons Ammon, and the Philistines, and Amalek, and from the best spoils of Hadadezer, the son of Rehob, the king of Zobah.
{8:13} David also made a name for himself when he returned from seizing Syria, in the Valley of the Salt Pits, having cut down eighteen thousand.
{8:14} And he positioned guards in Edom, and he stationed a garrison. And all of Edom was made to serve David. And the Lord assisted David in all things whatsoever that he set out to accomplish.
{8:15} And David reigned over all of Israel. And David accomplished judgment and justice with all his people.
{8:16} Now Joab, the son Zeruiah, was over the army. And Jehoshaphat, the son of Ahilud, was the keeper of records.
{8:17} And Zadok, the son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech, the son of Abiathar, were the priests. And Seraiah was the scribe.
{8:18} And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, was over the Cherethites and Pelethites. But the sons of David were priests.
{9:1} And David said, “Do you think that there could be anyone left from the house of Saul, so that I might show mercy to him because of Jonathan?”
{9:2} Now there was, from the house of Saul, a servant named Ziba. And when the king had called him to himself, he said to him, “Are you not Ziba?” And he responded, “I am your servant.”
{9:3} And the king said, “Could there be anyone alive from the house of Saul, so that I may show the mercy of God to him?” And Ziba said to the king, “There is left alive a son of Jonathan, with disabled feet.”
{9:4} “Where is he?” he said. And Ziba said to the king, “Behold, he is in the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, in Lodebar.”
{9:5} Therefore, king David sent and brought him from the house of Machir, the son of Ammiel, from Lodebar.
{9:6} And when Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, had come to David, he fell upon his face, and he reverenced. And David said, “Mephibosheth?” And he responded, “Your servant is here.”
{9:7} And David said to him: “Do not be afraid. For I will certainly show mercy to you because of your father Jonathan. And I will restore to you all the fields of your father Saul. And you shall eat bread at my table always.”
{9:8} And reverencing him, he said, “Who am I, your servant, that you should look with favor upon a dead dog like me?”
{9:9} And so, the king called Ziba, the servant of Saul, and he said to him: “Everything whatsoever that belonged to Saul, and his entire house, I have given to the son of your lord.
{9:10} And so, work the land for him, you and your sons and your servants. And you shall bring in food for the son of your lord, for nourishment. And Mephibosheth, the son of your lord, shall always eat bread at my table.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.
{9:11} And Ziba said to the king: “Just as my lord has ordered your servant, so will your servant do. And Mephibosheth shall eat at my table, like one of the sons of the king.”
{9:12} Now Mephibosheth had a young son whose name was Mica. Truly, all the kindred of the house of Ziba served Mephibosheth.
{9:13} But Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem. For he was fed always from the table of the king. And he was lame in both feet.
{10:1} Now after these things, it happened that the king of the sons of Ammon died, and his son Hanun reigned after him.
{10:2} And David said, “I will show mercy to Hanun, the son of Nahash, just as his father showed mercy to me.” Therefore, David sent consolation to him, by his servants, over the passing of his father. But when the servants of David had arrived in the land of the sons of Ammon,
{10:3} the leaders of the sons of Ammon said to Hanun, their lord: “Do you think it was because of the honor of your father that David sent consolers to you? And did not David send his servants to you, so that he might investigate and explore the city, and so that he might overthrow it?”
{10:4} And so, Hanun took the servants of David, and he shaved off one half part of their beards, and he cut their garments at the middle, as far as the buttocks, and he sent them away.
{10:5} And when this had been reported to David, he sent to meet them. And the men were greatly disturbed by shame. And David commanded them, “Remain in Jericho, until your beards grow, and then return.”
{10:6} Now the sons of Ammon, seeing that they had done an injury to David, sent for, and paid wages to, the Syrians of Rehob, and the Syrians of Zobah, twenty thousand foot soldiers, and from the king of Maacah, one thousand men, and from Tob, twelve thousand men.
{10:7} And when David had heard this, he sent Joab and the entire army of warriors.
{10:8} Then the sons of Ammon went forth, and they positioned their battle line before the very entrance of the gates. But the Syrians of Zobah, and of Rehob, and of Tob, and of Maacah, were by themselves in the field.
{10:9} And so, seeing that the battle had been prepared against him, both facing him and behind, Joab chose some from all of the elect men of Israel, and he set up a battle line opposite the Syrians.
{10:10} But the remaining part of the people he delivered to his brother Abishai, who formed a battle line against the sons of Ammon.
{10:11} And Joab said: “If the Syrians prevail against me, then you shall assist me. But if the sons of Ammon prevail against you, then I will assist you.
{10:12} Be valiant men. And let us fight on behalf of our people and the city of our God. Then the Lord will do what is good in his own sight.”
{10:13} And so, Joab, and the people who were with him, undertook the conflict against the Syrians, who immediately fled before their face.
{10:14} Then, seeing that the Syrians had fled, the sons of Ammon themselves also fled from the face of Abishai, and they entered into the city. And Joab returned from the sons of Ammon, and he went to Jerusalem.
{10:15} And so, the Syrians, seeing that they had fallen before Israel, gathered themselves together.
{10:16} And Hadadezer sent and brought the Syrians who were beyond the river, and he led in their army. And Shobach, the ruler of the military of Hadadezer, was their leader.
{10:17} And when this had been reported to David, he drew together all of Israel. And he crossed over the Jordan, and he went to Helam. And the Syrians formed a battle line opposite David, and they fought against him.
{10:18} And the Syrians fled before the face of Israel. And David killed, among the Syrians, the men of seven hundred chariots, and forty thousand horsemen. And he struck down Shobach, the leader of the military, who immediately died.
{10:19} Then all the kings who were in the reinforcements of Hadadezer, seeing themselves to be defeated by Israel, were very afraid and they fled: fifty-eight thousand men before Israel. And they made peace with Israel, and they served them. And the Syrians were afraid to offer assistance to the sons of Ammon anymore.
{11:1} Now it happened that, at the turn of the year, in the time when kings usually go forth to war, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all of Israel, and they laid waste to the sons of Ammon, and they besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem.
{11:2} While these things were taking place, David happened to arise from his bed after midday, and he walked upon the terrace of the king’s house. And he saw, across from his terrace, a woman washing herself. And the woman was very beautiful.
{11:3} Therefore, the king sent and inquired who the woman might be. And it was reported to him that she was Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah, the Hittite.
{11:4} And so, David sent messengers, and he took her. And when she had entered to him, he slept with her. And presently, she was purified from her uncleanness.
{11:5} And she returned to her house, having conceived an unborn child. And sending, she informed David, and she said, “I have conceived.”
{11:6} Then David sent to Joab, saying, “Send me Uriah, the Hittite.” And Joab sent Uriah to David.
{11:7} And Uriah went to David. And David inquired whether Joab was doing well, and about the people, and how the war was being conducted.
{11:8} And David said to Uriah, “Go into your house, and wash your feet.” And Uriah departed from the house of the king. And a meal from the king followed after him.
{11:9} But Uriah slept before the gate of the king’s house, with the other servants of his lord, and he did not go down to his own house.
{11:10} And it was reported to David by some, saying, “Uriah did not go into his house.” And David said to Uriah: “Did you not arrive from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?”
{11:11} And Uriah said to David: “The ark of God, and Israel and Judah, dwell in tents, and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, stay upon the face of the earth. And should I then go into my own house, so that I may eat and drink, and sleep with my wife? By your welfare and by the welfare of your soul, I will not do this thing.”
{11:12} Therefore, David said to Uriah, “Even so, remain here today, and tomorrow I will send you away.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem, on that day and the next.
{11:13} And David called him, so that he might eat and drink before him, and he made him inebriated. And departing in the evening, he slept on his bedding, with the servants of his lord, and he did not go down to his own house.
{11:14} Therefore, when morning arrived, David wrote a letter to Joab. And he sent it by the hand of Uriah,
{11:15} writing in the letter: “Place Uriah opposite the warfare, where the battle is the strongest, and then abandon him, so that, having been wounded, he may die.”
{11:16} And so, when Joab was besieging the city, he positioned Uriah in the place where he knew the strongest men to be.
{11:17} And the men, departing from the city, made war against Joab. And some of the people among the servants of David fell, and Uriah the Hittite also died.
{11:18} And so, Joab sent and reported to David every word about the battle.
{11:19} And he instructed the messenger, saying: “When you have completed all the words about the war to the king,
{11:20} if you see him to be angry, and if he says: ‘Why did you draw near to the wall in order to fight? Are you ignorant that many darts are thrown from above the wall?
{11:21} Who struck down Abimelech, the son of Jerubbaal? Did not a woman throw a fragment of a millstone upon him from the wall, and so kill him at Thebez? Why did you approach beside the wall?’ then you shall say: ‘Your servant Uriah, the Hittite, also lies dead.’ ”
{11:22} Therefore, the messenger departed. And he went and described to David all that Joab had instructed him.
{11:23} And the messenger said to David: “The men prevailed against us, and they went out to us in the field. Then we pursued them, making an assault, even to the gate of the city.
{11:24} And the archers directed their arrows at your servants from the wall above. And some of the king’s servants died, and then also your servant Uriah the Hittite died.”
{11:25} And David said to the messenger: “You shall say these things to Joab: ‘Do not let this matter dishearten you. For varied are the events of war. Now this one, and now that one, is consumed by the sword. Encourage your warriors against the city and exhort them, so that you may destroy it.’ ”
{11:26} Then the wife of Uriah heard that her husband Uriah had died, and she mourned for him.
{11:27} But when the lamentation was completed, David sent and brought her into his house, and she became his wife, and she bore a son to him. And this word, which David had done, was displeasing in the sight of the Lord.
{12:1} Then the Lord sent Nathan to David. And when he had come to him, he said to him: “Two men were in one city: one wealthy, and the other poor.
{12:2} The wealthy man had very many sheep and oxen.
{12:3} But the poor man had nothing at all, except one little sheep, which he had bought and nourished. And she had grown up before him, together with his children, eating from his bread, and drinking from his cup, and sleeping in his bosom. And she was like a daughter to him.
{12:4} But when a certain traveler had come to the wealthy man, neglecting to take from his own sheep and oxen, so that he might present a feast for that traveler, who had come to him, he took the sheep of the poor man, and he prepared a meal for the man who had come to him.”
{12:5} Then David’s indignation was enraged exceedingly against that man, and he said to Nathan: “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this is a son of death.
{12:6} He shall restore the sheep fourfold, because he did this word, and he did not take pity.”
{12:7} But Nathan said to David: “You are that man. Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘I anointed you as king over Israel, and I rescued you from the hand of Saul.
{12:8} And I gave the house of your lord to you, and the wives of your lord into your bosom. And I gave the house of Israel and of Judah to you. And as if these things were small, I shall add much greater things to you.
{12:9} Therefore, why have you despised the word of the Lord, so that you did evil in my sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword. And you have taken his wife as a wife for yourself. And you have put him to death with the sword of the sons of Ammon.
{12:10} For this reason, the sword shall not withdraw from your house, even perpetually, because you have despised me, and you have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite, so that she may be your wife.’
{12:11} And so, thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will raise up over you an evil from your own house. And I will take your wives away before your eyes, and I will give them to your neighbor. And he will sleep with your wives in the sight of this sun.
{12:12} For you acted secretly. But I will do this word in the sight of all of Israel, and in the sight of the sun.’ ”
{12:13} And David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David: “The Lord has also taken away your sin. You shall not die.
{12:14} Yet truly, because you have given occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, because of this word, the son who was born to you: dying he shall die.”
{12:15} And Nathan returned to his own house. And the Lord struck the little one, whom the wife of Uriah had borne to David, and he was despaired of.
{12:16} And David begged the Lord on behalf of the little one. And David fasted strictly, and entering alone, he lay upon the ground.
{12:17} Then the elders of his house came, urging him to rise up from the ground. And he was not willing, nor would he eat a meal with them.
{12:18} Then, on the seventh day, it happened that the infant died. And the servants of David were afraid to report to him that the little one had died. For they said: “Behold, when the child was still alive, we were speaking to him, but he would not listen to our voice. How much more will he afflict himself, if we tell him that the boy is dead?”
{12:19} But when David had seen his servants whispering, he realized that the infant had died. And he said to his servants, “Is the child dead?” And they responded to him, “He is dead.”
{12:20} Therefore, David rose up from the ground. And he washed and anointed himself. And when he had changed his clothing, he entered the house of the Lord, and he worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and he asked them to place bread before him, and he ate.
{12:21} But his servants said to him: “What is this word that you have done? You fasted and were weeping, on behalf of the infant, while he was still alive. But when the boy was dead, you arose and ate bread.”
{12:22} And he said: “While he was yet alive, I fasted and wept on behalf of the infant. For I said: Who knows if the Lord may perhaps give him to me, and let the infant live?
{12:23} But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Would I be able to bring him back anymore? Instead, I will go to him. Yet truly, he will not return to me.”
{12:24} And David consoled his wife Bathsheba. And entering to her, he slept with her. And she bore a son, and he called his name Solomon, and the Lord loved him.
{12:25} And he sent, by the hand of Nathan the prophet, and he called his name, Beloved of the Lord, because the Lord loved him.
{12:26} And then Joab fought against Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, and he fought outside the royal city.
{12:27} And Joab sent messengers to David, saying: “I have struggled against Rabbah, and so the City of Waters will soon be seized.
{12:28} Now therefore, gather the remaining portion of the people together, and besiege the city and take it. Otherwise, when the city will have been laid waste by me, the victory will be ascribed to my name.”
{12:29} And so David gathered together all the people, and he set out against Rabbah. And after he had fought, he seized it.
{12:30} And he took the crown of their king from his head. The weight of it was a talent of gold, having the most precious gems. And it was placed upon the head of David. Moreover, he carried away the spoils of the city, which were very many.
{12:31} Also, bringing forth its people, he sawed them, and he drove over them with iron wagons, and he divided them with knives, and he dragged them through brick kilns. So he did to all the citizens of the sons of Ammon. And David returned, with the entire army, to Jerusalem.
{13:1} Now after these things, it happened that Amnon, the son of David, was in love with the very beautiful sister of Absalom, the son of David, and she was called Tamar.
{13:2} And he pined for her exceedingly, so much so that, out of love for her, he became ill. For, since she was a virgin, it seemed a difficulty to him that he would do anything dishonest with her.
{13:3} Now Amnon had a friend named Jonadab, the son of Shimeah, the brother of David: a very prudent man.
{13:4} And he said to him: “Why are you becoming so thin from day to day, O son of the king? Why won’t you tell me?” And Amnon said to him, “I am in love with Tamar, the sister of my brother Absalom.”
{13:5} And Jonadab said to him: “Lie down upon your bed, and feign sickness. And when your father will come to visit you, say to him: ‘I ask you to let my sister Tamar come to me, so that she may give me food, and may make a small meal, so that I may eat it from her hand.’ ”
{13:6} And so, Amnon lay down, and he began to act as if he were ill. And when the king had come to visit him, Amnon said to the king, “I beg you to let my sister Tamar come to me, and make in my sight two little portions of food, so that I take it from her hand.”
{13:7} Therefore, David sent home to Tamar, saying, “Come to the house of your brother Amnon, and make a small meal for him.”
{13:8} And Tamar went into the house of her brother Amnon. But he was lying down. And taking flour, she mixed it. And dissolving it in his sight, she cooked little portions of food.
{13:9} And taking what she had cooked, she poured it out, and she set it before him. But he refused to eat. And Amnon said, “Send everyone away from me.” And when they had sent everyone away,
{13:10} Amnon said to Tamar, “Bring the food into the bedroom, so that I may eat from your hand.” Therefore, Tamar took the little portions of food that she had made, and she brought them to her brother Amnon in the bedroom.
{13:11} And when she had presented the food to him, he took hold of her, and he said, “Come lie with me, my sister.”
{13:12} She answered him: “Do not do so, my brother! Do not force me. For no such thing must be done in Israel. Do not choose to do this senseless act.
{13:13} For I will not be able to bear my shame. And you will be like one of the foolish in Israel. For it is better to speak to the king, and he will not deny me to you.”
{13:14} But he was not willing to agree to her petition. Instead, prevailing by strength, he forced her, and he lay with her.
{13:15} And Amnon held hatred for her with an exceedingly great hatred, so much so that the hatred with which he hated her was greater than the love with which he had loved her before. And Amnon said to her, “Rise up, and go away.”
{13:16} And she answered him, “This evil is greater, which you are now doing against me in driving me away, than what you did before.” But he was not willing to listen to her.
{13:17} Instead, calling the servants who were ministering to him, he said, “Cast this woman out from me, and close the door behind her.”
{13:18} Now she was clothed with an ankle-length robe. For the virgin daughters of the king made use of this kind of garment. And so, his servant cast her out, and he closed the door behind her.
{13:19} And she sprinkled ashes upon her head, and she tore her ankle-length robe. And placing her hands upon her head, she went forth, walking and crying out.
{13:20} Then her brother Absalom said to her: “Has your brother Amnon lain with you? But now, sister, be quiet. For he is your brother. And you should not afflict your heart because of this matter.” And so, Tamar remained, wasting away in the house of her brother Absalom.
{13:21} And when king David had heard about these things, he was deeply grieved. But he was not willing to afflict the spirit of his son Amnon. For he loved him, since he was his firstborn.
{13:22} Yet Absalom did not speak to Amnon, neither good nor evil. For Absalom hated Amnon because he had violated his sister Tamar.
{13:23} Then, after the time of two years, it happened that the sheep of Absalom were being shorn in Baal-hazor, which is near Ephraim. And Absalom invited all the sons of the king.
{13:24} And he went to the king, and he said to him: “Behold, the sheep of your servant are being shorn. I ask that the king, with his servants, may come to his servant.”
{13:25} And the king said to Absalom: “Do not, my son, do not choose to ask that we may all come and be a burden to you.” Then, after he urged him, and he had refused to go, he blessed him.
{13:26} And Absalom said, “If you are not willing to come, I beg you, at least let my brother Amnon come with us.” And the king said to him, “It is not necessary that he go with you.”
{13:27} But Absalom pressed him, and so he sent with him Amnon and all the sons of the king. And Absalom made a feast, like the feast of a king.
{13:28} Then Absalom commanded his servants, saying: “Observe when Amnon will have become drunk with wine. And when I say to you, ‘Strike and kill him!’ do not be afraid. For it is I who commands you. Be strong and valiant men.”
{13:29} Therefore, the servants of Absalom acted against Amnon, just as Absalom had commanded them. And all the sons of the king rose up, and each one climbed upon his mule and fled.
{13:30} And while they were still traveling on the journey, a rumor reached David, saying, “Absalom has struck down all the sons of the king, and there is not one of them remaining.”
{13:31} And so the king rose up, and he tore his garments, and he fell upon the ground. And all his servants, who were standing near him, tore their garments.
{13:32} But Jonadab, the son of Shimeah, David’s brother, responding, said: “My lord the king should not consider that all the sons of the king have been slain. Amnon alone is dead. For he was set against by the mouth of Absalom from the day that he raped his sister Tamar.
{13:33} Now therefore, let not my lord the king set this word in his heart, saying, ‘All the sons of the king have been slain.’ For only Amnon is dead.”
{13:34} Now Absalom fled. And the young man keeping watch, lifted up his eyes and gazed out. And behold, many people were arriving along a remote road at the side of the mountain.
{13:35} And Jonadab said to the king: “Behold, the sons of the king are here. In accord with the word of your servant, so it has happened.”
{13:36} And when he had ceased speaking, the sons of the king also appeared. And entering, they lifted up their voice, and they wept. And the king also, and all his servants, wept with an exceedingly great weeping.
{13:37} But Absalom, fleeing, went to Talmai, the son of Ammihud, the king of Geshur. Then David mourned for his son every day.
{13:38} Now after he had fled and had arrived in Geshur, Absalom was in that place for three years. And king David ceased to pursue Absalom, because he had been consoled over the passing of Amnon.
{14:1} Now Joab, the son of Zeruiah, understood that the heart of the king had been turned toward Absalom,
{14:2} so he sent to Tekoa, and he brought from there a wise woman. And he said to her: “Feign that you are in mourning, and put on the clothing of one who mourns. And do not anoint yourself with oil, so that you may be like a woman who is still grieving for someone who died some time ago.
{14:3} And you shall enter to the king, and you shall speak words to him in this manner.” Then Joab put the words in her mouth.
{14:4} And so, when the woman of Tekoa had entered to the king, she fell before him on the ground, and she reverenced, and she said, “Save me, O king.”
{14:5} And the king said to her, “What problem do you have?” And she responded: “Alas, I am a woman who is a widow. For my husband has died.
{14:6} And your handmaid had two sons. And they quarreled against one another in the field. And there was no one there who would be able to stop them. And one struck the other, and killed him.
{14:7} And behold, the whole family, rising up against your handmaid, said: ‘Deliver him who struck down his brother, so that we may kill him for the life of his brother, whom he killed, and so that we may do away with the heir.’ And they are seeking to extinguish my spark that is left, so that there may not survive a name for my husband, nor a remnant upon the earth.”
{14:8} And the king said to the woman, “Go to your own house, and I will make a decree on your behalf.”
{14:9} And the woman of Tekoa said to the king: “May the iniquity be upon me, my lord, and upon the house of my father. But may the king and his throne be innocent.”
{14:10} And the king said, “Whoever will contradict you, bring him to me, and he will never touch you again.”
{14:11} And she said, “Let the king remember the Lord his God, so that close blood relatives may not be multiplied in order to take revenge, and so that they may by no means kill my son.” And he said, “As the Lord lives, not one hair from your son shall fall to the ground.”
{14:12} Then the woman said, “Let your handmaid speak a word to my lord the king.” And he said, “Speak.”
{14:13} And the woman said: “Why have you thought such a thing against the people of God, and why has the king spoken this word, so that he sins and does not lead back the one whom he rejected?
{14:14} We are all dying, and we are all like waters that flow into the ground and do not return. God does not will to lose a soul. Instead, he renews his efforts, thinking that what has been rejected might not perish altogether.
{14:15} Therefore, now I have come to speak this word to my lord the king, in the presence of the people. And your handmaid said: I will speak to the king, for perhaps there may be some way for the king to accomplish the word of his handmaid.
{14:16} And the king listened, and he freed his handmaid from the hand of all who were willing to take away me and my son together, from the inheritance of God.
{14:17} Therefore, let your handmaid speak, so that the word of my lord the king may be like a sacrifice. For even like an Angel of God, so is my lord the king, so that he is moved by neither a blessing, nor a curse. Then too, the Lord your God is with you.”
{14:18} And in response, the king said to the woman, “You shall not conceal from me a word of what I ask you.” And the woman said to him, “Speak, my lord the king.”
{14:19} And the king said, “Is not the hand of Joab with you in all this?” And the woman answered and said: “By the welfare of your soul, my lord the king, it is neither to the left, nor to the right, in all these things that my lord the king has spoken. For your servant Joab himself instructed me, and he himself placed all these words in the mouth of your handmaid.
{14:20} Thus did I turn to this figure of speech, because your servant Joab instructed it. But you, my lord the king, are wise, just as an Angel of God has wisdom, so that you understand all that is upon the earth.”
{14:21} And the king said to Joab: “Behold, your word has succeeded in appeasing me. Therefore, go and call back the boy Absalom.”
{14:22} And falling to the ground upon his face, Joab reverenced, and he blessed the king. And Joab said: “Today your servant has understood that I have found grace in your sight, my lord the king. For you have accomplished the word of your servant.”
{14:23} Then Joab rose up, and he went away to Geshur. And he brought Absalom into Jerusalem.
{14:24} But the king said, “Let him return to his own house, but let him not see my face.” And so, Absalom returned to his own house, but he did not see the face of the king.
{14:25} Now in all of Israel, there was no man so handsome, and so very stately as Absalom. From the sole of the foot to the top of the head, there was no blemish in him.
{14:26} And when he shaved off his hair, for he shaved it off once a year, because his long hair was burdensome to him, he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels, by the public weights.
{14:27} Then three sons were born to Absalom, and one daughter, of elegant form, whose name was Tamar.
{14:28} And Absalom remained for two years in Jerusalem, and he did not see the face of the king.
{14:29} And so, he sent to Joab, so that he might send him to the king. But he refused to come to him. And when he had sent a second time, and he had refused to come to him,
{14:30} he said to his servants: “You know that the field of Joab, the one that is near my field, has a harvest of barley. Therefore, go and set it on fire.” And so, the servants of Absalom set fire to the grain field. And the servants of Joab, arriving with their garments torn, said, “The servants of Absalom have set fire to part of the field!”
{14:31} And Joab rose up, and he went to Absalom at his house, and he said, “Why have your servants set fire to my grain field?”
{14:32} And Absalom responded to Joab: “I sent to you, begging that you might come to me, and that I might send you to the king, and that you might say to him: ‘Why was I brought from Geshur? It would have been better for me to be there.’ I beg you, therefore, that I may see the face of the king. And if he is mindful of my iniquity, let him put me to death.”
{14:33} And so, Joab, entering to the king, reported everything to him. And Absalom was summoned. And he entered to the king, and he reverenced on the face of the earth. And the king kissed Absalom.
{15:1} Then, after these things, Absalom obtained for himself chariots, and horsemen, and fifty men who went before him.
{15:2} And rising up in the morning, Absalom was standing beside the entrance of the gate. And when there was any man who had a dispute that might go before the king’s judgment, Absalom would call him to him, and would say, “Which city are you from?” And responding, he would say, “I am your servant, from a certain tribe of Israel.”
{15:3} And Absalom would answer him: “Your words seem good and just to me. But there is no one appointed by the king to hear you.” And Absalom would say:
{15:4} “Who may appoint me judge over the land, so that all those who have a dispute might come to me, and I might judge justly.”
{15:5} Then too, when a man would draw near to him, so that he might greet him, he would extend his hand, and taking hold of him, he would kiss him.
{15:6} And he was doing this to all those of Israel arriving for judgment to be heard by the king. And he solicited the hearts of the men of Israel.
{15:7} Then, after forty years, Absalom said to king David: “I should go and pay my vows, which I have vowed to the Lord at Hebron.
{15:8} For your servant made a vow, when he was in Geshur of Syria, saying: If the Lord will lead me back to Jerusalem, I will sacrifice to the Lord.”
{15:9} And king David said to him, “Go in peace.” And he rose up and went away to Hebron.
{15:10} Then Absalom sent scouts into all the tribes of Israel, saying: “As soon as you hear the blare of the trumpet, say: ‘Absalom reigns in Hebron.’ ”
{15:11} Now having been called, two hundred men from Jerusalem went forth with Absalom, going in simplicity of heart and being entirely ignorant of the plan.
{15:12} Absalom also summoned Ahithophel the Gilonite, a counselor of David, from his city, Giloh. And when he was immolating victims, a very strong oath was sworn, and the people, hurrying together, joined with Absalom.
{15:13} Then a messenger went to David, saying, “With their whole heart, all of Israel is following Absalom.”
{15:14} And David said to his servants, who were with him in Jerusalem: “Rise up, let us flee! For otherwise there will be no escape for us from the face of Absalom. Hurry to depart, lest perhaps, upon arriving, he may seize us, and force ruin upon us, and strike the city with the edge of the sword.”
{15:15} And the servants of the king said to him, “Everything whatsoever that our lord the king will command, we your servants shall carry out willingly.”
{15:16} Therefore, the king departed, with his entire household on foot. And the king left behind ten women of the concubines to care for the house.
{15:17} And having gone forth on foot, the king and all of Israel stood at a distance from the house.
{15:18} And all his servants were walking beside him. And the legions of the Cerethites and Phelethites, and all the Gittites, powerful fighters, six hundred men who had followed him from Gath on foot, were preceding the king.
{15:19} Then the king said to Ittai the Gittite: “Why do you come with us? Return and live with the king. For you are a stranger, and you departed from your own place.
{15:20} You arrived yesterday. And today should you be compelled to go away with us? For I should go to the place where I am going. But you should return, and lead your own brothers back with you. And the Lord will show mercy and truth to you, because you have shown grace and faith.”
{15:21} And Ittai responded to the king, by saying, “As the Lord lives, and as my lord the king lives, in whatever place you will be, my lord the king, whether in death or in life, your servant will be there.”
{15:22} And David said to Ittai, “Come, and pass over.” And Ittai the Gittite passed over, and all the men who were with him, and the rest of the multitude.
{15:23} And they all wept with a great voice, and all the people passed over. The king also passed over the torrent Kidron. And all the people advanced opposite the way which looks out toward the desert.
{15:24} Now Zadok the priest also went, and all the Levites went with him, carrying the ark of the covenant of God. And they set down the ark of God. And Abiathar went up, until all the people who had departed from the city had gone by.
{15:25} And the king said to Zadok: “Carry back the ark of God into the city. If I shall find grace in the sight of the Lord, he will lead me back. And he will show it to me in his tabernacle.
{15:26} But if he will say to me, ‘You are not pleasing,’ I am ready. Let him do whatever is good in his own sight.”
{15:27} And the king said to Zadok the priest: “O seer, return into the city in peace. And let your son Ahimaaz, and Jonathan, the son of Abiathar, your two sons, be with you.
{15:28} Behold, I will hide in the plains of the desert, until word from you may arrive to inform me.”
{15:29} Therefore, Zadok and Abiathar carried back the ark of God into Jerusalem, and they remained there.
{15:30} But David ascended to the Mount of Olives, climbing and weeping, advancing with bare feet and with his head covered. Moreover, all the people who were with him ascended, weeping with their heads covered.
{15:31} Then it was reported to David that Ahithophel also had joined in swearing with Absalom. And David said, “ O Lord, I beg you, to uncover the foolishness of the counsel of Ahithophel.”
{15:32} And when David had ascended to the summit of the mountain, where he was going to adore the Lord, behold Hushai the Archite met him, with his garment torn and his head covered with soil.
{15:33} And David said to him: “If you come with me, you will be a burden to me.
{15:34} But if you return to the city, and you say to Absalom, ‘I am your servant, O king; just as I have been the servant of your father, so too will I be your servant,’ you will destroy the counsel of Ahithophel
{15:35} And you have with you the priests Zadok and Abiathar. And any word whatsoever that you will hear from the house of the king, you shall reveal it to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests.
{15:36} Now with them are their two sons Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, and Jonathan, the son of Abiathar. And you shall send to me by them every word that you will have heard.”
{15:37} Therefore, Hushai, the friend of David, went into the city. And Absalom also entered into Jerusalem.
{16:1} And when David had passed a little beyond the top of the mountain, Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, appeared to meet him, with two donkeys, which were burdened with two hundred loaves, and one hundred bunches of dried grapes, and one hundred masses of dried figs, and a skin of wine.
{16:2} And the king said to Ziba, “What do you intend to do with these things?” And Ziba responded: “The donkeys are for the household of the king, so that they may sit. And the loaves and dried figs are for your servants to eat. But the wine is for anyone to drink who may be faint in the desert.”
{16:3} And the king said, “Where is the son of your lord?” And Ziba answered the king: “He remained in Jerusalem, saying, ‘Today, the house of Israel will restore the kingdom of my father to me.’ ”
{16:4} And the king said to Ziba, “All the things which were for Mephibosheth are now yours.” And Ziba said, “I beg you that I may find grace before you, my lord the king.”
{16:5} Then king David went as far as Bahurim. And behold, a man from the kindred of the house of Saul, named Shimei, the son of Gera, went out from there. And going out, he continued on, and he was cursing,
{16:6} and throwing stones against David and against all the servants of king David. And all the people and all the warriors were traveling to the right and to the left sides of the king.
{16:7} And so, as he was cursing the king, Shimei said: “Go away, go away, you man of blood, and you man of Belial!
{16:8} The Lord has repaid you for all the blood of the house of Saul. For you have usurped the kingdom in place of him. And so, the Lord has given the kingdom into the hand of Absalom, your son. And behold, your evils press close upon you, because you are a man of blood.”
{16:9} Then Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, said to the king: “Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go and cut off his head.”
{16:10} And the king said: “What is it to me and to all of you, O sons of Zeruiah? Permit him, so that he may curse. For the Lord has commanded him to curse David. And who is the one who would dare to say, ‘Why has he done so?’ ”
{16:11} And the king said to Abishai and to all his servants: “Behold, my son, who went forth from my loins, is seeking my life. How much more does a son of Benjamin do so now? Permit him, so that he may curse, in accord with the command of the Lord.
{16:12} Perhaps the Lord may look with favor upon my affliction, and the Lord may repay me good, in place of the cursing of this day.”
{16:13} And so, David continued walking along the way, and his associates with him. But Shimei was advancing along the ridge of the mountain on the side opposite him, cursing and throwing stones at him, and scattering dirt.
{16:14} And the king and the entire people with him, being weary, went and refreshed themselves there.
{16:15} But Absalom and all his people entered into Jerusalem. Moreover, Ahithophel was with him.
{16:16} And when Hushai the Archite, David’s friend, had gone to Absalom, he said to him: “May you be well, O king! May you be well, O king!”
{16:17} And Absalom said to him: “Is this your kindness to your friend? Why did you not go with your friend?”
{16:18} And Hushai responded to Absalom: “By no means! For I will be his, whom the Lord has chosen. And I, and all this people, and all of Israel, will remain with him.
{16:19} But then too, I declare this: whom should I serve? Is it not the son of the king? Just as I have been subject to your father, so will I be subject to you also.”
{16:20} Then Absalom said to Ahithophel, “Present a counsel as to what we ought to do.”
{16:21} And Ahithophel said to Absalom: “Enter to the concubines of your father, whom he left behind in order to care for the house. Thus, when all of Israel will hear that you disgraced your father, their hands may be strengthened with you.”
{16:22} Therefore, they spread a tent for Absalom on the rooftop. And he entered to the concubines of his father in the sight of all Israel.
{16:23} Now the counsel of Ahithophel, which he gave in those days, was treated as if one were consulting God. So was every counsel of Ahithophel, both when he was with David, and when he was with Absalom.
{17:1} Then Ahithophel said to Absalom: “I will choose for myself twelve thousand men, and rising up, I will pursue David this night.
{17:2} And rushing against him, for he is weary and has weakened hands, I will strike him. And when all the people who are with him will have fled, I will strike down the king in isolation.
{17:3} And I will lead back the entire people, returning in the manner of one man. For you are seeking only one man. And all the people shall be in peace.”
{17:4} And this word pleased Absalom and all those greater by birth of Israel.
{17:5} But Absalom said, “Summon Hushai the Archite, and let us hear what he also may say.”
{17:6} And when Hushai had gone to Absalom, Absalom said to him: “Ahithophel has spoken a word in this manner. Should we do it or not? What counsel do you give?”
{17:7} And Hushai said to Absalom, “The counsel that Ahithophel has given at this time is not good.”
{17:8} And again Hushai declared, “You know your father, and the men who are with him, to be very strong and bitter in soul, comparable to a bear raging in the forest when her young have been taken away. Moreover, your father is a man of war, and so he will not live among the people.
{17:9} Perhaps now he hides in pits, or in another place, wherever he wills. And if by chance, in the beginning, anyone may fall, whoever hears about it, no matter what he has heard, will say, ‘There is a slaughter among the people who were following Absalom.’
{17:10} And even the very strong, whose heart is like the heart of a lion, will be weakened out of fear. For all the people of Israel know your father to be a valiant man, and that all who are with him are robust.
{17:11} But this seems to me to be the right counsel: Let all of Israel be gathered to you, from Dan to Beersheba, like the sand of the sea which is innumerable. And you will be in their midst.
{17:12} And we shall rush against him in whatever place he will have been found. And we shall cover him, as the dew usually falls upon the ground. And we shall not leave behind even one of the men who are with him.
{17:13} And if he will enter into any city, all of Israel shall encircle that city with ropes. And we will pull it into the torrent, so that there may not be found even one small stone from it.”
{17:14} And Absalom, with all the men of Israel, said: “The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel.” So, by an act of the Lord, the useful counsel of Ahithophel was defeated, in order that the Lord might lead evil over Absalom.
{17:15} And Hushai said to the priests, Zadok and Abiathar: “Ahithophel gave counsel to Absalom and to the elders of Israel in this and that manner. And I gave counsel in such and such a manner.
{17:16} Now therefore, send quickly, and report to David, saying: ‘You shall not stay this night in the plains of the desert. Instead, without delay, go across. Otherwise the king may be engulfed, and all the people who are with him.’ ”
{17:17} But Jonathan and Ahimaaz remained beside the Fountain of Rogel. And a handmaid went away and reported it to them. And they set out, so that they might carry the report to king David. For they could not be seen, nor enter into the city.
{17:18} But a certain young man saw them, and he revealed it to Absalom. Yet truly, they traveled quickly and entered into the house of a certain man in Bahurim, who had a well in his court, and they descended into it.
{17:19} Then a woman took and spread a covering over the mouth of the well, as if drying hulled barley. And so the matter was hidden.
{17:20} And when the servants of Absalom had entered into the house, they said to the woman, “Where is Ahimaaz and Jonathan?” And the woman responded to them, “They passed through hurriedly, after they had taken a little water.” But those who were seeking them, when they had not found them, returned to Jerusalem.
{17:21} And when they had gone, they ascended from the well. And traveling, they reported to king David, and they said: “Rise up, and go across the river quickly. For Ahithophel has given a counsel of this kind against you.”
{17:22} Therefore, David rose up, and all the people who were with him, and they crossed over the Jordan, until first light. And not even one of them was left behind who had not crossed over the river.
{17:23} Then Ahithophel, seeing that his counsel had not been done, saddled his donkey, and he rose up and went away to his own house and to his own city. And putting his house in order, he killed himself by hanging. And he was buried in the sepulcher of his father.
{17:24} Then David went to the encampment, and Absalom crossed over the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him.
{17:25} Truly, Absalom appointed Amasa in place of Joab over the army. Now Amasa was the son of a man who was called Ithra of Jezrael, who entered to Abigail, the daughter of Nahash, the sister of Zeruiah, who was the mother of Joab.
{17:26} And Israel made camp with Absalom in the land of Gilead.
{17:27} And when David had arrived at the encampment, Shobi, the son of Nahash, from Rabbah, of the sons of Ammon, and Machir, the son of Ammiel of Lodebar, and Barzillai, the Gileadite of Rogelim,
{17:28} brought to him bedding, and tapestries, and earthen vessels, and wheat, and barley, and meal, and cooked grain, and beans, and lentils, and fried chick peas,
{17:29} and honey, and butter, sheep and fattened calves. And they gave these to David and to the people who were with him to eat. For they suspected that the people were faint with hunger and thirst in the desert.
{18:1} And so David, having reviewed his people, appointed over them tribunes and centurions.
{18:2} And he placed a third part of the people under the hand of Joab, and a third part under the hand of Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, the brother of Joab, and a third part under the hand of Ittai, who was from Gath. And the king said to the people, “I, too, will go forth with you.”
{18:3} And the people responded: “You shall not go out. For if we flee, there will not be great concern in them for us. Or if one half part of us will fall, they will not care much. For you are considered as one for ten thousand. Therefore, it is better that you should be in the city to strengthen us.”
{18:4} And the king said to them, “I will do whatever seems good to you.” Therefore, the king stood beside the gate. And the people went out by their troops, by hundreds and by thousands.
{18:5} And the king ordered Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, “Preserve for me the boy Absalom.” And all the people heard the king commanding all the leaders on behalf of Absalom.
{18:6} And so, the people departed into the field against Israel. And the battle took place in the forest of Ephraim.
{18:7} And the people of Israel were cut down in that place by the army of David. And a great slaughter occurred on that day: twenty thousand men.
{18:8} Now the battle in that place was dispersed over the face of all the land. And there were many more of the people whom the forest had consumed, than the sword had devoured, on that day.
{18:9} Then it happened that Absalom, riding on a mule, met the servants of David. And when the mule had entered under a thick and large oak tree, his head became trapped in the oak. And while he was suspended between heaven and earth, the mule on which he had been sitting continued on.
{18:10} Then a certain one saw this and reported it to Joab, saying, “I saw Absalom hanging from an oak.”
{18:11} And Joab said to the man who had reported it to him, “If you saw him, why did you not stab him to the ground, and I would have given you ten shekels of silver and a belt?”
{18:12} And he said to Joab: “Even if you weighed out to my hands one thousand silver coins, I would never lay my hands on the son of the king. For in our hearing the king ordered you and Abishai and Ittai, saying, ‘Keep for me the boy Absalom.’
{18:13} Then too, if I had acted with such audacity, against my own life, this would never have been able to be hidden from the king. And would you then have stood by my side?”
{18:14} And Joab said, “It will not be as you wish. Instead, I will be assailing him in your sight.” Then he took three lances in his hand, and he fixed them in the heart of Absalom. And while he was still clinging to life upon the oak,
{18:15} ten young men, armor bearers of Joab, ran up, and striking him, they killed him.
{18:16} Then Joab sounded the trumpet, and he held back the people, lest they pursue Israel in their flight, for he was willing to spare the multitude.
{18:17} And they took Absalom, and they threw him into a great pit in the forest. And they piled an exceedingly great heap of stones over him. But all of Israel fled to their own tents.
{18:18} Now Absalom had raised up for himself, when he was still alive, a monument, which is in the Valley of the King. For he said, “I have no son, and so this shall be the memorial to my name.” And he called the monument by his own name. And it is called the Hand of Absalom, even to this day.
{18:19} Then Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, said, “I will run and report to the king that the Lord has accomplished judgment for him, from the hand of his enemies.”
{18:20} And Joab said to him: “You shall not be the messenger on this day. Instead, you shall report on another day. I am not willing for you to give the report today, because the son of the king is dead.”
{18:21} Then Joab said to Hushai, “Go, and report to the king what you have seen.” Hushai reverenced Joab, and he ran.
{18:22} And Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok, said to Joab again, “What prevents me from running after Hushai also?” And Joab said to him: “Why do you want to run, my son? You would not be the bearer of good news.”
{18:23} And he responded, “But what if I do run?” And he said to him, “Run.” Then Ahimaaz, running along a shorter way, passed Hushai.
{18:24} Now David was sitting between the two gates. Truly, the watchman, who was at the summit of the gate upon the wall, lifting up his eyes, saw a man running alone.
{18:25} And crying out, he told the king. And the king said, “If he is alone, there is good news in his mouth.” But as he was advancing and drawing nearer,
{18:26} the watchman saw another man running. And so, crying out from the height, he said: “Another man has appeared, running alone.” And the king said, “This one also is a good messenger.”
{18:27} Then the watchman said, “The running of the closest one seems like the running of Ahimaaz, the son of Zadok.” And the king said, “He is a good man, and he arrives bearing good news.”
{18:28} Then, Ahimaaz, crying out, said to the king, “Be well, O king.” And reverencing the king prone on the ground before him, he said, “Blessed be the Lord your God, who has enclosed the men who had lifted up their hands against my lord the king.”
{18:29} And the king said, “Is there peace for the boy Absalom?” And Ahimaaz said: “I saw a great tumult, O king, when your servant Joab sent me, your servant. I know nothing else.”
{18:30} And the king said to him, “Pass, and stand here.” And when he had passed and stood still,
{18:31} Hushai appeared. And approaching, he said: “I bear good news, my lord the king. For today the Lord has judged for you, from the hand of all who had risen up against you.”
{18:32} But the king said to Hushai, “Is there peace for the boy Absalom?” And responding, Hushai said to him, “May the enemies of my lord the king, and all who rise against him for evil, be as the boy is.”
{18:33} And so the king, being greatly saddened, ascended to the upper room of the gate, and he wept. And as he went, he was speaking in this manner: “My son Absalom! Absalom my son! Who can grant to me that I may die on your behalf? Absalom, my son! My son, Absalom!”
{19:1} Now it was reported to Joab that the king was weeping and mourning for his son.
{19:2} And so the victory on that day was turned into mourning for all the people. For the people heard it said on that day, “The king is grieving over his son.”
{19:3} And the people declined to enter the city on that day, in the manner that the people were accustomed to decline if they had turned and fled from battle.
{19:4} And the king covered his head, and he was crying out in a great voice: “My son, Absalom! Absalom, my son, my son!”
{19:5} Therefore, Joab, entering to the king in the house, said: “Today you have shamed the faces of all your servants, who saved your life, and the lives of your sons and your daughters, and the lives of your wives, and the lives of your concubines.
{19:6} You love those who hate you, and you hate those who love you. And you have revealed this day that you have no concern for your leaders and for your servants. And truly, I know now that if Absalom had lived, and if we all had been killed, then it would have pleased you.
{19:7} Now then, rise up and go out, and speak so as to make amends to your servants. For I swear to you by the Lord that if you will not go forth, not even one person will be left with you this night. And this will be worse for you than all the evils that have come to you, from your youth even to the present.”
{19:8} Therefore, the king rose up, and he sat at the gate. And it was announced to all the people that the king was sitting at the gate. And the entire multitude went before the king. But Israel fled to their own tents.
{19:9} And all the people were conflicted, in all the tribes of Israel, saying: “The king has freed us from the hand of our enemies. He himself saved us from the hand of the Philistines. But now he flees from the land for the sake of Absalom.
{19:10} But Absalom, whom we anointed over us, has died in the war. How long will you be silent, and not lead back the king?”
{19:11} Then truly, king David sent to Zadok and Abiathar, the priests, saying: “Speak to those greater by birth of Judah, saying: ‘Why have you arrived last to lead back the king into his house? (For the talk in all of Israel had reached the king in his house.)
{19:12} You are my brothers; you are my bone and my flesh. Why are you the last to lead back the king?’
{19:13} And say to Amasa: ‘Are you not my bone and my flesh? May God do these things, and may he add these other things, if you will not be the leader of the military in my sight, for all time, in the place of Joab.’ ”
{19:14} And he inclined the heart of all the men of Judah, as if one man. And they sent to the king, saying, “Return, you and all your servants.”
{19:15} And the king returned. And he went as far as the Jordan, and all of Judah went as far as Gilgal, so as to meet the king, and to lead him across the Jordan.
{19:16} And Shimei, the son of Gera, the son of Benjamin, from Bahurim, hurried and descended with the men of Judah to meet king David,
{19:17} with one thousand men from Benjamin, and with Ziba, the servant from the house of Saul. And with him were his fifteen sons and twenty servants. And going into the Jordan,
{19:18} they crossed the fords before the king, so that they might lead across the house of the king, and might act in accord with his order. Then, Shimei, the son of Gera, prostrating himself before the king after he had now gone across the Jordan,
{19:19} said to him: “May you not impute to me, my lord, the iniquity, nor call to mind the injuries, of your servant in the day that you, my lord the king, departed from Jerusalem. And may you not store it up in your heart, O king.
{19:20} For as your servant, I acknowledge my sin. And for this reason, today, I arrive as the first from all the house of Joseph, and I descend to meet my lord the king.”
{19:21} Yet truly, Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, responding, said, “Should not Shimei, because of these words, be killed, since he cursed the Christ of the Lord?”
{19:22} And David said: “What is it to me and to all of you, O sons of Zeruiah? Why are you acting toward me this day like Satan? Why should any man be put to death on this day in Israel? Or do you not know that today I have been made king over Israel?”
{19:23} And the king said to Shimei, “You shall not die.” And he swore to him.
{19:24} And Mephibosheth, the son of Saul, descended to meet the king, with unwashed feet and uncut beard. And he had not washed his garments from the day that the king had departed, until the day of his return in peace.
{19:25} And when he had met the king at Jerusalem, the king said to him, “Why did you not go with me, Mephibosheth?”
{19:26} And in response, he said: “My lord the king, my servant spurned me. And I, your servant, spoke to him so that he might saddle a donkey for me, and I might climb upon it and go with the king. For I, your servant, am lame.
{19:27} Moreover, he also accused me, your servant, to you, my lord the king. But you, my lord the king, are like an Angel of God. Do whatever is pleasing to you.
{19:28} For my father’s house was deserving of nothing but death before my lord the king. Yet you have placed me, your servant, among the guests of your table. Therefore, what just complaint might I have? Or what else can I cry out to the king?”
{19:29} Then the king said to him: “Why are you still speaking? What I have spoken is fixed. You and Ziba shall divide the possessions.”
{19:30} And Mephibosheth responded to the king, “But now let him take it all, since my lord the king has been returned peacefully into his own house.”
{19:31} Likewise, Barzillai the Gileadite, descending from Rogelim, led the king across the Jordan, having prepared also to follow him beyond the river.
{19:32} Now Barzillai the Gileadite was very old, that is, eighty years old. And he provided the king with sustenance when he was staying at the encampment. For indeed, he was an exceedingly rich man.
{19:33} And so the king said to Barzillai, “Come with me, so that you may rest securely with me in Jerusalem.”
{19:34} And Barzillai said to the king: “How many days remain in the years of my life, that I should go up with the king to Jerusalem?
{19:35} Today I am eighty years old. Are my senses quick to discern sweet and bitter? Or is food and drink able to delight your servant? Or can I still hear the voice of men and women singers? Why should your servant be a burden to my lord the king?
{19:36} I, your servant, shall proceed a little ways from the Jordan with you. I am not in need of this recompense.
{19:37} But I beg you that I, your servant, may be returned and may die in my own city, and may be buried beside the sepulcher of my father and my mother. But there is your servant Chimham; let him go with you, my lord the king. And do for him whatever seems good to you.”
{19:38} And so the king said to him: “Let Chimham cross over with me, and I will do for him whatever will be pleasing to you. And all that you ask of me, you shall obtain.”
{19:39} And when the entire people and the king had crossed over the Jordan, the king kissed Barzillai, and he blessed him. And he returned to his own place.
{19:40} Then the king went on to Gilgal, and Chimham went with him. Now all the people of Judah had led the king across, but only as much as one half part of the people of Israel were there.
{19:41} And so, all the men of Israel, running to the king, said to him: “Why have our brothers, the men of Judah, stolen you away. And why have they led the king and his house across the Jordan, and all the men of David with him?”
{19:42} And all the men of Judah responded to the men of Israel: “Because the king is nearer to me. Why are you angry over this matter? Have we eaten anything belonging to the king, or have any gifts been given to us?”
{19:43} And the men of Israel responded to the men of Judah, and said: “I have the greater amount, ten parts, with the king, and so David belongs to me more so than to you. Why have you caused me injury, and why was it not announced to me first, so that I might lead back my king?” But the men of Judah answered more firmly than the men of Israel.
{20:1} And it happened that there was, in that place, a man of Belial, whose name was Sheba, the son of Bichri, a man of Benjamin. And he sounded the trumpet, and he said: “There is no portion for us in David, nor any inheritance in the son of Jesse. Return to your own tents, O Israel.”
{20:2} And all of Israel separated from David, and they were following Sheba, the son of Bichri. But the men of Judah clung to their king, from the Jordan as far as Jerusalem.
{20:3} And when the king had entered his house at Jerusalem, he took the ten women concubines, whom he had left behind to care for the house, and he put them into custody, allowing them provisions. But he did not enter to them. Instead, they were enclosed, even until the day of their deaths, living as widows.
{20:4} Then the king said to Amasa, “Summon to me all the men of Judah on the third day, and you shall be present also.”
{20:5} Therefore, Amasa went away, so that he might summon Judah. But he delayed beyond the agreed time that the king had appointed to him.
{20:6} And David said to Abishai: “Now Sheba, the son of Bichri, will afflict us more so than Absalom did. Therefore, take the servants of your lord, and pursue him, otherwise he may find fortified cities, and escape from us.”
{20:7} And so, the men of Joab departed with him, along with the Cherethites and the Pelethites. And all the able-bodied men went out from Jerusalem to pursue Sheba, the son of Bichri.
{20:8} And when they were beside the great stone, which is in Gibeon, Amasa came to meet them. Now Joab was wearing a close-fitting coat of equal length with his garment. And over these, he was girded with a sword hanging down to his thigh, in a scabbard which was made so that the sword could be removed with the least motion, and then strike.
{20:9} Then Joab said to Amasa, “Be well, my brother.” And he held Amasa by the chin with his right hand, as if to kiss him.
{20:10} But Amasa did not notice the sword that Joab had. And he struck him in the side, and his intestines poured out to the ground. And he did not inflict a second wound, and he died. Then Joab and his brother Abishai pursued Sheba, the son of Bichri.
{20:11} Meanwhile, certain men, from the company of Joab, when they had stopped beside the dead body of Amasa, said: “Behold, the one who wished to be in the place of Joab, the companion of David.”
{20:12} Now Amasa was covered with blood, and was lying in the middle of the road. A certain man saw this, with all the people standing nearby to look at him, and he removed Amasa from the road into a field. And he covered him with a garment, so that those passing by would not stop because of him.
{20:13} Then, when he had been removed from the road, all the men continued on, following Joab in the pursuit of Sheba, the son of Bichri.
{20:14} Now he had passed through all the tribes of Israel into Abel and Bethmaacah. And all the elect men had gathered together to him.
{20:15} And so, they went and besieged him at Abel and Bethmaacah. And they surrounded the city with siege works, and the city was blockaded. Then the entire crowd who were with Joab strove to destroy the walls.
{20:16} And a wise woman exclaimed from the city: “Listen, listen, and say to Joab: Draw near, and I will speak with you.”
{20:17} And when he had drawn near to her, she said to him, “Are you Joab?” And he responded, “I am.” And she spoke in this way to him, “Listen to the words of your handmaid.” He responded, “I am listening.”
{20:18} And again she spoke: “A word was said in the old proverb, ‘Those who would inquire, let them inquire in Abel.’ And so they would reach a conclusion.
{20:19} Am I not the one who responds with the truth in Israel? And yet you are seeking to overthrow the city, and to overturn a mother in Israel! Why would you cast down the inheritance of the Lord?”
{20:20} And responding, Joab said: “May this be far, may this be far from me! May I not cast down, and may I not demolish.
{20:21} The matter is not as you said. Rather, a man from mount Ephraim, Sheba, the son of Bichri, by name, has lifted up his hand against king David. Deliver him alone, and we will withdraw from the city.” And the woman said to Joab, “Behold, his head will be thrown down to you from the wall.’
{20:22} Therefore, she entered to all the people, and she spoke to them wisely. And they cut off the head of Sheba, the son of Bichri, and they threw it down to Joab. And he sounded the trumpet, and they withdrew from the city, each one to his own tent. But Joab returned to Jerusalem to the king.
{20:23} Thus Joab was over the entire army of Israel. And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, was over the Cerethites and Phelethites.
{20:24} Yet truly, Adoram was over the tributes. And Jehoshaphat, the son of Ahilud, was the keeper of records.
{20:25} Now Sheva was the scribe. And truly Zadok and Abiathar were the priests.
{20:26} But Ira, the Jairite, was the priest of David.
{21:1} And a famine occurred, during the days of David, for three years continuously. And David consulted the oracle of the Lord. And the Lord said: “This is because of Saul, and his house of bloodshed. For he killed the Gibeonites.”
{21:2} Therefore, the king, calling for the Gibeonites, spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites were not of the sons of Israel, but were the remnant of the Amorites. And the sons of Israel had sworn an oath to them, but Saul wished to strike them in zeal, as if on behalf of the sons of Israel and Judah.
{21:3} Therefore, David said to the Gibeonites: “What shall I do for you? And what shall be your satisfaction, so that you may bless the inheritance of the Lord?”
{21:4} And the Gibeonites said to him: “There is no quarrel for us over silver or gold, but against Saul and against his house. And we do not desire that any man of Israel be put to death.” The king said to them, “Then what do you wish that I should do for you?”
{21:5} And they said to the king: “The man who unjustly afflicted and oppressed us, we ought to destroy in such manner that not even one of his stock may be left behind in all the parts of Israel.
{21:6} Let seven men from his sons be given to us, so that we may crucify them to the Lord in Gibeon of Saul, formerly the chosen place of the Lord.” And the king said, “I will give them.”
{21:7} But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of the oath of the Lord which had been made between David and Jonathan, the son of Saul.
{21:8} And so the king took the two sons of Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore to Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth, and the five sons of Michal, the daughter of Saul, whom she conceived of Adriel, the son of Barzillai, who was from Meholath,
{21:9} and he gave them into the hands of the Gibeonites. And they crucified them on a hill in the sight of the Lord. And these seven fell together in the first days of the harvest, when the barley is beginning to be reaped.
{21:10} Then Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah, taking a haircloth, spread it under herself on a rock, from the beginning of the harvest until water dropped from heaven upon them. And she did not permit the birds to tear them by day, nor the beasts by night.
{21:11} And it was reported to David what Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done.
{21:12} And David went and took the bones of Saul, and the bones of his son Jonathan, from the men of Jabesh Gilead, who had stolen them from the street of Bethshan, where the Philistines had suspended them after they had slain Saul at Gilboa.
{21:13} And he brought the bones of Saul, and the bones of his son Jonathan, from there. And they collected the bones of those who had been crucified.
{21:14} And they buried them with the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan, in the land of Benjamin, to the side of the sepulcher of his father Kish. And they did all that the king had instructed. And after these things, God showed favor again to the land.
{21:15} Then the Philistines again undertook a battle against Israel. And David descended, and his servants with him, and they fought against the Philistines. But when David grew faint,
{21:16} Ishbibenob, who was of the ancestry of Arapha, the iron of whose spear weighed three hundred ounces, who had been girded with a new sword, strove to strike down David.
{21:17} And Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, defended him, and striking the Philistine, he killed him. Then David’s men swore an oath to him, saying, “You shall no longer go out to war with us, lest you extinguish the lamp of Israel.”
{21:18} Also, a second war occurred in Gob against the Philistines. Then Sibbecai from Hushah struck down Saph, from the stock of Arapha, of the ancestry of the giants.
{21:19} Then there was a third war in Gob against the Philistines, in which Adeodatus, a son of the forest, a weaver from Bethlehem, struck down Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like the beam used by a cloth maker.
{21:20} A fourth battle was in Gath. In that place, there was a lofty man, who had six digits on each hand and each foot, that is, twenty-four in all, and he was from the origins of Arapha.
{21:21} And he blasphemed Israel. So Jonathan, the son of Shimei, the brother of David, struck him down.
{21:22} These four men were born of Arapha in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and his servants.
{22:1} And David spoke to the Lord the words of this verse, in the day that the Lord freed him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.
{22:2} And he said: “The Lord is my rock, and my strength, and my Savior.
{22:3} I will hope in him. God is my strong one, my shield, and the horn of my salvation. He lifts me up, and he is my refreshment. You, O my Savior, will free me from iniquity.
{22:4} I will call upon the Lord, who is praiseworthy; and I will be saved from my enemies.
{22:5} For the pangs of death have encircled me. The torrents of Belial have terrified me.
{22:6} The ropes of Hell have encompassed me. The snares of death have intercepted me.
{22:7} In my tribulation, I will call upon the Lord, and I will cry out to my God. And he will heed my voice from his temple, and my outcry will reach his ears.
{22:8} The earth was shaken, and it quaked. The foundations of the mountains were struck together and violently shaken, because he was angry with them.
{22:9} Smoke ascends from his nostrils, and fire from his mouth will devour; coals have been kindled by it.
{22:10} He bent down the heavens, and it descended; and a fog was beneath his feet.
{22:11} And he climbed upon the cherubim, and he flew; and he slid upon the wings of the wind.
{22:12} He set darkness as a hiding place around himself, with waters sifted from the clouds of the heavens.
{22:13} By means of the brightness of his glance, coals of fire were kindled.
{22:14} The Lord will thunder from heaven; and the Most High will utter his voice.
{22:15} He shot arrows, and he scattered them; lightning, and he consumed them.
{22:16} And the overflow of the sea appeared, and the foundations of the globe were revealed, at the rebuke of the Lord, at the exhale of the breath of his fury.
{22:17} He sent from on high, and he took me up. And he drew me out of many waters.
{22:18} He freed me from my most powerful enemy and from those who had hated me. For they were too strong for me.
{22:19} He went before me in the day of my affliction, and the Lord became my firmament.
{22:20} And he led me out to a wide-open place. He freed me, because I was pleasing to him.
{22:21} The Lord will reward me according to my justice. And he will repay me according to the cleanness of my hands.
{22:22} For I have kept to the ways of the Lord, and I have not acted impiously before my God.
{22:23} For all his judgments are in my sight. And I have not removed his precepts from me.
{22:24} And I shall be perfect with him. And I shall guard myself from my own iniquity.
{22:25} And the Lord will recompense me according to my justice, and according to the cleanness of my hands in the sight of his eyes.
{22:26} With the holy one, you will be holy, and with the strong one, you will be perfect.
{22:27} With the elect one, you will be elect, and with the perverse one, you will be perverse.
{22:28} And you will bring to salvation the poor people, and you will humble the exalted with your eyes.
{22:29} For you are my lamp, O Lord. And you, O Lord, will illuminate my darkness.
{22:30} For in you, I will run girded. In my God, I will leap over the wall.
{22:31} God, his way is immaculate; the eloquence of the Lord is an exacting fire. He is the shield of all who hope in him.
{22:32} Who is God except the Lord? And who is strong except our God?
{22:33} God, he has girded me with fortitude, and he has made my way perfect:
{22:34} making my feet like the feet of the stag, and stationing me upon my exalted places,
{22:35} teaching my hands to do battle, and making my arms like a bow of brass.
{22:36} You have given me the shield of your salvation. And your mildness has multiplied me.
{22:37} You will enlarge my steps under me, and my ankles will not fail.
{22:38} I will pursue my enemies, and crush them. And I will not turn back, until I consume them.
{22:39} I will consume them and break them apart, so that they cannot rise up; they will fall under my feet.
{22:40} You have girded me with strength for the battle. Those who resisted me, you have bent down under me.
{22:41} You have caused my enemies to turn their back to me; they have hatred for me, and I shall destroy them.
{22:42} They will cry out, and there will be no one to save; to the Lord, and he will not heed them.
{22:43} I will wipe them away like the dust of the earth. I will break them apart and crush them, like the mud of the streets.
{22:44} You will save me from the contradictions of my people. You will preserve me to be the head of the Gentiles; a people I do not know shall serve me.
{22:45} The sons of foreigners, who will resist me, at the hearing of the ear they will be obedient to me.
{22:46} The foreigners flowed away, but they will be drawn together in their anguishes.
{22:47} The Lord lives, and my God is blessed. And the strong God of my salvation shall be exalted.
{22:48} God gives me vindication, and he casts down the peoples under me.
{22:49} He leads me away from my enemies, and he lifts me up from those who resist me. You will free me from the iniquitous man.
{22:50} Because of this, I will confess to you, O Lord, among the Gentiles, and I will sing to your name:
{22:51} magnifying the salvation of his king, and showing mercy to David, his Christ, and to his offspring forever.”
{23:1} These are the last words of David. Now David, the son of Jesse, the man to whom it was appointed concerning the Christ of the God of Jacob, the preeminent psalmist of Israel said:
{23:2} “The Spirit of the Lord has spoken through me, and his word was spoken through my tongue.
{23:3} The God of Israel spoke to me, the Strong One of Israel spoke, the Ruler of men, the Just Ruler, in the fear of God,
{23:4} like the first light of the morning as the sun is rising, when a morning without clouds glows red, and like plants springing forth from the earth after a rainfall.
{23:5} But my house is not so great with God that he should undertake an eternal covenant with me, firm and fortified in all things. For he is the entirety of my salvation and the entirety of my will. And there is nothing of this which will not spring forth.
{23:6} But all prevaricators shall be plucked out like thorns, yet they are not taken away by hands.
{23:7} And if anyone wishes to touch them, he must be armed with iron and a wooden lance. And they shall be set ablaze and burned to nothing.”
{23:8} These are the names of the valiant of David. Sitting in the chair was the wisest leader among the three; he was like a very tender little worm in a tree, who killed eight hundred men in one attack.
{23:9} After him, there was Eleazar, the son of his paternal uncle, an Ahohite, who was among the three valiant men who were with David when they chastised the Philistines, and they were gathered together in battle there.
{23:10} And when the men of Israel had gone up, he himself stood fast and struck down the Philistines, until his hand grew weak and stiff with the sword. And the Lord wrought a great salvation on that day. And the people who had fled returned to take up the spoils of the slain.
{23:11} And after him, there was Shammah, the son of Agee, from Hara. And the Philistines gathered together at an outpost. For a field full of lentils was in that place. And when the people had fled from the face of the Philistines,
{23:12} he stood fast in the middle of the field, and it was protected by him. And he struck down the Philistines. And the Lord wrought a great salvation.
{23:13} And moreover, before this, the three who were leaders among the thirty descended and went to David at harvest time, in the cave of Adullam. But the camp of the Philistines was positioned in the Valley of the giants.
{23:14} And David was in a stronghold. Moreover, there was a garrison of the Philistines at that time in Bethlehem.
{23:15} Then David desired, and he said, “If only someone would give me a drink of the water from the cistern, which is in Bethlehem beside the gate!”
{23:16} Therefore, the three valiant men burst into the encampment of the Philistines, and they drew water from the cistern of Bethlehem, which was beside the gate. And they brought it to David. Yet he was not willing to drink; instead, he poured it out to the Lord,
{23:17} saying: “May the Lord be gracious to me, so that I may not do this. Should I drink the blood of these men who have set out to the peril of their own lives?” Therefore, he was not willing to drink. These things were accomplished by these three robust men.
{23:18} Also Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was first among the three. It was he who lifted up his spear against three hundred men, whom he killed. And he was renowned among the three,
{23:19} and he was the noblest of the three, and he was their leader. But at first he did not attain to the three.
{23:20} And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, a very strong man of great deeds, was from Kabzeel. He slew the two lions of Moab, and he descended and slew a lion in the middle of a den, in the days of snow.
{23:21} He also killed an Egyptian who had a spear in his hand, a man worthy to behold. And yet he had gone down to him with only a staff. And he forced the spear from the hand of the Egyptian, and he killed him with his own spear.
{23:22} Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, accomplished these things.
{23:23} And he was renowned among the three robust men, who were the most noble among the thirty. Yet truly, he did not attain to the three, until David made him his secret advisor.
{23:24} Among the thirty were: Asahel, the brother of Joab, Elhanan, the son of his paternal uncle, from Bethlehem,
{23:25} Shammah from Harod, Elika from Harod,
{23:26} Helez from Palti, Ira, the son of Ikkesh, from Tekoa,
{23:27} Abiezer from Anathoth, Mebunnai from Hushah,
{23:28} Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite,
{23:29} Heleb, the son of Baanah, also himself a Netophathite, Ittai, the son of Ribai, from Gibeah, of the sons of Benjamin,
{23:30} Benaiah the Pirathonite, Hiddai from the Torrent Gaash,
{23:31} Abialbon the Arbathite, Azmaveth from Beromi,
{23:32} Eliahba from Shaalbon; the sons of Jashen, Jonathan,
{23:33} Shammah from Orori, Ahiam, the son of Sharar, the Hararite,
{23:34} Eliphelet, the son of Ahasbai, the son of Maacath, Eliam, the son of Ahithophel, the Gilonite,
{23:35} Hezrai from Carmel, Paarai from Arbi,
{23:36} Igal, the son of Nathan, from Zobah, Bani from Gad,
{23:37} Zelek from Ammon, Naharai the Beerothite, the armor bearer of Joab, the son of Zeruiah,
{23:38} Ira the Ithrite, Gareb also an Ithrite,
{23:39} Uriah the Hittite: altogether thirty seven
{24:1} And the fury of the Lord was again kindled against Israel, and he stirred up David among them, saying: “Go, number Israel and Judah.”
{24:2} And the king said to Joab, the leader of his army, “Travel through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and number the people, so that I may know their number.”
{24:3} And Joab said to the king: “May the Lord your God increase your people, who are already great in number, and may he again increase them, one hundredfold, in the sight of my lord the king. But what does my lord the king intend for himself by this kind of thing?”
{24:4} But the words of the king prevailed over the words of Joab and the leaders of the army. And so Joab and the leaders of the military departed from the face of the king, so that they might number the people of Israel.
{24:5} And when they had passed across the Jordan, they arrived at Aroer, to the right of the city, which is in the Valley of Gad.
{24:6} And they continued on through Jazer, into Gilead, and to the lower land of Hodsi. And they arrived in the woodlands of Dan. And going around beside Sidon,
{24:7} they passed near the walls of Tyre, and near all the land of the Hivite and the Canaanite. And they went into the south of Judah, to Beersheba.
{24:8} And having inspected the entire land, after nine months and twenty days, they were present in Jerusalem.
{24:9} Then Joab gave the number of the description of the people to the king. And there were found of Israel eight hundred thousand able-bodied men, who might draw the sword; and of Judah, five hundred thousand fighting men.
{24:10} Then the heart of David struck him, after the people were numbered. And David said to the Lord: “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But I pray that you, O Lord, may take away the iniquity of your servant. For I have acted very foolishly.”
{24:11} And David rose up in the morning, and the word of the Lord went to Gad, the prophet and seer of David, saying:
{24:12} “Go, and say to David: ‘Thus says the Lord: I present to you a choice of three things. Choose one of these, whichever you will, so that I may do it to you.’ ”
{24:13} And when Gad had gone to David, he announced it to him, saying: “Either seven years of famine will come to you in your land; or you will flee for three months from your adversaries, and they will pursue you; or there will be a pestilence in your land for three days. Now then, deliberate, and see what word I may respond to him who sent me.”
{24:14} Then David said to Gad: “I am in great anguish. But it is better that I should fall into the hands of the Lord (for his mercies are many) than into the hands of men.”
{24:15} And the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel, from the morning until the appointed time. And there died of the people, from Dan to Beersheba, seventy thousand men.
{24:16} And when the Angel of the Lord had extended his hand over Jerusalem, so that he might destroy it, the Lord took pity on the affliction. And he said to the Angel who was striking the people: “It is enough. Hold back your hand now.” And the Angel of the Lord was beside the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
{24:17} And when he had seen the Angel cutting down the people, David said to the Lord: “I am the one who sinned. I have acted iniquitously. These ones who are the sheep, what have they done? I beg you that your hand may be turned against me and against my father’s house.”
{24:18} Then Gad went to David on that day, and he said, “Ascend and construct an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.”
{24:19} And David ascended in accord with the word of Gad, which the Lord had commanded to him.
{24:20} And looking out, Araunah turned his attention to the king and his servants, passing toward him.
{24:21} And going out, he adored the king, lying prone with his face to the ground, and he said, “What is the reason that my lord the king has come to his servant?” And David said to him, “So as to purchase the threshing floor from you, and to build an altar to the Lord, and to quiet the plague that rages among the people.”
{24:22} And Araunah said to David: “May my lord the king offer and accept whatever is pleasing to him. You have oxen for a holocaust, and the cart and the yokes of the oxen to use for wood.”
{24:23} All these things Araunah gave, as a king to a king. And Araunah said to the king, “May the Lord your God accept your vow.”
{24:24} And in response, the king said to him: “It shall not be as you wish. Instead, I will purchase it from you at a price. For I will not offer to the Lord, my God, holocausts that cost nothing.” Therefore, David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
{24:25} And in that place, David built an altar to the Lord. And he offered holocausts and peace offerings. And the Lord was gracious to the land, and the plague was held back from Israel.
{1:1} Now king David had become elderly, and he had many days in his lifetime. And though he was covered with clothes, he was not warmed.
{1:2} Therefore, his servants said to him: “Let us seek, for our lord the king, a young virgin. And let her stand before the king, and warm him, and sleep in his bosom, and provide warmth for our lord the king.”
{1:3} And so they sought a beautiful young woman in all the parts of Israel. And they found Abishag, a Shunammite, and they led her to the king.
{1:4} Now the girl was exceedingly beautiful. And she slept with the king, and she ministered to him. Yet truly, the king did not know her.
{1:5} Then Adonijah, the son of Haggith, exalted himself, saying, “I shall reign!” And he appointed for himself chariots and horsemen, with fifty men who would run before him.
{1:6} Neither did his father chastise him at any time, saying, “Why have you done this?” Now he, too, was very beautiful, the second in birth, after Absalom.
{1:7} And he conferred with Joab, the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar, the priest, who gave assistance to the side of Adonijah.
{1:8} Yet truly, Zadok, the priest, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan, the prophet, and Shimei and Rei, and the mature men of the army of David were not with Adonijah.
{1:9} Then Adonijah, having immolated rams and calves and every kind of fat cattle beside the Stone of the Serpent, which was in the vicinity of the fountain Rogel, summoned all his brothers, the sons of the king, and all the men of Judah, the servants of the king.
{1:10} But he did not summon Nathan, the prophet, and Benaiah, and all the mature men, and Solomon, his brother.
{1:11} And so Nathan said to Bathsheba, the mother of Solomon: “Have you not heard that Adonijah, the son of Haggith, has begun to reign, and that our lord David is ignorant of this?
{1:12} Now then, come, accept my counsel, and save your life and the life of your son Solomon.
{1:13} Go and enter to king David, and say to him: ‘Did you not, my lord the king, swear to me, your handmaid, saying: “Your son Solomon shall reign after me, and he himself shall sit on my throne?” Then why does Adonijah reign?’
{1:14} And while you are still speaking with the king there, I will enter after you, and I will complete your words.”
{1:15} And so Bathsheba entered to the king in the bedroom. Now the king was very old, and Abishag, the Shunammite, was ministering to him.
{1:16} Bathsheba bowed herself, and she reverenced the king. And the king said to her, “What do you wish?”
{1:17} And responding, she said: “My lord, you swore to your handmaid, by the Lord your God: ‘your son Solomon will reign after me, and he himself shall sit upon my throne.’
{1:18} And now behold, Adonijah reigns, while you, my lord the king, are ignorant of it.
{1:19} He has slain oxen, and every kind of fattened cattle, and many rams. And he has summoned all the sons of the king, as well as Abiathar, the priest, and Joab, the leader of the military. But Solomon, your servant, he did not summon.
{1:20} Truly now, my lord the king, the eyes of all of Israel look with favor upon you, that you may indicate to them who ought to sit upon your throne, my lord the king, after you.
{1:21} Otherwise, this will be: when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, I and my son Solomon will be as sinners.”
{1:22} And while she was still speaking with the king, Nathan, the prophet, arrived.
{1:23} And they announced to the king, saying, “Nathan, the prophet, is here.” And when he had entered in the sight of the king, and he had reverenced prone on the ground,
{1:24} Nathan said: “My lord the king, did you say, ‘Let Adonijah reign after me, and let him sit upon my throne?’
{1:25} For today, he descended, and he immolated oxen, and fattened cattle, and many rams. And he summoned all the sons of the king, and the leaders of the army, along with Abiathar, the priest. And they are eating and drinking before him, and saying, ‘As king Adonijah lives.’
{1:26} But he did not summon me, your servant, and Zadok, the priest, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and Solomon, your lowly servant.
{1:27} Could this word have gone out from my lord the king, and could you not have revealed it to me, your servant, as to who would be seated upon the throne of my lord the king after him?”
{1:28} And king David responded, saying, “Summon to me Bathsheba.” And when she had entered before the king, and she had stood before him,
{1:29} the king swore and said: “As the Lord lives, who has rescued my soul from all distress,
{1:30} just as I swore to you by the Lord God of Israel, saying: ‘Your son Solomon shall reign after me, and he himself shall sit upon my throne in my place,’ so shall I do this day.”
{1:31} And Bathsheba, having lowered her face to the ground, reverenced the king, saying, “May my lord David live forever.”
{1:32} And king David said, “Summon to me Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada.” And when they had entered before the king,
{1:33} he said to them: “Take with you the servants of your lord, and place my son Solomon upon my mule. And lead him to Gihon.
{1:34} And let Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, anoint him in that place as the king over Israel. And you shall sound the trumpet, and you shall say, ‘As king Solomon lives.’
{1:35} And you shall ascend after him, and he shall arrive and shall sit upon my throne. And he himself shall reign in my place. And I will command that he be the ruler over Israel and over Judah.”
{1:36} And Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, responded to the king, saying: “Amen. So says the Lord, the God of my lord the king.
{1:37} In the same way that the Lord has been with my lord the king, so may he be with Solomon. And may he make his throne more sublime than the throne of my lord, king David.”
{1:38} Then Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, descended, with Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and Pelethites. And they placed Solomon on the mule of king David, and they led him to Gihon.
{1:39} And Zadok, the priest, took the horn of oil from the tabernacle, and he anointed Solomon. And they sounded the trumpet. And all the people said, “As king Solomon lives.”
{1:40} And the entire multitude ascended after him. And the people were playing on pipes, and rejoicing with great joy. And the earth resounded before the noise of them.
{1:41} Then Adonijah, and all who had been summoned by him, heard it. And now the feast had ended. Then, too, Joab, hearing the voice of the trumpet, said, “What is the meaning of this clamor from the tumultuous city?”
{1:42} While he was still speaking, Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest, arrived. And Adonijah said to him, “Enter, for you are a valiant man, and you report good news.”
{1:43} And Jonathan answered Adonijah: “By no means. For our lord king David has appointed Solomon as king.
{1:44} And he has sent with him Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, and Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and Pelethites. And they have placed him on the mule of the king.
{1:45} And Zadok, the priest, and Nathan, the prophet, have anointed him king, at Gihon. And they are ascending from there, rejoicing, and so the city resounds. This is the noise that you have heard.
{1:46} But also, Solomon sits upon the throne of the kingdom.
{1:47} And the servants of the king, entering, have blessed our lord king David, saying: ‘May God amplify the name of Solomon above your name, and may he magnify his throne above your throne.’ And the king reverenced from his bed.
{1:48} And he said: ‘Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who today has bestowed someone to sit upon my throne, while my eyes may see it.’ ”
{1:49} Therefore, all those who had been summoned by Adonijah were terrified. And they all rose up, and each one went his own way.
{1:50} Then Adonijah, fearing Solomon, rose up and went away. And he took hold of the horn of the altar.
{1:51} And they reported to Solomon, saying: “Behold, Adonijah, fearing king Solomon, has taken hold of the horn of the altar, saying: ‘May king Solomon swear to me this day that he will not put to death his servant with the sword.’ ”
{1:52} And Solomon said: “If he is a good man, not so much as one hair of his head shall fall to the ground. But if evil is found in him, he shall die.”
{1:53} Therefore, king Solomon sent and brought him from the altar. And entering, he reverenced king Solomon. And Solomon said to him, “Go to your own house.”
{2:1} Now the days of David had drawn near, so that he would die, and he instructed his son Solomon, saying:
{2:2} “I am entering the way of all the earth. Be strengthened and be a good man.
{2:3} And observe the care of the Lord your God, so that you walk in his ways, so that you care for his ceremonies, and his precepts, and judgments, and testimonies, just as it is written in the law of Moses. So may you understand everything that you do, in any direction that you may turn yourself.
{2:4} So may the Lord confirm his words, which he has spoken about me, saying: ‘If your sons will guard their ways, and if they will walk before me in truth, with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not be taken away from you a man on the throne of Israel.’
{2:5} Also, you know what Joab, the son of Zeruiah, has done to me, what he did to the two leaders of the army of Israel, to Abner, the son of Ner, and to Amasa, the son of Jether. He killed them, and so he shed the blood of war in peace time, and he set the bloodshed of battle on his belt, which was around his waist, and in his shoes, which were on his feet.
{2:6} Therefore, act according to your wisdom. And you shall not allow his gray head to be led away to death in peace.
{2:7} Then, too, repay grace to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite. And you shall allow them to eat at your table. For they met me when I fled from the face of Absalom, your brother.
{2:8} Also, you have with you Shimei, the son of Gera, the son of Benjamin, from Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse, when I went away to the camp. And he descended to meet me when I crossed over the Jordan, and I swore to him by the Lord, saying, ‘I will not put you to death by the sword,’
{2:9} yet do not choose to treat him as if he were innocent. Since you are a wise man, you will know what to do with him. And you shall lead away his grey hair to death with blood.”
{2:10} And so, David slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the city of David.
{2:11} Now the days during which David reigned over Israel are forty years: he reigned seven years in Hebron, thirty-three in Jerusalem.
{2:12} Then Solomon sat upon the throne of his father David, and his kingdom was strengthened exceedingly.
{2:13} And Adonijah, the son of Haggith, entered to Bathsheba, the mother of Solomon. And she said to him, “Is your entrance peaceful?” He responded, “It is peaceful.”
{2:14} And he added, “My word is for you.” She said to him, “Speak.” And he said:
{2:15} “You know that the kingdom was mine, and that all of Israel had preferred me for themselves as king. But the kingdom was transferred, and has become my brother’s. For it was appointed to him by the Lord.
{2:16} Now therefore, I beg of you one petition. May you not confound my face.” And she said to him, “Speak.”
{2:17} And he said: “I beg that you may speak to king Solomon, for he is not able to refuse anything to you, so that he may give Abishag the Shunammite to me as wife.”
{2:18} And Bathsheba said: “It is well. I will speak to the king on your behalf.”
{2:19} Then Bathsheba went to king Solomon, so that she might speak to him on behalf of Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her, and he reverenced her, and he sat down upon his throne. And a throne was stationed for the mother of the king, and she sat at his right hand.
{2:20} And she said to him: “I petition one small request from you. May you not confound my face.” And the king said to her: “Ask, my mother. For it is not right that I turn away your face.”
{2:21} And she said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah, your brother, as wife.”
{2:22} And king Solomon responded, and he said to his mother: “Why do you request Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Why not request the kingdom for him! For he is my older brother, and he has Abiathar, the priest, and Joab, the son of Zeruiah.”
{2:23} And so king Solomon swore by the Lord, saying: “May God do these things to me, and may he add these other things! For Adonijah has spoken this word against his own life.
{2:24} And now, as the Lord lives, who has confirmed me and placed me upon the throne of my father David, and who, just as he said, has made a house for me: Adonijah shall be put to death this day.”
{2:25} And king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, who put him to death, and so he died.
{2:26} Also, the king said to Abiathar, the priest: “Go into Anathoth, to your own land, for you are a man worthy of death. But I will not put you to death this day, since you carried the ark of the Lord God before David, my father, and since you have endured hardship in all the things, for which my father labored.”
{2:27} Therefore, Solomon cast out Abiathar, so that he would not be the priest of the Lord, so that the word of the Lord might be fulfilled, which he spoke over the house of Eli at Shiloh.
{2:28} And the news came to Joab, for Joab had turned aside after Adonijah, and he had not turned aside after Solomon. And so, Joab fled into the tabernacle of the Lord, and he took hold of the horn of the altar.
{2:29} And it was reported to king Solomon that Joab had fled into the tabernacle of the Lord, and that he was beside the altar. And Solomon sent Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, saying, “Go, put him to death.”
{2:30} And Benaiah went to the tabernacle of the Lord, and he said to him: “The king says this: ‘Come out.’ ” But he said: “I will not come out. Instead, I will die here.” Benaiah sent word back to the king, saying, “Joab said this, and he responded to me in this way.”
{2:31} And the king said to him, “Do just as he has said. And put him to death, and bury him. And so shall you take away the innocent blood, which was shed by Joab, from me and from my father’s house.
{2:32} And the Lord shall repay his blood upon his own head. For he killed two men, just and better than himself, and he killed them with the sword, while my father, David, did not know it: Abner, the son of Ner, leader of the military of Israel, and Amasa, the son of Jether, leader of the army of Judah.
{2:33} And their blood shall be turned back upon the head of Joab, and upon the head of his offspring forever. But as for David, and his offspring and house, and his throne, may there be peace from the Lord, even unto eternity.”
{2:34} And so Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, went up and, attacking him, put him to death. And he was buried in his own house in the desert.
{2:35} And the king appointed Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, in his place over the army. And he appointed Zadok, the priest, in place of Abiathar.
{2:36} Also, the king sent for and summoned Shimei, and he said to him: “Build a house for yourself in Jerusalem, and live there. And do not depart from that place to here or to there.
{2:37} For on whatever day you will have departed and crossed the torrent Kidron, know that you shall be put to death. Your blood will be upon your own head.”
{2:38} And Shimei said to the king: “The word is good. Just as my lord the king has said, so will your servant do.” And so Shimei lived in Jerusalem for many days.
{2:39} But it happened that, after three years, the servants of Shimei fled to Achish, the son of Maacah, the king of Gath. And it was reported to Shimei that his servants had gone away to Gath.
{2:40} And Shimei rose up, and he saddled his donkey. And went away to Achish in Gath, in order to seek his servants. And he led them away from Gath.
{2:41} And it was reported to Solomon that Shimei had gone away from Jerusalem to Gath, and had returned.
{2:42} And sending, he summoned him, and he said to him: “Did I not testify to you by the Lord, and warn you in advance, ‘On whatever day, having departed, you go forth to here or to there, know that you shall die?’ And you responded to me, ‘The word that I have heard is good.’
{2:43} Then why have you not kept the oath to the Lord, and the commandment which I instructed to you?”
{2:44} And the king said to Shimei: “You know all the evil, of which your heart is conscious, which you did to David, my father. The Lord has repaid your wickedness upon your own head.”
{2:45} And king Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the Lord, even forever.
{2:46} And so the king commanded Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada. And going out, he struck him down, and he died.
{3:1} And so the kingdom was confirmed in the hand of Solomon, and he was joined with Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, by affinity. For he took his daughter, and he led her into the city of David, until he completed building his own house, and the house of the Lord, and the wall of Jerusalem all around.
{3:2} But still the people immolated in the high places. For no temple had been built to the name of the Lord, even to that day.
{3:3} Now Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the precepts of David, his father, except that he immolated in the high places, and he burned incense.
{3:4} And so, he went away to Gibeon, so that he might immolate there; for that was the greatest high place. Solomon offered upon that altar, at Gibeon, one thousand victims as holocausts.
{3:5} Then the Lord appeared to Solomon, through a dream in the night, saying, “Request whatever you wish, so that I may give it to you.”
{3:6} And Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to your servant David, my father, because he walked in your sight in truth and justice, and with an upright heart before you. And you have kept your great mercy for him, and you have given him a son sitting upon his throne, just as it is this day.
{3:7} And now, O Lord God, you have caused your servant to reign in place of David, my father. But I am a small child, and I am ignorant of my entrance and departure.
{3:8} And your servant is in the midst of the people that you have chosen, an immense people, who are not able to be numbered or counted because of their multitude.
{3:9} Therefore, give to your servant a teachable heart, so that he may be able to judge your people, and to discern between good and evil. For who will be able to judge this people, your people, who are so many?”
{3:10} And the word was pleasing before the Lord, that Solomon had requested this kind of thing.
{3:11} And the Lord said to Solomon: “Since you have requested this word, and you have not asked for many days or for wealth for yourself, nor for the lives of your enemies, but instead you have requested for yourself wisdom in order to discern judgment:
{3:12} behold, I have done for you according to your words, and I have given you a wise and understanding heart, so much so that there has been no one like you before you, nor anyone who will rise up after you.
{3:13} But also the things for which you did not ask, I have given to you, namely wealth and glory, so that no one has been like you among the kings in the all days before.
{3:14} And if you will walk in my ways, and keep my precepts and my commandments, just as your father walked, I will lengthen your days.”
{3:15} Then Solomon awakened, and he understood that it was a dream. And when he had arrived in Jerusalem, he stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and he offered holocausts and made victims of peace offerings, and he held a great feast for all his servants.
{3:16} Then two women harlots went to the king, and they stood before him.
{3:17} And one of them said: “I beg you, my lord, I and this woman were living in one house, and I gave birth, with her in the room.
{3:18} Then, on the third day after I gave birth, she also gave birth. And we were together, with no other person with us in the house, only the two of us.
{3:19} Then this woman’s son died in the night. For while sleeping, she smothered him.
{3:20} And rising up in the silent depths of the night, she took my son from my side, while I, your handmaid, was sleeping, and she set him in her bosom. Then she placed her dead son in my bosom.
{3:21} And when I had arisen in the morning, so that I might give milk to my son, he appeared to be dead. But gazing upon him more diligently in the light of day, I realized that he was not mine, whom I had born.”
{3:22} And the other woman responded: “It is not such as you say. Instead, your son is dead, but mine is alive.” To the contrary, she said: “You are lying. For my son lives, and your son is dead.” And in this manner, they were contending before the king.
{3:23} Then said the king: “This one says, ‘My son is alive, and your son is dead.’ And the other responds, ‘No, instead your son is dead, but mine lives.’ ”
{3:24} Therefore the king said, “Bring a sword to me.” And when they had brought a sword before the king,
{3:25} he said, “Divide the living infant in two parts, and give a half part to the one and a half part to the other.”
{3:26} But the woman, whose son was alive, said to the king, for her heart was moved concerning her son, “I beg you, my lord, give the living infant to her, and do not kill him.” To the contrary, the other said, “Let it be neither for me, nor for you, instead divide it.”
{3:27} The king responded and said: “Give the living infant to this woman, and do not kill it. For she is his mother.”
{3:28} Then all of Israel heard about the judgment that the king had judged, and they feared the king, seeing that the wisdom of God was in him to accomplish judgment.
{4:1} Now king Solomon was reigning over all of Israel.
{4:2} And these were the leaders that he had: Azariah, the son of Zadok, the priest;
{4:3} Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, the scribes; Jehoshaphat, the son of Ahilud, the keeper of records;
{4:4} Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, over the army; and Zadok, and Abiathar, priests;
{4:5} Azariah, the son of Nathan, over those who were assisting the king; Zabud, the son of Nathan, the priest, the friend of the king;
{4:6} and Ahishar, first ruler of the house; and Adoniram, the son of Abda, over the tribute.
{4:7} And Solomon had twelve commanders over all of Israel, who offered yearly provisions for the king and his house. For each was ministering the necessities, by each month of the year.
{4:8} And these are their names: Benhur, on mount Ephraim;
{4:9} Bendeker, in Makaz, and in Shaalbim, and in Beth-shemesh, and in Elon, and in Beth-hanan;
{4:10} Benhesed, in Arubboth: his was Socoh and the entire land of Hepher;
{4:11} Benabinadab, to whom was all of Naphath-Dor, who had Taphath, the daughter of Solomon, as wife;
{4:12} Baana, the son of Ahilud, who was reigning in Taanach, and Megiddo, and all of Bethshean, which is beside Zarethan and below Jezreel, from Bethshean as far as Abelmeholah, opposite Jokmeam;
{4:13} Bengeber, in Ramoth Gilead, who had the town of Jair, the son of Manasseh, in Gilead; the same was first in the entire region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty great cities with walls that had bronze bars;
{4:14} Ahinadab, the son of Iddo, who was first in Mahanaim;
{4:15} Ahimaaz, in Naphtali, and he also had Basemath, the daughter of Solomon, in marriage;
{4:16} Baana, the son of Hushai, in Asher and in Bealoth;
{4:17} Jehoshaphat, the son of Paruah, in Issachar;
{4:18} Shimei, the son of Ela, in Benjamin;
{4:19} Geber, the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, in the land of Sihon, king of the Amorites, and of Og, king of Bashan, over all who were in that land.
{4:20} Judah and Israel were innumerable, like the sand of the sea in multitude: eating and drinking, and rejoicing.
{4:21} Now Solomon had, in his dominion, all the kingdoms, from the river to the land of the Philistines, even to the border of Egypt. And they offered gifts to him, and they served him all the days of his life.
{4:22} And the provisions of Solomon, for each day, were thirty cor of fine wheat flour, and sixty cor of meal,
{4:23} ten fattened oxen, and twenty oxen from the pastures, and one hundred rams, aside from the venison of stags, roe deer, and gazelles, and fattened poultry.
{4:24} For he had obtained the entire region which was beyond the river, from Tiphsah as far as Gaza, and all the kings of those regions. And he had peace on every side all around.
{4:25} And so, Judah and Israel were living without any fear, each one under his own vine and under his own fig tree, from Dan as far as Beersheba, during all the days of Solomon.
{4:26} And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of chariot horses, and twelve thousand riding horses.
{4:27} And the above-stated commanders of the king nourished these. And they also offered the necessities for the table of king Solomon, with immense diligence, each in his time.
{4:28} Also, they brought barley and straw for the horses and beasts of burden, to the place where the king was, just as it was appointed to them.
{4:29} And God gave wisdom to Solomon, and an exceedingly great prudence, and a spacious heart, like the sand which is on the shore of the sea.
{4:30} And the Wisdom_of_Solomon surpassed the wisdom of all the East, and of the Egyptians.
{4:31} And he was wiser than all men: wiser than Ethan, the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol. And he was renowned in all the nations on every side.
{4:32} Solomon also spoke three thousand parables. And his verses were one thousand and five.
{4:33} And he discoursed about trees, from the cedar which is in Lebanon, to the hyssop which grows out from the wall. And he explained about beasts, and birds, and reptiles, and fish.
{4:34} And they came from all the peoples in order to hear the Wisdom_of_Solomon, and from all the kings of the earth, who were hearing about his wisdom.
{5:1} Hiram, the king of Tyre, also sent his servants to Solomon. For he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father. Now Hiram had been a friend to David the entire time.
{5:2} Then Solomon sent to Hiram, saying:
{5:3} “You know the will of my father David, and that he was not able to build a house to the name of the Lord his God, because of the wars that were imminent all around him, until the Lord set them under the steps of his feet.
{5:4} But now the Lord my God has given rest to me on all sides. And there is no adversary, nor occurrence of evil.
{5:5} For this reason, I intend to build a temple to the name of the Lord my God, just as the Lord spoke to my father David, saying: ‘Your son, whom I will set in your place, upon your throne, he himself shall build a house to my name.’
{5:6} Therefore, order that your servants may cut down for me cedars from Lebanon. And let my servants be with your servants. Then I will give to you, for the wages of your servants, whatever you will ask. For you know that there is not a man among my people who knows how to cut wood as well as the Sidonians.”
{5:7} Therefore, when Hiram had heard the words of Solomon, he rejoiced greatly, and he said, “Blessed be the Lord God this day, who gave to David a very wise son over this numerous people!”
{5:8} And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying: “I have heard the things that you would entrust to me. And I will do your whole will concerning the cedar trees and spruce trees.
{5:9} My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon to the sea. And I will arrange them together as rafts on the sea, as far as the place that you will indicate to me. And I will land them there, and you will take them. And you shall offer to me what is necessary to give food to my house.”
{5:10} And so, Hiram gave to Solomon cedar trees and spruce trees, in accord with his whole will.
{5:11} Then Solomon offered to Hiram twenty thousand cor of wheat, as food for his house, and twenty cor of the purest oil. These things Solomon gave as a tribute to Hiram every year.
{5:12} And the Lord gave wisdom to Solomon, just as he said to him. And there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two struck a pact.
{5:13} And king Solomon chose workers from all of Israel, and the conscription was of thirty thousand men.
{5:14} And he sent them into Lebanon, ten thousand each month, in turns, so that for two months they were in their own houses. And Adoniram was over this type of conscription.
{5:15} And Solomon had seventy thousand of those who were carrying burdens, and eighty thousand of those who cut stones from the mountain,
{5:16} aside from the commanders who were over each work, in number three thousand and three hundred, who gave orders to the people and to those who were doing the work.
{5:17} And the king ordered them to bring great stones, precious stones, for the foundation of the temple, and to square them.
{5:18} And these were shaped by the stoneworkers of Solomon and the stoneworkers of Hiram. And the men of Gebal also prepared the wood and the stones in order to build the house.
{6:1} Then it happened that, in the four hundred and eightieth year after the sons of Israel departed from the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of the reign of Solomon over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, the house of the Lord began to be built.
{6:2} Now the house, which king Solomon was building to the Lord, was sixty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in width, and thirty cubits in height.
{6:3} And a portico was before the temple, of twenty cubits in length, in accord with the measure of the width of the temple. And it had ten cubits of width before the face of the temple.
{6:4} And he made oblique windows in the temple.
{6:5} And upon the wall of the temple, he built panels on all sides, in the walls of the house around the temple and the oracle. And he made side chambers all around.
{6:6} The flooring on the bottom level held five cubits in width, and the middle floor was six cubits in width, and the third floor held seven cubits in width. Then he positioned beams on the house all around the outside, in such a way that they would not be fastened to the walls of the temple.
{6:7} Now the house, while it was being built, was made from cut and finished stones. And so, neither mallet, nor chisel, nor any tool of iron was heard in the house while it was being built.
{6:8} The door at the side of the middle section was to the right of the house. And they would ascend along winding stairs to the middle level, and from the middle level to the third level.
{6:9} And he built the house, and finished it. And he overlaid the house with boards of cedar.
{6:10} And he built a paneling over the entire house, five cubits in height, and he covered the house with cedar wood.
{6:11} And the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying:
{6:12} “Concerning this house, which you are building: if you will walk in my precepts, and carry out my judgments, and keep all my commandments, advancing by them, I will confirm my word to you, which I spoke to your father David.
{6:13} And I will dwell in the midst of the sons of Israel, and I will not forsake my people Israel.”
{6:14} And so, Solomon built the house, and finished it.
{6:15} And he built the walls of the house, on the interior, with panels of cedar, from the floor of the house, to the top of the walls, and even to the ceiling. He covered it with cedar wood on the interior. And he overlaid the floor of the house with panels of spruce.
{6:16} And he built panels of cedar, of twenty cubits, at the back part of the temple, from the floor even to the top. And he made the inner house of the oracle as the Holy of Holies.
{6:17} And the temple itself, before the doors of the oracle, was forty cubits.
{6:18} And the entire house was clothed with cedar on the interior, having its turnings and junctures artfully wrought, with carvings projecting outward. Everything was clothed with panels of cedar. And no stone at all was able to be seen in the wall.
{6:19} Now he made the oracle in the middle of the house, in the inner part, so that he might station the ark of the covenant of the Lord there.
{6:20} And the oracle held twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in width, and twenty cubits in height. And he covered and clothed it with the purest gold. Then, too, he clothed the altar in cedar.
{6:21} Also, the house before the oracle, he covered with the purest gold, and he fastened the plates with nails of gold.
{6:22} And there was nothing in the temple that was not covered with gold. Moreover, the entire altar of the oracle he overlaid with gold.
{6:23} And he made in the oracle two cherubim from wood of the olive tree, of ten cubits in height.
{6:24} One wing of a cherub was five cubits, and the other wing of a cherub was five cubits, that is, having ten cubits from the summit of one wing even to the summit of the other wing.
{6:25} Likewise, the second cherub was ten cubits. And the measure was equal and the work was one, in the two cherubim,
{6:26} that is, one cherub had a height of ten cubits, and similarly the second cherub.
{6:27} And he stationed the cherubim in the middle of the inner temple. And the cherubim extended their wings, and the wing of the one was touching the wall, and the wing of the second cherub was touching the other wall. But the other wings, in the middle of the temple, were touching each another.
{6:28} He also overlaid the cherubim with gold.
{6:29} And all the walls of the temple all around he engraved with diverse carvings and turnings. And he made in them cherubim, and palm trees, and various images, as if these were projecting out, and going forth from, the wall.
{6:30} Then, too, the floor of the house he overlaid with gold within and without.
{6:31} And at the entrance of the oracle, he made little doors, from wood of the olive tree, with posts of five corners.
{6:32} And there were two doors, from wood of the olive tree. And he carved upon them pictures of cherubim, and images of palm trees, and very prominent figures. And he overlaid these with gold. And he covered the cherubim, as well as the palm trees and the other things, with gold.
{6:33} And he made, at the entrance of the temple, posts from wood of the olive tree, with four corners,
{6:34} and two doors, from wood of the spruce tree, on the other side. And each door was double, and so it opened by folding upon itself.
{6:35} And he carved cherubim, and palm trees, and very prominent engravings. And he covered everything with gold plates, worked to be perfectly square.
{6:36} And he built the inner atrium with three rows of polished stones, and one row of cedar wood.
{6:37} In the fourth year, the house of the Lord was founded, in the month of Ziv.
{6:38} And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, the house was perfected in all its works and in all its equipment. And he built it for seven years.
{7:1} Now Solomon built his own house for thirteen years, and he brought it to perfection.
{7:2} And he built the house from the forest of Lebanon: one hundred cubits in length, and fifty cubits in width, and thirty cubits in height, with four walkways between columns of cedar. For he had hewn the cedar trees into columns.
{7:3} And he clothed the entire vaulted room with panels of cedar. And it was supported by forty-five columns. Now one row held fifteen columns,
{7:4} each positioned opposite another,
{7:5} and looking toward one another, with equal spacing between the columns. And above the columns there were square beams equal in all things.
{7:6} And he made a portico of columns, fifty cubits in length and thirty cubits in width, and another portico, facing the greater portico, with columns and with crossbeams upon the columns.
{7:7} He also made the portico of the throne, in which is the tribunal. And he overlaid it with cedar wood, from the floor even to the summit.
{7:8} And in the midst of the portico, there was a small house, where he would sit in judgment, similar in workmanship. He also made a house for the daughter of Pharaoh (whom Solomon had taken as wife) of the same work and type as this portico.
{7:9} All was of precious stones, which had been sawed by a particular standard and measure, as much within as without, from the foundation even to the summit of the walls, and outside even to the great atrium.
{7:10} Now the foundations were of precious stones: great stones of eight or ten cubits.
{7:11} And above these, there were precious stones, of equal measure, which had been cut in a manner similar to boards of cedar.
{7:12} And the great atrium was round, with three rows of cut stones and one row of cut cedar, even as it also was in the interior atrium of the house of the Lord, and in the portico of the house.
{7:13} And king Solomon sent and brought Hiram of Tyre,
{7:14} the son of a widowed woman, from the tribe of Naphtali, whose father was a Tyrian, an artisan in brass, and full of wisdom, and understanding, and knowledge in order to form every work of brass. And when he had gone to king Solomon, he wrought all his work.
{7:15} And he cast two columns of brass. Each column was eighteen cubits in height, and a line of twelve cubits encompassed both columns.
{7:16} Also, he made two heads of molten brass, which would be set upon the tops of the columns: one head was five cubits in height, and the other head was five cubits in height.
{7:17} And there was something like a network of chains, woven together in a wonderful manner. Both heads of the columns were cast, and seven rows of little nets traversed one head, and seven little nets were on the other head.
{7:18} And he finished the columns with two rows all around each network, so that these covered the heads, which were at the top, with pomegranates. And he did in like manner to the second head.
{7:19} Now the heads that were at the top of the columns, in the portico of four cubits, had been fabricated with a work of lilies.
{7:20} And again, there were other heads at the tops of the columns above, in accord with the measure of the column opposite the netting. And there were two hundred of the pomegranates, in rows around the second head.
{7:21} And he stationed the two columns in the portico of the temple. And when he had stationed the column on the right, he called its name Jachin. Similarly, he erected the second column, and he called its name Boaz.
{7:22} And above the tops of the columns, he set a work in the manner of lilies. And the work of the columns was perfected.
{7:23} He also made a molten sea, of ten cubits from brim to brim, rounded on all sides. Its height was five cubits, and a thin rope of thirty cubits wrapped it all around.
{7:24} And a sculpted work under the brim encircled it for ten cubits going around the sea. There were two rows cast of striated sculptures.
{7:25} And it was standing upon twelve oxen, of which three were looking toward the north, and three toward the west, and three toward the south, and three toward the east. And the sea above was over them. And their posteriors were entirely hidden within.
{7:26} And the basin was the thickness of three twelfths. And its brim was like the brim of a chalice, or like the outturned petal of a lily. It contained two thousand baths.
{7:27} And he made ten bases of brass: each base was four cubits in length, and four cubits in width, and three cubits in height.
{7:28} And the work itself of the bases was engraved; and there were sculptures between the junctures.
{7:29} And between the little crowns and the edges, there were lions, and oxen, and cherubim; and similarly in the junctures above. And under the lions and oxen were something like bands of brass hanging down.
{7:30} And each base had four wheels, with axels of brass. And at the four sides were something like little arms, under the cast basin, facing away from one another.
{7:31} Also, the mouth of the interior of the basin was at the top of the head. And what was visible outside was of one cubit all around, and altogether it had one cubit and a half. Now at the corners of the columns were diverse engravings. And the spaces between the columns were square, not round.
{7:32} And the four wheels, which were at the four corners of the base, were joined to one another under the base. The height of one wheel held one cubit and a half.
{7:33} Now these were the kind of wheels such as are often made for a chariot. And their axels, and spokes, and tires, and centers were all cast.
{7:34} And the four little arms, which were at each corner of a base, were cast and joined together as part of the base itself.
{7:35} And at the summit of the base, there was a round stand of one half cubit, fabricated so that the basin could be placed upon it, having its engravings, and various sculptures of its own.
{7:36} He also engraved those plates, which were of brass. And at the corners were cherubim, and lions, and palm trees, standing out, as if in the likeness of a man, so that they seemed not to be engraved, but placed adjacent on all sides.
{7:37} In this manner, he made ten bases with the same casting and measure, and very similar engravings.
{7:38} He also made ten hand basins of brass. One hand basin contained four baths, and was of four cubits. And each basin he set upon a base, which is ten bases.
{7:39} And he stationed the ten bases, five to the right side of the temple, and five to the left. And the sea he placed to the right side of the temple, opposite the east, toward the south.
{7:40} Then Hiram made cooking pots, and trays, and small hooks. And he completed all the work of king Solomon in the temple of the Lord:
{7:41} the two columns, and the two cords of the heads over the tops of the columns, and the two networks which covered the two cords that were above the tops of the columns;
{7:42} and the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, two turnings of pomegranates for each network, in order to cover the cords of the heads, which were above the tops of the columns;
{7:43} and the ten bases, and the ten basins on the bases;
{7:44} and the one sea, and the twelve oxen under the sea;
{7:45} and the cooking pots, and the trays, and the small hooks. All of the items that Hiram made for king Solomon, for the house of the Lord, were of golden brass.
{7:46} In the open regions near the Jordan, the king cast these, in the clay soil between Succoth and Zarethan.
{7:47} And Solomon positioned all the items. But because of its exceedingly great amount, the brass was not weighed.
{7:48} And Solomon made all the furniture for the house of the Lord: the altar of gold, and the table of gold, upon which the bread of the presence would be placed;
{7:49} and the gold lampstands, five to the right, and five to the left, opposite the oracle, of pure gold; and likenesses of lily blossoms, with lamps above them, of gold; and gold tongs;
{7:50} and water pots, and little forks, and bowls, and little mortars, and censers, of the purest gold; and the hinges of the doors, for the interior house of the Holy of Holies and for the doors of the house of the temple, which were of gold.
{7:51} And Solomon perfected all the work that he was doing in the house of the Lord. And he brought in the things that his father David had sanctified: the silver, and the gold, and the vessels. And he stored these in the treasuries of the house of the Lord.
{8:1} Then all those greater by birth of Israel, with the leaders of the tribes and the rulers of the families of the sons of Israel, gathered together before king Solomon at Jerusalem, so that they might carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, from the city of David, that is, from Zion.
{8:2} And all of Israel assembled before king Solomon, on the solemn day in the month of Ethanim, which is the seventh month.
{8:3} And all the elders of Israel arrived, and the priests took up the ark.
{8:4} And they carried the ark of the Lord, and the tabernacle of the covenant, and all the vessels of the Sanctuary, which were in the tabernacle; and the priests and the Levites carried these.
{8:5} Then king Solomon, and the entire multitude of Israel, who had assembled before him, advanced with him before the ark. And they immolated sheep and oxen, which could not be numbered or estimated.
{8:6} And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, into the oracle of the temple, in the Holy of Holies, under the wings of the cherubim.
{8:7} For indeed, the cherubim extended their wings over the place of the ark, and they protected the ark and its bars from above.
{8:8} And since the bars projected outward, their ends were visible from without, in the Sanctuary before the oracle; but they were not visible farther outward. And they have been in that place even to the present day.
{8:9} Now inside the ark, there was nothing other than the two tablets of stone, which Moses had placed in it at Horeb, when the Lord formed a covenant with the sons of Israel, when they departed from the land of Egypt.
{8:10} Then it happened that, when the priests had exited from the Sanctuary, a cloud filled the house of the Lord.
{8:11} And the priests were unable to stand and minister, because of the cloud. For the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord.
{8:12} Then Solomon said: “The Lord has said that he would dwell in a cloud.
{8:13} Building, I have built a house as your dwelling place, your most firm throne forever.”
{8:14} And the king turned his face, and he blessed the entire assembly of Israel. For the entire assembly of Israel was standing.
{8:15} And Solomon said: “Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who spoke with his mouth to my father David, and who, with his own hands, has perfected it, saying:
{8:16} ‘From the day when I led my people Israel away from Egypt, I did not choose any city out of all the tribes of Israel, so that a house would be built, and so that my name might be there. Instead, I chose David to be over my people Israel.’
{8:17} And my father David wanted to build a house to the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.
{8:18} But the Lord said to my father David: ‘Since you have planned in your heart to build a house to my name, you have done well by considering this plan in your mind.
{8:19} Yet truly, you shall not build a house for me. Instead, your son, who shall go forth from your loins, he himself shall build a house to my name.’
{8:20} The Lord has confirmed his word which he spoke. And so I stand in place of my father David, and I sit upon the throne of Israel, just as the Lord said. And I have built a house to the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.
{8:21} And there I have appointed a place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he struck with our fathers, when they went forth from the land of Egypt.”
{8:22} Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord, in the sight of the assembly of Israel, and he extended his hands toward heaven.
{8:23} And he said: “Lord God of Israel, there is no God like you, in heaven above, nor on the earth below. You preserve covenant and mercy with your servants, who walk before you with all their heart.
{8:24} You have fulfilled, for your servant David, my father, that which you said to him. With your mouth, you spoke; and with your hands, you completed; just as this day proves.
{8:25} Now therefore, O Lord God of Israel, fulfill, for your servant David, my father, that which you spoke to him, saying, ‘There shall not be taken away from you a man before me, who may sit upon the throne of Israel, if only your sons will guard their way, so that they walk before me, just as you have walked in my sight.’
{8:26} And now, O Lord God of Israel, establish your words, which you spoke to your servant David, my father.
{8:27} Is it, then, to be understood that truly God would dwell upon the earth? For if heaven, and the heavens of heavens, are not able to contain you, how much less this house, which I have built?
{8:28} Yet look with favor upon the prayer of your servant and upon his petitions, O Lord, my God. Listen to the hymn and the prayer, which your servant prays before you this day,
{8:29} so that your eyes may be open over this house, night and day, over the house about which you said, ‘My name shall be there,’ so that you may heed the prayer that your servant is praying in this place to you.
{8:30} So may you heed the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel, whatever they will pray for in this place, and so may you heed them in your dwelling place in heaven. And when you heed, you will be gracious.
{8:31} But if any man sins against his neighbor, and he has any kind of an oath by which he is bound, and he arrives because of the oath, before your altar in your house,
{8:32} you will hear in heaven, and you will act and judge your servants, condemning the impious, and repaying his own way upon his own head, but justifying the just, and rewarding him in accord with his justice.
{8:33} And if your people Israel will have fled from their enemies, because they have sinned against you, and doing penance and confessing to your name, shall arrive and pray and petition you in this house,
{8:34} listen in heaven, and forgive the sin of your people Israel, and lead them back to the land, which you gave to their fathers.
{8:35} And if the heavens have closed, so that there is no rain, because of their sins, and they, praying in this place, shall do penance to your name, and shall be converted from their sins, by occasion of their afflictions,
{8:36} hear them from heaven, and forgive the sins of your servants and of your people Israel. And reveal to them the good way, along which they should walk, and grant rain upon your land, which you have given to your people as a possession.
{8:37} Then, if famine rises over the land, or pestilence, or corrupt air, or blight, or locust, or mildew, or if their enemy afflicts them, besieging the gates, or any harm or infirmity,
{8:38} or whatever curse or divine intervention may happen to any man among your people Israel, if anyone understands, having been wounded in his heart, and if he will have extended his hands in this house,
{8:39} you will hear in heaven, in your dwelling place, and you will forgive. And you will act so that you give to each one in accord with his own ways, just as you see in his heart, for you alone know the heart of all the sons of men.
{8:40} So may they fear you, all the days that they live upon the face of the land, which you have given to our fathers.
{8:41} Moreover, the foreigner too, who is not of your people Israel, when he will have arrived from a distant land because of your name, for they shall hear about your great name, and your strong hand,
{8:42} and your outstretched arm everywhere: so when he arrives and prays in this place,
{8:43} you will listen in heaven, in the firmament of your dwelling place. And you will do all the things, for which that foreigner will have called upon you. So may all the peoples of the earth learn to fear your name, just as your people Israel do. And so may they show that your name has been invoked over this house, which I have built.
{8:44} And if your people have gone out to war against their enemies, along whatever way you will send them, they shall pray to you in the direction of the city, which you have chosen, and toward the house, which I have built to your name.
{8:45} And you will hear in heaven their prayers and their petitions. And you will accomplish judgment for them.
{8:46} But if they sin against you, for there is no man who does not sin, and you, being angry, deliver them to their enemies, and they will have been led away as captives to the land of their enemies, whether far or near,
{8:47} and if they do penance in their heart, in the place of captivity, and having been converted, make supplication to you in their captivity, saying, ‘We have sinned; we acted unjustly; we committed impiety,’
{8:48} and they return to you with all their heart and all their soul, in the land of their enemies, to which they have been led away as captives, and if they pray to you in the direction of their land, which you gave to their fathers, and of the city, which you have chosen, and of the temple, which I have built to your name:
{8:49} you will hear in heaven, in the firmament of your throne, their prayers and their petitions. And you will accomplish their judgment.
{8:50} And you will forgive your people, who have sinned against you, and all their iniquities, by which they have transgressed against you. And you will grant to them mercy in the sight of those who have made them captives, so that they may take pity on them.
{8:51} For they are your people and your inheritance, whom you have led away from the land of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron.
{8:52} So may your eyes be open to the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel. And so may you heed them in all the things about which they will call upon you.
{8:53} For you have separated them to yourself as an inheritance, from among all the peoples of the earth, just as you spoke by Moses, your servant, when you led our fathers away from Egypt, O Lord God.”
{8:54} And it happened that, when Solomon had completed praying this entire prayer and supplication to the Lord, he rose up from the sight of the altar of the Lord. For he had fixed both knees upon the ground, and he had extended his hands toward heaven.
{8:55} Then he stood and blessed the entire assembly of Israel in a great voice, saying:
{8:56} “Blessed is the Lord, who has given rest to his people Israel, in accord with all that he said. Not even one word, out of all the good things that he spoke by his servant Moses, has fallen away.
{8:57} May the Lord our God be with us, just as he was with our fathers, not abandoning us, and not rejecting us.
{8:58} But may he incline our hearts to himself, so that we may walk in all his ways, and keep his commandments, and his ceremonies, and whatever judgments he commanded to our fathers.
{8:59} And may these my words, by which I have prayed before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God, day and night, so that he may accomplish judgment for his servant and for his people Israel, throughout each day.
{8:60} So may all the peoples of the earth know that the Lord himself is God, and there is no other beside him.
{8:61} Also, may our hearts be perfect with the Lord our God, so that we may walk in his decrees, and keep his commandments, as also on this day.”
{8:62} Then the king, and all of Israel with him, immolated victims before the Lord.
{8:63} And Solomon slew sacrifices of peace offerings, which he immolated to the Lord: twenty-two thousand oxen, and twenty thousand one hundred sheep. And the king and all the sons of Israel dedicated the temple of the Lord.
{8:64} On that day, the king sanctified the middle of the atrium, which was before the house of the Lord. For in that place, he offered holocaust, and sacrifice, and the fat of peace offerings. For the bronze altar, which was before the Lord, was too small and was not able to hold the holocaust, and the sacrifice, and the fat of the peace offerings.
{8:65} Then Solomon made, at that time, a celebratory festival, and all of Israel with him, a great multitude, from the entrance of Hamath to the river of Egypt, in the sight of the Lord our God, for seven days plus seven days, that is, fourteen days.
{8:66} And on the eighth day, he dismissed the people. And blessing the king, they set out for their tents, rejoicing and cheerful in heart over all the good things that the Lord had done for his servant David and for his people Israel.
{9:1} Now it happened that, when Solomon had perfected the building of the house of the Lord, and the king’s house, and all that he had desired and had willed to do,
{9:2} the Lord appeared to him a second time, just as he had appeared to him at Gibeon.
{9:3} And the Lord said to him: “I have heard your prayer and your petition, which you prayed before me. I have sanctified this house, which you have built, so that I may place my name there forever, and so that my eyes and my heart will be there for all days.
{9:4} Also, if you will walk before me, just as your father walked, in simplicity of heart and in equity, and you do all that I have instructed to you, and you keep my laws and my judgments,
{9:5} then I will set the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, just as I promised your father David, saying: ‘A man from your stock shall not be taken away from the throne of Israel.’
{9:6} But if you and your sons, wandering, will have turned away, not following me, and not keeping my commandments and my ceremonies, which I have proposed to you, but instead you go away, and you serve strange gods and adore them,
{9:7} then I will take away Israel from the face of the land, which I have given to them. And the temple, which I have sanctified to my name, I will cast out from my sight. And Israel will be a proverb and a parable among all the peoples.
{9:8} And this house will become an example: anyone who passes by it will be stupefied, and he will hiss and say, ‘Why has the Lord acted in this way to this land and to this house?’
{9:9} And they will respond: ‘Because they abandoned the Lord their God, who led their fathers away from the land of Egypt, and they followed strange gods, and they adored them and served them. For this reason, the Lord led all this evil over them.’ ”
{9:10} Then, when twenty years were fulfilled, after Solomon had built the two houses, that is, the house of the Lord, and the house of the king,
{9:11} Hiram, the king of Tyre, having supplied Solomon with cedar wood, and spruce wood, and gold, in accord with all that he needed, then Solomon gave Hiram twenty towns in the land of Galilee.
{9:12} And Hiram went out of Tyre, so that he might view the towns that Solomon had given to him. And they did not please him.
{9:13} And he said, “Are these the cities that you have given to me, brother?” And he called them the land of Cabul, even to this day.
{9:14} And Hiram sent to king Solomon one hundred twenty talents of gold.
{9:15} This is the sum of the expenses that king Solomon offered for the building of the house of the Lord, and his own house, and for Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer.
{9:16} Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, ascended and seized Gezer, and he burned it with fire. And he put to death the Canaanite who was living in the city, and he gave it as a dowry for his daughter, the wife of Solomon.
{9:17} Therefore, Solomon built up Gezer, and lower Beth-horon,
{9:18} and Baalath, and Palmira in the land of the wilderness.
{9:19} And all the towns which belonged to him, and which were without walls, he walled, along with the cities of the chariots, and the cities of the horsemen, and whatever was pleasing to him that he might build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in the entire land of his dominion.
{9:20} All the people who had remained of the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not of the sons of Israel,
{9:21} their sons, who had remained in the land, namely, those whom the sons of Israel had not been able to destroy, Solomon made tributary, even to this day.
{9:22} But from the sons of Israel, Solomon did not appoint anyone at all to serve, except the men of war, and his ministers, and leaders, and commanders, and the overseers of the chariots and the horses.
{9:23} Now there were five hundred fifty leaders in the first place over all the works of Solomon, and they had people subject to them, and these were given orders for the appointed works.
{9:24} And the daughter of Pharaoh went up from the city of David to her house, which Solomon had built for her. Then he built up Millo.
{9:25} Also, three times each year, Solomon offered holocausts and victims of peace offerings, upon the altar that he had built to the Lord, and he burned incense before the Lord. And the temple was perfected.
{9:26} And king Solomon made a navy at Ezion Geber, which is beside Eloth, on the shores of the Red Sea, in the land of Idumea.
{9:27} And Hiram sent his servants to that navy, the sailors and those knowledgeable about the sea, with the servants of Solomon.
{9:28} And when they had gone to Ophir, taking from there four hundred twenty talents of gold, they brought it to king Solomon.
{10:1} Then, too, the queen of Sheba, having heard of the fame of Solomon in the name of the Lord, arrived to test him with enigmas.
{10:2} And entering into Jerusalem with a great retinue, and with riches, and with camels carrying aromatics, and with an exceedingly great quantity of gold and precious stones, she went to king Solomon. And she spoke to him all that she held in her heart.
{10:3} And Solomon taught her, in all the words that she had proposed to him. There was not any word which was able to be hidden from the king, or which he did not answer for her.
{10:4} Then, when the queen of Sheba saw all the Wisdom_of_Solomon, and the house that he had built,
{10:5} and the food of his table, and the dwelling places of his servants, and the rows of his ministers, and their apparel, and the cupbearers, and the holocausts that he was offering in the house of the Lord, she had no longer any spirit in her.
{10:6} And she said to the king: “The word is true, which I have heard in my own land,
{10:7} about your words and your wisdom. But I did not believe those who explained it to me, until I went myself and saw it with my own eyes. And I have discovered that the half of it has not been told to me: your wisdom and works are greater than the report that I have heard.
{10:8} Blessed are your men, and blessed are your servants, who stand before you always, and who hear your wisdom.
{10:9} Blessed is the Lord your God, whom you have greatly pleased, and who has placed you upon the throne of Israel. For the Lord loves Israel forever, and he has appointed you as king, so that you may accomplish judgment and justice.”
{10:10} Then she gave the king one hundred twenty talents of gold, and an exceedingly great amount of aromatics and precious stones. No greater quantity of aromatics was ever again brought forth as these, which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon.
{10:11} Then, too, the navy of Hiram, which carried gold from Ophir, brought an exceedingly great quantity of thyine wood and precious stones from Ophir.
{10:12} And the king made, from the thyine wood, the posts of the house of the Lord, and of the house of the king, and citharas and lyres for the musicians. No thyine trees of this kind were ever again brought forth or seen, even to the present day.
{10:13} Then king Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all that she desired and requested of him, aside from what he himself had offered to her from his royal bounty. And she returned and went away to her own land, with her servants.
{10:14} Now the weight of the gold that was brought to Solomon each year was six hundred sixty-six talents of gold,
{10:15} aside from what was brought to him by the men who were over the tributes, and by the merchants, and by those selling every kind of small item, and by all the kings of Arabia, and by the rulers of the land.
{10:16} Also, king Solomon made two hundred large shields from the purest gold. He dispensed six hundred shekels of gold for the layers of one shield.
{10:17} And for the three hundred crescent-shaped shields of tested gold, there were three hundred minas of gold covering one shield. And the king placed these in the house of the forest of Lebanon.
{10:18} Also, king Solomon made a great throne from ivory. And he clothed it with a great quantity of red gold.
{10:19} The throne had six steps, and the summit of the throne was rounded in the back section. And there were two hands, on one side and the other, holding the seat. And two lions were standing beside each hand,
{10:20} with twelve little lions standing upon the six steps, on one side and the other. No similar work has been made, ever in any kingdom.
{10:21} Moreover, all the vessels from which king Solomon would drink were of gold. And all the items in the house of the forest of Lebanon were of the purest gold. There was no silver, nor was any accounting made of silver in the days of Solomon.
{10:22} For the navy of the king, once every three years, went with the navy of Hiram by sea to Tarshish, bringing from there gold, and silver, and elephant tusks, and primates, and peacocks.
{10:23} And so, king Solomon was magnified above all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom.
{10:24} And all the earth desired to see the face of Solomon, so as to hear his wisdom, which God had granted to his heart.
{10:25} And each one brought him gifts, vessels of silver and of gold, clothing and weapons of war, as well as aromatics, and horses, and mules, throughout each year.
{10:26} And Solomon gathered together the chariots and horsemen. And he had one thousand four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. And he placed them in the walled cities, and with the king at Jerusalem.
{10:27} And he caused silver to be as abundant in Jerusalem as stones, and he supplied a multitude of cedars like the sycamores that grow in the plains.
{10:28} And horses were brought for Solomon from Egypt and from Kue. For the merchants of the king were buying these from Kue. And they paid out the established price.
{10:29} Now a four-horse chariot would be sent from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for one hundred and fifty. And in this manner, all the kings of the Hittites and of Syria were selling horses.
{11:1} But king Solomon loved many foreign women, including the daughter of Pharaoh, and women of Moab, and of Ammon, and of Idumea, and of Sidon, and of the Hittites.
{11:2} These were of the nations about whom the Lord said to the sons of Israel: “You shall not enter to them, and none of them shall enter to anyone of yours. For they will most certainly turn aside your hearts, so that you follow their gods.” And yet, to these Solomon was joined with a greatly enflamed love.
{11:3} And for him, there were seven hundred wives, as if they were queens, and three hundred concubines. And the women turned aside his heart.
{11:4} And when now he was old, his heart was perverted by the women, so that he followed strange gods. And his heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David.
{11:5} For Solomon worshipped Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom, the idol of the Ammonites.
{11:6} And Solomon did what was not pleasing in the sight of the Lord. And he did not continue to follow the Lord, as his father David did.
{11:7} Then Solomon built a shrine for Chemosh, the idol of Moab, on the mount that is opposite Jerusalem, and for Milcom, the idol of the sons of Ammon.
{11:8} And he acted in this manner for all his foreign wives, who were burning incense and immolating to their gods.
{11:9} And so, the Lord became angry with Solomon, because his mind had been turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice,
{11:10} and who had instructed him about this matter, lest he follow strange gods. But he did not observe what the Lord commanded to him.
{11:11} And so, the Lord said to Solomon: “Because you have this with you, and because you have not kept my covenant and my precepts, which I commanded to you, I will tear apart your kingdom, and I will give it to your servant.
{11:12} Yet truly, I will not do it in your days, for the sake of your father David. From the hand of your son, I will tear it away.
{11:13} Neither will I take away the whole kingdom. Instead, I will grant one tribe to your son, for the sake of David, my servant, and Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”
{11:14} Then the Lord raised up an adversary to Solomon, Hadad of Idumea, from an offspring of the king who was in Idumea.
{11:15} For when David was in Idumea, Joab, the leader of the military, had ascended to bury those who had been killed, and he had killed every male in Idumea.
{11:16} And Joab remained in that place for six months, with all of Israel, until he had put to death every male in Idumea.
{11:17} Then Hadad fled, he and some men of Idumea from among the servants of his father with him, so that he might enter into Egypt. But Hadad was then a little boy.
{11:18} And when they had risen up from Midian, they went into Paran, and they took with them some men from Paran. And they went into Egypt, to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. And he gave him a house, and he appointed food for him, and he assigned land to him.
{11:19} And Hadad found great favor before Pharaoh, so much so that he gave to him as wife, the sister of his own wife, queen Tahpenes.
{11:20} And the sister of Tahpenes bore to him a son, Genubath. And Tahpenes raised him in the house of Pharaoh. And Genubath was living with Pharaoh and his sons.
{11:21} And when Hadad had heard in Egypt that David had slept with his fathers, and that Joab, the leader of the military, had died, he said to Pharaoh, “Release me, so that I may go to my own land.”
{11:22} And Pharaoh said to him, “But what is lacking to you with me, so that you would seek to go to your own land?” But he responded: “Nothing. Yet I beg you that you may release me.”
{11:23} Also, God raised up against him an adversary, Rezon, the son of Eliada, who had fled from his lord, Hadad-Ezer, the king of Zobah.
{11:24} And he gathered together men against him. And when David put those of Zobah to death, he became a leader of robbers. And they went away to Damascus, and they lived there. And they appointed him to be king of Damascus.
{11:25} And he was an adversary to Israel during all the days of Solomon. And such is the evil of Hadad and of his hatred against Israel. And he reigned in Syria.
{11:26} Also, there was Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite from Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother was named Zeruah, a widowed woman. He lifted up his hand against the king.
{11:27} And this is the reason for his rebellion against him: that Solomon built up Millo, and that he filled in a deep hole in the city of David, his father.
{11:28} Now Jeroboam was a valiant and powerful man. And perceiving the young man to be ingenious and industrious, Solomon appointed him as first ruler over the tributes of the entire house of Joseph.
{11:29} And it happened, in that time, that Jeroboam departed from Jerusalem. And the prophet Ahijah, the Shilonite, wearing a new cloak, found him on the way. And the two were alone in the field.
{11:30} And taking his new cloak, with which he was covered, Ahijah tore it into twelve parts.
{11:31} And he said to Jeroboam: “Take ten pieces for yourself. For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I will tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon, and I will give to you ten tribes.
{11:32} Yet one tribe shall remain with him, for the sake of my servant, David, as well as Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel.
{11:33} For he has abandoned me, and he has adored Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Chemosh, the god of Moab, and Milcom, the god of the sons of Ammon. And he has not walked in my ways, so that he would do justice before me, and so that he would carry out my precepts and judgments, as his father David did.
{11:34} But I will not take the entire kingdom from his hand. Instead, I will establish him as the ruler during all the days of his life, for the sake of my servant David, whom I chose, who kept my commandments and my precepts.
{11:35} But I will take away the kingdom from the hand of his son, and I will give to you ten tribes.
{11:36} Then, to his son, I will give one tribe, so that there may remain a lamp for my servant David before me, for all days, in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen, so that my name would be there.
{11:37} And I will take you up, and you shall reign over all that your soul desires. And you shall be king over Israel.
{11:38} Therefore, if you will listen to all that I will command you, and if you will walk in my ways, and do what is right in my sight, keeping my commandments and my precepts, just as my servant David did, then I will be with you, and I will build for you a faithful house, in the way that I built a house for David, and I will deliver Israel to you.
{11:39} And I will afflict the offspring of David over this, but truly not for all days.’ ”
{11:40} Therefore, Solomon wanted to kill Jeroboam. But he rose up and fled away to Egypt, to Shishak, the king of Egypt. And he was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.
{11:41} Now the rest of the words of Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom: behold, these are all written in the book of the words of the days of Solomon.
{11:42} And the days that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem, over all of Israel, were forty years.
{11:43} And Solomon slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the city of David, his father. And Rehoboam, his son, reigned in his place.
{12:1} Then Rehoboam went to Shechem. For in that place, all of Israel had gathered to appoint him as king.
{12:2} Yet truly, Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, while he was still in Egypt as a fugitive from the face of king Solomon, hearing of his death, returned from Egypt.
{12:3} And they sent and called him. Therefore, Jeroboam went, with the entire multitude of Israel, and they spoke to Rehoboam, saying:
{12:4} “Your father imposed a very harsh yoke upon us. And so, you should now take away a little from the very harsh rule of your father and from his very grievous yoke, which he imposed upon us, and we will serve you.”
{12:5} And he said to them, “Go away, until the third day, and then return to me.” And when the people had gone away,
{12:6} king Rehoboam took counsel with the elders who had assisted before his father Solomon while he was still living. And he said, “What counsel do you give to me, so that I may respond to this people?”
{12:7} They said to him, “If today you will obey and serve this people, and yield to their petition, and if you will speak lenient words to them, they will be your servants for all days.”
{12:8} But he abandoned the counsel of the old men, which they had given to him. And he consulted the young men who had been raised with him, and who were assisting him.
{12:9} And he said to them: “What counsel do you give to me, so that I may respond to this people, who have said to me: ‘Make light the yoke that your father imposed on us?’ ”
{12:10} And the young men who had been raised with him, said: “You shall speak in this way to this people, who have spoken to you, saying: ‘Your father weighed down our yoke. You should relieve us.’ You shall say this to them: ‘My little finger is thicker than the back of my father.
{12:11} And now, my father placed a heavy yoke upon you, but I will add more upon your yoke. My father cut you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions.’ ”
{12:12} Therefore, Jeroboam and all the people went to Rehoboam on the third day, just as the king had spoken, saying, “Return to me on the third day.”
{12:13} And the king responded to the people harshly, leaving behind the counsel of the elders that they had given to him.
{12:14} And he spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying: “My father weighed down your yoke, but I will add more to your yoke. My father cut you with whips, but I will beat you with scorpions.”
{12:15} And the king did not acquiesce to the people. For the Lord had turned him away, so that he might raise up his word, which he had spoken by the hand of Ahijah, the Shilonite, to Jeroboam, the son of Nebat.
{12:16} And so the people, seeing that the king had not been willing to listen to them, responded to him, saying: “What part do we have in David? Or what inheritance do we have in the son of Jesse? Go to your own tents, O Israel. Now David, see to your own house.” And Israel went away to their own tents.
{12:17} But over all the sons of Israel who were living in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned.
{12:18} Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the tribute. And all of Israel stoned him, and he died. Therefore, king Rehoboam hurrying, climbed into the chariot, and fled to Jerusalem.
{12:19} And Israel drew away from the house of David, even to the present day.
{12:20} And it happened that, when all of Israel had heard that Jeroboam had returned, gathering an assembly, they sent and called him, and they appointed him as king over all of Israel. And no one followed the house of David, except the tribe of Judah alone.
{12:21} Then Rehoboam went to Jerusalem, and he gathered together the entire house of Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, one hundred and eighty thousand elect men of war, so that they might fight against the house of Israel, and might bring the kingdom back to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon.
{12:22} But the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, the man of God, saying:
{12:23} “Speak to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, the king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah, and to Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, saying:
{12:24} ‘Thus says the Lord: You shall not go up, and you shall not make war against your brothers, the sons of Israel. Let each man return to his own house. For this word came from me.’ ” And they listened to the word of the Lord, and they returned from the journey, as the Lord had instructed them.
{12:25} Then Jeroboam built up Shechem, on mount Ephraim, and he lived there. And departing from there, he built up Penuel.
{12:26} And Jeroboam said in his heart: “Now the kingdom will return to the house of David,
{12:27} if this people ascend to offer sacrifices in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem. And the heart of this people will be converted to their lord Rehoboam, the king of Judah, and they will put me to death, and return to him.”
{12:28} And devising a plan, he made two golden calves. And he said to them: “No longer choose to ascend to Jerusalem. Behold, these are your gods, O Israel, who led you away from the land of Egypt!”
{12:29} And he stationed one in Bethel, and the other in Dan.
{12:30} And this word became an occasion of sin. For the people went to adore the calf, even to Dan.
{12:31} And he made shrines on the high places, and he made priests out of the lowest people, who were not of the sons of Levi.
{12:32} And he appointed a solemn day in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, in imitation of the solemnity that was celebrated in Judah. And ascending to the altar, he acted similarly in Bethel, so that he immolated to the calves, which he had made. And in Bethel, he appointed priests of the high places, which he had made.
{12:33} And he ascended to the altar, which he had raised up in Bethel, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, the day that he had decided in his own heart. And he made a solemnity to the sons of Israel, and he ascended to the altar, so that he might burn incense.
{13:1} And behold, by the word of the Lord, a man of God went from Judah to Bethel, when Jeroboam was standing over the altar, and burning incense.
{13:2} And by the word of the Lord, he cried out against the altar. And he said: “O altar, O altar! Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, a son will be born to the house of David, Josiah by name. And upon you, he will immolate the priests of the high places, who now burn incense upon you. And upon you, he will burn up the bones of men.’ ”
{13:3} And he gave a sign on the same day, saying: “This will be the sign that the Lord has spoken. Behold, the altar shall be torn apart, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out.”
{13:4} And when the king had heard the word of the man of God, which he had cried out against the altar at Bethel, he extended his hand from the altar, saying, “Apprehend him!” But his hand, which he had extended against him, withered. And he was unable to draw it back to himself.
{13:5} Also, the altar was torn apart, and the ashes were poured out from the altar, in accord with the sign that the man of God had predicted by the word of the Lord.
{13:6} And the king said to the man of God, “Entreat the face of the Lord your God, and pray for me, so that my hand may be restored to me.” And the man of God prayed before the face of the Lord, and the hand of the king was restored to him, and it became as it had been before.
{13:7} Then the king said to the man of God: “Come home with me, so that you may dine. And I will give you gifts.”
{13:8} And the man of God responded to the king: “Even if you will give me one half part of your house, I will not go with you, nor eat bread, nor drink water in this place.
{13:9} For so it was commanded to me by the word of the Lord, ordering: ‘You shall not eat bread, and you shall not drink water, nor shall you return by the way that you came.’ ”
{13:10} Then he departed by another way, and he did not return along the way that he had traveled to Bethel.
{13:11} Now a certain elderly prophet was living in Bethel. His sons went to him, and they described to him all the works which the man of God had accomplished on that day in Bethel. And they described to their father the words that he had spoken to the king.
{13:12} And their father said to them, “By which way did he depart?” His sons showed him the way by which the man of God, who had come from Judah, had departed.
{13:13} And he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” And when they had saddled it, he climbed on,
{13:14} and he went away after the man of God. And he found him sitting under a terebinth tree. And he said to him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?” And he responded, “I am.”
{13:15} And he said to him, “Come home with me, so that you may eat bread.”
{13:16} But he said: “I am not able to turn back, nor to go with you. Neither will I eat bread, or drink water in this place.
{13:17} For the Lord has spoken to me, by the word of the Lord, saying, “You shall not eat bread, and you shall not drink water in that place, nor shall you return by the way that you arrived.”
{13:18} And he said to him: “I, too, am a prophet like you. And an Angel spoke to me, by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘Lead him back with you to your house, so that he may eat bread, and drink water.’ ” And so he deceived him.
{13:19} And he led him back with him. Then he ate bread and drank water in his house.
{13:20} And while they were sitting at table, the word of the Lord came to the prophet who had led him back.
{13:21} And he cried out to the man of God who had arrived from Judah, saying: “Thus says the Lord: Because you were not obedient to the mouth of the Lord, and you did not keep the commandment that the Lord your God instructed to you,
{13:22} and you turned back, and ate bread, and drank water in the place where he commanded you that you should not eat bread, nor drink water: your dead body shall not be carried back to the sepulcher of your fathers.”
{13:23} And when he had eaten and had drunk, he saddled his donkey for the prophet whom he had led back.
{13:24} And when he had departed, a lion found him along the way, and it killed him, and his dead body was left upon the road. Now the donkey was standing beside him. And the lion was standing beside the dead body.
{13:25} And behold, men who were passing by saw the dead body lying in the road, with the lion standing beside the body. And they went and made it widely known in the city where that elderly prophet was living.
{13:26} And when that prophet, who had led him back from the way, had heard it, he said: “It is the man of God, who was disobedient to the mouth of the Lord. And the Lord has delivered him to the lion. And it has torn him apart and killed him, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he spoke to him.”
{13:27} And he said to his sons, “Saddle a donkey for me.” And when they had saddled it,
{13:28} and he had departed, he found the dead body lying on the road, with the donkey and the lion standing beside the dead body. The lion did not eat from the dead body, nor did it harm the donkey.
{13:29} Then the prophet took the dead body of the man of God, and he placed it upon the donkey, and returning, he brought it into the city of the elderly prophet, so that he might mourn for him.
{13:30} And he placed his dead body in his own sepulcher. And they mourned for him, saying: “Alas! Alas! My brother!”
{13:31} And when they had mourned over him, he said to his sons: “When I will have died, bury me in the sepulcher in which the man of God was buried. Place my bones beside his bones.
{13:32} For certainly, the word will arrive, which he predicted by the word of the Lord, against the altar, which is in Bethel, and against all the shrines of the high places, which are in the cities of Samaria.”
{13:33} After these words, Jeroboam did not turn back from his very evil way. Instead, to the contrary, he made priests for the high places out of the least of the people. Whosoever was willing, he filled his hand, and he became a priest of the high places.
{13:34} And for this reason, the house of Jeroboam sinned, and was uprooted, and was wiped from the face of the earth.
{14:1} In that time Abijah, the son of Jeroboam, became ill.
{14:2} And Jeroboam said to his wife: “Rise up, and change clothing, so that you will not be recognized to be the wife of Jeroboam. And go to Shiloh, where the prophet Ahijah is, who said to me that I should reign over this people.
{14:3} Also, take in your hand ten loaves, and dried bread, and a container of honey, and go to him. For he will reveal to you what will happen to this boy.”
{14:4} The wife of Jeroboam did just as he had said. And rising up, she went away to Shiloh. And she arrived at the house of Ahijah. But he was unable to see, because his eyes had dimmed due to old age.
{14:5} Then the Lord said to Ahijah: “Behold, the wife of Jeroboam enters, so that she may consult you over her son, who is ill. You shall say one thing and another to her.” Therefore, as she was entering, not presenting herself to be who she was,
{14:6} Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, entering through the door. And he said: “Enter, O wife of Jeroboam. Why do you pretend to be someone you are not? But I have been sent to you with harsh news.
{14:7} Go, and tell Jeroboam: ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Although I exalted you from the midst of the people, and I granted to you to be the leader over my people Israel,
{14:8} and I tore the kingdom away from the house of David, and I gave it to you, yet you have not been like David, my servant, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with his whole heart, doing what was pleasing in my sight.
{14:9} Instead, you have worked evil beyond all those who were before you. And you have made for yourself strange gods and molten images, so that you provoke me to anger. And you have cast me behind your back.
{14:10} For this reason, behold, I will lead evils over the house of Jeroboam, and I will strike down from Jeroboam that which urinates against a wall, and that which is lame, and that which is last in Israel. And I will cleanse that which remains of the house of Jeroboam, just as dung is usually cleaned away, until there is purity.
{14:11} Those who will have died of Jeroboam in the city, the dogs will devour them. And those who will have died in the field, the birds of the heavens will devour them. For the Lord has spoken.’
{14:12} Therefore, you must rise up, and go to your house. And in the city, at the very entrance of your feet, the boy will die.
{14:13} And all of Israel will mourn him, and will bury him. For he alone of Jeroboam shall be brought into a sepulcher. For concerning him, there has been found a good word from the Lord, the God of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam.
{14:14} But the Lord has appointed for himself a king over Israel, who will strike down the house of Jeroboam, in this day and in this time.
{14:15} And the Lord God shall strike Israel, just as a reed is usually shaken in the water. And he will uproot Israel from this good land, which he gave to their fathers. And he will winnow them beyond the river. For they have made for themselves sacred groves, so that they have provoked the Lord.
{14:16} And the Lord will hand over Israel, because of the sins of Jeroboam, who has sinned and caused Israel to sin.”
{14:17} And so, the wife of Jeroboam rose up, and she went away. And she arrived at Tirzah. And as she was entering the threshold of the house, the boy died.
{14:18} And they buried him, and all of Israel mourned for him, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he spoke by the hand of his servant Ahijah, the prophet.
{14:19} Now the rest of the words of Jeroboam, the manner in which he fought, and the manner in which he reigned, behold, these were written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel.
{14:20} And the days during which Jeroboam reigned were twenty-two years. And he slept with his fathers. And Nadab, his son, reigned in his place.
{14:21} Now Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city that the Lord chose, out of all the tribes of Israel, so that he might place his name there. And the name of his mother was Naamah, an Ammonite.
{14:22} And Judah did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they provoked him beyond all that their fathers had done, by their sins that they committed.
{14:23} For they, too, built for themselves altars, and statues, and sacred groves, upon every high hill and under every leafy tree.
{14:24} Moreover, the effeminate were in the land, and they committed all the abominations of the peoples that the Lord had destroyed before the face of the sons of Israel.
{14:25} Then, in the fifth year of the reign of Rehoboam, Shishak, the king of Egypt, ascended against Jerusalem.
{14:26} And he took away the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the royal treasures, and he plundered everything, including the shields of gold that Solomon had made.
{14:27} In place of these, king Rehoboam made shields of brass, and he delivered them into the hand of the commanders of the shield bearers, and of those who were keeping the night watch before the gate of the king’s house.
{14:28} And when the king entered into the house of the Lord, these were carried by those who held the office to go before him. And afterward, they carried them back to the armory of the shield bearers.
{14:29} Now the rest of the words of Rehoboam, and all that he did, behold, these were written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah.
{14:30} And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam, during all the days.
{14:31} And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and he was buried with them in the city of David. And his mother’s name was Naamah, an Ammonite. And his son Abijam reigned in his place.
{15:1} Then, in the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, Abijam reigned over Judah.
{15:2} He reigned for three years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Maacah, the daughter of Abishalom.
{15:3} And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him. Neither was his heart perfect with the Lord his God, as was the heart of David, his father.
{15:4} But for the sake of David, the Lord his God gave to him a lamp in Jerusalem, so that he might raise up his son after him, and so that he might establish Jerusalem.
{15:5} For David had done what was right in the eyes of the Lord, and he had not declined from all of the things that he had instructed to him, during all the days of his life, except the matter of Uriah, the Hittite.
{15:6} Now there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam during the entire time of his life.
{15:7} And the rest of the words of Abijam, and all that he did, were these not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah? And there was fighting between Abijam and Jeroboam.
{15:8} And Abijam slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David. And Asa, his son, reigned in his place.
{15:9} Then, in the twentieth year of Jeroboam, the king of Israel, Asa reigned as king of Judah.
{15:10} And he reigned for forty-one years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Maacah, the daughter of Abishalom.
{15:11} And Asa did what was right before the sight of the Lord, just as his father David did.
{15:12} And he took away the effeminate from the land. And he purged all the filth of the idols, which his fathers had made.
{15:13} Moreover, he also removed his mother, Maacah, from being the leader in the sacrifices of Priapus, and in his sacred grove which she had consecrated. And he destroyed his grotto. And he shattered the very indecent idol, and he burned it at the torrent Kidron.
{15:14} But the high places, he did not take away. Yet truly, the heart of Asa was perfect with the Lord during all his days.
{15:15} And he brought the things that his father had sanctified and vowed back to the house of the Lord: the silver, and the gold, and the vessels.
{15:16} Now there was war between Asa and Baasha, the king of Israel, during all their days.
{15:17} And Baasha, the king of Israel, ascended against Judah. And he built up Ramah, so that no one would be able to exit or enter from the side of Asa, the king of Judah.
{15:18} And so, Asa took all the silver and the gold which had remained in the treasuries of the house of the Lord, and in the treasuries of the house of the king, and he gave it into the hands of his servants. And he sent them to Benhadad, the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, the king of Syria, who was living in Damascus, saying:
{15:19} “There is a pact between me and you, and between my father and your father. For this reason, I have sent to you gifts of silver and of gold. And I ask you to go and break your pact with Baasha, the king of Israel, so that he may withdraw from me.”
{15:20} Benhadad, acquiescing to king Asa, sent the leaders of his army against the cities of Israel. And they struck Ijon, and Dan, and Abel, the house of Maacah, and all of Chinneroth, that is, all the land of Naphtali.
{15:21} And when Baasha had heard this, he ceased from fortifying Ramah, and he returned to Tirzah.
{15:22} Then king Asa sent an announcement to all of Judah, saying, “Let no one be excused.” And they took away the stones from Ramah, and its timber, with which Baasha had fortified it. And from these things, king Asa built up Geba of Benjamin and Mizpah.
{15:23} Now all the rest of the words of Asa, and his entire strength, and all that he did, and the cities that he built, were these not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah? Yet truly, in the time of his old age, he was afflicted in his feet.
{15:24} And he slept with his fathers, and he was buried with them in the city of David, his father. And Jehoshaphat, his son, reigned in his place.
{15:25} Yet truly, Nadab, the son of Jeroboam, reigned over Israel, in the second year of Asa, the king of Judah. And he reigned over Israel for two years.
{15:26} And he did what is evil in the sight of the Lord. And he walked in the ways of his father and in his sins, by which he caused Israel to sin.
{15:27} Then Baasha, the son of Ahijah, from the house of Issachar, set an ambush against him, and he struck him down at Gibbethon, which is a city of the Philistines. For indeed, Nadab and all of Israel were laying siege to Gibbethon.
{15:28} And so Baasha killed him in the third year of Asa, the king of Judah, and he reigned in his place.
{15:29} And when he had reigned, he struck down the entire house of Jeroboam. He did not leave behind even one soul from his offspring, until he had wiped him away, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he had spoken by the hand of Ahijah, the Shilonite,
{15:30} because of the sin of Jeroboam, which he had committed, and by which he had caused Israel to sin, and because of the offense by which he had provoked the Lord, the God of Israel.
{15:31} But the rest of the words of Nadab, and all that he did, were these not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{15:32} And there was war between Asa and Baasha, the king of Israel, during all their days.
{15:33} In the third year of Asa, the king of Judah, Baasha, the son of Ahijah, reigned over all of Israel, at Tirzah, for twenty-four years.
{15:34} And he did evil in the sight of the Lord. And he walked in the ways of Jeroboam, and in his sins, by which he caused Israel to sin.
{16:1} Then the word of the Lord came to Jehu, the son of Hanani, against Baasha, saying:
{16:2} “Even though I exalted you from the dust, and I set you as ruler over my people Israel, still you have walked in the way of Jeroboam, and you have caused my people Israel to sin, so that you have provoked me by their sins.
{16:3} Behold, I will cut down the posterity of Baasha, and the posterity of his house. And I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat.
{16:4} Whoever will have died of Baasha in the city, the dogs will consume him. And whoever will have died of him in the countryside, the birds of the air will consume him.”
{16:5} Now the rest of the words of Baasha, and whatever he did, and his battles, were these not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{16:6} Then Baasha slept with his fathers, and he was buried at Tirzah. And Elah, his son, reigned in his place.
{16:7} And when the word of the Lord had arrived by the hand of the prophet Jehu, the son of Hanani, against Baasha, and against his house, and against every evil that he had done before the Lord, so that he provoked him by the works of his hands, so that he became like the house of Jeroboam: for this reason, he killed him, that is, the prophet Jehu, the son of Hanani.
{16:8} In the twenty-sixth year of Asa, the king of Judah, Elah, the son of Baasha, reigned over Israel, at Tirzah, for two years.
{16:9} And his servant Zimri, the commander of one half part of the horsemen, rebelled against him. Now Elah was drinking at Tirzah, and he became inebriated in the house of Arza, the prefect of Tirzah.
{16:10} Then Zimri, rushing in, struck him and killed him, in the twenty-seventh year of Asa, the king of Judah. And he reigned in his place.
{16:11} And when he had reigned and had sat upon his throne, he struck down the entire house of Baasha. And he did not leave behind of them anything that urinates against a wall, among both close relatives and his friends.
{16:12} And so, Zimri destroyed the entire house of Baasha, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he had spoken to Baasha, by the hand the prophet of Jehu,
{16:13} because of all the sins of Baasha, and the sins of Elah, his son, who sinned and caused Israel to sin, provoking the Lord, the God of Israel, with their vanities.
{16:14} But the rest of the words of Elah, and all that he did, were these not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{16:15} In the twenty-seventh year of Asa, the king of Judah, Zimri reigned for seven days in Tirzah. For the army was besieging Gibbethon, a city of the Philistines.
{16:16} And when they had heard that Zimri had rebelled, and that he had killed the king, all of Israel made Omri as a king for themselves; he was the leader of the military over Israel in the encampment in that day.
{16:17} Therefore, Omri ascended, and all of Israel with him, from Gibbethon, and they besieged Tirzah.
{16:18} Then Zimri, seeing that the city was about to be taken, entered the palace, and he set fire to himself along with the royal house. And he died
{16:19} in his sins, which he had sinned, doing evil before the Lord, and walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin, by which he caused Israel to sin.
{16:20} But the rest of the words of Zimri, and of his treachery and tyranny, were these not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{16:21} Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts: one half part of the people followed Tibni, the son of Ginath, having appointed him as king, and one half part followed Omri.
{16:22} But the people who were with Omri prevailed over the people who were following Tibni, the son of Ginath. And Tibni died, and Omri reigned.
{16:23} In the thirty-first year of Asa, the king of Judah, Omri reigned over Israel for twelve years; he reigned for six years at Tirzah.
{16:24} And he bought the mount of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver. And he built upon it, and he called the name of the city that he had built, Samaria, after the name of Shemer, the owner of the mount.
{16:25} But Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord, and he wrought wickedness, beyond all who had been before him.
{16:26} And he walked in all the ways of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and in his sins, by which he had caused Israel to sin, so that he provoked the Lord, the God of Israel, by their vanities.
{16:27} Now the rest of the words of Omri, and his battles that he carried out, were these not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{16:28} And Omri slept with his fathers, and he was buried in Samaria. And Ahab, his son, reigned in his place.
{16:29} Truly, Ahab, the son of Omri, reigned over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa, the king of Judah. And Ahab, the son of Omri, reigned over Israel at Samaria for twenty-two years.
{16:30} And Ahab, the son of Omri, did evil in the sight of the Lord, beyond all who had been before him.
{16:31} And it was not enough for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat. In addition, he took as a wife Jezebel, the daughter of Eth-baal, the king of the Sidonians. And he went astray, and he served Baal, and adored him.
{16:32} And he set up an altar for Baal, in the temple of Baal, which he had built at Samaria.
{16:33} And he planted a sacred grove. And Ahab added to his works, provoking the Lord, the God of Israel, beyond all the kings of Israel who had been before him.
{16:34} In his days, Hiel from Bethel built up Jericho. With Abiram, his firstborn, he founded it, and with Segub, his youngest son, he set up its gates, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he had spoken by the hand of Joshua, the son of Nun.
{17:1} And Elijah the Tishbite, from the inhabitants of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord lives, the God of Israel, in whose sight I stand, there shall not be dew or rain during these years, except by the words of my mouth.”
{17:2} And the word of the Lord came to him, saying:
{17:3} “Withdraw from here, and go toward the east, and hide at the torrent Cherith, which is opposite the Jordan.
{17:4} And there you shall drink from the torrent. And I have instructed the ravens to feed you there.”
{17:5} Therefore, he went and acted in accord with the word of the Lord. And going away, he settled by the torrent Cherith, which is opposite the Jordan.
{17:6} And the ravens carried bread and flesh to him in the morning, and likewise bread and flesh in the evening. And he drank from the torrent.
{17:7} But after some days, the torrent dried up. For it had not rained upon the earth.
{17:8} Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying:
{17:9} “Rise up, and go to Zarephath of the Sidonians, and dwell there. For I have instructed a widowed woman there to feed you.”
{17:10} He rose up and went away to Zarephath. And when he had arrived at the gate of the city, he saw the widowed woman collecting wood, and he called to her. And he said to her, “Give me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink.”
{17:11} And as she was going to bring it, he called out after her, saying, “Bring me also, I beg you, a morsel of bread in your hand.”
{17:12} And she responded: “As the Lord your God lives, I have no bread, except a handful of flour in a jar, and a little oil in a bottle. See, I am collecting a couple of sticks, so that I may go in and make it for myself and my son, so that we may eat it and die.”
{17:13} And Elijah said to her: “Do not be afraid. But go and do as you have said. Yet truly, first make for me, from the same flour, a little bread baked under ashes, and bring it to me. Then afterward, make some for yourself and for your son.
{17:14} For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘The jar of flour will not fail, nor the bottle of oil be diminished, until the day when the Lord will grant rain upon the face of the earth.’ ”
{17:15} She went and acted in accord with the word of Elijah. And he ate, and she and her household ate. And from that day,
{17:16} the jar of flour did not fail, and the bottle of oil was not diminished, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he had spoken by the hand of Elijah.
{17:17} Now it happened that, after these things, the son of the woman who was the mother of the family became ill. And the sickness was very powerful, so that no breath remained in him.
{17:18} Therefore, she said to Elijah: “What is there between you and me, O man of God? Have you entered to me, so that my iniquities would be remembered, and so that you would put to death my son?”
{17:19} And Elijah said to her, “Give your son to me.” And he took him from her bosom, and he carried him to an upper room, where he himself was staying. And he placed him on his own bed.
{17:20} And he cried out to the Lord, and he said, “O Lord, my God, have you even afflicted the widow by whom I am, in a sense, sustained, so that you would put to death her son?”
{17:21} And he stretched himself out beside the boy three times. And he cried out to the Lord and said, “O Lord, my God, let the soul of this boy, I beg you, return to his body.”
{17:22} And the Lord heeded the voice of Elijah. And the soul of the boy returned to him, and he revived.
{17:23} And Elijah took the boy, and he brought him down from the upper room to the lower part of the house. And he gave him to his mother. And he said to her, “See, your son lives.”
{17:24} And the woman said to Elijah: “By this, I now realize that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is true.”
{18:1} After many days, the word of the Lord came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, “Go and show yourself to Ahab, so that I may grant rain upon the face of the earth.”
{18:2} Therefore, Elijah went to show himself to Ahab. For there was a severe famine in Samaria.
{18:3} And Ahab called Obadiah, the manager of his household. Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly.
{18:4} For when Jezebel was killing the prophets of the Lord, he took one hundred prophets, and concealed them, fifty and fifty, in caves. And he fed them with bread and water.
{18:5} Then Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go into the land, to all fountains of water, and to all the valleys, for perhaps we will be able to find plants, and save the horses and mules, so that the beasts of burden may not perish entirely.”
{18:6} And they divided the regions among themselves, so that they might travel through them. Ahab went one way alone, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
{18:7} And while Obadiah was on the way, Elijah met him. And when he had recognized him, he fell on his face, and he said, “Are you not my lord Elijah?”
{18:8} And he responded to him: “I am. Go and tell your lord that Elijah is here.”
{18:9} And he said: “How have I sinned that you would deliver me, your servant, into the hand of Ahab, so that he would put me to death?
{18:10} As the Lord your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom to which my lord has not sent, seeking you. And when all responded, ‘He is not here,’ he swore each kingdom and nation to an oath, because you were not found at all.
{18:11} And now, you say to me, ‘Go and tell your lord that Elijah is here.’
{18:12} And when I will have departed from you, the Spirit of the Lord will transport you to a place that I do not know. And entering, I will report to Ahab. And he, not finding you, will put me to death. Yet your servant has feared the Lord from his infancy.
{18:13} Has it not been revealed to you, my lord, what I did when Jezebel was killing the prophets of the Lord: how I hid one hundred men from the prophets of the Lord, fifty and fifty, in caves, and how I fed them with bread and water?
{18:14} And now you say: ‘Go and tell your lord that Elijah is here,’ so that he may kill me!”
{18:15} And Elijah said, “As the Lord of hosts lives, before whose face I stand, this day I will appear to him.”
{18:16} Therefore, Obadiah went away to meet Ahab, and he reported to him. And Ahab went to meet Elijah.
{18:17} And when he had seen him, he said, “Are you the one who is disturbing Israel?”
{18:18} And he said: “I have not troubled Israel. But it is you, and the house of your father, who have abandoned the commandments of the Lord, and have followed the Baals.
{18:19} Yet truly now, send and gather to me all of Israel, on Mount Carmel, with the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred prophets of the sacred groves, who eat from the table of Jezebel.”
{18:20} Ahab sent to all the sons of Israel, and he gathered together the prophets on mount Carmel.
{18:21} Then Elijah, drawing near to all the people, said: “How long will you waver between two sides? If the Lord is God, follow him. But if Baal is, then follow him.” And the people did not respond a word to him.
{18:22} And Elijah said again to the people: “I alone remain as a prophet of the Lord. But the prophets of Baal are four hundred and fifty men.
{18:23} Let two oxen be given to us. And let them choose one ox for themselves, and, cutting it into pieces, let them set it on the wood. But they may not place fire under it. And I will prepare the other ox, and set it on the wood. But I will not place fire under it.
{18:24} Call upon the names of your gods. And I will call on the name of my Lord. And the God who will have heeded with fire, let him be God.” And in response, all the people said, “Excellent proposition.”
{18:25} Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal: “Choose for yourselves one ox, and prepare it first. For you are many. And call on the names of your gods, but do not place fire under it.”
{18:26} And when they had taken an ox, which he had given to them, they prepared it. And they called on the name of Baal, from morning even until midday, saying, “O Baal, heed us.” And there was no voice, nor did anyone respond. And so they leaped upon the altar that they had made.
{18:27} And when it was now midday, Elijah ridiculed them, saying: “Cry out with a louder voice. For he is a god, and perhaps he is talking, or at an inn, or on a journey, or certainly he may be asleep, and must be awakened.”
{18:28} Then they cried out with a loud voice, and they cut themselves, in accord with their ritual, with knives and lancets, until they were entirely covered in blood.
{18:29} Then, after midday had passed, and they were prophesying, the time had arrived when the sacrifice is usually offered. And there was no voice heard, neither did anyone heed or respond to the praying.
{18:30} Elijah said to all the people, “Draw near to me.” And as the people were drawing near to him, he repaired the altar of the Lord, which had been torn down.
{18:31} And he took twelve stones, in accord with the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord came, saying, “Israel shall be your name.”
{18:32} And he built from the stones an altar to the name of the Lord. And he made a trench for water, like two furrows of plowed land, all around the altar.
{18:33} And he arranged the wood, and he cut the ox into pieces, and he placed it on the wood.
{18:34} And he said, “Fill four containers with water, and pour it over the holocaust, and over the wood.” And again, he said, “Do this a second time.” And when they had done it a second time, he said, “Do it also a third time.” And they did so a third time.
{18:35} And the water was running down around the altar, and the pit of the trench was filled with water.
{18:36} And when it was now time for the holocaust to be offered, the prophet Elijah, drawing near, said: “O Lord, God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Israel, reveal this day that you are the God of Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have acted, in all these things, in accord with your precept.
{18:37} Heed me, O Lord, heed me, so that this people may learn that you are the Lord God, and that you have converted their heart again.”
{18:38} Then the fire of the Lord fell down and devoured the holocaust, and the wood, and the stones, and even the dust, and it absorbed the water that was in the trench.
{18:39} And when all the people had seen it, they fell upon their face, and they said: “The Lord himself is God! The Lord himself is God!”
{18:40} And Elijah said to them, “Apprehend the prophets of Baal, and do not let even one of them escape.” And when they had apprehended them, Elijah led them down to the torrent Kishon, and he put them to death there.
{18:41} And Elijah said to Ahab “Ascend; eat and drink. For there is the sound of an abundance of rain.”
{18:42} Ahab ascended, so that he might eat and drink. But Elijah ascended to the top of Carmel, and bending down to the ground, he placed his face between his knees.
{18:43} And he said to his servant, “Ascend, and gaze out toward the sea.” And when he had ascended, and had contemplated, he said, “There is nothing.” And again, he said to him, “Return seven times.”
{18:44} And at the seventh time, behold, a little cloud ascended from the sea like the footstep of a man. And he said: “Ascend, and say to Ahab, ‘Yoke your chariot, and descend; otherwise, the rain may prevent you.’ ”
{18:45} And as he was turning himself this way and that, behold, the heavens were darkened, and there were clouds and wind, and a great rainstorm occurred. And so Ahab, going up, went away to Jezreel.
{18:46} And the hand of the Lord was upon Elijah. And cinching his waist, he ran before Ahab, until he arrived at Jezreel.
{19:1} Then Ahab reported to Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword.
{19:2} And so Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “May the gods do these things, and may they add these other things, if by this hour tomorrow I will not have made your life like the life of one of them.”
{19:3} Therefore, Elijah was afraid. And rising up, he went away to wherever his will would carry him. And he arrived in Beersheba of Judah. And he dismissed his servant there.
{19:4} And he continued on, into the desert, for one day’s journey. And when he had arrived, and was sitting under a juniper tree, he requested for his soul that he might die. And he said: “It is enough for me, O Lord. Take my soul. For I am no better than my fathers.”
{19:5} And he stretched himself out, and he slept deeply in the shadow of the juniper tree. And behold, an Angel of the Lord touched him, and said to him, “Rise up and eat.”
{19:6} He looked, and behold, at his head was bread baked under ashes, and a container of water. Then he ate and drank, and again he slept deeply.
{19:7} And the Angel of the Lord returned a second time, and touched him, and said to him: “Rise up, eat. For a great journey again stands before you.”
{19:8} And he when he had risen up, he ate and drank. And he walked by the strength of that food for forty days and forty nights, as far as the mountain of God, Horeb.
{19:9} And when he had arrived there, he stayed in a cave. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
{19:10} And he responded: “I have been very zealous on behalf of the Lord, the God of hosts. For the sons of Israel have forsaken your covenant. They have torn down your altars. They have killed your prophets with the sword. I alone remain. And they are seeking my life, so that they may take it away.”
{19:11} And he said to him, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by. And there was a great and strong wind, tearing apart the mountains, and crushing the rocks before the Lord. But the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind, there was an earthquake. But the Lord was not in the earthquake.
{19:12} And after the earthquake, there was a fire. But the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire, there was the whisper of a gentle breeze.
{19:13} And when Elijah had heard it, he covered his face with his cloak, and going out, he stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there was a voice to him, saying: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” And he responded:
{19:14} “I have been very zealous on behalf of the Lord, the God of hosts. For the sons of Israel have forsaken your covenant. They have torn down your altars. They have killed your prophets with the sword. I alone remain. And they are seeking my life, so that they may take it away.”
{19:15} And the Lord said to him: “Go, and return on your way, through the desert, to Damascus. And when you have arrived there, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Syria.
{19:16} And you shall anoint Jehu, the son of Nimshi, as king over Israel. But Elisha, the son of Shaphat, who is from Abelmeholah, you shall anoint to be a prophet in your place.
{19:17} And this shall be: whoever will have escaped from the sword of Hazael, will be slain by Jehu. And whoever will have escaped from the sword of Jehu, will be put to death by Elisha.
{19:18} And I will leave for myself seven thousand men in Israel, whose knees have not been bent before Baal, and every mouth that has not adored him, kissing hands.”
{19:19} Therefore, Elijah, setting out from there, found Elisha, the son of Shaphat, plowing with twelve yoke of oxen. And he himself was one of those who were plowing with the twelve yoke of oxen. And when Elijah had gone to him, he cast his mantle over him.
{19:20} And immediately, leaving behind the oxen, he ran after Elijah. And he said, “I beg you to let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.” And he said to him: “Go, and turn back. For what was mine to do, I have done concerning you.”
{19:21} Then, turning back from him, he took a pair of oxen, and he slew them. And he cooked the flesh with the plow of the oxen. And he gave it to the people, and they ate. And rising up, he went and followed Elijah, and he ministered to him.
{20:1} Then Benhadad, the king of Syria, gathered together his entire army. And there were thirty-two kings with him, with horses and chariots. And ascending, he fought against Samaria, and he besieged it.
{20:2} And sending messengers into the city, to Ahab, the king of Israel,
{20:3} he said: “Thus says Benhadad: Your silver and your gold is mine. And your wives and your best sons are mine.”
{20:4} And the king of Israel responded, “In agreement with your word, my lord the king, I am yours, with all that is mine.”
{20:5} And the messengers, returning, said: “Thus says Benhadad, who sent us to you: Your silver and your gold, and your wives and your sons, you shall give to me.
{20:6} Therefore, tomorrow, at this same hour, I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants. And all that pleases them, they will put in their hands and take away.”
{20:7} Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and he said: “Let your souls take heed, and see that he commits treachery against us. For he sent to me for my wives and sons, and for silver and gold. And I did not refuse.”
{20:8} And all those greater by birth, with all the people, said to him, “You should neither listen, nor acquiesce to him.”
{20:9} And so, he responded to the messengers of Benhadad: “Tell my lord the king: Everything about which you sent to me in the beginning, I your servant will do. But this thing, I am not able to do.”
{20:10} And returning, the messengers took this to him, and he sent again and said, “May the gods do these things to me, and may they add these other things, if the dust of Samaria is enough to fill the hands of all the people who follow me.”
{20:11} And responding, the king of Israel said, “Tell him that one who is girded should not boast the same as one who is ungirded.”
{20:12} Then it happened that, when Benhadad had heard this word, he and the kings were drinking in a pavilion. And he said to his servants, “Encircle the city.” And they encircled it.
{20:13} And behold, one prophet, drawing near to Ahab, the king of Israel, said to him: “Thus says the Lord: Certainly, you have seen this entire exceedingly great multitude? Behold, I will deliver them into your hand today, so that you may know that I am the Lord.”
{20:14} And Ahab said, “By whom?” And he said to him: “Thus says the Lord: By the footmen of the leaders of the provinces.” And he said, “Who should begin to do battle?” And he said, “You should.”
{20:15} Therefore, he took a count of the servants of the leaders of the provinces. And he found the number to be two hundred thirty-two. And he set them in order after the people, all the sons of Israel, who were seven thousand.
{20:16} And they went out at midday. But Benhadad was drinking; he was inebriated in his pavilion, and the thirty-two kings with him, who had arrived in order to assist him.
{20:17} Then the servants of the leaders of the provinces went out to the first place, at the front. And so, Benhadad sent, and they reported to him, saying: “Men have gone out from Samaria.”
{20:18} And he said: “If they have arrived for peace, apprehend them alive; if to do battle, capture them alive.”
{20:19} Therefore, the servants of the leaders of the provinces went out, and the remainder of the army was following.
{20:20} And each one struck down the man who came against him. And the Syrians fled, and Israel pursued them. Also, Benhadad, the king of Syria, fled on a horse, with his horsemen.
{20:21} But the king of Israel, going out, struck the horses and the chariots, and he struck the Syrians with a great slaughter.
{20:22} Then a prophet, drawing near to the king of Israel, said to him: “Go and be strengthened. And know and see what you are doing. For in the following year, the king of Syria will rise up against you.”
{20:23} Then truly, the servants of the king of Syria said to him: “Their gods are the gods of the mountains; because of this, they have overwhelmed us. But it is better that we fight against them in the plains, and then we will prevail over them.
{20:24} Therefore, you should do this word: Remove each of the kings from your army, and set commanders in their place.
{20:25} And replace the number of soldiers who have been cut down of yours, and the horses, in accord with the earlier number of horses, and the chariots, in accord with the number of chariots that you had before. And we will fight against them in the plains, and you will see that we will prevail over them.” And he trusted in their counsel, and he did so.
{20:26} Therefore, after the passing of the year, Benhadad took a count of the Syrians, and he ascended to Aphek, so that he might fight against Israel.
{20:27} Then the sons of Israel were numbered, and taking provisions, they set out to the opposite side. And they stretched out the camp facing them, like two little flocks of goats. But the Syrians filled the land.
{20:28} And one man of God, drawing near, said to the king of Israel: “Thus says the Lord: Because the Syrians have said, ‘The Lord is the God of the mountains, but he is not the God of the valleys,’ I will deliver this entire great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the Lord.”
{20:29} And for seven days, both sides arranged each of their battle lines. Then, on the seventh day, the war was undertaken. And the sons of Israel struck down, from the Syrians, one hundred thousand foot soldiers in one day.
{20:30} Then those who had remained fled to Aphek, into the city. And the wall fell upon twenty-seven thousand men of those who had remained. Then Benhadad, fleeing, entered the city, into a room that was inside another room.
{20:31} And his servants said to him: “Behold, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel show clemency. And so, let us put sackcloth around our waists, and ropes on our heads, and let us go out to the king of Israel. Perhaps he will save our lives.”
{20:32} So they wrapped sackcloth around their waists, and they placed ropes on their heads. And they went to the king of Israel, and they said to him: “Your servant, Benhadad, says: ‘I beg you to let my soul live.’ ” And he replied, “If he is still alive, he is my brother.”
{20:33} The men accepted this as a good sign. And hastily, they took up the word from his mouth, and they said, “Benhadad is your brother.” And he said to them, “Go, and bring him to me.” Therefore, Benhadad went out to him, and he lifted him onto his chariot.
{20:34} And he said to him: “The cities that my father took from your father, I will return. And you may make streets for yourself in Damascus, just as my father made in Samaria. And after we have made a pact, I will withdraw from you.” Therefore, he formed a pact with him, and he released him.
{20:35} Then a certain man from the sons of the prophets said to his associate, by the word of the Lord, “Strike me.” But he was not willing to strike.
{20:36} And he said to him: “Because you were not willing to heed the voice of the Lord, behold, you will depart from me, and a lion will slay you. And when he had departed a short distance from him, a lion found him, and slew him.
{20:37} But upon finding another man, he said to him, “Strike me.” And he struck him, and wounded him.
{20:38} Then the prophet departed. And he met the king along the way, and he changed his appearance by sprinkling dust around his mouth and eyes.
{20:39} And when the king had passed by, he cried out to the king, and he said: “Your servant went out to do battle in close quarters. And when one man had fled, a certain person brought him to me, and he said: ‘Guard this man. For if he slips away, your life will take the place of his life, or you will weigh out one talent of silver.’
{20:40} And while I was distracted, turning one way and another, suddenly, he was not to be seen.” And the king of Israel said to him, “This is your judgment, that which you yourself have decreed.”
{20:41} Then immediately, he wiped away the dust from his face, and the king of Israel recognized him, that he was one of the prophets.
{20:42} And he said to him: “Thus says the Lord: Because you have released from your hand a man worthy of death, your life will take the place of his life, and your people will take the place of his people.”
{20:43} And so the king of Israel returned to his house, unwilling to listen, and a fury entered into Samaria.
{21:1} And after these things, in that time, there was a vineyard of Naboth, the Jezreelite, who was in Jezreel, beside the palace of Ahab, the king of Samaria.
{21:2} Therefore, Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying: “Give your vineyard to me, so that I may make for myself a garden of herbs. For it is nearby and is beside my house. And I will give to you, in place of it, a better vineyard. Or if you consider it to be more convenient for you, I will give you the price in silver, whatever it is worth.”
{21:3} Naboth responded to him, “May the Lord be gracious to me, lest I give to you the inheritance of my fathers.”
{21:4} Then Ahab went into his house, angry and gnashing his teeth over the word that Naboth, the Jezreelite, had spoken to him, saying, “I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers.” And casting himself on his bed, he turned away his face to the wall, and he would not eat bread.
{21:5} Then Jezebel, his wife, entered to him, and she said to him: “What is this matter, by which your soul has been saddened? And why do you not eat bread?”
{21:6} And he responded to her: “I spoke to Naboth, the Jezreelite, and I said to him: ‘Give your vineyard to me, and accept money. Or if it pleases you, I will give to you a better vineyard, in place of it.’ And he said, ‘I will not give my vineyard to you.’ ”
{21:7} Then Jezebel, his wife, said to him: “You are of great authority, and you rule well in the kingdom of Israel. Rise up and eat bread, and be even-tempered. I will give the vineyard of Naboth, the Jezreelite, to you.”
{21:8} And so, she wrote letters in the name of Ahab, and she sealed these with his ring. And she sent to those greater by birth, and to the nobles who were in his city and living with Naboth.
{21:9} And this was the judgment of the letters: “Proclaim a fast, and cause Naboth to sit among the first rulers of the people.
{21:10} And send out two men, sons of Belial, against him. And let them speak the false testimony: ‘He has blasphemed God and king.’ And then lead him away, and stone him, and so let him die.”
{21:11} Then his fellow citizens, those greater by birth and the nobles who were living with him in the city, did just as Jezebel had instructed them, and just as it was written in the letters that she had sent to them.
{21:12} They proclaimed a fast, and they caused Naboth to sit among the first rulers of the people.
{21:13} And bringing forward two men, sons of the devil, they caused them to sit opposite him. And they, acting indeed like diabolical men, spoke testimony against him before the multitude: “Naboth has blasphemed God and king.” For this reason, they led him away, beyond the city, and they put him to death by stoning.
{21:14} And they sent to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned, and he has died.”
{21:15} Then it happened that, when Jezebel had heard that Naboth was stoned and was dead, she said to Ahab: “Rise up and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth, the Jezreelite, who was not willing to acquiesce to you, and to give it to you in exchange for money. For Naboth is not alive, but dead.”
{21:16} And when Ahab had heard this, namely, that Naboth was dead, he rose up and descended to the vineyard of Naboth, the Jezreelite, so that he might take possession of it.
{21:17} Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah, the Tishbite, saying:
{21:18} “Rise up, and descend to meet Ahab, the king of Israel, who is in Samaria. Behold, he is descending to the vineyard of Naboth, so that he may take possession of it.
{21:19} And you shall speak to him, saying: ‘Thus says the Lord: You have killed. Moreover you have also taken possession.’ And after this, you shall add: ‘Thus says the Lord: In this place, where the dogs have licked the blood of Naboth, they shall also lick your blood.’ ”
{21:20} And Ahab said to Elijah, “Have you discovered me to be your enemy?” And he said: “I have discovered you to have been sold, so that you would do evil in the sight of the Lord:
{21:21} ‘Behold, I will lead evil over you. And I will cut down your posterity. And I will put to death of Ahab whatever urinates against a wall, and whatever is lame, and whatever is last in Israel.
{21:22} And I will cause your house to be like the house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha, the son of Ahijah. For you have acted so that you provoked me to anger, and so that you caused Israel to sin.’
{21:23} And about Jezebel also, the Lord spoke, saying: ‘The dogs shall consume Jezebel in the field of Jezreel.
{21:24} If Ahab will have died in the city, the dogs will consume him. But if he will have died in the field, the birds of the air will consume him.’ ”
{21:25} And so, there was no other person similar to Ahab, who was sold so that he did evil in the sight of the Lord. For his wife, Jezebel, urged him on.
{21:26} And he became abominable, so much so that he followed the idols that the Amorites had made, whom the Lord consumed before the face of the sons of Israel.
{21:27} Then, when Ahab had heard these words, he tore his garments, and he put haircloth on his body, and he fasted, and he slept in sackcloth, and he walked with his head downcast.
{21:28} And the word of the Lord came to Elijah, the Tishbite, saying:
{21:29} “Have you not seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Therefore, since he has humbled himself because of me, I will not lead in the evil during his days. Instead, during the days of his son, I will bring in the evil to his house.”
{22:1} Then three years passed without war between Syria and Israel.
{22:2} But in the third year, Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, descended to the king of Israel.
{22:3} And the king of Israel said to his servants, “Are you ignorant that Ramoth Gilead is ours, and that we have neglected to take it from the hand of the king of Syria?”
{22:4} And so he said to Jehoshaphat, “Will you come to the battle with me at Ramoth Gilead?”
{22:5} And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel: “As I am, so also are you. My people and your people are one. And my horsemen are your horsemen.” And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “I beg you to inquire today of the word of the Lord.”
{22:6} Therefore, the king of Israel gathered together the prophets, about four hundred men, and he said to them, “Should I go to Ramoth Gilead to make war, or should I be at peace?” They responded, “Ascend, and the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.”
{22:7} Then Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not here a particular prophet of the Lord, so that we may inquire by him?”
{22:8} And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat: “One man remains, by whom we may be able to inquire of the Lord: Micaiah, the son of Imlah. But I hate him. For he does not prophecy good to me, but evil.” And Jehoshaphat said, “You should not speak in this way, O king.”
{22:9} Therefore, the king of Israel called a certain eunuch, and he said to him, “Hurry to bring here Micaiah, the son of Imlah.”
{22:10} Now the king of Israel, and Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, were each sitting upon his own throne, clothed in the habit of royal vestments, in a courtyard beside the entrance of the gate of Samaria. And all the prophets were prophesying in their sight.
{22:11} Also, Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah, made for himself horns of iron, and he said, “Thus says the Lord: With these, you shall threaten Syria, until you destroy it.”
{22:12} And all the prophets were prophesying similarly, saying: “Ascend to Ramoth Gilead, and go forth to success. For the Lord will deliver it into the hands of the king.”
{22:13} Then truly, the messenger who had gone to summon Micaiah spoke to him, saying: “Behold, the words of the prophets, as if with one mouth, are predicting good to the king. Therefore, let your word be like theirs, and speak what is good.”
{22:14} But Micaiah said to him, “As the Lord lives, whatever the Lord will have said to me, this shall I speak.”
{22:15} And so he went to the king. And the king said to him, “Micaiah, should we go to Ramoth Gilead to do battle, or should we cease?” And he responded to him, “Ascend, and go forth to success, and the Lord will deliver it into the hands of the king.”
{22:16} But the king said to him, “I require you under oath, again and again, that you not say to me anything except what is true, in the name of the Lord.”
{22:17} And he said: “I saw all of Israel scattered among the hills, like sheep that have no shepherd. And the Lord said: ‘These have no master. Let each of them return to his own house in peace.’ ”
{22:18} Therefore, the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat: “Did I not tell you that he prophesies nothing good to me, but always evil?”
{22:19} Yet truly, continuing, he said: “Because of his, listen to the word of the Lord. I saw the Lord sitting upon his throne. And the entire army of heaven was standing beside him, to the right and to the left.
{22:20} And the Lord said, ‘Who will mislead Ahab, the king of Israel, so that he may ascend and fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ And one spoke words in this manner, and another spoke otherwise.
{22:21} But then a spirit went out and stood before the Lord. And he said, ‘I will mislead him.’ And the Lord said to him, ‘By what means?’
{22:22} And he said, ‘I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And the Lord said: ‘You will deceive him, and you will prevail. Go forth, and do so.’
{22:23} So now, behold: the Lord has given a lying spirit into the mouth of all your prophets who are here. And the Lord has spoken evil against you.”
{22:24} Then Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah, drew near and struck Micaiah on the jaw, and he said, “So then, has the Spirit of the Lord left me, and spoken to you?”
{22:25} And Micaiah said, “You shall see in the day when you will enter into a room within a room, so that you may conceal yourself.”
{22:26} And the king of Israel said: “Take Micaiah, and let him dwell with Amon, the ruler of the city, and with Joash, the son of Amalech.
{22:27} And tell them: ‘Thus says the king: Put this man in prison, and sustain him with the bread of affliction, and with the water of distress, until I return in peace.’ ”
{22:28} And Micaiah said, “If you will have returned in peace, the Lord has not spoken through me.” And he said, “May all the people hear it.”
{22:29} And so, the king of Israel, and Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, ascended to Ramoth Gilead.
{22:30} Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat: “Take up your armor, and enter the battle. And be clothed in your own garments.” But the king of Israel changed his clothing, and he entered the war.
{22:31} Now the king of Syria had instructed the thirty-two commanders of the chariots, saying, “You shall not fight against anyone, small or great, except against the king of Israel alone.”
{22:32} Therefore, when the commanders of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they suspected that he was the king of Israel. And making a violent assault, they fought against him. And Jehoshaphat cried out.
{22:33} And the commanders of the chariots understood that he was not the king of Israel, and so they turned away from him.
{22:34} But a certain man bent his bow, aiming the arrow without certitude, and by chance he struck the king of Israel, between the lungs and the stomach. Then he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn your hand, and carry me away from the army, for I have been grievously wounded.”
{22:35} Then the battle was undertaken throughout that day. And the king of Israel was standing on his chariot opposite the Syrians, and he died in the evening. For the blood was flowing from the wound into the joints of the chariot.
{22:36} And a herald proclaimed throughout the entire army, before the setting of the sun, saying: “Let each one return to his own city, and to his own land.”
{22:37} Then the king died, and he was carried into Samaria. And they buried the king in Samaria.
{22:38} And they washed his chariot in the pool of Samaria. And the dogs licked up his blood. And they washed the reins, in accord with the word of the Lord which he had spoken.
{22:39} But the rest of the words of Ahab, and all that he did, and the house of ivory that he built, and all the cities that he constructed, were these not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{22:40} And so, Ahab slept with his fathers. And Ahaziah, his son, reigned in his place.
{22:41} Yet truly, Jehoshaphat, the son of Asa, had begun to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab, the king of Israel.
{22:42} He was thirty-five years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for twenty-five years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi.
{22:43} And he walked in the entire way of Asa, his father, and he did not decline from it. And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord.
{22:44} Yet truly, he did not take away the high places. For still the people were sacrificing and burning incense in the high places.
{22:45} And Jehoshaphat had peace with the king of Israel.
{22:46} But the rest of the words of Jehoshaphat, and his works that he did, and the battles, were these not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{22:47} Then, too, the remnant of the effeminate, who had remained in the days of Asa, his father, he took away from the land.
{22:48} At that time, there was no king appointed in Idumea.
{22:49} Yet truly, king Jehoshaphat had made a navy on the sea, which would sail to Ophir for gold. But they were unable to go, because the ships were broken down at Eziongeber.
{22:50} Then Ahaziah, the son of Ahab, said to Jehoshaphat, “Let my servants go with your servants on the ships.” But Jehoshaphat was not willing.
{22:51} And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and he was buried with them in the city of David, his father. And Jehoram, his son, reigned in his place.
{22:52} Then Ahaziah, the son of Ahab, began to reign over Israel, in Samaria, in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah. And he reigned over Israel for two years.
{22:53} And he did evil in the sight of the Lord. And he walked in the way of his father and his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin.
{22:54} Also, he served Baal, and he adored him, and he provoked the Lord, the God of Israel, in accord with all that his father had done.
{1:1} Then, after the death of Ahab, Moab transgressed against Israel.
{1:2} And Ahaziah fell down through the lattices of his upper room, which he had in Samaria, and he was injured. And he sent messengers, saying to them, “Go, consult Beelzebub, the god of Ekron, as to whether I may be able to survive this infirmity of mine.”
{1:3} And an Angel of the Lord spoke to Elijah, the Tishbite, saying: “Rise up, and ascend to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria. And you shall say to them: ‘Is there not a God in Israel, so that you would go to consult Beelzebub, the god of Ekron?
{1:4} For this reason, thus says the Lord: From the bed to which you have ascended, you shall not descend. Instead, dying you shall die.’ ” And Elijah went away.
{1:5} And the messengers returned to Ahaziah. And he said to them, “Why have you returned?”
{1:6} But they responded to him: “A man met us, and he said to us: ‘Go, and return to the king who sent you. And you shall say to him: Thus says the Lord: Is it because there was no God in Israel that you are sending to consult Beelzebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore, from the bed to which you have ascended, you shall not descend. Instead, dying you shall die.’ ”
{1:7} And he said to them: “What was the appearance and dress of that man, who met you and who spoke these words?”
{1:8} So they said, “A hairy man, with a belt of leather wrapping his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah, the Tishbite.”
{1:9} And he sent to him a leader of fifty, with the fifty who were under him. And he ascended to him, sitting at the top of a hill, and he said, “Man of God, the king commanded that you should descend.”
{1:10} And responding, Elijah said to the leader of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire from heaven descend and devour you and your fifty.” And then fire from heaven descended and devoured him and the fifty who were with him.
{1:11} And again, he sent to him another leader of fifty, and the fifty with him. And he said to him, “Man of God, thus says the king: Hurry, descend.”
{1:12} Responding, Elijah said, “If I am a man of God, let fire from heaven descend and devour you and your fifty.” And fire from heaven descended and devoured him and his fifty.
{1:13} Again, he sent a third leader of fifty men and the fifty who were with him. And when he had arrived, he bent his knees before Elijah, and he pleaded with him, and said: “Man of God, do not choose to despise my life and the lives of your servants who are with me.
{1:14} Behold, fire from heaven descended and devoured the two previous leaders of fifty and the fifties who were with them. But now I beg you to take pity on my life.”
{1:15} Then the Angel of the Lord spoke to Elijah, saying, “Descend with him; fear not.” And so, he arose and descended with him to the king.
{1:16} And he said to him: “Thus says the Lord: Because you sent messengers to consult Beelzebub, the god of Ekron, as if there were no God in Israel, from whom you would be able to seek a word, therefore, from the bed to which you have ascended, you shall not descend. Instead, dying you shall die.”
{1:17} And so he died, in accord with the word of the Lord, which Elijah spoke. And Jehoram, his brother, reigned in his place, in the second year of Jehoram, the son of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah. For he had no son.
{1:18} But the rest of the words of Ahaziah that he worked, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{2:1} Now it happened that, when the Lord willed to lift up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were going out of Gilgal.
{2:2} And Elijah said to Elisha: “Remain here. For the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.” And Elisha said to him, “As the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, I will not forsake you.” And when they had descended to Bethel,
{2:3} the sons of the prophets, who were at Bethel, went out to Elisha. And they said to him, “Do you not know that today the Lord will take away your lord from you?” And he responded: “I know it. Be silent.”
{2:4} Then Elijah said to Elisha: “Remain here. For the Lord has sent me to Jericho.” And he said, “As the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, I will not forsake you.” And when they had arrived at Jericho,
{2:5} the sons of the prophets, who were at Jericho, drew near to Elisha. And they said to him, “Do you not know that today the Lord will take away your lord from you?” And he said: “I know it. Be silent.”
{2:6} Then Elijah said to him: “Remain here. For the Lord has sent me as far as the Jordan.” And he said, “As the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, I will not forsake you.” And so, the two of them continued on together.
{2:7} And fifty men from the sons of the prophets followed them, and they stood opposite them, at a distance. But the two of them were standing above the Jordan.
{2:8} And Elijah took his cloak, and he rolled it up, and he struck the waters, which were divided into two parts. And they both went across on dry ground.
{2:9} And when they had gone across, Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask what you wish that I may do for you, before I am taken from you.” And Elisha said, “I beg you, that twice your spirit may be accomplished in me.”
{2:10} And he responded: “You have requested a difficult thing. Nevertheless, if you see me when I am taken from you, you will have what you requested. But if you do not see, it shall not be.”
{2:11} And as they continued on, they were conversing while walking. And behold, a fiery chariot with fiery horses divided the two. And Elijah ascended by a whirlwind into heaven.
{2:12} Then Elisha saw it, and he cried out: “My father, my father! The chariot of Israel with its driver!” And he saw him no more. And he took hold of his own garments, and he tore them into two parts.
{2:13} And he picked up the cloak of Elijah, which had fallen from him. And turning back, he stood above the bank of the Jordan.
{2:14} And he struck the waters with the cloak of Elijah, which had fallen from him, and they were not divided. And he said, “Where is the God of Elijah, even now?” And he struck the waters, and they were divided here and there. And Elisha went across.
{2:15} Then the sons of the prophets, who were at Jericho, watching from a distance, said, “The spirit of Elijah has rested upon Elisha.” And approaching to meet him, they reverenced him prone on the ground.
{2:16} And they said to him, “Behold, with your servants there are fifty strong men, who are able to go forth and to seek your lord. For perhaps, the Spirit of the Lord has taken him up and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley.” But he said, “Do not send them.”
{2:17} And they urged him, until he acquiesced and said, “Send them.” And they sent fifty men. And after they had searched for three days, they did not find him.
{2:18} And they returned to him, for he was living in Jericho. And he said to them: “Did I not say to you, ‘Do not send them?’ ”
{2:19} Also, the men of the city said to Elisha: “Behold, this city is a very good habitation, as you yourself perceive, O lord. But the waters are very bad, and the ground is barren.”
{2:20} And so he said, “Bring a new vessel to me, and place salt in it.” And when they had brought it,
{2:21} he went out to the source of the waters, and he cast the salt into it. And he said: “Thus says the Lord: I have healed these waters, and no longer shall there be death or barrenness in them.”
{2:22} Then the waters were healed, even to this day, in accord with the word of Elisha, which he spoke.
{2:23} Then he went up from there into Bethel. And as he was ascending along the way, little boys departed from the city. And they were mocking him, saying: “Go up, bald head! Go up, bald head!”
{2:24} And when he had looked back, he saw them, and he cursed them in the name of the Lord. And two bears went out from the forest, and they wounded forty-two boys among them.
{2:25} Then he went away from there to mount Carmel. And he returned from there into Samaria.
{3:1} Truly, Joram, the son of Ahab, reigned over Israel, in Samaria, in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah. And he reigned for twelve years.
{3:2} And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, but not as his father and mother did. For he took away the statues of Baal, which his father had made.
{3:3} Yet truly, he did adhere to the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin; neither did he withdraw from these.
{3:4} Now Mesha, the king of Moab, raised many sheep. And he repaid to the king of Israel one hundred thousand lambs, and one hundred thousand rams, with their fleece.
{3:5} And when Ahab had died, he transgressed the pact that he had with the king of Israel.
{3:6} Therefore, king Joram departed on that day from Samaria, and he took a count of all of Israel.
{3:7} And he sent to Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, saying: “The king of Moab has withdrawn from me. Come to battle with me against him.” And he responded: “I will go up. What is mine, is yours. My people are your people. And my horses are your horses.”
{3:8} And he said, “Along which way shall we ascend?” So he responded, “Along the desert of Idumea.”
{3:9} Therefore, the king of Israel, and the king of Judah, and the king of Idumea, traveled, and they went by a circuitous path for seven days. But there was no water for the army or for the beasts of burden which were following them.
{3:10} And the king of Israel said: “Alas, alas, alas! The Lord has gathered we three kings, so that he might deliver us into the hands of Moab.”
{3:11} And Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not a prophet of the Lord here, so that we may appeal to the Lord through him?” And one of the servants of the king of Israel responded, “Elisha, the son of Shaphat, is here, who poured water upon the hands of Elijah.”
{3:12} And Jehoshaphat said, “The word of the Lord is with him.” And so, the king of Israel, with Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, and with the king of Idumea, descended to him.
{3:13} Then Elisha said to the king of Israel: “What is there between you and me? Go to the prophets of your father and your mother.” And the king of Israel said to him, “Why has the Lord gathered these three kings, so that he might deliver them into the hands of Moab?”
{3:14} And Elisha said to him: “As the Lord of hosts lives, in whose sight I stand, if I was not humbled by the face of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, certainly I would neither have listened to you, nor have looked upon you.
{3:15} But now, bring a musician to me.” And while the musician was playing, the hand of the Lord fell upon him, and he said:
{3:16} “Thus says the Lord: Make, in the channel of this torrent, pit after pit.
{3:17} For thus says the Lord: You shall not see wind or rain. And yet this channel shall be filled with water. And you shall drink, you and your families, and your beasts of burden.
{3:18} And this is small in the sight of the Lord. So, in addition, he will also deliver Moab into your hands.
{3:19} And you shall strike every fortified town and every elect city. And you shall cut down every fruitful tree. And you shall obstruct all the sources of water. And you shall cover every excellent field with stones.”
{3:20} Then it happened that, in the morning, when the sacrifices were usually to be offered, behold, water was arriving along the way of Idumea, and the land was filled with water.
{3:21} Then all the Moabites, hearing that the kings had ascended so that they might fight against them, gathered all who had been girded with a belt around them, and they stood at the borders.
{3:22} And rising up in early morning, and when the sun was now rising before the waters, the Moabites saw the waters opposite them, which were red like blood.
{3:23} And they said: “It is the blood of the sword! The kings have fought among themselves, and they have slain one another. Go now, Moab, to the spoils!”
{3:24} And they went into the camp of Israel. But Israel, rising up, struck Moab, and they fled before them. And since they had prevailed, they went and struck down Moab.
{3:25} And they destroyed the cities. And they filled up every excellent field, each one casting stones. And they obstructed all the sources of water. And they cut down all the fruitful trees, to such an extent that only brick walls remained. And the city was encircled by the slingers of stones. And a great part of it was struck down.
{3:26} And when the king of Moab had seen this, specifically, that the enemies had prevailed, he took with him seven hundred men who draw the sword, so that he might break through to the king of Idumea. But they were unable.
{3:27} And taking his firstborn son, who would have reigned in his place, he offered him as a holocaust upon the wall. And there was great indignation in Israel. And they promptly withdrew from him, and they turned back to their own land.
{4:1} Now a certain woman, from the wives of the prophets, cried out to Elisha, saying: “My husband, your servant, is dead. And you know that your servant was one who fears the Lord. And behold, a creditor has arrived, so that he may take away my two sons to serve him.”
{4:2} And Elisha said to her: “What do you want me to do for you? Tell me, what do you have in your house?” And she responded, “I, your handmaid, do not have anything in my house, except a little oil, with which I may be anointed.”
{4:3} And he said to her: “Go, ask to borrow from all your neighbors empty vessels, more than a few.
{4:4} And enter and close your door. And when you are inside with your sons, pour from the oil into all those vessels. And when they are full, take them away.”
{4:5} And so, the woman went and closed the door upon herself and her sons. They were bringing her the vessels, and she was pouring into them.
{4:6} And when the vessels had been filled, she said to her son, “Bring me another a vessel.” And he responded, “I have none.” And there was oil remaining.
{4:7} Then she went and told the man of God. And he said: “Go, sell the oil, and repay your creditor. Then you and your sons may live on what remains.”
{4:8} Now it happened that, on a certain day, Elisha passed by Shunem. And there was a great woman there, who took him to eat bread. And since he frequently passed by there, he turned aside to her house, so that he might eat bread.
{4:9} And she said to her husband: “I have noticed that he is a holy man of God, who passes by us frequently.
{4:10} Therefore, let us prepare a small upper room for him, and place a bed in it for him, and a table, and a chair, and a lampstand, so that when he comes to us, he may stay there.”
{4:11} Then it happened that, on a certain day, arriving, he turned aside into the upper room, and he rested there.
{4:12} And he said to his servant Gehazi, “Call this Shunammite woman.” And when he had called her, and she stood before him,
{4:13} he said to his servant: “Say to her: Behold, you have ministered to us attentively in all things. What do you want, that I might do for you? Do you have any business, or do you want me to speak to the king, or to the leader of the military?” And she responded, “I live in the midst of my own people.”
{4:14} And he said, “Then what does she want, that I might do for her?” And Gehazi said: “You need not ask. For she has no son, and her husband is elderly.”
{4:15} And so, he instructed him to call her. And when she had been called, and was standing before the door,
{4:16} he said to her, “At this time, and at this same hour, with life as a companion, you will have a son in your womb.” But she responded, “Do not, I ask you, my lord, a man of God, do not be willing to lie to your handmaid.”
{4:17} And the woman conceived. And she bore a son, in the time and at the same hour as Elisha had said.
{4:18} And the boy grew. And on a certain day, when he had gone out to his father, to the harvesters,
{4:19} he said to his father: “I have a pain in my head. I have a pain in my head.” But he said to his servant, “Take him, and lead him to his mother.”
{4:20} But when he had taken him, and he had led him to his mother, she placed him upon her knees, until midday, and then he died.
{4:21} Then she went up and laid him out on the bed of the man of God, and she closed the door. And departing,
{4:22} she called her husband, and she said: “Send with me, I beg you, one of your servants, and a donkey, so that I may hurry to the man of God, and then return.”
{4:23} And he said to her: “What is the reason that you would go to him? Today is not the new moon, and it is not the Sabbath.” She responded, “I will go.”
{4:24} And she saddled a donkey, and she instructed her servant: “Drive, and hurry on. You shall cause no delay for me in departing. And do whatever I instruct you to do.”
{4:25} And so she set out. And she came to the man of God, on mount Carmel. And when the man of God had seen her at a distance, he said to his servant Gehazi: “Behold, it is that Shunammite woman.
{4:26} So then, go to meet her, and say to her, ‘Does all go well concerning you, and your husband, and your son?’ ” And she answered, “It is well.”
{4:27} And when she had arrived at the man of God, on the mount, she took hold of his feet. And Gehazi drew near, so that he might remove her. But the man of God said: “Permit her. For her soul is in bitterness. And the Lord has concealed it from me, and has not revealed it to me.”
{4:28} And she said to him: “Did I ask a son from my lord? Did I not say to you, ‘You should not deceive me?’ ”
{4:29} And so he said to Gehazi: “Gird your waist, and take my staff in your hand, and go. If any man will meet you, you shall not greet him. And if anyone greets you, you shall not respond to him. And place my staff upon the face of the boy.”
{4:30} But the mother of the boy said, “As the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, I will not release you.” Therefore, he rose up, and he followed her.
{4:31} But Gehazi had gone before them, and he had placed the staff upon the face of the boy. And there was no voice, nor any response. And so he returned to meet him. And he reported to him, saying, “The boy did not rise up.”
{4:32} Therefore, Elisha entered the house. And behold, the boy was lying dead upon his bed.
{4:33} And entering, he closed the door upon himself and the boy. And he prayed to the Lord.
{4:34} And he climbed up, and lay across the boy. And he put his mouth over his mouth, and his eyes over his eyes, and his hands over his hands. And he leaned himself over him, and the body of the boy grew warm.
{4:35} And returning, he walked around the house, first here and then there. And he went up, and lay across him. And the boy gasped seven times, and he opened his eyes.
{4:36} And he called Gehazi, and said to him, “Call this Shunammite woman.” And having been called, she entered to him. And he said, “Take up your son.”
{4:37} She went and fell at his feet, and she reverenced upon the ground. And she took up her son, and departed.
{4:38} And Elisha returned to Gilgal. Now there was a famine in the land, and the sons of the prophets were living in his sight. And he said to one of his servants, “Set out a large cooking pot, and boil a soup for the sons of the prophets.”
{4:39} And one went out into the field, so that he might collect wild herbs. And he found something like a wild vine, and he gathered from it bitter fruits of the field, and he filled his cloak. And returning, he cut these up for the pot of soup. But he did not know what it was.
{4:40} Then they poured it out for their companions to eat. And when they had tasted the mixture, they cried out, saying, “Death is in the cooking pot, O man of God!” And they were unable to eat.
{4:41} But he said, “Bring some flour.” And when they had brought it, he cast it into the cooking pot, and he said, “Pour it out for the group, so that they may eat.” And there was no longer any bitterness in the cooking pot.
{4:42} Now a certain man arrived from Baal-Shalishah, carrying, for the man of God, bread from the first-fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and new grain in his satchel. But he said, “Give it to the people, so that they may eat.”
{4:43} And his servant responded to him, “What amount is this, that I should set it before a hundred men?” But he said again: “Give it to the people, so that they may eat. For thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat, and there shall be still more.’ ”
{4:44} And so, he set it before them. And they ate, and there was still more, in accord with the word of the Lord.
{5:1} Naaman, the leader of the military of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man with his lord. For through him the Lord gave salvation to Syria. And he was a strong and rich man, but a leper.
{5:2} Now robbers had gone out from Syria, and they had led away captive, from the land of Israel, a little girl. And she was in the service of the wife of Naaman.
{5:3} And she said to her lady: “I wish that my lord had been with the prophet who is in Samaria. Certainly, he would have cured him of the leprosy that he has.”
{5:4} And so, Naaman entered to his lord, and he reported to him, saying: “The girl from the land of Israel spoke in such a manner.”
{5:5} And the king of Syria said to him, “Go, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” And when he had set out, he had taken with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand gold coins, and ten changes of fine clothing.
{5:6} And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, in these words: “When you will receive this letter, know that I have sent to you my servant, Naaman, so that you may heal him of his leprosy.”
{5:7} And when the king of Israel had read the letter, he tore his garments, and he said: “Am I God, so that I could take or give life, or so that this man would send to me to cure a man from his leprosy? Take notice and see that he is seeking occasions against me.”
{5:8} And when Elisha, the man of God, had heard this, specifically, that the king of Israel had torn his garments, he sent to him, saying: “Why have you torn your garments? Let him come to me, and let him know that there is a prophet in Israel.”
{5:9} Therefore, Naaman arrived with his horses and chariots, and he stood at the door of the house of Elisha.
{5:10} And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go, and wash seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will receive health, and you will be clean.”
{5:11} And becoming angry, Naaman went away, saying: “I thought that he would have come out to me, and, standing, would have invoked the name of the Lord, his God, and that he would have touched the place of the leprosy with his hand, and so have healed me.
{5:12} Are not the Abana and the Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel, so that I might wash in them and be cleansed?” But then, after he had turned himself away and was leaving with indignation,
{5:13} his servants approached him, and they said to him: “If the prophet had told you, father, to do something great, certainly you ought to have done it. How much more so, now that he has said to you: ‘Wash, and you will be clean?’ ”
{5:14} So he descended and washed in the Jordan seven times, in accord with the word of the man of God. And his flesh was restored, like the flesh of a little child. And he was made clean.
{5:15} And returning to the man of God, with his entire retinue, he arrived, and stood before him, and he said: “Truly, I know there is no other God, in all the earth, except in Israel. And so I beg you to accept a blessing from your servant.”
{5:16} But he responded, “As the Lord lives, before whom I stand, I will not accept it.” And though he urged him strongly, he did not agree at all.
{5:17} And Naaman said: “As you wish. But I beg you to grant to me, your servant, that I may take from here the burden of two mules from the ground. For your servant will no longer offer holocaust or victim to other gods, except to the Lord.
{5:18} But there is still this matter, for which you will entreat the Lord on behalf of your servant: when my lord enters the temple of Rimmon, so that he may adore there, and he leans on my hand, if I will bow down in the temple of Rimmon, while he is adoring in the same place, that the Lord may ignore me, your servant, concerning this matter.”
{5:19} And he said to him, “Go in peace.” Then he went away from him, in the elect time of the earth.
{5:20} And Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, said: “My lord has spared Naaman, this Syrian, by not receiving from him what he brought. As the Lord lives, I will run after him, and take something from him.”
{5:21} And so, Gehazi followed after the back of Naaman. And when he had seen him running toward him, he leaped down from his chariot to meet him, and he said, “Is all well?”
{5:22} And he said: “It is well. My lord has sent me to you, saying: ‘Just now two youths from the sons of the prophets have come to me from mount Ephraim. Give them a talent of silver, and two changes of clothing.’ ”
{5:23} And Naaman said, “It is better that you accept two talents.” And he urged him, and he bound the two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of clothing. And he set them upon two of his servants, who carried them before him.
{5:24} And when now he had arrived in the evening, he took them from their hands, and he stored them in the house. And he dismissed the men, and they went away.
{5:25} Then, having entered, he stood before his lord. And Elisha said, “Where are you coming from, Gehazi?” He responded, “Your servant did not go anywhere.”
{5:26} But he said: “Was my heart not present, when the man turned back from his chariot to meet you? And now you have received money, and you have received garments, so that you might buy olive groves, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and men and women servants.
{5:27} So then, the leprosy of Naaman shall adhere to you, and to your offspring forever.” And he departed from him a leper, as white as snow.
{6:1} Now the sons of the prophets said to Elisha: “Behold, the place in which we live before you is too narrow for us.
{6:2} Let us go as far as the Jordan, and let us each take from the forest a piece of timber, so that we may build for ourselves a place to live there.” And he said, “Go.”
{6:3} And one of them said, “Then you, too, should go with your servants.” And he answered, “I will go.”
{6:4} And he went with them. And when they had arrived at the Jordan, they were cutting down wood.
{6:5} Then it happened that, while someone was cutting timber, the iron of the ax fell into the water. And he cried out and said: “Alas, alas, alas, my lord! For this thing was borrowed.”
{6:6} Then the man of God said, “Where did it fall?” And he indicated to him the place. Then he cut off a piece of wood, and he threw it in. And the iron floated up.
{6:7} And he said, “Take it.” And he extended his hand, and took it.
{6:8} Now the king of Syria was fighting against Israel, and he took counsel with his servants, saying, “In this and that place, let us set up an ambush.”
{6:9} And so the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying: “Take care not to pass by that place. For the Syrians are there in ambush.”
{6:10} And so the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God had told him, and he prevented it. And he preserved himself, concerning that place, not merely once or twice.
{6:11} And the heart of the king of Syria was disturbed over this matter. And calling together his servants, he said, “Why have you not revealed to me the one who is betraying me to the king of Israel?”
{6:12} And one of his servants said: “By no means, my lord the king! Rather it is the prophet Elisha, who is in Israel, who is revealing to the king of Israel every word whatsoever that you will speak in your conclave.”
{6:13} And he said to them, “Go, and see where he is, so that I may send and capture him.” And they reported to him, saying, “Behold, he is in Dothan.”
{6:14} Therefore, he sent horses, and chariots, and experienced soldiers to that place. And when they had arrived in the night, they encircled the city.
{6:15} Now the servant of the man of God, arising at first light, went out and saw the army all around the city, with horses and chariots. And he reported it to him, saying: “Alas, alas, alas, my lord! What shall we do?”
{6:16} But he responded: “Do not be afraid. For there are more with us than with them.”
{6:17} And when Elisha had prayed, he said, “O Lord, open the eyes of this one, so that he may see.” And the Lord opened the eyes of the servant, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire, all around Elisha.
{6:18} Then truly, the enemies descended to him. But Elisha prayed to the Lord, saying: “Strike, I beg you, this people with blindness.” And the Lord struck them, so that they would not see, in accord with the word of Elisha.
{6:19} Then Elisha said to them: “This is not the way, and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will reveal to you the man whom you are seeking.” Then he led them into Samaria.
{6:20} And when they had entered into Samaria, Elisha said, “O Lord, open the eyes of these ones, so that they may see.” And the Lord opened their eyes, and they saw themselves to be in the midst of Samaria.
{6:21} And the king of Israel, when he had seen them, said to Elisha, “My father, should I not strike them?”
{6:22} And he said: “You should not strike them. For you did not capture them with your sword or bow, so that you might strike them. Instead, set bread and water before them, so that they may eat and drink, and then go to their lord.”
{6:23} And a great preparation of foods was placed before them. And they ate and drank. And he dismissed them. And they went away to their lord. And the robbers of Syria no longer came into the land of Israel.
{6:24} Now it happened that, after these things, Benhadad, the king of Syria, gathered together his entire army, and he ascended and was besieging Samaria.
{6:25} And a great famine occurred in Samaria. And it was blockaded for a long time, until the head of a donkey was sold for eighty pieces of silver, and one fourth part of a pint of pigeons’ dung sold for five silver coins.
{6:26} And as the king of Israel was passing by the wall, a certain woman cried out to him, saying, “Save me, my lord the king!”
{6:27} And he said: “If the Lord does not save you, how am I able to save you? From the grain floor, or from the wine press?” And the king said to her, “What is the matter with you?” And she responded:
{6:28} “This woman said to me: ‘Give your son, so that we may eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow.’
{6:29} Therefore, we cooked my son, and we ate him. And I said to her on the next day, ‘Give your son, so that we may eat him.’ But she concealed her son.”
{6:30} When the king had heard this, he tore his garments, and he passed along the wall. And all the people saw the haircloth that he had worn underneath, beside his flesh.
{6:31} And the king said, “May God do these things to me, and may he add these other things, if the head of Elisha, the son of Shaphat, will remain on him this day!”
{6:32} Now Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him. And so he sent a man ahead. And before that messenger arrived, he said to the elders: “Do you not know that this son of a murderer is sending someone to cut off my head? Therefore, watch, and when the messenger arrives, close the door. And you shall not permit him to enter. For behold, the sound of his lord’s feet is behind him.”
{6:33} While he was still speaking to them, the messenger appeared who was sent to him. And he said: “Behold, such a great evil is from the Lord! What more should I expect from the Lord?”
{7:1} Then Elisha said: “Listen to the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord: Tomorrow, at this time, one measure of fine wheat flour will be one silver coin, and two measures of barley will be one silver coin, at the gate of Samaria.”
{7:2} And one of the leaders, upon whose hand the king leaned, responding to the man of God, said, “Even if the Lord will open the floodgates of heaven, how can what you say possibly be?” And he said, “You will see it with your own eyes, and you will not eat from it.”
{7:3} Now there were four lepers beside the entrance of the gate. And they said one to another: “Should we choose to stay here until we die?
{7:4} If we choose to enter the city, we will die from the famine. And if we remain here, we also will die. Therefore, come and let us flee over to the camp of the Syrians. If they spare us, we will live. But if they choose to kill us, we will die anyway.”
{7:5} Therefore, they rose up in the evening, so that they might go to the camp of the Syrians. And when they had arrived at the beginning of the camp of the Syrians, they found no one in that place.
{7:6} For indeed, the Lord had caused them to hear, in the camp of Syria, the sound of chariots and horses, and a very numerous army. And they said one to another: “Behold, the king of Israel has paid wages to the kings of the Hittites and of the Egyptians against us. And they will overwhelm us.”
{7:7} Therefore, they rose up and fled away in the dark. And they left behind their tents and horses and donkeys in the camp. And they fled, desiring to save so much as their own lives.
{7:8} And so, when these lepers had arrived at the beginning of the camp, they entered one tent, and they ate and drank. And they took from there silver, and gold, and clothing. And they went away and hid it. And they returned again to another tent, and similarly, carrying away from there, they hid it.
{7:9} Then they said one to another: “We are not doing the right thing. For this is a day of good news. If we remain silent and refuse to report it until morning, we will be charged with a crime. Come, let us go and report it in the court of the king.”
{7:10} And when they had arrived at the gate of the city, they explained to them, saying: “We went into the camp of the Syrians, and we found no one in that place, except horses and donkeys tied, and the tents still standing.”
{7:11} Therefore, the gatekeepers went and reported it in the palace of the king.
{7:12} And he rose up in the night, and he said to his servants: “I tell you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are suffering from famine, and therefore they have gone out from the camp, and they lie hidden in the fields, saying: ‘When they will have gone out from the city, we will capture them alive, and then we will be able to enter the city.’ ”
{7:13} But one of his servants responded: “Let us take the five horses that remain in the city (for there were no more amid the entire multitude of Israel, since the rest had been consumed), and sending, we will be able to explore.”
{7:14} Therefore, they brought two horses. And the king sent them into the camp of the Syrians, saying, “Go, and see.”
{7:15} And they went away after them, as far as the Jordan. But behold, the entire way was filled with clothing and vessels, which the Syrians had thrown aside when they were disturbed. And the messengers returned and told the king.
{7:16} And the people, going out, pillaged the camp of the Syrians. And one measure of fine wheat flour went for one silver coin, and two measures of barley went for one silver coin, in accord with the word of the Lord.
{7:17} Then the king stationed that leader, on whose hand he leaned, at the gate. And the crowd trampled him at the entrance of the gate. And he died, in accord with what the man of God had said when the king had descended to him.
{7:18} And this happened in accord with the word of the man of God, which he had spoken to the king, when he said: “Two measures of barley will be one silver coin, and one measure of fine wheat flour will be one silver coin, at this same time tomorrow, at the gate of Samaria.”
{7:19} Then that leader had responded to the man of God, and he had said, “Even if the Lord will open the floodgates of heaven, how can what you say possibly happen?” And he said to him, “You will see it with your own eyes, and you will not eat from it.”
{7:20} Therefore, it happened to him just as it had been predicted. For the people trampled him at the gate, and he died.
{8:1} Now Elisha spoke to the woman, whose son he had caused to live, saying: “Rise up. Go, you and your household, and sojourn in whatever place you can find. For the Lord has called forth a famine, and it shall overwhelm the land for seven years.”
{8:2} And she rose up, and she acted in accord with the word of the man of God. And going with her household, she sojourned in the land of the Philistines for many days.
{8:3} And when the seven years had ended, the woman returned from the land of the Philistines. And she departed, so that she might petition the king on behalf of her house and on behalf of her fields.
{8:4} Now the king was speaking with Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, “Describe for me all the great deeds that Elisha has done.”
{8:5} And as he was describing for the king the manner in which he had raised the dead, the woman appeared, whose son he had restored to life, crying out to the king on behalf of her house and on behalf of her fields. And Gehazi said, “My lord the king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha raised up.”
{8:6} And the king questioned the woman. And she explained it to him. And the king appointed a eunuch to her, saying, “Restore to her all that is hers, with all the proceeds of the fields, from the day that she left the land until the present.”
{8:7} Also, Elisha arrived in Damascus, and Benhadad, the king of Syria, was ill. And they reported to him, saying, “The man of God has arrived here.”
{8:8} And the king said to Hazael: “Take with you gifts. And go to meet the man of God. And consult the Lord through him, saying: ‘Will I be able to escape from this, my infirmity?’ ”
{8:9} And so, Hazael went to meet him, having with him gifts, and all the goods of Damascus, the burdens of forty camels. And when he had stood before him, he said: “Your son, Benhadad, the king of Syria, sent me to you, saying: ‘Will I be able to be healed from this, my infirmity?’ ”
{8:10} And Elisha said to him: “Go, tell him: ‘You will be healed.’ But the Lord has revealed to me that, dying he shall die.”
{8:11} And he stood beside him, and he was so troubled that his face became flushed. And the man of God wept.
{8:12} And Hazael said to him, “Why is my lord weeping?” And he said: “Because I know the evil that you will do to the sons of Israel. Their fortified cities you will burn with fire. And their young men you will kill with the sword. And you will destroy their little ones, and tear open the pregnant women.”
{8:13} And Hazael said, “But what am I, your servant, a dog, that I would do this great thing?” And Elisha said, “The Lord has revealed to me that you will be the king of Syria.”
{8:14} And when he had departed from Elisha, he went to his lord, who said to him, “What did Elisha say to you?” And he responded: “He said to me, ‘You shall receive health.’ ”
{8:15} And when the next day had arrived, he took a small covering, and poured water on it, and he spread it over his face. And when he died, Hazael reigned in his place.
{8:16} In the fifth year of Joram, the son of Ahab, the king of Israel, and of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah: Jehoram, the son of Jehoshaphat, reigned as the king of Judah.
{8:17} He was thirty-two years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for eight years in Jerusalem.
{8:18} And he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had walked. For the daughter of Ahab was his wife. And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.
{8:19} But the Lord was not willing to destroy Judah, because of David, his servant, just as he had promised him, so that he might grant a light to him and to his sons, for all days.
{8:20} In his days, Idumea drew apart, so as not to be under Judah, and they appointed a king for themselves.
{8:21} And so, Jehoram went to Zair, and all the chariots with him. And he rose up in the night, and he struck down the Idumeans who had surrounded him, and the leaders of the chariots. But the people fled to their tents.
{8:22} And Idumea drew apart, so as not to be under Judah, even to this day. Then Libnah also drew apart, at the same time.
{8:23} Now the rest of the words of Jehoram, and all that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{8:24} And Jehoram slept with his fathers, and he was buried with them in the city of David. And Ahaziah, his son, reigned in his place.
{8:25} In the twelfth year of Joram, the son of Ahab, the king of Israel: Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram, the king of Judah, reigned.
{8:26} Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for one year in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Athaliah, the daughter of Omri, the king of Israel.
{8:27} And he walked in the ways of the house of Ahab. And he did what is evil before the Lord, just as the house of Ahab did. For he was the son-in-law of the house of Ahab.
{8:28} Also, he went with Joram, the son of Ahab, in order to fight against Hazael, the king of Syria, at Ramoth Gilead. And the Syrians had wounded Joram.
{8:29} And he turned back, so that he might be cured at Jezreel. For the Syrians had wounded him at Ramoth, fighting against Hazael, the king of Syria. Then Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram, the king of Judah, descended to visit Joram, the son of Ahab, at Jezreel, because he was sick there.
{9:1} Now the prophet Elisha called one of the sons of the prophets, and he said to him: “Gird your waist, and take this little bottle of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth Gilead.
{9:2} And when you arrive in that place, you will see Jehu, the son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi. And upon entering, you shall raise him up from the midst of his brothers, and you shall lead him into an inner room.
{9:3} And taking the little bottle of oil, you shall pour it upon his head, and you shall say: ‘Thus says the Lord: I have anointed you as king over Israel.’ And you shall open the door and flee. And you shall not remain in that place.”
{9:4} Therefore, the young man, a servant of the prophet, went away to Ramoth Gilead.
{9:5} And he entered that place, and behold, the leaders of the army were sitting there, and he said, “I have a word for you, O prince.” And Jehu said, “For which one among us all?” And he said, “For you, O prince.”
{9:6} And he rose up and entered into the room. And he poured the oil on his head, and he said: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘I have anointed you as king over Israel, the people of the Lord.
{9:7} And you shall strike down the house of Ahab, your lord. And I will avenge the blood of my servants, the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord, from the hand of Jezebel.
{9:8} And I will destroy the entire house of Ahab. And I will cause to pass away from Ahab, whatever urinates against a wall, and whatever is lame, and whatever is least in Israel.
{9:9} And I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha, the son of Ahijah.
{9:10} Also, the dogs will consume Jezebel, in the field of Jezreel. Neither will there be anyone who may bury her.’ ” And then he opened the door, and he fled.
{9:11} Then Jehu went out to the servants of his lord. And they said to him: “Is everything well? Why has this insane man come to you?” And he said to them, “You know the man, and what he said.”
{9:12} But they responded, “That is false; instead, you should tell us.” And he said to them, “He said to me these certain things, and he said, ‘Thus says the Lord: I have anointed you as king over Israel.’ ”
{9:13} And so they hurried away. And each one, taking his cloak, placed it under his feet, in the manner of a seat for judgment. And they sounded the trumpet, and they said: “Jehu reigns!”
{9:14} Then Jehu, the son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi, conspired against Joram. Now Joram had besieged Ramoth Gilead, he and all of Israel, against Hazael, the king of Syria.
{9:15} And he had returned, so that he might be cured at Jezreel, because of his wounds. For the Syrians had struck him, while he was fighting against Hazael, the king of Syria. And Jehu said, “If it pleases you, let no one depart, fleeing from the city; otherwise he may go and give a report in Jezreel.”
{9:16} And he climbed up and set out for Jezreel, because Joram was sick there, and Ahaziah, the king of Judah, had gone down to visit Joram.
{9:17} And so the watchman, who was standing upon the tower of Jezreel, saw the crowd of Jehu arriving, and he said, “I see a crowd.” And Joram said: “Take a chariot, and send to meet them. And those who go should say, ‘Is everything well?’ ”
{9:18} Therefore, he who had climbed into the chariot went away to meet him, and he said, “The king says this: ‘Is everything peaceful?’ ” And Jehu said: “What peace is there for you? Pass by and follow me.” Also the watchman gave a report, saying, “The messenger went to them, but he did not return.”
{9:19} And then he sent a second chariot of horses. And he went to them, and he said, “The king says this: ‘Is there peace?’ ” And Jehu said: “What peace is there for you? Pass by and follow me.”
{9:20} Then the watchman gave a report, saying: “He went all the way to them, but he did not return. But their advance is like the advance of Jehu, the son of Nimshi. For he advances precipitously.”
{9:21} And Joram said, “Yoke the chariot.” And they yoked his chariot. And Joram, the king of Israel, and Ahaziah, the king of Judah, departed, each in his chariot. And they went out to meet Jehu. And they met him in the field of Naboth, the Jezreelite.
{9:22} And when Joram had seen Jehu, he said, “Is there peace, Jehu?” And he responded: “What is peace? For still the fornications of your mother, Jezebel, and her many poisons, are thriving.”
{9:23} Then Joram turned his hand, and, fleeing, he said to Ahaziah, “Treachery, Ahaziah!”
{9:24} But Jehu bent his bow with his hand, and he struck Joram between the shoulders. And the arrow went through his heart, and immediately he fell in his chariot.
{9:25} And Jehu said to Bidkar, his commander: “Take and cast him into the field of Naboth, the Jezreelite. For I remember, when you and I, sitting in a chariot, were following Ahab, this man’s father, that the Lord lifted this burden upon him, saying:
{9:26} ‘Certainly, I will repay you in this field, says the Lord, for the blood of Naboth, and for the blood of his sons, which I saw yesterday, says the Lord.’ Therefore, take him now, and cast him into the field, in accord with the word of the Lord.”
{9:27} But Ahaziah, the king of Judah, seeing this, fled along the way of the garden house. And Jehu pursued him, and he said, “Strike this one also in his chariot.” And they struck him on the ascent to Gur, which is beside Ibleam. But he fled into Megiddo, and he died there.
{9:28} And his servants placed him upon his chariot, and they took him to Jerusalem. And they buried him in the sepulcher with his fathers, in the city of David.
{9:29} In the eleventh year of Joram, the son of Ahab, Ahaziah reigned over Judah.
{9:30} And Jehu went into Jezreel. But Jezebel, hearing of his arrival, painted her eyes with cosmetics, and adorned her head. And she watched through a window,
{9:31} as Jehu was entering through the gate. And she said, “Is it possible for there to be peace for Zimri, who killed his lord?”
{9:32} And Jehu lifted up his face to the window, and he said, “Who is this woman?” And two or three eunuchs bowed down before him.
{9:33} And he said to them, “Throw her down with force.” And they threw her forcefully, and the wall was splattered with her blood, and the hoofs of the horses trampled her.
{9:34} And when he had entered, so that he might eat and drink, he said: “Go, and see to that cursed woman, and bury her. For she is the daughter of a king.”
{9:35} But when they had gone, so that they might bury her, they found nothing but the skull, and the feet, and the ends of her hands.
{9:36} And returning, they reported to him. And Jehu said: “It is the word of the Lord, which he spoke through his servant, Elijah the Tishbite, saying: ‘In the field of Jezreel, the dogs will consume the flesh of Jezebel.
{9:37} And the flesh of Jezebel will be like dung upon the face of the earth, in the field of Jezreel, so that those who pass by may say: Is this that same Jezebel?’ ”
{10:1} Now Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria. And so Jehu wrote letters, and he sent to Samaria, to the nobles of the city, and to those greater by birth, and to those who had raised Ahab’s sons, saying:
{10:2} “Immediately when you receive these letters, you who have your lord’s sons, and chariots, and horses, and reinforced cities, and weapons,
{10:3} choose him who is better and who pleases you from among the sons of your lord, and set him on the throne of his father, and fight for the house of your lord.”
{10:4} But they were vehemently afraid, and they said: “Behold, two kings were not able to stand before him. So how will we be able to withstand him?”
{10:5} Therefore, those who were in charge of the house, and the prefects of the city, and those greater by birth, and those who raised the sons, sent to Jehu, saying: “We are your servants. Whatever you will order, we will do. But we will not appoint a king for ourselves. Do whatever pleases you.”
{10:6} Then he again wrote letters to them a second time, saying: “If you are mine, and if you obey me, take the heads of the sons of your lord, and come to me at Jezreel at this same hour tomorrow.” Now the sons of the king, being seventy men, were being raised with the nobles of the city.
{10:7} And when the letters had arrived to them, they took the sons of the king, and they killed the seventy men. And they placed their heads in baskets, and they sent these to him at Jezreel.
{10:8} Then a messenger arrived and reported to him, saying, “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons.” And he responded, “Place them in two piles, beside the entrance of the gate, until morning.”
{10:9} And when it had become light, he went out. And standing there, he said to all the people: “You are just. If I have conspired against my lord, and if I have killed him, who has struck down all of these?
{10:10} Now therefore, see that none of the words of the Lord has fallen to the ground, which the Lord spoke over the house of Ahab, and that the Lord has done what he spoke by the hand of his servant Elijah.”
{10:11} And so, Jehu struck down all who had remained from the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his nobles and friends and priests, until no remnant of them was left behind.
{10:12} And he rose up and went to Samaria. And when he had arrived at the shepherds’ cabin along the way,
{10:13} he found the brothers of Ahaziah, the king of Judah, and he said to them, “Who are you?” And they responded, “We are the brothers of Ahaziah, and we are going down to greet the sons of the king, and the sons of the queen.”
{10:14} And he said, “Take them alive.” And when they had taken them alive, they cut their throats at the cistern beside the cabin, forty-two men. And he did not leave any of them behind.
{10:15} And when he had gone away from there, he found Jehonadab, the son of Rechab, coming to meet him, and he blessed him. And he said to him, “Is your heart upright, just as my heart is with your heart?” And Jehonadab said, “It is.” Then he said, “If it is, then give me your hand.” He gave his hand to him. And so he lifted him up to himself in the chariot.
{10:16} And he said to him, “Come with me, and see my zeal for the Lord.” And he gave him a place in his chariot.
{10:17} And he led him into Samaria. And he struck down all who were left behind of Ahab in Samaria, even to the last one, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he spoke through Elijah.
{10:18} Then Jehu gathered together the entire people. And he said to them: “Ahab worshipped Baal a little, but I will worship him even more.
{10:19} Now therefore, summon to me all the prophets of Baal, and all his servants, and all his priests. Let no one be permitted not to come, for great is the sacrifice from me to Baal. Whoever will fail to come, he shall not live.” Now Jehu was doing this treacherously, so that he might destroy the worshippers of Baal.
{10:20} And he said: “Sanctify a day of solemnity for Baal.” And he summoned
{10:21} and sent into all the borders of Israel. And all the servants of Baal came. There was left behind not even one who did not arrive. And they entered into the temple of Baal. And the house of Baal was filled, all the way from end to end.
{10:22} And he said to those who were over the vestments, “Bring forth vestments for all the servants of Baal.” And they brought forth vestments for them.
{10:23} And Jehu, upon entering the temple of Baal with Jehonadab, the son of Rechab, said to the worshippers of Baal, “Inquire and see that there is no one with you from the servants of the Lord, but only from the servants of Baal.”
{10:24} Then they entered, so that they might offer victims and holocausts. But Jehu had prepared for himself eighty men outside. And he had said to them, “If anyone escapes from among these men, whom I have led into your hands, your life will take the place of his life.”
{10:25} Then it happened that, when the holocaust had been completed, Jehu ordered his soldiers and officers, saying: “Enter and strike them down. Let no one escape.” And the soldiers and officers struck them down with the edge of the sword, and they cast them out. And they went into the city of the temple of Baal,
{10:26} and they took away the statue from the shrine of Baal, and they burned it up
{10:27} and crushed it. They also tore down the temple of Baal, and they made it into a latrine, even to this day.
{10:28} And thus did Jehu wipe away Baal from Israel.
{10:29} Yet truly, he did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin. Neither did he forsake the golden calves, which were in Bethel and Dan.
{10:30} Then the Lord said to Jehu: “Since you have diligently carried out what was right and pleasing in my eyes, and since you have accomplished, against the house of Ahab, all that was in my heart, your sons shall sit upon the throne of Israel, even to the fourth generation.”
{10:31} But Jehu did not take care, so that he might walk in the law of the Lord, the God of Israel, with all his heart. For he did not withdraw from the sins of Jeroboam, who had caused Israel to sin.
{10:32} In those days, the Lord began to be weary of Israel. And Hazael struck them throughout all the parts of Israel,
{10:33} from the Jordan opposite the eastern region, in all the land of Gilead, and Gad, and Reuben, and Manasseh, from Aroer, which is above the torrent Arnon, in both Gilead and Bashan.
{10:34} But the rest of the words of Jehu, and all that he did, and his strength, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{10:35} And Jehu slept with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria. And Jehoahaz, his son, reigned in his place.
{10:36} Now the days during which Jehu reigned over Israel, in Samaria, were twenty-eight years.
{11:1} Truly, Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah, seeing that her son was dead, rose up and put to death all the royal offspring.
{11:2} But Jehosheba, the daughter of king Joram, the sister of Ahaziah, taking Jehoash, the son of Ahaziah, stole him away from the midst of the sons of the king who were being killed, out of the bedroom, with his nurse. And she hid him from the face of Athaliah, so that he would not be killed.
{11:3} And he was with her for six years, hidden in the house of the Lord. But Athaliah reigned over the land.
{11:4} Then, in the seventh year, Jehoiada sent for and took centurions and soldiers, and he brought them to himself in the temple of the Lord. And he formed a pact with them. And taking an oath with them in the house of the Lord, he revealed to them the son of the king.
{11:5} And he commanded them, saying: “This is the word that you must do.
{11:6} Let one third part of you enter on the Sabbath, and keep watch on the house of the king. And let one third part be at the gate of Sur. And let one third part be at the gate behind the dwelling place of the shield bearers. And you shall keep the watch on the house of Mesha.
{11:7} Yet truly, let two parts of you, all who depart on the Sabbath, keep watch over the house of the Lord concerning the king.
{11:8} And you shall surround him, having weapons in your hands. But if anyone will have entered the precinct of the temple, let him be killed. And you shall be with the king, entering and departing.”
{11:9} And the centurions acted in accord with all the things that Jehoiada, the priest, had instructed them. And taking each one of their men who would enter on the Sabbath, with those who would depart on the Sabbath, they went to Jehoiada, the priest.
{11:10} And he gave to them the spears and weapons of king David, which were in the house of the Lord.
{11:11} And they stood, each one having his weapons in his hand, before the right side of the temple, all the way to the left side of the altar and of the shrine, surrounding the king.
{11:12} And he led forth the son of the king. And he placed the diadem on him, and the testimony. And they made him king, and they anointed him. And clapping their hands, they said: “The king lives!”
{11:13} Then Athaliah heard the sound of the people running. And entering to the crowd at the temple of the Lord,
{11:14} she saw the king standing upon a tribunal, according to custom, and the singers and trumpets near him, and all the people of the land rejoicing and sounding the trumpets. And she tore her garments, and she cried out: “Conspiracy! Conspiracy!”
{11:15} But Jehoiada gave orders to the centurions who were over the army, and he said to them: “Lead her away, beyond the precinct of the temple. And whoever will have followed her, let him be struck with the sword.” For the priest had said, “Do not allow her to be killed in the temple of the Lord.”
{11:16} And they laid hands on her. And they pushed her through the way by which horses enter, beside the palace. And she was killed there.
{11:17} Then Jehoiada formed a covenant between the Lord, and the king and the people, so that they would be the people of the Lord; and between the king and the people.
{11:18} And all the people of the land entered the temple of Baal, and they tore down his altars, and they thoroughly crushed the statues. Also, they killed Mattan, the priest of Baal, before the altar. And the priest placed guards in the house of the Lord.
{11:19} And he took the centurions, and the legions of the Cherethites and Pelethites, and all the people of the land, and together they led the king from the house of the Lord. And they went by way of the gate of the shield bearers into the palace. And he sat upon the throne of the kings.
{11:20} And all the people of the land rejoiced. And the city was quieted. But Athaliah was slain with the sword at the house of the king.
{11:21} Now Jehoash was seven years old when he had begun to reign.
{12:1} In the seventh year of Jehu, Jehoash reigned. And he reigned for forty years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Zebiah from Beersheba.
{12:2} And Jehoash did what was right in the sight of the Lord, during all the days that Jehoiada, the priest, taught him.
{12:3} Yet still he did not take away the high places. For the people were still immolating, and burning incense, in the high places.
{12:4} And Jehoash said to the priests: “All of the money for the holy things, which has been brought into the temple of the Lord from those who pass by, which is offered for the price of a soul, and which they bring into the temple of the Lord willingly, from their own free heart:
{12:5} let the priests, according to their ranks, take and use it in order to repair the surfaces of the house, wherever they see anything in need of repair.”
{12:6} And yet, even until the twenty-third year of king Jehoash, the priests did not repair the surfaces of the temple.
{12:7} And king Jehoash called the high priest, Jehoiada, and the priests, saying to them: “Why have you not repaired the surfaces of the temple? Therefore, you may no longer accept money according to your ranks. Instead, return it in order that the temple may be repaired.”
{12:8} And so the priests were prohibited from accepting any more money from the people to repair the surfaces of the house.
{12:9} And the high priest, Jehoiada, took a certain chest, and he opened a hole in the top, and he placed it beside the altar, to the right of those who were entering the house of the Lord. And the priests who kept the doors put all the money in it which was being brought into the temple of the Lord.
{12:10} And when they saw that there was a great amount of money in the chest, the scribe of the king and the high priest went up and poured it out. And they counted the money that was found in the house of the Lord.
{12:11} And they gave it out, by number and measure, to the hands of those who were over the masons of the house of the Lord. And they weighed it out to the carpenters and masons, to those who were working in the house of the Lord
{12:12} and restoring the surfaces, and to those who were cutting stones, and buying timber and stones to be cut, so that the repairs to the house of the Lord might be finished: for all that was needed toward the expenses in order to strengthen the house.
{12:13} Yet truly, from the same money, they did not make for the temple of the Lord water pitchers, or small hooks, or censers, or trumpets, or any vessel of gold or silver, from the money that was brought into the temple of the Lord.
{12:14} For it was given to those who were doing the work, so that the temple of the Lord might be repaired.
{12:15} And they did not ration the money to the men who received it in order to distribute it to the artisans. Instead, they bestowed it with faith.
{12:16} Yet truly, the money for offenses and the money for sins, they did not bring into the temple of the Lord, since it was for the priests.
{12:17} Then Hazael, the king of Syria, ascended and fought against Gath, and he captured it. And he directed his face, so that he might ascend against Jerusalem.
{12:18} For this reason, Jehoash, the king of Judah, took all the sanctified things, which Jehoshaphat, and Jehoram, and Ahaziah, his fathers, the kings of Judah, had consecrated and which he himself had offered, and all the silver that could be found in the treasuries of the temple of the Lord and in the palace of the king, and he sent it to Hazael, the king of Syria. And so he withdrew from Jerusalem.
{12:19} Now the rest of the words of Jehoash, and all that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{12:20} Then his servants rose up and conspired among themselves. And they struck down Jehoash, at the house of Millo, on the descent of Silla.
{12:21} For Jozacar, the son of Shimeath, and Jehozabad, the son of Shomer, his servants, struck him, and he died. And they buried him with his fathers in the city of David. And Amaziah, his son, reigned in his place.
{13:1} In the twenty-third year of Jehoash, the son of Ahaziah, the king of Judah, Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, reigned over Israel, in Samaria, for seventeen years.
{13:2} And he did evil before the Lord. And he followed the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin. And he did not turn aside from these.
{13:3} And the fury of the Lord was enraged against Israel, and he delivered them into the hand of Hazael, the king of Syria, and into the hand of Benhadad, the son of Hazael, during all the days.
{13:4} But Jehoahaz petitioned the face of the Lord, and the Lord heeded him. For he saw the anguish of Israel, because the king of Syria had oppressed them.
{13:5} And the Lord gave a savior to Israel. And they were freed from the hand of the king of Syria. And the sons of Israel lived in their tabernacles, just as yesterday and the day before.
{13:6} Yet truly, they did not withdraw from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, who had caused Israel to sin. Instead, they walked by them. And there was even a sacred grove still remaining in Samaria.
{13:7} And there was left to Jehoahaz from the people nothing but fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand foot soldiers. For the king of Syria had killed them, and he had reduced them to become like dust on a threshing floor.
{13:8} But the rest of the words of Jehoahaz, and all that he did, and his strength, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{13:9} And Jehoahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria. And Joash, his son, reigned in his place.
{13:10} In the thirty-seventh year of Jehoash, the king of Judah, Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, reigned over Israel, in Samaria, for sixteen years.
{13:11} And he did what is evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not turn aside from all the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin. Instead, he walked by them.
{13:12} But the rest of the words of Joash, and all that he did, and his strength, the manner in which he fought against Amaziah, the king of Judah, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{13:13} And Joash slept with his fathers. Then Jeroboam sat upon his throne. And Joash was buried in Samaria, with the kings of Israel.
{13:14} Now Elisha was sick of the infirmity from which he also died. And Joash, the king of Israel, descended to him. And he was weeping before him, and saying: “My father, my father! The chariot of Israel and its driver!”
{13:15} And Elisha said to him, “Bring a bow and arrows.” And when he had brought a bow and arrows to him,
{13:16} he said to the king of Israel, “Place your hand upon the bow.” And when he had placed his hand, Elisha placed his own hands over the hands of the king.
{13:17} And he said, “Open the window toward the east.” And when he had opened it, Elisha said, “Shoot an arrow.” And he shot it. And Elisha said: “It is the arrow of the salvation of the Lord, and the arrow of salvation against Syria. And you shall strike the Syrians at Aphek, until you consume them.”
{13:18} And he said, “Take the arrows.” And when he had taken them, he then said to him, “Strike an arrow against the ground.” And when he had struck three times, and he had stood still,
{13:19} the man of God became angry against him. And he said: “If you had struck five or six or seven times, you would have struck down Syria, even until it was consumed. But now you will strike it three times.”
{13:20} Then Elisha died, and they buried him. And the robbers from Moab came into the land in the same year.
{13:21} But certain ones who were burying a man saw the robbers, and they cast the dead body into the sepulcher of Elisha. But when it had touched the bones of Elisha, the man revived, and he stood upon his feet.
{13:22} Now Hazael, the king of Syria, afflicted Israel during all the days of Jehoahaz.
{13:23} But the Lord took pity on them, and he returned to them, because of his covenant, which he had made with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob. And he was not willing to destroy them, nor to cast them out completely, even to the present time.
{13:24} Then Hazael, the king of Syria, died. And Benhadad, his son, reigned in his place.
{13:25} Now Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, by a just war, took the cities from the hand of Benhadad, the son of Hazael, which he had taken from the hand of Jehoahaz, his father. Joash struck him three times, and he restored the cities to Israel.
{14:1} In the second year of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the king of Israel: Amaziah, the son of Jehoash, reigned as king of Judah.
{14:2} He was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jehoaddin from Jerusalem.
{14:3} And he did what is right before the Lord, yet truly, not like David, his father. He acted in accord with all the things that his father Jehoash did,
{14:4} except for this alone: he did not take away the high places. For still the people were immolating, and burning incense, in the high places.
{14:5} And when he had obtained the kingdom, he struck down those of his servants who had killed his father, the king.
{14:6} But the sons of those who had been killed he did not put to death, in accord with what was written in the book of the law of Moses, just as the Lord instructed, saying: “The fathers shall not die for the sons, and the sons shall not die for the fathers. Instead, each one shall die for his own sin.”
{14:7} He struck down ten thousand men of Idumea, in the Valley of the Salt Pits. And he captured ‘the Rock’ in battle, and he called its name ‘Subdued by God,’ even to the present day.
{14:8} Then Amaziah sent messengers to Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, the king of Israel, saying: “Come, and let us see one another.”
{14:9} And Joash, the king of Israel, sent a reply to Amaziah, the king of Judah, saying: “A thistle of Lebanon sent to a cedar, which is in Lebanon, saying: ‘Give your daughter as wife to my son.’ And the beasts of the forest, which are in Lebanon, passed by and trampled the thistle.
{14:10} You have struck and prevailed over Idumea. And your heart has lifted you up. Be content with your own glory, and be seated in your own house. Why would you provoke evil, so that you would fall, and Judah with you?”
{14:11} But Amaziah was not quieted. And so Joash, the king of Israel, went up. And he and Amaziah, the king of Judah, saw one another at Beth-shemesh, a town in Judah.
{14:12} And Judah was struck down before Israel, and they fled, each to their own tents.
{14:13} And truly, Joash, the king of Israel, captured Amaziah, the king of Judah, the son of Jehoash, the son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh. And he brought him to Jerusalem. And he breached the wall of Jerusalem, from the gate of Ephraim as far as the gate of the Corner, four hundred cubits.
{14:14} And he took away all the gold and silver, and all the vessels, which were found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king, and he returned to Samaria with hostages.
{14:15} But the rest of the words of Joash, which he accomplished, and his strength, with which he fought against Amaziah, the king of Judah, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{14:16} And Joash slept with his fathers, and he was buried in Samaria, with the kings of Israel. And Jeroboam, his son, reigned in his place.
{14:17} Now Amaziah, the son of Jehoash, the king of Judah, lived for fifteen years after the death of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the king of Israel.
{14:18} And the rest of the words of Amaziah, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{14:19} And they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem. And he fled to Lachish. And they sent after him, to Lachish, and they killed him there.
{14:20} And they carried him away on horses. And he was buried in Jerusalem with his fathers, in the city of David.
{14:21} Then all the people of Judah took Azariah, at sixteen years from birth, and they appointed him as king in place of his father, Amaziah.
{14:22} He built up Elath, and he restored it to Judah, after which the king slept with his fathers.
{14:23} In the fifteenth year of Amaziah, the son of Jehoash, the king of Judah: Jeroboam, the son of Joash, the king of Israel, reigned, in Samaria, for forty-one years.
{14:24} And he did what is evil before the Lord. He did not withdraw from all the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin.
{14:25} He restored the borders of Israel, from the entrance of Hamath as far as the Sea of the Wilderness, in accord with the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, which he spoke through his servant, the prophet Jonah, the son of Amittai, who was from Gath, which is in Hepher.
{14:26} For the Lord saw the exceedingly bitter affliction of Israel, and that they were being consumed, even to those who were enclosed in prison, and even to the least ones, and that there was no one who would help Israel.
{14:27} But the Lord did not say that he would wipe away the name of Israel from under heaven. So instead, he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam, the son of Joash.
{14:28} But the rest of the words of Jeroboam, and all that he did, and his strength, with which he went to battle, and the manner in which he restored Damascus and Hamath to Judah, in Israel, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{14:29} And Jeroboam slept with his fathers, the kings of Israel. And Zechariah, his son, reigned in his place.
{15:1} In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam, the king of Israel: Azariah, the son of Amaziah, reigned as king of Judah.
{15:2} He was sixteen years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for fifty-two years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jecoliah of Jerusalem.
{15:3} And he did what was pleasing before the Lord, in accord with all that his father, Amaziah, did.
{15:4} Yet truly, he did not demolish the high places. And still the people were sacrificing, and burning incense, in the high places.
{15:5} Now the Lord struck the king, and he became a leper, even until the day of his death. And he was living in a separate house by himself. And truly, Jotham, the son of the king, governed the palace, and he judged the people of the land.
{15:6} Now the rest of the words of Azariah, and all that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{15:7} And Azariah slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his ancestors in the city of David. And Jotham, his son, reigned in his place.
{15:8} In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah, the king of Judah: Zechariah, the son of Jeroboam, reigned over Israel, in Samaria, for six months.
{15:9} And he did what is evil before the Lord, just as his fathers had done. He did not withdraw from the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin.
{15:10} Then Shallum, the son of Jabesh, conspired against him. And he struck him openly, and killed him. And he reigned in his place.
{15:11} Now the rest of the words of Zechariah, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{15:12} This was the word of the Lord, which he spoke to Jehu, saying: “Your sons, even to the fourth generation, shall sit upon the throne of Israel.” And so it happened.
{15:13} Shallum, the son of Jabesh, reigned in the thirty-ninth year of Azariah, the king of Judah. And he reigned for one month, in Samaria.
{15:14} And Menahem, the son of Gadi, ascended from Tirzah. And he went into Samaria, and he struck Shallum, the son of Jabesh, in Samaria. And he killed him, and reigned in his place.
{15:15} Now the rest of the words of Shallum, and his conspiracy, by which he carried out treachery, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{15:16} Then Menahem struck Tirzah, and all who were in it, and its borders around Tirzah. For they were not willing to open to him. And he killed all of its pregnant women, and he tore them open.
{15:17} In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah, the king of Judah: Menahem, son of Gadi, reigned over Israel for ten years, in Samaria.
{15:18} And he did what was evil before the Lord. He did not withdraw from the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin, during all his days.
{15:19} Then Pul, the king of the Assyrians, came into the land. And Menahem gave Pul one thousand talents of silver, so that he would be a help to him, and so that he might strengthen his kingdom.
{15:20} And Menahem proclaimed a tax upon Israel, on all who were powerful and wealthy, so that each one would give to the king of the Assyrians fifty shekels of silver. Then the king of the Assyrians turned back, and he did not remain in the land.
{15:21} Now the rest of the words of Menahem, and all that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{15:22} And Menahem slept with his fathers. And Pekahiah, his son, reigned in his place.
{15:23} In the fiftieth year of Azariah, the king of Judah: Pekahiah, the son of Menahem, reigned over Israel, in Samaria, for two years.
{15:24} And he did what was evil before the Lord. He did not withdraw from the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin.
{15:25} Then Pekah, the son of Remaliah, his commander, conspired against him. And he struck him in Samaria, in the tower of the king’s house, near Argob and Arieh, and with him fifty men from the sons of the Gileadites. And he killed him, and reigned in his place.
{15:26} Now the rest of the words of Pekahiah, and all that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{15:27} In the fifty-second year of Azariah, the king of Judah: Pekah, the son of Remaliah, reigned over Israel, in Samaria, for twenty years.
{15:28} And he did what was evil before the Lord. He did not withdraw from the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin.
{15:29} In the days of Pekah, the king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser, the king of Assyria, arrived and captured Ijon, and Abel Bethmaacah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, and the entire land of Naphtali. And he took them away into Assyria.
{15:30} Then Hoshea, the son of Elah, conspired and carried out treachery against Pekah, the son of Remaliah. And he struck him, and killed him. And he reigned in his place, in the twentieth year of Jotham, the son of Uzziah.
{15:31} Now the rest of the words of Pekah, and all that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
{15:32} In the second year of Pekah, the son of Remaliah, the king of Israel: Jotham, son of Uzziah, reigned as king of Judah.
{15:33} He was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jerusha, the daughter of Zadok.
{15:34} And he did what was pleasing before the Lord. In accord with all that his father, Uzziah, had done, so he did.
{15:35} Yet truly, he did not take away the high places. And still the people were immolating, and burning incense, in the high places. But he edified the gate of the house of the Lord to be very sublime.
{15:36} Now the rest of the words of Jotham, and all that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{15:37} In those days, the Lord began to send, into Judah, Rezin, the king of Syria, and Pekah, the son of Remaliah.
{15:38} And Jotham slept with his fathers, and he was buried with them in the city of David, his father. And Ahaz, his son, reigned in his place.
{16:1} In the seventeenth year of Pekah, the son of Remaliah: Ahaz, the son of Jotham, reigned as king of Judah.
{16:2} Ahaz was twenty years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. He did not do what was pleasing in the sight of the Lord, his God, as his father David did.
{16:3} Instead, he walked in the way of the kings of Israel. Moreover, he even consecrated his son, making him pass through fire, in accord with the idols of the nations that the Lord destroyed before the sons of Israel.
{16:4} Also, he was immolating victims, and burning incense, in the high places, and on the hills, and under every leafy tree.
{16:5} Then Rezin, the king of Syria, and Pekah, the son of Remaliah, the king of Israel, ascended to do battle against Jerusalem. And they besieged Ahaz, but they were not able to overcome him.
{16:6} At that time, Rezin, the king of Syria, restored Elath to Syria, and he expelled the Judeans from Elath. And the Idumeans went into Elath, and they have lived there, even to this day.
{16:7} Then Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser, the king of the Assyrians, saying: “I am your servant, and I am your son. Ascend and accomplish my salvation from the hand of the king of Syria, and from the hand of the king of Israel, who have risen up together against me.”
{16:8} And when he had collected the silver and the gold that could be found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasuries of the king, he sent it as a gift to the king of the Assyrians.
{16:9} And he agreed to his will. For the king of the Assyrians ascended against Damascus, and he laid waste to it. And he carried away its inhabitants to Cyrene. But Rezin he killed.
{16:10} And king Ahaz traveled to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser, the king of the Assyrians. And when he had seen the altar of Damascus, king Ahaz sent to Uriah, the priest, its pattern and likeness, according to all of its work.
{16:11} And Uriah, the priest, constructed an altar in accord with all that king Ahaz had commanded from Damascus. Uriah, the priest, did so, until king Ahaz arrived from Damascus.
{16:12} And when the king had arrived from Damascus, he saw the altar, and he venerated it. And he went up and immolated holocausts, with his own sacrifice.
{16:13} And he offered libations, and he poured out the blood of the peace offerings, which he had offered, upon the altar.
{16:14} But the altar of brass, which was before the Lord, he took away from the face of the temple, and from the place of the altar, and from the place of the temple of the Lord. And he positioned it at the side of the altar, toward the north.
{16:15} Also, king Ahaz instructed Uriah, the priest, saying: “Upon the great altar, offer the morning holocaust, and the evening sacrifice, and the holocaust of the king, and his sacrifice, and the holocaust of the entire people of the land, and their sacrifices. But their libations, and all the blood of the holocaust, and all the blood of the victim, you shall pour out upon it. Then truly, the altar of brass shall be prepared for use at my will.”
{16:16} And so Uriah, the priest, acted in accord with all that king Ahaz had instructed to him.
{16:17} Then king Ahaz took away the engraved bases, and the basin that was upon them. And he took down the sea from the bronze oxen, which were holding it up. And he positioned it upon a layer of pavement stone.
{16:18} Also, the canopy for the Sabbath, which he had built in the temple, and the exterior entrance of the king, he converted into the temple of the Lord, because of the king of the Assyrians.
{16:19} Now the rest of the words of Ahaz that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{16:20} And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and he was buried with them in the city of David. And Hezekiah, his son, reigned in his place.
{17:1} In the twelfth year of Ahaz, the king of Judah: Hoshea, the son of Elah, reigned over Israel, in Samaria, for nine years.
{17:2} And he did evil before the Lord, but not like the kings of Israel who had been before him.
{17:3} Shalmaneser, the king of the Assyrians, ascended against him. And Hoshea became a servant to him, and he paid him tribute.
{17:4} And when the king of the Assyrians discovered that Hoshea, striving to rebel, had sent messengers to Sais, to the king of Egypt, so as not to present the tribute to the king of the Assyrians, as he had been accustomed to do each year, he besieged him. And having been bound, he cast him into prison.
{17:5} And he wandered through the entire land. And ascending to Samaria, he besieged it for three years.
{17:6} And in the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of the Assyrians captured Samaria, and he carried away Israel to Assyria. And he stationed them in Halah and in Habor, beside the river of Gozan, in the cities of the Medes.
{17:7} For it happened that, when the sons of Israel had sinned against the Lord, their God, who had led them away from the land of Egypt, from the hand of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, they worshipped strange gods.
{17:8} And they walked according to the rituals of the nations that the Lord had consumed in the sight of the sons of Israel, and of the kings of Israel. For they had acted similarly.
{17:9} And the sons of Israel offended the Lord, their God, with deeds that were not upright. And they built for themselves high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city.
{17:10} And they made for themselves statues and sacred groves, on every high hill and under every leafy tree.
{17:11} And they were burning incense there, upon altars, in the manner of the nations that the Lord had removed from their face. And they did wicked deeds, provoking the Lord.
{17:12} And they worshipped impurities, concerning which the Lord instructed them that they should not do this word.
{17:13} And the Lord testified to them, in Israel and in Judah, through the hand of all the prophets and seers, saying: “Return from your wicked ways, and keep my precepts and ceremonies, in accord with the entire law, which I instructed to your fathers, and just as I sent to you by the hand of my servants, the prophets.”
{17:14} But they did not listen. Instead, they hardened their necks to be like the neck of their fathers, who were not willing to obey the Lord, their God.
{17:15} And they cast aside his ordinances, and the covenant that he formed with their fathers, and the testimonies which he testified to them. And they pursued vanities and acted vainly. And they followed the nations that were all around them, concerning the things which the Lord had commanded them not to do, and which they did.
{17:16} And they abandoned all the precepts of the Lord, their God. And they made for themselves two molten calves and sacred groves. And they adored the entire celestial army. And they served Baal.
{17:17} And they consecrated their sons and their daughters through fire. And they devoted themselves to divinations and soothsaying. And they delivered themselves into the doing of evil before the Lord, so that they provoked him.
{17:18} And the Lord became vehemently angry with Israel, and he took them away from his sight. And there remained no one, except the tribe of Judah alone.
{17:19} But even Judah did not keep the commandments of the Lord, their God. Instead, they walked in the errors of Israel, which they had wrought.
{17:20} And the Lord cast aside all of the offspring of Israel. And he afflicted them, and he delivered them into the hand of despoilers, until he drove them away from his face,
{17:21} even from that time when Israel was torn away from the house of David, and they appointed for themselves Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, as king. For Jeroboam separated Israel from the Lord, and he caused them to sin a great sin.
{17:22} And the sons of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam, which he had done. And they did not withdraw from these,
{17:23} even when the Lord carried away Israel from his face, just as he had said by the hand of all his servants, the prophets. And Israel was carried away from their land into Assyria, even to this day.
{17:24} Then the king of the Assyrians brought some from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Avva, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim. And he located them in the cities of Samaria, in place of the sons of Israel. And they possessed Samaria, and they lived in its cities.
{17:25} And when they had begun to live there, they did not fear the Lord. And the Lord sent lions among them, which were killing them.
{17:26} And this was reported to the king of the Assyrians, and it was said: “The peoples that you transferred and caused to live in the cities of Samaria, they are ignorant of the ordinances of the God of the land. And so the Lord has sent lions among them. And behold, they have killed them, because they were ignorant of the rituals of the God of the land.”
{17:27} Then the king of the Assyrians commanded, saying: “Lead to that place one of the priests, whom you brought as a captive from there. And let him go and live with them. And let him teach them the ordinances of the God of the land.”
{17:28} And so, when one of the priests, who had been led away captive from Samaria, had arrived, he lived in Bethel. And he taught them how they should worship the Lord.
{17:29} And each of the nations made gods of their own, and they placed them in the shrines of the high places, which the Samaritans had made: nation after nation, in their cities in which they were living.
{17:30} So the men of Babylon made Soccoth-benoth; and the men of Cuth made Nergal; and the men of Hamath made Ashima;
{17:31} and the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak. Then those who were from Sepharvaim burned up their children with fire, for the gods of Sepharvaim: Adram-melech and Anam-melech.
{17:32} But nevertheless, they worshipped the Lord. Then they made for themselves, from the least of the people, priests of the high places. And they placed them in the shrines of the high places.
{17:33} And though they worshipped the Lord, they also served their own gods, according to the custom of the nations from which they had been transferred into Samaria.
{17:34} Even to the present day, they follow the ancient customs; they do not fear the Lord, and they do not keep his ceremonies, and judgments, and law, and commandment, which the Lord had instructed to the sons of Jacob, whom he named Israel.
{17:35} And he had struck a covenant with them, and he had commanded them, saying: “You shall not fear foreign gods, and you shall not adore them, and you shall not worship them, and you shall not sacrifice to them.
{17:36} But the Lord, your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt, with great strength and with an outstretched arm, him shall you fear, and him shall you adore, and to him shall you sacrifice.
{17:37} Also, the ceremonies, and judgments, and law, and commandment, which he wrote for you, you shall keep so that you do them for all days. And you shall not fear strange gods.
{17:38} And the covenant, which he struck with you, you shall not forget; neither shall you worship strange gods.
{17:39} But you shall fear the Lord, your God. And he will rescue you from the hand of all your enemies.”
{17:40} Yet truly, they did not listen to this. Instead, they acted in accord with their earlier custom.
{17:41} And such were these nations: to some extent fearing the Lord, yet nevertheless also serving their idols. As for their sons and grandsons, just as their fathers acted, so also did they act, even to the present day.
{18:1} In the third year of Hoshea, the son of Elah, the king of Israel: Hezekiah, the son of Ahaz, reigned as king of Judah.
{18:2} He was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Abi, the daughter of Zechariah.
{18:3} And he did what was good before the Lord, in accord with all that his father David had done.
{18:4} He destroyed the high places, and he crushed the statues, and he cut down the sacred groves. And he broke apart the bronze serpent, which Moses had made. For even until that time, the sons of Israel were burning incense to it. And he called its name Nehushtan.
{18:5} He hoped in the Lord, the God of Israel. And after him, there was no one similar to him, among all the kings of Judah, nor even among any of those who were before him.
{18:6} And he clung to the Lord, and he did not withdraw from his footsteps, and he carried out his commandments, which the Lord had instructed to Moses.
{18:7} Therefore, the Lord was also with him. And he conducted himself wisely in all the things to which he went forth. Also, he rebelled against the king of the Assyrians, and he did not serve him.
{18:8} He struck the Philistines as far as Gaza, and in all their borders, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city.
{18:9} In the fourth year of king Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea, the son of Elah, the king of Israel: Shalmaneser, the king of the Assyrians, ascended to Samaria, and he fought against it,
{18:10} and he seized it. For after three years, in the sixth year of Hezekiah, that is, in the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Israel, Samaria was captured.
{18:11} And the king of the Assyrians took away Israel into Assyria. And he located them in Halah and in Habor, at the rivers of Gozan, in the cities of the Medes.
{18:12} For they did not listen to the voice of the Lord, their God. Instead, they transgressed his covenant. All that Moses, the servant of the Lord, had instructed, they would neither hear, nor do.
{18:13} In the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians, went up to all the fortified cities of Judah, and he captured them.
{18:14} Then Hezekiah, the king of Judah, sent messengers to the king of the Assyrians at Lachish, saying: “I have offended. Withdraw from me, and all that you will impose upon me, I will bear.” And so the king of the Assyrians levied a tax upon Hezekiah, the king of Judah, of three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
{18:15} And Hezekiah gave all the silver that had been found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasuries of the king.
{18:16} At that time, Hezekiah broke apart the doors of the temple of the Lord, with the plates of gold which he had affixed to them. And he gave these to the king of the Assyrians.
{18:17} Then the king of the Assyrians sent Tartan, and Rabsaris, and Rabshakeh, from Lachish, to king Hezekiah, with a powerful hand, to Jerusalem. And when they had ascended, they arrived in Jerusalem, and they stood beside the aqueduct of the upper pool, which is along the way of the fuller’s field.
{18:18} And they called for the king. But there went out to them Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, the first ruler of the house, and Shebnah, the scribe, and Joah, the son of Asaph, the keeper of records.
{18:19} And Rabshakeh said to them: “Speak to Hezekiah: Thus says the great king, the king of the Assyrians: What is this faith, in which you strive?
{18:20} Perhaps, you have taken counsel, so that you would prepare yourself for battle. In whom do you trust, so that you would dare to rebel?
{18:21} Do you hope in Egypt, that staff of a broken reed, which, if a man would lean upon it, breaking, it would pierce his hand? Such is Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, to all who would trust in him.
{18:22} But if you say to me: ‘We have faith in the Lord, our God.’ Is it not he, whose high places and altars Hezekiah has taken away? And did he not instruct Judah and Jerusalem: ‘You shall adore before this altar in Jerusalem?’
{18:23} Now therefore, cross over to my lord, the king of the Assyrians, and I will give to you two thousand horses, and we will see if you even have enough riders for them.
{18:24} So how can you resist one prince from the least of my lord’s servants? Do you have faith in Egypt because of the chariots and horsemen?
{18:25} Is it not by the will of the Lord that I have chosen to ascend to this place, so that I may destroy it? The Lord said to me: ‘Ascend to this land, and destroy it.’ ”
{18:26} Then Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, and Shebnah, and Joah, said to Rabshakeh: “We beseech you, that you may speak to us, your servants, in Syriac. For we understand that language to some extent. And do not speak to us in the Jews’ language, in the hearing of the people, who are upon the wall.”
{18:27} And Rabshakeh responded to them, saying: “Has my lord sent me to your lord and to you, so that I may speak these words, and not instead to the men who are sitting upon the wall, so that they may eat their own dung, and drink their own urine with you?”
{18:28} And so, Rabshakeh stood up, and he exclaimed in a great voice, in the Jews’ language, and he said: “Listen to the words of the great king, the king of the Assyrians.
{18:29} Thus says the king: Let not Hezekiah lead you astray. For he will not be able to rescue you from my hand.
{18:30} And do not let him give you faith in the Lord, saying: ‘The Lord will rescue and free us, and this city will not be delivered into the hand of the king of the Assyrians.’
{18:31} Do not choose to listen to Hezekiah. For thus says the king of the Assyrians: Do with me what is for your own good, and come out to me. And each one of you will eat from his own vine, and from his own fig tree. And you shall drink water from your own wells,
{18:32} until I arrive and transfer you into a land, similar to your own land, a fruitful and fertile land of wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olives and oil and honey. And you will live, and not die. Do not choose to listen to Hezekiah, who deceives you, saying: ‘The Lord will free us.’
{18:33} Have any of the gods of the nations freed their land from the hand of the king of Assyria?
{18:34} Where is the god of Hamath, and of Arpad? Where is the god of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and of Avva? Have they freed Samaria from my hand?
{18:35} Which ones among all the gods of the lands have rescued their region from my hand, so that the Lord would be able to rescue Jerusalem from my hand?”
{18:36} But the people were silent, and they did not respond at all to him. For indeed, they had received an instruction from the king that they should not respond to him.
{18:37} And Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, the first ruler of the house, and Shebnah, the scribe, and Joah, the son of Asaph, the keeper of records, went to Hezekiah with their garments torn. And they reported to him the words of Rabshakeh.
{19:1} And when king Hezekiah had heard this, he tore his garments, and he covered himself with sackcloth, and he entered the house of the Lord.
{19:2} And he sent Eliakim, the first ruler of the house, and Shebnah, the scribe, and the elders from the priests, covered with sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz.
{19:3} And they said to him: “Thus says Hezekiah: This day is a day of tribulation, and of rebuke, and of blasphemy. The sons are ready to be born, but the woman in labor does not have the strength.
{19:4} Perhaps the Lord, your God, may hear all the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of the Assyrians, his lord, sent so that he would reproach the living God, and rebuke with words, which the Lord, your God, has heard. And so, offer a prayer on behalf of the remnant that has been found.”
{19:5} And the servants of king Hezekiah went to Isaiah.
{19:6} And Isaiah said to them: “So shall you say to your lord. Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid before the face of the words that you have heard, by which the servants of the king of the Assyrians have blasphemed me.
{19:7} Behold, I will send a spirit to him, and he will hear a report, and he will return to his own land. And I will bring him down by the sword in his own land.”
{19:8} Then Rabshakeh returned, and he found the king of the Assyrians fighting against Libnah. For he had heard that he had withdrawn from Lachish.
{19:9} And when he had heard from Tirhakah, the king of Ethiopia, saying, “Behold, he has gone out so that he may fight against you,” and when he went forth against him, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying:
{19:10} “So shall you say to Hezekiah, the king of Judah: Let not your God, in whom you trust, lead you astray. And you should not say, ‘Jerusalem will not be delivered into the hands of the king of the Assyrians.’
{19:11} For you yourself have heard what the kings of the Assyrians have done to all the lands, the manner in which they have laid waste to them. Therefore, how would you alone be able to be freed?
{19:12} Have the gods of the nations freed any of those whom my fathers have destroyed, such as Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the sons of Eden, who were at Telassar?
{19:13} Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, and of Hena, and of Avva?”
{19:14} And so, when Hezekiah had received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and had read it, he ascended to the house of the Lord, and he spread it out before the Lord.
{19:15} And he prayed in his sight, saying: “O Lord, God of Israel, who sits upon the cherubim, you alone are God, over all the kings of the earth. You made heaven and earth.
{19:16} Incline your ear, and listen. Open your eyes, O Lord, and see. And hear all the words of Sennacherib, who sent so that he might reproach the living God before us.
{19:17} Truly, O Lord, the kings of the Assyrians have devastated all peoples and lands.
{19:18} And they have cast their gods into the fire. For they were not gods, but instead were the works of men’s hands, out of wood and stone. And so they destroyed them.
{19:19} Now therefore, O Lord our God, bring us salvation from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the Lord God.”
{19:20} Then Isaiah, the son of Amoz, sent to Hezekiah, saying: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I have heard what you beseeched from me, concerning Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians.
{19:21} This is the word that the Lord has spoken about him: The virgin daughter of Zion has spurned and ridiculed you. The daughter of Jerusalem has shaken her head behind your back.
{19:22} Whom have you reproached, and whom have you blasphemed? Against whom have you exalted your voice, and lifted up your eyes on high? Against the Holy One of Israel!
{19:23} By the hand of your servants, you have reproached the Lord, and you have said: ‘By the multitude of my chariots I have ascended to the heights of the mountains, to the summit of Lebanon. And I have cut down its sublime cedars, and its elect spruce trees. And I have entered even to its limits. And its forest of Carmel,
{19:24} I have cut down. And I drank foreign waters, and I dried up all the enclosed waters with the steps of my feet.’
{19:25} But have you not heard what I have done from the beginning? From the days of antiquity, I have formed it, and now I have brought it to be. And fortified cities of fighting men will become piles of ruins.
{19:26} And whoever may settle in these, they have trembled, with a weak hand, and they have been confounded. They have become like the hay of the field, and like weeds sprouting on the rooftops, which dry up before they reached maturity.
{19:27} Your habitation, and your exit, and your entrance, and your way, I knew beforehand, along with your fury against me.
{19:28} You have been maddened against me, and your arrogance has ascended to my ears. And so, I will place a ring in your nose, and a bit between your lips. And I will lead you back along the way by which you came.
{19:29} But as for you, Hezekiah, this shall be a sign: Eat this year whatever you will find, and in the second year, whatever may spring up of itself. But in the third year, sow and reap; plant vineyards, and eat from their fruit.
{19:30} And whatever will have been left behind, from the house of Judah, shall send a root downward, and shall bear fruit upward.
{19:31} Indeed, a remnant shall go forth from Jerusalem, and what may be saved shall go forth from mount Zion. The zeal of the Lord of hosts shall accomplish this.
{19:32} For this reason, thus says the Lord about the king of the Assyrians: He shall not enter into this city, nor shoot an arrow into it, nor overtake it with the shield, nor encircle it with fortifications.
{19:33} By the way that he came, so shall he return. And he shall not enter this city, says the Lord.
{19:34} And I will protect this city, and I will save it for my own sake, and for the sake of my servant David.”
{19:35} And so it happened that, in the same night, an Angel of the Lord went and struck down, in the camp of the Assyrians, one hundred and eighty-five thousand. And when he had risen up, at first light, he saw all the bodies of the dead. And withdrawing, he went away.
{19:36} And Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians, returned and dwelled in Nineveh.
{19:37} And while he was worshipping in the temple of his god, Nisroch, his sons, Adram-melech and Sharezer, struck him with the sword. And they fled into the land of the Armenians. And Esarhaddon, his son, reigned in his place.
{20:1} In those days, Hezekiah was sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz, came and said to him: “Thus says the Lord God: Instruct your house, for you will die, and not live.”
{20:2} And he turned his face to the wall, and he prayed to the Lord, saying:
{20:3} “I beg you, O Lord, I beseech you, remember how I have walked before you in truth, and with a perfect heart, and how I have done what is pleasing before you.” And then Hezekiah wept with a great weeping.
{20:4} And before Isaiah departed from the middle part of the atrium, the word of the Lord came to him, saying:
{20:5} “Return and tell Hezekiah, the leader of my people: Thus says the Lord, the God of your father David: I have heard your prayer, and I have seen your tears. And behold, I have healed you. On the third day, you shall ascend to the temple of the Lord.
{20:6} And I will add fifteen years to your days. Then too, I will free you and this city from the hand of the king of the Assyrians. And I will protect this city for my own sake, and for the sake of my servant David.”
{20:7} And Isaiah said, “Bring me a mass of figs.” And when they had brought it, and they had placed it on his sore, he was healed.
{20:8} But Hezekiah had said to Isaiah, “What will be the sign that the Lord will heal me, and that I will ascend to the temple of the Lord on the third day?”
{20:9} And Isaiah said to him: “This will be the sign from the Lord, that the Lord will do the word that he has spoken: Do you wish that the shadow may ascend ten lines, or that it may turn back for the same number of degrees?”
{20:10} And Hezekiah said: “It is easy for the shadow to increase for ten lines. And so I do not wish that this be done. Instead, let it turn back for ten degrees.”
{20:11} And so the prophet Isaiah called upon the Lord. And he led back the shadow, along the lines by which it had already descended on the sundial of Ahaz, in reverse for ten degrees.
{20:12} At that time, Merodach-baladan, the son of Baladan, the king of the Babylonians, sent letters and gifts to Hezekiah. For he had heard that Hezekiah had been ill.
{20:13} Now Hezekiah rejoiced at their arrival, and so he revealed to them the house of aromatic spices, and the gold and silver, and the various pigments and ointments, and the house of his vessels, and all that he was able to have in his treasuries. There was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominions, that Hezekiah did not show to them.
{20:14} Then the prophet Isaiah came to king Hezekiah, and said to him: “What did these men say? And from where did they come to you?” And Hezekiah said to him, “They came to me from Babylon, from a far away land.”
{20:15} And he responded, “What did they see in your house?” And Hezekiah said: “They saw all things whatsoever that are in my house. There is nothing in my treasuries that I did not show to them.”
{20:16} And so Isaiah said to Hezekiah: “Listen to the word of the Lord.
{20:17} Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and all that your fathers have stored up even to this day, will be carried away to Babylon. Nothing at all shall remain, says the Lord.
{20:18} Then too, they will take from your sons, who will go forth from you, whom you will conceive. And they will be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”
{20:19} Hezekiah said to Isaiah: “The word of the Lord, which you have spoken, is good. Let peace and truth be in my days.”
{20:20} Now the rest of the words of Hezekiah, and all his strength, and how he made a pool, and an aqueduct, and how he brought waters into the city, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{20:21} And Hezekiah slept with his fathers. And Manasseh, his son, reigned in his place.
{21:1} Manasseh was twelve years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for fifty-five years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Hephzibah.
{21:2} And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, in accord with the idols of the nations that the Lord destroyed before the face of the sons of Israel.
{21:3} And he turned away. And he built up the high places that his father, Hezekiah, had destroyed. And he erected altars to Baal, and he made sacred groves, just as Ahab, the king of Israel, had done. And he adored the entire army of heaven, and he served them.
{21:4} And he constructed altars in the house of the Lord, about which the Lord said: “In Jerusalem, I will place my name.”
{21:5} And he constructed altars, for the entire army of heaven, within the two courts of the temple of the Lord.
{21:6} And he led his son through fire. And he used divinations, and observed omens, and appointed soothsayers, and multiplied diviners, so that he did evil before the Lord, and provoked him.
{21:7} Also, he set up an idol, of the sacred grove that he had made, in the temple of the Lord, about which the Lord said to David, and to his son Solomon: “In this temple, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will place my name forever.
{21:8} And I will no longer cause the feet of Israel to be moved from the land that I gave to their fathers: if only they will take care to do all that I have instructed them, and the entire law that my servant Moses commanded to them.”
{21:9} Yet truly, they did not listen. Instead, they were seduced by Manasseh, so that they did evil, more so than the nations that the Lord crushed before the face of the sons of Israel.
{21:10} And so the Lord spoke, by the hand of his servants, the prophets, saying:
{21:11} “Since Manasseh, the king of Judah, has committed these wicked abominations, beyond all that the Amorites before him have done, and also has caused Judah to sin by his defilements,
{21:12} because of this, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Behold, I will lead evils over Jerusalem and over Judah, such that, whoever will hear of these things, both his ears will ring.
{21:13} And I will extend the measuring line of Samaria over Jerusalem, with the scale of the house of Ahab. And I will erase Jerusalem, just as writing tablets are usually erased. And after erasing, I will turn it and repeatedly drag a stylus over its surface.
{21:14} And truly, I will send away the remnants of my inheritance, and I will deliver them into the hands of their enemies. And they will be devastated and plundered by all their adversaries.
{21:15} For they have done evil before me, and they have persevered in provoking me, from the day when their fathers departed from Egypt, even to this day.
{21:16} Moreover, Manasseh also has shed an exceedingly great amount of innocent blood, until he filled Jerusalem even to the mouth, aside from his sins by which he caused Judah to sin, so that they did evil before the Lord.”
{21:17} Now the rest of the words of Manasseh, and all that he did, and his sin that he sinned, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{21:18} And Manasseh slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the garden of his own house, in the garden of Uzza. And Amon, his son, reigned in his place.
{21:19} Amon was twenty-two years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for two years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Meshullemeth, the daughter of Haruz, from Jotbah.
{21:20} And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, just as his father, Manasseh, had done.
{21:21} And he walked in all the ways in which his father had walked. And he served the unclean things that his father had served, and he adored them.
{21:22} And he abandoned the Lord, the God of his fathers, and he did not walk in the way of the Lord.
{21:23} And his servants undertook treachery against him. And they killed the king in his own house.
{21:24} But the people of the land slew all those who had conspired against king Amon. And they appointed for themselves Josiah, his son, as king in his place.
{21:25} But the rest of the words of Amon, which he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{21:26} And they buried him in his sepulcher, in the garden of Uzza. And his son, Josiah, reigned in his place.
{22:1} Josiah was eight years old when he had begun to reign. He reigned for thirty-one years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah, from Bozkath.
{22:2} And he did what was pleasing before the Lord, and he walked in all the ways of his father David. He did not turn aside to the right, or to the left.
{22:3} Then, in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, the king sent Shaphan, the son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, the scribe of the temple of the Lord, saying to him:
{22:4} “Go to Hilkiah, the high priest, so that the money may be put together which has been brought into the temple of the Lord, which the doorkeepers of the temple have collected from the people.
{22:5} And let it be given, by those in charge of the house of the Lord, to the workers. And let them distribute it to those who are working in the temple of the Lord in order to repair the surfaces of the temple,
{22:6} specifically, to carpenters and masons, and to those who mend gaps, and so that wood may be purchased, and stones from the quarries, in order to repair the temple of the Lord.
{22:7} Yet truly, let no account be given by them of the money that they receive. Instead, let them have it within their power and trust.”
{22:8} Then Hilkiah, the high priest, said to Shaphan, the scribe, “I have found the book of the law in the house of the Lord.” And Hilkiah gave the volume to Shaphan, and he read it.
{22:9} Also, Shaphan, the scribe, went to the king, and reported to him what he had instructed. And he said: “Your servants have brought together the money which was found in the house of the Lord. And they have given it so that it would be distributed to the workers by the overseers of the works of the temple of the Lord.”
{22:10} Also, Shaphan, the scribe, explained to the king, saying, “Hilkiah, the priest, gave the book to me.” And when Shaphan had read it before the king,
{22:11} and the king had heard the words of the book of the law of the Lord, he tore his garments.
{22:12} And he instructed Hilkiah, the priest, and Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, and Achbor, the son of Micaiah, and Shaphan, the scribe, and Asaiah, the servant of the king, saying:
{22:13} “Go and consult the Lord concerning me, and the people, and all of Judah, about the words of this volume which has been found. For the great wrath of the Lord has been kindled against us because our fathers did not listen to the words of this book, so that they would do all that has been written for us.”
{22:14} Therefore, Hilkiah, the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asaiah, went to Huldah, the prophetess, the wife of Shallum, the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, the keeper of the vestments, who was living in Jerusalem, in the second part. And they spoke with her.
{22:15} And she responded to them: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Tell the man who sent you to me:
{22:16} Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will lead evils over this place, and over its inhabitants, all the words of the law that the king of Judah has read.
{22:17} For they have abandoned me, and they have sacrificed to foreign gods, provoking me by all the works of their hands. And so my indignation will be kindled against this place. And it will not be extinguished.
{22:18} But to the king of Judah, who sent you so that you would consult the Lord, so shall you say: Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: In so far as you have heard the words of the volume,
{22:19} and your heart was terrified, and you humbled yourself before the Lord, listening to the words against this place and its inhabitants, specifically, that they would become an astonishment and a curse, and because you have torn your garments, and have wept before me: I also have heard you, says the Lord.
{22:20} For this reason, I will gather you to your fathers, and you will be gathered to your sepulcher in peace, so that your eyes may not see all the evils that I will bring over this place.”
{23:1} And they reported to the king what she had said. And he sent, and all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem were gathered to him.
{23:2} And the king ascended to the temple of the Lord. And with him were all the men of Judah and all who were living in Jerusalem: the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, from the small to the great. And in the hearing of everyone, he read all the words of the book of the covenant, which was found in the house of the Lord.
{23:3} And the king stood upon the step. And he struck a covenant before the Lord, so that they would walk after the Lord, and keep his precepts and testimonies and ceremonies, with all their heart and with all their soul, and so that they would carry out the words of this covenant, which had been written in that book. And the people agreed to the covenant.
{23:4} And the king instructed Hilkiah, the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the doorkeepers, so that they would cast out of the temple of the Lord all the vessels which had been made for Baal, and for the sacred grove, and for the entire army of heaven. And he burned them outside of Jerusalem, in the steep valley of Kidron. And he carried their dust into Bethel.
{23:5} And he destroyed the soothsayers, whom the kings of Judah had appointed to sacrifice in the high places throughout the cities of Judah, and all around Jerusalem, along with those who were burning incense to Baal, and to the Sun, and to the Moon, and to the twelve signs, and to the entire army of heaven.
{23:6} And he caused the sacred grove to be carried away from the house of the Lord, outside of Jerusalem, to the steep valley of Kidron. And he burned it there, and reduced it to dust. And he cast the dust over the graves of the common people.
{23:7} Also, he destroyed the small places of the effeminate, which were in the house of the Lord, for which the women were weaving something like little houses in the sacred grove.
{23:8} And he gathered together all the priests from the cities of Judah. And he defiled the high places, where the priests were sacrificing, from Geba as far as Beersheba. And he tore down the altars of the gates at the entrance to the gate of Joshua, the leader of the city, which was to the left of the gate of the city.
{23:9} Yet truly, the priests of the high places did not ascend to the altar of the Lord in Jerusalem. For they would only eat from the unleavened bread in the midst of their brothers.
{23:10} Also, he defiled Topheth, which is in the steep valley of the son of Hinnom, so that no one would consecrate his son or his daughter, through fire, to Molech.
{23:11} Also, he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the Sun, at the entrance to the temple of the Lord, beside the hallway of Nathan-melech, the eunuch, who was in Pharurim. And he burned the chariots of the Sun with fire.
{23:12} Also, the altars which were upon the roof of the upper room of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the temple of the Lord, the king destroyed. And he hurried from there, and he scattered their ashes into the torrent Kidron.
{23:13} Also, the high places which were in Jerusalem, to the right side of the Mount of Offense, which Solomon, the king of Israel, had built to Ashtoreth, the idol of the Sidonians, and to Chemosh, the offense of Moab, and to Milcom, the abomination of the sons of Ammon, the king defiled.
{23:14} And he crushed the statues, and he cut down the sacred groves. And he filled their places with the bones of the dead.
{23:15} Then too, the altar which was in Bethel, and the high place which Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin, had made: both that altar and the high place he tore down, and burned, and reduced to dust. And then he also set fire to the sacred grove.
{23:16} And in that place Josiah, turning, saw the sepulchers which were on the mount. And he sent and took the bones from the sepulchers. And he burned them upon the altar, and he defiled it in accord with the word of the Lord, which was spoken by the man of God, who had predicted these events.
{23:17} And he said, “What is that monument that I see?” And the citizens of that city responded to him: “It is the sepulcher of the man of God, who came from Judah, and who predicted these events, which you have carried out concerning the altar of Bethel.”
{23:18} And he said: “Permit him. Let no one move his bones.” And his bones have remained untouched, with the bones of the prophet who had arrived from Samaria.
{23:19} Then too, all the shrines of the high places, which were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the Lord, Josiah took away. And he acted toward them according to all the works that he had done in Bethel.
{23:20} And all the priests of the high places, who were in that place, he killed upon the altars. And he burned the bones of the men upon them. And he returned to Jerusalem.
{23:21} And he instructed all the people, saying: “Keep the Passover to the Lord your God, according to what has been written in the book of this covenant.”
{23:22} Now no similar Passover was kept, from the days of the judges, who judged Israel, and from all the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah,
{23:23} as this Passover, which was kept to the Lord in Jerusalem, in the eighteenth year of king Josiah.
{23:24} Then too, Josiah took away those who divined by spirits, and the soothsayers, and the images of the idols, and the defilements, and the abominations, which had been in the land of Judah and Jerusalem, so that he might establish the words of the law, which were written in the book, which Hilkiah, the priest, found in the temple of the Lord.
{23:25} There was no king before him similar to him, who returned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his strength, in accord with the entire law of Moses. And after him, there rose up no one similar to him.
{23:26} Yet truly, the Lord did not turn away from the wrath of his great fury, his fury which was enraged against Judah because of the provocations by which Manasseh had provoked him.
{23:27} And so the Lord said: “And now I will remove Judah from my face, just as I removed Israel. And I will cast aside this city, Jerusalem, which I have chosen, and the house, about which I said: My name shall be there.”
{23:28} Now the rest of the words of Josiah, and all that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah?
{23:29} During his days, Pharaoh Neco, the king of Egypt, ascended against the king of the Assyrians to the river Euphrates. And king Josiah went out to meet him. And when he had seen him, he was killed at Megiddo.
{23:30} And his servants carried him dead from Megiddo. And they took him to Jerusalem, and they buried him in his own sepulcher. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz, the son of Josiah. And they anointed him, and made him king in place of his father.
{23:31} Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah, from Libnah.
{23:32} And he did evil before the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done.
{23:33} And Pharaoh Neco bound him at Riblah, which is in the land of Hamath, so that he would not reign in Jerusalem. And he imposed a penalty on the land: one hundred talents of silver, and one talent of gold.
{23:34} And Pharaoh Neco appointed Eliakim, the son of Josiah, as king in place of Josiah his father. And he changed his name to Jehoiakim. Then he took Jehoahaz away, and he brought him into Egypt, and there he died.
{23:35} Now Jehoiakim gave silver and gold to Pharaoh, when he had taxed the land, according to each one who would contribute by the command of Pharaoh. And he exacted both silver and gold from the people of the land, from each one according to his ability, so that he would give to Pharaoh Neco.
{23:36} Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Zebidah, the daughter of Pedaiah, from Rumah.
{23:37} And he did evil before the Lord, in accord with all that his fathers had done.
{24:1} During his days, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, ascended, and Jehoiakim became his servant for three years. And again he rebelled against him.
{24:2} And the Lord sent to him the robbers of the Chaldeans, and the robbers of Syria, and the robbers of Moab, and the robbers of the sons of Ammon. And he sent them into Judah, so that they might destroy it, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he had spoken through his servants, the prophets.
{24:3} Then this occurred, by the word of the Lord against Judah, that he took him away from before himself because of all the sins of Manasseh which he did,
{24:4} and because of the innocent blood which he shed, and because he filled Jerusalem with the slaughter of the innocent. And for this reason, the Lord was not willing to be appeased.
{24:5} But the rest of the words of Jehoiakim, and all that he did, have these not been written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Judah? And Jehoiakim slept with his fathers.
{24:6} And Jehoiachin, his son, reigned in his place.
{24:7} And the king of Egypt no longer continued to go out from his own land. For the king of Babylon had taken all that had belonged to the king of Egypt, from the river of Egypt as far as the river Euphrates.
{24:8} Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan, from Jerusalem.
{24:9} And he did evil before the Lord, in accord with all that his father had done.
{24:10} At that time, the servants of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, ascended against Jerusalem. And the city was encircled with fortifications.
{24:11} And Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, went to the city, with his servants, so that he might fight against it.
{24:12} And Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his leaders, and his eunuchs. And the king of Babylon received him, in the eighth year of his reign.
{24:13} And he took from there all the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the house of the king. And he cut up all the gold vessels which Solomon, the king of Israel, had made for the temple of the Lord, in accord with the word of the Lord.
{24:14} And he carried away all of Jerusalem, and all the leaders, and all the strong men of the army, ten thousand, into captivity, with every artisan and craftsman. And no one was left behind, except the poor among the people of the land.
{24:15} Also, he carried away Jehoiachin into Babylon, and the mother of the king, and the wives of the king, and his eunuchs. And he led into captivity the judges of the land, from Jerusalem to Babylon,
{24:16} and all the robust men, seven thousand, and the artisans and craftsman, one thousand: all who were strong men and fit for war. And the king of Babylon led them away as captives, into Babylon.
{24:17} And he appointed Mattaniah, his uncle, in his place. And he imposed the name Zedekiah upon him.
{24:18} Zedekiah held twenty-one years of life when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah, from Libnah.
{24:19} And he did evil before the Lord, in accord with all that Jehoiakim had done.
{24:20} For the Lord was angry against Jerusalem and against Judah, until he cast them away from his face. And so Zedekiah withdrew from the king of Babylon.
{25:1} Then it happened that, in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, he and his entire army, arrived against Jerusalem. And they encircled it, and they constructed fortifications all around it.
{25:2} And the city was enclosed and besieged, even until the eleventh year of king Zedekiah,
{25:3} on the ninth day of the month. And a famine prevailed in the city; neither was there bread for the people of the land.
{25:4} And the city was breached. And all the men of war fled in the night along the way of the gate which is between the double wall at the garden of the king. Now the Chaldeans were besieging the city on all sides. And so Zedekiah fled along the way which leads to the plains of the wilderness.
{25:5} And the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king, and they overtook him in the plains of Jericho. And all the warriors who were with him were dispersed, and they abandoned him.
{25:6} Therefore, having apprehended him, they led the king to the king of Babylon at Riblah. And he was speaking with him in judgment.
{25:7} Then he killed the sons of Zedekiah before him, and he dug out his eyes, and he bound him with chains, and he led him away to Babylon.
{25:8} In the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, the same is the nineteenth year of the king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the leader of the army, a servant of the king of Babylon, went into Jerusalem.
{25:9} And he set fire to the house of the Lord, and to the house of the king. And the houses of Jerusalem, and every great house, he burned with fire.
{25:10} And the entire army of the Chaldeans, which was with the leader of the military, tore down the walls of Jerusalem all around.
{25:11} Then Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, carried away the rest of the people, who had remained in the city, and the fugitives, who had fled over to the king of Babylon, and the remnant of the common people.
{25:12} But he left behind some vinedressers and farmers from the poor of the land.
{25:13} Now the pillars of brass which were in the temple of the Lord, and the bases, and the sea of brass, which was in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke apart. And they took all the brass to Babylon.
{25:14} Also, they took away the cooking pots of brass, and the scoops, and the forks, and the cups, and the little mortars, and all the articles of brass with which they were ministering.
{25:15} And the leader of the military even took away the censers and the bowls, whatever was of gold for the gold, and whatever was of silver for the silver,
{25:16} and also the two pillars, the one sea, and the bases which Solomon had made for the temple of the Lord. The brass of all these items was beyond measure.
{25:17} One pillar had eighteen cubits in height. And the head of brass upon it was three cubits in height. And the network and pomegranates upon the head of the pillar were all of brass. And the second pillar had a similar adornment.
{25:18} Also, the leader of the military took away Seraiah, the chief priest, and Zephaniah, the second priest, and three doorkeepers,
{25:19} and from the city, one eunuch, who was in charge of the men of war, and five men out of those who had stood before the king, whom he found in the city, and Sopher, the leader of the army who trained the young soldiers from the people of the land, and sixty men from the common people, who had been found in the city.
{25:20} Taking them, Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, led them to the king of Babylon at Riblah.
{25:21} And the king of Babylon struck them and killed them at Riblah, in the land of Hamath. And Judah was taken away from his land.
{25:22} But over the people who had remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had permitted, he appointed as ruler Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan.
{25:23} And when all the commanders of the military had heard this, they and the men who were with them, specifically, that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah, they went to Gedaliah at Mizpah: Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan, the son of Kareah, and Seraiah, the son of Tanhumeth, the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah, the son of a Maacathite, they and their companions.
{25:24} And Gedaliah swore to them and to their companions, saying: “Do not be afraid to serve the Chaldeans. Remain in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.”
{25:25} But it happened that, in the seventh month, Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of royal offspring, and ten men with him, went and struck Gedaliah, who then died, along with the Jews and the Chaldeans who were with him at Mizpah.
{25:26} And all the people, from small to great, and the leaders of the military, rising up, went away to Egypt, fearing the Chaldeans.
{25:27} Truly, it happened that, in the thirty-seventh year of the transmigration of Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evilmerodach, the king of Babylon, in the year when he had begun to reign, lifted up the head of Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, from prison.
{25:28} And he spoke kindly to him. And he set his throne above the throne of the kings who were with him at Babylon.
{25:29} And he changed his garments that he had worn in prison. And he ate bread before him always, during all the days of his life.
{25:30} Also, he appointed to him an allowance without ceasing, which also was given to him by the king, for each day, during all the days of his life.
{1:1} Adam, Seth, Enos,
{1:2} Cainan, Mahalalel, Jared,
{1:3} Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech,
{1:4} Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
{1:5} The sons of Japheth: Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, Tubal, Meshech, Tiras.
{1:6} And the sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah.
{1:7} And the sons of Javan: Elishah and Tarshish, Kittim and Rodanim.
{1:8} The sons of Ham: Cush, and Mizraim, and Put, and Canaan.
{1:9} And the sons of Cush: Seba, and Havilah, Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabteca. And the sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dadan.
{1:10} Then Cush conceived Nimrod, and he began to be powerful upon the earth.
{1:11} Truly, Mizraim conceived Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim,
{1:12} as well as Pathrusim and Casluhim: from these the Philistines and the Caphtorim went forth.
{1:13} Truly, Canaan conceived Sidon, his firstborn, as well as the Hittite,
{1:14} and the Jebusite, and the Amorite, and the Girgashite,
{1:15} and the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite,
{1:16} and also the Arvadian, and the Samarite, and the Hamathite.
{1:17} The sons of Shem: Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram, and Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Meshech.
{1:18} Then Arphaxad conceived Shelah, who also himself conceived Eber.
{1:19} And to Eber were born two sons. The name of one was Peleg, because in his days the earth was divided. And the name of his brother was Joktan.
{1:20} Then Joktan conceived Almodad, and Sheleph, and Hazarmaveth, and Jerah,
{1:21} as well as Hadoram, and Uzal, and Diklah,
{1:22} and then Obal, and Abimael, and Sheba, indeed
{1:23} also Ophir, and Havilah, and Jobab. All these are the sons of Joktan.
{1:24} Shem, Arphaxad, Shelah,
{1:25} Eber, Peleg, Reu,
{1:26} Serug, Nahor, Terah,
{1:27} Abram, the same is Abraham.
{1:28} And the sons of Abraham: Isaac and Ishmael.
{1:29} And these are their generations: the firstborn of Ishmael, Nebaioth, and then Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam,
{1:30} and Mishma, and Dumah, Massa, Hadad, and Tema,
{1:31} Jetur, Naphish, Kedemah. These are the sons of Ishmael.
{1:32} And the sons of Keturah, the concubine of Abraham, whom she conceived: Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. And the sons of Jokshan: Sheba and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan: Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummim.
{1:33} And the sons of Midian: Ephah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. All these are the sons of Keturah.
{1:34} Now Abraham conceived Isaac, whose sons were Esau and Israel.
{1:35} The sons of Esau: Eliphaz, Reuel, Jeush, Jalam, and Korah.
{1:36} The sons of Eliphaz: Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, Kenez, and by Timna, Amalek.
{1:37} The sons of Reuel: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, Mizzah.
{1:38} The sons of Seir: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, Dishon, Ezer, Dishan.
{1:39} The sons of Lotan: Hori, Heman. Now the sister of Lotan was Timna.
{1:40} The sons of Shobal: Alian, and Manahath, and Ebal, Shephi, and Onam. The sons of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah. The sons of Anah: Dishon.
{1:41} The sons of Dishon: Hamran, and Esheban, and Ithran, and Cheran.
{1:42} The sons of Ezer: Bilhan, and Zaavan, and Akan. The sons of Dishan: Uz and Aran.
{1:43} Now these are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom, before there was a king over the sons of Israel: Bela, the son of Beor; and the name of his city was Dinhabah.
{1:44} Then Bela died, and Jobab, the son of Zerah, from Bozrah, reigned in his place.
{1:45} And when Jobab also had died, Husham, from the land of the Temanites, reigned in his place.
{1:46} Then Husham also passed away, and Hadad, the son of Bedad, reigned in his place. And he struck the Midianites in the land of Moab. The name of his city was Avith.
{1:47} And when Hadad also had died, Samlah from Masrekah reigned in his place.
{1:48} Then Samlah also died, and Shaul from Rehoboth, which is situated beside a river, reigned in his place.
{1:49} Shaul also having died, Baal-hanan, the son of Achbor, reigned in his place.
{1:50} Then he too died, and Hadar reigned in his place. And the name of his city was Pau. And his wife was called Mehetabel, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mezahab.
{1:51} And Hadar having died, there began to be commanders in Edom in place of kings: commander Thamna, commander Alvah, commander Jetheth,
{1:52} commander Oholibamah, commander Elah, commander Pinon,
{1:53} commander Kanez, commander Teman, commander Mibzar,
{1:54} commander Magdiel, commander Iram. These are the commanders of Edom.
{2:1} And the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun,
{2:2} Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
{2:3} The sons of Judah: Er, Onan, and Shelah. These three were born to him from the daughter of Shua, the Canaanite. But Er, the firstborn of Judah, was evil in the sight of the Lord, and so he killed him.
{2:4} Now Tamar, his daughter-in-law, bore to him Perez and Zerah. Therefore, all the sons of Judah were five.
{2:5} And the sons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul.
{2:6} Also, the sons of Zerah: Zimri, and Ethan, and Heman, as well as Calcol and Dara, five altogether.
{2:7} The sons of Carmi: Achar, who disturbed Israel and sinned by the theft of what was anathema.
{2:8} The sons of Ethan: Azariah.
{2:9} And the sons of Hezron who were born to him: Jerahmeel, and Ram, and Chelubai.
{2:10} Then Ram conceived Amminadab. And Amminadab conceived Nahshon, a leader of the sons of Judah.
{2:11} Also, Nahshon conceived Salma, from whom Boaz rose up.
{2:12} Truly, Boaz conceived Obed, who also himself conceived Jesse.
{2:13} Now Jesse conceived the firstborn Eliab, the second Abinadab, the third Shammah,
{2:14} the fourth Nethanel, the fifth Raddai,
{2:15} the sixth Ozem, the seventh David.
{2:16} Their sisters were Zeruiah and Abigail. The sons of Zeruiah: Abishai, Joab, and Asahel, three.
{2:17} And Abigail conceived Amasa, whose father was Jether, the Ishmaelite.
{2:18} Truly, Caleb, the son of Hezron, took a wife named Azubah, of whom he conceived Jerioth. And her sons were Jesher, and Shobab, and Ardon.
{2:19} And when Azubah had died, Caleb took as wife Ephratha, who bore to him Hur.
{2:20} Now Hur conceived Uri. And Uri conceived Bezalel.
{2:21} And afterwards, Hezron entered to the daughter of Machir, father of Gilead. And he took her when he was sixty years old. And she bore to him Segub.
{2:22} And then Segub conceived Jair, and he possessed twenty-three cities in the land of Gilead.
{2:23} And he seized Geshur and Aram, towns of Jair, and Kenath and its villages, sixty cities. All these were sons of Machir, father of Gilead.
{2:24} Then, when Hezron had died, Caleb entered to Ephratha. Also, Hezron had as wife Abia, who bore to him Ashhur, the father of Tekoa.
{2:25} Now sons were born to Jerahmeel, the firstborn of Hezron: Ram, his firstborn, and Bunah, and Oren, and Ozem, and Ahijah.
{2:26} Jerahmeel also married another wife, named Atarah, who was the mother of Onam.
{2:27} Then too, the sons of Ram, the firstborn of Jerahmeel, were Maaz, Jamin, and Eker.
{2:28} And Onam had sons: Shammai and Jada. And the sons of Shammai: Nadab and Abishur.
{2:29} Truly, the name of the wife of Abishur was Abihail, who bore to him Ahban and Molid.
{2:30} Now the sons of Nadab were Seled and Appaim. And Seled died without children.
{2:31} Truly, the son of Appaim was Ishi. And Ishi conceived Sheshan. Then Sheshan conceived Ahlai.
{2:32} But the sons of Jada, the brother of Shammai, were Jether and Jonathan. Then Jether also died without children.
{2:33} And Jonathan conceived Peleth and Zaza. These were the sons of Jerahmeel.
{2:34} Now Sheshan did not have sons, but only daughters, and an Egyptian servant named Jarha.
{2:35} And so he gave to him his daughter as wife, who bore to him Attai.
{2:36} Then Attai conceived Nathan, and Nathan conceived Zabad.
{2:37} Also, Zabad conceived Ephlal, and Ephlal conceived Obed.
{2:38} Obed conceived Jehu; Jehu conceived Azariah.
{2:39} Azariah conceived Helez, and Helez conceived Eleasah.
{2:40} Eleasah conceived Sismai; Sismai conceived Shallum.
{2:41} Shallum conceived Jekamiah; then Jekamiah conceived Elishama.
{2:42} And the sons of Caleb, the brother of Jerahmeel, were Mesha, his firstborn, who was the father of Ziph, and the sons of Mesha, the father of Hebron.
{2:43} Now the sons of Hebron were Korah, and Tapuah, and Rekem, and Shema.
{2:44} Then Shema conceived Raham, the father of Jorkeam. And Rekem conceived Shammai.
{2:45} The son of Shammai was Maon, and Maon was the father of Bethzur.
{2:46} Now Ephah, the concubine of Caleb, bore Haran, and Moza, and Gazez. And Haran conceived Gazez.
{2:47} And the sons of Jahdai: Regem, and Jotham, and Geshan, and Pelet, and Ephah, and Shaaph.
{2:48} And Maacah, the concubine of Caleb, bore Sheber and Tirhanah.
{2:49} Then Shaaph, the father of Madmannah, conceived Sheva, the father of Machbenah, and the father of Gibea. Truly, the daughter of Caleb was Achsah.
{2:50} These were the sons of Caleb, the son of Hur, the firstborn of Ephratha: Shobal, the father of Kiriath-jearim;
{2:51} Salma, the father of Bethlehem; Hareph, the father of Bethgader.
{2:52} Now there were sons for Shobal, the father of Kiriath-jearim, who saw half the places of rest.
{2:53} And from the kindred of Kiriath-jearim: the Ithrites, and the Puthites, and the Shumathites, and the Mishraites. From these, the Zorathites and the Eshtaolites went forth.
{2:54} The sons of Salma: Bethlehem, and the Netophathites, the crowns of the house of Joab, and half the places of rest of the Zorathites,
{2:55} as well as the families of the scribes living in Jabesh, those singing and making music, and those dwelling in tents. These are the Kenites, who went forth from Calor, the father of the house of Rechab.
{3:1} Truly, David had these sons, who were born to him in Hebron: the firstborn Amnon, of Ahinoam the Jezreelite; the second Daniel, from Abigail the Carmelite;
{3:2} the third Absalom, the son of Maacah, daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur; the fourth Adonijah, the son of Haggith;
{3:3} the fifth Shephatiah, of Abital; the sixth Ithream, from his wife Eglah.
{3:4} Therefore, six were born to him in Hebron, where he reigned for seven years and six months. Then he reigned for thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
{3:5} Now in Jerusalem, sons were born to him: Shammua, and Sobab, and Nathan, and Solomon, these four from Bathsheba, the daughter of Ammiel;
{3:6} also Ibhar and Elishama,
{3:7} and Eliphelet, and Nogah, and Nepheg, and Japhia,
{3:8} indeed also Elishama, and Eliada, and Eliphelet, nine.
{3:9} All these were sons of David, aside from the sons of the concubines. And they had a sister, Tamar.
{3:10} Now the son of Solomon was Rehoboam, from whom Abijah conceived a son, Asa. And from him, there was born Jehoshaphat,
{3:11} the father of Jehoram. And Jehoram conceived Ahaziah, from whom there was born Jehoash.
{3:12} And his son, Amaziah, conceived Azariah. Then Jotham, the son of Azariah,
{3:13} conceived Ahaz, the father of Hezekiah, from whom was born Manasseh.
{3:14} Then too, Manasseh conceived Amon, the father of Josiah.
{3:15} Now the sons of Josiah were these: the firstborn Johanan, the second Jehoiakim, the third Zedekiah, the fourth Shallum.
{3:16} From Jehoiakim was born Jeconiah and Zedekiah.
{3:17} The sons of Jeconiah the captive were: Shealtiel,
{3:18} Malchiram, Pedaiah, Shenazzar, and Jekamiah, Hoshama, and Nedabiah.
{3:19} From Pedaiah, there rose up Zerubbabel and Shimei. Zerubbabel conceived Meshullam, Hananiah, and their sister Shelomith,
{3:20} as well as Hashubah, and Ohel, and Berechiah, and Hasadiah, Jushab-hesed, five.
{3:21} Now the son of Hananiah was Pelatiah, the father of Jeshaiah, whose son was Rephaiah. And his son was Arnan, from whom was born Obadiah, whose son was Shecaniah.
{3:22} The son of Shecaniah was Shemaiah, whose sons were these: Hattush, and Igal, and Bariah, and Neariah, and Shaphat, six in number.
{3:23} The sons of Neariah: Elioenai, and Hizkiaj, and Azrikam, three.
{3:24} The sons of Elioenai: Hodaviah, and Eliashib, and Pelaiah, and Akkub, and Johanan, and Delaiah, and Anani, seven.
{4:1} The sons of Judah: Perez, Hezron, and Carmi, and Hur, and Shobal.
{4:2} Truly, Reaiah, the son of Shobal, conceived Jahath; from him were born Ahumai and Lahad. These are the kindred of the Zorathites.
{4:3} And this is the stock of Etam: Jezreel, and Ishma, and Idbash. And the name of their sister was Hazzelelponi.
{4:4} Now Penuel was the father of Gedor, and Ezer was the father of Hushah. These are the sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephratha, the father of Bethlehem.
{4:5} Truly, for Ashhur, the father of Tekoa, there were two wives: Helah and Naarah.
{4:6} And Naarah bore to him: Ahuzzam, and Hepher, and Temeni, and Haahashtari. These are the sons of Naarah.
{4:7} And the sons of Helah were Zereth, Izhar, and Ethnan.
{4:8} Now Koz conceived Anub, and Zobebah, and the kindred of Aharhel, the son of Harum.
{4:9} But Jabez was renowned, more so than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, “For I bore him in sorrow.”
{4:10} Truly, Jabez called upon the God of Israel, saying, “If only, when blessing, you will bless me, and will broaden my borders, and your hand will be with me, and you will cause me not to be oppressed by evil.” And God granted to him the things for which he prayed.
{4:11} Now Chelub, the brother of Shuhah, conceived Mehir, who was the father of Eshton.
{4:12} Then Eshton conceived Bethrapha, and Paseah, and Tehinnah, the father of the city of Nahash. These are the men of Recah.
{4:13} Now the sons of Kenaz were Othniel and Seraiah. And the sons of Othniel were Hathath and Meonothai.
{4:14} Meonothai conceived Ophrah, but Seraiah conceived Joab, the father of the Valley of Artisans. For indeed, there were artisans there.
{4:15} Truly, the sons of Chelub, the son of Jephunneh, were Iru, and Elah, and Naam. And the sons of Elah: Kenaz.
{4:16} Also, the sons of Jehallelel: Ziph and Ziphah, Tiria and Asarel.
{4:17} And the sons of Ezrah: Jether, and Mered, and Epher, and Jalon; and he conceived Miriam, and Shammai, and Ishbah, the father of Eshtemoa.
{4:18} And then his wife, Judaia, bore Jered, the father of Gedor, and Heber, the father of Soco, and Jekuthiel, the father of Zanoah. Now there were sons of Bithiah, the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Mered married,
{4:19} and sons of his wife Hodiah, the sister of Naham, the father of Keilah the Garmite, and of Eshtemoa, who was from Maacathi.
{4:20} And the sons of Shimon: Amnon, and Rinnah, son of Hanan, and Tilon. And the sons of Ishi: Zoheth and Benzoheth.
{4:21} The sons of Shelah, the son of Judah: Er, the father of Lecah, and Laadah, the father of Mareshah, and the kindred of the house of the workers of fine linen in the house of the oath,
{4:22} and he who caused the sun to stand still, and the men of Lying, and Secure, and Burning, who were leaders in Moab, and who returned into Lehem. Now these words are ancient.
{4:23} These are the potters living in the Plantations and in the Hedges, with a king in his works, and they were dwelling there.
{4:24} The sons of Simeon: Nemuel and Jamin, Jarib, Zerah, Shaul;
{4:25} Shallum his son, Mibsam his son, Mishma his son.
{4:26} The sons of Mishma: Hammuel his son, Zaccur his son, Shimei his son.
{4:27} The sons of Shimei were sixteen, and there were six daughters. But his brothers did not have many sons, and the entire kindred was not equal to the sum of the sons of Judah.
{4:28} Now they lived in Beersheba, and Moladah, and Hazarshual,
{4:29} and in Bilhah, and in Ezem, and in Tolad,
{4:30} and in Bethuel, and in Hormah, and in Ziklag,
{4:31} and in Beth-marcaboth, and in Hazarsusim, and in Bethbiri, and in Shaaraim. These were their cities until king David.
{4:32} And their towns were Etam, and Ain, Rimmon, and Tochen, and Ashan, five cities,
{4:33} with all their villages, on every side of these cities, as far as Baal. This is their habitation and the distribution of the settlements.
{4:34} And there were Meshobab and Jamlech, and Joshah, the son of Amaziah,
{4:35} and Joel, and Jehu, the son of Joshibiah, the son of Seraiah, the son of Asiel,
{4:36} and Elioenai, and Jaakobah, and Jeshohaiah, and Asaiah, and Adiel, and Jesimiel, and Benaiah,
{4:37} as well as Ziza, the son of Shiphi, the son of Allon, the son of Jedaiah, the son of Shimri, the son of Shemaiah.
{4:38} These were the names of the leaders in their kindred. And they were multiplied greatly within the houses of their marriages.
{4:39} And they set out, so that they might enter into Gedor, as far as the eastern valley, and so that they might seek pastures for their flocks.
{4:40} And they found fat and very good pastures, and a very wide and quiet and fruitful land, in which some from the stock of Ham had lived before.
{4:41} So then, those whose names have been written above, went forth in the days of Hezekiah, the king of Judah. And they struck down the inhabitants who had been found there with their dwellings. And they wiped them out, even to the present day. And they lived in place of them, because they found very fat pastures there.
{4:42} Also, some of the sons of Simeon, five hundred men, went away to mount Seir, having as leaders Pelatiah and Neariah and Rephaiah and Uzziel, the sons of Ishi.
{4:43} And they struck down the remnant of the Amalekites, those who had been able to escape, and they lived there in place of them, even to this day.
{5:1} Also, there were the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel. For indeed, he was his firstborn, but when he had violated the bed of his father, his right as firstborn was given to the sons of Joseph, the son of Israel, and he was not reputed as firstborn.
{5:2} Moreover, Judah, who was strongest among his brothers, from his stock leaders sprung up, but the right of firstborn was reputed to Joseph.
{5:3} So then, the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel, were Hanoch and Pallu, Hezron and Carmi.
{5:4} The sons of Joel: Shemaiah his son, Gog his son, Shimei his son,
{5:5} Micah his son, Reaiah his son, Baal his son,
{5:6} Beerah his son, whom Tilgath-pilneser, the king of the Assyrians, led away captive, and he was a leader in the tribe of Reuben.
{5:7} Now his brothers and all his kindred, when they were being numbered according to their families, had as leaders Jeiel and Zechariah.
{5:8} Now Bela, the son of Azaz, the son of Shema, the son of Joel, lived in Aroer, as far as Nebo and Baalmeon.
{5:9} And he lived toward the eastern region, as far as the entrance to the wilderness and the river Euphrates. For indeed, they possessed a great number of cattle in the land of Gilead.
{5:10} Then, in the days of Saul, they battled against the Hagarites and put them to death. And they lived in place of them, in their dwellings, throughout the entire region that looks to the east of Gilead.
{5:11} Truly, the sons of Gad lived in the opposite region from them, in the land of Bashan, as far as Salecah:
{5:12} Joel the head, and Shapham the second, then Janai and Shaphat, in Bashan.
{5:13} Truly, their brothers, according to the houses of their kindred, were: Michael, and Meshullam, and Sheba, and Jorai, and Jacan, and Zia, and Eber, seven.
{5:14} These were the sons of Abihail, the son of Huri, the son of Jaroah, the son of Gilead, the son of Michael, the son of Jeshishai, the son of Jahdo, the son of Buz,
{5:15} along with their brothers, the sons of Abdiel, the son of Guni, the leader of the house, in their families,
{5:16} And they lived in Gilead, and in Bashan and its towns, and in all the suburbs of Sharon, as far as the borders.
{5:17} All these were numbered in the days of Jotham, the king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the king of Israel:
{5:18} the sons of Reuben, and of Gad, and the one half tribe of Manasseh, men of war, carrying shields and swords, and bending the bow, and trained for battle, forty-four thousand and seven hundred sixty, advancing to the fight.
{5:19} They struggled against the Hagarites, yet truly the Jetureans, and Naphish, and Nodab offered assistance to them.
{5:20} And the Hagarites were delivered into their hands, and all who were with them. For they called upon God while they did battle. And he heeded them, because they had trusted in him.
{5:21} And they seized all that they possessed, of camels fifty thousand, and of sheep two hundred fifty thousand, and of donkeys two thousand, and of men one hundred thousand lives.
{5:22} And many fell down wounded. For it was a war of the Lord. And they lived in place of them, until the transmigration.
{5:23} Also, the sons of the one half tribe of Manasseh possessed the land, from the parts of Bashan as far as Baal, Hermon, and Sanir, and Mount Hermon. For certainly, their number was immense.
{5:24} And these were leaders of the house of their kindred: Epher, and Ishi, and Eliel, and Azriel, and Jeremiah, and Hodaviah, and Jahdiel, very valiant and powerful men, and renowned leaders in their families.
{5:25} But they abandoned the God of their fathers, and they fornicated after the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God took away before them.
{5:26} And so the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul, the king of the Assyrians, and the spirit of Tilgath-pilneser, the king of Assur. And he took away Reuben, and Gad, and the one half tribe of Manasseh. And he led them to Halah, and to Habor, and to Hara, and to the river of Gozan, even to this day.
{6:1} The sons of Levi: Gershom, Kohath, and Merari.
{6:2} The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.
{6:3} The sons of Amram: Aaron, Moses, and Miriam. The sons of Aaron: Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.
{6:4} Eleazar conceived Phinehas, and Phinehas conceived Abishua.
{6:5} Truly, Abishua conceived Bukki, and Bukki conceived Uzzi.
{6:6} Uzzi conceived Zerahiah, and Zerahiah conceived Meraioth.
{6:7} Then Meraioth conceived Amariah, and Amariah conceived Ahitub.
{6:8} Ahitub conceived Zadok, and Zadok conceived Ahimaaz.
{6:9} Ahimaaz conceived Azariah; Azariah conceived Johanan.
{6:10} Johanan conceived Azariah. He is the one who executed the priestly office in the house that Solomon built in Jerusalem.
{6:11} Now Azariah conceived Amariah, and Amariah conceived Ahitub.
{6:12} Ahitub conceived Zadok, and Zadok conceived Shallum.
{6:13} Shallum conceived Hilkiah, and Hilkiah conceived Azariah.
{6:14} Azariah conceived Seraiah, and Seraiah conceived Jehozadak.
{6:15} Now Jehozadak departed, when the Lord took away Judah and Jerusalem, by the hands of Nebuchadnezzar.
{6:16} So the sons of Levi were Gershom, Kohath, and Merari.
{6:17} And these are the names of the sons of Gershom: Libni and Shimei.
{6:18} The sons of Kohath: Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel.
{6:19} The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. And so these are the kindred of Levi, according to their families.
{6:20} Of Gershom: Libni his son, Jahath his son, Zimmah his son,
{6:21} Joah his son, Iddo his son, Zerah his son, Jeatherai his son.
{6:22} The sons of Kohath: Amminadab his son, Korah his son, Assir his son,
{6:23} Elkanah his son, Ebiasaph his son, Assir his son,
{6:24} Tahath his son, Uriel his son, Uzziah his son, Shaul his son.
{6:25} The sons of Elkanah: Amasai and Ahimoth
{6:26} and Elkanah. The sons of Elkanah: Zophai his son, Nahath his son,
{6:27} Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, Elkanah his son.
{6:28} The sons of Samuel: Vasseni the firstborn, and Abijah.
{6:29} Now the sons of Merari were: Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his son, Uzzah his son,
{6:30} Shimea his son, Haggiah his son, Asaiah his son.
{6:31} These are the ones whom David appointed over the singing men in the house of the Lord, in the place where the ark was located.
{6:32} And they ministered before the tabernacle of the testimony with singing, until Solomon built the house of the Lord in Jerusalem. And they would stand according to their order in the ministry.
{6:33} Truly, these are the ones who were assisting, with their sons, from the sons of Kohath: the singer Heman, the son of Joel, the son of Samuel,
{6:34} the son of Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Eliel, the son of Toah,
{6:35} the son of Zuph, the son of Elkanah, the son of Mahath, the son of Amasai,
{6:36} the son of Elkanah, the son of Joel, the son of Azariah, the son of Zephaniah,
{6:37} the son of Tahath, the son of Assir, the son of Ebiasaph, the son of Korah,
{6:38} the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, the son of Israel.
{6:39} And there was also his brother, Asaph, who was standing at his right, Asaph, the son of Berechiah, the son of Shimea,
{6:40} the son of Michael, the son of Baaseiah, the son of Malchijah,
{6:41} the son of Ethni, the son of Zerah, the son of Adaiah,
{6:42} the son of Ethan, the son of Zimmah, the son of Shimei,
{6:43} the son of Jahath, the son of Gershom, the son of Levi.
{6:44} Now the sons of Merari, their brothers, were on the left: Ethan, the son of Kishi, the son of Abdi, the son of Malluch,
{6:45} the son of Hashabiah, the son of Amaziah, the son of Hilkiah,
{6:46} the son of Amzi, the son of Boni, the son of Shemer,
{6:47} the son of Mahli, the son of Mushi, the son of Merari, the son of Levi.
{6:48} There were also their brothers, Levites who were appointed for every ministry of the tabernacle of the house of the Lord.
{6:49} Truly, Aaron and his sons were burning offerings upon the altar of holocausts and upon the altar of incense, for the entire work of the Holy of Holies, and to pray on behalf of Israel, in accord with all the things that Moses, the servant of God, had instructed.
{6:50} Now these are the sons of Aaron: Eleazar his son, Phinehas his son, Abishua his son,
{6:51} Bukki his son, Uzzi his son, Zerahiah his son,
{6:52} Meraioth his son, Amariah his son, Ahitub his son,
{6:53} Zadok his son, Ahimaaz his son.
{6:54} And these are their habitations according to the villages and confines, specifically of the sons of Aaron, according to the kindred of the Kohathites. For it fell to them by lot.
{6:55} And so, they gave Hebron, in the land of Judah, and its suburbs all around, to them,
{6:56} but they gave the fields of the city, and the villages, to Caleb, the son of Jephunneh.
{6:57} Then, to the sons of Aaron, they gave the cities of refuge: Hebron, and Libnah with its suburbs,
{6:58} also Jattir and Eshtemoa with their suburbs, then also Hilen and Debir with their suburbs,
{6:59} as well as Ashan and Beth-shemesh with their suburbs.
{6:60} And from the tribe of Benjamin: Geba with its suburbs, and Alemeth with its suburbs, as well as Anathoth with its suburbs. All the cities throughout their kindred were thirteen.
{6:61} Now to the sons of Kohath, those remaining from their kindred, they gave ten cities, from the one half tribe of Manasseh, as a possession;
{6:62} and to the sons of Gershom, according to their families, from the tribe of Issachar, and from the tribe of Asher, and from the tribe of Naphtali, and from the tribe Manasseh in Bashan: thirteen cities.
{6:63} Then to the sons of Merari, according to their families, from the tribe of Reuben, and from the tribe of Gad, and from the tribe of Zebulun, they gave by lot twelve cities.
{6:64} Also, the sons of Israel gave, to the Levites, cities and their suburbs,
{6:65} and they gave them by lot, out of the tribe of the sons of Judah, and out of the tribe of the sons of Simeon, and out of the tribe of the sons of Benjamin, these cities, which they called by their names.
{6:66} And for those who were from the kindred of the sons of Kohath, the cities with their borders were from the tribe of Ephraim.
{6:67} Then they gave to them the cities of refuge: Shechem with its suburbs on mount Ephraim, and Gezer with its suburbs,
{6:68} as well as Jokmeam with its suburbs, and Beth-horon similarly,
{6:69} and indeed Hilen with its suburbs, and Gath Rimmon in the same manner.
{6:70} Then too, out of the one half tribe of Manasseh: Aner and its suburbs, Bileam and its suburbs; these in particular went to those who were remaining from the kindred of the sons of Kohath.
{6:71} And to the sons of Gershom, from the kindred of the one half tribe of Manasseh: Golan, in Bashan, and its suburbs, and Ashtaroth with its suburbs;
{6:72} from the tribe of Issachar: Kedesh and its suburbs, and Daberath with its suburbs,
{6:73} as well as Ramoth and its suburbs, and Anem with its suburbs;
{6:74} truly, from the tribe of Asher: Mashal with its suburbs, and Abdon similarly;
{6:75} as well as Hukkok and its suburbs, and Rehob with its suburbs;
{6:76} moreover, from the tribe of Naphtali: Kedesh in Galilee and its suburbs, Hammon with its suburbs, and Kiriathaim and its suburbs.
{6:77} Then to the remaining sons of Merari, from the tribe of Zebulun: Rimmono and its suburbs, and Tabor with its suburbs;
{6:78} and also, across the Jordan opposite Jericho, facing the east of the Jordan, from the tribe of Reuben: Bezer in the wilderness with its suburbs, and Jahzah with its suburbs;
{6:79} as well as Kedemoth and its suburbs, and Mephaath with its suburbs;
{6:80} indeed also, from the tribe of Gad: Ramoth in Gilead and its suburbs, and Mahanaim with its suburbs;
{6:81} then too, Heshbon with its suburbs, and Jazer with its suburbs.
{7:1} Now the sons of Issachar were Tola and Puah, Jashub and Shimron, four.
{7:2} The sons of Tola: Uzzi, and Rephaiah, and Jeriel, and Jahmai, and Ibsam, and Shemuel, leaders according to the houses of their kindred. From the stock of Tola, there were numbered, in the days of David, twenty-two thousand six hundred very strong men.
{7:3} The sons of Uzzi: Izrahiah, from whom were born: Michael, and Obadiah, and Joel, and Isshiah; all five were leaders.
{7:4} And with them, by their families and peoples, there were thirty-six thousand very strong men, girded for battle. And they had many wives and children.
{7:5} Also, their brothers, throughout all the kindred of Issachar, were numbered as eighty-seven thousand, very fit for battle.
{7:6} The sons of Benjamin: Bela, and Becher, and Jediael, three.
{7:7} The sons of Bela: Ezbon, and Uzzi, and Uzziel, and Jerimoth and Iri, five leaders of families, also very fit for battle; and their number was twenty-two thousand thirty-four.
{7:8} Now the sons of Becher: Zemirah, and Joash, and Eliezer, and Elioenai, and Omri, and Jeremoth, and Abijah, and Anathoth, and Alemeth: all these were sons of Becher.
{7:9} And they were numbered according to their families, by the leaders of their kindred, very strong in warfare, twenty thousand and two hundred.
{7:10} And the sons of Jediael: Bilhan, and the sons of Bilhan: Jeush, and Benjamin, and Ehud, and Chenaanah, and Zethan, and Tarshish, and Ahishahar.
{7:11} All these were sons of Jediael, the leaders of their kindred, very strong men, seventeen thousand and two hundred, going forth to battle.
{7:12} Also, Shuppim and Huppim, the sons of Ir; and Hushim, sons of Aher.
{7:13} Then the sons of Naphtali: Jahziel, and Guni, and Jezer, and Shallum, sons of Bilhah.
{7:14} Also, the son of Manasseh: Asriel. And his concubine, a Syrian, bore Machir, the father of Gilead.
{7:15} Now Machir took wives for his sons, Huppim and Shuppim. And he had a sister named Maacah; but the name of the second was Zelophehad, and daughters were born to Zelophehad.
{7:16} And Maacah, the wife of Machir, bore a son, and she called his name Peresh. And the name of his brother was Sheresh. And his sons were Ulam and Rakem.
{7:17} Then the son of Ulam: Bedan. These are the sons of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh.
{7:18} And his sister, Regina, bore Ishhod, and Abiezer, and Mahlah.
{7:19} Now the sons of Shemida were Ahian, and Shechem, and Likhi and Aniam.
{7:20} And the sons of Ephraim: Shuthelah, Bered his son, Tahath his son, Eleadah his son, Tahath his son, whose son was Zabad,
{7:21} and his son was Shuthelah, and his son was Ezer, and also Elead. But the men indigenous to Gath killed them, because they had descended to invade their possessions.
{7:22} And so their father, Ephraim, mourned for many days; and his brothers arrived, so that they might console him.
{7:23} And he entered to his wife; she conceived and bore a son. And he called his name Beriah, because he rose up during a time of evil for his house.
{7:24} Now his daughter was Sheerah, who built lower and upper Beth-horon, and also Uzzen-sheerah.
{7:25} And Rephah was his son, and Resheph, and Telah, from whom was born Tahan,
{7:26} who conceived Ladan. And his son was Ammihud, who conceived Elishama,
{7:27} from whom was born Nun, who had Joshua as a son.
{7:28} Now their possessions and habitations were: Bethel with her daughters, and toward the east, Naaran, and toward the western region, Gezer and her daughters, as well as Shechem with her daughters, as far as Ayyah with her daughters;
{7:29} also, beside the sons of Manasseh, Bethshean and her daughters, Taanach and her daughters, Megiddo and her daughters, Dor and her daughters. In these places, there lived the sons of Joseph, the son of Israel.
{7:30} The sons of Asher: Imnah, and Ishvah, and Ishvi, and Beriah, and Serah their sister.
{7:31} And the sons of Beriah: Heber, and Malchiel, the same is the father of Birzaith.
{7:32} Now Heber conceived Japhlet, and Shomer, and Hotham, and their sister Shua.
{7:33} The sons of Japhlet: Pasach, and Bimhal, and Ashvath; these are the sons of Japhlet.
{7:34} Then the sons of Shomer: Ahi, and Rohgah, and Jehubbah, and Aram.
{7:35} And the sons of Helem, his brother: Zophah, and Imna, and Shelesh, and Amal.
{7:36} The sons of Zophah: Suah, Harnepher, and Shual, and Beri, and Imrah,
{7:37} Bezer, and Hod, and Shamma, and Shilshah, and Ithran, and Beera.
{7:38} The sons of Jether: Jephunneh, and Pispa, and Ara.
{7:39} Then the sons of Ulla: Arah, and Hanniel, and Rizia.
{7:40} All these were sons of Asher, the leaders of families, elect and very strong rulers among rulers. And the number of those who were of an age that was fit for warfare was twenty-six thousand.
{8:1} Now Benjamin conceived Bela as his firstborn, Ashbel the second, Aharah the third,
{8:2} Nohah the fourth, and Rapha the fifth.
{8:3} And the sons of Bela were: Addar, and Gera, and Abihud,
{8:4} as well as Abishua, and Naaman, and Ahoah,
{8:5} then also Gera, and Shephuphan, and Huram.
{8:6} These are the sons of Ehud, leaders of the kindred living in Geba, who were moved away to Manahath.
{8:7} And Naaman, and Ahijah, and Gera, he also moved them away; and he conceived Uzza and Ahihud.
{8:8} Then Shaharaim conceived, in the region of Moab, after he sent away Hushim and Baara, his wives;
{8:9} and so, of his wife Hodesh, he conceived Jobab, and Zibia, and Mesha, and Malcam,
{8:10} and also Jeuz and Sachia, and Mirmah. These were his sons, the leaders of their families.
{8:11} Truly, of Hushim he conceived Abitub and Elpaal.
{8:12} And the sons of Elpaal were Eber, and Misham, and Shemed, who built Ono and Lod and its daughters.
{8:13} Now Beriah and Shema were leaders of their families living in Aijalon; these put to flight the inhabitants of Gath.
{8:14} And Ahio, and Shashak, and Jeremoth,
{8:15} and Zebadiah, and Arad, and Eder,
{8:16} as well as Michael, and Ishpah, and Joha, were the sons of Beriah.
{8:17} Then Zebadiah, and Meshullam, and Hizki, and Heber,
{8:18} and Ishmerai, and Izliah, and Jobab were the sons of Elpaal.
{8:19} Then Jakim, and Zichri, and Zabdi,
{8:20} and Elienai, and Zillethai, and Eliel,
{8:21} and Adaiah, and Beraiah, and Shimrath were the sons of Shimei.
{8:22} Then Ishpan, and Eber, and Eliel,
{8:23} and Abdon, and Zichri, and Hanan,
{8:24} and Hananiah, and Elam, and Anthothijah,
{8:25} and Iphdeiah, and Penuel were the sons of Shashak.
{8:26} Then Shamsherai, and Shehariah and Athaliah,
{8:27} and Jaareshiah, and Elijah, and Zichri were the sons of Jeroham.
{8:28} These were the patriarchs and leaders of the families who were living in Jerusalem.
{8:29} Now in Gibeon, there lived Jeiel, the father of Gibeon; and the name of his wife was Maacah,
{8:30} and his firstborn son was Abdon, and then Zur, and Kish, and Baal, and Nadab,
{8:31} and Gedor, and Ahio, and Zecher, and Mikloth.
{8:32} And Mikloth conceived Shimeah. And they lived opposite their brothers in Jerusalem, with their brothers.
{8:33} Now Ner conceived Kish, and Kish conceived Saul. Then Saul conceived Jonathan, and Malchishua, and Abinadab, and Eshbaal.
{8:34} And the son of Jonathan was Meribbaal; and Meribbaal conceived Micah.
{8:35} The sons of Micah were Pithon, and Melech, and Tarea, and Ahaz.
{8:36} And Ahaz conceived Jehoaddah. And Jehoaddah conceived Alemeth, and Azmaveth, and Zimri. And Zimri conceived Moza.
{8:37} And Moza conceived Binea, whose son was Raphah, of whom was born Eleasah, who conceived Azel.
{8:38} Now there were six sons for Azel, whose names were Azrikam, Bocheru, Ishmael, Sheariah, Obadiah, and Hanan. All these were the sons of Azel.
{8:39} Then the sons of Eshek, his brother, were Ulam the firstborn, and Jeush the second, and Eliphelet the third.
{8:40} And the sons of Ulam were very robust men, drawing the bow with great strength. And they had many sons and grandsons, even to one hundred fifty. All these were sons of Benjamin.
{9:1} And so, all of Israel was numbered. And the sum of them was written in the book of the kings of Israel and of Judah. And they were taken away to Babylon because of their transgression.
{9:2} Now the first who lived in their possessions and in their cities were Israel, and the priests, and the Levites, and the temple servants.
{9:3} Staying in Jerusalem were some from the sons of Judah, and from the sons of Benjamin, and also from the sons of Ephraim and of Manasseh:
{9:4} Uthai, the son of Ammihud, the son of Omri, the son of Imri, the son of Bani, from the sons of Perez, the son of Judah.
{9:5} And from Shiloni: Asaiah the firstborn, and his sons.
{9:6} Then from the sons of Zerah: Jeuel, and their brothers, six hundred ninety.
{9:7} And from the sons of Benjamin: Sallu, the son of Meshullam, the son of Hodaviah, the son of Hassenuah;
{9:8} and Ibneiah, the son of Jeroham; and Elah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Michri; and Meshullam, the son of Shephatiah, the son of Reuel, the son of Ibnijah;
{9:9} and their brothers according to their families, nine hundred fifty-six. All these were leaders of their kindred, according to the houses of their fathers.
{9:10} And from the priests: Jedaiah, Jehoiarib, and Jachin;
{9:11} and also Azariah, the son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub, the high priest of the house of God;
{9:12} then Adaiah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Pashhur, the son of Malchijah; and Maasai, the son of Adiel, the son of Jahzerah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Meshillemith, the son of Immer;
{9:13} and also their brothers, leaders according to their families, one thousand seven hundred sixty, very strong experienced men, for the work of the ministry in the house of God.
{9:14} Then from the Levites: Shemaiah, the son of Hasshub, the son of Azrikam, the son of Hashabiah, of the sons of Merari;
{9:15} and also Bakbakkar the carpenter; and Galal; and Mattaniah, the son of Mica, the son of Zichri, the son of Asaph;
{9:16} and Obadiah, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Galal, the son of Jeduthun; and Berechiah, the son of Asa, the son of Elkanah, who lived at the entrance to Netophah.
{9:17} Now the gatekeepers were Shallum, and Akkub, and Talmon, and Ahiman; and their brother Shallum was the leader.
{9:18} For until that time, at the gate of the king to the east, the sons of Levi served in their turns.
{9:19} Truly, Shallum, the son of Kore, the son of Ebiasaph, the son of Korah, with his brothers and his father’s house, these Korahites, were over the works of the ministry of keeping the vestibules of the tabernacle. And their families, in turns, were keepers of the entrance to the camp of the Lord.
{9:20} Now Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, was their ruler before the Lord.
{9:21} But Zechariah, the son of Meshelemiah, was the keeper of the gate of the tabernacle of the testimony.
{9:22} All these, chosen as porters for the gates, were two hundred twelve. And they were recorded in their own towns, those whom David, and the seer Samuel, appointed, in their faith,
{9:23} as with them, so also with their sons, at the gates of the house of the Lord and the tabernacle, by their turns.
{9:24} At the four directions, there were gatekeepers, that is, at the east, and at the west, and at the north, and at the south.
{9:25} Now their brothers were staying in the villages, and they arrived on their Sabbaths, from time to time.
{9:26} To these four Levites were entrusted the entire number of the gatekeepers, and they were over the chambers and storehouses of the house of the Lord.
{9:27} And they remained in their watches, on all sides of the temple of the Lord, so that, when the time had arrived, they might open the gates in the morning.
{9:28} Some from their kindred were also over the vessels of the ministry. For the vessels were both carried in and carried out according to number.
{9:29} Some of them also were entrusted with the equipment of the sanctuary; they were in charge of the fine wheat flour, and the wine, and the oil, and the frankincense, and the aromatics.
{9:30} Now the sons of the priests composed the ointments from the aromatics.
{9:31} And Mattithiah, a Levite, the firstborn of Shallum the Korahite, was in charge of those things that were cooked in a frying pan.
{9:32} Now some of the sons of Kohath, their brothers, were over the bread of the presence, so that they might continually prepare it new for each Sabbath.
{9:33} These are the leaders of the singing men, according to the families of the Levites, who were dwelling in the chambers, so that they might carry out their ministry continually, day and night.
{9:34} The heads of the Levites, leaders according to their families, abode in Jerusalem.
{9:35} Now in Gibeon, there lived Jeiel, the father of Gibeon, and the name of his wife was Maacah.
{9:36} His firstborn son was Abdon, and then Zur, and Kish, and Baal, and Ner, and Nadab,
{9:37} as well as Gedor, and Ahio, and Zechariah, and Mikloth.
{9:38} Then Mikloth conceived Shimeam. These lived opposite their brothers in Jerusalem, with their brothers.
{9:39} Now Ner conceived Kish, and Kish conceived Saul. And Saul conceived Jonathan, and Malchishua, and Abinadab, and Eshbaal.
{9:40} And the son of Jonathan was Meribbaal. And Meribbaal conceived Micah.
{9:41} Now the sons of Micah were Pithon, and Melech, and Tahrea, and Ahaz.
{9:42} And Ahaz conceived Jarah. And Jarah conceived Alemeth, and Azmaveth, and Zimri. Then Zimri conceived Moza.
{9:43} Truly, Moza conceived Binea, whose son, Rephaiah, conceived Eleasah, from of whom was born Azel.
{9:44} Now Azel had six sons, whose names are: Azrikam, Bocheru, Ishmael, Sheariah, Obadiah, Hanan. These are the sons of Azel.
{10:1} Now the Philistines were fighting against Israel, and the men of Israel fled from the Philistines, and they fell down wounded on mount Gilboa.
{10:2} And when the Philistines had drawn near, pursuing Saul and his sons, they struck down Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua, the sons of Saul.
{10:3} And the battle grew heavy against Saul. And the archers found him, and they wounded him with arrows.
{10:4} And Saul said to his armor bearer: “Unsheathe your sword and kill me. Otherwise, these uncircumcised men may arrive and mock me.” But his armor bearer was not willing, having been struck with fear. And so, Saul took hold of his sword, and he fell upon it.
{10:5} And when his armor bearer had seen this, specifically, that Saul was dead, he now fell on his sword also, and he died.
{10:6} Therefore, Saul died, and his three sons passed away, and his entire house fell, together.
{10:7} And when the men of Israel who were living in the plains had seen this, they fled. And since Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their cities and were dispersed, here and there. And the Philistines arrived and lived among them.
{10:8} Then, on the next day, when the Philistines were taking away the spoils of the slain, they found Saul and his sons, lying on mount Gilboa.
{10:9} And when they had despoiled him, and had cut off his head, and had stripped his armor, they sent these things into their land, so that they would be carried around and displayed in the temples of the idols and to the people.
{10:10} But his armor they consecrated in the shrine of their god, and his head they affixed in the temple of Dagon.
{10:11} When the men of Jabesh Gilead had heard this, specifically, all that the Philistines had done concerning Saul,
{10:12} each one of the valiant men rose up, and they took the bodies of Saul and of his sons. And they brought them to Jabesh. And they buried their bones under the oak that was in Jabesh. And they fasted for seven days.
{10:13} Thus did Saul die for his iniquities, because he betrayed the commandment of the Lord which he had instructed, and did not keep it. And moreover, he even consulted a woman diviner;
{10:14} for he did not trust in the Lord. Because of this, he caused his death, and he transferred his kingdom to David, the son of Jesse.
{11:1} Then all of Israel was gathered to David at Hebron, saying: “We are your bone and your flesh.
{11:2} Also, yesterday and the day before, when Saul still reigned, you were the one who led out and brought in Israel. For the Lord your God said to you: ‘You shall pasture my people Israel, and you shall be the leader over them.’ ”
{11:3} Therefore, all those greater by birth of Israel went to the king at Hebron. And David formed a pact with them before the Lord. And they anointed him king over Israel, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he spoke by the hand of Samuel.
{11:4} Then David and all of Israel went to Jerusalem. The same is Jebus, where the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, were.
{11:5} And those who were living in Jebus said to David: “You shall not enter here.” But David seized the stronghold of Zion, which is the city of David.
{11:6} And he said, “Whoever shall strike the Jebusites first, shall be ruler and commander.” And so Joab, the son of Zeruiah, ascended first, and he was made the leader.
{11:7} Then David lived in the stronghold, and for this reason it was called the City of David.
{11:8} And he built up the city all around, from Millo even to every side. But Joab built the rest of the city.
{11:9} And David continued advancing and increasing, and the Lord of hosts was with him.
{11:10} These are the leaders of the strong men of David, who assisted him, so that he would become king over all of Israel, in accord with the word of the Lord, which he spoke to Israel.
{11:11} And this is the number of the robust of David: Jashobeam, the son of a Hachmonite, leader among the thirty. He lifted up his spear over three hundred, who were wounded at one time.
{11:12} And after him, there was Eleazar, the son of his uncle, an Ahohite, who was among the three powerful ones.
{11:13} He was with David in Pasdammim, when the Philistines were gathered to that place for battle. Now the field of that region was full of barley, but the people had fled from the face of the Philistines.
{11:14} These men stood in the midst of the field, and they defended it. And when they had struck down the Philistines, the Lord gave a great salvation to his people.
{11:15} Then three from the thirty leaders descended to the rock where David was, to the cave of Adullam, when the Philistines had made camp in the Valley of the Rephaim.
{11:16} Now David was in a stronghold, and a garrison of the Philistines was in Bethlehem.
{11:17} And then David desired and said, “O if only someone would give me water from the well of Bethlehem, which is at the gate!”
{11:18} Therefore, these three broke through to the midst of the camp of the Philistines, and they drew water from the well of Bethlehem, which was at the gate. And they took it to David, so that he might drink. But he was not willing; and instead, he offered it as a libation to the Lord,
{11:19} saying: “Far be it from me, that I would do this in the sight of my God, and that I would drink the blood of these men. For at the peril of their own lives, they brought the water to me.” And for this reason, he was not willing to drink. The three most powerful accomplished these things.
{11:20} Also, Abishai, the brother of Joab, was the leader of the three, and he lifted up his spear against three hundred, who were wounded. And he was most renowned among the three,
{11:21} and he was famous among the second three and their leader. Yet truly, he did not reach as far as the first three.
{11:22} Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, from Kabzeel, was a very mature man, who had accomplished many deeds. He struck down the two lions of God from Moab. And he descended and killed a lion in the middle of a pit, in the time of snow.
{11:23} And he struck down an Egyptian man, whose stature was five cubits, and who had a spear like a weaver’s beam. And yet he descended to him with a staff. And he seized the spear that he was holding in his hand. And he killed him with his own spear.
{11:24} These things were done by Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, who was most renowned among the three robust ones,
{11:25} the first among the thirty. Yet truly, he did not reach as far as the three. Then David placed him beside his ear.
{11:26} Moreover, the strongest men of the army were Asahel, the brother of Joab; and Elhanan, the son of his uncle, from Bethlehem;
{11:27} Shammoth, a Harorite; Helez, a Pelonite;
{11:28} Ira, the son of Ikkesh, a Tekoite; Abiezer, an Anathothite;
{11:29} Sibbecai, a Hushathite; Ilai, an Ahohite;
{11:30} Maharai, a Netophathite; Heled, the son of Baanah, a Netophathite;
{11:31} Ithai, the son of Ribai, from Gibeah, of the sons of Benjamin; Benaiah, a Pirathonite;
{11:32} Hurai, from the torrent Gaash; Abiel, an Arbathite; Azmaveth, a Baharumite; Eliahba, a Shaalbonite.
{11:33} The sons of Hashem, a Gizonite: Jonathan, the son of Shagee, a Hararite;
{11:34} Ahiam, the son of Sachar, a Hararite;
{11:35} Eliphal, the son of Ur;
{11:36} Hepher, a Mecherathite; Ahijah, a Pelonite;
{11:37} Hezro, a Carmelite; Naharai, the son of Ezbai;
{11:38} Joel, the brother of Nathan; Mibhar, the son of Hagri;
{11:39} Zelek, an Ammonite; Naarai, a Beerothite, the armor bearer of Joab, the son of Zeruiah;
{11:40} Ira, an Ithrite; Gareb, an Ithrite;
{11:41} Uriah, a Hittite; Zabad, the son of Ahlai;
{11:42} Adina, the son of Shiza, a Reubenite, the leader of the Reubenites, and thirty who were with him;
{11:43} Hanan, the son of Maacah; and Joshaphat, a Mithnite;
{11:44} Uzzia, an Ashterathite; Shama and Jeiel, the sons of Hotham, an Aroerite;
{11:45} Jediael, the son of Shimri; and Joha, his brother, a Tizite;
{11:46} Eliel, a Mahavite; and Jeribai and Joshaviah, the sons of Elnaam; and Ithmah, a Moabite; Eliel, and Obed, and Jaasiel from Mezobaite.
{12:1} Also, these went to David at Ziklag, while he was still fleeing from Saul, the son of Kish. And they were very strong and distinguished fighters,
{12:2} bending the bow, and using either hand in casting stones with slings, and shooting arrows. From the brothers of Saul, out of Benjamin:
{12:3} the leader was Ahiezer, with Joash, sons of Shemaah from Gibeah, and Jeziel and Pelet, sons of Azmaveth, and Beracah and Jehu, from Anathoth.
{12:4} Also, there was Ishmaiah, from Gibeon, the strongest among the thirty and over the thirty; Jeremiah, and Jahaziel, and Johanan, and Jozabad, from Gederah;
{12:5} and Eluzai, and Jerimoth, and Bealiah, and Shemariah, and Shephatiah, the Haruphites;
{12:6} Elkanah, and Isshiah, and Azarel, and Joezer, and Jashobeam, from Carehim;
{12:7} and also Joelah and Zebadiah, sons of Jeroham, from Gedor.
{12:8} Then too, from Gad, there went over to David, when he was hiding in the desert, very robust men, who were excellent fighters, taking hold of shield and spear; their faces were like the faces of a lion, and they were swift like the roe deer upon the mountains.
{12:9} Ezer was the leader, Obadiah the second, Eliab the third,
{12:10} Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth,
{12:11} Attai the sixth, Eliel the seventh,
{12:12} Johanan the eighth, Elzabad the ninth,
{12:13} Jeremiah the tenth, Machbannai the eleventh.
{12:14} These were from the sons of Gad, leaders of the army. The least was in charge of one hundred soldiers, and the greatest was in charge of one thousand.
{12:15} These are the ones who crossed over the Jordan in the first month, when it is accustomed to overflow its banks. And they put to flight all those who were staying in the valleys, to the eastern region and to the west.
{12:16} Then some from Benjamin and from Judah also arrived at the stronghold where David was staying.
{12:17} And David went out to meet them, and he said: “If you have arrived peacefully, so as to be a help to me, may my heart be joined to you; but if to betray me to my adversaries, though I have no iniquity in my hands, may the God of our fathers see and judge.”
{12:18} Truly, the Spirit clothed Amasai, the leader among the thirty, and he said: “O David, we are yours! O son of Jesse, we are for you! Peace, peace to you, and peace to your helpers. For your God helps you.” Therefore, David received them, and he appointed them as leaders of troops.
{12:19} Moreover, some from Manasseh crossed over to David, when he went forth with the Philistines against Saul, so that he might fight. But he did not fight with them. For the leaders of the Philistines, taking counsel, sent him back, saying, “To the peril of our own heads, he will return to his lord, Saul.”
{12:20} And so, when he returned to Ziklag, some fled over to him from Manasseh: Adnah, and Jozabad, and Jediael, and Michael, and Adnah, and Jozabad, and Elihu, and Zillethai, leaders of thousands in Manasseh.
{12:21} These offered assistance to David against the robbers. For all were very strong men, and they became leaders in the army.
{12:22} Then, too, some came to David throughout each day, in order to help him, until they became a great number, like the army of God.
{12:23} Now this is the number of the leaders of the army who went to David when he was at Hebron, so that they might transfer the kingdom of Saul to him, in accord with the word of the Lord:
{12:24} the sons of Judah, carrying shield and spear, six thousand eight hundred, equipped for battle;
{12:25} from the sons of Simeon, very strong men for the fight, seven thousand one hundred;
{12:26} from the sons of Levi, four thousand six hundred;
{12:27} as well as Jehoiada, a leader from the stock of Aaron, and with him three thousand seven hundred;
{12:28} and then Zadok, a youth of distinguished qualities, and the house of his father, twenty-two leaders;
{12:29} and from the sons of Benjamin, brothers of Saul, three thousand, for still a great part of them were following the house of Saul.
{12:30} Then from the sons of Ephraim, there were twenty thousand eight hundred, very strong and robust men, renowned among their kindred.
{12:31} And out of the one half tribe of Manasseh, eighteen thousand, each by their names, went forth so that they might appoint David as king.
{12:32} Also, from the sons of Issachar, there were learned men, who knew each of the times, in order to anticipate what Israel ought to do, two hundred leaders. And all the remainder of the tribe were following their counsel.
{12:33} Then, from Zebulun, there were those who went forth to battle, and who were standing in a battle line, prepared with the weapons of warfare; these fifty thousand arrived to assist, without duplicity of heart.
{12:34} And from Naphtali, there were one thousand leaders; and with them were thirty-seven thousand, prepared with shield and spear.
{12:35} And then from Dan, there were twenty-eight thousand six hundred, ready for battle.
{12:36} And from Asher, there were forty thousand, going forth to fight, and summoned to the battle line.
{12:37} Then, across the Jordan, there were, from the sons of Reuben, and from Gad, and from the one half tribe of Manasseh, one hundred twenty thousand, prepared with the weapons of warfare.
{12:38} All these men of war, equipped for the fight, went with a perfect heart to Hebron, so that they might appoint David as king over all of Israel. Then, too, all the remainder of Israel were of one heart, so that they might make David king.
{12:39} And they were in that place with David for three days, eating and drinking. For their brothers had made preparations for them.
{12:40} Moreover, those who were near to them, even as far as Issachar, and Zebulun, and Naphtali, were bringing, on donkeys and camels and mules and oxen, bread for their provisions, with grain, dried figs, dried grapes, wine, oil, and oxen and sheep, with all abundance. For indeed, there was joy in Israel.
{13:1} Then David took counsel with the tribunes, and the centurions, and all the leaders.
{13:2} And he said to the entire assembly of Israel: “If it pleases you, and if the words that I speak come from the Lord our God, let us send to the remainder of our brothers, in all the regions of Israel, and to the priests and Levites who live in the suburbs of the cities, so that they may gather to us.
{13:3} And let us bring back the ark of our God to us. For we did not seek it during the days of Saul.”
{13:4} And the entire multitude responded that it should be done. For the word had pleased all the people.
{13:5} Therefore, David gathered all of Israel, from Shihor of Egypt even to the entrance of Hamath, so as to bring the ark of God from Kiriath-jearim.
{13:6} And David ascended with all the men of Israel to the hill of Kiriath-jearim, which is in Judah, so that he might bring from there the ark of the Lord God, sitting upon the Cherubim, where his name is invoked.
{13:7} And they placed the ark of God upon a new cart from the house of Abinadab. Then Uzzah and his brother drove the cart.
{13:8} Now David and all of Israel were playing before God, with all of their ability, in songs, and with harps, and psalteries, and timbrels, and cymbals, and trumpets.
{13:9} And when they had arrived at the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzzah reached out his hand, so that he might support the ark. For indeed, the ox being wanton had caused it to incline a little.
{13:10} And so the Lord became angry against Uzzah. And he struck him down because he had touched the ark. And he died there before the Lord.
{13:11} And David was greatly saddened because the Lord had divided Uzzah. And he called that place ‘the Division of Uzzah,’ even to the present day.
{13:12} And then he feared God, at that time, saying: “How will I be able to bring in the ark of God to myself?”
{13:13} And for this reason, he did not bring it to himself, that is, into the City of David. Instead, he turned aside to the house of Obededom, the Gittite.
{13:14} Therefore, the ark of God dwelt in the house of Obededom for three months. And the Lord blessed his house and all that he had.
{14:1} Also, Hiram, the king of Tyre, sent messengers to David, and cedar wood, and artisans of walls and of wood, so that they might build a house for him.
{14:2} And David realized that the Lord had confirmed him as king over Israel, and that his kingdom had been lifted up over his people Israel.
{14:3} Also, David took other wives in Jerusalem. And he conceived sons and daughters.
{14:4} And these are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua and Shobab, Nathan and Solomon,
{14:5} Ibhar, and Elishua, and Elpelet,
{14:6} as well as Nogah, and Nepheg, and Japhia,
{14:7} Elishama, and Beeliada, and Eliphelet.
{14:8} Then, hearing that David had been anointed as king over all of Israel, all the Philistines ascended so that they might seek him. But when David had heard of it, he went out to meet them.
{14:9} Now the Philistines, arriving, spread out in the Valley of the Rephaim.
{14:10} And so David consulted the Lord, saying, “Shall I ascend to the Philistines, and will you deliver them into my hand?” And the Lord said to him, “Ascend, and I will deliver them into your hand.”
{14:11} And when they had ascended to Baal-perazim, David struck them there, and he said: “God has divided my enemies by my hand, just as waters are divided.” And therefore the name of that place was called Baal-perazim.
{14:12} And they left behind their gods in that place, and so David ordered them to be burned.
{14:13} And then, at another time, the Philistines invaded, and they spread out in the valley.
{14:14} And again, David consulted God. And God said to him: “You shall not ascend after them. Draw away from them. And you shall come against them opposite the balsam trees.
{14:15} And when you hear a sound approaching in the tops of the balsam trees, then you shall go forth to war. For God has gone forth before you, so that he may strike down the army of the Philistines.”
{14:16} Therefore, David did just as God had instructed him. And he struck down the army of the Philistines, from Gibeon as far as Gazera.
{14:17} And the name of David became well-known in all the regions. And the Lord placed the fear of him over all the nations.
{15:1} Also, he made houses for himself in the City of David. And built a place for the ark of God, and he set up a tent for it.
{15:2} Then David said: “It is illicit for anyone to carry the ark of God except the Levites, whom the Lord chose to carry it and to minister to himself, even unto eternity.”
{15:3} And he gathered all of Israel in Jerusalem, so that the ark of God might be brought into its place, which he had prepared for it.
{15:4} Certainly, there were both the sons of Aaron and the Levites:
{15:5} From the sons of Kohath, Uriel was the leader, and his brothers were one hundred twenty.
{15:6} From the sons of Merari: Asaiah was the leader, and his brothers were two hundred twenty.
{15:7} From the sons of Gershom: Joel was the leader, and his brothers were one hundred thirty.
{15:8} From the sons of Elizaphan: Shemaiah was the leader, and his brothers were two hundred.
{15:9} From the sons of Hebron: Eliel was the leader, and his brothers were eighty.
{15:10} From the sons of Uzziel: Amminadab was the leader, and his brothers were one hundred twelve.
{15:11} And David summoned the priests, Zadok and Abiathar, and the Levites: Uriel, Asaiah, Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel, and Amminadab.
{15:12} And he said to them: “You who are the leaders of the Levitical families, be sanctified with your brothers, and bring the ark of the Lord God of Israel to the place that has been prepared for it.
{15:13} Otherwise, as it was before, when the Lord struck us because you were not present, so also it might be now, if we do what is illicit.”
{15:14} Therefore, the priests and the Levites were sanctified, so that they might carry the ark of the Lord God of Israel.
{15:15} And the sons of Levi took the ark of God, just as Moses had instructed, in accord with the word of the Lord, upon their shoulders by the bars.
{15:16} And David spoke to the leaders of the Levites, so that they might appoint, from their brothers, singers with musical instruments, specifically, psalteries, and harps, and cymbals, so that a joyful noise might resound on high.
{15:17} And they appointed from the Levites: Heman, the son of Joel; and from his brothers, Asaph, the son of Berechiah; and truly, from their brothers, the sons of Merari: Ethan, the son of Kushaiah.
{15:18} And with them were their brothers in the second rank: Zechariah, and Ben, and Jaaziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jahiel, and Unni, and Eliab, and Benaiah, and Maaseiah, and Mattithiah, and Eliphelehu, and Mikneiah, and Obededom, and Jeiel, who were gatekeepers.
{15:19} Now the singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, were sounding out with cymbals of brass.
{15:20} And Zechariah, and Aziel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Unni, and Eliab, and Maaseiah, and Benaiah were singing mysteries with the psalteries.
{15:21} Then Mattithiah, and Eliphelehu, and Mikneiah and Obededom, and Jeiel and Azaziah were singing a song of victory with the harps, for the octave.
{15:22} Now Chenaniah, the leader of the Levites, was foremost over the prophecies, in order to mark out in advance the melodies. For indeed, he was very skillful.
{15:23} And Berechiah and Elkanah were porters of the ark.
{15:24} And the priests, Shebaniah, and Joshaphat, and Nethanel, and Amasai, and Zechariah, and Benaiah, and Eliezer, were sounding the trumpets before the ark of God. And Obededom and Jehiah were porters of the ark.
{15:25} Therefore, David, and all those greater by birth of Israel, and the tribunes, went to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the house of Obededom with rejoicing.
{15:26} And when God had assisted the Levites, who were carrying the ark of the covenant of the Lord, they immolated seven bulls and seven rams.
{15:27} Now David was clothed with a robe of fine linen, as were all the Levites who were carrying the ark, and the singers, and Chenaniah, the leader of the prophecy among the singers. But David was also clothed with a linen ephod.
{15:28} And all of Israel were leading back the ark of the covenant of the Lord with jubilation, sounding out with the noise of horns, and trumpets, and cymbals, and psalteries, and harps.
{15:29} And when the ark of the covenant of the Lord had arrived in the City of David, Michal, the daughter of Saul, gazing through a window, saw king David dancing and playing, and she despised him in her heart.
{16:1} And so they took the ark of God, and they set it in the midst of the tabernacle, which David had pitched for it. And they offered holocausts and peace offerings before God.
{16:2} And when David had completed offering holocausts and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord.
{16:3} And he divided to every single one, from men even to women, a twist of bread, and a piece of roasted beef, and fine wheat flour fried with oil.
{16:4} And he appointed some from the Levites who would minister before the ark of the Lord, and commemorate his works, and glorify and praise the Lord, the God of Israel.
{16:5} Asaph was the leader, and second to him was Zechariah. In addition, there were Jeiel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehiel, and Mattithiah, and Eliab, and Benaiah, and Obededom. And Jeiel was over the instruments of the psaltery and the harps. But Asaph sounded out with the cymbals.
{16:6} Truly, the priests, Benaiah and Jahaziel, were to sound the trumpet continually before the ark of the covenant of the Lord.
{16:7} In that day, David made Asaph the leader, in order to confess to the Lord with his brothers:
{16:8} “Confess to the Lord, and invoke his name. Make known his endeavors among the peoples.
{16:9} Sing to him, and sing psalms to him, and describe all his miracles.
{16:10} Praise his holy name! Let the heart of those who seek the Lord rejoice!
{16:11} Seek the Lord and his virtue. Seek his face always.
{16:12} Remember his miracles, which he has accomplished, his signs, and the judgments of his mouth.
{16:13} O offspring of Israel, his servants! O sons of Jacob, his elect!
{16:14} He is the Lord our God. His judgments are throughout all the earth.
{16:15} Remember forever his covenant, the word that he instructed unto a thousand generations,
{16:16} the covenant that he formed with Abraham, and his oath with Isaac.
{16:17} And he appointed the same to Jacob as a precept, and to Israel as an everlasting pact,
{16:18} saying: ‘To you, I will give the land of Canaan, the lot of your inheritance.’
{16:19} At that time, they were small in number, they were few and were settlers there.
{16:20} And they passed through, from nation to nation, and from one kingdom to another people.
{16:21} He did not permit anyone to falsely accuse them. Instead, he reproved kings on their behalf:
{16:22} ‘Do not touch my Christ. And do not malign my prophets.’
{16:23} Sing to the Lord, all the earth! Announce his salvation, from day to day.
{16:24} Describe his glory among the Gentiles, his miracles among all the peoples.
{16:25} For the Lord is great and exceedingly praiseworthy. And he is terrible, above all gods.
{16:26} For all the gods of the peoples are idols. But the Lord made the heavens.
{16:27} Confession and magnificence are before him. Strength and gladness are in his place.
{16:28} Bring to the Lord, O families of the peoples, bring to the Lord glory and dominion.
{16:29} Give glory to the Lord, to his name. Lift up sacrifice, and approach before his sight. And adore the Lord in holy attire.
{16:30} Let all the earth be moved before his face. For he founded the globe immoveable.
{16:31} Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth exult. And let them say among the nations, ‘The Lord has reigned.’
{16:32} Let the sea roar, with all its plenitude. Let the fields exult, with all that is in them.
{16:33} Then the trees of the forest will give praise before the Lord. For he comes to judge the earth.
{16:34} Confess to the Lord, for he is good. For his mercy is eternal.
{16:35} And say: ‘Save us, O God our savior! And gather us together, and rescue us from the nations, so that we may confess to your holy name, and may exult in your songs.
{16:36} Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from eternity to eternity.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen,’ and let them sing a hymn to the Lord.”
{16:37} And so, there before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, he left Asaph and his brothers, so that they might minister in the sight of the ark continually, throughout each day, and in their turns.
{16:38} Now Obededom and his brothers were sixty-eight. And he appointed Obededom, the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah to be porters.
{16:39} But Zadok the priest, and his brothers the priests, were before the tabernacle of the Lord in the high place, which was in Gibeon,
{16:40} so that they could offer holocausts to the Lord upon the altar of holocausts continually, morning and evening, according to all that was written in the law of the Lord, which he instructed to Israel.
{16:41} And after him, Heman, and Jeduthun, and the remainder of the elect, each one by his name, were appointed to confess to the Lord: “For his mercy endures forever.”
{16:42} Also Heman and Jeduthun sounded the trumpet, and they played upon the cymbals, and upon every kind of musical instrument, in order to sing praises to God. But the sons of Jeduthun he made to be porters.
{16:43} And all the people returned to their houses, and David also, so that he might bless his own house too.
{17:1} Now when David was living in his house, he said to the prophet Nathan: “Behold, I live in a house of cedar. But the ark of the covenant of the Lord is under tent skins.”
{17:2} And Nathan said to David: “Do all that is in your heart. For God is with you.”
{17:3} And yet, that night the word of God came to Nathan, saying:
{17:4} “Go, and speak to my servant David: Thus says the Lord: You shall not build a house for me as a dwelling place.
{17:5} For I have not stayed in a house from the time when I led out Israel, even to this day. Instead, I have been continually changing places, in a tabernacle and tent,
{17:6} dwelling with all of Israel. When did I ever speak to any one at all, among the judges of Israel whom I placed in charge so that they might pasture my people, saying: ‘Why have you not built a house of cedar for me?’
{17:7} And so, now you shall say this to my servant David: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you when you were following the flock in the pastures, so that you would be the leader of my people Israel.
{17:8} And I have been with you wherever you have gone. And I have slain all your enemies before you, and I have made a name for you like one of the great ones who are celebrated upon the earth.
{17:9} And I have given a place to my people Israel. They shall be planted, and they shall live in it, and they shall no longer be moved. Neither shall the sons of iniquity wear them away, as in the beginning,
{17:10} from the days when I gave judges to my people Israel, and I humbled all your enemies. Therefore, I announce to you that the Lord will build a house for you.
{17:11} And when you will have completed your days, so that you go to your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall be from your sons. And I will establish his kingdom.
{17:12} He shall build a house for me, and I will make firm his throne, even unto eternity.
{17:13} I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me. And I will not take away my mercy from him, as I took it away from the one who was before you.
{17:14} And I will station him in my house and in my kingdom, even forever. And his throne will be very firm, in perpetuity.”
{17:15} According to all these words, and according to this entire vision, so did Nathan speak to David.
{17:16} And when king David had departed, and had sat down before the Lord, he said: “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you would grant such things to me?
{17:17} But even this has seemed little in your sight, and therefore you have also spoken about the house of your servant even for the future. And you have made me a spectacle above all men, O Lord God.
{17:18} What more can David add, since you have so glorified your servant, and have known him?
{17:19} O Lord, because of your servant, in accord with your own heart, you have brought about all this magnificence, and you have willed all these great things to be known.
{17:20} O Lord, there is no one like you. And there is no other God apart from you, out of all whom we have heard about with our ears.
{17:21} For what other single nation upon earth is like your people Israel, to whom God reached out, so that he might free them, and might make a people for himself, and by his greatness and terribleness cast out the nations before the face of those whom he had freed from Egypt?
{17:22} And you have set your people Israel to be your people, even unto eternity. And you, O Lord, have become their God.
{17:23} Now therefore, O Lord, let the word that you have spoken to your servant, and over his house, be confirmed in perpetuity, and do just as you have spoken.
{17:24} And may your name remain and be magnified even for all time. And let it be said: ‘The Lord of hosts is the God of Israel. And the house of his servant David remains forever before him.’
{17:25} For you, O Lord my God, have revealed to the ear of your servant that you will build a house for him. And therefore your servant has found faith so that he might pray before you.
{17:26} Now then, O Lord, you are God. And you have spoken to your servant such great benefits.
{17:27} And you have begun to bless the house of your servant, so that it may be always before you. For since it is you who is blessing, O Lord, it shall be blessed forever.”
{18:1} Now after these things, it happened that David struck the Philistines, and he humbled them, and he took Gath and her daughters from the hand of the Philistines.
{18:2} And he struck Moab. And the Moabites became the servants of David, offering gifts to him.
{18:3} In that time, David also struck Hadadezer, the king of Zobah, in the region of Hamath, when he went forth so that he might extend his dominion as far as the river Euphrates.
{18:4} Then David seized one thousand of his four-horse chariots, and seven thousand horsemen, and twenty thousand men on foot. And he hamstrung all the chariot horses, except for one hundred four-horse chariots, which he reserved for himself.
{18:5} Then the Syrians of Damascus also arrived, so that they might offer assistance to Hadadezer, the king of Zobah. And so, David then struck of them twenty-two thousand men.
{18:6} And he stationed soldiers in Damascus, so that Syria also would serve him, and would offer gifts. And the Lord assisted him in all the things to which he went forth.
{18:7} Also, David took the golden quivers, which the servants of Hadadezer had, and he brought them to Jerusalem.
{18:8} In addition, from Tibhath and Cun, cities of Hadadezer, he brought very much brass, from which Solomon made the sea of brass, and the pillars, and the vessels of brass.
{18:9} Now when Toi, the king of Hamath, had heard this, specifically that David had struck the entire army of Hadadezer, the king of Zobah,
{18:10} he sent his son Hadoram to king David so that he might petition peace from him, and so that he might congratulate him that he had struck and defeated Hadadezer. For indeed, Toi was an adversary to Hadadezer.
{18:11} Moreover, all the vessels of gold and silver and brass king David consecrated to the Lord, with the silver and gold that he had taken from all the nations, as much from Idumea, and Moab, and the sons of Ammon, as from the Philistines and Amalek.
{18:12} Truly, Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, struck eighteen thousand of the Edomites in the Valley of the Salt Pits.
{18:13} And he stationed a garrison in Edom, so that Idumea would serve David. And the Lord saved David in all the things to which he went forth.
{18:14} Therefore, David reigned over all of Israel, and he executed judgment and justice among all his people.
{18:15} Now Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was over the army, and Jehoshaphat, the son of Ahilud, was the keeper of records.
{18:16} And Zadok, the son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech, the son of Abiathar, were the priests. And Shavsha was the scribe.
{18:17} Also, Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada, was over the legions of the Cherethites and Pelethites. But the sons of David were first at the hand of the king.
{19:1} Now it happened that Nahash, the king of the sons of Ammon, died, and his son reigned in his place.
{19:2} And David said: “I will act with mercy toward Hanun, the son of Nahash. For his father was gracious to me.” And so David sent messengers to console him over the death of his father. But when they had reached the land of the sons of Ammon, so that they might console Hanun,
{19:3} the leaders of the sons of Ammon said to Hanun: “Do you think that perhaps David has sent them to console you in order to honor your father? Have you not noticed that his servants came to you so that they might explore, and investigate, and examine your land?”
{19:4} And so Hanun shaved the heads and beards of the servants of David, and he cut away their tunics from the buttocks to the feet, and he sent them away.
{19:5} And when they had gone, and had sent word to David, (for they had suffered a great disgrace,) he sent to meet them, and he instructed them that they should remain at Jericho until their beards grew, and then they should return.
{19:6} Then, when the sons of Ammon realized that they had committed an injury against David, both Hanun and the rest of the people sent one thousand talents of silver, so that they might hire for themselves chariots and horsemen from Mesopotamia, and from Syrian Maacah, and from Zobah.
{19:7} And they hired thirty-two thousand chariots, and the king of Maacah with his people. When these had arrived, they made camp in the region opposite Medeba. Also, the sons of Ammon, gathering from their cities, went to war.
{19:8} And when David had heard this, he sent Joab and the entire army of strong men.
{19:9} And the sons of Ammon, going out, set up a battle line before the gate of the city. But the kings who had come to their aid stood separately in the field.
{19:10} And so Joab, understanding the war to be set facing him and behind his back, chose the strongest men from all of Israel, and he went out against the Syrians.
{19:11} But the remaining portion of the people he placed under the hand of his brother Abishai. And they went out against the sons of Ammon.
{19:12} And he said: “If the Syrians prevail over me, then you shall be a help to me. But if the sons of Ammon prevail over you, I will be a safeguard for you.
{19:13} Be strengthened, and let us act manfully on behalf of our people, and on behalf of the cities of our God. And the Lord will do what is good in his own sight.”
{19:14} Therefore, Joab, and the people who were with him, went out to battle against the Syrians. And he put them to flight.
{19:15} Then the sons of Ammon, seeing that the Syrians had fled, also themselves fled from Abishai, his brother, and they entered into the city. And now Joab returned to Jerusalem.
{19:16} But the Syrians, seeing that they had fallen before Israel, sent messengers, and they brought the Syrians who were across the river. And Shophach, the leader of the military of Hadadezer, was their commander.
{19:17} When this had been reported to David, he gathered together all of Israel, and he crossed the Jordan. And he rushed toward them. And he set up a battle line facing them. And they fought against him.
{19:18} But the Syrians fled from Israel. And David killed of the Syrians seven thousand chariots, and forty thousand men on foot, and Shophach, the leader of the army.
{19:19} Then the servants of Hadadezer, seeing themselves to be overwhelmed by Israel, crossed over to David, and they served him. And Syria was no longer willing to offer aid to the sons of Ammon.
{20:1} Now it happened that, after the course of a year, in the time when kings usually go forth to war, Joab gathered an army with experienced soldiers, and he laid waste to the land of the sons of Ammon. And he continued on and besieged Rabbah. But David was staying in Jerusalem when Joab struck Rabbah and destroyed it.
{20:2} Then David took the crown of Milcom from his head, and he found in it the weight of one talent of gold, and very precious gems. And he made for himself a diadem from it. Also, he took the best spoils of the city, which were very many.
{20:3} Then he led away the people who were in it. And he caused plows, and sleds, and iron chariots to go over them, so much so that they were cut apart and crushed. So did David treat all the cities of the sons of Ammon. And he returned with all his people to Jerusalem.
{20:4} After these things, a war was begun at Gezer against the Philistines, in which Sibbecai the Hushathite struck Sippai from the race of the Rephaim, and he humbled them.
{20:5} Also, another war was undertaken against the Philistines, in which Adeodatus, a son of the forest, a Bethlehemite, struck the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the wood of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam.
{20:6} Then too, another war occurred in Gath, in which there was a very tall man, having six digits, that is, all together twenty-four. This man too was born from the stock of the Rephaim.
{20:7} He blasphemed Israel. And Jonathan, the son of Shimea, the brother of David, struck him down. These were the sons of the Rephaim in Gath, who fell by the hand of David and his servants.
{21:1} Now Satan rose up against Israel, and he incited David so that he would number Israel.
{21:2} And David said to Joab and to the leaders of the people: “Go, and number Israel, from Beersheba even to Dan. And bring me the number, so that I may know it.”
{21:3} And Joab responded: “May the Lord increase his people a hundred times more than they are. But, my lord the king, are they not all your servants? Why would my lord seek this thing, which may be imputed as a sin to Israel?”
{21:4} But the word of the king prevailed instead. And Joab went away, and he traveled around, through all of Israel. And he returned to Jerusalem.
{21:5} And he gave to David the number of those whom he had surveyed. And the entire number of Israel was found to be one million and one hundred thousand men who could draw the sword; but from Judah, there were four hundred and seventy thousand men of war.
{21:6} But Levi and Benjamin he did not number. For Joab executed the orders of the king unwillingly.
{21:7} Then God was displeased with what had been ordered, and so he struck Israel.
{21:8} And David said to God: “I have sinned exceedingly in doing this. I beg you take away the iniquity of your servant. For I have acted unwisely.”
{21:9} And the Lord spoke to Gad, the seer of David, saying:
{21:10} “Go, and speak to David, and tell him: Thus says the Lord: I give to you the option of three things. Choose the one that you will want, and I will do it to you.”
{21:11} And when Gad had gone to David, he said to him: “Thus says the Lord: Choose what you will want:
{21:12} Either three years of famine, or three months for you to flee from your enemies, unable to escape from their sword, or three days for the sword of the Lord and a pestilence to turn within the land, with the Angel of the Lord killing in every part of Israel. Now therefore, see what I should respond to him who sent me.”
{21:13} And David said to Gad: “There are difficulties pressing upon me from every side. But it is better for me to fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercies are many, than into the hands of men.”
{21:14} Therefore, the Lord sent a pestilence upon Israel. And there fell from Israel seventy thousand men.
{21:15} Also, he sent an Angel to Jerusalem, so that he might strike it. And while he was striking, the Lord saw and took pity over the magnitude of the harm. And he commanded the Angel who was striking: “It is enough. Now let your hand cease.” And the Angel of the Lord was standing beside the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
{21:16} And David, lifting up his eyes, saw the Angel of the Lord, standing between heaven and earth with a drawn sword in his hand, turned toward Jerusalem. And both he and those greater by birth, being clothed in haircloth, fell prone upon the ground.
{21:17} And David said to God: “Am I not the one who ordered that the people be numbered? It is I who sinned; it is I who did evil. This flock, what does it deserve? O Lord my God, I beg you to let your hand be turned against me and against the house of my father. But let not your people be struck down.”
{21:18} Then the Angel of the Lord instructed Gad to tell David that he should ascend and build an altar to the Lord God on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
{21:19} Therefore, David ascended, in accord with the word of Gad, which he had spoken to him in the name of the Lord.
{21:20} Now when Ornan had looked up and seen the Angel, he and his four sons hid themselves. For at that time, he was threshing wheat upon the floor.
{21:21} Then, as David was approaching Ornan, Ornan saw him, and he went out from the threshing floor to meet him. And he reverenced him prone on the ground.
{21:22} And David said to him: “Give this place of your threshing floor to me, so that I may build an altar to the Lord upon it. And you shall accept from me as much money as it is worth, so that the plague may cease from the people.”
{21:23} But Ornan said to David: “Take it, and may my lord the king do whatever pleases him. Moreover, I give the oxen also as a holocaust, and the plow for wood, and the wheat for a sacrifice. I will offer all freely.”
{21:24} And king David said to him: “By no means shall it be so. Instead, I will give money to you, as much as it is worth. For I must not take it from you, and thereby offer to the Lord holocausts that cost nothing.”
{21:25} Therefore, David gave Ornan, for the place, the very just weight of six hundred shekels of gold.
{21:26} And he built an altar to the Lord there. And he offered holocausts and peace offerings, and he called upon the Lord. And he heeded him by sending fire from heaven upon the altar of the holocaust.
{21:27} And the Lord instructed the Angel, and he turned his sword back into its sheath.
{21:28} Then, seeing that the Lord had heeded him at the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, David immediately immolated victims there.
{21:29} But the tabernacle of the Lord, which Moses had made in the desert, and the altar of holocausts, were at that time on the high place of Gibeon.
{21:30} And David was unable to go to the altar, so that he might pray to God there. For he had been struck with an exceedingly great fear, seeing the sword of the Angel of the Lord.
{22:1} And David said, “This is the house of God, and this is the altar for the holocaust of Israel.”
{22:2} And he instructed them to gather all the new converts from the land of Israel. And from these he appointed stoneworkers, to hew stones and to polish them, so that he might build the house of God.
{22:3} Also, David prepared very much iron to use for the nails of the gates, and for the seams and joints, as well as an immeasurable weight of brass.
{22:4} Also, the cedar trees, which the Sidonians and Tyrians had transported to David, were not able to be counted.
{22:5} And David said: “My son Solomon is a young and tender boy. But the house that I desire to be built to the Lord ought to be so great that it is renowned in every region. Therefore, I will prepare what will be necessary for him.” And for this reason, before his death, he prepared all the expenses.
{22:6} And he called for Solomon, his son. And he instructed him to build a house to the Lord, the God of Israel.
{22:7} And David said to Solomon: “My son, it was my will that I build a house to the name of the Lord my God.
{22:8} But the word of the Lord came to me, saying: ‘You have shed much blood, and you have battled in many wars. You are not able to build a house to my name, so great was the shedding of blood before me.
{22:9} The son who shall be born to you will be a very quiet man. For I will cause him to have rest from all his enemies on every side. And for this reason, he shall be called Peaceful. And I will grant peace and tranquility to Israel during all his days.
{22:10} He shall build a house to my name. And he shall be a son to me, and I will be a father to him. And I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel unto eternity.’
{22:11} Now then, my son, may the Lord be with you, and may you prosper and build a house to the Lord your God, just as he has spoken concerning you.
{22:12} Also, may the Lord give you prudence and understanding, so that you may be able to rule Israel and to guard the law of the Lord your God.
{22:13} For then you will be able to advance, if you keep the commandments and judgments that the Lord instructed Moses to teach to Israel. Be strengthened and act manfully. You should not fear, and you should not dread.
{22:14} Behold, in my poverty I have prepared the expenses for the house of the Lord: one hundred thousand talents of gold, and one million of talents of silver. Yet truly, there is no measuring the brass and the iron. For their magnitude is beyond numbering. And I have prepared the timber and the stones for the entire project.
{22:15} Also, you have very many artisans: stoneworkers, and builders of walls, and craftsmen of wood, and those most prudent in doing the work of every art,
{22:16} with gold and silver, and with brass and iron, of which there is no number. Therefore, rise up and act. And the Lord will be with you.”
{22:17} Also, David instructed all the leaders of Israel, so that they would assist his son Solomon,
{22:18} saying: “You discern that the Lord your God is with you, and that he has given you rest on all sides, and that he has delivered all your enemies into your hands, and that the land has been subdued before the Lord and before his people.
{22:19} Therefore, offer your hearts and your souls, so that you seek the Lord your God. And rise up and build a sanctuary to the Lord God, so that the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and the vessels consecrated to the Lord, may be brought into the house that is built to the name of the Lord.”
{23:1} Then David, being old and full of days, appointed his son Solomon as king over Israel.
{23:2} And he gathered together all the leaders of Israel, with the priests as well as the Levites.
{23:3} And the Levites were numbered from the age of thirty years and upward. And there were found thirty-eight thousand men.
{23:4} Of these, twenty-four thousand were chosen and distributed to the ministry of the house of the Lord. Then six thousand were overseers and judges.
{23:5} Moreover, four thousand were porters. And the same number were the singers of psalms to the Lord, with the musical instruments which he had made for the music.
{23:6} And David distributed them into courses according to the sons of Levi, specifically, Gershom, and Kohath, and Merari.
{23:7} The sons of Gershom: Ladan and Shimei.
{23:8} The sons of Ladan: the leader Jahiel, and Zetham, and Joel, three.
{23:9} The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, and Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the leaders of the families of Ladan.
{23:10} Then the sons of Shimei: Jahath, and Zizah, and Jeush, and Beriah. These were the sons of Shimei, four.
{23:11} Now Jahath was first, Zizah second, but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons, and for this reason they were reckoned as one family and one house.
{23:12} The sons of Kohath: Amram and Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel, four.
{23:13} The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Now Aaron was separated so that he might minister in the Holy of Holies, he and his sons forever, and so that he might burn incense to the Lord, according to his rite, and so that he might bless his name in perpetuity.
{23:14} The sons of Moses, the man of God, were also numbered in the tribe of Levi.
{23:15} The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer.
{23:16} The sons of Gershom: Shebuel the first.
{23:17} Now the sons of Eliezer were Rehabiah the first. And there were no other sons for Eliezer. But the sons of Rehabiah were multiplied exceedingly.
{23:18} The sons of Izhar: Shelomith the first.
{23:19} The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, Jekameam the fourth.
{23:20} The sons of Uzziel: Micah the first, Isshiah the second.
{23:21} The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish.
{23:22} Then Eleazar died, and had no sons, but only daughters. And so the sons of Kish, their brothers, married them.
{23:23} The sons of Mushi: Mahli, and Eder, and Jeremoth, three.
{23:24} These are the sons of Levi, in their kindred and families, leaders in turns, and the number of each of the heads who were doing the works of the ministry of the house of the Lord, from twenty years of age and upward.
{23:25} For David said: “The Lord, the God of Israel, has given rest to his people, and a habitation in Jerusalem even unto eternity.
{23:26} Neither shall it be the office of the Levites any more to carry the tabernacle with all its equipment for use in the ministry.”
{23:27} Also, according to the last precepts of David, the sons of Levi shall be counted by number from twenty years of age and upward.
{23:28} And they shall be under the hand of the sons of Aaron, in the care of the house of the Lord, in the vestibule, and in the chambers, and in the place of purification, and in the sanctuary, and in all the works of the ministry of the temple of the Lord.
{23:29} But the priests shall be over the bread of the presence, and the sacrifice of fine wheat flour, and the unleavened cakes, and the frying pan, and the roasting, and over every weight and measure.
{23:30} Yet truly, the Levites shall stand to confess and to sing to the Lord, in the morning, and similarly in the evening,
{23:31} as much in the oblation of the holocausts of the Lord, as in the Sabbaths and new moons and other solemnities, according to the number and ceremonies for each and every matter, perpetually before the Lord.
{23:32} And let them keep the observances of the tabernacle of the covenant, and the rituals of the sanctuary, and the observance of the sons of Aaron, their brothers, so that they may minister in the house of the Lord.
{24:1} Now these were the divisions of the sons of Aaron. The sons of Aaron: Nadab, and Abihu, and Eleazar, and Ithamar.
{24:2} But Nadab and Abihu died before their father, and without children. And so Eleazar and Ithamar exercised the priestly office.
{24:3} And David distributed them, that is, Zadok of the sons of Eleazar, and Ahimelech of the sons of Ithamar, according to their courses and ministry.
{24:4} And there were found many more of the sons of Eleazar among the leading men, than of the sons of Ithamar. Therefore, he divided them so that there were, of the sons of Eleazar, sixteen leaders by their families, and of the sons of Ithamar eight by their families and houses.
{24:5} Then he divided among them, in both families, by lot. For there were leaders of the sanctuary and leaders of God, as much from the sons of Eleazar as from the sons of Ithamar.
{24:6} And the scribe Shemaiah, the son of Nethanel, a Levite, wrote these down before the king and the leaders, with Zadok, the priest, and Ahimelech, the son of Abiathar, and also the leaders of the priestly and Levitical families. And there was one house, which was preeminent over the others, that of Eleazar; and there was another house, which had the others under it, that of Ithamar.
{24:7} Now the first lot went forth to Jehoiarib, the second to Jedaiah,
{24:8} the third to Harim, the fourth to Seorim,
{24:9} the fifth to Malchijah, the sixth to Mijamin,
{24:10} the seventh to Hakkoz, the eighth to Abijah,
{24:11} the ninth to Jeshua, the tenth to Shecaniah,
{24:12} the eleventh to Eliashib, the twelfth to Jakim,
{24:13} the thirteenth to Huppah, the fourteenth to Jeshebeab,
{24:14} the fifteenth to Bilgah, the sixteenth to Immer,
{24:15} the seventeenth to Hezir, the eighteenth to Happizzez,
{24:16} the nineteenth to Pethahiah, the twentieth to Jehezkel,
{24:17} the twenty-first to Jachin, the twenty-second to Gamul,
{24:18} the twenty-third to Delaiah, the twenty-fourth to Maaziah.
{24:19} These were their courses according to their ministries, so that they would enter into the house of the Lord in accord with their practice, under the hand of Aaron, their father, just as the Lord, the God of Israel, had instructed.
{24:20} Now of the sons of Levi who were remaining, there were Shubael, from the sons of Amram, and Jehdeiah, from the sons of Shubael.
{24:21} Also, there were Isshiah, the leader from the sons of Rehabiah,
{24:22} and truly Shelomoth, the son of Izhar, and Jahath, the son of Shelomoth,
{24:23} and his son, Jeriah the first, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, Jekameam the fourth.
{24:24} The son of Uzziel was Micah. The son of Micah was Shamir.
{24:25} The brother of Micah was Isshiah. And the son of Isshiah was Zechariah.
{24:26} The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. The son of Uzziah was Beno.
{24:27} Also, the son of Merari: Uzziah, and Shoham, and Zaccur, and Hebri.
{24:28} In addition, the son of Mahli was Eleazar, who had no children.
{24:29} Truly, the son of Kish was Jerahmeel.
{24:30} The sons of Mushi were Mahli, Eder, and Jerimoth. These were the sons of Levi according to the houses of their families.
{24:31} And they also cast lots concerning their brothers, the sons of Aaron, before David the king, and Zadok, and Ahimelech, and the leaders of the priestly and Levitical families, as much concerning the elder as the younger. The lot divided all things equitably.
{25:1} Then David and the magistrates of the army set apart, for the ministry, the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who were to prophesy with harps and psalteries and cymbals, in accord with their number, having been dedicated to their appointed office.
{25:2} From the sons of Asaph: Zaccur, and Joseph, and Nethaniah, and Asharelah, the sons of Asaph, under the hand of Asaph, prophesying beside the king.
{25:3} Then of Jeduthun, the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, and Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the hand of their father Jeduthun, who was prophesying with stringed instruments, while confessing and praising the Lord.
{25:4} Also, of Heman, the sons of Heman: Bukkiah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shebuel, and Jerimoth, Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti, and Romamtiezer, and Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir, Mahazioth.
{25:5} All these were the sons of Heman, the seer of the king in the words of God, in order to lift up the horn. And God gave to Heman fourteen sons and three daughters.
{25:6} All these, under their father’s hand, were distributed in order to sing in the temple of the Lord, with cymbals and psalteries and harps, in the ministry of the house of the Lord beside the king, specifically, Asaph, and Jeduthun, and Heman.
{25:7} Now the number of these, with their brothers, who were instructing in the song of the Lord, all the teachers, were two hundred eighty-eight.
{25:8} And they cast lots in their turns, the elder equally with the younger, the learned together with the unlearned.
{25:9} And the first lot went forth to Joseph, who was of Asaph; the second went forth to Gedaliah, to him and his sons and his brothers, twelve.
{25:10} The third went to Zaccur, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:11} The fourth went to Izri, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:12} The fifth went to Nethaniah, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:13} The sixth went to Bukkiah, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:14} The seventh went to Jesharelah, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:15} The eighth went to Jeshaiah, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:16} The ninth went to Mattaniah, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:17} The tenth went to Shimei, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:18} The eleventh went to Azarel, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:19} The twelfth went to Hashabiah, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:20} The thirteenth went to Shubael, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:21} The fourteenth went to Mattithiah, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:22} The fifteenth went to Jeremoth, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:23} The sixteenth went to Hananiah, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:24} The seventeenth went to Joshbekashah, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:25} The eighteenth went to Hanani, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:26} The nineteenth went to Mallothi, to his sons and his brothers, twelve.
{25:27} The twentieth went to Eliathah, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:28} The twenty-first went to Hothir, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:29} The twenty-second went to Giddalti, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:30} The twenty-third went to Mahazioth, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{25:31} The twenty-fourth went to Romamtiezer, to his sons and brothers, twelve.
{26:1} Now the divisions of the porters were, from the Korahites: Meshelemiah, the son of Kore, of the sons of Asaph.
{26:2} The sons of Meshelemiah: Zechariah the firstborn, Jediael the second, Zebadiah the third, Jathniel the fourth,
{26:3} Elam the fifth, Jehohanan the sixth, Eliehoenai the seventh.
{26:4} Then the sons of Obededom: Shemaiah the firstborn, Jehozabad the second, Joah the third, Sachar the fourth, Nethanel the fifth,
{26:5} Ammiel the sixth, Issachar the seventh, Peullethai the eighth. For the Lord had blessed him.
{26:6} Now to his son Shemaiah, there were born sons, rulers of their families. For they were very strong men.
{26:7} Then the sons of Shemaiah were Othni, and Rephael, and Obed, Elzabad and his brothers, very strong men, as well as Elihu and Semachiah.
{26:8} All these were from the sons of Obededom: they and their sons and brothers, very fit for the ministry, sixty-two from Obededom.
{26:9} Then there were the sons of Meshelemiah and their brothers, very robust men, eighteen.
{26:10} Now, from Hosah, that is, from the sons of Merari: Shimri the leader, for he had not had a firstborn son, and so, because of this, his father had appointed him as the leader,
{26:11} Hilkiah the second, Tebaliah the third, Zechariah the fourth. All these, the sons and brothers of Hosah, were thirteen.
{26:12} These were distributed as porters, so that the leaders of the posts, as well as their brothers, were ministering continually in the house of the Lord.
{26:13} Then they cast lots equally, for both the small and the great, by their families, concerning each one of the gates.
{26:14} And the lot of the east fell out to Shelemiah. But to his son Zechariah, a very prudent and learned man, the northern section was obtained by lot.
{26:15} Truly, Obededom and his sons obtained that to the south, in the part of the house where the council of elders was.
{26:16} Shuppim and Hosah obtained that toward the west, beside the gate that leads to the way of the ascent, one post facing the other.
{26:17} Truly, toward the east there were six Levites, and toward the north there were four per day, and then toward the south similarly there were four each day. And where the council was, there were two and two.
{26:18} Also, in the cells of the porters toward the west, there were four along the way, and two at every cell.
{26:19} These are the divisions of the porters of the sons of Kohath and of Merari.
{26:20} Now Ahijah was over the treasuries of the house of God, and the holy vessels.
{26:21} The sons of Ladan, sons of Gershon: from Ladan, leaders of the families of Ladan and of Gershon: Jehieli.
{26:22} The sons of Jehieli: Zetham and Joel; his brothers were over the treasuries of the house of the Lord,
{26:23} with the Amramites, and Izharites, and Hebronites, and Uzzielites.
{26:24} Now, Shebuel, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses, was in the first place over the treasuries,
{26:25} along with his brothers, Eliezer, and his son Rehabiah, and his son Jeshaiah, and his son Joram, and also his son Zichri, and his son Shelomoth.
{26:26} The same Shelomoth and his brothers were over the treasuries of the holy things, which king David sanctified, with the leaders of the families, and the tribunes, and the centurions, and the commanders of the army.
{26:27} These things were from the wars and from the best spoils of the battles, which they had consecrated for the repair and the furnishing of the temple of the Lord.
{26:28} Now all these things were sanctified by Samuel, the seer, and by Saul, the son of Kish, and by Abner, the son of Ner, and by Joab, the son of Zeruiah. All those who had sanctified these were under the hand of Shelomoth and his brothers.
{26:29} Yet truly, Chenaniah and his sons were over the Izharites, for the exterior works concerning Israel, in order to teach and to judge them.
{26:30} Now from the Hebronites, Hashabiah and his brothers, one thousand seven hundred very strong men, were in charge of Israel across the Jordan toward the west, in all the works of the Lord, and in the ministry of the king.
{26:31} And the leader of the Hebronites was Jerijah, according to their families and kindred. In the fortieth year of the reign of David, they were numbered, and there were found very strong men in Jazer Gilead.
{26:32} And his brothers of a mature age were two thousand seven hundred leaders of families. Then king David placed them in charge of the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the one half tribe of Manasseh, in all of the ministries of God and of the king.
{27:1} Now the sons of Israel, according to their number, the leaders of the families, the tribunes, and the centurions, and the chiefs, who were ministering to the king by their companies, entering and departing in each month of the year as they were in charge, were twenty-four thousand.
{27:2} Jashobeam, the son of Zabdiel, was in charge of the first company in the first month; and under him were twenty-four thousand.
{27:3} He was from the sons of Perez, and he was the leader of all the other leaders in the army, in the first month.
{27:4} The company of the second month had Dodai, an Ahohite; and after him there was another, named Mikloth, who ruled over a portion of the army of the twenty-four thousand.
{27:5} Also, the commander of the third company, in the third month, was Benaiah, the son of Jehoiada the priest; and in his division there were twenty-four thousand.
{27:6} The same is the Benaiah who was strongest among the thirty, and was above the thirty. But his son, Ammizabad, was in charge of his company.
{27:7} The fourth, for the fourth month, was Asahel, the brother of Joab, and his son Zebadiah after him; and in his company there were twenty-four thousand.
{27:8} The fifth leader, for the fifth month, was Shamhuth, an Izrahite; and in his company there were twenty-four thousand.
{27:9} The sixth, for the sixth month, was Ira, the son of Ikkesh, a Tekoite; and in his company there were twenty-four thousand.
{27:10} The seventh, for the seventh month, was Helez, a Pelonite from the sons of Ephraim; and in his company there were twenty-four thousand.
{27:11} The eighth, for the eighth month, was Sibbecai, a Hushathite from the stock of the Zerahites; and in his company there were twenty-four thousand.
{27:12} The ninth, for the ninth month, was Abiezer, an Anathothite from the sons of Benjamin; and in his company there were twenty-four thousand.
{27:13} The tenth, for the tenth month, was Maharai, and he was a Netophathite from the stock of the Zerahites; and in his company there were twenty-four thousand.
{27:14} The eleventh, for the eleventh month, was Benaiah, a Pirathonite from the sons of Ephraim; and in his company there were twenty-four thousand.
{27:15} The twelfth, for the twelfth month, was Heldai, a Netophathite from the stock of Othniel; and in his company there were twenty-four thousand.
{27:16} Now those who were first over the tribes of Israel were these: over the Reubenites, Eliezer, the son of Zichri, was the ruler; over the Simeonites, Shephatiah, the son of Maacah, was the ruler;
{27:17} over the Levites, Hashabiah, the son of Kemuel; over the Aaronites, Zadok;
{27:18} over Judah, Elihu, the brother of David; over Issachar, Omri, the son of Michael;
{27:19} over the Zebulunites, Ishmaiah, the son of Obadiah; over the Naphtalites, Jeremoth, the son of Azriel;
{27:20} over the sons of Ephraim, Hoshea, the son of Azaziah; over the one half tribe of Manasseh, Joel, the son of Pedaiah;
{27:21} and over the one half tribe of Manasseh in Gilead, Iddo, the son of Zechariah; then over Benjamin, Jaasiel, the son of Abner;
{27:22} yet truly, Azarel, the son of Jeroham, was over Dan. These were the leaders of the sons of Israel.
{27:23} But David was not willing to number them from twenty years old and under. For the Lord had said that he would multiply Israel like the stars of heaven.
{27:24} Joab, the son of Zeruiah, had begun to number, but he did not finish. For because of this, wrath had fallen upon Israel. And therefore the number of those who had been counted was not related in the official records of king David.
{27:25} Now over the storerooms of the king was Azmaveth, the son of Adiel. But Jonathan, the son of Uzziah, was over those storerooms that were in the cities, and in the villages, and in the towers.
{27:26} And over the farmlands and the farmers, those who worked the ground, was Ezri, the son of Chelub.
{27:27} And over the cultivators of vineyards was Shimei, a Ramathite; then over the wine cellars was Zabdi, an Aphonite.
{27:28} Now over the olive groves and the fig groves, which were in the plains, was Baal-hanan, a Gederite; and over the oil cellars was Joash.
{27:29} Now over the herds that were pastured in Sharon, Shitrai, a Sharonite, was in the first place; and over the oxen in the valleys, there was Shaphat, the son of Adlai.
{27:30} Truly, over the camels was Obil, an Ishmaelite; and over the donkeys was Jehdeiah, a Meronothite.
{27:31} And over the sheep was Jaziz, a Hagarene. All these were leaders over the substance of king David.
{27:32} Now Jonathan, the uncle of David, was a counselor, a prudent and scholarly man; he and Jehiel, the son of Hachmoni, were with the sons of the king.
{27:33} Now Ahithophel was the counselor of the king; and Hushai, the Archite, was the king’s friend.
{27:34} After Ahithophel was Jehoiada, the son of Benaiah, and Abiathar. But the leader of the army of the king was Joab.
{28:1} And so David called together all the leaders of Israel, the rulers of the tribes, and those in charge of the companies, who were ministering to the king, and also the tribunes and centurions, and those in charge of the substance and possessions of the king, and his sons, with the eunuchs and the powerful and those most experienced in the army, at Jerusalem.
{28:2} And when the king had risen up and was standing, he said: “Listen to me, my brothers and my people. I thought that I would build a house, in which the ark of the covenant of the Lord, the footstool of our God, might rest. And so I prepared everything for its building.
{28:3} But God said to me: ‘You shall not build a house to my name, because you are a man of war, and have shed blood.’
{28:4} Now the Lord God of Israel chose me, out of the entire house of my father, so that I would be king over Israel forever. For from Judah he chose leaders; then from the house of Judah he chose the house of my father; and from the sons of my father, it pleased him to choose me as king over all of Israel.
{28:5} Then too, among my sons (for the Lord has given me many sons) he chose Solomon my son, so that he would sit upon the throne of the kingdom of the Lord, over Israel.
{28:6} And he said to me: ‘Solomon your son shall build my house and my courts. For I have chosen him to be to me as a son, and I will be to him as a father.
{28:7} And I will make firm his kingdom, even unto eternity, if he will persevere in doing my precepts and judgments, as also today.’
{28:8} Now therefore, before the entire assembly of Israel, in the hearing of our God, keep and seek all the commandments of the Lord our God, so that you may possess the good land, and may bequeath it to your sons after you, even forever.
{28:9} And as for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and a willing mind. For the Lord searches all hearts, and understands the thoughts of all minds. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you abandon him, he will cast you aside for eternity.
{28:10} Now therefore, since the Lord has chosen you, so that you would build the house of the Sanctuary, be strengthened and accomplish it.”
{28:11} Then David gave to his son Solomon a description of the portico, and the temple, and the storerooms, and the upper floor, and the innermost rooms, and the house of propitiation,
{28:12} and indeed also of all the courts that he had planned, and the outer rooms on all sides, for the treasuries of the house of the Lord, and for the treasuries of the holy things,
{28:13} and for the divisions of the priests and the Levites: concerning all the works of the house of the Lord and all the items in the ministry of the temple of the Lord.
{28:14} There was gold by weight for every vessel of the ministry, and also silver by weight for the diversity of vessels and equipment.
{28:15} Then too, he distributed gold for the lampstands and their lamps, according to the measure of each of the lampstands with their lamps. Similarly also, he distributed silver by weight for the silver lampstands with their lamps, according to the diversity of their measure.
{28:16} Also, he gave gold for the tables of the presence, according to the diversity of the tables; similarly too, he gave silver for the other tables of silver.
{28:17} Also, he distributed from the purest gold for the small hooks and the bowls and the censors, as well as for the little lions of gold, in accord with the precise measure of the weight, for lion after lion. Similarly too, for the lions of silver, he set aside a different weight of silver.
{28:18} Then, for the altar on which the incense was burned, he gave the purest gold. And from the same he made the likeness of the chariot of the Cherubim, with extended wings, which is veiling the ark of the covenant of the Lord.
{28:19} “All these things,” he said, “came to me written by the hand of the Lord, so that I would understand all the works of the pattern.”
{28:20} David also said to his son Solomon: “Act manfully, and be strengthened, and carry it out. You should not be afraid, and you should not be dismayed. For the Lord my God will be with you, and he will not send you away, nor will he abandon you, until you have perfected the entire work of the ministry of the house of the Lord.
{28:21} Behold, the divisions of the priests and the Levites, for every ministry of the house of the Lord, are standing before you. And they have been prepared, and so they know, both the leaders and the people, how to carry out all your precepts.”
{29:1} And king David spoke to the entire assembly: “My son Solomon, the one God has chosen, is still a tender boy. And yet the work is great, for a habitation is being prepared, not for man, but for God.
{29:2} Now with all my ability, I have prepared the expenses for the house of my God: gold for items of gold, and silver for those of silver, brass for those of brass, iron for those of iron, and wood for those of wood, and stones of onyx, and stones like alabaster, and stones of diverse colors, and every kind of precious stone, and marble from Paros in great abundance.
{29:3} And in addition to these things that I have offered into the house of my God, I give, from my own belongings, gold and silver for the temple of my God, aside from those things that I have prepared for the holy shrine:
{29:4} three thousand talents of gold, from the gold of Ophir, and seven thousand talents of highly-refined silver, for the gilding of the walls of the temple;
{29:5} and gold for wherever there is need of gold, and silver for wherever there is need of silver, for the works to be done by the hands of the artisans. And if anyone freely offers, let him fill his hand this day, and let him offer whatever he wishes to the Lord.”
{29:6} And so the leaders of the families, and the nobles of the tribes of Israel, as well as the tribunes and the centurions and the overseers of the king’s possessions, promised
{29:7} and gave, for the works of the house of the Lord, five thousand talents and ten thousand pieces of gold, ten thousand talents of silver, and eighteen thousand talents of brass, and also one hundred thousand talents of iron.
{29:8} And whoever found precious stones among their belongings gave them to the treasuries of the house of the Lord, by the hand of Jehiel the Gershonite.
{29:9} And the people rejoiced, since they were promising their votive offerings willingly. For they were offering these to the Lord with all their heart. And king David also rejoiced with great gladness.
{29:10} And he blessed the Lord before the entire multitude, and he said: “Blessed are you, O Lord God of Israel, our Father from eternity to eternity.
{29:11} Yours, O Lord, is magnificence and power and glory, and also victory; and to you is praise. For all the things that are in heaven and on earth are yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are above all rulers.
{29:12} Yours is wealth, and yours is glory. You have dominion over all things. In your hand is virtue and power. In your hand is greatness and authority over all things.
{29:13} Now therefore, we confess to you, our God, and we praise your famous name.
{29:14} Who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to promise all these things to you? All is yours. And so the things that we received from your hand, we have given to you.
{29:15} For we are sojourners and new arrivals before you, as all our fathers were. Our days upon the earth are like a shadow, and there is no delay.
{29:16} O Lord our God, all this abundance, which we have prepared so that a house may be built to your holy name, is from your hand, and all things are yours.
{29:17} I know, my God, that you test hearts, and that you love simplicity. Therefore, in the simplicity of my heart, I also have offered all these things joyfully. And I have seen, with immense gladness, your people, who have been found here, offering their donations to you.
{29:18} O Lord, the God of our fathers Abraham and Isaac and Israel, preserve unto eternity this desire of their heart, and let this purpose remain forever, for the worship of you.
{29:19} Also, I give to my son Solomon a perfect heart, so that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your ceremonies, and so that he may accomplish all things, and may build the temple, for which I have prepared the expenses.”
{29:20} Then David instructed the entire assembly: “Bless the Lord our God.” And the entire assembly blessed the Lord, the God of their fathers. And they bowed themselves, and they adored God, and next they reverenced the king.
{29:21} And they immolated victims to the Lord. And they offered holocausts on the following day: one thousand bulls, one thousand rams, one thousand lambs, with their libations and with every ritual, very abundantly, for all of Israel.
{29:22} And they ate and drank before the Lord on that day, with great rejoicing. And they anointed Solomon, the son of David, a second time. And they anointed him to the Lord as the ruler, and Zadok as the high priest.
{29:23} And Solomon sat upon the throne of the Lord as king, in place of his father David, and it pleased everyone. And all of Israel obeyed him.
{29:24} Moreover, all the leaders, and the powerful, and all the sons of king David pledged with their hand, and they became subject to king Solomon.
{29:25} Then the Lord magnified Solomon over all of Israel. And he gave to him a glorious reign, of a kind such as no one has had before him, as king of Israel.
{29:26} Now David, the son of Jesse, reigned over all of Israel.
{29:27} And the days during which he reigned over Israel were forty years. He reigned seven years in Hebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.
{29:28} And he died at a good old age, full of days and wealth and glory. And his son Solomon reigned in his place.
{29:29} Now the acts of king David, from the first to the last, have been written in the book of Samuel the seer, and in the book of Nathan the prophet, and in the book of Gad the seer,
{29:30} concerning his entire reign and strength, and the times that passed under him, both in Israel and in all the kingdoms of the lands.
{1:1} Then Solomon, the son of David, was strengthened in his reign, and the Lord his God was with him, and he magnified him on high.
{1:2} And Solomon instructed the whole of Israel, the tribunes, and the centurions, and the rulers, and the judges over all of Israel, and the leaders of the families.
{1:3} And he went away with the entire multitude to the high place of Gibeon, where the tabernacle of the covenant of the Lord was, which Moses, the servant of God, made in the wilderness.
{1:4} For David had brought the ark of God from Kiriath-jearim, to the place that he had prepared for it, and where he had pitched a tabernacle for it, that is, in Jerusalem.
{1:5} Also, the altar of brass, which Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, had constructed, was there before the tabernacle of the Lord. And so Solomon sought it, with the entire assembly.
{1:6} And Solomon ascended to the bronze altar, before the tabernacle of the covenant of the Lord, and he offered upon it one thousand victims.
{1:7} But behold, during that night God appeared to him, saying, “Request what you wish, so that I may give it to you.”
{1:8} And Solomon said to God: “You have shown great mercy to my father David. And you have appointed me as king in his place.
{1:9} Now therefore, O Lord God, let your word be fulfilled, which you promised to my father David. For you have made me king over your great people, who are as innumerable as the dust of the earth.
{1:10} Give to me wisdom and understanding, so that I may enter and depart before your people. For who is able worthily to judge this, your people, who are so great?”
{1:11} Then God said to Solomon: “Since this is the choice that pleased your heart, and you did not request wealth and substance and glory, nor the lives of those who hate you, nor even many days of life, since instead you requested wisdom and knowledge so that you may be able to judge my people, over whom I have appointed you as king:
{1:12} wisdom and knowledge are granted to you. And I will give to you wealth and substance and glory, so that none of the kings either before you or after you will be similar to you.”
{1:13} Then Solomon went from the high place of Gibeon to Jerusalem, before the tabernacle of the covenant, and he reigned over Israel.
{1:14} And he gathered to himself chariots and horsemen. And they brought to him one thousand four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. And he caused them to be in the cities of the chariots, and with the king in Jerusalem.
{1:15} And the king offered silver and gold in Jerusalem as if they were stones, and cedar trees as if they were sycamores, which grow in the plains in a great multitude.
{1:16} Then horses were brought to him from Egypt and from Kue, by the negotiators of the king, who went and bought for a price:
{1:17} a four-horse chariot for six hundred pieces of silver, and a horse for one hundred fifty. A similar offer to purchase was made known among all the kingdoms of the Hittites, and among the kings of Syria.
{2:1} And Solomon resolved to build a house to the name of the Lord, and a palace for himself.
{2:2} And he numbered seventy thousand men to carry upon shoulders, and eighty thousand who were hewing stones in the mountains, and three thousand six hundred as their overseers.
{2:3} Also, he sent to Hiram, the king of Tyre, saying: “Just as you did for my father David, when you sent him cedar wood, so that he might build a house for himself, in which he then lived,
{2:4} do so also for me, so that I may build a house to the name of the Lord my God, so that I may consecrate it for the burning of incense before him, and for the smoke of aromatics, and for the perpetual bread of the presence, and for the holocausts, in morning and in evening, as well as on the Sabbaths and new moons and solemnities of the Lord our God forever, which have been commanded to Israel.
{2:5} For the house that I desire to build is great. For our God is great, above all gods.
{2:6} So then, who will be able prevail, so that he may build a worthy house for him? If heaven and the heavens of heavens cannot contain him, what am I that I would be able to build a house to him? But let it be for this only, so that incense may be burned before him.
{2:7} Therefore, send to me a learned man, who knows how to work with gold and silver, with brass and iron, with purple, scarlet, and hyacinth, and who knows how to carve engravings, along with these artisans that I have with me in Judea and Jerusalem, whom my father David has prepared.
{2:8} Then too, send to me cedar wood, and juniper, and pine from Lebanon. For I know that your servants know how to cut timber from Lebanon, and my servants will be with your servants,
{2:9} so that very much wood may be prepared for me. For the house that I desire to build is exceedingly great and glorious.
{2:10} In addition, I will give to your servants, the workers who will cut down the trees, for provisions: twenty thousand cor of wheat, and the same number of cor of barley, and twenty thousand measures of wine, as well as twenty thousand good measures of oil.”
{2:11} Then Hiram, the king of Tyre, said, by a letter that had been sent to Solomon: “Because the Lord loved his people, for this reason he appointed you to reign over them.”
{2:12} And he added, saying: “Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who gave to king David a son who is wise, and learned, and intelligent as well as prudent, so that he may build a house to the Lord, and a palace for himself.
{2:13} Therefore, I have sent my father Hiram to you; he is a prudent and very knowledgeable man,
{2:14} the son of a woman from the daughters of Dan, whose father was a Tyrian, who knows how to work with gold and silver, with brass and iron, and with marble and timber, as well as with purple, and hyacinth, and fine linen, and scarlet. And he knows how to carve every kind of engraving, and how to devise prudently whatever may be necessary to the work, with your artisans and with the artisans of my lord David, your father.
{2:15} Therefore, send the wheat and barley and oil and wine, which you, my lord, have promised, to your own servants.
{2:16} Then we will cut down as much wood from Lebanon as you will need, and we will convey them as rafts by sea to Joppa. Then it will be for you to transfer them to Jerusalem.”
{2:17} And so Solomon numbered all the new converts who were in the land of Israel, after the numbering that David his father had done, and they were found to be one hundred fifty thousand and three thousand six hundred.
{2:18} And he appointed seventy thousand of them, who would carry burdens on shoulders, and eighty thousand who would hew stones in the mountains, then three thousand and six hundred as overseers of the work of the people.
{3:1} And Solomon began to build the house of the Lord, in Jerusalem on mount Moriah, as it had been shown to David his father, at the place which David had prepared on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
{3:2} Now he began to build in the second month, in the fourth year of his reign.
{3:3} And these are the foundations, which Solomon set forth so that he might build the house of God: the length in cubits by the first measure sixty, the width in cubits twenty.
{3:4} Truly, at the front, the portico, which was extended in length according to the measure of the width of the house, was of twenty cubits. Then the height was of one hundred twenty cubits. And he overlaid it on the interior with the purest gold.
{3:5} Also, he covered the greater house with wooden panels of spruce, and he affixed layers of refined gold through it all. And he engraved in them palm trees, and the likeness of little chains interlaced with one another.
{3:6} Also, he paved the floor of the temple with the most precious marble, of great beauty.
{3:7} Now the gold, with which he covered in layers the house and its beams and posts and walls and doors, was highly refined. And he engraved cherubim on the walls.
{3:8} Also, he made the house of the Holy of Holies. Its length, in accord with the width of the temple, was of twenty cubits. And its width, similarly, was of twenty cubits. And he covered it with layers of gold, of about six hundred talents.
{3:9} Then he also made nails of gold, such that each nail weighed fifty shekels. Also, he covered the upper rooms in gold.
{3:10} Now he also made, in the house of the Holy of Holies, two cherubim as a work of statues. And he covered them with gold.
{3:11} The wings of the cherubim extended for twenty cubits, such that one wing had five cubits and it touched the wall of the house, and the other, having five cubits, touched the wing of the other cherub.
{3:12} Similarly, the wing of the other cherub was five cubits, and it touched the wall, and his other wing of five cubits also touched the wing of the other cherub.
{3:13} And so the wings of both cherubim were stretched out and extended for twenty cubits. Now they were standing upright on their feet, and their faces were turned toward the exterior house.
{3:14} Also, he made a veil from hyacinth, purple, scarlet, and fine linen. And he wove within it cherubim.
{3:15} And also, before the doors of the temple, there were two pillars, having a height of thirty-five cubits. But their heads were of five cubits.
{3:16} Then too, there were something like little chains on the oracle, and he placed these upon the heads of the pillars. And there were one hundred pomegranates, which he placed between the little chains.
{3:17} Also, he placed these pillars in the vestibule of the temple, one to the right, and the other to the left. The one that was on the right, he called Jachin; and the one that was on the left, Boaz.
{4:1} Also, he made a brass altar of twenty cubits in length, and of twenty cubits in width, and of ten cubits in height,
{4:2} as well as a molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in its circumference. It had five cubits in height, and a line of thirty cubits went around it on all sides.
{4:3} Also, under it there was the likeness of oxen. And certain engravings encircled the cavity of the sea, along ten cubits of the outside, as if in two rows. Now the oxen were molten.
{4:4} And the sea itself was placed upon the twelve oxen, three of which were looking toward the north, and another three toward the west, then another three toward the south, and the three that remained toward the east, having the sea imposed upon them. But the posteriors of the oxen were toward the interior, under the sea.
{4:5} Now its thickness had the measure of the palm of a hand, and its brim was like the lip of a cup, or like the outturned petal of a lily. And it held three thousand measures.
{4:6} Also, he made ten basins. And he placed five on the right, and five on the left, so that they might wash in them all the things that they were to offer as holocausts. But the priests were to be washed in the sea.
{4:7} Then he also made ten gold lampstands, according to the form by which they had been ordered to be made. And he set them in the temple, five on the right, and five on the left.
{4:8} Moreover, there were also ten tables. And he placed them in the temple, five on the right, and five on the left. Also, there were one hundred gold bowls.
{4:9} Then too, he made the court of the priests, and a great hall, and doors in the hall, which he covered with brass.
{4:10} Now he placed the sea on the right side, facing the east, toward the south.
{4:11} Then Hiram made cooking pots and hooks and bowls. And he completed every work of the king in the house of God,
{4:12} that is, the two pillars, and the crossbeams, and the heads, and something like a little net, which would cover the heads above the crossbeams,
{4:13} and also four hundred pomegranates, and two little nets, so that two rows of pomegranates were joined to each net, which would cover the crossbeams and the heads of the pillars.
{4:14} He also made bases; and basins that he placed upon the bases;
{4:15} one sea, and twelve oxen under the sea;
{4:16} and cooking pots and hooks and bowls. Hiram, his father, made all the vessels for Solomon, in the house of the Lord, from the purest brass.
{4:17} The king cast these in the region near the Jordan, in the clay soil between Succoth and Zeredah.
{4:18} Now the multitude of the vessels was innumerable, so much so that the weight of the brass was unknown.
{4:19} And Solomon made all the vessels for the house of God, and the gold altar, and the tables upon which were the bread of the presence;
{4:20} and also, of the purest gold, the lampstands with their lamps, to shine before the oracle, according to the rite;
{4:21} and certain flowers, and lamps, and gold tongs. All these were made from the purest gold.
{4:22} Also, the vessels for the perfumes, and the censers, and the bowls, and the little mortars were from the purest gold. And he engraved the doors of the inner temple, that is, for the Holy of Holies. And the doors of the outer temple were of gold. And so, every work was completed that Solomon made in the house of the Lord.
{5:1} Then Solomon brought in all the things that David his father had vowed, the silver, and the gold, and all the vessels, which he placed in the treasuries of the house of God.
{5:2} After this, he gathered together those greater by birth of Israel, and all the leaders of the tribes, and the heads of the families, from the sons of Israel, to Jerusalem, so that they might bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the City of David, which is Zion.
{5:3} And so, all the men of Israel went to the king, on the solemn day of the seventh month.
{5:4} And when all the elders of Israel had arrived, the Levites carried the ark,
{5:5} and they brought it in, along with all the equipment of the tabernacle. Then too, the priests with the Levites carried the vessels of the sanctuary, which were in the tabernacle.
{5:6} Now king Solomon, and the entire assembly of Israel, and all who had gathered together before the ark, were immolating rams and oxen without any number, for so great was the multitude of the victims.
{5:7} And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, that is, to the oracle of the temple, in the Holy of Holies, under the wings of the cherubim,
{5:8} so that the cherubim extended their wings over the place where the ark was positioned, and they covered the ark itself and its bars.
{5:9} But concerning the bars by which the ark was carried, because they were a little longer, the ends were able to be seen before the oracle. Yet truly, if anyone were a little ways toward the exterior, he would not be able to see them. And so the ark has been in that place, even to the present day.
{5:10} And there was nothing else in the ark, except the two tablets, which Moses had placed there at Horeb when the Lord gave the law to the sons of Israel, at the departure from Egypt.
{5:11} And having gone out from the Sanctuary, the priests (for all the priests who were able to be found there were sanctified, and in that time the turns and orders of the ministries had not yet been divided among them)
{5:12} with both the Levites and the singing men, that is, those who were under Asaph, and those who were under Heman, and those who were under Jeduthun, with their sons and brothers, clothed in fine linen, sounded out with cymbals, and psalteries, and harps, standing toward the eastern side of the altar. And with them were one hundred twenty priests, sounding out with trumpets.
{5:13} And when they all sounded out together, with trumpets, and voice, and cymbals, and pipes, and with various kinds of musical instruments, lifting their voice on high, the sound was heard from far away, so that when they had begun to praise the Lord, and to say, “Confess to the Lord, for he is good; for his mercy is eternal,” the house of God was filled with a cloud.
{5:14} Neither were the priests able to stand and to minister, because of the cloud. For the glory of the Lord had filled the house of God.
{6:1} Then Solomon said: “The Lord has promised that he would dwell in a cloud.
{6:2} But I have built a house to his name, so that he may dwell there forever.”
{6:3} And the king turned his face, and he blessed the entire multitude of Israel, (for the whole crowd was standing and attentive) and he said:
{6:4} “Blessed is the Lord, the God of Israel, who has completed the work that he spoke to David my father, saying:
{6:5} ‘From the day when I led my people away from the land of Egypt, I did not choose a city from all the tribes of Israel, so that a house would be built in it to my name. And I did not choose any other man, so that he would be the ruler of my people Israel.
{6:6} But I chose Jerusalem, so that my name would be in it. And I chose David, so that I might appoint him over my people Israel.’
{6:7} And though David, my father, had decided that he would build a house to the name of the Lord God of Israel,
{6:8} the Lord said to him: ‘In so far as it was your will that you build a house to my name, certainly you have done well in having such a will.
{6:9} But you shall not build the house. Truly, your son, who will go forth from your loins, shall build a house to my name.’
{6:10} Therefore, the Lord has accomplished his word, which he had spoken. And I have risen up in place of my father David, and I sit upon the throne of Israel, just as the Lord spoke. And I have built a house to the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.
{6:11} And I have placed in it the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he formed with the sons of Israel.”
{6:12} Then he stood before the altar of the Lord, facing the entire multitude of Israel, and he extended his hands.
{6:13} For indeed, Solomon had made a bronze base, and he had positioned it in the midst of the hall; it held five cubits in length, and five cubits in width, and three cubits in height. And he stood upon it. And next, kneeling down while facing the entire multitude of Israel, and lifting up his palms towards heaven,
{6:14} he said: “O Lord God of Israel, there is no god like you in heaven or on earth. You preserve covenant and mercy with your servants, who walk before you with all their hearts.
{6:15} You fulfilled for your servant David, my father, whatsoever you had said to him. And you carried out the deed that you promised with your mouth, just as the present time proves.
{6:16} Now then, O Lord God of Israel, fulfill for your servant David, my father, whatsoever you said to him, saying: ‘There shall not fail to be a man from you before me, who will sit upon the throne of Israel, yet only if your sons will guard their ways, and will walk in my law, just as you also have walked before me.’
{6:17} And now, O Lord God of Israel, let your word be confirmed that you spoke to your servant David.
{6:18} How then is it to be believed that God would dwell with men upon the earth? If heaven and the heavens of the heavens do not contain you, how much less this house that I have built?
{6:19} But it has been done for this only, so that you may look with favor upon the prayer of your servant, and on his supplication, O Lord my God, and so that you may hear the prayers which your servant pours out before you,
{6:20} and so that you may open your eyes over this house, day and night, over the place where you promised that your name would be invoked,
{6:21} and so that you may heed the prayer which your servant is praying within it, and so that you may heed the prayers of your servant and of your people Israel. Whoever will pray in this place, listen from your habitation, that is, from heaven, and forgive.
{6:22} If anyone will have sinned against his neighbor, and he arrives to swear against him, and to bind himself with a curse before the altar in this house,
{6:23} you will hear him from heaven, and you will execute justice for your servants, so that you return, to the iniquitous man, his own way upon his own head, and so that you vindicate the just man, repaying him according to his own justice.
{6:24} If your people Israel will have been overwhelmed by their enemies, (for they will sin against you) and having been converted will do penance, and if they will have beseeched your name, and will have prayed in this place,
{6:25} you will heed them from heaven, and you will forgive the sin of your people Israel, and you will lead them back into the land that you gave to them and to their fathers.
{6:26} If the heavens have been closed, so that rain does not fall, because of the sin of the people, and if they will petition you in this place, and confess to your name, and be converted from their sins when you will afflict them,
{6:27} heed them from heaven, O Lord, and forgive the sins of your servants and of your people Israel, and teach them the good way, by which they may advance, and give rain to the land that you gave to your people as a possession.
{6:28} If a famine will have risen up in the land, or pestilence, or fungus, or mildew, or locusts, or beetles, or if enemies will have laid waste to the countryside and will have besieged the gates of the cities, or whatever scourge or infirmity will have pressed upon them,
{6:29} if anyone from your people Israel, knowing his own scourge and infirmity, will have made supplication and will have extended his hands in this house,
{6:30} you will heed him from heaven, indeed from your sublime habitation, and you will forgive, and you will repay each one according to his ways, which you know him to hold in his heart. For you alone know the hearts of the sons of men.
{6:31} So may they fear you, and so may they walk in your ways, during all the days that they live upon the face of the land, which you gave to our fathers.
{6:32} Also, if the outsider, who is not from your people Israel, will have arrived from a far away land, because of your great name, and because of your robust hand and your outstretched arm, and if he will adore in this place,
{6:33} you will heed him from heaven, your most firm habitation, and you will accomplish all the things about which this sojourner will have called out to you, so that all the people of the earth may know your name, and may fear you, just as your people Israel do, and so that they may know that your name is invoked over this house, which I have built.
{6:34} If, having gone out to war against their adversaries along the way that you will send them, your people adore you facing in the direction of this city, which you have chosen, and of this house, which I have built to your name,
{6:35} you will heed their prayers from heaven, and their supplications, and you will vindicate them.
{6:36} But if they will have sinned against you (for there is no man who does not sin) and you will have become angry against them, and if you will have delivered them to their enemies, and so they lead them away as captives to a far away land, or even to one that is near,
{6:37} and if, having been converted in their heart in the land to which they had been led as captives, they will do penance, and beseech you in the land of their captivity, saying, ‘We have sinned; we have committed iniquity; we have acted unjustly,’
{6:38} and if they will have returned to you, with their whole heart and with their whole soul, in the land of their captivity to which they were led away, and if they will adore you in the direction of their own land, which you gave to their fathers, and of the city, which you have chosen, and of the house, which I have built to your name,
{6:39} from heaven, that is, from your firm habitation, you will heed their prayers, and you will accomplish judgment, and you will forgive your people, even though they are sinners.
{6:40} For you are my God. Let your eyes be open, I beg you, and let your ears be attentive to the prayer that is made in this place.
{6:41} Now therefore, rise up, O Lord God, to your resting place, you and the ark of your strength. Let your priests, O Lord God, be clothed with salvation, and let your holy ones rejoice in what is good.
{6:42} O Lord God, may you not turn away from the face of your Christ. Remember the mercies of your servant, David.”
{7:1} And when Solomon had completed pouring out his prayers, fire descended from heaven, and it devoured the holocausts and the victims. And the majesty of the Lord filled the house.
{7:2} Neither were the priests able to enter into the temple of the Lord, because the majesty of the Lord had filled the temple of the Lord.
{7:3} Moreover, all the sons of Israel saw the fire descending, and the glory of the Lord upon the house. And falling prone upon the ground, on the layer of pavement stones, they adored and praised the Lord: “For he is good. For his mercy is everlasting.”
{7:4} Then the king and all the people were immolating victims before the Lord.
{7:5} And so, king Solomon slaughtered victims: twenty-two thousand oxen, and one hundred twenty thousand rams. And the king and the entire people dedicated the house of God.
{7:6} Then the priests and the Levites were standing in their offices, with the instruments of music for the Lord, which king David made in order to praise the Lord: “For his mercy is eternal.” And they were playing the hymns of David with their hands. And the priests were sounding out with trumpets before them, and all of Israel was standing.
{7:7} Also, Solomon sanctified the middle of the atrium in front of the temple of the Lord. For he had offered the holocausts and the fat of peace offerings in that place because the bronze altar, which he had made, had not been able to support the holocausts and the sacrifices and the fat.
{7:8} Therefore, Solomon kept the solemnity, at that time, for seven days, and all of Israel with him, a very great assembly, from the entrance of Hamath, even to the torrent of Egypt.
{7:9} And on the eighth day, he held a solemn gathering, because he had dedicated the altar over seven days, and he had celebrated the solemnity over seven days.
{7:10} And so, on the twenty-third day of the seventh month, he dismissed the people to their dwellings, joyful and glad over the good that the Lord had done for David, and for Solomon, and for his people Israel.
{7:11} And Solomon completed the house of the Lord, and the house of the king, and all that he had resolved in his heart to do for the house of the Lord, and for his own house. And he prospered.
{7:12} Then the Lord appeared to him by night, and said: “I have heard your prayer, and I have chosen this place for myself as a house of sacrifice.
{7:13} If I close up heaven, so that no rain will fall, or if I order and instruct the locust to devour the land, or if I send a pestilence among my people,
{7:14} and if my people, over whom my name has been invoked, being converted, will have petitioned me and sought my face, and will have done penance for their wicked ways, then I will heed them from heaven, and I will forgive their sins, and I will heal their land.
{7:15} Also, my eyes will be open, and my ears will be attentive, to the prayer of him who shall pray in this place.
{7:16} For I have chosen and sanctified this place, so that my name may be there continually, and so that my eyes and my heart may remain there, for all days.
{7:17} And as for you, if you will walk before me, just as your father David walked, and if you will act in accord with all that I have instructed you, and if you will observe my justices and judgments,
{7:18} I will raise up the throne of your kingdom, just as I promised to your father David, saying: ‘There shall not be taken away a man from your stock who will be ruler in Israel.’
{7:19} But if you will have turned away, and will have forsaken my justices and my precepts, which I have set before you, and going astray, you serve strange gods, and you adore them,
{7:20} I will uproot you from my land, which I gave to you, and from this house, which I sanctified to my name, and I will cast it away from before my face, and I will deliver it to be a parable and an example for all the peoples.
{7:21} And this house will be like a proverb to all who pass by. And being astonished, they shall say: ‘Why has the Lord acted this way toward this land and toward this house?’
{7:22} And they shall respond: ‘Because they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers, who led them away from the land of Egypt, and they took hold of foreign gods, and they adored and worshipped them. Therefore, all these evils have overwhelmed them.’ ”
{8:1} Then, twenty years having passed since Solomon built the house of the Lord and his own house,
{8:2} he built the cities that Hiram had given to Solomon, and he caused the sons of Israel to live there.
{8:3} Also, he went to Hamath Zobah, and he obtained it.
{8:4} And he built Palmira in the desert, and he built very fortified cities in Hamath.
{8:5} And he built upper Beth-horon and lower Beth-horon, as walled cities, having gates and bars and locks,
{8:6} as well as Baalath, and all the very strong cities which were of Solomon, and all the cities of the chariots, and the cities of the horsemen. Everything whatsoever that Solomon willed and decided, he built in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and throughout the entire land of his authority.
{8:7} All the people who had been left from the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, those who were not from the stock of Israel,
{8:8} those of their sons and their posterity whom the sons of Israel had not put to death, Solomon subjugated as tributaries, even to this day.
{8:9} But he did not appoint anyone from the sons of Israel to serve in the works of the king. For they were men of war, and first rulers, and commanders of his chariots and horsemen.
{8:10} Now all the leaders of the army of king Solomon were two hundred fifty, who were instructing the people.
{8:11} Truly, he transferred the daughter of Pharaoh, from the City of David, to the house that he had built for her. For the king said: “My wife shall not live in the house of David, king of Israel, for it has been sanctified. For the ark of the Lord has entered into it.”
{8:12} Then Solomon offered holocausts to the Lord on the altar of the Lord, which he had constructed before the portico,
{8:13} so that every day there would be an offering on it, in accord with the precept of Moses, on the Sabbaths, and on the new moons, and three times a year on the feast days, that is, on the solemnity of unleavened bread, and on the solemnity of weeks, and on the solemnity of tabernacles.
{8:14} And he appointed, in accord with the plan of his father David, the offices of the priests in their ministries; and those of the Levites, in their orders, so that they might praise and minister before the priests according to the ritual of each day; and the porters, in their divisions, from gate to gate. For so had David, the man of God, instructed.
{8:15} Neither the priests, nor the Levites, transgressed against the commands of the king, in all that he had instructed, and in the keeping of the treasuries.
{8:16} Solomon had all the expenses prepared, from the day on which he founded the house of the Lord, even until the day when he perfected it.
{8:17} Then Solomon went away to Eziongeber, and to Eloth, on the coast of the Red Sea, which is in the land of Edom.
{8:18} And Hiram sent to him ships, by the hands of his servants, sailors and skillful navigators of the sea, and they went away with the servants of Solomon to Ophir. And they took from there four hundred fifty talents of gold, and they brought it to king Solomon.
{9:1} Also, when the queen of Sheba had heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to Jerusalem, with great riches and with camels which were carrying aromatics, and very much gold, and precious gems, so that she might test him with enigmas. And when she had approached Solomon, she spoke to him all that was in her heart.
{9:2} And Solomon explained for her all that she had proposed. And there was nothing that he did not make clear to her.
{9:3} And after she saw these things, specifically, the Wisdom_of_Solomon, and the house which he had built,
{9:4} indeed also the foods of his table, and the habitations of the servants, and the duties of his ministers, and their apparel, and also his cupbearers and their garments, and the victims which he was immolating in the house of the Lord, there was no longer any spirit in her, due to astonishment.
{9:5} And she said to the king: “The word is true, which I had heard in my own land, about your virtues and wisdom.
{9:6} I did not believe those who described it, until I had arrived and my eyes had seen, and I had proven that not even half of your wisdom had been described to me. You have exceeded your fame with your virtue.
{9:7} Blessed are your men, and blessed are your servants, who stand before you at all times and listen to your wisdom.
{9:8} Blessed is the Lord your God, who willed to set you upon his throne as a king for the Lord your God. Since God loves Israel, he wishes to preserve them unto eternity. For this reason, he appointed you as king over them, so that you may accomplish judgment and justice.”
{9:9} Then she gave to the king one hundred twenty talents of gold, and an exceedingly great abundance of aromatics, and very precious gems. Never were there such aromatics as those that the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon.
{9:10} Then too, the servants of Hiram, with the servants of Solomon, brought gold from Ophir, and wood from thyine trees, and very precious gems.
{9:11} And the king made, from this particular thyine wood, steps in the house of the Lord, and in the house of the king, and also harps and psalteries for the singing men. Never was there seen such wood in the land of Judah.
{9:12} Then king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired, and all that she requested, and much more than what she had brought to him. And returning, she went away to her own land with her servants.
{9:13} Now the weight of the gold, which was being brought to Solomon throughout each year, was six hundred sixty-six talents of gold,
{9:14} apart from the sum that the legates of various nations and the merchants were accustomed to bring, and apart from the gold and silver that all the kings of Arabia, and the princes of the lands, were bringing together for Solomon.
{9:15} And so, king Solomon made two hundred gold spears, from six hundred gold pieces, the amount used for each spear,
{9:16} and also three hundred gold shields, from three hundred gold pieces, which covered each shield. And the king placed them in the armory, which was situated in a forest.
{9:17} Also, the king made a great ivory throne, and he clothed it with the purest gold.
{9:18} And there were six steps, by which he would ascend to the throne, and a footstool of gold, and two arms, one on each side, and two lions standing beside the arms.
{9:19} Moreover, there were twelve additional little lions standing upon the six steps on both sides. There was no similar throne in all the kingdoms.
{9:20} Also, all the vessels for the feasts of the king were of gold, and the vessels of the forest house of Lebanon were from the purest gold. For silver in those days was considered as nothing.
{9:21} For indeed, the ships of the king went to Tarshish, with the servants of Hiram, once every three years. And they brought from there gold, and silver, and ivory, and primates, and peacocks.
{9:22} And so, Solomon was magnified above all the kings of the earth in wealth and glory.
{9:23} And all the kings of the lands were desiring to see the face of Solomon, so that they might hear the wisdom that God had granted to his heart.
{9:24} And they were bringing to him gifts, vessels of silver and of gold, and garments, and armor, and aromatics, and horses, and mules, throughout each year.
{9:25} Also, Solomon had forty thousand horses in the stables, and twelve thousand chariots and horsemen, and he appointed them to the cities of the chariots, and where the king was in Jerusalem.
{9:26} Now he also exercised authority over all the kings from the river Euphrates as far as the land of the Philistines, and as far as the borders of Egypt.
{9:27} And he brought forth so much silver that it was as plentiful in Jerusalem as stones. And cedar trees were as great in number as the sycamores that spring up in the plains.
{9:28} And horses were brought to him from Egypt and from every region.
{9:29} Now the rest of the works of Solomon, the first and the last, have been written in the words of Nathan, the prophet, and in the books of Ahijah, the Shilonite, as well as in the vision of Iddo, the seer, against Jeroboam, the son of Nabat.
{9:30} And Solomon reigned in Jerusalem, over all of Israel, for forty years.
{9:31} And he slept with his fathers. And they buried him in the City of David. And his son, Rehoboam, reigned in his place.
{10:1} Now Rehoboam set out for Shechem. For in that place all of Israel had convened, so that they might appoint him as king.
{10:2} But when Jeroboam, the son of Nabat, who was in Egypt, (indeed he had fled to that place from Solomon) had heard it, he promptly returned.
{10:3} And they summoned him, and he arrived with all of Israel. And they spoke to Rehoboam, saying:
{10:4} “Your father pressed upon us a very difficult yoke. You should govern us more lightly than your father, who imposed on us a heavy servitude, and so lift up some of the burden, so that we may serve you.”
{10:5} But he said, “Return to me after three days.” And when the people had gone away,
{10:6} he took counsel with the elders, who had stood before his father Solomon while he was still living, saying, “What counsel would you give to me, so that I may respond to the people?”
{10:7} And they said to him, “If you please this people, and if you soothe them with words of clemency, they will be your servants for all days.”
{10:8} But he set aside the counsel of the elders, and he began to have discussion with the youth, who had been raised with him and who were among his companions.
{10:9} And he said to them: “How does it seem to you? Or how should I respond to this people, who have said to me, ‘Lift up the yoke that your father imposed upon us?’ ”
{10:10} But they responded like youths, having been raised with him in luxury, and they said: “So shall you speak to the people, who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy; you should lighten it,’ and so shall you respond to them: ‘My little finger is thicker than the back of my father.
{10:11} My father imposed a heavy yoke upon you, and I will place more weight upon it. My father cut you with whips; truly, I will beat you with scorpions.’ ”
{10:12} Then Jeroboam, and the entire people, went to Rehoboam on the third day, just as he had instructed them.
{10:13} And the king responded harshly, abandoning the counsel of the elders.
{10:14} And he spoke according to the will of the youths: “My father imposed a heavy yoke upon you, which I will make heavier. My father cut you with whips; truly, I will beat you with scorpions.”
{10:15} And he did not acquiesce to the pleadings of the people. For it was the will of God that his word be fulfilled, which he had spoken by the hand of Ahijah, the Shilonite, to Jeroboam, the son of Nabat.
{10:16} Then the entire people, speaking more harshly to the king, spoke to him in this way: “There is no portion for us in David, and there is no inheritance in the son of Jesse. Return to your dwellings, O Israel. Then you, O David, shall pasture your own house.” And Israel went away to their dwellings.
{10:17} But Rehoboam reigned over the sons of Israel who were living in the cities of Judah.
{10:18} And king Rehoboam sent Aduram, who was in charge of the tributes. And the sons of Israel stoned him, and he died. And so king Rehoboam hurried to climb into the chariot, and he fled to Jerusalem.
{10:19} And Israel withdrew from the house of David, even to this day.
{11:1} Then Rehoboam went to Jerusalem, and he called together the entire house of Judah and of Benjamin, one hundred eighty thousand elect men of war, so that he might contend against Israel, and turn back his kingdom to himself.
{11:2} And the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, the man of God, saying:
{11:3} “Speak to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, the king of Judah, and to all of Israel who are of Judah, or of Benjamin:
{11:4} Thus says the Lord: You shall not ascend and fight against your brothers. Let each one return to his own house. For it is by my will that this has happened.” And when they had heard the word of the Lord, they turned back, and they did not continue on against Jeroboam.
{11:5} Then Rehoboam lived in Jerusalem, and he built fortified cities in Judah.
{11:6} And he built up Bethlehem, and Etam, and Tekoa,
{11:7} and also Bethzur, and Soco, and Adullam,
{11:8} indeed also Gath, and Mareshah, and Ziph,
{11:9} then too Adoram, and Lachish, and Azekah,
{11:10} as well as Zorah, and Aijalon, and Hebron, which were very fortified cities in Judah and in Benjamin.
{11:11} And when he had enclosed them with walls, he placed in them rulers, and storehouses of provisions, that is, of oil and wine.
{11:12} Moreover, in each city he made an armory of shields and spears, and he strengthened them with the utmost diligence. And he ruled over Judah and Benjamin.
{11:13} Then the priests and Levites, who were in all of Israel, came to him from all their settlements,
{11:14} leaving behind their suburbs and possessions, and crossing over to Judah and to Jerusalem. For Jeroboam and his followers had cast them out, so that they could not exercise the priestly office to the Lord.
{11:15} And he appointed for himself priests of high places, and of demons, and of calves that he had made.
{11:16} Moreover, out of all the tribes of Israel, whosoever would give their heart so that they sought the Lord God of Israel, they went to Jerusalem to immolate their victims before the Lord, the God of their fathers.
{11:17} And they strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and they confirmed Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, for three years. For they walked in the ways of David and of Solomon, but only for three years.
{11:18} Then Rehoboam took as wife Mahalath, the daughter of Jerimoth, son of David, and also Abihail, the daughter of Eliab, son of Jesse.
{11:19} They bore sons for him: Jeush, and Shemariah, and Zaham.
{11:20} And also after her, he married Maacah, the daughter of Absalom, who bore for him Abijah, and Attai, and Ziza, and Shelomith.
{11:21} But Rehoboam loved Maacah, the daughter of Absalom, above all his wives and concubines. For he had taken eighteen wives and sixty concubines. And he conceived twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters.
{11:22} Truly, he appointed as the head, Abijah, the son of Maacah, to be the ruler over all his brothers. For he thought to make him king,
{11:23} since he was wiser and more powerful than all his sons, even in all the regions of Judah and Benjamin, and in all the fortified cities. And he provided them with very much food, and he sought many wives.
{12:1} And when the kingdom of Rehoboam had been strengthened and fortified, he abandoned the law of the Lord, and all of Israel with him.
{12:2} Then, in the fifth year of the reign of Rehoboam, Shishak, the king of Egypt, ascended against Jerusalem (for they had sinned against the Lord)
{12:3} with one thousand two hundred chariots and sixty thousand horsemen. And the common people could not be numbered who had arrived with him from Egypt, namely, the Libyans, and the Troglodytes, and the Ethiopians.
{12:4} And he seized the most fortified cities in Judah, and he went even to Jerusalem.
{12:5} Then Shemaiah, the prophet, entered to Rehoboam, and to the leaders of Judah who had gathered together in Jerusalem while fleeing from Shishak, and he said to them: “Thus says the Lord: You have abandoned me, and so I have abandoned you into the hand of Shishak.”
{12:6} And the leaders of Israel, and the king, being in consternation, said, “The Lord is just.”
{12:7} And when the Lord had seen that they were humbled, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, saying: “Because they have been humbled, I will not disperse them. And I will give to them a little help, and my fury will not rain down upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.
{12:8} Yet truly, they shall serve him, so that they may know the difference between my servitude, and the servitude of a kingdom of the lands.”
{12:9} And so Shishak, the king of Egypt, withdrew from Jerusalem, taking up the treasures of the house of the Lord and of the house of the king. And he took away everything with him, even the gold shields that Solomon had made.
{12:10} In place of these, the king made bronze ones, and he delivered them to the leaders of the shield bearers, who were guarding the vestibule of the palace.
{12:11} And when the king would enter into the house of the Lord, the shield bearers would arrive and take them, and they would carry them back to their armory.
{12:12} Yet truly, because they were humbled, the wrath of the Lord turned away from them, and so they were not utterly destroyed. And indeed, good works were also found in Judah.
{12:13} Therefore, king Rehoboam was strengthened in Jerusalem, and he reigned. He was forty-one years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city that the Lord chose out of all the tribes of Israel, so that he might confirm his name there. Now the name of his mother was Naamah, an Ammonite.
{12:14} But he did evil, and he did not prepare his heart so as to seek the Lord.
{12:15} Truly, the works of Rehoboam, the first and the last, have been written in the books of Shemaiah, the prophet, and of Iddo, the seer, and diligently set forth. And Rehoboam and Jeroboam fought against one another during all their days.
{12:16} And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the City of David. And his son, Abijah, reigned in his place.
{13:1} In the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam, Abijah reigned over Judah.
{13:2} He reigned for three years in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother was Micaiah, the daughter of Uriel, from Gibeah. And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam.
{13:3} And when Abijah had undertaken the conflict, and he had with him four hundred thousand elect men, very fit for war, Jeroboam set up a battle line opposite him of eight hundred thousand men, who were also elect and very strong in warfare.
{13:4} Then Abijah stood upon mount Zemaraim, which was in Ephraim, and he said: “Listen to me, Jeroboam and all of Israel.
{13:5} Are you ignorant that the Lord, the God of Israel, gave David the kingship over Israel for all time, to him and to his sons, by a covenant of salt?
{13:6} But Jeroboam, the son of Nabat, the servant of Solomon, son of David, rose up and rebelled against his lord.
{13:7} And there were gathered to him very vain men, and sons of Belial. And they prevailed against Rehoboam, the son of Solomon. For Rehoboam was inexperienced, and he had a fearful heart, and so he was unable to resist them.
{13:8} Now therefore, you say that you are able to resist the kingdom of the Lord, which he possesses through the sons of David, and you have a great multitude of people, and gold calves, which Jeroboam made for you as gods.
{13:9} And you have cast out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron, as well as the Levites. And like all the peoples of the lands, you have made priests for yourselves. Anyone who is willing to come and perform the ritual by his hand, with a bull from the herd and with seven rams, is made a priest of those who are not gods.
{13:10} But the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken him. And the priests who minister to the Lord are from the sons of Aaron. And the Levites are in their proper order.
{13:11} Also, they offer holocausts to the Lord, each and every day, morning and evening, and incense composed according to the precept of the law, and the bread of the presence on a very pure table. And there is with us the gold lampstand with its lamps, so that they may burn continually in the evening. For certainly, we keep the precepts of the Lord our God, whom you have forsaken.
{13:12} Therefore, God is the commander of our army, with his priests, who sound the trumpets that ring out against you. O sons of Israel, do not choose to fight against the Lord, the God of your fathers. For it is not expedient for you.”
{13:13} While he was speaking these things, Jeroboam set in motion an ambush behind them. And while they stood facing the enemy, without Judah realizing it, his army circled around.
{13:14} And looking back, Judah saw the war threatening in front and behind, and they cried out to the Lord. And the priests began to sound the trumpets.
{13:15} And all the men of Judah shouted out. And behold, when they cried out, God terrified Jeroboam, and all of Israel who were standing in opposition to Abijah and Judah.
{13:16} And the sons of Israel fled from Judah, and the Lord delivered them into their hand.
{13:17} Therefore, Abijah and his people struck them with a great slaughter. And five hundred thousand strong men of Israel fell wounded.
{13:18} And the sons of Israel were humiliated at that time. And the sons of Judah were very greatly strengthened, because they had trusted in the Lord, the God of their fathers.
{13:19} Then Abijah pursued the fleeing Jeroboam. And he seized cities from him: Bethel and her daughters, and Jeshanah with her daughters, and also Ephron and her daughters.
{13:20} And Jeroboam no longer had the strength to resist, in the days of Abijah. And the Lord struck him, and he died.
{13:21} And so Abijah, having been strengthened in his authority, took fourteen wives. And he procreated twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.
{13:22} Now the rest of the words of Abijah, and his ways and works, have been written very diligently in the book of Iddo, the prophet.
{14:1} Then Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the City of David. And his son, Asa, reigned in his place. During his days, the land was quiet for ten years.
{14:2} Now Asa did what was good and pleasing in the sight of his God. And he overturned the altars of foreign worship, and the high places.
{14:3} And he broke apart the statues, and he cut down the sacred groves.
{14:4} And he instructed Judah that they should seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, and that they should carry out the law and all the commandments.
{14:5} And he took away, from all the cities of Judah, the altars and the shrines. And he reigned in peace.
{14:6} Also, he built fortified cities in Judah. For it was quiet, and in his time no wars had arisen. For the Lord was generously granting peace.
{14:7} Then he said to Judah: “Let us build these cities, and strengthen them with walls, and fortify them with towers and gates and bars, while all things are at rest from wars. For we have sought the Lord, the God of our fathers, and he has granted to us peace on every side.” And so they built, and there was nothing to impede them from building.
{14:8} Now Asa had in his army three hundred thousand men of Judah, carrying shields and spears, and truly, of Benjamin, two hundred eighty thousand men with shields and bows. All of these were very valiant men.
{14:9} Then Zerah, the Ethiopian, went forth against them with his army of one million men, and three hundred chariots. And he approached as far as Mareshah.
{14:10} And Asa traveled to meet him, and he set up a battle line for the war in the Valley of Zephathah, which is near Mareshah.
{14:11} And he called upon the Lord God, and he said: “O Lord, there is no difference to you, whether you assist by few, or by many. Help us, O Lord our God. For having faith in you and in your name, we have gone forth against this multitude. O Lord, you are our God. Do not allow man to prevail against you.”
{14:12} And so the Lord terrified the Ethiopians before Asa and Judah. And the Ethiopians fled.
{14:13} And Asa, and the people who were with him, pursued them as far as Gerar. And the Ethiopians fell, even unto utter destruction, for the Lord was striking, and his army was battling, and they were destroyed. Therefore, they took many spoils.
{14:14} And they struck all the cities surrounding Gerar. For indeed, a great fear had overwhelmed everyone. And they despoiled the cities, and they carried away much plunder.
{14:15} Then too, destroying the fencing for the sheep, they took an innumerable multitude of cattle and camels. And they returned to Jerusalem.
{15:1} Now Azariah, the son of Oded, had the Spirit of God within him.
{15:2} And he went out to meet Asa, and he said to him: “Listen to me, Asa and all of Judah and Benjamin. The Lord is with you, because you have been with him. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you abandon him, he will abandon you.
{15:3} Then many days will pass in Israel, apart from the true God, and apart from a learned priest, and apart from the law.
{15:4} And when, in their anguish, they will have returned to the Lord, the God of Israel, and will have sought him, they shall find him.
{15:5} In that time, there will be no peace for those who depart and those who enter. Instead, there will be terror on every side, among all the inhabitants of the lands.
{15:6} For nation will fight against nation, and city against city. For the Lord will disturb them with every anguish.
{15:7} But as for you, be strengthened, and do not let your hands be weakened. For there will be a reward for your work.”
{15:8} And when Asa had heard these particular words, and the prophecy of the prophet Azariah, the son of Oded, he was strengthened, and he took away the idols from the entire land of Judah, and from Benjamin, and from the cities that he had seized of mount Ephraim, and he dedicated the altar of the Lord, which was before the portico of the Lord.
{15:9} And he gathered together all of Judah and Benjamin, and with them the new arrivals from Ephraim and Manasseh and Simeon. For many had fled to him from Israel, seeing that the Lord his God was with him.
{15:10} And when they had arrived in Jerusalem, in the third month, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa,
{15:11} they immolated to the Lord on that day, from the best of the spoils and from the plunder that they had brought: seven hundred oxen and seven thousand rams.
{15:12} And he entered, according to custom, in order to confirm the covenant, so that they would seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, with their whole heart and with their whole soul.
{15:13} “But if anyone,” he said, “will not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, let him die, from the least even to the greatest, from man even to woman.”
{15:14} And they swore to the Lord, with a great voice, in jubilation, and with the blare of trumpets, and with the sound of horns,
{15:15} all who were in Judah swore with a curse. For with all their heart they swore, and with all their will they sought and found him. And the Lord granted rest on all sides to them.
{15:16} Then too, Maacah, the mother of king Asa, he deposed from the august authority, because she had made an idol of Priapus within a sacred grove. And he entirely crushed it, breaking it into pieces, and he burned it at the torrent Kidron.
{15:17} But some high places were left in Israel. Even so, the heart of Asa was perfect during all his days.
{15:18} And whatever his father or he himself had vowed, he brought into the house of the Lord: silver and gold, and vessels for various uses.
{15:19} Truly, there was no war, until the thirty-fifth year of the kingdom of Asa.
{16:1} Then, in the thirty-sixth year of his reign, Baasha, the king of Israel, ascended against Judah. And he encircled Ramah with a wall, so that no one could safely depart or enter from the kingdom of Asa.
{16:2} Therefore, Asa brought forth silver and gold from the treasuries of the house of the Lord, and from the treasuries of the king. And he sent to Benhadad, the king of Syria, who was living in Damascus, saying:
{16:3} “There is a pact between me and you. Also, my father and your father had an agreement. For this reason, I have sent silver and gold to you, so that you may break the pact that you have with Baasha, the king of Israel, and so that you may cause him to withdraw from me.”
{16:4} And when he verified this, Benhadad sent the leaders of his armies to the cities of Israel. And they struck Ahion, and Dan, and Abelmaim, and all the walled cities of Naphtali.
{16:5} And when Baasha had heard of it, he ceased to build around Ramah, and he interrupted his work.
{16:6} Then king Asa took all of Judah, and they carried away from Ramah the stones and the wood that Baasha had prepared for the things to be built. And he built up Gibeah and Mizpah with them.
{16:7} In that time, the prophet Hanani went to Asa, the king of Judah, and he said to him: “Because you have faith in the king of Syria, and not in the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Syria has escaped from your hand.
{16:8} Were not the Ethiopians and the Libyans much more numerous in chariots, and horsemen, and an exceedingly great multitude? Yet when you believed in the Lord, he delivered them into your hand.
{16:9} For the eyes of the Lord contemplate the entire earth, and offer fortitude to those who believe in him with a perfect heart. And so, you acted foolishly. And so, because of this, from the present time wars shall rise up against you.”
{16:10} And Asa was angry against the seer, and he ordered him to be sent into prison. For indeed, he had been very indignant over this. And in that time, he put to death very many of the people.
{16:11} But the works of Asa, the first and the last, have been written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
{16:12} And now Asa became ill, in the thirty-ninth year of his reign, with a very severe pain in his feet. And yet, in his infirmity, he did not seek the Lord. Instead, he trusted more in the skill of physicians.
{16:13} And he slept with his fathers. And he died in the forty-first year of his reign.
{16:14} And they buried him in his own sepulcher, which he had made for himself in the City of David. And they placed him upon his bed, full of the aromatics and ointments of courtesans, which were composed with the skill of the perfumers. And they burned these over him with very great ostentation.
{17:1} Then Jehoshaphat, his son, reigned in his place. And he grew strong against Israel.
{17:2} And he appointed numbers of soldiers in all the cities of Judah that had been fortified with walls. And he placed garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of Ephraim that his father Asa had seized.
{17:3} And the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father, David. And he did not trust in the Baals,
{17:4} but in the God of his father. And he advanced in his precepts, and not according to the sins of Israel.
{17:5} And the Lord confirmed the kingdom in his hand. And all of Judah gave gifts to Jehoshaphat. And innumerable riches were brought to him, and much glory.
{17:6} And when his heart had taken courage because of the ways of the Lord, he now also took away the high places and the sacred groves from Judah.
{17:7} Then, in the third year of his reign, he sent Benhail, and Obadiah, and Zechariah, and Nethanel, and Micaiah, from among his leaders, so that they might teach in the cites of Judah.
{17:8} And with them were the Levites Shemaiah and Nethaniah and Zebadiah, and also Asahel and Shemiramoth and Jehonathan, and the Levites Adonijah and Tobijah and Tobadonijah. And with them were the priests Elishama and Jehoram.
{17:9} And they were teaching the people in Judah, having with them the book of the law of the Lord. And they were traveling through all the cities of Judah, and were instructing the people.
{17:10} And so, the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands which were around Judah. And they did not dare to make war against Jehoshaphat.
{17:11} Moreover, the Philistines carried gifts to Jehoshaphat, and a tribute in silver. Also, the Arabians brought cattle: seven thousand seven hundred rams, and the same number of he-goats.
{17:12} Therefore, Jehoshaphat increased and was magnified, even on high. And in Judah, he built houses in the likeness of towers, and walled cities.
{17:13} And he prepared many works in the cities of Judah. Also, there were men experienced in warfare in Jerusalem,
{17:14} and this is the number of them, by each of the houses and families. In Judah, the leader of the army was Adnah, the commander; and with him were three hundred thousand very experienced men.
{17:15} After him, Jehohanan was the leader; and with him were two hundred eighty thousand.
{17:16} Also after him, there was Amasiah, the son of Zichri, who was consecrated to the Lord; and with him were two hundred thousand strong men.
{17:17} Following him, there was Eliada, who was experienced in battle; and with him were two hundred thousand, holding bow and shield.
{17:18} Then too, after him, there was Jehozabad; and with him were one hundred eighty thousand lightly-armed soldiers.
{17:19} All these were at the hand of the king, aside from the others, whom he had positioned in the walled cities, in all of Judah.
{18:1} Therefore, Jehoshaphat was wealthy and very famous, and he was joined by affinity to Ahab.
{18:2} And after some years, he descended to him in Samaria. And upon his arrival, Ahab slaughtered very many sheep and oxen, for him and for the people who had arrived with him. And he persuaded him that he should ascend against Ramoth Gilead.
{18:3} And Ahab, the king of Israel, said to Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, “Come with me to Ramoth Gilead.” And he answered him: “As I am, so also are you. As your people are, so also are my people. And we will be with you in war.”
{18:4} And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Consult, I beg you, the word of the Lord for the present circumstances.”
{18:5} And so the king of Israel gathered together four hundred men of the prophets, and he said to them: “Should we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or should we be quieted?” But they said, “Ascend, and God will deliver into the hand of the king.”
{18:6} And Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not a prophet of the Lord here, so that we may inquire of him as well?”
{18:7} And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat: “There is one man, from whom we would be able to ask the will of the Lord. But I hate him, for he never prophesies good to me, but at all times evil. And it is Micaiah, the son of Imlah.” And Jehoshaphat said, “You should not speak in this manner, O king.”
{18:8} Therefore, the king of Israel called one of the eunuchs, and said to him: “Quickly, summon Micaiah, the son of Imlah.”
{18:9} Now the king of Israel, and Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, were both sitting upon their thrones, clothed in royal vestments. And they were sitting in an open area, beside the gate of Samaria. And all the prophets were prophesying before them.
{18:10} Truly, Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah, made for himself horns of iron, and he said: “Thus says the Lord: With these, you shall threaten Syria, until you crush it.”
{18:11} And all the prophets prophesied similarly, and they said: “Ascend against Ramoth Gilead, and you shall prosper, and the Lord will deliver them into the hand of the king.”
{18:12} Then the messenger who had gone to summon Micaiah said to him: “Lo, the words of all the prophets, with one mouth, announce good to the king. Therefore, I ask you that you not dissent from them in your word, and that you speak prosperity.”
{18:13} And Micaiah responded to him, “As the Lord lives, whatever my God will say to me, the same shall I speak.”
{18:14} Therefore, he went to the king. And the king said to him, “Micaiah, should we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or should we be quieted?” And he responded to him: “Ascend. For everything will come to prosperity, and the enemies will be delivered into your hands.”
{18:15} And the king said, “Again and again, I bind you by an oath, so that you will not speak to me except what is true in the name of the Lord!”
{18:16} Then he said: “I saw all of Israel scattered amid the mountains, like sheep without a shepherd. And the Lord said: ‘These have no masters. Let each one return in peace to his own house.’ ”
{18:17} And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat: “Did I not tell you that this one would not prophesy to me anything good, but only what is evil?”
{18:18} Then he said: “Therefore, listen to the word of the Lord. I saw the Lord sitting upon his throne, and the entire army of heaven was standing beside him, on the right and on the left.
{18:19} And the Lord said: ‘Who will deceive Ahab, the king of Israel, so that he may ascend and fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ And when one spoke in one way, and another in another way,
{18:20} there came forward a spirit, and he stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will deceive him.’ And the Lord said to him, ‘In what way will you deceive him?’
{18:21} And he responded, ‘I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And the Lord said: ‘You will deceive and prevail. Go forth and do so.’
{18:22} Therefore now, behold: the Lord gave a lying spirit to the mouth of all your prophets, and the Lord has spoken evil about you.”
{18:23} Then Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah, approached, and he struck Micaiah on the jaw, and he said: “In what way did the Spirit of the Lord depart from me, so that he would speak to you?”
{18:24} And Micaiah said: “You yourself shall see it, in that day, when you will enter a room within a room, so that you may be hidden.”
{18:25} Then the king of Israel instructed, saying: “Take Micaiah, and lead him to Amon, the leader of the city, and to Joash, the son of Amalech.
{18:26} And you shall say: ‘Thus says the king: Send this man to prison, and give to him a little bread and a little water, until I return in peace.’ ”
{18:27} And Micaiah said, “If you will have returned in peace, the Lord has not spoken by me.” And he said, “May all the people listen.”
{18:28} And so, the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, ascended against Ramoth Gilead.
{18:29} And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat: “I will change my clothing, and in this way I will go into battle. But you should be clothed in your own garments.” And the king of Israel, having changed his clothing, went to war.
{18:30} Now the king of Syria had instructed the commanders of his horsemen, saying, “You shall not fight against the least or the greatest, but only against the king of Israel.”
{18:31} And so, when the leaders of the horsemen had seen Jehoshaphat, they said, “This one is the king of Israel.” And while fighting, they surrounded him. But he cried out to the Lord, and he assisted him, and he turned them away from him.
{18:32} For when the commanders of the horsemen had seen that he was not the king of Israel, they left him.
{18:33} Then it happened that one of the people shot an arrow indiscriminately, and it struck the king of Israel between the neck and the shoulder. And so he said to his chariot driver: “Turn your hand, and lead me away from the battle line. For I have been wounded.”
{18:34} And the fight ended on that day. But the king of Israel was standing in his chariot facing the Syrians, even until evening. And he died when the sun set.
{19:1} Then Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, returned in peace to his house in Jerusalem.
{19:2} And the seer Jehu, the son of Hanani, met him, and said to him: “You offer assistance to the impious, and you are joined in friendship with those who hate the Lord. And for this reason, you certainly deserve the wrath of the Lord.
{19:3} But good works have been found in you. For you have taken away the sacred groves from the land of Judah. And you have prepared your heart, so as to seek the Lord, the God of your fathers.”
{19:4} Then Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem. And again he went out to the people, from Beersheba as far as mount Ephraim. And he called them back to the Lord, the God of their fathers.
{19:5} And he appointed judges of the land, in all the fortified cities of Judah, in each place.
{19:6} And instructing the judges, he said: “Pay attention to what you are doing. For you exercise judgment, not of man, but of the Lord. And whatever you will have judged, it will come back to you.
{19:7} Let the fear of the Lord be with you, and do all things with diligence. For there is no iniquity with the Lord our God, nor respect of persons, nor desire for gifts.”
{19:8} Jehoshaphat also appointed Levites and priests and leaders of families, out of Israel, in Jerusalem, so that they might judge the judgment and purpose of the Lord for its inhabitants.
{19:9} And he instructed them, saying, “So shall you act: faithfully, in the fear of the Lord, and with a perfect heart.
{19:10} Every case that will come to you from your brothers, who live in their cities, between kindred and kindred, wherever there is a question concerning law, commandment, ceremonies, or justifications, reveal it to them, so that they may not sin against the Lord, and so that wrath may not overwhelm you and your brothers. Then, by acting in this way, you will not sin.
{19:11} But Amariah, a priest and your high priest, shall preside over those things which pertain to God. Then Zebadiah, the son of Ishmael, who is a ruler in the house of Judah, shall be over those works that pertain to the office of the king. And you have before you the Levites as teachers. Be strengthened and act diligently, and the Lord will be with you for what is good.”
{20:1} After these things, the sons of Moab, and the sons of Ammon, and with them some from the Ammonites, gathered together so that they might fight against him.
{20:2} And messengers arrived and reported to Jehoshaphat, saying: “A great multitude has arrived against you, from those places that are across the sea, and from Syria. And behold, they are standing together at Hazazon-tamar, which is Engedi.”
{20:3} Then Jehoshaphat, being terrified with fear, gave himself entirely to petitioning the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all of Judah.
{20:4} And Judah gathered together to pray to the Lord. Moreover, everyone from their cities came to beseech him.
{20:5} And when Jehoshaphat had stood up in the midst of the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new atrium,
{20:6} he said: “O Lord, God of our fathers, you are God in heaven, and you rule over all the kingdoms of the Gentiles. In your hand is strength and power, and no one is able to withstand you.
{20:7} Did not you, our God, put to death all the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel? And you gave it to the offspring of your friend Abraham, for all time.
{20:8} And they lived in it. And they built a Sanctuary to your name in it, saying:
{20:9} ‘If evils will have fallen upon us, the sword of judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we will stand in your sight before this house, in which your name is invoked, and we will cry out to you in our tribulations. And you will heed us and accomplish our salvation.’
{20:10} Now therefore, behold the sons of Ammon, and of Moab, and mount Seir, through whose lands you did not permit Israel to cross when they were departing from Egypt. Instead, they turned aside from them, and they did not put them to death.
{20:11} They are doing the contrary, and they are striving to cast us from the possession which you delivered to us.
{20:12} Therefore, will you, our God, not judge them? Certainly, in us there is not enough strength so that we would be able to withstand this multitude, which rushes against us. But although we do not know what we ought to do, we have this alone remaining, that we direct our eyes to you.”
{20:13} Truly, all of Judah was standing before the Lord with their little ones and wives and children.
{20:14} But there was Jahaziel, the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite from the sons of Asaph, upon whom the Spirit of the Lord went, in the midst of the crowd.
{20:15} And he said: “Pay attention, all of Judah, and you who live in Jerusalem, and you, king Jehoshaphat. Thus says the Lord to you: Do not be afraid. Neither should you be dismayed by this multitude. For the fight is not yours, but God’s.
{20:16} Tomorrow, you shall descend against them. For they will ascend along the incline named Ziz, and will find them at the summit of the torrent, which is opposite the wilderness of Jeruel.
{20:17} It will not be you who will fight. Instead, only stand with confidence, and you will see the help of the Lord over you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid. Neither should you be dismayed. Tomorrow you shall go forth against them, and the Lord will be with you.”
{20:18} Then Jehoshaphat, and Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell prone on the ground before the Lord, and they adored him.
{20:19} And the Levites from the sons of Kohath, and from the sons of Korah, were praising the Lord, the God of Israel, with a great voice, on high.
{20:20} And when they had risen up in the morning, they went out through the desert of Tekoa. And as they were setting out, Jehoshaphat, standing in their midst, said: “Listen to me, men of Judah and all inhabitants of Jerusalem. Believe in the Lord your God, and you will be secure. Believe in his prophets, and everything will come to prosperity.”
{20:21} And he gave counsel to the people. And he appointed the singing men of the Lord, so that they would praise him by their companies, and so that they would go before the army, and with one voice say: “Confess to the Lord. For his mercy is eternal.”
{20:22} And when they had begun to sing praises, the Lord turned their ambushes upon themselves, that is, those of the sons of Ammon, and of Moab, and of mount Seir, who had gone forth so that they might fight against Judah. And they were struck down.
{20:23} For the sons of Ammon and of Moab rose up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, so that they might slay and destroy them. And when they had perpetrated this work, now also turning upon themselves, they cut one another with wounds.
{20:24} Then, when Judah had gone to the high point that looks out toward the desert, they saw, from far away, the entire wide region filled with dead bodies. Neither was there anyone who was left alive and had been able to escape death.
{20:25} Therefore, Jehoshaphat went, and all the people with him, in order to take away the spoils of the dead. And they found, among the dead bodies, diverse equipment, and also garments, and very precious vessels. And they despoiled these, to such an extent that they were unable to carry everything. Neither could they, over three days, take away the spoils because of the magnitude of the plunder.
{20:26} Then, on the fourth day, they were gathered together in the Valley of Blessing. For they had blessed the Lord there, and therefore they called that place the Valley of Blessing, even to the present day.
{20:27} And every man of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, returned, with Jehoshaphat before them, to Jerusalem, with great rejoicing. For the Lord had granted to them gladness concerning their enemies.
{20:28} And they entered into Jerusalem with psalteries, and harps, and trumpets, into the house of the Lord.
{20:29} Then the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands, when they had heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel.
{20:30} And the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was quiet. And God granted to him peace on all sides.
{20:31} And so Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah. And he was thirty-five years old when he had begun to reign. Then he reigned for twenty-five years in Jerusalem. And the name of his mother was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi.
{20:32} And he walked in the way of his father, Asa, and he did not decline from it, doing the things that were pleasing before the Lord.
{20:33} Yet truly, he did not take away the high places, and the people still had not directed their heart to the Lord, the God of their fathers.
{20:34} But the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, the first and the last, have been written in the words of Jehu, the son of Hanani, which he digested into the books of the kings of Israel.
{20:35} After these things, Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, formed a friendship with Ahaziah, the king of Israel, whose works were very impious.
{20:36} And he was a partner in the making of ships, which would go to Tarshish. And they made the fleet at Eziongeber.
{20:37} Then Eliezer, the son of Dodavahu, from Mareshah, prophesied to Jehoshaphat, saying: “Because you have made a pact with Ahaziah, the Lord has struck your works, and the ships have been broken, and they have not been able to go to Tarshish.”
{21:1} Then Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and he was buried with them in the City of David. And his son, Jehoram, reigned in his place.
{21:2} And he had brothers, sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, and Jehiel, and Zechariah, and Azariah, and Michael, and Shephatiah. All these were sons of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah.
{21:3} And their father gave to them many gifts of silver, and gold, and valuables, with very fortified cities in Judah. But the kingdom he handed on to Jehoram, because he was the firstborn.
{21:4} Therefore, Jehoram rose up over the kingdom of his father. And when he had established himself, he killed with the sword all his brothers, and certain ones from the leaders of Israel.
{21:5} Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for eight years in Jerusalem.
{21:6} And he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had done. For his wife was a daughter of Ahab, and he did evil in the sight of the Lord.
{21:7} But the Lord was not willing to destroy the house of David, because of the covenant that he had formed with him, and because he had promised that he would provide a lamp to him, and to his sons, for all time.
{21:8} In those days, Edom rebelled, so as not to be subject to Judah, and they appointed for themselves a king.
{21:9} And when Jehoram had gone across with his leaders, and all the horsemen who were with him, he arose in the night, and struck the Edomites (who had surrounded him), and all the commanders of his horsemen.
{21:10} Even so, Edom rebelled, so as not to be under the authority of Judah, even to this day. Also at that time, Libnah withdrew, so as not to be under his hand. For he had forsaken the Lord, the God of his fathers.
{21:11} Moreover, he also constructed high places in the cities of Judah. And he caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to fornicate, and Judah to prevaricate.
{21:12} Then letters were conveyed to him from the prophet Elijah, in which it was written: “Thus says the Lord, the God of David, your father: Because you have not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat, your father, nor in the ways of Asa, the king of Judah,
{21:13} but instead you have advanced along the paths of the kings of Israel, and you have caused Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to fornicate, imitating the fornication of the house of Ahab, and moreover, you have killed your brothers, the house of your father, who are better than you:
{21:14} behold, the Lord will strike you with a great plague, with all your people, and your sons and wives, and all your substance.
{21:15} And you shall be sickened by a very grievous disease of your bowels, until your inner organs depart, little by little, each day.”
{21:16} Therefore, the Lord stirred up, against Jehoram, the spirit of the Philistines, and of the Arabians, who are along the borders of the Ethiopians.
{21:17} And they ascended into the land of Judah. And they laid waste to it. And they despoiled all the substance that was found in the house of the king, including even his sons and wives. Neither did there remain for him any son, except Jehoahaz, who was the youngest born.
{21:18} And in addition to all these things, the Lord struck him with an incurable disease of the bowels.
{21:19} And as day followed after day, and the space of time turned, the course of two years was completed. And after having been wasted by a long consumption, so much so that even his inner organs were discharged, the disease ended along with his life. And so he died of a very grievous illness. And the people did not make a funeral for him, according to the custom of burning, as they had done for his ancestors.
{21:20} He was thirty-two years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for eight years in Jerusalem. And he did not walk uprightly. And they buried him in the City of David, yet truly, not in the sepulcher of the kings.
{22:1} Then the inhabitants of Jerusalem appointed his youngest son, Ahaziah, as king in his place. For the robbers of the Arabians, who had fallen upon the camp, had put to death all those who were greater by birth before him. And so Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram, reigned as king of Judah.
{22:2} Ahaziah was forty-two years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for one year in Jerusalem. And the name of his mother was Athaliah, the daughter of Omri.
{22:3} But he too went forth in the ways of the house of Ahab. For his mother impelled him to act impiously.
{22:4} And so he did evil in the sight of the Lord, just as the house of Ahab did. For after the death of his father, they were counselors to him, to his destruction.
{22:5} And he walked in their counsels. And he went with Joram, the son of Ahab, the king of Israel, to war against Hazael, the king of Syria, at Ramoth Gilead. And the Syrians wounded Joram.
{22:6} And he returned, so that he might be cured at Jezreel. For he had received many wounds in the above-stated battle. And so Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram, the king of Judah, descended, so that he might visit Joram, the son of Ahab, at Jezreel, while he was ill.
{22:7} Indeed, it was the will of God against Ahaziah that he would go to Joram, and when he had gone, that he also would go out with him against Jehu, the son of Nimshi, whom the Lord had anointed to destroy the house of Ahab.
{22:8} Therefore, when Jehu was overthrowing the house of Ahab, he found the leaders of Judah, with the sons of the brothers of Ahaziah, who were ministering to him, and he put them to death.
{22:9} Also, while he himself was seeking Ahaziah, he found him to be hiding in Samaria. And having been led to him, he killed him. And they buried him, because he was the son of Jehoshaphat, who had sought the Lord with all his heart. But there was no longer any hope that someone from the stock of Ahaziah would reign.
{22:10} For indeed, his mother, Athaliah, seeing that her son had died, rose up and killed the entire royal stock of the house of Jehoram.
{22:11} But Jehosheba, the daughter of the king, took Joash, the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from the midst the king’s sons when they were being slain. And she hid him with his nurse in a bedroom. Now Jehosheba, the one who had hidden him, was the daughter of king Jehoram, and the wife of the high priest Jehoiada, and the sister of Ahaziah. And because of this, Athaliah did not kill him.
{22:12} Therefore, he was with them, hidden in the house of God, for six years, while Athaliah reigned over the land.
{23:1} Then in the seventh year, Jehoiada having been strengthened, he took the centurions, namely, Azariah, the son of Jeroham, and Ishmael, the son of Jehohanan, and also Azariah, the son of Obed, and Maaseiah, the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat, the son of Zichri, and he formed a pact with them.
{23:2} And traveling through Judah, they gathered together the Levites from all of the cities of Judah, and the leaders of the families of Israel, and they went to Jerusalem.
{23:3} Then the entire multitude formed a pact with the king, in the house of God. And Jehoiada said to them: “Behold, the son of the king shall reign, just as the Lord has said concerning the sons of David.
{23:4} Therefore, this is the word that you shall do:
{23:5} One third part of you who arrive on the Sabbath, priests, and Levites, and porters, shall be at the gates. Truly, one third part shall be at the house of the king. And one third shall be at the gate which is called the Foundation. Yet truly, let all the remainder of the common people be in the courts of the house of the Lord.
{23:6} Let no one else enter into the house of the Lord, except the priests, and those from the Levites who are ministering. These alone may enter, for they have been sanctified. And let all the remainder of the common people observe the watches of the Lord.
{23:7} Then let the Levites encircle the king, each one having his weapons. And if anyone else will have entered into the temple, let him be slain. And may they be with the king, both entering and departing.”
{23:8} Then the Levites, and all of Judah, acted in accord with all that the high priest Jehoiada had instructed. And each of them took the men who were under him, and who were arriving by the course of the Sabbath, with those who had fulfilled the Sabbath and who were about to depart. For indeed the high priest Jehoiada had not permitted the companies to depart, which were accustomed to replace one another each week.
{23:9} And Jehoiada, the priest, gave to the centurions the lances and round shields and crescent shields of king David, which he had dedicated in the house of the Lord.
{23:10} And he positioned all the people, holding short swords, from the right part of the temple to the left part of the temple, before the altar and the temple, all around the king.
{23:11} And they led out the son of the king. And they imposed the diadem on him, and the testimony. And they gave him the law to hold in his hand. And they appointed him as king. Also, the high priest Jehoiada and his sons anointed him. And they prayed for him, and said, “May the king live!”
{23:12} And when Athaliah had heard it, specifically the sound of running and the praising of the king, she entered to the people in the temple of the Lord.
{23:13} And when she had seen the king standing upon the step at the entrance, and the leaders and companies around him, and all the people of the land rejoicing, and sounding the trumpets, and playing on instruments of various kinds, and the voice of those who were praising, she tore her garments, and she said: “Treason! Treason!”
{23:14} Then the high priest Jehoiada, going out to the centurions and to the leaders of the army, said to them: “Lead her away, beyond the borders of the temple. And let her be put to death outside, with the sword.” And the priest instructed that she should not be killed in the house of the Lord.
{23:15} And they laid hands on her neck. And when she had entered the gate for the horses at the king’s house, they put her to death there.
{23:16} Then Jehoiada formed a covenant between himself and the entire people, and the king, so that they would be the people of the Lord.
{23:17} And so, all the people entered into the house of Baal, and they destroyed it. And they broke apart his altars and idols. Also, they put to death Mattan, the priest of Baal, before the altars.
{23:18} Then Jehoiada appointed overseers in the house of the Lord, under the hands of the priests and Levites, whom David had distributed to the house of the Lord so that they might offer holocausts to the Lord, just as it was written in the law of Moses, with gladness and singing, in accord with the disposition of David.
{23:19} Also, he appointed porters at the gates of the house of the Lord, so that whoever was unclean for any reason would not enter.
{23:20} And he took the centurions, and the most valiant men, and the leaders of the people, and all the common people of the land, and they set out to descend to the king, from the house of the Lord, and to enter through the middle of the upper gate, to the house of the king. And they placed him on the royal throne.
{23:21} And all the people of the land were rejoicing, and the city was quieted. But Athaliah was slain with the sword.
{24:1} Joash was seven years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for forty years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Zibiah, from Beersheba.
{24:2} And he did what is good before the Lord during all the days of Jehoiada, the priest.
{24:3} Now Jehoiada gave to him two wives, from whom he conceived sons and daughters.
{24:4} After these things, it pleased Joash to repair the house of the Lord.
{24:5} And he gathered together the priests and Levites, and he said to them: “Go out to the cities of Judah, and collect from all of Israel money to repair the surfaces of the temple of your God, throughout each year. And do this promptly.” But the Levites acted negligently.
{24:6} And the king summoned Jehoiada, the leader, and he said to him: “Why was there no concern with you, so that you would compel the Levites to bring, from Judah and from Jerusalem, the money that was appointed by Moses, the servant of the Lord, so as to bring it, from the entire multitude of Israel, to the tabernacle of the testimony?
{24:7} For that very impious woman Athaliah and her sons have destroyed the house of God, and they have adorned the shrine of Baal from all the things that had been sanctified in the temple of the Lord.”
{24:8} Therefore, the king instructed, and they made an ark. And they placed it beside the gate of the house of the Lord, on the outside.
{24:9} And they proclaimed, in Judah and Jerusalem, that each one should bring to the Lord the money that Moses, the servant of God, appointed in the desert, concerning all of Israel.
{24:10} And all the leaders and all the people rejoiced. And upon entering, they together took and placed so much into the ark of the Lord that it was filled.
{24:11} And when it was time for them to bring the ark before the king by the hands of the Levites, for they saw that there was much money, the scribe of the king, and the one whom the high priest had appointed, entered. And they poured out the money that was in the ark. Then they carried the ark back to its place. And they did this on each day. And an immense sum of money was gathered.
{24:12} And the king and Jehoiada gave it to those who were in charge of the works of the house of the Lord. Then with it they hired hewers of stone, and artisans of every kind, so that they might repair the house of the Lord, and also so that the works of iron and of brass, which had begun to fall, would be reinforced.
{24:13} And those who were hired were working industriously. And the breach in the walls was healed by their hands. And they returned the house of the Lord to a pristine state. And they caused it stand firm.
{24:14} And when they had completed all the works, they brought the remaining part of the money before the king and Jehoiada. And from it, the vessels of the temple were made, for the ministry and for the holocausts, including bowls and other vessels of gold and silver. And holocausts were being offered in the house of the Lord continually, during all the days of Jehoiada.
{24:15} But Jehoiada was old and full of days. And he died when he was one hundred thirty years old.
{24:16} And they buried him in the City of David, with the kings, because he had done good to Israel and to his house.
{24:17} Then, after Jehoiada passed away, the leaders of Judah entered and reverenced the king. And he was enticed by their obsequiousness, and so he acquiesced to them.
{24:18} And they abandoned the temple of the Lord, the God of their fathers, and they served sacred groves and graven images. And wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem because of this sin.
{24:19} And he sent prophets to them, so that they might return to the Lord. And though they were offering testimony, they were not willing to listen to them.
{24:20} And so the Spirit of God clothed Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada the priest. And he stood in the sight of the people, and he said to them: “Thus says the Lord God: Why have you transgressed the precept of the Lord, though it was not to your benefit, and why have you abandoned the Lord, so that he would then abandon you?”
{24:21} And gathering together against him, they stoned him, beside the place of the king, in the atrium of the house of the Lord.
{24:22} And king Joash did not remember the mercy with which Jehoiada, his father, had treated him; instead he put to death his son. And as he was dying, he said: “May the Lord see and take account.”
{24:23} And when a year had turned, the army of Syria ascended against him. And they went to Judah and Jerusalem. And they put to death all the leaders of the people. And they sent all the spoils to the king of Damascus.
{24:24} And although certainly there had arrived a very small number of Syrians, the Lord delivered into their hands an immense multitude. For they had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers. Also, against Joash they executed disgraceful judgments.
{24:25} And upon departing, they left him greatly debilitated. Then his servants rose up against him, in vengeance for the blood of the son of Jehoiada the priest. And they killed him on his bed, and he died. And they buried him in the City of David, but not in the sepulchers of the kings.
{24:26} Truly, those who ambushed him were Zabad, the son of an Ammonite woman named Shimeath, and Jehozabad, the son of a Moabite woman named Shimrith.
{24:27} But concerning his sons, and the sum of money that had been amassed under him, and the repairing of the house of God, these things have been written more diligently in the book of kings. Then his son, Amaziah, reigned in his place.
{25:1} Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jehoaddan, from Jerusalem.
{25:2} And he accomplished good in the sight of the Lord. Yet truly, not with a perfect heart.
{25:3} And when he saw himself to be strengthened in his rule, he cut the throats of the servants who had killed his father, the king.
{25:4} But he did not put to death their sons, just as it was written in the book of the law of Moses, where the Lord instructed, saying: “The fathers shall not be slain because of the sons, nor the sons because of their fathers. Instead, each one shall die for his own sin.”
{25:5} And then Amaziah gathered together Judah, and he organized them by families, and tribunes, and centurions, throughout all of Judah and Benjamin. And he numbered them from twenty years old and upward. And he found three hundred thousand young men, who could go forth to battle, and who could hold spear and shield.
{25:6} Also, he hired for pay from Israel one hundred thousand experienced men, for one hundred talents of silver.
{25:7} Then a man of God came to him, and he said: “O king, let not the army of Israel go forth with you. For the Lord is not with Israel, nor with all the sons of Ephraim.
{25:8} But if you think that a war stands by the strength of the army, God will cause you to be overwhelmed by the enemies. For indeed, it belongs to God to assist, and to put to flight.”
{25:9} And Amaziah said to the man of God, “Then what will become of the one hundred talents, which I gave to the soldiers of Israel?” And the man of God responded to him, “The Lord has that from which he is able to give much more than this to you.”
{25:10} And so, Amaziah separated the army, which had come to him from Ephraim, so that they would return to their place. But having become very angry against Judah, they returned to their own region.
{25:11} Then Amaziah confidently led forth his people. And he went away to the Valley of the Salt Pits, and he struck down ten thousand of the sons of Seir.
{25:12} And the sons of Judah captured another ten thousand of the men. And they led them to the precipice of a certain rock. And they threw them from the summit, and they were all broken apart.
{25:13} But the army that Amaziah had sent away, so that they would not go with him into battle, spread out among the cities of Judah, from Samaria as far as Beth-horon. And having killed three thousand, they took away much plunder.
{25:14} Truly, after the slaughter of the Edomites, and when the gods of the sons of Seir were brought, Amaziah chose them as gods for himself. And he was adoring them, and burning incense to them.
{25:15} For this reason, the Lord became angry against Amaziah, and he sent a prophet to him, who would say to him, “Why have you adored gods who did not free their own people from your hand?”
{25:16} And after he spoke these things, he responded to him: “Are you the counselor of the king? Be quiet! Otherwise I will put you to death.” And departing, the prophet said, “I know that God has decided to kill you, because you have done this evil, and also because you have not agreed to my counsel.”
{25:17} And so Amaziah, the king of Judah, undertaking a very wicked counsel, sent to Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, the king of Israel, saying: “Come, let us see one another.”
{25:18} But he sent back messengers, saying: “The thistle which is in Lebanon sent to the cedar of Lebanon, saying: ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife.’ And behold, the beasts that were in the forest of Lebanon passed through, and they trampled the thistle.
{25:19} You said, ‘I struck down Edom.’ And for this reason, your heart is lifted up with pride. Settle in your own house. Why do you provoke evil against yourself, so that you may fall, and then Judah with you?”
{25:20} Amaziah was not willing to listen to him, because it was the will of the Lord that he be delivered into the hands of the enemies, because of the gods of Edom.
{25:21} And so Joash, the king of Israel, ascended, and they presented themselves within the sight of one another. Now Amaziah, the king of Judah, was in Beth-shemesh of Judah.
{25:22} And Judah fell before Israel. And each one fled to his own tent.
{25:23} Then Joash, the king of Israel, captured Amaziah, the king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, at Beth-shemesh, and he led him to Jerusalem. And he destroyed its walls, from the gate of Ephraim as far as the gate of the corner, four hundred cubits.
{25:24} Also, he brought back to Samaria all the gold and silver, and all the vessels, which he had found in the house of God, and with Obededom in the treasuries of the king’s house, as well as sons for hostages.
{25:25} Then Amaziah, the son of Joash, the king of Judah, lived for fifteen years after the death of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the king of Israel.
{25:26} Now the rest of the words of Amaziah, the first and the last, have been written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
{25:27} And after he withdrew from the Lord, they set up an ambush against him in Jerusalem. But since he had fled into Lachish, they sent and killed him in that place.
{25:28} And having carried him back upon horses, they buried him with his fathers in the City of David.
{26:1} Then all the people of Judah appointed his son, Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, as king in place of his father, Amaziah.
{26:2} He built up Eloth, and he restored it to the dominion of Judah. After this, the king slept with his fathers.
{26:3} Uzziah was sixteen years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for fifty-two years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jecoliah, from Jerusalem.
{26:4} And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, in accord with all that his father, Amaziah, had done.
{26:5} And he sought the Lord, during the days of Zechariah, who understood and saw God. And while he was seeking the Lord, he directed him in all things.
{26:6} Indeed, he went out and fought against the Philistines. And he destroyed the wall of Gath, and the wall of Jabneh, and the wall of Ashdod. Also, he built towns in Ashdod, and among the Philistines.
{26:7} And God helped him against the Philistines, and against the Arabians, who were living in Gurbaal, and against the Ammonites.
{26:8} And the Ammonites weighed out gifts to Uzziah. And his name became widely known, even to the entrance of Egypt, because of his frequent victories.
{26:9} And Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem, above the gate of the corner, and above the gate of the valley, and others on the same side of the wall, and he fortified them.
{26:10} Then he also constructed towers in the wilderness, and dug many cisterns, because he had much cattle, both in the plains and in the starkness of the wilderness. Also, he had vineyards and dressers of vines in the mountains and at Carmel. Certainly, he was a man devoted to agriculture.
{26:11} Now the army of his warriors, who would go forth to battle, was under the hand of Jeiel, the scribe, and Maaseiah, the teacher, and under the hand of Hananiah, who was among the king’s commanders.
{26:12} And the entire number of the leaders, by the families of strong men, was two thousand six hundred.
{26:13} And the entire army under them was three hundred and seven thousand five hundred, who were fit for war, and who fought on behalf of the king against the adversaries.
{26:14} Also, Uzziah prepared for them, that is, for the entire army, shields, and spears, and helmets, and breastplates, and bows, as well as slings for the casting of stones.
{26:15} And in Jerusalem, he made various kinds of machines, which he placed in the towers, and at the corners of the walls, so as to shoot arrows and large stones. And his name went forth to far away places, for the Lord was helping him and had strengthened him.
{26:16} But when he had become strong, his heart was lifted up, even to his own destruction. And he neglected the Lord his God. And entering into the temple of the Lord, he intended to burn incense upon the altar of incense.
{26:17} And entering immediately after him, Azariah the priest, and with him eighty priests of the Lord, very valiant men,
{26:18} withstood the king, and they said: “It is not your office, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord; rather, it is the office of the priests, that is, of the sons of Aaron, who have been consecrated for this same ministry. Depart from the sanctuary, otherwise you will be in contempt. For this act will not be reputed to you for your glory by the Lord God.”
{26:19} And Uzziah, having become angry, while holding in his hand the censer so that he might burn incense, threatened the priests. And immediately a leprosy arose on his forehead, in the sight of the priests, in the house of the Lord, at the altar of incense.
{26:20} And when the high priest Azariah, and all the rest of the priests, had gazed upon him, they saw the leprosy on his forehead, and they hurried to expel him. Then too, he himself, becoming terrified, rushed to depart, because immediately he had become aware of the wound of the Lord.
{26:21} And so, king Uzziah was a leper, even until the day of his death. And he lived in a separate house, being full of leprosy, because of which he had been ejected from the house of the Lord. Then Jotham, his son, directed the house of the king, and he was judging the people of the land.
{26:22} But the rest of the words of Uzziah, the first and the last, were written by the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz.
{26:23} And Uzziah slept with his fathers. And they buried him in the field of the royal sepulchers, because he was a leper. And Jotham, his son, reigned in his place.
{27:1} Jotham was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jerusha, the daughter of Zadok.
{27:2} And he did what was right before the Lord, in accord with all that his father, Uzziah, had done, except that he did not enter into the temple of the Lord, and still the people were transgressing.
{27:3} He improved the high gate of the house of the Lord. And he built many things upon the wall of Ophel.
{27:4} Also, he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and fortresses and towers in the forests.
{27:5} He fought against the king of the sons of Ammon, and he defeated them. And at that time, the sons of Ammon gave to him one hundred talents of silver, and ten thousand cor of wheat, and the same number of cor of barley. These things the sons of Ammon offered to him in the second and third year.
{27:6} And Jotham was strengthened, because he had directed his way before the Lord his God.
{27:7} Now the rest of the words of Jotham, and all his battles and works, have been written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.
{27:8} He was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem.
{27:9} And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the City of David. And his son, Ahaz, reigned in his place.
{28:1} Ahaz was twenty years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. He did not do what is right in the sight of the Lord, as his father David did.
{28:2} Instead, he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel. Moreover, he also cast statues for the Baals.
{28:3} It is he who burned incense in the Valley of the son of Hinnom. And he purified his sons by fire, in accord with the ritual of the nations that the Lord put to death at the advent of the sons of Israel.
{28:4} Also, he was sacrificing and burning incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every leafy tree.
{28:5} And so the Lord, his God, delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria, who struck him and took great plunder from his kingdom. And he carried it away to Damascus. Also, he was delivered into the hands of the king of Israel, and he struck him with great affliction.
{28:6} And Pekah, the son of Remaliah, killed, on one day, one hundred twenty thousand, all of them men of war from Judah, because they had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers.
{28:7} In the same time, Zichri, a powerful man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah, the son of the king, and Azrikam, the governor of his house, and also Elkanah, who was second to the king.
{28:8} And the sons of Israel seized, from their brothers, two hundred thousand women, boys, and girls, and immense plunder. And they took it away to Samaria.
{28:9} At that time, there was a prophet of the Lord there, named Oded. And going out to meet the army arriving in Samaria, he said to them: “Behold, the Lord, the God of your fathers, having become angry against Judah, has delivered them into your hands. But you have killed them by atrocities, so that your cruelty has reached up to heaven.
{28:10} Moreover, you wanted to subjugate the sons of Judah and Jerusalem as your men and women servants, which is a work that should never be done. And so you sinned in this matter against the Lord your God.
{28:11} But listen to my counsel, and release the captives, whom you have brought from your brothers. For a great fury of the Lord is hanging over you.”
{28:12} And so, some of the leaders of the sons of Ephraim, Azariah, the son of Johanan, Berechiah, the son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah, the son of Shallum, and Amasa, the son of Hadlai, stood up against those who were arriving from the battle.
{28:13} And they said to them: “You shall not lead back captives to here, lest we sin against the Lord. Why are you willing to add to our sins, and to build upon our old offenses? For indeed, the sin is great, and the furious anger of the Lord is hanging over Israel.”
{28:14} And the warriors released the spoils and all that they had seized, in the sight of the leaders and the entire multitude.
{28:15} And the men, whom we mentioned above, rose up and took the captives. All those who were naked, they clothed from the spoils. And when they had clothed them, and had given them shoes, and had refreshed them with food and drink, and had anointed them because of the hardship, and had cared for them, whoever was not able to walk and whoever was feeble in body, they set them upon beasts of burden, and they led them to Jericho, the city of palm trees, to their brothers, and they themselves returned to Samaria.
{28:16} In that time, king Ahaz sent to the king of the Assyrians, requesting assistance.
{28:17} And the Edomites arrived and struck down many of Judah, and they seized great plunder.
{28:18} Also, the Philistines spread out among the cities of the plains, and to the south of Judah. And they seized Beth-shemesh, and Aijalon, and Gederoth, and also Soco, and Timnah, and Gimzo, with their villages, and they lived in them.
{28:19} For the Lord had humbled Judah because of Ahaz, the king of Judah, since he had stripped it of help, and had shown contempt for the Lord.
{28:20} And he led against him Tilgath-pilneser, the king of the Assyrians, who also afflicted him and laid waste to him, without resistance.
{28:21} And so Ahaz, despoiling the house of the Lord, and the house of the kings and the leaders, gave gifts to the king of the Assyrians, and yet it profited him nothing.
{28:22} Moreover, in the time of his anguish, he also added to his contempt against the Lord. King Ahaz himself, by himself,
{28:23} immolated victims to the gods of Damascus, those who had struck him. And he said: “The gods of the kings of Syria assist them, and so I will please them with victims, and they will help me.” But to the contrary, they had been the ruin of him and of all Israel.
{28:24} And so, Ahaz, having despoiled and broken apart all the vessels of the house of God, closed up the doors of the temple of God, and made for himself altars in all the corners of Jerusalem.
{28:25} Also, he constructed altars in all the cities of Judah, in order to burn frankincense, and so he provoked the Lord, the God of his fathers, to wrath.
{28:26} But the rest of his words, and all his works, the first and the last, have been written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
{28:27} And Ahaz slept with his fathers. And they buried him in the city of Jerusalem. And they did not allow him to be in the sepulchers of the kings of Israel. And his son, Hezekiah, reigned in his place.
{29:1} And so Hezekiah began to reign when he was twenty-five years old. And he reigned for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah.
{29:2} And he did what was pleasing in the sight of the Lord, in accord with all that his father David had done.
{29:3} In the first year and month of his reign, he opened the double doors of the house of the Lord, and he repaired them.
{29:4} And he brought together the priests and Levites. And he gathered them in the wide eastern street.
{29:5} And he said to them: “Listen to me, O Levites, and be sanctified. Cleanse the house of the Lord, the God of your fathers, and take away every uncleanness from the sanctuary.
{29:6} Our fathers sinned and did evil in the sight of the Lord our God, abandoning him. They turned their faces away from the tabernacle of the Lord, and they presented their backs.
{29:7} They closed up the doors which were in the portico, and they extinguished the lamps. And they did not burn incense, and they did not offer holocausts, in the sanctuary of the God of Israel.
{29:8} And so the fury of the Lord was stirred up against Judah and Jerusalem, and he handed them over to turmoil, and to destruction, and to hissing, just as you discern with your own eyes.
{29:9} Lo, our fathers have fallen by the sword. Our sons, and our daughters and wives have been led away as captives because of this wickedness.
{29:10} Now therefore, it is pleasing to me that we should enter into a covenant with the Lord, the God of Israel. And he will turn away the fury of his indignation from us.
{29:11} My sons, do not choose to be negligent. The Lord has chosen you so that you would stand before him, and minister to him, and worship him, and burn incense to him.”
{29:12} Therefore, the Levites rose up, Mahath, the son of Amasai, and Joel, the son of Azariah, from the sons of Kohath; then, from the sons of Merari, Kish, the son of Abdi, and Azariah, the son of Jehallelel; and from the sons of Gershon, Joah, the son of Zimmah, and Eden, the son of Joah;
{29:13} and truly, from the sons of Elizaphan, Shimri and Jeuel; also, from the sons of Asaph, Zechariah and Mattaniah;
{29:14} indeed also, from the sons of Heman, Jehuel and Shimei; then too, from the sons of Jeduthun, Shemaiah and Uzziel.
{29:15} And they gathered together their brothers. And they were sanctified. And they entered in accord with the command of the king and the order of the Lord, so that they might expiate the house of God.
{29:16} And the priests, entering the temple of the Lord so that they might sanctify it, took every uncleanness, which they had found inside, out to the vestibule of the house of the Lord; and the Levites took it away and transported it outside, to the torrent Kidron.
{29:17} Now they began to cleanse on the first day of the first month. And on the eighth day of the same month, they entered the portico of the temple of the Lord. And then they expiated the temple over eight days. And on the sixteenth day of the same month, they finished what they had begun.
{29:18} Also, they entered to king Hezekiah, and they said to him: “We have sanctified the entire house of the Lord, and the altar of holocaust, and its vessels, indeed also the table of the presence, with all its vessels,
{29:19} and all the equipment of the temple, which king Ahaz, during his reign, had polluted after his transgression. And behold, these have all been set forth before the altar of the Lord.”
{29:20} And rising up at first light, king Hezekiah joined as one all the leaders of the city, and they ascended to the house of the Lord.
{29:21} And together they offered seven bulls and seven rams, seven lambs and seven he-goats, for sin, for the kingdom, for the Sanctuary, for Judah. And he spoke to the priests, the sons of Aaron, so that they would offer these upon the altar of the Lord.
{29:22} And so they slaughtered the bulls. And the priests took up the blood, and they poured it upon the altar. Then they also slaughtered the rams, and they poured their blood upon the altar. And they immolated the lambs, and they poured the blood upon the altar.
{29:23} They brought the he-goats for sin before the king and the entire multitude. And they laid their hands upon them.
{29:24} And the priests immolated them, and they sprinkled their blood before the altar, for the expiation of all Israel. For certainly the king had instructed that the holocaust and the sin offering should be made on behalf of all Israel.
{29:25} Also, he situated the Levites in the house of the Lord, with cymbals, and psalteries, and harps, according to the disposition of king David, and of the seer Gad, and of the prophet Nathan. For indeed, this was the precept of the Lord, by the hand of his prophets.
{29:26} And the Levites stood, holding the musical instruments of David, and the priests held the trumpets.
{29:27} And Hezekiah ordered that they should offer holocausts upon the altar. And when the holocausts were being offered, they began to sing praises to the Lord, and to sound the trumpets, and to play various musical instruments, which David, the king of Israel, had prepared.
{29:28} Then the entire crowd was adoring, and the singers and those who were holding the trumpeters were exercising their office, until the holocaust was completed.
{29:29} And when the oblation was finished, the king, and all who were with him, bowed down and adored.
{29:30} And Hezekiah and the rulers instructed the Levites to praise the Lord with the words of David, and of Asaph, the seer. And they praised him with great joy, and kneeling down, they adored.
{29:31} And now Hezekiah also added: “You have filled your hands for the Lord. Draw near, and offer victims and praises in the house of the Lord.” Therefore, the entire multitude offered victims and praises and holocausts, with devout intention.
{29:32} Now the number of the holocausts that the multitude offered was seventy bulls, one hundred rams, two hundred lambs.
{29:33} And they sanctified to the Lord six hundred oxen and three thousand sheep.
{29:34} Truly, the priests were few; neither were they sufficient to remove the pelts from the holocausts. Therefore, the Levites, their brothers, also assisted them, until the work was completed, and the priests, who were of higher rank, were sanctified. For indeed, the Levites are sanctified with an easier ritual than the priests.
{29:35} Thus, there were very numerous holocausts, with the fat of the peace offerings and the libations of the holocausts. And the service of the house of the Lord was completed.
{29:36} And Hezekiah and all the people were joyful because the ministry of the Lord was accomplished. For certainly, it had pleased them to do this suddenly.
{30:1} Also, Hezekiah sent to all of Israel and Judah. And he wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh, so that they would come to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, and so that they would keep the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel.
{30:2} Therefore, having taken counsel, the king and the rulers, and the entire assembly of Jerusalem, resolved that they would keep the Passover, in the second month.
{30:3} For they had not been able to keep it at its proper time. For the priests, who were unable to suffice, had not been sanctified. And the people had not yet been gathered together in Jerusalem.
{30:4} And the word was pleasing to the king, and to the entire multitude.
{30:5} And they resolved that they would send messengers to all of Israel, from Beersheba even to Dan, so that they might come and keep the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel, at Jerusalem. For many had not kept it, just as it was prescribed by the law.
{30:6} And carriers traveled with the letters, by order of the king and his rulers, to all of Israel and Judah, proclaiming, in accord with what the king had ordered: “O sons of Israel, return to the Lord, the God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Israel. And he will return to the remnant who escaped from the hand of the king of the Assyrians.
{30:7} Do not choose to be like your fathers and brothers, who withdrew from the Lord, the God of their fathers. And so he delivered them over to destruction, as you yourselves discern.
{30:8} Do not choose to harden your necks, as your fathers did. Surrender to the hands of the Lord. And go to his Sanctuary, which he has sanctified unto eternity. Serve the Lord, the God of your fathers, and the fury of his wrath will be turned away from you.
{30:9} For if you will return to the Lord, your brothers and sons will find mercy before their masters, who led them away as captives, and they will be returned to this land. For the Lord your God is compassionate and lenient, and he will not avert his face from you, if you will return to him.”
{30:10} And so, the carriers were traveling quickly from city to city, throughout the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, as far as Zebulun, though they were ridiculing and mocking them.
{30:11} Even so, certain men from Asher, and from Manasseh, and from Zebulun, acquiescing to this counsel, went to Jerusalem.
{30:12} Truly, the hand of God was working in Judah, to give them one heart, so that they would accomplish the word of the Lord, according to the precept of the king and of the rulers.
{30:13} And many people gathered together in Jerusalem, so that they could keep the solemnity of unleavened bread, in the second month.
{30:14} And rising up, they destroyed the altars which were in Jerusalem, and all the things in which incense was burned to idols. Overturning these things, they cast them into the torrent Kidron.
{30:15} Then they immolated the Passover on the fourteenth day of the second month. Also, the priests and Levites, at length having been sanctified, offered the holocausts in the house of the Lord.
{30:16} And they stood in their order, according to the disposition and law of Moses, the man of God. Yet truly, the priests took up the blood, which was to be poured out, from the hands of the Levites,
{30:17} because a great number were not sanctified. And therefore, the Levites immolated the Passover for those who had not been sanctified to the Lord in time.
{30:18} And now a great portion of the people from Ephraim, and Manasseh, and Issachar, and Zebulun, who had not been sanctified, ate the Passover, which is not in accord with what was written. And Hezekiah prayed for them, saying: “The good Lord will be forgiving
{30:19} to all who, with their whole heart, seek the Lord, the God of their fathers. And he will not impute it to them, though they have not been sanctified.”
{30:20} And the Lord heeded him, and was reconciled to the people.
{30:21} And the sons of Israel who were found at Jerusalem kept the solemnity of unleavened bread for seven days with great rejoicing, praising the Lord throughout each day, with the Levites and the priests, accompanied by the musical instruments corresponding to their office.
{30:22} And Hezekiah spoke to the heart of all the Levites, who had a good understanding concerning the Lord. And they ate during the seven days of the solemnity, immolating victims of peace offerings, and praising the Lord, the God of their fathers.
{30:23} And it pleased the entire multitude that they should celebrate, even for another seven days. And they did this with enormous gladness.
{30:24} For Hezekiah, the king of Judah, had offered to the multitude one thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep. Truly, the rulers had given the people one thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep. Then a great multitude of priests was sanctified.
{30:25} And the whole multitude of Judah, as much the priests and Levites as the entire crowd that had arrived from Israel, and also the converts from the land of Israel, and those with a habitation in Judah, was overflowing with cheerfulness.
{30:26} And there was a great celebration in Jerusalem, to such an extent as had not been in that city since the days of Solomon, the son of David, the king of Israel.
{30:27} Then the priests and Levites rose up and blessed the people. And their voice was heeded. And their prayer reached the holy habitation of heaven.
{31:1} And when these things had been celebrated according to ritual, all of Israel who had been found in the cities of Judah went forth, and they broke apart the idols and cut down the sacred groves. They demolished the high places and destroyed the altars, not only out of all Judah and Benjamin, but also out of Ephraim as well as Manasseh, until they utterly destroyed them. And all the sons of Israel returned to their possessions and cities.
{31:2} Then Hezekiah appointed the companies of the priests and Levites by their divisions, each man in his proper office, certainly as much for the priests as for the Levites, for the sake of holocausts and peace offerings, so that they might minister and confess and sing, at the gates of the camp of the Lord.
{31:3} Now the portion of the king, from his own substance, was such that they could offer a holocaust always, in morning and in evening, also on the Sabbaths, and the new moons, and the other solemnities, just as it was written in the law of Moses.
{31:4} And now he instructed the people living in Jerusalem that they were to give portions to the priests and Levites, so that they would be able to attend to the law of the Lord.
{31:5} And when this had reached the ears of the multitude, the sons of Israel brought an abundance of first-fruits of grain, wine, and oil, and also honey. And they offered a tenth part of all that the soil brings forth.
{31:6} Then too, the sons of Israel and Judah, who were living in the cities of Judah, brought tithes of oxen and sheep, and tithes of the holy things that they had vowed to the Lord their God. And carrying all these things, they made many stacks.
{31:7} In the third month, they began to lay out the foundations of the stacks. And in the seventh month, they finished them.
{31:8} And when Hezekiah and his rulers had entered, they saw the stacks, and they blessed the Lord and the people of Israel.
{31:9} And Hezekiah questioned the priests and Levites, as to why the stacks were laid out in this way.
{31:10} Azariah, the high priest from the stock of Zadok, answered him, saying: “Since the first-fruits began to be offered in the house of the Lord, we have eaten and been satisfied, and much remains. For the Lord has blessed his people. Then what was left over is this great abundance, which you see.”
{31:11} And so Hezekiah instructed that they should prepare storage places for the house of the Lord. And when they had done so,
{31:12} they faithfully brought in the first-fruits, as well as the tithes and all that they had vowed. Now the overseer of these things was Conaniah, a Levite; and his brother, Shimei, was second.
{31:13} And after him, there was Jehiel, and Azariah, and Nahath, and Asaahel, and Jerimoth, and also Jozabad, and Eliel, and Ismachiah, and Mahath, and Benaiah, who were overseers under the hands of Conaniah, and his brother, Shimei, by the authority of Hezekiah, the king, and Azariah, the high priest of the house of God, to whom all these things belonged.
{31:14} Yet truly, Kore, the son of Imnah, a Levite and the porter of the eastern gate, was the overseer of the things that were being offered freely to the Lord, and of the first-fruits, and of the things consecrated for the Holy of Holies.
{31:15} And under his charge were Eden, and Benjamin, Jeshua, and Shemaiah, and also Amariah, and Shecaniah, in the cities of the priests, so that they would distribute faithfully to their brothers, the small as well as the great, their portions
{31:16} (except for the males from three years old and upward) for all who were entering the temple of the Lord, and for whatever was needed for the ministry, throughout each day, as well as for the observances according to their divisions.
{31:17} And so, for the priests, by their families, and for the Levites, from the twentieth year and upward, by their orders and companies,
{31:18} and for the entire multitude, as much for the wives as for their children of both sexes, provisions were offered faithfully from whatever had been sanctified.
{31:19} Then too, men were appointed of the sons of Aaron, throughout the fields and the suburbs of each city, who would distribute portions to all the males among the priests and Levites.
{31:20} Therefore, Hezekiah did all these things (which we have said) in all of Judah. And he worked what is good and upright and true before the Lord his God,
{31:21} for the whole service of the ministry of the house of the Lord, in accord with the law and the ceremonies, desiring to seek his God with his whole heart. And he did so, and he prospered.
{32:1} After these things, and after this manner of truth, Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians arrived. And entering Judah, he besieged the fortified cities, desiring to seize them.
{32:2} And when Hezekiah had seen this, specifically that Sennacherib had arrived, and that the entire force of the war was turning against Jerusalem,
{32:3} he took counsel with the rulers and with the most valiant men, so that they might obstruct the heads of the springs which were beyond the city. And with everyone discerning the same judgment about this,
{32:4} he gathered together a great multitude, and they obstructed all the springs, and the brook which was flowing through the midst of the land, saying: “Otherwise, the kings of the Assyrians might arrive and find an abundance of water.”
{32:5} Also, acting industriously, he built up the entire wall that had been broken apart. And he constructed towers upon it, and another wall outside it. And he repaired Millo, in the City of David. And he made all kinds of weapons and shields.
{32:6} And he appointed leaders of the warriors within the army. And he summoned them all to the wide street of the gate of the city. And he spoke to their heart, saying:
{32:7} “Act manfully and be strengthened. Do not be afraid. Neither should you dread the king of the Assyrians and the entire multitude that is with him. For many more are with us than with him.
{32:8} For with him is an arm of flesh; with us is the Lord our God, who is our helper, and who fights for us.” And the people were strengthened by this type of words from Hezekiah, the king of Judah.
{32:9} After these things, Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians, sent his servants to Jerusalem, (for he and his entire army were besieging Lachish) to Hezekiah, the king of Judah, and to all the people who were in the city, saying:
{32:10} “Thus says Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians: In whom do you have faith, as you sit besieged in Jerusalem?
{32:11} Does not Hezekiah deceive you, so that he would deliver you to die from hunger and thirst, by affirming that the Lord your God will free you from the hand of the king of the Assyrians?
{32:12} Is this not the same Hezekiah who destroyed his own high places and altars, and who instructed Judah and Jerusalem, saying: ‘You shall worship before one altar, and you shall burn incense upon it?’
{32:13} Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of the lands? Have the gods of the nations and all the lands prevailed so as to free their region from my hand?
{32:14} Who is there, out of all the gods of the nations that my fathers destroyed, who is able to rescue his people from my hand, so that now also your God would be able to rescue you from this hand?
{32:15} Therefore, let not Hezekiah deceive or delude you with vain persuasion. And you should not believe him. For if no god out of all the nations and kingdoms was able to free his people from my hand, and from the hand of my fathers, consequently neither will your God be able to rescue you from my hand.”
{32:16} Then too, his servants were speaking many other things against the Lord God, and against his servant Hezekiah.
{32:17} Also, he wrote letters full of blasphemy against the Lord God of Israel. And against him he said: “Just as the gods of other nations were unable to free their people from my hand, so also is the God of Hezekiah unable to rescue his people from this hand.”
{32:18} Moreover, he also shouted with a great clamor, in the language of the Jews, toward the people who were sitting upon the walls of Jerusalem, so that he might frighten them and so seize the city.
{32:19} And he was speaking against the God of Jerusalem, just as against the gods of the peoples of the earth, which are works of the hands of men.
{32:20} And Hezekiah the king, and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, prayed against this blasphemy, and they cried out to heaven.
{32:21} And the Lord sent an Angel, who struck all the experienced men and warriors, and the leaders of the army of the king of the Assyrians. And he returned in disgrace to his own land. And when he had entered the house of his god, the sons who had gone forth from his loins killed him with the sword.
{32:22} And the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians, and from the hand of all. And he presented to them peace on every side.
{32:23} And now many were bringing victims and sacrifices to the Lord in Jerusalem, and gifts to Hezekiah, the king of Judah. And after these things, he was exalted before all the nations.
{32:24} In those days, Hezekiah was sick, even unto death, and he prayed to the Lord. And he heeded him, and gave to him a sign.
{32:25} But he did not repay according to the benefits which he had received, for his heart was lifted up. And so wrath was brought against him, and against Judah and Jerusalem.
{32:26} And after this, he was humbled, because he had exalted his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And therefore the wrath of the Lord did not overwhelm them in the days of Hezekiah.
{32:27} Now Hezekiah was wealthy and very famous. And he gathered for himself many treasures of silver and gold and precious stones, of aromatics, and all kinds of weapons, and vessels of great price,
{32:28} and also repositories of grain, wine, and oil, and stalls for every beast of burden, and fencing for cattle.
{32:29} And he built for himself cities. For indeed, he had innumerable herds and flocks of sheep. For the Lord had given to him an exceedingly great substance.
{32:30} This same Hezekiah was the one who blocked the upper font of the waters of Gihon, and who diverted them down to the western part of the City of David. In all his works, he prosperously accomplished whatever he willed.
{32:31} Yet still, concerning the legates from the leaders of Babylon, who had been sent to him so that they might inquire about the portent which had happened upon the earth, God permitted him to be tempted, so that everything might be made known which was in his heart.
{32:32} Now the rest of the words of Hezekiah, and his mercies, have been written in the vision of the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amos, and in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
{32:33} And Hezekiah slept with his fathers. And they buried him above the sepulchers of the sons of David. And all of Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, celebrated his funeral. And his son, Manasseh, reigned in his place.
{33:1} Manasseh was twelve years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for fifty-five years in Jerusalem.
{33:2} But he did evil before the Lord, in accord with all the abominations of the nations which the Lord overturned before the sons of Israel.
{33:3} And turning away, he repaired the high places, which had been demolished by his father, Hezekiah. And he constructed altars to the Baals, and made sacred groves. And he adored the entire army of heaven, and he served them.
{33:4} Also, he built altars in the house of the Lord, about which the Lord had said, “My name shall be in Jerusalem forever.”
{33:5} But he built these for the entire army of heaven, in the two courts of the house of the Lord.
{33:6} And he caused his sons to pass through fire in the Valley of the son of Hinnom. He observed dreams, followed divinations, served the occult arts, had with him magicians and enchanters, and worked many evils before the Lord, so that he provoked him.
{33:7} Also, he set up a graven image and molten statue in the house of God, about which God said to David, and to his son Solomon: “In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel, I will place my name forever.
{33:8} And I will not cause the foot of Israel to be moved from the land which I delivered to their fathers. Yet this is so, only if they will take care to do what I have instructed them, by the hand of Moses, with the entire law and the ceremonies and the judgments.”
{33:9} And so Manasseh seduced Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that they did evil, more so than all the nations which the Lord had overturned before the face of the sons of Israel.
{33:10} And the Lord spoke to him and to his people, but they were not willing to pay attention.
{33:11} Therefore, he led over them the leaders of the army of the king of the Assyrians. And they captured Manasseh, and they led him, bound with chains and fetters, to Babylon.
{33:12} And after this, being in great anguish, he prayed to the Lord his God. And he did penance greatly before the God of his fathers.
{33:13} And he petitioned and begged him intently. And he heeded his prayer, and led him back to Jerusalem, into his kingdom. And Manasseh realized that the Lord himself was God.
{33:14} After these things, he built a wall outside the City of David, to the west of Gihon, at the steep valley, from the entrance to the fish gate, circling around as far as Ophel. And he raised it up greatly. And he appointed leaders of the army in all the fortified cities of Judah.
{33:15} And he took away the foreign gods, and the idol from the house of the Lord, and also the altars which he had made on the mount of the house of the Lord and in Jerusalem. And he cast all these things outside the city.
{33:16} Then he repaired the altar of the Lord, and he immolated upon it victims, and peace offerings, with praise. And he instructed Judah to serve the Lord, the God of Israel.
{33:17} Yet still the people were immolating on the high places, to the Lord their God.
{33:18} But the rest of the deeds of Manasseh, and his prayer to his God, and also the words of the seers who were speaking to him in the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, are contained in the words of the kings of Israel.
{33:19} Also, his prayer and its heeding, and all his sins and contempt, and the sites on which he built high places and made sacred groves and statues, before he repented, have been written in the words of Hozai.
{33:20} Then Manasseh slept with his fathers, and they buried him in his own house. And his son, Amon, reigned in his place.
{33:21} Amon was twenty-two years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for two years in Jerusalem.
{33:22} And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, just as his father Manasseh had done. And he immolated to all the idols that Manasseh had fabricated, and he served them.
{33:23} But he did not turn his face to the Lord, as his father Manasseh had turned himself. And he sinned much more grievously.
{33:24} And when his servants had conspired against him, they killed him in his own house.
{33:25} But the rest of the multitude of the people, having slain those who had struck down Amon, appointed his son, Josiah, as king in his place.
{34:1} Josiah was eight years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for thirty-one years in Jerusalem.
{34:2} And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, and he walked in the ways of his father David. He did not turn away, neither to the right, nor to the left.
{34:3} Now in the eighth year of his reign, when he was still a boy, he began to seek the God of his father David. And in the twelfth year after he had begun to reign, he cleansed Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the sacred groves, and the idols, and the graven images.
{34:4} And in his sight, they destroyed the altars of the Baals, and they demolished the idols which had been set upon them. And then he cut down the sacred groves and crushed the graven images. And he scattered the fragments upon the tombs of those who had been accustomed to immolate to them.
{34:5} And after that, he burned the bones of the priests upon the altars of the idols. And so did he cleanse Judah and Jerusalem.
{34:6} Then too, in the cities of Manasseh, and of Ephraim, and of Simeon, even to Naphtali, he overturned everything.
{34:7} And when he had destroyed the altars and the sacred groves, and had broken the idols to pieces, and when all the profane shrines had been demolished from the entire land of Israel, he returned to Jerusalem.
{34:8} And so, in the eighteenth year of his reign, having now cleansed the land and the temple of the Lord, he sent Shaphan, the son of Azaliah, and Maaseiah, the ruler of the city, and Joah, the son of Joahaz, the historian, to repair the house of the Lord his God.
{34:9} And they went to Hilkiah, the high priest. And having accepted from him the money which had been brought into the house of the Lord, and which the Levites and porters had gathered together from Manasseh, and Ephraim, and the entire remnant of Israel, and also from all of Judah, and Benjamin, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
{34:10} they delivered it into the hands of those who were in charge of the workers in the house of the Lord, so that they might repair the temple, and restore whatever was weak.
{34:11} And they gave it to the artisans and the stoneworkers, so that they might buy stones from the quarries, and wood for the joints of the building and for the upper floors of the houses, which the kings of Judah had destroyed.
{34:12} And they did everything faithfully. Now the overseers of the workers were Jahath and Obadiah, from the sons of Merari, and Zechariah and Meshullam, from the sons of Kohath, who were supervising the work. All were Levites who knew how to play musical instruments.
{34:13} Truly, scribes and teachers, from among the Levites who were porters, were over those who were carrying burdens for various uses.
{34:14} And when they carried out the money that had been brought into the temple of the Lord, Hilkiah the priest found the book of the law of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
{34:15} And he said to Shaphan, the scribe: “I have found the book of the law in the house of the Lord.” And he delivered it to him.
{34:16} Then he took the volume to the king, and he reported to him, saying: “Behold, everything that you entrusted to your servants is completed.
{34:17} They have melted together the silver that was found in the house of the Lord. And it has been given to the overseers of the artisans and craftsmen for various works.
{34:18} After this, Hilkiah the priest gave to me this book.” And when he had read it in the presence of the king,
{34:19} and he had heard the words of the law, he tore his garments.
{34:20} And he instructed Hilkiah, and Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, and Abdon, the son of Micah, and also Shaphan, the scribe, and Asaiah, the servant of the king, saying:
{34:21} “Go, and pray to the Lord for me, and for the remnant of Israel and Judah, concerning all the words of this book, which has been found. For the great fury of the Lord has rained down upon us, because our fathers did not keep the words of the Lord, to do all that has been written in this volume.”
{34:22} Therefore, Hilkiah, and those who had been sent with him by the king, went to Huldah, the prophetess, the wife of Shallum, the son of Tokhath, the son of Hasrah, the keeper of the vestments. She was living in Jerusalem, in the second part. And they spoke to her the words which we explained above.
{34:23} And she responded to them: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Tell the man who sent you to me:
{34:24} Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will lead in evils over this place, and over its inhabitants, with all the curses that have been written in this book, which they have read before the king of Judah.
{34:25} For they have abandoned me, and they have sacrificed to foreign gods, so that they provoked me to wrath by all the works of their hands. Therefore, my fury will rain down upon this place, and it will not be extinguished.
{34:26} To the king of Judah, who sent you to petition before the Lord, so shall you speak: Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Since you listened to the words of this volume,
{34:27} and your heart was softened, and you humbled yourself in the sight of God concerning these things which have been said against this place and against the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and since, revering my face, you have torn your garments, and have wept before me: I also have heeded you, says the Lord.
{34:28} For now I will gather you to your fathers, and you will be brought into your sepulcher in peace. Neither shall your eyes see all the evil that I will lead in, over this place and over its inhabitants.” And so they took back to the king all that she had said.
{34:29} And he, calling together all those greater by birth of Judah and Jerusalem,
{34:30} ascended to the house of the Lord, united with all the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the priests and the Levites, and all the people, from the least even to the greatest. And in their hearing, in the house of the Lord, the king read all the words of the volume.
{34:31} And standing up at his tribunal, he struck a covenant before the Lord, so that he would walk after him, and would keep his precepts and testimonies and justifications, with his whole heart and with his whole soul, and so that he would do the things that were written in that volume, which he had read.
{34:32} Also, concerning this, he bound by oath all who had been found in Jerusalem and Benjamin. And the inhabitants of Jerusalem acted in accord with the covenant of the Lord, the God of their fathers.
{34:33} Therefore, Josiah took away all the abominations from all the regions of the sons of Israel. And he caused all who were remaining in Israel to serve the Lord their God. During all his days, they did not withdraw from the Lord, the God of their fathers.
{35:1} Now Josiah kept the Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem, and it was immolated on the fourteenth day of the first month.
{35:2} And he appointed the priests in their offices, and he exhorted them to minister in the house of the Lord.
{35:3} Also, he spoke with the Levites, by whose instruction all of Israel was sanctified to the Lord, saying: “Place the ark in the sanctuary of the temple, which Solomon, the son of David, the king of Israel, built. For never again shall you carry it. Instead, now you shall minister to the Lord your God, and to his people Israel.
{35:4} And prepare yourselves by your houses and families, within each division, just as David, the king of Israel, instructed, and just as his son Solomon has written.
{35:5} And minister in the sanctuary, by the Levitical families and companies.
{35:6} And having been sanctified, immolate the Passover. And then prepare your brothers, so that they may be able to act in accord with the words which the Lord has spoken by the hand of Moses.”
{35:7} After this, Josiah gave to all the people, those who had been found there at the solemnity of the Passover, thirty thousand lambs and young goats from the flocks, and other kinds of small cattle, and also three thousand oxen. All these were from the substance of the king.
{35:8} Also, his rulers offered what they had vowed freely, as much for the people as for the priests and Levites. Moreover, Hilkiah, and Zechariah, and Jehiel, rulers of the house of the Lord, gave to the priests, in order to observe the Passover, two thousand six hundred small cattle, and three hundred oxen.
{35:9} And Conaniah, with Shemaiah and Nethanel, his brothers, indeed also Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, rulers of the Levites, gave to the rest of the Levites, in order to celebrate the Passover, five thousand small cattle, and five hundred oxen.
{35:10} And the ministry was prepared. And the priests stood in their office, and the Levites also stood in their companies, according to the order of the king.
{35:11} And the Passover was immolated. And the priests sprinkled the blood with their hand, and the Levites drew away the pelts of the holocausts.
{35:12} And they put these aside, so that they might give them to each one, by their houses and families, and so that they might be offered to the Lord, just as it was written in the book of Moses. And with the oxen, they acted similarly.
{35:13} And they roasted the Passover above fire, in accord with what was written in the law. Yet truly, the victims of peace offerings they boiled in cauldrons and kettles and pots. And they promptly distributed these to all the common people.
{35:14} Then afterward, they made preparations for themselves and for the priests. Indeed, the priests had been occupied in the oblations of the holocausts and the fat offerings, even until night. Therefore, the Levites made preparations for themselves and for the priests, the sons of Aaron, last.
{35:15} Now the singers, the sons of Asaph, were standing in their order, according to the instruction of David, and of Asaph and Heman and Jeduthun, the prophets of the king. Truly, the porters kept watch at each gate, so as not to depart from their ministry even for one moment. And for this reason, their brothers, the Levites, prepared foods for them.
{35:16} And so, the entire worship ritual of the Lord was completed on that day, so that they observed the Passover and offered holocausts upon the altar of the Lord, in accord with the precept of king Josiah.
{35:17} And the sons of Israel, who had been found there, kept the Passover at that time, with the solemnity of unleavened bread, for seven days.
{35:18} There was no Passover similar to this one in Israel, from the days of Samuel the prophet. And neither did anyone, out of all the kings of Israel, keep such a Passover as did Josiah, the priests and Levites, and all those of Judah and Israel who had been found, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
{35:19} In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah, this Passover was celebrated.
{35:20} After Josiah had repaired the temple, Neco, the king of Egypt, ascended to fight at Carchemish, beside the Euphrates. And Josiah went out to meet him.
{35:21} But he sent messengers to him, saying: “What is there between me and you, O king of Judah? I have not come against you today. Instead, I am fighting against another house, to which God instructed me to go promptly. Refrain from acting against God, who is with me, otherwise he may kill you.”
{35:22} Josiah was not willing to return. Instead, he prepared for war against him. Neither would he agree to the words of Neco from the mouth of God. In truth, he traveled so that he might do battle in the field of Megiddo.
{35:23} And there, having been wounded by archers, he said to his servants: “Lead me away from the battle. For I have been severely wounded.”
{35:24} And they took him from the chariot, into another chariot which was following him, as was the custom of kings. And they transported him to Jerusalem. And he died, and he was buried in the mausoleum of his fathers. And all of Judah and Jerusalem mourned for him,
{35:25} most of all Jeremiah. All the singing men and women repeat his lamentations over Josiah, even to the present day. And this has become like a law in Israel. Behold, it is found written in the Lamentations.
{35:26} Now the rest of the words of Josiah, and his mercies, which were instructed by the law of the Lord,
{35:27} and also his works, the first and the last, have been written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
{36:1} Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz, the son of Josiah, and they appointed him king in place of his father, in Jerusalem.
{36:2} Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem.
{36:3} Then the king of Egypt, when he had arrived in Jerusalem, removed him, and condemned the land to one hundred talents of silver and one talent of gold.
{36:4} And he appointed Eliakim, his brother, as king in his place, over Judah and Jerusalem. And he changed his name to Jehoiakim. Truly, he took Jehoahaz with him, and he led him away to Egypt.
{36:5} Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem. And he did evil before the Lord his God.
{36:6} Nebuchadnezzar, the king of the Chaldeans, ascended against him, and led him bound in chains to Babylon.
{36:7} And to there, he also took away the vessels of the Lord, and he placed them in his temple.
{36:8} But the rest of the words of Jehoiakim, and his abominations that he worked, and the things that were found in him, are contained in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. Then his son, Jehoiachin, reigned in his place.
{36:9} Jehoiachin was eight years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for three months and ten days in Jerusalem. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord.
{36:10} And when the course of a year had turned, king Nebuchadnezzar sent and brought him to Babylon, carrying away, at the same time, the most precious vessels of the house of the Lord. Truly, he appointed his uncle, Zedekiah, as king over Judah and Jerusalem.
{36:11} Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem.
{36:12} And he did evil in the eyes of the Lord his God. And he did not show remorse before the face of the prophet Jeremiah, who was speaking to him from the mouth of the Lord.
{36:13} Also, he withdrew from king Nebuchadnezzar, who had bound him by an oath to God, and he hardened his own neck and his own heart, so that he did not return to the Lord, the God of Israel.
{36:14} Then too, all the leaders of the priests, with the people, transgressed iniquitously, in accord with all the abominations of the Gentiles. And they polluted the house of the Lord, which he had sanctified to himself in Jerusalem.
{36:15} Then the Lord, the God of their fathers, sent to them, by the hand of his messengers, rising in the night and daily admonishing them. For he was lenient to his people and to his habitation.
{36:16} But they ridiculed the messengers of God, and they gave little weight to his words, and they mocked the prophets, until the fury of the Lord ascended against his people, and there was no remedy.
{36:17} For he led over them the king of the Chaldeans. And he put to death their young men by the sword, in the house of his sanctuary. There was no pity for adolescents, nor virgins, nor the elderly, nor even for the disabled. Instead, he delivered them all into his hands.
{36:18} And all the vessels of the house of Lord, as much the greater as the lesser, and the treasures of the temple, and of the king and the rulers, he carried away to Babylon.
{36:19} The enemies set fire to the house of God, and they destroyed the wall of Jerusalem. They burned down all the towers. And whatever was precious, they demolished.
{36:20} If anyone had escaped from the sword, he was led into Babylon. And he served the king and his sons, until the king of Persia would command,
{36:21} and the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah would be fulfilled, and the land would celebrate her Sabbaths. For during all the days of the desolation, she kept a Sabbath, until the seventy years were completed.
{36:22} Then, in the first year of Cyrus, the king of the Persians, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord, which he had spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah, the Lord stirred up the heart of Cyrus, the king of the Persians, who commanded this to be proclaimed throughout his entire kingdom, and also in writing, saying:
{36:23} “Thus says Cyrus, the king of the Persians: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given to me all the kingdoms of the earth. And he has instructed me that I should build for him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judea. Who among you is from his entire people? May the Lord his God be with him, and let him ascend.”
{1:1} In the first year of Cyrus, king of the Persians, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, king of the Persians, so that the word of the Lord from the mouth of Jeremiah would be fulfilled. And he sent out a voice, throughout his entire kingdom, and also in writing, saying:
{1:2} “Thus says Cyrus, the king of the Persians: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given all the kingdoms of the earth to me, and he himself has instructed me that I should build a house for him in Jerusalem, which is in Judea.
{1:3} Who among you is from his entire people? May his God be with him. Let him ascend to Jerusalem, which is in Judea, and let him build the house of the Lord, the God of Israel. He is the God who is in Jerusalem.
{1:4} And let all who remain, in all the places wherever they may live, assist him, each man from his place, with silver and gold, and goods and cattle, in addition to whatever they may offer voluntarily to the temple of God, which is in Jerusalem.”
{1:5} And the leaders of the fathers from Judah and from Benjamin, with the priests, and the Levites, and all those whose spirit was stirred by God, rose up, so that they might ascend to build the temple of the Lord, which was in Jerusalem.
{1:6} And all those who were all around assisted their hands with vessels of silver and gold, with goods and cattle, with equipment, in addition to whatever they had offered freely.
{1:7} Likewise, king Cyrus offered the vessels of the temple of the Lord, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from Jerusalem and had placed in the temple of his god.
{1:8} Now Cyrus, king of Persia, offered these by the hand of Mithredath, the son of the treasurer, and he counted these out to Sheshbazzar, the leader of Judah.
{1:9} And this is their number: thirty gold bowls, one thousand silver bowls, twenty-nine knives, thirty gold cups,
{1:10} four hundred ten of a second kind of silver cup, one thousand other vessels.
{1:11} All the vessels of gold and silver were five thousand four hundred. Sheshbazzar brought all these, with those who ascended from the transmigration of Babylon, into Jerusalem.
{2:1} Now these are the sons of the province, who ascended from the captivity, whom Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had transferred to Babylon, and who were returned to Jerusalem and to Judah, each one to his own city.
{2:2} They arrived with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Seraiah, Reelaiah, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispar, Bigvai, Rehum, Baanah. The number of the men of the people of Israel:
{2:3} The sons of Parosh, two thousand one hundred seventy-two.
{2:4} The sons of Shephatiah, three hundred seventy-two.
{2:5} The sons of Arah, seven hundred seventy-five.
{2:6} The sons of Pahath-moab, of the sons of Jeshua and Joab, two thousand eight hundred twelve.
{2:7} The sons of Elam, one thousand two hundred fifty-four.
{2:8} The sons of Zattu, nine hundred forty-five.
{2:9} The sons of Zaccai, seven hundred sixty.
{2:10} The sons of Bani, six hundred forty-two.
{2:11} The sons of Bebai, six hundred twenty-three.
{2:12} The sons of Azgad, one thousand two hundred twenty-two.
{2:13} The sons of Adonikam, six hundred sixty-six.
{2:14} The sons of Bigvai, two thousand fifty-six.
{2:15} The sons of Adin, four hundred fifty-four.
{2:16} The sons of Ater, who were of Hezekiah, ninety-eight.
{2:17} The sons of Bezai, three hundred twenty-three.
{2:18} The sons of Jorah, one hundred twelve.
{2:19} The sons of Hashum, two hundred twenty-three.
{2:20} The sons of Gibbar, ninety-five.
{2:21} The sons of Bethlehem, one hundred twenty-three.
{2:22} The men of Netophah, fifty-six.
{2:23} The men of Anathoth, one hundred twenty-eight.
{2:24} The sons of Azmaveth, forty-two.
{2:25} The sons of Kiriatharim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, seven hundred forty-three.
{2:26} The sons of Ramah and Geba, six hundred twenty-one.
{2:27} The men of Michmas, one hundred twenty-two.
{2:28} The men of Bethel and Ai, two hundred twenty-three.
{2:29} The sons of Nebo, fifty-two.
{2:30} The sons of Magbish, one hundred fifty-six.
{2:31} The sons of the other Elam, one thousand two hundred fifty-five.
{2:32} The sons of Harim, three hundred twenty.
{2:33} The sons of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred twenty-five.
{2:34} The sons of Jericho, three hundred forty-five.
{2:35} The sons of Senaah, three thousand six hundred thirty.
{2:36} The priests: the sons of Jedaiah of the house of Jeshua, nine hundred seventy-three.
{2:37} The sons of Immer, one thousand fifty-two.
{2:38} The sons of Pashhur, one thousand two hundred forty-seven.
{2:39} The sons of Harim, one thousand seventeen.
{2:40} The Levites: the sons of Jeshua and Kadmiel, of the sons of Hodaviah, seventy-four.
{2:41} The singing men: the sons of Asaph, one hundred twenty-eight.
{2:42} The sons of the gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hatita, the sons of Shobai: altogether one hundred thirty-nine.
{2:43} The temple servants: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasupha, the sons of Tabbaoth,
{2:44} the sons of Keros, the sons of Siaha, the sons of Padon,
{2:45} the sons of Lebanah, the sons of Hagabah, the sons of Akkub,
{2:46} the sons of Hagab, the sons of Shamlai, the sons of Hanan,
{2:47} the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar, the sons of Reaiah,
{2:48} the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nekoda, the sons of Gazzam,
{2:49} the sons of Uzza, the sons of Paseah, the sons of Besai,
{2:50} the sons of Asnah, the sons of Meunim, the sons of Nephusim,
{2:51} the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Harhur,
{2:52} the sons of Bazluth, the sons of Mehida, the sons of Harsha,
{2:53} the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Temah,
{2:54} the sons of Neziah, the sons of Hatipha;
{2:55} the sons of the servants of Solomon, the sons of Sotai, the sons of Sophereth, the sons of Peruda,
{2:56} the sons of Jaalah, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel,
{2:57} the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pochereth, who were of Hazzebaim, the sons of Ami:
{2:58} all the temple servants and the sons of the servants of Solomon, three hundred ninety-two.
{2:59} And these were the ones who ascended from Telmelah, Telharsha, Cherub, and Addan, and Immer. And they were not able to indicate the house of their fathers and their offspring, whether they were of Israel:
{2:60} The sons of Delaiah, the sons of Tobiah, the sons of Nekoda, six hundred fifty-two.
{2:61} And from the sons of the priests: the sons of Hobaiah, the sons of Hakkoz, the sons of Barzillai, who took a wife from the daughters of Barzillai, the Gileadite, and who were called by their name.
{2:62} These sought the writing of their genealogy, and they did not find it, and so they were cast out of the priesthood.
{2:63} And the cupbearer said to them that they should not eat from the Holy of Holies, until there would arise a priest, learned and perfect.
{2:64} The entire multitude joined together was forty-two thousand three hundred sixty,
{2:65} not including their men and women servants, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty-seven. And among these were singing men and singing women, two hundred.
{2:66} Their horses were seven hundred thirty-six; their mules were two hundred forty-five;
{2:67} their camels were four hundred thirty-five; their donkeys were six thousand seven hundred twenty.
{2:68} And some of the leaders among the fathers, when they entered into the temple of the Lord, which is in Jerusalem, freely offered some of these to the house of God, in order to construct it in its location.
{2:69} They gave to the expenses of the work in accord with their ability: sixty-one thousand gold coins, five thousand silver minas, and one hundred priestly vestments.
{2:70} Therefore, the priests and the Levites, and some of the people, and the singing men, and the gatekeepers, and the temple servants lived in their cities, and all of Israel lived in their cities.
{3:1} And now the seventh month had arrived, and the sons of Israel were in their cities. Then, the people were gathered together, like one man, in Jerusalem.
{3:2} And Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, rose up with his brothers, the priests. And Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, rose up with his brothers. And they built the altar of the God of Israel, so that they might offer holocausts upon it, just as it was written in the law of Moses, the man of God.
{3:3} Now they set the altar of God upon its bases, while keeping the people of all the surrounding lands away from it. And they offered upon it a holocaust to the Lord, morning and evening.
{3:4} And they kept the solemnity of tabernacles, just as it was written, and the holocaust of each day in order, according to the precept, the work of each day in its time.
{3:5} And after these, they offered the continual holocaust, as much on the new moons as on all the solemnities of the Lord that were consecrated, and on all those when a voluntary gift was offered to the Lord.
{3:6} From the first day of the seventh month, they began to offer holocausts to the Lord. But the temple of God had not yet been founded.
{3:7} And so they gave money to those who cut and laid stones. Similarly, they gave food, and drink, and oil to the Sidonians and the Tyrians, so that they would bring cedar wood, from Lebanon to the sea at Joppa, in accord with what had been commanded of them by Cyrus, the king of the Persians.
{3:8} Then, in the second year of their advent to the temple of God in Jerusalem, in the second month, Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, and the remainder of their brothers, the priests, and the Levites, and all who had arrived from the captivity to Jerusalem, began, and they appointed Levites, from twenty years and over, to hasten the work of the Lord.
{3:9} And Jeshua and his sons and his brothers, Kadmiel and his sons, and the sons of Judah, like one man, stood so that they might have charge over those who did the work in the temple of God: the sons of Henadad, and their sons, and their brothers, the Levites.
{3:10} And when the builders had founded the temple of the Lord, the priests stood in their adornment with trumpets, and the Levites, the sons of Asaph, stood with cymbals, so that they might praise God by the hand of David, the king of Israel.
{3:11} And they sung together with hymns and confession to the Lord: “For he is good. For his mercy is over Israel unto eternity.” And likewise, all the people shouted with a great clamor in praise to the Lord, because the temple of the Lord had been founded.
{3:12} And many of the priests and the Levites, and the leaders of the fathers and of the elders, who had seen the former temple, when now this temple was founded and was before their eyes, wept with a great voice. And many of them, shouting for joy, lifted up their voice.
{3:13} Neither could anyone distinguish between the voice of clamor of joy, and a voice of weeping of the people. For the shouting of the people mixed into a great clamor, and the voice was heard from far away.
{4:1} Now the enemies of Judah and of Benjamin heard that the sons of the captivity were building a temple to the Lord, the God of Israel.
{4:2} And so, drawing near to Zerubbabel and to the leaders of the fathers, they said to them: “Let us build with you, for we seek your God just as you do. Behold, we have immolated victims to him from the days of Esarhaddon, king of Assyria, who brought us here.”
{4:3} And Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest of the leaders of the fathers of Israel said to them: “It is not for you to build the house of our God with us. Instead, we alone shall build to the Lord our God, just as Cyrus, the king of the Persians, has commanded us.”
{4:4} Therefore, it happened that the people of the land impeded the hands of the people of Judah, and they troubled them in building.
{4:5} Then they hired counselors against them, so that they might argue against their plan during all the days of Cyrus, king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius, king of the Persians.
{4:6} And so, during the reign of Ahasuerus, at the beginning of his reign, they wrote an accusation against the inhabitants of Judah and of Jerusalem.
{4:7} And so, in the days of Artaxerxes, Bishlam, Mithredath, and Tabeel, and the others who were in their council wrote to Artaxerxes, king of the Persians. Now the letter of accusation was written in Syriac, and was being read in the Syrian language.
{4:8} Rehum, the commander, and Shimshai, the scribe, wrote one letter from Jerusalem to king Artaxerxes, in this manner:
{4:9} “Rehum, the commander, and Shimshai, the scribe, and the rest of their counselors, the judges, and rulers, the officials, those from Persia, from Erech, from Babylonia, from Susa, the Dehavites, and the Elamites,
{4:10} and the rest of the nations, whom the great and glorious Osnappar transferred and caused to live in the cities of Samaria and in the rest of the regions across the river in peace:
{4:11} to king Artaxerxes. (This is a copy of the letter, which they sent to him.) Your servants, the men who are across the river, send a greeting.
{4:12} Let it be known to the king, that the Jews, who ascended from you to us, have arrived in Jerusalem, a rebellious and most wicked city, which they are building, constructing its ramparts and repairing the walls.
{4:13} And now let be it known to the king, that if this city will have been built up, and its walls repaired, they will not pay tribute, nor tax, nor yearly revenues, and this loss will affect even the kings.
{4:14} But, remembering the salt that we have eaten in the palace, and because we are led to believe that it is a crime to see the king harmed, we have therefore sent and reported to the king,
{4:15} so that you may search in the books of the histories of your fathers, and you may find written in the records, and you may know that this city is a rebellious city, and that it is harmful to the kings and the provinces, and that wars were incited within it from the days of antiquity. For which reason also, the city itself was destroyed.
{4:16} We report to the king that if this city will have been built, and its walls repaired, you will have no possession across the river.”
{4:17} The king sent word to Rehum, the commander, and to Shimshai, the scribe, and to the rest who were in their council, to the inhabitants of Samaria, and to the others across the river, offering a greeting and peace.
{4:18} “The accusation, which you have sent to us, has been read aloud before me.
{4:19} And it was commanded by me, and they searched and found that this city, from the days of antiquity, has rebelled against the kings, and that seditions and battles have been incited within it.
{4:20} Then too, there have been very strong kings in Jerusalem, who also ruled over the entire region which is across the river. They have also taken tribute, and tax, and revenues.
{4:21} Now therefore, hear the sentence: Prohibit those men, so that this city may be not built, until perhaps there may be further orders from me.
{4:22} See to it that you are not negligent in fulfilling this, otherwise, little by little, the evil may increase against the kings.”
{4:23} And so a copy of the edict of king Artaxerxes was read before Rehum, the commander, and Shimshai, the scribe, and their counselors. And they went away hurriedly to Jerusalem, to the Jews. And they prohibited them by force and by strength.
{4:24} Then the work of the house of the Lord in Jerusalem was interrupted, and it did not resume until the second year of the reign of Darius, the king of the Persians.
{5:1} Now Haggai, the prophet, and Zechariah, the son of Iddo, prophesying to the Jews who were in Judea and Jerusalem, prophesied in the name of the God of Israel.
{5:2} Then Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, rose up and began to build the temple of God in Jerusalem. And the prophets of God were with them, assisting them.
{5:3} Then, at the same time, Tattenai, who was the governor beyond the river, and Shetharbozenai, and their counselors came to them. And they spoke in this way to them: “Who has given you counsel, so that you would build this house and repair its walls?”
{5:4} We responded to this by giving them the names of the men who were the founders of that building.
{5:5} But the eye of their God was set over the elders of the Jews, and so they were unable to hinder them. And it was agreed that the matter should be referred to Darius, and then they would give a reply against that accusation.
{5:6} A copy of the letter that Tattenai, the governor of the region beyond the river, and Shetharbozenai, and his counselors, the rulers who were beyond the river, sent to Darius the king.
{5:7} The word that they sent him was written in this way: “To Darius, the king of all peace.
{5:8} Let it be known to the king, that we went to the province of Judea, to the house of the great God, which they are building with rough stones, and with timber set into the walls. And this work is being built up diligently, and it increases by their hands.
{5:9} Therefore, we questioned those elders, and we spoke to them in this way: ‘Who has given authority to you, so that you would build this house and repair these walls?’
{5:10} But we also required of them their names, so that we might report to you. And we have written down the names of their men, those who are leaders among them.
{5:11} Then they responded a word to us in this manner, saying: ‘We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth. And we are building the temple that was constructed these many years before, and which a great king of Israel had built and constructed.
{5:12} But afterward, our fathers had provoked the God of heaven to wrath, so he delivered them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, the Chaldean. And he destroyed this house, and he transferred its people to Babylon.
{5:13} Then, in the first year of Cyrus, the king of Babylon, king Cyrus issued a decree, so that this house of God would be built.
{5:14} And now the vessels of gold and silver from the temple of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple that was in Jerusalem, and which he had carried away to the temple of Babylon, king Cyrus brought out of the temple of Babylon, and they were given to one called Sheshbazzar, whom he also appointed as governor.
{5:15} And he said to him: “Take these vessels, and go, and set them in the temple that is in Jerusalem. And let the house of God be built in its place.”
{5:16} And so this same Sheshbazzar then came and set the foundations of the temple of God in Jerusalem. And from that time, even until now, it is being built, and it is not yet completed.’
{5:17} Now then, if it seems good to the king, let him search in the king’s library, which is in Babylon, to see whether it was ordered by king Cyrus, that the house of God in Jerusalem should be built. And may the will of the king be sent to us about this matter.”
{6:1} Then king Darius instructed, and they searched in the library of books that were deposited in Babylon.
{6:2} And there was found at Ecbatana, which is a fortified place in the province of Media, one volume, and this record was written in it:
{6:3} “In the first year of king Cyrus, Cyrus the king decreed that the house of God, which is in Jerusalem, shall be built in the place where they immolate victims, and that they should set the foundations so as to support a height of sixty cubits and a width of sixty cubits,
{6:4} with three rows of rough stones, and so as to have rows of new timber, and that the expenses shall be given from the house of the king.
{6:5} But also, let the gold and silver vessels of the temple of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took from the temple of Jerusalem, and which he carried away to Babylon, be restored and be carried back to the temple of Jerusalem, to their place, just as they had been placed in the temple of God.
{6:6} Now therefore, let Tattenai, the governor of the region which is beyond the river, Shetharbozenai, and your counselors, the rulers who are beyond the river, withdraw far away from them,
{6:7} and let this temple of God be released to the governor of the Jews and to their elders, so that they may build that house of God in its place.
{6:8} Moreover, it has been instructed by me as to what ought to be done by those priests of the Jews, so that the house of God may be built, specifically, that from the king’s treasury, that is, from the tribute which is taken from the region beyond the river, the expenses shall be scrupulously given to those men, so that the work may not be impeded.
{6:9} But if it may be necessary, let also calves, and lambs, and young goats for holocausts to the God of heaven, with grain, salt, wine, and oil, according to the rite of the priests who are in Jerusalem, be given to them for each day, so that there may be no complaint in anything.
{6:10} And let them offer oblations to the God of heaven, and let them pray for the life of the king and for the lives of his sons.
{6:11} Therefore, the decree has been set forth by me, so that, if there be any man who will change this order, a beam shall be taken from his own house, and it shall be set up, and he shall be nailed to it. Then his house shall be confiscated.
{6:12} So then, may the God who has caused his name to live there destroy any kingdoms or people who would extend their hand to fight against or to destroy that house of God, which is in Jerusalem. I, Darius, have established the decree, which I wish to be fulfilled scrupulously.”
{6:13} Therefore, Tattenai, the governor of the region beyond the river, and Shetharbozenai, and his counselors, in accord with what king Darius had instructed, diligently executed the same.
{6:14} Then the elders of the Jews were building and prospering, in accord with the prophecy of Haggai, the prophet, and Zechariah, the son of Iddo. And they built and constructed by the order of the God of Israel, and by the order of Cyrus and Darius, as well as Artaxerxes, the kings of the Persians.
{6:15} And they completed this house of God on the third day of the month of Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of king Darius.
{6:16} Then the sons of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the remainder of the sons of the transmigration celebrated the dedication of the house of God with gladness.
{6:17} And they offered, for the dedication of the house of God, one hundred calves, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs, and, as a sin offering for all of Israel, twelve he-goats from among the goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.
{6:18} And they appointed the priests into their divisions, and the Levites into their turns, over the works of God in Jerusalem, just as it was written in the book of Moses.
{6:19} Then the sons of Israel of the transmigration kept the Passover, on the fourteenth day of the first month.
{6:20} For the priests and Levites had been purified as one. All were cleansed in order to immolate the Passover for all the sons of the transmigration, and for their brothers, the priests, and for themselves.
{6:21} And the sons of Israel, who had been returned from the transmigration, and all those who had separated themselves from the defilement of the Gentiles of the earth to them, so that they might seek the Lord, the God of Israel, ate
{6:22} and kept the solemnity of unleavened bread for seven days with joy. For the Lord had made them joyful, and he had converted the heart of the king of Assur to them, so that he would assist their hands in the work of the house of the Lord, the God of Israel.
{7:1} Now after these things, during the reign of Artaxerxes, the king of the Persians, Ezra, the son of Seraiah, the son of Azariah, the son of Hilkiah,
{7:2} the son of Shallum, the son of Zadok, the son of Ahitub,
{7:3} the son of Amariah, the son of Azariah, the son of Meraioth,
{7:4} the son of Zerahiah, the son of Uzzi, the son of Bukki,
{7:5} the son of Abishua, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, priest from the beginning,
{7:6} this same Ezra, ascended from Babylon; and he was a proficient scribe in the law of Moses, which the Lord God gave to Israel. And the king granted to him his every petition. For the hand of the Lord, his God, was over him.
{7:7} And some from the sons of Israel, and from the sons of the priests, and from the sons of the Levites, and from the singing men, and from the gatekeepers, and from the temple servants ascended to Jerusalem, in the seventh year of king Artaxerxes.
{7:8} And they arrived at Jerusalem in the fifth month, in the same seventh year of the king.
{7:9} For on the first day of the first month, he began to ascend from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month, he arrived at Jerusalem. For the good hand of his God was over him.
{7:10} For Ezra prepared his heart, so that he might search the law of the Lord, and so that he might keep and teach precept and judgment in Israel.
{7:11} Now this is a copy of the letter of the edict, which king Artaxerxes gave to Ezra, the priest, a scribe well-taught in the words and precepts of the Lord and in his ceremonies in Israel:
{7:12} “Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra, the priest, a very learned scribe of the law of the God of heaven: a greeting.
{7:13} It has been decreed by me, that whosoever wishes, among the people of Israel and their priests and Levites within my kingdom, to go to Jerusalem, may go with you.
{7:14} For you have been sent from the face of the king and his seven counselors, so that you may visit Judea and Jerusalem by the law of your God, which is in your hand,
{7:15} and so that you may carry the silver and gold, which the king and his counselors have freely offered to the God of Israel, whose tabernacle is in Jerusalem.
{7:16} And all the silver and gold, as much as you will find in the entire province of Babylon, and which the people will wish to offer, and which some of the priests will offer freely to the house of their God, which is in Jerusalem,
{7:17} accept it freely. And with this money, carefully purchase calves, rams, lambs, and their sacrifices and libations, and offer these upon the altar of the temple of your God, which is in Jerusalem.
{7:18} But also, whatever it will please you and your brothers to do with the remainder of the silver and gold, do so in accord with the will of your God.
{7:19} Likewise, the vessels that have been given to you for the ministry of the house of your God, deliver these to the sight of God in Jerusalem.
{7:20} Then, whatever more will be needed for the house of your God, as much as is necessary for you to spend, it shall be given from the treasury, and from the king’s finances,
{7:21} and by me. I, king Artaxerxes, have appointed and decreed to all the keepers of the public treasury, those who are beyond the river, that whatever Ezra, the priest, a scribe of the law of the God of heaven, shall ask of you, you shall provide it without delay,
{7:22} even up to one hundred talents of silver, and up to one hundred cors of wheat, and up to one hundred baths of wine, and up to one hundred baths of oil, and truly salt without measure.
{7:23} All that pertains to the rite of the God of heaven, let it be distributed scrupulously to the house of the God of heaven, lest perhaps he may become angry against the kingdom of the king and his sons.
{7:24} Likewise, we would make known to you, about all the priests, and the Levites, and the singers, and the gatekeepers, and the temple servants, and the ministers of the house of this God, that you have no authority to impose tax, or tribute, or duty upon them.
{7:25} But as for you, Ezra, in accord with the wisdom of your God, which is in your hand, appoint judges and magistrates, so that they may judge the entire people, which is beyond the river, especially so that they may know the law of your God, but also so as to teach the ignorant freely.
{7:26} And anyone who will not diligently keep the law of your God, and the law of the king, judgment shall be upon him, either to death, or to exile, or to the confiscation of his goods, or certainly to prison.”
{7:27} Blessed be the Lord, the God of our fathers, who has put this into the heart of the king, so that he may glorify the house of the Lord, which is in Jerusalem.
{7:28} For he has turned his mercy toward me in the sight of the king, and his counselors, and all the powerful leaders of the king. And so, having been strengthened by the hand of the Lord, my God, which was upon me, I gathered together some of the leaders of Israel, those who were to go up with me.
{8:1} And so these are the leaders of the families, with their genealogy, of those who ascended with me from Babylon, during the reign of king Artaxerxes.
{8:2} From the sons of Phinehas, Gershom. From the sons of Ithamar, Daniel. From the sons of David, Hattush.
{8:3} From the sons of Shecaniah, the son of Parosh, Zechariah, and one hundred fifty men were numbered with him.
{8:4} From the sons of Pahath-moab, Eliehoenai, the son of Zerahiah, and two hundred men were with him.
{8:5} From the sons of Shecaniah, the son of Jahaziel, and three hundred men were with him.
{8:6} From the sons of Adin, Ebed, the son of Jonathan, and fifty men were with him.
{8:7} From the sons of Elam, Jeshaiah, the son of Athaliah, and seventy men were with him.
{8:8} From the sons of Shephatiah, Zebadiah, the son of Michael, and eighty men were with him.
{8:9} From the sons of Joab, Obadiah, the son of Jehiel, and two hundred eighteen men were with him.
{8:10} From the sons of Shelomith, the son of Josiphiah, and one hundred sixty men were with him.
{8:11} From the sons of Bebai, Zechariah, the son of Bebai, and twenty-eight men were with him.
{8:12} From the sons of Azgad, Johanan, the son of Hakkatan, and one hundred and ten men were with him.
{8:13} From the sons of Adonikam, who were the last, and these were their names: Eliphelet, and Jeuel, and Shemaiah, and sixty men were with them.
{8:14} From the sons of Bigvai, Uthai and Zaccur, and seventy men were with them.
{8:15} Now I gathered them together at the river that runs down to Ahava, and we stayed there for three days. And I sought among the people and among the priests for the sons of Levi, and I found none there.
{8:16} And so I sent Eliezer, and Ariel, and Shemaiah, and Elnathan, and Jarib, and another Elnathan, and Nathan, and Zechariah, and Meshullam, who were leaders, and Joiarib and Elnathan, who were wise.
{8:17} And I sent them to Iddo, who is first within the place of Casiphia. And I placed in their mouth the words that they should speak to Iddo and his brothers, the temple servants, in the place of Casiphia, so that they would lead to us ministers for the house of our God.
{8:18} And because the good hand of our God was over us, they led to us a very learned man from the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Israel, with Sherebiah, and his sons, and his eighteen brothers,
{8:19} and Hashabiah, and with him Jeshaiah, of the sons of Merari, and his brothers, and his sons, numbering twenty.
{8:20} And from the temple servants, whom David, and the leaders had provided for the ministry of the Levites, there were two hundred twenty temple servants. All these were called by their names.
{8:21} And I proclaimed a fast in that place, beside the river Ahava, so that we might afflict ourselves in the sight of the Lord our God, and so that we might request of him the right way for us, and for our sons, and for all our substance.
{8:22} For I was ashamed to petition the king for assistance and for horsemen, who would defend us from the enemy along the way. For we had said to the king: “The hand of our God is over all those who seek him in goodness. And his authority, and his strength and fury, is over all those who forsake him.”
{8:23} And so we fasted and begged our God for this; and as a result, we prospered.
{8:24} And I separated twelve from among the leaders of the priests: Sherebiah, and Hashabiah, and with them ten of their brothers.
{8:25} And I weighed out to them the silver and the gold, and the vessels consecrated to the house of our God, which had been offered by the king, and by his counselors and his leaders, and by all those of Israel who had been found.
{8:26} And I weighed out to their hands six hundred fifty talents of silver, and one hundred vessels of silver, and one hundred talents of gold,
{8:27} and twenty gold bowls which had the weight of one thousand coins, and two vessels of the finest shining brass, as beautiful as gold.
{8:28} And I said to them: “You are the holy ones of the Lord, and the vessels are holy, with the silver and the gold, which has been offered freely to the Lord, the God of our fathers.
{8:29} Watch and guard them, until you weigh them out before the leaders of the priests and the Levites, and the rulers of the families of Israel in Jerusalem, into the treasury of the house of the Lord.”
{8:30} Then the priests and the Levites received the weight of the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, so that they might carry these to Jerusalem, into the house of our God.
{8:31} Therefore, we set out from the river Ahava, on the twelfth day of the first month, so that we might travel to Jerusalem. And the hand of our God was over us, and he freed us from the hand of the enemy and of those who lay in ambush along the way.
{8:32} And we arrived at Jerusalem, and we stayed there for three days.
{8:33} Then, on the fourth day, the silver and the gold and the vessels were weighed out in the house of our God, by the hand of Meremoth, the son of Uriah, the priest; and with him was Eleazar, the son of Phinehas, and with them were the Levites, Jozabad, the son of Jeshua, and Noadiah, the son of Binnui.
{8:34} This was done according to the number and weight of everything; and every weight was written down at that time.
{8:35} Moreover, those who came from the captivity, the sons of the transmigration, offered holocausts to the God of Israel: twelve calves on behalf of all the people of Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and twelve he-goats for sin. All these were a holocaust to the Lord.
{8:36} Then they gave the edicts of the king to the rulers who served in the sight of the king, and to the governors beyond the river, and they exalted the people and the house of God.
{9:1} Then, after these things were completed, the leaders came to me, saying: “The people of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, have not been separated from the peoples of the lands and from their abominations, especially those of the Canaanites, and Hittites, and Perizzites, and Jebusites, and Ammonites, and Moabites, and Egyptians, and Amorites.
{9:2} For they have taken from their daughters for themselves and for their sons, and they have mixed a holy lineage with the peoples of the lands. And even the hand of the leaders and the magistrates has been first in this transgression.”
{9:3} And when I had heard this word, I tore my cloak and my tunic, and I pulled out the hairs of my head and beard, and I sat in mourning.
{9:4} Then all those who feared the word of the God of Israel gathered to me, because of the transgression of those who had arrived from the captivity. And I sat in sorrow, until the evening sacrifice.
{9:5} And at the evening sacrifice, I rose up from my affliction, and, having torn my cloak and my tunic, I fell to my knees, and I reached out my hands to the Lord, my God.
{9:6} And I said: “My God, I am confounded and ashamed to lift up my face to you. For our iniquities have been multiplied over our heads, and our offenses have increased, even up to heaven,
{9:7} from the days of our fathers. But also, we ourselves have sinned gravely, even to this day. And for our iniquities, we ourselves, and our kings and our priests, have been delivered into the hands of the kings of the lands, and to the sword, and to captivity, and to plunder, and to confusion of face, just as it is also in this day.
{9:8} And now, to a small extent and for a moment, our petition has been made with the Lord our God, so that they may leave us a remnant, and so that a secure place in his holy land may be given to us, and so that our God may illuminate our eyes, and may give us a little life in our servitude.
{9:9} For we are servants, yet in our servitude our God has not forsaken us, but he has inclined mercy upon us in the sight of the king of the Persians, so that he may give us life, and may raise up the house of our God, and repair its desolations, and give us a hedge in Judah and Jerusalem.
{9:10} And now, our God, what should we say after these things? For we abandoned your commandments,
{9:11} which you instructed by the hand of your servants, the prophets, saying: ‘The land, which you shall enter so that you may possess it, is an unclean land, due to the uncleanness of the peoples and of the other lands, the abominations of those who have filled it, from mouth to mouth, with their filth.’
{9:12} Now therefore, you should not give your daughters to their sons, nor should you receive their daughters for your sons. And you should not seek their peace, nor their prosperity, even forever. So shall you be strengthened, and so shall you eat the good things of the land, and have your sons as your heirs, even for all time.
{9:13} And after all that has happened to us because of our very wicked works and our great offense, you, our God, have freed us from our iniquity, and you have given us salvation, just as it is this day,
{9:14} so that we would not turn away and make your commandments void, and so that we would not unite in marriage with the peoples of these abominations. Could you be angry with us even to the very end, so that you would not leave us a remnant to be saved?
{9:15} O Lord, the God of Israel, you are just. For we have been left behind to be saved, just as it is this day. Behold, we are before your sight in our offense. And it is not possible to withstand you in this matter.”
{10:1} Therefore, as Ezra was praying, and imploring, and weeping in this way, and was prostrate before the temple of God, an exceedingly great assembly of men and women and children was gathered to him from Israel. And the people wept with a great weeping.
{10:2} And Shecaniah, the son of Jehiel, from the sons of Elam, responded and said to Ezra: “We have sinned against our God, and have taken foreign wives from the peoples of the land. And now, if there is repentance within Israel over this,
{10:3} let us strike a pact with the Lord our God, so that we may cast aside all the wives, and those who have been born from them, in accord with the will of the Lord, and of those who fear the precept of the Lord our God. So let it be done, according to the law.
{10:4} Rise up. It is for you to discern, and we shall be with you. Be strengthened and act.”
{10:5} Therefore, Ezra rose up, and he caused the leaders of the priests and the Levites, and all of Israel, to swear that they would act in accord with this word. And they swore it.
{10:6} And Ezra rose up before the house of God, and he went away to the chamber of Jehohanan, the son of Eliashib, and he entered into it. He did not eat bread, and he did not drink water. For he was mourning the transgression of those who had arrived from the captivity.
{10:7} And a voice was sent into Judah and Jerusalem, to all the sons of the transmigration, so that they would gather together in Jerusalem.
{10:8} And all those who would not arrive within three days, in accord with the counsel of the leaders and the elders, would have all his substance taken away, and he would be cast out of the assembly of the transmigration.
{10:9} And so, all the men of Judah and of Benjamin convened in Jerusalem within three days. This was in the ninth month, on the twentieth day of the month. And all the people sat in the street of the house of God, trembling because of the sin and the rain.
{10:10} And Ezra, the priest, rose up, and he said to them: “You have transgressed, and you have taken foreign wives, so that you added to the offenses of Israel.
{10:11} And now, make confession to the Lord, the God of your fathers, and do what pleases him, and separate yourselves from the peoples of the land, and from your foreign wives.”
{10:12} And the entire multitude responded, and they said with a great voice: “In accord with your word to us, so let be it done.
{10:13} Yet truly, since the people are many, and it is the time of rain, and we cannot endure standing outside, and this is not a task for one or two days, (for certainly we have sinned greatly in this matter,)
{10:14} let leaders be appointed among the entire multitude. And in all our cities, let those who have taken foreign wives arrive at appointed times, and with them the elders from city to city, and the judges, until the wrath of our God has been averted from us over this sin.”
{10:15} And so Jonathan, the son of Asahel, and Jahzeiah, the son of Tikvah, were appointed over this, and the Levites Meshullam and Shabbethai assisted them.
{10:16} And the sons of the transmigration did so. And Ezra, the priest, and the men who were the leaders of the families in the houses of their fathers, and all according to their names, went and sat down, on the first day of the tenth month, so that they might examine the matter.
{10:17} And they made an end with all the men who had taken foreign wives, by the first day of the first month.
{10:18} And there were found among the sons of the priests some who had taken foreign wives: From the sons of Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, and his brothers, Maaseiah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gedaliah.
{10:19} And they swore with their hands that they would cast aside their wives, and that they would offer for their offense a ram from among the sheep.
{10:20} And from the sons of Immer, Hanani and Zebadiah.
{10:21} And from the sons of Harim, Maaseiah, and Elijah, and Shemaiah, and Jehiel, and Uzziah.
{10:22} And from the sons of Pashhur, Elioenai, Maaseiah, Ishmael, Nethanel, Jozabad, and Elasah.
{10:23} And from the sons of the Levites, Jozabad, and Shimei, and Kelaiah, the same is Kelita, Pethahiah, Judah, and Eliezer.
{10:24} And from the singing men, Eliashib. And from the gatekeepers, Shallum, and Telem, and Uri.
{10:25} And out of Israel, from the sons of Parosh, Ramiah, and Izziah, and Malchijah, and Mijamin, and Eleazar, and Malchijah, and Benaiah.
{10:26} And from the sons of Elam, Mattaniah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, and Abdi, and Jeremoth, and Elijah.
{10:27} And from the sons of Zattu, Elioenai, Eliashib, Mattaniah, and Jeremoth, and Zabad, and Aziza.
{10:28} And from the sons of Bebai, Jehohanan, Hananiah, Zabbai, Athlai.
{10:29} And from the sons of Bani, Meshullam, and Malluch, and Adaiah, Jashub, and Sheal, and Ramoth.
{10:30} And from the sons of Pahath-moab, Adna, and Chelal, Benaiah, and Maaseiah, Mattaniah, Bezalel, Binnui, and Manasseh.
{10:31} And from the sons of Harim, Eliezer, Jeshua, Malchijah, Shemaiah, Simeon,
{10:32} Benjamin, Malluch, Shemariah.
{10:33} And from the sons of Hashum, Mattenai, Mattettah, Zabad, Eliphelet, Jeremai, Manasseh, Shimei.
{10:34} From the sons of Bani, Maadai, Amram, and Uel,
{10:35} Benaiah, and Bedeiah, Cheluhi,
{10:36} Vaniah, Meremoth, and Eliashib,
{10:37} Mattaniah, Mattenai, and Jaasu,
{10:38} and Bani, and Binnui, Shimei,
{10:39} and Shelemiah, and Nathan, and Adaiah,
{10:40} and Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai,
{10:41} Azarel, and Shelemiah, Shemariah,
{10:42} Shallum, Amariah, Joseph.
{10:43} From the sons of Nebo, Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai, and Joel, and Benaiah.
{10:44} All these had taken foreign wives, and there were among them women who had borne sons.
{1:1} The words of Nehemiah, the son of Hacaliah. And it happened that, in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, I was in the capital city of Susa.
{1:2} And Hanani, one of my brothers, arrived, he and some men of Judah. And I questioned them about the Jews who had remained and were left behind from the captivity, and about Jerusalem.
{1:3} And they said to me: “Those who have remained and have been left behind from the captivity, there in the province, are in great affliction and in disgrace. And the wall of Jerusalem has been broken apart, and its gates have been burned with fire.”
{1:4} And when I had heard this manner of words, I sat down, and I wept and mourned for many days. I fasted and prayed before the face of the God of heaven.
{1:5} And I said: “I beg you, O Lord, God of heaven, strong, great, and terrible, who keeps covenant and mercy with those who love you and who keep your commandments:
{1:6} may your ears be attentive, and may your eyes be open, so that you may hear the prayer of your servant, which I am praying before you today, night and day, for the sons of Israel, your servants. And I am confessing the sins of the sons of Israel, which they have sinned against you. We have sinned, I and my father’s house.
{1:7} We have been seduced by vanity. And we have not kept your commandments and ceremonies and judgments, which you have instructed to your servant Moses.
{1:8} Remember the word which you commanded to your servant Moses, saying: ‘When you will have transgressed, I will disperse you among the nations.
{1:9} But if you will return to me, and keep my precepts, and do them, even if you will have been led away to the furthest reaches of the heavens, I will gather you from there, and I will lead you back to the place that I have chosen so that my name would dwell there.’
{1:10} And these same are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great strength and by your powerful hand.
{1:11} I beg you, O Lord, may your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who are willing to fear your name. And so, guide your servant today, and grant to him mercy before this man.” For I was the cupbearer of the king.
{2:1} Now it happened that, in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of king Artaxerxes, wine was before him; and I lifted up the wine, and I gave it to the king. And I was like someone languishing before his face.
{2:2} And the king said to me: “Why is your expression sad, though you do not appear to be sick? This is not without cause, but some evil, I know not what, is in your heart.” And I was struck with an exceedingly great fear.
{2:3} And I said to the king: “O king, live forever. Why should my expression not be mournful, since the city of the house of the sepulchers of my father is desolate, and its gates have been burned with fire?”
{2:4} And the king said to me: “What would you request?” And I prayed to the God of heaven.
{2:5} And I said to the king: “If it seems good to the king, and if your servant is pleasing before your face: that you would send me into Judea, to the city of the sepulcher of my father. And I will rebuild it.”
{2:6} And the king said to me, with the queen who was sitting beside him: “Until what time will your journey be, and when will you return?” And it was pleasing before the countenance of the king, and so he sent me. And I established a time for him.
{2:7} And I said to the king: “If it seems good to the king, may he give me letters to the governors of the region beyond the river, so that they may lead me through, until I arrive in Judea,
{2:8} and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king’s forest, so that he may give me timber, in order that I may be able to cover the gates of the tower of the house, and the walls of the city, and the house that I will enter.” And the king granted to me in accord with the good hand of my God, who is with me.
{2:9} And I went to the governors of the region beyond the river, and I gave them the letters of the king. Now the king had sent with me military leaders and horsemen.
{2:10} And Sanballat, a Horonite, and the servant Tobiah, an Ammonite, heard this. And they were saddened, with a great affliction, that a man had arrived who was seeking the prosperity of the sons of Israel.
{2:11} And I arrived at Jerusalem, and I was there for three days.
{2:12} And I got up in the night, I and a few men with me. And I did not reveal to anyone what God had placed in my heart to do in Jerusalem. And there was no animal with me, except the animal on which I was sitting.
{2:13} And I departed in the night through the gate of the valley, and before the fountain of the dragon, and toward the dung gate. And I considered the wall of Jerusalem, which was broken apart, and its gates, which had been consumed by fire.
{2:14} And I continued on to the gate of the fountain, and to the aqueduct of the king. And there was no room for the beast on which I was sitting to pass through.
{2:15} And so I climbed up in the night along the torrent, and I considered the wall. And turning back, I went by the gate of the valley, and I returned.
{2:16} Now the magistrates did not know where I had gone, or what I had done. For I had revealed nothing, even to that point in time, to the Jews, or to the priests, or to the nobles, or to the magistrates, or to the others who were doing the work.
{2:17} And so I said to them: “You know the affliction in which we are, because Jerusalem is desolate, and its gates have been consumed by fire. Come, and let us rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, and let us no longer be in disgrace.”
{2:18} And I revealed to them how the hand of my God was with me for good, and the words of the king, which he had spoken to me. And I said: “Let us rise up, and build.” And their hands were strengthened for good.
{2:19} But Sanballat, a Horonite, and the servant Tobiah, an Ammonite, and Geshem, an Arab, heard of it. And they ridiculed and disparaged us, and they said: “What is this thing that you are doing? Could you be rebelling against the king?”
{2:20} And I replied to them a word, and I said to them: “The God of heaven himself is helping us, and we are his servants. Let us rise up and build. But there is no portion, or justice, or remembrance in Jerusalem for you.”
{3:1} And Eliashib, the great priest, rose up, with his brothers, the priests, and they built the gate of the flock. They sanctified it, and they set up its double doors, and as far as the tower of one hundred cubits, they sanctified it, even to the tower of Hananel.
{3:2} And beside him, the men of Jericho built. And beside them, Zaccur, the son of Imri, built.
{3:3} But the sons of Hassenaah built the fish gate. They covered it, and they set up its double doors and locks and bars. And beside them, Meremoth, the son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, built.
{3:4} And beside him, Meshullam, the son of Berechiah, the son of Meshezabel, built. And beside them, Zadok, the son of Baana, built.
{3:5} And beside them, the Tekoites built. But the nobles among them did not put their necks to the work of their Lord.
{3:6} And Joiada, the son of Paseah, and Meshullam, the son of Besodeiah, built the old gate. They covered it, and they set up its double doors and locks and bars.
{3:7} And beside them, Melatiah, a Gibeonite, and Jadon, a Meronothite, men from Gibeon and Mizpah, built, on behalf of the governor who was in the region across the river.
{3:8} And beside him, Uzziel, the son of Harhaiah the goldsmith, built. And beside him, Hananiah, the son of the perfumer, built. And they left aside Jerusalem as far as the wall of the broad street.
{3:9} And beside him, Rephaiah, the son of Hur, leader of a street of Jerusalem, built.
{3:10} And beside him, Jedaiah, the son of Harumaph, built, opposite his own house. And beside him, Hattush, the son of Hashabneiah, built.
{3:11} Malchijah, the son of Harim, and Hasshub, the son of Pahath-moab, built one half part of the street and the tower of the furnaces.
{3:12} And beside him, Shallum, the son of Hallohesh, the leader of one half part of a street of Jerusalem, built, he and his daughters.
{3:13} And Hanun built the gate of the valley, with the inhabitants of Zanoah. They built it, and they set up its double doors and locks and bars, with one thousand cubits of the wall, as far as the gate of the dunghill.
{3:14} And Malchijah, the son of Rechab, the leader of the street of Beth-haccherem, built the gate of the dunghill. He built it, and he set up its double doors and locks and bars.
{3:15} And Shallum, the son of Colhozeh, the leader of the district of Mizpah, built the gate of the fountain. He built it, and he covered it, and he set up its double doors and locks and bars, and the walls of the pool of Shelah at the garden of the king, and as far as the steps that descend from the City of David.
{3:16} After him, Nehemiah, the son of Azbuk, the leader of one half part of the street of Bethzur, built, as far as opposite the sepulcher of David, and even to the pool, which was constructed with great labor, and even to the house of the strong.
{3:17} After him, the Levites, Rehum, the son of Bani, built. After him, Hashabiah, the leader of one half part of the street of Keilah, built, in his own neighborhood.
{3:18} After him, their brothers, Binnui, the son of Henadad, the leader of one half part of Keilah, built.
{3:19} And beside him, Ezer, the son of Jeshua, the leader of Mizpah, built another measure, opposite the ascent to the strongest corner.
{3:20} After him, at the mount, Baruch, the son of Zabbai, built another measure, from the corner even to the door of the house of Eliashib, the great priest.
{3:21} After him, Meremoth, the son of Uriah, the son of Hakkoz, built another measure, from the door of the house of Eliashib, along the length of the house of Eliashib.
{3:22} And after him, the priests, men from the plains of the Jordan, built.
{3:23} After him, Benjamin and Hasshub built, opposite their own house. And after him, Azariah, the son of Maaseiah, the son of Ananiah, built, opposite his own house.
{3:24} After him, Binnui, the son of Henadad, built another measure, from the house of Azariah, even to the bend and to the corner.
{3:25} Palal, the son of Uzai, built, opposite the bend and the tower that projects from the high house of the king, that is, into the court of the prison. After him, Pedaiah, the son of Parosh, built.
{3:26} And the temple servants, who were living in Ophel, built to a point opposite the water gate, toward the east, and the tower that is prominent.
{3:27} After him, the Tekoites built another measure in the opposite area, from the great and prominent tower to the wall of the temple.
{3:28} Then, upward from the horse gate, the priests built, each one opposite his own house.
{3:29} After them, Zadok, the son of Immer, built, opposite his own house. And after him, Shemaiah, the son of Shecaniah, the keeper of the east gate, built.
{3:30} After him, Hananiah, the son of Shelemiah, and Hanun, the sixth son of Zalaph, built another measure. After him, Meshullam, the son of Berechiah, built, opposite his own storehouse. After him, Malchijah, the son of the goldsmith, built, even up to the house of the temple servants and of the sellers of small items, opposite the judgment gate, and even to the upper room of the corner.
{3:31} And within the upper room of the corner, at the gate of the flock, the goldsmiths and the merchants built.
{4:1} Now it happened that, when Sanballat had heard that we were building the wall, he was very angry. And having been moved exceedingly, he ridiculed the Jews.
{4:2} And he said, before his brothers and a crowd of the Samaritans: “What are the foolish Jews doing? Can it be that the Gentiles will allow them? Will they sacrifice and finish in one day? Do they have the ability to make stones out of piles of dust that have been burned up?”
{4:3} Then too, Tobiah, an Ammonite, his assistant, said: “Let them build. When the fox climbs, he will leap over their stone wall.”
{4:4} Listen, O our God, for we have become an object of contempt. Turn their reproach upon their own head, and grant that they may be despised in a land of captivity.
{4:5} May you not conceal their iniquity, and may their sin not be wiped away, before your face, for they have ridiculed those who are building.
{4:6} And so we built the wall, and we joined it together, even to the unfinished portion. And the heart of the people was stirred up for the work.
{4:7} Now it happened that, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabs, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites had heard that the walls of Jerusalem had been closed, and that the breaches had begun to be repaired, they were exceedingly angry.
{4:8} And they all gathered together, so that they might go forth and fight against Jerusalem, and so that they might prepare ambushes.
{4:9} And we prayed to our God, and we stationed guards upon the wall, day and night, against them.
{4:10} Then Judah said: “The strength of those who carry has diminished, and the amount of material is very great, and so we will not be able to build the wall.”
{4:11} And our enemies said: “Let them neither know, nor realize, until we arrive in their midst, and kill them, and cause the work to cease.”
{4:12} Now it happened that, on ten occasions, some Jews arrived who were living near them, from all the places from which they came to us, and they told us this.
{4:13} So I stationed the people in order, in places behind the wall, all around it, with their swords, and lances, and bows.
{4:14} And I gazed around, and I rose up. And I said to the nobles, and to the magistrates, and to the rest of the common people: “Do not be afraid before their face. Remember the great and terrible Lord, and fight on behalf of your brothers, your sons and your daughters, and your wives and your households.”
{4:15} Then it happened that, when our enemies had heard that it had been reported to us, God defeated their counsel. And we all returned to the walls, each one to his own work.
{4:16} And it happened that, from that day, half of their young men were doing the work, and half were prepared for war with lances, and shields, and bows, and armor. And the leaders were behind them in all the house of Judah.
{4:17} As for those building the wall, and carrying the burdens, and setting things in place: one of his hands was doing the work, and the other was holding a sword.
{4:18} For each one of the builders was girded with a sword at the waist. And they were building, and they were sounding a trumpet beside me.
{4:19} And I said to the nobles, and to the magistrates, and to the rest of the common people: “The work is great and wide, and we are separated on the wall far from one another.
{4:20} At whatever place you hear the sound of the trumpet, rush to that place for us. Our God will fight on our behalf.
{4:21} And so let us accomplish the work. And let one half part of us hold spears, from the ascent of dawn until the stars come out.”
{4:22} Also at that time, I said to the people: “Let each one with his servant remain in the midst of Jerusalem. And let us take turns, throughout the night and day, in doing the work.”
{4:23} But I and my brothers, and my servants, and the guards who were behind me, we did not take off our clothes; each one only removed his clothes to wash.
{5:1} And there occurred a great outcry of the people and their wives against their brothers, the Jews.
{5:2} And there were those who were saying: “Our sons and our daughters are very many. Let us receive grain as a price for them, and then we may eat and live.”
{5:3} And there were those who were saying: “Let us offer up our fields and vineyards, and our houses, and then we may receive grain during the famine.”
{5:4} And others were saying: “Let us borrow money for the tribute of the king, and let us surrender our fields and vineyards.”
{5:5} “And now, as is the flesh of our brothers, so is our flesh; and as are their sons, so also are our sons. Behold, we have subjugated our sons and our daughters into servitude, and some of our daughters are slaves, nor do we have the ability to redeem them, for others possess our fields and our vineyards.”
{5:6} And when I had heard their outcry in these words, I was exceedingly angry.
{5:7} And my heart considered within me. And I rebuked the nobles and the magistrates, and I said to them, “Have you each been exacting usury from your brothers?” And I gathered together a great assembly against them.
{5:8} And I said to them: “As you know, in accord with what was possible for us, we have redeemed our brothers, the Jews, who had been sold to the Gentiles. And yet you now sell your brothers, and we must redeem them?” And they were silent, nor did they find anything to answer.
{5:9} And I said to them: “The thing that you are doing is not good. Why are you not walking in the fear of our God, so that there may be no reproach against us from our enemies, the Gentiles?
{5:10} Both I and my brothers, with my servants, have lent money and grain to many. Let us agree not to ask for its return. Let us forgive the other money that is owed to us.
{5:11} On this day, restore their fields, and their vineyards, and their olive groves, and their houses to them. Then, too, the hundredth part of the money, and of the grain, wine, and oil, which you usually exact from them, give it to them.”
{5:12} And they said: “We will restore it, and we will require nothing from them. And we will do just as you say.” And I called the priests, and I had them swear an oath, so that they would act in accord with what I had said.
{5:13} Moreover, I shook out my lap, and I said: “So may God shake out every man, who does not fulfill this word. From his house and from his labors, so may he be shaken out and become empty.” And the entire multitude said, “Amen.” And they praised God. Therefore, the people acted in accord with what was said.
{5:14} Now from that day, on which the king had ordered me to be governor in the land of Judah, from the twentieth year even to the thirty-second year of king Artaxerxes, for twelve years, I and my brothers did not eat the yearly allowance that was owed to the governors.
{5:15} But the former governors, the ones who had been before me, were a burden to the people, and they took from them bread and wine, and forty shekels of money each day. And their officials also oppressed the people. But I did not do so, out of fear of God.
{5:16} In fact, I preferred to build in the work of the wall, and I bought no land, and all my servants were gathered to do the work.
{5:17} Likewise, the Jews and the magistrates, one hundred and fifty men, were at my table, with those who came to us from among the Gentiles that are around us.
{5:18} Now there was prepared for me, on each day, one ox and six choice rams, along with poultry. And once every ten days, I distributed diverse wines and many other things. Yet I did not require my yearly allowance as governor. For the people were greatly impoverished.
{5:19} Remember me, O my God, for good, in accord with all that I have done for this people.
{6:1} Now it happened that, when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and Geshem, an Arab, and our other enemies, had heard that I had built the wall, and that there was no interruption remaining in it, (even though, at that time, I had not set up the double doors at the gates,)
{6:2} Sanballat and Geshem sent to me, saying: “Come, and let us strike a pact together in the villages, on the plain of Ono.” But they were thinking that they would do me harm.
{6:3} Therefore, I sent messengers to them, saying: “I am doing a great work, and I cannot descend, lest perhaps it may be neglected when I go out and descend to you.”
{6:4} Then they sent to me, with this same word, four times. And I responded to them with the same word as before.
{6:5} And Sanballat sent his servant to me a fifth time, with the former word, and he had a letter in his hand written in this manner:
{6:6} “It has been heard among the Gentiles, and Geshem has said it, that you and the Jews are planning to rebel, and because of this, you are building the wall and thinking to raise yourself as a king over them. For this reason,
{6:7} you also have stationed prophets, who preach about you in Jerusalem, saying: ‘There is a king in Judea!’ But the king will hear about these words. Therefore, come now, so that we may go to counsel together.”
{6:8} And I sent to them, saying: “There has been nothing done according to these words, which you have spoken. For you are inventing these things from your own heart.”
{6:9} For all these men wished to frighten us, thinking that our hands would cease from the work, and that we would cease. For this reason, I strengthened my hands all the more.
{6:10} And I entered into the house of Shemaiah, the son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabel, in secret. And he said: “Let us consult together in the house of God, in the midst of the temple. And let us close the doors of the temple. For they will come to kill you, and they will arrive in the night to put you to death.”
{6:11} And I said: “How could anyone like me flee? And who like me should enter the temple, so that he may live? I will not enter.”
{6:12} And I understood that God had not sent him, but he had spoken to me as if he were prophesying, and that Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him.
{6:13} For he had accepted money, so that I would be afraid, and would sin, and so that they would have some evil with which to rebuke me.
{6:14} Remember me, O Lord, because of Tobiah and Sanballat, because of their works of this kind. Then, too, Noadiah, a prophetess, and the rest of the prophets, would have made me afraid.
{6:15} Now the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth day of the month of Elul, in fifty-two days.
{6:16} Then it happened that, when all our enemies had heard of it, all the nations that were around us were afraid, and they were downcast within themselves. For they knew that this work had been accomplished by God.
{6:17} But also, in those days, many letters were being sent by the nobles of the Jews to Tobiah, and were arriving from Tobiah to them.
{6:18} For there were many in Judea who had sworn an oath to him, because he was the son-in-law of Shecaniah, the son of Arah, and because Jehohanan, his son, had married the daughter of Meshullam, the son of Berechiah.
{6:19} Moreover, they praised him before me, and they reported my words to him. And Tobiah sent letters, so that he might make me afraid.
{7:1} Then, after the wall was built, and I set up the double doors, and I enrolled the gatekeepers, and the singing men, and the Levites,
{7:2} I instructed Hanani, my brother, and Hananiah, the leader of the house of Jerusalem, (for he seemed to be a truthful man, fearing God more than the others,)
{7:3} and I said to them: “Let not the gates of Jerusalem be opened until the sun is hot.” And while they were standing there, the gates were closed and barred. And I stationed guards from the inhabitants of Jerusalem, each one in his turn, and each one opposite his own house.
{7:4} Now the city was great and very wide, and the people in its midst were few, and the houses were not yet built.
{7:5} But God had given to my heart, and I gathered the nobles, and the magistrates, and the common people, so that I might enroll them. And I found a book of the census of those who first went up, and in it there was found written:
{7:6} These are the sons of the province, who ascended from the captivity of the transmigration, those whom Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had taken away, and who returned into Jerusalem and Judea, each one to his own city.
{7:7} They arrived with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, Baanah. The number of the men of the people of Israel:
{7:8} The sons of Parosh, two thousand one hundred seventy-two.
{7:9} The sons of Shephatiah, three hundred seventy-two.
{7:10} The sons of Arah, six hundred fifty-two.
{7:11} The sons of Pahath-moab of the sons of Jeshua and of Joab, two thousand eight hundred eighteen.
{7:12} The sons of Elam, one thousand two hundred fifty-four.
{7:13} The sons of Zattu, eight hundred forty-five.
{7:14} The sons of Zaccai, seven hundred sixty.
{7:15} The sons of Binnui, six hundred forty-eight.
{7:16} The sons of Bebai, six hundred twenty-eight.
{7:17} The sons of Azgad, two thousand three hundred twenty-two.
{7:18} The sons of Adonikam, six hundred sixty-seven.
{7:19} The sons of Bigvai, two thousand sixty-seven.
{7:20} The sons of Adin, six hundred fifty-five.
{7:21} The sons of Ater, sons of Hezekiah, ninety-eight.
{7:22} The sons of Hashum, three hundred twenty-eight.
{7:23} The sons of Bezai, three hundred twenty-four.
{7:24} The sons of Hariph, one hundred twelve.
{7:25} The sons of Gibeon, ninety-five.
{7:26} The sons of Bethlehem and Netophah, one hundred eighty-eight.
{7:27} The men of Anathoth, one hundred twenty-eight.
{7:28} The men of Beth-azmaveth, forty-two.
{7:29} The men of Kiriath-jearim, Chephirah, and Beeroth, seven hundred forty-three.
{7:30} The men of Ramah and Geba, six hundred twenty-one.
{7:31} The men of Michmas, one hundred twenty-two.
{7:32} The men of Bethel and Ai, one hundred twenty-three.
{7:33} The men of the other Nebo, fifty-two.
{7:34} The men of the other Elam, one thousand two hundred fifty-four.
{7:35} The sons of Harim, three hundred twenty.
{7:36} The sons of Jericho, three hundred forty-five.
{7:37} The sons of Lod, Hadid, and Ono, seven hundred twenty-one.
{7:38} The sons of Senaah, three thousand nine hundred thirty.
{7:39} The priests: the sons of Jedaiah in the house of Jeshua, nine hundred seventy-three.
{7:40} The sons of Immer, one thousand fifty-two.
{7:41} The sons of Pashhur, one thousand two hundred forty-seven.
{7:42} The sons of Harim, one thousand and seventeen.
{7:43} The Levites: the sons of Jeshua and Kadmiel, the sons
{7:44} of Hodaviah, seventy-four. The singing men:
{7:45} the sons of Asaph, one hundred forty-eight.
{7:46} The gatekeepers: the sons of Shallum, the sons of Ater, the sons of Talmon, the sons of Akkub, the sons of Hatita, the sons of Shobai, one hundred thirty-eight.
{7:47} The temple servants: the sons of Ziha, the sons of Hasupha, the sons of Tabbaoth,
{7:48} the sons of Keros, the sons of Siaha, the sons of Padon, the sons of Lebanah, the sons of Hagabah, the sons of Shalmai,
{7:49} the sons of Hanan, the sons of Giddel, the sons of Gahar,
{7:50} the sons of Reaiah, the sons of Rezin, the sons of Nekoda,
{7:51} the sons of Gazzam, the sons of Uzza, the sons of Paseah,
{7:52} the sons of Besai, the sons of Meunim, the sons of Nephusim,
{7:53} the sons of Bakbuk, the sons of Hakupha, the sons of Harhur,
{7:54} the sons of Bazluth, the sons of Mehida, the sons of Harsha,
{7:55} the sons of Barkos, the sons of Sisera, the sons of Temah,
{7:56} the sons of Neziah, the sons of Hatipha.
{7:57} The sons of the servants of Solomon: the sons of Sotai, the sons of Sophereth, the sons of Perida,
{7:58} the sons of Jaalah, the sons of Darkon, the sons of Giddel,
{7:59} the sons of Shephatiah, the sons of Hattil, the sons of Pochereth, who was born from Hazzebaim, the son of Amon.
{7:60} All the temple servants and the sons of the servants of Solomon, three hundred ninety-two.
{7:61} Now these are the ones who ascended from Telmelah, Telharsha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer; and they were not able to indicate the house of their fathers and their offspring, whether they were of Israel:
{7:62} the sons of Delaiah, the sons of Tobiah, the sons of Nekoda, six hundred forty-two;
{7:63} and among the priests: the sons of Hobaiah, the sons of Hakkoz, the sons of Barzillai, who took a wife from the daughters of Barzillai, a Gileadite, and he was called by their name.
{7:64} These sought their writing in the census, and they did not find it, and so they were cast out of the priesthood.
{7:65} And the cupbearer said to them that they should not eat from the Holy of Holies, until a priest would stand up who was learned and skillful.
{7:66} The entire multitude, which was like one man, was forty-two thousand three hundred sixty,
{7:67} aside from their men and women servants, who were seven thousand three hundred thirty-seven, and among them were singing men and singing women, two hundred forty-five.
{7:68} Their horses were seven hundred thirty-six; their mules were two hundred forty-five.
{7:69} Their camels were four hundred thirty-five; their donkeys were six thousand seven hundred twenty.
{7:70} Now several of the leaders of the families gave to the work. The cupbearer gave to the treasury one thousand drachmas of gold, fifty bowls, and five hundred thirty priestly garments.
{7:71} And some of the leaders of the families gave to the treasury of the work twenty thousand drachmas of gold, and two thousand two hundred minas of silver.
{7:72} And what the remainder of the people gave was twenty thousand drachmas of gold, and two thousand minas of silver, and sixty-seven priestly garments.
{7:73} Now the priests, and the Levites, and the gatekeepers, and the singing men, and the rest of the common people, and the temple servants, and all of Israel dwelt in their own cities.
{8:1} And the seventh month had arrived. Now the sons of Israel were in their cities. And all the people were gathered together, like one man, in the street which is before the water gate. And they spoke to Ezra the scribe, so that he would bring the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord had instructed to Israel.
{8:2} Therefore, Ezra the priest brought the law before the multitude of men and women, and all those who were able to understand, on the first day of the seventh month.
{8:3} And he read it openly in the street which was before the water gate, from morning even until midday, in the sight of the men and women, and those who understood. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the book.
{8:4} Then Ezra the scribe stood upon a step of wood, which he had made for speaking. And standing beside him were Mattithiah, and Shemaiah, and Anaiah, and Uriah, and Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, on his right. And on the left were Pedaiah, Mishael, and Malchijah, and Hashum, and Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam.
{8:5} And Ezra opened the book before all the people. For he stood out above all the people. And when he had opened it, all the people stood up.
{8:6} And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people responded, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed down, and they adored God, facing the ground.
{8:7} Then Jeshua, and Bani, and Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, the Levites, caused the people to be silent in order to hear the law. And the people were standing on their feet.
{8:8} And they read from the book of the law of God, distinctly and plainly, so as to be understood. And when it was read, they did understand.
{8:9} Then Nehemiah (the same is the cupbearer) and Ezra, the priest and scribe, and the Levites, who were interpreting for all the people, said: “This day has been sanctified to the Lord our God. Do not mourn, and do not weep.” For all of the people were weeping, as they were listening to the words of the law.
{8:10} And he said to them: “Go, eat fat foods and drink sweet drinks, and send portions to those who have not prepared for themselves. For it is the holy day of the Lord. And do not be sad. For the joy of the Lord is also our strength.”
{8:11} Then the Levites caused the people to be silent, saying: “Be quiet. For the day is holy. And do not be sorrowful.”
{8:12} And so all the people went forth, so that they might eat and drink, and so that they might send portions, and so that they might make a great rejoicing. For they understood the words that he had taught to them.
{8:13} And on the second day, the leaders of the families of all the people, the priests, and the Levites were gathered together to Ezra the scribe, so that he might interpret for them the words of the law.
{8:14} And they found written in the law, which the Lord had instructed by the hand of Moses, that the sons of Israel should live in tabernacles on the day of solemnity in the seventh month,
{8:15} and that they should proclaim and send out a voice in all their cities and in Jerusalem, saying: “Go forth to the mount, and bring olive branches, and the branches of beautiful trees, myrtle branches, and palm branches, and the branches of thick trees,” so that they might make tabernacles, just as it was written.
{8:16} And the people went forth and brought. And they made for themselves tabernacles, each one at his own dwelling, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim.
{8:17} Therefore, the entire assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made tabernacles and lived in tabernacles. For from the days of Jeshua, the son of Nun, even to that day, the sons of Israel had not done so. And there was exceedingly great rejoicing.
{8:18} Now he read in the book of the law of God, throughout each day, from the first day even to the very last day. And they kept the solemnity for seven days. And on the eighth day, there was a gathering according to the ritual.
{9:1} Then, on the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the sons of Israel came together in fasting and in sackcloth, and with soil upon them.
{9:2} And the offspring of the sons of Israel were separated from all the sons of foreigners. And they stood up, and they confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.
{9:3} And they arose to stand. And they read in the volume of the law of the Lord their God, four times in the day, and four times they confessed. And they adored the Lord their God.
{9:4} Then, upon the step of the Levites, Jeshua, and Bani, and Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani rose up. And they cried out in a great voice to the Lord their God.
{9:5} And the Levites, Jeshua and Kadmiel, Bunni, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah said: “Rise up. Bless the Lord your God, from eternity even to eternity! And blessed be the exalted name of your glory, with all blessing and praise.
{9:6} You yourself alone, O Lord, made heaven, and the heaven of the heavens, and all their host, the earth and all things that are in it, the seas and all things that are in them. And you gave life to all these things. And the host of heaven adores you.
{9:7} You yourself, O Lord God, are the One who chose Abram. And you led him away from the fire of the Chaldeans, and you gave him the name Abraham.
{9:8} And you found his heart to be faithful before you. And you formed a covenant with him, so that you might give to him the land of the Canaanite, of the Hittite, and of the Amorite, and of the Perizzite, and of the Jebusite, and of the Girgashite, so that you might give it to his offspring. And you have fulfilled your words, for you are just.
{9:9} And you saw the affliction of our fathers in Egypt. And you heard their outcry beside the Red Sea.
{9:10} And you gave signs and portents to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to the people of his land. For you knew that they acted arrogantly against them. And you made a name for yourself, just as it is in this day.
{9:11} And you divided the sea before them, and they crossed through the midst of the sea on dry land. But their pursuers you cast into the depths, like a stone into great waters.
{9:12} And in the pillar of cloud, you were their leader by day, and in the pillar of fire, by night, so that they might see the way along which they might advance.
{9:13} You also descended to mount Sinai, and you spoke with them from heaven. And you gave them upright judgments, and the law of truth, and ceremonies, and good precepts.
{9:14} You revealed to them your sanctified Sabbath, and you instructed them in commandments, and ceremonies, and the law, by the hand of Moses, your servant.
{9:15} You also gave them bread from heaven in their hunger, and you brought forth water from the rock for them in their thirst. And you said to them that they should enter and possess the land, over which you lifted up your hand so that you might give it to them.
{9:16} Yet truly, they and our fathers acted arrogantly, and they hardened their necks, and they did not listen to your commandments.
{9:17} And they were not willing to hear, and they did not remember, your miracles which you had accomplished for them. And they hardened their necks, and they offered their head, so that they would return to their servitude, as if in contention. But you, a forgiving God, lenient and merciful, longsuffering and full of compassion, did not abandon them.
{9:18} Indeed, even when they had made for themselves a molten calf, and they had said, ‘This is your God, who led you away from Egypt!’ and had committed great blasphemies,
{9:19} even so, in the multitude of your mercies, you did not send them away in the desert. The pillar of cloud did not withdraw from them by day, so that it might lead them on the way, nor the pillar of fire by night, so that it might show them the way along which they might advance.
{9:20} And you gave them your good Spirit, so that he might teach them, and you did not withhold your manna from their mouth, and you gave them water in their thirst.
{9:21} For forty years, you fed them in the desert, and nothing was lacking to them; their garments did not grow old, and their feet were not worn down.
{9:22} And you gave them kingdoms and peoples, and you distributed to them by lot. And they possessed the land of Sihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og, the king of Bashan.
{9:23} And you multiplied their sons like the stars of heaven. And you led them into the land, about which you had said to their fathers that they would enter and possess it.
{9:24} And the sons arrived and possessed the land. And you humbled the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, before them. And you delivered them into their hands, with their kings, and the people of the land, so that they might do with them just as it was pleasing to them.
{9:25} And so they seized fortified cities and fat soil. And they possessed houses filled with all kinds of goods, cisterns made by others, vineyards, and olive groves, and fruit trees in abundance. And they ate and were satisfied. And they were fattened, and they abounded with delights from your great goodness.
{9:26} But they provoked you to wrath, and they withdrew from you, and they cast your law behind their backs. And they killed your prophets, who contended with them so that they might return to you. And they committed great blasphemies.
{9:27} And so you gave them into the hand of their enemies, and they afflicted them. And in the time of their tribulation, they cried out to you, and from heaven you heard them. And in accord with your great compassion, you gave to them saviors, who might save them from the hand of their enemies.
{9:28} But after they had rested, they turned back, so that they did evil in your sight. And you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies, and they possessed them. And they converted, and they cried out to you. And from heaven you heeded them, and you freed them many times, by your mercies.
{9:29} And you contended with them, so that they might return to your law. Yet truly, they acted in arrogance, and they did not listen to your commandments, and they sinned against your judgments, which, if a man does them, he shall live by them. And they withdrew from offering their shoulder, and they hardened their neck; neither would they listen.
{9:30} And you continued to forbear them for many years. And you contended with them by your Spirit, through the hand of your prophets. And they did not listen, and so you delivered them into the hand of the peoples of the lands.
{9:31} Yet in your very many mercies, you did not cause them to be consumed, nor did you abandon them. For you are a compassionate and lenient God.
{9:32} Now therefore, our great God, strong and terrible, who keeps covenant and mercy, may you not avert your face from all the hardship that has found us, we and our kings, and our leaders, and our priests, and our prophets, and our fathers, and all the people, from the days of king Assur, even to this day.
{9:33} For you are just, concerning all things that have overwhelmed us. For you have done truth, but we have acted impiously.
{9:34} Our kings, our leaders, our priests, and our fathers have not done your law, and they have not been attentive to your commandments and your testimonies, to which you have testified among them.
{9:35} And they have not served you, in their kingdoms and with your many good things, which you gave to them, and in the very wide and fat land, which you delivered into their sight, nor did they return from their most wicked pursuits.
{9:36} Behold, we ourselves this day are servants. And the land, which you gave to our fathers so that they might eat its bread and have its good things, we ourselves are servants within it.
{9:37} And its fruits are multiplied for the kings, whom you have set over us because of our sins. And they rule over our bodies, and over our cattle, according to their will. And we are in great tribulation.
{9:38} Therefore, concerning all of these things, we ourselves are forming and writing a covenant, and our leaders, our Levites, and our priests are signing it.”
{10:1} And the signatories were: Nehemiah, the cupbearer, the son of Hacaliah, and Zedekiah,
{10:2} Seraiah, Azariah, Jeremiah,
{10:3} Pashhur, Amariah, Malchijah,
{10:4} Hattush, Shebaniah, Malluch,
{10:5} Harim, Meremoth, Obadiah,
{10:6} Daniel, Ginnethon, Baruch,
{10:7} Meshullam, Abijah, Mijamin,
{10:8} Maaziah, Bilgai, Shemaiah; these were the priests.
{10:9} And the Levites were: Jeshua, the son of Azaniah, Binnui of the sons of Henadad, Kadmiel,
{10:10} and their brothers, Shebaniah, Hodiah, Kelita, Pelaiah, Hanan,
{10:11} Mica, Rehob, Hashabiah,
{10:12} Zaccur, Sherebiah, Shebaniah,
{10:13} Hodiah, Bani, Beninu.
{10:14} The heads of the people were: Parosh, Pahath-moab, Elam, Zattu, Bani,
{10:15} Bunni, Azgad, Bebai,
{10:16} Adonijah, Bigvai, Adin,
{10:17} Ater, Hezekiah, Azzur,
{10:18} Hodiah, Hashum, Bezai,
{10:19} Hariph, Anathoth, Nebai,
{10:20} Magpiash, Meshullam, Hazir,
{10:21} Meshezabel, Zadok, Jaddua,
{10:22} Pelatiah, Hanan, Anaiah,
{10:23} Hoshea, Hananiah, Hasshub,
{10:24} Hallohesh, Pilha, Shobek,
{10:25} Rehum, Hashabnah, Maaseiah,
{10:26} Ahiah, Hanan, Anan,
{10:27} Malluch, Harim, Baanah.
{10:28} And the rest of the people were the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, and the singers, the temple servants, and all who had separated themselves, from the peoples of the lands, to the law of God, with their wives, their sons, and their daughters.
{10:29} All who were able to understand, pledged on behalf of their brothers, with their nobles, and they came forward to promise and to swear that they would walk in the law of God, which he had given to the hand of Moses, the servant of God, that they would do and keep all the commandments of the Lord our God, and his judgments and his ceremonies,
{10:30} and that we would not give our daughters to the people of the land, and that we would not accept their daughters for our sons,
{10:31} also that, if the people of the land carry in goods for sale or any useful things, so that they might sell them on the day of the Sabbath, that we would not buy them on the Sabbath, nor on a sanctified day, and that we would release the seventh year and the collection of debt from every hand.
{10:32} And we established precepts over ourselves, so that we would give one third part of a shekel each year for the work of the house of our God,
{10:33} for the bread of the presence, and for the continual sacrifice, and for a continual holocaust on the Sabbaths, on the new moons, on the solemnities, and for the holy things, and for the sin offering, so that atonement would be made for Israel, and for every use within the house of our God.
{10:34} Then we cast lots concerning the oblation of the wood among the priests, and the Levites, and the people, so that it would be carried into the house of our God, by the households of our fathers, at set times, from the times of one year to another, so that they might burn upon the altar of the Lord our God, just as it was written in the law of Moses,
{10:35} and so that we might bring in the first-fruits of our land, and the first-fruits of all the produce from every tree, from year to year, in the house of our Lord,
{10:36} and the firstborn of our sons, and of our cattle, just as it was written in the law, and the firstborn of our oxen and our sheep, so that they might be offered in the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God,
{10:37} and so that we might bring in the first-fruits of our foods, and of our libations, and the fruits of every tree, also of the vintage and of the oil, to the priests, to the storehouse of our God, with the tithes of our land for the Levites. The Levites also shall receive tithes from our works out of all the cities.
{10:38} Now the priest, the son of Aaron, shall be with the Levites in the tithes of the Levites, and the Levites shall offer a tenth part of their tithes in the house of our God, to the storeroom in the house of the treasury.
{10:39} For the sons of Israel and the sons of Levi shall carry to the storehouse the first-fruits of the grain, of the wine, and of the oil. And the sanctified vessels shall be there, and the priests, and the singing men, and the gatekeepers, and the ministers. And we shall not forsake the house of our God.
{11:1} Now the leaders of the people lived in Jerusalem. Yet truly, the remainder of the people cast lots, so that they might choose one part in ten who were to live in Jerusalem, the holy city, and nine parts for the other cities.
{11:2} Then the people blessed all the men who freely offered themselves to live in Jerusalem.
{11:3} And so these are the leaders of the province, who were living in Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah. Now each one lived in his possession, in their cities: Israel, the priests, the Levites, the temple servants, and the sons of the servants of Solomon.
{11:4} And in Jerusalem, there lived some of the sons of Judah, and some of the sons of Benjamin: of the sons of Judah, Athaiah, the son of Aziam, the son of Zechariah, the son of Amariah, the son of Shephatiah, the son of Mahalalel, of the sons of Perez;
{11:5} Maaseiah, the son of Baruch, the son of Colhozeh, the son of Hazaiah, the son of Adaiah, the son of Joiarib, the son of Zechariah, the son of a Silonite.
{11:6} All these sons of Perez lived in Jerusalem, four hundred sixty-eight strong men.
{11:7} Now these are the sons of Benjamin: Sallu, the son of Meshullam, the son of Joed, the son of Pedaiah, the son of Kolaiah, the son of Maaseiah, the son of Ithiel, the son of Jeshaiah;
{11:8} and after him Gabbai, Sallai. These were nine hundred twenty-eight.
{11:9} And Joel, the son of Zichri, was their foremost leader. And Judah, the son of Hassenuah, was second over the city.
{11:10} And from the priests, there were Jedaiah, the son of Joiarib, Jachin,
{11:11} Seraiah, the son of Hilkiah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub, the ruler of the house of God,
{11:12} and their brothers, who were doing the works of the temple: eight hundred twenty-two. And Adaiah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Pelaliah, the son of Amzi, the son of Zachariah, the son of Pashhur, the son of Malchijah,
{11:13} and his brothers, the leaders among the fathers: two hundred forty-two. And Amassai, the son of Azarel, the son of Ahzai, the son of Meshillemoth, the son of Immer,
{11:14} and their brothers, who were very powerful: one hundred twenty-eight. And their foremost leader was Zabdiel, the son of the powerful.
{11:15} And from the Levites, there were Shemaiah, the son of Hasshub, the son of Azrikam, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Bunni,
{11:16} and Shabbethai and Jozabad, who were over all the works which were exterior to the house of God, from among the leaders of the Levites.
{11:17} And Mattaniah, the son of Mica, the son of Zabdi, the son of Asaph, was the leader of praise and confession in prayer, with Bakbukiah, second among his brothers, and Abda, the son of Shammua, the son of Galal, the son of Jeduthun.
{11:18} All the Levites in the holy city were two hundred eighty-four.
{11:19} And the gatekeepers, Akkub, Talmon, and their brothers, who guarded the doorways, were one hundred seventy-two.
{11:20} And the remainder of Israel, the priests and the Levites, were in all the cities of Judah, each one in his own possession.
{11:21} And the temple servants were living at Ophel, with Ziha and Gishpa, of the temple servants.
{11:22} And the director of the Levites in Jerusalem was Uzzi, the son of Bani, the son of Hashabiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Mica. The singing men in the ministry of the house of God were from the sons of Asaph.
{11:23} In fact, there was a precept of the king about them, and an order among the singing men, throughout each day.
{11:24} And Pethahiah, the son of Meshezabel, from the sons of Zerah, the son of Judah, was at the hand of the king concerning every word of the people,
{11:25} and in the houses throughout all their regions. Some of the sons of Judah lived at Kiriatharba and in its daughter villages, and at Dibon and in its daughter villages, and at Jekabzeel and in its vicinity,
{11:26} and at Jeshua, and at Moladah, and at Bethpelet,
{11:27} and at Hazarshual, and at Beersheba and in its daughter villages,
{11:28} and at Ziklag, and at Meconah and in its daughter villages,
{11:29} and at Enrimmon, and at Zorah, and at Jarmuth,
{11:30} Zanoah, Adullam, and in their villages, at Lachish and its regions, and at Azekah and in its daughter villages. And they dwelt from Beersheba as far as the valley of Hinnom.
{11:31} But the sons of Benjamin lived from Geba, at Michmash, and Aija, and Bethel and in its daughter villages,
{11:32} to Anathoth, Nob, Ananiah,
{11:33} Hazor, Ramah, Gittaim,
{11:34} Hadid, Zeboim, and Neballat, Lod,
{11:35} and Ono, the valley of craftsmen.
{11:36} And some of the Levites were apportioned with Judah and Benjamin.
{12:1} Now these are the priests and the Levites who ascended with Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,
{12:2} Amariah, Malluch, Hattush,
{12:3} Shecaniah, Rehum, Meremoth,
{12:4} Iddo, Ginnethon, Abijah,
{12:5} Mijamin, Maadiah, Bilgah,
{12:6} Shemaiah, and Joiarib, Jedaiah, Sallu, Amok, Hilkiah, Jedaiah.
{12:7} These were the leaders of the priests and of their brothers, in the days of Jeshua.
{12:8} And the Levites, Jeshua, Binnui, Kadmiel, Sherebiah, Judah, Mattaniah, they and their brothers were over the hymns,
{12:9} with Bakbukiah, as well as Hannai, and their brothers, each one in his office.
{12:10} Now Jeshua conceived Joiakim, and Joiakim conceived Eliashib, and Eliashib conceived Joiada,
{12:11} and Joiada conceived Jonathan, and Jonathan conceived Jaddua.
{12:12} And in the days of Joiakim, the priests and the leaders of the families were: of Seraiah, Meraiah; of Jeremiah, Hananiah;
{12:13} of Ezra, Meshullam; of Amariah, Jehohanan;
{12:14} of Maluchi, Jonathan; of Shebaniah, Joseph;
{12:15} of Harim, Adna; of Meraioth, Helkai;
{12:16} of Adaiah, Zechariah; of Ginnethon, Meshullam;
{12:17} of Abijah, Zichri; of Mijamin and Moadiah, Piltai;
{12:18} of Bilgah, Shammua; of Shemaiah, Jehonathan;
{12:19} of Joiarib, Mattenai; of Jedaiah, Uzzi;
{12:20} of Sallai, Kallai; of Amok, Eber;
{12:21} of Hilkiah, Hashabiah; of Jedaiah, Nethanel.
{12:22} The Levites, in the days of Eliashib, and Joiada, and Johanan, and Jaddua, and the priests, were written according to the leaders of the families, during the reign of Darius the Persian.
{12:23} The sons of Levi, according to the leaders of the families, were written in the book of the words of those days, even to the days of Johanan, the son of Eliashib.
{12:24} Now the leaders of the Levites were Hashabiah, Sherebiah, and Jeshua, the son of Kadmiel, and their brothers, in their turns, so that they would praise and confess, according to the precept of David, the man of God. And they served equally and in order.
{12:25} Mattaniah, and Bakbukiah, Obadiah, Meshullam, Talmon, Akkub, were keepers of the gates and of the vestibules before the gates.
{12:26} These were in the days of Joiakim, the son of Jeshua, the son of Jozadak, and in the days of Nehemiah, the governor, and of Ezra, the priest and scribe.
{12:27} Now at the dedication of the wall of Jerusalem, they sought the Levites from all their places, so that they might bring them to Jerusalem, and so that they might keep the dedication, and rejoice with thanksgiving, and with singing, and with cymbals, psalteries, and lyres.
{12:28} Now the sons of the singing men were gathered from the plains surrounding Jerusalem, and from the villages of Netophati,
{12:29} and from the house of Gilgal, and from the regions of Geba and Azmaveth. For the singing men had built villages for themselves around Jerusalem.
{12:30} And the priests and the Levites were cleansed, and they cleansed the people, and the gates, and the wall.
{12:31} Then I caused the leaders of Judah to ascend the wall, and I appointed two great choirs to give praise. And they went to the right upon the wall, toward the dung gate.
{12:32} And after them went Hoshaiah, and one half part of the leadership of Judah,
{12:33} and Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam, Judah, and Benjamin, and Shemaiah, and Jeremiah.
{12:34} And some of the sons of the priests went forth with trumpets: Zachariah, the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Mattaniah, the son of Micaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph.
{12:35} And his brothers, Shemaiah, and Azarel, Milalai, Gilalai, Maai, Nethanel, and Judah, and Hanani, went forth with the canticles of David, the man of God. And Ezra, the scribe, was before them at the fountain gate.
{12:36} And opposite them, they ascended by the steps of the city of David, at the ascent of the wall above the house of David, and as far as the water gate to the east.
{12:37} And the second choir of those who gave thanks went forth on the opposite side, and I went after them, and one half part of the people were upon the wall, and upon the tower of the furnaces, as far as the widest wall,
{12:38} and above the gate of Ephraim, and above the ancient gate, and above the fish gate, and the tower of Hananel, and the tower of Hamath, and as far as the flock gate. And they stood still at the watch gate.
{12:39} And the two choirs of those who gave praise stood still at the house of God, with myself and one half part of the magistrates who were with me.
{12:40} And the priests, Eliakim, Maaseiah, Mijamin, Micaiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, Hananiah, went forth with trumpets,
{12:41} with Maaseiah, and Shemaiah, and Eleazar, and Uzzi, and Jehohanan, and Malchijah, and Elam, and Ezer. And the singers were singing clearly, and Jezrahiah was their foremost leader.
{12:42} And on that day, they immolated great sacrifices, and they rejoiced. For God had caused them to rejoice with great joy. And their wives and children also were glad. And the rejoicing of Jerusalem was heard from far away.
{12:43} On that day also, they enrolled men over the storehouses of the treasury, for the libations, and for the first-fruits, and for the tithes, so that the leaders of the city might bring these in, by them, with proper thanksgiving, for the priests and the Levites. For Judah was rejoicing in the priests and the Levites who were assisting.
{12:44} And they kept the vigil of their God, and the vigil of expiation, with the singing men and the gatekeepers, in accord with the precept of David, and of Solomon, his son.
{12:45} For in the days of David and Asaph, from the beginning, there were leaders appointed over the singers, to give praise in verses, and to confess to God.
{12:46} And all of Israel, in the days of Zerubbabel, and in the days of Nehemiah, gave portions to the singing men and to the gatekeepers, for each day, and they sanctified the Levites, and the Levites sanctified the sons of Aaron.
{13:1} Now on that day, they read from the book of Moses in the hearing of the people. And in it, there was found written that the Ammonites and the Moabites must not enter the church of God, even for all time,
{13:2} because they did not meet the sons of Israel with bread and water, and they hired Balaam against them, to curse them. But our God turned the curse into a blessing.
{13:3} Now it happened that, when they had heard the law, they separated every foreigner from Israel.
{13:4} And Eliashib, the priest, was over this task; he had been given charge of the treasury of the house of our God, and he was a close relative of Tobiah.
{13:5} Then he made for himself a large storeroom, and in that place, there was laid before him gifts, and frankincense, and vessels, and the tithes of grain, wine, and oil, the portions of the Levites, and of the singing men, and of the gatekeepers, and the first-fruits of the priests.
{13:6} But during all this, I was not in Jerusalem, because in the thirty-second year of Artaxerxes, the king of Babylon, I went to the king, and at the end of some days, I petitioned the king.
{13:7} And I went to Jerusalem, and I understood the evil that Eliashib had done for Tobiah, such that he would make him a storeroom in the vestibules of the house of God.
{13:8} And it seemed to me very evil. And I cast the vessels of the house of Tobiah outside of the storeroom.
{13:9} And I gave instructions, and they cleansed again the storeroom. And I brought back, into that place, the vessels of the house of God, the sacrifice, and the frankincense.
{13:10} And I realized that the portions of the Levites had not been given to them, and that each one had fled into his own region, from the Levites, and from the singing men, and from those who were ministering.
{13:11} And I brought the case before the magistrates, and I said, “Why have we forsaken the house of God?” And I gathered them together, and I caused them to stand at their stations.
{13:12} And all of Judah brought the tithes of the grain, and the wine, and the oil into the storehouses.
{13:13} And we appointed over the storehouses, Shelemiah, the priest, and Zadok, the scribe, and Pedaiah from the Levites, and next to them Hanan, the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah. For they had proven to be faithful. And so the portions of their brothers were entrusted to them.
{13:14} Remember me, O my God, because of this, and may you not wipe away my acts of compassion, which I have done for the house of my God and for his ceremonies.
{13:15} In those days, I saw, in Judah, some who were treading the presses on the Sabbath, and who were carrying sheaves, and placing on donkeys burdens of wine, and of grapes, and of figs, and all manner of burdens, and who were bringing these into Jerusalem on the day of the Sabbath. And I contended with them, so that they would sell on a day when it was permitted to sell.
{13:16} And some Tyrians dwelt within, who were bringing fish and all kinds of items for sale. And they were selling on the Sabbaths to the sons of Judah in Jerusalem.
{13:17} And I put the nobles of Judah under oath, and I said to them: “What is this evil thing that you are doing, profaning the Sabbath day?
{13:18} Did not our fathers do these things, and so our God brought all this evil upon us and upon this city? And you are adding more wrath upon Israel by violating the Sabbath!”
{13:19} And it happened that, when the gates of Jerusalem had rested on the day of the Sabbath, I spoke, and they closed the gates. And I instructed that they should not open them until after the Sabbath. And I appointed some of my servants over the gates, so that no one would carry in a burden on the day of the Sabbath.
{13:20} And so the merchants and those who sold all kinds of items remained just outside of Jerusalem, once and again.
{13:21} And I contended with them, and I said to them: “Why are you remaining just beyond the wall? If you do this again, I will send hands upon you.” And so, from that time, they no longer came on the Sabbath.
{13:22} I also spoke to the Levites, so that they would be cleansed, and would arrive to guard the gates and to sanctify the day of the Sabbath. Because of this also, O my God, remember me and spare me, in accord with the multitude of your mercies.
{13:23} But also in those days, I saw some Jews taking wives from the Ashdodites, and the Ammonites, and the Moabites.
{13:24} And their sons spoke partly in the speech of Ashdod, and they did not know how to speak the Jewish language, and they were speaking according to the language of one people or another.
{13:25} And I put them under oath, and I cursed them. And I struck some of their men, and I shaved off their hair, and I made them swear to God that they would not give their daughters to their sons, nor take their daughters for their sons, nor for themselves, saying:
{13:26} “Did not Solomon, king of Israel, sin in this kind of thing? And certainly, among many nations, there was no king similar to him, and he was beloved of his God, and God set him as king over all of Israel. And yet foreign women led even him into sin!
{13:27} So how could we disobey and do all this great evil, so that we would transgress against our God, and take foreign wives?”
{13:28} Now one of the sons of Joiada, the son of Eliashib, the high priest, was a son-in-law to Sanballat, a Horonite, and I made him flee from me.
{13:29} O Lord, my God, remember against those who defile the priesthood and the law of the priests and the Levites!
{13:30} And so I cleansed them from all foreigners, and I established the orders of the priests and the Levites, each one in his ministry.
{13:31} O my God, remember me also, for good, because of the offering of wood, at the appointed times, and because of the first-fruits. Amen.
{1:1} Tobit was from the tribe and city of Naphtali (which is in the upper parts of Galilee above Asher, after the way, which leads to the west, that has on its left the city of Sephet).
{1:2} Although he had been taken captive in the days of Shalmaneser, the king of the Assyrians, even in such a situation as captivity, he did not desert the way of truth.
{1:3} So then, every day, all that he was able to obtain, he bestowed on his fellow captive brothers, who were from his kindred.
{1:4} And, when he was among the youngest of any in the tribe of Naphtali, he showed not so much as any childish behavior in his work.
{1:5} And then, when all went to the golden calves which Jeroboam, king of Israel, had made, he alone fled from the company of them all.
{1:6} Yet he continued on to Jerusalem, to the temple of the Lord, and there he adored the Lord God of Israel, offering faithfully all his first-fruits and his tithes.
{1:7} So then, in the third year, he administered all his tithes to new converts and to new arrivals.
{1:8} These and similar such things, even as a boy, he observed according to the law of God.
{1:9} Truly, when he had become a man, he received as wife Anna of his own tribe, and he conceived a son by her, to whom he assigned his own name.
{1:10} From his infancy, he taught him to fear God and to abstain from all sin.
{1:11} Therefore, when, during the captivity, he had arrived with his wife and son at the city of Nineveh, with all his tribe,
{1:12} (even though they all ate from the foods of the Gentiles,) he guarded his soul and never was contaminated with their foods.
{1:13} And because he was mindful of the Lord with his whole heart, God gave him favor in the sight of Shalmaneser the king.
{1:14} And he gave him the power to go wherever he would want, having the freedom to do whatever he wished.
{1:15} Therefore, he continued on to all who were in captivity, and he gave them helpful advice.
{1:16} But when he had arrived at Rages, a city of the Medes, he had ten talents of silver, from that which he had been given in honor by the king.
{1:17} And when, in the midst of the great tumult of his kindred, he saw the destitution of Gabael, who was from his tribe, he loaned him, under a written agreement, the aforementioned weight of silver.
{1:18} In truth, after a long time, Shalmaneser the king died, while Sennacherib his son reigned in his place, and he held a hatred for the sons of Israel.
{1:19} Every day, Tobit traveled through all his own people, and he consoled them, and he distributed to each one as much as he could from his resources.
{1:20} He nourished the hungry, and he supplied clothes to the naked, and he showed concern for the burial of the dead and of the slain.
{1:21} And then, when king Sennacherib had returned from Judea, fleeing the scourge which God had caused all around him because of his blasphemy, and, being angry, he was slaughtering many from the sons of Israel, Tobit buried their bodies.
{1:22} And when it was reported to the king, he ordered him to be slain, and he took away all his belongings.
{1:23} In truth, Tobit, fleeing with nothing but his son and his wife, was able to remain hidden because many loved him.
{1:24} In truth, after forty-five days, the king was slain by his own sons,
{1:25} and Tobit was able to return to his house, and all his resources were restored to him.
{2:1} In truth, after this, when there was a feast day of the Lord, and a good dinner had been prepared in the house of Tobit,
{2:2} he said to his son: “Go, and bring some others who fear God from our tribe to feast with us.”
{2:3} And after he had gone, returning, he reported to him that one of the sons of Israel, with his throat cut, was lying in the street. And immediately, he leapt from his place reclining at table, left behind his dinner, and went forth with fasting to the body.
{2:4} And taking it up, he carried it in secret to his house, so that, after the sun had set, he might bury him cautiously.
{2:5} And after he had hidden the body, he chewed his bread with mourning and fear,
{2:6} remembering the word that the Lord spoke through the prophet Amos: “Your feast days shall be turned into lamentation and mourning.”
{2:7} Truly, when the sun had set, he went out, and he buried him.
{2:8} Yet all his neighbors argued with him, saying: “Now, an order was given to execute you because of this matter, and you barely escaped a death sentence, and again you are burying the dead?”
{2:9} But Tobit, fearing God more than the king, stole away the bodies of the slain and concealed them in his house, and in the middle of the night, he buried them.
{2:10} But it happened one day, being tired from burying the dead, he came into his house, and he threw himself down next to the wall, and he slept.
{2:11} And, as he was sleeping, warm droppings from a swallow’s nest fell upon his eyes, and he was made blind.
{2:12} And so the Lord permitted this trial to befall him, in order that an example might be given to posterity of his patience, which is even like that of holy Job.
{2:13} For, even from his infancy, he had always feared God and kept his commandments, so he was not discouraged before God because of the scourge of blindness that had befallen him.
{2:14} But he remained immoveable in the fear of God, giving thanks to God all the days of his life.
{2:15} For just as kings have mocked blessed Job, so also his relatives and acquaintances ridiculed his life, saying:
{2:16} “Where is your hope, on behalf of which you gave alms and buried the dead?”
{2:17} In truth, Tobit corrected them, saying: “Do not speak in this way,
{2:18} for we are the sons of the holy ones, and we look forward to that life which God will give to those who never change in their faith before him.”
{2:19} In truth, his wife Anna went out to weaving work daily, and she brought back the provisions that she was able to obtain by the labor of her hands.
{2:20} Whereupon it happened that, having received a young goat, she brought it home.
{2:21} When her husband heard the sound of its bleating, he said, “Look, so that it might not be stolen, return it to its owners, for it is not lawful for us either to eat, or to touch, anything stolen.”
{2:22} At this, his wife, being angry, answered, “Clearly, your hope has become vanity, and the manner of your almsgiving has become apparent.”
{2:23} And with these and other similar such words, she reproached him.
{3:1} Then Tobit sighed, and he began to pray with tears,
{3:2} saying, “O Lord, you are just and all your judgments are just, and all your ways are mercy, and truth, and judgment.
{3:3} And now, O Lord, remember me, and do not take vengeance for my sins, and do not call to mind my offenses, nor those of my parents.
{3:4} For we have not obeyed your precepts, and so we have been handed over to plundering and to captivity, and to death, and to mockery, and as a disgrace before all the nations, among which you have dispersed us.
{3:5} And now, O Lord, great are your judgments. For we have not acted according to your precepts, and we have not walked sincerely before you.
{3:6} And now, O Lord, do with me according to your will, and order my spirit to be received in peace. For it is more expedient for me to die, than to live.”
{3:7} And so, on the same day, it happened that Sarah, the daughter of Raguel, in Rages, a city of the Medes, also heard a reproach from one of her father’s servant maids.
{3:8} For she had been given to seven husbands, and a demon named Asmodeus had killed them, as soon as they had approached her.
{3:9} Therefore, when she corrected the maid for her fault, she answered her, saying, “May we never see son or daughter from you upon the earth, you murderess of your husbands.
{3:10} Would you also kill me, just as you have already killed seven husbands?” At these words, she proceeded to an upper room of her house. And for three days and three nights, she did not eat or drink.
{3:11} But, continuing in prayer with tears, she beseeched God, so that he would liberate her from this reproach.
{3:12} And it happened on the third day, while she was completing her prayer, blessing the Lord,
{3:13} that she said: “Blessed is your name, O God of our fathers, who, though you had been angry, will show mercy. And in time of tribulation, you dismiss the sins of those who call upon you.
{3:14} To you, O Lord, I turn my face; to you, I direct my eyes.
{3:15} I beg you, O Lord, that you may absolve me from the chains of this reproach, or at least take me away from the earth.
{3:16} You know, O Lord, that I have never coveted a husband, and I have preserved my soul clean from all impure desire.
{3:17} I have never mingled myself with those who play. And I have not presented myself as a participant with those who walk with levity.
{3:18} But I consented to accept a husband, in your fear, not in my lust.
{3:19} And, either I was unworthy of them, or they perhaps were not worthy of me. For perhaps you have preserved me for another husband.
{3:20} For your counsel is not within the ability of man.
{3:21} But all who worship you are certain of this: that one’s life, if it should be tested, shall be crowned, and if it should be in tribulation, shall be delivered, and if it should be corrected, shall be permitted to approach your mercy.
{3:22} For you are not delighted with our perdition. For, after a storm, you create tranquility, and after tears and weeping, you pour out exultation.
{3:23} May your name, O God of Israel, be blessed forever.”
{3:24} At that time, the prayers of them both were heard in the sight of the glory of the most high God.
{3:25} And the holy Angel of the Lord, Raphael, was sent to care for both of them, whose prayers were recited at the same time in the sight of the Lord.
{4:1} Therefore, when Tobit considered that his prayer was heard, so that he might be able to die, he called his son Tobias to him.
{4:2} And he said to him: “My son, hear the words of my mouth, and set them, like a foundation, in your heart.
{4:3} When God will receive my soul, bury my body. And you shall honor your mother, all the days of her life.
{4:4} For you are obliged to be mindful of what great perils she suffered because of you in her womb.
{4:5} But when she too will have completed the time of her life, bury her near me.
{4:6} Yet, for all the days of your life, have God in your mind. And be careful that you never consent to sin, nor overlook the precepts of the Lord our God.
{4:7} Give alms from your substance, and do not turn away your face from any pauper. For so it shall be that neither will the face of the Lord be turned away from you.
{4:8} In whatever way that you are able, so shall you be merciful.
{4:9} If you have much, distribute abundantly. If you have little, nevertheless strive to bestow a little freely.
{4:10} For you store up for yourself a good reward for the day of necessity.
{4:11} For almsgiving liberates from every sin and from death, and it will not suffer the soul to go into darkness.
{4:12} Almsgiving will be a great act of faith before the most high God, for all those who practice it.
{4:13} Take care to keep yourself, my son, from all fornication, and, except for your wife, never permit yourself to know such an offense.
{4:14} Never permit arrogance to rule in your mind or in your words. For in it, all perdition had its beginning.
{4:15} And whoever has done any kind of work for you, immediately pay him his wages, and do not let the wages of your hired hand remain with you at all.
{4:16} Whatever you would hate to have done to you by another, see that you never do so to another.
{4:17} Eat your bread with the hungry and the needy, and cover the naked with your own garments.
{4:18} Set out your bread and your wine at the burial of a just man, and do not eat and drink from it with sinners.
{4:19} Always seek the counsel of a wise man.
{4:20} Bless God at all times. And petition him that he direct your ways and that all your counsels may remain in him.
{4:21} And now, I reveal to you, my son, that I lent ten talents of silver, while you were still a young child, to Gabael, in Rages, a city of the Medes, and I have his written agreement with me.
{4:22} And so, inquire how you may travel to him and receive from him the aforementioned weight of silver, and return to him the written agreement.
{4:23} Do not be afraid, my son. We do indeed lead a poor life, but we will have many good things: if we fear God, and withdraw from all sin, and do what is good.”
{5:1} Then Tobias responded to his father, and he said: “I will do everything just as you have instructed me, father.
{5:2} But I do not know how to obtain this money. He does not know me, and I do not know him. What proof shall I give to him? And I do not know any part of the way, which leads to that place.”
{5:3} Then his father answered him, and he said: “Indeed, I have a written agreement about that in my possession, which, when you show it to him, he will immediately repay it.
{5:4} But go out now, and inquire after some faithful man, who would go with you to keep you safe in return for his wages, so that you may receive it while I am still alive.”
{5:5} Then Tobias, departing, found a splendid young man, standing girded and seemingly ready for travel.
{5:6} And not knowing that he was an Angel of God, he greeted him, and he said, “Where are you from, good young man?”
{5:7} And so he answered, “From the sons of Israel.” And Tobias said to him, “Do you know the way that leads to the region of the Medes?”
{5:8} And he answered: “I know it. And I have frequently walked through all its paths, and I stayed with Gabael, our brother, who lives in Rages, a city of the Medes, which is situated at the mount of Ecbatana.”
{5:9} Tobias said to him, “I implore you, wait here for me, until I tell these same things to my father.”
{5:10} Then Tobias, entering, revealed all these things to his father. Upon which, his father, in admiration, asked that he would enter to him.
{5:11} And so, entering, he greeted him, and he said, “May gladness be always with you.”
{5:12} And Tobit said, “What kind of gladness will be for me, since I sit in darkness and do not see the light of heaven?”
{5:13} And the young man said to him, “Be steadfast in soul. Your cure from God is near.”
{5:14} And so Tobit said to him, “Are you able to lead my son to Gabael in Rages, a city of the Medes? And when you return, I will pay you your wages.”
{5:15} And the Angel said to him, “I will lead him, and I will bring him back to you.”
{5:16} And Tobit responded to him, “I ask you to tell me: which family or which tribe are you from?”
{5:17} And Raphael the Angel said, “Do you seek the family of the one you hire, or else the hired hand himself, to go with your son?
{5:18} But, lest perhaps I cause you to worry: I am Azariah, the son of Hananiah the great.”
{5:19} And Tobit responded, “You are from a great family. But I ask you, do not be angry that I wanted to know your family.”
{5:20} But the Angel said to him, “I will lead your son safely, and I will bring him back safely to you.”
{5:21} And so Tobit, answering, said, “May you walk well, and may God be with you on your journey, and may his Angel accompany you.”
{5:22} Then, when all things were ready which were to be carried on their journey, Tobias said farewell to his father, and to his mother, and the two of them walked together.
{5:23} And when they had set out, his mother began to weep, and to say: “You have taken the staff of our old age, and you have sent him away from us.
{5:24} I wish that the money, for which you sent him, had never been.
{5:25} For our poverty has been sufficient for us, so that we might count it as riches that we saw our son.”
{5:26} And Tobit said to her: “Do not weep. Our son will arrive safely, and he will return safely to us, and your eyes shall see him.
{5:27} For I believe that the good Angel of God accompanies him and that he orders all things well which occur around him, such that he will be returned to us with gladness.”
{5:28} At these words, his mother ceased weeping, and she was silent.
{6:1} And so Tobias continued on, and the dog was following him, and he stayed at the first stopping point, near the river Tigris.
{6:2} And he went out to wash his feet, and behold, an immense fish came out to devour him.
{6:3} And Tobias, being frightened of it, cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Sir, it is attacking me!”
{6:4} And the Angel said to him, “Catch it by the gills, and draw it to you.” And when he had done so, he pulled it onto dry land, and it began to thrash before his feet.
{6:5} Then the Angel said to him: “Disembowel this fish, and put aside his heart, and his gall, and his liver for yourself. For these things are necessary as useful medicines.”
{6:6} And when he had done so, he roasted its flesh, and they took it with them on the way. The rest they salted, so that it might be sufficient for them, until they would arrive at Rages, a city of the Medes.
{6:7} Then Tobias questioned the Angel, and he said to him, “I implore you, brother Azariah, to tell me what remedies these things hold, which you have told me to retain from the fish?”
{6:8} And the Angel, answering, said to him: “If you put a little piece of its heart on burning coals, its smoke will drive away all kinds of demons, whether from a man or from a woman, so that they will no longer approach them.
{6:9} And the gall is useful for anointing the eyes, in which there may be a white speck, and they will be cured.”
{6:10} And Tobias said to him, “Where do you prefer that we stay?”
{6:11} And the Angel, responding, said: “Here is one named Raguel, a man closely related to you from your tribe, and he has a daughter named Sarah, but he has no other male or female, except her.
{6:12} All his livelihood is dependent upon you, and you ought to take her to yourself in marriage.
{6:13} Therefore, ask for her from her father, and he will give her to you as wife.”
{6:14} Then Tobias responded, and he said: “I hear that she has been given to seven husbands, and they passed away. But I have even heard this: that a demon killed them.
{6:15} Therefore, I am afraid, lest this may happen to me also. And since I am the only child of my parents, I might send their old age with sorrow to the grave.”
{6:16} Then the Angel Raphael said to him: “Listen to me, and I will reveal to you who they are, over whom the demon can prevail.
{6:17} For example, those who receive marriage in such manner as to exclude God from themselves and from their mind, and in such a manner as to empty themselves to their lust, like the horse and mule, which have no understanding, over them the demon has power.
{6:18} But you, when you will have accepted her, enter the bedroom and for three days keep yourself continent from her, and empty yourself to nothing other than prayers with her.
{6:19} Moreover, on that night, burn the liver of the fish like incense, and the demon will be put to flight.
{6:20} In truth, on the second night, you will become ready to receive a physical union like that of the holy Patriarchs.
{6:21} And then, on the third night, you will obtain a blessing, so that healthy children may be procreated from you both.
{6:22} And so, the third night having been accomplished, you will receive the virgin with the fear of the Lord, led more by love of children than by physical desire, so that, as the offspring of Abraham, you will then obtain a blessing in children.
{7:1} And so they went to Raguel, and Raguel received them with gladness.
{7:2} And Raguel, gazing upon Tobias, said to Anna his wife, “How much like my cousin is this young man!”
{7:3} And when he had spoken this, he said, “Which of our brethren are you from, young men?”
{7:4} But they said, “We are from the tribe of Naphtali, from the captivity of Nineveh.”
{7:5} And Raguel said to them, “Do you know my brother Tobit?” They said to him, “We know him.”
{7:6} And since he was saying many good things about him, the Angel said to Raguel, “The Tobit about whom you inquire is the father of this young man.”
{7:7} And Raguel threw himself towards him and kissed him with tears and weeping upon his neck, saying, “May a blessing be upon you, my son, because you are the son of a good and most noble man.”
{7:8} And his wife Anna, and their daughter Sarah, were weeping.
{7:9} And so, after they had spoken, Raguel instructed a sheep to be killed, and a feast to be prepared. And when he exhorted them to recline for dinner,
{7:10} Tobias said, “Here, today, I will not eat or drink, unless you first confirm my petition, and promise to give Sarah your daughter to me.”
{7:11} When Raguel heard this word, he became afraid, knowing what had befallen those seven men, who had approached her. And he began to fear, lest it might happen to him also in the same way. And, since he wavered and gave no further response to the petition,
{7:12} the Angel said to him: “Do not be afraid to give her to this one, because this one fears God. He is obliged to be joined to your daughter. Because of this, no other one could have her.”
{7:13} Then Raguel said: “I do not doubt that God has admitted my prayers and tears before his sight.
{7:14} And I believe, therefore, that he has caused you to come to me, so that this one might be joined in marriage to one of her own kindred, according to the law of Moses. And now, do not continue to doubt that I will give her to you.”
{7:15} And taking the right hand of his daughter, he gave it into the right hand of Tobias, saying, “May the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob be with you. And may he join you together in marriage and fulfill his blessing in you.”
{7:16} And taking paper, they made a written record of the marriage.
{7:17} And after this, they feasted, blessing God.
{7:18} And Raguel called his wife Anna to him, and he instructed her to prepare another bedroom.
{7:19} And she brought her daughter Sarah into it, and she was weeping.
{7:20} And she said to her, “Be steadfast in spirit, my daughter. May the Lord of heaven give you gladness in place of the grief that you have had to endure.”
{8:1} In truth, after they had dined, they introduced the young man to her.
{8:2} And so, Tobias, remembering the word of the Angel, took part of the liver from his bag, and he placed it over the live coals.
{8:3} Then the Angel Raphael caught the demon, and bound him in the desert of upper Egypt.
{8:4} Then Tobias exhorted the virgin, and he said to her: “Sarah, get up and let us pray to God this day, and tomorrow, and the following day. For, during these three nights, we are being joined to God. And then, when the third night has passed, we ourselves will be joined together.
{8:5} For certainly, we are the children of the saints, and we must not be joined together in such a manner as the heathens, who are ignorant of God.”
{8:6} And so, rising up together, they both prayed earnestly, at the same time, that health might be given to them.
{8:7} And Tobias said: “Lord, the God of our fathers, may the heavens and the earth bless you, and the sea, and the fountains, and the rivers, and all your creatures that are in them.
{8:8} You formed Adam from the mud of the earth, and you gave Eve to him as a helper.
{8:9} And now, O Lord, you know that I take my sister in conjugal union, not by reason of worldly pleasure, but solely for the love of posterity, in which your name may be blessed forever and ever.”
{8:10} Sarah likewise said, “Be merciful to us, O Lord, be merciful to us. And let us both grow old together in health.”
{8:11} And it happened, about the time of the rooster’s crowing, that Raguel ordered his servants to be summoned, and they went out with him together to dig a grave.
{8:12} For he said, “Lest perhaps, in the same way, it may have happened to him, as it did also to the other seven men who approached her.”
{8:13} And when they had prepared the pit, Raguel returned to his wife, and he said to her,
{8:14} “Send one of your maids, and let her see if he is dead, so that I may bury him before the dawn of day.”
{8:15} And so, she sent one of her maidservants, who entered the bedroom and discovered them safe and unharmed, sleeping both together.
{8:16} And returning, she reported the good news. And they blessed the Lord: Raguel, especially, and his wife Anna.
{8:17} And they said: “We bless you, Lord God of Israel, because it has not happened in the way that we thought it might.
{8:18} For you have acted in your mercy toward us, and you have excluded from us the enemy who pursued us.
{8:19} Moreover, you have had compassion on two only children. Make them, O Lord, able to bless you more fully and to offer you a sacrifice of your praise and of their health, so that all peoples everywhere may know that you alone are God in all the earth.”
{8:20} And immediately Raguel instructed his servants to refill the pit, which they had made, before daylight.
{8:21} And then he told his wife to make ready a feast, and to prepare all the provisions that are necessary for those who undertake a journey.
{8:22} Likewise, he caused two fat cows and four rams to be killed, and a banquet to be prepared for all his neighbors and every one of his friends.
{8:23} And Raguel pleaded with Tobias to delay with him for two weeks.
{8:24} Moreover, of all the things that Raguel possessed, he gave one half part to Tobias, and he made a writing, so that the half that remained should also pass into the ownership of Tobias, after their deaths.
{9:1} Then Tobias called the Angel to him, whom he indeed considered to be a man, and he said to him: “Brother Azariah, I implore you to listen to my words:
{9:2} If I should give myself to be your servant, I would not be equally worthy of your providence.
{9:3} Even so, I beg you to take with you beasts or even servants, and to go to Gabael in Rages, the city of the Medes, and restore to him his handwritten note, and receive from him the money, and petition him to come to my wedding celebration.
{9:4} For you know that my father numbers the days. And if I delay one day more, his soul will be afflicted.
{9:5} And surely you see how Raguel has obtained my oath, an oath that I am not able to spurn.”
{9:6} Then Raphael borrowed four of the servants of Raguel, and two camels, and he traveled to Rages, the city of the Medes. And upon finding Gabael, he gave him his handwritten note, and he received from him all the money.
{9:7} And he revealed to him, concerning Tobias the son of Tobit, all that had been done. And he made him come with him to the wedding celebration.
{9:8} And when he had entered into the house of Raguel, he discovered Tobias reclining at table. And leaping up, they kissed each other. And Gabael wept, and he blessed God.
{9:9} And he said: “May the God of Israel bless you, for you are the son of a man most noble and just, fearing God and performing almsgiving.
{9:10} And may a blessing be spoken over your wife and over your parents.
{9:11} And may you see your sons, and the sons of your sons, even to the third and fourth generation. And may your offspring be blessed by the God of Israel, who reigns forever and ever.”
{9:12} And when all had said, “Amen,” they approached the feast. But they also celebrated the marriage feast with the fear of the Lord.
{10:1} In truth, when Tobias was delayed because of the marriage celebration, his father Tobit was worried, saying: “Why do you think my son is delayed, or why has he been detained there?
{10:2} Do you think that Gabael has died, and that no one will repay him the money?”
{10:3} And so he began to be exceedingly sad, both he and his wife Anna with him. And they both began to weep together, because their son did not at least return to them on the appointed day.
{10:4} But his mother wept inconsolable tears, and also said: “Woe, woe to me, O my son. Why did we send you to journey far away, you: the light of our eyes, the staff of our old age, the solace of our life, the hope of our posterity?
{10:5} Having all things together as one in you, we ought not to have dismissed you from us.”
{10:6} And Tobit was saying to her: “Be calm, and do not be troubled. Our son is safe. That man, with whom we sent him, is faithful enough.”
{10:7} Yet she was by no means able to be consoled. But, leaping up every day, she looked all round, and traveled around all the ways, by which there seemed any hope that he might return, so that she might possibly see him coming from afar.
{10:8} In truth, Raguel said to his son-in-law, “Remain here, and I will send a message of your health to your father Tobit.”
{10:9} And Tobias said to him, “I know that my father and my mother have now counted the days, and their spirit must be tortured within them.”
{10:10} And when Raguel had repeatedly petitioned Tobias, and he was by no means willing to listen to him, he delivered Sarah to him, and half of all his substance: with men and women servants, with sheep, camels, and cows, and with much money. And he dismissed him away, in safety and gladness, from him,
{10:11} saying: “May the holy Angel of the Lord be with your journey, and may he lead you through unharmed, and may you discover that all is right concerning your parents, and may my eyes see your sons before I die.”
{10:12} And the parents, taking hold of their daughter, kissed her and let her go:
{10:13} admonishing her to honor her father-in-law, to love her husband, to guide the family, to govern the household, and to behave irreproachably herself.
{11:1} And as they were returning, they came through to Haran, which is in the middle of the journey, opposite Nineveh, on the eleventh day.
{11:2} And the Angel said: “Brother Tobias, you know how you left behind your father.
{11:3} And so, if it pleases you, let us go on ahead, and let the family follow after us with a slower step, together with your bride, and with the animals.”
{11:4} And since it pleased him to go on in this way, Raphael said to Tobias, “Take with you from the gall of the fish, for it will be necessary.” And so, Tobias took from its gall, and he went ahead.
{11:5} But Anna sat beside the way every day, on the top of a hill, from where she would be able to see for a long distance.
{11:6} And while she was watching for his arrival from that place, she looked far off, and soon she realized that her son was approaching. And running, she reported it to her husband, saying: “Behold, your son arrives.”
{11:7} And Raphael said to Tobias: “As soon as you enter into your house, immediately adore the Lord your God. And, giving thanks to him, approach your father, and kiss him.
{11:8} And immediately anoint his eyes from this gall of the fish, which you carry with you. For you should know that his eyes will soon be opened, and your father will see the light of heaven, and he will rejoice at the sight of you.”
{11:9} Then the dog, which had been with them in the way, ran ahead, and, arriving like a messenger, he showed his joy by fawning and wagging his tail.
{11:10} And rising up, his blind father began to run, stumbling with his feet. And giving his hand to a servant, he ran on to meet his son.
{11:11} And receiving him, he kissed him, as did his wife, and they both began to weep for joy.
{11:12} And when they had adored God and had given thanks, they sat down together.
{11:13} Then Tobias, taking from the gall of the fish, anointed his father’s eyes.
{11:14} And about half an hour passed, and then a white film began to come out of his eyes, like the membrane of an egg.
{11:15} So, taking hold of it, Tobias pulled it away from his eyes, and immediately he received his sight.
{11:16} And they glorified God: Tobit especially, and his wife, and all those who knew him.
{11:17} And Tobit said, “I bless you, O Lord God of Israel, because you have chastised me, and you have saved me, and behold, I see my son Tobias.”
{11:18} And then, after seven days, Sarah, the wife of his son, and all the family arrived safely, along with the sheep, and the camels, and much money from his wife, but also with that money which he had received from Gabael.
{11:19} And he explained to his parents all the benefits from God, which he had produced all around him, by means of the man who had led him.
{11:20} And then Ahikar and Nadab arrived, the maternal first cousins of Tobias, rejoicing for Tobias, and congratulating with him for all the good things that God had revealed all around him.
{11:21} And for seven days they feasted, and all were rejoicing with great joy.
{12:1} Then Tobit called his son to him, and he said to him, “What are we able to give to this holy man, who accompanied you?”
{12:2} Tobias, answering, said to his father: “Father, what wages shall we give him? And what could be worthy of his benefits?
{12:3} He led me and he brought me back safely. He received the money from Gabael. He caused me to have my wife. And he confined the demon away from her. He caused joy to her parents. Myself, he rescued from being devoured by the fish. As for you, he also caused you to see the light of heaven. And so, we have been filled with all good things through him. What could we possibly give to him that would be worthy of these things?
{12:4} But I implore you, my father, to ask him if he would perhaps deign to take for himself half of all the things that have been brought.”
{12:5} And calling him, the father especially, and the son, they took him aside. And they began to petition him, so that he would deign to accept ownership of one half part of all things that they had brought.
{12:6} Then he said to them privately: “Bless the God of heaven, and confess to him in the sight of all who live, for he has acted in his mercy toward you.
{12:7} For it is good to conceal the secret of a king, just as it is also honorable to reveal and to confess the works of God.
{12:8} Prayer with fasting is good, and almsgiving is better than hiding away gold in storage.
{12:9} For almsgiving delivers from death, and the same is what purges sins and makes one able to find mercy and everlasting life.
{12:10} But those who commit sin and iniquity are enemies to their own soul.
{12:11} Therefore, I reveal the truth to you, and I will not hide the explanation from you.
{12:12} When you prayed with tears, and buried the dead, and left behind your dinner, and hid the dead by day in your house, and buried them by night: I offered your prayer to the Lord.
{12:13} And because you were acceptable to God, it was necessary for you to be tested by trials.
{12:14} And now, the Lord has sent me to cure you, and to free Sarah, your son’s wife, from the demon.
{12:15} For I am the Angel Raphael, one of seven, who stand before the Lord.”
{12:16} And when they had heard these things, they were troubled, and being seized with fear, they fell upon the ground on their face.
{12:17} And the Angel said to them: “Peace be to you. Fear not.
{12:18} For when I was with you, I was there by the will of God. Bless him, and sing to him.
{12:19} Indeed, I seemed to eat and drink with you, but I make use of an invisible food and drink, which cannot be seen by men.
{12:20} Therefore, it is time that I return to him who sent me. But as for you, bless God, and describe all his wonders.”
{12:21} And when he had said these things, he was taken from their sight, and they were not able to see him any longer.
{12:22} Then, lying prostrate for three hours upon their face, they blessed God. And rising up, they described all his wonders.
{13:1} And so, the elder Tobit, opening his mouth, blessed the Lord, and he said: “O Lord, you are great in eternity and your kingdom is with all ages.
{13:2} For you scourge, and you save. You lead down to the grave, and you bring up again. And there is no one who can escape from your hand.
{13:3} Confess to the Lord, O sons of Israel, and praise him in the sight of the nations.
{13:4} For, indeed, he has dispersed you among the Gentiles, who are ignorant of him, that you may proclaim his wonders, and that you may cause them to know that there is no other almighty God, except him.
{13:5} He has chastised us because of our iniquities, and he will save us because of his mercy.
{13:6} Therefore, look upon what he has done for us, and, with fear and trembling, confess to him. And extol the King of all ages with your works.
{13:7} But as for me, I will confess him in the land of my captivity. For he has revealed his majesty within a sinful nation.
{13:8} And so, be converted, you sinners, and do justice in the presence of God, believing that he will act in his mercy toward you.
{13:9} But I and my soul will rejoice in him.
{13:10} Bless the Lord, all you his elect. Keep days of rejoicing, and confess to him.
{13:11} O Jerusalem, the city of God, the Lord has chastised you for the works of your hands.
{13:12} Confess to the Lord with your good things, and bless the God of all ages, so that he may rebuild his tabernacle in you, and he may recall all the captives to you, and you may be glad in all ages and forever.
{13:13} You will shine with a splendid light, and all the ends of the earth will adore by you.
{13:14} Nations from far away will come to you, bringing gifts. And in you, they shall adore the Lord, and they will hold your land in sanctification.
{13:15} For they will invoke the Great Name in you.
{13:16} Those who despise you will be cursed, and all those who blaspheme by you will be condemned, and those who build you up will be blessed.
{13:17} But you will rejoice in your sons, because they will all be blessed, and they will be gathered together for the Lord.
{13:18} Blessed are all those who love you and who rejoice in your peace.
{13:19} Bless the Lord, O my soul, for the Lord our God has freed Jerusalem, his city, from every one of her tribulations.
{13:20} Happy will I be, if any of my offspring will be left to see the brightness of Jerusalem.
{13:21} The gates of Jerusalem will be built from sapphire and emerald, and all its walls will be surrounded with precious stones.
{13:22} All its streets will be paved with stones, white and clean. And ‘Alleluia’ will be sung throughout its neighborhoods.
{13:23} Blessed be the Lord, who has exalted it, and may he reign over it, forever and ever. Amen.”
{14:1} And the sermon of Tobit was completed. And after Tobit received his sight, he lived forty-two years, and he saw the sons of his grandchildren.
{14:2} And so, having completed one hundred and two years, he was buried honorably at Nineveh.
{14:3} For he was fifty-six years old, when he lost the light of his eyes, and he was sixty years old, when he truly received it again.
{14:4} And, in truth, the remainder of his life was in gladness. And so, with the good accomplishment of the fear of God, he departed in peace.
{14:5} But, in the hour of his death, he called to himself his son Tobias, along with his sons, the seven youths who were his grandsons, and he said to them:
{14:6} “Nineveh will pass away soon. For the word of the Lord goes forward, and our brothers, who have been dispersed away from the land of Israel, shall return to it.
{14:7} Thus its deserted land will be entirely filled again. And the house of God, which was burned like incense within it, will be rebuilt again. And all those who fear God will return there.
{14:8} And the Gentiles will relinquish their idols, and they will enter into Jerusalem, and they will dwell in it.
{14:9} And all the kings of the earth will rejoice in it, adoring the King of Israel.
{14:10} Therefore, my sons, listen to your father. Serve the Lord in truth, and seek to do the things that please him.
{14:11} And command your sons, so that they may accomplish justice and almsgiving, and so that they may be mindful of God and may bless him at all times, in truth and with all their strength.
{14:12} And now, sons, listen to me, and do not remain here. But, on whatever day you will bury your mother near me in one sepulcher, from that time, direct your steps to leave this place.
{14:13} For I see that its iniquity will bring about its end.”
{14:14} And it happened that, after the death of his mother, Tobias withdrew from Nineveh, with his wife, and sons, and sons of sons, and he was returned to his father-in-law.
{14:15} And he found them unharmed in a good old age. And he took care of them, and he closed their eyes. And all the inheritance of the house of Raguel passed to him. And he saw the sons of his sons to the fifth generation.
{14:16} And, having completed ninety-nine years in the fear of the Lord, with joy, they buried him.
{14:17} But all his family and all his lineage continued with a good life and in holy conversation, so that they were acceptable both to God and to men, as well as to everyone who dwelt in the land.
{1:1} And so Arphaxad, king of the Medes, subjugated many nations under his authority, and he built a very powerful city, which he called Ecbatana.
{1:2} From stones, cut and squared, he made its walls: seventy cubits in height and thirty cubits in breadth. And, in truth, he set its towers one hundred cubits in height.
{1:3} In fact, at its corners, each side was extended for the space of twenty feet. And he set its gates according to the height of the towers.
{1:4} And he glorified it, in its power, with the force of his army and with the glory of his chariots.
{1:5} Thereafter, in the twelfth year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, who reigned in Nineveh the great city, fought against Arphaxad and prevailed over him:
{1:6} in the great plain, which is called Ragae, near the Euphrates, and the Tigris, and the Hydaspes, at the encampment of Arioch, king of the Elymaeans.
{1:7} Then the kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar was exalted, and his heart was elevated. And he sent to all who dwelt in Cilicia, and Damascus, and Lebanon,
{1:8} and to the nations that are in Carmel and Kedar, and to the inhabitants of Galilee, in the great plain of Esdrelon,
{1:9} and to all who were in Samaria and across the river Jordan, even to Jerusalem and to all the land of Jesse, until one passes through to the borders of Ethiopia.
{1:10} To all these, Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, sent messengers:
{1:11} whom they all with one mind contradicted, and they sent them back empty, and they rejected them without honor.
{1:12} Then king Nebuchadnezzar, being indignant against all that land, swore by his throne and his kingdom that he would defend himself against all those regions.
{2:1} In the thirteenth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, on the twenty-second day of the first month, the word went forth from the house of Nebuchadnezzar, king of the Assyrians, that he would defend himself.
{2:2} And he called all the native leaders, and all the commanders, and his officers of war, and he met with them in his secret council.
{2:3} And he said to them that his thoughts were to subjugate all the earth to his authority.
{2:4} And when this saying pleased them all, king Nebuchadnezzar called Holofernes, the leader of his military.
{2:5} And he said to him: “Go out against all the kingdoms of the west, and against those in particular who showed contempt for my authority.
{2:6} Your eye must not spare any kingdom, and all the fortified cities you will subjugate to me.”
{2:7} Then Holofernes called the commanders and the magistrates of the army of the Assyrians. And he numbered men for the expedition, just as the king had instructed him: one hundred and twenty thousand foot-soldiers, and twelve thousand archers on horseback.
{2:8} And he caused his entire expeditionary force to go ahead with an innumerable multitude of camels, with whatever was needed in abundance for the armies, and with herds of cattle, and flocks of sheep, which could not be numbered.
{2:9} He appointed grain to be prepared from all of Syria, as he passed through it.
{2:10} In fact, he took up gold and silver from the house of the king in great abundance.
{2:11} And he set out, he and all the army, with the four-horse chariots, and horsemen, and archers. And they covered the face of the earth like locusts.
{2:12} And when he had crossed over the borders of the Assyrians, he came to the great mountains of Ange, which are on the left of Cilicia. And he ascended to all their castles, and he prevailed over all the fortifications.
{2:13} Moreover, he broke open the renowned city of Melothus, and he pillaged all the sons of Tarshish, and the sons of Ishmael, who were opposite the face of the desert and to the south of the land of Cellon.
{2:14} And he crossed over the Euphrates and came into Mesopotamia. And he crushed all the lofty cities that were there, from the torrent of Mambre, even until one passes through to the sea.
{2:15} And he occupied its furthest regions, from Cilicia all the way to the coastlines of Japheth, which are towards the south.
{2:16} And he carried away all the sons of Midian, and he plundered them in all their wealthy regions. And all who resisted him, he slew with the edge of the sword.
{2:17} And after these things, he descended to the plains of Damascus, in the days of the harvest, and he set fire to all the crops, and he caused all the trees and the vineyards to be cut down.
{2:18} And the fear of them fell upon all the inhabitants of the land.
{3:1} Then the kings as well as the princes of the provinces sent their emissaries from all of the cities: from Syria, particularly Mesopotamia, and Syria Sobal, and Libya as well as Cilicia. These, upon coming to Holofernes, said:
{3:2} “Let your indignation concerning us cease. For it is better for us to live in service to Nebuchadnezzar, the great king, and to become subject to you, rather than to die, even though we may have to suffer our condemnation into the annihilation of slavery.
{3:3} All our cities and all our possessions, all mountains, and hills, and fields, and herds of cattle, and flocks of sheep, and goats, and horses, and camels, and all our resources and families are in your sight.
{3:4} Let all that we have be subject to your law.
{3:5} We, and our sons, are your servants.
{3:6} Come to us as a peaceful lord, and use our service, just as it pleases you.”
{3:7} Then he descended from the mountains with horsemen, in great power, and he took charge of every city and of every inhabitant of the land.
{3:8} And, from all the cities, he took for himself auxiliaries: strong men and well-chosen for war.
{3:9} And such a dread lay upon those provinces, that the leading and honored inhabitants of all the cities, together with the people, went out to meet him at his arrival.
{3:10} They received him with garlands and lamps; they were led by choirs with timbrels and flutes.
{3:11} Yet, not even by doing these things were they able to mitigate the ferocity of his chest.
{3:12} For he both destroyed their cities and cut down their sacred groves.
{3:13} For king Nebuchadnezzar had instructed him to exterminate all the gods of the earth, evidently so that he alone might be called ‘god’ by those nations which were able to be subjugated by the power of Holofernes.
{3:14} But when he had passed through Syria Sobal, and all of Apamea, and all Mesopotamia, he came to the Idumeans in the land of Gibeah.
{3:15} And he took their cities, and he sat there for thirty days, during which days he instructed all the troops of his army to regroup.
{4:1} Then, upon hearing these things, the sons of Israel, who dwelt in the land of Judah, were very afraid before his face.
{4:2} Trembling and horror invaded their senses, lest he should do the same thing to Jerusalem and to the temple of the Lord that he had done to other cities and their temples.
{4:3} And they sent into all of Samaria, and by an indirect route even to Jericho, and they seized in advance all the tops of the mountains.
{4:4} And they surrounded their villages with walls, and they gathered together grain in preparation for the fight.
{4:5} And then Eliachim the priest wrote to all who were opposite Esdrelon, which is opposite the face of the great plain near Dothain, and to all whom he would be able to reach through a passable way:
{4:6} that they should hold the ascents of the mountains, through which there might be any passage able to reach Jerusalem, and that they should keep watch where the passage was narrow, wherever possible, between the mountains.
{4:7} And the sons of Israel did just as Eliachim, the priest of the Lord, had appointed them.
{4:8} And all the people cried out to the Lord with great urgency, and they humbled their souls with fastings, and prayers, both they and their wives.
{4:9} And the priests clothed themselves with haircloths, and they prostrated the little children opposite the face of the temple of the Lord, and they covered the altar of the Lord with haircloth.
{4:10} And they cried out to the Lord God of Israel with one accord, lest their children should be given over as prey, and their wives into distribution, and their cities into extermination, and their holy things into defilement, and so that they might not become the disgrace of the Gentiles.
{4:11} Then Eliachim, the high priest of the Lord, traveled all around Israel, and he was talking to them,
{4:12} saying: “Know that the Lord will heed your prayers, if you continue to persevere in fastings and prayers in the sight of the Lord.
{4:13} Recall that Moses, the servant of the Lord, overcame Amalek, who trusted in his own strength, and in his power, and in his army, and in his bronze shields, and in his swift chariots, and in his horsemen. He overcame him, not by fighting with iron, but by pleading with holy prayers.
{4:14} So will it be with all the enemies of Israel, if you persevere in this work that you have begun.”
{4:15} Therefore, by this exhortation and his prayer to the Lord, they continued in the sight of the Lord,
{4:16} so that even those who offered holocausts to the Lord, offered the sacrifices to the Lord girded with haircloths, and there were ashes upon their heads.
{4:17} And they all begged God with their whole heart, that he would visit his people Israel.
{5:1} And it was reported to Holofernes, the leader of the military of the Assyrians, that the sons of Israel were preparing themselves to resist, and also that they had closed the mountain passes.
{5:2} And he was enraged with extreme fury and great indignation, and he called together all the leaders of Moab and the leaders of Ammon.
{5:3} And he said to them: “Tell me who this people may be, who obstruct the mountains. And which are their cities, and of what kind, and how many? And then, what may be their power, and what may be their number, and who is king over their military?
{5:4} And why have these, more than all who dwell in the east, shown contempt for us, and have not gone out to meet us, so that they might receive us with peace?”
{5:5} Then Achior, commander of all the sons of Ammon, responding, said: “If you would deign to listen, my lord, I will tell the truth in your sight about this people, who dwell in the mountains, and not a false word will go forth from my mouth.
{5:6} This people is from the progeny of the Chaldeans.
{5:7} These dwelt at first in Mesopotamia, because they were not willing to follow the gods of their fathers, who were in the land of the Chaldeans.
{5:8} And so, forsaking the ceremonies of their fathers, which were with a multitude of gods,
{5:9} they worshipped one God of heaven, who also instructed them to go forth from that place and to dwell in Canaan. And when a famine covered the whole land, they went down into Egypt, and there, through four hundred years, they were so multiplied, that the army of them could not be numbered.
{5:10} And when the king of Egypt oppressed them, and also subjugated them to labor with clay and brick in the building of his cities, they cried out to their Lord, and he struck the entire land of Egypt with various plagues.
{5:11} And when the Egyptians had cast them away from them, and the plague had ceased from them, and they were willing to seize them again and recall them to their servitude:
{5:12} the God of heaven opened the sea to these as they fled, so that the waters were made to stand firm like a wall on either side, and these walked across the bottom of the sea and passed through with dry feet.
{5:13} In that place, when an innumerable army of the Egyptians pursued after them, they were so overwhelmed with the waters, that not even one remained to report to posterity what had happened.
{5:14} In truth, going forth from the Red Sea, they occupied the deserts of mount Sinai, in which man could never dwell, nor a son of man take rest.
{5:15} In that place, bitter fountains became sweet for them to drink, and, through forty years, they continued to receive provisions from heaven.
{5:16} And, although they had entered without bow and arrow, and without shield and sword, their God fought on their behalf and was victorious.
{5:17} And there was no one who could attack this people, except when they withdrew from the worship of the Lord their God.
{5:18} But as often as they worshipped any other, except their own God, they were delivered to plunder, and to the sword, and into reproach.
{5:19} But as often as they were repentant for having withdrawn from the worship of their God, the God of heaven gave them the power to resist.
{5:20} And, indeed, they overthrew the king of the Canaanites, and of the Jebusites, and of the Perizzites, and of the Hethites, and of the Hevites, and of the Amorrhites, and all the powerful ones in Hesebon, and these same possessed their lands and their cities.
{5:21} And, as long as they did not sin in the sight of their God, it was well with them. For their God hates iniquity.
{5:22} And even some years ago, when they had withdrawn from the way that their God had given them to walk, they were destroyed in battles by many nations and very many of them were led away captive into a land not their own.
{5:23} But, more recently, returning to the Lord their God, from the dispersion in which they had been scattered, they have united and have ascended into all these mountains, and they again possess Jerusalem, where their holy things are.
{5:24} Therefore, now my lord, inquire if there may be any iniquity of theirs in the sight of their God. If so, let us ascend to them, because their God will surely deliver them to you, and they will be subjugated under the yoke of your power.
{5:25} But if, in truth, there may be no offense of this people before their God, we will not be able to resist them, because their God will defend them, and we will become a disgrace to the whole earth.”
{5:26} And it happened, when Achior had ceased to speak these words, all the great men of Holofernes were angry, and they intended to execute him, saying to each other:
{5:27} “Who is this, that says the sons of Israel are able to resist king Nebuchadnezzar and his armies: unarmed men, and without strength, and without skill in the art of fighting?
{5:28} Therefore, so that Achior may know that he has failed us, let us ascend to the mountains. And, when the most powerful among them have been taken, then, with them, he will be impaled with the sword.
{5:29} So may every people know that Nebuchadnezzar is god of the earth, and there is no other, except him.”
{6:1} But when they had ceased speaking, it happened that Holofernes, being very indignant, said to Achior:
{6:2} “Because you have prophesied to us, saying that the people of Israel may be defended by their God, and so as to reveal to you that there is no God, except Nebuchadnezzar:
{6:3} when we will have struck them all as one man, then you also will pass away with them by the sword of the Assyrians, and all Israel will perish into perdition with you.
{6:4} And you will be shown that Nebuchadnezzar is the lord of the whole earth. And then, the sword of my army will pass through your sides, and, being stabbed, you will fall among the wounded of Israel, and you will breathe no longer, when you have been destroyed with them.
{6:5} And furthermore, if you consider your prophecy to be true, do not let your countenance fall, and let the paleness that has taken hold of your face depart from you, if you claim that these my words cannot be fulfilled.
{6:6} But so that you may know that you will experience these things together with them, behold, from this hour you will be associated with their people, so that, when they receive the punishment that they deserve from my sword, you will fall under the same vengeance.”
{6:7} Then Holofernes instructed his servants to apprehend Achior, and to lead him through to Bethulia, and to deliver him into the hands of the sons of Israel.
{6:8} And, taking him, the servants of Holofernes traveled through the plains. But when they approached close to the mountains, the slingers of stones went forth against them.
{6:9} Then, diverting by the side of the mountain, they tied Achior, hands and feet, to a tree, and so they abandoned him, bound with ropes, and they returned to their lord.
{6:10} Thereafter, the sons of Israel, descending from Bethulia, came to him. Releasing him, they brought him to Bethulia. And so, standing him in the midst of the people, they interrogated him as to what event caused the Assyrians to abandon him, bound.
{6:11} In those days, the rulers of that place were Uzziah, the son of Micah of the tribe of Simeon, and Chabris, also called Gothoniel.
{6:12} And so, in the midst of the elders and in the sight of everyone, Achior explained all that he had said in reply to the questioning of Holofernes, and in what manner the people of Holofernes wanted to have him killed because of this word,
{6:13} and how Holofernes himself, being angry, had ordered him to be handed over to the Israelites, for this reason: so that when he would prevail over the sons of Israel, then he would also command Achior himself to be executed by diverse torments, because he had said that the God of heaven is their defender.
{6:14} And when Achior had declared all these things, all the people fell on their faces, adoring the Lord, and, communing together with mourning and weeping, they poured out their prayers with one mind to the Lord,
{6:15} saying: “O Lord, God of heaven and earth, behold their arrogance, and gaze upon our humility, and attend to the face of your holy ones, and reveal that you do not abandon those who rely on you, and that those who rely on themselves and who glory in their own strength, you humble.”
{6:16} And so, when their weeping was ended, and the prayer of the people throughout the entire day was completed, they consoled Achior,
{6:17} saying: “The God of our fathers, whose power you have predicted, will give to you this in return: that you, instead, will see the destruction of them.
{6:18} Truly, when the Lord our God will give this freedom to his servants, may God also be with you in our midst, so that, just as it pleases you, everyone who is with you may keep company with us.”
{6:19} Then Uzziah, after the council was ended, received him into his own house, and he made him a great supper.
{6:20} And all the elders were invited; together they refreshed themselves at the completion of their fast.
{6:21} In truth, after this, all the people were called together, and they prayed throughout the entire night within the assembly, petitioning help from the God of Israel.
{7:1} But Holofernes, on another day, instructed his army to ascend against Bethulia.
{7:2} Moreover, there were one hundred and twenty thousand foot-soldiers, and twenty-two thousand horsemen, besides the contingents of those men who had been taken captive, and all the youths who had been abducted from the provinces and the cities.
{7:3} All these prepared themselves together to fight against the sons of Israel, and they came through the foothills of the mountain, even to the apex, which looks down upon Dothain, from the place which is called Belma, up to Chelmon, which is opposite Esdrelon.
{7:4} But the sons of Israel, when they saw the multitude of them, prostrated themselves upon the ground, scattering ashes over their heads, praying with one accord that the God of Israel would show his mercy upon his people.
{7:5} And, taking up their arms of war, they set up positions at the places that lead along a narrow footpath between the mountains, and they guarded them all day and night.
{7:6} Now Holofernes, while circling around, discovered that the fountain that flowed in to them, led directly through an aqueduct on the south side, beyond the city. And he instructed their aqueduct to be cut off.
{7:7} Even so, there were springs not far from the walls, from which they were seen to draw water secretly, to refresh themselves a little rather than to drink their fill.
{7:8} But the sons of Ammon and Moab approached Holofernes, saying: “The sons of Israel do not trust in their lances, nor in their arrows, but the mountains are their defense, and the steep hills and precipices constitute their fortifications.
{7:9} Therefore, so that you may be able to overcome them without joining battle, set guards at the springs so that they may not draw water from them, and you will put them to death without the sword, or at least, being weary, they will hand over their city, which they suppose to be, by its position in the mountains, unable to be conquered.”
{7:10} And these words were pleasing before Holofernes and before his attendants, and so he stationed a hundred men around every spring.
{7:11} And when they had kept this watch through twenty full days, the cisterns and collections of waters failed among all the inhabitants of Bethulia, so that there was within the city not enough to satisfy them for even one day, because water was given out to the people daily by measure.
{7:12} Then, all the men and women, youths and little ones, gathering together before Uzziah, all with one voice together,
{7:13} said: “May God be judge between us and you, for you have done evil with us, in not being willing to speak peacefully with the Assyrians, and because of this, God has sold us into their hands.
{7:14} And therefore, there is no one to help us, while we are prostrated before their eyes with thirst and great destruction.
{7:15} And now, gather together all who are in the city, so that we may willingly deliver every one of us to the people of Holofernes.
{7:16} For it is better that as captives, being alive, we should bless the Lord, than that we should die and become a disgrace to all flesh, after we have seen our wives and our children die before our eyes.
{7:17} We call to witness this day heaven and earth, and the God of our fathers, who takes vengeance upon us according to our sins, so that now you may deliver the city into the hand of the military of Holofernes. And may our end be brief, by the edge of the sword, that would be made longer by the dryness of thirst.”
{7:18} And when they had said these things, there happened a great weeping and a loud lamentation within the assembly. From everyone and for many hours, with one voice, they cried out to God, saying:
{7:19} “We have sinned like our fathers, we have acted unjustly, we have committed iniquity.
{7:20} May you have mercy on us, for you are pious, or with your own scourges avenge our iniquities, but do not be willing to deliver those trusting in you to a people who are ignorant of you,
{7:21} so that they may not say among the Gentiles, ‘Where is their God?’ ”
{7:22} And when, being weary from these outcries, and tired from these weepings, they became silent,
{7:23} Uzziah, rising up covered in tears, said: “Be steadfast in soul, brothers, and let us wait these five days for mercy from the Lord.
{7:24} For perhaps he will break off his indignation and give glory to his own name.
{7:25} But if, with five days passing, help does not arrive, we will accomplish the words that you have spoken.”
{8:1} And it happened that these words were heard by Judith, a widow who was the daughter of Merari, the son of Idox, the son of Joseph, the son of Oziel, the son of Elai, the son of Jamnor, the son of Gideon, the son of Raphaim, the son of Ahitub, the son of Melchiel, the son of Enan, the son of Nathaniel, the son of Salathiel, the son of Simeon, the son of Ruben.
{8:2} And her husband was Manasseh, who died in the days of the barley harvest.
{8:3} For he was standing over those who bound sheaves in the field, and the heat overcame his head, and he died in Bethulia, his own city, and he was buried there with his fathers.
{8:4} But Judith, his bereaved, was a widow now for three years and six months.
{8:5} And she made herself a private chamber in the upper part of her house, in which she stayed enclosed with her handmaids.
{8:6} And she had haircloth around her waist, and she fasted all the days of her life, except Sabbaths, and new moons, and the feasts of the house of Israel.
{8:7} Moreover, she was exceedingly elegant in appearance, and her husband left her many riches, and an abundant household, as well as the ownership of plentiful herds of oxen and flocks of sheep.
{8:8} And she was greatly renowned among all, because she feared the Lord very much, nor was there anyone who spoke an ill word about her.
{8:9} And so, when she heard that Uzziah had promised that he would hand over the city with the passing of five days, she sent to the elders Chabris and Charmis.
{8:10} And they came to her, and she said to them: “What is this word, by which Uzziah has consented to hand over the city to the Assyrians, if within five days no help arrives for us?
{8:11} And who are you to test the Lord?
{8:12} This is not a word that will provoke mercy, but rather one that may excite wrath and enkindle fury.
{8:13} You have set a time limit for the mercy of the Lord, and you have established a day for him, according to your choice.
{8:14} But, since the Lord is patient, let us be repentant about this same matter, and let us beg his indulgence with many tears.
{8:15} For God will not threaten like man, nor will he be inflamed to anger like a son of man.
{8:16} And, for this reason, let us humble our souls before him, and, continuing to serve him in a spirit of humility,
{8:17} let us speak to the Lord with tears, so that he may act according to his will in his mercy toward us. So then, just as our heart is disturbed by their arrogance, so also may we glory in our humility.
{8:18} For we have not followed the sins of our fathers, who abandoned their God in order to worship strange gods.
{8:19} Because of this crime, they were given over to their enemies: to the sword, and to pillaging, and to confusion. But we know no other God except him.
{8:20} Let us wait with humility for his consolation, and the Lord our God will requite our blood by the afflictions of our enemies, and he will humble all the nations that will rise up against us, and he will cause them to be without honor.
{8:21} And now, brothers, because you are the elders among the people of God, and their very soul hangs upon you, rescue their hearts by your eloquence, so that they may remember that our fathers were tested in order to prove whether or not they truly worshiped their God.
{8:22} They are obliged to remember how our father Abraham was tested, and being proved by many tribulations, he was made the friend of God.
{8:23} So Isaac, so Jacob, so Moses, and all that have pleased God, passed through many tribulations, remaining faithful.
{8:24} But those who did not accept the trials with the fear of the Lord, and who brought forward their impatience and the disgrace of their murmuring against the Lord,
{8:25} were exterminated by the exterminator, and they perished by serpents.
{8:26} And as for us, therefore, let us not revenge ourselves for these things that we suffer.
{8:27} But, in considering these same sufferings to be less than our sins deserve, let us believe that the scourges of the Lord, by which we are corrected like servants, have occurred for our improvement and not for our destruction.”
{8:28} And Uzziah and the elders said to her: “All the things that you have spoken are true, and there is nothing reprehensible in your words.
{8:29} Now, therefore, pray for us, because you are a holy woman, and one fearing God.”
{8:30} And Judith said to them: “You know that what I have been able to say is of God.
{8:31} So, concerning that which I propose to do, examine whether or not it is from God, and pray that God may act to strengthen my plan.
{8:32} You will stand at the gate this night, and I will go forth with my handmaid. And pray that, just as you have said, within five days the Lord may look kindly on his people Israel.
{8:33} But I am not willing to have you examine my actions, and, until I report to you, let nothing else be done, except to pray for me to the Lord our God.”
{8:34} And Uzziah, the leader of Judah, said to her, “Go in peace, and may the Lord be with you to take revenge among our enemies.” So, turning back, they departed.
{9:1} And when they were gone, Judith entered her place of prayer. And clothing herself with haircloth, she placed ashes on her head. And prostrating herself to the Lord, she cried out to the Lord, saying:
{9:2} “O Lord, God of my father Simeon, you gave him a sword to defend against foreigners, who stood out as violators by their defilement, and who uncovered the thigh of the virgin unto shame.
{9:3} And you gave their wives into plunder, and their daughters into captivity, and all their spoils to be divided to the servants, who were zealous with your zeal. Bring help, I ask you, O Lord my God, to me, a widow.
{9:4} For you have acted in the past, and you have decided one thing after another. And what you have willed, this too has happened.
{9:5} For all your ways have been prepared, and you have placed your judgments within your providence.
{9:6} Look upon the camp of the Assyrians now, just as you deigned to look upon the camp of the Egyptians, when their weapons rushed after your servants, trusting in their four-horse chariots, and in their horsemen, and in a multitude of warriors.
{9:7} But you gazed upon their camp, and darkness wearied them.
{9:8} The abyss took hold of their feet, and the waters covered them.
{9:9} So may it be with these also, O Lord, who trust in their multitude, and in their swift chariots, and in their pikes, and in their shields, and in their arrows, and the glory in their lances.
{9:10} And they do not know that you are our God, who crushes wars from the beginning, and the Lord is your name.
{9:11} Raise up your arm, just as from the beginning, and throw down their power by your power. Let their power fall, in their anger, for they promise themselves to violate your sanctuary, and to pollute the tabernacle of your name, and to cut down by their sword the horn of your altar.
{9:12} Act, O Lord, so that his arrogance may be cut off with his own sword.
{9:13} Let him be seized by the snare of his own eyes in my regard, and may you strike him by the attraction of my lips.
{9:14} Give me constancy in my soul, so that I may hold him in contempt, and give me virtue, so that I may overthrow him.
{9:15} For this will be a memorial to your name, when he will be overthrown by the hand of a woman.
{9:16} For your power, O Lord, is not in numbers, nor is your will with the strength of horses, nor from the beginning have the arrogant been pleasing to you. But the pleas of the humble and the meek have always pleased you.
{9:17} O God of the heavens, Creator of the waters, and Lord of all creation, heed me, a miserable thing, pleading you and depending on your mercy.
{9:18} Remember, O Lord, your covenant, and put your words in my mouth, and reinforce the plan in my heart, so that your house may continue with your sanctification,
{9:19} and so that all the nations may acknowledge that you are God, and there is no other beside you.”
{10:1} And it happened that, when she had ceased to cry out to the Lord, she arose from the place where she lay prostrate before the Lord.
{10:2} And she called her handmaid, and descending into her house, she took away from herself the haircloth, and she put away from herself the garments of her widowhood,
{10:3} and she washed her body, and she anointed herself with the best ointment, and she plaited the hair of her head, and she put a headdress on her head, and she clothed herself with the garments of her elegance, and she put sandals on her feet, and she put on her little bracelets, and lilies, and earrings, and rings, and she adorned herself with all her ornaments.
{10:4} And also, the Lord conferred upon her a splendor. For all this dressing up did not proceed from sensuality, but from virtue. And therefore, the Lord increased this, her beauty, so that she appeared with incomparable honor before the eyes of all.
{10:5} And so, she appointed to her handmaid a wineskin, and a vessel of oil, and parched grain, and dried figs, and bread, and cheese, and they departed.
{10:6} And when they came to the gate of the city, they found Uzziah and the elders of the city waiting.
{10:7} And when they saw her, being astounded, they wondered at her surpassing beauty.
{10:8} So, not questioning her at all, they dismissed her to go forth, saying: “May the God of our fathers give you grace, and may he strengthen all the advice of your heart with his virtue, so that Jerusalem may glory over you, and your name may be counted among the holy and the just.”
{10:9} And those who were there, all with one voice, said: “Amen. Amen.”
{10:10} In truth, Judith was praying to the Lord as she crossed through the gates, she and her handmaid.
{10:11} But it happened that, when she descended the mountain at about the break of day, the scouts of the Assyrians met her, and they stopped her, saying, “Where are you coming from? And where are you going?”
{10:12} And she answered: “I am a daughter of the Hebrews. This is why I have fled from their face: because I realized that in the future they would be given over to you with pillaging, for they hold you in contempt, and they would never be willing to surrender themselves, so that they might find mercy in your sight.
{10:13} For this reason, I thought to myself, saying: I will go to the face of the leader Holofernes, so that I may reveal to him their secrets, and show him by what means he may be able to prevail over them, without one man of his army being slain.”
{10:14} And when the men had heard her words, they beheld her face, and their eyes were astounded, because they wondered exceedingly at her beauty.
{10:15} And they said to her: “You have preserved your life by following such an excellent plan, to descend to our lord.
{10:16} But know this, that when you will stand in his sight, he will treat you well, and you will be very pleasing to his heart.” And they led her to the tabernacle of Holofernes, announcing her.
{10:17} And when she had entered before his face, immediately Holofernes was captivated by his eyes.
{10:18} And his attendants said to him, “Who can hold the people of the Hebrews in contempt, who have such beautiful women? So, we ought to think it not worthwhile, for their sakes, to fight against them.”
{10:19} And so, Judith looked upon Holofernes, sitting under a canopy, which was woven from purple and gold, with emeralds and precious stones.
{10:20} And, after she had gazed into his face, she showed reverence for him, prostrating herself to the ground. And the servants of Holofernes lifted her up, at the command of their lord.
{11:1} Then Holofernes said to her: “Be steadfast in soul, and do not be terrified in your heart. For I have never harmed a man who was willing to serve king Nebuchadnezzar.
{11:2} But if your people had not despised me, I would not have lifted up my lance over them.
{11:3} But now, tell me, for what reason have you withdrawn from them, and why has it pleased you to come to us?”
{11:4} And Judith said to him: “Receive the words of your maidservant. For, if you will follow the words of your maidservant, the Lord will accomplish an excellent thing by you.
{11:5} For, as Nebuchadnezzar the king of the earth lives, and as his power lives, which is with you for the chastising of all straying souls: not only men serve him through you, but also the beasts of the field are submissive to him.
{11:6} For the diligence of your mind is being reported to all nations, and it has been revealed to all of this age that you alone are good and powerful in all his kingdom, and your discipline is being announced beforehand in all the provinces.
{11:7} This is not hidden, what Achior has said, nor are we ignorant of what you have ordered to befall him.
{11:8} For it is agreed that our God is so offended with sins that he has commanded, through his prophets to the people, that he will deliver them up for their sins.
{11:9} And since the sons of Israel know that they have offended their God, your trembling is upon them.
{11:10} Moreover, now also a famine has assailed them, and, by drought of water, they are already counted among the dead.
{11:11} And finally, they have a plan to put to death their herds, and to drink their blood.
{11:12} And the sacred things of the Lord their God, which God instructed them not to touch, among the grain, wine, and oil, these they have decided to expend, and they are willing to consume the things that they ought not to touch with their hands. Therefore, because they do these things, it is certain that they will be given over to perdition.
{11:13} And I, your maidservant, knowing this, have fled from them, and the Lord has sent me to report to you these same things.
{11:14} For I, your maidservant, worship God even now that I am with you, and your maidservant will go out, and I will pray to God.
{11:15} And he will tell me when he will repay them for their sins, and I will return and announce it to you, so that I may bring you through the midst of Jerusalem, and you will hold all the people of Israel, like sheep that have no shepherd, and there will not be so much as one dog that barks against you.
{11:16} For these things have been told to me through the providence of God.
{11:17} And because God has been angry with them, I have been sent to report these same things to you.”
{11:18} And so, all these words were pleasing before Holofernes, and before his servants, and they wondered at her wisdom, and they said to one another:
{11:19} “There is not another woman so great upon the earth: in appearance, in beauty, and in charming words.”
{11:20} And Holofernes said to her: “God has done well, who sent you ahead of the people, so that you may give them into our hands.
{11:21} And if your promise is good, if your God will do this for me, he will also be my God, and you will be great in the house of Nebuchadnezzar, and your name will be renowned through all the earth.”
{12:1} Then he ordered her to enter where his valuables were stored, and he ordered her to wait there, and he appointed what should be given to her from his own feast.
{12:2} And Judith responded to him, and she said: “Now, I am not able to eat from these things which you instructed to be allotted to me, lest an offense come upon me. But I will eat from that which I have brought.”
{12:3} And Holofernes said to her, “If these things that you have brought with you should fail you, what shall we do for you?”
{12:4} And Judith said, “As your soul lives, my lord, your maidservant will not expend all these things, until God accomplishes by my hand what I have in mind.” And his servants led her into the tabernacle, as he instructed.
{12:5} And, as she was entering, she requested that it be permitted to her to go outside at night, before daylight, in order to pray and to petition the Lord.
{12:6} And he instructed his chamberlains that she may exit and enter, just as it may please her, to adore her God, for three days.
{12:7} And she went out in the nights into the valley of Bethulia, and she washed herself in a fountain of water.
{12:8} And, as she climbed up, she prayed to the Lord God of Israel that he would direct her way, to the liberation of his people.
{12:9} And entering, she remained pure in the tabernacle, until she received her own food in the evening.
{12:10} And it happened on the fourth day that Holofernes made a supper for his servants, and he said to Vagao his eunuch: “Go, and persuade that Hebrew woman to willingly consent to live with me.
{12:11} For it is disgraceful among the Assyrians, if a woman mocks a man, acting so as to pass through with immunity from him.”
{12:12} Then Vagao entered toward Judith, and he said, “May she not dread, my good young woman, to enter to my lord, so that she may be honored before his face, so that she may eat with him and drink wine with cheerfulness.”
{12:13} Judith answered him: “Who am I, that I should contradict my lord?
{12:14} All that will be good and best before his eyes, I will do. Moreover, whatever will please him, to me, that will be what is best, all the days of my life.”
{12:15} And she arose and dressed herself with her garments, and entering, she stood before his face.
{12:16} But the heart of Holofernes was struck. For he was burning with desire for her.
{12:17} And Holofernes said to her, “Drink now, and recline with cheerfulness, for you have found favor before me.”
{12:18} And Judith said, “I will drink, my lord, because my soul has been magnified this day, beyond all my days.”
{12:19} And she accepted and ate and drank in his sight what her handmaid had prepared for her.
{12:20} And Holofernes became pleased with her, and he drank very much wine, more than he had ever drunk in his life.
{13:1} So then, when it had become late, his servants hurried to their lodgings, and Vagao closed the chamber doors, and he went away.
{13:2} But they were all drowsy from the wine.
{13:3} And Judith was alone in the chamber.
{13:4} Moreover, Holofernes, being very inebriated, was fast asleep, reclining on his bed.
{13:5} And Judith told her handmaid to stand outside before the chamber, and to watch.
{13:6} And Judith stood in front of the bed, praying with tears, and her lips moved in silence,
{13:7} saying: “Confirm me, O Lord God of Israel, and in this hour look kindly upon the works of my hands, so that, just as you promised, you may raise up Jerusalem, your city, and so that, believing through you that this plan is able to be accomplished, I may succeed.”
{13:8} And when she had said this, she approached the pillar, which was at the head of the bed, and she released his blade, which was hanging tied to it.
{13:9} And when she had unsheathed it, she grabbed him by the hair of his head, and she said, “Confirm me, O Lord God, in this hour.”
{13:10} And she struck him twice on his neck, and she cut off his head, and she took off his canopy from the pillars, and she rolled away the trunk of his body.
{13:11} And after a little while, she went out, and she delivered the head of Holofernes to her handmaid, and she ordered her to put it in her bag.
{13:12} And the two went out, according to their custom, as if to prayer, and they passed through the camp, and having circled around the valley, they came to the gate of the city.
{13:13} And Judith, from a distance, spoke to the watchmen on the walls, “Open the gates, for God is with us, and he has acted with his power in Israel.”
{13:14} And it happened that, when the men had heard her voice, they called the elders of the city.
{13:15} And all rushed toward her, from the least to the greatest. For, until then, they held no hope that she would return.
{13:16} And, enflaming the lights, they gathered all around her. But she climbed up to a higher place, and she ordered them to be made silent. And when all had quieted down,
{13:17} Judith said: “Praise the Lord our God, who has not abandoned those who hope in him.
{13:18} And by me, his handmaid, he has fulfilled his mercy, which he promised to the house of Israel. And he has killed the enemy of his people, by my hand this night.”
{13:19} Then, taking the head of Holofernes from the bag, she displayed it to them, saying: “Behold, the head of Holofernes the leader of the military of the Assyrians, and behold his canopy, under which he reclined in his drunkenness, where the Lord our God struck him by the hand of a woman.
{13:20} But, as the Lord himself lives, his angel has been my guardian both from my departure, and while staying there, and when returning from there. And the Lord has not permitted me, his handmaid, to be defiled, but he has called me back to you without the pollution of sin, rejoicing in his victory, in my escape, and in your liberation.
{13:21} Confess everything to him, for he is good, for his mercy is with every generation.”
{13:22} Then everyone adored the Lord, and they said to her, “The Lord has blessed you by his power, because, through you, he has reduced our enemies to nothing.”
{13:23} Furthermore, Uzziah, the leader of the people of Israel, said to her: “O daughter, you have been blessed by the Lord, the most high God, above all the women on earth.
{13:24} Blessed is the Lord, who made heaven and earth, who has guided you in harming the head of the leader of our enemies.
{13:25} For he has so magnified your name this day, that your praise will not retire from the mouth of men, who will be mindful of the power of the Lord forever, because you have risked your life for the sake of the distress and tribulation of your people, and you have prevented our ruin before the sight of our God.”
{13:26} And all the people said: “Amen. Amen.”
{13:27} And so, Achior was called, and he drew near, and Judith said to him: “The God of Israel, to whom you gave testimony, has avenged himself on his enemies. He has cut down the head of all unbelievers, by my hand this night.
{13:28} And, so that you may determine that this is so, behold, the head of Holofernes, who, in the contempt of his pride, despised the God of Israel and threatened Israel with ruin, saying, ‘When the people of Israel have been captured, I will instruct your sides to be pierced through with a sword.’ ”
{13:29} Then Achior, seeing the head of Holofernes, and being distressed by fear, fell upon his face on the ground, and his soul became agitated.
{13:30} In truth, after this, when he had recovered his breath, he fell down before her feet, and he showed reverence for her, and he said:
{13:31} “Blessed are you by your God, in every tabernacle of Jacob, for in every nation that will hear of your name, the God of Israel will be magnified over you.”
{14:1} Then Judith said to all the people: “Hear me, brothers. Suspend this head over our walls.
{14:2} And, as soon as the sun rises, let everyone take up his weapons and go out to attack, not going down all the way, but only to seem as if making an assault.
{14:3} Then the scouts will have to hurry to awaken their leader for the fight.
{14:4} And when their commanders rush into the tabernacle of Holofernes, and they find his headless body wallowing in his blood, fear will fall over them.
{14:5} And when you realize that they are fleeing, go after them in security, for the Lord will crush them under your feet.”
{14:6} Then Achior, seeing the power that the God of Israel had wrought, left behind the rituals of the Gentiles. He believed in God, and he circumcised the flesh of his foreskin, and he was placed among the people of Israel, and so were all the succession of his kindred, even until this present day.
{14:7} And soon, at the rising of day, they suspended the head of Holofernes above the walls, and every man took up his weapons, and they went out with a great uproar and howling.
{14:8} When the scouts saw this, they rushed to the tent of Holofernes.
{14:9} Moreover, those who were in the tent came and made a loud noise before the entrance to the bedchamber, hoping to awaken him by an attempt at skillful noise-making, not by intruding on him, so that Holofernes might be roused from sleep.
{14:10} For no one dared to knock, or to open and enter, the bedchamber of the powerful leader of the Assyrians.
{14:11} But when his commanders and tribunes had arrived, with all the chiefs of the army of the king of the Assyrians, they said to the chamberlains:
{14:12} “Enter and awaken him, for the mice have come out of their holes, intending to challenge us to fight.”
{14:13} Then Vagao, entering his bedchamber, stood before the curtain, and he made a clapping noise with his hands. For he suspected that he was sleeping with Judith.
{14:14} But when, with attentiveness, he perceived no motion of anyone reclining, he approached the curtain. And lifting it up, he saw the dead body of Holofernes, without a head, lying on the ground, soaked in his own blood. He cried out with a loud voice and weeping, and he tore his garments.
{14:15} And he entered the tent of Judith and did not find her. And he ran out to the people,
{14:16} and he said: “One Hebrew woman has caused confusion in the house of Nebuchadnezzar the king. For behold, Holofernes lies on the ground, and his head is not with him.”
{14:17} Now when the leaders of the army of the Assyrians had heard this, they all tore their garments, and an intolerable fear and trembling fell over them, and their minds were greatly disturbed.
{14:18} And there was an unprecedented outcry in the midst of their camp.
{15:1} And when the entire army had heard that Holofernes was beheaded, reason and resolution fled from them, and, being moved by trembling and fear alone, they thought only to flee to safety.
{15:2} So then, no one spoke with his neighbor, but hanging their heads and leaving everything behind, they hurried to escape from the Hebrews, who, as they had heard, were advancing against them well-armed. And they fled through the ways of the fields and the paths of the hills.
{15:3} And so, the sons of Israel, seeing them fleeing, pursued them. And they went down after them, sounding the trumpets and howling.
{15:4} And, since the Assyrians were not united, they rushed headlong in their flight. But the sons of Israel, pursuing like one unit, struck down all they were able to find.
{15:5} And so, Uzziah sent messengers through all the cities and regions of Israel.
{15:6} And then, every region and every city sent their chosen young men with weapons after them, and they pursued them with the edge of the sword, until they passed through to the extremities of their borders.
{15:7} But the remainder, who were in Bethulia, entered the camp of the Assyrians and took away the plunder that the Assyrians, in their flight, had left behind, and they were exceedingly burdened.
{15:8} In truth, those who returned victorious to Bethulia brought with them everything that was theirs. So there was no numbering their cattle, and beasts, and everything they could carry, so much so that, from the least to the greatest, all were made rich by their spoils.
{15:9} But Joachim, the high priest, came from Jerusalem to Bethulia with all his elders to see Judith.
{15:10} And when she had gone out to him, they all blessed her with one voice, saying: “You are the glory of Jerusalem, you are the joy of Israel, you are the honor of our people.
{15:11} For you have acted manfully, and your heart has been strengthened. For you loved chastity, and, after your husband, you have not known any other. Therefore, also the hand of the Lord has strengthened you, and, therefore, you will be blessed for all eternity.”
{15:12} And all the people said: “Amen. Amen.”
{15:13} But all of thirty days were scarcely enough for the people of Israel to collect the spoils of the Assyrians.
{15:14} But moreover, all of those things that were clearly the particular possessions of Holofernes they gave to Judith: with gold, and silver, and garments, and gems, and furniture. And these were all delivered to her by the people.
{15:15} And all the people rejoiced, with the women, and the virgins, and the young men, playing on wind instruments and stringed instruments.
{16:1} Then Judith sang this canticle to the Lord, saying:
{16:2} “Call to the Lord with drums, sing to the Lord with cymbals, play for him a new psalm, exalt and invoke his name.
{16:3} The Lord crushes wars; the Lord is his name.
{16:4} He has set up his camp in the midst of his people, to rescue us from the hand of all our enemies.
{16:5} Assur came from the mountains, from the North, with the multitude of his strength. His multitude blockaded the torrents, and their horses covered the valleys.
{16:6} He told himself that he would set fire to my borders, and kill my young men with the sword, to give my children into plunder and my virgins into captivity.
{16:7} But the almighty Lord has harmed him, and he has delivered him into the hands of a woman, and he has pierced him through.
{16:8} For their powerful one did not fall by young men, nor did the sons of Titan strike him, nor did lofty giants set themselves against him, but Judith, the daughter of Merari, dissolved him with the splendor of her face.
{16:9} For she put away from herself the garments of widowhood, and she clothed herself with the garments of rejoicing, for the sake of the exultation of the sons of Israel.
{16:10} She anointed her face with ointment, and she gathered the locks of her hair with a headdress; she accepted a new dress in order to deceive him.
{16:11} Her sandals ravished his eyes; her beauty made his soul her captive; with a blade, she cut off his head.
{16:12} The Persians were horrified at her constancy, and the Medes at her boldness.
{16:13} Then the camp of the Assyrians howled, when my humble ones appeared, parched with thirst.
{16:14} The sons of the servant girls have pierced them through, and, like fleeing servants, they have killed them. They perished in battle before the face of the Lord, my God.
{16:15} Let us sing a canticle to the Lord; let us sing a new hymn to our God.
{16:16} O Adonai, O Lord, you are great, and splendor is in your virtue, and no one is able to overcome you.
{16:17} Let all your creatures serve you. For you spoke, and they became. You sent forth your Spirit, and they were created. And there is no one who can withstand your voice.
{16:18} The mountains will be moved from the foundations by the waters. The rocks, like wax, will liquefy before your face.
{16:19} But those who fear you will be great with you, throughout all things.
{16:20} Woe to the people that rises up against my people. For the Lord almighty will be vindicated against them; in the day of judgment, he will visit them.
{16:21} For he will bestow fire and worms on their flesh, so that they may burn and have sensations without ceasing.”
{16:22} And it happened that, after these things, all the people came to Jerusalem after the victory, to adore the Lord. And as soon as they were purified, they all offered holocausts, and vows, and their promises.
{16:23} Moreover, Judith offered all the implements of war from Holofernes, which the people gave to her, and the canopy that she had taken away from his chamber, as an anathema unto oblivion.
{16:24} But the people were cheerful before the face of the sanctuary, and for three months the gladness of this victory was celebrated with Judith.
{16:25} And after those days, each one returned to his own house, and Judith became great in Bethulia, and she had great splendor in all the land of Israel.
{16:26} For chastity was one with her virtue, so that she did not know man all the days of her life, after the passing away of her husband, Manasseh.
{16:27} And then, on feast days, she came forth with great glory.
{16:28} But she remained in her husband’s house for one hundred and five years, and she set her handmaid free. And she passed away and was buried with her husband in Bethulia.
{16:29} And all the people mourned her, for seven days.
{16:30} And, during all the time of her life, there was no one who disturbed Israel, nor for many years after her death.
{16:31} Moreover, the day of the festivity of this victory was accepted by the Hebrews in the numbering of holy days, and it was religiously observed by the Jews, from that time, even to the present day.
{1:1} In the second year of the reign of Artaxerxes the great, on the first day of the month of Nisan, Mordecai the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin,
{1:2} a Jewish man who lived in the city of Susa, a great gentleman, and among the first ones of the king’s court, saw a dream.
{1:3} Now he was one of a number of captives, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away from Jerusalem with Jeconiah king of Judah.
{1:4} And this was his dream: voices appeared, and confusion, and thunders, and earthquakes, and a disturbance upon the earth.
{1:5} And behold, there were two great dragons making preparations against one another for battle.
{1:6} And at their cry all peoples rushed forth to fight against the nation of the just.
{1:7} And that was a day of darkness and division, of tribulation and anguish, and there was an unnatural dread over the earth.
{1:8} And the nation of the just was disturbed, fearing their own evils, and was prepared for death.
{1:9} And they cried out to God, and from their loud crying, a little fountain grew into a very great river and overflowed into many waters.
{1:10} The light and the sun rose up, and the humble were exalted, and they devoured the illustrious.
{1:11} When Mordecai had seen this, and he arose from bed, he was considering what God might want to do, and he kept it fixed in his soul, desiring to know what the dream might signify.
{2:1} Now he was staying at that time in the king’s court with Bagatha and Thara the king’s eunuchs, who were porters of the palace.
{2:2} And when he realized their thoughts, and had diligently paid close attention, he learned that they were attempting to cast their hand against king Artaxerxes, and he reported this to the king.
{2:3} Then the king had both of them questioned, and when they confessed, he ordered a sentence of death.
{2:4} But the king had what had happened written in the commentaries. And even Mordecai handed over the memory of these things into writing.
{2:5} And the king instructed him to remain in the court of the palace, having given him this position for the information.
{2:6} In truth, Haman the son of Hammedatha the Bougaean had great honor in the eyes of the king, and he wanted to harm Mordecai and his people because of the two eunuchs of the king who had been executed.
{3:1} In the days of Artaxerxes, who reigned from India to Ethiopia over one hundred twenty-seven provinces,
{3:2} when he sat on the throne of his kingdom, the city of Susa was the root of his kingdom.
{3:3} And so, in the third year of his reign, he made a great feast for all the leaders and his servants, for the most powerful among the Persians and the distinguished among the Medes, and for the rulers of the provinces before him,
{3:4} so that he might show the glorious riches of his kingdom, as well as its greatness, and so boast of his power, for a long time, namely, one hundred and eighty days.
{3:5} And when the days of the feast were nearly completed, he invited all the people, who had been found in Susa, from the greatest even to the least, and he commanded a feast to be prepared, for seven days, in the court of the garden and the arboretum, which had been planted by the care and by the hand of the king.
{3:6} And, in every direction, tents the color of the sky and of flax as well as hyacinth were hung up, suspended by cords of linen and even purple, which had been placed through rings of ivory and were held up with marble columns. The couches also, of gold and silver, had been arranged over a pavement of emerald-green, bearing scattered jewels, which was decorated with a wonderful variety of images.
{3:7} Moreover, those who had been invited drank from golden cups, and dishes of foods were brought in one after another. Likewise, choice wine was presented in abundance, as was worthy of royal magnificence.
{3:8} Nor was anyone compelled to drink who was unwilling, but, just as the king had appointed, one of his nobles was set over each table, so that each one might select what he wanted.
{3:9} Likewise, Vashti the queen made a feast for the women, in the palace where king Artaxerxes was accustomed to stay the night.
{3:10} And so, on the seventh day, when the king was more cheerful, and, after excessive drinking, had become warmed with wine, he ordered Mehuman, and Biztha, and Harbona, and Bigtha, and Abagtha, and Zethar, and Charkas, seven eunuchs who served in his presence,
{3:11} to bring in queen Vashti before the king, with the crown set upon her head, to show her beauty to the whole people and to the leaders, for she was very beautiful.
{3:12} She refused, and she showed contempt towards the king’s command, which he had delivered to her by the eunuchs. Whereupon the king, being angry and inflamed with a very great fury,
{3:13} questioned the wise men, who, according to royal custom were always near him and all he did was by their counsel, who knew the laws as well as the judgments of their ancestors,
{3:14} (but first and foremost were Carshena, and Shethar, and Admatha, and Tarshish, and Meres, and Marsena, and Memucan, seven rulers of the Persians as well as the Medes, who saw the face of the king and who were accustomed to sitting down first after him,)
{3:15} as to what sentence should fall upon Vashti the queen, who had refused to do the commandment of king Artaxerxes, which he had delivered to her by the eunuchs.
{3:16} And Memucan answered, in the hearing of the king as well as the rulers, “Queen Vashti has wounded not only the king, but also all the people and the leaders, who are in all the provinces of king Artaxerxes.
{3:17} For word about the queen will go out to all the women, so that they will show contempt for their husbands, and they will say, ‘King Artaxerxes ordered that queen Vashti should enter before him, and she would not.’
{3:18} And so, by this example all the wives of the leaders of the Persians and the Medes will belittle the authority of their husbands; therefore, the indignation of the king is just.
{3:19} If it pleases you, let an edict be sent out from your presence, and let it be written according to the law of the Persians and the Medes, which it is forbidden to disregard, that Vashti shall no longer enter before the king, but let another, who is better than her, receive her queenship.
{3:20} And let this be published in all the provinces of your empire, (which is very wide,) and let all wives, the greater as much as the lesser, give honor to their husbands.”
{3:21} His counsel pleased the king and the rulers, and the king acted according to the counsel of Memucan,
{3:22} and he sent letters to all the provinces of his kingdom, so that every nation was able to hear and to read, in various languages and letters, that husbands are to be the greater rulers in their own houses, and that this should be published to every people.
{4:1} And so, after this had been carried out, and the indignation of king Artaxerxes had subsided, he remembered Vashti, and what she had done, and what had happened to her.
{4:2} And the servants of the king, and his ministers, said, “Let young women be sought for the king, virgins and beautiful,
{4:3} and let investigators be sent throughout all the provinces for young women, beautiful and virgins. And let them bring them to the city of Susa, and deliver them to the house of the women under the hand of Hegai the eunuch, who is the overseer and keeper of the king’s women. And let them receive feminine ornaments, and other things necessary for their use.
{4:4} And whoever among them all will please the king’s eyes, let her reign instead of Vashti.” The idea pleased the king, and so he ordered it to be done as they had suggested.
{4:5} There was a Jewish man in the city of Susa, by the name of Mordecai, son of Jair, son of Shimei, son of Kish, of the house of Benjamin,
{4:6} who had been carried away from Jerusalem at the time that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon carried away Jeconiah king of Judah,
{4:7} who had raised his brother’s daughter Hadassah, who by another name was called Esther. And she had lost both her parents. She was very beautiful, with a graceful appearance. Since her father and mother had both died, Mordecai adopted her as his own daughter.
{4:8} And when the king’s command became very well-known, in accordance with his command, many beautiful virgins were brought to Susa, and were delivered to Hegai the eunuch. Likewise, Esther, along with the other young women, was delivered to him, to be protected with the assembled women.
{4:9} She was pleasing to him, and she found favor in his sight. And he commanded a eunuch to hasten the women’s ornaments, and to deliver her share to her, along with seven of the most beautiful young women of the king’s house, so as to both adorn and honor her and her handmaids.
{4:10} She was not willing to reveal to him her people or her native land. For Mordecai had instructed her that she should keep silent about all these things.
{4:11} He went for a walk every day, in the front courtyard of the house in which the chosen virgins were kept, having concern for Esther’s welfare and wanting to know what would happen to her.
{4:12} But, when the time came for each in the line of young women to go in to the king, after everything had been completed concerning feminine grooming, the twelfth month had been reached, to the extent that for six months they were anointed with oil of myrrh, and for another six months they used certain types of makeup and perfumes.
{4:13} And when they were going in to the king, whatever they requested to adorn themselves, they received, and when each was pleased with herself, having been prepared in the chamber of the women, she passed on to the king’s chamber.
{4:14} And whoever entered at evening, departed in the morning, and then from there she was led to the second house, which was under the hand of Shaashgaz the eunuch, who presided over the king’s concubines. Nor did she have the power to return again to the king, unless the king desired it and had summoned her by name.
{4:15} But, as the order continued to progress, the day arrived when Esther, the daughter of Abihail the brother of Mordecai, whom he had adopted as his daughter, was required to go in to the king. She did not seek feminine ornaments, except that whatever Hegai the eunuch and keeper of the virgins chose, he gave her to adorn her. For she was very attractive, and her incredible beauty made her appear gracious and amiable in the eyes of all.
{4:16} And so she was led to the chamber of king Artaxerxes, in the tenth month, which is called Tebeth, in the seventh year of his reign.
{4:17} And the king loved her more than all the women, and she had favor and mercy in his eyes above all the women, and he set the royal crown on her head, and he made her queen instead of Vashti.
{4:18} And he ordered a magnificent feast to be prepared for all the rulers, and for his servants, because of the union and wedding of Esther. And he gave a holiday to all the provinces, and he bestowed gifts befitting of princely generosity.
{4:19} And when the virgins were sought for the second time and gathered together, Mordecai remained at the king’s gate.
{4:20} Esther had not yet declared her native land and her people, according to his command. For whatever he instructed, Esther observed. And so she did all things as she had become accustomed in the time when he raised her from early childhood.
{4:21} Therefore, at that time, when Mordecai was staying at the king’s gate, Bagatha and Thara, two of the king’s eunuchs, who were gatekeepers and who presided over the first entryway of the palace, were angry, and they decided to rise up against the king and kill him.
{4:22} But Mordecai did not keep this secret, and immediately he reported it to queen Esther, and she reported it to the king in Mordecai’s name, who had brought the matter to her.
{4:23} It was inquired into and discovered, and they were both hanged on a gallows. And it was committed to the histories and the chronicles which are delivered in the sight of the king.
{5:1} After this, king Artaxerxes exalted Haman, the son of Hammedatha, who was of Agag lineage, and he set his throne above all the rulers whom he had.
{5:2} And all the king’s servants, who passed by the doors of the palace, bent their knees and adored Haman, for so the ruler had instructed them. Only Mordecai did not bend his knee, nor adore him.
{5:3} The king’s servants, who presided over the doors of the palace, said to him, “Why do you, more than the others, not observe the king’s command?”
{5:4} And when they were saying this frequently, and he would not listen to them, they reported it to Haman, desiring to know whether he would continue in his resolution, for he had told them that he was a Jew.
{5:5} Now when Haman had heard this, and had proved by a test that Mordecai did not bend his knee to him, nor adore him, he was very angry.
{5:6} And he considered it pointless to lay his hands on Mordecai alone, for he had heard that he was part of the Jewish people. And so he wanted more: to destroy the entire nation of the Jews, who were in the kingdom of Artaxerxes.
{5:7} In the first month, which is called Nisan, in the twelfth year of the reign of Artaxerxes, the lot was cast into an urn, which in Hebrew is called Pur, in the presence of Haman, to determine on what day and in which month the Jewish people should be destroyed. And it turned out to be the twelfth month, which is called Adar.
{5:8} And Haman said to king Artaxerxes, “There is a people dispersed throughout all the provinces of your kingdom and separated one from another, who make use of unusual laws and ceremonies, and who, in addition, show contempt for the king’s ordinances. And you know very well that it is not expedient for your kingdom that they should become insolent through independence.
{5:9} If it pleases you, declare that they may be destroyed, and I will weigh out ten thousand talents to the keepers of your treasury.”
{5:10} And so the king took the ring that he used, from his own hand, and gave it to Haman, the son of Hammedatha, of Agag lineage, enemy of the Jews.
{5:11} And he said to him, “Let the silver, which you promise, be for yourself. As for the people, do with them as it pleases you.”
{5:12} And the scribes of the king were summoned, in the first month Nisan, on the thirteenth day of the same month. And it was written, as Haman had commanded, to all the king’s governors, and to the judges of the provinces, and to various peoples, so that each people could read and hear according to their various languages, in the name of king Artaxerxes. And the letters were sealed with his ring.
{5:13} These were sent by the king’s messengers to all the provinces, so as to kill and destroy all the Jews, from children all the way to the elderly, even little children and women, on one day, that is, on the thirteenth of the twelfth month, which is called Adar, and to plunder their goods, even their necessities.
{6:1} And this was the text of the letter: “Artaxerxes, the great king from India all the way to Ethiopia, to the leaders and generals of the one hundred twenty-seven provinces, which are subject to his authority, greetings.
{6:2} Although I have reigned over many nations and subjugated the whole world under my realm, I was by no means willing to abuse the greatness of this power, but to govern my subjects with clemency and leniency, so that they would settle into a quiet life, apart from any terror, and delight in peace, as all mortals would choose to do.
{6:3} Yet, in asking my counselors how this might be able to be accomplished, one who excelled the others in wisdom and fidelity, and who was second after the king, named Haman,
{6:4} explained to me that there was a people, scattered throughout the whole world, that used strange laws, and, acting against the customs of all peoples, despised the commandments of kings and violated the harmony of all nations with their dissension.
{6:5} When we had learned this, seeing one nation rebellious against all mankind, having overthrown the usefulness of laws, and going against our orders, and disturbing the peace and harmony of the provinces subject to us,
{6:6} we commanded that whomever Haman, who is chief over all the provinces, and second after the king, and whom we honor in the place of a father, whomever he would point out should be destroyed by their enemies, with their wives and children, and that no one may take pity on them, on the fourteenth day of the twelfth month Adar of this present year,
{6:7} so that these guilty men, all on one day, may go down to the underworld, restoring to our empire the peace that they had disturbed.”
{6:8} And the effect of the letters was this: that all provinces would know and prepare for the prescribed day.
{6:9} The couriers, who had been sent, hurried to complete the king’s command, but the edict was hung up in Susa immediately. And the king and Haman celebrated a feast, while all the Jews in the city were weeping.
{7:1} When Mordecai had heard this, he tore his garments and put on sackcloth, strewing ashes on his head, and he cried out with a loud voice in the main street of the city, revealing the anguish of his soul.
{7:2} And he continued with this lamenting, even up to the gate of the palace, for no one clothed with sackcloth is permitted to enter the king’s court.
{7:3} Likewise, in all provinces, towns, and places where the king’s cruel decision arrived, there was extraordinary mourning among the Jews with fasting, wailing, and weeping, with many using sackcloth and ashes for their bed.
{7:4} Then Esther’s maids and eunuchs went in and informed her. When she heard it, she was shocked, and she sent a garment to clothe him and to take away the sackcloth, but he would not accept it.
{7:5} And she sent for Hathach the eunuch, whom the king had appointed to minister to her, and she instructed him to go to Mordecai and to discern from him why he was doing this.
{7:6} And departing, Hathach went to Mordecai, who was standing in the street of the city, in front of the palace entrance.
{7:7} He told him everything that had happened, how Haman had promised to transfer silver into the king’s treasury for the death of the Jews.
{7:8} Also, he gave him a copy of the edict that was hanging up in Susa, so that he would show it to the queen and advise her to go in to the king and beg him on behalf of her people.
{7:9} And Hathach returned and informed Esther of all that Mordecai had said.
{7:10} “Remember,” he said, “the days of your lowliness, how you were nurtured as if in my hand, because Haman, who is second after the king, has spoken against us to death.
{7:11} And you must call upon the Lord, and speak with the king on our behalf, and free us from death.”
{7:12} She answered him, and ordered him say to Mordecai:
{7:13} “All the servants of the king and all the provinces that are under his realm understand that anyone, whether man or woman, who enters the king’s inner court, who has not been summoned, is immediately to be put to death without any delay, unless the king should happen to extend the golden scepter to him, as a sign of clemency, so that he will be able to live. How then can I go in to the king, when, for thirty days now, I have not been called to him?”
{7:14} And when Mordecai had heard this, he again sent word to Esther, saying, “Do not think that you will save so much as your own soul, just because you are in the king’s house and are above all the Jews.
{7:15} For, if you remain silent now, the Jews will be delivered through some other opportunity, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for this reason, so that you would be prepared for such a time as this?”
{7:16} And he entrusted her (there was no question but that it was Mordecai) to go in to the king, and to petition on behalf of her people and her native land.
{7:17} And again Esther sent to Mordecai in these words:
{7:18} “Go and gather together all the Jews whom you will find in Susa, and pray for me. Neither eat nor drink for three days and three nights, and I will fast with my handmaids similarly, and then I will go in to the king, doing what is against the law, not having been called, and so expose myself to mortal danger.”
{7:19} And so Mordecai went, and he did everything that Esther had instructed him.
{7:20} Now Mordecai beseeched the Lord, remembering all his works,
{7:21} and he said, “O Lord, Lord, almighty King, truly all things are possible for you, and there is no one who is able to resist your will, if you would determine to save Israel.
{7:22} You have created heaven and earth, and everything that is contained under the cycle of heaven.
{7:23} You are Lord of all, and there is no one who can resist your majesty.
{7:24} You know everything, and you know that it was not out of arrogance or indignation or some desire for glory that I did this, so that I refused to adore the very proud Haman.
{7:25} (For I was freely prepared, for the sake of the salvation of Israel, to have willingly kissed even the footsteps of his feet.)
{7:26} But I feared, lest I should transfer the honor of my God to a man, and lest I should adore anyone except my God.
{7:27} And now Lord, King, God of Abraham, may you have mercy on your people because our enemies want to destroy us and to erase your inheritance.
{7:28} Do not despise your portion, which you have redeemed for yourself out of Egypt.
{7:29} Listen to my supplication, and be gracious to your lot and your token, and change our sorrow into gladness, so that, in living, we may praise your name, Lord; and do not close the mouths of those who sing to you.”
{7:30} Likewise, all Israel cried out to the Lord with the same intention and supplication because certain death was hanging over them.
{8:1} Queen Esther also, fearing the danger that was imminent, fled to the Lord.
{8:2} And when she had put aside her royal apparel, she took up garments suitable for weeping and mourning, and instead of various ointments, she covered her head with ashes from burnt dung, and she humbled her body with fasting, and all the aspects of her beauty, she covered with her torn hair.
{8:3} And she begged the Lord God of Israel, saying, “My Lord, who alone is our King, help me, a solitary woman, for there is no other helper but you.
{8:4} My peril is close at hand.
{8:5} I have heard from my father that you, Lord, chose Israel from among all nations and our fathers from among all their former ancestors, to possess them as an everlasting inheritance, and you have done for them just as you said.
{8:6} We have sinned in your sight, and therefore you have delivered us into the hands of our enemies,
{8:7} for we have worshipped their gods. You are just, O Lord.
{8:8} And now they are not content to oppress us with a very difficult servitude, but attributing the strength of their hands to the power of their idols,
{8:9} they want to alter your promises, and erase your inheritance, and close the mouths of those who praise you, and extinguish the glory of your temple and your altar,
{8:10} so that they may open the mouths of the nations, and praise the strength of idols, and proclaim a worldly king in perpetuity.
{8:11} Lord, do not hand over your scepter to that which does not exist, lest they laugh at our ruin, but turn their counsel upon themselves and destroy him who has begun to rage against us.
{8:12} Be mindful, Lord, and show yourself to us in the time of our tribulation, and give me faith, Lord, King of gods and of every power.
{8:13} Grant fitting words to my mouth in the sight of the lion, and transform his heart to hate our enemy, so that both he, and the others who conspire with him, may perish.
{8:14} But free us by your hand, and help me, who has no other helper but you, Lord, who holds the knowledge of all things.
{8:15} And you know that I hate the glory of the wicked, and I detest the bed of the uncircumcised, and of all outsiders.
{8:16} You know my necessity, that I loathe the sign of my exaltation and glory, which is on my head in the days of my exhibition, and that I detest it like a menstruous rag and do not wear it in the days of my silence,
{8:17} and that I have not eaten at Haman’s table, nor has the king’s feasts pleased me, and that I have not drunk the wine of his libations,
{8:18} and that your handmaid has never rejoiced, from the time that I was carried here until this very day, except in you, Lord, God of Abraham.
{8:19} O God, whose strength is above all things, heed the voice of those who have no other hope, and free us from the hand of the wicked, and rescue me from my fear.”
{9:1} So, on the third day, she put away her ornate apparel, and surrounded herself with glory.
{9:2} And when she was shining in a royal manner, and had called upon God, the Guide and Savior of all, she took two maids with her.
{9:3} And she was leaning upon one of them, as if, out of delicateness and great tenderness, she were not able to bear carrying her own body.
{9:4} And the other maid followed her lady, carrying her garment flowing on the ground.
{9:5} Yet she had a rosy color pouring over her face, for, with gracious and bright eyes, she restrained a sorrowful soul and very great fear.
{9:6} And so, entering hesitantly through a series of doors, she stood opposite the king, where he sat upon his royal throne, clothed in royal robes, and shining with gold and precious stones. And he was terrible to behold.
{9:7} And when he had lifted up his face, and with burning eyes had shown the fury of his heart, the queen collapsed, and her color turned pale, and she rested her exhausted head upon her handmaid.
{9:8} And God changed the king’s spirit into gentleness; quickly and apprehensively, he leapt from his throne, and lifting her up in his arms until she came to herself, he coaxed her with these words:
{9:9} “What is the matter, Esther? I am your brother, do not be afraid.
{9:10} You will not die. For this law has not been established for you, but for all others.
{9:11} So approach and touch the scepter.”
{9:12} And since she remained silent, he took the golden scepter and placed it on her neck, and he kissed her and said, “Why do you not speak to me?”
{9:13} She answered, “I saw you, my lord, as an angel of God, and my heart was disturbed for fear of your glory.
{9:14} For you, my lord, are great and wonderful, and your face is full of grace.”
{9:15} And while she was speaking, she collapsed again, because she was out of breath.
{9:16} But the king was troubled, and all his servants consoled her.
Alternate text from the Hebrew, verses 17-18:
{9:17} And so, on the third day, Esther had put on her royal apparel and was standing in the atrium of the king’s house, which was inside, opposite the king’s hall, while he was sitting on his throne in the council room of the palace, opposite the entrance of the house.
{9:18} And when he saw Esther the queen standing there, she pleased his eyes, and he extended toward her the golden scepter, which he held in his hand, and she approached and kissed the top of his scepter.
{9:19} And the king said to her, “What do you wish, queen Esther? What is your request? Even if you ask for half of the kingdom, it will be given to you.”
{9:20} But she responded, “If it pleases the king, I beg you to come with me today, and Haman with you, to the feast that I have prepared.”
{9:21} And immediately the king said, “Call Haman quickly, so that he may obey Esther’s will. And so the king and Haman came to the feast, which the queen had prepared for them.
{9:22} And the king said to her, after he had drunk wine abundantly, “What are you asking for that should be given to you? And which things do you require? Even if you request half of my kingdom, you will obtain it.”
{9:23} Esther answered him, “My petition and prayer is this:
{9:24} If I have found favor in the sight of the king, and if it pleases the king to give me what I ask, and to fulfill my petition, let the king and Haman come to the feast which I have prepared for them, and tomorrow I will open my mind to the king.”
{9:25} And so Haman went out that day joyful and cheerful. And when he saw that Mordecai was sitting in front of the gate of the palace, and that he alone did not get up for him, but did not so much as move from the place where he sat, he was very indignant.
{9:26} But, concealing his anger and returning into his house, he gathered to him his friends and Zeresh, his wife.
{9:27} And he explained to them the greatness of his riches, and the influence of his sons, and how, with such glory, the king had elevated him above all his rulers and servants.
{9:28} And after this, he said, “Also, queen Esther has called no one else to the feast with the king, except me. And I will be dining with the king again tomorrow.
{9:29} And though I have all these things, I consider that I have nothing as long as I see Mordecai the Jew sitting in front of the king’s gate.”
{9:30} And Zeresh his wife and his other friends answered him, “Order a great beam to be prepared, having a height of fifty cubits, and in the morning speak to the king, so that Mordecai may be hanged from it, and so you will go joyfully with the king to the feast.” This advice pleased him, and so he ordered a high cross to be prepared.
{10:1} The king passed that night without sleep, and so he ordered the histories and chronicles of former times to be brought to him. And when they were reading them before him,
{10:2} they came to that place where it had been written, how Mordecai had reported the treachery of Bigthan and Teresh the eunuchs, who desired to cut the throat of king Artaxerxes.
{10:3} When the king had heard this, he said, “What honor and reward has Mordecai been given for this fidelity?” His servants and ministers said to him, “He has received no compensation at all.”
{10:4} And immediately the king said, “Who is in the atrium?” For, you see, Haman was entering the inner atrium of the king’s house to suggest to the king that he should order Mordecai to be hanged on the gallows, which had been prepared for him.
{10:5} The servants answered, “Haman is standing in the atrium.” And the king said, “Let him enter.”
{10:6} And when he had entered, he said to him, “What ought to be done for the man whom the king wishes to honor?” But Haman, thinking in his heart and supposing that the king would honor no one else but himself,
{10:7} answered, “The man whom the king wishes to honor,
{10:8} ought to be clothed with the king’s apparel, and be set upon the horse that the king rides, and receive the royal crown upon his head.
{10:9} And let the first of the king’s rulers and sovereigns hold his horse, and, as they advance through the street of the city, proclaim before him and say, ‘Thus shall he be honored, whom the king decides to honor.’ ”
{10:10} And the king said to him, “Hurry, take the robe and the horse, and do as you have said to Mordecai the Jew, who sits in front of the gate of the palace. Be careful not to omit any of those things which you have mentioned.”
{10:11} And so Haman took the robe and the horse, and arraying Mordecai in the street of the city, and setting him on the horse, he went before him and cried out, “He is worthy of this honor, whom the king has decided to honor.”
{10:12} And Mordecai returned to the palace door. And Haman hurried to go to his house, mourning and hiding his head.
{10:13} And he explained to Zeresh his wife and to his friends all that had happened to him. And the wise men, whom he held in counsel, and his wife, answered him, “If Mordecai, before whom you have begun to fall, is from the offspring of the Jews, you will not be able to withstand him, but you will fall in his sight.”
{10:14} As they were still speaking, the king’s eunuchs arrived and compelled him to go quickly to the feast, which the queen had prepared.
{11:1} And so the king and Haman entered to drink with the queen.
{11:2} And the king said to her again on the second day, after he was warmed with wine, “What is your request, Esther, so that it may be given to you? And what do you want done? Even if you ask for half of my kingdom, you will obtain it.”
{11:3} She answered him, “If I have found favor in your eyes, O king, and if it pleases you, spare my soul, I ask you, and spare my people, I beg you.
{11:4} For I and my people have been handed over to be crushed, to be slain, and to perish. And if we were only being sold as servants and slaves, the evil might be tolerable, and I would have mourned in silence. But now our enemy is one whose cruelty overflows upon the king.”
{11:5} And king Artaxerxes answered and said, “Who is this, and of what power, that he would dare to do these things?”
{11:6} And Esther said, “This is our most wicked enemy and foe: Haman!” Hearing this, Haman was suddenly dumbfounded, unable to bear the faces of the king and the queen.
{11:7} But the king, being angry, rose up and, from the place of the feast, entered into the arboretum of the garden. Haman likewise rose up to entreat Esther the queen for his soul, for he understood that evil was prepared for him by the king.
{11:8} When the king returned from the arboretum of the garden and entered into the place of the feast, he found Haman collapsed on the couch on which Esther lay, and he said, “And now he wishes to oppress the queen, in my presence, in my house!” The word had not yet gone out of the king’s mouth, and immediately they covered his face.
{11:9} And Harbona, one of the eunuchs who stood in ministry to the king, said, “Behold the wood, which he had prepared for Mordecai, who spoke up on behalf of the king, stands in Haman’s house, having a height of fifty cubits.” The king said to him, “Hang him from it.”
{11:10} And so Haman was hanged on the gallows, which he had prepared for Mordecai, and the king’s anger was quieted.
{12:1} On that day king, Artaxerxes gave the house of Haman, the adversary of the Jews, to queen Esther, and Mordecai entered before the king. For Esther had confessed to him that he was her paternal uncle.
{12:2} And the king took the ring, which he had ordered to be taken from Haman, and he handed it to Mordecai. And Esther appointed Mordecai over her house.
{12:3} Not content with these things, she threw herself down at the king’s feet and wept, and, speaking to him, pleaded that he would give orders that the malice of Haman the Agagite, and his most wicked schemes, which he had contrived against the Jews, would be made ineffective.
{12:4} But he, as was the custom, extended the golden scepter with his hand, which was the sign of clemency, and she rose up and stood before him.
{12:5} And she said, “If it pleases the king, and if I have found favor in his eyes, and my request is not seen to be disagreeable to him, I beg you that the former letters of Haman, the traitor and enemy of the Jews, by which he instructed them to be destroyed in all the king’s provinces, may be corrected by new letters.
{12:6} For how will I be able to endure the murder and execution of my people?”
{12:7} And king Artaxerxes answered Esther the queen and Mordecai the Jew, “I have granted Haman’s house to Esther, and I have ordered him to be fastened to a cross, because he dared to lay hands on the Jews.
{12:8} Therefore, write to the Jews, just as it pleases you, in the king’s name, sealing the letters with my ring.” For this was the custom, that letters which were sent in the king’s name and were sealed with his ring, no one would dare to contradict.
{12:9} Then the scribes and copyists were brought in, (now it was the time of the third month which is called Sivan,) on the twenty-third day of the month, and letters were written, as Mordecai wanted, to the Jews, and to the governors, and procurators, and judges, who presided over the one hundred twenty-seven provinces, from India all the way to Ethiopia: to one province and another, to one people and another, in accordance with their languages and letters, and to the Jews, exactly as they were able to read and hear.
{12:10} And these letters, which were sent in the king’s name, had been signed with his ring, and were sent by swift couriers who were to rush in every direction, through all the provinces, so as to prevent the former letters with new messages.
{12:11} The king commanded them to bring together the Jews throughout each city, and to instruct them to join together, so as to make a stand for their lives, and to execute and destroy all their enemies, with their wives and children and their entire houses, and to plunder their spoil.
{12:12} And one day of retribution was established throughout all the provinces, namely, the thirteenth of the twelfth month Adar.
{13:1} “Artaxerxes, the great king from India all the way to Ethiopia, to the generals and leaders of the one hundred twenty-seven provinces that obey our command: greetings, he says.
{13:2} In arrogance, many have abused the goodness of leaders and the honor that has been bestowed on them,
{13:3} and they strive, not only to oppress the king’s subjects, but, not acting according to the glory given to them, set in motion a plan to ambush those very ones who gave it.
{13:4} Neither are they content to withhold thanks for benefits and to violate in themselves the laws of humanity, but they also think they are able to escape from every sentence of the sifting judgment of God.
{13:5} And they rush forth in such insanity that they attempt to subvert by filthy lies those who carefully fulfill the offices delegated to them and so perform everything that is deserving of the praise of all.
{13:6} Meanwhile, they craftily deceive by fraud the ears of single-minded leaders, and they judge others according to their own nature.
{13:7} These things are proven both from the ancient histories and from those things which happen daily: how the zeal of kings can be corrupted by the evil suggestions of such persons.
{13:8} Therefore, we will make provision for the peace of all the provinces.
{13:9} Neither should you think, if we change our orders, that they come from a fickle mind, but that we draw conclusions from the quality and necessity of the times, just as the expediency of the public good demands.
{13:10} And, so that you may more clearly understand what we are saying: Haman the son of Hammedatha, a Macedonian both in mind and ancestry, and foreign to Persian blood, and with his cruelty contaminating our piety, was accepted by us as a sojourner.
{13:11} And our humanity proved to be so great towards him that he was called our father and was adored by all as second only to the king.
{13:12} But he was so filled with arrogance as to strive to deprive us of our kingdom and our life.
{13:13} For example, with certain strange and unheard of machinations, he sought the death of Mordecai, whose faith and kindness kept us alive, and Esther, the partner of our kingdom, and all their people.
{13:14} This he planned so that, after they were executed, he might work treason against us in our solitude and transfer the kingdom of the Persians to the Macedonians.
{13:15} But we, having been resolved to ruin in death the mortal Jews, discovered no fault within them, but on the contrary, they use just laws
{13:16} and are sons of the highest and greatest and ever-living God, by whose kindness the kingdom was handed down both to our fathers and to us, and is cared for even unto this day.
{13:17} Therefore, you should understand to be null and void those letters that he administered under our name.
{13:18} For this crime, before the gates of this city, that is, Susa, both he who devised it, and all his associates, hang on gallows: not we, but God repaying him as he deserved.
{13:19} But this edict, which we now send, shall be displayed in all cities so that the Jews may be allowed to use their own laws.
{13:20} You must be a support to them, so that they may be able to execute those, who themselves had prepared to kill them, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is called Adar.
{13:21} For the almighty God has turned this day of grief and sorrow into joy for them.
{13:22} Therefore, you too will keep this day, along with the other festival days, and celebrate it with all joy, so that it may be known even by future generations.
{13:23} All those who faithfully obey the Persians deserve, for their fidelity, to receive a reward, but those who are traitors to their kingdom deserve to be destroyed for their crime.
{13:24} But every province and city, which is not willing to participate in this solemnity, must perish by the sword and by fire, and be destroyed in this way so that they will be forever an indisputable example of contempt and disobedience, not only to humans, but even to wild animals.”
{13:25} And such was the content of the letter, so that it would be made known in all lands and nations, which are subject to the authority of king Artaxerxes, that the Jews have been made ready to be vindicated of their enemies.
{13:26} And so the swift couriers departed in haste, carrying through the announcement, and the king’s edict was hung up in Susa.
{13:27} But Mordecai, going forth from the palace and from the king’s presence, shone in royal apparel the color of hyacinth and of the sky, wearing a golden crown on his head, and clothed with a cloak of silk and purple. And all the city rejoiced and was joyful.
{13:28} But for the Jews, a new light seemed to rise; there was joy, honor, and dancing.
{13:29} With all the peoples, cities, and provinces, wherever the king’s orders arrived, there was wonderful rejoicing, banquets and feasts, and a solemn holy day, so much so that many of the other nations joined themselves to their religious practices and ceremonies. For a great fear of the name of the Jews had overcome them all.
{14:1} Therefore, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which as we have said before is called Adar, when all the Jews were prepared to be executed and their enemies were greedy for their blood, the situation turned around, and the Jews began to have the upper hand and to vindicate themselves of their adversaries.
{14:2} And they gathered together throughout each city, and town, and place, so as to extend their hands against their enemies and their persecutors. And no one dared to resist them, because their great power had pierced all the peoples.
{14:3} For even the judges of the provinces, and the rulers, and the procurators, and everyone of dignity, who presided over every place and work, extolled the Jews for fear of Mordecai.
{14:4} For they knew him to be the leader of the palace and to have much power. Likewise, the fame of his name increased daily and flew everywhere through word of mouth.
{14:5} And so the Jews struck their enemies like a great plague and killed them, repaying according to what they had prepared to do to them,
{14:6} so much so that even in Susa they executed five hundred men, besides the ten sons of Haman the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews, and their names are these:
{14:7} Parshandatha, and Dalphon, and Aspatha
{14:8} and Poratha, and Adalia, and Aridatha,
{14:9} and Parmashta, and Arisai, and Aridai, and Vaizatha.
{14:10} When they had slain them, they were unwilling to touch the spoils of their belongings.
{14:11} And immediately the number of those who had been killed in Susa was reported to the king.
{14:12} He said to the queen, “In the city of Susa, the Jews have executed five hundred men, and also the ten sons of Haman. How many executions do you think that they have carried out in all the provinces? What more do you ask, and what do you wish, so that I may order it to be done?”
{14:13} And she answered, “If it pleases the king, may power be granted to the Jews, so as to do tomorrow in Susa just as they have done today, and that the ten sons of Haman may be hung up the gallows.”
{14:14} And the king instructed that it should be so done. And immediately the edict was hung up in Susa, and the ten sons of Haman were hung up.
{14:15} On the fourteenth day of the month Adar, the Jews gathered themselves together, and they executed in Susa three hundred men, but they did not seize their belongings from them.
{14:16} Moreover, throughout all the provinces which were subject to the king’s dominion, the Jews made a stand for their lives, and they executed their enemies and their persecutors, so much so that the number of those who were killed amounted to seventy-five thousand, and yet no one touched any of their belongings.
{14:17} Now the thirteenth day of the month Adar was the first day with all of the executions, and on the fourteenth day they ceased the killing. This day they established to be sacred, so that in all times hereafter they would be free for feasting, joyfulness, and celebration.
{14:18} But, as for those who were carrying out the killings in the city of Susa, they turned to killing on the thirteenth and fourteenth day of the same month. But on the fifteenth day they ceased to attack. And for that reason they established that day as sacred, with feasting and with gladness.
{14:19} But in truth, those Jews who were staying in unwalled towns and villages, appointed the fourteenth day of the month Adar for celebration and gladness, so as to rejoice on that day and send one another portions of their feasts and their meals.
{14:20} And so Mordecai wrote down all these things and sent them, composed in letters, to the Jews who were staying in all the king’s provinces, as much to those in nearby places as to those far away,
{14:21} so that they would accept the fourteenth and fifteenth day of the month Adar for holy days, and always, at the return of the year, would celebrate them with sacred esteem.
{14:22} For on those days, the Jews vindicated themselves of their enemies, and their mourning and sorrow were turned into mirth and joy, so that these would be days of feasting and gladness, in which they would send one another portions of their feasts, and would grant gifts to the poor.
{14:23} And the Jews accepted as a solemn ritual all the things which they had begun to do at that time, which Mordecai had commanded with letters to be done.
{14:24} For Haman, the son of Hammedatha of Agag lineage, the enemy and adversary of the Jews, had devised evil against them, to kill them and to destroy them. And he had cast Pur, which in our language means the lot.
{14:25} And after this, Esther had entered before the king, begging him that his efforts might be made ineffective by the king’s letters, and that the evil he intended against the Jews might return upon his own head. Finally, both he and his sons were fastened to a cross.
{14:26} And so, from that time, these days are called Purim, that is, of the lots, because Pur, that is, the lot, was cast into the urn. And all things that had been carried out are contained in the volume of this epistle, that is, of this book.
{14:27} And whatever they suffered, and whatever was altered afterwards, the Jews received for themselves and their offspring and for all who were willing to be joined to their religion, so that none would be permitted to transgress the solemnity of these two days, to which the writing testifies, and which certain times require, as the years continually succeed one another.
{14:28} These are the days which no one ever will erase into oblivion, and which every province in the whole world, throughout each generation, shall celebrate. Neither is there any city wherein the days of Purim, that is, of lots, may not be observed by the Jews, and by their posterity, which has been obligated to these ceremonies.
{14:29} And Esther the queen, the daughter of Abihail, and Mordecai the Jew, also wrote a second letter, so that with all zealousness this day would be confirmed as customary for future generations.
{14:30} And they sent to all the Jews, who had been stirred up in the one hundred twenty-seven provinces of king Artaxerxes, that they should have peace and receive truth,
{14:31} and observe the days of lots, and celebrate them with joy at their proper time, just as Mordecai and Esther had established. And they accepted these to be observed by themselves and by their offspring: fasting, and crying out, and the days of lots,
{14:32} and all things which are contained in the history of this book, which is called Esther.
{15:1} Truly, king Artaxerxes made all the land, and all the islands of the sea, tributaries.
{15:2} And his strength and his authority, and the dignity and supremacy with which he exalted Mordecai, have been written in the books of the Medes and the Persians,
{15:3} and how Mordecai of Jewish birth, was second after king Artaxerxes, and great among the Jews, and acceptable to the people of his brethren, seeking the good of his people, and speaking about things which pertained to peace for their descendants.
{15:4} And Mordecai said, “By God have these things been done.
{15:5} I remember a dream that I saw, which signified these same things, and nothing of this whatsoever has failed to occur.
{15:6} The little fountain which grew into a river, and had turned into light and into the sun, and overflowed into many waters, is Esther, whom the king received as wife and whom he preferred to be queen.
{15:7} But the two dragons are I and Haman.
{15:8} The peoples who gathered together are those who had attempted to erase the name of the Jews.
{15:9} And my people is Israel, who cried out to the Lord, and the Lord brought salvation to his people, and he freed us from all evils, and he created great signs and portents among the nations.
{15:10} And he commanded there to be two lots, one for the people of God and the other for all the nations.
{15:11} And both lots arrived at the day appointed before God, even from that past time, for all peoples.
{15:12} And the Lord remembered his people and had mercy on his inheritance.
{15:13} And these days shall be observed in the month of Adar, on the fourteenth and fifteenth day of the same month, with all zealousness and joy, by the people gathered together into one union, throughout all the generations hereafter of the people of Israel.”
{15:14} In the fourth year of the reigns of Ptolemy and Cleopatra, Dositheus, who was himself a priest and born of the Levites, and Ptolemy his son, brought this epistle of Purim, which they said was a translation by Lysimachus the son of Ptolemy in Jerusalem.
{1:1} There was a man in the land of Uz named Job, and he was a simple and honest man, fearing God and withdrawing from evil.
{1:2} And there had been born to him seven sons and three daughters.
{1:3} And his possession was seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, along with five hundred pairs of oxen and five hundred she-donkeys, and also a very large family. And this man was great among all the people of the east.
{1:4} And his sons went and made a feast by houses, each one on his day. And sending, they called their three sisters to eat and drink with them.
{1:5} And when the days of their feasting had been completed, Job sent to them and sanctified them, and, getting up at dawn, he offered holocausts for each one. For he said, “Perhaps my sons have sinned and have not praised God in their hearts.” So Job did all the days.
{1:6} But on a certain day, when the sons of God came to attend in the presence of the Lord, Satan also arrived among them.
{1:7} The Lord said to him, “Where do you come from?” Answering, he said, “I have circled the land, and walked around in it.”
{1:8} And the Lord said to him, “Have you not considered my servant, Job? For there is no one like him in the land, a simple and honest man, fearing God and withdrawing from evil.”
{1:9} Answering him, Satan said, “Does Job fear God to no purpose?
{1:10} Have you not fortified him, as well as his house and every one of his belongings around him, blessed the works of his hands, and his possession has increased in the land?
{1:11} But extend your hand a little, and touch all that he possesses, and see if he still praises you to your face.”
{1:12} Therefore, the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, everything that he has is in your hand, only do not extend your hand against him.” And Satan departed from the face of the Lord.
{1:13} So, on a certain day, when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine, in the house of their first-born brother,
{1:14} a messenger came to Job, who said, “The oxen were plowing, and the donkeys were grazing beside them,
{1:15} and the Sabeans rushed in and carried away everything, and they struck the servants with the sword; and I alone evaded them to tell you.”
{1:16} And while he was still speaking, another arrived, and he said, “The fire of God fell from heaven, and, having struck the sheep and the servants, it consumed them; and I alone escaped to tell you.”
{1:17} And while he also was still speaking, another arrived, and he said, “The Chaldeans organized three attacks, and advanced on the camels and took them; and not only that, but they have struck the servants with the sword; and I alone fled to tell you.”
{1:18} He was still speaking, and behold, another entered, and he said, “Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine in the house of their first-born brother,
{1:19} when suddenly a severe wind rushed forth from a region of the desert and shook the four corners of the house, which collapsed and crushed your children, and they are dead; and I alone escaped to tell you.”
{1:20} Then Job got up and tore his garments, and, having shaved his head, he collapsed on the ground, and worshipped,
{1:21} and he said, “Naked I departed from my mother’s womb, and naked I shall return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. Just as it pleased the Lord, so has it been done. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
{1:22} In all this, Job did not sin by his lips, nor did he speak any foolish thing against God.
{2:1} But it happened that, on a certain day, when the sons of God had arrived and they stood before the Lord, Satan likewise arrived among them, and he stood in his sight.
{2:2} So the Lord said to Satan, “Where do you come from?” Answering, he said, “I have circled the land, and walked around in it.”
{2:3} And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you not considered my servant, Job, that there is no one like him in the land, a simple and honest man, fearing God and withdrawing from evil, and still retaining his innocence? Yet you have stirred me against him, so that I would afflict him to no purpose.”
{2:4} Answering him, Satan said, “Skin for skin; and everything that a man has, he will give for his life.
{2:5} Yet send your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and then you will see whether or not he blesses you to your face.”
{2:6} Therefore, the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand, but even so, spare his life.”
{2:7} And so, Satan departed from the face of the Lord and he struck Job with a very serious ulcer from the sole of the foot all the way to the crown of his head.
{2:8} So he took a shard of earthenware and scraped the discharge, while sitting on a heap of refuse.
{2:9} But his wife said to him, “Do you still continue in your simplicity? Bless God and die.”
{2:10} He said to her, “You have spoken like one of the foolish wives. If we accepted good things from the hand of God, why should we not accept bad things?” In all this, Job did not sin with his lips.
{2:11} And so, three friends of Job, hearing about all the evil that had befallen him, arrived, each one from his own place, Eliphaz the Themanite, and Baldad the Suhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. For they had agreed to come together to visit and console him.
{2:12} And when they had raised up their eyes from a distance, they did not recognize him, and, crying out, they wept, and, tearing their garments, they scattered dust over their heads into the sky.
{2:13} And they sat with him on the ground for seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his sorrow was very great.
{3:1} After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed his day,
{3:2} and this is what he said:
{3:3} May the day perish on which I was born, and the night, in which it was said, “A man has been conceived.”
{3:4} May that day be turned into darkness, may God not seek it from above, and may light not illuminate it.
{3:5} Let darkness and the shadow of death obscure it, let a fog overtake it, and let it be enveloped in bitterness.
{3:6} Let a whirlwind of darkness take hold of that night, let it not be counted in the days of the year, nor numbered in the months.
{3:7} May that night be alone and unworthy of praise.
{3:8} May they curse it, who curse the day, who are prepared to awaken a leviathan.
{3:9} Let the stars be concealed with its darkness. Let it expect light, and not see it, nor the rising of the dawn in the East.
{3:10} For it did not close the doors of the womb that bore me, nor take away evils from my eyes.
{3:11} Why did I not die in the womb? Having left the womb, why did I not immediately perish?
{3:12} Why was I received upon the knees? Why was I suckled at the breasts?
{3:13} For by now, I should have been sleeping silently, and taking rest in my sleep
{3:14} with the kings and consuls of the earth, who build themselves solitudes,
{3:15} either with princes, who possess gold and fill their houses with silver,
{3:16} or, like a hidden miscarriage, I should not have continued, just like those who, being conceived, have not seen the light.
{3:17} There the impious cease from rebellion, and there the wearied in strength take rest.
{3:18} And at such times, having been bound together without difficulty, they have not heard the voice of the bailiff.
{3:19} The small and great are there, and the servant is free from his master.
{3:20} Why is light given to the miserable, and life to those who are in bitterness of soul,
{3:21} who expect death, and it does not arrive, like those who dig for treasure
{3:22} and who rejoice greatly when they have found the grave,
{3:23} to a man whose way is hidden and whom God has surrounded with darkness?
{3:24} Before I eat, I sigh; and like overflowing waters, so is my howl,
{3:25} for the terror that I feared has happened to me, and so has the dread befallen me.
{3:26} Have I not remained hidden? Have I not kept silence? Have I not remained calm? Yet indignation has overcome me.
{4:1} But Eliphaz the Themanite, answering, said:
{4:2} If we start to speak to you, perhaps you will take it badly, but who can hold back the words he has conceived?
{4:3} Behold, you have taught many, and you have strengthened weary hands.
{4:4} Your words have reassured the wavering, and you have fortified the trembling knees.
{4:5} But now the scourge has overcome you, and you falter. It has touched you, and you are disturbed.
{4:6} Where is your reverence, your fortitude, your patience, and the perfection of your ways?
{4:7} Consider this, I beg you: who ever perished being innocent? Or when have the righteous been destroyed?
{4:8} In fact, I have instead seen those who work iniquity and who sow resentments, reap them,
{4:9} perishing by the breath of God, and being consumed by the wrath of his spirit.
{4:10} The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the lioness, and the teeth of young lions have been worn away.
{4:11} The tiger has perished because it does not have prey, and the young lions have been scattered.
{4:12} Furthermore, a word was spoken to me in secret, and, as if by theft, my ears received the pulse of its whisper.
{4:13} In the horror of a vision by night, when men are accustomed to be overtaken by a deep sleep,
{4:14} fear and trembling seized me and all my bones were terrified.
{4:15} And when a spirit passed before me, the hair on my body stood up.
{4:16} There appeared an image before my eyes, someone whose face I did not recognize, and I heard a voice like a gentle breeze.
{4:17} Should man be justified in relation to God, or will a man be more pure than his Maker?
{4:18} Behold, those who serve him are not steadfast, and in his angels he finds imperfection.
{4:19} How much more will those who live in houses of clay, which have an earthly foundation, be consumed like the moth?
{4:20} From morning all the way to evening, they will be cut down, and because no one understands, they will be destroyed without ceasing.
{4:21} But those who are left behind will be taken away from them; they will die, and not in wisdom.
{5:1} Therefore call, if there are any who will respond to you, and turn to one or another of the saints.
{5:2} Truly, anger condemns the foolish to death, and envy kills the petty.
{5:3} I have seen a fool with a strong root, and I have cursed his excellence without hesitation.
{5:4} His sons will be far from prosperity and will be crushed at the gate, and there will be none who can rescue them.
{5:5} Their harvest, the starving will eat. The armed man will rob him, and the thirsty will drink his resources.
{5:6} Nothing on earth occurs without a reason, and sorrow does not rise from the earth.
{5:7} Man is born to labor, and the bird to fly.
{5:8} Therefore, because of this, I will beg the Lord, and place my eloquence before God.
{5:9} He does great and unfathomable and miraculous things without number.
{5:10} He gives rain over the face of the earth and irrigates all things with the waters.
{5:11} He places the humble on high and encourages the grieving towards health.
{5:12} He dispels the thoughts of the spiteful, lest their hands be able to complete what they had begun.
{5:13} He catches the wise in their cleverness and dissipates the counsel of the perverse.
{5:14} They will encounter darkness in the daytime, and they will grope at midday just as in the night.
{5:15} Thereafter, he will act to save the needy from the sword of their mouth, and the poor from the hand of the violent.
{5:16} And there will be hope for those in need, for iniquity will diminish its speech.
{5:17} Blessed is the man whom God corrects; therefore, do not reject the chastisement of the Lord.
{5:18} For he wounds and he cures; he strikes and his hands will heal.
{5:19} He will deliver you into six tribulations, and in the seventh, evil will not touch you.
{5:20} During famine, he will rescue you from death, and during war, from the hand of the sword.
{5:21} You will be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, and you will not fear calamity when it arrives.
{5:22} In desolation and in famine, you will laugh, and you will not dread the beasts of the earth.
{5:23} For you are in harmony with the stones of the land, and the beasts of the earth will make peace with you.
{5:24} And you will know that your home has peace, and, concerning your appearance, you will not sin.
{5:25} Likewise, you will know that your offspring will be manifold and your progeny will be like the grass of the earth.
{5:26} You will enter the grave with abundance, just as a crop of wheat is gathered in its time.
{5:27} Behold, this is just as we have found it, which you have heard; walk it through your mind.
{6:1} But Job, responding, said:
{6:2} I wish that my sins, for which I deserve wrath, and the calamity that I endure, were weighed out on a balance.
{6:3} Compared to the sand of the sea, they would appear heavier, and so my words are full of sorrow.
{6:4} For the arrows of the Lord are in me, my spirit drinks of their indignation, and the terrors of the Lord are soldiers against me.
{6:5} Will the wild ass bray when he has grass? Or will the ox bellow when he stands before a full manger?
{6:6} Or can one eat bland food, which is not seasoned with salt? Or can anyone taste that which, if tasted, causes death?
{6:7} The things that my soul was unwilling to touch before, now, because of anguish, are my foods.
{6:8} Who will grant that my petition may arrive and that God may bestow on me what I expect,
{6:9} and that he who, at first, had crushed me, will let loose his hand and cut me down?
{6:10} And may this be my consolation, that in afflicting me with sorrow, although he might not be lenient with me, I still do not contradict the words of the Holy One.
{6:11} For what is my strength, that I may continue? Or what is my goal, so that I may act patiently?
{6:12} My strength is not the strength of stones, nor is my flesh made of bronze.
{6:13} Behold, there is no help for me in myself, and my loved ones also have withdrawn from me.
{6:14} He who takes away mercy from his friend, abandons the fear of the Lord.
{6:15} My brethren have disregarded me, like a torrent that passes swiftly through the steep valleys.
{6:16} Those who fear frost, snow will rush over them.
{6:17} At that time, when they are scattered, they will perish, and when it becomes hot, they will be freed from their place.
{6:18} The paths of their steps are entangled; they will walk in vain and will perish.
{6:19} Consider the paths of Thema, the ways of Saba, and wait a little while.
{6:20} They have been thrown into confusion, just as I had hoped; they have even come to me and are overwhelmed with shame.
{6:21} Now you have arrived, and merely by seeing my affliction, you are afraid.
{6:22} Did I say: “Bring to me and give to me from your necessities?”
{6:23} or, “Free me from the hand of the enemy and rescue me from the hand of the strong?”
{6:24} Teach me, and I will be silent, and if by chance I have been ignorant of anything, instruct me.
{6:25} Why have you diminished the words of truth, when there is none of you who is able to offer proof against me?
{6:26} You prepare speeches as so much noise, and you offer words into the wind.
{6:27} You encroach upon the orphan, and you strive to undermine your friend.
{6:28} Such is true, so finish what you have begun. Listen closely, and see if I lie.
{6:29} Respond, I beg you, without contention, and, speaking what is just, pass judgment.
{6:30} And you will not find iniquity on my tongue, nor will foolishness resound in my throat.
{7:1} The life of a man on the earth is a battle, and his days are like the days of a hired hand.
{7:2} Just as a servant desires the shade, and just as the hired hand looks forward to the end of his work,
{7:3} so also have I had empty months and have counted my burdensome nights.
{7:4} If I lie down to sleep, I will say, “When will I rise?” And next I will hope for the evening and will be filled with sorrows even until darkness.
{7:5} My flesh is clothed with particles of rottenness and filth; my skin is dried up and tightened.
{7:6} My days have passed by more quickly than threads are cut by a weaver, and they have been consumed without any hope.
{7:7} Remember that my life is wind, and my eye will not return to see good things.
{7:8} Neither will the sight of man gaze upon me; your eyes are upon me, and I will not endure.
{7:9} Just as a cloud is consumed and passes away, so he who descends to hell will not ascend.
{7:10} He will not return again to his house, nor will his own place know him any longer.
{7:11} And because of this, I will not restrain my mouth. I will speak in the affliction of my spirit. I will converse from the bitterness of my soul.
{7:12} Am I an ocean or a whale, that you have encircled me in a prison?
{7:13} If I say, “My bed will comfort me, and I will find rest, speaking with myself on my blanket,”
{7:14} then you will frighten me with dreams, and strike dread through visions,
{7:15} so that, because of these things, my soul would choose hanging, and my bones, death.
{7:16} I despair; by no means will I live any longer. Spare me, for my days are nothing.
{7:17} What is man, that you should praise him? Or why do you place your heart near him?
{7:18} You visit him at dawn, and you test him unexpectedly.
{7:19} How long will you not spare me, nor release me to ingest my saliva?
{7:20} I have sinned; what should I do for you, O keeper of men? Why have you set me against you, so that I have become burdensome even to myself?
{7:21} Why do you not steal away my sin, and why do you not sweep away my iniquity? Behold, now I will sleep in the dust, and if you seek me in the morning, I will not remain.
{8:1} But Baldad the Suhite, responding, said:
{8:2} How long will you speak this way, so that the words of your mouth are like a changeable wind?
{8:3} Does God supplant judgment, or does the Almighty subvert that which is just?
{8:4} And if now your children have sinned against him, and he has dismissed them into the power of their iniquity,
{8:5} even so, you should arise early to God, so as to beseech the Almighty.
{8:6} If you approach with purity and honesty, he will quickly be attentive to you, and a peaceful life will repay your righteousness,
{8:7} so much so that, if your former things were small, your latter things would be multiplied greatly.
{8:8} For inquire of the earliest generation, and investigate diligently the history of the fathers,
{8:9} (of course, we are but of yesterday and are ignorant that our days on earth are like a shadow,)
{8:10} and they will teach you; they will speak with you and will offer you the eloquence of their hearts.
{8:11} Can the marsh plant live without moisture? Or can sedges grow without water?
{8:12} When it is still in flower, and has not been pulled up by hand, it withers before all other plants.
{8:13} Just so are the ways of all who forget God, and the hope of the hypocrite will perish.
{8:14} His frenzy will not please him, and his faith will be like a spider’s web.
{8:15} He will lean on his house, and it will not stand; he will prop it up, but it will not rise.
{8:16} He seems to have moisture before the sun arrives; and at sunrise, his sprout shoots forth.
{8:17} His roots will crowd together over a heap of stones, and among the stones he will remain.
{8:18} If someone is devoured right beside him, he will deny him and will say: “I do not know you.”
{8:19} For this is the benefit of his way, that others in turn may spring up from the earth.
{8:20} God will not discard the simple, nor will he extend his hand to the spiteful,
{8:21} even until your mouth is filled with laughter and your lips with rejoicing.
{8:22} Those who hate you, will be clothed with confusion, and the tabernacle of the impious will not continue.
{9:1} And Job, responding, said:
{9:2} Truly, I know that it is so, and that man cannot be justified compared with God.
{9:3} If he chooses to contend with him, he is not able to respond to him once out of a thousand times.
{9:4} He is understanding in heart and mighty in strength; who has resisted him and yet had peace?
{9:5} He has moved mountains, and those whom he overthrew in his fury did not know it.
{9:6} He shakes the earth out of its place and its pillars tremble.
{9:7} He commands the sun and it does not rise, and he closes the stars as if under a seal.
{9:8} He alone extends the heavens, and he walks upon the waves of the sea.
{9:9} He fashions Arcturus, and Orion, and Hyades, and the interior of the south.
{9:10} He accomplishes great and incomprehensible and miraculous things, which cannot be numbered.
{9:11} If he approaches me, I will not see him; if he departs, I will not understand.
{9:12} If he suddenly should question, who will answer him? Or who can say, “Why did you do so?”
{9:13} God, whose wrath no one is able to resist, and under whom they bend who carry the world,
{9:14} what am I then, that I should answer him and exchange words with him?
{9:15} And if I now have any justice, I will not respond, but will beseech my judge.
{9:16} And if he should listen to me when I call, I would not believe that he had heard my voice.
{9:17} For he will crush me in a whirlwind and multiply my wounds, even without cause.
{9:18} He does not permit my spirit to rest, and he fills me with bitterness.
{9:19} If strength is sought, he is most strong; if equity in judgment, no one would dare to give testimony for me.
{9:20} If I wanted to justify myself, my own mouth will condemn me; if I would reveal my innocence, he would prove me depraved.
{9:21} And if I now became simple, my soul would be ignorant even of this, and my life would weary me.
{9:22} There is one thing that I have said: both the innocent and the impious he consumes.
{9:23} If he scourges, let him kill all at once, and not laugh at the punishment of the innocent.
{9:24} Since the earth has been given into the hand of the impious, he covers the face of its judges; for if it is not him, then who is it?
{9:25} My days have been swifter than a messenger; they have fled and have not seen goodness.
{9:26} They have passed by like ships carrying fruits, just like an eagle flying to food.
{9:27} If I say: “By no means will I speak this way.” I change my face and I am tortured with sorrow.
{9:28} I have dreaded all my works, knowing that you did not spare the offender.
{9:29} Yet, if I am also just as impious, why have I labored in vain?
{9:30} If I had been washed with snow-like waters, and my hands were shining like the cleanest thing,
{9:31} yet you would plunge me in filth, and my own garments would abhor me.
{9:32} For even I would not answer a man who were like myself, nor one who could be heard with me equally in judgment.
{9:33} There is no one who could both prevail in argument and in placing his hand between the two.
{9:34} Let him take his staff away from me, and let not the fear of him terrify me.
{9:35} I will speak and I will not fear him, for in fearfulness I am not able to respond.
{10:1} My soul is weary of my life. I will release my words against myself. I will speak in the bitterness of my soul.
{10:2} I will say to God: Do not be willing to condemn me. Reveal to me why you judge me this way.
{10:3} Does it seem good to you, if you find fault with me and oppress me, the work of your own hands, and assist the counsel of the impious?
{10:4} Do you have bodily eyes? Or, just as man sees, will you see?
{10:5} Are your days just like the days of man, and are your years as the times of humans,
{10:6} so that you would inquire about my iniquity and examine my sin?
{10:7} And you know that I have done nothing impious, yet there is no one who can deliver from your hand.
{10:8} Your hands have made me and formed me all around, and, in this way, do you suddenly throw me away?
{10:9} Remember, I ask you, that you have fashioned me like clay, and you will reduce me to dust.
{10:10} Have you not extracted me like milk and curdled me like cheese?
{10:11} You have clothed me with skin and flesh. You have put me together with bones and nerves.
{10:12} You have assigned to me life and mercy, and your visitation has preserved my spirit.
{10:13} Though you may conceal this in your heart, yet I know that you remember everything.
{10:14} If I have sinned, and you have spared me for an hour, why do you not endure me to be clean from my iniquity?
{10:15} And if I should be impious, woe to me, and if I should be just, I will not lift up my head, being drenched with affliction and misery.
{10:16} And because of pride, you will seize me like a lioness, and having returned, you torment me to an extraordinary degree.
{10:17} You renew your testimony against me, and you multiply your wrath against me, and these punishments make war within me.
{10:18} Why did you lead me out of the womb? If only I had been consumed, so that no eye would ever see me!
{10:19} I should have been as if I had not been: transferred from the womb to the tomb.
{10:20} Will not my few days be completed soon? Release me, therefore, so that I may lament my sorrows a little,
{10:21} before I depart and return no more to a land that is dark and covered with the fog of death,
{10:22} a land of misery and darkness, where the shadow of death, and nothing else but everlasting horror, dwells.
{11:1} But Zophar the Naamathite, responding, said:
{11:2} Will he who speaks much, not also listen? Or will a talkative man be justified?
{11:3} Will men be silent only for you? And when you have mocked others, will no one refute you?
{11:4} For you said: “My word is pure, and I am clean in your sight.”
{11:5} Yet I wish that God would speak with you, and would open his lips to you,
{11:6} so that he might reveal to you the secrets of wisdom, and how intricate his law is, and that you would understand how much less he requires of you than your iniquity deserves.
{11:7} By chance, will you comprehend the footsteps of God and reach all the way to the perfection of the Almighty?
{11:8} He is higher than heaven, and what will you do? He is deeper than hell, but how will you know?
{11:9} His measure is longer than the earth and wider than the sea.
{11:10} If he overturns all things, or packs them together, who will contradict him?
{11:11} For he knows the vanity of men, and when he sees iniquity, does he not evaluate it?
{11:12} A vain man is lifted up in arrogance, and he thinks that he is born free like a wild ass’s colt.
{11:13} But you have fortified your heart and extended your hands to him.
{11:14} If you would send away from you the iniquity that is in your hand, and not let injustice remain in your tabernacle,
{11:15} then you would be able to lift up your face without blemish, and you would be steadfast and unafraid.
{11:16} Misery, likewise, you would forget, or would remember only like waters that have passed by.
{11:17} And brightness, like that of midday, will rise upon you until evening, and when you would think yourself consumed, you will rise up like the morning star.
{11:18} And, when hope has been set before you, you will have faith, and, when buried, you will sleep secure.
{11:19} You will rest, and there will be nothing to make you afraid, and many will make requests before your face.
{11:20} But the eyes of the impious will fade away, and the path to escape will perish before them, for the abomination of the soul is their hope.
{12:1} Then Job, answering, said:
{12:2} Are you, therefore, alone among men, and will wisdom die with you?
{12:3} And I have a heart just as you also do, and I am not inferior to you. For who is ignorant of these things, which you know?
{12:4} He who is mocked by his friends as I am, will call upon God, and he will listen to him because it is the sincerity of the just that is being mocked.
{12:5} The lamp that is despised in the thoughts of the rich is ready for the appointed time.
{12:6} The tabernacles of robbers are numerous, and they provoke God boldly; whereas, it is he who has given all things into their hands.
{12:7} In truth, ask the mules, and they will teach you, and the birds of the sky, and they will reveal to you.
{12:8} Speak with the earth, and it will respond to you, and the fish of the sea will explain.
{12:9} Who is ignorant that the hand of the Lord has made all these things?
{12:10} In his hand is the soul of all the living and the spirit of all the flesh of mankind.
{12:11} Does not the ear perceive words, and the palate, when eating, perceive flavor?
{12:12} In old age is wisdom, and in length of days is prudence.
{12:13} With him is wisdom and strength, he has counsel and understanding.
{12:14} If he tears down, there is no one who can build up; if he encloses a man, there is no one who can open.
{12:15} If he restrains the waters, everything will dry up; and if he sends them forth, they will subdue the land.
{12:16} With him is strength and wisdom; he knows both the deceiver and he who is deceived.
{12:17} He leads advisors to a foolish end and judges to stupidity.
{12:18} He removes the belt of kings and encircles their waist with a rope.
{12:19} He leads away priests in dishonor and displaces nobles,
{12:20} altering the lips of those who speak the truth and sweeping away the teaching of the aged.
{12:21} He pours disdain upon the leaders, relieving those who had been oppressed.
{12:22} He reveals the depths of the darkness, and he brings the shadow of death into the light.
{12:23} He multiplies peoples, and destroys them, and, having been overthrown, he restores them anew.
{12:24} He transforms the heart of the leaders of the people on earth, and misleads those who in vain advance upon the inviolable.
{12:25} They will grope as in the darkness, not the light, and he will make them stagger like drunkards.
{13:1} Behold, my eye has seen all these things, and my ear has heard, and I have understood each one.
{13:2} In conformity with your knowledge, I also know. I am not inferior to you.
{13:3} Yet I speak this way to the Almighty, and I desire to argue with God,
{13:4} having first shown that you fabricate lies and cultivate perverse teachings.
{13:5} And I wish that you would remain silent, so that you would be counted among the wise.
{13:6} Therefore, listen to my correction, and pay attention to the judgment of my lips.
{13:7} Does God require your lie, so that you would speak deceitfully for him?
{13:8} Have you taken his place, and do you struggle to give judgment in favor of God?
{13:9} Or, will it please him, from whom nothing can be concealed? Or, will he be deceived, like a man, by your deceitfulness?
{13:10} He will accuse you because in secret you have preempted his presence.
{13:11} As soon as he moves himself, he will disturb you, and his dread will fall over you.
{13:12} Your remembrance will be compared to ashes, and your necks will be reduced to clay.
{13:13} Be silent for a little while, so that I may speak whatever my mind suggests to me.
{13:14} Why do I wound my flesh with my teeth, and carry my soul in my hands?
{13:15} And now, if he would kill me, I will hope in him; in this, truly, I will correct my ways in his sight.
{13:16} And he will be my savior, for no hypocrite at all will approach in his sight.
{13:17} Listen to my words, and perceive an enigma with your ears.
{13:18} If I will be judged, I know that I will be found to be just.
{13:19} Who is it that will go to judgment with me? Let him approach. Why should I be consumed in silence?
{13:20} Do not do such things to me twice, and then I will not hide from your face.
{13:21} Take your hand far away from me, and do not let your dread terrify me.
{13:22} Call me, and I will answer you, or else I will speak, and you can answer me.
{13:23} How many iniquities and sins do I have? Reveal my crimes and offenses to me.
{13:24} Why do you conceal your face and consider me to be your enemy?
{13:25} Against a leaf, which is carried away by the wind, you reveal your power, and you pursue dry straw.
{13:26} For you write bitter things against me, and you want to consume me for the sins of my youth.
{13:27} You have put my feet on a tether, and you have observed all my paths, and you have considered the steps of my feet.
{13:28} I will be left to decay like something rotten and like a garment that is being eaten by moths.
{14:1} Man, born of woman, living for a short time, is filled with many miseries.
{14:2} He comes forth like a flower, and is crushed, and he flees, as if a shadow, and never remains in the same state.
{14:3} And do you consider it fitting to look down with your eyes on someone in this way and to lead him into judgment with you?
{14:4} Who can make him clean who is conceived of unclean seed? Are you not the only one who can?
{14:5} The days of man are short, and the number of his months is with you; you have determined his limits, which cannot be surpassed.
{14:6} Withdraw a little from him, so that he may rest, until his awaited day arrives, like that of the hired hand.
{14:7} A tree has hope: if it has been cut, it turns green again, and its branches spring forth.
{14:8} If its roots grow old in the earth, and its trunk passes into dust,
{14:9} at the scent of water, it will sprout and bring forth leaves, as when it had first been planted.
{14:10} Truly, when a man dies, and has been left unprotected, and has decayed, I ask you where is he?
{14:11} It is as if the waters had receded from the sea and an emptied river had dried up;
{14:12} just so, when a man is fallen asleep, he will not rise again, until the heavens are worn away; he will not awaken, nor rise from his sleep.
{14:13} Who will grant this to me, that you will protect me in the underworld, and hide me until your fury passes by, and establish a time for me, in which you will remember me?
{14:14} Do you suppose that a dead man will live again? On each of the days in which I now battle, I wait until my transformation occurs.
{14:15} You will call me and I will answer you; to the work of your hands, you will extend your right hand.
{14:16} Indeed, you have numbered my steps, but you have been lenient with my sins.
{14:17} You have sealed up my offenses, as if in a purse, but you have cured my iniquity.
{14:18} A falling mountain flows away, and a stone is transferred from its place.
{14:19} Waters wear away stones, and with a flood the land is reduced little by little; and similarly, you will destroy man.
{14:20} You have strengthened him for a little while, so that he may cross over into eternity. You will change his face and send him forth.
{14:21} Whether his sons have been noble or ignoble, he will not understand.
{14:22} And in this way his body, while he yet lives, will have grief, and his soul will mourn over himself.
{15:1} But Eliphaz the Themanite, answering, said:
{15:2} Will a wise man answer as if he were speaking wind, and will he fill his stomach with fire?
{15:3} You rebuke with words he who is not equal to you, and you speak what is not expedient for you,
{15:4} to such an extent that, within yourself, you have expelled reverence and have taken away prayers from the presence of God.
{15:5} For your iniquity has mislead your mouth, and you imitate the tongue of blasphemers.
{15:6} Your own mouth will condemn you, not I; and your own lips will answer you.
{15:7} Are you the first man who was born, or were you formed before the hills?
{15:8} Have you heard the intentions of God, and will his wisdom be inferior to you?
{15:9} What do you know, about which we are ignorant? What do you understand that we do not know?
{15:10} There are with us both aged and ancient men, even more senior than your fathers.
{15:11} Is it so important that God should console you? But your own depraved words prevent this.
{15:12} Why does your heart exalt you, and why do you gaze with your eyes, as if thinking great things?
{15:13} Why does your spirit stir against God, so as to utter such speeches from your mouth?
{15:14} What is man that he should be immaculate, and that he should appear just, having been born of woman?
{15:15} Behold, among his holy ones not one is immutable, and even the heavens are not pure in his sight.
{15:16} How much more abominable and useless is the man who drinks as if from the water of iniquity?
{15:17} I will reveal to you, so listen to me; and I will explain to you what I have seen.
{15:18} The wise acknowledge, and they do not leave behind, their fathers,
{15:19} to whom alone the earth has been given, and no stranger passed among them.
{15:20} The impious is arrogant for all his days, and the number of the years of his tyranny is uncertain.
{15:21} The sound of terror is always in his ears; and when there is peace, he always suspects treason.
{15:22} He does not believe that it is possible for him to be turned from darkness into the light, for he sees around him the sword on every side.
{15:23} When he moves himself to seek bread, he knows that the day of darkness has been prepared for his hand.
{15:24} Tribulation will terrify him, and anguish will prevail over him, like a king who is being prepared to go to battle.
{15:25} For he has extended his hand against God, and he has strengthened himself against the Almighty.
{15:26} He has rushed against him with his throat exposed, and he has been armed with a fat neck.
{15:27} Thickness has covered his face, and lard hangs down from his sides.
{15:28} He has lived in desolate cities and deserted houses, which have been turned into tombs.
{15:29} He will not be enriched, nor will his basic necessities endure, nor will he establish his root in the earth.
{15:30} He will not withdraw from the darkness; the flame will burn up his branches, and he will be defeated by the breath of his own mouth.
{15:31} He will not believe, being vainly deceived by error, that he could be redeemed at any price.
{15:32} Before his time is completed, he will pass into ruin and his hands will wither away.
{15:33} He will be wounded like a grapevine, when its cluster is in first flower, and like an olive tree that casts off its flower.
{15:34} For the congregation of the hypocrites is fruitless, and fire will devour the tabernacles of those who love to accept money.
{15:35} He has conceived sorrow, and he has brought forth iniquity, and his womb prepares deceit.
{16:1} Then Job, answering, said:
{16:2} I have often heard such things; you are all aggravating comforters.
{16:3} Will there be no end to windy words? Or is it at all a burden to you, if you speak?
{16:4} I, too, can speak like you; and I also wish that your soul favored my soul.
{16:5} I would also comfort you with speeches and would wag my head over you.
{16:6} I would strengthen you with my mouth, and would move my lips, as if being lenient to you.
{16:7} But what can I do? When I am speaking, my grief will not be quiet; and if I am quiet, it will not withdraw from me.
{16:8} But now my grief has crushed me, and all my limbs have been reduced to nothing.
{16:9} My wrinkles bear witness against me, and a liar rises up against my face, contradicting me.
{16:10} He has gathered together his fury towards me, and, threatening me, he has roared against me with his teeth; my enemy has beheld me with terrible eyes.
{16:11} They have opened their mouths against me, and, reproaching me, they have struck me on the cheek; they are nourished by my sufferings.
{16:12} God has confined me with the immoral, and he has delivered me into the hands of the impious.
{16:13} I, who once was wealthy, am now crushed. He has grabbed me by my neck; he has broken me and has placed me before him as a sign.
{16:14} He has surrounded me with his lances. He has severely wounded my lower back, he has not been lenient, and he has poured out my organs upon the earth.
{16:15} He has cut me with wound after wound. He has rushed upon me like a giant.
{16:16} I have sewn sackcloth over my skin, and I have covered my body with ashes.
{16:17} My face is swollen from weeping, and my eyelids have dimmed my vision.
{16:18} These things I have endured without iniquity in my hand, while I held pure prayers before God.
{16:19} O earth, do not conceal my blood, nor let my outcry find a hiding place in you.
{16:20} For behold, my witness is in heaven, and my confidante is on high.
{16:21} My friends are full of words; my eye rains tears upon God.
{16:22} And I wish that a man might be so judged before God, just as the son of man is judged with his assistant!
{16:23} For behold, a few years pass by, and I am walking a path by which I will not return.
{17:1} My spirit will be wasted, my days will be shortened, and only the grave will be left for me.
{17:2} I have not sinned, yet my eye remains in bitterness.
{17:3} Free me, O Lord, and set me beside you, and let the hand of anyone you wish fight against me.
{17:4} You have set their heart far from discipline; therefore, they will not be praised.
{17:5} He promises prey to his companions, but the eyes of his sons will grow faint.
{17:6} He has posted me like a proverb to the people, and I am an example in their presence.
{17:7} My eyesight has been clouded by indignation, and my limbs have been reduced, as if to nothing.
{17:8} The just will be astounded over this, and the innocent will be stirred up against the hypocrite.
{17:9} And the just will cling to his way, and clean hands will increase strength.
{17:10} Therefore, be converted, all of you, and approach, for I do not find in you any wisdom.
{17:11} My days have passed away; my thoughts have been scattered, tormenting my heart.
{17:12} They have turned night into day, and I hope for light again after the darkness.
{17:13} If I should wait, the underworld is my house, and in darkness I have spread out my bed.
{17:14} I have said to decay and to worms: “You are my father, my mother, and my sister.”
{17:15} Therefore, where is my expectation now, and who is it that considers my patience?
{17:16} Everything of mine will descend into the deepest underworld; do you think that, in that place at least, there will be rest for me?
{18:1} But Baldad the Suhite responded by saying:
{18:2} How long will you throw around words? Understand first, and then let us speak.
{18:3} Why have we been treated like mules, as if we were unworthy before you?
{18:4} You, who ruins your own soul in your fury, will the earth be forsaken because of you, and will the cliffs be moved from their place?
{18:5} Will not the light of the impious be put out, and the flame of his fire refuse to shine?
{18:6} Light will become darkness in his tabernacle, and the lamp that is over him will be extinguished.
{18:7} His strong steps will be constrained, and his own counsel will cast him down uncontrollably.
{18:8} For he has caused his own feet to go into a net, and he has walked into its web.
{18:9} His heel will be held in a snare, and thirst will rage against him.
{18:10} A trap has been hidden for him in the earth, and a decoy, along his path.
{18:11} Horrifying things will terrify him everywhere and will entangle his feet.
{18:12} Let his strength be diminished by famine, and let starvation invade his ribs.
{18:13} Let it devour the beauty of his skin; let the ancient death consume his arms.
{18:14} Let his confidence be torn away from his tabernacle, and let ruin trample over him like a king.
{18:15} Let the companions of he who is not, dwell in his tabernacle; let brimstone rain down upon his tabernacle.
{18:16} Let his roots be dried up from beneath him, and his harvest be crushed from above.
{18:17} Let the memory of him perish from the earth, and let not his name be celebrated in the streets.
{18:18} He will expel him from light into darkness, and he will remove him from the world.
{18:19} Neither his offspring, nor his descendants, will exist among his people, nor will there be any remnants in his country.
{18:20} The last will be astonished at his day, and the first will be overcome with horror.
{18:21} And so, these are the tabernacles of the sinful, and this the place of he who does not know God.
{19:1} But Job answered by saying:
{19:2} How long will you afflict my soul and wear me down with words?
{19:3} So, ten times you confound me and are not ashamed to oppress me.
{19:4} Now, of course, if I have been ignorant, my ignorance will be with me.
{19:5} But you have risen up against me, and you accuse me to my disgrace.
{19:6} At least now you should understand that God has not afflicted me with a balanced judgment, though he has encompassed me with his scourges.
{19:7} Behold, I will cry out, enduring violence, and no one will hear. I will announce loudly, but there is no one who may judge.
{19:8} He has hemmed in my path, and I cannot pass; he has added darkness to my difficult path.
{19:9} He has plundered me of my glory, and he has stolen the crown from my head.
{19:10} He has destroyed me on every side, and I am lost, and, like an uprooted tree, he has taken away my hope.
{19:11} His fury has raged against me, and in this way he has treated me like his enemy.
{19:12} His troops have gathered together, and they have made their way to me, and they have besieged my tabernacle all around.
{19:13} He has put my brothers far from me, and my friends have withdrawn from me like strangers.
{19:14} My kinsmen have forsaken me, and those who knew me, have forgotten me.
{19:15} The inhabitants of my house and my maidservants treat me just as if I were a stranger, and I have been like a sojourner in their eyes.
{19:16} I called my servant, and he did not respond; I pleaded with him with my own mouth.
{19:17} My wife has shuddered at my breath, and I have begged the sons of my loins.
{19:18} Even the foolish have looked down on me, and, when I withdrew from them, they spoke ill of me.
{19:19} Those who were sometimes my counselors, treat me like an abomination; and he whom I valued the most has turned against me.
{19:20} Since my flesh has been consumed, my bone adheres to my skin, and only my lips have been left around my teeth.
{19:21} Have mercy on me, have compassion on me, at least you my friends, because the hand of the Lord has touched me.
{19:22} Why do you pursue me just as God does, and satiate yourselves with my flesh?
{19:23} Who will grant to me that my words may be written down? Who will grant to me that they may be inscribed in a book,
{19:24} with an iron pen and a plate of lead, or else be carved in stone?
{19:25} For I know that my Redeemer lives, and on the last day I will rise out of the earth.
{19:26} And I will be enveloped again with my skin, and in my flesh I will see my God.
{19:27} It is he whom I myself will see, and he whom my eyes will behold, and no other. This, my hope, has taken rest in my bosom.
{19:28} Why then do you now say: “Let us pursue him, and let us find a basis to speak against him?”
{19:29} So then, flee from the face of the sword, for the sword is the avenger of iniquities; but know this: there is to be a judgment.
{20:1} Then Zophar the Naamathite answered by saying:
{20:2} In response, various thoughts succeed one another in me, and my mind moves quickly through different ideas.
{20:3} The teaching you use to admonish me, I will hear, and the spirit of my understanding will respond for me.
{20:4} This, I know, is from the beginning, from the time that man was set over the earth:
{20:5} that the praise of the impious shall be short, and the joy of the hypocrite lasts only a moment.
{20:6} If his pride ascends even towards the heavens, and his head touches the clouds,
{20:7} in the end, he will be destroyed like a trash heap, and those who had seen him will say: “Where is he?”
{20:8} Like a dream that flies away, he will not be found; he will pass away like a nightmare.
{20:9} The eyes that had seen him, will not see him; no longer will his own place admire him.
{20:10} His sons will be worn away by poverty, and his own hands will deliver his grief to him.
{20:11} His bones will be filled with the vices of his youth, and they will sleep with him in the dust.
{20:12} For, when evil will be sweet in his mouth, he will hide it under his tongue.
{20:13} He will permit it, and not abandon it, and he will conceal it in his throat.
{20:14} His bread in his belly will be turned into the venom of snakes within him.
{20:15} The riches that he devours, he will vomit up, and from his stomach God will draw them out.
{20:16} He will suck the head of snakes, and the tongue of the viper will kill him.
{20:17} (May he never see the streams of the river, the torrents of honey and butter.)
{20:18} He will be repaid for all he has done, yet he will not be consumed; according to the multitude of his schemes, so also will he suffer.
{20:19} For, having broken in, he stripped the poor. He has quickly stolen away a house he did not build.
{20:20} And yet his stomach will not be satisfied, and when he has the things he desires, he will not be able to possess them.
{20:21} Nothing remained of his portion, and, because of this, nothing will continue of his kind.
{20:22} When he will be satisfied, he will be constrained; he will seethe, and all anguish will fall upon him.
{20:23} May his stomach be filled, so that God may send forth the fury of his wrath to him and may rain down his battle upon him.
{20:24} He will flee from weapons of iron, and he will fall in an arc of brass,
{20:25} which had been drawn and had issued forth from its sheath, glittering in its bitterness: the horrible ones will go forth and approach over him.
{20:26} All darkness has been hidden in his secrecy. A fire that has not been set will devour him; he will be thrown down and forsaken in his tabernacle.
{20:27} The heavens will reveal his sinfulness, and the earth will rise up against him.
{20:28} The offspring of his house will be exposed; he will be pulled down in the day of God’s wrath.
{20:29} This is the portion of a wicked man from God, and the inheritance of his words from the Lord.
{21:1} Then Job responded by saying:
{21:2} I beseech you to hear my words and to do penance.
{21:3} Permit me, and I will speak, and afterwards, if you see fit, you can laugh at my words.
{21:4} Is my dispute against man, so that I would have no reason to be discouraged?
{21:5} Listen to me and be astonished, and place a finger over your mouth.
{21:6} As for me, when I think it over, I am afraid, and trembling convulses my body.
{21:7} Why then do the impious live, having been lifted up and strengthened with riches?
{21:8} They see their offspring continue before them: a commotion of close relatives and of children’s children in their sight.
{21:9} Their houses have been secure and peaceable, and there is no staff of God over them.
{21:10} Their cattle have conceived and have not miscarried; their cow has given birth and is not deprived of her newborn.
{21:11} Their little ones go out like a flock, and their children jump around playfully.
{21:12} They take up the timbrel and the lyre, and they rejoice at the sound of the organ.
{21:13} Their days are prolonged in wealth, yet, in an instant, they descend into hell.
{21:14} Who has said to God, “Depart from us, for we do not want the knowledge of your ways.
{21:15} Who is the Almighty that we should serve him? And how is it helpful to us if we pray to him?”
{21:16} It is true that their good things are not in their power. May the counsel of the impious be far from me!
{21:17} How often will the lamp of the wicked be extinguished, and a deluge overtake them, and how often will he distribute the afflictions of his wrath?
{21:18} They will be like chaff before the face of the wind, and like ashes that the whirlwind scatters.
{21:19} God will preserve the grief of the father for his sons, and, when he repays, then he will understand.
{21:20} His eyes will see his own destruction, and he will drink from the wrath of the Almighty.
{21:21} For what does he care what happens to his house after him, or if the number of its months are reduced by half?
{21:22} Can anyone teach holy knowledge to God, who judges the exalted?
{21:23} This one dies strong and healthy, rich and happy.
{21:24} His gut is full of fat and his bones are moistened with marrow.
{21:25} In truth, another dies in bitterness of soul, without any resources.
{21:26} And yet they will sleep together in the dust, and worms will cover them.
{21:27} Surely, I know your thoughts and your sinful judgments against me.
{21:28} For you say, “Where is the house of the ruler, and where are the tabernacles of the impious?”
{21:29} Ask any passerby whom you wish, and you will realize that he understands these same things:
{21:30} that the evil-doer is reserved for the day of destruction, and he will be led to the day of wrath.
{21:31} Who will reprove his way to his face, and who will repay him for what he has done?
{21:32} He will be led to the tomb, and he will remain awake in the chaos of the dead.
{21:33} He has been found acceptable to the banks of the River of Lamentation, and he will draw any man towards him, and there are countless before him.
{21:34} Therefore, how long will you console me in vain, when your answer is shown to be repugnant to truth?
{22:1} Then Eliphaz the Themanite responded by saying:
{22:2} Can man be compared with God, even if he were perfect in knowledge?
{22:3} What advantage is it to God, if you were just? Or what do you provide for him, if your way should be immaculate?
{22:4} Will he reprove you and take you to judgment for being afraid,
{22:5} and not because of your many evil deeds and your infinite unfairness?
{22:6} For you have taken away the collateral of your brothers without cause, and stripped them naked of their clothing.
{22:7} You have not given water to the weary; you have taken bread away from the hungry.
{22:8} By the strength of your arm, you took possession of the land, and you retain it by being the strongest.
{22:9} You have sent widows away empty, and you have crushed the shoulders of orphans.
{22:10} Because of this, you are surrounded by traps, and unexpected fears will disturb you.
{22:11} And did you think that you would not see darkness and that you were not to be overwhelmed by the onrush of overflowing waters?
{22:12} Have you not considered that God is higher than the heavens and is lifted above the height of the stars?
{22:13} And you say: “Well, what does God know?” and, “He judges, as if through a fog,”
{22:14} and, “The clouds are his hiding-place,” and, “He does not examine us closely,” and, “He makes his rounds at the limits of the heavens.”
{22:15} Do you not want to tend the path of the ages, which wicked men have spurned?
{22:16} These were taken away before their time, and a flood overthrew their foundation.
{22:17} They said to God, “Withdraw from us,” and they treated the Almighty as if he could do nothing,
{22:18} though he had filled their houses with good things. May their way of thinking be far from me.
{22:19} The just will see and will rejoice, and the innocent will mock them.
{22:20} Has not their haughtiness been cut down, and has not fire devoured the remnants of them?
{22:21} So, repose yourself with him and be at peace, and, in this way, you will have the best fruits.
{22:22} Accept the law from his mouth, and place his words in your heart.
{22:23} If you will return to the Almighty, you will be rebuilt, and you will put sinfulness far from your tabernacle.
{22:24} He will give you stone in place of dirt, and torrents of gold in place of stone.
{22:25} And the Almighty will be against your enemies, and silver will be gathered together for you.
{22:26} Then will you flock together in delight over the Almighty, and you will lift up your face to God.
{22:27} You will plead with him, and he will listen to you, and you will pay your vows.
{22:28} You will decide on something, and it will come to you, and the light will shine in your ways.
{22:29} For he who had been humbled, will be in glory; and he who will lower his eyes, will be the one saved.
{22:30} The innocent will be saved, and he will be saved with purity in his hands.
{23:1} Then Job answered by saying:
{23:2} Now again my conversation is in bitterness, and the force of my scourging weighs more heavily on me because of my mourning.
{23:3} Who will grant me that I might know and find him, and that I may approach even to his throne?
{23:4} I would place judgment before his eye, and my mouth would fill with criticism,
{23:5} so that I may know the words that he will answer me and understand what he will say to me.
{23:6} I do not want him to contend with me with much strength, nor to overwhelm me with the bulk of his greatness.
{23:7} Let him show fairness in response to me, and let my judgment reach to victory.
{23:8} If I go to the east, he does not appear; if I go to the west, I will not understand him.
{23:9} If I turn to the left, what can I do? I will not take hold of him. If I turn myself to the right, I will not see him.
{23:10} Truly, he knows my way and has tested me like gold that passes through fire.
{23:11} My feet have been following his footsteps; I have kept to his way and have not strayed from it.
{23:12} I have not withdrawn from the commands of his lips, and the words of his mouth I have hidden in my sinews.
{23:13} For he is alone, and no one is able to disturb his intention; and whatever his spirit wills, that he accomplishes.
{23:14} And when he fulfills his will in me, many other similar ones will also be present with him.
{23:15} And, for this reason, I have been troubled at his presence, and, when I consider him, I am approached by fear.
{23:16} God has weakened my heart, and the Almighty has confused me.
{23:17} Yet I have not perished because of the threatening darkness, nor has gloom covered my face.
{24:1} The times are not hidden from the Almighty; even those who know him, do not know his days.
{24:2} Some have crossed the boundaries, plundered the flocks, and given them pasture.
{24:3} They have driven away the donkey of orphans, and have taken the cow from the widow as collateral.
{24:4} They have undermined the way of the poor, and have pressed together the meek of the earth.
{24:5} Others, like wild asses in the desert, go forth to their work; by watching for prey, they obtain bread for their children.
{24:6} They reap a field that is not their own, and they harvest a vineyard that they have taken by force.
{24:7} They send men away naked, having taken the clothing of those who have no covering in the cold;
{24:8} these are wet with the mountain rain, and, having no covering, they embrace the rocks.
{24:9} They have used violence to deprive orphans, and they have robbed the poor common people.
{24:10} From the naked and those who do not have enough clothing, and from the hungry, they have taken away sheaves of grain.
{24:11} They take their midday rest among the stockpiles of those who, though they have trodden the winepresses, suffer thirst.
{24:12} In the cities, they caused the men to groan and the spirit of the wounded to cry out, and so God does not allow this to go unpunished.
{24:13} They have been rebellious against the light; they have not known his ways, nor have they returned by his paths.
{24:14} The killer of men rises at first light; he executes the destitute and the poor, but, in truth, he is like a thief in the night.
{24:15} The eye of the adulterer waits for darkness, saying, “No eye will see me,” and he covers his face.
{24:16} He passes through houses in the nighttime, just as they had agreed among themselves in the daytime; and they are ignorant of the light.
{24:17} If sunrise should suddenly appear, it is treated by them like the shadow of death; and they walk in darkness, as if in light.
{24:18} He is nimble on the surface of water. His place on land is to be accursed. May he not walk by way of the vineyards.
{24:19} May he cross from the snowy waters to excessive heat, and his sin, all the way to hell.
{24:20} Let mercy forget him. His charm is worms. Let him not be remembered, but instead be broken like an unfruitful tree.
{24:21} For he has fed on the barren, who does not bear fruit, and he has not done good to the widow.
{24:22} He has pulled down the strong by his strength, and, when he stands up, he will not have trust in his life.
{24:23} God has given him a place for repentance, and he abuses it with arrogance, but his eyes are upon his ways.
{24:24} They are lifted up for a little while, but they will not continue, and they will be brought low, just like all things, and they will be taken away, and, like the tops of the ears of grain, they will be crushed.
{24:25} But, if this is not so, who is able to prove to me that I have lied and to place my words before God?
{25:1} Then Baldad the Suhite answered by saying:
{25:2} Power and terror are with him that makes a pact with those in high places.
{25:3} Is there any limit to the number of his soldiers or to the number of those over whom his light rises?
{25:4} Is it right for man to compare himself to God, or to appear pure though he is born of woman?
{25:5} Behold, even the moon is not radiant, and the stars are not pure, in his sight.
{25:6} Is man much more than rottenness and the son of man much more than worms?
{26:1} Then Job responded by saying:
{26:2} Whose assistant are you? Is he weak-minded? And do you sustain the arm of him that is not strong?
{26:3} To whom have you given advice? Perhaps it is to him that has no wisdom or prudence that you have revealed your many ideas.
{26:4} Who is it that you wanted to teach? Was it not him that created the breath of life?
{26:5} Behold, giant things groan under the waters, and they dwell with them.
{26:6} The underworld is naked before him, and there is no covering for perdition.
{26:7} He stretched out the North over emptiness, and he suspended the land over nothing.
{26:8} He secures the waters in his clouds, so that they do not burst forth downward all at once.
{26:9} He holds back the face of his throne, and he stretches his cloud over it.
{26:10} He has set limits around the waters, until light and darkness shall reach their limit.
{26:11} The pillars of heaven tremble and are frightened at his nod.
{26:12} By his strength, the seas suddenly gather together, and his foresight has struck the arrogant.
{26:13} His spirit has adorned the heavens, and his birthing hand has brought forth the winding serpent.
{26:14} Behold, these things have been said about his ways in part, and, since we barely have heard a small drop of his word, who will be able to gaze upon the thunder of his greatness?
{27:1} Job also added to this, using figures of speech, and he said:
{27:2} As God lives, who has taken away my judgment, and the Almighty, who has led my soul to bitterness,
{27:3} as long as my breath remains in me and the breath of God remains in my nostrils,
{27:4} my lips will not speak iniquity, nor will my tongue devise lies.
{27:5} Far be it from me that I should judge you to be right, for, until I expire, I will not withdraw from my innocence.
{27:6} I will not forsake my justification, which I have just begun to grasp, for my heart does not find blame for me in my whole life.
{27:7} Let the impious be as my enemy, and the sinful, as my adversary.
{27:8} For what hope is there for the hypocrite, if he greedily plunders and God does not free his soul?
{27:9} Will God pay attention to his cry, when anguish overcomes him?
{27:10} Or will he take delight in the Almighty and call upon God at all times?
{27:11} I will teach you through the hand of God, what the Almighty holds, and I will not conceal it.
{27:12} Behold, you know all this, and so why do you speak vain things without a reason?
{27:13} This is the portion of the impious man with God, and the inheritance of the violent, which they will receive from the Almighty.
{27:14} If his sons should happen to increase, they will be for the sword, and his grandsons will not be satisfied with bread.
{27:15} Whatever will remain of him will be buried in the ruins, and his widows will not weep.
{27:16} If he will amass silver as if it were dirt and fabricate garments as if they were clay,
{27:17} then yes, he will gather, but the just will be clothed with it and the innocent will divide the silver.
{27:18} He has built his house like a moth, and he has made a makeshift shelter like a sentry.
{27:19} When he falls asleep, the rich man will leave him with nothing; he will open his eyes and find nothing.
{27:20} Destitution will surround him like water; a storm will overwhelm him in the night.
{27:21} A burning wind will pick him up and carry him away, and, like a whirlwind, it will rush him from his place.
{27:22} And it will hurl over him and will not spare him; fleeing from its power, he will go into exile.
{27:23} He will clasp his hands over himself, and he will hiss at himself, while considering his situation.
{28:1} Silver has its fissures where it is first found, and gold has a place where it is melted.
{28:2} Iron is taken from the earth, and ore, unbound by heat, is turned into brass.
{28:3} He has established a time for darkness, and he has settled on an end for all things, as well as for the stone that is in the gloom and shadow of death.
{28:4} The burning separates a pilgrim people from those who have been forgotten by the feet of the destitute man and from the unapproachable.
{28:5} The land, where bread appeared in its place, has been destroyed by fire.
{28:6} Its stones are embedded with sapphires, and its soil, with gold.
{28:7} The bird does not know its path, nor has the eye of the vulture beheld it.
{28:8} The sons of merchants have not walked there, nor has the lioness traveled through it.
{28:9} He has stretched out his hand to the rocks; he has overturned the foundations of the mountains.
{28:10} He has cut rivers through the rocks, and his eye has seen all precious things.
{28:11} The depths of rivers he has also examined, and he has brought hidden things into the light.
{28:12} But, in truth, where is wisdom to be found, and where is the place of understanding?
{28:13} Man does not know its price, nor is it found in the land of those who live in sweetness.
{28:14} The abyss declares, “It is not in me.” And the sea says, “It is not with me.”
{28:15} The finest gold will not be paid for it, nor will silver be weighed in exchange for it.
{28:16} It will not be compared with the dyed colors of India, nor with the very costly stone sardonyx, nor with the sapphire.
{28:17} Neither gold nor crystal will be its equal; neither will vessels of gold be fitted for it.
{28:18} The exalted and the eminent will not be remembered in comparison with it. Yet wisdom is drawn out of concealment.
{28:19} The topaz of Ethiopia will not be equal to it, nor will it be compared to the purest dyes.
{28:20} So then, where does wisdom begin, and where is the place of understanding?
{28:21} It has been hidden from the eyes of all living things, just as the birds of the heavens escape notice.
{28:22} Perdition and death have said, “With our ears, we have heard its fame.”
{28:23} God understands its way, and he knows its location.
{28:24} For he beholds the limits of the world, and he looks upon all things that are under heaven.
{28:25} He created a counterweight for the winds, and he suspended the waters to measure them.
{28:26} At that time, he gave a law to the rain and a path to the resounding storms.
{28:27} Then he saw and explained it, and he made ready and examined it.
{28:28} And he said to man, “Behold the fear of the Lord. Such is wisdom. And to withdraw from evil, this is understanding.”
{29:1} Job also added to this, using figures of speech, and he said:
{29:2} Who will grant to me that I might be as I was in former months, according to the days when God kept watch over me?
{29:3} At that time, his lamp shined over my head, and by his light, I walked through the darkness.
{29:4} I was then just as in the days of my youth, when God was privately in my tabernacle.
{29:5} At that time, the Almighty was with me and my children surrounded me.
{29:6} Then, I washed my feet with butter, and a boulder poured out rivers of oil for me.
{29:7} When I went to the gate of the city, or to the main street, they prepared a chair for me.
{29:8} The youths saw me and hid themselves, and the elders, rising up, remained standing.
{29:9} The leaders stopped talking, and they placed a finder over their mouth.
{29:10} The commanders subdued their voice, and their tongue adhered to their throat.
{29:11} The ear that heard me, blessed me, and the eye that saw me, gave testimony for me.
{29:12} This was because I had freed the poor, who cried out, and the orphan, who had no helper.
{29:13} The blessing of him who would have been destroyed came upon me, and I consoled the heart of the widow.
{29:14} I put on justice, and I clothed myself with my judgment, like a robe and a diadem.
{29:15} I was an eye for the blind and a foot for the lame.
{29:16} I was the father of the poor; and if I lacked knowledge about any case, I investigated very diligently.
{29:17} I crushed the jaws of the impious, and I took away prey from his teeth.
{29:18} And I said, “I will die in my little nest, and like a palm tree, I will multiply my days.
{29:19} My root has been spread beside the waters, and the dew will remain with my harvest.
{29:20} My glory will always be restored, and my bow will be restored to my hand.”
{29:21} Those who heard me, expected vindication, and they listened closely in silence to my counsel.
{29:22} To my words, they dared to add nothing, and my eloquence poured over them.
{29:23} They waited for me as for rain, and they opened their mouth as for belated rains.
{29:24} If I had ever laughed at them, they would not have believed it, and the light of my face was not cast down towards the ground.
{29:25} If I wished to go to them, I sat down first, and, though I sat like a king surrounded by an army, yet I was a comforter to those who mourned.
{30:1} But now, those younger in years scorn me, whose fathers I would not have seen fit to place with the dogs of my flock,
{30:2} the strength of whose hands was nothing to me, and they were considered unworthy of life itself.
{30:3} They were barren from poverty and hunger; they gnawed in solitude, layered with misfortune and misery.
{30:4} And they chewed grass and the bark from trees, and the root of junipers was their food.
{30:5} They took these things from the steep valleys, and when they discovered one of these things, they rushed to the others with a cry.
{30:6} They lived in the parched desert and in caves underground or above the rocks.
{30:7} They rejoiced among these kinds of things, and they considered it delightful to be under thorns.
{30:8} These are the sons of foolish and base men, not even paying any attention to the land.
{30:9} Now I become their song, and I have been made into their proverb.
{30:10} They loathe me, and so they flee far from me, and they are not reluctant to spit in my face.
{30:11} For he has opened his quiver and has afflicted me, and he has placed a bridle in my mouth.
{30:12} Immediately, upon rising, my calamities rise up to the right. They have overturned my feet and have pressed me down along their way like waves.
{30:13} They have diverted my journeys; they have waited to ambush me, and they have prevailed, and there was no one who might bring help.
{30:14} They have rushed upon me, as when a wall is broken or a gate opened, and they have been pulled down into my miseries.
{30:15} I have been reduced to nothing. You have taken away my desire like a wind, and my health has passed by like a cloud.
{30:16} But now my soul withers within myself, and the days of affliction take hold of me.
{30:17} At night, my bone is pierced with sorrows, and those who feed on me, do not sleep.
{30:18} By the sheer number of them my clothing is worn away, and they have closed in on me like the collar of my coat.
{30:19} I have been treated like dirt, and I have been turned into embers and ashes.
{30:20} I cry to you, and you do not heed me. I stand up, and you do not look back at me.
{30:21} You have changed me into hardness, and, with the hardness of your hand, you oppose me.
{30:22} You have lifted me up, and, placing me as if on the wind, you have thrown me down powerfully.
{30:23} I know that you will hand me over to death, where a home has been established for all the living.
{30:24} Truly, then, you do not extend your hand in order to consume them, and if they fall down, you will save them.
{30:25} Once, I wept over him who was afflicted, and my soul had compassion on the poor.
{30:26} I expected good things, but evil things have come to me. I stood ready for light, yet darkness burst forth.
{30:27} My insides have seethed, without any rest, for the days of affliction have prevented it.
{30:28} I went forth mourning, without anger, and rising up, I cried out in confusion.
{30:29} I was the brother of snakes, and the companion of ostriches.
{30:30} My skin has become blackened over me, and my bones have dried up because of the heat.
{30:31} My harp has been turned into mourning, and my pipes have been turned into a voice of weeping.
{31:1} I reached an agreement with my eyes, that I would not so much as think about a virgin.
{31:2} For what portion should God from above hold for me, and what inheritance should the Almighty from on high keep?
{31:3} Is not destruction held for the wicked and repudiation kept for those who work injustice?
{31:4} Does he not examine my ways and number all my steps?
{31:5} If I have walked in vanity, or if my foot has hurried towards deceitfulness,
{31:6} let him weigh me in a just balance, and let God know my simplicity.
{31:7} If my steps have turned aside from the way, or if my heart has followed my eyes, or if a blemish has clung to my hands,
{31:8} then may I sow, and let another consume, and let my offspring be eradicated.
{31:9} If my heart has been deceived over a woman, or if I have waited in ambush at my friend’s door,
{31:10} then let my wife be the harlot of another, and let other men lean over her.
{31:11} For this is a crime and a very great injustice.
{31:12} It is a fire devouring all the way to perdition, and it roots out all that springs forth.
{31:13} If I have despised being subject to judgment with my servant or my maid, when they had any complaint against me,
{31:14} then what will I do when God rises to judge, and, when he inquires, how will I respond to him?
{31:15} Is not he who created me in the womb, also he who labored to make him? And did not one and the same form me in the womb?
{31:16} If I have denied the poor what they wanted and have made the eyes of the widow wait;
{31:17} if I have eaten my morsel of food alone, while orphans have not eaten from it;
{31:18} (for from my infancy mercy grew with me, and it came out with me from my mother’s womb;)
{31:19} if I have looked down on him who was perishing because he had no clothing and the poor without any covering,
{31:20} if his sides have not blessed me, and if he were not warmed with the fleece of my sheep;
{31:21} if I have lifted up my hand over an orphan, even when it might seem to me that I have the advantage over him at the gate;
{31:22} then may my shoulder fall from its joint, and may my arm, with all its bones, be broken.
{31:23} For I have always feared God, like waves flowing over me, whose weight I was unable to bear.
{31:24} If I have considered gold to be my strength, or if I have called purified gold ‘my Trust;’
{31:25} if I have rejoiced over my great success, and over the many things my hand has obtained;
{31:26} if I gazed upon the sun when it shined and the moon advancing brightly,
{31:27} so that my heart rejoiced in secret and I kissed my hand with my mouth,
{31:28} which is a very great iniquity and a denial against the most high God;
{31:29} if I have been glad at the ruin of him who hated me and have exulted that evil found him,
{31:30} for I have not been given my throat to sin by asking for a curse on his soul;
{31:31} if the men around my tabernacle have not said: “He might give us some of his food, so that we will be filled,”
{31:32} for the foreigner did not remain at the door, my door was open to the traveler;
{31:33} if, as man does, I have hidden my sin and have concealed my iniquity in my bosom;
{31:34} if I became frightened by an excessive crowd, and the disrespect of close relatives alarmed me, so that I would much rather have remained silent or have gone out the door;
{31:35} then, would he grant me a hearing, so that the Almighty would listen to my desire, and he who judges would himself write a book,
{31:36} which I would then carry on my shoulder and wrap around me like a crown?
{31:37} With each of my steps, I would pronounce and offer it, as if to a prince.
{31:38} So, if my land cries out against me, and if its furrows weep with it,
{31:39} if I have used its fruits for nothing but money and have afflicted the souls of its tillers,
{31:40} then, may thistles spring forth for me instead of grain, and thorns instead of barley. (This ended the words of Job.)
{32:1} But these three men ceased to answer Job, because he considered himself justified.
{32:2} And Eliu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the kindred of Ram, was angry and indignant. But he was angry against Job because he described himself to be just in the presence of God.
{32:3} Moreover, he was indignant with his friends because they had not found a reasonable response, except in so far as they condemned Job.
{32:4} Therefore, Eliu waited while Job was talking, for these were his elders that were speaking.
{32:5} But when he saw that these three were not able to respond, he was extremely angry.
{32:6} And so Eliu the son of Barachel the Buzite responded by saying: I am younger in years, and you are more ancient; therefore, I kept my head low, for I was afraid to reveal to you my opinion.
{32:7} For I had hoped that greater age would speak, and that a multitude of years would teach wisdom.
{32:8} But I see now that there is only breath in men, and that it is the inspiration of the Almighty that gives understanding.
{32:9} The wise are not the aged, nor do the elders understand judgment.
{32:10} Therefore, I will speak. Listen to me, and so I will show you my wisdom.
{32:11} For I have endured your words; I have paid attention to your deliberations, while you were being argumentative with words.
{32:12} And as long as I supposed that you were saying something, I considered; but now I see that there is none of you that is able to argue with Job and to respond to his words.
{32:13} So that you will not say, “We have found wisdom,” God has thrown him down, not man.
{32:14} He has said nothing to me, and I will not respond to him according to your words.
{32:15} Then they were filled with dread, and so they no longer responded, and they withdrew from their speechmaking.
{32:16} Therefore, because I have waited and they have not been speaking, for they stood firm and did not respond at all,
{32:17} I also will answer in my turn, and I will reveal my knowledge.
{32:18} For I am full of words, and the feeling in my gut inspires me.
{32:19} Yes, my stomach is like fermenting wine without a vent, which bursts the new containers.
{32:20} I should speak, but I will also breathe a little; I will open my lips, and I will answer.
{32:21} I will not esteem the reputation of a man, and I will not equate God with man.
{32:22} For I do not know how long I will continue, and whether, after a while, my Maker might take me away.
{33:1} Therefore, hear my speeches, Job, and listen to all my words.
{33:2} Behold, I have opened my mouth; let my tongue speak along with my throat.
{33:3} My words are from my simple heart, and my lips will speak a pure judgment.
{33:4} The Spirit of God made me, and the breath of the Almighty gave me life.
{33:5} If you can, answer me, and oppose me to my face.
{33:6} Behold, God has made me, just as he also has made you, and I, likewise, have been formed of the same clay.
{33:7} So, truly, do not let my wonders terrify you, and do not let my eloquence be burdensome to you.
{33:8} For you have spoken in my hearing, and I have heard the voice of your words, saying:
{33:9} “I am clean and without sin; I am immaculate, and there is no iniquity in me.
{33:10} Yet he has discovered blame in me, and so he has treated me like his enemy.
{33:11} He has put my feet in fetters; he has kept watch over all my ways.”
{33:12} Therefore, it is for this reason that you have not been justified. For I tell you that God is greater than man.
{33:13} Do you contend against him because he has not responded to all of your words?
{33:14} God speaks once, and he does not repeat the same thing a second time.
{33:15} Through a dream in a vision of the night, when a deep sleep falls over men, and they are sleeping in their beds,
{33:16} then, he opens the ears of men, and, educating them, he teaches discipline,
{33:17} so that he may divert a man from the things that he is doing, and may free him from pride,
{33:18} rescuing his soul from corruption and his life from passing away by the sword.
{33:19} Likewise, he rebukes by sorrow in bed, and he causes all of his bones to become weak.
{33:20} Bread becomes abominable to him in his life, and, to his soul, the meat which before he desired.
{33:21} His body will waste away, and his bones, which had been covered, will be revealed.
{33:22} His soul has approached corruption, and his life has drawn near to what is deadly.
{33:23} If there were an angel speaking for him, one among thousands, to declare the fairness of the man,
{33:24} he will have mercy on him, and he will say, “Free him, so that he will not descend to destruction. I have found a reason to be favorable to him.
{33:25} His body is consumed by suffering. Let him return to the days of his youth.”
{33:26} He will beg pardon from God, and he will be soothing to him; and he will look upon his face in jubilation, and he will restore his justice to man.
{33:27} He will consider mankind, and he will say: “I have sinned and truly I have offended, yet I was not treated as I deserved.”
{33:28} He has freed his soul from continuing into destruction, so that, in living, it may see the light.
{33:29} Behold, all these things God works three times within each one,
{33:30} so that he may revive their souls from corruption and enlighten them with the light of life.
{33:31} Pay attention Job, and listen to me; and remain silent, while I speak.
{33:32} Yet, if you have anything to say, answer me and speak, for I want you to be treated justly.
{33:33} But if you do not have anything to say, then listen to me. Be quiet and I will teach you wisdom.
{34:1} After proclaiming these things, Eliu now had this to say:
{34:2} May the wise hear my words, and may the educated listen to me.
{34:3} For the ear examines words, and the mouth discerns foods by the taste.
{34:4} Let us choose judgment for ourselves, and let us consider among ourselves what is best.
{34:5} For Job has said: “I am just, yet God has subverted my judgment.
{34:6} For, within my judgment, there is a lie: my vehement barbs are without any sin.”
{34:7} What man is there that is like Job, who drinks up derision as if it were water,
{34:8} who accompanies those who work iniquity, and who walks with impious men?
{34:9} For he has said, “Man will not please God, even if he should travel with him.”
{34:10} Therefore, prudent men, hear me: impiety is far from God, and iniquity is far from the Almighty.
{34:11} For he will restore to man his works, and according to the ways of each, he will repay them.
{34:12} For truly, God will not condemn in vain, nor will the Almighty repudiate judgment.
{34:13} What other is established over the earth? Or whom has he placed over the world, which he made?
{34:14} But, if he directs his heart towards him, he will draw his spirit and breath to himself.
{34:15} All flesh will fail together, and man will return to ashes.
{34:16} Therefore, if you have understanding, hear what is said, and heed the sound of my eloquence.
{34:17} Is he that does not love judgment able to be corrected? And how can you so greatly condemn him who is just?
{34:18} He says to the king, “You are an apostate.” He calls commanders impious.
{34:19} He does not accept the reputation of leaders; nor does he recognize the tyrant as he contends against the poor. For all are the work of his hands.
{34:20} They will die suddenly, and the people will be troubled in the middle of the night, but they will pass through it, and the violent will be taken away without a hand.
{34:21} For his eyes are upon the ways of men, and he examines all of their steps.
{34:22} There is no darkness and no shadow of death, where those who work iniquity may be hidden.
{34:23} For it is no longer within the power of man to enter into judgment with God.
{34:24} He will break into many innumerable pieces, and he will cause others to stand up in their place.
{34:25} For he knows their works, and, as a result, he will bring the night, and they will be crushed.
{34:26} Just as the impious do, he has struck them in a place where they can be seen.
{34:27} They, as if with great diligence, have withdrawn from him, and they refused to understand all his ways,
{34:28} so that they caused the outcry of the needy to reach him, and he heard the voice of the poor.
{34:29} For, when he grants peace, who is there that can condemn? When he hides his face, who is there that can contemplate him, either among the nations, or among all men?
{34:30} He causes a hypocritical man to reign because of the sins of the people.
{34:31} Therefore, since I have been speaking about God, I will not prevent you from doing the same.
{34:32} If I have erred, you may teach me; if I have spoken unfairly, I will add no more.
{34:33} Does God require this of you because it is displeasing to you? For you were the first to speak, and not I. But if you know something better, speak.
{34:34} Let men of understanding speak to me, and let a wise man listen to me.
{34:35} But Job has been speaking foolishly, and his words contain unsound teaching.
{34:36} My father, let Job be tested even to the end; may you not retreat from a man of iniquity.
{34:37} For he adds blasphemy on top of his sins; nevertheless, let him be constrained to be among us, and then let him provoke God to judgment with his speeches.
{35:1} After this, Eliu again spoke in this way:
{35:2} Does it seem right to you in your thoughts, that you should say, “I am more just than God?”
{35:3} For you said, “Having done what is right does not please you,” and, “How will it benefit you, if I sin?”
{35:4} And so, I will respond to your words, and to your friends who are with you.
{35:5} Look up towards heaven and consider; also, think about the sky, which is higher than you.
{35:6} If you sin, how will it hurt him? And if your iniquities are multiplied, what will you do against him?
{35:7} Furthermore, if you act justly, what will you give him, or what will he receive from your hand?
{35:8} Your impiety may hurt a man who is like you, though your justice may help the son of the man.
{35:9} Because of the multitude of false accusers, they will cry out; and they will lament because of the strong arm of the tyrants.
{35:10} Yet he has not said: “Where is God, who made me, who has given songs in the night,
{35:11} who teaches us in addition to the beasts of the earth, and who educates us along with the birds of the air?”
{35:12} There they will cry, and he will not heed them, because of the arrogance of the wicked.
{35:13} Therefore, God does not hear in vain, and the Almighty will look into each and every case.
{35:14} And so, when you say, “He does not examine,” be judged before him, but wait for him.
{35:15} For, at the present time, he does not bring forth his fury, nor does he punish sin exceedingly.
{35:16} Therefore, Job has opened his mouth in vain and has multiplied words without knowledge.
{36:1} Continuing in a similar manner, Eliu had this to say:
{36:2} Bear with me for a little while and I will show you; for I have still more to say in favor of God.
{36:3} I will review my knowledge from the beginning, and I will prove my Maker to be just.
{36:4} For truly my words are without any falsehood and perfect knowledge will be proven to you.
{36:5} God does not abandon the powerful, for he himself is also powerful.
{36:6} But he does not save the impious, though he grants judgment to the poor.
{36:7} He will not take his eyes away from the just, and he continually establishes kings on their throne, and they are exalted.
{36:8} And, if they are in captivity, or are bound with the chains of poverty,
{36:9} he will reveal to them their works, as well as their sinfulness, in that they were violent.
{36:10} Likewise, he will open their ears to his correction, and he will speak to them, so that they may return from iniquity.
{36:11} If they listen and obey, they will fill their days with goodness and complete their years in glory.
{36:12} But if they will not listen, they will pass away by the sword and will be consumed by foolishness.
{36:13} The false and the crafty provoke the wrath of God, yet they do not cry out to him when they are chained.
{36:14} Their soul will die in a storm, and their life, among the unmanly.
{36:15} He will rescue the poor from his anguish, and he will open his ear during tribulation.
{36:16} Therefore, he will save you from the narrow mouth very widely, even though it has no foundation under it. Moreover, your respite at table will be full of fatness.
{36:17} Your case has been judged like that of the impious; you will withdraw your plea and your judgment.
{36:18} Therefore, do not let anger overwhelm you so that you oppress another; neither should you allow a multitude of gifts to influence you.
{36:19} Lay down your greatness without distress, and put aside all of your power with courage.
{36:20} Do not prolong the night, even if people rise on their behalf.
{36:21} Be careful that you do not turn to iniquity; for, after your misery, you have begun to follow this.
{36:22} Behold, God is exalted in his strength, and there is no one like him among the law-givers.
{36:23} Who is able to investigate his ways? And who can say, “You have done iniquity,” to him?
{36:24} Remember that you are ignorant of his work, yet men have sung its praises.
{36:25} All men consider him; and each one ponders from a distance.
{36:26} Behold, God is great, defeating our knowledge; the number of his years is inestimable.
{36:27} He carries away the drops of rain, and he sends forth showers like a raging whirlpool;
{36:28} they flow from the clouds that are woven above everything.
{36:29} If he wills it, he extends the clouds as his tent
{36:30} and shines with his light from above; likewise, he covers the oceans within his tent.
{36:31} For he judges the people by these things, and he gives food to a multitude of mortals.
{36:32} Within his hands, he hides the light, and he commands it to come forth again.
{36:33} He announces it to his friend, for it is his possession and he is able to reach out to it.
{37:1} At this, my heart became frightened, and it has been moved from its place.
{37:2} Pay close attention to the alarm of his voice and to the sound that proceeds from his mouth.
{37:3} He beholds everything under the heavens, and his light reaches beyond the ends of the earth.
{37:4} After this, a noise will sound; he will thunder with the voice of his greatness, and it will not be tracked down, yet his voice will be obeyed.
{37:5} God will thunder with his voice miraculously, for he performs great and unsearchable things.
{37:6} He commands the snow to descend on earth, and the winter rains, and the shower of his strength.
{37:7} He signs the hand of all men, so that each one may know his works.
{37:8} The beast will enter his hiding-place, and he will remain in his cave.
{37:9} From the interior, a storm will come forth, and a cold winter from the north.
{37:10} As God breathes out, frost forms, and the waters are poured forth very widely again.
{37:11} Crops desire clouds, and the clouds scatter their light.
{37:12} It shines all around, wherever the will of him that governs them will lead, to anywhere he will command, over the whole face of the earth,
{37:13} whether in one tribe, or in his own region, or in whatever place of his mercy that he will order them to be found.
{37:14} Listen to these things, Job. Stand up and consider the wonders of God.
{37:15} Do you know when God ordered the rains, so as to show the light of his clouds?
{37:16} Do you know the great paths of the clouds, and the perfect sciences?
{37:17} Are not your garments hot, when the south wind blows across the land?
{37:18} Perhaps you have made the heavens with him, which are very solid, as if they had been cast from brass.
{37:19} Reveal to us what we should say to him, for, of course, we are wrapped in darkness.
{37:20} Who will explain to him the things that I am saying? Even while a man is still speaking, he will be devoured.
{37:21} Although they do not see the light, the air will be thickened suddenly into clouds, and the wind, passing by, will drive them away.
{37:22} Riches arrive from the north, and fearful praise reaches out to God.
{37:23} We are not worthy to be able to find him. Great in strength, great in judgment, great in justice: he is indescribable.
{37:24} Therefore, men will fear him, and all those who seem to themselves to be wise, will not dare to contemplate him.
{38:1} But the Lord, responding to Job from a whirlwind, said:
{38:2} Who is this that wraps sentences in unskilled words?
{38:3} Gird your waist like a man. I will question you, and you must answer me.
{38:4} Where were you, when I set the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.
{38:5} Who set its measurements, if you know, or who stretched a line over it?
{38:6} Upon what have its bases been grounded, and who set forth its cornerstone,
{38:7} when the morning stars praised me together, and all the sons of God made a joyful noise?
{38:8} Who enclosed the sea with doors, when it broke forth as if issuing from the womb,
{38:9} when I stationed a cloud as its garment and wrapped it in a mist as if swaddling an infant?
{38:10} I encircled it with my limits, and I positioned its bars and doors.
{38:11} And I said: “This far you will approach, and you will proceed no further, and here you will break your swelling waves.”
{38:12} Did you, after your birth, command the birth of the sun and show the sunrise its place?
{38:13} And did you hold the extremities of the earth, shaking them, and have you shaken the impious out of it?
{38:14} The seal will be restored like clay, and it will remain in place like a garment.
{38:15} From the impious, the light will be taken away, and the exalted arm will be broken.
{38:16} Have you entered the depths of the sea, and have you taken a walk in the uttermost parts of the abyss?
{38:17} Have the gates of death been opened to you, and have you seen the doors of darkness?
{38:18} Have you considered the breadth of the earth? If you know all things, reveal them to me.
{38:19} Which is the way that holds the light, and which is the place of darkness?
{38:20} In this way, you might lead each thing to its final place, and understand the paths of its house.
{38:21} So then, did you know when you were to be born? And did you know the number of your days?
{38:22} Have you been admitted into the storehouses of the snows, and have you gazed upon the stockpile of the brimstone,
{38:23} which I have prepared for the time of the enemy, for the day of the battle and the war?
{38:24} In what way is the light scattered, and the heat distributed, over the earth?
{38:25} Who gave a course to the rainstorms, and a path to the resounding thunder,
{38:26} so that it would rain on the earth far from man, in the wilderness where no mortal lingers,
{38:27} so that it would fill impassable and desolate places, and would bring forth green plants?
{38:28} Who is the father of rain, or who conceived the drops of dew?
{38:29} From whose womb did the ice proceed, and who created the frost from the air?
{38:30} The waters are hardened to become like stone, and the surface of the abyss freezes over.
{38:31} Will you have the strength to join together the sparkling stars of the Pleiades, or are you able to disperse the circling of Arcturus?
{38:32} Can you bring forth the morning star, in its time, and make the evening star rise over the sons of the earth?
{38:33} Do you know the order of heaven, and can you explain its rules here on the earth?
{38:34} Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, so that an onslaught of waters will cover you?
{38:35} Can you send forth lightning bolts, and will they go, and on returning, say to you: “Here we are?”
{38:36} Who placed discernment in the guts of man, or who gave the rooster intelligence?
{38:37} Who can describe the rules of the heavens, or who can put to rest the harmony of heaven?
{38:38} When was the dust cast to become the earth, and when were its clods fastened together?
{38:39} Will you seize prey for the lioness, and will you sustain the lives of her young,
{38:40} as they rest in their dens or lie in wait in pits?
{38:41} Who provides the raven with its meal, when her chicks cry out to God, as they wander around because they have no food?
{39:1} Do you know at what time the wild goats have given birth among the rocks, or do you observe the deer when they go into labor?
{39:2} Have you numbered the months since their conception, and do you know at what time they gave birth?
{39:3} They bend themselves for their offspring, and they give birth, and they emit roars.
{39:4} Their young are weaned and go out to feed; they depart and do not return to them.
{39:5} Who has set the wild ass free, and who has released his bonds?
{39:6} I have given a house in solitude to him, and his tabernacle is in the salted land.
{39:7} He despises the crowded city; he does not pay attention to the bellow of the tax collector.
{39:8} He looks around the mountains of his pasture, and he searches everywhere for green plants.
{39:9} Will the rhinoceros be willing to serve you, and will he remain in your stall?
{39:10} Can you detain the rhinoceros with your harness to plough for you, and will he loosen the soil of the furrows behind you?
{39:11} Will you put your faith in his great strength, and delegate your labors to him?
{39:12} Will you trust him to return to you the seed, and to gather it on your drying floor?
{39:13} The wing of the ostrich is like the wings of the heron, and of the hawk.
{39:14} When she leaves eggs behind in the earth, will you perhaps warm them in the dust?
{39:15} She forgets that feet may trample them, or that the beasts of the field may shatter them.
{39:16} She is hardened against her young, as if they were not hers; she has labored in vain, with no fear compelling her.
{39:17} For God has deprived her of wisdom; neither has he given her understanding.
{39:18} Yet, when the time is right, she raises her wings on high; she ridicules the horse and his rider.
{39:19} Will you supply strength to the horse, or envelope his throat with neighing?
{39:20} Will you alarm him as the locusts do? His panic is revealed by the display of his nostrils.
{39:21} He digs at the earth with his hoof; he jumps around boldly; he advances to meet armed men.
{39:22} He despises fear; he does not turn away from the sword.
{39:23} Above him, the quiver rattles, the spear and the shield shake.
{39:24} Seething and raging, he drinks up the earth; neither does he pause when the blast of the trumpet sounds.
{39:25} When he hears the bugle, he says, “Ha!” He smells the battle from a distance, the exhortation of the officers, and the battle cry of the soldiers.
{39:26} Does the hawk grow feathers by means of your wisdom, spreading her wings towards the south?
{39:27} Will the eagle lift herself up at your command and make her nest in steep places?
{39:28} She dwells among the rocks, and she lingers among broken boulders and inaccessible cliffs.
{39:29} From there, she looks for food, and her eyes catch sight of it from far away.
{39:30} Her young will drink blood, and wherever the carcass will be, she is there immediately.
{39:31} And the Lord continued, and he said to Job:
{39:32} Will he who contends with God be so easily silenced? Certainly, he who argues with God must also respond to him.
{39:33} Then Job answered the Lord, saying:
{39:34} What could I possibly answer, since I have been speaking thoughtlessly? I will place my hand over my mouth.
{39:35} One thing I have spoken, which I wish I had not said; and another, to which I will add no more.
{40:1} But the Lord, answering Job out of the whirlwind, said:
{40:2} Gird your waist like a man. I will question you, and you must answer me.
{40:3} Will you make my judgment null and void; and will you condemn me so that you may be justified?
{40:4} And do you have an arm like God, or a voice like thunder?
{40:5} Envelop yourself with splendor, and raise yourself up on high, and be glorious, and put on splendid garments.
{40:6} Scatter the arrogant with your wrath, and, when you see all the arrogant, humble them.
{40:7} Look down upon each of the arrogant and confound them, and crush the impious in their place.
{40:8} Hide them in the dust together and plunge their faces into the pit.
{40:9} Then I will confess that your right hand is able to save you.
{40:10} Behold, the behemoth, whom I created along with you, eats hay like an ox.
{40:11} His strength is in his lower back, and his power is in the center of his abdomen.
{40:12} He draws up his tail like a cedar; the sinews of his thighs have been drawn together.
{40:13} His bones are like pipes of brass; his cartilage is like plates of iron.
{40:14} He is the beginning of the ways of God, who made him; he will use him as his sword.
{40:15} The mountains bring forth grass for him; all the beasts of the field will play there.
{40:16} He sleeps in the shadows, under the cover of branches, and in moist places.
{40:17} The shadows cover his shadow; the willows of the brook will encircle him.
{40:18} Behold, he will drink a river and not be amazed, and he has confidence that the Jordan could flow into his mouth.
{40:19} He will seize him through his eyes, as if with a hook, and he will bore through his nostrils, as if with stakes.
{40:20} Can you draw out the leviathan with a hook, and can you bind his tongue with a cord?
{40:21} Can you place a ring in his nose, or bore through his jaw with an arm band?
{40:22} Will he offer many prayers to you, or speak to you quietly?
{40:23} Will he form a covenant with you, and will you accept him as a servant forever?
{40:24} Will you play with him as with a bird, or tether him for your handmaids?
{40:25} Will your friends cut him into pieces, will dealers distribute him?
{40:26} Will you fill up bags with his hide, and let his head be used as a home for fishes?
{40:27} Place your hand upon him; remember the battle and speak no more.
{40:28} Behold, his hope will fail him, and in the sight of all, he will be thrown down.
{41:1} I will not rouse him, as the cruel would do, for who is able to withstand my countenance?
{41:2} Who has given to me beforehand, so that I should repay him? All things that are under heaven are mine.
{41:3} I will not spare him, nor his powerful words and counterfeit attempts at supplication.
{41:4} Who can reveal the beauty of his garment? And who can enter the middle of his mouth?
{41:5} Who can open the doors of his face? I gave fear to the circle of his teeth.
{41:6} His body is like shields fused together, like dense scales pressed over one another.
{41:7} One is joined to another, and not even air can pass between them.
{41:8} They adhere to one another, and they hold themselves in place and will not be separated.
{41:9} His sneezing has the brilliance of fire, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.
{41:10} Lamps proceed from his mouth, like torches of fire burning brightly.
{41:11} Smoke passes out of his nostrils, like a pot that is heated and boiling.
{41:12} His breath causes coal to burn, and a flame comes forth from his mouth.
{41:13} Strength dwells in his neck, and destitution goes before his presence.
{41:14} The parts of his body work in harmony together. He will send lightning bolts against him, and they will not be carried to another place.
{41:15} His heart will be as hard as a stone and as dense as a blacksmith’s anvil.
{41:16} When he will be raised up, the angels will be afraid, and, because they are terrified, they will purify themselves.
{41:17} When a sword catches up with him, it will not be able to settle in, nor a spear, nor a breastplate.
{41:18} For he will consider iron as if it were chaff, and brass as if it were rotten wood.
{41:19} The archer will not cause him to flee; the stones of the sling have been turned into stubble for him.
{41:20} He will treat the hammer as if it were stubble, and he will ridicule those who brandish the spear.
{41:21} The beams of the sun will be under him, and he will dispense gold to them as if it were clay.
{41:22} He will make the depths of the sea boil like a pot, and he will set it to bubble just as ointments do.
{41:23} A path will shine after him; he will esteem the abyss as if it were weakening with age.
{41:24} There is no power on the earth that is being compared to him, who has been made so that he fears no one.
{41:25} He sees every prominent thing; he is king over all the sons of arrogance.
{42:1} Then Job, responding to the Lord, said:
{42:2} I know that you are able to do all things, and that no thoughts are hidden from you.
{42:3} So, who is it that would disguise a lack of knowledge as counsel? Therefore, I have been speaking foolishly, about things whose measure exceeds my knowledge.
{42:4} Listen, and I will speak. I will question you, and you may answer me.
{42:5} By paying attention with the ear, I have heard you, but now my eye sees you.
{42:6} Therefore, I find myself reprehensible, and I will do penance in embers and ashes.
{42:7} But after the Lord had finished speaking these words to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Themanite: My wrath has been kindled against you, and against your two friends, because you have not been speaking correctly in my eyes, as my servant Job has done.
{42:8} Therefore, have seven bulls and seven rams brought to you, and go to my servant Job, and offer these as a holocaust for yourselves. But also, my servant Job will pray for you; I will accept his face, so that foolishness will not be imputed to you. For you have not been speaking correctly about me, as my servant Job has done.
{42:9} So Eliphaz the Themanite, and Baldad the Suhite, and Zophar the Naamathite departed, and they did just as the Lord had spoken to them, and the Lord accepted the face of Job.
{42:10} Likewise, the Lord was moved by the repentance of Job, when he prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave to Job twice as much as he had before.
{42:11} Yet all his brethren came to him, and all his sisters, and everyone who had known him before, and they ate bread with him in his house. They also shook their heads over him and comforted him, because of all the bad things that God had inflicted on him. And each one of them gave him one female sheep, and one earring of gold.
{42:12} And the Lord blessed the latter end of Job even more than his beginning. And he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand pairs of oxen, and a thousand she-donkeys.
{42:13} And he had seven sons and three daughters.
{42:14} And he called the name of one, Daylight, and the name of the second, Cinnamon, and the name of the third, Horn of Cosmetics.
{42:15} And, in the whole world, there were not found women so beautiful as the daughters of Job. And so their father gave them an inheritance along with their brothers.
{42:16} But Job lived long after these events, for a hundred and forty years, and he saw his children, and his children’s children, all the way to the fourth generation, and he died an old man and full of days.
{1:1} Blessed is the man who has not followed the counsel of the impious, and has not remained in the way of sinners, and has not sat in the chair of pestilence.
{1:2} But his will is with the law of the Lord, and he will meditate on his law, day and night.
{1:3} And he will be like a tree that has been planted beside running waters, which will provide its fruit in its time, and its leaf will not fall away, and all things whatsoever that he does will prosper.
{1:4} Not so the impious, not so. For they are like the dust that the wind casts along the face of the earth.
{1:5} Therefore, the impious will not prevail again in judgment, nor sinners in the council of the just.
{1:6} For the Lord knows the way of the just. And the path of the impious will pass away.
{2:1} Why have the Gentiles been seething, and why have the people been pondering nonsense?
{2:2} The kings of the earth have stood up, and the leaders have joined together as one, against the Lord and against his Christ:
{2:3} “Let us shatter their chains and cast their yoke away from us.”
{2:4} He who dwells in heaven will ridicule them, and the Lord will mock them.
{2:5} Then will he speak to them in his anger and trouble them with his fury.
{2:6} Yet I have been appointed king by him over Zion, his holy mountain, preaching his precepts.
{2:7} The Lord has said to me: You are my son, this day have I begotten you.
{2:8} Ask of me and I will give to you: the Gentiles for your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for your possession.
{2:9} You will rule them with an iron rod, and you will shatter them like a potter’s vessel.
{2:10} And now, O kings, understand. Receive instruction, you who judge the earth.
{2:11} Serve the Lord in fear, and exult in him with trembling.
{2:12} Embrace discipline, lest at any time the Lord might become angry, and you would perish from the way of the just.
{2:13} Though his wrath can flare up in a short time, blessed are all those who trust in him.
{3:1} A Psalm of David. When he fled from the face of his son, Absalom.
{3:2} Lord, why have those who trouble me been multiplied? Many rise up against me.
{3:3} Many say to my soul, “There is no salvation for him in his God.”
{3:4} But you, Lord, are my supporter, my glory, and the one who raises up my head.
{3:5} I have cried out to the Lord with my voice, and he has heard me from his holy mountain.
{3:6} I have slept, and I have been stupefied. But I awakened because the Lord has taken me up.
{3:7} I will not fear the thousands of people surrounding me. Rise up, Lord. Save me, my God.
{3:8} For you have struck all those who oppose me without cause. You have broken the teeth of sinners.
{3:9} Salvation is of the Lord, and your blessing is upon your people.
{4:1} In parts according to verses. A Psalm of David.
{4:2} When I called upon him, the God of my justice heeded me. In tribulation, you have enlarged me. Have mercy on me, and heed my prayer.
{4:3} Sons of men, how long will you be dull in heart, so that whatever you love is in vain, and whatever you seek is false?
{4:4} And know this: the Lord has made wondrous his holy one. The Lord will heed me when I cry out to him.
{4:5} Be angry, and do not be willing to sin. The things that you say in your hearts: be sorry for them on your beds.
{4:6} Offer the sacrifice of justice, and hope in the Lord. Many say, “Who reveals to us what is good?”
{4:7} The light of your countenance, Lord, has been sealed upon us. You have given joy to my heart.
{4:8} By the fruit of their grain, wine, and oil, they have been multiplied.
{4:9} In peace itself, I will sleep and I will rest.
{4:10} For you, O Lord, have established me singularly in hope.
{5:1} Unto the end. For her who pursues the inheritance. A Psalm of David.
{5:2} O Lord, listen closely to my words. Understand my outcry.
{5:3} Attend to the voice of my prayer, my King and my God.
{5:4} For to you, I will pray. In the morning, Lord, you will hear my voice.
{5:5} In the morning, I will stand before you, and I will see. For you are not a God who wills iniquity.
{5:6} And the malicious will not dwell close to you, nor will the unjust endure before your eyes.
{5:7} You hate all who work iniquity. You will destroy all who speak a lie. The bloody and deceitful man, the Lord will abominate.
{5:8} But I am in the multitude of your mercy. I will enter your house. I will show adoration toward your holy temple, in your fear.
{5:9} Lord, lead me in your justice. Because of my enemies, direct my way in your sight.
{5:10} For there is no truth in their mouth: their heart is vain.
{5:11} Their throat is an open sepulcher. They have acted deceitfully with their tongues. Judge them, O God. Let them fall by their own intentions: according to the multitude of their impiety, expel them. For they have provoked you, O Lord.
{5:12} But let all those who hope in you rejoice. They will exult in eternity, and you will dwell in them. And all those who love your name will glory in you.
{5:13} For you will bless the just. You have crowned us, O Lord, as if with a shield of your good will.
{6:1} In parts according to verses. A Psalm of David. For the octave.
{6:2} O Lord, do not rebuke me in your fury, nor chastise me in your anger.
{6:3} Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am weak. Heal me, Lord, for my bones have become disturbed,
{6:4} and my soul has been very troubled. But as for you, Lord, when?
{6:5} Turn to me, Lord, and rescue my soul. Save me because of your mercy.
{6:6} For there is no one in death who would be mindful of you. And who will confess to you in Hell?
{6:7} I have labored in my groaning. Every night, with my tears, I will wash my bed and drench my blanket.
{6:8} My eye has been troubled by rage. I have grown old among all my enemies.
{6:9} Scatter before me, all you who work iniquity, for the Lord has heard the voice of my weeping.
{6:10} The Lord has heard my supplication. The Lord has accepted my prayer.
{6:11} Let all my enemies be ashamed and together be greatly troubled. May they be converted and become ashamed very quickly.
{7:1} A Psalm of David, which he sang to the Lord because of the words of Cush, the son of Jemini.
{7:2} O Lord, my God, in you I have hoped. Save me from all those who persecute me, and free me:
{7:3} lest at any time, like a lion, he might seize my soul, while there is no one to redeem me, nor any who can save.
{7:4} O Lord, my God, if there is iniquity in my hands, if I have done this:
{7:5} if I have repaid those who rendered evils to me, may I deservedly fall away empty before my enemies:
{7:6} let the enemy pursue my soul, and take hold of it, and trample my life into the earth, and drag down my glory into the dust.
{7:7} Rise up, Lord, in your anger. And be exalted to the borders of my enemies. And rise up, O Lord my God, according to the precept that you commanded,
{7:8} and a congregation of people will surround you. And, because of this, return on high.
{7:9} The Lord judges the people. Judge me, O Lord, according to my justice and according to my innocence within me.
{7:10} The wickedness of sinners will be consumed, and you will direct the just: the examiner of hearts and temperaments is God.
{7:11} Just is my help from the Lord, who saves the upright of heart.
{7:12} God is a just judge, strong and patient. How could he be angry throughout every day?
{7:13} Unless you will be converted, he will brandish his sword. He has extended his bow and made it ready.
{7:14} And with it, he has prepared instruments of death. He has produced his arrows for those on fire.
{7:15} Behold him who has given birth to injustice: he has conceived sorrow and has begotten iniquity.
{7:16} He has opened a pit and enlarged it. And he has fallen into the hole that he made.
{7:17} His sorrow will be turned upon his own head, and his iniquity will descend upon his highest point.
{7:18} I will confess to the Lord according to his justice, and I will sing a psalm to the name of the Lord Most High.
{8:1} Unto the end. For the oil and wine presses. A Psalm of David.
{8:2} O Lord, our Lord, how admirable is your name throughout all the earth! For your magnificence is elevated above the heavens.
{8:3} Out of the mouths of babes and infants, you have perfected praise, because of your enemies, so that you may destroy the enemy and the revenger.
{8:4} For I will behold your heavens, the works of your fingers: the moon and the stars, which you have founded.
{8:5} What is man, that you are mindful of him, or the son of man, that you visit him?
{8:6} You reduced him to a little less than the Angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor,
{8:7} and you have set him over the works of your hands.
{8:8} You have subjected all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, and in addition: the beasts of the field,
{8:9} the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, which pass through the paths of the sea.
{8:10} O Lord, our Lord, how admirable is your name throughout all the earth!
{9:1} Unto the end. For the secrets of the Son. A Psalm of David.
{9:2} I will confess to you, Lord, with my whole heart. I will recount all your wonders.
{9:3} I will rejoice and exult in you. I will sing a psalm to your name, O Most High.
{9:4} For my enemy will be turned back. They will be weakened and perish before your face.
{9:5} For you have accomplished my judgment and my cause. You have sat upon the throne that judges justice.
{9:6} You have rebuked the Gentiles, and the impious one has perished. You have deleted their name in eternity and for all generations.
{9:7} The spears of the enemy have failed in the end, and their cities, you have destroyed. Their memory has perished with a loud noise.
{9:8} But the Lord remains in eternity. He has prepared his throne in judgment.
{9:9} And he will judge the whole world in equity. He will judge the people in justice.
{9:10} And the Lord has become a refuge for the poor, a helper in opportunity, in tribulation.
{9:11} And may they hope in you, who know your name. For you have not abandoned those seeking you, Lord.
{9:12} Sing a psalm to the Lord, who dwells in Zion. Announce his study among the Gentiles.
{9:13} Because of those who yearned for their blood, he has remembered them. He has not forgotten the cry of the poor.
{9:14} Have mercy on me, Lord. See my humiliation from my enemies.
{9:15} You lift me up from the gates of death, so that I may announce all your praises at the gates of the daughter of Zion.
{9:16} I will exult in your salvation. The Gentiles have become trapped in the ruin that they made. Their foot has been caught in the same snare that they themselves had hidden.
{9:17} The Lord will be recognized when making judgments. The sinner has been caught in the works of his own hands.
{9:18} The sinners will be turned into Hell: all the Gentiles who have forgotten God.
{9:19} For the poor will not be forgotten in the end. The patience of the poor will not perish in the end.
{9:20} Rise up, Lord: do not let man be strengthened. Let the Gentiles be judged in your sight.
{9:21} O Lord, establish a lawgiver over them, so that the Gentiles may know that they are only men.
{9:22} So then, why, O Lord, have you withdrawn far away? Why have you overlooked us in opportunity, in tribulation?
{9:23} While the impious is arrogant, the poor is enflamed. They are held by the counsels that they devise.
{9:24} For the sinner is praised by the desires of his soul, and the iniquitous is blessed.
{9:25} The sinner has provoked the Lord; according to the multitude of his wrath, he will not seek him.
{9:26} God is not before his sight. His ways are stained at all times. Your judgments are removed from his face. He will be master of all his enemies.
{9:27} For he has said in his heart, “I will not be disturbed: from generation to generation without evil.”
{9:28} His mouth is full of curses, and bitterness, and deceit. Under his tongue are hardship and sorrow.
{9:29} He sits in ambush, with resources in hidden places, so that he may execute the innocent.
{9:30} His eyes catch sight of the poor. He lies in ambush, in hiding like a lion in his den. He lies in ambush, so that he may seize the poor, to seize the poor as he draws him in.
{9:31} With his snare, he will bring him down. He will crouch down and pounce, when he has power over the poor.
{9:32} For he has said in his heart, “God has forgotten, he has turned away his face, lest he see to the end.”
{9:33} O Lord God, rise up. Let your hand be exalted. Do not forget the poor.
{9:34} How has the impious one provoked God? For he has said in his heart, “He will not inquire.”
{9:35} You do see, for you examine hardship and sorrow, so that you may deliver them into your hands. The poor one has been abandoned to you. You will be a helper to the orphan.
{9:36} Break the arm of the sinner and the malicious. His sin will be sought, and it will not be found.
{9:37} The Lord shall reign in eternity, even forever and ever. You will perish the Gentiles from his land.
{9:38} The Lord has heeded the desire of the poor. Your ear has listened to the preparation of their heart,
{9:39} so as to judge for the orphan and the humble, so that man may no longer presume to magnify himself upon the earth.
{10:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David.
{10:2} I trust in the Lord. How can you say to my soul, “Sojourn to the mountain, like a sparrow.”
{10:3} For behold, the sinners have bent their bow. They have prepared their arrows in the quiver, so as to shoot arrows in the dark at the upright of heart.
{10:4} For they have destroyed the things that you have completed. But what has the just one done?
{10:5} The Lord is in his holy temple. The Lord’s throne is in heaven. His eyes look upon the poor. His eyelids question the sons of men.
{10:6} The Lord questions the just and the impious. Yet he who loves iniquity, hates his own soul.
{10:7} He will rain down snares upon sinners. Fire and brimstone and windstorms will be the portion of their cup.
{10:8} For the Lord is just, and he has chosen justice. His countenance has beheld equity.
{11:1} Unto the end. For the octave. A Psalm of David.
{11:2} Save me, O Lord, because holiness has passed away, because truths have been diminished, before the sons of men.
{11:3} They have been speaking emptiness, each one to his neighbor; they have been speaking with deceitful lips and a duplicitous heart.
{11:4} May the Lord scatter all deceitful lips, along with the tongue that speaks malice.
{11:5} They have said: “We will magnify our tongue; our lips belong to us. Who is our Lord?”
{11:6} Because of the misery of the destitute and the groaning of the poor, now I will arise, says the Lord. I will place him in safety. I will act faithfully toward him.
{11:7} The eloquence of the Lord is pure eloquence, silver tested by fire, purged from the earth, refined seven times.
{11:8} You, O Lord, will preserve us, and you will guard us from this generation into eternity.
{11:9} The impious wander aimlessly. According to your loftiness, you have multiplied the sons of men.
{12:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David. How long, O Lord? Will you forget me until the end? How long will you turn your face away from me?
{12:2} How long can I take counsel in my soul, sorrowing in my heart throughout the day?
{12:3} How long will my enemy be exalted over me?
{12:4} Look upon me and listen to me, O Lord my God. Enlighten my eyes, lest I fall asleep forever in death,
{12:5} lest at any time my enemy may say, “I have prevailed against him.” Those who trouble me will exult, if I have been disturbed.
{12:6} But I have hoped in your mercy. My heart will exult in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, who assigns good things to me. And I will sing psalms to the name of the Lord Most High.
{13:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David. The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They were corrupted, and they have become abominable in their studies. There is no one who does good; there is not even one.
{13:2} The Lord has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men, to see if there were any who were considering or seeking God.
{13:3} They have all gone astray; together they have become useless. There is no one who does good; there is not even one.
{13:4} Their throat is an open sepulcher. With their tongues, they have been acting deceitfully; the venom of asps is under their lips. Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.
{13:5} Their feet are swift to shed blood. Grief and unhappiness are in their ways; and the way of peace, they have not known.
{13:6} There is no fear of God before their eyes.
{13:7} Will they never learn: all those who work iniquity, who devour my people like a meal of bread?
{13:8} They have not called upon the Lord. There, they have trembled in fear, where there was no fear.
{13:9} For the Lord is with the just generation. You have confounded the counsel of the needy because the Lord is his hope.
{13:10} Who will grant the salvation of Israel from Zion? When the Lord turns away the captivity of his people, Jacob will exult, and Israel will rejoice.
{14:1} A Psalm of David. O Lord, who will dwell in your tabernacle? Or who will rest on your holy mountain?
{14:2} He who walks without blemish and who works justice.
{14:3} He who speaks the truth in his heart, who has not acted deceitfully with his tongue, and has not done evil to his neighbor, and has not taken up a reproach against his neighbors.
{14:4} In his sight, the malicious one has been reduced to nothing, but he glorifies those who fear the Lord. He who swears to his neighbor and does not deceive.
{14:5} He who has not given his money in usury, nor accepted bribes against the innocent. He who does these things will be undisturbed for eternity.
{15:1} The inscription of a title: of David himself. Preserve me, O Lord, because I have hoped in you.
{15:2} I have said to the Lord: “You are my God, so you have no need of my goodness.”
{15:3} As for the saints, who are in his land: he has made all my desires wonderful in them.
{15:4} Their infirmities have been multiplied; after this, they acted more quickly. I will not gather for their convocations of blood, nor will I remember their names with my lips.
{15:5} The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup. It is you who will restore my inheritance to me.
{15:6} The lots have fallen upon me with clarity. And, indeed, my inheritance has been very clear to me.
{15:7} I will bless the Lord, who has bestowed understanding upon me. Moreover, my temperament has also corrected me, even through the night.
{15:8} I have made provision for the Lord always in my sight. For he is at my right hand, so that I may not be disturbed.
{15:9} Because of this, my heart has been joyful, and my tongue has exulted. Moreover, even my body will rest in hope.
{15:10} For you will not abandon my soul to Hell, nor will you allow your holy one to see corruption.
{15:11} You have made known to me the ways of life; you will fill me with joy by your countenance. At your right hand are delights, even to the end.
{16:1} A Prayer of David. Lord, listen to my justice, attend to my supplication. Pay attention to my prayer, which is not from deceitful lips.
{16:2} Let my judgment proceed from your presence. Let your eyes behold fairness.
{16:3} You have tested my heart and visited it by night. You have examined me by fire, and iniquity has not been found in me.
{16:4} Therefore, may my mouth not speak the works of men. I have kept to difficult ways because of the words of your lips.
{16:5} Perfect my steps in your paths, so that my footsteps may not be disturbed.
{16:6} I have cried out because you, O God, have listened to me. Incline your ear to me and heed my words.
{16:7} Make your mercies wonderful, for you save those who hope in you.
{16:8} From those who resist your right hand, preserve me like the pupil of your eye. Protect me under the shadow of your wings,
{16:9} from the face of the impious who have afflicted me. My enemies have surrounded my soul.
{16:10} They have concealed their fatness; their mouth has been speaking arrogantly.
{16:11} They have cast me out, and now they have surrounded me. They have cast their eyes down to the earth.
{16:12} They have taken me, like a lion ready for the prey, and like a young lion dwelling in hiding.
{16:13} Rise up, O Lord, arrive before him and displace him. Deliver my soul from the impious one: your spear from the enemies of your hand.
{16:14} Lord, divide them from the few of the earth in their life. Their gut has been filled from your hidden stores. They have been filled with sons, and they have bequeathed to their little ones the remainder.
{16:15} But as for me, I will appear before your sight in justice. I will be satisfied when your glory appears.
{17:1} Unto the end. For David, the servant of the Lord, who spoke the words of this canticle to the Lord, in the day that the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. And he said:
{17:2} I will love you, O Lord my strength.
{17:3} The Lord is my firmament, my refuge, and my liberator. My God is my helper, and I hope in him: my protector, and the horn of my salvation, and my support.
{17:4} Praising, I will call upon the Lord. And I will be saved from my enemies.
{17:5} The sorrows of death surrounded me, and the torrents of iniquity dismayed me.
{17:6} The sorrows of Hell encompassed me, and the snares of death intercepted me.
{17:7} In my tribulation, I called upon the Lord, and I cried out to my God. And he listened to my voice from his holy temple. And my cry in his presence entered into his ears.
{17:8} The earth was shaken, and it trembled. The foundations of the mountains were disturbed, and they were shaken, because he was angry with them.
{17:9} A smoke ascended by his wrath, and a fire flared up from his face: coals were kindled by it.
{17:10} He bent the heavens, and they descended. And darkness was under his feet.
{17:11} And he ascended upon the cherubim, and he flew: he flew upon the feathers of the winds.
{17:12} And he set darkness as his hiding place, with his tabernacle all around him: dark waters in the clouds of the air.
{17:13} At the brightness that was before his sight, the clouds crossed by, with hail and coals of fire.
{17:14} And the Lord thundered from heaven, and the Most High uttered his voice: hail and coals of fire.
{17:15} And he sent forth his arrows and scattered them. He multiplied lightnings, and he set them in disarray.
{17:16} Then the fountains of waters appeared, and the foundations of the world were revealed, by your rebuke, O Lord, by the inspiration of the Spirit of your wrath.
{17:17} He sent from on high, and he accepted me. And he took me up, out of many waters.
{17:18} He rescued me from my strongest enemies, and from those who hated me. For they had been too strong for me.
{17:19} They intercepted me in the day of my affliction, and the Lord became my protector.
{17:20} And he led me out, into a wide place. He accomplished my salvation, because he willed me.
{17:21} And the Lord will reward me according to my justice, and he will repay me according to the purity of my hands.
{17:22} For I have preserved the ways of the Lord, and I have not behaved impiously before my God.
{17:23} For all his judgments are in my sight, and his justice, I have not pushed away from me.
{17:24} And I will be immaculate together with him, and I will keep myself from my iniquity.
{17:25} And the Lord will reward me according to my justice and according to the purity of my hands before his eyes.
{17:26} With the holy, you will be holy, and with the innocent, you will be innocent,
{17:27} and with the elect, you will be elect, and with the perverse, you will be perverse.
{17:28} For you will save the humble people, but you will bring down the eyes of the arrogant.
{17:29} For you illuminate my lamp, O Lord. My God, enlighten my darkness.
{17:30} For in you, I will be delivered from temptation; and with my God, I will climb over a wall.
{17:31} As for my God, his way is undefiled. The eloquence of the Lord has been examined by fire. He is the protector of all who hope in him.
{17:32} For who is God, except the Lord? And who is God, except our God?
{17:33} It is God who has wrapped me with virtue and made my way immaculate.
{17:34} It is he who has perfected my feet, like the feet of deer, and who stations me upon the heights.
{17:35} It is he who trains my hands for battle. And you have set my arms like a bow of brass.
{17:36} And you have given me the protection of your salvation. And your right hand sustains me. And your discipline has corrected me unto the end. And your discipline itself will teach me.
{17:37} You have expanded my footsteps under me, and my tracks have not been weakened.
{17:38} I will pursue my enemies and apprehend them. And I will not turn back until they have failed.
{17:39} I will break them, and they will not be able to stand. They will fall under my feet.
{17:40} And you have wrapped me with virtue for the battle. And those rising up against me, you have subdued under me.
{17:41} And you have given the back of my enemies to me, and you have destroyed those who hated me.
{17:42} They cried out, but there was none to save them, to the Lord, but he did not heed them.
{17:43} And I will crush them into dust before the face of the wind, so that I will obliterate them like the mud in the streets.
{17:44} You will rescue me from the contradictions of the people. You will set me at the head of the Gentiles.
{17:45} A people I did not know has served me. As soon as their ears heard, they were obedient to me.
{17:46} The sons of foreigners have been deceitful to me, the sons of foreigners have grown weak with time, and they have wavered from their paths.
{17:47} The Lord lives, and blessed is my God, and may the God of my salvation be exalted:
{17:48} O God, who vindicates me and who subdues the people under me, my liberator from my enraged enemies.
{17:49} And you will exalt me above those who rise up against me. From the iniquitous man, you will rescue me.
{17:50} Because of this, O Lord, I will confess to you among the nations, and I will compose a psalm to your name:
{17:51} magnifying the salvation of his king, and showing mercy to David, his Christ, and to his offspring, even for all time.
{18:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David.
{18:2} The heavens describe the glory of God, and the firmament announces the work of his hands.
{18:3} Day proclaims the word to day, and night to night imparts knowledge.
{18:4} There are no speeches or conversations, where their voices are not being heard.
{18:5} Their sound has gone forth through all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world.
{18:6} He has placed his tabernacle in the sun, and he is like a bridegroom coming out of his bedroom. He has exulted like a giant running along the way;
{18:7} his departure is from the summit of heaven. And his course reaches all the way to its summit. Neither is there anyone who can hide himself from his heat.
{18:8} The law of the Lord is immaculate, converting souls. The testimony of the Lord is faithful, providing wisdom to little ones.
{18:9} The justice of the Lord is right, rejoicing hearts. The precepts of the Lord are brilliant, enlightening the eyes.
{18:10} The fear of the Lord is holy, enduring for all generations. The judgments of the Lord are true, justified in themselves:
{18:11} desirable beyond gold and many precious stones, and sweeter than honey and the honeycomb.
{18:12} For, indeed, your servant keeps them, and in keeping them, there are many rewards.
{18:13} Who can understand transgression? From my hidden faults, cleanse me, O Lord,
{18:14} and from those of others, spare your servant. If they will have no dominion over me, then I will be immaculate, and I will be cleansed from the greatest transgression.
{18:15} And the eloquence of my mouth will be so as to please, along with the meditation of my heart, in your sight, forever, O Lord, my helper and my redeemer.
{19:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David.
{19:2} May the Lord hear you in the day of tribulation. May the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
{19:3} May he send you help from the sanctuary and watch over you from Zion.
{19:4} May he be mindful of all your sacrifices, and may your burnt-offerings be fat.
{19:5} May he grant to you according to your heart, and confirm all your counsels.
{19:6} We will rejoice in your salvation, and in the name of our God, we will be magnified.
{19:7} May the Lord fulfill all your petitions. Now I know that the Lord has saved his Christ. He will hear him from his holy heaven. The salvation of his right hand is in his power.
{19:8} Some trust in chariots, and some in horses, but we will call upon the name of the Lord our God.
{19:9} They have been bound, and they have fallen. But we have risen up, and we have been set upright.
{19:10} O Lord, save the king, and hear us on the day that we will call upon you.
{20:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David.
{20:2} In your virtue, Lord, the king will rejoice, and over your salvation, he will exult exceedingly.
{20:3} You have granted him the desire of his heart, and you have not cheated him of the wish of his lips.
{20:4} For you have gone ahead of him with blessings of sweetness. You have placed a crown of precious stones on his head.
{20:5} He petitioned you for life, and you have granted him length of days, in the present time, and forever and ever.
{20:6} Great is his glory in your salvation. Glory and great adornment, you will lay upon him.
{20:7} For you will give him as a blessing forever and ever. You will make him rejoice with gladness in your presence.
{20:8} Because the king hopes in the Lord, and in the mercy of the Most High, he will not be disturbed.
{20:9} May your hand be found by all your enemies. May your right hand discover all those who hate you.
{20:10} You will make them like an oven of fire, in the time of your presence. The Lord will stir them up with his wrath, and fire will devour them.
{20:11} You will destroy their fruit from the earth and their offspring from the sons of men.
{20:12} For they have turned evils upon you; they have devised plans, which they have not been able to accomplish.
{20:13} For you will make them turn their back; with your remnants, you will prepare their countenance.
{20:14} Be exalted, Lord, by your own power. We will play music and sing psalms to your virtues.
{21:1} Unto the end. For the tasks of early morning. A Psalm of David.
{21:2} O God, my God, look upon me. Why have you forsaken me? Far from my salvation are the words of my offenses.
{21:3} My God, I will cry out by day, and you will not heed, and by night, and it will not be foolishness for me.
{21:4} But you dwell in holiness, O Praise of Israel.
{21:5} In you, our fathers have hoped. They hoped, and you freed them.
{21:6} They cried out to you, and they were saved. In you, they hoped and were not confounded.
{21:7} But I am a worm and not a man: a disgrace among men, and an outcast of the people.
{21:8} All those who saw me have derided me. They have spoken with the lips and shook the head.
{21:9} He has hoped in the Lord, let him rescue him. Let him save him because he chooses him.
{21:10} For you are the one who has drawn me out of the womb, my hope from the breasts of my mother.
{21:11} I have been thrown upon you from the womb; from the womb of my mother, you are my God.
{21:12} Do not depart from me. For tribulation is near, since there is no one who may help me.
{21:13} Many calves have surrounded me; fat bulls have besieged me.
{21:14} They have opened their mouths over me, just like a lion seizing and roaring.
{21:15} And so, I have been poured out like water, and all my bones have been scattered. My heart has become like wax, melting in the midst of my chest.
{21:16} My strength has dried up like clay, and my tongue has adhered to my jaws. And you have pulled me down, into the dust of death.
{21:17} For many dogs have surrounded me. The council of the malicious has besieged me. They have pierced my hands and feet.
{21:18} They have numbered all my bones. And they have examined me and stared at me.
{21:19} They divided my garments among them, and over my vestment, they cast lots.
{21:20} But you, O Lord, do not take your help far from me; be attentive to my defense.
{21:21} O God, rescue my soul from the spear, and my only one from the hand of the dog.
{21:22} Save me from the mouth of the lion, and my humility from the horns of the single-horned beast.
{21:23} I will declare your name to my brothers. In the midst of the Church, I will praise you.
{21:24} You who fear the Lord, praise him. All the offspring of Jacob, glorify him.
{21:25} May all the offspring of Israel fear him. For he has neither spurned nor despised the pleas of the poor. Neither has he turned his face away from me. And when I cried out to him, he heeded me.
{21:26} My praise is with you, within a great church. I will pay my vows in the sight of those who fear him.
{21:27} The poor will eat and be satisfied, and those who yearn for the Lord will praise him. Their hearts will live forever and ever.
{21:28} All the ends of the earth will remember, and they will be converted to the Lord. And all the families of the Gentiles will adore in his sight.
{21:29} For the kingdom belongs to the Lord, and he will have dominion over the Gentiles.
{21:30} All the fat of the earth have gnashed their teeth, and they have adored. In his sight, they will fall down, all those who descend to the ground.
{21:31} And my soul will live for him, and my offspring will serve him.
{21:32} There will be announced for the Lord a future generation, and the heavens will announce his justice to a people who will be born, whom the Lord has made.
{22:1} A Psalm of David. The Lord directs me, and nothing will be lacking to me.
{22:2} He has settled me here, in a place of pasture. He has led me out to the water of refreshment.
{22:3} He has converted my soul. He has led me away on the paths of justice, for the sake of his name.
{22:4} For, even if I should walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will fear no evils. For you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they have given me consolation.
{22:5} You have prepared a table in my sight, opposite those who trouble me. You have anointed my head with oil, and my cup, which inebriates me, how brilliant it is!
{22:6} And your mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and so may I dwell in the house of the Lord for length of days.
{23:1} For the First Sabbath. A Psalm of David. The earth and all its fullness belong to the Lord: the whole world and all that dwells in it.
{23:2} For he has founded it upon the seas, and he has prepared it upon the rivers.
{23:3} Who will ascend to the mountain of the Lord? And who will stand in his holy place?
{23:4} The innocent of hands and the clean of heart, who has not received his soul in vain, nor sworn deceitfully to his neighbor.
{23:5} He will receive a blessing from the Lord, and mercy from God, his Savior.
{23:6} This is the generation that seeks him, that seeks the face of the God of Jacob.
{23:7} Lift up your gates, you princes, and be lifted up, eternal gates. And the King of Glory shall enter.
{23:8} Who is this King of Glory? The Lord who is strong and powerful; the Lord powerful in battle.
{23:9} Lift up your gates, you princes, and be lifted up, eternal gates. And the King of Glory shall enter.
{23:10} Who is this King of Glory? The Lord of virtue. He himself is the King of Glory.
{24:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David. To you, Lord, I have lifted up my soul.
{24:2} In you, my God, I trust. Let me not be put to shame.
{24:3} And do not let my enemies laugh at me. For all who remain with you will not be confounded.
{24:4} May all those who act unjustly over nothing be confounded. O Lord, demonstrate your ways to me, and teach me your paths.
{24:5} Direct me in your truth, and teach me. For you are God, my Savior, and I remain with you all day long.
{24:6} O Lord, remember your compassion and your mercies, which are from ages past.
{24:7} Do not remember the offenses of my youth and my ignorances. Remember me according to your mercy, because of your goodness, O Lord.
{24:8} The Lord is sweet and righteous. Because of this, he will grant a law to those who fall short in the way.
{24:9} He will direct the mild in judgment. He will teach the meek his ways.
{24:10} All the ways of the Lord are mercy and truth, to those who yearn for his covenant and his testimonies.
{24:11} Because of your name, O Lord, you will pardon my sin, for it is great.
{24:12} Which is the man who fears the Lord? He has established a law for him, on the way that he has chosen.
{24:13} His soul will dwell upon good things, and his offspring will inherit the earth.
{24:14} The Lord is a firmament to those who fear him, and his covenant will be made manifest to them.
{24:15} My eyes are ever toward the Lord, for he will pull my feet from the snare.
{24:16} Look upon me and have mercy on me; for I am alone and poor.
{24:17} The troubles of my heart have been multiplied. Deliver me from my needfulness.
{24:18} See my lowliness and my hardship, and release all my offenses.
{24:19} Consider my enemies, for they have been multiplied, and they have hated me with an unjust hatred.
{24:20} Preserve my soul and rescue me. I will not be ashamed, for I have hoped in you.
{24:21} The innocent and the righteous have adhered to me, because I have remained with you.
{24:22} Free Israel, O God, from all his tribulations.
{25:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David. Judge me, Lord, for I have been walking in my innocence, and by hoping in the Lord, I will not be weakened.
{25:2} Examine me, Lord, and test me: enkindle my temperament and my heart.
{25:3} For your mercy is before my eyes, and I am serene in your truth.
{25:4} I have not sat with the council of emptiness, and I will not enter with those who carry out injustice.
{25:5} I have hated the assembly of the malicious; and I will not sit with the impious.
{25:6} I will wash my hands among the innocent, and I will surround your altar, O Lord,
{25:7} so that I may hear the voice of your praise and describe all your wonders.
{25:8} O Lord, I have loved the beauty of your house and the dwelling place of your glory.
{25:9} O God, do not let my soul perish with the impious, nor my life with the men of blood,
{25:10} in whose hands are iniquities: their right hand has been filled by bribes.
{25:11} But as for me, I have been walking in my innocence. Redeem me, and have mercy on me.
{25:12} My foot has stood firm in the straight path. In the churches, I will bless you, O Lord.
{26:1} A Psalm of David, before he was sealed. The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear? The Lord is the protector of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?
{26:2} Meanwhile, the guilty draw near to me, so as to eat my flesh. Those who trouble me, my enemies, have themselves been weakened and have fallen.
{26:3} If entrenched armies were to stand together against me, my heart would not fear. If a battle were to rise up against me, I would have hope in this.
{26:4} One thing I have asked of the Lord, this I will seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, so that I may behold the delight of the Lord, and may visit his temple.
{26:5} For he has hidden me in his tabernacle. In the day of evils, he has protected me in the hidden place of his tabernacle.
{26:6} He has exalted me upon the rock, and now he has exalted my head above my enemies. I have circled around and offered a sacrifice of loud exclamation in his tabernacle. I will sing, and I will compose a psalm, to the Lord.
{26:7} Hear my voice, O Lord, with which I have cried out to you. Have mercy on me, and hear me.
{26:8} My heart has spoken to you; my face has sought you. I yearn for your face, O Lord.
{26:9} Do not turn your face away from me. In your wrath, do not turn aside from your servant. Be my helper. Do not abandon me, and do not despise me, O God, my Savior.
{26:10} For my father and my mother have left me behind, but the Lord has taken me up.
{26:11} O Lord, establish a law for me in your way, and direct me in the right path, because of my enemies.
{26:12} Do not surrender me to the souls of those who trouble me. For unjust witnesses have risen up against me, and iniquity has lied to itself.
{26:13} I believe that I shall see the good things of the Lord in the land of the living.
{26:14} Wait for the Lord, act manfully; and let your heart be strengthened, and remain with the Lord.
{27:1} A Psalm of David himself. To you, Lord, I will cry out. My God, do not be silent toward me. For if you remain silent toward me, I will become like those who descend into the pit.
{27:2} Hear, O Lord, the voice of my supplication, when I pray to you, when I lift up my hands toward your holy temple.
{27:3} Do not draw me away together with sinners; and let me not perish with those who work iniquity, who speak peacefully to their neighbor, yet evils are in their hearts.
{27:4} Give to them according to their works and according to the wickedness of their inventions. Assign to them according to the works of their hands. Repay them with their own retribution.
{27:5} Since they have not understood the works of the Lord and the works of his hands, you will destroy them, and you will not build them up.
{27:6} Blessed is the Lord, for he has heard the voice of my supplication.
{27:7} The Lord is my helper and my protector. In him, my heart has hoped and I have been helped. And my flesh has flourished again. And from my will, I shall confess to him.
{27:8} The Lord is the strength of his people and the protector of the salvation of his Christ.
{27:9} O Lord, save your people and bless your inheritance, and reign over them and exalt them, even unto eternity.
{28:1} A Psalm of David, at the completion of the tabernacle. Bring to the Lord, O sons of God, bring to the Lord the sons of rams.
{28:2} Bring to the Lord, glory and honor. Bring to the Lord, glory for his name. Adore the Lord in his holy court.
{28:3} The voice of the Lord is over the waters. The God of majesty has thundered. The Lord is over many waters.
{28:4} The voice of the Lord is in virtue. The voice of the Lord is in magnificence.
{28:5} The voice of the Lord shatters the cedars. And the Lord will shatter the cedars of Lebanon.
{28:6} And it will break them into pieces, like a calf of Lebanon, and in the same way as the beloved son of the single-horned beast.
{28:7} The voice of the Lord cuts through the flame of fire.
{28:8} The voice of the Lord shakes the desert. And the Lord will quake the desert of Kadesh.
{28:9} The voice of the Lord is preparing the stags, and he will reveal the dense woods. And in his temple, all will speak his glory.
{28:10} The Lord causes the great flood to dwell. And the Lord will sit as King in eternity.
{28:11} The Lord will give virtue to his people. The Lord will bless his people in peace.
{29:1} A Canticle Psalm. In dedication to the house of David.
{29:2} I will extol you, Lord, for you have sustained me, and you have not allowed my enemies to delight over me.
{29:3} O Lord my God, I have cried out to you, and you have healed me.
{29:4} Lord, you led my soul away from Hell. You have saved me from those who descend into the pit.
{29:5} Sing a psalm to the Lord, you his saints, and confess with remembrance of his holiness.
{29:6} For wrath is in his indignation, and life is in his will. Toward evening, weeping will linger, and toward morning, gladness.
{29:7} But I have said in my abundance: “I will never be disturbed.”
{29:8} O Lord, in your will, you made virtue preferable to beauty for me. You turned your face away from me, and I became disturbed.
{29:9} To you, Lord, I will cry out. And I will make supplication to my God.
{29:10} What use would there be in my blood, if I descend into corruption? Will dust confess to you or announce your truth?
{29:11} The Lord has heard, and he has been merciful to me. The Lord has become my helper.
{29:12} You have turned my mourning into gladness for me. You have cut off my sackcloth, and you have surrounded me with joy.
{29:13} So then, may my glory sing to you, and may I not regret it. O Lord, my God, I will confess to you for eternity.
{30:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David according to an ecstasy.
{30:2} In you, Lord, I have hoped; let me never be confounded. In your justice, deliver me.
{30:3} Incline your ear to me. Hasten to rescue me. Be for me a protector God and a house of refuge, so as to accomplish my salvation.
{30:4} For you are my strength and my refuge; and for the sake of your name, you will lead me and nourish me.
{30:5} You will lead me out of this snare, which they have hidden for me. For you are my protector.
{30:6} Into your hands, I commend my spirit. You have redeemed me, O Lord, God of truth.
{30:7} You have hated those who practice emptiness to no purpose. But I have hoped in the Lord.
{30:8} I will exult and rejoice in your mercy. For you have looked upon my humility; you have saved my soul from needfulness.
{30:9} And you have not enclosed me in the hands of the enemy. You have set my feet in a spacious place.
{30:10} Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am troubled. My eye has been disturbed by wrath, along with my soul and my gut.
{30:11} For my life has fallen into sorrow, and my years into sighing. My virtue has been weakened in poverty, and my bones have been disturbed.
{30:12} I have become a disgrace among all my enemies, and even more so to my neighbors, and a dread to my acquaintances. Those who catch sight of me, flee away from me.
{30:13} I have become forgotten, like one dead to the heart. I have become like a damaged utensil.
{30:14} For I have heard the harsh criticism of many who linger in the area. While assembled together against me in that place, they deliberated on how to take away my life.
{30:15} But I have hoped in you, O Lord. I said, “You are my God.”
{30:16} My fate is in your hands. Rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from those who are persecuting me.
{30:17} Shine your face upon your servant. Save me in your mercy.
{30:18} Do not let me be confounded, Lord, for I have called upon you. Let the impious be ashamed and be drawn down into Hell.
{30:19} May deceitful lips be silenced: those that speak iniquity against the just, in arrogance and in abusiveness.
{30:20} How great is the multitude of your sweetness, O Lord, which you keep hidden for those who fear you, which you have perfected for those who hope in you, in the sight of the sons of men.
{30:21} You hide them in the concealment of your face, from the disturbance of men. You protect them in your tabernacle, from the contradiction of tongues.
{30:22} Blessed is the Lord. For he has shown his wonderful mercy to me, in a fortified city.
{30:23} But I said in the excess of my mind: “I have been cast away from the glance of your eyes.” And so, you heeded the voice of my prayer, while I was still crying out to you.
{30:24} Love the Lord, all you his saints. For the Lord will require truth, and he will abundantly repay those who act with arrogance.
{30:25} Act manfully, and let your heart be strengthened, all you who hope in the Lord.
{31:1} The understanding of David himself. Blessed are they whose iniquities have been forgiven and whose sins have been covered.
{31:2} Blessed is the man to whom the Lord has not imputed sin, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
{31:3} Because I was silent, my bones grew old, while still I cried out all day long.
{31:4} For, day and night, your hand was heavy upon me. I have been converted in my anguish, while still the thorn is piercing.
{31:5} I have acknowledged my offense to you, and I have not concealed my injustice. I said, “I will confess against myself, my injustice to the Lord,” and you forgave the impiety of my sin.
{31:6} For this, everyone who is holy will pray to you in due time. Yet truly, in a flood of many waters, they will not draw near to him.
{31:7} You are my refuge from the tribulation that has surrounded me. You are my exultation: rescue me from those who are surrounding me.
{31:8} I will give you understanding, and I will instruct you in this way, in which you will walk. I will fix my eyes upon you.
{31:9} Do not become like the horse and the mule, which have no understanding. Their jaws are constrained with bit and bridle, so as not to draw near to you.
{31:10} Many are the scourges of the sinner, but mercy will surround him that hopes in the Lord.
{31:11} Rejoice in the Lord and exult, you just ones, and glory, all you upright of heart.
{32:1} A Psalm of David. Exult in the Lord, you just ones; together praise the upright.
{32:2} Confess to the Lord with stringed instruments; sing psalms to him with the psaltery, the instrument of ten strings.
{32:3} Sing to him a new song. Sing psalms to him skillfully, with loud exclamation.
{32:4} For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his works are in faith.
{32:5} He loves mercy and judgment. The earth is full of the mercy of the Lord.
{32:6} By the word of the Lord, the heavens were established, and all their power, by the Spirit of his mouth:
{32:7} gathering together the waters of the sea, as if in a container, placing the depths in storage.
{32:8} Let all the earth fear the Lord, and may all the inhabitants of the world quake before him.
{32:9} For he spoke, and they became. He commanded, and they were created.
{32:10} The Lord scatters the counsels of the nations. Moreover, he reproves the thoughts of the people, and he rejects the counsels of the leaders.
{32:11} But the counsel of the Lord remains for eternity, the thoughts of his heart from generation to generation.
{32:12} Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as his inheritance.
{32:13} The Lord has looked down from heaven. He has seen all the sons of men.
{32:14} From his well-prepared dwelling place, he has gazed upon all who dwell on the earth.
{32:15} He has formed the hearts of each one of them; he understands all their works.
{32:16} The king is not saved by great power, nor will the giant be saved by his many powers.
{32:17} The horse is false safety; for he will not be saved by the abundance of his powers.
{32:18} Behold, the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him and on those who hope in his mercy,
{32:19} so as to rescue their souls from death and to feed them during famine.
{32:20} Our soul remains with the Lord. For he is our helper and protector.
{32:21} For in him, our heart will rejoice, and in his holy name, we have hoped.
{32:22} Let your mercy be upon us, O Lord, just as we have hoped in you.
{33:1} To David, when he changed his appearance in the sight of Abimelech, and so he dismissed him, and he went away.
{33:2} I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise will be ever in my mouth.
{33:3} In the Lord, my soul will be praised. May the meek listen and rejoice.
{33:4} Magnify the Lord with me, and let us extol his name in itself.
{33:5} I sought the Lord, and he heeded me, and he carried me away from all my tribulations.
{33:6} Approach him and be enlightened, and your faces will not be confounded.
{33:7} This poor one cried out, and the Lord heeded him, and he saved him from all his tribulations.
{33:8} The Angel of the Lord will encamp around those who fear him, and he will rescue them.
{33:9} Taste and see that the Lord is sweet. Blessed is the man who hopes in him.
{33:10} Fear the Lord, all you his saints. For there is no destitution for those who fear him.
{33:11} The rich have been needy and hungry, but those who seek the Lord will not be deprived of any good thing.
{33:12} Come forward, sons. Listen to me. I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
{33:13} Which is the man who wills life, who chooses to see good days?
{33:14} Prohibit your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit.
{33:15} Turn away from evil, and do good. Inquire about peace, and pursue it.
{33:16} The eyes of the Lord are on the just, and his ears are with their prayers.
{33:17} But the countenance of the Lord is upon those who do evil, to perish the remembrance of them from the earth.
{33:18} The just cried out, and the Lord heard them, and he freed them from all their tribulations.
{33:19} The Lord is near to those who are troubled in heart, and he will save the humble in spirit.
{33:20} Many are the afflictions of the just, but from them all the Lord will free them.
{33:21} The Lord preserves all of their bones, not one of them shall be broken.
{33:22} The death of a sinner is very harmful, and those who hate the just will fare badly.
{33:23} The Lord will redeem the souls of his servants, and none of those who hope in him will fare badly.
{34:1} Of David himself. O Lord, judge those who harm me; assail those who attack me.
{34:2} Take hold of weapons and a shield, and rise up in assistance to me.
{34:3} Bring forth the spear, and close in on those who persecute me. Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.”
{34:4} Let them be confounded and in awe, who pursue my soul. Let them be turned back and be confounded, who think up evil against me.
{34:5} May they become like dust before the face of the wind, and let the Angel of the Lord hem them in.
{34:6} May their way become dark and slippery, and may the Angel of the Lord pursue them.
{34:7} For, without cause, they have concealed their snare for me unto destruction. Over nothing, they have rebuked my soul.
{34:8} Let the snare, of which he is ignorant, come upon him, and let the deception, which he has hidden, take hold of him: and may he fall into that very snare.
{34:9} But my soul will exult in the Lord and delight over his salvation.
{34:10} All my bones will say, “Lord, who is like you?” He rescues the needy from the hand of the stronger one, the indigent and the poor from those who plunder him.
{34:11} Unfair witnesses have risen up, interrogating me about things of which I am ignorant.
{34:12} They repaid me evil for good, to the deprivation of my soul.
{34:13} But as for me, when they were harassing me, I was clothed with haircloth. I humbled my soul with fasting, and my prayer will become my sinews.
{34:14} Like a neighbor, and like our brother, so did I please; like one mourning and contrite, so was I humbled.
{34:15} And they have been joyful against me, and they joined together. Scourges have been gathered over me, and I was ignorant of it.
{34:16} They have been scattered, yet they were unremorseful. They have tested me. They scoffed at me with scorn. They gnashed their teeth over me.
{34:17} Lord, when will you look down upon me? Restore my soul from before their malice, my only one from before the lions.
{34:18} I will confess to you in a great Church. I will praise you among a weighty people.
{34:19} May those who are my unjust adversaries not be glad over me: those who have hated me without cause, and who nod agreement with their eyes.
{34:20} For indeed, they spoke peacefully to me; and speaking with passion to the earth, they intended deceit.
{34:21} And they opened their mouth wide over me. They said, “Well, well, our eyes have seen.”
{34:22} You have seen, O Lord, do not be silent. Lord, do not depart from me.
{34:23} Rise up and be attentive to my judgment, to my cause, my God and my Lord.
{34:24} Judge me according to your justice, O Lord, my God, and do not let them be glad over me.
{34:25} Do not let them say in their hearts, “Well, well, to our soul.” Neither let them say, “We have devoured him.”
{34:26} Let them blush and be in awe together, those who congratulate at my misfortunes. Let them be clothed with confusion and awe, who speak great things against me.
{34:27} Let them exult and rejoice, who wish my justice, and let them ever say, “The Lord be magnified,” who will the peace of his servant.
{34:28} And so my tongue will express your justice: your praise all day long.
{35:1} Unto the end. To the servant of the Lord, David himself.
{35:2} The unjust one has said within himself that he would commit offenses. There is no fear of God before his eyes.
{35:3} For he has acted deceitfully in his sight, such that his iniquity will be found to be hatred.
{35:4} The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit. He is unwilling to understand, so that he may act well.
{35:5} He has been considering iniquity on his bed. He has set himself on every way that is not good; moreover, he has not hated evil.
{35:6} Lord, your mercy is in heaven, and your truth is even to the clouds.
{35:7} Your justice is like the mountains of God. Your judgments are a great abyss. Men and beasts, you will save, O Lord.
{35:8} How you have multiplied your mercy, O God! And so the sons of men will hope under the cover of your wings.
{35:9} They will be inebriated with the fruitfulness of your house, and you will give them to drink from the torrent of your enjoyment.
{35:10} For with you is the fountain of life; and within your light, we will see the light.
{35:11} Extend your mercy before those who know you, and your justice to these, who are upright in heart.
{35:12} May arrogant feet not approach me, and may the hand of the sinner not disturb me.
{35:13} In that place, those who work iniquity have fallen. They have been expelled; they were not able to stand.
{36:1} A Psalm of David himself. Do not choose to imitate the malicious; neither should you envy those who work iniquity.
{36:2} For they will quickly wither away like dry grass, and in like manner to kitchen herbs, they will soon droop.
{36:3} Hope in the Lord and do good, and dwell in the land, and so you shall be pastured with its riches.
{36:4} Delight in the Lord, and he will grant to you the petitions of your heart.
{36:5} Reveal your way to the Lord, and hope in him, and he will accomplish it.
{36:6} And he will bring forth your justice like the light, and your judgment like the midday.
{36:7} Be subject to the Lord and pray to him. Do not choose to compete with him who prospers in his way, with the man who does injustice.
{36:8} Cease from wrath and leave behind rage. Do not choose to imitate the malicious.
{36:9} For those who are malicious will be exterminated. But those who remain with the Lord, these will inherit the land.
{36:10} Yet still a little while, and the sinner will not be. And you will search his place and find nothing.
{36:11} But the meek shall inherit the earth, and they will delight in the multitude of peace.
{36:12} The sinner will observe the just, and he will gnash his teeth over him.
{36:13} But the Lord will laugh at him: for he knows in advance that his day will come.
{36:14} The sinners have drawn the sword, they have bent their bow, so as to cast down the poor and the needy, so as to massacre the upright of heart.
{36:15} Let their sword enter into their own hearts, and let their bow be broken.
{36:16} A little is better to the just than the many riches of sinners.
{36:17} For the arms of sinners will be crushed, but the Lord confirms the just.
{36:18} The Lord knows the days of the immaculate, and their inheritance will be in eternity.
{36:19} They will not be confounded in an evil time; and in days of famine, they will be satisfied:
{36:20} for sinners will perish. Truly, the adversaries of the Lord, soon after they have been honored and exalted, will fade away, in the same way that smoke fades away.
{36:21} The sinner will lend and not release, but the just one shows compassion and donates.
{36:22} For those who bless him will inherit the earth, but those who curse him will perish.
{36:23} The steps of a man will be directed by the Lord, and he will choose his way.
{36:24} When he falls, he will not be harmed, because the Lord places his hand under him.
{36:25} I have been young, and now I am old; and I have not seen the just forsaken, nor his offspring seeking bread.
{36:26} He shows compassion and lends, all day long, and his offspring will be in blessing.
{36:27} Turn away from evil and do good, and dwell forever and ever.
{36:28} For the Lord loves judgment, and he will not abandon his saints. They will be kept safe in eternity. The unjust will be punished, and the offspring of the impious will perish.
{36:29} But the just will inherit the earth, and they will dwell upon it forever and ever.
{36:30} The mouth of the just one will express wisdom, and his tongue will speak judgment.
{36:31} The law of his God is in his heart, and his steps shall not be supplanted.
{36:32} The sinner considers the just one and seeks to put him to death.
{36:33} But the Lord will not abandon him into his hands, nor condemn him, when he will be judged.
{36:34} Wait for the Lord, and keep to his way. And he will exalt you, so as to inherit the land that you may seize. When the sinners will have passed away, then you shall see.
{36:35} I have seen the impious over-exalted, and lifted up like the cedars of Lebanon.
{36:36} And I passed by, and behold, he was not. And I sought him, and his place was not found.
{36:37} Keep to innocence, and gaze upon fairness: because there are allotments for the peaceful man.
{36:38} But the unjust will be destroyed together: the allotments of the impious will pass away.
{36:39} But the salvation of the just is from the Lord, and he is their protector in time of tribulation.
{36:40} And the Lord will help them and free them. And he will rescue them from sinners and save them, because they have hoped in him.
{37:1} A Psalm of David, in commemoration of the Sabbath.
{37:2} O Lord, do not rebuke me in your fury, nor chastise me in your wrath.
{37:3} For your arrows have been driven into me, and your hand has been confirmed over me.
{37:4} There is no health in my flesh before the face of your wrath. There is no peace for my bones before the face of my sins.
{37:5} For my iniquities have walked over my head, and they have been like a heavy burden weighing upon me.
{37:6} My sores have putrefied and been corrupted before the face of my foolishness.
{37:7} I have become miserable, and I have been bent down, even to the end. I have walked with contrition all day long.
{37:8} For my loins have been filled with illusions, and there is no health in my flesh.
{37:9} I have been afflicted and greatly humbled. I bellowed from the groaning of my heart.
{37:10} O Lord, all my desire is before you, and my groaning before you has not been hidden.
{37:11} My heart has been disturbed. My strength has abandoned me, and the light of my eyes has abandoned me, and it is not with me.
{37:12} My friends and my neighbors have drawn near and stood against me. And those who were next to me stood far apart. And those who sought my soul used violence.
{37:13} And those who sought evil accusations against me were speaking emptiness. And they practiced deceitfulness all day long.
{37:14} But, like someone deaf, I did not hear. And I was like someone mute, not opening his mouth.
{37:15} And I became like a man who does not hear, and who has no reproofs in his mouth.
{37:16} For in you, Lord, I have hoped. You will listen to me, O Lord my God.
{37:17} For I said, “Lest at any time, my enemies might rejoice over me,” and, “While my feet are being shaken, they have spoken great things against me.”
{37:18} For I have been prepared for scourges, and my sorrow is ever before me.
{37:19} For I will announce my iniquity, and I will think about my sin.
{37:20} But my enemies live, and they have been stronger than me. And those who have wrongfully hated me have been multiplied.
{37:21} Those who render evil for good have dragged me down, because I followed goodness.
{37:22} Do not forsake me, O Lord my God. Do not depart from me.
{37:23} Be attentive to my help, O Lord, the God of my salvation.
{38:1} Unto the end. For Jeduthun himself. A Canticle of David.
{38:2} I said, “I will keep to my ways, so that I will not offend with my tongue.” I posted a guard at my mouth, when a sinner took up a position against me.
{38:3} I was silenced and humbled, and I was quiet before good things, and my sorrow was renewed.
{38:4} My heart grew hot within me, and, during my meditation, a fire would flare up.
{38:5} I spoke with my tongue, “O Lord, make me know my end, and what the number of my days will be, so that I may know what is lacking to me.”
{38:6} Behold, you have made my days measurable, and, before you, my substance is as nothing. Yet truly, all things are vanity: every living man.
{38:7} So then, truly man passes by like an image; even so, he is disquieted in vain. He stores up, and he knows not for whom he will gather these things.
{38:8} And now, what is it that awaits me? Is it not the Lord? And my substance is with you.
{38:9} Rescue me from all my iniquities. You have handed me over as a reproach to the foolish.
{38:10} I was silenced, and I did not open my mouth, because it was you who acted.
{38:11} Remove your scourges from me.
{38:12} I fall short at corrections from the strength of your hand. For you have chastised man for iniquity. And you have made his soul shrink away like a spider. Nevertheless, it is in vain that any man be disquieted.
{38:13} O Lord, heed my prayer and my supplication. Pay attention to my tears. Do not be silent. For I am a newcomer with you, and a sojourner, just as all my fathers were.
{38:14} Forgive me, so that I may be refreshed, before I will go forth and be no more.
{39:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David himself.
{39:2} I have waited expectantly for the Lord, and he was attentive to me.
{39:3} And he heard my prayers and he led me out of the pit of misery and the quagmire. And he stationed my feet upon a rock, and he directed my steps.
{39:4} And he sent a new canticle into my mouth, a song to our God. Many will see, and they will fear; and they will hope in the Lord.
{39:5} Blessed is the man whose hope is in the name of the Lord, and who has no respect for vanities and absurd falsehoods.
{39:6} You have accomplished your many wonders, O Lord my God, and there is no one similar to you in your thoughts. I have announced and I have spoken: they are multiplied beyond number.
{39:7} Sacrifice and oblation, you did not want. But you have perfected ears for me. Holocaust and sin offering, you did not require.
{39:8} Then I said, “Behold, I draw near.” At the head of the book, it has been written of me:
{39:9} that I should do your will. My God, I have willed it. And your law is in the midst of my heart.
{39:10} I have announced your justice in a great Church: behold, I will not restrain my lips. O Lord, you have known it.
{39:11} I have not concealed your justice within my heart. I have spoken your truth and your salvation. I have not concealed your mercy and your truth from a great assembly.
{39:12} O Lord, do not take your tender mercies far from me. Your mercy and your truth ever sustain me.
{39:13} For evils without number have surrounded me. My iniquities have taken hold of me, and I was not able to see. They have been multiplied beyond the hairs of my head. And my heart has forsaken me.
{39:14} Be pleased, O Lord, to rescue me. Look down, O Lord, to help me.
{39:15} Let them together be confounded and awed, who seek after my soul to steal it away. Let them be turned back and be in awe, who wish evils upon me.
{39:16} Let them bear their confusion all at once, who say to me, “Well, well.”
{39:17} Let all who seek you exult and rejoice over you. And let those who love your salvation always say, “May the Lord be magnified.”
{39:18} But I am a beggar and poor. The Lord has been concerned about me. You are my helper and my protector. My God, do not delay.
{40:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David himself.
{40:2} Blessed is he who shows understanding toward the needy and the poor. The Lord will deliver him in the evil day.
{40:3} May the Lord preserve him and give him life, and make him blessed upon the earth. And may he not hand him over to the will of his adversaries.
{40:4} May the Lord bring him help on his bed of sorrow. In his infirmity, you have changed his entire covering.
{40:5} I said, “O Lord, be merciful to me. Heal my soul, because I have sinned against you.”
{40:6} My enemies have spoken evils against me. When will he die and his name perish?
{40:7} And when he came in to see me, he was speaking emptiness. His heart gathered iniquity to itself. He went outside, and he was speaking in the same way.
{40:8} All my enemies were whispering against me. They were thinking up evils against me.
{40:9} They established an unjust word against me. Will he that sleeps no longer rise again?
{40:10} For even the man of my peace, in whom I hoped, who ate my bread, has greatly supplanted me.
{40:11} But you, O Lord, have mercy on me, and raise me up again. And I will requite them.
{40:12} By this, I knew that you preferred me: because my adversary will not rejoice over me.
{40:13} But you have sustained me, because of my innocence, and you have confirmed me in your sight in eternity.
{40:14} Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, for all generations and even forever. Amen. Amen.
{41:1} Unto the end. The understanding of the sons of Korah.
{41:2} As the deer longs for fountains of water, so my soul longs for you, O God.
{41:3} My soul has thirsted for the strong living God. When will I draw close and appear before the face of God?
{41:4} My tears have been my bread, day and night. Meanwhile, it is said to me daily: “Where is your God?”
{41:5} These things I have remembered; and my soul within me, I have poured out. For I will cross into the place of the wonderful tabernacle, all the way to the house of God, with a voice of exultation and confession, the sound of feasting.
{41:6} Why are you sad, my soul? And why do you disquiet me? Hope in God, for I will still confess to him: the salvation of my countenance,
{41:7} and my God. My soul has been troubled within myself. Because of this, I will remember you from the land of the Jordan and from Hermon, from the little mountain.
{41:8} Abyss calls upon abyss, with the voice of your floodgate. All your heights and your waves have passed over me.
{41:9} In the daylight, the Lord has ordered his mercy; and in the night, a canticle to him. With me is a prayer to the God of my life.
{41:10} I will say to God, “You are my supporter. Why have you forgotten me? And why do I walk in mourning, while my adversary afflicts me?”
{41:11} While my bones are being broken, my enemies, who trouble me, have reproached me. Meanwhile, they say to me every single day, “Where is your God?”
{41:12} My soul, why are you saddened? And why do you disquiet me? Hope in God, for I will still confess to him: the salvation of my countenance and my God.
{42:1} A Psalm of David. Judge me, O God, and discern my cause from that of a nation not holy; rescue me from a man unjust and deceitful.
{42:2} For you are God, my strength. Why have you rejected me? And why do I walk in sadness, while the adversary afflicts me?
{42:3} Send forth your light and your truth. They have guided me and led me, to your holy mountain and into your tabernacles.
{42:4} And I will enter, up to the altar of God, to God who enlivens my youthfulness. To you, O God, my God, I will confess upon a stringed instrument.
{42:5} Why are you sad, my soul? And why do you disquiet me? Hope in God, for I will still give praise to him: the salvation of my countenance and my God.
{43:1} Unto the end. To the sons of Korah, toward understanding.
{43:2} We have heard, O God, with our own ears. Our fathers have announced to us the work that you wrought in their days and in the days of antiquity.
{43:3} Your hand dispersed the Gentiles, and you transplanted them. You afflicted a people, and you expelled them.
{43:4} For they did not take possession of the land by their sword, and their own arm did not save them. But your right hand and your arm, and the light of your countenance did so, because you were pleased with them.
{43:5} You yourself are my king and my God, who commands the salvation of Jacob.
{43:6} With you, we will brandish a horn before our enemies; and in your name, we will spurn those rising up against us.
{43:7} For I will not hope in my bow, and my sword will not save me.
{43:8} For you have saved us from those who afflict us, and you have bewildered those who hate us.
{43:9} In God, we will give praise all day long; and in your name, we will confess forever.
{43:10} But now, you have rejected and bewildered us, and you will not go forth with our armies, O God.
{43:11} You have turned our back to our enemies, and those who hated us have plundered for themselves.
{43:12} You have given us over like sheep for food. You have scattered us among the Gentiles.
{43:13} You have sold your people without a price, and no great number was exchanged for them.
{43:14} You have set us as a disgrace to our neighbors, a scoff and a derision to those who are around us.
{43:15} You have set us as a parable among the Gentiles, a shaking of the head among the peoples.
{43:16} All day long my shame is before me, and the confusion of my face has covered me,
{43:17} before the voice of the reproacher and the commentator, before the face of the adversary and the pursuer.
{43:18} All these things have come upon us, yet we have not forgotten you, and we have not acted unjustly in your covenant.
{43:19} And our heart has not turned back. And you have not diverted our steps from your way.
{43:20} For you humbled us in a place of affliction, and the shadow of death has covered us.
{43:21} If we have forgotten the name of our God, and if we have extended our hands to a foreign god,
{43:22} will not God find this out? For he knows the secrets of the heart. For, because of you, we are being killed all day long. We are considered as sheep for the slaughter.
{43:23} Rise up. Why do you fall asleep, O Lord? Rise up, and do not reject us in the end.
{43:24} Why do you turn your face away, and why do you forget our needfulness and our tribulation?
{43:25} For our soul has been humbled into the dust. Our belly has been bound to the earth.
{43:26} Rise up, O Lord. Help us and redeem us, because of your name.
{44:1} Unto the end. For those who will be changed. To the sons of Korah, toward understanding. A Canticle for the Beloved.
{44:2} My heart has uttered a good word. I speak of my works to the king. My tongue is like the pen of a scribe who writes quickly.
{44:3} You are a brilliant form before the sons of men. Grace has been poured freely into your lips. Because of this, God has blessed you in eternity.
{44:4} Fasten your sword to your thigh, O most powerful one.
{44:5} With your splendor and your excellence extended, proceed prosperously, and reign for the sake of truth and meekness and justice, and so will your right hand lead you wondrously.
{44:6} Your arrows are sharp; the people will fall under you, with the hearts of the enemies of the king.
{44:7} Your throne, O God, is forever and ever. The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of true aim.
{44:8} You have loved justice and hated iniquity. Because of this, God, your God, has anointed you, before your co-heirs, with the oil of gladness.
{44:9} Myrrh and balsam and cinnamon perfume your garments, from the houses of ivory. From these, they have delighted you:
{44:10} the daughters of kings in your honor. The queen assisted at your right hand, in clothing of gold, encircled with diversity.
{44:11} Listen, daughter, and see, and incline your ear. And forget your people and your father’s house.
{44:12} And the king will desire your beauty. For he is the Lord your God, and they will adore him.
{44:13} And the daughters of Tyre will entreat your countenance with gifts: all the rich men of the people.
{44:14} All the glory of the daughter of its king is inside, in golden fringes,
{44:15} clothed all around with diversities. After her, virgins will be led to the king. Her neighbors will be brought to you.
{44:16} They will be brought with gladness and exultation. They will be led into the temple of the king.
{44:17} For your fathers, sons have been born to you. You will establish them as leaders over all the earth.
{44:18} They will remember your name always, for generation after generation. Because of this, people will confess to you in eternity, even forever and ever.
{45:1} Unto the end. To the sons of Korah, for confidants. A Psalm.
{45:2} Our God is our refuge and strength, a helper in the tribulations that have greatly overwhelmed us.
{45:3} Because of this, we will not be afraid when the earth will be turbulent and the mountains will be transferred into the heart of the sea.
{45:4} They thundered, and the waters were stirred up among them; the mountains have been disturbed by his strength.
{45:5} The frenzy of the river rejoices the city of God. The Most High has sanctified his tabernacle.
{45:6} God is in its midst; it will not be shaken. God will assist it in the early morning.
{45:7} The peoples have been disturbed, and the kingdoms have been bowed down. He uttered his voice: the earth has been moved.
{45:8} The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our supporter.
{45:9} Draw near and behold the works of the Lord: what portents he has set upon the earth,
{45:10} carrying away wars even to the end of the earth. He will crush the bow and break the weapons, and he will burn the shield with fire.
{45:11} Be empty, and see that I am God. I will be exalted among the peoples, and I will be exalted upon the earth.
{45:12} The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our supporter.
{46:1} Unto the end. A Psalm for the sons of Korah.
{46:2} All nations, clap your hands. Shout joyfully to God with a voice of exultation.
{46:3} For the Lord is exalted and terrible: a great King over all the earth.
{46:4} He has subjected the peoples to us and subdued the nations under our feet.
{46:5} He has chosen us for his inheritance: the splendor of Jacob, whom he has loved.
{46:6} God ascends with jubilation, and the Lord with the voice of the trumpet.
{46:7} Sing psalms to our God, sing psalms. Sing psalms to our King, sing psalms.
{46:8} For God is the King of all the earth. Sing psalms wisely.
{46:9} God will reign over the peoples. God sits upon his holy throne.
{46:10} The leaders of the peoples have been gathered together by the God of Abraham. For the strong gods of the earth have been exceedingly exalted.
{47:1} A Canticle Psalm. To the sons of Korah, on the second Sabbath.
{47:2} The Lord is great and exceedingly praiseworthy, in the city of our God, on his holy mountain.
{47:3} Mount Zion is being founded with the exultation of the whole earth, on the north side, the city of the great king.
{47:4} In her houses, God will be known, since he will support her.
{47:5} For behold, the kings of the earth have been gathered together; they have convened as one.
{47:6} Such did they see, and they were astonished: they were disturbed, they were moved.
{47:7} Trembling took hold of them. In that place, their pains were that of a woman in labor.
{47:8} With a vehement spirit, you will crush the ships of Tarshish.
{47:9} As we have heard, so we have seen, in the city of the Lord of hosts, in the city of our God. God has founded it in eternity.
{47:10} We have received your mercy, O God, in the midst of your temple.
{47:11} According to your name, O God, so does your praise reach to the ends of the earth. Your right hand is full of justice.
{47:12} Let mount Zion rejoice, and let the daughters of Judah exult, because of your judgments, O Lord.
{47:13} Encircle Zion and embrace her. Discourse in her towers.
{47:14} Set your hearts on her virtue. And distribute her houses, so that you may discourse of it in another generation.
{47:15} For this is God, our God, in eternity and forever and ever. He will rule us forever.
{48:1} Unto the end. A Psalm to the sons of Korah.
{48:2} Hear these things, all nations. Pay attention, all inhabitants of the world:
{48:3} whoever is earth-born, you sons of men, together as one, the rich and the poor.
{48:4} My mouth will speak wisdom, and the meditation of my heart will speak prudence.
{48:5} I will incline my ear to a parable. I will open my case with the psaltery.
{48:6} Why should I fear in the evil day? The iniquity at my heel will surround me.
{48:7} Those who trust in their own strength and who glory in the multitude of their riches,
{48:8} no brother redeems, nor will man buy back. He will not give to God his appeasement,
{48:9} nor the price for the redemption of his soul. And he will labor continuously,
{48:10} and he will still live, until the end.
{48:11} He will not see death, when he sees the wise dying: the foolish and the senseless will perish together. And they will leave their riches to strangers.
{48:12} And their sepulchers will be their houses forever, their tabernacles from generation to generation. They have called their names in their own lands.
{48:13} And man, when he was held in honor, did not understand. He has been compared to the senseless beasts, and he has become like them.
{48:14} This way of theirs is a scandal to them. And afterwards, they will delight in their mouth.
{48:15} They have been placed in Hell like sheep. Death will feed on them. And the just will have dominion over them in the morning. And their help will grow old in Hell for their glory.
{48:16} Even so, truly God will redeem my soul from the hand of Hell, when he will receive me.
{48:17} Do not be afraid, when a man will have been made rich, and when the glory of his house will have been multiplied.
{48:18} For when he dies, he will take nothing away, and his glory will not descend with him.
{48:19} For his soul will be blessed in his lifetime, and he will admit to you when you do good to him.
{48:20} He will even enter with the progeny of his fathers, but, even in eternity, he will not see the light.
{48:21} Man, when he was in honor, did not understand. He has been compared to the senseless beasts, and he has become like them.
{49:1} A Psalm of Asaph. The God of gods, the Lord has spoken, and he has called the earth, from the rising of the sun even to its setting,
{49:2} from Zion, the brilliance of his beauty.
{49:3} God will arrive manifestly. Our God also will not keep silence. A fire will flare up in his sight, and a mighty tempest will surround him.
{49:4} He will call to heaven from above, and to the earth, to discern his people.
{49:5} Gather his holy ones to him, you who order his covenant above sacrifices.
{49:6} And the heavens will announce his justice. For God is the judge.
{49:7} Listen, my people, and I will speak. Listen, Israel, and I will testify for you. I am God, your God.
{49:8} I will not reprove you for your sacrifices. Moreover, your holocausts are ever in my sight.
{49:9} I will not accept calves from your house, nor he-goats from your flocks.
{49:10} For all the wild beasts of the forest are mine: the cattle on the hills and the oxen.
{49:11} I know all the flying things of the air, and the beauty of the field is with me.
{49:12} If I should be hungry, I would not tell you: for the whole world is mine, and all its plentitude.
{49:13} Shall I gnaw on the flesh of bulls? Or would I drink the blood of goats?
{49:14} Offer to God the sacrifice of praise, and pay your vows to the Most High.
{49:15} And call upon me in the day of tribulation. I will rescue you, and you will honor me.
{49:16} But to the sinner, God has said: Why do you discourse on my justices, and take up my covenant through your mouth?
{49:17} Truly, you have hated discipline, and you have cast my sermons behind you.
{49:18} If you saw a thief, you ran with him, and you have placed your portion with adulterers.
{49:19} Your mouth has abounded with malice, and your tongue has concocted deceits.
{49:20} Sitting, you spoke against your brother, and you set up a scandal against your mother’s son.
{49:21} These things you have done, and I was silent. You thought, unjustly, that I ought to be like you. But I will reprove you, and I will set myself against your face.
{49:22} Understand these things, you who forget God; lest at any time, he might quickly take you away, and there would be no one to rescue you.
{49:23} The sacrifice of praise will honor me. And in that place is the journey by which I will reveal to him the salvation of God.
{50:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David,
{50:2} when Nathan the prophet came to him, after he went to Bathsheba.
{50:3} Be merciful to me, O God, according to your great mercy. And, according to the plentitude of your compassion, wipe out my iniquity.
{50:4} Wash me once again from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
{50:5} For I know my iniquity, and my sin is ever before me.
{50:6} Against you only have I sinned, and I have done evil before your eyes. And so, you are justified in your words, and you will prevail when you give judgment.
{50:7} For behold, I was conceived in iniquities, and in sinfulness did my mother conceive me.
{50:8} For behold, you have loved truth. The obscure and hidden things of your wisdom, you have manifested to me.
{50:9} You will sprinkle me with hyssop, and I will be cleansed. You will wash me, and I will be made whiter than snow.
{50:10} In my hearing, you will grant gladness and rejoicing. And the bones that have been humbled will exult.
{50:11} Turn your face away from my sins, and erase all my iniquities.
{50:12} Create a clean heart in me, O God. And renew an upright spirit within my inmost being.
{50:13} Do not cast me away from your face; and do not take your Holy Spirit from me.
{50:14} Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and confirm me with an unsurpassed spirit.
{50:15} I will teach the unjust your ways, and the impious will be converted to you.
{50:16} Free me from blood, O God, the God of my salvation, and my tongue will extol your justice.
{50:17} O Lord, you will open my lips, and my mouth will announce your praise.
{50:18} For if you had desired sacrifice, I would certainly have given it, but with holocausts, you will not be delighted.
{50:19} A crushed spirit is a sacrifice to God. A contrite and humbled heart, O God, you will not spurn.
{50:20} Act kindly, Lord, in your good will toward Zion, so that the walls of Jerusalem may be built up.
{50:21} Then you will accept the sacrifice of justice, oblations, and holocausts. Then they will lay calves upon your altar.
{51:1} Unto the end. The understanding of David.
{51:2} When Doeg the Edomite came and reported to Saul, David went to the house of Ahimelech.
{51:3} Why do you glory in malice, you who are powerful in iniquity?
{51:4} All day long your tongue thinks up injustice. Like a sharp razor, you have wrought deceit.
{51:5} You have loved malice above goodness, and iniquity more than speaking righteousness.
{51:6} You have loved all precipitous words, you deceitful tongue.
{51:7} Because of this, God will destroy you in the end. He will pull you up, and he will remove you from your tabernacle and your root from the land of the living.
{51:8} The just will see and be afraid, and they will laugh over him, and say:
{51:9} “Behold the man who did not set God as his helper. But he hoped in the multitude of his riches, and so he prevailed in his emptiness.”
{51:10} But I, like a fruitful olive tree in the house of God, have hoped in the mercy of God unto eternity, and forever and ever.
{51:11} I will confess to you forever, because you have accomplished it. And I will wait on your name, for it is good in the sight of your saints.
{52:1} Unto the end. For Mahalath: the thoughts of David. The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
{52:2} They were corrupted, and they became abominable with iniquities. There is no one who does good.
{52:3} God gazed down from heaven on the sons of men, to see if there were any who were considering or seeking God.
{52:4} All have gone astray; together they have become useless. There is no one who does good; there is not even one.
{52:5} Will they never learn: all those who work iniquity, who devour my people like a meal of bread?
{52:6} They have not called upon God. In that place, they have trembled in fear, where there was no fear. For God has scattered the bones of those who please men. They have been confounded, because God has spurned them.
{52:7} Who will grant from Zion the salvation of Israel? Jacob will exult, when God will convert the captivity of his people; and Israel will rejoice.
{53:1} Unto the end. In verses, the understanding of David,
{53:2} when the Ziphites had arrived and they said to Saul, “Has not David been hidden with us?”
{53:3} Save me, O God, by your name, and judge me in your virtue.
{53:4} O God, listen to my prayer. Pay attention to the words of my mouth.
{53:5} For strangers have risen up against me, and the strong have sought my soul. And they have not set God before their eyes.
{53:6} For behold, God is my helper, and the Lord is the protector of my soul.
{53:7} Turn back the evils upon my adversaries, and ruin them by your truth.
{53:8} I will freely sacrifice to you, and I will confess your name, O God, because it is good.
{53:9} For you have quickly rescued me from all tribulation, and my eye has looked down upon my enemies.
{54:1} Unto the end. In verses, the understanding of David.
{54:2} Listen to my prayer, O God, and despise not my supplication.
{54:3} Be attentive to me, and heed me. I have been grieved in my training, and I have been disturbed
{54:4} at the voice of the adversary and at the tribulation of the sinner. For they have diverted iniquities toward me, and they have been harassing me with rage.
{54:5} My heart has become disturbed within me, and the dread of death has fallen over me.
{54:6} Fear and trembling have overwhelmed me, and darkness has buried me.
{54:7} And I said, “Who will give me wings like the dove, so that I may fly away and take rest?”
{54:8} Behold, I have fled far away, and I linger in solitude.
{54:9} I waited for him who saved me from a weak-minded spirit and from a tempest.
{54:10} Cast them down, O Lord, and divide their tongues. For I have seen iniquity and contradiction in the city.
{54:11} Day and night, iniquity will surround it upon its walls, and hardship is in its midst,
{54:12} with injustice. And usury and deceit have not fallen away from its streets.
{54:13} For if my enemy had spoken evil about me, certainly, I would have sustained it. And if he who hated me had been speaking great things against me, I would perhaps have hidden myself from him.
{54:14} Truly, you are a man of one mind: my leader and my acquaintance,
{54:15} who took sweet food together with me. In the house of God, we walked side-by-side.
{54:16} Let death come upon them, and let them descend alive into Hellfire. For there is wickedness in their dwellings, in their midst.
{54:17} But I have cried out to God, and the Lord will save me.
{54:18} Evening and morning and midday, I will discourse and announce, and he will heed my voice.
{54:19} He will redeem my soul in peace from those who draw near to me. For, among the many, they were with me.
{54:20} God will hear, and He who is before time will humble them. For there is no change with them, and they have not feared God.
{54:21} He has stretched forth his hand in retribution. They have contaminated his covenant.
{54:22} They were divided by the wrath of his countenance, and his heart has drawn near. His words are smoother than oil, and they are arrows.
{54:23} Cast your cares upon the Lord, and he will nurture you. He will not allow the just to be tossed about forever.
{54:24} Truly, O God, you will lead them away into the well of death. Bloody and deceitful men will not divide their days in half. But I will hope in you, O Lord.
{55:1} Unto the end. For the people who have become far removed from the Sacred. Of David, with the inscription of a title, when the Philistines held him in Gath.
{55:2} Have mercy on me, O God, because man has trampled over me. All day long, he has afflicted me by fighting against me.
{55:3} My enemies have trampled over me all day long. For those who make war against me are many.
{55:4} From the height of the day, I will be afraid. But truly, I will hope in you.
{55:5} In God, I will praise my words. In God, I have put my trust. I will not fear what flesh can do to me.
{55:6} All day long, they curse my words. All their intentions are for evil against me.
{55:7} They will dwell and hide themselves. They will watch my heel, just as they waited for my soul;
{55:8} because of this, nothing will save them. In your anger, you will crush the people.
{55:9} O God, I have announced my life to you. You have placed my tears in your sight, and even in your promise.
{55:10} Then my enemies will be turned back. On whatever day that I call upon you, behold, I know that you are my God.
{55:11} In God, I will praise the word. In the Lord, I will praise his speech. In God, I have hoped. I will not fear what man can do to me.
{55:12} My vows to you, O God, are in me. I will repay them. Praises be to you.
{55:13} For you have rescued my soul from death and my feet from slipping, so that I may be pleasing in the sight of God, in the light of the living.
{56:1} Unto the end. May you not destroy. Of David, with the inscription of a title, when he fled from Saul into a cave.
{56:2} Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me. For my soul trusts in you. And I will hope in the shadow of your wings, until iniquity passes away.
{56:3} I will cry out to God Most High, to God who has been kind to me.
{56:4} He sent from heaven and freed me. He has surrendered into disgrace those who trampled me. God has sent his mercy and his truth.
{56:5} And he has rescued my soul from the midst of the young lions. I slept troubled. The sons of men: their teeth are weapons and arrows, and their tongue is a sharp sword.
{56:6} Be exalted above the heavens, O God, and your glory above all the earth.
{56:7} They prepared a snare for my feet, and they bowed down my soul. They dug a pit before my face, yet they have fallen into it.
{56:8} My heart is prepared, O God, my heart is prepared. I will sing, and I will compose a psalm.
{56:9} Rise up, my glory. Rise up, psaltery and harp. I will arise in early morning.
{56:10} I will confess to you, O Lord, among the peoples. I will compose a psalm to you among the nations.
{56:11} For your mercy has been magnified, even to the heavens, and your truth, even to the clouds.
{56:12} Be exalted above the heavens, O God, and your glory above all the earth.
{57:1} Unto the end. May you not destroy. Of David, with the inscription of a title.
{57:2} If, truly and certainly, you speak justice, then judge what is right, you sons of men.
{57:3} For, even in your heart, you work iniquity. Your hands construct injustice on the earth.
{57:4} Sinners have become foreigners from the womb; they have gone astray from conception. They have been speaking falsehoods.
{57:5} Their fury is similar to that of a serpent; it is like a deaf asp, who even blocks her ears,
{57:6} who will not listen to the voice of charmers, nor even to the enchanter who chants wisely.
{57:7} God will crush their teeth within their own mouth. The Lord will break the molars of the lions.
{57:8} They will come to nothing, like water flowing away. He has aimed his bow, while they are being weakened.
{57:9} Like wax that flows, they will be carried away. Fire has fallen upon them, and they will not see the sun.
{57:10} Before your thorns could know the brier, he consumes them alive, as if in rage.
{57:11} The just one will rejoice when he sees vindication. He will wash his hands in the blood of the sinner.
{57:12} And man will say, “If the just one is fruitful, then, truly, there is a God judging them on earth.”
{58:1} Unto the end. May you not destroy. Of David, with the inscription of a title, when Saul sent and watched his house, in order to execute him.
{58:2} Rescue me from my enemies, my God, and free me from those who rise up against me.
{58:3} Rescue me from those who work iniquity, and save me from men of blood.
{58:4} For behold, they have seized my soul. The strong have rushed upon me.
{58:5} And it is neither my iniquity, nor my sin, O Lord. I have run and gone directly, without iniquity.
{58:6} Rise up to meet me, and see: even you, O Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel. Reach out to visit all nations. Do not take pity on all those who work iniquity.
{58:7} They will return toward evening, and they will suffer hunger like dogs, and they will wander around the city.
{58:8} Behold, they will speak with their mouth, and a sword is in their lips: “For who has heard us?”
{58:9} And you, O Lord, will laugh at them. You will lead all the Gentiles to nothing.
{58:10} I will guard my strength toward you, for you are God, my supporter.
{58:11} My God, his mercy will precede me.
{58:12} God will oversee my enemies for me. Do not slay them, lest at times my people may forget them. Scatter them by your virtue. And depose them, O Lord, my protector,
{58:13} by the offense of their mouth and by the speech of their lips. And may they be caught in their arrogance. And, for their cursing and lying, they will be made known
{58:14} at the consummation, in the fury of the consummation, and so they will be no more. And they will know that God will rule over Jacob, even to the ends of the earth.
{58:15} They will return toward evening, and they will suffer hunger like dogs, and they will wander around the city.
{58:16} They will be dispersed in order to gnaw, and truly, when they will not have been satisfied, they will murmur.
{58:17} But I will sing your strength, and I will extol your mercy, in the morning. For you have been my supporter and my refuge in the day of my tribulation.
{58:18} To you, my helper, I will sing psalms. For you are God, my supporter. My God is my mercy.
{59:1} Unto the end. For those who will be changed, with the inscription of a title, of David himself, for instruction:
{59:2} when he set fire to Mesopotamia of Syria and Sobal, and Joab turned back and struck Idumea, in the valley of the salt pits, twelve thousand men.
{59:3} O God, you have rejected us, and you have ruined us. You became angry, and yet you have been merciful to us.
{59:4} You have moved the earth, and you have disturbed it. Heal its breaches, for it has been moved.
{59:5} You have revealed to your people difficulties. You have made us drink the wine of remorse.
{59:6} You have given a warning sign to those who fear you, so that they may flee from before the face of the bow, so that your beloved may be delivered.
{59:7} Save me with your right hand, and hear me.
{59:8} God has spoken in his holy place: I will rejoice, and I will divide Shechem, and I will measure the steep valley of the tabernacles.
{59:9} Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine. And Ephraim is the strength of my head. Judah is my king.
{59:10} Moab is the cooking pot of my hope. Into Idumea, I will extend my shoe. To me, the foreigners have been made subject.
{59:11} Who will lead me into the fortified city? Who will lead me all the way to Idumea?
{59:12} Will not you, O God, who has rejected us? And will not you, O God, go out with our armies?
{59:13} Grant us help from tribulation. For salvation from man is empty.
{59:14} In God, we will act virtuously. And those who trouble us, he will lead to nothing.
{60:1} Unto the end. With hymns, of David.
{60:2} O God, pay attention to my supplication. Be attentive to my prayer.
{60:3} I cried out to you from the ends of the earth. When my heart was in anguish, you exalted me on a rock. You have led me,
{60:4} for you have been my hope, a tower of strength before the face of the enemy.
{60:5} I will dwell in your tabernacle forever. I will be protected under the cover of your wings.
{60:6} For you, my God, have listened to my prayer. You have granted an inheritance to those who fear your name.
{60:7} You will add days to the days of the king, to his years, even to the time of generation after generation.
{60:8} He remains in eternity, in the sight of God. Who will long for his mercy and truth?
{60:9} So I will compose a psalm to your name, forever and ever, so that I may repay my vows from day to day.
{61:1} Unto the end. For Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
{61:2} Will my soul not be subject to God? For from him is my salvation.
{61:3} Yes, he himself is my God and my salvation. He is my supporter; I will be moved no more.
{61:4} How is it that you rush against a man? Every one of you puts to death, as if you were pulling down a ruined wall, leaning over and falling apart.
{61:5} So, truly, they intended to reject my price. I ran in thirst. They blessed with their mouth and cursed with their heart.
{61:6} Yet, truly, my soul will be subject to God. For from him is my patience.
{61:7} For he is my God and my Savior. He is my helper; I will not be expelled.
{61:8} In God is my salvation and my glory. He is the God of my help, and my hope is in God.
{61:9} All peoples gathered together: trust in him. Pour out your hearts in his sight. God is our helper for eternity.
{61:10} So, truly, the sons of men are untrustworthy. The sons of men are liars in the scales, so that, by emptiness, they may deceive among themselves.
{61:11} Do not trust in iniquity, and do not desire plunder. If riches flow toward you, do not be willing to set your heart on them.
{61:12} God has spoken once. I have heard two things: that power belongs to God,
{61:13} and that mercy belongs to you, O Lord. For you will repay each one according to his works.
{62:1} A Psalm of David, when he was in the desert of Idumea.
{62:2} O God, my God: to you, I keep vigil until first light. For you, my soul has thirsted, to you my body, in so many ways.
{62:3} By a deserted land, both inaccessible and waterless, so I have appeared in the sanctuary before you, in order to behold your virtue and your glory.
{62:4} For your mercy is better than life itself. It is you my lips will praise.
{62:5} So will I bless you in my life, and I will lift up my hands in your name.
{62:6} Let my soul be filled, as if with marrow and fatness; and my mouth will give praise with exultant lips.
{62:7} When I have remembered you on my bed in the morning, I will meditate on you.
{62:8} For you have been my helper. And I will exult under the cover of your wings.
{62:9} My soul has clung close to you. Your right hand has supported me.
{62:10} Truly, these ones have sought my soul in vain. They will enter into the lower parts of the earth.
{62:11} They will be delivered into the hand of the sword. They will be the portions of foxes.
{62:12} Truly, the king will rejoice in God: all those who swear by him will be praised, because the mouth of those who speak iniquity has been blocked.
{63:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David.
{63:2} Hear, O God, my prayer of supplication. Rescue my soul from the fear of the enemy.
{63:3} You have protected me from the assembly of the malignant, from a multitude of workers of iniquity.
{63:4} For they have sharpened their tongues like a sword; they have formed their bow into a bitter thing,
{63:5} so that they may shoot arrows from hiding at the immaculate.
{63:6} They will suddenly shoot arrows at him, and they will not be afraid. They are resolute in their wicked talk. They have discussed hidden snares. They have said, “Who will see them?”
{63:7} They have been searching carefully for iniquities. Their exhaustive search has failed. Man will approach with a deep heart,
{63:8} and God will be exalted. The arrows of the little ones have become their wounds,
{63:9} and their tongues have been weakened against them. All those who saw them have been troubled;
{63:10} and every man was afraid. And they announced the works of God, and they understood his acts.
{63:11} The just will rejoice in the Lord, and they will hope in him. And all the upright of heart will be praised.
{64:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David. A Canticle of Jeremiah and Ezekiel to the people of the captivity, when they began to go into exile.
{64:2} O God, a hymn adorns you in Zion, and a vow will be repaid to you in Jerusalem.
{64:3} Hear my prayer: all flesh will come to you.
{64:4} Words of iniquity have prevailed over us. And you will pardon our impieties.
{64:5} Blessed is he whom you have chosen and taken up. He will dwell in your courts. We will be filled with the good things of your house. Holy is your temple:
{64:6} wonderful in equity. Hear us, O God our Savior, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of a sea far away.
{64:7} You prepare the mountains in your virtue, wrapped with power.
{64:8} You stir up the depths of the sea, the noise of its waves. The nations will be troubled,
{64:9} and those who dwell at the limits will be afraid, before your signs. You will make the passing of morning and evening enjoyable.
{64:10} You have visited the earth, and you have saturated it. You have enriched it in so many ways. The river of God has been filled with water. You have prepared their food. For thus is its preparation.
{64:11} Drench its streams, multiply its fruits; it will spring up and rejoice in its showers.
{64:12} You will bless the crown of the year with your kindness, and your fields will be filled with abundance.
{64:13} The beauty of the desert will fatten, and the hills will be wrapped with exultation.
{64:14} The rams of the sheep have been clothed, and the valleys will abound with grain. They will cry out; yes, they will even utter a hymn.
{65:1} Unto the end. A Canticle Psalm of the Resurrection. Shout joyfully to God, all the earth.
{65:2} Proclaim a psalm to his name. Give glory to his praise.
{65:3} Exclaim to God, “How terrible are your works, O Lord!” According to the fullness of your virtue, your enemies will speak lies about you.
{65:4} Let all the earth adore you and sing psalms to you. May it sing a psalm to your name.
{65:5} Draw near and see the works of God, who is terrible in his counsels over the sons of men.
{65:6} He converts the sea into dry land. They will cross the river on foot. There, we will rejoice in him.
{65:7} He rules by his virtue for eternity. His eyes gaze upon the nations. May those who exasperate him, not be exalted in themselves.
{65:8} Bless our God, you Gentiles, and make the voice of his praise be heard.
{65:9} He has set my soul toward life, and he has granted that my feet may not be shaken.
{65:10} For you, O God, have tested us. You have examined us by fire, just as silver is examined.
{65:11} You have led us into a snare. You have placed tribulations on our back.
{65:12} You have set men over our heads. We have crossed through fire and water. And you have led us out to refreshment.
{65:13} I will enter your house with holocausts. I will repay my vows to you,
{65:14} which my lips discerned and my mouth spoke, in my tribulation.
{65:15} I will offer to you holocausts full of marrow, with the burnt offerings of rams. I will offer to you bulls as well as goats.
{65:16} Draw near and listen, all you who fear God, and I will describe to you how much he has done for my soul.
{65:17} I cried out to him with my mouth, and I extolled him under my breath.
{65:18} If I have seen iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not heed me.
{65:19} And yet, God has heeded me and he has attended to the voice of my supplication.
{65:20} Blessed is God, who has not removed my prayer, nor his mercy, from me.
{66:1} Unto the end. With hymns, a Canticle Psalm of David.
{66:2} May God have mercy on us and bless us. May he shine his countenance upon us, and may he have mercy on us.
{66:3} So may we know your way upon the earth, your salvation among all nations.
{66:4} Let the peoples confess to you, O God. Let all the peoples confess to you.
{66:5} May the nations rejoice and exult. For you judge the peoples with equity, and you direct the nations on earth.
{66:6} Let the peoples confess to you, O God. Let all the peoples confess to you.
{66:7} The earth has provided her fruit. May God, our God, bless us.
{66:8} May God bless us, and may all the ends of the earth fear him.
{67:1} Unto the end. A Canticle Psalm of David himself.
{67:2} May God rise up, and may his enemies be scattered, and may those who hate him flee from before his face.
{67:3} Just as smoke vanishes, so may they vanish. Just as wax flows away before the face of fire, so may sinners pass away before the face of God.
{67:4} And so, let the just feast, and let them exult in the sight of God and be delighted in gladness.
{67:5} Sing to God, sing a psalm to his name. Make a path for him, who ascends over the west. The Lord is his name. Exult in his sight; they will be stirred up before his face,
{67:6} the father of orphans and the judge of widows. God is in his holy place.
{67:7} It is God who makes men dwell in a house under one custom. He leads out those who are strongly bound, and similarly, those who exasperate, who dwell in sepulchers.
{67:8} O God, when you departed in the sight of your people, when you passed through the desert,
{67:9} the earth was moved, for the heavens rained down before the face of the God of Sinai, before the face of the God of Israel.
{67:10} You will set aside for your inheritance, O God, a willing rain. And though it was weak, truly, you have made it perfect.
{67:11} Your animals will dwell in it. O God, in your sweetness, you have provided for the poor.
{67:12} The Lord will give the word to evangelizers, along with great virtue.
{67:13} The King of virtue is beloved among the beloved. And the beauty of the house will divide spoils.
{67:14} If you take your rest in the midst of the clergy, you will be like a dove whose wings are covered with fine silver and edged with pale gold.
{67:15} When heaven discerns kings to be over her, they will be whitened with the snows of Zalmon.
{67:16} The mountain of God is a fat mountain, a dense mountain, a thick mountain.
{67:17} So then, why are you distrustful of dense mountains? The mountain on which God is well pleased to dwell, even there, the Lord will dwell until the end.
{67:18} The chariot of God is ten thousand fold: thousands rejoice. The Lord is with them in Sinai, in the holy place.
{67:19} You have ascended on high; you have taken captivity captive. You have accepted gifts among men. For even those who do not believe dwell with the Lord God.
{67:20} Blessed is the Lord, day after day. The God of our salvation will make our journey prosper for us.
{67:21} Our God is the God who will bring about our salvation, and our Lord is the Lord who has brought an end to death.
{67:22} So then, truly, God will break the heads of his enemies, the hairy skull of those who wander around in their offenses.
{67:23} The Lord said: I will turn them away from Bashan, I will turn them into the depths of the sea,
{67:24} so that your feet may be soaked in the blood of your enemies, so that the tongue of your dogs may be soaked with the same.
{67:25} O God, they have seen your arrival, the arrival of my God, of my king who is in a holy place.
{67:26} The leaders went ahead, united with the singers of psalms, in the midst of girls playing on timbrels.
{67:27} In the churches, bless the Lord God from the fountains of Israel.
{67:28} In that place, Benjamin is a youth in ecstasy of mind. The leaders of Judah are their governors: the leaders of Zebulun, the leaders of Naphtali.
{67:29} Command by your virtue, O God. Confirm in this place, O God, what you have wrought in us.
{67:30} Before your temple in Jerusalem, kings will offer gifts to you.
{67:31} Rebuke the wild beasts of the reeds, a congregation of bulls with the cows of the people, for they seek to exclude those who have been tested like silver. Scatter the nations that are pleased by wars.
{67:32} Ambassadors will come out of Egypt. Ethiopia will offer in advance her hands to God.
{67:33} Sing to God, O kingdoms of the earth. Sing psalms to the Lord. Sing psalms to God.
{67:34} He ascends, up to the heaven of the heavens, toward the east. Behold, he will utter his voice, the voice of virtue.
{67:35} Give glory to God beyond Israel. His magnificence and his virtue is in the clouds.
{67:36} God is wonderful in his saints. The God of Israel himself will give virtue and strength to his people. Blessed is God.
{68:1} Unto the end. For those who will be changed: of David.
{68:2} Save me, O God, for the waters have entered, even to my soul.
{68:3} I have become stuck in a deep quagmire, and there is no firm footing. I have arrived at the height of the sea, and a tempest has overwhelmed me.
{68:4} I have endured hardships, while crying out. My jaws have become hoarse; my eyes have failed. Meanwhile, I hope in my God.
{68:5} Those who hate me without cause have been multiplied beyond the hairs of my head. My enemies, who persecuted me unjustly, have been strengthened. Then I was required to pay for what I did not take.
{68:6} O God, you know my foolishness, and my offenses have not been hidden from you.
{68:7} Let those who wait for you, O Lord, the Lord of hosts, not be shamed in me. Let those who seek you, O God of Israel, not be confounded over me.
{68:8} For because of you, I have endured reproach; confusion has covered my face.
{68:9} I have become a stranger to my brothers and a sojourner to the sons of my mother.
{68:10} For zeal for your house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those who reproached you have fallen upon me.
{68:11} And I covered my soul with fasting, and it has become a reproach to me.
{68:12} And I put on a haircloth as my garment, and I became a parable to them.
{68:13} Those who sat at the gate spoke against me, and those who drank wine made me their song.
{68:14} But as for me, truly, my prayer is to you, O Lord. This time has pleased you well, O God. In the multitude of your mercy, in the truth of your salvation, hear me.
{68:15} Rescue me from the quagmire, so that I may not become trapped. Free me from those who hate me and from deep waters.
{68:16} Do not allow the tempest of water to submerge me, nor the deep to absorb me. And do not allow the well to close in on me.
{68:17} Hear me, O Lord, for your mercy is kind. Look upon me, according to the fullness of your compassion.
{68:18} And do not turn your face away from your servant, for I am in trouble: heed me quickly.
{68:19} Attend to my soul, and free it. Rescue me, because of my enemies.
{68:20} You know my reproach, and my confusion, and my reverence.
{68:21} All those who trouble me are in your sight; my heart has anticipated reproach and misery. And I sought for one who might grieve together with me, but there was no one, and for one who might console me, and I found no one.
{68:22} And they gave me gall for my food. And in my thirst, they gave me vinegar to drink.
{68:23} Let their table be a snare before them, and a retribution, and a scandal.
{68:24} Let their eyes be darkened, so that they may not see, and may their back always be crooked.
{68:25} Pour out your indignation upon them, and may the fury of your anger take hold of them.
{68:26} May their dwelling place be deserted, and may there be no one who dwells in their tabernacles.
{68:27} For they persecuted whomever you struck. And they have added to the grief of my wounds.
{68:28} Assign an iniquity upon their iniquity, and may they not enter into your justice.
{68:29} Delete them from the Book of the Living, and let them not be written down with the just.
{68:30} I am poor and sorrowful, but your salvation, O God, has taken me up.
{68:31} I will praise the name of God with a canticle, and I will magnify him with praise.
{68:32} And it will please God more than a new calf producing horns and hoofs.
{68:33} Let the poor see and rejoice. Seek God, and your soul will live.
{68:34} For the Lord has heard the poor, and he has not despised his prisoners.
{68:35} Let the heavens and the earth praise him: the sea, and everything that crawls in it.
{68:36} For God will save Zion, and the cities of Judah will be built up. And they will dwell there, and they will acquire it by inheritance.
{68:37} And the offspring of his servants will possess it; and those who love his name will dwell in it.
{69:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David, in remembrance that the Lord had saved him.
{69:2} O God, reach out to help me. O Lord, hasten to assist me.
{69:3} May those who seek my soul be confounded and awed.
{69:4} May those who wish evils upon me be turned back and blush with shame. May they be turned away immediately, blushing with shame, who say to me: “Well, well.”
{69:5} Let all who seek you exult and rejoice in you, and let those who love your salvation forever say: “The Lord be magnified.”
{69:6} I am truly destitute and poor. O God, assist me. You are my helper and my deliverer. O Lord, do not delay.
{70:1} A Psalm of David. Of the sons of Jonadab and the former captives. In you, O Lord, I have hoped; do not let me be brought to ruin forever.
{70:2} Free me by your justice, and rescue me. Incline your ear to me, and save me.
{70:3} Be a God of protection and a place of strength for me, so that you may accomplish my salvation. For you are my firmament and my refuge.
{70:4} Rescue me, O my God, from the hand of the sinner, and from the hand of the unjust and those who act against the law.
{70:5} For you, O Lord, are my patience: my hope from my youth, O Lord.
{70:6} In you, I have been confirmed from conception. From my mother’s womb, you are my protector. In you, I will sing forever.
{70:7} I have become to many as if I were a portent, but you are a strong helper.
{70:8} Let my mouth be filled with praise, so that I may sing your glory, your greatness all day long.
{70:9} Do not cast me off in the time of old age. Do not abandon me when my strength will fail.
{70:10} For my enemies have spoken against me. And those who watched for my soul have taken counsel as one,
{70:11} saying: “God has abandoned him. Pursue and overtake him. For there is no one to rescue him.”
{70:12} O God, do not be far from me. O my God, provide for my assistance.
{70:13} May they be confounded, and may they fail, who drag down my soul. Let them be covered with confusion and shame, who seek evils for me.
{70:14} But I will always have hope. And I will add more to all your praise.
{70:15} My mouth will announce your justice, your salvation all day long. For I have not known letters.
{70:16} I will enter into the powers of the Lord. I will be mindful of your justice alone, O Lord.
{70:17} You have taught me from my youth, O God. And so I will declare your wonders continuously,
{70:18} even in old age and with grey hairs. Do not abandon me, O God, while I announce your arm to every future generation: your power
{70:19} and your justice, O God, even to the highest great things that you have done. O God, who is like you?
{70:20} How great is the tribulation that you have revealed to me: very great and evil. And so, turning back, you have brought me to life, and you have led me back again from the abyss of the earth.
{70:21} You have multiplied your magnificence. And so, turning back to me, you have consoled me.
{70:22} Therefore, I will confess your truth to you, with the instruments of the Psalter. O God, I will sing psalms to you with stringed instruments, O Holy One of Israel.
{70:23} My lips will exult, when I sing to you, and also my soul, which you have redeemed.
{70:24} And even my tongue will meditate on your justice all day long, when those who seek evils for me have been confounded and set in awe.
{71:1} A Psalm according to Solomon.
{71:2} Give your judgment, O God, to the king, and your justice to the king’s son, to judge your people with justice and your poor with judgment.
{71:3} Let the mountains take up peace for the people, and the hills, justice.
{71:4} He will judge the poor of the people, and he will bring salvation to the sons of the poor. And he will humble the false accuser.
{71:5} And he will remain, with the sun and before the moon, from generation to generation.
{71:6} He will descend like rain upon fleece, and like showers showering upon the earth.
{71:7} In his days, justice will rise like the sun, with abundance of peace, until the moon is taken away.
{71:8} And he will rule from sea to sea and from the river to the limits of the whole world.
{71:9} In his sight, the Ethiopians will fall prostrate, and his enemies will lick the ground.
{71:10} The kings of Tarshish and the islands will offer gifts. The kings of Arabia and of Seba will bring gifts.
{71:11} And all the kings of the earth shall adore him. All nations will serve him.
{71:12} For he will free the poor from the powerful, and the poor one who has no helper.
{71:13} He will spare the poor and the indigent, and he will bring salvation to the souls of the poor.
{71:14} He will redeem their souls from usuries and from iniquity, and their names shall be honorable in his sight.
{71:15} And he will live, and to him will be given from the gold of Arabia, and by him they will always adore. They will bless him all day long.
{71:16} And there will be a firmament on earth, at the summits of mountains: its fruits will be extolled above Lebanon, and those of the city will flourish like the grass of the earth.
{71:17} May his name be blessed forever; may his name remain before the sun. And all the tribes of the earth will be blessed in him. All nations will magnify him.
{71:18} Blessed is the Lord, God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things.
{71:19} And blessed is the name of his majesty in eternity. And all the earth will be filled with his majesty. Amen. Amen.
{71:20} The praises of David, the son of Jesse, have reached an end.
{72:1} A Psalm of Asaph. How good is God to Israel, to those who are upright in heart.
{72:2} But my feet were nearly moved; my steps had nearly slipped.
{72:3} For I was zealous over the iniquitous, seeing the peacefulness of sinners.
{72:4} For they have no respect for their death, nor do they have support in their wounds.
{72:5} They are not with the hardships of men, nor will they be scourged with men.
{72:6} Therefore, arrogance has held on to them. They have been covered with their iniquity and impiety.
{72:7} Their iniquity has proceeded, as if from fat. They have parted from the affection of the heart.
{72:8} They have thought and spoken wickedness. They have spoken iniquity in high places.
{72:9} They have set their mouth against heaven, and their tongue has traversed the earth.
{72:10} Therefore, my people will be converted here, and fullness of days will be found in them.
{72:11} And they said, “How would God know?” and, “Isn’t there knowledge in high places?”
{72:12} Behold, these are sinners, and, abounding in this age, they have obtained riches.
{72:13} And I said: So then, it is without purpose that I have justified my heart and washed my hands among the innocent.
{72:14} And I have been scourged all day long, and I have received my chastisement in the mornings.
{72:15} If I were to say that I would explain this: Behold, I would condemn this nation of your sons.
{72:16} I considered, so that I might know this. It is a hardship before me,
{72:17} until I may enter into the Sanctuary of God, and understand it to its last part.
{72:18} So, because of deceitfulness, truly, you have placed it before them. While they were being lifted up, you were casting them down.
{72:19} How have they been brought to desolation? They have suddenly failed. They have perished because of their iniquity.
{72:20} As a dream is to those who awaken, O Lord, so will you reduce their image to nothing in your city.
{72:21} For my heart has been inflamed, and my temperament has been changed.
{72:22} And so, I have been reduced to nothing, and I did not know it.
{72:23} I have become like a beast of burden to you, and I am always with you.
{72:24} You have held my right hand. And in your will, you have conducted me, and with your glory, you have taken me up.
{72:25} For what is there for me in heaven? And what do I wish for on earth before you?
{72:26} My body has failed, and my heart: O God of my heart, and God my portion, into eternity.
{72:27} For behold, those who put themselves far from you will perish. You have perished all those who fornicate away from you.
{72:28} But it is good for me to adhere to God, to put my hope in the Lord God, so that I may announce all your prophecies, at the gates of the daughter of Zion.
{73:1} The understanding of Asaph. O God, why have you rejected us to the end. Why has your fury become enraged over the sheep of your pasture?
{73:2} Be mindful of your congregation, which you have possessed from the beginning. You redeemed the scepter of your inheritance, mount Zion, in which you have dwelt.
{73:3} Lift up your hands against their arrogance in the end. How great the malice of the enemy has been in the sanctuary!
{73:4} And those who hate you have been glorified, in the midst of your solemnity. They have set up their own signs as a proof,
{73:5} as if it had been issued from on high; yet they did not understand. As in a forest of chopped wood,
{73:6} they have cut down the entrances themselves. With axe and hatchet, they have brought it down.
{73:7} They have set fire to your Sanctuary. They have polluted the tabernacle of your name on earth.
{73:8} They have said in their heart, the whole group of them together: “Let us cause all the feast days of God to cease from the land.
{73:9} We have not seen our proof; there is now no prophet. And he will no longer know us.”
{73:10} How long, O God, will the enemy place blame? Is the adversary to provoke your name until the end?
{73:11} Why do you turn your hand away, even your right hand, from the midst of your sinews, until the end?
{73:12} But God is our king before all ages. He has wrought salvation in the midst of the earth.
{73:13} In your virtue, you confirmed the sea. You crushed the heads of the serpents in the waters.
{73:14} You have broken the heads of the serpent. You have given him as food for the people of the Ethiopians.
{73:15} You have disrupted the fountains and the torrents. You have dried up the rivers of Ethan.
{73:16} Yours is the day, and yours is the night. You have made the morning light and the sun.
{73:17} You have made all the limits of the earth. The summer and the spring were formed by you.
{73:18} Be mindful of this: the enemy placed blame against the Lord, and a foolish people has incited against your name.
{73:19} Do not hand over to beasts the souls that confess to you; and do not forget the souls of your poor until the end.
{73:20} Consider your covenant. For those who have been darkened upon the earth have been filled by the iniquity of the houses.
{73:21} Do not allow the humble to be turned away in confusion. The poor and the needy will praise your name.
{73:22} Rise up, O God, judge your own case. Call to mind the accusations against you, which are made by the foolish all day long.
{73:23} Do not forget the voices of your adversaries. The arrogance of those who hate you rises up continually.
{74:1} Unto the end. May you not be corrupted. A Canticle Psalm of Asaph.
{74:2} We will confess to you, O God. We will confess, and we will call upon your name. We will describe your wonders.
{74:3} While I have time, I will judge justices.
{74:4} The earth has been dissolved, with all who dwell in it. I have confirmed its pillars.
{74:5} I said to the iniquitous: “Do not act unjustly,” and to the offenders: “Do not exalt the horn.”
{74:6} Do not exalt your horn on high. Do not speak iniquity against God.
{74:7} For it is neither from the east, nor from the west, nor before the desert mountains.
{74:8} For God is judge. This one he humbles and that one he exalts.
{74:9} For, in the hand of the Lord, there is a cup of undiluted wine, full of consternation. And he has tipped it from here to there. So, truly, its dregs have not been emptied. All the sinners of the earth will drink.
{74:10} But I will announce it in every age. I will sing to the God of Jacob.
{74:11} And I will break all the horns of sinners. And the horns of the just will be exalted.
{75:1} Unto the end. With Praises. A Psalm of Asaph. A Canticle to the Assyrians.
{75:2} In Judea, God is known. In Israel, his name is great.
{75:3} And his place has been formed with peace. And his dwelling place is in Zion.
{75:4} In that place, he has broken the powers of the bows, the shield, the sword, and the battle.
{75:5} You illuminate wondrously from the mountains of eternity.
{75:6} All the foolish of heart have been disturbed. They have slept their sleep, and all the men of riches have found nothing in their hands.
{75:7} At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, those who were mounted on horseback have fallen asleep.
{75:8} You are terrible, and so, who can withstand you? From thence is your wrath.
{75:9} You have caused judgment to be heard from heaven. The earth trembled and was quieted,
{75:10} when God rose up in judgment in order to bring salvation to all the meek of the earth.
{75:11} For the thinking of man will confess to you, and the legacy of his thinking will keep a feast day to you.
{75:12} Make vows and pay them to the Lord, your God. All you who surround him bring gifts: to him who is terrible,
{75:13} even to him who takes away the spirit of leaders, to him who is terrible with the kings of the earth.
{76:1} Unto the end. For Jeduthun. A Psalm of Asaph.
{76:2} I cried out to the Lord with my voice, to God with my voice, and he attended to me.
{76:3} In the days of my tribulation, I sought God, with my hands opposite him in the night, and I was not deceived. My soul refused to be consoled.
{76:4} I was mindful of God, and I was delighted, and I was distressed, and my spirit fell away.
{76:5} My eyes anticipated the vigils. I was disturbed, and I did not speak.
{76:6} I considered the days of antiquity, and I held the years of eternity in my mind.
{76:7} And I meditated in the night with my heart, and I was distressed, and I examined my spirit.
{76:8} So then, will God reject for eternity? Will he not continue to allow himself to show favor?
{76:9} Or, will he cut off his mercy in the end, from generation to generation?
{76:10} And would God ever forget to be merciful? Or, would he, in his wrath, restrict his mercies?
{76:11} And I said, “Now I have begun. This change is from the right hand of the Most High.”
{76:12} I was mindful of the works of the Lord. For I will be mindful from the beginning of your wonders,
{76:13} and I will meditate on all your works. And I will take part in your intentions.
{76:14} Your way, O God, is in what is holy. Which God is great like our God?
{76:15} You are the God who performs miracles. You have made your virtue known among the peoples.
{76:16} With your arm, you have redeemed your people, the sons of Jacob and of Joseph.
{76:17} The waters saw you, O God, the waters saw you, and they were afraid, and the depths were stirred up.
{76:18} Great was the sound of the waters. The clouds uttered a voice. For your arrows also pass by.
{76:19} The voice of your thunder is like a wheel. Your flashes have illuminated the whole world. The earth has quaked and trembled.
{76:20} Your way is through the sea, and your paths are through many waters. And your traces will not be known.
{76:21} You have conducted your people like sheep, by the hand of Moses and Aaron.
{77:1} The understanding of Asaph. O my people, attend to my law. Incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
{77:2} I will open my mouth in parables. I will speak about concepts that are from the beginning.
{77:3} We have heard and known such great things, as our fathers have described to us.
{77:4} These things have not been hidden from their sons in any generation: declaring the praises of the Lord, and his virtues, and the wonders that he has done.
{77:5} And he has received testimony with Jacob, and he has set a law within Israel. Such great things, he has commanded our fathers, so as to make these things known to their sons,
{77:6} so that another generation might know them, and so that the sons, who will be born and who will grow up, shall describe them to their sons.
{77:7} So then, may they put their hope in God, and may they not forget the works of God, and may they seek his commandments.
{77:8} May they not become like their fathers, a perverse and exasperating generation: a generation that does not straighten their heart and whose spirit is not trustworthy with God.
{77:9} The sons of Ephraim, who bend and shoot the bow, have been turned back in the day of battle.
{77:10} They have not kept the covenant of God. And they were not willing to walk in his law.
{77:11} And they have been forgetful of his benefits, and of his miracle, which he revealed to them.
{77:12} He performed miracles in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Tanis.
{77:13} He broke the sea and he led them through. And he stationed the waters, as if in a vessel.
{77:14} And he led them with a cloud by day, and with illumination by fire throughout the night.
{77:15} He broke through the rock in the wasteland, and he gave them to drink, as if from the great abyss.
{77:16} He brought forth water from the rock, and he conducted the waters, as if they were rivers.
{77:17} And yet, they continued to sin against him. In a waterless place, they provoked the Most High with resentment.
{77:18} And they tempted God in their hearts, by asking for food according to their desires.
{77:19} And they spoke badly about God. They said, “Would God be able to prepare a table in the desert?
{77:20} He struck the rock, and so waters flowed and the torrents flooded, but would even he be able to provide bread, or provide a table, for his people?”
{77:21} Therefore, the Lord heard, and he was dismayed, and a fire was kindled within Jacob, and an anger ascended into Israel.
{77:22} For they neither put their trust in God, nor did they hope in his salvation.
{77:23} And he commanded the clouds from above, and he opened the doors of heaven.
{77:24} And he rained down manna upon them to eat, and he gave them the bread of heaven.
{77:25} Man ate the bread of Angels. He sent them provisions in abundance.
{77:26} He transferred the south wind from heaven, and, in his virtue, he brought in the Southwest wind.
{77:27} And he rained down flesh upon them, as if it were dust, and feathered birds, as if they were the sand of the sea.
{77:28} And they fell down in the midst of their camp, encircling their tabernacles.
{77:29} And they ate until they were greatly satisfied, and he brought to them according to their desires.
{77:30} They were not cheated out of what they wanted. Their food was still in their mouth,
{77:31} and then the wrath of God came upon them. And he slew the fat ones among them, and he impeded the elect of Israel.
{77:32} In all these things, they continued to sin, and they were not trustworthy with his miracles.
{77:33} And their days faded away into vanity, and their years with haste.
{77:34} When he slew them, then they sought him. And they returned, and they drew near to him in the early morning.
{77:35} And they were mindful that God is their helper and that the Most High God is their redeemer.
{77:36} And they chose him with their mouth, and then they lied to him with their tongue.
{77:37} For their heart was not upright with him, nor have they been living faithfully in his covenant.
{77:38} Yet he is merciful, and he will pardon their sins. And he will not destroy them. And he has abundantly turned aside his own wrath. And he did not enflame his wrath entirely.
{77:39} And he remembered that they are flesh: with a spirit that goes forth and does not return.
{77:40} How often did they provoke him in the desert and stir him to wrath in a waterless place?
{77:41} And they turned back and tempted God, and they exasperated the Holy One of Israel.
{77:42} They did not remember his hand, in the day that he redeemed them from the hand of the one troubling them.
{77:43} Thus, he positioned his signs in Egypt and his wonders in the field of Tanis.
{77:44} And he turned their rivers into blood, along with their rain showers, so that they could not drink.
{77:45} He sent among them the common fly, and it devoured them, and the frog, and it scattered them.
{77:46} And he gave up their fruits to mold and their labors to the locust.
{77:47} And he slew their vineyards with hail and their mulberry trees with severe frost.
{77:48} And he delivered their cattle to the hail and their possessions to fire.
{77:49} And he sent the wrath of his indignation among them: indignation and wrath and tribulation, sent forth by evil angels.
{77:50} He made way for the path of his anger. He did not spare their souls from death. And he enclosed their beasts of burden in death.
{77:51} And he struck all the first-born in the land of Egypt: the first-fruits of all their labor in the tabernacles of Ham.
{77:52} And he took away his own people like sheep, and he led them through the wilderness like a flock.
{77:53} And he led them out in hope, and they did not fear. And the sea covered their enemies.
{77:54} And he led them to the mountain of his sanctification: the mountain that his right hand had acquired. And he cast out the Gentiles before their face. And he divided their land by lot to them, with a line of distribution.
{77:55} And he caused the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tabernacles.
{77:56} Yet they tempted and aggravated God Most High, and they did not keep his testaments.
{77:57} And they turned themselves aside, and they did not serve the covenant. In the same manner as their fathers, they were turned backwards, like a crooked bow.
{77:58} They impelled him to anger on their hills, and they provoked him to rivalry with their graven images.
{77:59} God listened, and he spurned them, and he reduced Israel greatly, almost to nothing.
{77:60} And he rejected the tabernacle of Shiloh, his tabernacle where he had dwelt among men.
{77:61} And he delivered their virtue into captivity, and their beauty into the hands of the enemy.
{77:62} And he enclosed his people with the sword, and he spurned his inheritance.
{77:63} Fire consumed their young men, and their virgins were not lamented.
{77:64} Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows did not weep.
{77:65} And the Lord was awakened, as if out of sleep, and like a powerful man impaired by wine.
{77:66} And he struck his enemies on the back. He gave them over to everlasting disgrace.
{77:67} And he rejected the tabernacle of Joseph, and he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
{77:68} But he chose the tribe of Judah: mount Zion, which he loved.
{77:69} And he built up his sanctuary, like a single-horned beast, in the land that he founded for all ages.
{77:70} And he chose his servant David, and he took him from the flocks of the sheep: he received him from following the ewes with their young,
{77:71} in order to pasture Jacob his servant and Israel his inheritance.
{77:72} And he fed them with the innocence of his heart. And he led them with the understanding of his hands.
{78:1} A Psalm of Asaph. O God, the Gentiles have entered into your inheritance; they have polluted your holy temple. They have set Jerusalem as a place to tend fruit trees.
{78:2} They have placed the dead bodies of your servants as food for the birds of the sky, the flesh of your saints for the beasts of the earth.
{78:3} They have poured out their blood like water all around Jerusalem, and there was no one who would bury them.
{78:4} We have become a disgrace to our neighbors, an object of ridicule and mockery to those who are around us.
{78:5} How long, O Lord? Will you be angry until the end? Will your zeal be kindled like a fire?
{78:6} Pour out your wrath among the Gentiles, who have not known you, and upon the kingdoms that have not invoked your name.
{78:7} For they have devoured Jacob, and they have desolated his place.
{78:8} Do not remember our iniquities of the past. May your mercies quickly intercept us, for we have become exceedingly poor.
{78:9} Help us, O God, our Savior. And free us, Lord, for the glory of your name. And forgive us our sins for the sake of your name.
{78:10} Let them not say among the Gentiles, “Where is their God?” And may your name become known among the nations before our eyes. For the retribution of your servants’ blood, which has been poured out:
{78:11} may the groans of the shackled enter before you. According to the greatness of your arm, take possession of the sons of those who have been killed.
{78:12} And repay our neighbors sevenfold within their sinews. It is the reproach of the same ones who brought reproach against you, O Lord.
{78:13} But we are your people and the sheep of your pasture: we will give thanks to you in all ages. From generation to generation, we will announce your praise.
{79:1} Unto the end. For those who will be changed. The testimony of Asaph. A Psalm.
{79:2} The One who reigns over Israel: Be attentive. For you lead Joseph like a sheep. The One who sits upon the cherubim: Shine forth
{79:3} in the presence of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh. Awaken your power and draw near, so as to accomplish our salvation.
{79:4} Convert us, O God. And reveal your face, and we will be saved.
{79:5} O Lord, God of hosts, how long will you be angry over the prayer of your servant?
{79:6} How long will you feed us the bread of tears, and give us to drink a full measure of tears?
{79:7} You have set us as a contradiction to our neighbors. And our enemies have ridiculed us.
{79:8} O God of hosts, convert us. And reveal your face, and we will be saved.
{79:9} You have transferred a vineyard from Egypt. You have cast out the Gentiles, and planted it.
{79:10} You were the leader of the journey in its sight. You planted its roots, and it filled the earth.
{79:11} Its shadow covered the hills, and its branches covered the cedars of God.
{79:12} It extended its new branches even to the sea, and its new seedlings even to the river.
{79:13} So then, why have you destroyed its walls, so that all those who pass by the way gather its grapes?
{79:14} The wild boar of the forest has trampled it, and a single wild beast has laid waste to it.
{79:15} Turn back, O God of hosts. Look down from heaven, and see, and visit this vineyard;
{79:16} and complete what your right hand has planted, and look upon the son of man, whom you have confirmed for yourself.
{79:17} Whatever has been set on fire and dug under will perish at the rebuke of your countenance.
{79:18} Let your hand be over the man on your right, and over the son of man, whom you have confirmed for yourself.
{79:19} For we do not depart from you, and you will revive us. And we will invoke your name.
{79:20} O Lord, God of hosts, convert us. And reveal your face, and we will be saved.
{80:1} Unto the end. For the wine and oil presses. A Psalm of Asaph himself.
{80:2} Exult before God our helper. Sing joyfully to the God of Jacob.
{80:3} Take up a psalm, and bring forth the timbrel: a pleasing Psalter with stringed instruments.
{80:4} Sound the trumpet at the new moon, on the noteworthy day of your solemnity,
{80:5} for it is a precept in Israel and a judgment for the God of Jacob.
{80:6} He set it as a testimony with Joseph, when he went out of the land of Egypt. He heard a tongue that he did not know.
{80:7} He turned the burdens away from his back. His hands had been a slave to baskets.
{80:8} You called upon me in tribulation, and I freed you. I heard you within the hidden tempest. I tested you with waters of contradiction.
{80:9} My people, listen and I will call you to testify. If, O Israel, you will pay heed to me,
{80:10} then there will be no new god among you, nor will you adore a foreign god.
{80:11} For I am the Lord your God, who led you out of the land of Egypt. Widen your mouth, and I will fill it.
{80:12} But my people did not hear my voice, and Israel was not attentive to me.
{80:13} And so, I sent them away, according to the desires of their heart. They will go forth according to their own inventions.
{80:14} If my people had heard me, if Israel had walked in my ways,
{80:15} I would have humbled their enemies, as if it were nothing, and I would have sent my hand upon those who troubled them.
{80:16} The enemies of the Lord have lied to him, and their time will come, in every age.
{80:17} And he fed them from the fat of the grain, and he saturated them with honey from the rock.
{81:1} A Psalm of Asaph. God has stood in the synagogue of gods, but, in their midst, he decides between gods.
{81:2} How long will you judge unjustly and favor the faces of sinners?
{81:3} Judge for the indigent and the orphan. Do justice to the humble and the poor.
{81:4} Rescue the poor, and free the needy from the hand of the sinner.
{81:5} They did not know and did not understand. They wander in darkness. All the foundations of the earth will be moved.
{81:6} I said: You are gods, and all of you are sons of the Most High.
{81:7} But you will die like men, and you will fall just like one of the princes.
{81:8} Rise up, O God. Judge the earth. For you will inherit it with all the nations.
{82:1} A Canticle Psalm of Asaph.
{82:2} O God, who will ever be like you? Do not be silent, and do not be unmoved, O God.
{82:3} For behold, your enemies have sounded off, and those who hate you have carried out a head.
{82:4} They have acted with malice in counsel over your people, and they have plotted against your holy ones.
{82:5} They have said, “Come, let us scatter them from the nations and not allow the name of Israel to be remembered any longer.”
{82:6} For they plotted unanimously. Joined together against you, they ordained a covenant:
{82:7} the tabernacle of Edomites and Ishmaelites, and Moab and the Hagarites,
{82:8} and Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek, the foreigners among the inhabitants of Tyre.
{82:9} For even Assur comes with them. They have become the helpers of the sons of Lot.
{82:10} Do to them as you did to Midian and Sisera, just as to Jabin at the torrent of Kishon.
{82:11} They perished at Endor, and they became like the dung of the earth.
{82:12} Set their leaders to be like Oreb and Zeeb, and Zebah and Zalmunna: all their leaders
{82:13} who said, “Let us possess the Sanctuary of God for an inheritance.”
{82:14} My God, set them like a wheel, and like stubble before the face of the wind.
{82:15} Set them like a fire burning up the forest, and like a flame burning up the mountains.
{82:16} So will you pursue them in your tempest, and disturb them in your wrath.
{82:17} Fill their faces with shame, and they will seek your name, O Lord.
{82:18} Let them be ashamed and troubled, from age to age, and let them be confounded and perish.
{82:19} And let them know that the Lord is your name. You alone are the Most High in all the earth.
{83:1} Unto the end. For the wine and oil presses. A Psalm to the sons of Korah.
{83:2} How beloved are your tabernacles, O Lord of hosts!
{83:3} My soul longs and faints for the courts of the Lord. My heart and my flesh have exulted in the living God.
{83:4} For even the sparrow has found a home for himself, and the turtle-dove a nest for herself, where she may lay her young: your altars, O Lord of hosts, my king and my God.
{83:5} Blessed are those who dwell in your house, O Lord. They will praise you from age to age.
{83:6} Blessed is the man whose help is from you. In his heart, he is disposed to ascend
{83:7} from the valley of tears, from the place which he has determined.
{83:8} For even the lawgiver will provide a blessing; they will go from virtue to virtue. The God of gods will be seen in Zion.
{83:9} O Lord, God of hosts, hear my prayer. Pay attention, O God of Jacob.
{83:10} O God, gaze upon our protector, and look upon the face of your Christ.
{83:11} For one day in your courts is better than thousands elsewhere. I have chosen to be lowly in the house of my God, rather than to dwell in the tabernacles of sinners.
{83:12} For God loves mercy and truth. The Lord will give grace and glory.
{83:13} He will not withhold good things from those who walk in innocence. O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man who hopes in you.
{84:1} Unto the end. A Psalm to the sons of Korah.
{84:2} O Lord, you have blessed your land. You have turned aside the captivity of Jacob.
{84:3} You have released the iniquity of your people. You have covered all their sins.
{84:4} You have mitigated all your wrath. You have turned aside from the wrath of your indignation.
{84:5} Convert us, O God, our Savior, and turn your anger away from us.
{84:6} Will you be angry with us forever? And will you extend your wrath from generation to generation?
{84:7} O God, you will turn back and revive us. And your people will rejoice in you.
{84:8} O Lord, reveal to us your mercy, and grant to us your salvation.
{84:9} I will listen to what the Lord God may be saying to me. For he will speak peace to his people, and to his saints, and to those who are being converted to the heart.
{84:10} So then, truly his salvation is near to those who fear him, so that glory may inhabit our land.
{84:11} Mercy and truth have met each other. Justice and peace have kissed.
{84:12} Truth has risen from the earth, and justice has gazed down from heaven.
{84:13} For so will the Lord give goodness, and our earth will give her fruit.
{84:14} Justice will walk before him, and he will set his steps upon the way.
{85:1} A Prayer of David himself. Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear me. For I am needy and poor.
{85:2} Preserve my soul, for I am holy. My God, bring salvation to your servant who hopes in you.
{85:3} O Lord, be merciful to me, for I have cried out to you all day long.
{85:4} Give joy to the soul of your servant, for I have lifted up my soul to you, Lord.
{85:5} For you are sweet and mild, Lord, and plentiful in mercy to all who call upon you.
{85:6} Pay attention, Lord, to my prayer, and attend to the voice of my supplication.
{85:7} In the day of my tribulation, I cried out to you, because you heeded me.
{85:8} There is no one like you among the gods, O Lord, and there is no one like you in your works.
{85:9} All the nations, which you have made, will draw near and adore in your presence, O Lord. And they will glorify your name.
{85:10} For you are great, and you perform wonders. You alone are God.
{85:11} Lead me, O Lord, in your way, and I will walk in your truth. May my heart rejoice, so that it will fear your name.
{85:12} I will confess to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart. And I will glorify your name in eternity.
{85:13} For your mercy toward me is great, and you have rescued my soul from the lower part of Hell.
{85:14} O God, the iniquitous have risen up against me, and the synagogue of the powerful have sought my soul, and they have not placed you in their sight.
{85:15} And you, Lord God, are compassionate and merciful, being patient and full of mercy and truthful.
{85:16} Look down upon me and have mercy on me. Grant your authority to your servant, and bring salvation to the son of your handmaid.
{85:17} Make me a sign of what is good, so that those who hate me, may look and be confounded. For you, O Lord, have helped me and consoled me.
{86:1} A Canticle Psalm to the sons of Korah. Its foundations are in the holy mountains:
{86:2} the Lord loves the gates of Zion above all the tabernacles of Jacob.
{86:3} Glorious things are being said of you, O City of God.
{86:4} I will be mindful of Rahab and of Babylon knowing me. Behold, the foreigners, and Tyre, and the people of the Ethiopians: these have been there.
{86:5} Will not Zion say that this man and that man were born in her? And the Most High himself has founded her.
{86:6} The Lord will explain, in the writings of peoples and of leaders, about those who have been in her.
{86:7} For so the dwelling place within you is with all rejoicing.
{87:1} A Canticle Psalm to the sons of Korah. Unto the end. For Mahalath, to answer the understanding of Heman the Ezrahite.
{87:2} O Lord, God of my salvation: I have cried out, day and night, in your presence.
{87:3} Let my prayer enter in your sight. Incline your ear to my petition.
{87:4} For my soul has been filled with evils, and my life has drawn near to Hell.
{87:5} I am considered to be among those who will descend into the pit. I have become like a man without assistance,
{87:6} idle among the dead. I am like the wounded sleeping in sepulchers, whom you no longer remember, and who have been repelled by your hand.
{87:7} They have lain me in the lower pit: in dark places and in the shadow of death.
{87:8} Your fury has been confirmed over me. And you have brought all your waves upon me.
{87:9} You have sent my acquaintances far from me. They have set me as an abomination to themselves. I was handed over, yet I did not depart.
{87:10} My eyes languished before destitution. All day long, I cried out to you, O Lord. I stretched out my hands to you.
{87:11} Will you perform wonders for the dead? Or will physicians raise to life, and so confess to you?
{87:12} Could anyone declare your mercy in the sepulcher, or your truth from within perdition?
{87:13} Will your wonders be known in the darkness, or your justice in the land of oblivion?
{87:14} And I have cried out to you, O Lord, and in early morning, my prayer will come before you.
{87:15} Lord, why do you reject my prayer? Why do you turn your face away from me?
{87:16} I am poor, and I have been amid hardships from my youth. And, though I have been exalted, I am humbled and disturbed.
{87:17} Your wrath has crossed into me, and your terrors have disturbed me.
{87:18} They have surrounded me like water, all day long. They have surrounded me, all at once.
{87:19} Friend and neighbor, and my acquaintances, you have sent far away from me, away from misery.
{88:1} The understanding of Ethan the Ezrahite.
{88:2} I will sing the mercies of the Lord in eternity. I will announce your truth with my mouth, from generation to generation.
{88:3} For you have said: Mercy will be built in the heavens, unto eternity. Your truth will be prepared there.
{88:4} I have set up a covenant with my elect. I have sworn to David my servant:
{88:5} I will prepare your offspring, even in eternity. And I will build up your throne, from generation to generation.
{88:6} The heavens will confess your miracles, Lord, and also your truth, in the Church of the saints.
{88:7} For who among the clouds is equal to the Lord? Who among the sons of God is like God?
{88:8} God is glorified by the counsel of the saints. He is great and terrible above all those who are around him.
{88:9} O Lord, God of hosts, who is like you? You are powerful, Lord, and your truth is all around you.
{88:10} You rule over the power of the sea, and you even mitigate the movement of its waves.
{88:11} You have humbled the arrogant one, like one who has been wounded. You have scattered your enemies with the arm of your strength.
{88:12} Yours are the heavens, and yours is the earth. You founded the whole world in all its fullness.
{88:13} You created the north and the sea. Tabor and Hermon will exult in your name.
{88:14} Your arm acts with power. Let your hand be strengthened, and let your right hand be exalted.
{88:15} Justice and judgment are the preparation of your throne. Mercy and truth will precede your face.
{88:16} Blessed is the people that knows jubilation. They will walk in the light of your countenance, O Lord,
{88:17} and they will exult in your name all day long, and they will be exalted in your justice.
{88:18} For you are the glory of their virtue, and in your goodness, our horn will be exalted.
{88:19} For our assumption is of the Lord, and it is of our king, the holy one of Israel.
{88:20} Then you spoke in a vision to your holy ones, and you said: I have stationed help with the powerful one, and I have exalted the elect one from my people.
{88:21} I have found my servant David. I have anointed him with my holy oil.
{88:22} For my hand will assist him, and my arm will fortify him.
{88:23} The enemy will have no advantage over him, nor will the son of iniquity be positioned to harm him.
{88:24} And I will cut down his enemies before his face. And those who hate him, I will turn to flight.
{88:25} And my truth and my mercy will be with him. And his horn will be exalted in my name.
{88:26} And I will place his hand on the sea and his right hand on the rivers.
{88:27} He will invoke me: “You are my father, my God, and the support of my salvation.”
{88:28} And I will make him the first-born, preeminent before the kings of the earth.
{88:29} I will preserve my mercy for him eternally, and my covenant for him faithfully.
{88:30} And I will set his offspring from generation to generation, and his throne like the days of heaven.
{88:31} But if his sons abandon my law, and if they do not walk in my judgments,
{88:32} if they profane my justices, and if they do not keep my commandments:
{88:33} I will visit their iniquities with a rod, and their sins with a beating.
{88:34} But I will not scatter my mercy from him, and I will not do harm to my truth.
{88:35} And I will not profane my covenant, and I will not make void that which proceeds from my lips.
{88:36} I have sworn by my holiness one time: I will not lie to David,
{88:37} his offspring will remain for eternity. And his throne will be like the sun in my sight,
{88:38} and, like the moon, it is perfected in eternity, and it is a faithful witness in heaven.
{88:39} Yet, truly, you have rejected and despised, you have pushed away, my Christ.
{88:40} You have overthrown the covenant of your servant. You have profaned his sanctuary on earth.
{88:41} You have destroyed all his fences. You have made his territory dreadful.
{88:42} All who pass by the way have plundered him. He has become a disgrace to his neighbors.
{88:43} You have exalted the right hand of those who oppress him. You have brought joy to all his enemies.
{88:44} You have diverted the help of his sword, and you have not assisted him in battle.
{88:45} You have torn him away from cleansing, and you have smashed his throne down to the ground.
{88:46} You have reduced the days of his time. You have flooded him with confusion.
{88:47} How long, O Lord? Will you turn away unto the end? Will your wrath flare up like a fire?
{88:48} Remember what my substance is. For could you really have appointed all the sons of men in vain?
{88:49} Who is the man that will live, and yet not see death? Who will rescue his own soul from the hand of the underworld?
{88:50} O Lord, where are your mercies of antiquity, just as you swore to David in your truth?
{88:51} Be mindful, O Lord, of the disgrace of your servants (which I have sustained in my sinews) among many nations.
{88:52} With these, your enemies have reproached you, O Lord; with these, they have reproached the commutation of your Christ.
{88:53} Blessed is the Lord for all eternity. Amen. Amen.
{89:1} A prayer of Moses, the man of God. O Lord, you have been our refuge from generation to generation.
{89:2} Before the mountains became, or the land was formed along with the world: from ages past, even to all ages, you are God.
{89:3} And, lest man be turned aside in humiliation, you have said: Be converted, O sons of men.
{89:4} For a thousand years before your eyes are like the days of yesterday, which have passed by, and they are like a watch of the night,
{89:5} which was held for nothing: so their years shall be.
{89:6} In the morning, he may pass away like grass; in the morning, he may flower and pass away. In the evening, he will fall, and harden, and become dry.
{89:7} For, at your wrath, we have withered away, and we have been disturbed by your fury.
{89:8} You have placed our iniquities in your sight, our age in the illumination of your countenance.
{89:9} For all our days have faded away, and at your wrath, we have fainted. Our years will be considered to be like a spider’s web.
{89:10} The days of our years in them are seventy years. But in the powerful, they are eighty years, and more of these are with hardship and sorrow. For mildness has overwhelmed us, and we shall be corrected.
{89:11} Who knows the power of your wrath? And, before fear, can your wrath
{89:12} be numbered? So make known your right hand, along with men learned in heart, in wisdom.
{89:13} Return, O Lord, how long? And may you be persuaded on behalf of your servants.
{89:14} We were filled in the morning with your mercy, and we exulted and delighted all our days.
{89:15} We have been rejoicing, because of the days in which you humbled us, because of the years in which we saw evils.
{89:16} Look down upon your servants and upon their works, and direct their sons.
{89:17} And may the splendor of the Lord our God be upon us. And so, direct the works of our hands over us; direct even the work of our hands.
{90:1} The Praise of a Canticle, of David. Whoever dwells with the assistance of the Most High will abide in the protection of the God of heaven.
{90:2} He will say to the Lord, “You are my supporter and my refuge.” My God, I will hope in him.
{90:3} For he has freed me from the snare of those who go hunting, and from the harsh word.
{90:4} He will overshadow you with his shoulders, and you will hope under his wings.
{90:5} His truth will surround you with a shield. You will not be afraid: before the terror of the night,
{90:6} before the arrow flying in the day, before the troubles that wander in the darkness, nor of invasion and the midday demon.
{90:7} A thousand will fall before your side and ten thousand before your right hand. Yet it will not draw near you.
{90:8} So then, truly, you will consider with your eyes, and you will see the retribution of sinners.
{90:9} For you, O Lord, are my hope. You have set the Most High as your refuge.
{90:10} Disaster will not draw near to you, and the scourge will not approach your tabernacle.
{90:11} For he has given his Angels charge over you, so as to preserve you in all your ways.
{90:12} With their hands, they will carry you, lest you hurt your foot against a stone.
{90:13} You will walk over the asp and the king serpent, and you will trample the lion and the dragon.
{90:14} Because he has hoped in me, I will free him. I will protect him because he has known my name.
{90:15} He will cry out to me, and I will heed him. I am with him in tribulation. I will rescue him, and I will glorify him.
{90:16} I will fill him with length of days. And I will reveal to him my salvation.
{91:1} A Canticle Psalm. On the day of the Sabbath.
{91:2} It is good to confess to the Lord and to sing psalms to your name, O Most High:
{91:3} to announce your mercy in the morning, and your truth throughout the night,
{91:4} upon the ten strings, upon the psaltery, with a canticle, upon stringed instruments.
{91:5} For you, O Lord, have delighted me with your doings, and I will exult in the works of your hands.
{91:6} How great are your works, O Lord! Your thoughts have been made exceedingly deep.
{91:7} A foolish man will not know these things, and a senseless one will not understand:
{91:8} when sinners will have risen up like grass, and when all those who work iniquity will have appeared, that they shall pass away, age after age.
{91:9} But you, O Lord, are the Most High for all eternity.
{91:10} For behold your enemies, O Lord, for behold your enemies will perish, and all those who work iniquity will be dispersed.
{91:11} And my horn will be exalted like that of the single-horned beast, and my old age will be exalted in fruitful mercy.
{91:12} And my eye has looked down upon my enemies, and my ear will hear of the malignant rising up against me.
{91:13} The just one will flourish like the palm tree. He will be multiplied like the cedar of Lebanon.
{91:14} Those planted in the house of the Lord will flourish in the courts of the house of our God.
{91:15} They will still be multiplied in a fruitful old age, and they will endure well,
{91:16} so that they may announce that the Lord our God is righteous and that there is no iniquity in him.
{92:1} The Praise of a Canticle, of David himself. In the time before the Sabbath, when the earth was founded.
{92:2} The Lord has reigned. He has been clothed with beauty.
{92:3} The Lord has been clothed with strength, and he has girded himself. Yet he has also confirmed the world, which will not be moved.
{92:4} My throne is prepared from of old. You are from everlasting.
{92:5} The floods have lifted up, O Lord, the floods have lifted up their voice. The floods have lifted up their waves,
{92:6} before the noise of many waters. Wondrous are the surges of the sea; wondrous is the Lord on high.
{92:7} Your testimonies have been made exceedingly trustworthy. Sanctity befits your house, O Lord, with length of days.
{93:1} A Psalm of David himself. The Fourth Sabbath. The Lord is the God of retribution. The God of retribution acts in order to deliver.
{93:2} Lift yourself up, for you judge the earth. Repay the arrogant with retribution.
{93:3} How long will sinners, O Lord, how long will sinners glory?
{93:4} How long will they utter and speak iniquity? How long will all who work injustice speak out?
{93:5} They have humiliated your people, O Lord, and they have harassed your inheritance.
{93:6} They have executed the widow and the new arrival, and they have slaughtered the orphan.
{93:7} And they have said, “The Lord will not see, nor will the God of Jacob understand.”
{93:8} Understand, you senseless ones among the people. And be wise at last, you foolish ones.
{93:9} He who formed the ear, will he not hear? And he who forged the eye, does he not look closely?
{93:10} He who chastises nations, he who teaches man knowledge, will he not rebuke?
{93:11} The Lord knows the thoughts of men: that these are in vain.
{93:12} Blessed is the man whom you will instruct, O Lord. And you will teach him from your law.
{93:13} So may you soothe him from the evil days, until a pit may be dug for sinners.
{93:14} For the Lord will not drive away his people, and he will not abandon his inheritance,
{93:15} even until the time when justice is being converted into judgment, and when those who are close to justice are all those who are upright of heart.
{93:16} Who will rise up with me against the malignant? Or who will stand with me against the workers of iniquity?
{93:17} Except that the Lord assisted me, my soul almost would have dwelt in Hell.
{93:18} If ever I said, “My foot is slipping,” then your mercy, O Lord, assisted me.
{93:19} According to the multitude of my sorrows in my heart, your consolations have given joy to my soul.
{93:20} Does the seat of iniquity adhere to you, you who contrive hardship within a commandment?
{93:21} They will hunt down the soul of the just, and they will condemn innocent blood.
{93:22} And the Lord has been made into a refuge for me, and my God into the assistance of my hope.
{93:23} And he will repay them their iniquity, and he will destroy them in their malice. The Lord our God will utterly destroy them.
{94:1} The Praise of a Canticle, of David himself. Come, let us exult in the Lord. Let us shout joyfully to God, our Savior.
{94:2} Let us anticipate his presence with confession, and let us sing joyfully to him with psalms.
{94:3} For the Lord is a great God and a great King over all gods.
{94:4} For in his hand are all the limits of the earth, and the heights of the mountains are his.
{94:5} For the sea is his, and he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.
{94:6} Come, let us adore and fall prostrate, and let us weep before the Lord who made us.
{94:7} For he is the Lord our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
{94:8} If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts:
{94:9} as in the provocation, according to the day of temptation in the wilderness, where your fathers tempted me; they tested me, though they had seen my works.
{94:10} For forty years, I was offended by that generation, and I said: These have always strayed in heart.
{94:11} And these have not known my ways. So I swore in my wrath: They shall not enter into my rest.
{95:1} A Canticle of David himself, when the house was built after the captivity. Sing to the Lord a new song. Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
{95:2} Sing to the Lord and bless his name. Announce his salvation from day to day.
{95:3} Announce his glory among the Gentiles, his miracles among all peoples.
{95:4} For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised. He is terrible, beyond all gods.
{95:5} For all the gods of the Gentiles are demons, but the Lord made the heavens.
{95:6} Confession and beauty are in his sight. Sanctity and magnificence are in his sanctuary.
{95:7} Bring to the Lord, you natives of the nations, bring to the Lord glory and honor.
{95:8} Bring to the Lord glory for his name. Lift up sacrifices, and enter into his courts.
{95:9} Adore the Lord in his holy court. Let the entire earth be shaken before his face.
{95:10} Say among the Gentiles: The Lord has reigned. For he has even corrected the whole world, which will not be shaken. He will judge the peoples with fairness.
{95:11} Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth exult; let the sea and all its fullness be moved.
{95:12} The fields and all the things that are in them will be glad. Then all the trees of the forest will rejoice
{95:13} before the face of the Lord: for he arrives. For he arrives to judge the earth. He will judge the whole world with fairness and the peoples with his truth.
{96:1} This is to David, when his land was restored to him. The Lord has reigned, let the earth exult. Let the many islands rejoice.
{96:2} Clouds and mist are all around him. Justice and judgment are corrections from his throne.
{96:3} A fire will precede him, and it will enflame his enemies all around.
{96:4} His lightnings have enlightened the whole world. The earth saw, and it was shaken.
{96:5} The mountains flowed like wax before the face of the Lord, before the face of the Lord of all the earth.
{96:6} The heavens announced his justice, and all peoples saw his glory.
{96:7} May all those who adore graven images be confounded, along with those who glory in their false images. All you his Angels: Adore him.
{96:8} Zion heard, and was glad. And the daughters of Judah exulted because of your judgments, O Lord.
{96:9} For you are the Most High Lord over all the earth. You are greatly exalted above all gods.
{96:10} You who love the Lord: hate evil. The Lord watches over the souls of his holy ones. He will free them from the hand of the sinner.
{96:11} The light has risen for the just, and joy for the upright of heart.
{96:12} Rejoice in the Lord, you just ones, and confess to the memory of his sanctuary.
{97:1} A Psalm of David himself. Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has performed wonders. His right hand has accomplished salvation for him, with his holy arm.
{97:2} The Lord has made known his salvation. He has revealed his justice in the sight of the nations.
{97:3} He has remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
{97:4} Sing joyfully to God, all the earth. Sing and exult, and sing psalms.
{97:5} Sing psalms to the Lord with stringed instruments, with strings and the voice of a psalmist,
{97:6} with subtle wind instruments and the voice of woodwinds. Make a joyful noise before the Lord our king.
{97:7} Let the sea be moved and all its fullness, the whole world and all who dwell in it.
{97:8} The rivers will clap their hands, the mountains will exult together,
{97:9} before the presence of the Lord. For he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the whole world with justice, and the peoples with fairness.
{98:1} A Psalm of David himself. The Lord has reigned: let the peoples be angry. He sits upon the cherubim: let the earth be moved.
{98:2} The Lord is great in Zion, and he is high above all peoples.
{98:3} May they confess to your great name, for it is terrible and holy.
{98:4} And the honor of the king loves judgment. You have prepared guidance. You have accomplished judgment and justice in Jacob.
{98:5} Exalt the Lord our God, and adore the footstool of his feet, for it is holy.
{98:6} Moses and Aaron are among his priests, and Samuel is among those who call upon his name. They called upon the Lord, and he heeded them.
{98:7} He spoke to them in the pillar of the cloud. They kept his testimonies and the precept that he gave them.
{98:8} You heeded them, O Lord our God. You were a forgiving God to them, though taking vengeance on all their inventions.
{98:9} Exalt the Lord our God, and adore on his holy mountain. For the Lord our God is holy.
{99:1} A Psalm of Confession.
{99:2} Shout joyfully to God, all the earth. Serve the Lord with rejoicing. Enter into his sight in exultation.
{99:3} Know that the Lord himself is God. He made us, and we ourselves did not. We are his people and the sheep of his pasture.
{99:4} Enter his gates with confession, his courts with hymns, and acknowledge him. Praise his name.
{99:5} For the Lord is sweet, his mercy is in eternity, and his truth is from generation to generation.
{100:1} A Psalm of David himself. I will sing mercy and judgment to you, O Lord. I will sing psalms.
{100:2} And I will have understanding within the immaculate way, when you will draw near to me. I wandered about in the innocence of my heart, in the midst of my house.
{100:3} I will not display any unjust thing before my eyes. I have hated those carrying out betrayals.
{100:4} The perverse heart did not adhere to me. And the malignant, who turned away before me, I would not recognize.
{100:5} The one who secretly detracted his neighbor, this one I pursued. The one with an arrogant eye and an insatiable heart, with that one I would not eat.
{100:6} My eyes looked toward the faithful of the earth, to sit with me. The one walking in the immaculate way, this one ministered to me.
{100:7} He who has acted arrogantly will not dwell in the midst of my house. He who has spoken iniquity was not guided with the sight of my eyes.
{100:8} In the morning, I executed all the sinners of the earth, so that I might scatter all the workers of iniquity from the city of the Lord.
{101:1} The prayer of the pauper, when he was anxious, and so he poured out his petition in the sight of the Lord.
{101:2} O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my outcry reach you.
{101:3} Do not turn your face away from me. In whatever day that I am in trouble, incline your ear to me. In whatever day that I will call upon you, heed me quickly.
{101:4} For my days have faded away like smoke, and my bones have dried out like firewood.
{101:5} I have been cut down like hay, and my heart has withered, for I had forgotten to eat my bread.
{101:6} Before the voice of my groaning, my bone has adhered to my flesh.
{101:7} I have become like a pelican in solitude. I have become like a night raven in a house.
{101:8} I have kept vigil, and I have become like a solitary sparrow on a roof.
{101:9} All day long my enemies reproached me, and those who praised me swore oaths against me.
{101:10} For I chewed on ashes like bread, and I mixed weeping into my drink.
{101:11} By the face of your anger and indignation, you lifted me up and threw me down.
{101:12} My days have declined like a shadow, and I have dried out like hay.
{101:13} But you, O Lord, endure for eternity, and your memorial is from generation to generation.
{101:14} You will rise up and take pity on Zion, for it is time for its mercy, for the time has come.
{101:15} For its stones have pleased your servants, and they will take pity on its land.
{101:16} And the Gentiles will fear your name, O Lord, and all the kings of the earth your glory.
{101:17} For the Lord has built up Zion, and he will be seen in his glory.
{101:18} He has noticed the prayer of the humble, and he has not despised their petition.
{101:19} Let these things be written in another generation, and the people who will be created will praise the Lord.
{101:20} For he has gazed from his high sanctuary. From heaven, the Lord has beheld the earth.
{101:21} So may he hear the groans of those in shackles, in order that he may release the sons of the slain.
{101:22} So may they announce the name of the Lord in Zion and his praise in Jerusalem:
{101:23} while the people convene, along with kings, in order that they may serve the Lord.
{101:24} He responded to him in the way of his virtue: Declare to me the brevity of my days.
{101:25} Do not call me back in the middle of my days: your years are from generation to generation.
{101:26} In the beginning, O Lord, you founded the earth. And the heavens are the work of your hands.
{101:27} They will perish, but you remain. And all will grow old like a garment. And, like a blanket, you will change them, and they will be changed.
{101:28} Yet you are ever yourself, and your years will not decline.
{101:29} The sons of your servants will live, and their offspring will be guided aright in every age.
{102:1} To David himself. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and bless his holy name, all that is within me.
{102:2} Bless the Lord, O my soul, and do not forget all his recompenses.
{102:3} He forgives all your iniquities. He heals all your infirmities.
{102:4} He redeems your life from destruction. He crowns you with mercy and compassion.
{102:5} He satisfies your desire with good things. Your youth will be renewed like that of the eagle.
{102:6} The Lord accomplishes mercies, and his judgment is for all who patiently endure injuries.
{102:7} He has made his ways known to Moses, his will to the sons of Israel.
{102:8} The Lord is compassionate and merciful, patient and full of mercy.
{102:9} He will not be angry forever, and he will not threaten for eternity.
{102:10} He has not dealt with us according to our sins, and he has not repaid us according to our iniquities.
{102:11} For according to the height of the heavens above the earth, so has he reinforced his mercy toward those who fear him.
{102:12} As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our iniquities from us.
{102:13} As a father is compassionate to his sons, so has the Lord been compassionate to those who fear him.
{102:14} For he knows our form. He has called to mind that we are dust.
{102:15} Man: his days are like hay. Like the flower of the field, so will he flourish.
{102:16} For the spirit in him will pass away, and it will not remain, and he will know his place no longer.
{102:17} But the mercy of the Lord is from eternity, and even unto eternity, upon those who fear him. And his justice is with the sons of the sons,
{102:18} with those who serve his covenant and have been mindful of his commandments by doing them.
{102:19} The Lord has prepared his throne in heaven, and his kingdom will rule over all.
{102:20} Bless the Lord, all you his Angels: powerful in virtue, doing his word, in order to heed the voice of his discourse.
{102:21} Bless the Lord, all his hosts: his ministers who do his will.
{102:22} Bless the Lord, all his works: in every place of his dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul.
{103:1} To David himself. Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, you are exceedingly great. You have clothed yourself with confession and beauty;
{103:2} you are dressed with light like a garment, while you stretch out heaven like a tent.
{103:3} You cover its heights with water. You set the clouds as your stairs. You walk upon the wings of the winds.
{103:4} You make your Angels a breath of life, and your ministers a burning fire.
{103:5} You founded the earth upon its stable base. It will not be bent from age to age.
{103:6} The abyss, like a garment, is its clothing. The waters will remain standing above the mountains.
{103:7} At your rebuke, they will flee. At the voice of your thunder, they will dread.
{103:8} The mountains ascend, and the plains descend, to the place which you have founded for them.
{103:9} You have set a limit that they will not cross. And they will not return to cover the earth.
{103:10} You spring forth fountains in steep valleys. The waters will cross through the midst of the mountains.
{103:11} All the wild beasts of the field will drink. The wild donkeys will anticipate in their thirst.
{103:12} Above them, the flying things of the air will dwell. From the midst of the rocks, they will utter voices.
{103:13} You irrigate the mountains from your heights. The earth will be satiated from the fruit of your works,
{103:14} producing grass for cattle and herbs for the service of men. So may you draw bread from the earth,
{103:15} and wine, in order to cheer the heart of man. Then he may gladden his face with oil, and bread will confirm the heart of man.
{103:16} The trees of the field will be saturated, along with the cedars of Lebanon, which he planted.
{103:17} There, the sparrows will make their nests. The leader of them is the house of the heron.
{103:18} The heights of the hills are for the deer; the rock is a refuge for the hedgehog.
{103:19} He has made the moon for seasons; the sun knows its setting.
{103:20} You appointed darkness, and it has become night; all the beasts of the forest will cross through it.
{103:21} The young lions will roar, while searching for and seizing their meal from God.
{103:22} The sun arose, and they were gathered together; and in their dens, they will lie down together.
{103:23} Man will go forth to his work and to his activities, until the evening.
{103:24} How great are your works, O Lord! You have made all things in wisdom. The earth has been filled with your possessions.
{103:25} This sea is great and its hands are spacious. There are creeping things without number: the small animals with the great.
{103:26} There, the ships will pass by this sea-serpent that you have formed to mock them.
{103:27} All these expect you to give them food in due time.
{103:28} What you give to them, they will gather. When you open your hand, they will all be filled with goodness.
{103:29} But if you turn your face away, they will be disturbed. You will take away their breath, and they will fail, and they will return to their dust.
{103:30} You will send forth your Spirit, and they will be created. And you will renew the face of the earth.
{103:31} May the glory of the Lord be for all ages. The Lord will rejoice in his works.
{103:32} He considers the earth, and he makes it tremble. He touches the mountains, and they smoke.
{103:33} I will sing to the Lord with my life. I will sing psalms to my God, as long as I am.
{103:34} May my speech be pleasing to him. Truly, I will take delight in the Lord.
{103:35} Let sinners fade away from the earth, along with the unjust, so that they may not be. Bless the Lord, O my soul.
{104:1} Alleluia. Confess to the Lord, and invoke his name. Announce his works among the nations.
{104:2} Sing to him, and sing psalms to him. Describe all his wonders.
{104:3} Be praised in his holy name. Let the heart of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
{104:4} Seek the Lord, and be confirmed. Seek his face always.
{104:5} Remember his miracles, which he has done, his portents and the judgments of his mouth:
{104:6} you offspring of Abraham his servant, you sons of Jacob his elect.
{104:7} He is the Lord our God. His judgments are throughout the entire earth.
{104:8} He has remembered his covenant for all ages: the word that he entrusted to a thousand generations,
{104:9} which he assigned to Abraham, and his oath to Isaac.
{104:10} And he stationed the same for Jacob with a precept, and for Israel with an eternal testament,
{104:11} saying: To you, I will give the land of Canaan, the allotment of your inheritance.
{104:12} Though they may have been but a small number, very few and foreigners there,
{104:13} and though they passed from nation to nation, and from one kingdom to another people,
{104:14} he allowed no man to harm them, and he reproved kings on their behalf.
{104:15} Do not be willing to touch my Christ, and do not be willing to malign my prophets.
{104:16} And he called a famine upon the land, and he crushed every foundation of the bread.
{104:17} He sent a man before them: Joseph, who had been sold as a slave.
{104:18} They humbled his feet in shackles; the iron pierced his soul,
{104:19} until his word arrived. The eloquence of the Lord inflamed him.
{104:20} The king sent and released him; he was the ruler of the people, and he dismissed him.
{104:21} He established him as master of his house and ruler of all his possessions,
{104:22} so that he might instruct his princes as himself, and teach his elders prudence.
{104:23} And Israel entered into Egypt, and Jacob became a sojourner in the land of Ham.
{104:24} And he helped his people greatly, and he strengthened them over their enemies.
{104:25} He turned their heart to hate his people, and to deal deceitfully with his servants.
{104:26} He sent Moses, his servant, and Aaron, the one whom he chose.
{104:27} He placed with them signs of his word, and portents in the land of Ham.
{104:28} He sent darkness and made it conceal, and he did not afflict them with his speech.
{104:29} He turned their waters into blood, and he slaughtered their fish.
{104:30} Their land brought forth frogs, even in the inner chambers of their kings.
{104:31} He spoke, and there came forth common flies and gnats, in every region.
{104:32} He gave them a shower of hail and a burning fire, in the same land.
{104:33} And he struck their vineyards and their fig trees, and he crushed the trees of their region.
{104:34} He spoke, and the locust came forth, and the caterpillar, of which there was no number.
{104:35} And it devoured all the grass in their land, and it consumed all the fruit of their land.
{104:36} And he struck all the first-born in their land, the first-fruits of all their labor.
{104:37} And he led them out with silver and gold, and there was not an infirm one among their tribes.
{104:38} Egypt was joyful at their departure, for the fear of them lay heavy upon them.
{104:39} He spread a cloud for their protection, and a fire, to give them light through the night.
{104:40} They petitioned, and the quail came; and he satisfied them with the bread of heaven.
{104:41} He ruptured the rock and the waters flowed: rivers gushed in the dry land.
{104:42} For he had called to mind his holy word, which he kept near to his servant Abraham.
{104:43} And he led forth his people in exultation, and his elect in rejoicing.
{104:44} And he gave them the regions of the Gentiles, and they possessed the labors of the peoples,
{104:45} so that they might observe his justifications, and inquire about his law.
{105:1} Alleluia. Confess to the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy is with every generation.
{105:2} Who will declare the powers of the Lord? Who make a hearing for all his praises?
{105:3} Blessed are those who keep judgment and who do justice at all times.
{105:4} Remember us, O Lord, with good will for your people. Visit us with your salvation,
{105:5} so that we may see the goodness of your elect, so that we may rejoice in the joy of your nation, so that you may be praised along with your inheritance.
{105:6} We have sinned, as have our fathers. We have acted unjustly; we have wrought iniquity.
{105:7} Our fathers did not understand your miracles in Egypt. They did not remember the multitude of your mercies. And they provoked you, while going up to the sea, even the Red Sea.
{105:8} And he saved them for the sake of his name, so that he might make known his power.
{105:9} And he rebuked the Red Sea, and it dried up. And he led them into the abyss, as if into a desert.
{105:10} And he saved them from the hand of those who hated them. And he redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.
{105:11} And the water covered those who troubled them. Not one of them remained.
{105:12} And they believed his words, and they sang his praises.
{105:13} As soon as they had finished, they forgot his works, and they would not endure his counsel.
{105:14} And they coveted their desire in the desert, and they tempted God in a waterless place.
{105:15} And he granted to them their request, and he sent abundance into their souls.
{105:16} And they provoked Moses in the camp, and Aaron, the holy one of the Lord.
{105:17} The earth opened and swallowed Dathan, and it covered the congregation of Abiram.
{105:18} And a fire broke out in their congregation. A flame burned up the sinners.
{105:19} And they fashioned a calf at Horeb, and they adored a graven image.
{105:20} And they exchanged their glory for the likeness of a calf that eats hay.
{105:21} They forgot God, who saved them, who did great things in Egypt:
{105:22} miracles in the land of Ham, terrible things at the Red Sea.
{105:23} And he said that he would destroy them, yet Moses, his elect, stood firm before him in the breach, in order to avert his wrath, lest he destroy them.
{105:24} And they held the desirable land to be nothing. They did not trust in his word.
{105:25} And they murmured in their tabernacles. They did not heed the voice of the Lord.
{105:26} And he lifted up his hand over them, in order to prostrate them in the desert,
{105:27} and in order to cast their offspring among the nations, and to scatter them among the regions.
{105:28} And they were initiated into Baal of Peor, and they ate the sacrifices of the dead.
{105:29} And they provoked him with their inventions, and ruination was multiplied in them.
{105:30} Then Phinehas stood up and placated him: and so the violent disturbance ceased.
{105:31} And it was reputed to him unto justice, from generation to generation, even forever.
{105:32} And they provoked him at the Waters of Contradiction, and Moses was afflicted because of them,
{105:33} for they exasperated his spirit. And so he divided them with his lips.
{105:34} They did not destroy the nations, about which the Lord had spoken to them.
{105:35} And they were mixed among the Gentiles. And they learned their works,
{105:36} and they served their graven images, and it became a scandal to them.
{105:37} And they sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons.
{105:38} And they shed innocent blood: the blood of their sons and of their daughters, which they sacrificed to the graven images of Canaan. And the land was infected with bloodshed,
{105:39} and was contaminated with their works. And they fornicated according to their own inventions.
{105:40} And the Lord became furiously angry with his people, and he abhorred his inheritance.
{105:41} And he delivered them into the hands of the nations. And those who hated them became rulers over them.
{105:42} And their enemies afflicted them, and they were humbled under their hands.
{105:43} Many times, he delivered them. Yet they provoked him with their counsel, and they were brought low by their iniquities.
{105:44} And he saw that they were in tribulation, and he heard their prayer.
{105:45} And he was mindful of his covenant, and he repented according to the multitude of his mercies.
{105:46} And he provided for them with mercies, in the sight of all those who had seized them.
{105:47} Save us, O Lord our God, and gather us from the nations, so that we may confess your holy name and glory in your praise.
{105:48} Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, from ages past, even to all ages. And let all the people say: Amen. Amen.
{106:1} Alleluia. Confess to the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy is with every generation.
{106:2} Let those who have been redeemed by the Lord say so: those whom he redeemed from the hand of the enemy and gathered from the regions,
{106:3} from the rising of the sun and its setting, from the north and from the sea.
{106:4} They wandered into solitude in a waterless place. They did not find the way of the city to be their dwelling place.
{106:5} They were hungry, and they were thirsty. Their soul fainted within them.
{106:6} And they cried out to the Lord in tribulation, and he rescued them in their necessity.
{106:7} And he led them in the right way, so that they might go forth to a city of habitation.
{106:8} Let his mercies confess to the Lord, and let his miracles confess to the sons of men.
{106:9} For he has satisfied the empty soul, and he has satisfied the hungry soul with good things:
{106:10} those sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death, shackled by extreme poverty and by iron.
{106:11} For they exasperated the eloquence of God, and they irritated the deliberation of the Most High.
{106:12} And their heart was brought low with hardships. They were weakened, and there was no one to help them.
{106:13} And they cried out to the Lord in their tribulation, and he freed them from their distress.
{106:14} And he led them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and he broke apart their chains.
{106:15} Let his mercies confess to the Lord, and let his miracles confess to the sons of men.
{106:16} For he has crushed the gates of brass and broken the iron bars.
{106:17} He has taken them up, from the way of their iniquity. For they were brought low, because of their injustices.
{106:18} Their soul abhorred all food, and they drew near even to the gates of death.
{106:19} And they cried out to the Lord in their tribulation, and he delivered them in their necessity.
{106:20} He sent his word, and he healed them, and he rescued them from their utter destruction.
{106:21} Let his mercies confess to the Lord, and let his miracles confess to the sons of men.
{106:22} And let them offer sacrifice with the sacrifice of praise, and let them announce his works in exultation.
{106:23} Those who descend to the sea in ships, making their livelihood in the great waters:
{106:24} these have seen the works of the Lord and his wonders in the deep.
{106:25} He spoke: and a windstorm stood up, and its waves were exalted.
{106:26} They ascend even to the heavens, and they descend even to the abyss. Their soul will waste away in distress.
{106:27} They were troubled, and they moved like a drunkard, and all their wisdom was consumed.
{106:28} And they cried out to the Lord in their tribulation, and he led them out of their distress.
{106:29} And he replaced the storm with a breeze, and its waves were stilled.
{106:30} And they were joyful that it was stilled, and he led them into the haven that they desired.
{106:31} Let his mercies confess to the Lord, and let his miracles confess to the sons of men.
{106:32} And let them exalt him in the Church of the people, and praise him in the chair of the elders.
{106:33} He has placed rivers in the desert and sources of water in dry places,
{106:34} a fruit-bearing land in the midst of brine, before the malice of those who dwell in it.
{106:35} He has placed a desert in the midst of pools of waters, and a land without water in the midst of sources of water.
{106:36} And he has gathered the hungry together there, and they constructed a city of habitation.
{106:37} And they sowed fields and planted vineyards, and they produced the fruit of nativity.
{106:38} And he blessed them, and they were multiplied exceedingly. And he did not diminish their beasts of burden.
{106:39} And they became few, and they were afflicted by the tribulation of evils and of sorrow.
{106:40} Contempt was poured over their leaders, and he caused them to wander in an impassable place, and not on the way.
{106:41} And he helped the poor out of destitution, and he stationed families like sheep.
{106:42} The upright will see, and they will rejoice. And every iniquity will block its mouth.
{106:43} Who is wise and will keep these things? And who will understand the mercies of the Lord?
{107:1} A Canticle Psalm, of David himself.
{107:2} My heart is prepared, O God, my heart is prepared. I will sing songs, and I will sing psalms in my glory.
{107:3} Rise up, my glory. Rise up, Psalter and harp. I will arise in early morning.
{107:4} I will confess to you, O Lord, among the peoples. And I will sing psalms to you among the nations.
{107:5} For your mercy is great, beyond the heavens, and your truth, even to the clouds.
{107:6} Be exalted, O God, beyond the heavens, and your glory, beyond all the earth,
{107:7} so that your beloved may be freed. Save with your right hand, and heed me.
{107:8} God has spoken in his holiness. I will exult, and I will divide Shechem, and I will divide by measure the steep valley of tabernacles.
{107:9} Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine, and Ephraim is the supporter of my head. Judah is my king.
{107:10} Moab is the cooking pot of my hope. I will extend my shoe in Idumea; the foreigners have become my friends.
{107:11} Who will lead me into the fortified city? Who will lead me, even into Idumea?
{107:12} Will not you, O God, who had rejected us? And will not you, O God, go out with our armies?
{107:13} Grant us help from tribulation, for vain is the help of man.
{107:14} In God, we will act virtuously, and he will bring our enemies to nothing.
{108:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David.
{108:2} O God, do not be silent toward my praise, for the mouth of the sinner and the mouth of the deceitful one have been opened against me.
{108:3} They have spoken against me with deceitful tongues, and they have surrounded me with hateful words, and they fought against me over nothing.
{108:4} Instead of choosing to act on my behalf, they detracted me. But I gave myself to prayer.
{108:5} And they set evil against me, instead of good, and hatred, in return for my love.
{108:6} Establish the sinner over him, and let the devil stand at his right hand.
{108:7} When he is judged, may he go forth in condemnation, and may his prayer be counted as sin.
{108:8} May his days be few, and let another take his episcopate.
{108:9} May his sons be orphans, and his wife a widow.
{108:10} May his sons be carried by those who walk unsteadily, and may they go begging. And may they be cast out of their dwelling places.
{108:11} May the money lenders scrutinize all his belongings, and let foreigners plunder his labors.
{108:12} May there be no one to assist him, nor anyone to be compassionate to his orphaned children.
{108:13} May his posterity be in utter ruin. In one generation, may his name be wiped away.
{108:14} May the iniquity of his fathers return in memory before the sight of the Lord, and do not let the sin of his mother be wiped away.
{108:15} May these be opposite the Lord always, but let their memory perish from the earth.
{108:16} For certain things are not remembered about them, in order to be merciful.
{108:17} And so the destitute man was pursued, with the beggar and the remorseful in heart, so as to be put to death.
{108:18} And he loved a curse, and it came to him. And he was unwilling to have a blessing, and it went far from him. And he clothed himself with curses like a garment, and it entered his inner self like water, and it entered his bones like oil.
{108:19} May it be to him like a garment that covers him, and like a belt that always cinches him.
{108:20} This is the work of those who detract me with the Lord and who speak evils against my soul.
{108:21} But as for you, Lord, O Lord: act on my behalf for your name’s sake. For your mercy is sweet.
{108:22} Free me, for I am destitute and poor, and my heart has been disquieted within me.
{108:23} I have been taken away like a shadow when it declines, and I have been shaken off like locusts.
{108:24} My knees have been weakened by fasting, and my flesh has been replaced by oil.
{108:25} And I have become a disgrace to them. They saw me, and they shook their heads.
{108:26} Help me, O Lord, my God. Save me according to your mercy.
{108:27} And let them know that this is your hand, and that you, O Lord, have done this.
{108:28} They will curse, and you will bless. May those who rise up against me be confounded. But your servant will rejoice.
{108:29} May those who detract me be clothed with shame, and may they be covered with their confusion, as if with a double cloak.
{108:30} I will confess exceedingly to the Lord with my mouth. And I will praise him in the midst of the multitude.
{108:31} For he stands at the right hand of the poor, in order to save my soul from persecutors.
{109:1} A Psalm of David. The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”
{109:2} The Lord will send forth the scepter of your virtue from Zion. Rule in the midst of your enemies.
{109:3} It is with you from the beginning, in the day of your virtue, in the splendor of the saints. From conception, before the light-bearer, I begot you.
{109:4} The Lord has sworn, and he will not repent: “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.”
{109:5} The Lord is at your right hand. He has broken kings in the day of his wrath.
{109:6} He will judge between the nations; he will fill up ruination. He will shatter heads in the land of the many.
{109:7} He will drink from the torrent on the way. Because of this, he will exalt the head.
{110:1} Alleluia. I will confess to you, O Lord, with my whole heart, in the council of the just and in the congregation.
{110:2} Great are the works of the Lord, exquisite in all his intentions.
{110:3} Confession and magnificence are his work. And his justice remains from age to age.
{110:4} He has created a memorial to his wonders; he is a merciful and compassionate Lord.
{110:5} He has given food to those who fear him. He will be mindful of his covenant in every age.
{110:6} He will announce the virtue of his works to his people,
{110:7} so that he may give them the inheritance of the nations. The works of his hands are truth and judgment.
{110:8} All his commands are faithful: confirmed from age to age, created in truth and fairness.
{110:9} He has sent redemption upon his people. He has commanded his covenant for all eternity. Holy and terrible is his name.
{110:10} The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. A good understanding is for all who do it. His praise remains from age to age.
{111:1} Alleluia. Of the return of Haggai and Zachariah. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord. He will prefer his commandments exceedingly.
{111:2} His offspring will be powerful on the earth. The generation of the upright will be blessed.
{111:3} Glory and wealth will be in his house, and his justice shall remain from age to age.
{111:4} For the upright, a light has risen up in the darkness. He is merciful and compassionate and just.
{111:5} Pleasing is the man who shows mercy and lends. He will order his words with judgment.
{111:6} For he will not be disturbed in eternity.
{111:7} The just one will be an everlasting memorial. He will not fear a report of disasters. His heart is prepared to hope in the Lord.
{111:8} His heart has been confirmed. He will not be disturbed, until he looks down upon his enemies.
{111:9} He has distributed, he has given to the poor. His justice shall remain from age to age. His horn shall be exalted in glory.
{111:10} The sinner will see and become angry. He will gnash his teeth and waste away. The desire of sinners will perish.
{112:1} Alleluia. Praise the Lord, children. Praise the name of the Lord.
{112:2} Blessed is the name of the Lord, from this time forward and even forever.
{112:3} From the rising of the sun, even to its setting, praiseworthy is the name of the Lord.
{112:4} The Lord is high above all nations, and his glory is high above the heavens.
{112:5} Who is like the Lord, our God, who dwells on high,
{112:6} and who gazes upon the humble things in heaven and on earth?
{112:7} He lifts up the needy from the ground, and he urges the poor away from filth,
{112:8} so that he may place him with the leaders, with the leaders of his people.
{112:9} He causes a barren woman to live in a house, as the joyful mother of sons.
{113:1} Alleluia. At the departure of Israel from Egypt, the house of Jacob from a barbarous people:
{113:2} Judea was made his sanctuary; Israel was made his power.
{113:3} The sea looked, and it fled. The Jordan was turned back again.
{113:4} The mountains exulted like rams, and the hills like lambs among the sheep.
{113:5} What happened to you, O sea, so that you fled, and to you, O Jordan, so that you were turned back again?
{113:6} What happened to you, O mountains, so that you exulted like rams, and to you, O hills, so that you exulted like lambs among the sheep?
{113:7} Before the face of the Lord, the earth was moved, before the face of the God of Jacob.
{113:8} He converted the rock into pools of water, and the cliff into fountains of waters.
{113:9} Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory.
{113:10} Give glory to your mercy and your truth, lest the Gentiles should say, “Where is their God?”
{113:11} But our God is in heaven. All things whatsoever that he has willed, he has done.
{113:12} The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the works of the hands of men.
{113:13} They have mouths, and do not speak; they have eyes, and do not see.
{113:14} They have ears, and do not hear; they have noses, and do not smell.
{113:15} They have hands, and do not feel; they have feet, and do not walk. Neither will they cry out with their throat.
{113:16} Let those who make them become like them, along with all who trust in them.
{113:17} The house of Israel has hoped in the Lord. He is their helper and their protector.
{113:18} The house of Aaron has hoped in the Lord. He is their helper and their protector.
{113:19} Those who fear the Lord have hoped in the Lord. He is their helper and their protector.
{113:20} The Lord has been mindful of us, and he has blessed us. He has blessed the house of Israel. He has blessed the house of Aaron.
{113:21} He has blessed all who fear the Lord, the small with the great.
{113:22} May the Lord add blessings upon you: upon you, and upon your sons.
{113:23} Blessed are you by the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
{113:24} The heaven of heaven is for the Lord, but the earth he has given to the sons of men.
{113:25} The dead will not praise you, Lord, and neither will all those who descend into Hell.
{113:26} But we who live will bless the Lord, from this time forward, and even forever.
{114:1} Alleluia. I have loved: therefore, the Lord will heed the voice of my prayer.
{114:2} For he has inclined his ear to me. And in my days, I will call upon him.
{114:3} The sorrows of death have surrounded me, and the perils of Hell have found me. I have found tribulation and sorrow.
{114:4} And so, I called upon the name of the Lord. O Lord, free my soul.
{114:5} Merciful is the Lord, and just. And our God is compassionate.
{114:6} The Lord is the keeper of little ones. I was humbled, and he freed me.
{114:7} Turn again, my soul, to your rest. For the Lord has done good to you.
{114:8} For he has rescued my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from slipping.
{114:9} I will please the Lord in the land of the living.
{115:1} Alleluia. I had confidence, because of what I was saying, but then I was greatly humbled.
{115:2} I said in my excess, “Every man is a liar.”
{115:3} What shall I repay to the Lord, for all the things that he has repaid to me?
{115:4} I will take up the cup of salvation, and I will call upon the name of the Lord.
{115:5} I will repay my vows to the Lord, in the sight of all his people.
{115:6} Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his holy ones.
{115:7} O Lord, because I am your servant, your servant and the son of your handmaid, you have broken my bonds.
{115:8} I will sacrifice to you the sacrifice of praise, and I will invoke the name of the Lord.
{115:9} I will repay my vows to the Lord in the sight of all his people,
{115:10} in the courts of the house of the Lord, in your midst, O Jerusalem.
{116:1} Alleluia. All nations, praise the Lord. All peoples, praise him.
{116:2} For his mercy has been confirmed over us. And the truth of the Lord remains for all eternity.
{117:1} Alleluia. Confess to the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy is forever.
{117:2} Let Israel now say: For he is good, for his mercy is forever.
{117:3} Let the house of Aaron now say: For his mercy is forever.
{117:4} Let those who fear the Lord now say: For his mercy is forever.
{117:5} In my tribulation, I called upon the Lord. And the Lord heeded me with generosity.
{117:6} The Lord is my helper. I will not fear what man can do to me.
{117:7} The Lord is my helper. And I will look down upon my enemies.
{117:8} It is good to trust in the Lord, rather than to trust in man.
{117:9} It is good to hope in the Lord, rather than to hope in leaders.
{117:10} All the nations have surrounded me. And, in the name of the Lord, I have been avenged over them.
{117:11} Surrounding me, they closed in on me. And, in the name of the Lord, I have been avenged over them.
{117:12} They surrounded me like a swarm, and they burned like fire among the thorns. And, in the name of the Lord, I have been avenged over them.
{117:13} Having been pushed, I was overturned so as to fall. But the Lord took me up.
{117:14} The Lord is my strength and my praise. And he has become my salvation.
{117:15} A voice of exultation and salvation is in the tabernacles of the just.
{117:16} The right hand of the Lord has wrought virtue. The right hand of the Lord has exalted me. The right hand of the Lord has wrought virtue.
{117:17} I will not die, but I will live. And I will declare the works of the Lord.
{117:18} When chastising, the Lord chastised me. But he has not delivered me over to death.
{117:19} Open the gates of justice to me. I will enter them, and I will confess to the Lord.
{117:20} This is the gate of the Lord. The just will enter by it.
{117:21} I will confess to you because you have heard me. And you have become my salvation.
{117:22} The stone which the builders have rejected, this has become the head of the corner.
{117:23} By the Lord has this been done, and it is a wonder before our eyes.
{117:24} This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us exult and rejoice in it.
{117:25} O Lord, grant salvation to me. O Lord, grant good prosperity.
{117:26} Blessed is he who arrives in the name of the Lord. We have blessed you from the house of the Lord.
{117:27} The Lord is God, and he has enlightened us. Establish a solemn day amid a dense crowd, even to the horn of the altar.
{117:28} You are my God, and I will confess to you. You are my God, and I will exalt you. I will confess to you, for you have heeded me. And you have become my salvation.
{117:29} Confess to the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy is forever.
{118:1} Alleluia. ALEPH. Blessed are the immaculate in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord.
{118:2} Blessed are those who examine his testimonies. They seek him with their whole heart.
{118:3} For those who work iniquity have not walked in his ways.
{118:4} You have ordered your commandments to be kept most diligently.
{118:5} I wish that my ways may be directed so as to keep your justifications.
{118:6} Then I will not be confounded, when I will look into all your commandments.
{118:7} I will confess to you with honesty of heart. In this way, I have learned the judgments of your justice.
{118:8} I will keep your justifications. Do not utterly abandon me.
{118:9} BETH. By what does an adolescent correct his way? By keeping to your words.
{118:10} With my whole heart, I have sought you. Do not let me be driven away from your commandments.
{118:11} I have hidden your eloquence in my heart, so that I may not sin against you.
{118:12} Blessed are you, O Lord. Teach me your justifications.
{118:13} With my lips, I have pronounced all the judgments of your mouth.
{118:14} I have been delighted in the way of your testimonies, as if in all riches.
{118:15} I will be trained in your commandments, and I will consider your ways.
{118:16} I will meditate on your justifications. I will not forget your words.
{118:17} GHIMEL. Repay your servant, revive me; and I will keep your words.
{118:18} Reveal to my eyes, and I will consider the wonders of your law.
{118:19} I am a sojourner on the earth. Do not hide your commandments from me.
{118:20} My soul has longed to desire your justifications at all times.
{118:21} You have rebuked the arrogant. Those who decline from your commandments are accursed.
{118:22} Take me away from disgrace and contempt, for I have sought your testimonies.
{118:23} For even the leaders sat and spoke against me. But your servant has been trained in your justifications.
{118:24} For your testimonies are also my meditation, and your justifications are my counsel.
{118:25} DALETH. My soul has adhered to the pavement. Revive me according to your word.
{118:26} I have declared my ways, and you have heeded me. Teach me your justifications.
{118:27} Instruct me in the way of your justifications, and I will be trained in your wonders.
{118:28} My soul has slumbered because of weariness. Confirm me in your words.
{118:29} Remove the way of iniquity from me, and have mercy on me by your law.
{118:30} I have chosen the way of truth. I have not forgotten your judgments.
{118:31} I have adhered to your testimonies, O Lord. Do not be willing to confound me.
{118:32} I have run by way of your commandments, when you enlarged my heart.
{118:33} HE. O Lord, place the law before me, the way of your justifications, and I will always inquire into it.
{118:34} Give me understanding, and I will examine your law. And I will keep it with my whole heart.
{118:35} Lead me according to the path of your commandments, for I have desired this.
{118:36} Bend my heart with your testimonies, and not with avarice.
{118:37} Turn my eyes away, lest they see what is vain. Revive me in your way.
{118:38} Station your eloquence with your servant, along with your fear.
{118:39} Cut off my disgrace, which I have taken up, for your judgments are delightful.
{118:40} Behold, I have longed for your commandments. Revive me in your fairness.
{118:41} VAU. And let your mercy overwhelm me, O Lord: your salvation according to your eloquence.
{118:42} And I will respond to those who reproach me by word, for I have hoped in your words.
{118:43} And do not utterly take away the word of truth from my mouth. For in your judgments, I have hoped beyond hope.
{118:44} And I will always keep your law, in this age and forever and ever.
{118:45} And I have wandered far and wide, because I was seeking your commandments.
{118:46} And I spoke of your testimonies in the sight of kings, and I was not confounded.
{118:47} And I meditated on your commandments, which I loved.
{118:48} And I lifted up my hands to your commandments, which I loved. And I was trained in your justifications.
{118:49} ZAIN. Be mindful of your word to your servant, by which you have given me hope.
{118:50} This has consoled me in my humiliation, for your word has revived me.
{118:51} The arrogant act altogether iniquitously, but I have not turned aside from your law.
{118:52} I called to mind your judgments of antiquity, O Lord, and I was consoled.
{118:53} Faintness has taken hold of me, because of the sinners, those who abandon your law.
{118:54} Your justifications were the subject of my worthy singing, in the place of my pilgrimage.
{118:55} During the night, I remembered your name, O Lord, and I kept your law.
{118:56} This has happened to me because I sought your justifications.
{118:57} HETH. O Lord, my portion, I have said that I would keep your law.
{118:58} I have beseeched your face with my whole heart. Be merciful to me according to your word.
{118:59} I have considered my ways, and I have turned my feet toward your testimonies.
{118:60} I have been prepared, and I have not been disturbed, so that I may keep your commandments.
{118:61} The ropes of the impious have encircled me, and I have not forgotten your law.
{118:62} I arose in the middle of the night to confess to you, over the judgments of your justification.
{118:63} I am a partaker with all those who fear you and who keep your commandments.
{118:64} The earth, O Lord, is full of your mercy. Teach me your justifications.
{118:65} TETH. You have done well with your servant, O Lord, according to your word.
{118:66} Teach me goodness and discipline and knowledge, for I have trusted your commandments.
{118:67} Before I was humbled, I committed offenses; because of this, I have kept to your word.
{118:68} You are good, so in your goodness teach me your justifications.
{118:69} The iniquity of the arrogant has been multiplied over me. Yet I will examine your commandments with all my heart.
{118:70} Their heart has been curdled like milk. Truly, I have meditated on your law.
{118:71} It is good for me that you humbled me, so that I may learn your justifications.
{118:72} The law of your mouth is good for me, beyond thousands of gold and silver pieces.
{118:73} IOD. Your hands have created me and formed me. Give me understanding, and I will learn your commandments.
{118:74} Those who fear you will see me, and they will rejoice. For I have greatly hoped in your words.
{118:75} I know, O Lord, that your judgments are fairness. And in your truth, you have humbled me.
{118:76} Let it be your mercy that consoles me, according to your eloquence to your servant.
{118:77} Let your compassion draw near to me, and I will live. For your law is my meditation.
{118:78} Let the arrogant be confounded, for unjustly they have done iniquity to me. But I will be trained in your commandments.
{118:79} Let those who fear you turn to me, along with those who know your testimonies.
{118:80} Let my heart be immaculate in your justifications, so that I may not be confounded.
{118:81} CAPH. My soul has faltered in your salvation, yet in your word, I have hoped beyond hope.
{118:82} My eyes have failed in your eloquence, saying, “When will you console me?”
{118:83} For I have become like a wineskin in the frost. I have not forgotten your justifications.
{118:84} How many are the days of your servant? When will you bring judgment against those who persecute me?
{118:85} The iniquitous have spoken fables to me. But these are unlike your law.
{118:86} All your commandments are truth. They have been persecuting me unjustly: assist me.
{118:87} They have nearly consumed me on earth. Yet I have not forsaken your commandments.
{118:88} Revive me according to your mercy. And I will keep the testimonies of your mouth.
{118:89} LAMED. O Lord, your word remains firm in heaven, for all eternity.
{118:90} Your truth is from generation to generation. You have founded the earth, and it remains firm.
{118:91} By your ordinance, the day perseveres. For all things are in service to you.
{118:92} If your law had not been my meditation, then perhaps I would have perished in my humiliation.
{118:93} I will not forget your justifications, for eternity. For by them, you have enlivened me.
{118:94} I am yours. Accomplish my salvation. For I have inquired into your justifications.
{118:95} The sinners have waited for me, in order to destroy me. I have understood your testimonies.
{118:96} I have seen the end of the consummation of all things. Your commandment is exceedingly broad.
{118:97} MEM. How have I loved your law, O Lord? It is my meditation all day long.
{118:98} By your commandment, you have made me able to see far, beyond my enemies. For it is with me for eternity.
{118:99} I have understood beyond all my teachers. For your testimonies are my meditation.
{118:100} I have understood beyond the elders. For I have searched your commandments.
{118:101} I have prohibited my feet from every evil way, so that I may keep your words.
{118:102} I have not declined from your judgments, because you have stationed a law for me.
{118:103} How sweet is your eloquence to my palate, more so than honey to my mouth!
{118:104} I obtained understanding by your commandments. Because of this, I have hated every way of iniquity.
{118:105} NUN. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my paths.
{118:106} I have sworn it, and so I am determined to keep the judgments of your justice.
{118:107} I have been altogether humbled, Lord. Revive me according to your word.
{118:108} Make the willing offerings of my mouth well pleasing, Lord, and teach me your judgments.
{118:109} My soul is always in my hands, and I have not forgotten your law.
{118:110} Sinners have set a snare for me, yet I have not strayed from your commandments.
{118:111} I have acquired your testimonies as an inheritance unto eternity, because they are the exultation of my heart.
{118:112} I have inclined my heart to do your justifications for eternity, as a recompense.
{118:113} SAMECH. I have hated the iniquitous, and I have loved your law.
{118:114} You are my helper and my supporter. And in your word, I have greatly hoped.
{118:115} Turn away from me, you malignant ones. And I will examine the commandments of my God.
{118:116} Uphold me according to your eloquence, and I will live. And let me not be confounded in my expectation.
{118:117} Help me, and I will be saved. And I will meditate always on your justifications.
{118:118} You have despised all those who fell away from your judgments. For their intention is unjust.
{118:119} I have considered all the sinners of the earth to be transgressors. Therefore, I have loved your testimonies.
{118:120} Pierce my flesh with your fear, for I am afraid of your judgments.
{118:121} AIN. I have accomplished judgment and justice. Do not hand me over to those who slander me.
{118:122} Uphold your servant in what is good. And do not allow the arrogant to slander me.
{118:123} My eyes have failed in your salvation and in the eloquence of your justice.
{118:124} Deal with your servant according to your mercy, and teach me your justifications.
{118:125} I am your servant. Give me understanding, so that I may know your testimonies.
{118:126} It is time to act, O Lord. They have dissipated your law.
{118:127} Therefore, I have loved your commandments beyond gold and topaz.
{118:128} Because of this, I was directed toward all your commandments. I held hatred for every iniquitous way.
{118:129} PHE. Your testimonies are wonderful. Therefore, my soul has been examined by them.
{118:130} The declaration of your words illuminates, and it gives understanding to little ones.
{118:131} I opened my mouth and drew breath, for I desired your commandments.
{118:132} Gaze upon me and be merciful to me, according to the judgment of those who love your name.
{118:133} Direct my steps according to your eloquence, and let no injustice rule over me.
{118:134} Redeem me from the slanders of men, so that I may keep your commandments.
{118:135} Make your face shine upon your servant, and teach me your justifications.
{118:136} My eyes have gushed like springs of water, because they have not kept your law.
{118:137} SADE. You are just, O Lord, and your judgment is right.
{118:138} You have commanded justice: your testimonies and your truth even more so.
{118:139} My zeal has caused me to pine away, because my enemies have forgotten your words.
{118:140} Your eloquence has been greatly enflamed, and your servant has loved it.
{118:141} I am young and treated with contempt. But I have not forgotten your justifications.
{118:142} Your justice is justice for all eternity, and your law is truth.
{118:143} Tribulation and anguish have found me. Your commandments are my meditation.
{118:144} Your testimonies are fairness unto eternity. Give me understanding, and I will live.
{118:145} COPH. I cried out with my whole heart. Heed me, O Lord. I will ask for your justifications.
{118:146} I cried out to you. Save me, so that I may keep your commandments.
{118:147} I arrived first in maturity, and so I cried out. For in your words, I have hoped beyond hope.
{118:148} My eyes preceded the dawn for you, so that I might meditate on your eloquence.
{118:149} Hear my voice according to your mercy, O Lord. And revive me according to your judgment.
{118:150} Those who persecute me have drawn near to iniquity, but they have been brought far from your law.
{118:151} You are near, O Lord, and all your ways are truth.
{118:152} I have known from the beginning about your testimonies. For you founded them in eternity.
{118:153} RES. See my humiliation and rescue me, for I have not forgotten your law.
{118:154} Judge my judgment and redeem me. Revive me because of your eloquence.
{118:155} Salvation is far from sinners, because they have not inquired about your justifications.
{118:156} Many are your mercies, O Lord. Enliven me according to your judgment.
{118:157} Many are those who persecute me and who trouble me. I have not turned away from your testimonies.
{118:158} I saw the prevaricators, and I pine away. For they have not kept your word.
{118:159} O Lord, see how I have loved your commandments. Revive me in your mercy.
{118:160} The beginning of your words is truth. All the judgments of your justice are for eternity.
{118:161} SIN. The leaders have persecuted me without cause. And my heart has been awed by your words.
{118:162} I will rejoice over your eloquence, like one who has found many spoils.
{118:163} I have held hatred for iniquity, and I have abhorred it. Yet I have loved your law.
{118:164} Seven times a day, I uttered praise to you about the judgments of your justice.
{118:165} Those who love your law have great peace, and there is no scandal for them.
{118:166} I have waited for your salvation, O Lord. And I have loved your commandments.
{118:167} My soul has kept to your testimonies and has loved them exceedingly.
{118:168} I have served your commandments and your testimonies. For all my ways are before your sight.
{118:169} TAU. O Lord, let my supplication draw near in your sight. Grant understanding to me according to your eloquence.
{118:170} Let my petition enter before you. Rescue me according to your word.
{118:171} A hymn will burst forth from my lips, when you will teach me your justifications.
{118:172} My tongue will pronounce your eloquence. For all your commandments are fairness.
{118:173} Let it be your hand that saves me. For I have chosen your commandments.
{118:174} O Lord, I have longed for your salvation, and your law is my meditation.
{118:175} My soul will live and will praise you, and your judgments will assist me.
{118:176} I have gone astray like a sheep that is lost. Seek out your servant, for I have not forgotten your commandments.
{119:1} A Canticle in steps. When troubled, I cried out to the Lord, and he heard me.
{119:2} O Lord, free my soul from lips of iniquity and from the deceitful tongue.
{119:3} What will be given to you, or what will be added to you, for a deceitful tongue?:
{119:4} the sharp arrows of the powerful, along with the burning coals of desolation.
{119:5} Woe to me, for my sojourning has been prolonged. I have lived with the inhabitants of Kedar.
{119:6} My soul has long been a sojourner.
{119:7} With those who hated peace, I was peaceful. When I spoke to them, they fought against me without cause.
{120:1} A Canticle in steps. I have lifted up my eyes to the mountains; from thence help will come to me.
{120:2} My help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
{120:3} May he not allow your foot to be moved, and may he not slumber, who guards you.
{120:4} Behold, he who guards Israel will neither sleep, nor slumber.
{120:5} The Lord is your keeper, the Lord is your protection, above your right hand.
{120:6} The sun will not burn you by day, nor the moon by night.
{120:7} The Lord guards you from all evil. May the Lord guard your soul.
{120:8} May the Lord guard your entrance and your exit, from this time forward and even forever.
{121:1} A Canticle in steps. I rejoiced in the things that were said to me: “We shall go into the house of the Lord.”
{121:2} Our feet were standing in your courts, O Jerusalem.
{121:3} Jerusalem has been built as a city, whose participation is unto itself.
{121:4} For to that place, the tribes ascended, the tribes of the Lord: the testimony of Israel, to confess to the name of the Lord.
{121:5} For in that place, seats have sat down in judgment, seats above the house of David.
{121:6} Petition for the things that are for the peace of Jerusalem, and for abundance for those who love you.
{121:7} Let peace be in your virtue, and abundance in your towers.
{121:8} For the sake of my brothers and my neighbors, I spoke peace about you.
{121:9} For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I sought good things for you.
{122:1} A Canticle in steps. I have lifted up my eyes to you, who dwells in the heavens.
{122:2} Behold, as the eyes of the servants are on the hands of their masters, as the eyes of the handmaid are on the hands of her mistress, so our eyes are upon the Lord our God, until he may be merciful to us.
{122:3} Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us. For we have been filled with utter disdain.
{122:4} For our soul has been greatly filled. We are the disgrace of those who have abundance and the disdain of the arrogant.
{123:1} A Canticle in steps. If the Lord had not been with us, let Israel now say it:
{123:2} if the Lord had not been with us, when men rose up against us,
{123:3} perhaps they would have swallowed us alive. When their fury was enraged against us,
{123:4} perhaps the waters would have engulfed us.
{123:5} Our soul has passed through a torrent. Perhaps, our soul had even passed through intolerable water.
{123:6} Blessed is the Lord, who has not given us into the harm of their teeth.
{123:7} Our soul has been snatched away like a sparrow from the snare of the hunters. The snare has been broken, and we have been freed.
{123:8} Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
{124:1} A Canticle in steps. Those who trust in the Lord will be like the mountain of Zion. He will not be disturbed for eternity, who dwells
{124:2} in Jerusalem. Mountains surround it. And the Lord surrounds his people, from this time forward and even forever.
{124:3} For the Lord will not allow the rod of sinners to remain over the lot of the just, so that the just may not extend their hands toward iniquity.
{124:4} Do good, O Lord, to the good and to the upright of heart.
{124:5} But those who turn away into obligation, the Lord will lead away with the workers of iniquity. Peace be upon Israel.
{125:1} A Canticle in steps. When the Lord turned back the captivity of Zion, we became like those who are consoled.
{125:2} Then our mouth was filled with gladness and our tongue with exultation. Then they will say among the nations: “The Lord has done great things for them.”
{125:3} The Lord has done great things for us. We have become joyful.
{125:4} Convert our captivity, O Lord, like a torrent in the south.
{125:5} Those who sow in tears shall reap in exultation.
{125:6} When departing, they went forth and wept, sowing their seeds.
{125:7} But when returning, they will arrive with exultation, carrying their sheaves.
{126:1} A Canticle in steps: of Solomon. Unless the Lord has built the house, those who build it have labored in vain. Unless the Lord has guarded the city, he who guards it watches in vain.
{126:2} It is in vain that you rise before daylight, that you rise up after you have sat down, you who chew the bread of sorrow. Whereas, to his beloved, he will give sleep.
{126:3} Behold, the inheritance of the Lord is sons, the reward is the fruit of the womb.
{126:4} Like arrows in the hand of the powerful, so are the sons of those who have been cast out.
{126:5} Blessed is the man who has filled his desire from these things. He will not be confounded when he speaks to his enemies at the gate.
{127:1} A Canticle in steps. Blessed are all those who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways.
{127:2} For you will eat by the labors of your hands. Blessed are you, and it will be well with you.
{127:3} Your wife is like an abundant vine on the sides of your house. Your sons are like young olive trees surrounding your table.
{127:4} Behold, so will the man be blessed who fears the Lord.
{127:5} May the Lord bless you from Zion, and may you see the good things of Jerusalem, all the days of your life.
{127:6} And may you see the sons of your sons. Peace be upon Israel.
{128:1} A Canticle in steps. They have often fought against me from my youth, let Israel now say:
{128:2} they have often fought against me from my youth, yet they could not prevail over me.
{128:3} The sinners have made fabrications behind my back. They have prolonged their iniquity.
{128:4} The just Lord will cut the necks of sinners.
{128:5} Let all those who hate Zion be confounded and turned backwards.
{128:6} Let them be like grass on the rooftops, which withers before it can be pulled up:
{128:7} with it, he who reaps does not fill his hand and he who gathers sheaves does not fill his bosom.
{128:8} And those who were passing by have not said to them: “The blessing of the Lord be upon you. We have blessed you in the name of the Lord.”
{129:1} A Canticle in steps. From the depths, I have cried out to you, O Lord.
{129:2} O Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication.
{129:3} If you, O Lord, were to heed iniquities, who, O Lord, could persevere?
{129:4} For with you, there is forgiveness, and because of your law, I persevered with you, Lord. My soul has persevered in his word.
{129:5} My soul has hoped in the Lord.
{129:6} From the morning watch, even until night, let Israel hope in the Lord.
{129:7} For with the Lord there is mercy, and with him there is bountiful redemption.
{129:8} And he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
{130:1} A Canticle in steps: of David. O Lord, my heart has not been exalted, and my eyes have not been raised up. Neither have I walked in greatness, nor in wonders beyond me.
{130:2} When I was not humble in thought, then I lifted up my soul. Like one who has been weaned from his mother, so was I recompensed in my soul.
{130:3} Let Israel hope in the Lord, from this time forward and even forever.
{131:1} A Canticle in steps. O Lord, remember David and all his meekness,
{131:2} how he swore to the Lord, how he made a vow to the God of Jacob:
{131:3} I shall not enter into the tabernacle of my house, nor climb into the bed where I lie down;
{131:4} I shall not give sleep to my eyes, nor slumber to my eyelids
{131:5} and rest to my temples, until I find a place for the Lord, a tabernacle for the God of Jacob.
{131:6} Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah. We discovered it in the fields of the forest.
{131:7} We will enter into his tabernacle. We will adore in the place where his feet stood.
{131:8} Rise up, O Lord, into your resting place. You and the ark of your sanctification.
{131:9} Let your priests be clothed with justice, and let your saints exult.
{131:10} For the sake of your servant David, do not turn away the face of your Christ.
{131:11} The Lord has sworn the truth to David, and he will not disappoint: I will set upon your throne from the fruit of your lineage.
{131:12} If your sons will keep my covenant and these, my testimonies, which I will teach to them, then their sons will sit upon your throne even forever.
{131:13} For the Lord has chosen Zion. He has chosen it as his dwelling place.
{131:14} This is my resting place, forever and ever. Here I will dwell, for I have chosen it.
{131:15} When blessing, I will bless her widow. I will satisfy her poor with bread.
{131:16} I will clothe her priests with salvation, and her saints will rejoice with great joy.
{131:17} There, I will produce a horn to David. There, I have prepared a lamp for my Christ.
{131:18} I will clothe his enemies with confusion. But my sanctification will flourish over him.
{132:1} A Canticle in steps: of David. Behold, how good and how pleasing it is for brothers to dwell in unity.
{132:2} It is like the ointment on the head that descended to the beard, the beard of Aaron, which descended to the hem of his garment.
{132:3} It is like the dew of Hermon, which descended from mount Zion. For in that place, the Lord has commanded a blessing, and life, even unto eternity.
{133:1} A Canticle in steps. Behold, bless the Lord now, all you servants of the Lord, who stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God.
{133:2} In the nights, lift up your hands in sanctity, and bless the Lord.
{133:3} May the Lord, who made heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.
{134:1} Alleluia. Praise the name of the Lord. You servants, praise the Lord.
{134:2} You who stand in the house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God:
{134:3} praise the Lord, for the Lord is good. Sing psalms to his name, for it is sweet.
{134:4} For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself, Israel for his own possession.
{134:5} For I have known that the Lord is great, and our God is before all gods.
{134:6} All things whatsoever that he willed, the Lord did: in heaven, on earth, in the sea, and in all the deep places.
{134:7} He leads clouds from the ends of the earth. He has created lightnings in the rain. He has produced winds from his storehouses.
{134:8} He struck the first-born of Egypt, from man even to cattle.
{134:9} He sent signs and wonders into your midst, O Egypt: upon Pharaoh and upon all his servants.
{134:10} He has struck many nations, and he has slaughtered strong kings:
{134:11} Sihon, king of the Amorites, and Og, king of Bashan, and all the kingdoms of Canaan.
{134:12} And he gave their land as an inheritance, as an inheritance for his people Israel.
{134:13} Your name, O Lord, is in eternity. Your memorial, O Lord, is from generation to generation.
{134:14} For the Lord will judge his people, and he will be petitioned by his servants.
{134:15} The idols of the Gentiles are silver and gold, the works of the hands of men.
{134:16} They have a mouth, and do not speak. They have eyes, and do not see.
{134:17} They have ears, and do not hear. For neither is there any breath in their mouths.
{134:18} Let those who make them become like them, along with all who trust in them.
{134:19} Bless the Lord, O house of Israel. Bless the Lord, O house of Aaron.
{134:20} Bless the Lord, O house of Levi. You who fear the Lord, bless the Lord.
{134:21} The Lord is blessed from Zion, by those who dwell in Jerusalem.
{135:1} Alleluia. Confess to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy is eternal.
{135:2} Confess to the God of gods, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:3} Confess to the Lord of lords, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:4} He alone performs great miracles, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:5} He made the heavens with understanding, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:6} He established the earth above the waters, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:7} He made the great lights, for his mercy is eternal:
{135:8} the sun to rule the day, for his mercy is eternal:
{135:9} the moon and the stars to rule the night, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:10} He struck Egypt along with their first-born, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:11} He led Israel away from their midst, for his mercy is eternal:
{135:12} with a powerful hand and an outstretched arm, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:13} He divided the Red Sea into separate parts, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:14} And he led out Israel through the middle of it, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:15} And he shook off Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:16} He led his people through the desert, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:17} He has struck great kings, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:18} And he has slaughtered strong kings, for his mercy is eternal:
{135:19} Sihon, king of the Amorites, for his mercy is eternal:
{135:20} and Og, king of Bashan, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:21} And he granted their land as an inheritance, for his mercy is eternal:
{135:22} as an inheritance for his servant Israel, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:23} For he was mindful of us in our humiliation, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:24} And he redeemed us from our enemies, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:25} He gives food to all flesh, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:26} Confess to the God of heaven, for his mercy is eternal.
{135:27} Confess to the Lord of lords, for his mercy is eternal.
{136:1} A Psalm of David: to Jeremiah. Above the rivers of Babylon, there we sat and wept, while we remembered Zion.
{136:2} By the willow trees, in their midst, we hung up our instruments.
{136:3} For, in that place, those who led us into captivity questioned us about the words of the songs. And those who carried us away said: “Sing us a hymn from the songs of Zion.”
{136:4} How can we sing a song of the Lord in a foreign land?
{136:5} If I ever forget you, Jerusalem, let my right hand be forgotten.
{136:6} May my tongue adhere to my jaws, if I do not remember you, if I do not set Jerusalem first, as the beginning of my joy.
{136:7} O Lord, call to mind the sons of Edom, in the day of Jerusalem, who say: “Despoil it, despoil it, even to its foundation.”
{136:8} O daughter of Babylon, have pity. Blessed is he who will repay you with your payment, which you have paid to us.
{136:9} Blessed is he who will take hold of your little ones and dash them against the rock.
{137:1} Of David himself. O Lord, I will confess to you with my whole heart, for you have heard the words of my mouth. I will sing psalms to you in the sight of the Angels.
{137:2} I will adore before your holy temple, and I will confess your name: it is above your mercy and your truth. For you have magnified your holy name above all.
{137:3} On whatever day that I will call upon you: hear me. You will multiply virtue in my soul.
{137:4} May all the kings of the earth confess to you, O Lord. For they have heard all the words of your mouth.
{137:5} And let them sing in accordance with the ways of the Lord. For great is the glory of the Lord.
{137:6} For the Lord is exalted, and he looks with favor on the humble. But the lofty he knows from a distance.
{137:7} If I wander into the midst of tribulation, you will revive me. For you extended your hand against the wrath of my enemies. And your right hand has accomplished my salvation.
{137:8} The Lord will provide retribution on my behalf. O Lord, your mercy is forever. Do not disdain the works of your hands.
{138:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David. O Lord, you have examined me, and you have known me.
{138:2} You have known my sitting down and my rising up again.
{138:3} You have understood my thoughts from afar. My path and my fate, you have investigated.
{138:4} And you have foreseen all my ways. For there is no word in my tongue.
{138:5} Behold, O Lord, you have known all things: the newest and the very old. You have formed me, and you have placed your hand over me.
{138:6} Your knowledge has become a wonder to me. It has been reinforced, and I am not able to prevail against it.
{138:7} Where will I go from your Spirit? And where will I flee from your face?
{138:8} If I ascend into heaven, you are there. If I descend into Hell, you are near.
{138:9} If I assume my feathers in early morning, and dwell in the utmost parts of the sea,
{138:10} even there, your hand will lead me forth, and your right hand will hold me.
{138:11} And I said: Perhaps darkness will overwhelm me, and the night will be my illumination, to my delight.
{138:12} But darkness will not be impenetrable to you, and night will illuminate like the day: for just as its darkness is, so also is its light.
{138:13} For you have possessed my temperament. You have supported me from the womb of my mother.
{138:14} I will confess to you, for you have been magnified terribly. Your works are miraculous, as my soul knows exceedingly well.
{138:15} My bone, which you have made in secret, has not been hidden from you, and my substance is in accord with the lower parts of the earth.
{138:16} Your eyes saw my imperfection, and all this shall be written in your book. Days will be formed, and no one shall be in them.
{138:17} But to me, O God, your friends have been greatly honored. Their first ruler has been exceedingly strengthened.
{138:18} I will number them, and they will be more numerous than the sand. I rose up, and I am still with you.
{138:19} O God, if only you would cut down sinners. You men of blood: depart from me.
{138:20} For you say in thought: They will accept your cities in vain.
{138:21} Have I not hated those who hated you, Lord, and wasted away because of your enemies?
{138:22} I have hated them with a perfect hatred, and they have become enemies to me.
{138:23} Examine me, O God, and know my heart. Question me, and know my paths.
{138:24} And see if there might be in me the way of iniquity, and lead me in the way of eternity.
{139:1} Unto the end. A Psalm of David.
{139:2} Rescue me, O Lord, from the evil man. Rescue me from the iniquitous leader.
{139:3} Those who have devised iniquities in their hearts: all day long they constructed conflicts.
{139:4} They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent. The venom of asps is under their lips.
{139:5} Preserve me, O Lord, from the hand of the sinner, and rescue me from men of iniquity. They have decided to supplant my steps.
{139:6} The arrogant have hidden a snare for me. And they have stretched out cords for a snare. They have placed a stumbling block for me near the road.
{139:7} I said to the Lord: You are my God. O Lord, heed the voice of my supplication.
{139:8} Lord, O Lord, the strength of my salvation: you have overshadowed my head in the day of war.
{139:9} O Lord, do not hand me over to the sinner by my desire. They have plotted against me. Do not abandon me, lest they should triumph.
{139:10} The head of those who encompass me, the labor of their lips, will overwhelm them.
{139:11} Burning coals will fall upon them. You will cast them down into the fire, into miseries that they will not be able to withstand.
{139:12} A talkative man will not be guided aright upon the earth. Evils will drag the unjust man unto utter ruin.
{139:13} I know that the Lord will accomplish justice for the needy and vindication for the poor.
{139:14} So then, truly, the just will confess your name, and the upright will dwell with your countenance.
{140:1} A Psalm of David. O Lord, I have cried out to you, hear me. Attend to my voice, when I cry out to you.
{140:2} Let my prayer be guided like incense in your sight: the lifting up of my hands, like the evening sacrifice.
{140:3} O Lord, station a guard over my mouth and a door enclosing my lips.
{140:4} Do not turn aside my heart to words of malice, to making excuses for sins, with men who work iniquity; and I will not communicate, even with the best of them.
{140:5} The just one will correct me with mercy, and he will rebuke me. But do not allow the oil of the sinner to fatten my head. For my prayer will still be toward their good will.
{140:6} Their judges have been engulfed, joined to the rocks. They will hear my words, which have prevailed,
{140:7} as when the lava of the earth has erupted above ground. Our bones have been scattered beside Hell.
{140:8} For Lord, O Lord, my eyes look to you. In you, I have hoped. Do not take away my soul.
{140:9} Protect me from the snare that they have set up for me and from the scandals of those who work iniquity.
{140:10} The sinners will fall into his net. I am alone, until I pass over.
{141:1} The understanding of David. A prayer, when he was in the cave.
{141:2} With my voice, I cried out to the Lord. With my voice, I made supplication to the Lord.
{141:3} In his sight, I pour out my prayer, and before him, I declare my tribulation.
{141:4} Though my spirit may become faint within me, even then, you have known my paths. Along this way, which I have been walking, they have hidden a snare for me.
{141:5} I considered toward the right, and I looked, but there was no one who would know me. Flight has perished before me, and there is no one who has concern for my soul.
{141:6} I cried out to you, O Lord. I said: You are my hope, my portion in the land of the living.
{141:7} Attend to my supplication. For I have been humbled exceedingly. Free me from my persecutors, for they have been fortified against me.
{141:8} Lead my soul out of confinement in order to confess your name. The just are waiting for me, until you repay me.
{142:1} A Psalm of David, when his son Absalom was pursuing him. O Lord, hear my prayer. Incline your ear to my supplication in your truth. Heed me according to your justice.
{142:2} And do not enter into judgment with your servant. For all the living will not be justified in your sight.
{142:3} For the enemy has pursued my soul. He has lowered my life to the earth. He has stationed me in darkness, like the dead of ages past.
{142:4} And my spirit has been in anguish over me. My heart within me has been disturbed.
{142:5} I have called to mind the days of antiquity. I have been meditating on all your works. I have meditated on the workings of your hands.
{142:6} I have extended my hands to you. My soul is like a land without water before you.
{142:7} O Lord, heed me quickly. My spirit has grown faint. Do not turn your face away from me, lest I become like those who descend into the pit.
{142:8} Make me hear your mercy in the morning. For I have hoped in you. Make known to me the way that I should walk. For I have lifted up my soul to you.
{142:9} O Lord, rescue me from my enemies. I have fled to you.
{142:10} Teach me to do your will. For you are my God. Your good Spirit will lead me into the righteous land.
{142:11} For the sake of your name, O Lord, you will revive me in your fairness. You will lead my soul out of tribulation.
{142:12} And you will scatter my enemies in your mercy. And you will destroy all those who afflict my soul. For I am your servant.
{143:1} A Psalm of David versus Goliath. Blessed is the Lord, my God, who trains my hands for the battle and my fingers for the war.
{143:2} My mercy and my refuge, my supporter and my deliverer, my protector and him in whom I have hoped: he subdues my people under me.
{143:3} O Lord, what is man that you have become known to him? Or the son of man that you consider him?
{143:4} Man has been made similar to vanity. His days pass by like a shadow.
{143:5} O Lord, incline your heavens and descend. Touch the mountains, and they will smoke.
{143:6} Send a flash of lightning, and you will scatter them. Shoot your arrows, and you will set them in disarray.
{143:7} Send forth your hand from on high: rescue me, and free me from many waters, from the hand of the sons of foreigners.
{143:8} Their mouth has been speaking vain things, and their right hand is the right hand of iniquity.
{143:9} To you, O God, I will sing a new song. On the psaltery, with an instrument of ten strings, I will sing psalms to you.
{143:10} He gives salvation to kings. He has redeemed your servant David from the malignant sword.
{143:11} Rescue me, and deliver me from the hand of the sons of foreigners. Their mouth has been speaking vain things, and their right hand is the right hand of iniquity.
{143:12} Their sons are like new plantings in their youth. Their daughters are dressed up: adorned all around like the idols of a temple.
{143:13} Their cupboards are full: overflowing from one thing into another. Their sheep bear young, brought forth in abundance.
{143:14} Their cattle are fat. There is no ruined wall or passage, nor anyone crying out in their streets.
{143:15} They have called the people that has these things: blessed. But blessed is the people whose God is the Lord.
{144:1} The Praise of David himself. I will extol you, O God, my king. And I will bless your name, in this time and forever and ever.
{144:2} Throughout every single day, I will bless you. And I will praise your name, in this time and forever and ever.
{144:3} The Lord is great and exceedingly praiseworthy. And there is no end to his greatness.
{144:4} Generation after generation will praise your works, and they will declare your power.
{144:5} They will tell of the magnificent glory of your sanctity. And they will discourse of your wonders.
{144:6} And they will talk about the virtue of your terrible acts. And they will describe your greatness.
{144:7} They will shout about the memory of your abundant sweetness. And they will exult in your justice.
{144:8} The Lord is compassionate and merciful, patient and full of mercy.
{144:9} The Lord is sweet to all things, and his compassion is upon all his works.
{144:10} O Lord, may all your works confess to you, and let your holy ones bless you.
{144:11} They will speak of the glory of your kingdom, and they will declare your power,
{144:12} so as to make known to the sons of men your power and the glory of your magnificent kingdom.
{144:13} Your kingdom is a kingdom for all ages, and your dominion is with all, from generation to generation. The Lord is faithful in all his words and holy in all his works.
{144:14} The Lord lifts up all who have fallen down, and he sets upright all who have been thrown down.
{144:15} O Lord, all eyes hope in you, and you provide their food in due time.
{144:16} You open your hand, and you fill every kind of animal with a blessing.
{144:17} The Lord is just in all his ways and holy in all his works.
{144:18} The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth.
{144:19} He will do the will of those who fear him, and he will heed their supplication and accomplish their salvation.
{144:20} The Lord watches over all who love him. And he will destroy all sinners.
{144:21} My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord, and may all flesh bless his holy name, in this time and forever and ever.
{145:1} Alleluia. Of Haggai and Zachariah.
{145:2} Praise the Lord, O my soul. I will praise the Lord with my life. I will sing psalms to my God as long as I shall be. Do not trust in the leaders,
{145:3} in the sons of men, in whom there is no salvation.
{145:4} His spirit will depart, and he will return to his earth. In that day, all their thoughts will perish.
{145:5} Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob: his hope is in the Lord God himself,
{145:6} who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all the things that are in them.
{145:7} He preserves the truth forever. He executes judgment for those who suffer injury. He provides food for the hungry. The Lord releases those who are bound.
{145:8} The Lord enlightens the blind. The Lord sets upright those who have been thrown down. The Lord loves the just.
{145:9} The Lord watches over new arrivals. He will support the orphan and the widow. And he will destroy the ways of sinners.
{145:10} The Lord shall reign forever: your God, O Zion, from generation to generation.
{146:1} Alleluia. Praise the Lord, because the psalm is good. Delightful and beautiful praise shall be for our God.
{146:2} The Lord builds up Jerusalem. He will gather together the dispersed of Israel.
{146:3} He heals the contrite of heart, and he binds up their sorrows.
{146:4} He numbers the multitude of the stars, and he calls them all by their names.
{146:5} Great is our Lord, and great is his virtue. And of his wisdom, there is no number.
{146:6} The Lord lifts up the meek, but he brings down the sinner, even to the ground.
{146:7} Sing before the Lord with confession. Play psalms to our God on a stringed instrument.
{146:8} He covers heaven with clouds, and he prepares rain for the earth. He produces grass on the mountains and herbs for the service of men.
{146:9} He gives their food to beasts of burden and to young ravens that call upon him.
{146:10} He will not have good will for the strength of the horse, nor will he be well pleased with the legs of a man.
{146:11} The Lord is well pleased with those who fear him and with those who hope in his mercy.
{147:1} Alleluia. Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem. Praise your God, O Zion.
{147:2} For he has reinforced the bars of your gates. He has blessed your sons within you.
{147:3} He has stationed peace at your borders, and he has satisfied you with the fat of the grain.
{147:4} He sends forth his eloquence to the earth. His word runs swiftly.
{147:5} He provides snow like wool. He strews clouds like ashes.
{147:6} He sends his ice crystals like morsels. Who can stand firm before the face of his cold?
{147:7} He will send forth his word, and it will melt them. His Spirit will breathe out, and the waters will flow.
{147:8} He announces his word to Jacob, his justices and his judgments to Israel.
{147:9} He has not done so much for every nation, and he has not made his judgments manifest to them. Alleluia.
{148:1} Alleluia. Praise the Lord from the heavens. Praise him on the heights.
{148:2} Praise him, all his Angels. Praise him, all his hosts.
{148:3} Praise him, sun and moon. Praise him, all stars and light.
{148:4} Praise him, heavens of the heavens. And let all the waters that are above the heavens
{148:5} praise the name of the Lord. For he spoke, and they became. He commanded, and they were created.
{148:6} He has stationed them in eternity, and for age after age. He has established a precept, and it will not pass away.
{148:7} Praise the Lord from the earth: you dragons and all deep places,
{148:8} fire, hail, snow, ice, windstorms, which do his word,
{148:9} mountains and all hills, fruitful trees and all cedars,
{148:10} wild beasts and all cattle, serpents and feathered flying things,
{148:11} kings of the earth and all peoples, leaders and all judges of the earth,
{148:12} young men and virgins. Let the older men with the younger men, praise the name of the Lord.
{148:13} For his name alone is exalted.
{148:14} Confession of him is beyond heaven and earth, and he has exalted the horn of his people. A hymn to all his holy ones, to the sons of Israel, to a people close to him. Alleluia.
{149:1} Alleluia. Sing to the Lord a new song. His praise is in the Church of the saints.
{149:2} Let Israel rejoice in him who made them, and let the sons of Zion exult in their king.
{149:3} Let them praise his name in chorus. Let them sing psalms to him with the timbrel and the psaltery.
{149:4} For the Lord is well pleased with his people, and he will exalt the meek unto salvation.
{149:5} The saints will exult in glory. They will rejoice upon their couches.
{149:6} The exultations of God will be in their throat, and two-edged swords will be in their hands:
{149:7} to obtain vindication among the nations, chastisements among the peoples,
{149:8} to bind their kings with shackles and their nobles with manacles of iron,
{149:9} to obtain judgment over them, as it has been written. This is glory for all his saints. Alleluia.
{150:1} Alleluia. Praise the Lord in his holy places. Praise him in the firmament of his power.
{150:2} Praise him for his virtues. Praise him according to the multitude of his greatness.
{150:3} Praise him with the sound of the trumpet. Praise him with psaltery and stringed instrument.
{150:4} Praise him with timbrel and choir. Praise him with strings and organ.
{150:5} Praise him with sweet-sounding cymbals. Praise him with cymbals of jubilation.
{150:6} Let every spirit praise the Lord. Alleluia.
{1:1} The parables of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel,
{1:2} in order to know wisdom and discipline,
{1:3} to understand words of prudence, and to accept the instruction of doctrine, justice and judgment, and equity,
{1:4} so as to give discernment to little ones, knowledge and understanding to adolescents.
{1:5} By listening, the wise shall become wiser and the intelligent shall possess governments.
{1:6} He shall turn his soul to a parable and to its interpretation, to the words of the wise and their enigmas.
{1:7} The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. The foolish despise wisdom as well as doctrine.
{1:8} Listen, my son, to the discipline of your father, and forsake not the law of your mother,
{1:9} so that grace may be added to your head and a collar to your neck.
{1:10} My son, if sinners should entice you, do not consent to them.
{1:11} If they should say: “Come with us. We will lie in wait for blood. We will lay traps against the innocent, without cause.
{1:12} Let us swallow him alive, like Hell, and whole, like one descending into the pit.
{1:13} We will discover every precious substance. We will fill our houses with spoils.
{1:14} Cast your lot with us. One purse will be for us all.”
{1:15} My son, do not walk with them. Preclude your feet from their paths.
{1:16} For their feet rush to evil, and they hurry to shed blood.
{1:17} But a net is thrown in vain before the eyes of those who have wings.
{1:18} Likewise, they lie in ambush against their own blood, and they undertake deceits against their own souls.
{1:19} Thus, the ways of all those who are greedy seize the souls of those who possess.
{1:20} Wisdom forewarns far and wide; she bestows her voice in the streets.
{1:21} She cries out at the head of crowds; at the entrance of the gates of the city, she offers her words, saying:
{1:22} “Little ones, how long will you choose to be childish, and how long will the foolish desire what is harmful to themselves, and how long will the imprudent hate knowledge?
{1:23} Be converted by my correction. Lo, I will offer my spirit to you, and I will reveal my words to you.
{1:24} For I called, and you refused. I extended my hand, and there was no one who watched.
{1:25} You have despised all my counsels, and you have neglected my rebukes.
{1:26} Similarly, I will ridicule you at your demise, and I will mock you, when that which you feared shall overcome you.
{1:27} When sudden calamity rushes upon you, and your demise advances like a tempest, when tribulation and anguish overcome you,
{1:28} then they will call to me, and I will not heed, they will arise in the morning, and not find me.
{1:29} For they held hatred for discipline, and they would not accept the fear of the Lord;
{1:30} they would not consent to my counsel, but they detracted from all of my corrections.
{1:31} Therefore, they shall eat the fruit of their way, and they shall have their fill of their own counsels.
{1:32} The loathing of the little ones shall destroy them, and the prosperity of the foolish shall perish them.
{1:33} But whoever will listen to me shall rest without terror, and shall have full enjoyment of abundance, without fear of evils.”
{2:1} My son, if you would accept my words, and conceal my commandments within you,
{2:2} so that your ears may listen to wisdom, then bend your heart in order to know prudence.
{2:3} For if you would call upon wisdom and bend your heart to prudence,
{2:4} if you will seek her like money, and dig for her as if for treasure,
{2:5} then you will understand the fear of the Lord, and you will discover the knowledge of God.
{2:6} For the Lord bestows wisdom, and out of his mouth, prudence and knowledge.
{2:7} He will preserve the salvation of the righteous, and he will protect those who walk in simplicity:
{2:8} serving the paths of justice, and guarding the ways of sanctity.
{2:9} Then you shall understand justice and judgment, and equity, and every good path.
{2:10} If wisdom is to enter into your heart, and if knowledge is to become pleasing to your soul,
{2:11} then counsel must guard you, and prudence must serve you,
{2:12} so that you may be rescued from the evil way, and from the man who speaks perversities,
{2:13} from those who leave the straight path to walk in dark ways,
{2:14} who rejoice when they have done evil, and who exult in the most wicked things.
{2:15} Their ways are perverse, and their steps are infamous.
{2:16} So may you be rescued from the foreign woman, and from the outsider, who softens her speech,
{2:17} and who leaves behind the Guide of her youth,
{2:18} and who has forgotten the covenant of her God. For her household inclines toward death, and her paths toward Hell.
{2:19} All those who enter to her will not return again, nor will they take hold of the paths of life.
{2:20} So may you walk in the good way, and keep to the difficult paths of the just.
{2:21} For those who are upright shall live upon the earth, and the simple shall continue upon it.
{2:22} Yet truly, the impious shall perish from the earth, and those who act unjustly shall be taken away from it.
{3:1} My son, do not forget my law, but let your heart guard my precepts.
{3:2} For they shall set before you length of days, and years of life, and peace.
{3:3} Let not mercy and truth abandon you: encircle them around your throat, and inscribe them on the tablets of your heart.
{3:4} And so shall you discover grace and good discipline, in the sight of God and men.
{3:5} Have confidence in the Lord with all your heart, and do not depend upon your own prudence.
{3:6} In all your ways, consider him, and he himself will direct your steps.
{3:7} Do not seem wise to yourself. Fear God, and withdraw from evil.
{3:8} Certainly, it shall be health to your navel, and refreshment to your bones.
{3:9} Honor the Lord with your substance, and give to him from the first of all your fruits,
{3:10} and then your storehouses will be filled with abundance, and your presses shall overflow with wine.
{3:11} My son, do not discard the discipline of the Lord, and do not fall away when you are corrected by him.
{3:12} For whomever the Lord loves, he corrects, and just as a father does with a son, he wins him over.
{3:13} Blessed is the man who finds wisdom and who advances to prudence.
{3:14} Her acquisition is better than trading in silver, and her fruit is better than the first and purest gold.
{3:15} She is more precious than all riches, and all that can be desired cannot prevail in comparison to her.
{3:16} Length of days is at her right hand, and at her left hand is wealth and glory.
{3:17} Her ways are beautiful ways, and all her paths are peaceful.
{3:18} She is a tree of life to those who overtake her, and he who shall take hold of her is blessed.
{3:19} The Lord founded the earth on wisdom. He secured the heavens with prudence.
{3:20} By his wisdom, the abyss erupted and the clouds increased with dew.
{3:21} My son, let not these things move away from your eyes. Preserve law as well as counsel.
{3:22} And so shall there be life in your soul and grace in your voice.
{3:23} Then you shall walk confidently in your way, and your feet will not stumble.
{3:24} When you slumber, you shall not fear. When you rest, your sleep also will be sweet.
{3:25} Do not fear unexpected terror, nor the power of the impious falling upon you.
{3:26} For the Lord will be at your side, and he will guard your feet, so that you may not be seized.
{3:27} Do not prevent him who is able from doing good. When you are able, do good yourself too.
{3:28} Do not say to your friend: “Go away, and then return. Tomorrow I will give to you.” When you are able to do so, give in the present.
{3:29} Do not undertake evil against your friend, even though he has trust in you.
{3:30} Do not contend against a man without cause, even though he has done no evil to you.
{3:31} Do not rival an unjust man, and do not imitate his ways.
{3:32} For everyone who ridicules is an abomination to the Lord, and his communication is for the simple.
{3:33} Destitution in the house of the impious is from the Lord. But the habitations of the just shall be blessed.
{3:34} He will ridicule those who ridicule, but he will bestow grace upon the mild.
{3:35} The wise will possess glory. The exaltation of the foolish is disgraceful.
{4:1} Listen, sons, to the discipline of a father, and pay attention, so that you may know prudence.
{4:2} I will bestow upon you a good gift. Do not relinquish my law.
{4:3} For I, too, was the son of my father, tender and an only son in the sight of my mother.
{4:4} And he taught me, and he also said: “Let your heart accept my words. Keep my precepts, and you shall live.
{4:5} Obtain wisdom, obtain prudence. May you neither forget, nor turn away from, the words of my mouth.
{4:6} Do not send her away, and she will guard you. Love her, and she will preserve you.
{4:7} The beginning of wisdom is to obtain wisdom, and, with all that you possess, to acquire prudence.
{4:8} Grasp her, and she will exalt you. You will be glorified by her, when you have embraced her.
{4:9} She will bestow upon your head an increase in graces, and she will protect you with a noble crown.
{4:10} Listen, my son, and accept my words, so that years of life may be multiplied for you.
{4:11} I will demonstrate to you the way of wisdom. I will lead you along the paths of equity.
{4:12} When you have entered by these, your steps will not be constrained, and when running, you will have no obstacle.
{4:13} Take hold of discipline. Do not dismiss it. Guard it, for it is your life.
{4:14} Do not delight in the paths of the impious, nor permit the way of evil-doers to please you.
{4:15} Take flight from it. Do not pass close to it. Turn away and abandon it.
{4:16} For they do not sleep, unless they have done evil. And their sleep is quickly taken away from them, unless they have overthrown.
{4:17} They eat the bread of impiety, and they drink the wine of iniquity.
{4:18} But the path of the just is like a shining light: it advances and increases, even to the day of completion.
{4:19} The way of the impious is darkened. They do not know where they may fall.
{4:20} My son, pay attention to my sermons, and incline your ear to my eloquent words.
{4:21} Let them not recede from your eyes. Keep them in the midst of your heart.
{4:22} For they are life to those who find them and health to all that is flesh.
{4:23} Preserve your heart with all watchfulness, for life proceeds from this.
{4:24} Remove from yourself a corrupt mouth, and let detracting lips be far from you.
{4:25} Let your eyes look straight ahead, and let your eyelids precede your steps.
{4:26} Direct the path of your feet, and all your ways shall be secure.
{4:27} Turn aside, neither to the right, nor to the left; yet turn your foot away from evil. For the Lord knows the ways that are on the right, and truly, those that are on the left are perverse. But he himself will make your courses straight. Then your journey will advance in peace.
{5:1} My son, pay attention to my wisdom, and incline your ear to my prudence,
{5:2} so that you may guard your thinking, and so that your lips may preserve discipline. Do not pay attention to the deceit of a woman.
{5:3} For the lips of a loose woman are like a dripping honeycomb, and her voice is smoother than oil.
{5:4} But in the end, she is as bitter as wormwood, and as sharp as a two-edged sword.
{5:5} Her feet descend into death, and her steps reach even to Hell.
{5:6} They do not walk along the path of life; her steps are wandering and untraceable.
{5:7} Therefore, my son, listen to me now, and do not withdraw from the words of my mouth.
{5:8} Make your way at a distance from her, and do not approach the doors of her house.
{5:9} Do not give your honor to foreigners, and your years to the cruel.
{5:10} Otherwise, outsiders may be filled with your strength, and your labors may be in a foreign house,
{5:11} and you may mourn in the end, when you will have consumed your flesh and your body. And so you may say:
{5:12} “Why have I detested discipline, and why has my heart not been quieted by correction?
{5:13} And why have I not listened to the voice of those who guided me? And why has my ear not inclined to my teachers?
{5:14} I have almost been with all evil in the midst of the church and of the assembly.”
{5:15} Drink water from your own cistern and from the springs of your own well.
{5:16} Let your fountains be diverted far and wide, and divide your waters in the streets.
{5:17} Hold them for yourself alone, and do not let strangers be partakers with you.
{5:18} Let your spring be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth:
{5:19} a beloved doe and most pleasing fawn. Let her breasts inebriate you at all times. Be delighted continually by her love.
{5:20} Why are you seduced, my son, by a strange woman, and why are you kept warm by the bosom of another?
{5:21} The Lord beholds the ways of man, and he considers all his steps.
{5:22} His own iniquities take hold of the impious, and he is bound by the cords of his own sins.
{5:23} He shall die, for he has not held to discipline. And by the multitude of his foolishness, he shall be deceived.
{6:1} My son, if you have taken a pledge on behalf of your friend, then you have bound your hand to an outsider,
{6:2} then you are ensnared by the words of your own mouth, and taken captive by your own words.
{6:3} Therefore, my son, do what I say, and free yourself, for you have fallen into the hand of your neighbor. Run, hurry, awaken your friend.
{6:4} Do not grant sleep to your eyes, nor let your eyelids slumber.
{6:5} Rescue yourself like a gazelle from the hand, and like a bird from the hand of the fowler.
{6:6} Go to the ant, you lazy one, and consider her ways, and so learn wisdom.
{6:7} For though she has no ruler, nor instructor, nor leader,
{6:8} she provides meals for herself in the summer, and she gathers at the harvest what she may eat.
{6:9} How long will you slumber, you lazy one? When will you rise up from your sleep?
{6:10} You will sleep a little, you will slumber a little, you will fold your hands a little to sleep,
{6:11} and then destitution will meet with you, like a traveler, and poverty, like an armed man. Yet truly, if you would be diligent, then your harvest will arrive like a fountain, and destitution will flee far from you.
{6:12} An apostate man, a harmful man, walks with a perverse mouth;
{6:13} he winks with the eyes, touches with the foot, speaks with the finger.
{6:14} With a depraved heart he devises evil, and at all times he sows conflict.
{6:15} To this one, his perdition will arrive promptly, and he shall be crushed suddenly: he will no longer have any remedy.
{6:16} Six things there are that the Lord hates, and the seventh, his soul detests:
{6:17} haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood,
{6:18} a heart that devises the most wicked thoughts, feet running swiftly unto evil,
{6:19} a deceitful witness bringing forth lies, and he who sows discord among brothers.
{6:20} My son, preserve the precepts of your father, and do not dismiss the law of your mother.
{6:21} Bind them to your heart unceasingly, and encircle them around your throat.
{6:22} When you walk, let them keep step with you. When you sleep, let them guard you. And when you keep watch, speak with them.
{6:23} For commandment is a lamp, and law is a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life.
{6:24} So may they guard you from an evil woman, and from the flattering tongue of the outsider.
{6:25} Let not your heart desire her beauty; do not be captivated by her winks.
{6:26} For the price of a prostitute is only one loaf. Yet the woman seizes the precious soul of a man.
{6:27} Would a man be able to conceal fire in his bosom, so that his garments would not burn?
{6:28} Or could he walk over burning coals, so that his feet would not be burned?
{6:29} So also, he who enters to the wife of his neighbor shall not be clean when he touches her.
{6:30} Not so great is the fault when someone has stolen. For he steals so as to satisfy a hungry soul.
{6:31} Also, if he is apprehended, he shall repay sevenfold and hand over all the substance of his house.
{6:32} But whoever is an adulterer, because of the emptiness of his heart, will destroy his own soul.
{6:33} He gathers shame and dishonor to himself, and his disgrace will not be wiped away.
{6:34} For the jealousy and fury of the husband will not spare him on the day of vindication,
{6:35} nor will he agree to the pleadings of anyone, nor will he accept, as repayment, a multitude of gifts.
{7:1} My son, guard my words and conceal my precepts within you.
{7:2} Son, preserve my commandments, and you shall live. And keep my law as the pupil of your eye.
{7:3} Bind it with your fingers; write it on the tablets of your heart.
{7:4} Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” and call prudence your friend.
{7:5} So may she guard you from the woman who is an outsider, and from the stranger who sweetens her words.
{7:6} For I gaze from the window of my house, through the lattice,
{7:7} and I see little ones. I consider a frenzied youth,
{7:8} who crosses the street at the corner and close to the way of that house.
{7:9} He steps into shadows, as day becomes evening, into the darkness and gloom of the night.
{7:10} And behold, a woman meets him, dressed like a harlot, prepared to captivate souls: chattering and rambling,
{7:11} unwilling to bear silence, unable to keep her feet at home,
{7:12} now outside, now in the streets, now lying in ambush near the corners.
{7:13} And overtaking the youth, she kisses him, and with a provocative face, she flatters him, saying:
{7:14} “I vowed sacrifices for well-being. Today I have repaid my vows.
{7:15} Because of this, I have gone out to meet you, desiring to see you, and I have found you.
{7:16} I have woven my bed with cords. I have strewn it with embroidered tapestries from Egypt.
{7:17} I have sprinkled my bed with myrrh, aloe, and cinnamon.
{7:18} Come, let us be inebriated in abundance, and let us delight in the embraces of desire, until the day begins to dawn.
{7:19} For my husband is not in his house. He has gone away on a very long journey.
{7:20} He took with him a bag of money. He will return to his house on the day of the full moon.”
{7:21} She enmeshed him with many words, and she drew him forward with the flattery of her lips.
{7:22} Immediately, he follows her, like an ox being led to the sacrifice, and like a lamb acting lasciviously, and not knowing that he is being drawn foolishly into chains,
{7:23} until the arrow pierces his liver. It is just as if a bird were to hurry into the snare. And he does not know that his actions endanger his own soul.
{7:24} Therefore, my son, hear me now, and attend to the words of my mouth.
{7:25} Do not let your mind be pulled into her ways. And do not be deceived by her paths.
{7:26} For she has tossed aside many wounded, and some of those who were very strong have been slain by her.
{7:27} Her household is the way to Hell, reaching even to the inner places of death.
{8:1} Does not wisdom call out, and prudence bestow her voice?
{8:2} At the summits and the tops of exalted places, standing above the ways, in the midst of the paths,
{8:3} beside the gates of the city, at the very doors, she speaks, saying:
{8:4} “O men, to you I call out, and my voice is to the sons of men.
{8:5} O little ones, understand discernment. And you who are unwise, turn your souls.
{8:6} Listen, for I will speak about great things, and my lips will be opened, so as to foretell what is right.
{8:7} My throat shall practice truth, and my lips shall detest the impious.
{8:8} All my words are just. There is no depravity in them, and no perversity.
{8:9} They are upright to those who understand, and equitable to those who discover knowledge.
{8:10} Accept my discipline, and not money. Choose the doctrine that is greater than gold.
{8:11} For wisdom is better than all that is most precious, and everything that is desirable cannot compare to her.
{8:12} I, wisdom, dwell in counsel, and I am inside learned thoughts.
{8:13} The fear of the Lord hates evil. I detest arrogance, and pride, and every wicked way, and a mouth with a double tongue.
{8:14} Counsel is mine, and equity. Prudence is mine. Strength is mine.
{8:15} Through me, kings reign and legislators decree just conditions.
{8:16} Through me, princes rule and the powerful decree justice.
{8:17} I love those who love me. And those who stand watch for me until morning shall discover me.
{8:18} With me, are wealth and glory, superb riches and justice.
{8:19} For my fruit is better than gold and precious stones, and my progeny better than choice silver.
{8:20} I walk in the way of justice, in the midst of the paths of judgment,
{8:21} so that I may enrich those who love me, and thus complete their treasures.
{8:22} The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his ways, before he made anything, from the beginning.
{8:23} I was ordained from eternity, and out of antiquity, before the earth was formed.
{8:24} The abyss did not yet exist, and I was already conceived; neither had the fountains of waters yet erupted.
{8:25} The mountains, with their great mass, had not yet been established. Before the hills, I was brought forth.
{8:26} Still he had not made the earth, and the rivers, and the poles of the globe of the earth.
{8:27} I was already present: when he prepared the heavens; when, with a certain law and a circuit, he fortified the abyss;
{8:28} when he made firm the sky above, and set free the fountains of waters;
{8:29} when he encompassed the sea within its limits, and laid down a law for the waters, lest they transgress their limits; when he weighed the foundations of the earth.
{8:30} I was with him in composing all things. And I was delighted, throughout every day, by playing in his sight at all times,
{8:31} playing in globe of the earth. And my delight was to be with the sons of men.
{8:32} Therefore, sons, hear me now. Blessed are those who preserve my ways.
{8:33} Listen to discipline, and become wise, and do not be willing to cast it aside.
{8:34} Blessed is the man who listens to me, and who stands watch at my gates every day, and who observes at the posts of my doors.
{8:35} He who finds me, finds life, and he will draw salvation from the Lord.
{8:36} But he who sins against me will wound his own soul. All who hate me love death.”
{9:1} Wisdom has built a house for herself. She has hewn seven columns.
{9:2} She has immolated her victims. She has mixed her wine and set forth her table.
{9:3} She has sent her maids to call out to the tower and to the fortified walls of the city,
{9:4} “If anyone is little, let him come to me.” And to the unwise, she has said:
{9:5} “Approach. Eat my bread, and drink the wine that I have mixed for you.
{9:6} Leave behind childishness. And live and walk by the ways of prudence.”
{9:7} Whoever teaches a mocker causes injury to himself. And whoever argues with the impious produces a blemish on himself.
{9:8} Do not be willing to argue with a mocker, lest he hate you. Dispute with the wise, and he will love you.
{9:9} Present an opportunity to the wise, and wisdom shall be added to him. Teach the just, and he will hurry to receive it.
{9:10} The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of holiness is prudence.
{9:11} For by me, your days will be multiplied and years of life will be added to you.
{9:12} If you would be wise, you will be so for yourself. But if you would be one who ridicules, you alone shall carry the evil.
{9:13} A foolish and loud woman, who is full of enticements and who knows nothing at all,
{9:14} sat at the entrance of her house on a seat, in a high place of the city,
{9:15} so as to call to those who were passing by the way and continuing on their journey:
{9:16} “Whoever is little, let him turn aside to me.” And to the frenzied, she said,
{9:17} “Stolen waters are more soothing, and secret bread is more pleasant.”
{9:18} And he did not know that giants are there, and that her companions are in the depths of Hell.
{10:1} A wise son gladdens the father. Yet truly, a foolish son is the grief of his mother.
{10:2} Treasures of impiety will profit nothing. Truly, justice shall liberate from death.
{10:3} The Lord will not afflict with famine the soul of the just, and he will overthrow the treacheries of the impious.
{10:4} The neglectful hand has wrought destitution. But the hand of the steadfast prepares riches. He who advances by lies, this one feeds on the wind. For he is the same as one who runs after flying birds.
{10:5} He who gathers the harvest is a wise son. But he who snores in warm weather is a son of confusion.
{10:6} The blessing of the Lord is on the head of the just. But iniquity covers the mouth of the impious.
{10:7} The remembrance of the just is with praises. And the name of the impious shall decay.
{10:8} The wise of heart accept precepts. The foolish are cut down by the lips.
{10:9} He who walks in simplicity walks in confidence. But he who corrupts his ways shall be discovered.
{10:10} He who winks with the eye gives sorrow. And the foolish in lips shall be beaten.
{10:11} The mouth of the just is a vein of life. And the mouth of the impious covers iniquity.
{10:12} Hatred rises up from disputes. And charity covers all offenses.
{10:13} In the lips of the wise, wisdom is discovered. And a rod is for the back of one who lacks heart.
{10:14} The wise store away knowledge. But the mouth of the foolish is a neighbor to confusion.
{10:15} The substance of the rich is the city of his strength. The fear of the poor is their destitution.
{10:16} The work of the just is unto life. But the fruit of the impious is unto sin.
{10:17} The way of life is for those who observe discipline. But whoever abandons correction wanders astray.
{10:18} Lying lips conceal hatred; whoever brings forth contempt is unwise.
{10:19} In a multitude of speaking, sin will not be lacking. But whoever tempers his lips is most prudent.
{10:20} The tongue of the just is choice silver. But the heart of the impious is exchanged for nothing.
{10:21} The lips of the just instruct many. But those who are unlearned shall die in destitution of heart.
{10:22} The blessing of the Lord causes riches. Affliction will not be a companion to them.
{10:23} The foolish work wickedness as if in jest. But wisdom is prudence to a man.
{10:24} What the impious fear will overwhelm them. The just shall be given their desire.
{10:25} Like a passing tempest, so the impious one will be no more. But the just one is like an everlasting foundation.
{10:26} Like vinegar to the teeth, and smoke to the eyes, so is a lazy one to those who sent him.
{10:27} The fear of the Lord adds days. And the years of the impious will be shortened.
{10:28} The expectation of the just is rejoicing. But the hope of the impious will perish.
{10:29} The strength of the simple is the way of the Lord, and it is fear to those who work evil.
{10:30} The just in eternity shall not be moved. But the impious will not live upon the earth.
{10:31} The mouth of the just shall bring forth wisdom. The tongue of the depraved will perish.
{10:32} The lips of the just consider what is acceptable. And the mouth of the impious considers perversities.
{11:1} A deceitful scale is an abomination with the Lord, and a fair weighing is his will.
{11:2} Wherever arrogance may be, there too is insult. But wherever humility is, there too is wisdom.
{11:3} The simplicity of the just shall direct them, and the rebellion of the perverse will devastate them.
{11:4} Wealth will not profit in the day of vengeance. But justice shall liberate from death.
{11:5} The justice of the simple shall direct his way. And the impious will fall in his impiety.
{11:6} The justice of the upright shall free them. And the iniquitous will be seized by their own treachery.
{11:7} When the impious man is dead, there will no longer be any hope. And the expectation of the anxious will perish.
{11:8} The just one is freed from anguish. And the impious one will be handed over instead of him.
{11:9} The pretender deceives his friend by mouth. But the just shall be freed by knowledge.
{11:10} In the good of the just, the city shall exult. And in the perdition of the impious, there shall be praise.
{11:11} By the blessing of the just, the city shall be exalted. And by the mouth of the impious, it will be subverted.
{11:12} Whoever despises his friend is destitute in heart. But the prudent man will remain silent.
{11:13} Whoever walks dishonestly reveals secrets. But whoever is of a faithful soul conceals what is confided by a friend.
{11:14} Where there is no governor, the people shall fall. But where there is much counsel, well-being shall be.
{11:15} He will be afflicted with evil, who provides a guarantee for an outsider. But whoever is wary of traps shall be secure.
{11:16} A gracious woman shall discover glory. And the robust will have wealth.
{11:17} A merciful man benefits his own soul. But whoever is cruel casts out even his close relatives.
{11:18} The impious does work with inconstancy. But for the sower of justice, there is the reward of faithfulness.
{11:19} Clemency prepares life. And the pursuit of evils prepares death.
{11:20} A depraved heart is abominable to the Lord. And his will is with those who walk in simplicity.
{11:21} Hand in hand, the evil shall not be innocent. But the offspring of the just shall be saved.
{11:22} A beautiful and senseless woman is like a gold ring in the snout of a swine.
{11:23} The desire of the just is entirely good. The anticipation of the impious is fury.
{11:24} Some distribute their own goods, and they become wealthier. Others seize what is not their own, and they are always in need.
{11:25} The soul that blesses shall be made fat. And whoever inebriates will likewise be inebriated himself.
{11:26} Whoever hides away grain shall be cursed among the people. But a blessing is upon the head of those who sell it.
{11:27} He does well to rise early, who seeks what is good. But whoever is a seeker of evils shall be oppressed by them.
{11:28} Whoever trusts in his riches will fall. But the just shall spring up like a green leaf.
{11:29} Whoever troubles his own house will possess the winds. And whoever is foolish will serve the wise.
{11:30} The fruit of the just one is the tree of life. And whoever receives souls is wise.
{11:31} If the just are repaid upon the earth, how much more the impious and the sinner!
{12:1} Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge. But whoever hates correction is unwise.
{12:2} Whoever is good shall draw grace from the Lord. But whoever trusts in his own thoughts acts impiously.
{12:3} Man will not be made strong from impiety. And the root of the just shall not be moved.
{12:4} A diligent woman is a crown to her husband. And she who acts with confusion as to which things are worthy is decay to his bones.
{12:5} The thoughts of the just are judgments. And the counsels of the impious are dishonest.
{12:6} The words of the impious lie in wait for blood. The mouth of the just shall free them.
{12:7} Turn from the impious, and they will not be. But the house of the just shall stand firm.
{12:8} A man will be known by his doctrine. But whoever is vain and heartless will suffer contempt.
{12:9} Better is a pauper who has what he needs, than someone glorious and in need of bread.
{12:10} The just one knows the lives of his beasts. But the inner most parts of the impious are cruel.
{12:11} Whoever works his land shall be satisfied with bread. But whoever continually pursues leisure is most foolish. Whoever is soothed by lingering over wine leaves behind contempt in his strongholds.
{12:12} The desire of the impious is the fortification of what is most wicked. But the root of the just shall prosper.
{12:13} For the sins of the lips draw ruin to the evil. But the just shall escape from distress.
{12:14} By the fruit of his own mouth, each one shall be filled with good things, and according to the works of his own hands, it will be distributed to him.
{12:15} The way of the foolish is right in his own eyes. But whoever is wise listens to counsels.
{12:16} The senseless immediately reveals his anger. But whoever ignores injuries is clever.
{12:17} He is a sign of justice, who speaks what he knows. But whoever deceives is a dishonest witness.
{12:18} He who makes promises is also jabbed, as if with a sword, in conscience. But the tongue of the wise is reasonable.
{12:19} The lips of truth shall be steadfast forever. But a hasty witness readies a lying tongue.
{12:20} Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evils. But gladness follows those who take up counsels of peace.
{12:21} Whatever may befall the just, it will not discourage him. But the impious will be filled with disasters.
{12:22} Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord. But whoever acts faithfully pleases him.
{12:23} A resourceful man conceals knowledge. And the heart of the unwise provokes foolishness.
{12:24} The hand of the strong will rule. But anyone who is neglectful will pay tribute.
{12:25} Grief in the heart of a man humbles him. And with a good word he shall be made glad.
{12:26} He who ignores a loss for the sake of a friend is just. But the way of the impious will deceive them.
{12:27} The dishonest will not discover gain. But the substance of a man will be like precious gold.
{12:28} In the path of justice, there is life. But the devious way leads to death.
{13:1} A wise son is the doctrine of his father. But he who ridicules does not listen when he is reproved.
{13:2} From the fruit of his own mouth, a man shall be satisfied with good things. But the soul of betrayers is iniquity.
{13:3} Whoever guards his mouth guards his soul. But whoever gives no consideration to his speech shall experience misfortunes.
{13:4} The lazy one is willing and then not willing. But the soul of he who labors shall be made fat.
{13:5} The just shall detest a lying word. But the impious confound and will be confounded.
{13:6} Justice guards the way of the innocent. But impiety undermines the sinner.
{13:7} One is like the rich, though he has nothing. And another is like the poor, though he has many riches.
{13:8} The redemption of a man’s life is his riches. But he who is poor cannot tolerate correction.
{13:9} The light of the just enriches. But the lamp of the impious will be extinguished.
{13:10} Among the arrogant, there are always conflicts. But those who do everything with counsel are ruled by wisdom.
{13:11} Substance obtained in haste will be diminished. But what is collected by hand, little by little, shall be multiplied.
{13:12} Hope, when it is delayed, afflicts the soul. The arrival of the desired is a tree of life.
{13:13} Whoever denounces something obligates himself for the future. But whoever fears a lesson shall turn away in peace. Deceitful souls wander into sins. The just are merciful and compassionate.
{13:14} The law of the wise is a fountain of life, so that he may turn aside from the ruin of death.
{13:15} Good doctrine bestows grace. In the way of the contemptuous, there is a chasm.
{13:16} The discerning do everything with counsel. But whoever is senseless discloses his stupidity.
{13:17} The messenger of the impious will fall into evil. But a faithful ambassador shall prosper.
{13:18} Destitution and disgrace are for those who abandon discipline. But whoever agrees with a reproof shall be glorified.
{13:19} The desired, when perfected, shall delight the soul. The foolish detest those who flee from evils.
{13:20} Whoever keeps step with the wise shall be wise. A friend of the foolish will become like them.
{13:21} Evil pursues sinners. And good things shall be distributed to the just.
{13:22} The good leave behind heirs: children and grandchildren. And the substance of the sinner is preserved for the just.
{13:23} Much nourishment is in the fallow land of the fathers. But for others, it is gathered without judgment.
{13:24} He who spares the rod hates his son. But he who loves him urgently instructs him.
{13:25} The just eats and fills his soul. But the belly of the impious is never satisfied.
{14:1} A wise woman builds up her household. But a foolish one will pull down with her own hands what has been built up.
{14:2} One who walks on a virtuous journey, and who fears God, is despised by him who advances along a disreputable way.
{14:3} In the mouth of the foolish, there is a rod of arrogance. But the lips of the wise guard them.
{14:4} Where there are no oxen, the feeding trough is empty. But where there are many crops, there the strength of the ox is manifest.
{14:5} A faithful witness will not lie. But a deceitful witness offers a lie.
{14:6} A mocker seeks wisdom and does not find it. The doctrine of the prudent is accessible.
{14:7} Go against a foolish man, and he does not acknowledge lips of prudence.
{14:8} The wisdom of a discerning man is to understand his way. And the imprudence of the foolish is to be wandering astray.
{14:9} The foolish will speak mockingly of sin. But grace lingers among the just.
{14:10} The heart that knows the bitterness of its own soul, in its gladness the outsider shall not meddle.
{14:11} The house of the impious will be wiped away. Yet truly, the tabernacles of the just shall spring forth.
{14:12} There is a way which seems just to a man, but its conclusion leads to death.
{14:13} Laughter shall be mingled with sorrow, and mourning occupies the limits of joy.
{14:14} The foolish will be filled up by his own ways. And the good man shall be above him.
{14:15} The innocent trust every word. The astute one considers his own steps. Nothing good will be for the deceitful son. But the wise servant shall act prosperously and his way will be set in order.
{14:16} The wise fear, and so turn away from evil. The foolish leap ahead with confidence.
{14:17} The impatient will work foolishness. And a resourceful man is hated.
{14:18} The childish will possess foolishness, and the discerning will anticipate knowledge.
{14:19} The evil will fall down before the good. And the impious will fall down before the gates of the just.
{14:20} The pauper will be hated, even by his own neighbor. Yet truly, the friends of the wealthy are many.
{14:21} Whoever despises his neighbor, sins. But whoever pities the poor shall be blessed. Whoever trusts in the Lord loves mercy.
{14:22} They wander astray who work evil. But mercy and truth prepare good things.
{14:23} In every work, there shall be abundance. But where there are many words, there is often need.
{14:24} The crown of the wise is their wealth. The senselessness of the foolish is imprudence.
{14:25} A faithful witness frees souls. And the chameleon utters lies.
{14:26} In the fear of the Lord is the faithfulness of strength, and there shall be hope for his sons.
{14:27} The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, so as to turn aside from the ruin of death.
{14:28} In a multitude of people, there is dignity for the king. And in a paucity of people, there is disgrace for the prince.
{14:29} Whoever is patient is governed by much prudence. But whoever is impatient exalts his foolishness.
{14:30} The well-being of the heart is life for the flesh. But envy is decay for the bones.
{14:31} Whoever slanders the indigent argues against his Maker. But he who has compassion on the poor honors his Maker.
{14:32} The impious will be expelled in his malice. But the just finds hope even in his own death.
{14:33} In the heart of the prudent, wisdom finds rest. And so shall he instruct all the uneducated.
{14:34} Justice elevates a nation. But sin makes the peoples miserable.
{14:35} An intelligent minister is acceptable to the king. Whoever is useless shall bear his wrath.
{15:1} A mild response shatters anger. But a harsh word stirs up fury.
{15:2} The tongue of the wise adorns knowledge. But the mouth of the senseless gushes with foolishness.
{15:3} In every place, the eyes of the Lord consider good and evil.
{15:4} A peaceful tongue is a tree of life. But that which is immoderate will crush the spirit.
{15:5} A fool laughs at the discipline of his father. But whoever preserves rebukes will become astute. In abundant justice, there is very great virtue. But the intentions of the impious will be eradicated.
{15:6} The house of the just has very great strength. And in the fruits of the impious, there is disorder.
{15:7} The lips of the wise shall disseminate knowledge. The heart of the foolish will be dissimilar.
{15:8} The sacrifices of the impious are abominable to the Lord. The vows of the just are appeasing.
{15:9} The way of the impious is an abomination to the Lord. Whoever pursues justice is loved by him.
{15:10} Doctrine is evil to those who abandon the way of life. Whoever hates correction shall die.
{15:11} Hell and perdition are in the sight of the Lord. How much more the hearts of the sons of men!
{15:12} He who corrupts himself does not love the one who afflicts him, nor will he step toward the wise.
{15:13} A rejoicing heart gladdens the face. But by the grief of the soul, the spirit is cast down.
{15:14} The heart of the wise seeks doctrine. And the mouth of the foolish feeds on ignorance.
{15:15} All the days of the poor are evil. A secure mind is like a continual feast.
{15:16} Better is a little with the fear of the Lord, than great treasures and dissatisfaction.
{15:17} It is better to be called to vegetables with charity, than to a fatted calf with hatred.
{15:18} A short-tempered man provokes conflicts. Whoever is patient tempers those who are stirred up.
{15:19} The way of the slothful is like a hedge of thorns. The way of the just is without offense.
{15:20} A wise son gladdens the father. But the foolish man despises his mother.
{15:21} Folly is gladness to the foolish. And the prudent man sets his own steps in order.
{15:22} Intentions dissipate where there is no counsel. Yet truly, they are confirmed where there are many counselors.
{15:23} A man rejoices in the verdict of his own mouth. And a word at the right time is best.
{15:24} The path of life is for the wise above, so that he may turn away from the end of Hell.
{15:25} The Lord will demolish the house of the arrogant. And He will make firm the borders of the widow.
{15:26} Evil intentions are an abomination to the Lord. And pure conversation, most beautiful, shall be confirmed by him.
{15:27} Whoever pursues avarice disturbs his own house. But whoever hates bribes shall live. Through mercy and faith, sins are purged. But through the fear of the Lord, each one turns aside from evil.
{15:28} The mind of the just meditates on obedience. The mouth of the impious overflows with evils.
{15:29} The Lord is distant from the impious. And he will heed the prayers of the just.
{15:30} The light of the eyes rejoices the soul. A good reputation fattens the bones.
{15:31} The ear that listens to the reproofs of life shall abide in the midst of the wise.
{15:32} Whoever rejects discipline despises his own soul. But whoever agrees to correction is a possessor of the heart.
{15:33} The fear of the Lord is the discipline of wisdom. And humility precedes glory.
{16:1} It is for man to prepare the soul, and for the Lord to govern the tongue.
{16:2} All the ways of a man are open to his eyes; the Lord is the one who weighs spirits.
{16:3} Open your works to the Lord, and your intentions will be set in order.
{16:4} The Lord has wrought all things because of himself. Likewise the impious is for the evil day.
{16:5} All the arrogant are an abomination to the Lord. Even if hand will be joined to hand, he is not innocent. The beginning of a good way is to do justice. And this is more acceptable with God than to immolate sacrifices.
{16:6} By mercy and truth, iniquity is redeemed. And by the fear of the Lord, one turns away from evil.
{16:7} When the ways of man will please the Lord, he will convert even his enemies to peace.
{16:8} Better is a little with justice, than many fruits with iniquity.
{16:9} The heart of man disposes his way. But it is for Lord to direct his steps.
{16:10} Foreknowledge is in the lips of the king. His mouth shall not err in judgment.
{16:11} Weights and scales are judgments of the Lord. And all the stones in the bag are his work.
{16:12} Those who act impiously are abominable to the king. For the throne is made firm by justice.
{16:13} Just lips are the will of kings. He who speaks honestly shall be loved.
{16:14} The indignation of a king is a herald of death. And the wise man will appease it.
{16:15} In the cheerfulness of the king’s countenance, there is life. And his clemency is like belated rain.
{16:16} Possess wisdom, for it is better than gold. And acquire prudence, for it is more precious than silver.
{16:17} The path of the just turns away from evils. He who guards his soul preserves his way.
{16:18} Arrogance precedes destruction. And the spirit is exalted before a fall.
{16:19} It is better to be humbled with the meek, than to divide spoils with the arrogant.
{16:20} The learned in word shall find good things. And whoever hopes in the Lord is blessed.
{16:21} Whoever is wise in heart shall be called prudent. And whoever is sweet in eloquence shall attain to what is greater.
{16:22} Learning is a fountain of life to one who possesses it. The doctrine of the foolish is senseless.
{16:23} The heart of the wise shall instruct his mouth and add grace to his lips.
{16:24} Careful words are a honeycomb: sweet to the soul and healthful to the bones.
{16:25} There is a way which seems right to a man, and its end result leads to death.
{16:26} The soul of the laborer labors for himself, because his mouth has driven him to it.
{16:27} The impious man digs up evil, and in his lips is a burning fire.
{16:28} A perverse man stirs up lawsuits. And one who is verbose divides leaders.
{16:29} A man of iniquity entices his friend, and he leads him along a way that is not good.
{16:30} Whoever, with astonished eyes, thinks up depravities, biting his lips, accomplishes evil.
{16:31} Old age is a crown of dignity, when it is found in the ways of justice.
{16:32} A patient man is better than a strong one. And whoever rules his soul is better than one who assaults cities.
{16:33} Lots are cast into the lap, but they are tempered by the Lord.
{17:1} A dry morsel with gladness is better than a house full of sacrifices along with conflict.
{17:2} A wise servant shall rule over foolish sons, and he will divide the inheritance among brothers.
{17:3} Just as silver is tested by fire, and gold is tested in the furnace, so also does the Lord test hearts.
{17:4} The evil obey an unjust tongue. And the false are submissive to lying lips.
{17:5} Whoever despises the poor rebukes his Maker. And whoever rejoices in the ruin of another will not go unpunished.
{17:6} Sons of sons are the crown of old age. And the glory of sons is their fathers.
{17:7} Well-chosen words are not fitting for the foolish, nor are lying lips fitting for a leader.
{17:8} The expectation of those who stand ready is a most pleasing jewel. Whichever way he turns himself, he understands prudently.
{17:9} Whoever conceals an offense seeks friendships. Whoever repeats the words of another separates allies.
{17:10} A correction benefits more with a wise man, than a hundred stripes with a fool.
{17:11} The evil one continually seeks conflicts. But a cruel Angel shall be sent against him.
{17:12} It is more expedient to meet a bear robbed of her young, than the foolish trusting in his own folly.
{17:13} Whoever repays evil for good, evil shall not withdraw from his house.
{17:14} Whoever releases the water is the head of the conflict. And just before he suffers contempt, he abandons judgment.
{17:15} Those who justify the impious, and those who condemn the just, both are abominable with God.
{17:16} What does it profit the foolish to have riches, when he is not able to buy wisdom? Whoever makes his house high seeks ruin. And whoever shuns learning shall fall into evils.
{17:17} Whoever is a friend loves at all times. And a brother is proved by distress.
{17:18} A foolish man will clap his hands, when he makes a pledge for his friend.
{17:19} Whoever dwells on discord loves disputes. And whoever exalts his door seeks ruin.
{17:20} Whoever is of a perverse heart shall not find good. And whoever turns his tongue shall fall into evil.
{17:21} A foolish one is born into his own disgrace. But his father will not rejoice in one who is senseless.
{17:22} A joyful soul makes a lifetime flourish. A gloomy spirit dries out the bones.
{17:23} The impious receives gifts from the bosom, so that he may pervert the paths of judgment.
{17:24} Prudence shines from the face of the wise. The eyes of the foolish are on the ends of the earth.
{17:25} A foolish son is the anger of the father and the grief of the mother who conceived him.
{17:26} It is not good to inflict damage on the just, nor to strike the leader who judges uprightly.
{17:27} Whoever moderates his words is learned and prudent. And a man of learning has a precious spirit.
{17:28} If he would remain silent, even the foolish would be considered wise, and if he closes his lips, intelligent.
{18:1} Whoever has a will to withdraw from a friend, seeks occasions; he shall be reproached at all times.
{18:2} The foolish do not accept words of prudence, unless you say what is already turning in his heart.
{18:3} The impious, when he has arrived within the depths of sin, thinks little of it. But ill repute and disgrace follow him.
{18:4} Words from the mouth of a man are deep waters. And the fountain of wisdom is a torrent overflowing.
{18:5} It is not good to accept the character of the impious, so as to turn away from true judgment.
{18:6} The lips of the foolish meddle in disputes. And his mouth provokes conflicts.
{18:7} The mouth of the foolish is his destruction, and his own lips are the ruin of his soul.
{18:8} The words of the double-tongued seem simple. And they reach even to the interior of the gut. Fear casts down the lazy, but the souls of the effeminate shall go hungry.
{18:9} Whoever is dissolute and slack in his work is the brother of him who wastes his own works.
{18:10} The name of the Lord is a very strong tower. The just one rushes to it, and he shall be exalted.
{18:11} The substance of the wealthy is the city of his strength, and it is like a strong wall encircling him.
{18:12} The heart of a man is exalted before it is crushed and humbled before it is glorified.
{18:13} Whoever responds before he listens, demonstrates himself to be foolish and deserving of confusion.
{18:14} The spirit of a man sustains his weakness. Yet who can sustain a spirit that is easily angered?
{18:15} A prudent heart shall possess knowledge. And the ear of the wise seeks doctrine.
{18:16} A man’s gift expands his way and makes space for him before leaders.
{18:17} The just is the first accuser of himself; his friend arrives and shall investigate him.
{18:18} Casting a lot suppresses contentions and passes judgment, even among the powerful.
{18:19} A brother who is helped by a brother is like a reinforced city, and judgments are like the bars of cities.
{18:20} From the fruit of a man’s mouth shall his belly be filled. And the harvest of his own lips shall satisfy him.
{18:21} Death and life are in the power of the tongue. Whoever values it shall eat from its fruits.
{18:22} He who has found a good wife has found goodness, and he shall draw contentment from the Lord. He who expels a good wife expels goodness. But he who holds on to an adulteress is foolish and impious.
{18:23} The poor will speak with supplications. And the rich will express themselves roughly.
{18:24} A man amiable to society shall be more friendly than a brother.
{19:1} Better is the poor who walks in his simplicity, than the rich who twists his lips and is unwise.
{19:2} Where there is no knowledge of the soul, there is no good. And whoever hurries with his feet will stumble.
{19:3} The foolishness of a man undermines his steps. And then he seethes in his soul against God.
{19:4} Riches add many friends. But from the pauper, even those whom he had become separated.
{19:5} A false witness shall not go unpunished. And whoever speaks lies will not escape.
{19:6} Many honor the character of one who is powerful, and there are friends for a giver of gifts.
{19:7} The brothers of the poor man hate him. Moreover, even his friends have withdrawn far from him. Whoever pursues only words shall have nothing.
{19:8} But whoever possesses reason loves his own soul. And one who guards prudence shall discover good things.
{19:9} A false witness shall not go unpunished. And whoever speaks lies will perish.
{19:10} Fine things are not fitting for the foolish, nor is it fitting for a servant to rule over princes.
{19:11} The doctrine of a man is known through patience. And his glory is to pass beyond iniquities.
{19:12} Like the roaring of a lion, so also is the wrath of a king. And his cheerfulness is like the dew upon the grass.
{19:13} A foolish son is the grief of his father. And an argumentative wife is like a roof that is continually leaking.
{19:14} A house and its riches are given by parents. But a prudent wife is particularly from the Lord.
{19:15} Laziness sends one into a deep sleep, and a dissolute soul will go hungry.
{19:16} Whoever guards a commandment guards his own soul. But whoever neglects his own way will die.
{19:17} Whoever is merciful to the poor lends to the Lord. And he will repay him for his efforts.
{19:18} Teach your son; do not despair. But do not set your soul toward putting him to death.
{19:19} Whoever is impatient will sustain damage. And when it has been taken away, he will set up another.
{19:20} Listen to counsel and take up discipline, so that you may be wise in your latter days.
{19:21} There are many intentions in the heart of a man. But the will of the Lord shall stand firm.
{19:22} An indigent man is merciful. And a pauper is better than a deceitful man.
{19:23} The fear of the Lord is unto life. And he shall linger in plentitude, without being visited by disaster.
{19:24} The lazy conceals his hand under his arm, and he will not so much as bring it to his mouth.
{19:25} When the pestilent are scourged, the foolish will become wiser. But if you chastise the wise, he will understand discipline.
{19:26} Whoever afflicts his father and flees from his mother is disreputable and unhappy.
{19:27} Son, do not cease listening to doctrine, and do not be ignorant of the sermons of knowledge.
{19:28} An unjust witness ridicules judgment. And the mouth of the impious devours iniquity.
{19:29} Judgments are prepared for those who ridicule. And striking hammers are prepared for the bodies of the foolish.
{20:1} It is a luxurious thing, wine, and inebriation is tumultuous. Anyone who is delighted by this will not be wise.
{20:2} Just like the roaring of a lion, so also is the dread of a king. Whoever provokes him sins in his own soul.
{20:3} Honor is for the man who separates himself from contentions. But all the foolish meddle in altercations.
{20:4} Because of the cold, the lazy one was not willing to plough. Therefore, in the summer, he will beg, and it will not be given to him.
{20:5} Counsel in the heart of a man is like deep waters. But a wise man will draw it out.
{20:6} Many men are called merciful. But who will find a faithful man?
{20:7} The just who walks in his simplicity shall leave behind him blessed sons.
{20:8} The king who sits on the throne of judgment scatters all evil with his gaze.
{20:9} Who is able to say: “My heart is clean. I am pure from sin?”
{20:10} Diverse weights, diverse measures: both are abominable with God.
{20:11} A child may be understood by his interests: whether his works may be clean and upright.
{20:12} The hearing ear and the seeing eye: the Lord has made them both.
{20:13} Do not love sleep, lest deprivation oppress you. Open your eyes and be satisfied with bread.
{20:14} “It is bad, it is bad,” says every buyer; and when he has withdrawn, then he will boast.
{20:15} There is gold, and there are a multitude of jewels. But lips of knowledge are a precious vessel.
{20:16} Take away the vestments of him who stands up to vouch for a stranger, and take a pledge from him instead of from outsiders.
{20:17} The bread of lies is sweet to a man. But afterwards, his mouth will be filled with pebbles.
{20:18} Plans are strengthened by counsels. And wars are to be handled by governments.
{20:19} Do not become involved with him who reveals mysteries, and who walks deceitfully, and who enlarges his lips.
{20:20} Whoever curses his father and mother, his lamp will be extinguished in the midst of darkness.
{20:21} When an inheritance is obtained hastily in the beginning, in the end it will be without a blessing.
{20:22} Do not say, “I will repay evil.” Wait for the Lord, and he will free you.
{20:23} Diverse weights are an abomination with the Lord. A deceitful balance is not good.
{20:24} The steps of men are directed by the Lord. But who is the man able to understand his own way?
{20:25} It is ruin for a man to devour what is holy, or, after making vows, to retract them.
{20:26} A wise king scatters the impious and bends an archway over them.
{20:27} The spirit of a man is a lamp to the Lord, which investigates all the secrets of the inner self.
{20:28} Mercy and truth guard the king, and his throne is strengthened by clemency.
{20:29} The joy of youths is their strength. And the dignity of old men is their grey hairs.
{20:30} The bruise of a wound, as well as scourges, shall wipe away evils in the more secret places of the inner self.
{21:1} Just as with the dividing of the waters, so also is the heart of the king in the hand of the Lord. He shall bend it whichever way he wills.
{21:2} Every way of a man seems right to himself. But the Lord weighs hearts.
{21:3} To do mercy and judgment is more pleasing to the Lord than sacrifices.
{21:4} To lift up the eyes is to enlarge the heart. The lamp of the impious is sin.
{21:5} The intentions of the robust continually bring forth abundance. But all the lazy are continually in need.
{21:6} Whoever gathers treasures by a lying tongue is vain and heartless. And he will stumble into the snares of death.
{21:7} The robberies of the impious will drag them down, because they were not willing to do judgment.
{21:8} The perverse way of a man is foreign. But whoever is pure: his work is upright.
{21:9} It is better to sit in a corner of the attic, than with a contentious woman and in a shared house.
{21:10} The soul of the impious desires evil; he will not take pity on his neighbor.
{21:11} When the pestilent is punished, a little one will become wiser. And if he pursues what is wise, he will receive knowledge.
{21:12} The just thinks carefully about the house of the impious, so that he may draw the impious away from evil.
{21:13} Whoever blocks his ears to the outcry of the poor shall also cry out himself, and he will not be heeded.
{21:14} A surprise gift extinguishes anger. And a gift concealed in the bosom extinguishes the greatest indignation.
{21:15} It is gladness for the just to do judgment; and it is dread for those who work iniquity.
{21:16} A man who wanders astray from the way of doctrine will linger in the company of the giants.
{21:17} Whoever loves a feast will be in deprivation. Whoever loves wine and fatness will not be enriched.
{21:18} The impious is given over instead of the just, and the iniquitous is given over in place of the upright.
{21:19} It is better to live in a deserted land, than with a quarrelsome and emotional woman.
{21:20} There is desirable treasure, as well as oil, in the habitations of the just. And the imprudent man will waste it.
{21:21} Whoever follows justice and mercy shall discover life, justice, and glory.
{21:22} The wise has ascended the city of the strong, and he has torn down the bulwark of its confidence.
{21:23} Whoever guards his mouth and his tongue guards his soul from anguish.
{21:24} A proud and arrogant one is also called ignorant, if he, in anger, acts according to pride.
{21:25} Desires kill the lazy, for his hands are not willing to work at all.
{21:26} He covets and desires all day long. But whoever is just shall distribute and shall not cease.
{21:27} The sacrifices of the impious are abominable, because they are offered out of wickedness.
{21:28} A lying witness will perish. An obedient man shall speak of victory.
{21:29} The impious man insolently hardens his face. But whoever is upright corrects his own way.
{21:30} There is no wisdom, there is no prudence, there is no counsel, which is against the Lord.
{21:31} The horse is prepared for the day of battle. But the Lord bestows salvation.
{22:1} A good name is better than many riches. And good esteem is above silver and gold.
{22:2} The rich and poor have met one another. The Lord is the maker of them both.
{22:3} The clever saw evil and hid himself. The innocent continued on and was afflicted with damage.
{22:4} The end of moderation is the fear of the Lord, riches and glory and life.
{22:5} Weapons and swords are on the way of the perverse. But he who guards his own soul withdraws far from them.
{22:6} The proverb is: A youth is close to his way; even when he is old, he will not withdraw from it.
{22:7} The rich rule over the poor. And the borrower is servant to the lender.
{22:8} Whoever sows iniquity will reap evils, and by the rod of his own wrath he will be consumed.
{22:9} Whoever is inclined to mercy shall be blessed, for from his bread he has given to the poor. Whoever gives gifts will acquire victory and honor. But he carries away the soul of the receiver.
{22:10} Cast out the one who ridicules, and conflict will go out with him, and accusations and insults will cease.
{22:11} Whoever loves cleanness of heart, because of the grace of his lips, will have the king as his friend.
{22:12} The eyes of the Lord watch over knowledge. And the words of the iniquitous are supplanted.
{22:13} The lazy one says: “There is a lion outside. I might be slain in the midst of the streets.”
{22:14} The mouth of a foreign woman is a deep pit; the Lord was angry with him who will fall into it.
{22:15} Foolishness has been bound to the heart of a child, and a rod of discipline shall cause it to flee.
{22:16} Whoever slanders the poor, so as to augment his own riches, will give it away to one who is richer, and will be in need.
{22:17} Incline your ear, and listen to the words of the wise. Then apply your heart to my doctrine.
{22:18} It shall be beautiful to you, if you preserve it in your inner self, and it shall overflow from your lips,
{22:19} so that your confidence may be in the Lord. Therefore, I also have revealed it to you this day.
{22:20} Behold, I have written it for you in three ways, and with meditations and knowledge,
{22:21} so that I might reveal to you, firmly and with words of truth, in order to respond about these things to those who sent you.
{22:22} Do not act with violence toward the pauper because he is poor. And do not weary the needy at the gate.
{22:23} For the Lord will judge his case, and he will pierce those who have pierced his soul.
{22:24} Do not be willing to be a friend to an angry man, and do not walk with a furious man,
{22:25} lest perhaps you learn his ways, and take up a stumbling block to your soul.
{22:26} Do not be willing to be with those who certify with their hands, and who offer themselves as a guarantee against debts.
{22:27} For if you do not have the means to restore, what reason should there be for him to take the covering from your bed?
{22:28} Do not cross beyond the ancient limits that your fathers have set.
{22:29} Have you seen a man swift in his work? He shall stand in the sight of kings, and not before those who are disreputable.
{23:1} When you sit down to eat with a leader, pay close attention to what has been set before your face,
{23:2} and put a knife to your throat, if, in such a way, you could hold your soul in your own power.
{23:3} Do not desire his foods, in which is the bread of deceit.
{23:4} Do not be willing to labor so that you may be enriched. But set limits by your prudence.
{23:5} Do not raise your eyes toward wealth that you are not able to have. For they will make themselves wings, like those of an eagle, and they will fly in the sky.
{23:6} Do not eat with an envious man, and do not desire his foods.
{23:7} For, like a seer and an interpreter of dreams, he presumes what he does not know. “Eat and drink,” he will say to you; and his mind is not with you.
{23:8} The foods that you had eaten, you will vomit up. And you will lose the beauty in your words.
{23:9} Do not speak into the ears of the unwise. They will despise the doctrine of your eloquence.
{23:10} Do not touch the boundaries of little ones, and do not enter into the field of the fatherless.
{23:11} For their close relative is strong, and he will judge their case against you.
{23:12} Let your heart enter into doctrine, and let your ears enter into words of knowledge.
{23:13} Do not be willing to take away discipline from a child. For if you strike him with the rod, he will not die.
{23:14} You will strike him with the rod, and so shall you deliver his soul from Hell.
{23:15} My son, if your soul will become wise, my heart will be glad with you.
{23:16} And my temperament will exult, when your lips will have spoken what is upright.
{23:17} Let not your heart compete with sinners. But be in the fear of the Lord all day long.
{23:18} For you will have hope in the end, and your expectation will not be taken away.
{23:19} Listen, my son, and be wise, and direct your soul along the way.
{23:20} Do not be willing to be in the feasts of great drinkers, nor in the carousings of those who gather to feed on flesh.
{23:21} For those who waste time drinking, and who surrender themselves to symbols, will be consumed. And those who sleep will be clothed in rags.
{23:22} Listen to your father, who conceived you. And do not despise your mother, when she is old.
{23:23} Purchase truth, and do not sell wisdom, or doctrine, or understanding.
{23:24} The father of the just exults in gladness; he who has conceived the wise will rejoice in him.
{23:25} Let your father and your mother be joyful, and may she who conceived you exult.
{23:26} My son, offer me your heart, and let your eyes keep to my ways.
{23:27} For a loose woman is a deep pit, and a foreign woman is a constricted well.
{23:28} She lies in wait along the way like a robber. And the incautious one whom she sees, she will put to death.
{23:29} Who has woe? Whose father has woe? Who has quarrels? Who falls into pits? Who has wounds without cause? Who has watery eyes?
{23:30} Is it not those who linger over wine, and who strive to be drinking from their cups?
{23:31} Do not gaze into the wine when it turns gold, when its color shines in the glass. It enters pleasantly,
{23:32} but in the end, it will bite like a snake, and it will spread poison like a king of snakes.
{23:33} Your eyes will see women who are outsiders, and your heart will utter perversities.
{23:34} And you will be like someone sleeping in the middle of the sea, and like a pilot, fast asleep, who has lost his hold on the helm.
{23:35} And you will say: “They have beaten me, but I did not feel pain. They have dragged me, and I did not realize it. When will I awaken and find more wine?”
{24:1} Do not imitate evil men, nor desire to be among them.
{24:2} For their mind meditates on robberies, and their lips speak deceptions.
{24:3} By wisdom shall a house be built, and by prudence shall it be strengthened.
{24:4} By doctrine, the storerooms shall be filled with every substance that is precious and most beautiful.
{24:5} A wise man is strong, and a well-taught man is robust and valiant.
{24:6} For war is undertaken in an orderly manner, and safety shall be where there are many counsels.
{24:7} Wisdom is beyond the foolish; at the gate he will not open his mouth.
{24:8} Whoever intends to do evil shall be called foolish.
{24:9} The intention of the foolish is sin. And the detractor is an abomination among men.
{24:10} If you despair, being weary in the day of anguish, your strength will be diminished.
{24:11} Rescue those who are led away to death. And do not cease from delivering those who are dragged away to a violent death.
{24:12} If you would say: “I do not have sufficient strength.” He who inspects the heart, the same one understands, and nothing slips past the one who preserves your soul. And he shall repay a man according to his works.
{24:13} My son, eat honey, because it is good, and the honeycomb, because it is so sweet to your throat.
{24:14} So, too, is the doctrine of wisdom to your soul. When you have found it, you will have hope in the end, and your hope shall not perish.
{24:15} Do not lie in wait, and do not seek impiety in the house of the just, nor spoil his rest.
{24:16} For the just one will fall seven times, and he shall rise again. But the impious will fall into evil.
{24:17} When your enemy will fall, do not be glad, and do not let your heart exult in his ruin,
{24:18} lest perhaps the Lord see, and it displease him, and he may take away his wrath from him.
{24:19} Do not contend with the most wicked, and do not be a rival to the impious.
{24:20} For the evil hold no hope in the future, and the lamp of the impious will be extinguished.
{24:21} My son, fear the Lord, as well as the king. And do not mingle with detractors.
{24:22} For their perdition shall rise up suddenly. And who knows what ruin will be for each of them?
{24:23} Likewise, these things are for the wise. It is not good to base judgment on knowledge of character.
{24:24} Those who say to the impious, “You are just,” shall be cursed by the people, and the tribes shall detest them.
{24:25} Those who argue against the impious shall be praised, and a blessing shall come upon them.
{24:26} He shall kiss the lips, who responds with upright words.
{24:27} Prepare your outdoor work, and diligently cultivate your field, so that afterward, you may build your house.
{24:28} Do not be a witness without cause against your neighbor. And do not mislead anyone with your lips.
{24:29} Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me.” I will repay each one according to his work.
{24:30} I passed by the field of a lazy man, and by the vineyard of a foolish man,
{24:31} and behold, it was entirely filled with nettles, and thorns had covered its surface, and the stonewall was destroyed.
{24:32} When I had seen this, I laid it up in my heart, and by this example, I received discipline.
{24:33} You will sleep a little,” I said. “You will slumber briefly. You will fold your hands a little, so as to rest.
{24:34} And destitution will overtake you like a runner, and begging will overtake you like an armed man.”
{25:1} These, too, are parables of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah, king of Judah, transferred.
{25:2} It is to the glory of God to conceal a word, and it is to the glory of kings to investigate speech.
{25:3} Heaven above, and earth below, and the heart of kings are each unsearchable.
{25:4} Take away the tarnish from silver, and a most pure vessel will go forth.
{25:5} Take away impiety from the face of the king, and his throne shall be made firm by justice.
{25:6} Do not appear glorious before the king, and do not stand in the place of the great.
{25:7} For it is better that it should be said to you, “Ascend to here,” than that you should be humbled before the prince.
{25:8} The things that your eyes have seen, do not offer hastily in a quarrel, lest afterward you may not be able to make amends, when you have dishonored your friend.
{25:9} Argue your case with your friend, and do not reveal the secret to an outsider,
{25:10} lest perhaps he may insult you, when he has heard it, and he might not cease to reproach you. Grace and friendship free a man; preserve these for yourself, lest you fall under reproach.
{25:11} Whoever speaks a word at an opportune time is like apples of gold on beds of silver.
{25:12} Whoever reproves the wise and obedient ear is like an earring of gold with a shining pearl.
{25:13} Just like the cold of snow in a time of harvest, so also is a faithful messenger to him who sent him: he causes his soul to rest.
{25:14} A man who boasts and does not fulfill his promises is like clouds and wind, when rain does not follow.
{25:15} By patience, a leader shall be appeased, and a soft tongue shall break hardness.
{25:16} You have discovered honey; eat what is sufficient for you, lest perhaps, being filled up, you may vomit it.
{25:17} Withdraw your feet from the house of your neighbor, lest, when he has had his fill, he may hate you.
{25:18} A man who speaks false testimony against his neighbor is like a dart and a sword and a sharp arrow.
{25:19} Whoever sets his hopes on the unfaithful in a day of anguish is like a rotten tooth and weary foot,
{25:20} and like one who loosens his garment in cold weather. Whoever sings verses to a wicked heart is like vinegar on baking soda. Just like a moth to a garment, and a worm to wood, so too does the sadness of a man do harm to the heart.
{25:21} If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him water to drink.
{25:22} For you will gather hot coals upon his head, and the Lord will repay you.
{25:23} The north wind brings forth the rain, and a sorrowful face brings forth a detracting tongue.
{25:24} It is better to sit in a corner of the attic, than with an argumentative woman and in a shared house.
{25:25} Like cold water to a thirsty soul, so too are good reports from a far away land.
{25:26} The just falling down before the impious is like a fountain stirred up by feet and like a corrupted spring.
{25:27} Just as whoever eats too much honey, it is not good for him, so also whoever is an investigator of what is majestic will be overwhelmed by glory.
{25:28} Just like a city lying in the open and without surrounding walls, so also is a man who is unable to restrain his own spirit in speaking.
{26:1} In the manner of snow in the summer, and rain at the harvest, so also is glory unfit for the foolish.
{26:2} Like a bird flying away to another place, and like a sparrow that hurries away freely, so also a curse uttered against someone without cause will pass away.
{26:3} A whip is for a horse, and a muzzle is for donkey, and a rod is for the back of the imprudent.
{26:4} Do not respond to the foolish according to his folly, lest you become like him.
{26:5} Respond to the foolish according to his folly, lest he imagine himself to be wise.
{26:6} Whoever sends words by a foolish messenger has lame feet and drinks iniquity.
{26:7} In the manner of a lame man who has beautiful legs to no purpose, so also is a parable unfit for the mouth of the foolish.
{26:8} Just like one who casts a stone into the pile of Mercury, so also is he who gives honor to the foolish.
{26:9} In the manner of a thorn, if it were to spring up from the hand of a drunkard, so also is a parable in the mouth of the foolish.
{26:10} Judgment determines cases. And whoever imposes silence on the foolish mitigates anger.
{26:11} Like a dog that returns to his vomit, so also is the imprudent who repeats his foolishness.
{26:12} Have you seen a man who seems wise to himself? There will be greater hope held for the unwise than for him.
{26:13} The lazy one says, “There is a lion along the way, and a lioness in the roads.”
{26:14} Just as a door turns upon its hinges, so also does the lazy one turn upon his bed.
{26:15} The lazy one conceals his hand under his arms, and it is a labor for him to move it to his mouth.
{26:16} The lazy one seems wiser to himself than seven men speaking judgments.
{26:17} Just like one who takes hold of a dog by the ears, so also is he who crosses impatiently and meddles in the quarrels of another.
{26:18} Just as he is guilty who let loose the arrows and the lances unto death,
{26:19} so also is the man who harms his friend by deceitfulness. And when he has been apprehended, he says, “I did it jokingly.”
{26:20} When the wood fails, the fire will be extinguished. And when the gossiper is taken away, conflicts will be quelled.
{26:21} Just as charcoals are to burning coals, and wood is to fire, so also is an angry man who stirs up quarrels.
{26:22} The words of a whisperer seem simple, but they penetrate to the innermost parts of the self.
{26:23} In the same manner as an earthen vessel, if it were adorned with impure silver, conceited lips are allied with a wicked heart.
{26:24} An enemy is known by his lips, though it is from his heart that he draws out deceit.
{26:25} When he will have lowered his voice, do not believe him, for there are seven vices in his heart.
{26:26} Whoever covers hatred with deceit, his malice shall be revealed in the assembly.
{26:27} Whoever digs a pit will fall into it. And whoever rolls a stone, it will roll back to him.
{26:28} A false tongue does not love truth. And a slippery mouth works ruin.
{27:1} Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what the future day may bring.
{27:2} Let another praise you, and not your own mouth: an outsider, and not your own lips.
{27:3} A stone is weighty, and sand is burdensome; but the wrath of the foolish is heavier than both.
{27:4} Anger holds no mercy, nor does fury when it erupts. And who can bear the assault of one who has been provoked?
{27:5} An open rebuke is better than hidden love.
{27:6} The wounds of a loved one are better than the deceitful kisses of a hateful one.
{27:7} A sated soul will trample the honeycomb. And a hungry soul will accept even bitter in place of sweet.
{27:8} Just like a bird migrating from her nest, so also is a man who abandons his place.
{27:9} Ointment and various perfumes delight the heart. And the good advice of a friend is sweet to the soul.
{27:10} Do not dismiss your friend or your father’s friend. And do not enter your brother’s house in the day of your affliction. A close neighbor is better than a distant brother.
{27:11} My son, study wisdom, and rejoice my heart, so that you may be able to respond to the one who reproaches.
{27:12} The discerning man, seeing evil, hides himself. The little ones, continuing on, sustain losses.
{27:13} Take away the garment of him who has vouched for an outsider. And take a pledge from him on behalf of foreigners.
{27:14} Whoever blesses his neighbor with a grand voice, rising in the night, shall be like one who curses.
{27:15} A roof leaking on a cold day, and an argumentative woman, are comparable.
{27:16} He who would restrain her, he is like one who would grasp the wind, or who would gather together oil with his right hand.
{27:17} Iron sharpens iron, and a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.
{27:18} Whoever maintains the fig tree shall eat its fruit. And whoever is the keeper of his master shall be glorified.
{27:19} In the manner of faces looking into shining water, so are the hearts of men made manifest to the prudent.
{27:20} Hell and perdition are never filled; similarly the eyes of men are insatiable.
{27:21} In the manner of silver being tested in the refinery, and gold in the furnace, so also is a man tested by the mouth of one who praises. The heart of the iniquitous inquires after evils, but the heart of the righteous inquires after knowledge.
{27:22} Even if you were to crush the foolish with a mortar, as when a pestle strikes over pearled barley, his foolishness would not be taken from him.
{27:23} Be diligent to know the countenance of your cattle, and consider your own flocks,
{27:24} for you will not always hold this power. But a crown shall be awarded from generation to generation.
{27:25} The meadows are open, and the green plants have appeared, and the hay has been collected from the mountains.
{27:26} Lambs are for your clothing, and goats are for the price of a field.
{27:27} Let the milk of goats be sufficient for your food, and for the necessities of your household, and for the provisions of your handmaids.
{28:1} The impious flees, though no one pursues. But the just, like a confident lion, shall be without dread.
{28:2} Because of the sins of the land, it has many princes. And because of the wisdom of a man, and the knowledge of those things that are said, the life of the leader shall be prolonged.
{28:3} A poor man slandering the poor is like a violent rainstorm in advance of a famine.
{28:4} Those who abandon the law praise the impious. Those who guard it are inflamed against him.
{28:5} Evil men do not intend judgment. But those who inquire after the Lord turn their souls toward all things.
{28:6} Better is the pauper walking in his simplicity, than the rich walking in ways of depravity.
{28:7} Whoever keeps the law is a wise son. But whoever feeds gluttons brings shame to his father.
{28:8} Whoever piles up riches by usury and profit gathers them for him who will give freely to the poor.
{28:9} Whoever turns away his ears from listening to the law: his prayer will be detestable.
{28:10} Whoever deceives the just in a malicious way will fall into his own perdition. And the simple shall possess his goods.
{28:11} The rich one seems wise to himself. But the poor one, being prudent, shall evaluate him.
{28:12} In the exultation of the just, there is great glory. When the impious reign, men are brought to ruin.
{28:13} Whoever hides his crimes will not be guided. But whoever will have confessed and abandoned them shall overtake mercy.
{28:14} Blessed is the man who is ever fearful. Yet truly, whoever is hardened in mind will fall into evil.
{28:15} An impious leader over a poor people is like a roaring lion and a hungry bear.
{28:16} A leader destitute of prudence will oppress many through false accusations. But whoever hates avarice shall prolong his days.
{28:17} A man who slanders the blood of a life, even if he flees to the pit, no one will tolerate him.
{28:18} Whoever walks simply shall be saved. Whoever is perverse in his steps will fall all at once.
{28:19} Whoever works his land shall be satisfied with bread. But whoever pursues leisure will be filled with need.
{28:20} A faithful man shall be greatly praised. But whoever rushes to become rich will not be innocent.
{28:21} Whoever shows favoritism in judgment does not do well; even if it is for a morsel of bread, he forsakes the truth.
{28:22} A man who hurries to become rich, and who envies others, does not know that destitution will overwhelm him.
{28:23} Whoever corrects a man, afterward he shall find favor with him, more so than he who deceives him with a flattering tongue.
{28:24} Whoever takes away anything from his father or mother, and who says, “This is not a sin,” is the associate of a murderer.
{28:25} Whoever boasts and enlarges himself stirs up conflicts. Yet truly, whoever trusts in the Lord will be healed.
{28:26} Whoever trusts in his own heart is a fool. But whoever treads wisely, the same shall be saved.
{28:27} Whoever gives to the poor shall not be in need. Whoever despises his petition will suffer scarcity.
{28:28} When the impious rise up, men will hide themselves. When they perish, the just shall be multiplied.
{29:1} The man who, with a stiff neck, treats the one who corrects him with contempt will be suddenly overwhelmed to his own destruction, and reason shall not follow him.
{29:2} When just men are multiplied, the common people shall rejoice. When the impious take up the leadership, the people shall mourn.
{29:3} The man who loves wisdom rejoices his father. But whoever nurtures promiscuous women will lose his substance.
{29:4} A just king guides the land. A man of avarice will destroy it.
{29:5} A man who speaks to his friend with flattering and feigned words spreads a net for his own feet.
{29:6} A snare will entangle the iniquitous when he sins. And the just shall praise and be glad.
{29:7} The just knows the case of the poor. The impious is ignorant of knowledge.
{29:8} Pestilent men squander a city. Yet truly, the wise avert fury.
{29:9} A wise man, if he were to contend with the foolish, whether in anger or in laughter, would find no rest.
{29:10} Bloodthirsty men hate the simple one; but the just seek out his soul.
{29:11} A foolish one offers everything on his mind. A wise one reserves and defers until later.
{29:12} A leader who freely listens to lying words has only impious servants.
{29:13} The pauper and the creditor have met one another. The Lord is the illuminator of them both.
{29:14} The king who judges the poor in truth, his throne shall be secured in eternity.
{29:15} The rod and its correction distribute wisdom. But the child who is left to his own will, brings shame to his mother.
{29:16} When the impious are multiplied, crimes will be multiplied. But the just shall see their ruin.
{29:17} Teach your son, and he will refresh you, and he will give delight to your soul.
{29:18} When prophecy fails, the people will be scattered. Yet truly, whoever guards the law is blessed.
{29:19} A servant cannot be taught by words, because he understands what you say, but he disdains to respond.
{29:20} Have you seen a man rushing to speak? Foolishness has more hope than his correction.
{29:21} Whoever nurtures his servant delicately from childhood, afterwards will find him defiant.
{29:22} A short-tempered man provokes quarrels. And whoever is easily angered is more likely to sin.
{29:23} Humiliation follows the arrogant. And glory shall uphold the humble in spirit.
{29:24} Whoever participates with a thief hates his own soul; for he listens to his oath and does not denounce him.
{29:25} Whoever fears man will quickly fall. Whoever hopes in the Lord shall be lifted up.
{29:26} Many demand the face of the leader. But the judgment of each one proceeds from the Lord.
{29:27} The just abhor an impious man. And the impious abhor those who are on the right way. By keeping the word, the son shall be free from perdition.
{30:1} The words of the Gatherer, the son of the Vomiter. The vision that the man spoke. God is with him, and he, being strengthened by God and abiding with him, said:
{30:2} “I am the most foolish among men, and the wisdom of men is not with me.
{30:3} I have not learned wisdom, and I have not known the knowledge of sanctity.
{30:4} Who has ascended to heaven and also descended? Who has grasped the wind in his hands? Who has tied the waters together, as with a garment? Who has raised all the limits of the earth? What is his name, and what is the name of his son, if you know?
{30:5} Every word of God is fire-tested. He is a bronze shield to those who hope in him.
{30:6} Do not add anything to his words, lest you be reproved and be discovered to be a liar.
{30:7} Two things I have asked of you; do not deny them to me before I die.
{30:8} Remove, far from me, vanity and lying words. Give me neither begging, nor wealth. Apportion to me only the necessities of my life,
{30:9} lest perhaps, being filled, I might be enticed into denial, and say: ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or, being compelled by destitution, I might steal, and then perjure myself in the name of my God.
{30:10} Do not accuse a servant to his lord, lest he curse you, and you fall.
{30:11} There is a generation which curses their father, and which does not bless their mother.
{30:12} There is a generation which seems pure to themselves, and yet they are not even washed from their filthiness.
{30:13} There is a generation, whose eyes have been elevated, and their eyelids are lifted on high.
{30:14} There is a generation which has swords in place of teeth, and which commands their molars to devour the indigent from the earth and the poor from among men.
{30:15} The leech has two daughters, who say, ‘Bring, bring.’ Three things are insatiable, and a fourth never says ‘Enough’:
{30:16} Hell, and the mouth of the womb, and a land that is not filled with water. And truly, fire never says, ‘Enough.’
{30:17} The eye of one who mocks his father and who despises the childbearing of his mother, let the ravens of the torrent tear it out, and let the sons of the eagles consume it.
{30:18} Three things are difficult for me, and about a fourth, I am nearly ignorant:
{30:19} the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a serpent on a rock, the way of a ship in the middle of the sea, and the way of a man in adolescence.
{30:20} Such is the way also of an adulterous woman, who eats, and wiping her mouth, says: “I have done no evil.”
{30:21} By three things, the earth is moved, and a fourth it is not able to sustain:
{30:22} by a slave when he reigns, by the foolish when he has been filled with food,
{30:23} by a hateful woman when she has been taken in matrimony, and by a handmaid when she has been heir to her mistress.
{30:24} Four things are least upon the earth, and they are wiser than the wise:
{30:25} the ants, an infirm people who provide food for themselves at the harvest,
{30:26} the rabbit, a sickened people who make their bed upon the rock.
{30:27} The locust has no king, but they all depart by their troops.
{30:28} The lizard supports itself on hands and dwells in the buildings of kings.
{30:29} There are three things that advance well, and a fourth that marches happily on:
{30:30} a lion, the strongest of beasts, who fears nothing that he meets,
{30:31} a rooster prepared at the loins, likewise a ram, and a king, whom none can resist.
{30:32} There is one who has appeared foolish, after he was lifted up on high; for if he had understood, he would have placed his hand over his mouth.
{30:33} But whoever strongly squeezes the udder to bring out the milk, presses out butter. And whoever violently blows his nose, brings out blood. And whoever provokes wrath, brings forth discord.”
{31:1} The words of king Lamuel. The vision by which his mother instructed him:
{31:2} “What, O my beloved? What, O beloved of my womb? What, O beloved of my vows?
{31:3} Do not give your substance to women, or your riches to overthrow kings.
{31:4} Not to kings, O Lamuel, not to kings give wine. For there are no secrets where drunkenness reigns.
{31:5} And perhaps they may drink and forget judgments, and alter the case of the sons of the poor.
{31:6} Give strong drink to the grieving, and wine to those who are bitter in soul.
{31:7} Let them drink, and forget their needs, and remember their sorrow no more.
{31:8} Open your mouth for the mute and for all the cases of the sons who are passing through.
{31:9} Open your mouth, declare what is just, and do justice to the indigent and the poor.
{31:10} Who shall find a strong woman? Far away, and from the furthest parts, is her price.
{31:11} The heart of her husband confides in her, and he will not be deprived of spoils.
{31:12} She will repay him with good, and not evil, all the days of her life.
{31:13} She has sought wool and flax, and she has worked these by the counsel of her hands.
{31:14} She has become like a merchant’s ship, bringing her bread from far away.
{31:15} And she has risen in the night, and given a prey to her household, and provisions to her maids.
{31:16} She has considered a field and bought it. From the fruit of her own hands, she has planted a vineyard.
{31:17} She has wrapped her waist with fortitude, and she has strengthened her arm.
{31:18} She has tasted and seen that her tasks are good; her lamp shall not be extinguished at night.
{31:19} She has put her hand to strong things, and her fingers have taken hold of the spindle.
{31:20} She has opened her hand to the needy, and she has extended her hands to the poor.
{31:21} She shall not fear, in the cold of snow, for her household. For all those of her household have been clothed two-fold.
{31:22} She has made embroidered clothing for herself. Fine linen and purple is her garment.
{31:23} Her husband is noble at the gates, when he sits among the senators of the land.
{31:24} She has made finely woven cloth and sold it, and she has delivered a waistband to the Canaanite.
{31:25} Strength and elegance are her clothing, and she will laugh in the final days.
{31:26} She has opened her mouth to wisdom, and the law of clemency is on her tongue.
{31:27} She has considered the paths of her household, and she has not eaten her bread in idleness.
{31:28} Her sons rose up and predicted great happiness; her husband rose up and praised her.
{31:29} Many daughters have gathered together riches; you have surpassed them all.
{31:30} Charm is false, and beauty is vain. The woman who fears the Lord, the same shall be praised.
{31:31} Give to her from the fruit of her own hands. And let her works praise her at the gates.
{1:1} The words of Ecclesiastes, the son of David, the king of Jerusalem.
{1:2} Ecclesiastes said: Vanity of vanities! Vanity of vanities, and all is vanity!
{1:3} What more does a man have from all his labor, as he labors under the sun?
{1:4} A generation passes away, and a generation arrives. But the earth stands forever.
{1:5} The sun rises and sets; it returns to its place, and from there, being born again,
{1:6} it circles through the south, and arcs toward the north. The spirit continues on, illuminating everything in its circuit, and turning again in its cycle.
{1:7} All rivers enter into the sea, and the sea does not overflow. To the place from which the rivers go out, they return, so that they may flow again.
{1:8} Such things are difficult; man is not able to explain them with words. The eye is not satisfied by seeing, nor is the ear fulfilled by hearing.
{1:9} What is it that has existed? The same shall exist in the future. What is it that has been done? The same shall continue to be done.
{1:10} There is nothing new under the sun. Neither is anyone able to say: “Behold, this is new!” For it has already been brought forth in the ages that were before us.
{1:11} There is no remembrance of the former things. Indeed, neither shall there be any record of past things in the future, for those who will exist at the very end.
{1:12} I, Ecclesiastes, was king of Israel at Jerusalem.
{1:13} And I was determined in my mind to seek and to investigate wisely, concerning all that is done under the sun. God has given this very difficult task to the sons of men, so that they may be occupied by it.
{1:14} I have seen all that is done under the sun, and behold: all is emptiness and an affliction of the spirit.
{1:15} The perverse are unwilling to be corrected, and the number of the foolish is boundless.
{1:16} I have spoken in my heart, saying: “Behold, I have achieved greatness, and I have surpassed all the wise who were before me in Jerusalem.” And my mind has contemplated many things wisely, and I have learned.
{1:17} And I have dedicated my heart, so that I may know prudence and doctrine, and also error and foolishness. Yet I recognize that, in these things also, there is hardship, and affliction of the spirit.
{1:18} Because of this, with much wisdom there is also much anger. And whoever adds knowledge, also adds hardship.
{2:1} I said in my heart: “I will go forth and overflow with delights, and I will enjoy good things.” And I saw that this, too, is emptiness.
{2:2} Laughter, I considered an error. And to rejoicing, I said: “Why are you being deceived, to no purpose?”
{2:3} I decided in my heart to withdraw my flesh from wine, so that I might bring my mind to wisdom, and turn away from foolishness, until I see what is useful for the sons of men, and what they ought to do under the sun, during the number of the days of their life.
{2:4} I magnified my works. I built houses for myself, and I planted vineyards.
{2:5} I made gardens and orchards. And I planted them with trees of every kind.
{2:6} And I dug out fishponds of water, so that I might irrigate the forest of growing trees.
{2:7} I obtained men and women servants, and I had a great family, as well as herds of cattle and great flocks of sheep, beyond all who were before me in Jerusalem.
{2:8} I amassed for myself silver and gold, and the wealth of kings and governors. I chose men and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men, bowls and pitchers for the purpose of pouring wine.
{2:9} And I surpassed in opulence all who were before me in Jerusalem. My wisdom also persevered with me.
{2:10} And all that my eyes desired, I did not refuse them. Neither did I prohibit my heart from enjoying every pleasure, and from amusing itself in the things that I had prepared. And I regarded this as my share, as if I were making use of my own labors.
{2:11} But when I turned myself toward all the works that my hands had made, and to the labors in which I had perspired to no purpose, I saw emptiness and affliction of the soul in all things, and that nothing is permanent under the sun.
{2:12} I continued on, so as to contemplate wisdom, as well as error and foolishness. “What is man,” I said, “that he would be able to follow his Maker, the King?”
{2:13} And I saw that wisdom surpasses foolishness, so much so that they differ as much as light from darkness.
{2:14} The eyes of a wise man are in his head. A foolish man walks in darkness. Yet I learned that one would pass away like the other.
{2:15} And I said in my heart: “If the death of both the foolish and myself will be one, how does it benefit me, if I have given myself more thoroughly to the work of wisdom?” And as I was speaking within my own mind, I perceived that this, too, is emptiness.
{2:16} For there will not be a remembrance in perpetuity of the wise, nor of the foolish. And the future times will cover everything together, with oblivion. The learned die in a manner similar to the unlearned.
{2:17} And, because of this, my life wearied me, since I saw that everything under the sun is evil, and everything is empty and an affliction of the spirit.
{2:18} Again, I detested all my efforts, by which I had earnestly labored under the sun, to be taken up by an heir after me,
{2:19} though I know not whether he will be wise or foolish. And yet he will have power over my labors, in which I have toiled and been anxious. And is there anything else so empty?
{2:20} Therefore, I ceased, and my heart renounced further laboring under the sun.
{2:21} For when someone labors in wisdom, and doctrine, and prudence, he leaves behind what he has obtained to one who is idle. So this, too, is emptiness and a great burden.
{2:22} For how can a man benefit from all his labor and affliction of spirit, by which he has been tormented under the sun?
{2:23} All his days have been filled with sorrows and hardships; neither does he rest his mind, even in the night. And is this not emptiness?
{2:24} Is it not better to eat and drink, and to show his soul the good things of his labors? And this is from the hand of God.
{2:25} So who will feast and overflow with delights as much as I have?
{2:26} God has given, to the man who is good in his sight, wisdom, and knowledge, and rejoicing. But to the sinner, he has given affliction and needless worrying, so as to add, and to gather, and to deliver, to him who has pleased God. But this, too, is emptiness and a hollow worrying of the mind.
{3:1} All things have their time, and all things under heaven continue during their interval.
{3:2} A time to be born, and a time to die. A time to plant, and a time to pull up what was planted.
{3:3} A time to kill, and a time to heal. A time to tear down, and a time to build up.
{3:4} A time to weep, and a time to laugh. A time to mourn, and a time to dance.
{3:5} A time to scatter stones, and a time to gather. A time to embrace, and a time to be far from embraces.
{3:6} A time to gain, and a time to lose. A time to keep, and a time to cast away.
{3:7} A time to rend, and a time to sew. A time to be silent, and a time to speak.
{3:8} A time of love, and a time of hatred. A time of war, and a time of peace.
{3:9} What more does a man have from his labor?
{3:10} I have seen the affliction that God has given to the sons of men, in order that they may be occupied by it.
{3:11} He has made all things good in their time, and he has handed over the world to their disputes, so that man may not discover the work which God made from the beginning, even until the end.
{3:12} And I realize that there is nothing better than to rejoice, and to do well in this life.
{3:13} For this is a gift from God: when each man eats and drinks, and sees the good results of his labor.
{3:14} I have learned that all the works which God has made continue on, in perpetuity. We are not able to add anything, nor to take anything away, from those things which God has made in order that he may be feared.
{3:15} What has been made, the same continues. What is in the future, has already existed. And God restores what has passed away.
{3:16} I saw under the sun: instead of judgment, impiety, and instead of justice, iniquity.
{3:17} And I said in my heart: “God will judge the just and the impious, and then the time for each matter shall be.”
{3:18} I said in my heart, about the sons of men, that God would test them, and reveal them to be like wild animals.
{3:19} For this reason, the passing away of man and of beasts is one, and the condition of both is equal. For as a man dies, so also do they die. All things breathe similarly, and man has nothing more than beast; for all these are subject to vanity.
{3:20} And all things continue on to one place; for from the earth they were made, and unto the earth they shall return together.
{3:21} Who knows if the spirit of the sons of Adam ascend upward, and if the spirit of the beasts descend downward?
{3:22} And I have discovered nothing to be better than for a man to rejoice in his work: for this is his portion. And who shall add to him, so that he may know the things that will occur after him?
{4:1} I turned myself to other things, and I saw the false accusations which are carried out under the sun, and the tears of the innocent, and that there was no one to console them; and that they were not able to withstand their violence, being destitute of all help.
{4:2} And so, I praised the dead more than the living.
{4:3} And happier than both of these, I judged him to be, who has not yet been born, and who has not yet seen the evils which are done under the sun.
{4:4} Again, I was contemplating all the labors of men. And I took notice that their endeavors are open to the envy of their neighbor. And so, in this, too, there is emptiness and superfluous anxiety.
{4:5} The foolish man folds his hands together, and he consumes his own flesh, saying:
{4:6} “A handful with rest is better than both hands filled with labors and with affliction of the soul.”
{4:7} While considering this, I also discovered another vanity under the sun.
{4:8} He is one, and he does not have a second: no son, no brother. And yet he does not cease to labor, nor are his eyes satisfied with wealth, nor does he reflect, saying: “For whom do I labor and cheat my soul of good things?” In this, too, is emptiness and a most burdensome affliction.
{4:9} Therefore, it is better for two to be together, than for one to be alone. For they have the advantage of their companionship.
{4:10} If one falls, he shall be supported by the other. Woe to one who is alone. For when he falls, he has no one to lift him up.
{4:11} And if two are sleeping, they warm one another. How can one person alone be warmed?
{4:12} And if a man can prevail against one, two may withstand him, and a threefold cord is broken with difficulty.
{4:13} Better is a boy, poor and wise, than a king, old and foolish, who does not know to look ahead for the sake of posterity.
{4:14} For sometimes, one goes forth from prison and chains, to a kingdom, while another, born to kingly power, is consumed by need.
{4:15} I saw all the living who are walking under the sun, and I saw the next generation, who shall rise up in their places.
{4:16} The number of people, out of all who existed before these, is boundless. And those who will exist afterwards shall not rejoice in them. But this, too, is emptiness and an affliction of the spirit.
{4:17} Guard your foot, when you step into the house of God, and draw near, so that you may listen. For obedience is much better than the sacrifices of the foolish, who do not know the evil that they are doing.
{5:1} You should not speak anything rashly, nor should your heart be hasty to present a word before God. For God is in heaven, and you are on earth. For this reason, let your words be few.
{5:2} Dreams follow many worries, and in many words foolishness will be found.
{5:3} If you have vowed anything to God, you should not delay to repay it. And whatever you have vowed, render it. But an unfaithful and foolish promise displeases him.
{5:4} And it is much better not to make a vow, than, after a vow, not to fulfill what was promised.
{5:5} You should not use your mouth so as to cause your flesh to sin. And you should not say, in the sight of an Angel, “There is no Providence.” For God, being angry at your words, may scatter all the works of your hands.
{5:6} Where there are many dreams, there are many vanities and innumerable words. Yet truly, you must fear God.
{5:7} If you see false accusations against the indigent, and violent judgments, and subverted justice in the government, do not be surprised over this situation. For those in high places have others who are higher, and there are still others, more eminent, over these.
{5:8} But finally, there is the King who rules over the entire earth, which is subject to him.
{5:9} A greedy man will not be satisfied by money. And whoever loves wealth will reap no fruit from it. Therefore, this, too, is emptiness.
{5:10} Where there are many riches, there will also be many to consume these things. And how does it benefit the one who possesses, except that he discerns the wealth with his own eyes?
{5:11} Sleep is sweet to one who works, whether he consumes little or much. But the satiation of a wealthy man will not permit him to sleep.
{5:12} There is even another most burdensome infirmity, which I have seen under the sun: wealth kept to the harm of the owner.
{5:13} For they are lost in a most grievous affliction. He has produced a son, who will be in the utmost destitution.
{5:14} Just as he went forth naked from his mother’s womb, so shall he return, and he shall take nothing with him from his labors.
{5:15} It is an utterly miserable infirmity that, in the same manner as he has arrived, so shall he return. How then does it benefit him, since he has labored for the wind?
{5:16} All the days of his life he consumes: in darkness, and with many worries, and in distress as well as sadness.
{5:17} And so, this has seemed good to me: that a person should eat and drink, and should enjoy the fruits of his labor, in which he has toiled under the sun, for the number of the days of his life that God has given him. For this is his portion.
{5:18} And this is a gift from God: that every man to whom God has given wealth and resources, and to whom he has granted the ability to consume these, may enjoy his portion, and may find joy in his labors.
{5:19} And then he will not fully remember the days of his life, because God occupies his heart with delights.
{6:1} There is also another evil, which I have seen under the sun, and, indeed, it is frequent among men.
{6:2} It is a man to whom God has given wealth, and resources, and honor; and out of all that he desires, nothing is lacking to his life; yet God does not grant him the ability to consume these things, but instead a man who is a stranger will devour them. This is emptiness and a great misfortune.
{6:3} If a man were to produce one hundred children, and to live for many years, and to attain to an age of many days, and if his soul were to make no use of the goods of his resources, and if he were lacking even a burial: concerning such a man, I declare that a miscarried child is better than he.
{6:4} For he arrives without a purpose and he continues on into darkness, and his name shall be wiped away, into oblivion.
{6:5} He has not seen the sun, nor recognized the difference between good and evil.
{6:6} Even if he were to live for two thousand years, and yet not thoroughly enjoy what is good, does not each one hurry on to the same place?
{6:7} Every labor of man is for his mouth, but his soul will not be filled.
{6:8} What do the wise have which is more than the foolish? And what does the pauper have, except to continue on to that place, where there is life?
{6:9} It is better to see what you desire, than to desire what you cannot know. But this, too, is emptiness and a presumption of spirit.
{6:10} Whoever shall be in the future, his name has already been called. And it is known that he is a man and that he is not able to contend in judgment against one who is stronger than himself.
{6:11} There are many words, and many of these, in disputes, hold much emptiness.
{7:1} Why is it necessary for a man to seek things that are greater than himself, when he does not know what is advantageous for himself in his life, during the number of the days of his sojourn, and while time passes by like a shadow? Or who will be able to tell him what will be in the future after him under the sun?
{7:2} A good name is better than precious ointments, and a day of death is better than a day of birth.
{7:3} It is better to go to a house of mourning, than to a house of feasting. For in the former, we are admonished about the end of all things, so that the living consider what may be in the future.
{7:4} Anger is better than laughter. For through the sadness of the countenance, the soul of one who offends may be corrected.
{7:5} The heart of the wise is a place of mourning, and the heart of the foolish is a place of rejoicing.
{7:6} It is better to be corrected by a wise man, than to be deceived by the false praise of the foolish.
{7:7} For, like the crackling of thorns burning under a pot, so is the laughter of the foolish. But this, too, is emptiness.
{7:8} A false accusation troubles the wise man and saps the strength of his heart.
{7:9} The end of a speech is better than the beginning. Patience is better than arrogance.
{7:10} Do not be quickly moved to anger. For anger resides in the sinews of the foolish.
{7:11} You should not say: “What do you think is the reason that the former times were better than they are now?” For this type of question is foolish.
{7:12} Wisdom with riches is more useful and more advantageous, for those who see the sun.
{7:13} For as wisdom protects, so also does money protect. But learning and wisdom have this much more: that they grant life to one who possesses them.
{7:14} Consider the works of God, that no one is able to correct whomever he has despised.
{7:15} In good times, enjoy good things, but beware of an evil time. For just as God has established the one, so also the other, in order that man may not find any just complaint against him.
{7:16} I also saw this, in the days of my vanity: a just man perishing in his justice, and an impious man living a long time in his malice.
{7:17} Do not try to be overly just, and do not try to be more wise than is necessary, lest you become stupid.
{7:18} Do not act with great impiety, and do not choose to be foolish, lest you die before your time.
{7:19} It is good for you to support a just man. Furthermore, you should not withdraw your hand from him, for whoever fears God, neglects nothing.
{7:20} Wisdom has strengthened the wise more than ten princes of a city.
{7:21} But there is no just man on earth, who does good and does not sin.
{7:22} So then, do not attach your heart to every word that is spoken, lest perhaps you may hear your servant speaking ill of you.
{7:23} For your conscience knows that you, too, have repeatedly spoken evil of others.
{7:24} I have tested everything in wisdom. I have said: “I will be wise.” And wisdom withdrew farther from me,
{7:25} so much more than it was before. Wisdom is very profound, so who shall reveal her?
{7:26} I have examined all things in my soul, so that I may know, and consider, and seek out wisdom and reason, and so that I may recognize the impiety of the foolish, and the error of the imprudent.
{7:27} And I have discovered a woman more bitter than death: she who is like the snare of a hunter, and whose heart is like a net, and whose hands are like chains. Whoever pleases God shall flee from her. But whoever is a sinner shall be seized by her.
{7:28} Behold, Ecclesiastes said, I have discovered these things, one after another, in order that I might discover the explanation
{7:29} which my soul still seeks and has not found. One man among a thousand, I have found; a woman among them all, I have not found.
{7:30} This alone have I discovered: that God made man righteous, and yet he has adulterated himself with innumerable questions. Who is so great as the wise? And who has understood the meaning of the word?
{8:1} The wisdom of a man shines in his countenance, and even the expression of a most powerful man will change.
{8:2} I heed the mouth of the king, and the commandment of an oath to God.
{8:3} You should not hastily withdraw from his presence, nor should you remain in an evil work. For all that pleases him, he will do.
{8:4} And his word is filled with authority. Neither is anyone able to say to him: “Why are you acting this way?”
{8:5} Whoever keeps the commandment will not experience evil. The heart of a wise man understands the time to respond.
{8:6} For every matter, there is a time and an opportunity, as well as many difficulties, for man.
{8:7} For he is ignorant of the past, and he is able to know nothing of the future by means of a messenger.
{8:8} It is not in the power of a man to prohibit the spirit, nor does he have authority over the day of death, nor is he permitted to rest when war breaks out, and neither will impiety save the impious.
{8:9} I have considered all these things, and I have applied my heart to all the works which are being done under the sun. Sometimes one man rules over another to his own harm.
{8:10} I have seen the impious buried. These same, while they were still living, were in the holy place, and they were praised in the city as workers of justice. But this, too, is emptiness.
{8:11} For the sons of men perpetrate evils without any fear, because judgment is not pronounced quickly against the evil.
{8:12} But although a sinner may do evil of himself one hundred times, and by patience still endure, I realize that it will be well with those who fear God, who revere his face.
{8:13} So, may it not go well with the impious, and may his days not be prolonged. And let those who do not fear the face of the Lord pass away like a shadow.
{8:14} There is also another vanity, which is done upon the earth. There are the just, to whom evils happen, as though they had done the works of the impious. And there are the impious, who are very secure, as though they possess the deeds of the just. But this, too, I judge to be a very great vanity.
{8:15} And so, I praised rejoicing, because there was no good for a man under the sun, except to eat and drink, and to be cheerful, and because he may take nothing with him from his labor in the days of his life, which God has given to him under the sun.
{8:16} And I applied my heart, so that I might know wisdom, and so that I might understand a disturbance that turns upon the earth: it is a man, who takes no sleep with his eyes, day and night.
{8:17} And I understood that man is able to find no explanation for all those works of God which are done under the sun. And so, the more that he labors to seek, so much the less does he find. Yes, even if a wise man were to claim that he knows, he would not be able to discover it.
{9:1} I have drawn all these things through my heart, so that I might carefully understand. There are just men as well as wise men, and their works are in the hand of God. And yet a man does not know so much as whether he is worthy of love or of hatred.
{9:2} But all things in the future remain uncertain, because all things happen equally to the just and to the impious, to the good and to the bad, to the pure and to the impure, to those who offer sacrifices and to those who despise sacrifices. As the good are, so also are sinners. As those who commit perjury are, so also are those who swear to the truth.
{9:3} This is a very great burden among all things that are done under the sun: that the same things happen to everyone. And when the hearts of the sons of men are filled with malice and contempt in their lives, afterwards they shall be dragged down to hell.
{9:4} There is no one who lives forever, or who even has confidence in this regard. A living dog is better than a dead lion.
{9:5} For the living know that they themselves will die, yet truly the dead know nothing anymore, nor do they have any recompense. For the memory of them is forgotten.
{9:6} Likewise, love and hatred and envy have all perished together, nor have they any place in this age and in the work which is done under the sun.
{9:7} So then, go and eat your bread with rejoicing, and drink your wine with gladness. For your works are pleasing to God.
{9:8} Let your garments be white at all times, and let not oil be absent from your head.
{9:9} Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your uncertain life which have been given to you under the sun, during all the time of your vanity. For this is your portion in life and in your labor, with which you labor under the sun.
{9:10} Whatever your hand is able to do, do it earnestly. For neither work, nor reason, nor wisdom, nor knowledge will exist in death, toward which you are hurrying.
{9:11} I turned myself toward another thing, and I saw that under the sun, the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor wealth to the learned, nor grace to the skillful: but there is a time and an end for all these things.
{9:12} Man does not know his own end. But, just as fish are caught with a hook, and birds are captured with a snare, so are men seized in the evil time, when it will suddenly overwhelm them.
{9:13} This wisdom, likewise, I have seen under the sun, and I have examined it intensely.
{9:14} There was a small city, with a few men in it. There came against it a great king, who surrounded it, and built fortifications all around it, and the blockade was completed.
{9:15} And there was found within it, a poor and wise man, and he freed the city through his wisdom, and nothing was recorded afterward of that poor man.
{9:16} And so, I declared that wisdom is better than strength. But how is it, then, that the wisdom of the poor man is treated with contempt, and his words are not heeded?
{9:17} The words of the wise are heard in silence, more so than the outcry of a prince among the foolish.
{9:18} Wisdom is better than weapons of war. And whoever offends in one thing, shall lose many good things.
{10:1} Dying flies ruin the sweetness of the ointment. Wisdom and glory is more precious than a brief and limited foolishness.
{10:2} The heart of a wise man is in his right hand, and the heart of a foolish man is in his left hand.
{10:3} Moreover, as a foolish man is walking along the way, even though he himself is unwise, he considers everyone to be foolish.
{10:4} If the spirit of one who holds authority rises over you, do not leave your place, because attentiveness will cause the greatest sins to cease.
{10:5} There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, proceeding from the presence of a prince, as if by mistake:
{10:6} a foolish man appointed to a high dignity, and the rich sitting beneath him.
{10:7} I have seen servants on horses, and princes walking on the ground like servants.
{10:8} Whoever digs a pit will fall into it. And whoever tears apart a hedge, a snake will bite him.
{10:9} Whoever carries away stones will be harmed by them. And whoever cuts down trees will be wounded by them.
{10:10} If the iron is dull, and if it was not that way before, but has been made dull by much labor, then it will be sharpened. And wisdom will follow after diligence.
{10:11} Whoever slanders in secret is nothing less than a snake that bites silently.
{10:12} Words from the mouth of a wise man are graceful, but the lips of a foolish man will throw him down with violence.
{10:13} At the beginning of his words is foolishness, and at the end of his talk is a most grievous error.
{10:14} The fool multiplies his words. A man does not know what has been before him, and who is able to reveal to him what will be in the future after him?
{10:15} The hardship of the foolish will afflict those who do not know to go into the city.
{10:16} Woe to you, the land whose king is a boy, and whose princes consume in the morning.
{10:17} Blessed is the land whose king is noble, and whose princes eat at the proper time, for refreshment and not for self-indulgence.
{10:18} By laziness, a framework shall be brought down, and by the weakness of hands, a house shall collapse through.
{10:19} While laughing, they make bread and wine, so that the living may feast. And all things are obedient to money.
{10:20} You should not slander the king, even in your thoughts, and you should not speak evil of a wealthy man, even in your private chamber. For even the birds of the air will carry your voice, and whatever has wings will announce your opinion.
{11:1} Cast your bread over running waters. For, after a long time, you shall find it again.
{11:2} Give a portion to seven, and indeed even to eight. For you do not know what evil may be upon the earth in the future.
{11:3} If the clouds have been filled, they will pour forth rain upon the earth. If a tree falls to the south, or to the north, or to whatever direction it may fall, there it shall remain.
{11:4} Whoever heeds the wind will not sow. And whoever considers the clouds will never reap.
{11:5} In the same manner that you do not know the way of the spirit, nor the way that bones are joined together in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you do not know the works of God, who is the Maker of all.
{11:6} In the morning, sow your seed, and in the evening, do not let your hand cease. For you do not know which of these may rise up, the one or the other. But if both rise up together, so much the better.
{11:7} Light is pleasant, and it is delightful for the eyes to see the sun.
{11:8} If a man lives for many years, and if he has rejoiced in all of these, he must remember the many days of the dark times, which, when they will have arrived, will accuse the past of vanity.
{11:9} So then, rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart remain in what is good during the days of your youth. And walk in the ways of your heart, and with the perception of your eyes. And know that, concerning all these things, God will bring you to judgment.
{11:10} Remove anger from your heart, and set aside evil from your flesh. For youth and pleasure are empty.
{12:1} Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the time of affliction arrives and the years draw near, about which you will say, “These do not please me.”
{12:2} Before the sun, and the light, and the moon, and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain,
{12:3} when the guardians of the house will tremble, and the strongest men will waver, and those who grind grain will be idle, except for a small number, and those who look through the keyholes will be darkened.
{12:4} And they will close the doors to the street, when the voice of he who grinds the grain will be humbled, and they will be disturbed at the sound of a flying thing, and all the daughters of song shall become deaf.
{12:5} Likewise, they will fear the things above them, and they will dread the way. The almond tree will flourish; the locust will be fattened; and the caper plant will be scattered, because man shall go into the house of his eternity, and the mourners shall wander around in the street.
{12:6} Before the silver cord is broken, and the golden band pulls away, and the pitcher is crushed over the fountain, and the wheel is broken above the cistern,
{12:7} and the dust returns to its earth, from which it was, and the spirit returns to God, who granted it.
{12:8} Vanity of vanities, said Ecclesiastes, and all is vanity!
{12:9} And since Ecclesiastes was very wise, he taught the people, and he described what he had accomplished. And while searching, he composed many parables.
{12:10} He sought useful words, and he wrote most righteous words, which were full of truth.
{12:11} The words of the wise are like a goad, and like nails deeply fastened, which, through the counsel of teachers, are set forth by one pastor.
{12:12} You should require no more than this, my son. For there is no end to the making of many books. And excessive study is an affliction to the flesh.
{12:13} Let us all listen together to the end of the discourse. Fear God, and observe his commandments. This is everything for man.
{12:14} And so, for all that is done and for each error, God will bring judgment: whether it was good or evil.
{1:1} Bride: May he kiss me with the kiss of his mouth.
{1:2} Groom to Bride: So much better than wine are your breasts, fragranced with the finest perfumes.
{1:3} Bride to Groom: Your name is oil that has been poured out; therefore, the maidens have loved you. Draw me forward.
{1:4} Chorus to Bride: We will run after you in the odor of your perfumes.
{1:5} Bride to Chorus: The king has led me into his storerooms.
{1:6} Chorus to Bride: We will exult and rejoice in you, remembering your breasts above wine.
{1:7} Groom to Bride: The righteous love you.
{1:8} Bride to Chorus: O daughters of Jerusalem: I am black, but shapely, like the tabernacles of Kedar, like the tents of Solomon.
{1:9} Do not be concerned that I am dark, for the sun has changed my color.
{1:10} The sons of my mother have fought against me. They have made me the keeper of the vineyards. My own vineyard I have not kept.
{1:11} Bride to Groom: Reveal to me, you whom my soul loves, where you pasture, where you recline at midday, lest I begin to wander after the flocks of your companions.
{1:12} Groom to Bride: If you yourself do not know, O most beautiful among women, then go out and follow after the steps of the flocks, and pasture your young goats beside the tabernacles of the shepherds.
{1:13} O my love, I have compared you to my company of horsemen against the chariots of Pharaoh.
{1:14} Your cheeks are beautiful, like those of a turtledove. Your neck is like a bejeweled collar.
{1:15} Chorus to Bride: We will fashion for you chains of gold, accented with reddened silver.
{1:16} Bride to Chorus: While the king was taking his rest, my aromatic ointment sent forth its odor.
{1:17} My beloved is a bundle of myrrh to me. He shall abide between my breasts.
{1:18} My beloved is a cluster of Cyprus grapes to me, in the vineyards of Engaddi.
{1:19} Groom to Bride: Behold, you are beautiful, O my love. Behold, you are beautiful. Your eyes are those of a dove.
{1:20} Bride to Groom: Behold, you are handsome, O my beloved, and graceful. Our bed is flourishing.
{1:21} Groom to Bride: The timbers of our houses are of cedar; our ceilings are of cypress.
{2:1} Bride: I am a flower of the open field and a lily of the steep valleys.
{2:2} Groom: Like a lily among the thorns, so is my loved one among the daughters.
{2:3} Bride to Chorus: Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat beneath the shadow of the one whom I desired, and his fruit was sweet to my palate.
{2:4} He brought me into the storeroom of wine. He set charity in order within me.
{2:5} Prop me up with flowers. Close me in with apples. For I languish through love.
{2:6} His left hand is under my head, and his right hand shall embrace me.
{2:7} Groom to Chorus: I bind you by oath, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the does and the stags of the open field, not to disturb or awaken the beloved, even for as long as she wills.
{2:8} Bride to Chorus: The voice of my beloved! Behold, he arrives leaping along the mountains, jumping across the hills.
{2:9} My beloved is like a doe and like a young stag.
{2:10} Lo, he stands beyond our wall, gazing through the windows, watching through the lattices.
{2:11} Lo, my beloved speaks to me:
{2:12} Groom to Bride: Rise up, quickly, my love, my dove, my shapely one, and advance.
{2:13} For winter has now past; the rain has decreased and gone away.
{2:14} The flowers have appeared in our land; the time for pruning has arrived. The voice of the turtledove has been heard in our land.
{2:15} The fig tree has brought forth its green figs; the flowering vines bestow their odor. Rise up, my love, my brilliant one, and advance.
{2:16} My dove in the clefts of the rock, in the hollows of the wall, reveal to me your face. Let your voice sound in my ears. For your voice is sweet, and your face is graceful.
{2:17} Chorus to Groom and Bride: Capture for us the little foxes, which are tearing down the vines; for our vineyard has flourished.
{2:18} Bride to Chorus: My beloved is for me, and I am for him. He pastures among the lilies, until the day rises and the shadows decline.
{2:19} Bride to Groom: Return, O my beloved. Be like a doe and like a young stag upon the mountains of Bether.
{3:1} Bride: On my bed, throughout the night, I sought him whom my soul loves. I sought him, and did not find him.
{3:2} I will rise up, and I will circle through the city. Through the side streets and thoroughfares, I will seek him whom my soul loves. I sought him, and did not find him.
{3:3} The watchers who guard the city found me: “Have you seen him whom my soul loves?”
{3:4} When I had passed by them a little, I found him whom my soul loves. I held him, and would not release him, until I would bring him into my mother’s house, and into the chamber of her who bore me.
{3:5} Groom to Chorus: I bind you by oath, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the does and the stags of the open field, not to disturb or awaken the beloved, until she wills.
{3:6} Chorus to Groom: Who is she, who ascends through the desert, like a staff of smoke from the aromatics of myrrh, and frankincense, and every powder of the perfumer?
{3:7} Chorus to Bride: Lo, sixty strong ones, out of all the strongest in Israel, stand watch at the bed of Solomon,
{3:8} all holding swords and well-trained in warfare, each one’s weapon upon his thigh, because of fears in the night.
{3:9} Bride to Chorus: King Solomon made himself a portable throne from the wood of Lebanon.
{3:10} He made its columns of silver, the reclining place of gold, the ascent of purple; the middle he covered well, out of charity for the daughters of Jerusalem.
{3:11} O daughters of Zion, go forth and see king Solomon with the diadem with which his mother crowned him, on the day of his espousal, on the day of the rejoicing of his heart.
{4:1} Groom to Bride: How beautiful you are, my love, how beautiful you are! Your eyes are those of a dove, except for what is hidden within. Your hair is like flocks of goats, which ascend along the mountain of Gilead.
{4:2} Your teeth are like flocks of shorn sheep, which ascend from the washing, each one with its identical twin, and not one among them is barren.
{4:3} Your lips are like a scarlet ribbon, and your eloquence is sweetness. Like a piece of pomegranate, so are your cheeks, except for what is hidden within.
{4:4} Your neck is like the tower of David, which was built with ramparts: a thousand shields are hanging from it, all the armor of the strong.
{4:5} Your two breasts are like two young does, twins that pasture among the lilies.
{4:6} Until the day rises and the shadows decline, I will go to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of frankincense.
{4:7} You are totally beautiful, my love, and there is no blemish in you.
{4:8} Advance from Lebanon, my spouse, advance from Lebanon, advance. You shall be crowned at the head of Amana, near the summit of Senir and Hermon, by the dens of lions, by the mountains of leopards.
{4:9} You have wounded my heart, my sister, my spouse. You have wounded my heart with one look of your eyes, and with one lock of hair on your neck.
{4:10} How beautiful are your breasts, my sister, my spouse! Your breasts are more beautiful than wine, and the fragrance of your ointments is above all aromatic oils.
{4:11} Your lips, my spouse, are a dripping honeycomb; honey and milk are under your tongue. And the fragrance of your garments is like the odor of frankincense.
{4:12} An enclosed garden is my sister, my spouse: an enclosed garden, a sealed fountain.
{4:13} You send forth a paradise of pomegranates along with the fruits of the orchard: Cypress grapes, with aromatic oil;
{4:14} aromatic oil and saffron; sweet cane and cinnamon, with all the trees of Lebanon; myrrh and aloe, with all the best ointments.
{4:15} The fountain of the gardens is a well of living waters, which flow forcefully from Lebanon.
{4:16} Rise up, north wind, and advance, south wind. Send a breeze through my garden, and carry its aromatic scents.
{5:1} Bride: May my beloved enter into his garden, and eat the fruit of his apple trees.
{5:2} Groom to Bride: I have arrived in my garden, O my sister, my spouse. I have harvested my myrrh, with my aromatic oils. I have eaten the honeycomb with my honey. I have drunk my wine with my milk. Eat, O friends, and drink, and be inebriated, O most beloved.
{5:3} Bride: I sleep, yet my heart watches. The voice of my beloved knocking:
{5:4} Groom to Bride: Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my immaculate one. For my head is full of dew, and the locks of my hair are full of the drops of the night.
{5:5} Bride: I have taken off my tunic; how shall I be clothed in it? I have washed my feet; how shall I spoil them?
{5:6} My beloved put his hand through the window, and my inner self was moved by his touch.
{5:7} I rose up in order to open to my beloved. My hands dripped with myrrh, and my fingers were full of the finest myrrh.
{5:8} I opened the bolt of my door to my beloved. But he had turned aside and had gone away. My soul melted when he spoke. I sought him, and did not find him. I called, and he did not answer me.
{5:9} The keepers who circulate through the city found me. They struck me, and wounded me. The keepers of the walls took my veil away from me.
{5:10} I bind you by oath, O daughters of Jerusalem, if you find my beloved, announce to him that I languish through love.
{5:11} Chorus to Bride: What kind of beloved is your beloved, O most beautiful among women? What kind of beloved is your beloved, so that you would bind us by oath?
{5:12} Bride: My beloved is white and ruddy, elect among thousands.
{5:13} His head is like the finest gold. His locks are like the heights of palm trees, and as black as a raven.
{5:14} His eyes are like doves, which have been washed with milk over rivulets of waters, and which reside near plentiful streams.
{5:15} His cheeks are like a courtyard of aromatic plants, sown by perfumers. His lips are like lilies, dripping with the best myrrh.
{5:16} His hands are smoothed gold, full of hyacinths. His abdomen is ivory, accented with sapphires.
{5:17} His legs are columns of marble, which have been established over bases of gold. His appearance is like that of Lebanon, elect like the cedars.
{5:18} His throat is most sweet, and he is entirely desirable. Such is my beloved, and he is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
{5:19} Chorus to Bride: Where has your beloved gone, O most beautiful among women? To where has your beloved turned aside, so that we may seek him with you?
{6:1} Bride: My beloved has descended to his garden, to the courtyard of aromatic plants, in order to pasture in the gardens and gather the lilies.
{6:2} I am for my beloved, and my beloved is for me. He pastures among the lilies.
{6:3} Groom to Bride: My love, you are beautiful: sweet and graceful, like Jerusalem; terrible, like an army in battle array.
{6:4} Avert your eyes from me, for they have caused me to fly away. Your hair is like a flock of goats, which have appeared out of Gilead.
{6:5} Your teeth are like a flock of sheep, which have ascended from the washing, each one with its identical twin, and not one among them is barren.
{6:6} Like the skin of a pomegranate, so are your cheeks, except for your hiddenness.
{6:7} There are sixty queens, and eighty concubines, and maidens without number.
{6:8} One is my dove, my perfect one. One is her mother; elect is she who bore her. The daughters saw her, and they proclaimed her most blessed. The queens and concubines saw her, and they praised her.
{6:9} Chorus to Groom: Who is she, who advances like the rising dawn, as beautiful as the moon, as elect as the sun, as terrible as an army in battle array?
{6:10} Bride: I descended to the garden of nuts, in order to see the fruits of the steep valleys, and to examine whether the vineyard had flourished and the pomegranates had produced buds.
{6:11} I did not understand. My soul was stirred up within me because of the chariots of Amminadab.
{6:12} Chorus to Bride: Return, return, O Sulamitess. Return, return, so that we may consider you.
{7:1} Chorus to Groom: What will you see in the Sulamitess, other than choruses of encampments?
{7:2} Chorus to Bride: How beautiful are your footsteps in shoes, O daughter of a ruler! The joints of your thighs are like jewels, which have been fabricated by the hand of an artist.
{7:3} Your navel is a round bowl, never lacking in curvature. Your abdomen is like a bundle of wheat, surrounded with lilies.
{7:4} Your two breasts are like two young twin does.
{7:5} Your neck is like a tower of ivory. Your eyes like the fish ponds at Heshbon, which are at the entrance to the daughter of the multitude. Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon, which looks out toward Damascus.
{7:6} Your head is like Carmel, and the hairs of your head are like the purple of the king, bound into pleats.
{7:7} Most beloved one, how beautiful you are, and how graceful in delights!
{7:8} Your stature is comparable to the palm tree, and your breasts to clusters of grapes.
{7:9} Groom: I said, I will ascend to the palm tree, and take hold of its fruit. And your breasts will be like clusters of grapes on the vine. And the fragrance of your mouth will be like apples.
{7:10} Bride: Your throat is like the finest wine: wine worthy for my beloved to drink, and for his lips and teeth to contemplate.
{7:11} I am for my beloved, and his turning is to me.
{7:12} Approach, my beloved. Let us go out into the field; let us linger in the villages.
{7:13} Let us go up in the morning to the vineyards; let us see if the vineyard has flourished, if the flowers are ready to bear fruit, if the pomegranates have flourished. There I will give my breasts to you.
{7:14} The mandrakes yield their fragrance. At our gates is every fruit. The new and the old, my beloved, I have kept for you.
{8:1} Bride to Groom: Who will give you to me as my brother, feeding from the breasts of my mother, so that I may discover you outside, and may kiss you, and so that now no one may despise me?
{8:2} I will take hold of you and lead you into my mother’s house. There you will teach me, and I will give you a cup of spiced wine, and of new wine from my pomegranates.
{8:3} His left hand is under my head, and his right hand shall embrace me.
{8:4} Groom to Chorus: I bind you by oath, O daughters of Jerusalem, not to disturb or awaken the beloved, until she wills.
{8:5} Chorus to Groom: Who is she, who ascends from the desert, flowing with delights, leaning upon her beloved?
{8:6} Groom to Bride: Under the apple tree, I awakened you. There your mother was corrupted. There she who bore you was violated.
{8:7} Set me like a seal upon your heart, like a seal upon your arm. For love is strong, like death, and envy is enduring, like hell: their lamps are made of fire and flames.
{8:8} A multitude of waters cannot extinguish love, nor can a river overwhelm it. If a man were to give all the substance of his house in exchange for love, he would despise it as nothing.
{8:9} Chorus: Our sister is little and has no breasts. What shall we do for our sister on the day when she is called upon?
{8:10} If she is a wall, let us build a rampart of silver upon it. If she is a door, let us join it together with boards of cedar.
{8:11} Bride to Chorus: I am a wall, and my breasts are like towers, since, in his presence, I have become like one who has discovered peace.
{8:12} The peaceful one had a vineyard, in that which held the peoples. He handed it on to the caretakers; a man brought, in exchange for its fruit, a thousand pieces of silver.
{8:13} Groom: My vineyard is before me. The thousand is for your peacefulness, and two hundred is for those who care for its fruit.
{8:14} Bride to Groom: Your friends are attentive to those who have been dwelling in the gardens. Cause me to heed your voice.
{8:15} Flee away, my beloved, and become like the doe and the young stag upon the mountains of aromatic plants.
{1:1} Love justice, you who judge the land. Think of the Lord in goodness and seek him in simplicity of heart.
{1:2} For he is found by those who do not test him, yet he reveals himself to those who have faith in him.
{1:3} For perverse thoughts separate from God. But his virtue, when it is tested, corrects the foolish.
{1:4} For wisdom will not enter into a malicious soul, nor dwell in a body subdued by sin.
{1:5} For the holy spirit of instruction will flee from falsehood, and he will withdraw himself from thoughts that are without understanding, and he will not be reached when iniquity overcomes.
{1:6} For the spirit of wisdom is benevolent, and will not release the evil speaker from his talk, because God is a witness of his temperament, and a true examiner of his heart, and an auditor of his words.
{1:7} For the spirit of the Lord has filled the world, and he who contains all things, retains knowledge of every voice.
{1:8} Therefore, he who speaks unjust things cannot escape notice, nor will the chastising judgment pass him by.
{1:9} For inquiry will be made into the thoughts of the impious, his conversation also will reach the hearing of God, to the chastising of his iniquities.
{1:10} For the zealous ear hears all things, and the disturbance of complaining will not be hidden.
{1:11} Therefore, keep yourselves from complaining, which benefits nothing, and refrain your tongue from slander, because secret conversation will not pass into nothingness, and the mouth that lies kills the soul.
{1:12} Do not court death by the error of your life, nor procure your destruction by the works of your hands,
{1:13} because God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the loss of the living.
{1:14} For he created all things that they might exist, and he made the nations of the world curable, and there is no medicine of extermination in them, nor a kingdom of hell upon the earth.
{1:15} For justice is perpetual and immortal.
{1:16} But the impious, with hands and words, have called death to them, and, esteeming it a friend, they have fallen away and have made a covenant with death, because they deserved to take part in it.
{2:1} For they have said, reasoning with themselves incorrectly: “Our lifetime is brief and tedious, and there is no relief within the limits of man, and no one is acknowledged to have returned from the dead.
{2:2} For we are born from nothing, and after this we will be as if we had not been, because the breath in our nostrils is like smoke, and conversation sends out sparks from the stirring of our heart;
{2:3} therefore, when it is extinguished, our body will be ashes, and our spirit will be diffused like a soft breeze, and our life will pass away like the wisp of a cloud, just as a mist is dissolved when it is driven away by the rays of the sun and overpowered by its heat.
{2:4} And in time our name will surrender to oblivion, and no one will have remembrance of our works.
{2:5} For our time is like the passing of a shadow, and nothing can reverse our end, for it is signed and sealed, and cannot be returned.
{2:6} Therefore, hurry, let us enjoy the good things of the present time, and let us quickly use up passing things, just as in youth.
{2:7} Let us indulge ourselves with costly wine and ointments, and let no flower of youth pass us by.
{2:8} Let us surround ourselves with rosebuds before they wither; let no meadow be left untouched by our indulgence.
{2:9} Let no one among us be exempt from our indulgence. Let us leave behind tokens of enjoyment everywhere, for this is our portion, and this is fate.
{2:10} Let us oppress the poor just man, and not spare the widow, nor respect the aged grey hairs of elders.
{2:11} But let our strength be the law of justice, for what is weak is found to be useless.
{2:12} Therefore, let us encircle the just, because he is useless to us, and he is against our works, and he reproaches us with our legal offenses, and makes known to us the sins of our way of life.
{2:13} He promises that he has the knowledge of God and he calls himself the son of God.
{2:14} He was made among us to expose our very thoughts.
{2:15} He is grievous for us even to behold, for his life is unlike other men’s lives, and immutable are his ways.
{2:16} It is as if we are considered by him to be insignificant, and he abstains from our ways as from filth; he prefers the newly justified, and he glories that he has God for his father.
{2:17} Let us see, then, if his words are true, and let us test what will happen to him, and then we will know what his end will be.
{2:18} For if he is the true son of God, he will receive him and deliver him from the hands of his adversaries.
{2:19} Let us examine him with insult and torture, that we may know his reverence and try his patience.
{2:20} Let us condemn him to a most shameful death, for, according to his own words, God will care for him.”
{2:21} These things they thought, and they were mistaken, for their own malice blinded them.
{2:22} And they were ignorant of the mysteries of God; they neither hoped for the reward of justice, nor judged the value of holy souls.
{2:23} For God created man to be immortal, and he made him in the image of his own likeness.
{2:24} But by the envy of the devil, death entered the world,
{2:25} yet they imitate him, who are from his side.
{3:1} But the souls of the just are in the hand of God and no torment of death will touch them.
{3:2} In the eyes of the foolish, they seemed to die, and their departure was considered an affliction,
{3:3} and their going away from us, a banishment. Yet they are in peace.
{3:4} And though, in the sight of men, they suffered torments, their hope is full of immortality.
{3:5} Troubled in few things, in many things they will be well compensated, because God has tested them and found them worthy of himself.
{3:6} Like gold in the furnace, he has proved them, and as a holocaust victim, he has received them, and in the time of their visitation
{3:7} they will shine, and they will dash about like sparks among stubble.
{3:8} They will judge the nations and they will rule over the people, and their Lord will reign forever.
{3:9} Those who trust in him, will understand the truth, and those who are faithful in love will rest in him, because grace and peace is for his elect.
{3:10} But the impious will be chastised according to their thoughts, for they have neglected the just and have retreated from the Lord.
{3:11} For whoever abandons wisdom and instruction is unhappy, and their hope is empty, and their labors without fruit, and their works useless.
{3:12} Their wives are foolish and their sons are wicked; the things that serve them are accursed.
{3:13} Therefore, fertile is the barren and undefiled, who has not known transgressions in bed; she will bear fruit by caring for holy souls.
{3:14} And fertile is the celibate, who has not wrought iniquity with his hands, nor thought wickedness against God; for to him will be given a special gift of faith and a very welcome place in the temple of the Lord.
{3:15} For the fruit of good labors is glorious and the root of wisdom shall never perish.
{3:16} But the sons of adulterers will not reach completion, and the offspring of a sinful bed will be banished.
{3:17} And if they live long, they will be counted as nothing, and their last years of old-age will be without honor.
{3:18} And if they die quickly, they will have no hope, nor words of comfort on the day of reckoning.
{3:19} For the iniquities of the people have a dreadful result.
{4:1} O how beautiful is the chaste fruit of purity! For its remembrance is immortal, because it is observed both with God and with men.
{4:2} When it is present, they imitate it, and they desire it when it has withdrawn itself, and it triumphs crowned forever, winning the reward of undefiled conflicts.
{4:3} But the great number of the many different kinds of the impious will not be to their advantage, and spurious seedlings will not be given deep roots, nor will they establish any firm foundation.
{4:4} And if they spring forth with branches for a time, yet, being set infirmly, they will be shaken by the wind, and, by the superabundance of the winds, they will be eradicated.
{4:5} For the incomplete branches will be broken, and their fruits will be useless, and bitter to eat, and fit for nothing.
{4:6} For all the sons born from iniquity are witnesses of wickedness against their parents at their interrogation.
{4:7} But the just, if death seizes him beforehand, will be refreshed.
{4:8} For old age is made venerable, neither by lasting long, nor by counting the number of years; yet understanding is the gray hair of wisdom for men,
{4:9} and an immaculate life is a generation of sages.
{4:10} Pleasing to God, having been made beloved, and living among sinners, he was transformed.
{4:11} He was quickly taken away, for malice could not alter his understanding, nor could deceit beguile his soul.
{4:12} For fascination with entertainment obscures good things, and the unfaithfulness of desire subverts the mind without malice.
{4:13} Completed in a short time, he fulfilled many times.
{4:14} Truly his soul was pleasing to God. Because of this, he hastened to bring him out of the midst of iniquities, but the people see this and do not understand, nor do they place such things in their hearts:
{4:15} that the grace and mercy of God is with his holy ones, and he watches over his elect.
{4:16} But the just dead will condemn the impious living, and youth hastily completed results in a long unjust life.
{4:17} For they will see the end of the wise, and will neither understand, nor imagine, that he is of God, and that therefore the Lord has safeguarded him.
{4:18} For they will see and despise him, but the Lord will ridicule them.
{4:19} And after this, they will fall without honor and with contempt among the dead forever. Seeing that they are puffed up and speechless, he will shatter them and will shake them from the foundations all the way to the top, to their utter desolation, and they will grieve and their remembrance will perish.
{4:20} They will hurry with fear at the understanding of their sins, and their iniquities will bear witness against them.
{5:1} Then the just will stand with great steadfastness against those who have oppressed them and have taken away their labors.
{5:2} Seeing this, they will be troubled with terrible fear, and they will be amazed at the suddenness of unexpected salvation.
{5:3} Driven toward regret, and through the anguish of their groaning spirit, they will say within themselves: “These are the ones whom we held for some time in derision and in mocking reproach.
{5:4} We foolish considered their life to be madness, and their end to be without honor.
{5:5} How is it that they are counted among the sons of God, and their place is among the holy?
{5:6} Therefore, we have strayed from the way of truth, and the light of justice has not shined on us, and the sun of understanding has not risen on us.
{5:7} We exhausted ourselves in the way of iniquity and perdition, and have walked a difficult way, while ignoring the way of the Lord.
{5:8} How has arrogance benefited us? Or what has exalting in riches brought us?
{5:9} All those things have passed away like a shadow, and like a messenger traveling quickly by;
{5:10} and like a ship passing over the waves of water, when it has gone by, its trace cannot be found, nor can the pathway of its keel in the waves;
{5:11} or, like a bird flying through the air, there is no evidence of her journey to be found, but there is hardly a sound as the beating of her wings lifts up the air and, by the force of her journey, divides the air she has flown across, which was disturbed by her wings, and afterwards there is no sign of her journey to be found;
{5:12} or, like an arrow shot at a selected mark, the air continues to be divided and to be brought together again, so that its passing is unknown.
{5:13} And in like manner we, having been born, continuously cease to exist, and indeed, we depart with no sign of virtue to show, but we are consumed in our malice.”
{5:14} Such things those who sinned said in hell.
{5:15} For the hope of the impious is like feathers, which are blown away by the wind, and like a thin foam, which is dispersed by a storm, and like smoke, which is scattered by the wind, and like the memory of a guest who passes by one day.
{5:16} But the just will live forever, and their reward is with the Lord, and the thought of them is with the Most High.
{5:17} Therefore, they will receive a beautiful kingdom and a crown of splendor from the hand of the Lord, for with his right hand he will cover them, and with his holy arm he will defend them.
{5:18} And his zeal will take up arms, and he will equip his servants for retribution on their enemies.
{5:19} He will put on justice as a breastplate, and he will grasp sure judgment as a helmet.
{5:20} He will select fairness as an invincible shield.
{5:21} Yet he will sharpen his severe wrath into a spear, and he will fight with those of the world against the irrational.
{5:22} Shafts of lightning will hurl forth accurately, and, as if from a well-curved bow of clouds, they will be expelled and will fly to the determined mark.
{5:23} And hail will be cast like stones full of anger, and the water of the sea will rise up against them, and the rivers will charge forth harshly.
{5:24} The spirit of virtue will stand firm against them and like a whirlwind will divide them, and he will lead all the world of iniquity into a wasteland, and malice will overthrow the seats of power.
{6:1} Wisdom is better than power, and a prudent man is better than a powerful one.
{6:2} Therefore, hear, O kings, and understand; learn, you judges of the ends of the earth.
{6:3} Listen closely, you who hold the attention of the crowds, and who please yourselves by disturbing the nations.
{6:4} For power has been given to you from the Lord and strength from the Most High, who will examine your works and scrutinize your thoughts.
{6:5} For, when you were ministers of his kingdom, you did not judge correctly, nor keep the law of justice, nor walk according to the will of God.
{6:6} Horribly and quickly he will appear to you, because he will make a severe judgment for those who are in charge.
{6:7} For, to the little, great mercy is granted, but the powerful will endure powerful torment.
{6:8} For the Lord will not exempt anyone’s character, nor will he stand in awe of anyone’s greatness, because he himself made the little and the great, and he is equally concerned for everyone.
{6:9} But a powerful torture pursues the powerful.
{6:10} Therefore, O kings, these, my words, are for you, so that you may learn wisdom and not perish.
{6:11} For those who have justly preserved justice will be justified, and those who have learned these things will find what to answer.
{6:12} Therefore, desire my words, love them, and you will have instruction.
{6:13} Wisdom is pure and never fades away, and is easily seen by those who love her and found by those who seek her.
{6:14} She anticipates those who desire her, so that she first reveals herself to them.
{6:15} Whoever awakens early to seek her, will not labor, for he will find her sitting at his door.
{6:16} Therefore, by thinking about her, understanding is perfected, and whoever remains watchful for her, will quickly be secure.
{6:17} For she goes about seeking such as are worthy of her, and she reveals herself to them cheerfully in the ways, and meets them with all foresight.
{6:18} For the very true beginning of her is the desire for instruction.
{6:19} Therefore, the zeal for instruction is love, and love is the keeping of her laws, and the keeping of her laws is the perfection of incorruptibility,
{6:20} while incorruptibility makes us near to God.
{6:21} And so, the desire for wisdom leads to an everlasting kingdom.
{6:22} If, therefore, your delight is in thrones and scepters, O kings of the people, love wisdom, so that you may reign forever;
{6:23} love the light of wisdom, all you who lead the peoples.
{6:24} But what wisdom is, and how she was made, I will report, and I will not hide the mysteries of God from you, but I will investigate her from the beginning of her birth, and I will place the knowledge of her in the light, and will not pass over the truth.
{6:25} Neither will I hold to the path that dwindles away with envy, because such a man will not partake in wisdom.
{6:26} For the proliferation of the wise is sanity for the world, and a wise king is the mainstay of the people.
{6:27} Therefore, receive instruction by my words, and it will benefit you.
{7:1} Certainly, I myself am also a mortal man, like everyone, and the offspring of this earth, which was made beforehand; and in my mother’s womb I was fashioned with care,
{7:2} within the time of ten months, made of blood, from the seed of man and the delight of sleeping together.
{7:3} And when I was born, I drew in the common air, and in similar fashion, I fell upon the earth, and the first voice I uttered, like everyone, was crying.
{7:4} I was nursed in swaddling clothes and with great care.
{7:5} For none of the kings had any other beginning of birth.
{7:6} Therefore, there is only one entrance for everyone into life, and the same in leaving.
{7:7} Because of this, I chose, and understanding was given to me; and I prayed, and the spirit of wisdom came to me;
{7:8} and I placed her before kingdoms and thrones, and I considered riches nothing in comparison with her.
{7:9} Neither did I compare to her a precious stone, for all gold in comparison with her is like a little sand, and silver, in view of her, will be valued as if dirt.
{7:10} I loved her above health and beauty, and I placed having her before light, for her light is unfailing.
{7:11} Yet all good things came to me together with her, and innumerable honors by her hand;
{7:12} and I rejoiced in all these, because this wisdom went before me, although I did not know that she is the mother of them all.
{7:13} This I have learned without falsehood and communicate without envy, and her integrity I do not hide.
{7:14} Indeed, she is an infinite treasure chest for men, and those who make use of it, become partakers in the friendship of God, because they are recommended by the gifts of instruction.
{7:15} Yet God has given to me to speak my mind, and to conceive thoughts worthy of those things that are given to me, because he is the leader of wisdom and the repairer of understanding.
{7:16} For in his hand are both we, and our words, and all wisdom, and the works of science, and instruction.
{7:17} For he has given me true knowledge of these things which exist: so as to know the orderly arrangement of the world, and the powers of the elements,
{7:18} the beginning and the end and the midpoint of the seasons, the characteristics of changing things, and the divisions of time,
{7:19} the courses of the years, and the orderly arrangement of the stars,
{7:20} the natures of animals, and the rage of wild beasts, the force of winds, and the reasonings of men, the diversities of plants, and the benefits of roots,
{7:21} and all such things as are hidden and unexpected, I have learned; for wisdom, the artisan of all things, taught me.
{7:22} For in her is the spirit of understanding: holy, singular, manifold, subtle, perceptive, lively, chaste, reliable, gracious, loving, good, astute, who forbids nothing beneficial,
{7:23} humane, kind, steadfast, trustworthy, secure, having all virtue, watching for all things and grasping all things with a pure and most delicate understanding of spirit.
{7:24} For wisdom is more active than all active things, yet she reaches everywhere because of her purity.
{7:25} For she is a breath of the virtue of God and a genuine emanation from the purity of the almighty God, and therefore nothing unclean can invade her.
{7:26} Indeed, she is the brightness of eternal light, and the unspotted mirror of the majesty of God, and the image of his goodness.
{7:27} And though she is one, she can do all things; and, unchanging in herself, she renews all things, and throughout the nations she conveys herself to holy souls, establishing them as friends and prophets of God.
{7:28} For God loves none but those who dwell with wisdom.
{7:29} For she is more spectacular than the sun, and above the array of all the stars; compared with the light, she is found to be before it.
{7:30} Indeed, after her comes night, but wisdom will not be overcome by malice.
{8:1} Thus, she reaches mightily from one end all the way to the other, and she orders all things sweetly.
{8:2} I have loved her and searched for her from my youth, and have asked to take her to me as my spouse, and I became a lover of her form.
{8:3} She glorifies her lineage by having companionship with God; yes and of all things, the Lord loves her.
{8:4} For she teaches the teaching of God and is the chooser of his works.
{8:5} And if riches are longed for in life, what is richer than wisdom, which is being served in all things?
{8:6} But if the mind is to be served, who, of all that exists, is a greater artisan than she?
{8:7} And if anyone loves justice, her labors hold great virtues; for she teaches temperance and prudence, justice and virtue, and nothing is more useful in human life.
{8:8} And if one desires a multitude of knowledge, she knows the past and forecasts the future; she knows the subtleties of conversation and the response to arguments; she understands the signs and portents, before the events take place, events both of the present time and of future ages.
{8:9} Therefore, I resolved to take her to me to live together, knowing that she will be a good counselor and will console my thoughts and my weariness.
{8:10} Because of her, I have clarity in the midst of confusion, and honor among the elders in my youth;
{8:11} and I will be found to be astute in judgment, and will be admired in the sight of the mighty, and the faces of leaders will wonder at me.
{8:12} When I am silent, they will wait for me; when I speak, they will respect me; and when I talk for too long, they will put their hands on their mouths.
{8:13} Thus, by means of her, I will have immortality, and I will bequeath an everlasting memorial to those who come after me.
{8:14} I will set the peoples in order, and nations will be subject to me.
{8:15} Hearing me, terrible kings will be afraid; to the multitude, I will be seen as good and valiant in war.
{8:16} When I go into my house, I will repose myself with her, for her conversation has no bitterness, nor her company any tediousness, but only joy and gladness.
{8:17} Thinking these things within myself, and recalling in my heart that immortality is the intention of wisdom,
{8:18} and that in her friendship is good enjoyment, and in the works of her hands are honors without flaw, and in debate with her is understanding, and glory in sharing conversation with her; I went about seeking, so that I might take her to myself.
{8:19} For I was an ingenious boy and had been dealt a good soul.
{8:20} Even more so, being good, I came to have an undefiled body.
{8:21} And since I know that it is not possible to be chaste except as a gift from God, and that it is a point of wisdom to know whose gift it is, I approached the Lord, and I besought him, and I said with my whole heart:
{9:1} “God of my fathers and Lord of mercy, who has made all things with your word,
{9:2} and by your wisdom has established man to have dominion over the creatures which have been made by you,
{9:3} so that he would order the world in equity and justice, and execute judgment with an upright heart,
{9:4} give me wisdom, the handmaiden at your throne, and be unwilling to reject me from among your children,
{9:5} because I am your servant, and the son of your handmaid, a weak man, and short-lived, with limited understanding of judgment and laws.
{9:6} And if someone were perfect among the sons of men, yet if your wisdom was taken away from him, he would be counted as nothing.
{9:7} You have chosen me to be a king of your people, and a judge of your sons and daughters.
{9:8} And you called me to construct a temple on your holy mount, and, in the city of your dwelling, an altar in the likeness of your holy tabernacle, which you have prepared from the beginning.
{9:9} And with you is wisdom, who is familiar with your works, and who was nearby when you made the world, and who knows what is pleasing to your eyes, and who is guided by your teachings.
{9:10} Send her out of your holy heavens and from the throne of your majesty, so that she is with me and labors with me, and I will know what is acceptable with you.
{9:11} For she knows and understands all things, and will lead me soberly in my works, and will guard me by her power.
{9:12} And my works will be acceptable, and I will govern your people justly, and I will be worthy of the throne of my father.
{9:13} For who among men can know the counsel of God? Or who can imagine the will of God?
{9:14} For the thoughts of mortals are timid, and our foresight is uncertain.
{9:15} For the corruptible body weighs down the soul, and this earthy dwelling presses many thoughts upon the mind.
{9:16} And we assess with difficulty the things that are of earth, and we discover with labor the things that are within our view. So who will search out the things that are in heaven?
{9:17} Moreover, who will know your mind, unless you give wisdom and send your holy spirit from on high?
{9:18} And in this way, those who are on earth are corrected in their path, and men learn the things that are pleasing to you.
{9:19} For by wisdom they are saved, who have pleased you, O Lord, from the beginning.”
{10:1} This is he, who was formed first by God, the father of the world, who was alone when created; she preserved him,
{10:2} and led him out of his offense, and gave him the power to maintain all things.
{10:3} After this, when the unjust man withdrew from her in his anger, he perished through anger by the murder of his brother.
{10:4} Because of this, when water destroyed the earth, wisdom healed it again, guiding the just by means of contemptible wood.
{10:5} Moreover, when the nations had conspired together to consent to wickedness, she knew the just, and preserved him without blame before God, and preserved his strength out of mercy for his sons.
{10:6} She freed this just man from the destruction of the impious, fleeing descending fire in the Five Cities,
{10:7} which, as a testimony to their wickedness, is a constantly smoking desolate land, and the trees bear fruit at uncertain times, and a figure of salt stands as a monument to an unbelieving soul.
{10:8} For, in disregarding wisdom, they are fallen, not so much in this, that they were ignorant of good, but that they bequeathed to men a memorial of their foolishness, so that, in the things in which they sinned, they were unable to escape notice.
{10:9} Yet wisdom has freed from sorrow those who are self-observant.
{10:10} She led the just man, this fugitive of his brother’s wrath, by the right ways, and revealed to him the kingdom of God, and gave him the knowledge of holiness, honored him in his labors, and completed his labors.
{10:11} In the midst of encircling deceit, she flowed around him and made him honest.
{10:12} She guarded him from his enemies, and she defended him from seducers, and she gave him a strong conflict so that he might overcome and might know that the power of all things is wisdom.
{10:13} She did not abandon the just man when he was sold, but freed him from sinners; she went down with him into the pit,
{10:14} and she did not abandon him in chains, while she brought him the scepter of the kingdom and power against those who oppressed him, and revealed them to be liars who had dishonored him, and gave him everlasting glory.
{10:15} She freed this just people and the blameless offspring, from the nations that had oppressed them.
{10:16} She entered the soul of the servant of God and stood against dreadful kings in the midst of portents and signs,
{10:17} and she rendered to the just the wages of their labors, and led them along a wondrous way; and she was to them, like a cover by day, and like the light of the stars by night.
{10:18} She carried them through the Red Sea, and led them across a great water.
{10:19} But their enemies, she submerged in the sea, and from the furthest depths, she drew them up. Therefore, the just carried off the spoils of the impious.
{10:20} And they chanted to your holy name, Lord, and they together praised your victorious hand,
{10:21} because wisdom opened the mouth of the mute, and made the speech of infants eloquent.
{11:1} She directed their works in the hands of the holy prophet.
{11:2} They made a path through desolate areas, which were uninhabited, and set up their homes in remote places.
{11:3} They stood firm against the enemy, and vindicated themselves from their adversaries.
{11:4} They thirsted, and they called upon you, and water was given them out of the deepest rock, and respite from thirst out of the hard stone.
{11:5} For through water, their enemies had been punished, by the corruption of their drinking water; and so, among them, when the sons of Israel lacked the abundance they would have had, their enemies rejoiced;
{11:6} yet through water, when they were in need, it turned out well for them.
{11:7} For instead of a fountain, even everlasting in flow, you gave human blood to the unjust,
{11:8} and while they would be crushed into disgrace because of the murdering of infants, you unexpectedly gave your own abundant water,
{11:9} revealing through the thirst, which occurred at that time, how you would exalt your own and would kill their adversaries.
{11:10} For when they were being tested, and even when receiving merciful correction, they knew in what way, when your wrath judged the impious, they would suffer torments.
{11:11} For these, advising like a father, you approved; but the others, interrogating like a severe king, you condemned.
{11:12} For whether absent or present, they were tortured alike.
{11:13} For they had received double: weariness and groaning in the remembrance of things past.
{11:14} For when they paid attention to their punishments, to attend to their own benefit, they called to mind the Lord, admiring the end result.
{11:15} For though they showed scorn by throwing out distorted statements, in the end they were amazed at the result, but this is not the same as thirsting for justice.
{11:16} For according to the thinking of their irrational iniquity, because some, going astray, were worshiping mute serpents and worthless beasts, you sent upon them a multitude of mute beasts for vengeance,
{11:17} so that they might know that by whatever things a man sins, by the same also is he tormented.
{11:18} For it was not impossible for your all-powerful hand, which created the world from unknown material, to send forth upon them a multitude of bears, or fierce lions,
{11:19} or, in anger, beasts of a new kind, massive and strange, either breathing out a fiery vapor, or sending forth an odorous smoke, or shooting horrible sparks from their eyes;
{11:20} whereby, not only wounds would be able to destroy them, but also the very sight would kill them through fear.
{11:21} Yet, even without these, they could have been killed with one breath, suffering persecution of their own making and being scattered by your spirit of virtue; but you have ordered all things in size and number and weight.
{11:22} Though many are strong, you alone always overcome. And who will withstand the strength of your arm?
{11:23} For, like a tiny grain on a scale, just so is the world before you, and like a drop of dew before dawn, which descends upon the earth.
{11:24} But you are merciful to all, because you can do all, and you dismiss the sins of man because of repentance.
{11:25} For you love all things that are, and you hate nothing of the things you have made; for you would not have created or established anything that you hated.
{11:26} For how could anything endure, except by your will? Or what, having been called by you not to exist, would be preserved?
{11:27} Yet you spare all things, because they are yours, O Lord, who loves souls.
{12:1} O how good and gracious, Lord, is your spirit in all things!
{12:2} Therefore, those who wander afield, you correct, and, as to those who sin, you counsel them and admonish them, so that, having abandoned malice, they may believe in you, O Lord.
{12:3} For those ancient inhabitants of your holy land, who you abhorred,
{12:4} because they were doing works hateful to you, through unjust medicines and sacrifices,
{12:5} and the merciless murderers of their own sons, and the eaters of human entrails, and the devourers of blood apart from your community sacrament,
{12:6} and the sellers performing the ceremonies of helpless souls, you willed to destroy by the hands of our parents,
{12:7} so that they might worthily secure the sojourn of the children of God, in the land which is most beloved by you.
{12:8} Yet, so that you were lenient even to these men, you sent wasps, forerunners of your army, so that you might destroy them little by little,
{12:9} not because you were unable to subdue the impious under the just by war or by cruel beasts, or with a harsh word to exterminate them at once,
{12:10} but, in judging by degrees, you were giving them a place of repentance, not unaware that their nation is wicked, and their malice is inherent, and that their thinking could never be changed.
{12:11} For this offspring was accursed from the beginning. Neither did you, fearing anyone, give favor to their sins.
{12:12} For who will say to you, “What have you done?” Or who will stand against your judgment? Or who will come before you as a defender of unfair men? Or who will accuse you, if the nations perish, which you have made?
{12:13} For neither is there any other God but you, who has care of all, to whom you would show that you did not give judgment unjustly.
{12:14} Neither will king or tyrant inquire before you about those whom you destroyed.
{12:15} Therefore, since you are just, you order all things justly, considering it foreign to your virtue to condemn him who does not deserve to be punished.
{12:16} For your power is the beginning of justice, and, because you are Lord of all, you make yourself to be lenient to all.
{12:17} For you reveal power to those who do not believe you to be perfect in power, and you expose the arrogance of those who do not know you.
{12:18} Yet, you are the master of power, since you judge with tranquility, and since you administer us with great reverence; for it is close to you to be used whenever you will.
{12:19} But you have taught your people, through such works, that they must be just and humane, and you have made your sons to be of good hope, because in judging you provide a place for repentance from sins.
{12:20} For even if the enemies of your servants were deserving of death, you afflicted them with great attentiveness, providing a time and a place whereby they would be able to be changed from malice;
{12:21} with what diligence, then, have you judged your sons, whose parents you have given oaths and covenants in good faith!
{12:22} Therefore, while you give us discipline, you give our enemies a multiplicity of scourges, so that in judging we may think on your goodness, and when we are judged, we may hope for mercy.
{12:23} Therefore, also to these, who have lived their life irrationally and unjustly, through these things that they worshiped, you gave the greatest torments.
{12:24} And, indeed, they wandered for a long time in the way of error, valuing those things as gods, which are worthless even among animals, living in foolish irrational behavior.
{12:25} Because of this, you have given a judgment in derision, as if from foolish children.
{12:26} But those who have not been corrected by mockery and chiding, have experienced a judgment worthy of God.
{12:27} For among those who were indignant at their sufferings, which came through those things that they reputed to be gods, when they saw that they would be destroyed by these same things, those who formerly refused knowledge of him, now acknowledged the true God, and, because of this, the end of their condemnation came upon them.
{13:1} But all men are vain, who are not under the knowledge of God, and who, from these good things that are seen, were not able to understand he who is, nor, by paying attention to the works, did they acknowledge he who was the artisan.
{13:2} Instead, they had considered either the fire, or the air, or the atmosphere, or the circle of stars, or the great sea, or the sun and moon, to be the gods that rule the world.
{13:3} If they, being delighted by such sights, supposed them to be gods, let them know how great the Lord of them is in splendor. For he who created all things is the author of beauty.
{13:4} Or, if they wondered at their power and their effects, let them understand by these things, that he who created them is mightier than they are.
{13:5} For, by the greatness of the creation and its beauty, the creator of these will be able to be seen discernibly.
{13:6} Yet, up to this point, the complaint about this is lesser. For perhaps they made a mistake in this, while desiring and seeking to find God.
{13:7} And, indeed, having some familiarity with him through his works, they search, and they are persuaded, because the things that they are seeing are good.
{13:8} But, then again, neither can their debt be ignored.
{13:9} For, if they were able to know enough so that they could value the universe, how is it they did not easily discover the Lord of it?
{13:10} Yet they are unhappy, and their hope is among the dead, for they have called ‘gods’ the works of the hands of men, gold and silver, the inventions of skill, and the likeness of animals, or a useless stone, the work of an ancient hand.
{13:11} Or, it is as if a craftsman, a workman of the forest, had cut straight wood, and, with his expertise, shaved off all of its bark, and, with his skill, diligently fashioned a vessel, practical for use in life,
{13:12} and even the remains of his work were exhausted in the preparation of food;
{13:13} and, from the remainder of this, which has become useful for nothing, a curved piece of wood and full of knots, he diligently carves it in his spare time, and, through the knowledge of his art, forms it and makes it in the image of a man,
{13:14} or something comparable to an animal, thoroughly rubbing it with red ochre, to make it red with the color of the pigment, and to cover every imperfection which is in it;
{13:15} and it is as if he made a fitting resting place for it, even setting it in a wall and fastening it with iron,
{13:16} providing for it, lest it should fall, knowing that it is unable to help itself, for it is an image and it is in need of help.
{13:17} And then, making an offering, he inquires about his wealth, and about his sons, and about marriage. And he is not ashamed to talk to that which has no soul.
{13:18} And for health, indeed, something unhealthy is being prayed to, and for life, he petitions what is dead, and for help, he calls upon something helpless,
{13:19} and for a good journey, he entreats that which is unable to walk, and for acquiring, and for working, and for success in all things, he entreats that which is useless in all things.
{14:1} Again, another, thinking to sail, and beginning to make his voyage through the raging waves, calls upon a piece of wood more fragile than the wood that carries him.
{14:2} For this is what desire has contrived to be acquired, and the craftsman has formed its understanding.
{14:3} But your providence, O Father, governs, because you have provided for both a way in the sea and a very reliable path among the waves,
{14:4} revealing that you are able to save out of all things, even if someone were to go to sea without skill.
{14:5} But, so that the works of your wisdom might not be empty, therefore, men trust their souls even to a little piece of wood, and, crossing over the sea by raft, they are set free.
{14:6} But, from the beginning, when the proud giants were perishing, the hope of the world, fleeing by boat, gave back to future ages a seed of birth, which was governed by your hand.
{14:7} For blessed is the wood through which justice is made.
{14:8} But, through the hand that makes the idol, both it, and he who made it, is accursed: he, indeed, because it has been served by him, and it, because, though it is fragile, it is called ‘god.’
{14:9} But the impious and his impiety are similarly offensive to God.
{14:10} For that which is made, together with him who made it, will suffer torments.
{14:11} Because of this, and according to the idolatries of the nations, there will be no refuge, for the things created by God have been made into hatred, and into a temptation to the souls of men, and into a snare for the feet of the foolish.
{14:12} For the beginning of fornication is the search for idols, and from their invention comes corruption of life.
{14:13} For they neither existed from the beginning, nor will they exist forever.
{14:14} For by the great emptiness of men they came into the world, and therefore their end is soon discovered.
{14:15} For a father, embittered with the suffering of grief, made an image of his son, who had been suddenly taken away from him, and then, he who had died as a man, now begins to be worshiped as if a god, and so rites and sacrifices are established among his servants.
{14:16} Then, in the course of time, iniquity gains strength within this erroneous custom, so that this error has been observed as if it were a law, and this figment has been worshiped at the command of tyrants.
{14:17} And those, whom men could not openly honor because they were far off, a likeness of them was carried from far off, and from it they made a similar image of the king that they wanted to honor, so that, by their solicitude, they might worship he who was absent, just as if he were present.
{14:18} Yet, it passes into their care, and those whom they did not know, they love because of the excellence of the artist.
{14:19} For he, wishing to please the one who hired him, embellished his art, so as to fashion a better likeness.
{14:20} But the multitude of men, brought together by the beauty of the work, now considered him to be a god, whom they had formerly honored as a man.
{14:21} And this was the deception of human life: that men, serving either their own inclination or their kings, assigned the unutterable name to stones and wood.
{14:22} And it was not enough for them to go astray concerning the knowledge of God, but also, while living in a great war of ignorance, they call so many and such great evils ‘peace.’
{14:23} For either they sacrifice their own sons, or they make dark sacrifices, or they hold vigils full of madness,
{14:24} so that now they neither protect life, nor preserve a clean marriage, but one kills another through envy, or grieves him by adultery.
{14:25} And all things are mixed together: blood, murder, theft and fraud, corruption and infidelity, disturbances and perjury, disorder within good things,
{14:26} forgetfulness of God, pollution of souls, alteration of procreation, inconstancy of marriage, unnatural adultery and homosexuality.
{14:27} For the worship of unspeakable idols is the cause, and the beginning and the end, of all evil.
{14:28} For they either act with madness while happy, or they insistently speak wild lies, or they live unjustly, or they are quick to commit perjury.
{14:29} For, while they trust in idols, which are without a soul, vowing evil, they hope not to be harmed themselves.
{14:30} Therefore, from both sides it will fittingly happen, because they have thought evil of God, paying attention to idols, and because they have sworn unjustly, in guile despising justice.
{14:31} For swearing is not virtue, but sinning always comes around to a punishment according to the transgression of the unjust.
{15:1} But you, our God, are gracious and true, patient, and in mercy ordering all things.
{15:2} And, indeed, if we sin, we are yours, knowing your greatness; and, if we do not sin, we know that we are counted with you.
{15:3} For to have known you is perfect justice, and to know justice and your virtue is the root of immortality.
{15:4} For the skillful planning of evil men has not led us into error, nor the shadow of a picture, a fruitless labor, an image having been sculpted through the use of diverse colors,
{15:5} the sight of which gives desire to the foolish, and he loves the likeness of a lifeless image without a soul.
{15:6} Deserving are the lovers of evil, those who hope in such things, and those who make them, and those who love them, and those who promote them.
{15:7} But even the potter, pressing laboriously, molds the soft earth into vessels, each one for our use. And from the same clay he molds vessels, those which are for clean use, and similarly, those which are for the opposite. But, as to what is the use of a vessel, the potter is the judge.
{15:8} And with effort he molds an empty god of the same clay, he who a little before had been made from the earth, and, after brief time, he himself returns from whence he came, to be claimed by he who holds the debt of his soul.
{15:9} Yet his concern is, not what his work will be, nor that his life is short, but that he is being contested by those who work with gold and silver, yet he also does the same to those who work with copper, and he glories that he makes worthless things.
{15:10} For his heart is ashes, and his hope is worthless dirt, and his life is more common than clay,
{15:11} because he ignores the One who molded him, and who instilled in him a working soul, and who breathed into him a living spirit.
{15:12} Yet they even considered our life to be a plaything, and the usefulness of life to be the accumulation of wealth, and that we must be acquiring things in every possible way, even from evil.
{15:13} For, above all else, he knows himself to be lacking, who, from fragile material of the earth forms vessels and graven images.
{15:14} For all the foolish and unhappy, in charge of the way of the arrogant soul, are enemies of your people and rule over them,
{15:15} because they have esteemed all the idols of the nations as gods, which neither have the use of eyes to see, nor noses to draw breath, nor ears to hear, nor the fingers of hands to grasp, and even their feet are slow to walk.
{15:16} For man made them, and he who borrowed his own breath, formed them. For no man will be able to form God in the likeness of himself.
{15:17} For, being mortal, he forms a dead thing with his unjust hands. Yet, he is better than those things that he worships, because he indeed has lived, though he is mortal, but they never have.
{15:18} Moreover, they worship the most miserable animals, for, to make a foolish comparison, these others are worse.
{15:19} But not even from their appearance can anyone discern anything good in these animals. Yet they have fled from the praise of God, and from his blessing.
{16:1} Because of this, and by means of things similar to these, they were allowed to endure fitting torments, and they were exterminated by a multitude of beasts.
{16:2} Instead of these torments, you administered your people kindly, giving them a desire for a new taste from your delights, and preparing quails for their food,
{16:3} so that, even those desiring food, because of those things which were sent and revealed to them, were now turned away from a necessary desire. Yet these, after a brief time, having become weak, tasted a new food.
{16:4} For it was necessary, though they are without excuse, for them to unexpectedly come upon the ruin of exercising tyranny, yet this was as if to show them how their enemies were being exterminated.
{16:5} And so, when fierce beasts overcame them in anger, they were exterminated by the bites of perverse snakes.
{16:6} But your anger did not continue forever, though they were troubled for a short time for their correction, they have a sign of salvation as a remembrance of the commandment of your law.
{16:7} For he who turned to it was not healed by what he saw, but by you, the Savior of all.
{16:8} Yet in this you revealed to our enemies that you are he who delivers from all evil.
{16:9} For they were killed by the biting of locusts and flies, and there was found no remedy for their life, because they deserved to be destroyed by such things.
{16:10} But not even the teeth of venomous serpents conquered your sons, for your mercy came to them and healed them.
{16:11} For, in remembrance of your words, they were examined and were quickly saved, for forgetfulness is not engraved into your altar so that they would be unable to obtain your help.
{16:12} And, indeed, neither an herb, nor a poultice, healed them, but your word, O Lord, which heals all.
{16:13} For it is you, O Lord, who holds the power of life and death; you both lead to the threshold of death and you restore.
{16:14} Yet man, indeed, kills his own soul through malice, and when his spirit goes forth, it will not be returned, nor will he call back his soul when it has been received.
{16:15} But it is impossible to escape your hand.
{16:16} For the impious, having refused to know you, have been scourged by the strength of your arm, enduring persecution by unusual waters, and by hailstorms, and by rain storms, and being consumed by fire.
{16:17} For there was something extraordinary in water, which extinguishes all things; it has prevailed more than fire; for the world is the defender of the just.
{16:18} Indeed, at a certain time, the fire was subdued, so as not to burn away the animals, which were sent against the impious; and so that, in seeing this, they might know that they are suffering persecution by the judgment of God.
{16:19} And, at another time, fire burned, beyond its own power, in the midst of water, and it flared up from all around, so as to destroy the nations of an unjust land.
{16:20} Instead of these things, you nourished your people with the food of angels, and, having prepared bread from heaven, you served them without labor that which holds within itself every delight and the sweetness of every flavor.
{16:21} For your nature showed your sweetness, which you hold within your sons, and serving the will of each one, it was converted to what each one preferred.
{16:22} But snow and ice held back the strength of fire, and did not melt, so that they might know that fire, burning in the hail and flashing in the rain, destroyed the fruits of the enemies.
{16:23} Yet it was also the case, so that the just might be nourished, that fire had even been deprived of its own power.
{16:24} For the creature serving you, the Creator, grows red hot in the midst of the conflict against the unjust, and yet it subsides for the benefit of those who trust in you.
{16:25} Because of this, and at that time, having been transfigured in all things, your grace was diligently serving as the nursemaid of all things, according to the will of those who long for you,
{16:26} so that your sons, whom you loved, O Lord, might know that it is not the fruits of nature which feed men, but your word, which preserves those who believe in you.
{16:27} For that which could not be destroyed by fire, was immediately melted when warmed by a few rays of the sun,
{16:28} so that it might be clear to all that it is right to come before the sun to bless you, and to adore you at the dawning of the light.
{16:29} For the hope of the ungrateful will melt away like the winter’s ice and will disperse like overflowing water.
{17:1} For your judgments, O Lord, are great, and your words are indescribable. Therefore, undisciplined souls have wandered astray.
{17:2} For, while they managed to convince the unjust, so as to obtain dominion over the holy nation, they themselves were fettered with chains of darkness and of endless night, enclosed in their houses, fugitives of everlasting providence, lying in ruins.
{17:3} And, while they thought to escape notice in their secret sins, they were scattered under a dark veil of oblivion, being horribly afraid, and having been disturbed with great astonishment.
{17:4} For neither did the cave which enclosed them preserve them from fear, because descending noises disturbed them, and the sorrowful persons appearing to them intensified their fear.
{17:5} And, indeed, even fire had no strength to provide them light, nor could the clear flames of the stars illuminate that horrible night.
{17:6} Yet there appeared to them a sudden fire, filled with fear; and, having been struck with the fear of that face which is unseen, they considered those things which they did see to be worse,
{17:7} and, having been ridiculed, the illusions were removed from their arts along with their contemptuous rebuke of glorious wisdom.
{17:8} Indeed, those who promised to drive away fears and disturbances from a languishing soul, though they were filled with derision, were themselves languishing in fear.
{17:9} And, even if nothing unnatural disturbed them, yet being agitated by the passing of animals and the hissing of snakes, they died of fear, denying what they themselves saw even in the air, which no one thinks to be able to escape.
{17:10} For, while there may be apprehension with wickedness, it gives testimony to condemnation, for a troubled conscience always forecasts harshness.
{17:11} For fear is nothing else but unfaithfulness to thinking helpful things.
{17:12} And, while expectation is driven from within, the cause of this is supposing that one is great in knowledge, and as a result, conflict excels.
{17:13} Yet those who were truly powerless that night, being overcome by both the vilest and the deepest hell, were sleeping the same sleep,
{17:14} sometimes stirred up by the fear of unnatural things, other times sinking down in disgrace of soul, for a sudden and unexpected fear overcame them.
{17:15} Then, if any among them had fallen away, he was kept in a prison without bars which had been left open.
{17:16} For if a farmer, or a shepherd, or a worker in a field of labor were suddenly overcome, he endured an inescapable necessity.
{17:17} For they were all bound together with one chain of darkness. Or if there were a whistling wind, or the sweet sound of birds among the thick tree branches, or the force of water rushing excessively,
{17:18} or the strong noise of rocks crashing down, or the scattering of playful animals having been seen, or the strong voice of bellowing beasts, or the resounding of the highest mountain echo, these things made them sink down because of fear.
{17:19} For the whole world was enlightened with a clear light, and none were being hindered in their labors.
{17:20} But then, the heavy night was placed over the sun for them, an image of that darkness which was about to overcome them. Yet they were more grievous to themselves than was the darkness.
{18:1} But your saints were your greatest light, and they heard your voice, but did not see your form. And because they themselves did not also suffer the same things, they praised you greatly.
{18:2} And those who were wounded before, gave thanks, because they were no longer being wounded, and because they had petitioned for this gift, that there would be this difference.
{18:3} Because of this, they had a burning column of fire as a guide on the unknown way, and you displayed a harmless sun of a good hospitality.
{18:4} The others, indeed, deserved to be deprived of the light and to endure a prison of darkness, who watched for an opportunity to imprison your sons, by whom the incorruptible light of the law was beginning to be given to future generations.
{18:5} When they thought to kill the babes of the just, one son having been exposed and set free, to their disgrace, you took away a multitude of their sons and destroyed them all together in a mighty water.
{18:6} For that night was known beforehand by our fathers, so that, knowing the truth of the oaths in which they had trusted, they might be more peaceful in their souls.
{18:7} Yet your people received not only the salvation of the just, but also the destruction of the unjust.
{18:8} For just as you wounded our adversaries, so also did you greatly esteem calling us forth.
{18:9} For the just children of goodness were secretly offering sacrifice, and in agreement they administered the law of justice, so that both good and bad would be able to receive justice, and so that you might now approve of their chanting to the father.
{18:10} On the other hand, a dissimilar voice was resounding from the enemies, and a lamentable wailing was heard for the children who were being cried over.
{18:11} But the same punishment afflicted the servant with the master, and the common man endured the same as the king.
{18:12} Therefore, all were the same, with one name for death, and the dead were innumerable. For neither were the living sufficient to bury the dead, because, with a single effort, their most illustrious nation was exterminated.
{18:13} For they would not believe anything because of the drugs; then truly, at the beginning, when the extermination of the firstborn happened, they pledged the people to belong to God.
{18:14} For, when a quiet silence surrounded all things, and when the course of the night was passing the middle of its journey,
{18:15} your almighty word from heaven leapt down from your royal throne, as a fierce warrior in the midst of the land of extermination,
{18:16} as a sharp sword carrying your unfeigned authority, and standing, filled all things with death, and, standing on the earth, reached all the way up to touch heaven.
{18:17} Then, incessant visions of nightmares disturbed them, and unexpected fears overcame them.
{18:18} And another was thrown down elsewhere half-alive; and so, by means of that which was dying, the cause of death was revealed.
{18:19} For the visions that disturbed them had forewarned of these things, lest they should perish and not know why they suffered these evils.
{18:20} Yet, at that time, the trial of death touched even the just, and there was a disturbance of the multitude in the wilderness, but your wrath did not continue for long.
{18:21} For a blameless man, prospering, is to be entreated for your people, bringing forth the shield of your service, through prayer and incense, making prayerful supplication, he withstands anger, and so establishes an end to the necessary difficulty, revealing that he is your servant.
{18:22} Yet he outlasted the disturbance, not by virtue of the body, nor by force of arms, but, with a word, he subdued those who were troubling him, commemorating the oaths and covenant of the parents.
{18:23} For when they were now fallen down dead by heaps one upon another, he stood between them and cut off their attack, and he divided those who controlled the path to the living.
{18:24} For, within the garment of shame which he held, the world was all together, and the great deeds of the parents were engraved on four orders of stones, and your majesty was engraved on the crown of his head.
{18:25} Yet he who was exterminating yielded even to those he frightened. For one trial of wrath was sufficient.
{19:1} But the impious, all the way to the very end, were overcome by anger without mercy. Indeed, he knew beforehand even their future.
{19:2} Yet, seeing that they might have repented, so that they would be led by him and be sent forth with great concern, the just sought the impious, while regretting their deeds.
{19:3} For, while the just were still holding grief in their hands and weeping at the tombs of the dead, these others took upon themselves another senseless thought, and they cast out the legislators and pursued them as if they were fugitives.
{19:4} For a fitting necessity was leading them to this end, and they were losing the remembrance of those things which had happened, so that what was lacking in the sufferings of the conflict might be completed by the punishment,
{19:5} and so that your people, indeed, might wonderfully pass through, but these others might find a new death.
{19:6} For every creature according to its kind was fashioned again as from the beginning, diligently serving your teachings, so that your children would be preserved unharmed.
{19:7} For a cloud overshadowed their camp, and where water was before, dry land appeared, and in the Red Sea, a way without hindrance, and out of the great deep, a level field sprung up,
{19:8} through which the whole nation passed, protected by your hand, seeing your miracles and wonders.
{19:9} For they consumed food like horses, and they leapt about like lambs, praising you, O Lord, who had freed them.
{19:10} For they were still mindful of those things which had happened during the time of their sojourn, how, instead of cattle, the earth brought forth flies, and instead of fish, the river cast up a multitude of frogs.
{19:11} And, lastly, they saw a new kind of bird, when, being led by their desire, they demanded a feast of meat.
{19:12} For, to console their loss, the quail came up to them from the sea, and yet troubles overcame the sinners, though they were not without the evidence of what had happened before by the power of lightning, for they suffered justly according to their own wickedness.
{19:13} And indeed, they set up a more detestable inhospitality. Certainly, some have refused to receive unknown foreigners, but these others were drafting good guests into servitude,
{19:14} and not only foreigners, but also those who had been under their care, because they were reluctantly sheltering the outsiders.
{19:15} Yet whoever had sheltered them with gladness, by making use of the very same justice, they afflicted with the most severe sorrow.
{19:16} Yet they were struck with blindness, like someone brought before the gates of justice, so that they were suddenly covered with darkness, and each one was left searching for the threshold of his front door.
{19:17} For the elements in themselves are in the process of being changed, just as when the sound of a musical instrument is being altered in quality, yet each one keeps its own sound, from where it is considered to be and according to its fixed appearance.
{19:18} For the countryside was transformed by water, and things which were swimming, crossed over the land.
{19:19} Fire prevailed in the midst of water, beyond its own power, and the water forgot its quenching nature.
{19:20} On the other hand, the flames did not trouble the bodies of the mortal animals walking around, nor did they melt that good food, which is as easily melted as ice. For in all things, O Lord, you magnified your people, and honored them, and did not despise them, but at every time and in every place, you assisted them.
{P:1} The wisdom of many great things has been revealed to us through the law, and the prophets, and the other books that followed these. Concerning these things, Israel ought to be praised, because of doctrine and wisdom. For it is necessary, not only for those who are speaking, but even for outsiders, to be skillful, both in speaking and in writing, so as to become very learned.
{P:2} My grandfather Jesus, after he gave himself fully to a diligent reading of the law, and the prophets, and the other books that were handed down to us by our ancestors, also wanted to write something himself, about the things that pertain to doctrine and wisdom, so that those who desire to learn and to become skillful in these things would be more and more attentive in mind, and would be strengthened to live according to the law.
{P:3} And so, I exhort you to approach with benevolence, and to perform the reading with attentive study, and to be forbearing in these things when we may seem, while pursuing the image of wisdom, to fall short in the composition of words.
{P:4} For the Hebrew words are deficient when they have been translated into another language.
{P:5} And not only these words, but also the law itself, and the prophets, and the remainder of the books, have no small difference from when they have been spoken in their own language.
{P:6} For in the time of king Ptolemy Euergetes, in the thirty-eighth year after I had arrived in Egypt, after I had been there for a long time, I found, left behind there, books with a doctrine neither small nor contemptible.
{P:7} And so I considered it to be both good and necessary for me to apply some significant diligence and labor in order to translate this book.
{P:8} Then, after much attentiveness to doctrine over a length of time, I brought to a close the things being considered, so as to offer this book for those who are willing to apply their mind and to learn how they ought to conduct their way of life,
{P:9} for those who have decided to form their life in accord with the law of the Lord.
{1:1} All wisdom is from the Lord God, and has always been with him, and is before all time.
{1:2} Who has numbered the sand of the sea, and the drops of the rain, and the days of the world? Who has measured the height of heaven, and the breadth of the earth, and the depth of the abyss?
{1:3} Who has examined the wisdom of God, which precedes all things?
{1:4} Wisdom was created before all things, and the understanding of prudence is before all time.
{1:5} The Word of God on high is the source of wisdom, whose steps are eternal commandments.
{1:6} To whom has the root of wisdom been revealed, and who has recognized her astuteness?
{1:7} To whom has the discipline of wisdom been revealed and made manifest? And who has understood the multiplicity of her steps?
{1:8} The most high omnipotent Creator is One, and he is the mighty King, and he is exceedingly to be feared, sitting upon his throne, and he is the sovereign God.
{1:9} He created wisdom through the Holy Spirit, and he saw her, and numbered her, and measured her.
{1:10} And he poured her over all his works, and over all flesh, to the extent of his favor, and he has offered her to those who love him.
{1:11} The fear of the Lord is glory, and honor, and rejoicing, and a crown of exultation.
{1:12} The fear of the Lord will delight the heart, and will give joy and gladness and length of days.
{1:13} It will be well, in the very end, for him who fears the Lord, and on the day that he passes away, he will be blessed.
{1:14} The love of God is honorable wisdom.
{1:15} And those to whom she will appear for their consideration love her because of what they see and know of her great works.
{1:16} The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and was created with the faithful in the womb, and walks with elect women, and is known by the just and the faithful.
{1:17} The fear of the Lord is the sanctity of knowledge.
{1:18} Sanctity will guard and justify the heart, and will bestow happiness and joy.
{1:19} It will be well with him who fears the Lord, and at the consummation of his days, he will be blessed.
{1:20} To fear God is the fullness of wisdom, and it is a fullness from its fruits.
{1:21} She will fill her entire house from her offspring, and storehouses from her treasures.
{1:22} The fear of the Lord is the crown of wisdom, the completion of peace, and the fruit of salvation.
{1:23} And the fear of the Lord has seen and numbered wisdom; but both are gifts of God.
{1:24} Wisdom will distribute knowledge and an understanding of prudence; and she lifts up the glory of those who hold to her.
{1:25} The root of wisdom is to fear the Lord, and its branches are long-lived.
{1:26} In the treasures of wisdom is understanding and the sanctity of knowledge. But to sinners, wisdom is an abomination.
{1:27} The fear of the Lord expels sin.
{1:28} For he who is without fear is not able to be justified. For the disposition of his spirit is his undoing.
{1:29} Those who are patient will suffer for a brief time, and afterwards, happiness will return.
{1:30} A noble mind will hide his words for a brief time, and then the lips of many will declare his understanding.
{1:31} Among the treasures of wisdom is the outward sign of discipline.
{1:32} But to those who sin, the worship of God is an abomination.
{1:33} Son, if you desire wisdom, observe justice, and then God will offer her to you.
{1:34} For the fear of the Lord is wisdom and discipline.
{1:35} And what pleases him is faith and meekness. And so shall he complete his treasures.
{1:36} You should not be incredulous to the fear of the Lord. And you should not draw close to him with a duplicitous heart.
{1:37} You should not be a hypocrite in the sight of men. And you should not scandalize with your lips.
{1:38} Attend to these things, otherwise you may fall and bring dishonor to your soul.
{1:39} And then God may uncover your secrets, and he may cast you down forcefully in the midst of the congregation.
{1:40} For you drew near to the Lord wickedly, and your heart was filled with deceit and falseness.
{2:1} Son, when you apply yourself to the service of God, stand in justice and in fear, and prepare your soul for temptation.
{2:2} Humble your heart, and persevere. Incline your ear, and accept words of understanding. And you should not hurry away in the time of distress.
{2:3} Endure steadfastly for God. Join yourself to God, and persevere, so that your life may increase in the very end.
{2:4} Accept everything that will happen to you, and persevere in your sorrow, and have patience in your humiliation.
{2:5} For gold and silver are tested in fire, yet truly, acceptable men are tested in the furnace of humiliation.
{2:6} Believe God, and he will restore you to health. And straighten your way, and hope in him. Observe his fear, and grow old in it.
{2:7} You who fear the Lord, wait for his mercy. And do not turn away from him, lest you fall.
{2:8} You who fear the Lord, believe in him. And your reward will not be taken away.
{2:9} You who fear the Lord, hope in him. And mercy will approach you, to your delight.
{2:10} You who fear the Lord, love him. And your hearts will be illuminated.
{2:11} My sons, consider the nations of men, and know that not one of them hoped in the Lord and was confounded.
{2:12} For who has remained in his commandment and been abandoned? Or who has called upon him, and yet he despised him?
{2:13} For God is upright and merciful, and he will forgive sins in the day of tribulation. And he is the Protector to all those who seek him in truth.
{2:14} Woe to the duplicitous heart, and to the wicked lips, and to the hands that do evil, and to the sinner who walks the earth by two ways!
{2:15} Woe to the dissolute in heart, who do not trust God! For, as a result, they will not be protected by him.
{2:16} Woe to those who have lost endurance, and who have abandoned upright ways, and who have turned aside to depraved ways!
{2:17} And what will they do when the Lord begins to examine them?
{2:18} Those who fear the Lord will not be unbelieving toward his Word. And those who love him will keep to his way.
{2:19} Those who fear the Lord will seek the things that are well-pleasing to him. And those who love him will be filled with his law.
{2:20} Those who fear the Lord will prepare their hearts, and they will sanctify their souls in his sight.
{2:21} Those who fear the Lord keep his commandments, and they will have patience even until his examination,
{2:22} saying: “If we do not do penance, then we will fall into the hands of the Lord, and not into the hands of men.”
{2:23} For according to his greatness, so also is his mercy with him.
{3:1} The sons of wisdom are the Church of the just: and their generation is obedience and love.
{3:2} Sons, listen to the judgment of your father, and act accordingly, so that you may be saved.
{3:3} For God has honored the father in the sons, and, when seeking the judgment of the mother, he has confirmed it in the children.
{3:4} He who loves God will plead with him on behalf of sins, and will keep himself away from sin, and will be heeded in the prayers of his days.
{3:5} And, like one who stores up treasure, so also is he who honors his mother.
{3:6} He who honors his father will find happiness in his own children, and he will be heeded in the day of his prayer.
{3:7} He who honors his father will live a long life. And he who obeys his father will be a refreshment to his mother.
{3:8} He who fears the Lord honors his parents, and he will serve them as masters, for it is they who conceived him.
{3:9} In word and deed, and in all things, honor your father with patience,
{3:10} so that a blessing may come to you from him, and so that his blessing may remain to the very end.
{3:11} The blessing of the father strengthens the houses of the sons; but the curse of the mother uproots even its foundation.
{3:12} Do not boast in the disgrace of your father; for his shame is not your glory.
{3:13} For the glory of a man is from the honor of his father, and a father without honor is a discredit to the son.
{3:14} Son, support your father in his old age, and do not grieve him in his life.
{3:15} And if his mind should fail, show kindness; and do not spurn him when you are in your strength. For almsgiving to the father will never be forgotten.
{3:16} For even in return for the sin of the mother, good will be repaid to you.
{3:17} And you will be built up in justice, and you will be remembered in the day of tribulation. And your sins will dissolve like ice in warm weather.
{3:18} What an evil form has he who forsakes his father! And whoever exasperates his mother is accursed by God.
{3:19} Son, perform your works in meekness, and you shall be loved beyond the glory of men.
{3:20} However great you may be, humble yourself in all things, and you will find grace in the presence of God.
{3:21} For only the power of God is great, and he is honored by the humble.
{3:22} You should not seek the things that are too high for you, and you should not examine the things that are beyond your ability. But as for the things that God has entrusted to you, consider these always. But you should not be curious in too many of his works.
{3:23} For it is not necessary for you to see with your own eyes the things that are hidden.
{3:24} In unnecessary matters, do not choose to be an examiner of many different things, and you should not be curious about too many of his works.
{3:25} For many things have been revealed to you, beyond the understanding of men.
{3:26} Yet uncertainty in these things has also undermined many persons and has detained their minds in vanity.
{3:27} A hardened heart will have evil in the very end, and he who loves peril will perish in it.
{3:28} A heart advancing in two directions will not have success, and the depraved heart will be scandalized in this way.
{3:29} A wicked heart will be burdened with sorrows, and a sinner will add further sins.
{3:30} The synagogue of the arrogant will not be healed. For the stalk of sinfulness will take root in them, and it will not be understood.
{3:31} The heart of the wise is understood by wisdom, and a good ear will listen to wisdom with all its desire.
{3:32} A wise and understanding heart will abstain from sins, and will have success in works of justice.
{3:33} Water extinguishes a burning fire, and almsgiving withstands sins.
{3:34} And God is the watchman for him who repays a kindness. He remembers him afterwards, and in the time of his fall, he will find a firm support.
{4:1} Son, you should not cheat the poor out of alms, nor should you avert your eyes from a poor man.
{4:2} You should not despise the hungry soul, and you should not aggravate a poor man in his need.
{4:3} You should not afflict the heart of the needy, and you should not delay an offer to someone in anguish.
{4:4} You should not make requests of one who is greatly troubled, and you should not avert your face from the indigent.
{4:5} You should not avert your eyes from the needy out of anger. And you should not abandon those who seek help from you, so that they speak curses behind your back.
{4:6} For the pleadings of him who speaks curses of you, in the bitterness of his soul, will be heeded. For the One who made him will heed him.
{4:7} Make yourself a friend to the congregation of the poor, and humble your soul before an elder, and humble your head before the great.
{4:8} Turn your ear without sadness toward the poor, and repay your debt, and respond to him peacefully in meekness.
{4:9} Free him who suffers injury at the hand of the arrogant, and do not carry animosity in your soul.
{4:10} In judging, be merciful to the orphan, like a father, and be merciful to their mother, like a husband.
{4:11} And then you shall be like an obedient son of the Most High, and he will take pity on you more than a mother would.
{4:12} Wisdom breathes life into her sons, and she lifts up those who are seeking her, and she will precede them in the way of justice.
{4:13} And he who loves her loves life. And those who watch for her shall embrace her delights.
{4:14} Those who hold to her will inherit life. And whatever place she enters, God will bless.
{4:15} Those who serve her will yield to what is holy. And God loves those who love wisdom.
{4:16} He who listens to her shall judge the nations. And he who gazes upon her will remain secure.
{4:17} If he believes in her, he will inherit her, and whatever arises from him will be confirmed.
{4:18} For she walks with him through temptation, and she chooses him from the beginning.
{4:19} She will lead fear and dread and trials over him, and she will crucify him with the tribulation of her doctrine, until she has tested him in his thoughts and she can trust in his soul.
{4:20} And then she will strengthen him, and lead him along a straight path, and rejoice in him.
{4:21} And she will disclose her secrets to him, and she will store up treasure, of the knowledge and understanding of justice, in him.
{4:22} But if he has wandered astray, she will leave him behind, and she will deliver him into the hands of his enemy.
{4:23} Son, be continually observant, and keep away from evil.
{4:24} For the sake of your soul, you should not be ashamed to speak the truth.
{4:25} For there is a shame that brings sin, and there is a shame that brings glory and grace.
{4:26} You should not accept a face contrary to your own face, nor should you accept a lie contrary to your own soul.
{4:27} You should not enjoy the fall of your neighbor.
{4:28} Neither should you withhold words at an opportunity for salvation. You should not conceal your wisdom in her beauty.
{4:29} For wisdom is discerned within speech. And understanding and knowledge and doctrine are discerned in the words of those who understand and by their steadfastness in the works of justice.
{4:30} You should not contradict a word of truth in any way. Otherwise, by a falsehood born of ignorance, you will be confounded.
{4:31} You should not be ashamed to confess your sins, but do not subject yourself to any man because of sin.
{4:32} Do not choose to stand against the face of the powerful, for you should not strive against the current of the river.
{4:33} Suffer for justice, on behalf of your soul, and struggle, even unto death, on behalf of justice, and God will fight against your enemies on your behalf.
{4:34} Do not choose to be quick with your words, nor unproductive or neglectful in your works.
{4:35} Do not choose to be like a lion in your house, distressing those of your household, and oppressing those who are subject to you.
{4:36} Do not let your hand be open when receiving, but closed when giving.
{5:1} Do not choose to seek iniquitous possessions, and you should not say: “I have all I need in life.” For it will be of no benefit to you in the time of retribution and darkness.
{5:2} You should not pursue, in your strength, the desires of your heart.
{5:3} And you should not say: “How powerful am I?” or, “Who will cast me down because of my deeds?” For God will vindicate with vengeance.
{5:4} You should not say, “I sinned, and what grief has befallen me?” For the Most High is a patient recompensor.
{5:5} Do not be willing to be without fear concerning a forgiven sin, and you should not add sin upon sin.
{5:6} And you should not say: “The compassion of the Lord is great; he will take pity on the multitude of my sins.”
{5:7} For both mercy and wrath go forth quickly from him, and his wrath sets its gaze upon sinners.
{5:8} You should not delay being converted to the Lord, and you should not set it aside from day to day.
{5:9} For his wrath will approach suddenly, and in the time of vindication, he will destroy you.
{5:10} Do not choose to be anxious for unjust wealth. For these things will not benefit you in the day of darkness and retribution.
{5:11} You should not winnow in every wind, and you should not go forth into every path. For so is every sinner proven by his duplicitous tongue.
{5:12} Be steadfast in the way of the Lord and in the truth of your understanding and knowledge, and let words of peace and justice overtake you.
{5:13} Be meek when listening to a word, so that you may understand. And offer a true response in wisdom.
{5:14} If you understand, then answer your neighbor. But if you do not, then let your hand be over your mouth, so that you are not caught by an inept word, and then confounded.
{5:15} Honor and glory are in the words of those who understand, yet truly, the tongue of the imprudent man is his undoing.
{5:16} You should not be called a whisperer, and you should not be caught by your own tongue, and then confounded.
{5:17} For confusion and remorse is upon a thief, and a wicked mark is upon the double-tongued; but for the whisperer, there is hatred and animosity and disgrace.
{5:18} Justify the small and the great similarly.
{6:1} Do not be willing to become an enemy instead of a friend to your neighbor. For an evil man will inherit reproach and disgrace, as will every sinner who is envious and double-tongued.
{6:2} You should not extol yourself, like a bull, in the thoughts of your soul, lest perhaps your strength may be cast down through foolishness,
{6:3} which would consume your leaves, and destroy your fruit, and leave you behind like a dry tree in the desert.
{6:4} For a wicked soul will destroy the one who has it. For it gladly provides enemies to him, and it will lead him to the fate of the impious.
{6:5} A sweet word multiplies friends and mitigates enemies. And thankful words abound in a good man.
{6:6} Allow many to be at peace with you, but allow one out of a thousand to be your counselor.
{6:7} If you would obtain a friend, test him before you accept him, and do not trust him readily.
{6:8} For there is a friend according to his own time, but he will not remain in the day of tribulation.
{6:9} And there is a friend who can be turned to animosity. And there is a friend who will reveal hatred and ridicule and insults.
{6:10} And there is a friend who is a companion at table, but he will not remain in a day of need.
{6:11} A friend, if he remains steadfast, will be to you as you are to yourself, and he will act with faithfulness among those of your household.
{6:12} If he humbles himself before you and hides himself from your face, you shall have a noble and harmonious friendship.
{6:13} Distance yourself from your enemies, and pay attention to your friends.
{6:14} A faithful friend is a strong shelter, and whoever has found one has found a treasure.
{6:15} Nothing is comparable to a faithful friend, and no weight of silver or gold is worth more than the goodness of his fidelity.
{6:16} A faithful friend is a medicine for life and immortality; and those who fear the Lord will find one.
{6:17} He who fears God will have a similar good friendship, because his friend will be like him.
{6:18} Son, from your youth receive instruction, and then you will find wisdom, even to your grey hairs.
{6:19} Approach wisdom like one who plows and sows, and then wait for her good fruits.
{6:20} For in doing her work, you will labor a little, but you will soon eat from her produce.
{6:21} How exceedingly harsh is wisdom to unlearned men! And so, the witless will not remain with her.
{6:22} She will be to them like a great stone of trial, and they will cast her away from them without delay.
{6:23} For the wisdom of doctrine is in accord with her name, and she is not manifest to many. But she continues with those by whom she is recognized, even in the sight of God.
{6:24} Listen, son, and accept an understanding counsel, for you should not discard my advice.
{6:25} Set your feet in her fetters and your neck in her chains.
{6:26} Incline your shoulder, and carry her, for you will not be grieved by her bindings.
{6:27} Approach her with all your soul, and serve her ways with all your strength.
{6:28} Examine her, and she will be revealed to you, and when you have obtained her, you should not abandon her.
{6:29} For, in the very end, you will find rest in her, and she will turn into your delight.
{6:30} Then her fetters will be a strong protection and a firm foundation for you, and her chains will be a robe of glory.
{6:31} For in her is the beauty of life, and her bindings are a healing bandage.
{6:32} You will be clothed with her as with a robe of glory, and you will set her upon your head like a crown of rejoicing.
{6:33} Son, if you heed me, you will learn. And if you adapt your mind, you will be wise.
{6:34} If you incline your ear, you will receive doctrine. And if you love to listen, you will be wise.
{6:35} Stand among the multitude of prudent elders, and join yourself to their wisdom from the heart, so that you may be able to hear every discourse about God, and so that the proverbs of praise may not flee from you.
{6:36} And if you see a man of understanding, stand watch for him, and let your feet wear down the steps of his doors.
{6:37} Set your thoughts on the precepts of God, and be entirely constant in his commandments. And he himself will give a heart to you, and the desire of wisdom will be given to you.
{7:1} Do not choose to do evil, and evil will not take hold of you.
{7:2} Withdraw from the iniquitous, and evil will withdraw from you.
{7:3} Son, do not sow evil in the furrows of injustice, and you will not reap them sevenfold.
{7:4} Do not seek a role of leadership from the Lord, and do not seek a seat of honor from the king.
{7:5} You should not justify yourself before God, for he is the Knower of hearts. And by no means should you wish to seem wise before the king.
{7:6} Do not seek to become a judge, unless you have sufficient strength to shatter iniquities. Otherwise, you might fear the face of the powerful, and so establish a scandal within your integrity.
{7:7} You should not sin against the multitude of a city, nor should you cast yourself against the people.
{7:8} And you should not bind two sins together. For even in one sin, you will not go unpunished.
{7:9} Do not be cowardly in your soul.
{7:10} You should not be unwilling to beg, nor to give alms.
{7:11} You should not say: “God will look with favor on the multitude of my gifts, and when I make an offering to the most high God, he will accept my gift.”
{7:12} You should not ridicule a man in bitterness of soul. For there is One who humbles and who exalts: the all-seeing God.
{7:13} Do not love a lie against your brother, nor should you act the same toward your friend.
{7:14} Do not be willing to devise a lie of any kind. For the practice of lying is not good.
{7:15} Do not choose to be verbose among a multitude of elders, and you should not repeat the words of your prayers.
{7:16} You should not hate laborious works, nor the rustic life created by the Most High.
{7:17} You should not consider yourself to be among the multitude of the undisciplined.
{7:18} Remember wrath. For it will not be delayed.
{7:19} Humble your spirit greatly. For the retribution against the flesh of the impious is with fire and worms.
{7:20} Do not betray your friend for the sake of money, and you should not spurn your dearest brother for the sake of gold.
{7:21} Do not choose to depart from a good and understanding wife, whom you have been allotted in the fear of the Lord. For the grace of her modesty is above gold.
{7:22} You should not harm the servant whose works are honest, nor the hired hand who entrusts his life to you.
{7:23} Let an understanding servant be loved by you like your own soul. You should not cheat him out of freedom, nor abandon him to destitution.
{7:24} Are cattle yours? Tend to them. And if they are useful, let them remain with you.
{7:25} Are sons yours? Instruct them, and bow them down from their childhood.
{7:26} Are daughters yours? Watch over their bodies. And you should not display a light-hearted attitude toward them.
{7:27} Give your daughter in marriage, and give her to an understanding man, and you will be doing a great work.
{7:28} If a wife in accord with your soul is yours, you should not reject her. But do not entrust yourself to her who is hateful.
{7:29} With your whole heart, honor your father. And you should not forget the complaints of your mother.
{7:30} Remember that you would not have been born except through them. And so, give back to them as they also have done for you.
{7:31} With all your soul, fear the Lord, and consider his priests to be holy.
{7:32} With all your strength, love him who made you, and you should not abandon his ministers.
{7:33} Honor God from your whole soul, and confer honor on the priests, and continue to purify yourself with your strength.
{7:34} Give them their portion, just as it has been commanded of you, from the first-fruits and from the purifications. And for your ignorant offenses, purify yourself with a smaller offering.
{7:35} You should offer to the Lord the gift of your strength, and the sacrifice of sanctification, and the first-fruits of what is holy.
{7:36} And reach out your hand to the poor, so that your atonement and your blessing may be perfected.
{7:37} A gift has grace in the sight of all the living, but you should not prohibit grace for the dead.
{7:38} You should not fail to console those who are weeping, nor to walk with those who are mourning.
{7:39} Do not let yourself be slow to visit the sick. For in this way, you will be confirmed in love.
{7:40} In all your works, remember your very end, and so you will not sin, unto eternity.
{8:1} You should not quarrel with a powerful man, lest perhaps you may fall into his hands.
{8:2} You should not contend with a wealthy man, lest perhaps he may bring an action against you.
{8:3} For gold and silver have destroyed many, and have reached and corrupted even the hearts of kings.
{8:4} You should not quarrel with a man who is full of words, for you should not cast wood upon his fire.
{8:5} You should not confide in an ignorant man, lest he speak evil about your family.
{8:6} You should not despise a man who turns himself away from sin, nor reproach him with it. Remember that we are all subject to correction.
{8:7} You should not spurn a man in his old age. For we are all subject to growing old.
{8:8} Do not be willing to rejoice at the death of your enemy, knowing that we all die, and that we do not want others to rejoice over us.
{8:9} You should not despise the discourse of those who are old and wise; instead, ponder their proverbs.
{8:10} For from them, you will learn wisdom and intelligent doctrine, so as to serve great men without blame.
{8:11} Do not allow the discourse of your elders to pass you by. For they have learned from their fathers.
{8:12} And from them, you will learn understanding, and you will learn what response to give in a time of necessity.
{8:13} You should not kindle the coals of sinners by arguing with them. For you might be scorched by the flame from the fire of their sins.
{8:14} You should not stand against the face of a contemptuous person, otherwise he may sit down as if waiting in ambush against your words.
{8:15} You should not lend to a man who is stronger than you. But if you do lend, consider it lost.
{8:16} You should not promise beyond your ability. But if you do promise, consider how to fulfill it.
{8:17} You should not judge against a judge. For he judges according to what is just.
{8:18} You should not go forth on the way with an audacious man, lest perhaps he may burden you with his evils. For he goes forth according to his own will, and you will perish with him in his folly.
{8:19} You should not start a conflict with an angry man, and you should not go into the desert with an audacious man. For shedding blood is nothing to him, and in a place where there is no help for you, he will overthrow you.
{8:20} You should not hold counsel with the foolish. For they are not able to love anything except what pleases them.
{8:21} You should not take counsel in the sight of an outsider. For you do not know what he will do next.
{8:22} You should not reveal your heart to every man, lest perhaps he may offer a false kindness to you, and then speak reproachfully about you.
{9:1} You should not be jealous of the wife of your bosom, lest she reveal, because of you, the malice of a wicked lesson.
{9:2} You should not give authority over your soul to a woman, lest she obtain your strength, and then you would be confounded.
{9:3} You should not look with favor on a woman with many desires, lest perhaps you may fall into her traps.
{9:4} You should not be continually in need of entertainment, nor should you be persuaded by it, lest perhaps you may perish by its effectiveness.
{9:5} You should not stare at a virgin, lest perhaps you may be scandalized by her beauty.
{9:6} You should not give your soul, in any way, to fornicators, lest you destroy yourself and your inheritance.
{9:7} Do not choose to look around in the streets of the city, nor should you wander along its thoroughfares.
{9:8} Avert your face from an ornate woman, for you should not gaze upon strange beauty.
{9:9} Many have perished because of the beauty of a woman; and by this, desire is kindled like a fire.
{9:10} Every woman who is a fornicator will be trampled down, like the filth in the street.
{9:11} Many, by admiring the beauty of the wife of another, have become reprobate. For familiarity with her flares up like a fire.
{9:12} You should not sit down at all with another man’s wife, nor recline with her on a couch.
{9:13} And you should not argue with her over wine, lest perhaps your heart may turn toward her, and by your emotion, you would be toppled into perdition.
{9:14} You should not abandon an old friend. For a new one will not be similar to him.
{9:15} A new friend is like new wine. It will grow old, and then you will enjoy drinking it.
{9:16} You should not envy the glory and wealth of a sinner. For you do not know what may be his undoing in the future.
{9:17} The injury of the unjust should not please you, knowing that, until they are in hell, the impious will not please.
{9:18} Keep yourself far from a man having the power to kill, and then you will not have the fear of death suspended over you.
{9:19} But if you do approach him, do nothing to offend, lest perhaps he may take away your life.
{9:20} Know that this is a communion with death. For you would be entering the midst of snares, and walking upon the arms of the grieving.
{9:21} According to your ability, be cautious of your neighbor, and treat him as the wise and prudent would.
{9:22} Let just men be your companions, and let your glory be in the fear of God.
{9:23} And let the thought of God be in your mind, and let all your discourse be on the precepts of the Most High.
{9:24} Works will be praised for the hands of the artists, and a leader of the people will be praised for the wisdom of his words, yet truly, the word of the elders will be praised for its understanding.
{9:25} A man full of words is a dread to his city, but one who speaks rashly will be hated for his word.
{10:1} A wise judge will judge his people, and the leadership of an understanding man will be steadfast.
{10:2} As the judge of the people is, so also are his assistants. And whatever kind of man the ruler of a city is, of such a kind also are those who live in it.
{10:3} A foolish king will be the ruin of his people. For cities will be inhabited through the understanding of those with power.
{10:4} Power over the earth is in the hand of God, and, in due time, he will raise up a helpful leader over the earth.
{10:5} The prosperity of a man is in the hand of God, and he will place his honor above the face of the scribe.
{10:6} You should forget all injury done to you by your neighbor, and you should do nothing among the works of injury.
{10:7} Arrogance is hateful in the sight of God and of men. And all iniquity among the nations is abominable.
{10:8} A kingdom is transferred from one people to another because of injustices, and injuries, and contempt, and every kind of deceit.
{10:9} But nothing is more wicked than a greedy man. Why should that which is earth and ashes be arrogant?
{10:10} There is nothing more iniquitous than to love money. For such a one has sold even his own soul. For in his life, he casts aside his innermost being.
{10:11} All power is of short life. A prolonged sickness is of grave concern to a physician.
{10:12} A physician causes a sickness to be shortened. So also, a king is here today, and tomorrow he will die.
{10:13} For when a man dies, he will inherit serpents, and wild beasts, and worms.
{10:14} The beginning of the arrogance of man is apostasy from God.
{10:15} For his heart has withdrawn from the One who made him. For arrogance is the beginning of all sin. Whoever holds to it, will be filled with evil words, and it will overthrow him in the end.
{10:16} Because of this, the Lord has dishonored the gatherings of the evil, and he has destroyed them, even unto the end.
{10:17} God has destroyed the seats of arrogant leaders, and he has caused the meek to be seated in their place.
{10:18} The roots of arrogant nations, God has dried up, and the humble among these nations, he has planted.
{10:19} The Lord has overthrown the lands of the Gentiles, and he has utterly destroyed them, even to their foundation.
{10:20} He has dried up some of them, and he has utterly destroyed them, and he has caused their memory to depart from the earth.
{10:21} God has abolished the memory of the arrogant, and he has left behind only the memory of those who are humble in mind.
{10:22} Arrogance was not created for men, nor was an angry temperament created for the gender of women.
{10:23} Those who fear God among the offspring of men will be honored. But those among the offspring who ignore the commandments of the Lord will be dishonored.
{10:24} In the midst of his brothers, a ruler has honor. And those who fear the Lord will have honor in his eyes.
{10:25} The fear of God is the glory of the wealthy, and of the honorable, and of the poor.
{10:26} Do not choose to despise a just man who is poor, and do not choose to magnify a sinful man who is rich.
{10:27} The great man, and the judge, and the powerful have honor. But no one is greater than he who fears God.
{10:28} Those who are free will serve an understanding servant. And a prudent and disciplined man will not murmur at correction. But an ignorant man will not be honored.
{10:29} Do not choose to extol yourself in doing your work, and do not be unproductive during the time of distress.
{10:30} He who works, and so abounds in all things, is better than he who boasts, and so lacks bread.
{10:31} Son, preserve your soul in meekness, and give it honor according to its merit.
{10:32} Who will justify one who sins in his soul? And who will honor one who dishonors his soul?
{10:33} The poor man is glorified by his discipline and fear. And there is a man who is honored because of his substance.
{10:34} But if someone is glorified in poverty, how much more in substance? And whoever is glorified in substance, let him fear poverty.
{11:1} The wisdom of one who is humble will exalt his head, and will cause him to sit down in the midst of great men.
{11:2} You should not praise a man for his beauty, and you should not despise a man for his appearances.
{11:3} The bee is small among flying things, but its fruit holds the summit of sweetness.
{11:4} You should not glory in clothing at any time, and you should not let yourself be extolled in the day of your honor. For the works of the Most High alone are wondrous; and glorious and hidden and unseen are his works.
{11:5} Many tyrants have sat upon a throne, and one whom no one would admire has worn a diadem.
{11:6} Many powerful men have been powerfully cast down, and the illustrious have been handed over into the hands of others.
{11:7} Before you inquire, you should not place blame on anyone; and when you have inquired, reprove justly.
{11:8} Before you listen, you should not respond a word; and you should not interrupt in the middle of a discourse.
{11:9} You should not contend in a matter which does not concern you, and you should not sit in judgment together with sinners.
{11:10} Son, you should not be involved in many matters. And if you become rich, you will not be free from transgression. For if you pursue, you will not apprehend; and if you run ahead, you will not escape.
{11:11} There is an impious man who labors and hurries and grieves, but all the more will he be without abundance.
{11:12} There is a debilitated man in need of recovery, who is lacking in strength and abundant in poverty.
{11:13} Yet the eye of God has looked with favor upon him for his benefit, and he has lifted him up from his humiliation, and he has exalted his head. And many have wondered at him, and they have honored God.
{11:14} Good things and misfortune, life and death, poverty and wealth, are from God.
{11:15} Wisdom, and discipline, and knowledge of the law are with God. Love and the ways of good things are with him.
{11:16} Error and darkness have been created by sinners. And those who exult in evil, grow old in evil.
{11:17} The gift of God remains with the just man, and his advancement will have success unto eternity.
{11:18} There is one who is enriched by spending sparingly, and this is the extent of his reward.
{11:19} About this, he says: “I have found rest for myself, and now I alone will eat from my goods.”
{11:20} But he does not know how much time will pass before death approaches, and then he must leave everything behind to others and die.
{11:21} Stand fast in your covenant, and become familiar with it, and grow old in the work of your commandments.
{11:22} You should not spend time in the works of sinners. Instead, trust in God and remain in your own place.
{11:23} For it is easy, in the eyes of God, to make a pauper suddenly rich.
{11:24} The blessing of God hurries to reward the just man, and in a fleeting hour his advancement bears fruit.
{11:25} You should not say: “What do I need?” or, “What good will there be for me in this?”
{11:26} You should not say: “I have enough for myself,” or, “What could be worse than this?”
{11:27} In a day of good things, you should not be forgetful of misfortunes. And in a day of misfortunes, you should not be forgetful of good things.
{11:28} For it is easy, in the sight of God, on the day of one’s passing, to repay each one according to his ways.
{11:29} The affliction of an hour causes one to forget great delights, and in the end of a man is the uncovering of his works.
{11:30} You should not praise any man before death. For a man is known by his children.
{11:31} You should not bring every man into your house. For many are the snares of the deceitful.
{11:32} For as a stomach with a bad smell vomits, and as a partridge is led into a cage, and like a deer led into a snare, so also is the heart of the arrogant. And it is like a bystander watching his neighbor fall.
{11:33} For it lies in ambush, and then turns good into evil, and it will place the blame on the elect.
{11:34} From one spark, a great fire grows; and from one deceitful man, much blood flows. But a very sinful man lies in ambush for blood.
{11:35} Pay close attention to yourself before a harmful man, for he fabricates evils. Otherwise, he may lead over you a whispered reproach unceasingly.
{11:36} Receive a stranger to yourself, and he will overthrow you with a whirlwind, and he will alienate you from what is your very own.
{12:1} If you do good, know to whom you do it, and there will be many thanks for your good deeds.
{12:2} Do good to the just, and you will find great recompense, and if not from him, certainly from the Lord.
{12:3} For there is no good for someone who is always occupied in evil, or who does not give alms. For the Most High holds hatred for sinners, but he takes pity on the repentant.
{12:4} Give to the merciful, and you should not assist the sinner. For the impious and the sinner will be repaid with the vengeance being held for them on the day of retribution.
{12:5} Give to the good, but you should not receive from a sinner.
{12:6} Do good to the humble, but you should not give to the impious; withhold your bread, do not give it to him, otherwise he may overpower you with it.
{12:7} For you will find twice the evil for all the good you will have done to him. For the Most High also holds hatred for sinners, and he will repay vengeance to the impious.
{12:8} A friend will not be known in good times, and an enemy will not be hidden in adversity.
{12:9} By the good fortune of a man, his enemies are grieved; and by his misfortune, a friend is revealed.
{12:10} You should never trust your enemy. For his wickedness rusts like a brass pot.
{12:11} And if he humbles himself and goes about bowed down, increase your alertness and guard yourself from him.
{12:12} You should not sit down anywhere near him, nor should you allow him to sit at your right hand, lest perhaps he may turn toward your place, and seek your seat, and then, in the very end, you would understand my words and be stung by my sermon.
{12:13} Who will take pity on an enchanter struck by a serpent, or on someone who draws near to wild beasts? And so it is with one who keeps company with an iniquitous man and is involved in his sins.
{12:14} For one hour, he will abide with you. But if you begin to turn aside, he will not permit it.
{12:15} An enemy speaks sweetly with his lips, but in his heart, he waits in ambush, so that he may throw you into a pit.
{12:16} An enemy has tears in his eyes. But if he finds an opportunity, he will not be satisfied with blood.
{12:17} And if misfortunes happen upon you, you will find him there first.
{12:18} An enemy has tears in his eyes, but while pretending to help you, he will dig under your feet.
{12:19} He will shake his head, and clap his hands, and whisper much, and change his expression.
{13:1} Whoever touches pitch will be contaminated by it. And whoever associates with the arrogant will be clothed by arrogance.
{13:2} Whoever associates with those more honorable than himself sets a burden on himself. And so, you should have no fellowship with someone who is wealthier than you.
{13:3} What will the cooking pot have in common with the earthen vessel? And when they collide with one another, one will be broken.
{13:4} The rich man has suffered no injustice, and yet he fumes. But the poor man, though he has been wounded, will remain silent.
{13:5} If you are generous, he will take you up; and when you have nothing, he will cast you aside.
{13:6} If you possess, he will feast with you, and he will empty you, and he will not grieve over you.
{13:7} If he has need of you, he will deceive you; and while smiling, he will give you hope. He will converse with you pleasantly, and he will say: “What is it that you need?”
{13:8} And he will impress you with his foods, until he has drained you two or three times, and in the very end, he will ridicule you. And afterward, when he sees you, he will abandon you, and he will shake his head at you.
{13:9} Humble yourself before God, and wait for his hands.
{13:10} Be careful. Otherwise, having been seduced into foolishness, you will be humiliated.
{13:11} Do not choose to be low in your wisdom, otherwise, having been brought low, you will be seduced into foolishness.
{13:12} If you are invited by someone who is more powerful than you, you should decline. Otherwise, he will invite you all the more.
{13:13} You cannot be rude to him, lest you be pushed away. And you cannot stray far from him, lest you be forgotten.
{13:14} You cannot hold a discussion with him as with an equal. You should not trust his many words. For by much talking, he will probe you, and while smiling, he will question you about your secrets.
{13:15} His cruel mind will store up your words; and he will not spare you from affliction, nor from prison.
{13:16} Be cautious of yourself, and attend diligently to what you are hearing. For you are walking toward your own destruction.
{13:17} Yet truly, while listening to these things, consider it as if it were a dream, and you will awaken.
{13:18} Love God for your entire life, and call upon him for your salvation.
{13:19} Every animal loves its own kind; so also every man loves those closest to himself.
{13:20} All flesh will join with whatever is similar to itself, and every man will associate with whomever is similar to himself.
{13:21} If a wolf would at any time have fellowship with a lamb, so also would a sinner have fellowship with the just.
{13:22} What fellowship does a holy man have with a dog? Or what portion do the wealthy have with the poor?
{13:23} In the desert, the wild donkey is the prey of the lion. So also are the poor the pasture of the rich.
{13:24} And just as humility is an abomination to the arrogant, so also does the rich man abhor the poor man.
{13:25} When a wealthy man has been shaken, he is strengthened by his friends. But when a lowly man has fallen, he is expelled even by those who know him well.
{13:26} When a rich man has been deceived, many will help him recover; he has spoken arrogantly, and yet they justify him.
{13:27} When a poor man has been deceived, in addition he is rebuked; he has spoken with understanding, and no place is given to him.
{13:28} The rich man has spoken, and all remain silent, and they repeat his words, even to the clouds.
{13:29} The poor man has spoken, and they say: “Who is this?” And if he stumbles, they will overthrow him.
{13:30} Substance is good for him who has no sin on his conscience. And poverty is called very wicked by the mouth of the impious.
{13:31} The heart of a man changes his face, either for better or for worse.
{13:32} You will find, with difficulty and much labor, the sign of a good heart and a good face.
{14:1} Blessed is the man who has not slipped because of a word from his mouth, and who has not been stung by grief because of an offense.
{14:2} Happy is he who does not have sadness in his mind, and who has not fallen away from his hope.
{14:3} Substance is senseless for a greedy and stingy man. And what would a spiteful man do with gold?
{14:4} Whoever acquires unjustly, according to his own mind, gathers for others. For another will spend his goods lavishly.
{14:5} Whoever is wicked to himself, to whom will he be good? For he will not take enjoyment in his own goods.
{14:6} Whoever has ill will toward himself, nothing is more worthless than he is. But such is the reward of his wickedness.
{14:7} And if he does good, he does it ignorantly and unwillingly. And in the very end, he realizes his own malice.
{14:8} The eye of the spiteful man is wicked, and he averts his face and despises his own soul.
{14:9} The eye of the greedy man is insatiable in his portion of iniquity. He will not be satisfied until he has consumed his own soul, withering it away.
{14:10} An evil eye is directed at evil things. And he will not be satisfied by bread; instead, he will be needy and grieving at his own table.
{14:11} Son, if you have anything, do good to yourself, and offer worthy oblations to God.
{14:12} Remember that death has not been delayed, and that the covenant of the grave has been revealed to you. For the covenant of this world will pass away in death.
{14:13} Do good to your friend before you die. And according to your ability, extend your hand and give to the poor.
{14:14} Do not cheat yourself out of a good day, and do not let the smallest good gift pass you by.
{14:15} Should you not leave it to others to divide your sorrows and labors by lot?
{14:16} Give, and receive, and justify your soul.
{14:17} Before your passing, accomplish justice. For in death, there is no food to be found.
{14:18} All flesh grows old like the grass, and like the foliage that springs forth from a green tree.
{14:19} Some spring up, and others fall away. Such is the generation of flesh and blood. One is finished, and another is born.
{14:20} Every corruptible work will fail in the end. And its worker will go with it.
{14:21} But every excellent work will be justified. And whoever worked it will be honored by it.
{14:22} Blessed is the man who will abide in wisdom, and who will meditate on her righteousness, and who, in his mind, will consider the circumspection of God.
{14:23} He considers her ways in his heart, and he finds understanding in her secrets. He goes after her like an investigator, and he is constant in her ways.
{14:24} He gazes through her windows, and he listens at her door.
{14:25} He rests next to her house, and, fastening a peg in her walls, he sets up his cottage by her hands. And so, good things will find rest in his cottage as time passes.
{14:26} He will station his sons under her covering, and he will abide under her branches.
{14:27} He will be protected by her covering from the heat, and he will rest in her glory.
{15:1} Whoever fears God will do good. And whoever holds to justice will obtain it.
{15:2} And like an honorable mother, she will meet him, and like a virgin bride, she will receive him.
{15:3} She will feed him with the bread of life and understanding. And she will give him to drink from the water of salvific wisdom. And she will be confirmed in him, and he will not waver.
{15:4} And she will hold to him, and he will not be confounded. And she will exalt him, along with those closest to him.
{15:5} And in the midst of the Church, she will open his mouth, and she will fill him with the spirit of wisdom and understanding, and she will clothe him with a robe of glory.
{15:6} She will store up in him a treasure of rejoicing and exultation, and she will cause him to inherit an everlasting name.
{15:7} But foolish men will not take hold of her. And though understanding men will meet her, foolish men will not catch sight of her. For she is far from arrogance and deceit.
{15:8} Lying men will be wary of her. But men who speak the truth will be found with her, and they will have success, even when examined by God.
{15:9} Praise is not beautiful in the mouth of a sinner.
{15:10} For wisdom was sent from God. And praise will stand before the wisdom of God, and praise will abound in the mouths of the faithful, and the sovereign Lord will give praise to wisdom.
{15:11} You should not say: “It is because of God that wisdom is absent.” For you should not do what he detests.
{15:12} You should not say: “He has led me astray.” For the impious are of no use to him.
{15:13} The Lord hates all abominable error, and those who fear him will not love such things.
{15:14} God established man from the beginning, and he left him in the hand of his own counsel.
{15:15} He added his commandments and precepts.
{15:16} If you choose to keep the commandments, and if, having chosen them, you fulfill them with perpetual fidelity, they will preserve you.
{15:17} He has set water and fire before you. Extend your hand to whichever one you would choose.
{15:18} Before man is life and death, good and evil. Whichever one he chooses will be given to him.
{15:19} For the wisdom of God is manifold. And he is strong in power, seeing all things without ceasing.
{15:20} The eyes of the Lord are upon those who fear him, and he knows each one of the works of man.
{15:21} He has commanded no one to act impiously, and he has given no one permission to sin.
{15:22} For he does not desire a multitude of unfaithful and useless sons.
{16:1} You should not rejoice in impious children, if they are successful; nor should you take delight in them, if the fear of God is not in them.
{16:2} You should not approve of their life, nor should you look with favor on their labors.
{16:3} For one child who fears God is better than one thousand impious children.
{16:4} And it is better to die without children, than to leave behind impious children.
{16:5} By means of one person with understanding, a country will be inhabited. The tribe of the impious will become desolate.
{16:6} Many such things my eyes have seen, and greater things than these my ear has heard.
{16:7} In the synagogue of sinners, a fire will blaze forth; and amid an unbelieving people, wrath will flare up.
{16:8} The giants of antiquity did not obtain pardon for their sins; they were destroyed by trusting in their own abilities.
{16:9} And he did not spare the place of Lot’s sojourn, and he abhorred them because of the arrogance of their words.
{16:10} He did not take pity on them, destroying an entire people, who even extolled themselves concerning their sins.
{16:11} And this was so with six hundred thousand men, who were gathered together in the hardness of their hearts. And if even a single obstinate person had escaped unpunished, it would be a wonder.
{16:12} For mercy and wrath are with him. He is powerful in forgiveness, and he pours forth wrath.
{16:13} As is his mercy, so also is his correction; he judges a man according to his works.
{16:14} The sinner, in his violations, will not escape; but the patience of the One who shows mercy will not be diminished.
{16:15} Every mercy will make a place for each man, according to the merit of his works, and according to the understanding of his sojourn.
{16:16} You should not say: “I am hidden from God,” or, “Who, from on high, will take note of me?”
{16:17} or, “Among a great number of people, I will not be noticed. For what is my soul amid such an immense creation?”
{16:18} Behold: the heavens, and the heaven of the heavens, the abyss, and the entire earth, and the things that are within these, will be shaken by his gaze,
{16:19} together with mountains and hills, and the foundations of the earth. When God casts his gaze upon them, they will be struck with trembling.
{16:20} And concerning all these things, the heart is without understanding; but every heart is understood by him.
{16:21} And who will understand his ways, or the tempest, which no eye of man will see?
{16:22} For many of his works are concealed. But who will announce the works of his justice? Or who will endure them? For the testament is far from some persons, and the examination of each thing is in its end.
{16:23} Whoever diminishes the heart, thinks empty thoughts. For the imprudent and erring man thinks up foolishness.
{16:24} Listen to me, son, and learn the discipline of understanding, and attend to my words in your heart.
{16:25} And I will speak with equity about discipline, and I will strive to announce wisdom. So attend to my words in your heart, and I will speak with equity of spirit, about the virtues that God has set within his works from the beginning, and I will announce his knowledge in truth.
{16:26} With the judgment of God, his works have been done from the beginning; and from their institution, he himself distinguished their parts and set their beginnings, in their kinds.
{16:27} He has beautified their works unto eternity. They have neither hungered, nor labored, and they have not ceased from their works.
{16:28} Neither will any one of them cause anguish to his neighbor, forever.
{16:29} You should not be incredulous at his word.
{16:30} Afterward, God looked with favor upon the earth, and he filled it with his goodness.
{16:31} The soul of every living thing brought word from before his face, and their return again is to him.
{17:1} God created man from the earth, and he made him according to his own image.
{17:2} And he returned him again to it, and he clothed him with virtue according to himself.
{17:3} He gave him the number and time of his days, and he gave him authority over all the things that are upon the earth.
{17:4} He placed the fear of him over all flesh, and he had dominion over wild beasts and flying things.
{17:5} He created from him a helper, similar to himself. He gave them counsel, and language, and sight, and hearing, and a heart, in order to think. And he filled them with the discipline of understanding.
{17:6} He created within them the knowledge of the spirit. He filled their heart with understanding, and he showed them both good and evil.
{17:7} He set his eye upon their hearts, to reveal to them the greatness of his works,
{17:8} so that they might highly praise the name of sanctification, and give glory to his wonders, so that they might declare the greatness of his works.
{17:9} In addition, he gave them discipline and the law of life, as their inheritance.
{17:10} He established an eternal covenant with them, and he revealed to them his justice and judgments.
{17:11} And their eye saw the greatness of his honor, and their ears heard the honor of his voice, and he said to them: “Beware of all iniquity.”
{17:12} And he commanded each one concerning his neighbor.
{17:13} Their ways are always in his sight; they are not hidden from his eyes.
{17:14} Over each and every people, he has appointed a ruler.
{17:15} And Israel was made to be the manifest portion of God.
{17:16} And in the sight of God, all their works are like the sun. And his eyes, without ceasing, inspect their ways.
{17:17} The covenants are not hidden by their iniquity, and all their iniquities are in the sight of God.
{17:18} The almsgiving of a man is like a seal upon him, which will guard the grace of a man like the pupil of an eye.
{17:19} And afterward, it will rise up and repay them their reward, each one upon his head, and it will return to the hidden places of the earth.
{17:20} Now, to the repentant, he has given the way of justice, and he has strengthened those lacking in patience, and he has fastened them to a destiny of truth.
{17:21} Convert to the Lord, and relinquish your sins.
{17:22} Make supplication before the face of the Lord, and diminish your offenses.
{17:23} Return to the Lord, and turn away from your injustice, and have immense hatred for abomination.
{17:24} And acknowledge the justices and judgments of God, and stand firm in the circumstances set before you and in prayer to the most high God.
{17:25} Go to the side of the holy generation, to those who live in order to give praise to God.
{17:26} You should not linger in the error of the impious; confess before death. Confession perishes from the dead as if it were nothing.
{17:27} Confess while living; you should give thanks while you are still alive and healthy. And you should praise God and glory in his compassion.
{17:28} How great is the mercy of the Lord, and his forgiveness, for those who convert to him!
{17:29} For not all things can be in men, because the son of man is not immortal, and because they are pleased by the emptiness of malice.
{17:30} What is brighter than the sun? Yet this will fail. Or what is more wicked than that which flesh and blood has invented? And this will be reproved.
{17:31} He beholds the power of the heights of heaven. And all men are earth and ashes.
{18:1} The One who dwells in eternity created all things together. God alone will be justified, and he remains an invincible King for eternity.
{18:2} Who is able to declare his works?
{18:3} For who can examine his greatness?
{18:4} And who will announce the power of his magnitude? Or who would be able to describe his mercy?
{18:5} There is no diminishing, and no increasing, and there is no discovering, the greatness of God.
{18:6} When man has reached the end, then he will begin. And when he ceases, he will be in need.
{18:7} What is man, and what is his grace? And what is his good, or what is his evil?
{18:8} The number of the days of men are as many as one hundred years. Like a drop of water in the ocean, so they are considered to be. And like a grain of sand on the shore, so do these few years compare to the days of all time.
{18:9} For this reason, God is patient with them, and he pours forth his mercy upon them.
{18:10} He has seen that the presumption of their heart is evil, and he knows that their rebelliousness is wicked.
{18:11} Therefore, he has bestowed his forgiveness on them, and he has revealed to them the way of equity.
{18:12} The compassion of man is toward those closest to him. But the mercy of God is upon all flesh.
{18:13} He is merciful, and he teaches and corrects, like a shepherd with his flock.
{18:14} He takes pity on those who accept the doctrine of compassion, and he applies his judgments promptly.
{18:15} Son, in your good works, you should not complain, and in giving anything, you should not cause grief with evil words.
{18:16} Is heat not refreshed by the dew? So also is a good word better than a gift.
{18:17} Behold, is a word not greater than a gift? But both are with a justified man.
{18:18} The foolish place blame sharply. And a gift from the undisciplined causes the eyes to fail.
{18:19} Before you judge, put justice in order within yourself, and before you speak, learn.
{18:20} Before you become sick, obtain medicine. And before you judge, examine yourself. And then you will find forgiveness in the sight of God.
{18:21} Before you become weak, humble yourself; and in a time of infirmity, show your way of life.
{18:22} Let nothing impede you from praying always. And then you will not dread to be justified, even unto death. For the reward of God dwells in eternity.
{18:23} Before you pray, prepare your soul. And do not choose to be like a man who tempts God.
{18:24} Remember the wrath that will be on the day of consummation, and remember the time of retribution, when he will turn away his face.
{18:25} Remember poverty in a time of abundance, and remember the deficiency of poverty in a day of riches.
{18:26} From morning until evening, the time will be changed, and all these are swift in the eyes of God.
{18:27} A wise man will be cautious in all things, and during a time of many offenses, he will be attentive against inaction.
{18:28} Anyone who is astute recognizes wisdom, and he will acknowledge anyone who finds it.
{18:29} Those who show understanding with words also have acted wisely themselves, and they have understood truth and justice, and they have fulfilled proverbs and judgments.
{18:30} You should not go after your desires; instead, turn away from your own will.
{18:31} If you offer your desires to your soul, this will cause you to become a joy to your enemies.
{18:32} Take no delight in disorderly gatherings, whether large or small. For their commission of offenses is unceasing.
{18:33} You should not be reduced by the contention of borrowing, even if there is nothing in your purse. For you would be contending against your own life.
{19:1} An inebriated worker will not be wealthy. And whoever despises littleness will fall a little at a time.
{19:2} Wine and women cause wise men to fall away, and then they will complain against those who understand.
{19:3} And whoever joins himself to fornicators will become wicked. Decay and worms will inherit him, and he will be denounced as the greater example, and his soul will be deducted from the number.
{19:4} Whoever is quick to believe has a trivial heart and will be diminished. And whoever offends against his own soul will have even less.
{19:5} Whoever rejoices in iniquity will be condemned. And whoever hates correction will have less in life. But whoever hates excessive talk extinguishes evil.
{19:6} Whoever sins against his own soul will be punished. And whoever rejoices in malice will be condemned.
{19:7} You should not repeat a wicked and harsh word, and then you will not be diminished.
{19:8} Do not reveal your mind to friend or foe. And if there is a sin within you, do not disclose it.
{19:9} For he will listen to you and watch you, and while pretending to defend your sin, he will despise you, and so he will be whenever he is with you.
{19:10} Have you heard a word against your neighbor? Let it die within you, trusting that it will not burst forth from you.
{19:11} Before the face of a word, a foolish man labors, like a woman groaning as she gives birth to a child.
{19:12} Like an arrow fixed in the flesh of the thigh, so is a word in the heart of a foolish man.
{19:13} Correct a friend, though perhaps there was a misunderstanding, and he may say, “I did not do it.” Or, if he did do it, correct him, so that he may not do it again.
{19:14} Correct your neighbor, for perhaps he did not say it. But if he did say it, correct him, so that he may not say it again.
{19:15} Correct your friend. For often a fault has been committed.
{19:16} And do not believe every word. There is one who slips with his word, but not with his heart.
{19:17} For who is there who has not offended with his words? Correct your neighbor before you reprimand him.
{19:18} And make a place for the fear of the Most High. For all wisdom is fear of God, and it is wise to fear God, and in all wisdom is the orderly disposition of the law.
{19:19} But the discipline of wickedness is not wisdom. And there is no prudence in the thoughts of sinners.
{19:20} There is a wickedness, and in it there is abomination. And there is a foolish man who has been diminished in wisdom.
{19:21} Better is a man who has been diminished in wisdom because his mind is failing, but with the fear of God, than he who abounds in intelligence, but with transgression against the law of the Most High.
{19:22} There is a certain cleverness, and it is unjust.
{19:23} And there is one who utters a careful word, explaining away the truth. There is one who humbles himself wickedly, for his interior is filled with deceit.
{19:24} And there is one who lowers himself excessively with a great debasement. And there is one who inclines his face downward, and pretends as if he did not see what has not been made known.
{19:25} And if he is prevented from sinning by a lack of ability, and then finds an opportunity for evildoing, he will do evil.
{19:26} A man is recognized by his appearances. But when you meet an understanding man, he is recognized by his face.
{19:27} The clothing of the body, and the laughter of the teeth, and the walk of a man, give a report about him.
{19:28} There is a lying correction in the anger of a contemptuous man. And there is a judgment which does not prove to be good. But there is one who is silent, and the same is prudent.
{20:1} How much better is it to reprove, than to become angry, so as not to hinder him who may confess in prayer.
{20:2} The lust of an eunuch will deflower a young maiden;
{20:3} similar is he who by violence gives an iniquitous judgment.
{20:4} How good it is, when you are corrected, to show contrition! For in this way, you will escape deliberate sin.
{20:5} There is one who, by remaining silent, is found to be wise. And there is another who is hateful and who provokes by speaking out.
{20:6} There is one who, not having the understanding to speak, remains silent. And there is another who remains silent, knowing the proper time.
{20:7} A wise man will remain silent until the proper time. But an unrestrained and imprudent person will not heed the times.
{20:8} Whoever uses many words will wound his own soul. And whoever unjustly takes authority upon himself will be hated.
{20:9} There is advancement in evil for an undisciplined man, and there is a plan which turns to his detriment.
{20:10} There is a gift which is not helpful, and there is a gift, the repayment for which is double.
{20:11} There is a loss for the sake of boasting, and there is one who will lift up his head from lowliness.
{20:12} There is one who buys much for a small price, and who pays it back sevenfold.
{20:13} Anyone wise in words makes himself loved. But the graces of the foolish will be poured away.
{20:14} A gift from the unwise will not benefit you. For his gaze is divided, sevenfold.
{20:15} He will give little, and reproach much. And the opening of his mouth is like a burning flame.
{20:16} There is one who lends today and demands repayment tomorrow. A man such as this is hateful.
{20:17} A foolish man will not have a friend, and there will be no thanks for his good deeds.
{20:18} For those who eat his bread have a false tongue. How often and how many are those who will ridicule him!
{20:19} For what he possesses, he does not distribute with correct understanding. And he acts similarly with what he does not possess.
{20:20} The slip of a false tongue is like someone who falls upon pavement. Such a fall for the wicked will arrive quickly.
{20:21} A disagreeable man is like a pointless fable; it will be continually in the mouth of the undisciplined.
{20:22} A parable from the mouth of a fool will be rejected. For he does not speak it at the proper time.
{20:23} There is one who is prevented from sinning by poverty, and in his rest, he will be vexed.
{20:24} There is one who will lose his own soul because of pretense, and he will lose it by an example of imprudence. For by seeking the approval of another, he will destroy himself.
{20:25} There is one who, for the sake of what others think, makes a promise to a friend, and so he gains him as an enemy for no reason.
{20:26} A lie is a wicked disgrace to a man, and yet lies will be continually in the mouths of those without discipline.
{20:27} A thief is better than a man who constantly lies. But both of them will inherit perdition.
{20:28} The habits of lying men are without honor. And their shame is with them without ceasing.
{20:29} A wise man will benefit himself by his own words, and a prudent man will please the powerful.
{20:30} Whoever works his land will raise high a stockpile of grain. And whoever works justice will himself be raised high. Yet truly, whoever pleases the powerful will escape unfair treatment.
{20:31} Presents and gifts blind the eyes of judges, and silence their mouths, turning them aside from their task of correction.
{20:32} Wisdom hidden, and treasure unseen: of what use is either of these?
{20:33} He who hides his foolishness is better than a man who conceals his wisdom.
{21:1} Son, have you sinned? You should not add further sins. Then too, for your former sins, pray so that they may be forgiven you.
{21:2} Flee from sins, as if from the face of a serpent. For if you approach them, they will take hold of you.
{21:3} Their teeth are like the teeth of a lion, bringing death to the souls of men.
{21:4} All iniquity is like a two-edged spear; there is no healing in its wound.
{21:5} Reproach and injury will make resources useless. And a house that is exceedingly wealthy will become powerless through pride. In this way, the resources of the arrogant will be eradicated.
{21:6} Supplications from the mouth of the pauper will reach all the way to the ears of God, and judgment will come to him quickly.
{21:7} Whoever hates correction is walking in the steps of a sinner. But whoever fears God will convert within his heart.
{21:8} He who has power by means of a bold tongue will be known from far away. But an understanding man knows to slip past him.
{21:9} Whoever builds his house, paid for by another, is like one who gathers his building stones in winter.
{21:10} The synagogue of sinners is like stubble piled up; for the end of them both is a burning fire.
{21:11} The way of sinners is paved and level, and at their end is hell and darkness and punishments.
{21:12} Whoever observes justice will obtain an understanding of it.
{21:13} The consummation of the fear of God is wisdom and understanding.
{21:14} One who is not wise in goodness will not accept instruction.
{21:15} Now there is a wisdom which abounds in evil. But there is no understanding where there is bitterness.
{21:16} The knowledge of the wise will increase like a flood, and his counsel will continue like a fountain of life.
{21:17} The heart of the foolish is like a broken vessel, for it will not hold any wisdom.
{21:18} A knowledgeable man will praise any wise word he hears, and he will apply it to himself. The self-indulgent man has heard it, and it displeases him, and so he casts it behind his back.
{21:19} The talk of the foolish is like a burden on a journey. But in the lips of the understanding, grace will be found.
{21:20} The mouth of the prudent is sought in the Church, and they will consider his words in their hearts.
{21:21} Like a house which has been demolished, so is wisdom to the foolish. And the knowledge of the unwise is like meaningless words.
{21:22} Doctrine to the senseless is like fetters on the feet, and like chains on the right hand.
{21:23} A foolish man lifts up his voice in laughter. But a wise man will not even laugh quietly to himself.
{21:24} Doctrine is to the prudent like a gold ornament, and like an armband on the right arm.
{21:25} The feet of the foolish step easily into his neighbor’s house. But an experienced man will be apprehensive in the presence of the powerful.
{21:26} A senseless man will gaze through a window into the house. But a man who has been well-taught will stand outside.
{21:27} It is foolish for a man to listen through the door. And a prudent man will be grieved at this disgrace.
{21:28} The lips of the imprudent will describe senseless things. But the words of the prudent will be weighed on a balance.
{21:29} The hearts of the foolish are in their mouths. But the mouths of the wise are with their hearts.
{21:30} Whenever the impious curse the devil, they curse their own soul.
{21:31} Those who whisper accusations defile their own souls, and they will be hated by all. And whoever abides with them will be hateful. The silent and understanding man will be honored.
{22:1} The lazy man is pelted with a dirty stone, and all will speak about his rejection.
{22:2} The lazy man is pelted with the dung of oxen, and all who touch him will brush off their hands.
{22:3} An undisciplined son is the shame of his father, but an undisciplined daughter will be to his degradation.
{22:4} A prudent daughter brings an inheritance to her husband. But she who causes shame will be a disgrace to him who conceived her.
{22:5} She who is bold shames her father and her husband, and she will not be less offensive to the impious. For she will be held in dishonor by both.
{22:6} An untimely explanation is like music in a time of mourning. But the sharp correction and doctrine of wisdom are ever timely.
{22:7} Whoever teaches the foolish is like someone who glues together a broken pot.
{22:8} Whoever explains a word to one who is not listening is like someone who suddenly awakens a sleeping person from a deep sleep.
{22:9} Whoever explains wisdom to the senseless is like one speaking to a sleeping person. And at the end of the explanation, he says: “Who is this?”
{22:10} Weep over the dead, for his light has failed. And weep over the foolish, for his understanding has failed.
{22:11} Weep only a little over the dead, for he is at rest.
{22:12} But the wicked life of a wicked fool is worse than death.
{22:13} The mourning for the dead is seven days; but for the foolish and the impious, it is all the days of their life.
{22:14} You should not talk at length with the foolish, and you should not go with the senseless.
{22:15} Keep yourself from him, so that you may not have problems, and so that you will not be polluted by his sin.
{22:16} Turn away from him, and you will find rest, and you will not be discouraged by his foolishness.
{22:17} What is heavier than lead? And what else can he be called but foolish?
{22:18} Sand, and salt, and an iron weight are each easier to bear than an imprudent man, who is both foolish and impious.
{22:19} A bundle of wood strapped together in the foundation of a building will not be loosened. And similar is the heart that has been strengthened by thoughtful counsel.
{22:20} The thoughts of one who is understanding will not be corrupted by fear in any situation.
{22:21} Just as chaff in a high place, or a wall made of mortar without stones set within, will not continue against the face of the wind,
{22:22} so also a timid heart, and the thoughts of the senseless, will not withstand the forcefulness of fear.
{22:23} Despite a cowardly heart, the thoughts of the foolish will not fear any situation; yet neither will one who continues always in the precepts of God.
{22:24} He who jabs an eye produces tears. And he who jabs the heart produces understanding.
{22:25} He who throws a stone at birds will drive them away. So also, he who accuses his friend dissolves the friendship.
{22:26} But if you have drawn a sword against a friend, you should not despair; for there may be a way back.
{22:27} If you have opened a harsh mouth against a friend, you should not fear; for there may be a reconciliation. However, if there are accusations, or abuse, or arrogance, or the revealing of secrets, or a wound from deceitfulness, in all these cases, a friend will flee away.
{22:28} Hold to faithfulness with a friend in his poverty, so that you may also rejoice in his prosperity.
{22:29} In the time of his tribulation, remain faithful to him, so that you may also be an heir with him in his inheritance.
{22:30} Just as the steam from an oven, or the smoke from a fire, rises up before a flame, so also do curses and insults and threats rise up before bloodshed.
{22:31} I shall not be ashamed to greet a friend, nor shall I hide myself from his face. And if misfortunes befall me because of him, I will endure.
{22:32} Anyone who hears of this will be wary around him.
{22:33} Who will provide a keeper for my mouth, and a reliable seal over my lips, so that I may not fall because of them, and so that my tongue does not destroy me?
{23:1} Lord, Father and Ruler of my life: may you not abandon me to their counsel, nor permit me to fall by them.
{23:2} They would impose scourges over my thoughts and over the discipline of wisdom in my heart. And they would not spare me from their ignorances, nor would they allow their own offenses to become apparent.
{23:3} And they intend that my ignorances would increase, and my offenses be multiplied, and my sins abound. And so I would fall in the sight of my adversaries, and be rejoiced over by my enemy.
{23:4} Lord, Father and God of my life: may you not abandon me to their plans.
{23:5} Do not leave me with the haughtiness of my eyes. And avert all desire from me.
{23:6} Take the desire of the body from me, and do not allow sexual desire to take hold of me, and do not permit an irreverent and senseless mind within me.
{23:7} O sons: listen to the doctrine of my mouth. For those who observe it will not perish by the lips, nor be scandalized into wicked works.
{23:8} A sinner is held by his own emptiness. And the arrogant and those who speak evil will be scandalized by these things.
{23:9} Do not allow your mouth to become accustomed to swearing oaths. For in this, there are many pitfalls.
{23:10} Truly, do not allow the naming of God to be continually in your mouth, and do not treat as if common the names of the holy ones. For you will not escape punishment by them.
{23:11} Just as a servant, continually interrogated, will not be without a bruise, so everyone who swears oaths and takes God’s name will not be entirely free from sin.
{23:12} A man who swears many oaths will be filled with iniquity, and scourges will not depart from his house.
{23:13} And if he fails to fulfill it, his offense will be over him, and if he pretends he fulfilled it, he offends doubly.
{23:14} And if he swears an oath insincerely, he will not be justified. For his house will be filled with retribution for him.
{23:15} There is yet another kind of talk which faces death; let it not be found in the inheritance of Jacob.
{23:16} For all these things will be taken away from the merciful, and they shall not wallow in offenses.
{23:17} Do not allow your mouth to become accustomed to undisciplined speech. For in this, there is the sin of words.
{23:18} When you sit in the midst of great men, remember your father and mother.
{23:19} Otherwise, God may forget you, when you are in their sight, and then you would be repeatedly ridiculed and would suffer disgrace, and you might wish that you had never been born, and you might curse the day of your nativity.
{23:20} The man who is accustomed to disgraceful words will not accept instruction, all the days of his life.
{23:21} Two kinds of persons abound in sins, and a third adds wrath and perdition.
{23:22} A desirous soul is like a burning fire, it will not be quenched, until it devours something.
{23:23} And a man who is wicked in the desires of his flesh will not desist until he has kindled a fire.
{23:24} To a man of fornication, all bread is sweet; he will not tire of transgression, to the very end.
{23:25} Every man who transgresses his own bed has contempt for his own soul. And so he says: “Who can see me?
{23:26} Darkness surrounds me, and the walls enclose me, and no one catches sight of me. Whom should I fear? The Most High will not remember my offenses.”
{23:27} And he does not understand that God’s eye sees all things. For fear within a man such as this drives away from him both the fear of God and the eyes of those men who fear God.
{23:28} And he does not acknowledge that the eyes of the Lord are much brighter than the sun, keeping watch over all the ways of men, even to the depths of the abyss, and gazing into the hearts of men, even to the most hidden parts.
{23:29} For all things, before they were created, were known to the Lord God. And even after their completion, he beholds all things.
{23:30} This man will be punished in the streets of the city, and he will be chased like a young horse. And in a place that he does not suspect, he will be captured.
{23:31} And because he did not understand the fear of the Lord, he will be in disgrace before all men,
{23:32} as will be every woman, too, who abandons her husband and establishes an inheritance by marriage to another man.
{23:33} For first, she was unbelieving of the law of the Most High. Second, she offended against her husband. Third, she fornicated by adultery, and so established her children by another man.
{23:34} This woman will be led into the assembly, and she will be stared at by her children.
{23:35} Her children will not take root, and her branches will not produce fruit.
{23:36} She will leave behind her memory as a curse, and her infamy will not be wiped away.
{23:37} And those who are left behind will acknowledge that there is nothing better than the fear of God, and that there is nothing sweeter than to have respect for the commandments of the Lord.
{23:38} It is a great glory to follow the Lord. For length of days will be received from him.
{24:1} Wisdom will praise her own mind, and she will be honored by God, and she will be glorified in the midst of her people.
{24:2} And she will open her mouth in the churches of the Most High, and she will be glorified in the sight of his virtue.
{24:3} And in the midst of her own people, she will be exalted. And she will be admired by the holy assembly.
{24:4} And she will have praise within the multitude of the elect. And she will be blessed among the blessed. And she will say:
{24:5} “I went forth from the mouth of the Most High, as the first-born before all creatures.
{24:6} I caused an unfailing light to arise in the heavens. And I covered all the earth like a cloud.
{24:7} I lived in the highest places, and my throne is in the pillar of a cloud.
{24:8} I alone have encompassed the circuit of heaven, and have penetrated to the depths of the abyss, and have walked upon the waves of the sea,
{24:9} and have stood upon the whole earth. And among every people,
{24:10} and in every nation, I have held primacy.
{24:11} And by virtue, I have tread upon the hearts of all, the great and the lowly. And I have sought my rest in all of them. And I will continue, as the inheritance of the Lord.
{24:12} Then the Creator of all things instructed and spoke with me. And the One who created me rested in my tabernacle.
{24:13} And he said to me: ‘Let your dwelling place be with Jacob, and let your inheritance be in Israel, for you shall take root among my elect.’
{24:14} From the beginning, and before the world, I was created. And even unto the future world, I will not cease to exist. For I have ministered before him in the holy habitation.
{24:15} And in this way, I was established in Zion. And likewise, in the holy city, I found rest. And my authority was in Jerusalem.
{24:16} And I took root among an honorable people, within the portion of my God, within his inheritance. And so my abode is in the full assembly of the saints.
{24:17} I was exalted like a cedar in Lebanon and like a cypress on Mount Zion.
{24:18} I was exalted like a palm tree in Kadesh and like a rose bush in Jericho.
{24:19} I was exalted like a beautiful olive tree in the plains, and like a sycamore tree beside the waters along a wide road.
{24:20} I gave off an aromatic fragrance like cinnamon or balsam. I produced a sweet odor like the best myrrh.
{24:21} And I perfumed my dwelling place with sweet gum, and aromatic resin, and flower petals, and aloe, as well as the finest cedar from Lebanon. And my fragrance is like undiluted balsam.
{24:22} I have extended my branches like a terebinth tree, and my branches are of honor and grace.
{24:23} Like the vine, I have born the fruit of a sweet fragrance. And my flowers are the fruit of honor and integrity.
{24:24} I am the mother of the beauty of love, and of fear, and of knowledge, and of holy hope.
{24:25} All grace of the way and of the truth is in me. All hope of life and of virtue is in me.
{24:26} Journey toward me, all you who desire me, and be filled by my harvest.
{24:27} For my spirit is sweeter than honey, and my inheritance is better than honey and the honeycomb.
{24:28} My memory is for the generations of all ages.
{24:29} Whoever consumes me will hunger still. And whoever drinks me will thirst still.
{24:30} Whoever listens to me will not be confounded. And whoever acts in me will not sin.
{24:31} Whoever elucidates me will have eternal life.”
{24:32} All this is a book of life, and a covenant of the Most High, and an acknowledgement of truth.
{24:33} Moses commanded the law by the precepts of justice, and an inheritance to the house of Jacob, and the promises to Israel.
{24:34} God appointed David as his servant, in order to raise up from him a most mighty King, who would sit upon the throne of honor forever.
{24:35} It is he who fulfills wisdom, like the Phison river and the Tigris river in the first days.
{24:36} It is he who fulfills understanding, like the river Euphrates. It is he who multiplies understanding, like the river Jordan in the time of the harvest.
{24:37} He sends forth discipline like the light, and he stands forth like the river Gehon in the time of the vintage.
{24:38} He first had perfect knowledge of her, for a weaker one would not search for her.
{24:39} For her thoughts abound like the sea, and her counsels abound like the great abyss.
{24:40} “I, wisdom, have poured forth rivers.
{24:41} I am like a brook leading to a river of immense waters. I am like a channel flowing from a river. And I went forth from Paradise like an aqueduct.
{24:42} I said: I will irrigate my garden of plantings, and I will thoroughly water the fruits of my field.
{24:43} And behold, my brook became overflowing, and my river drew near to the sea.
{24:44} For I illuminate doctrine to all, like the first light. And I will announce doctrine, even to those who are far away.
{24:45} I will reach to all the lower parts of the earth, and I will gaze upon all who sleep, and I will illuminate all who hope in the Lord.
{24:46} Even now, I pour forth doctrine like prophecy. And even now, I bequeath doctrine to those who seek wisdom. And I will not cease from their progeny, even unto the holy time.
{24:47} See how I have not labored for myself alone, but for all who are seeking truth!”
{25:1} My spirit is pleased with three things; these are approved in the sight of God and men:
{25:2} the harmony of brothers, and the love of neighbors, and a husband and wife agreeing well together.
{25:3} My soul hates three kinds of things; and I am greatly distressed over their souls:
{25:4} an arrogant pauper, a wealthy liar, a foolish and senseless elder.
{25:5} The things that you have not obtained in your youth, how will you find them in your old age?
{25:6} How beautiful it is for a grey head to have judgment, and for elders to know counsel!
{25:7} How beautiful it is for those who are aged to have wisdom, and for those who are honored to have understanding and counsel!
{25:8} Great experience is the crown of the aged, and the fear of God is their glory.
{25:9} I have magnified nine things, overlooked by the heart; and a tenth, I will declare to men with my tongue:
{25:10} a man who finds joy in his children, and one who lives to see the undoing of his enemies.
{25:11} Blessed is he who lives with a wise wife, and he who has not slipped with his tongue, and he who has not served those unworthy of himself.
{25:12} Blessed is he who finds a true friend, and he who describes justice to an attentive ear.
{25:13} How great is he who finds wisdom and knowledge! But there is no one above him who fears the Lord.
{25:14} The fear of God has set itself above all things.
{25:15} Blessed is the man to whom it has been given to have the fear of God. He who holds to it, to whom can he be compared?
{25:16} The fear of God is the beginning of his love; and the beginning of faith has been joined closely to the same.
{25:17} The sadness of the heart is every wound. And the wickedness of a wife is every malice.
{25:18} And a man will choose any wound, but the wound of the heart,
{25:19} and any wickedness, but the wickedness of a wife,
{25:20} and any obstacle, but the obstacle of those who hate him,
{25:21} and any vindication, but the vindication of his enemies.
{25:22} There is no head worse than the head of a serpent,
{25:23} and there is no anger above the anger of a wife. It would be more agreeable to abide with a lion or a dragon, than to live with a wicked wife.
{25:24} A wicked wife changes her face. And she darkens her countenance like a bear. And she displays it like sackcloth. In the midst of her neighbors,
{25:25} her husband groans, and hearing of this, he sighs a little.
{25:26} All malice is brief compared to the malice of a wife. Let the fate of sinners fall upon her!
{25:27} As climbing over sand is to the feet of the aged, so is a talkative wife to a quiet man.
{25:28} You should not favor a woman’s beauty, and you should not desire a wife for her beauty.
{25:29} The anger and disrespect and shame from a wife can be great.
{25:30} The wife, if she has primacy, is set against her husband.
{25:31} A wicked wife debases the heart, and saddens the face, and wounds the heart.
{25:32} A wife who does not make her husband happy enfeebles the hands and weakens the knees.
{25:33} The beginning of sin came from a woman; and through her, we all die.
{25:34} You should not provide an exit to your water, not even a little; nor should you give permission for a wicked wife to exceed the limit.
{25:35} If she will not walk at your hand, she will confound you in the sight of your enemies.
{25:36} Tear her away from your body, lest she abuse you continually.
{26:1} Blessed is the husband of a good wife. For the number of his years is doubled.
{26:2} A good wife delights her husband, and she will fill up the years of his life with peace.
{26:3} A good wife is a good portion. She will be given the portion of those who fear God, like a man who has done good deeds.
{26:4} But, rich or poor, with a good heart, his countenance will be cheerful at all times.
{26:5} Of three things, my heart has been afraid, and at a fourth, my face has shown dread:
{26:6} an accusation made by a city, and the gathering of a mob,
{26:7} and a deceitful false accusation. All these are more grievous than death.
{26:8} A jealous wife is a grief and a mourning to the heart.
{26:9} In a jealous wife, there is a scourge of the tongue, which communicates with everyone.
{26:10} Like a yoke of oxen being provoked, so also is a wicked wife. He who has hold of her is like one who has taken hold of a scorpion.
{26:11} An inebriated wife is a great wrath. And her disgrace and indecency will not be covered.
{26:12} The fornication of a wife will become known by the haughtiness of her eyes and by her eyelids.
{26:13} So that her daughter will not also turn away, keep a strict watch; otherwise, having found an opportunity, she may enjoy herself.
{26:14} Be wary of the irreverence of her eyes, and you should not wonder if she might disregard you.
{26:15} Like a thirsty traveler, she will open her mouth to the fountain, and she will drink from every water nearby, and she will sit down beside every fencepost, and she will open her quiver to every arrow, until she becomes weary.
{26:16} The grace of an attentive wife will delight her husband, and will fatten his bones.
{26:17} Her discipline is a gift from God.
{26:18} Such is an understanding and quiet wife. For there is no substitution for a well-instructed soul.
{26:19} A holy and contrite wife is grace upon grace.
{26:20} And no amount of money is equal to the value of a soul with self-restraint.
{26:21} Like the sun rising over the world in the high places of God, so the beauty of a good wife is the adornment of her house.
{26:22} Like a lamp shining atop a holy lampstand, so is the beauty of a face in the mature stage of life.
{26:23} Like golden pillars upon bases of silver, so are the firm feet of a mature wife upon the soles of her feet.
{26:24} Like everlasting foundations upon a solid rock, so are the commandments of God in the heart of a holy wife.
{26:25} By two things, my heart is greatly saddened, and at a third, anger overwhelms me:
{26:26} a man of war failing because of dire need, and an understanding man treated with contempt,
{26:27} and anyone who crosses over from justice to sin. God has prepared such a one for the spear.
{26:28} Two kinds of things have seemed difficult and dangerous to me: a merchant will not be easily freed from his negligence, and a shopkeeper will not be justified by the sins of his lips.
{27:1} Because of need, many have sinned. And whoever seeks to be enriched, averts his eye.
{27:2} Like a post fixed in the middle of adjoining stones, so also will sin become wedged between selling and buying.
{27:3} Sin will be crushed with the one who sins.
{27:4} If you do not hold yourself steadfastly to the fear of the Lord, your house will be quickly overthrown.
{27:5} Just as the dust remains when one shakes a sieve, so will the doubt of a man remain in his thoughts.
{27:6} The furnace tests the potter’s vessels, and the trial of the tribulation tests just men.
{27:7} As the pruning of a tree reveals its fruit, so does a word reveal the thoughts in the heart of a man.
{27:8} You should not praise a man before he speaks; for such is the testing of men.
{27:9} If you pursue justice, you will obtain it. And you will be clothed with justice, as with a long robe of honor. And you will live with justice. And justice will protect you continually. And on the day of reckoning, you will find a strong foundation.
{27:10} Birds flock to their own kind. And truth will return to those who practice it.
{27:11} The lion lies in wait for its prey continually. So also do sins lie in wait for those who work iniquity.
{27:12} A holy man persists in wisdom like the sun. But a senseless man changes like the moon.
{27:13} In the midst of the senseless, retain a word for the proper time. But be continually in the midst of those who are thoughtful.
{27:14} The discussions of sinners are hateful, and their laughter is a delight in sin.
{27:15} The speech that swears many oaths will cause the hair of the head to stand upright; and its irreverence will cause the ears to be blocked.
{27:16} The shedding of blood is in the quarrels of the arrogant; and their evil talk is grievous to hear.
{27:17} Whoever discloses the secret of a friend breaks faith; and he will not find a friend for his soul.
{27:18} Love your neighbor, and be united with him faithfully.
{27:19} But if you disclose his secrets, you should not continue to follow after him.
{27:20} For like a man who destroys his friend, so also is he who destroys the friendship of his neighbor.
{27:21} And like someone releasing a bird from his hand, so have you abandoned your neighbor, and you will not obtain him again.
{27:22} You should no longer seek him, for he is now far away; he has fled like a roe-deer from a snare. For his soul has been wounded.
{27:23} You will no longer be able to bind his wound. For there may be a reconciliation from cursing.
{27:24} But to disclose the secrets of a friend is the hopeless act of an unhappy soul.
{27:25} One who winks with the eye fabricates iniquity, and no one will cast him aside.
{27:26} In the sight of your eyes, he will sweeten his mouth, and he will admire your talk. But at the very end, he will pervert his mouth, and he will offer a scandal from your own words.
{27:27} I have hated many things, but I have not done as he has done, and the Lord will hate him.
{27:28} Whoever throws a stone straight up will find that it falls on his own head. And a deceitful wound will return to wound the deceitful.
{27:29} And whoever digs a pit will fall into it. And whoever positions a stone against his neighbor will stumble over it. And whoever lays a trap for another will perish by it.
{27:30} Whoever sets in motion a wicked plan will find that it rolls back over him, and he will not know from which direction it will arrive.
{27:31} Mockery and derision are of the arrogant, and vengeance will lie in wait for them, like a lion.
{27:32} Whoever enjoys the fall of the just will perish in a snare, and grief will consume them before they die.
{27:33} Anger and fury are both abominable, and the sinful man will be held by them.
{28:1} Whoever wishes for vengeance will find vengeance from the Lord, and he will surely be attentive to his sins.
{28:2} Forgive your neighbor, if he has harmed you, and then your sins will be forgiven you when you pray.
{28:3} A man holds on to anger against another man, and does he then seek a remedy from God?
{28:4} He has no mercy on a man like himself, and does he then entreat for his own sins?
{28:5} He who is but flesh holds on to anger, and does he then request forgiveness from God? Who can obtain pardon for his sins in this way?
{28:6} Remember your very end, and let animosities cease.
{28:7} For corruption and death are suspended over his commandments.
{28:8} Remember the fear of God, and do not be angry with your neighbor.
{28:9} Remember the covenant of the Most High, and overlook the ignorant offenses of your neighbor.
{28:10} Refrain from strife, and you will diminish your sins.
{28:11} For an ill-tempered man enflames conflict, and a sinful man troubles his friends, and he casts hostility into the midst of those who have peace.
{28:12} For the fire burns according to the wood of the forest. And the anger of a man burns according to the strength of the man. And according to his resources, he will exalt his anger.
{28:13} A hasty contention kindles a fire. And a hasty quarrel sheds blood. And an accusatory tongue brings death.
{28:14} If you blow on a spark, it will increase to a fire. But if you spit on it, it will be extinguished. Both of these proceed from the mouth.
{28:15} The double-tongued whisperer is accursed. For he has disturbed many who had peace.
{28:16} A third tongue has stirred up many, and has scattered them from nation to nation.
{28:17} It has destroyed the walled cities of the wealthy, and has undermined the houses of the great.
{28:18} It has cut down the virtues of the peoples, and has broken strong nations.
{28:19} A third tongue has cast down virtuous women, and has deprived them of their labors.
{28:20} Whoever favors it will not have rest, nor will he have a friend in whom he may find peace.
{28:21} The wound of a whip causes a bruise, but the wound of the tongue will crush the bones.
{28:22} Many have fallen by the mouth of the sword, but not as many as have perished by their own tongue.
{28:23} Blessed is he who is protected from a wicked tongue, who has not gone over to its wrath, and has not pulled its yoke, and has not been bound by its chains.
{28:24} For its yoke is a yoke of iron. And its chains are chains of brass.
{28:25} Its death is a most wicked death. And hell is more useful than it is.
{28:26} Its continuance will not be permanent, but it will take hold of the ways of the unjust. And the just will not be burned by its flame.
{28:27} Those who abandon God will fall by it, and it will burn within them and not be quenched. And it will be sent upon them, like a lion, and it will wound them, like a leopard.
{28:28} Hedge your ears with thorns. Do not be willing to listen to a wicked tongue. And make doors and bars for your mouth.
{28:29} Melt down your gold and your silver. And make a scale for your words, and an upright bridle for your mouth.
{28:30} And be attentive, lest perhaps you may slip with your tongue, and fall in the sight of your enemies, who are lying in wait for you, and then your fall may be incurable unto death.
{29:1} He shows mercy who lends to his neighbor, for he keeps the commandments by strengthening him.
{29:2} Lend to your neighbor in his time of need, and receive it again from your neighbor in his time.
{29:3} Keep your word, and act faithfully with him, and then you will find whatever you need in every time.
{29:4} Many have treated a loan like found money, and they offered trouble to those who helped them.
{29:5} Until they receive, they kiss the hands of the giver, and they humble their voice in promises.
{29:6} But at the time of repayment, they will ask for more time, and they will speak annoying and complaining words, and they will make excuses for the time.
{29:7} Then, if he is able to repay, he will turn away. He will pay barely one half, and he will consider it as if he had found it.
{29:8} But if not, then he will defraud him of his money, and he will have him as an enemy without cause.
{29:9} And he will repay him with accusations and curses, and he will repay him with contempt, instead of with honor and kindness.
{29:10} Many have refused to lend, not because of wickedness, but because they were afraid to be defrauded without cause.
{29:11} Yet truly, be more steadfast toward the humble, and you should not delay in acts of mercy toward them.
{29:12} Assist the poor because of the commandment. And you should not send him away empty because of his dire need.
{29:13} Lose your money to your brother and your friend. For you should not hide it under a stone to be lost.
{29:14} Let your treasure be in the precepts of the Most High, and it will benefit you more than gold.
{29:15} Store your alms in the hearts of the poor, and it will obtain help for you against all evil.
{29:16} Better than the shield or the lance of a powerful man,
{29:17} it will fight for you against your enemy.
{29:18} A good man offers credit for the sake of his neighbor. But one who abandons him to himself will perish in shame.
{29:19} You should not forget the kindness of your benefactor. For he has offered his life on your behalf.
{29:20} The sinner and the unclean flee from such promises.
{29:21} A sinner attributes to himself the goods of his loan. And an ungrateful mind will abandon the one who has freed him.
{29:22} A man offers credit to his neighbor. But when he will have lost respect, he will abandon him.
{29:23} A wicked promise has destroyed many who had good intentions, and has tossed them like a wave on the ocean.
{29:24} It has caused powerful men to travel around, and they have wandered amid foreign nations.
{29:25} A sinner transgressing the commandment of the Lord will fall into a wicked promise. And he who undertakes many things will fall into judgment.
{29:26} Help your neighbor to recover according to your ability, but attend to yourself, lest you also fall.
{29:27} The primary need in a man’s life is water and bread, and clothing, and a house to protect modesty.
{29:28} A pauper’s food under a roof of boards is better than a splendid feast on a sojourn away from home.
{29:29} Let yourself be pleased with little instead of much, and you will not hear the reproach of being away from home.
{29:30} It is a wicked life to go from house to house as a guest. For wherever he is a guest, he will not act confidently, nor open his mouth.
{29:31} He will entertain, and feed, and give drink to the ungrateful, and beyond this, he will listen to bitter words:
{29:32} “Go, my guest, and set the table, and let others eat from what you have in your hand.”
{29:33} “Depart from the honored face of my friends. For it has become necessary for my house to host my brother instead.”
{29:34} These things are grievous to a man having understanding: to take advantage of a household, and to reproach a lender.
{30:1} He who loves his son will frequently chastise him, so that he may be happy in the very end, and not grope for the doors of his neighbors.
{30:2} He who instructs his son will be praised over him and will glory in him, in the midst of his household.
{30:3} He who teaches his son will make his enemy jealous, and in the midst of his friends, he will glory in him.
{30:4} When his father has died, it will be as if he were not dead. For he will have left behind someone who is like himself.
{30:5} In his life, he saw him and rejoiced in him. And at his passing, he was not sorrowful, nor was he confounded in the sight of his enemies.
{30:6} For he left behind himself a defender of his house against his enemies, and someone who will repay his friends with kindness.
{30:7} For the sake of the souls of his sons, he will bind up his wounds, and at every voice, his gut will be stirred up.
{30:8} An untamed horse becomes stubborn, and a child left to himself becomes headstrong.
{30:9} Coddle a son, and he will make you afraid. Play with him, and he will make you sorrowful.
{30:10} You should not laugh with him; otherwise you may have grief, and in the end, your teeth will be clenched.
{30:11} You should not give him power in his youth, but you should not despise his thoughts.
{30:12} Bow down his neck in his youth, and slap his sides while he is a child, lest perhaps he may become stubborn, and then he will not trust you, and so he will bring sorrow to your soul.
{30:13} Instruct your son, and work with him, lest you give offense by his shameful behavior.
{30:14} Better is a healthy pauper with a strong constitution, than a wealthy man who is weak and afflicted by maladies.
{30:15} A healthy soul with the sanctity of justice is better than all the gold and silver. And a sound body is better than immense revenues.
{30:16} There is no revenue above the revenue of a healthy body. And there is no delight above a joyful heart.
{30:17} Death is better than a bitter life. And eternal rest is better than continual sickness.
{30:18} Good things hidden in a closed mouth are like seats at a feast placed around a grave.
{30:19} What benefit is there in an offering to an idol? For it can neither eat, nor smell.
{30:20} So is he who flees from the Lord, carrying the wages of his iniquity.
{30:21} He sees with his eyes and groans, like a eunuch who embraces a virgin and sighs.
{30:22} You should not give your soul to sadness, and you should not afflict yourself by your own counsel.
{30:23} The gladness of the heart is the life of a man, and it is a treasure of sanctity without defect. And the exultation of a man is length of life.
{30:24} Take pity on your own soul by pleasing God, and show self-restraint. Gather your heart into his sanctity, and drive sadness far away from yourself.
{30:25} For sadness has killed many, and there is no usefulness in it.
{30:26} Envy and anger will diminish your days, and pensiveness will bring old age before its time.
{30:27} A cheerful and good heart is like a feast. And its feasts are formed by diligence.
{31:1} Watching for wealth consumes the flesh, and thinking about it takes away sleep.
{31:2} Anticipation in thought distracts the mind, and a grievous infirmity makes the soul sober.
{31:3} The rich man has labored in gathering wealth, and in his rest, he will be filled with his goods.
{31:4} The poor man has labored in his lowly way, and in the end, he may still be in need.
{31:5} Whoever loves gold will not be justified. And whoever pursues consumption will be consumed by it.
{31:6} Many have been caused to fall because of gold, and it became their ruin by its beauty.
{31:7} Gold is a stumbling block to those who sacrifice for it. Woe to those who pursue it eagerly, for all the imprudent will perish by it.
{31:8} Blessed is the rich man who is found to be without blemish. And blessed is he who has not gone after gold, nor placed his hope in money or treasures.
{31:9} Who is he? For we should praise him. For he has done wonderful things in his life.
{31:10} He has been tested by it, and has become perfect; he will have eternal glory. He was able to transgress, but he has not transgressed. He was able to do evil, but he has not done evil.
{31:11} Therefore, his good things are established in the Lord, and the entire Church of the saints will proclaim his almsgiving.
{31:12} Are you seated at a great table? You should not open your mouth over it first.
{31:13} You should not speak in this way: “There are many things that are upon it.”
{31:14} Remember that a wicked eye is evil.
{31:15} What has been made more wicked than the eye? Therefore, when it sees, it will shed tears over the entire face.
{31:16} You should not extend your hand first, for then, having been corrupted by envy, you would be ashamed.
{31:17} You should not press forward at a feast.
{31:18} Understand which things are your neighbor’s and not your own.
{31:19} Make use of the things that are set before you, just as a frugal man would. Otherwise, if you eat much, you will be hated.
{31:20} Cease eating first, for the sake of discipline. And do not eat to excess, lest you offend.
{31:21} And if you sit in the midst of many, you should not extend your hand before they do, and you should not be the first to ask for a drink.
{31:22} How sufficient is a little wine for a well-taught man! For in sleep, you will not labor because of it, and you will not feel pain.
{31:23} Worry, and disease, and torment are with an intemperate man.
{31:24} A healthy sleep is with a temperate man. He will sleep until morning, and his soul will be delighted with him.
{31:25} And if you have been coaxed into eating too much, rise up, go outside, and vomit. And it will refresh you, and you will not bring sickness upon your body.
{31:26} Listen to me, son, for you should not spurn me. And in the very end, you will discover my words.
{31:27} In all your works, be prompt, and then no infirmity will befall you.
{31:28} The lips of many will bless the splendid in bread. For the testimony of his truthfulness is faithful.
{31:29} The city will murmur against the wicked in bread. For the testimony against his wickedness is true.
{31:30} Do not choose to provoke those who love wine. For wine has destroyed many.
{31:31} Fire tests the hardness of iron; similarly, drinking wine to inebriation will rebuke the hearts of the arrogant.
{31:32} Drinking wine in sobriety gives a contented life to men. If you drink it in moderation, you will be sober.
{31:33} What is life to him who is diminished by wine?
{31:34} What can cheat him of his life? Death.
{31:35} From the beginning, wine was created for cheerfulness, but not for inebriation.
{31:36} Wine taken in moderation lifts up the mind and the heart.
{31:37} Sober drinking is healthful to mind and body.
{31:38} Wine taken in excess stirs up conflict and anger, and brings many to ruin.
{31:39} Wine taken in excess is bitter to the soul.
{31:40} The effects of inebriation are a stumbling block to the imprudent, diminishing strength and causing wounds.
{31:41} You should not argue with your neighbor during a banquet of wine. And you should not spurn him in his cheerfulness.
{31:42} You should not speak words of reproach to him. And you should not press him with repeated requests.
{32:1} Have they appointed you as a leader? Do not be willing to be extolled. Be among them as one of them.
{32:2} Have concern for them, and in this way sit down with them, and when you have explained all your concerns, sit back.
{32:3} Then you may rejoice because of them, and you may receive a crown as an adornment of grace, and so obtain the dignity of the assembly.
{32:4} Speak, you who are greater by birth. For it is fitting for you
{32:5} to speak the first word with careful knowledge. But you should not hinder the music.
{32:6} Where no one is listening, you should not pour out words. And do not choose to be extolled improperly for your wisdom.
{32:7} A gemstone of garnet is set amid an ornament of gold, and a concert of music is set amid a banquet of wine.
{32:8} Just as a signet of emerald is set amid a work of gold, so is a melody of music set amid delightful and moderate wine.
{32:9} Listen silently, and for your reverence, good graces will be added to you.
{32:10} Young man, speak in your own case only reluctantly.
{32:11} If you have been asked twice, let your response be concise.
{32:12} In many matters, be as if you lack knowledge, and listen silently as well as intently.
{32:13} In the midst of great men, you should not be presumptuous. And where the elders are present, you should not speak much.
{32:14} Lightning goes before a hailstorm, and grace goes before modesty. And so, for your reverence, good graces will be added to you.
{32:15} And at the hour for rising, you should not be lax. Later, be the first to run ahead to your house, and there withdraw, and there take your pastime.
{32:16} And act according to your intentions, but not in sin and not in arrogant speech.
{32:17} And for all these things, bless the Lord, who made you, and who fills you to overflowing with all his good things.
{32:18} Whoever fears the Lord will accept his doctrine. And whoever watches for him diligently will find a blessing.
{32:19} Whoever seeks the law will be filled from the law. But whoever acts with treachery will be scandalized by treachery.
{32:20} Those who fear the Lord will find just judgment, and they will kindle justice like a light.
{32:21} A sinful man will shun correction, and he will find a rationalization in accord with his own will.
{32:22} A man of counsel will not reject understanding. A strange and arrogant man will not be disturbed by fear.
{32:23} Even so, after he has acted out of fear and without counsel, he will be rebuked by his own criticism.
{32:24} Son, you should do nothing without counsel, and then you will not regret what you have done.
{32:25} You should not go into the way of ruin, and you then will not stumble on stones. You should not commit yourself to a laborious way; otherwise, you may set up a scandal against your own soul.
{32:26} And be cautious concerning your own sons. And be attentive to those of your own household.
{32:27} In all of your works, trust your soul to faith. For this is the keeping of the commandments.
{32:28} Whoever believes God attends to the commandments. And whoever trusts in him will not be diminished.
{33:1} No evils will befall one who fears the Lord. Instead, God will preserve him during temptation and will free him from evils.
{33:2} A wise man does not hate the commandments and the justices, and so he will not be thrown about violently, like a ship in a storm.
{33:3} A man of understanding puts his faith in the law of God, and so the law is faithful to him.
{33:4} Whoever would resolve a dispute will prepare a word, and so, having prayed, he will be heard. And he will observe discipline, and then he will respond.
{33:5} The heart of a fool is like the wheel of a cart. And his thoughts are like a turning axel.
{33:6} A friend who is a whisperer is like an untamed horse: he neighs under anyone who sits upon him.
{33:7} Why does day follow after day, and light follow after light, and year follow after year, in accord with the sun?
{33:8} By the knowledge of the Lord, they were arranged, after the sun was made, in keeping with his command.
{33:9} And so, the seasons changed, with their feast days. And according to them, they celebrated the feast days, in their hour.
{33:10} Some of them, God exalted and magnified. And some of them, he set amid the ordinary days. And all men are from the ground, and from the earth, from which Adam was created.
{33:11} With a multitude of disciplines, the Lord has distinguished them and diversified their ways.
{33:12} Some of them, he has blessed and exalted. And some of them he has sanctified and placed close to himself. And some of them, he has cursed and brought low, and he has turned them from their station.
{33:13} Just as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so as to form and to shape it,
{33:14} so are all his ways in accord with his dispensation, and so is man in the hand of the One who made him. And he will repay him according to his judgment.
{33:15} Good is against evil, and life is against death; so also is a sinner against a just man. And so should you consider all the works of the Most High: two and two, and one against another.
{33:16} And I awakened at the very end, and I was like one who gathers grapes after the grape-gatherers.
{33:17} I, too, have hoped in the blessing of God. And I have filled the winepress like one who gathers grapes.
{33:18} Consider how I have not labored for myself alone, but for all who are seeking discipline.
{33:19} Listen to me, you great ones, with all the peoples. And incline your ears, you rulers of the Church.
{33:20} You should not give authority over yourself to a son or wife, to a brother or friend, in your life. And you should not give your estate to another, lest perhaps you may regret it, and then you would be begging for the same.
{33:21} While you are still living and breathing, let no one among all flesh change you.
{33:22} For it is better if your children petition you, than if you look toward the hands of your children.
{33:23} In all your works, be pre-eminent.
{33:24} You should not allow a blemish upon your glory. On the day of the consummation of the days of your life, at the time of your passing, distribute your inheritance.
{33:25} Fodder and a rod and a burden are for a donkey; bread and discipline and work are for a servant.
{33:26} He works under discipline, and he seeks rest. Allow his hands to be idle, and he seeks liberty.
{33:27} The yoke and the strap bend a stiff neck, and continual labors bend a servant.
{33:28} Torture and chains are for a malevolent servant; send him to work, so that he may not be idle.
{33:29} For idleness has taught much evil.
{33:30} Appoint him to a task. For this is fitting for him. And if he will not be obedient, bend him with chains. But you should do no more than any flesh can bear. Truly, you should do nothing grievous without judgment.
{33:31} If you have a faithful servant, let him be to you like your own soul. Treat him like a brother. For you have obtained him by the blood of your soul.
{33:32} If you harm him unjustly, he will turn away and flee.
{33:33} And then, when he lifts himself up and departs, you will not know whom to ask, or in what way to seek him.
{34:1} The hopes of a senseless man are empty and false; and dreams extol the imprudent.
{34:2} Like one who chases a shadow and pursues the wind, so also is one who pays attention to lying visions.
{34:3} In the vision of dreams, one thing represents another, as when a mask is before the face of a man.
{34:4} What can be cleansed by the unclean? And what truth can be spoken from a lie?
{34:5} Erroneous divinations and false signs and the dreams of evildoers are emptiness.
{34:6} For your heart suffers from imagination, like a woman suffering in childbirth. Unless it is a visitation sent from the Most High, you should not set your heart upon it.
{34:7} For dreams have caused many to go astray, and those who have hoped in them have fallen away.
{34:8} The word of the law will be fulfilled without a lie, and wisdom will be made plain in the mouths of the faithful.
{34:9} He who has not been tested, what does he know? A man with much experience will consider many things. And whoever has learned much will explain with understanding.
{34:10} He who has no experience knows little. And he who has done many things has made many mistakes.
{34:11} He who has not been tested, what kind of things can he know? He who has been deceived will be more cunning.
{34:12} I have seen much by wandering, and the customs of many things.
{34:13} At times, I have even been in danger of death because of these things, but I was freed by the grace of God.
{34:14} The spirit of those who fear God is sought, and they will be blessed by his providence.
{34:15} For their hope is in him who saves them, and the eyes of God are on those who love him.
{34:16} Those who fear the Lord will tremble at nothing, and they will not be terrified. For he is their hope.
{34:17} The soul of him who fears the Lord is blessed.
{34:18} To whom should he look, and who is his strength?
{34:19} The eyes of the Lord are upon those who fear him. He is a powerful Protector, a Firmament of virtue, a Shelter from the heat, and a Covering from the midday sun,
{34:20} a Guardian from offenses, and a Helper from falling, who exalts the soul and illuminates the eyes, and who gives health and life and blessing.
{34:21} An immolation from iniquity is a stained oblation, and the derisions of the unjust are not well pleasing.
{34:22} The Lord is only for those who persevere for him in the way of truth and justice.
{34:23} The Most High does not approve of the gifts of the iniquitous. Neither does he have respect for the oblations of the unjust; neither will he forgive their sins because of the multitude of their sacrifices.
{34:24} Whoever offers a sacrifice from the substance of the poor is like one who sacrifices the son in the sight of his father.
{34:25} The bread of the indigent is the life of the poor. Whoever cheats them out of it is a man of blood.
{34:26} Whoever takes away the bread of sweat is like one who kills his neighbor.
{34:27} He who sheds blood, and he who cheats the hired hand out of his wages, are brothers.
{34:28} When one builds and another destroys, what benefit do they have from their labor?
{34:29} When one prays and another curses, whose voice will God heed?
{34:30} He who washes himself after touching the dead, and then touches him again, what was the benefit of his washing?
{34:31} Similarly, a man who fasts for his sins, and then does the same again, what was the benefit of his humbling himself? Who will heed his prayer?
{35:1} Whoever observes the law multiplies oblations.
{35:2} It is a salutary sacrifice to attend to the commandments and to withdraw from all iniquity.
{35:3} And to depart from injustice is to offer a propitiatory sacrifice for injustices and a supplication for sins.
{35:4} Whoever gives thanks, offers a gift of fine flour, and whoever acts with mercy, offers a sacrifice.
{35:5} To withdraw from iniquity is well-pleasing to the Lord. And to withdraw from injustice is a supplication for sins.
{35:6} You should not appear empty before the sight of the Lord.
{35:7} For all these things are to be done because of the commandment of God.
{35:8} The oblation of the just fattens the altar, and is a fragrance of sweetness in the sight of the Most High.
{35:9} The sacrifice of the just is acceptable, and the Lord will never forget the memorial of it.
{35:10} Render glory to God with a good heart. And you should not reduce the first-fruits of your hands.
{35:11} With every gift, have a cheerful countenance, and sanctify your tithes with exultation.
{35:12} Give to the Most High according to his gifts to you, and act with a good eye toward the creations of your hands.
{35:13} For the Lord gives recompense, and he will repay you seven times as much.
{35:14} Do not be willing to offer corrupt gifts. For he will not accept them.
{35:15} And do not be willing to consider an unjust sacrifice. For the Lord is the judge, and with him there is no favoritism toward anyone.
{35:16} The Lord will not accept favoritism against the poor, but he will heed the prayer of one who has been harmed.
{35:17} He will not despise the prayers of the orphan, nor of the widow, if she utters a lamenting complaint.
{35:18} Do a widow’s tears not run down her cheek? And will her outcry not cause their downfall?
{35:19} For from her cheek, her tears ascend even to heaven. And the Lord, the One who listens, will not take delight in them.
{35:20} Whoever adores God with joy will be accepted, and his prayer will reach even to the clouds.
{35:21} The prayer of one who humbles himself will pierce the clouds. And it will not be consoled until it draws near; and it will not withdraw until the Most High beholds.
{35:22} And the Lord will not delay, and he will judge for those who are just, and he will accomplish judgment. And the Almighty will not have patience with them, so that he may crush their back.
{35:23} And he will repay vengeance to the Gentiles, until he has taken away the multitude of the arrogant, and broken the scepters of the iniquitous,
{35:24} until he has rendered to men according to their deeds, and according to the works of Adam, and according to his presumption,
{35:25} until he has judged the judgment of his people. And he will delight the just with his mercy.
{35:26} The mercy of God is beautiful in the time of tribulation, like a rain cloud in the time of drought.
{36:1} O God of all, take pity on us, and look with favor on us, and show us the light of your compassion.
{36:2} And send your fear upon the Gentiles, who have not sought you, so that they may acknowledge that there is no God except you, and so that they may declare your great deeds.
{36:3} Lift up your hand over unbelieving nations, so that they may see your power.
{36:4} For just as, in their sight, you have been sanctified in us, so also, in our sight, you will be magnified in them.
{36:5} So may they know you, as we also have known you. For there is no God apart from you, O Lord.
{36:6} Renew your signs, and work new wonders.
{36:7} Glorify your hand and your right arm.
{36:8} Stir up your fury, and pour out your wrath.
{36:9} Take away our adversary, and afflict our enemy.
{36:10} Hasten the time, and remember the end, so that they may declare your miracles.
{36:11} Let those who escape be devoured by the wrath of fire. And let those who harass your people find perdition.
{36:12} Crush the head of the leaders of the enemies, for they say: “There is no other beside us.”
{36:13} Gather together all the tribes of Jacob, so that they may acknowledge that there is no God except you, and so that they may declare your great deeds. And you will inherit them, as from the beginning.
{36:14} Take pity on your people, over whom your name has been invoked, and on Israel, whom you have treated as your firstborn.
{36:15} Take pity on Jerusalem, the city of your sanctification, the city of your rest.
{36:16} Fill Zion with your ineffable words, and fill your people with your glory.
{36:17} Give testimony to those who have been your creations from the beginning, and lift up the prophecies which the former prophets spoke in your name.
{36:18} Give a reward to those who endure for you, so that your prophets may be found to be faithful. And heed the prayers of your servants,
{36:19} in accord with the blessing of Aaron over your people. And direct us in the way of justice, and let all who inhabit the earth know that you are God, the Beholder of all ages.
{36:20} The belly can devour any food, yet one meal is better than another.
{36:21} The palate tests the meat of wild animals, and the understanding heart tests false words.
{36:22} A corrupt heart will cause grief, and a man of experience will resist it.
{36:23} A woman can receive any male, yet one daughter is better than another.
{36:24} The beauty of a wife cheers the face of her husband, and rises above his desire, above all the desires of man.
{36:25} If she offers healing words, then she both comforts and shows mercy; and so her husband is not like other men.
{36:26} He who holds to a good wife establishes a possession. She is a helper in agreement with him, and she is a pillar of rest.
{36:27} Where there is no hedge, a possession will be trampled. And where there is no wife, he will mourn her absence.
{36:28} Who will trust one who has no nest, and who conceals himself wherever his course may take him, like a well-equipped robber passing from city to city?
{37:1} Every friend will say: “I also am a close friend.” But there is a friend who is a friend in name only. Is this not a grief even unto death?
{37:2} But a companion and friend may turn into an enemy.
{37:3} O wicked presumption! From what were you created that you would cover the dry land with your malice and deceitfulness?
{37:4} A companion may rejoice with his friend in good times, but in a time of tribulation, he will be an adversary.
{37:5} There is a companion who commiserates with a friend for the sake of the stomach, but he will shield himself from the enemy.
{37:6} You should not forget your friend in your soul, and you should not be unmindful of him in your wealth.
{37:7} Do not choose to consult with someone who waits in ambush for you. And hide your counsel from those who rival you.
{37:8} Every counselor offers advice, but some are counselors only for themselves.
{37:9} Guard your soul from a counselor. And know beforehand what his interests are. For he will form thoughts from his own soul.
{37:10} Otherwise, he may set a signpost in the ground, and he may say to you:
{37:11} “Your own way is good.” But then he will stand at a distance to see what befalls you.
{37:12} Do not discuss holiness with an irreligious man, nor justice with one who is unjust. You should not speak with a woman about her who is a rival, nor with a coward about war, nor with a merchant about exaggeration, nor with a buyer about selling, nor with a spiteful man about giving thanks,
{37:13} nor with the impious about piety, nor with the dishonest about honesty, nor with the field worker about other kinds of work,
{37:14} nor with a worker hired for a year about the end of the year, nor with a lazy servant about great works. You should pay no heed to these persons in any matter of counsel.
{37:15} But be continually with a holy man, with anyone whom you know to observe the fear of God,
{37:16} whose soul is in agreement with your own soul, and who, when you falter in the dark, will share your sorrows.
{37:17} And establish a heart of good counsel within yourself. For there is nothing of greater usefulness to you than this.
{37:18} At any time, the soul of a holy man declares more truths than seven vigilant watchmen sitting in a high place.
{37:19} But concerning all things, pray to the Most High, so that he may direct your way in truth.
{37:20} In all your works, let a true word precede you, with steadfast counsel before every deed.
{37:21} A wicked word can change the heart. From the heart four kinds of things arise: good and evil, life and death. And the tongue is continually their ruler. There is a man who is an astute teacher of many, and yet this is useless to his own soul.
{37:22} A man of experience has taught many, and this is pleasant to his own soul.
{37:23} Whoever speaks mere rhetoric is hateful; he will be deceived in every matter.
{37:24} Grace is not given to him from the Lord. For he has been deprived of all wisdom.
{37:25} There is a wise man who is wise within his own soul, and the fruit of his understanding is praiseworthy.
{37:26} A wise man instructs his own people, and the fruit of his understanding is faithful.
{37:27} A wise man will be filled with blessings, and those who see will praise him.
{37:28} The life of a man is in the number of his days. But the days of Israel are innumerable.
{37:29} A wise man will inherit honor among the people, and his name will live in eternity.
{37:30} Son, test your own mind in your life, and if it is lacking, you should not give it authority.
{37:31} For not all things are fitting for all persons, and not every kind of thing is agreeable to every soul.
{37:32} Do not choose to be eager during any feast, and you should not act with excess toward any food.
{37:33} For in excessive eating there will be infirmity, and gluttony will continue even unto illness.
{37:34} By excessive drinking, many have passed away. But he who abstains will add to his life.
{38:1} Honor the physician because of necessity, and because the Most High created him.
{38:2} For all healing is from God, and so he will receive gifts from the King.
{38:3} The expertise of the physician will lift up his head, and in the sight of great men, he will be praised.
{38:4} The Most High has created medicines from the earth, and a prudent man will not abhor them.
{38:5} Was not bitter water made sweet with wood?
{38:6} The benefits of these things is recognized by men, and the Most High has given this knowledge to men, so that he may be honored in his wonders.
{38:7} By these things, he will cure or mitigate their suffering, and the pharmacist will make soothing ointments, and he will form healing medicines, and there will be no end to his works.
{38:8} For the peace of God is upon the surface of the earth.
{38:9} Son, in your infirmity, you should not neglect yourself, but pray to the Lord, and he will cure you.
{38:10} Turn away from sin, and direct your hands, and cleanse your heart from every offense.
{38:11} Give a sweet offering, and a memorial of fine flour, and fatten your oblation, but also give a place to the physician.
{38:12} For the Lord created him. And so, do not let him depart from you, for his works are necessary.
{38:13} For there is a time when you may fall into their hands.
{38:14} Truly, they will beseech the Lord, so that he may direct their treatments and cures, for the sake of their way of life.
{38:15} He who sins in the sight of the One who made him will fall into the hands of the physician.
{38:16} Son, shed tears over the dead, and begin to weep, as if you had suffered dreadfully. And according to judgment, cover his body, and you should not neglect his burial.
{38:17} And though you will sink down into bitterness, bear his mourning for one day, and then be consoled in your sadness.
{38:18} And carry out his mourning, according to his merit, for one or two days because of this loss.
{38:19} Yet sadness hastens death and overwhelms strength, and the sorrow of the heart bows down the neck.
{38:20} When one is taken away, sorrow remains. But the resources of a destitute man is found in his heart.
{38:21} You should not give your heart over to sadness, but push it away from you. And remember the very end.
{38:22} Do not be willing to forget this; for there is no turning back. Otherwise, it will not benefit you, and you will cause great harm to yourself.
{38:23} Call to mind my judgment. For so shall it be for you also. Yesterday is mine, and today is yours.
{38:24} When the deceased is at rest, let his memory rest also. And console him at the departure of his spirit.
{38:25} The wisdom of a scribe is found in his time of leisure. So whoever has less to do will gain wisdom.
{38:26} With what wisdom will someone be filled who holds the plow, and who boasts of the cattle prod that drives the oxen forward, and who is occupied in these labors, and whose only conversation is about the offspring of bulls?
{38:27} He will give his mind over to the plowing of furrows, and his vigilance to the fattening of the cows.
{38:28} Similarly, every craftsman and artisan, who crafts in the night as well as in the day, who sculpts graven seals, and who, by his diligence, varies the image, will give his mind over to the likeness of the image. And he will complete the work by his vigilance.
{38:29} The blacksmith, sitting by his anvil and considering a work of iron, is similar. The steam from the fire singes his flesh, and he struggles against the heat of the furnace.
{38:30} The voice of the hammer is ever in his ears, and his eye is upon the pattern of the ironwork.
{38:31} He gives his heart to the completion of his work, and his vigilance adorns it to perfection.
{38:32} The potter, sitting at his work and turning the wheel with his feet, is similar. He has settled into a continual concern for his work, and there is a rhythm in all that he does.
{38:33} He forms the clay with his arm, and he bends his strength over his feet.
{38:34} He will give his heart over to the completion of the glazing, and his vigilance to the cleansing of the furnace.
{38:35} All these persons trust in their own hands, and each one is wise in his own art.
{38:36} Without these persons, a city is not built.
{38:37} But they will neither inhabit nor walk around in the city. And they will not go across to the church.
{38:38} They will not sit upon the seats of judges, and they will not understand a decree of judgment. And they will not make clear discipline and judgment, and they will not be found to understand parables.
{38:39} But they will strengthen the state of the world, and their prayer will be in their artistic works, applying their soul, and searching the law of the Most High.
{39:1} A wise man will seek the wisdom of all the ancients, and he will be occupied in the prophets.
{39:2} He will preserve the words of renowned men, and he will enter with them into the subtleties of parables.
{39:3} He will search for the hidden meanings of proverbs, and he will become familiar with the mysteries of parables.
{39:4} He will minister in the midst of great men, and he will appear in the sight of the foremost leader.
{39:5} He will pass through the land of foreign nations. For he will test good and evil among men.
{39:6} At first light, he will offer his heart with watchfulness to the Lord who made him, and he will pray in the sight of the Most High.
{39:7} He will open his mouth in prayer, and he will make supplication for his offenses.
{39:8} For if the great Lord is willing, he will fill him with the Spirit of understanding.
{39:9} And he will send forth the eloquence of his wisdom like rain showers, and in his prayer, he will confess to the Lord.
{39:10} And he will direct his counsel and his discipline, and he will meditate on his mysteries.
{39:11} He will make the discipline of his doctrine clear, and he will glory in the law of the covenant of the Lord.
{39:12} Many persons will together praise his wisdom, and it will never be abolished, for all ages.
{39:13} The memory of him will not fade away, and his name will be sought from generation to generation.
{39:14} The peoples will declare his wisdom, and the Church will announce his praise.
{39:15} While he remains, he leaves behind a name greater than a thousand, and when he will rest, it will be to his benefit.
{39:16} I will meditate further, so that I may explain. For I have been filled with a passion.
{39:17} In a voice, he says: Listen to me, divine fruits. You shall bear fruit, like roses planted beside streams of waters.
{39:18} You shall have a sweet fragrance, like the cedars of Lebanon.
{39:19} Blossom with flowers, like the lily, and diffuse a fragrance, and sprout leaves in grace, and give praise with canticles, and bless the Lord in his works.
{39:20} Give magnificence to his name, and confess to him with the voice of your lips and with the canticles of your mouth and with stringed instruments. And in so praising him, you will confess:
{39:21} All the works of the Lord are very good.
{39:22} At his word, the waters stood still, as if piled together. And at the words of his mouth, the waters were contained, as if in basins of water.
{39:23} For it is made pleasing by his precept, and there is no decrease in his salvation.
{39:24} The works of all flesh are in his sight, and there is nothing hidden from his eyes.
{39:25} His gaze is from eternity to eternity, and nothing is a wonder in his sight.
{39:26} Let it not be said: “What is this?” or, “What is that?” For all things will be sought in their time.
{39:27} His blessing has overflowed like a river.
{39:28} In the same way that a flood inundates the dry land, so also will his wrath inherit the peoples that have not sought him.
{39:29} In the same way that he turned the waters into dry land, and made the earth dry, and just as his ways have been directed for their journey, so also will sinners stumble before his wrath.
{39:30} From the beginning, good things were created for those who are good, and similarly, good and evil things are for those who are wicked.
{39:31} The principal things necessary for the life of men are: water, fire, and iron, salt, milk, and flour for bread, and honey, and the grape cluster, and oil, and clothing.
{39:32} All these things will be used for good by those who are holy, but they will be turned to evil use by the impious and by sinners.
{39:33} There are spirits that have been created for vengeance, and they strengthen their torments by their fury.
{39:34} In the time of the consummation, they will pour forth their strength. And they will appease the fury of the One who made them.
{39:35} Fire, hail, famine, and death: all these were created for vengeance.
{39:36} The teeth of wild beasts, and scorpions, and serpents, and the spear: all these take vengeance upon the impious, unto utter destruction.
{39:37} At his command, they will feast. And they will be prepared upon the earth until they are needed. And in their time, they will not ignore his word.
{39:38} For this reason, from the beginning, I was strengthened, and I have meditated, and I have considered, and I have put these things in writing.
{39:39} All the works of the Lord are good, and he will provide for each work in its own hour.
{39:40} Let it not be said: “This is worse than that.” For all things will be tested in their time.
{39:41} And now, with the whole heart and mouth, give praise to him, and bless the name of the Lord.
{40:1} A great occupation was created for all men, and a heavy yoke is upon the sons of Adam, from the day of their departure from their mother’s womb, even until the day of their burial into the mother of all:
{40:2} their thoughts, and the fears of their heart, their imagined expectations, and the day of their end,
{40:3} from him who sits upon a glorious throne, even to him who is humbled in earth and ashes,
{40:4} from him who wears hyacinth and bears a crown, even to him who is covered with rough linen: wrath, envy, tumult, restlessness, and the fear of death, continual anger and contention.
{40:5} And in the time of rest upon his bed, the sleep of the night changes his knowledge.
{40:6} There is little or no rest, and sleep is taken from him, as if on a day of keeping watch.
{40:7} He is disturbed by a vision of his heart, as if he had escaped in a day of warfare. In the time of his salvation, he rose up and wondered that there was no fear.
{40:8} This is so with all flesh, from man even to cattle, but upon sinners it is seven times as great.
{40:9} Add to this: death, bloodshed, contention, and the spear, oppression, famine, and affliction, and scourges.
{40:10} All these things have been created because of iniquity, and it is due to iniquity that the great flood was made.
{40:11} All things that are of the earth shall return to the earth, and all waters shall return to the sea.
{40:12} All bribery and iniquity will be wiped away, but faith shall stand forever.
{40:13} The substance of the unjust will dry up like a river, and will pass away with a noise like loud thunder in a rainstorm.
{40:14} When he opens his hands, he will rejoice. So will transgressors pass away at the consummation.
{40:15} The descendants of the impious will not produce many branches, for they may be compared to dirty roots at the edge of a rock.
{40:16} The weeds, which grow above every water and beside the banks of the river, will be uprooted before all the grass.
{40:17} Grace is like a paradise of blessings, and mercy continues for eternity.
{40:18} The life of a worker, when content with what is sufficient, will become sweet, and in it you will find a treasure.
{40:19} Sons, and the building of a city, will establish a name, but an immaculate wife will be ranked above these things.
{40:20} Wine and music rejoice the heart, but the love of wisdom is above them both.
{40:21} The flute and the psaltery make a sweet melody, but a pleasant word is above them both.
{40:22} Your eye desires elegance and beauty, but verdant fields are above these things.
{40:23} A friend and a companion meet one another in time, but above them both is a wife with her husband.
{40:24} Brothers are a help in time of tribulation, but mercy will liberate, more so than they will.
{40:25} Gold and silver provide a firm position for the feet, but well-spoken counsel is above them both.
{40:26} Ability and strength lift up the heart, but the fear of the Lord is above these things.
{40:27} There is no loss in the fear of the Lord, and it has no need to ask for assistance.
{40:28} The fear of the Lord is like a paradise of blessings, and they have covered it above all glory.
{40:29} Son, in your lifetime you should not be indigent, for it is better to die than to be destitute.
{40:30} The life of him who looks to another man’s table should not be thought of as a way of life. For he feeds his life with another man’s food.
{40:31} But a disciplined and well-taught man will take care of himself.
{40:32} Scarcity will seem sweet to the mouth of the imprudent, but a fire will burn in his belly.
{41:1} O death, how bitter is the memory of you: to a man who has peace in his substance,
{41:2} to a quiet man, and to him whose ways are directed properly in all things, and who still has the strength to take nourishment.
{41:3} O death, your judgment is good to the indigent man, and to him whose strength has diminished,
{41:4} who is failing due to old age, and who is anxious about all things, and to the unbelieving man who has lost patience.
{41:5} Do not choose to dread the judgment of death. Remember the things that occurred before you, and the things that will occur after you. This judgment is from the Lord upon all flesh.
{41:6} And what will happen to you is well-pleasing to the Most High, whether in ten, or one hundred, or one thousand years.
{41:7} For death is no indictment of life.
{41:8} The sons of sinners, and those who pass their time in the manner of the houses of the impious, become sons of abominations.
{41:9} The inheritance of the sons of sinners will perish, and continual disgrace will be with their offspring.
{41:10} The sons of an impious father will complain, for they are in disgrace because of him.
{41:11} Woe to you, impious men, who have abandoned the law of the Most High Lord!
{41:12} And when you are born, you will be born into a curse; and when you die, your portion will be in a curse.
{41:13} All things that are from the earth shall return to the earth. Similarly, the impious will proceed from a curse unto perdition.
{41:14} The grieving of men is in their body, but the name of the impious will be wiped away.
{41:15} Have concern for your good name. For this will continue with you, more so than a thousand precious and great treasures.
{41:16} A good life has its number of days, but a good name will continue forever.
{41:17} Sons, practice discipline peacefully. For what use is there in either concealed wisdom, or undiscovered treasure?
{41:18} Better is the man who hides his foolishness than the man who hides his wisdom.
{41:19} Yet truly, have respect for these things which proceed from my mouth.
{41:20} For it is not good to observe every reverence. And all things do not please all persons in their beliefs.
{41:21} Have shame of these things: of fornication before father and mother, and of a lie before the first leader and the powerful,
{41:22} of a crime before a ruler or a judge, of iniquity before a congregation or a people,
{41:23} of injustice before a companion or a friend, and of the place in which you live,
{41:24} of theft, and of the truth before God, and of the covenant, of reclining to eat bread, and of deceitfulness in giving or receiving,
{41:25} of silence before those who greet you, of looking upon a woman of fornication, and of averting your face from a relative.
{41:26} You should not avert your face from your neighbor, nor should you take away a portion and not restore it.
{41:27} You should not stare at another man’s wife, nor pursue his handmaid, nor approach her bed.
{41:28} Avoid reproachful speeches before friends, and when you give, you should not place blame.
{42:1} You should not repeat a claim heard from the revealing of a hidden word. And then, truly, you will be without shame, and you will find favor in the sight of all men. You should not accept the reputation of someone, so that you would sin, nor should you be confounded in any of the following things:
{42:2} in the law of the Most High and his covenant, or by giving a judgment to justify the impious;
{42:3} in a word among companions and fellow travelers, or by distributing the inheritance of friends;
{42:4} in the fairness of scales and weights, or in acquiring much or little;
{42:5} by the corruption of buying and negotiating, or in the ample discipline of children, or in causing the side of a wicked servant to bleed.
{42:6} A seal is good over a wicked wife.
{42:7} Where there are many hands, seal and deliver all things by number and weight; and truly, give and receive everything in writing.
{42:8} You should not have shame in correcting the senseless, the foolish, and those youths who would judge their elders. And so shall you be well-instructed in all things and well-approved in the sight of all the living.
{42:9} The vigilance of a father for his daughter is hidden, and his concern for her takes away his sleep. For perhaps, in her adolescence, she might be brought into adulthood. Or when she lives with her husband, she might become hateful.
{42:10} In her virginity, she might be defiled, and then she may be found to be pregnant in her father’s house. Or perhaps, when she lives with her husband, she might stray, or at least become barren.
{42:11} Keep a close watch over a self-indulgent daughter. Otherwise, at some time, she might bring you into disgrace before your enemies, and into disrepute in the city, and into reproach among the people, and so she may confound you before the multitude of the people.
{42:12} She should not choose to gaze upon the beauty of every man, and she should not choose to spend her time in the midst of married women.
{42:13} For a moth goes forth from garments, and iniquity over a man goes forth from a woman.
{42:14} Yet iniquity over a man is better for her than if a married woman, seeking to benefit her, instead leads her into confusion and disgrace.
{42:15} And now, I will remember the works of the Lord, and I will announce what I have seen. The words of the Lord are in his works.
{42:16} The sun illuminates and considers all things, and its work shows the fullness of the glory of the Lord.
{42:17} Has not the Lord caused the holy ones to describe all his miracles, which the all-powerful Lord has firmly established in his glory?
{42:18} He has examined the abyss and the hearts of men. And he has considered their astuteness.
{42:19} For the Lord comprehends all knowledge, and he has gazed upon the signs of the times: announcing the things of the past, as well as the things of the future, and revealing the traces of hidden things.
{42:20} No thought passes by him unnoticed, and no word can conceal itself from him.
{42:21} He has adorned the magnificent works of his wisdom. He is before eternity and even unto eternity. And nothing can be added,
{42:22} and nothing can be taken away. And he has no need of any counselor.
{42:23} O how desirable are all his works! And all that we consider is but a spark.
{42:24} All these works exist, and they remain in the present age, and they all obey him in every purpose.
{42:25} All things are two-fold, one facing another, and he has not made anything to be lacking.
{42:26} He has confirmed each thing as good. And who would tire of beholding his glory?
{43:1} The firmament on high is his beauty; it is the beauty of heaven in a vision of glory.
{43:2} The sun, at its appearance, announces its journey; it is an instrument of wonder, a work of the Most High.
{43:3} At midday, it scorches the earth. And in the presence of its heat, who would be able to endure? It is like the custodian of a furnace in its works of heat.
{43:4} In three ways, the sun acts: scorching the mountains, emitting fiery rays, and shining with its beams that can blind the eyes.
{43:5} Great is the Lord who made it, and at his word, it hurries on its journey.
{43:6} And the moon, in all its phases, serves to mark the seasons and to be a sign of the times.
{43:7} From the moon is the sign of a feast day; it is a light which diminishes at its consummation.
{43:8} A month is named according to its phases, increasing wonderfully at its culmination.
{43:9} It is an instrument of the armies on high, shining gloriously in the firmament of heaven.
{43:10} The glory of the stars is the beauty of heaven; the Lord illuminates the world from on high.
{43:11} At the words of the Holy One, they stand for judgment, and they will never fail in their vigilance.
{43:12} Consider the rainbow, and bless the One who made it; it is very beautiful in its splendor.
{43:13} It encompasses the heavens with the circle of its glory; the hands of the Most High made it appear.
{43:14} By his order, he hastens the snow, and he spurs on the lightning to express his judgment.
{43:15} In like manner, his storehouses are opened, and the clouds fly out like birds.
{43:16} By his greatness, he has positioned the clouds, and the hailstones have been broken.
{43:17} At his glance, the mountains will be shaken, and by his will, the south wind will blow.
{43:18} The voice of his thunder will reverberate through the earth, by a storm from the north, and by a gathering of the whirlwind.
{43:19} And like the birds landing in a flock upon the earth, he sends down the snow; and its descent is like the arrival of a swarm of locusts.
{43:20} The eye is in wonder at the beauty of its whiteness, and the heart is astonished at its falling.
{43:21} He will pour out frost like salt upon the earth. And when it freezes, it will become like the tops of thistles.
{43:22} The cold north wind blows, and the water freezes into crystals; it will rest upon every gathering of water, and it will clothe the water like a breastplate.
{43:23} And it will devour the mountains, and burn the wilderness, and extinguish the greenery, like a fire.
{43:24} Relief for all is in the hurried arrival of a cloud. And the lowly dew will arrive to meet the heat and overpower it.
{43:25} At his word, the wind grows quiet, and by his thought, he appeases the abyss, for the Lord has planted islands in it.
{43:26} Let those who navigate the sea describe its perils. And when we have heard it with our ears, we will wonder.
{43:27} There are illustrious and wondrous works: the various kinds of wild animals, and all manner of cattle, and the great creatures of the sea.
{43:28} Through him, the end of their journey is confirmed, and by his word, all things fit together.
{43:29} We can say much, and yet still lack for words. But the consummation of our words is this: He is in all things.
{43:30} What would we be able to do to glorify him? For the Almighty himself is above all his own works.
{43:31} The Lord is terrible, and exceedingly great, and his power is wonderful.
{43:32} Glorify the Lord as much as you are able, yet still he will far exceed this. For his magnificence is beyond wonder.
{43:33} Bless the Lord and exalt him, as much as you are able. But he is beyond all praise.
{43:34} When you exalt him, use all your ability, and do not cease in this labor. For you can never comprehend him.
{43:35} Who will see him and explain? And who will magnify him, as he is from the beginning?
{43:36} There are many things, hidden from us, which are greater than these things. For we have seen but a few of his works.
{43:37} But the Lord has made all things, and he has given wisdom to those who act with piety.
{44:1} Let us praise the men of glory, and our ancestors in their generation.
{44:2} The Lord has wrought great glory, by his own magnificence, from ancient times.
{44:3} There are those who rule with their authority, men of great virtue, who are gifted with prudence. There are those who announce among the prophets, with the dignity of prophets.
{44:4} And there are those who rule over the present generation, by the virtue of prudence, with very holy words for the people.
{44:5} There are those who, by their skill, compose musical themes, so as to set the verses of Scripture to music.
{44:6} There are men rich in virtue, who make a study of beauty, who live in peacefulness in their houses.
{44:7} All these obtained glory in their generations, and they had praise in their days.
{44:8} They left behind a name for those who were born of them, so that their praises might be described.
{44:9} But for some of them, there is no memorial. They have passed away as if they had never existed; and they have become as if they had never been born, and their sons along with them.
{44:10} But these were men of mercy, whose pious deeds have not failed.
{44:11} Good things continue with their offspring.
{44:12} Their descendants are a holy inheritance, and their offspring stand firm in the covenants.
{44:13} And because of them, their sons remain even unto eternity. Their offspring and their glory will not be forsaken.
{44:14} Their bodies were buried in peace, and their name lives on, from generation to generation.
{44:15} Let the people declare their wisdom, and let the Church announce their praise.
{44:16} Enoch pleased God, and he was transferred to Paradise, so that he might offer repentance to the nations.
{44:17} Noah was found to be perfect and just, and so, in the time of wrath, he was made a reconciliation.
{44:18} As a result, there was a remnant left for the earth, when the great flood was made.
{44:19} The covenants of the world were placed with him, so that all flesh would not be wiped away by the great flood.
{44:20} Abraham was the great father of a multitude of nations, and no one was found to be like him in glory. He observed the law of the Most High, and he formed a covenant with him.
{44:21} In his flesh, he caused the covenant to stand, and when tested, he was found to be faithful.
{44:22} Therefore, by an oath, he gave glory to him among his people, so as to increase him like the dust of the earth,
{44:23} and to exalt his offspring like the stars, and to give an inheritance to them from sea to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.
{44:24} And he acted in like manner toward Isaac, because of his father Abraham.
{44:25} The Lord gave the blessing of all the nations to him, and he confirmed his covenant upon the head of Jacob.
{44:26} He acknowledged him in his blessings, and he gave an inheritance to him, and he distributed to him the portion of the twelve tribes.
{44:27} And he preserved for him men of mercy, who were found to have grace before the eyes of all flesh.
{45:1} Moses was beloved by God and men. The remembrance of him is a blessing.
{45:2} He made him like the holy ones in glory, and he magnified him by the fear of his enemies, and he appeased great portents by his words.
{45:3} He glorified him in the sight of kings, and he gave commandments to him in the sight of his people, and he revealed his glory to him.
{45:4} He made him holy by his faith and meekness, and he chose him from among all flesh.
{45:5} For he heard him and his voice, and he led him into a cloud.
{45:6} And he gave him precepts in his presence, with a law of life and discipline, so as to teach Jacob his covenant and Israel his judgments.
{45:7} He exalted his brother Aaron and those who were similar to him from the tribe of Levi.
{45:8} He established an eternal covenant with him, and he gave him the priesthood of the people, and he caused him to be blessed in glory.
{45:9} And he encircled him with a glorious belt, and he clothed him with a robe of glory, and he crowned him with virtuous attire.
{45:10} He placed upon him a garment to the feet, and pants, and an ephod, and he wrapped him all around with many little bells of gold,
{45:11} so that there would be a sound at his arrival, and so as to make a noise that would be heard in the temple, as a memorial for the sons of his people.
{45:12} He provided him with a holy robe of gold and hyacinth and purple, a woven work for a wise man of judgment and truth,
{45:13} a work of twisted scarlet, the work of an artist, with precious stones, cut and set in gold, and engraved by the work of a jeweler, as a memorial according to the number of the tribes of Israel.
{45:14} He provided him with a crown of gold upon his headdress, on which was written a symbol of holiness, a mark of honor. This was a work of virtue and a delight to the eyes in its beauty.
{45:15} Prior to him, there was no one of such beauty, even from the beginning.
{45:16} No foreigner was ever clothed with these things, but only his sons and his descendants alone, for all time.
{45:17} His sacrifices were consumed by fire daily.
{45:18} Moses filled his hands and anointed him with holy oil.
{45:19} An eternal covenant was made, with him and with his offspring, like the days of heaven, to execute the office of the priesthood, and to give praise and to glorify his people, in his name.
{45:20} He chose him from among all living men to offer to God sacrifice, incense, and a pleasing fragrance, as a memorial of appeasement on behalf of his people.
{45:21} And he gave him authority by his precepts, in the covenants of his judgments, to teach Jacob his testimonies, and to give light by his law to Israel.
{45:22} Then strangers stood up against him, and, because of envy, the men who were with Dathan and Abiram surrounded him in the desert, along with the congregation of Korah, in their anger.
{45:23} The Lord God saw this, and it did not please him, and so they were consumed by the force of his anger.
{45:24} He wrought great portents among them, and he consumed them with a flame of fire.
{45:25} And he added glory to Aaron, and he gave him an inheritance, and he allotted to him the first-fruits of the earth.
{45:26} He prepared for them the finest bread unto fullness. And they shall also eat from the sacrifices of the Lord, which he gave to him and to his offspring.
{45:27} And yet he will not have an inheritance among the people of the land, and he has no portion among the people. For the Lord himself is his portion and his inheritance.
{45:28} Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, is third in glory, by imitating him in the fear of the Lord.
{45:29} And he stood up against the shamefulness of the people. By the goodness and responsiveness of his soul, he appeased God on behalf of Israel.
{45:30} For this reason, he made him a covenant of peace, a leader of the sanctuary and of his people, so that the dignity of the priesthood would remain with him and with his offspring unto eternity.
{45:31} And he made a covenant with king David, the son of Jesse from the tribe of Judah, an inheritance for him and for his offspring, so that he might provide wisdom for our hearts, so as to judge his people in justice, lest their good things be abolished. And he caused their glory within their nation to be everlasting.
{46:1} Joshua, the son of Nun, was valiant in warfare; he was the successor of Moses among the prophets. He was great in accord with his name,
{46:2} very great in saving the elect of God. He fought against the insurgent enemies, so that he might obtain the inheritance for Israel.
{46:3} What great glory he secured, by lifting up his hands and throwing his spears against the cities!
{46:4} Who before him has stood so firmly? For the Lord himself led forward the enemies.
{46:5} Was not the sun halted by his wrath, and one day made as if two?
{46:6} He called upon the Most High Power, when the enemies assailed him on every side. And the great and holy God answered him with hailstones of exceedingly great force.
{46:7} He made a violent assault against a hostile nation, and at his descent, he destroyed his adversaries,
{46:8} so that the nations would acknowledge his power: that it is not easy to fight against God. And he followed the Almighty.
{46:9} And in the days of Moses, he accomplished a work of mercy. He and Caleb, the son of Jephuneh, stood against the enemy, and forbid the people from sin, and broke their wicked murmuring.
{46:10} And these two, having been appointed, were freed from peril, from foot soldiers numbering six hundred thousand, so as to lead them into their inheritance, into a land flowing with milk and honey.
{46:11} And the Lord gave strength to Caleb also, and his strength remained even in his old age, so that he ascended to the high places of the land, and his offspring obtained it as an inheritance.
{46:12} This was so that all the sons of Israel would see that it is good to obey the holy God.
{46:13} Then there were the judges, each one called by name, whose heart was not corrupted. They did not turn away from the Lord,
{46:14} so that their memory might be blessed, and their bones might spring forth from their place,
{46:15} and their name might remain forever, continuing in their sons, holy men of glory.
{46:16} Samuel, prophet of the Lord, beloved by the Lord his God, established a new government, and he anointed leaders over his people.
{46:17} By the law of the Lord, he judged the congregation, and the God of Jacob saw it, and so, by his fidelity, he was proven to be a prophet.
{46:18} And he was known to be faithful in his words. For he saw the God of light.
{46:19} And when fighting against the enemies, who stood against him on every side, he called upon the name of the Almighty Lord, with an offering of an inviolate lamb.
{46:20} And the Lord thundered from heaven, and with a great noise, he made his voice to be heard.
{46:21} And he crushed the leaders of the Tyrians, and all the commanders of the Philistines.
{46:22} And before the time of the end of his life in the world, he offered testimony in the sight of the Lord and of his Christ, that he had not taken a bribe from any flesh, not even so much as a shoe, and that no man made an accusation against him.
{46:23} And after this, he slept. And he made known to the king and revealed to him the end of his life. And he lifted up his voice from the earth in prophecy, to abolish the impiety of the people.
{47:1} After these things, Nathan the prophet arose, in the days of David.
{47:2} And just as fat is separated from meat, so was David separated from the sons of Israel.
{47:3} He played with lions, as if with lambs, and he acted similarly with bears, as if they were lambs of the flock, in his youth.
{47:4} Did he not kill the giant, and take away the reproach from his people?
{47:5} By lifting up his hand, with a stone in a sling, he threw down the boasting of Goliath.
{47:6} For he called upon the Almighty Lord, and he swore with his right hand to take away the mighty man of war, and to exalt the horn of his people.
{47:7} So he glorified him amid ten thousand, and he praised him with the blessings of the Lord, by offering him a crown of glory.
{47:8} For he crushed the enemies on every side, and he eradicated his adversaries, the Philistines, even to this day. He broke their horn, even for all time.
{47:9} In all his works, he gave thanks to the Holy One, to the Most High, with words of glory.
{47:10} With all his heart, he praised the Lord and he loved God, who made him and who gave him power against his enemies.
{47:11} And he appointed singers to stand opposite the altar, and by their voices he provided sweet music.
{47:12} And he provided beauty for the celebrations, and he gave order to the times, even until the end of his life, so that they would praise the holy name of the Lord, and magnify the sanctity of God, from early morning.
{47:13} The Lord purged his sins, and he exalted his horn forever. And he gave him the covenant of the kingdom, and a throne of glory in Israel.
{47:14} After him, an understanding son rose up. And by means of him, he cast down all the power of the enemies.
{47:15} Solomon reigned in days of peace, and God subjected all his enemies to him, so that he might build a house in his name, and prepare a sanctuary for all time. O how well-taught you were in your youth!
{47:16} And you were filled with wisdom like a river, and your mind exposed the world.
{47:17} And you explained mysteries by means of parables. Your name became known to far off islands, and you were beloved for your peace.
{47:18} The earth was in wonder over your canticles, and proverbs, and parables, and interpretations,
{47:19} and over the name of the Lord God, who is known as the God of Israel.
{47:20} You gathered gold like copper, and you multiplied silver like lead.
{47:21} But you bent your thigh to women, and you were held by the power of your body.
{47:22} You brought a stain upon your glory, and you profaned your seed, so as to bring wrath upon your children, and to incite your foolishness,
{47:23} so that you would cause the kingdom to be divided, and an obstinate kingdom to rule from Ephraim.
{47:24} But God will not abandon his mercy, nor will he corrupt or abolish his own works. And he will not perish the stock of the descendants of his elect. And he will not destroy the offspring of him who loves the Lord.
{47:25} Therefore, he left behind a remnant for Jacob and for David, from the same stock.
{47:26} And Solomon had his end with his fathers.
{47:27} And he left behind himself some of his offspring, as the folly of the nation:
{47:28} both Rehoboam, who had little prudence, and who turned away the people by his counsel,
{47:29} and Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin, and who provided a way of sin to Ephraim. And their sins were multiplied exceedingly.
{47:30} They thoroughly turned them away from their own land.
{47:31} And they sought every kind of wickedness, even until punishment overwhelmed them, and freed them from every kind of sin.
{48:1} And the prophet Elijah arose like a fire, and his word burned like a torch.
{48:2} He brought a famine upon them, and those who provoked him in their envy became few. For they could not bear the precepts of the Lord.
{48:3} By the word of the Lord, he closed the heavens, and he brought down fire from heaven three times.
{48:4} In this way, Elijah was magnified in his wondrous works. So who can say that he is similar to you in glory?
{48:5} He raised up a dead man from the grave, from the fate of death, by the word of the Lord God.
{48:6} He threw down kings unto perdition, and he easily shattered their power and boasting from his bed.
{48:7} He heeded the judgment at Sinai, and the judgments of punishment at Horeb.
{48:8} He anointed kings unto repentance, and he chose the prophets who would follow after him.
{48:9} He was received into a whirlwind of fire, into a swift chariot with fiery horses.
{48:10} He is written in the judgments of the times, so as to lessen the wrath of the Lord, to reconcile the heart of the father to the son, and to restore the tribes of Jacob.
{48:11} Blessed are those who saw you, and who were adorned with your friendship.
{48:12} For we live only in our life, and after death, our name will not be the same.
{48:13} Certainly, Elijah was covered by the whirlwind, and his spirit was completed in Elisha. In his days, he was not fearful of the ruler, and no power defeated him.
{48:14} No word overwhelmed him, and after death, his body prophesied.
{48:15} In his life, he gave great portents, and in death, he wrought miracles.
{48:16} In all these things, the people did not repent, and they did not withdraw from their sins, even until they were cast out of their land, and were dispersed throughout all the earth.
{48:17} And there was left behind a people very few in number, but with a leader in the house of David.
{48:18} Some of these did what pleased God. But others committed many sins.
{48:19} Hezekiah fortified his city, and he brought water into its midst, and he dug into rock with iron, and he built a well for water.
{48:20} In his days, Sennacherib rose up, and he sent Rabshakeh, and he lifted up his hand against them, and he extended his hand against Zion, and he became arrogant in his power.
{48:21} Then their hearts and hands shook. And they were in pain, like women giving birth.
{48:22} And they called upon the merciful Lord. And they spread their hands and lifted them up to heaven. And the holy Lord God quickly heeded their voice.
{48:23} He was not mindful of their sins, and he did not give them over to their enemies. Instead, he purified them by the hand of Isaiah, the holy prophet.
{48:24} He threw down the army of the Assyrians, and the Angel of the Lord crushed them.
{48:25} For Hezekiah did what pleased God, and he went with fortitude in the way of David his father, just as he had been commanded by Isaiah, a prophet great and faithful in the sight of God.
{48:26} In his days, the sun went backwards, and he added to the king’s life.
{48:27} With a great spirit he saw the final things. And he consoled the mourners in Zion.
{48:28} He revealed the future, even the distant future, and hidden things before they occurred.
{49:1} The memory of Josiah is like a blend of fragrances composed by the work of a perfumer.
{49:2} His remembrance will be sweet like honey in every mouth, and like music at a banquet of wine.
{49:3} He was divinely directed for the repentance of the nation, and he took away the abominations of impiety.
{49:4} And he guided his heart toward the Lord. And during the days of sinners, he strengthened piety.
{49:5} Other than David, and Hezekiah, and Josiah, everyone committed sin.
{49:6} For the kings of Judah abandoned the law of the Most High, and they held contempt for the fear of God.
{49:7} For they gave their kingdom to foreigners, and their glory to a strange people.
{49:8} They set fire to the chosen city of sanctity, and they made its streets desolate, in accord with the hand of Jeremiah.
{49:9} For they treated him wickedly, though he was consecrated as a prophet from his mother’s womb: to overthrow, and to root out, and to destroy, and also to rebuild and to renew.
{49:10} It was Ezekiel who saw a vision of glory, which was revealed to him with the chariot of the Cherubim.
{49:11} For it called to mind the enemies under the figure of rain, to do good to those who have revealed the upright ways.
{49:12} And may the bones of the twelve prophets spring up from their place. For they strengthened Jacob, and they redeemed themselves with a virtuous faith.
{49:13} How will we magnify Zerubbabel? For he, too, was like a signet on the right hand.
{49:14} So also was Jesus, the son of Jozadak, who in their days built the house, and raised up a holy temple to the Lord, as a preparation for everlasting glory.
{49:15} And may Nehemiah be remembered for a long time. He raised up for us the walls that had been torn down. And he made firm the gates and the bars. He raised up our houses.
{49:16} No one has been born upon the earth like Enoch. And he was also taken up from the earth.
{49:17} And there was no one like Joseph, who was a man born to be foremost among his brothers, the firmament of his clan, a guide to his brethren, the mainstay of his people.
{49:18} And his bones were visited, and after death, they prophesied.
{49:19} Shem and Seth obtained glory among men. And above every soul, at the very beginning, was Adam.
{50:1} Simon, the high priest, son of Onias: in his life, he propped up the house, and in his days, he strengthened the temple.
{50:2} Even the height of the temple was established by him: the double building and the high walls of the temple.
{50:3} In his days, waters flowed out from the wells, and these were full beyond measure, like the sea.
{50:4} He cared for his nation, and he freed it from perdition.
{50:5} He prevailed, so as to enlarge the city. And he obtained glory by his behavior among the people. And he enlarged the entrance of the house and of the atrium.
{50:6} He shined in his days like the morning star through the midst of a cloud, and like the full moon.
{50:7} And he shined forth in the temple of God in this manner: like the sun when it shines brightly,
{50:8} and like a rainbow shining amid clouds of glory, and like flowering roses in the days of spring, and like lilies along the water’s edge, and like sweet smelling frankincense in the days of summer,
{50:9} like a fire shining brightly, and like frankincense burning within a fire,
{50:10} like a vessel of solid gold, adorned with every precious stone,
{50:11} like an olive tree producing buds, and like a cypress tree lifting itself on high, when he received the robe of glory and was vested with the consummation of virtue.
{50:12} He gave glory to the vestment of sanctity, when he ascended to the holy altar.
{50:13} Then, when he received the portions from the hands of the priests, he himself stood next to the altar. And around him was the crown of his brethren, like a cedar planted on a mountain of Lebanon.
{50:14} And they stood around him like palm branches, and all were sons of Aaron in their glory.
{50:15} Then the oblation of the Lord was in their hands, in the sight of the entire synagogue of Israel. And completing his service at the altar, so as to magnify the offering to the Most High King,
{50:16} he extended his hand to make a libation, and he offered from the blood of the grape.
{50:17} At the base of the altar, he poured out a divine fragrance to the Most High Prince.
{50:18} Then the sons of Aaron shouted; they sounded finely-made trumpets, and they made a great noise, as a memorial in the sight of God.
{50:19} Then all the people at once hurried forward, and they fell to the ground on their faces, to adore the Lord their God, and to offer prayers to Almighty God Most High.
{50:20} And the singers of Psalms raised their voices, and a full sweet sound increased in the great house.
{50:21} And the people petitioned the Most High Lord in prayer, even until the honor of the Lord was completed, and they finished offering their gifts.
{50:22} Then, descending, he extended his hands over the entire congregation of the sons of Israel, to give glory to God from his lips, and to glory in his name.
{50:23} And he repeated his prayer, wanting to reveal the virtue of God.
{50:24} And now, pray to the God of all, who has accomplished great things over all the earth, who has increased our days from our mother’s womb, and who has acted toward us in accord with his mercy.
{50:25} May he give us joyfulness in heart, and may there be peace in our days, in Israel for unending days,
{50:26} so that Israel may trust the mercy of God to be with us, in order to free us in his days.
{50:27} Two nations my soul hates, and a third, which I hate, is not a nation:
{50:28} those who sit upon mount Seir, and the Philistines, and the foolish people who live at Shechem.
{50:29} Jesus, the son of Sirach, of Jerusalem, who renewed wisdom from his heart, wrote the doctrine of wisdom and discipline in this book.
{50:30} Blessed is he who lives by these good things. Whoever places these things in his heart will be ever wise.
{50:31} For if he does these things, he will prevail in all things. For the light of God is upon his footsteps.
{51:1} The prayer of Jesus, the son of Sirach: I will confess to you, O Lord and King, and I will give praise to you, O God my Savior.
{51:2} I will acknowledge your name. For you have been my Helper and Protector.
{51:3} And you have freed my body from perdition, from the snare of the iniquitous tongue, and from the lips of those who forge lies. And you have been my Helper in the sight of those who stood nearby.
{51:4} And you have freed me according to the multitude of the mercy of your name: from those who roared and prepared to devour,
{51:5} from the hands of those who sought my life, and from the gates of tribulation that surrounded me,
{51:6} from the oppression of the flames that surrounded me, and so I was not burned in the midst of the fire,
{51:7} from the depths of the bowels of hell, and from the defiled tongue, and from lying words, from an iniquitous king, and from an unjust tongue.
{51:8} My soul shall praise the Lord, even unto death.
{51:9} For my life was drawing near to hell below.
{51:10} And they surrounded me on every side. And there was no one who would help me. I looked around for the assistance of men, and there was none.
{51:11} Then I remembered your mercy, O Lord, and your works, which are from the very beginning.
{51:12} For you rescue those who persevere for you, O Lord, and you free them from the hands of the Gentiles.
{51:13} You exalted my habitation upon the earth, and I made supplication that death would pass away.
{51:14} I called upon the Lord, the Father of my Lord, so that he would not abandon me in the day of my tribulation, nor in the time of arrogance without assistance.
{51:15} I will praise your name unceasingly, and I will praise it with thanksgiving, for my prayer was heeded.
{51:16} And you freed me from perdition, and you rescued me from the time of iniquity.
{51:17} Because of this, I will give thanks and praise to you, and I will bless the name of the Lord.
{51:18} When I was still young, before I wandered astray, I sought wisdom openly in my prayer.
{51:19} I asked for her before the temple, and even to the very end, I will inquire after her. And she flourished like a newly-ripened grape.
{51:20} My heart rejoiced in her. My feet walked in the right path. From my youth, I pursued her.
{51:21} I bent my ear a little and accepted her.
{51:22} I found much wisdom within myself, and I benefited greatly by her.
{51:23} I will give glory to him who gives wisdom to me.
{51:24} For I have decided that I should act according to wisdom. I have been zealous for what is good, and so I will not be confounded.
{51:25} My soul has struggled for wisdom, and in doing so, I have been confirmed.
{51:26} I extended my hands on high, and I mourned my ignorance of her.
{51:27} I directed my soul toward her, and I found her within knowledge.
{51:28} From the beginning, I held my heart to wisdom. Because of this, I will not be forsaken.
{51:29} My stomach was stirred up while seeking her. Because of her, I will hold a good possession.
{51:30} The Lord has given me a tongue as my reward, and I will praise him with it.
{51:31} Draw near to me, you who are untaught, and gather yourselves into the house of discipline.
{51:32} Why are you reluctant? And what do you have to say about these things? Your souls are exceedingly thirsty!
{51:33} I have opened my mouth, and I have spoken. Buy wisdom for yourselves without silver,
{51:34} and subject your neck to her yoke, and let your soul accept her discipline. For she is close enough to be found.
{51:35} See with your own eyes how I have labored only a little, and have found much rest for myself.
{51:36} Take up discipline, as if it were a great sum of money, and possess an abundance of gold in her.
{51:37} Let your soul rejoice in his mercy. For you will not be confounded by his praise.
{51:38} Accomplish your work before the time. And he will give you your reward in his time.
{1:1} The vision of Isaiah, the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem, in the days of Uzziah, Joatham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
{1:2} Listen, O heavens, and pay attention, O earth, for the Lord has spoken. I have nurtured and raised children, but they have spurned me.
{1:3} An ox knows his owner, and a donkey knows the manger of his lord, but Israel has not known me, and my people have not understood.
{1:4} Woe to a sinful nation, a people burdened by iniquity, a wicked offspring, accursed children. They have abandoned the Lord. They have blasphemed the Holy One of Israel. They been taken away backwards.
{1:5} For what reason shall I continue to strike you, as you increase transgressions? The entire head is feeble, and the entire heart is grieving.
{1:6} From the sole of the foot, even to the top of the head, there is no soundness within. Wounds and bruises and swelling sores: these are not bandaged, nor treated with medicine, nor soothed with oil.
{1:7} Your land is desolate. Your cities have been set ablaze. Foreigners devour your countryside in your sight, and it will become desolate, as if devastated by enemies.
{1:8} And the daughter of Zion will be left behind, like an arbor in a vineyard, and like a shelter in a cucumber field, and like a city being laid to waste.
{1:9} If the Lord of hosts had not bequeathed us offspring, we would have been like Sodom, and we would have been comparable to Gomorrah.
{1:10} Listen to the Word of the Lord, you leaders of the people of Sodom. Listen closely to the law of our God, O people of Gomorrah.
{1:11} The multitude of your sacrifices, what is that to me, says the Lord? I am full. I do not desire holocausts of rams, nor the fat of fatlings, nor the blood of calves and of lambs and of he-goats.
{1:12} When you approach before my sight, who is it that requires these things from your hands, so that you would walk in my courts?
{1:13} You should no longer offer sacrifice in vain. Incense is an abomination to me. The new moons and the Sabbaths and the other feast days, I will not receive. Your gatherings are iniquitous.
{1:14} My soul hates your days of proclamation and your solemnities. They have become bothersome to me. I labor to endure them.
{1:15} And so, when you extend your hands, I will avert my eyes from you. And when you multiply your prayers, I will not heed you. For your hands are full of blood.
{1:16} Wash, become clean, take away the evil of your intentions from my eyes. Cease to act perversely.
{1:17} Learn to do good. Seek judgment, support the oppressed, judge for the orphan, defend the widow.
{1:18} And then approach and accuse me, says the Lord. Then, if your sins are like scarlet, they shall be made white like snow; and if they are red like vermillion, they shall become white like wool.
{1:19} If you are willing, and you listen to me, then you will eat the good things of the land.
{1:20} But if you are not willing, and you provoke me to anger, then the sword will devour you. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
{1:21} How has the faithful city, full of judgment, become a harlot? Justice lived in her, but now murderers.
{1:22} Your silver has turned into dross. Your wine has been mixed with water.
{1:23} Your leaders are unfaithful, the associates of thieves. They all love gifts; they pursue rewards. They do not judge for orphans, and the widow’s case is not brought before them.
{1:24} Because of this, the Lord God of hosts, the Strength of Israel, says: Ah! I will be consoled over my enemies, and I will be vindicated from my adversaries.
{1:25} And I will turn my hand to you. And I will temper your dross unto purity, and I will take away all your tin.
{1:26} And I will restore your judges, so that they will be as before, and your counselors as in times long past. After this, you shall be called the City of the Just, the Faithful City.
{1:27} Zion will be redeemed in judgment, and they will lead her back to justice.
{1:28} And he shall crush the accursed and sinners together. And those who have abandoned the Lord will be consumed.
{1:29} For they shall be confounded because of the idols, to which they have sacrificed. And you shall be ashamed over the gardens that you chose,
{1:30} when you were like an oak with falling leaves, and like a garden without water.
{1:31} And your strength will be like the embers from stubble, and your work will be like a spark, and both will burn together, and there will be no one to extinguish it.
{2:1} The word that Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
{2:2} And in the last days, the mountain of the house of the Lord will be prepared at the summit of the mountains, and it will be exalted above the hills, and all the nations shall flow to it.
{2:3} And many peoples will go, and they will say: “Let us approach and ascend to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob. And he will teach us his ways, and we will walk in his paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
{2:4} And he will judge the nations, and he will rebuke many peoples. And they shall forge their swords into plowshares, and their spears into sickles. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, neither will they continue to train for battle.
{2:5} O house of Jacob, let us approach and walk in the light of the Lord.
{2:6} For you have cast aside your people, the house of Jacob, because they have been filled up, as in past times, and because they have had soothsayers as the Philistines have, and because they have joined themselves to foreign servants.
{2:7} Their land has been filled with silver and gold. And there is no end to their storehouses.
{2:8} And their land has been filled with horses. And their four-horse chariots are innumerable. And their land has been filled with idols. They have adored the work of their hands, which their own fingers have made.
{2:9} And man has bowed himself down, and so man has become debased. Therefore, you should not forgive them.
{2:10} Enter into the rock, and hide in a ditch in the soil, from the presence of the fear of the Lord, and from the glory of his majesty.
{2:11} The lofty eyes of man have been humbled, and the haughtiness of men will be bowed down. Then the Lord alone shall be exalted, in that day.
{2:12} For the day of the Lord of hosts will prevail over all the proud and self-exalted, and over all the arrogant, and each one shall be humbled,
{2:13} and over all the straight and tall cedars of Lebanon, and over all the oaks of Bashan;
{2:14} and over all the lofty mountains, and over all the elevated hills;
{2:15} and over every lofty tower, and over every fortified wall;
{2:16} and over all the ships of Tarshish, and over all the beauty that may be seen.
{2:17} And the loftiness of men will be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men will be brought low. And the Lord alone shall be exalted, in that day.
{2:18} And idols will be thoroughly crushed.
{2:19} And they will go into the caves of the rocks, and into the caverns of the earth, from the presence of the dread of the Lord, and from the glory of his majesty, when he will have risen up to strike the earth.
{2:20} In that day, man shall cast aside his idols of silver and his images of gold, which he had made for himself, as if to reverence the moles and the bats.
{2:21} And so he will go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the caverns of stone, from the presence of the dread of the Lord, and from the glory of his majesty, when he will have risen up to strike the earth.
{2:22} Therefore, rest away from man, whose breath is in his nostrils, for he considers himself to be exalted.
{3:1} For behold, the sovereign Lord of hosts will take away, from Jerusalem and from Judah, the powerful and the strong: all the strength from bread, and all the strength from water;
{3:2} the strong man, and the man of war, the judge and the prophet, and the seer and the elder;
{3:3} the leader over fifty and the honorable in appearance; and the counselor, and the wise among builders, and the skillful in mystical speech.
{3:4} And I will provide children as their leaders, and the effeminate will rule over them.
{3:5} And the people will rush, man against man, and each one against his neighbor. The child shall rebel against the elder, and the ignoble against the noble.
{3:6} For a man will apprehend his brother, from the household of his own father, saying: “The vestment is yours. Be our leader, but let this ruin be under your hand.”
{3:7} In that day, he will respond by saying: “I am not a healer, and there is no bread or vestment in my house. Do not choose to appoint me as a leader of the people.”
{3:8} For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah has fallen, because their words and their plans are against the Lord, in order to provoke the eyes of his majesty.
{3:9} The acknowledgement of their countenance is their response. For they have proclaimed their own sin, like Sodom; and they have not concealed it. Woe to their souls! For evils are being repaid to them.
{3:10} Tell the just man that it is well, for he shall eat from the fruit from his own plans.
{3:11} Woe to the impious man immersed in evil! For retribution will be given to him from his own hands.
{3:12} As for my people, their oppressors have despoiled them, and women have ruled over them. My people, who call you blessed, the same are deceiving you and disrupting the path of your steps.
{3:13} The Lord stands for judgment, and he stands to judge the people.
{3:14} The Lord will enter into judgment with the elders of his people, and with their leaders. For you have been devouring the vineyard, and the plunder from the poor is in your house.
{3:15} Why do you wear down my people, and grind up the faces of the poor, says the Lord, the God of hosts?
{3:16} And the Lord said: Because the daughters of Zion have been lifted up, and have walked with extended necks and winking eyes, because they have continued on, walking noisily and advancing with a pretentious stride,
{3:17} the Lord will make the heads of the daughters of Zion bald, and the Lord will strip them of the locks of their hair.
{3:18} In that day, the Lord will take away their decorative shoes,
{3:19} and the little moons and chains, and the necklaces and bracelets, and the hats,
{3:20} and the ornaments for their hair, and the anklets, and the touches of myrrh and little bottles of perfumes, and the earrings,
{3:21} and the rings, and the jewels hanging on their foreheads,
{3:22} and the continual changes in appearance, and the short skirts, and the fine linens and embroidered cloths,
{3:23} and the mirrors, and scarves, and ribbons, and their sparse clothing.
{3:24} And in place of a sweet fragrance, there will be stench. And in place of a belt, there will be a rope. And in place of stylish hair, there will be baldness. And in place of a blouse, there will be haircloth.
{3:25} Likewise, your most handsome men will fall by the sword, and your strong men will fall in battle.
{3:26} And her gates will grieve and mourn. And she will sit on the ground, desolate.
{4:1} And seven women will take hold of one man, in that day, saying, “We will eat our own bread and wear our own clothing, only let us be called by your name, so as to take away our reproach.”
{4:2} In that day, the seedling of the Lord will have magnificence and glory, and the fruit of the earth will be greatly-esteemed and a source of joy to those who will have been saved out of Israel.
{4:3} And this shall be: all who are left behind in Zion, and who remain in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, all who have been written in life in Jerusalem.
{4:4} Then the Lord will have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and will have washed away the blood of Jerusalem from its midst, by means of a spirit of judgment and a spirit of intense devotion.
{4:5} And the Lord will create, over every place of Mount Zion and wherever he is called upon, a cloud by day and a smoke with the splendor of burning fire by night. For protection will be over every glory.
{4:6} And there will be a tabernacle for shade from the heat in daytime, and for security, and for protection from the whirlwind and from rain.
{5:1} I will sing to my beloved the canticle of my paternal cousin, about his vineyard. A vineyard was made for my beloved, at the horn in the son of oil.
{5:2} And he fenced it in, and he picked the stones out of it, and he planted it with the best vines, and he built a tower in the middle of it, and he set up a winepress within it. And he expected it to produce grapes, but it produced wild vines.
{5:3} Now then, inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah: judge between me and my vineyard.
{5:4} What more should I have done for my vineyard that I did not do for it? Should I not have expected it to produce grapes, though it produced wild vines?
{5:5} And now, I will reveal to you what I will do to my vineyard. I will take away its fence, and it will be plundered. I will pull down its wall, and it will be trampled.
{5:6} And I will make it desolate. It will not be pruned, and it will not be dug. And briers and thorns will rise up. And I will command the clouds not to rain upon it.
{5:7} For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel. And the man of Judah is his delightful seedling. And I expected that he would do judgment, and behold iniquity, and that he would do justice, and behold an outcry.
{5:8} Woe to you who join house to house, and who combine field to field, even to the limits of the place! Do you intend to live alone in the midst of the earth?
{5:9} These things are in my ears, says the Lord of hosts. Otherwise, many houses, great and beautiful, will become desolate, without an inhabitant.
{5:10} Then ten acres of vineyard will produce one small bottle of wine, and thirty measures of seed will produce three measures of grain.
{5:11} Woe to you who rise up in the morning to pursue drunkenness, and to drink even until evening, so as to be inflamed with wine.
{5:12} Harp and lyre and timbrel and pipe, as well as wine, are at your feasts. But you do not respect the work of the Lord, nor do you consider the works of his hands.
{5:13} Because of this, my people have been led away as captives, for they did not have knowledge, and their nobles have passed away from famine, and their multitudes have dried up from thirst.
{5:14} For this reason, Hell has expanded its soul, and has opened its mouth without any limits. And their strong ones, and their people, and their exalted and glorious ones will descend into it.
{5:15} And man will be bowed down, and man will be humbled, and the eyes of the exalted will be brought low.
{5:16} And the Lord of hosts will be exalted in judgment, and the holy God will be sanctified in justice.
{5:17} And the lambs will pasture in proper order, and new arrivals will eat from the deserts turned into fertile lands.
{5:18} Woe to you who draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and who draw sin as if with the rope of a cart,
{5:19} and who say: “Let him hurry, and let his work arrive soon, so that we may see it. And let the plan of the Holy One of Israel approach and arrive, so that we may know it.”
{5:20} Woe to you who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light, and light for darkness; who exchange bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
{5:21} Woe to you who are wise in your own eyes, and prudent in your own sight!
{5:22} Woe to you who are powerful at drinking wine, who are strong men in contriving inebriation!
{5:23} For you justify an impious man in exchange for bribes, and you carry away the justice of a just man from him.
{5:24} Because of this, as the tongue of fire devours stubble, and as the heat of a flame burns it completely, so will their root become like glowing embers, and so will their offshoot ascend like dust. For they have cast aside the law of the Lord of hosts, and they have blasphemed the eloquence of the Holy One of Israel.
{5:25} For this reason, the fury of the Lord has been enraged against his people, and he has extended his hand over them, and he has struck them. And the mountains were disturbed. And their carcasses became like dung in the midst of the streets. After all this, his fury was not turned away; instead, his hand was still extended.
{5:26} And he will lift up a sign to nations far away, and he will whistle to them from the ends of the earth. And behold, they will rush forward speedily.
{5:27} There is no one weak or struggling among them. They will not become drowsy, and they will not sleep. Neither will the belt around their waist be loosened, nor the laces of their boots be broken.
{5:28} Their arrows are sharp, and all their bows are taut. The hoofs of their horses are like flint, and their wheels are like the force of a tempest.
{5:29} Their roaring is like the lion; they will roar like young lions. They will both roar and seize their prey. And they will wrap themselves around it, and there will be no one who can rescue it.
{5:30} And in that day, they will make a noise over it, like the sound of the sea. We will gaze out toward the land, and behold, the darkness of the tribulation, and even the light has been darkened by its gloom.
{6:1} In the year in which king Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, sublime and exalted, and the things that were under him filled the temple.
{6:2} The Seraphim were standing above the throne. One had six wings, and the other had six wings: with two they were covering his face, and with two they were covering his feet, and with two they were flying.
{6:3} And they were crying out to one another, and saying: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God of hosts! All the earth is filled with his glory!”
{6:4} And the lintels above the hinges were shaken at the voice of the one crying out. And the house was filled with smoke.
{6:5} And I said: “Woe to me! For I have remained silent. For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live in the midst of a people having unclean lips, and I have seen with my eyes the King, the Lord of hosts!”
{6:6} And one of the Seraphim flew to me, and in his hand was a burning coal, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.
{6:7} And he touched my mouth, and he said, “Behold, this has touched your lips, and so your iniquities will be taken away, and your sin will be cleansed.”
{6:8} And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send?” and, “Who will go for us?” And I said: “Here I am. Send me.”
{6:9} And he said: “Go forth! And you shall say to this people: ‘When you listen, you will hear and not understand. And when you see a vision, you will not comprehend.’
{6:10} Blind the heart of this people. Make their ears heavy and close their eyes, lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and then I would heal them.”
{6:11} And I said, “For how long, O Lord?” And he said, “Until the cities are desolate, without an inhabitant, and the houses are without a man, and the land will be left behind, deserted.”
{6:12} For the Lord will take the men far away, and she who will have been left behind will be multiplied in the midst of the earth.
{6:13} But still, there will be a tithing within her, and she will be converted, and she will be put on display, like a terebinth tree and like an oak which extends its branches. And what will remain standing within her will be a holy offspring.
{7:1} And it happened in the days of Ahaz, the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, the king of Judah, that Rezin, the king of Syria, and Pekah, the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, ascended to Jerusalem to battle against it. But they were not able to defeat it.
{7:2} And they reported to the house of David, saying: “Syria has withdrawn to Ephraim.” And his heart was shaken, with the heart of his people, just as the trees of the forest are moved by the face of the wind.
{7:3} And the Lord said to Isaiah: Go out to meet Ahaz, you and your son, Jashub, who was left behind, to the end of the aqueduct, at the upper pool, on the road to the fuller’s field.
{7:4} And you shall say to him: “See to it that you are silent. Do not be afraid. And have no dread in your heart over the two tails of these firebrands, nearly extinguished, which are the wrath of the fury of Rezin, king of Syria, and of the son of Remaliah.”
{7:5} For Syria has undertaken a plan against you, with the evil of Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, saying:
{7:6} “Let us ascend to Judah, and stir it up, and tear it away for ourselves, and appoint the son of Tabeel as a king in its midst.”
{7:7} Thus says the Lord God: This shall not stand, and this shall not be.
{7:8} For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin; and within sixty-five years from now, Ephraim will cease to be a people.
{7:9} For the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is the son of Remaliah. If you will not believe, you will not continue.
{7:10} And the Lord spoke further to Ahaz, saying:
{7:11} Ask for a sign for yourself from the Lord your God, from the depths below, even to the heights above.
{7:12} And Ahaz said, “I will not ask, for I will not tempt the Lord.”
{7:13} And he said: “Then listen, O house of David. Is it such a small thing for you to trouble men, that you must also trouble my God?
{7:14} For this reason, the Lord himself will grant to you a sign. Behold, a virgin will conceive, and she will give birth to a son, and his name will be called Immanuel.
{7:15} He will eat butter and honey, so that he may know to reject evil and to choose good.
{7:16} But even before the boy knows to refuse evil and to choose good, the land that you detest will be abandoned by the face of her two kings.
{7:17} The Lord will lead over you, and over your people, and over the house of your father, such days as have not occurred since the days of the separation of Ephraim from Judah by the king of the Assyrians.
{7:18} And this shall be in that day: the Lord will call for the fly, which is in the most distant parts of the rivers of Egypt, and for the swarm, which is in the land of Assur.
{7:19} And they will arrive, and they all will rest in the torrents of the valleys, and in the caverns of the rocks, and in every thicket, and in every opening.
{7:20} In that day, the Lord will shave with a razor the ones hired by those who are across the river, by the king of the Assyrians, from the head to the hairs of the feet, with the entire beard.
{7:21} And this shall be in that day: a man will raise a cow among oxen, and two sheep,
{7:22} and, instead of an abundance of milk, he will eat butter. For all who are left behind in the midst of the land will eat butter and honey.
{7:23} And this shall be in that day: every place, where there were a thousand grapevines worth a thousand pieces of silver, will become thorns and briers.
{7:24} They will enter such places with arrows and bows. For briers and thorns will be throughout the entire land.
{7:25} But as for all the mountains, which will be dug with a hoe, the terror of thorns and briers will not approach those places. And there will be pasture land for oxen, and a range for cattle.”
{8:1} And the Lord said to me: “Take up for yourself a large book, and with a man’s pen write in it: ‘Take away the spoils quickly; plunder swiftly.’ ”
{8:2} And I summoned to myself faithful witnesses: Uriah, the priest, and Zechariah, the son of Berechiah.
{8:3} And I joined with the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. And the Lord said to me: “Call his name: ‘Rush to take away the spoils; Hurry to be plundered.’
{8:4} For before the boy knows how to call to his father and his mother, the strength of Damascus and the spoils of Samaria will be taken away, in the sight of the king of the Assyrians.”
{8:5} And the Lord spoke to me further, saying:
{8:6} “Because this people has cast aside the waters of Shiloah, which go forth silently, and has instead chosen Rezin and the son of Remaliah,
{8:7} for this reason, behold, the Lord will lead over them the waters of a river, strong and plentiful: the king of the Assyrians with all his glory. And he will rise up throughout all his streams, and he will overflow all his banks.
{8:8} And he will pass through Judah, inundating it, and he will cross over and arrive, even at its neck. And he will extend his wings, filling the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.”
{8:9} O people, gather together, and be conquered! All distant lands, listen! Be strengthened, and be conquered! Gird yourselves, and be conquered!
{8:10} Undertake a plan, and it will be dissipated! Speak a word, and it will not be done! For God is with us.
{8:11} For the Lord said this to me, and he has instructed this to me with a strong hand, lest I go forth in the way of this people, saying:
{8:12} “You should not say ‘It is conspiracy!’ For all that this people speaks is a conspiracy. And you should not be frightened or alarmed with their fear.
{8:13} Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself. Let him be your dread, and let him be your fear.
{8:14} And so shall he be a sanctification to you. But he will be a stone of offense and a rock of scandal to the two houses of Israel, and a snare and a ruin to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
{8:15} And very many of them will stumble and fall, and they will be broken and entangled and seized.
{8:16} Bind the testimony, seal the law, among my disciples.”
{8:17} And I will wait for the Lord, who has concealed his face from the house of Jacob, and I will stand before him.
{8:18} Behold: I and my children, whom the Lord has given to me as a sign and a portent, in Israel, from the Lord of hosts, who lives on Mount Zion.
{8:19} And though they say to you, “Seek from seers and diviners,” they who hiss in their incantations, should not the people seek from their God, for the sake of the living, and not from the dead?
{8:20} And this is, moreover, for the sake of the law and the testimony. But if they do not speak according to this Word, then he will not have the morning light.
{8:21} And he will pass by it; he will fall and become hungry. And when he is hungry, he will become angry, and he will speak evil against his king and his God, and he will lift himself upward.
{8:22} And he will gaze downward to the earth, and behold: tribulation and darkness, dissolution and distress, and a pursuing gloom. For he will not be able to fly away from its distress.
{9:1} In the earlier time, the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali were lifted up. But in the later time, the way of the sea beyond the Jordan, the Galilee of the Gentiles, was weighed down.
{9:2} The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. A light has risen for the inhabitants of the region of the shadow of death.
{9:3} You have increased the nation, but you have not increased the rejoicing. They will rejoice before you, like those who rejoice at the harvest, like the victorious exulting after capturing the prey, when they divide the spoils.
{9:4} For you have prevailed over the yoke of their burden, and over the rod of their shoulder, and over the scepter of their oppressor, as in the day of Midian.
{9:5} For every violent plunder with a tumult, and every garment mixed with blood, will be burned up and will become fuel for the fire.
{9:6} For unto us a child is born, and unto us a son is given. And leadership is placed upon his shoulder. And his name shall be called: wonderful Counselor, mighty God, father of the future age, Prince of Peace.
{9:7} His reign will be increased, and there will be no end to his peace. He will sit upon the throne of David and over his kingdom, to confirm and strengthen it, in judgment and justice, from now even unto eternity. The zeal of the Lord of hosts shall accomplish this.
{9:8} The Lord sent a word to Jacob, and it fell upon Israel.
{9:9} And all the people of Ephraim will know it. And the inhabitants of Samaria will say it, in the arrogance and haughtiness of their heart:
{9:10} “The bricks have fallen, but we will build with squared stones. They have cut down the sycamores, but we will replace them with cedars.”
{9:11} And the Lord will raise up the enemies of Rezin over him, and he will turn his adversaries into a tumult:
{9:12} the Syrians from the east and the Philistines from the west. And they will devour Israel with their whole mouth. After all this, his fury was not turned away; instead, his hand was still extended.
{9:13} And the people did not return to the One who struck them, and they did not seek the Lord of hosts.
{9:14} And so, the Lord will disperse, away from Israel, the head and the tail, he who bows down and he who refrains, in one day.
{9:15} The long-lived and honorable, he is the head; and the prophet who teaches lies, he is the tail.
{9:16} And those who deceitfully praise this people, and those who are praised, will be thrown down violently.
{9:17} For this reason, the Lord will not rejoice over their youths. And he will not take pity on their orphans and widows. For each one is a hypocrite, and each one is wicked, and every mouth has spoken foolishness. After all this, his fury was not turned away; instead, his hand was still extended.
{9:18} For impiety has been kindled like a fire: it will devour brier and thorn, and it will burn in the dense forest, and it will be interwoven with the ascending smoke.
{9:19} The earth has been shaken by the wrath of the Lord of hosts, and the people will become like fuel for the fire. A man will not spare his own brother.
{9:20} And he will turn toward the right, and he will be hungry. And he will eat toward the left, and he will not be satisfied. Each one will eat the flesh of his own arm: Manasseh Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh, and together they will be against Judah.
{9:21} After all this, his fury was not turned away; instead, his hand was still extended.
{10:1} Woe to those who make unfair laws, and who, when writing, write injustice:
{10:2} in order to oppress the poor in judgment, and to do violence to the case of the humble of my people, in order that widows may be their prey, and that they might plunder the orphan.
{10:3} What will you do on the day of visitation and calamity which is approaching from afar? To whom will you flee for assistance? And where will you leave behind your own glory,
{10:4} so that you may not be bowed down under the chains, and fall with the slain? Concerning all this, his fury was not turned away; instead, his hand was still extended.
{10:5} Woe to Assur! He is the rod and the staff of my fury, and my indignation is in their hands.
{10:6} I will send him to a deceitful nation, and I will order him against the people of my fury, so that he may take away the plunder, and tear apart the prey, and place it to be trampled like the mud of the streets.
{10:7} But he will not consider it to be so, and his heart will not suppose it to be this way. Instead, his heart will be set to crush and to exterminate more than a few nations.
{10:8} For he will say:
{10:9} “Are not my princes like many kings? Is not Calno like Carchemish, and Hamath like Arpad? Is not Samaria like Damascus?
{10:10} In the same manner as my hand reached the kingdoms of the idol, so also will it reach their false images, those of Jerusalem and of Samaria.
{10:11} Should I not do to Jerusalem and her false images, just as I have done to Samaria and her idols?”
{10:12} And this shall be: when the Lord will have completed each of his works on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, I will act against the fruit of the exalted heart of king Assur, and against the glory of the haughtiness of his eyes.
{10:13} For he has said: “I have acted with the strength of my own hand, and I have understood with my own wisdom, and I have removed the limits of the people, and I have plundered their leaders, and, like one with power, I have pulled down those residing on high.
{10:14} And my hand has reached to the strength of the people, as to a nest. And, just as the eggs which have been left behind are gathered, so have I gathered the entire earth. And there was no one who moved a wing, or opened a mouth, or uttered a snarl.”
{10:15} Should the axe glorify itself over him who wields it? Or can the saw exalt itself over him who pulls it? How can a rod lift itself up against him who wields it, or a staff exalt itself, though it is only wood?
{10:16} Because of this, the sovereign Lord, the Lord of hosts, will send leanness among his fat ones. And under the influence of his glory, a burning ardor will rage, like a consuming fire.
{10:17} And the light of Israel will be like a fire, and the Holy One of Israel will be like a flame. And his thorns and briers will be set ablaze and devoured, in one day.
{10:18} And the glory of his forest and of his beautiful hill will be consumed, from the soul even to the flesh. And he will flee away in terror.
{10:19} And what remains of the trees of his forest will be so few, and so easily numbered, that even a child could write them down.
{10:20} And this shall be in that day: those not added to the remnant of Israel, and those who escape of the house of Jacob, will not lean upon him who strikes them. Instead, they will lean upon the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.
{10:21} The remnant of Jacob, again I say the remnant, will be converted to the mighty God.
{10:22} For though your people, O Israel, will be like the sand of the sea, yet only a remnant of them will be converted. The consummation, having been shortened, will be inundated with justice.
{10:23} For the Lord, the God of hosts, will accomplish an abbreviation and a consummation, in the midst of all the earth.
{10:24} For this reason, the Lord, the God of hosts, says this: “My people, who inhabit Zion: do not be afraid of Assur. He will strike you with his rod, and he will lift up his staff over you, on the way of Egypt.
{10:25} But after a little while and a brief time, my indignation will be consumed, and my fury will turn to their wickedness.”
{10:26} And the Lord of hosts will raise up a scourge over him, like the scourge of Midian at the rock of Oreb, and he will raise up his rod over the sea, and he will lift it up against the way of Egypt.
{10:27} And this shall be in that day: his burden will be taken away from your shoulder, and his yoke will be taken away from your neck, and the yoke will decay at the appearance of the oil.
{10:28} He will approach Aiath; he will cross into Migron; he will entrust his vessels to Michmash.
{10:29} They have passed through in haste; Geba is our seat; Ramah was stupefied; Gibeah of Saul fled.
{10:30} Neigh with your voice, daughter of Gallim; pay attention, Laishah, impoverished woman of Anathoth.
{10:31} Madmenah has moved away; be strengthened, you inhabitants of Gebim.
{10:32} It is still daylight, so stand at Nob. He will shake his hand against the mountain of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.
{10:33} Behold, the sovereign Lord of hosts will crush the little bottle of wine with terror, and the exalted in stature will be cut down, and the lofty will be brought low.
{10:34} And the dense forest will be overturned with iron. And Lebanon, with its exalted ones, will fall.
{11:1} And a rod will go forth from the root of Jesse, and a flower will ascend from his root.
{11:2} And the Spirit of the Lord will rest upon him: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and fortitude, the spirit of knowledge and piety.
{11:3} And he will be filled with the spirit of the fear of the Lord. He will not judge according to the sight of the eyes, nor reprove according to the hearing of the ears.
{11:4} Instead, he will judge the poor with justice, and he will reprove the meek of the earth with fairness. And he will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and he will slay the impious with the spirit of his lips.
{11:5} And justice will be the belt around his waist. And faith will be the warrior’s belt at his side.
{11:6} The wolf will dwell with the lamb; and the leopard will lie down with the kid; the calf and the lion and the sheep will abide together; and a little boy will drive them.
{11:7} The calf and the bear will feed together; their young ones will rest together. And the lion will eat straw like the ox.
{11:8} And a breastfeeding infant will play above the lair of the asp. And a child who has been weaned will thrust his hand into the den of the king snake.
{11:9} They will not harm, and they will not kill, on all my holy mountain. For the earth has been filled with the knowledge of the Lord, like the waters covering the sea.
{11:10} In that day, the root of Jesse, who stands as a sign among the people, the same the Gentiles shall beseech, and his sepulcher will be glorious.
{11:11} And this shall be in that day: the Lord will send forth his hand a second time to take possession of the remnant of his people who will be left behind: from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Ethiopia, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.
{11:12} And he will lift up a sign to the nations, and he will gather together the fugitives of Israel, and he will collect the dispersed of Judah from the four regions of the earth.
{11:13} And the envy of Ephraim will be taken away, and the enemies of Judah will perish. Ephraim will not be a rival to Judah, and Judah will not fight against Ephraim.
{11:14} And they will fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines through the sea; together they will plunder the sons of the east. Idumea and Moab will be under the rule of their hand, and the sons of Ammon will be obedient.
{11:15} And the Lord will desolate the tongue of the sea of Egypt. And he will lift up his hand over the river, with the strength of his Spirit; and he will strike it, in its seven streams, so that they may cross through it in their shoes.
{11:16} And there will be a way for the remnant of my people, who will be left behind by the Assyrians: just as there was for Israel in the day that he ascended from the land of Egypt.
{12:1} And you will say in that day: “I will confess to you, O Lord, because you have been angry with me; but your fury has been turned away, and you have consoled me.
{12:2} Behold, God is my savior, I will act faithfully, and I will not be afraid. For the Lord is my strength and my praise, and he has become my salvation.”
{12:3} You will draw water with gladness from the fountains of the Savior.
{12:4} And you will say in that day: “Confess the Lord, and invoke his name! Make his plans known among the peoples! Remember that his name is exalted!
{12:5} Sing to the Lord, for he has acted magnificently! Announce it to the whole world!
{12:6} Exult and give praise, O habitation of Zion! For the Great One, the Holy One of Israel, is in your midst!”
{13:1} The burden of Babylon which Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saw.
{13:2} Over the foggy mountain lift up a sign! Raise the voice, lift up the hand, and let the rulers enter through the gates!
{13:3} In my wrath, I commanded my sanctified ones, and I called my strong ones, those who exult in my glory.
{13:4} On the mountains, there is the voice of a multitude, as if of a numerous people, a voice with the sound of kings, of nations gathered together. For the Lord of hosts has given orders to soldiers of war,
{13:5} to those who are arriving from a far off land, from the heights of the heavens. It is the Lord and the instruments of his fury, so that he may bring ruin to all the earth.
{13:6} Wail aloud! For the day of the Lord draws near! It will arrive like a devastation from the Lord.
{13:7} Because of it, every hand will fail, and every heart of man will waste away and be crushed.
{13:8} Writhing and pain will seize them. They will be in pain, like a woman in labor. Each one will appear stupefied to his neighbor. Their countenances will be like faces which have been burned up.
{13:9} Behold, the day of the Lord approaches: a cruel day, full of indignation and wrath and fury, which will place the earth in solitude and crush the sinners from it.
{13:10} For the stars of the heavens, in their splendor, will not display their light. The sun will be obscured at its rising, and the moon will not shine in her brightness.
{13:11} And I will act against the evils of the world, and against the impious for their iniquity. And I will cause the pride of the unfaithful to cease, and I will bring down the arrogance of the strong.
{13:12} A man will be more precious than gold, and mankind will become like pure refined gold.
{13:13} For this purpose, I will stir up heaven, and the earth will be moved from its place, because of the indignation of the Lord of hosts, because of the day of his furious wrath.
{13:14} And they will be like a doe fleeing away, or like sheep; and there will be no one who may gather them together. Each one will turn to his own people, and every one will flee to his own land.
{13:15} All who are found will be killed, and all who are caught unaware will fall by the sword.
{13:16} Their infants will be thrown down violently before their eyes. Their houses will be plundered, and their wives will be violated.
{13:17} Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them. They will not seek silver, nor desire gold.
{13:18} Instead, with their arrows, they will put the little children to death, and they will take no pity on breastfeeding women, and their eye will not spare their children.
{13:19} And then Babylon, the glorious one among kingdoms, that famous pride of the Chaldeans, will be destroyed, even as the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.
{13:20} It will not be inhabited, even unto the end, and it will not be reestablished, even from generation to generation. The Arab will not pitch his tents there, nor will the shepherds take rest there.
{13:21} Instead, the wild beasts will rest there, and their houses will be filled with serpents, and ostriches will live there, and the hairy ones will leap about there.
{13:22} And the tawny owls will answer one another there, in its buildings, and the Sirens in its shrines of pleasure.
{14:1} Her time is drawing near, and her days will not be prolonged. For the Lord will take pity on Jacob, and he will still choose from Israel, and he will cause them to rest upon their own soil. And the new arrival will be joined to them, and he will adhere to the house of Jacob.
{14:2} And the people will take them, and lead them to their place. And the house of Israel will possess them, in the land of the Lord, as men and women servants. And they will take captive those who had taken them captive. And they will subjugate their oppressors.
{14:3} And this shall be in that day: when God will have given you rest from your labor, and from your oppression, and from the difficult servitude under which you served before,
{14:4} you will accept this parable against the king of Babylon, and you will say: “How is it that the oppressor has ceased, along with his tribute?
{14:5} The Lord has crushed the staff of the impious, the scepter of despots,
{14:6} which struck the people in wrath with an incurable wound, which subjugated the nations in fury, which persecuted with cruelty.
{14:7} All the earth has become quiet and still; it has been gladdened and has rejoiced.
{14:8} The evergreens, too, have rejoiced over you, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying: ‘Since you have slept, no one has ascended who would cut us down.’
{14:9} Hell below was stirred up to meet you at your advent; it has awakened the giants for you. All the leaders of the earth have risen from their thrones, all the leaders among the nations.”
{14:10} Everyone will respond and will say to you: “Now you are wounded, just as we were; you have become like us.
{14:11} Your arrogance has been dragged down to Hell. Your body has fallen dead. The moths will be strewn beneath you, and the worms will be your covering.
{14:12} How is it that you have fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, who used to rise like the sun? How is it that you have fallen to the earth, you who wounded the peoples?
{14:13} And you said in your heart: ‘I will climb up to heaven. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. I will be enthroned upon the mountain of the covenant, on the northern parts.
{14:14} I will ascend above the tops of the clouds. I will be like the Most High.’
{14:15} Yet truly, you shall be dragged down to Hell, into the depths of the pit.
{14:16} Those who see you, will lean toward you, and will gaze upon you, saying: ‘Could this be the man who disturbed the earth, who shook kingdoms,
{14:17} who made the world into a desert and destroyed its cities, who would not even open a prison for his prisoners?’ ”
{14:18} All the kings of the nations throughout the whole world have slept in glory, each man in his own house.
{14:19} But you have been rejected from your grave, like a useless polluted plant, and you have been bound up with those who were slain by the sword, and who descended to the bottom of the pit, like a rotting carcass.
{14:20} You will not be associated with them, even in the grave. For you have destroyed your own land; you have slain your own people. The offspring of the wicked ones will not be called upon for eternity.
{14:21} Prepare his sons for the slaughter, according to the iniquity of their fathers. They will not rise up, nor inherit the earth, nor fill the face of the world with cities.
{14:22} But I will rise up against them, says the Lord of hosts. And I will perish the name of Babylon and its remnants: both the plant and its progeny, says the Lord.
{14:23} And I will appoint it as a possession for the hedgehog, with swamps of water. And I will sweep it out and wear it away with a brush, says the Lord of hosts.
{14:24} The Lord of hosts has sworn, saying: Surely, just as I have considered it, so shall it be, and in the same manner as I have drawn it through my mind,
{14:25} so shall it occur. So shall I crush the Assyrian in my land, and I will trample him upon my mountains, and his yoke will be taken away from them, and his burden will be removed from their shoulder.
{14:26} This is the plan that I have decided, concerning the entire earth, and this is the hand which is extended over all the nations.
{14:27} For the Lord of hosts has decreed it, and who is able to weaken it? And his hand is extended, so who can avert it?
{14:28} In the year in which king Ahaz died, this burden was given:
{14:29} You should not rejoice, all you of Philistia, that the rod of him who struck you has been crushed. For from the root of the serpent will go forth a king snake, and his offspring will engulf that which flies.
{14:30} And the firstborn of the poor will be pastured, and the poor will rest in faithfulness. And I will cause your root to pass away by famine, and I will put to death your remnant.
{14:31} Wail, O gate! Cry out, O city! All of Philistia has been prostrated. For a smoke will arrive from the north, and there is no one who will escape his army.
{14:32} And what will be the response to this news among the nations? It will be that the Lord has established Zion, and that the poor of his people will hope in him.
{15:1} The burden of Moab. Because Ar of Moab has been destroyed by night, it is utterly silent. Because the wall of Moab has been destroyed by night, it is utterly silent.
{15:2} The house has ascended with Dibon to the heights, in mourning over Nebo and over Medeba. Moab has wailed. There will be baldness on all of their heads, and every beard will be shaven.
{15:3} At their crossroads, they have been wrapped with sackcloth. On their rooftops and in their streets, everyone descends, wailing and weeping.
{15:4} Heshbon will cry out with Elealeh. Their voice has been heard as far as Jahaz. Over this, the well-equipped men of Moab wail; each soul will wail to itself.
{15:5} My heart will cry out to Moab; its bars will cry out even to Zoar, like a three-year-old calf. For they will ascend weeping, by way of the ascent of Luhith. And along the way of Horonaim, they will lift up a cry of contrition.
{15:6} For the waters of Nimrim will be desolate, because the plants have withered, and the seedling has failed, and all the greenery has passed away.
{15:7} This is in accord with the magnitude of their works and of their visitation. They will lead them to the torrent of the willows.
{15:8} For an outcry has circulated along the border of Moab; its wailing even to Eglaim, and its clamor even to the well of Elim.
{15:9} Because the waters of Dibon have been filled with blood, I will place even more upon Dibon: those from Moab who flee the lion, and the survivors of the earth.
{16:1} O Lord, send forth the Lamb, the Ruler of the earth, from the Rock of the desert to the mountain of the daughter of Zion.
{16:2} And this shall be: like a bird fleeing away, and like fledglings flying from the nest, so will the daughters of Moab be at the passage of Arnon.
{16:3} Form a plan. Call a council. Let your shadow be as if it were night, even at midday. Conceal the fugitives, and do not betray the wanderers.
{16:4} My fugitives will live with you. Become a hiding place, O Moab, from the face of the destroyer. For the dust is at its end; the miserable one has been consumed. He who trampled the earth has failed.
{16:5} And a throne will be prepared in mercy, and One shall sit upon it in truth, in the tabernacle of David, judging and seeking judgment, and quickly repaying what is just.
{16:6} We have heard of the pride of Moab; he is very proud. His pride and his arrogance and his indignation is more than his strength.
{16:7} For this reason, Moab will wail to Moab; each one will wail. Speak of their wounds to those who rejoice upon the brick walls.
{16:8} For the suburbs of Heshbon are deserted, and the lords of the Gentiles have cut down the vineyard of Sibmah. Its vines have arrived even at Jazer. They have wandered in the desert. Its seedlings have been abandoned. They have crossed over the sea.
{16:9} I will weep with the tears of Jazer over this, the vineyard of Sibmah. I will inebriate you with my tears, Heshbon and Elealeh! For the sound of those who trample has rushed over your vintage and over your harvest.
{16:10} And so, rejoicing and exultation will be taken away from Carmel, and there will be no jubilation or exultation in the vineyards. He who was accustomed to tread will not tread out the wine in the winepress. I have taken away the sound of those who tread.
{16:11} Over this, my heart will resonate like a harp for Moab, and my inner most being for the brick wall.
{16:12} And this shall be: when it is seen that Moab has struggled upon his high places, he will enter his holy places to pray, but he will not prevail.
{16:13} This is the word that the Lord has spoken to Moab concerning that time.
{16:14} And now the Lord has spoken, saying: In three years, like the years of a hired hand, the glory of Moab concerning the entire multitude of the people will be taken away, and what is left behind will be small and weak and not so numerous.
{17:1} The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus will cease to be a city, and it will be like a heap of stones in ruin.
{17:2} The cities in ruin will be left for the flocks, and they will take rest there, and there will be no one who may terrify them.
{17:3} And assistance will cease from Ephraim, and the kingdom will cease from Damascus. And the remnant of Syria will be like the glory of the sons of Israel, says the Lord of hosts.
{17:4} And this shall be in that day: the glory of Jacob will be thinned, and the fatness of his flesh will be reduced.
{17:5} And it shall be like the gathering of the harvest which remains, and his arm will pick the ears of grain. And it shall be like a search for grain in the valley of Rephaim.
{17:6} And what is left behind in it will be like one cluster of grapes, or like a shaken olive tree with two or three olives at the top of a branch, or like four or five olives at the top of a tree, says the Lord God of Israel.
{17:7} In that day, a man will bow before his Maker, and his eyes will consider the Holy One of Israel.
{17:8} And he will not bow before the altars that his hands have made. And he will not consider the things that his fingers have made, the sacred groves and the shrines.
{17:9} In that day, his strong cities will be abandoned, like the plows and the grain fields which were left behind before the face of the sons of Israel, and you shall be deserted.
{17:10} For you have forgotten God your Savior, and you have not remembered your strong Helper. Because of this, you will plant trustworthy plants, but you will sow a foreign seed.
{17:11} In the day of your planting, the wild grapevine and your morning seed will flourish. The harvest has been taken away to the day of inheritance, and you will grieve heavily.
{17:12} Woe to the multitude of many peoples, like the multitude of the roaring sea! Woe to the tumult of crowds, like the noise of many waters!
{17:13} The peoples will make a noise, like the noise of waters overflowing, but he will rebuke him, and so he will flee far away. And he will be quickly taken away, like the dust of the mountains before the face of the wind, and like a whirlwind before a tempest.
{17:14} In the time of the evening, behold: there will be a disturbance. When it is early morning, he will not remain. This is the portion of those who have devastated us, and this is the lot of those who have plundered us.
{18:1} Woe to the land, that winged cymbal, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia,
{18:2} which sends ambassadors by sea and in vessels of papyrus above the waters. Go forth, O swift Angels, to a nation which has been convulsed and torn apart, to a terrible people, after whom there is no other, to a nation apprehensive and downtrodden, whose land the rivers have spoiled.
{18:3} All inhabitants of the world, you who dwell upon the earth: when the sign will have been elevated on the mountains, you will see, and you will hear the blast of the trumpet.
{18:4} For the Lord says this to me: I will be quiet, and I will consider in my place, as the light at midday is clear, and as a cloud of dew in the day of the harvest.
{18:5} For before the harvest, all was flourishing. And it will spring forth with an untimely completion, and its little branches will be pruned with a curved blade. And what is left over will be cut away and shaken off.
{18:6} And together they will be abandoned to the birds of the mountains and to the wild beasts of the earth. And the birds will be continuously on them in the summer, and all the wild beasts of the earth will winter over them.
{18:7} In that time, a gift will be carried to the Lord of hosts, from a people divided and torn apart, from a terrible people, after whom there has been no other, from an apprehensive nation, apprehensive and downtrodden, whose land the rivers have ruined, and it will be carried to the place of the name of the Lord of hosts, to mount Zion.
{19:1} The burden of Egypt. Behold, the Lord will ascend upon a lofty cloud, and he will enter into Egypt, and the false images of Egypt will be moved before his face, and the heart of Egypt will waste away in its midst.
{19:2} And I will cause Egyptian to rush against Egyptian. And they will fight: a man against his brother, and a man against his friend, city against city, kingdom against kingdom.
{19:3} And the spirit of Egypt will be ruptured to its very core. And I will cast down their plan violently. And they will seek answers from their false images, and their diviners, and those led by demons, and their seers.
{19:4} And I will deliver Egypt into the hand of cruel masters, and a strong king will dominate them, says the Lord, the God of hosts.
{19:5} And the waters of the sea will dry up, and the river will be desolate and dry.
{19:6} And the rivers will fail. The streams of its banks will diminish and dry up. The reed and the bulrush will wither away.
{19:7} The channel of the river will be stripped down to its source, and everything irrigated by it will dry up and wither and be no more.
{19:8} And the fishermen will grieve. And all who cast a hook into the river will mourn. And those who cast a net upon the surface of its waters will languish.
{19:9} Those who work with linen, combing and weaving fine textiles, will be confounded.
{19:10} And its irrigated places will begin to fail, with all those who make pools to take fish.
{19:11} The leaders of Tanis are foolish. The wise counselors of Pharaoh have given foolish counsel. How can you say to Pharaoh: “I am the son of wise men, the son of the kings of antiquity?”
{19:12} Where are your wise men now? Let them announce it to you, and let them reveal what the Lord of hosts intends for Egypt.
{19:13} The leaders of Tanis have become foolish. The leaders of Memphis have decayed. They have deceived Egypt, the corner of its people.
{19:14} The Lord has mixed a spirit of giddiness into its midst. And they have caused Egypt to err in all its works, like a drunken man who staggers and vomits.
{19:15} And there will be no work for Egypt that would produce a head or a tail, one who bows down or one who refrains from bowing down.
{19:16} In that day, Egypt will be like women, and they will be stupefied and fearful before the presence of the shaking hand of the Lord of hosts, the hand which he will move over them.
{19:17} And the land of Judah will be a dread to Egypt. Everyone who thinks about it will be terrified before the presence of the plan of the Lord of hosts, the plan which he has decided concerning them.
{19:18} In that day, there will be five cities in the land of Egypt which speak the language of Canaan, and which swear by the Lord of hosts. One will be called the City of the Sun.
{19:19} In that day, there will be an altar of the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt and a monument of the Lord beside its borders.
{19:20} This shall be a sign and a testimony to the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt. For they will cry out to the Lord before the face of the tribulation, and he will send them a savior and a defender who will free them.
{19:21} And the Lord will be acknowledged by Egypt, and the Egyptians will recognize the Lord in that day, and they will worship him with sacrifices and gifts. And they will make vows to the Lord, and they will fulfill them.
{19:22} And the Lord will strike Egypt with a scourge, and he will heal them. And they will return to the Lord. And he will be placated toward them, and he will heal them.
{19:23} In that day, there will be a way from Egypt to the Assyrians, and the Assyrian will enter into Egypt, and the Egyptian will be with the Assyrians, and the Egyptians will serve Assur.
{19:24} In that day, will Israel be the third to the Egyptian and the Assyrian, a blessing in the midst of the earth,
{19:25} which the Lord of hosts has blessed, saying: Blessed be my people of Egypt, and the work of my hands for the Assyrian, but Israel is my inheritance.
{20:1} In the year in which Tharthan entered into Ashdod, when Sargon, the king of the Assyrians, had sent him, and when he had fought against Ashdod and had captured it,
{20:2} in that same time, the Lord spoke by the hand of Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saying: “Go forth, and remove the sackcloth from your waist, and take your shoes from your feet.” And he did so, going out naked and barefoot.
{20:3} And the Lord said: Just as my servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot, as a sign and as a portent of three years over Egypt and over Ethiopia,
{20:4} so also will the king of the Assyrians force the captivity of Egypt, and the transmigration of Ethiopia: young and old, naked and barefoot, with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.
{20:5} And they will be afraid and confounded over Ethiopia, their hope, and Egypt, their glory.
{20:6} And in that day, the inhabitants of a certain island will say: “Behold, this was our hope, we fled to them for help, to free us from the face of the king of the Assyrians. And now, how will we be able to escape?”
{21:1} The burden of the desert of the sea. Just as the whirlwinds approach from Africa, it approaches from the desert, from a terrible land.
{21:2} A difficult vision has been announced to me: he who is unbelieving, he acts unfaithfully, and he who is a plunderer, he devastates. Ascend, O Elam! Lay siege, O Media! I have caused all its mourning to cease.
{21:3} Because of this, my lower back has been filled with pain, and anguish has possessed me, like the anguish of a woman in labor. I fell down when I heard it. I was disturbed when I saw it.
{21:4} My heart withered. The darkness stupefied me. Babylon, my beloved, has become a wonder to me.
{21:5} Prepare the table. Contemplate, from a place of observation, those who eat and drink. Rise up, you leaders! Take up the shield!
{21:6} For the Lord has said this to me: “Go and station a watchman. And let him announce whatever he will see.”
{21:7} And he saw a chariot with two horsemen, and a rider on a donkey, and a rider on a camel. And he considered them diligently, with an intense gaze.
{21:8} And a lion cried out: “I am on the watchtower of the Lord, standing continually by day. And I am at my station, standing throughout the night.
{21:9} Behold, a certain man approaches, a man riding on a two-horse chariot.” And he responded, and he said: “Fallen, fallen is Babylon! And all its graven gods have been crushed into the earth!
{21:10} O my threshed grain! O sons of my threshing floor! What I have heard from the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, I have announced to you.”
{21:11} The burden of Dumah, cried out to me from Seir: “Watchman, how goes the night? Watchman, how goes the night?”
{21:12} The watchman said: “Morning approaches with the night. If you are seeking: seek, and convert, and approach.”
{21:13} The burden in Arabia. In the forest you shall sleep, in the evening on the paths of Dedanim.
{21:14} You who inhabit the land of the south: upon meeting the thirsty, bring water; meet the fugitive with bread.
{21:15} For they are fleeing before the face of swords, before the face of a sword hanging over them, before the face of a bent bow, before the face of a grievous battle.
{21:16} For the Lord said this to me: “After one more year, just like one year for a hired hand, all the glory of Kedar will be taken away.
{21:17} And the remainder of the multitude of strong archers from the sons of Kedar will be few, for the Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken it.”
{22:1} The burden of the valley of vision. What does it mean to you, then, that each of you have even climbed to the rooftops?
{22:2} Filled with clamor, a busy city, an exultant city: your dead have not been slain by the sword, nor did they die in battle.
{22:3} All your leaders have fled together, and they have been bound by hardship. All who were found were chained together. They have fled far away.
{22:4} For this reason, I said: “Depart from me. I will weep bitterly. Make no attempt to console me, over the devastation of the daughter of my people.”
{22:5} For it is a day of death, and of trampling, and of weeping to the Lord, the God of hosts, in the valley of vision: examining the wall and the magnificence above the mountain.
{22:6} And Elam took up the quiver and the chariot of the horseman; and he stripped the wall of the shield.
{22:7} And your elect valleys will be filled with chariots, and the horsemen will position themselves at the gates.
{22:8} And the covering of Judah will be exposed, and in that day, you will see the weaponry of the forest house.
{22:9} And you will see breaches in the city of David, for these have been multiplied. But you have gathered together the waters of the lower fish-pool.
{22:10} And you have numbered the houses of Jerusalem. And you have destroyed the houses in order to fortify the wall.
{22:11} And you have made a pit between two walls for the waters of the ancient fish-pool. But you have not gazed upward to him who made it, and you have not considered, even from a distance, its Maker.
{22:12} And in that day, the Lord, the God of hosts, will call to weeping and mourning, to baldness and the wearing of sackcloth.
{22:13} But behold: gladness and rejoicing, the killing of calves and the slaughter of rams, the eating of meat and the drinking of wine: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we will die.”
{22:14} And the voice of the Lord of hosts was revealed in my ears: “Surely this iniquity will not be forgiven you, until you die,” says the Lord, the God of hosts.
{22:15} Thus says the Lord, the God of hosts: Go forth and enter to him who lives in the tabernacle, to Shebna, who is in charge of the temple, and you shall say to him:
{22:16} “What are you here, or who are you claiming to be here? For you have hewn a sepulcher for yourself here. You have diligently hewn a memorial in a rock, as a tabernacle to yourself.
{22:17} Behold, the Lord will cause you to be carried away, like a domesticated rooster, and he will remove you, like an outer garment.
{22:18} He will crown you with a crown of tribulation. He will toss you like a ball into a broad and spacious land. There you will die, and there the chariot of your glory will be, for it is a shame to the house of your Lord.”
{22:19} And I will expel you from your station, and I will depose you from your ministry.
{22:20} And this shall be in that day: I will call my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah.
{22:21} And I will clothe him with your vestment, and I will strengthen him with your belt, and I will give your authority to his hand. And he shall be like a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.
{22:22} And I will place the key of the house of David upon his shoulder. And when he opens, no one will close. And when he closes, no one will open.
{22:23} And I will fasten him like a peg in a trustworthy place. And he will be upon a throne of glory in the house of his father.
{22:24} And they will suspend over him all the glory of his father’s house: various kinds of vessels and every little article, from the vessels of bowls even to every instrument of music.
{22:25} In that day, says the Lord of hosts, the peg which was fastened in a trustworthy place shall be taken away. And he will be broken, and he will fall, and he will perish, along with all that had depended upon him, because the Lord has spoken it.
{23:1} The burden of Tyre. Wail, you ships of the sea! For the house, from which they were accustomed to go forth, has been laid waste. From the land of Kittim, this has been revealed to them.
{23:2} Be silent, you inhabitants of the island! The merchants of Sidon, crossing over the sea, have filled you.
{23:3} The offspring of the Nile is in the midst of many waters. The harvest of the river is her crop. And she has become the marketplace of the nations.
{23:4} Be ashamed, O Sidon! For the sea speaks, the strength of the sea, saying: “I have not been in labor, and I have not given birth, and I have not raised young men, nor have I promoted the development of virgins.”
{23:5} When it has been heard in Egypt, they will be in anguish, when they hear of Tyre.
{23:6} Cross over the seas. Wail, you inhabitants of the island!
{23:7} Is this not your place, which from its earliest days has gloried in its antiquity? Her feet will lead her to a sojourn far away.
{23:8} Who has made this plan against Tyre, which formerly was crowned, whose merchants were leaders, whose traders were illustrious on the earth?
{23:9} The Lord of hosts has planned this, so that he may tear down the arrogance of all glory, and may bring disgrace to all the illustrious of the earth.
{23:10} Cross through your land, as through a river, O daughter of the sea. You no longer have a belt.
{23:11} He has extended his hand over the sea. He has stirred up kingdoms. The Lord has given an order against Canaan, so that he may crush its strong.
{23:12} And he said: “You shall no longer increase so as to glory, while enduring calumny, O virgin daughter of Sidon. Rise up and set sail for Kittim; in that place, too, there will be no rest for you.”
{23:13} Behold, the land of the Chaldeans: never before was there such a people! Assur founded it. They have led away its strong ones into captivity. They have dug under its houses. They have left it in ruins.
{23:14} Wail, you ships of the sea! For your strength has been devastated.
{23:15} And this shall be in that day: you, O Tyre, will be forgotten for seventy years, like the days of one king. Then, after seventy years, there will be, for Tyre, something like the canticle of a harlot.
{23:16} Take up a stringed instrument. Circulate through the city, you harlot who had been forgotten. Sing many canticles well, so that you may be remembered.
{23:17} And this shall be after seventy years: the Lord will visit Tyre, and he will lead her back to her profits. And she will fornicate again with all the kingdoms of the world upon the face of the earth.
{23:18} And her businesses and her profits will be sanctified to the Lord. They will not be locked away and they will not be stored. For her business will be for those who will live in the presence of the Lord, so that they may eat until satisfied, and may be well-clothed even into old age.
{24:1} Behold, the Lord will lay waste to the earth, and he will strip it, and he will afflict its surface, and he will scatter its inhabitants.
{24:2} And this shall be: as with the people, so with the priest; and as with the servant, so with his master; as with the handmaid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the creditor, so with the debtor.
{24:3} The earth will be utterly devastated and utterly plundered. For the Lord has spoken this word.
{24:4} The earth mourned, and slipped away, and languished. The world slipped away; the loftiness of the people of the earth was weakened.
{24:5} And the earth was corrupted by its inhabitants. For they have transgressed the laws, they have changed the ordinance, they have dissipated the everlasting covenant.
{24:6} Because of this, a curse will devour the earth, and its inhabitants will sin. And for this reason, its caretakers will become crazed, and few men will be left behind.
{24:7} The vintage has mourned. The vine has languished. All those who were rejoicing in their hearts have groaned.
{24:8} The gladness of the drums has ceased. The sound of rejoicing has quieted. The sweetness of stringed instruments has been silenced.
{24:9} They will not drink wine with a song. The drink will be bitter to those who drink it.
{24:10} The city of vanity has been worn away. Every house has been closed up; no one enters.
{24:11} There will be a clamor for wine in the streets. All rejoicing has been abandoned. The gladness of the earth has been carried away.
{24:12} Solitude is what remains in the city, and calamity will overwhelm its gates.
{24:13} For so shall it be in the midst of the earth, in the midst of the people: it is as if the few remaining olives are being shaken from the olive tree, and it is like a few clusters of grapes, when the grape harvest has already ended.
{24:14} These few shall lift up their voice and give praise. When the Lord will have been glorified, they will make a joyful noise from the sea.
{24:15} Because of this, glorify the Lord in doctrine: the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, in the islands of the sea.
{24:16} From the ends of the earth, we have heard the praises of the glory of the Just One. And I said: “My secret is for myself! My secret is for myself! Woe to me! Those who would betray us have betrayed us, and they have betrayed us with the betrayal of transgression.”
{24:17} Dread, and the pit, and the snare are over you, O inhabitant of the earth!
{24:18} And this shall be: whoever will flee from the voice of dread will fall into the pit. And whoever will extricate himself from the pit will be caught in the snare. For the floodgates from above have been opened, and the foundations of the earth will be shaken.
{24:19} The earth will be utterly broken! The earth will be utterly crushed! The earth will be utterly shaken!
{24:20} The earth will stagger greatly, like a drunken man, and will be carried away, like the tent of a single night. And its iniquity will be heavy upon it, and it will fall and not rise up again.
{24:21} And this shall be: in that day, the Lord will visit upon the armies of the sky above, and upon the kings of the earth who are on the ground.
{24:22} And they will be gathered together like the gathering of one bundle into a pit. And they will be enclosed in that place, as in a prison. And after many days, they will be visited.
{24:23} And the moon will be ashamed, and the sun will be confounded, when the Lord of hosts will reign on mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and when he will have been glorified in the sight of his elders.
{25:1} O Lord, you are my God! I will exalt you, and I will confess your name. For you have accomplished miracles. Your plan, from antiquity, is faithful. Amen.
{25:2} For you have appointed a city as a tomb, a strong city for ruination, a house of foreigners: so that it may not be a city, and so that it may not be rebuilt forever.
{25:3} Concerning this, a strong people will praise you; a city with a robust people will fear you.
{25:4} For you have been the strength of the poor, the strength of the indigent in his tribulation, a refuge from the whirlwind, a shadow from the heat. For the spirit of the mighty is like a whirlwind striking against a wall.
{25:5} You will bring low the uprising of foreigners, just as heat brings thirst. And like heat under a torrential cloud, you will cause the offshoot of the strong to wither away.
{25:6} And the Lord of hosts will cause all the peoples on this mountain to feast on fatness, to feast on wine, a fatness full of marrow, a purified wine.
{25:7} And he will cast down violently, on this mountain, the face of the chains, with which all peoples had been bound, and the net, with which all nations had been covered.
{25:8} He will violently cast down death forever. And the Lord God will take away the tears from every face, and he will take away the disgrace of his people from the entire earth. For the Lord has spoken it.
{25:9} And they will say in that day: “Behold, this is our God! We have waited for him, and he will save us. This is the Lord! We have endured for him. We will exult and rejoice in his salvation.”
{25:10} For the hand of the Lord will rest upon this mountain. And Moab will be trampled under him, just as stubble is worn away by a wagon.
{25:11} And he will extend his hands under him, like a swimmer extending his hands to swim. And he will bring down his glory with a clap of his hands.
{25:12} And the fortifications of your sublime walls will fall, and be brought low, and be torn down to the ground, even to the dust.
{26:1} In that day, this canticle will be sung in the land of Judah. Within it will be set the city of our strength: Zion, a savior, a wall with a bulwark.
{26:2} Open the gates, and let the just people who guard the truth enter.
{26:3} The old error has gone away. You will serve peace: peace, for we have hoped in you.
{26:4} You have trusted in the Lord for all eternity, in the Lord God almighty forever.
{26:5} For he will bend down those living in the heights. He will bring low the lofty city. He will lower it, even to the ground. He will tear it down, even to the dust.
{26:6} The foot will tread it down: the feet of the poor, the steps of the indigent.
{26:7} The path of the just is upright; the difficult path of the just is right to walk in.
{26:8} And in the path of your judgments, O Lord, we have endured for you. Your name and your remembrance are the desire of the soul.
{26:9} My soul has desired you in the night. But I will also watch for you with my spirit, in my inmost heart, from the morning. When you accomplish your judgments upon the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn justice.
{26:10} Let us take pity on the impious one, but he will not learn justice. In the land of the holy ones, he has done iniquity, and so he will not see the glory of the Lord.
{26:11} Lord, let your hand be exalted, and let them not see it. May the envious people see and be confounded. And may fire devour your enemies.
{26:12} Lord, you will give us peace. For all our works have been wrought for us by you.
{26:13} O Lord our God, other lords have possessed us apart from you, but in you alone let us remember your name.
{26:14} Let not the dead live; let not the giants rise up again. For this reason, you have visited and destroyed them, and you have perished all remembrance of them.
{26:15} You have been lenient to the people, O Lord, lenient to the people. But have you been glorified? You have removed all the limits of the earth.
{26:16} Lord, they have sought you in anguish. Your doctrine was with them, amid the tribulation of murmuring.
{26:17} Like a woman who has conceived and is approaching the time for delivery, who, in anguish, cries out in her pains, so have we become before your face, O Lord.
{26:18} We have conceived, and it is as if we were in labor, but we have given birth to wind. We have not brought forth salvation on the earth. For this reason, the inhabitants of the earth have not fallen.
{26:19} Your dead shall live. My slain will rise again. Be awakened, and give praise, you who live in the dust! For your dew is the dew of the light, and you shall be dragged down to the land of the giants, to ruination.
{26:20} Go, my people! Enter your chambers. Close your doors behind you. Conceal yourselves for a very brief time, until the indignation has passed over you.
{26:21} For behold, the Lord will go forth from his place, so that he may visit the iniquity of each inhabitant of the earth against him. And the earth will reveal its blood, and it will no longer cover its slain.
{27:1} In that day, the Lord will visit, with his harsh and great and strong sword, against Leviathan, the barred serpent, and against Leviathan, the twisted serpent, and he will slay the whale that is in the sea.
{27:2} In that day, the vineyard of pure wine will sing to them.
{27:3} I am the Lord, who watches over it. I will suddenly give drink to it. I will watch over it, night and day, lest perhaps someone visit against it.
{27:4} Indignation is not mine. Who will be a thorn and a brier to me in battle? I will advance against them. I set them on fire together.
{27:5} Or will he, instead, take hold of my strength? Will he make peace with me? Will she make peace with me?
{27:6} As they advance with violence against Jacob, Israel will flourish and spring forth, and they will fill the face of the world with offspring.
{27:7} Has he struck him with the scourge that he himself used to strike others? Or has he killed in the manner that he himself used to kill his victims?
{27:8} You will judge this by comparing one measure to another, when he has been cast out. He has decided this, by his stern spirit, for the day of heat.
{27:9} Therefore, concerning this, the iniquity of the house of Jacob will be forgiven. And this is the reward of all: that their sin be taken away, when he will have made all the stones of the altar to be like crushed cinders. For the sacred groves and the shrines shall not stand.
{27:10} For the fortified city will be desolate. The shining city will be abandoned and will be left behind like a desert. In that place, the calf will pasture, and in that place, he will lie down, and he will feed from its summits.
{27:11} Its harvest will be crushed by dryness. Women will arrive and teach it, for it is not a wise people. Because of this, he who made it will not take pity on it, and he who formed it will not spare it.
{27:12} And this shall be: in that day, the Lord will strike, from the channel of the river, even to the torrent of Egypt. And you shall be gathered together, one by one, O sons of Israel.
{27:13} And this shall be: in that day, a noise will be made with a great trumpet. And those who had been lost will approach from the land of the Assyrians, with those who had been outcasts in the land of Egypt. And they will adore the Lord, on the holy mountain, in Jerusalem.
{28:1} Woe to the crown of arrogance, to the inebriated of Ephraim, and to the falling flower, the glory of his exultation, to those who were at the top of the very fat valley, staggering from wine.
{28:2} Behold, the Lord is powerful and steadfast, like a storm of hail, like a crushing whirlwind, like the force of many waters, inundating, sent forth over a spacious land.
{28:3} The arrogant crown of the inebriated of Ephraim will be trampled underfoot.
{28:4} And the falling flower, the glory of his exultation, who is at the summit of the fat valley, will be like a premature fruit before the ripeness of autumn, which, when the onlooker beholds it, as soon he takes it in his hand, he will devour it.
{28:5} In that day, the Lord of hosts will be the crown of glory and the wreath of exultation for the remnant of his people.
{28:6} And he will be the spirit of judgment for those who sit in judgment, and the strength of those who return from war to the gates.
{28:7} Yet truly, these also have been ignorant due to wine, and they have gone astray due to inebriation. The priest and the prophet have been ignorant because of inebriation. They have been absorbed by wine. They have staggered in drunkenness. They have not known the One who sees. They have been ignorant of judgment.
{28:8} For all the tables have been filled with vomit and filth, so much so that there was no place left.
{28:9} To whom will he teach knowledge? And to whom will he grant an understanding of what is heard? To those who have been weaned from the milk, who have been pulled away from the breasts.
{28:10} So then: command, and command again; command, and command again; expect, and expect again; a little here, and a little there.
{28:11} For with the speech of lips and with a different language, he will speak to this people.
{28:12} He said to them: “This is my rest. Refresh the weary,” and, “This is my refreshment.” And yet they were unwilling to listen.
{28:13} And so, the word of the Lord to them will be: “Command, and command again; command, and command again; expect, and expect again; a little here, and a little there,” so that they may go forward and fall backward, and so that they may be broken and ensnared and captured.
{28:14} Because of this, listen to the word of the Lord, you mocking men, who lord it over my people who are at Jerusalem.
{28:15} For you have said: “We struck a deal with death, and we formed a pact with Hell. When the inundating scourge passes through, it will not overwhelm us. For we have placed our hope in lies, and we are protected by what is false.”
{28:16} For this reason, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will set a stone within the foundations of Zion, a tested stone, a cornerstone, a precious stone, which has been established in the foundation: whoever trusts in him need not hurry.
{28:17} And I will establish judgment in weights, and justice in measures. And a hailstorm will overturn hope in what is false; and waters will inundate its protection.
{28:18} And your deal with death will be abolished, and your pact with Hell will not stand. When the inundating scourge passes through, you will be trampled down by it.
{28:19} Whenever it passes through, it will take you away. For, at first light of morning, it will pass through, in the day and in the night, and vexation alone will make you understand what you hear.
{28:20} For the bed has been narrowed, so much so that one alone would fall out, and the short blanket is not able to cover two.
{28:21} For the Lord will stand, just as at the mountain of divisions. He will be angry, just as in the valley which is in Gibeon, so that he may accomplish his work, his strange work, so that he may complete his work, his work which is foreign even to him.
{28:22} And now, do not be willing to mock, lest your chains be tightened. For I have heard, from the Lord, the God of hosts, about the consummation and the abridgement concerning the entire earth.
{28:23} Pay close attention, and listen to my voice! Attend and hear my eloquence!
{28:24} Would the plowman, after plowing all day so that he may sow, instead cut open and hoe his soil?
{28:25} Will he not, when he has made the surface level, sow coriander, and scatter cumin, and plant wheat in rows, and barley, and millet, and vetch in their places?
{28:26} For he will be instructed in judgment; his God will teach him.
{28:27} For coriander cannot be threshed with a saw, and a cartwheel cannot revolve over cumin. Instead, coriander is shaken out with a stick, and cumin with a staff.
{28:28} But grain for bread must be crushed. Truly, the thresher cannot thresh it unceasingly, and the cartwheel can neither disrupt it, nor break it with its surface.
{28:29} And this has gone forth from the Lord, the God of hosts, so that he may accomplish his miraculous plan and magnify justice.
{29:1} Woe to Ariel, to Ariel the city against which David fought: year has been added to year, the solemnities have unfolded.
{29:2} And I will surround Ariel with siege works, and it will be in sorrow and mourning, and it will be like Ariel to me.
{29:3} And I will surround you like a sphere all around you, and I will raise up a rampart against you, and I will set up fortifications to blockade you.
{29:4} You will be brought low. You will speak from the ground, and your eloquence will be heard from the dirt. And, from the ground, your voice will be like that of the python, and your eloquence will mumble from the dirt.
{29:5} And the multitude of those who fan you will be like fine dust. And the multitude of those who have prevailed against you will be like embers fading away.
{29:6} And this will happen suddenly and swiftly. It will be visited from the Lord of hosts with thunder and earthquakes, and with the great noise of a whirlwind and a storm, and with a flame of devouring fire.
{29:7} And the multitude of all the nations that have struggled against Ariel will be like the dream of a vision by night, along with all who have battled, and besieged, and prevailed against it.
{29:8} And it will be like one who is hungry and dreams of eating, but, when he has been awakened, his soul is empty. And it will be like one who is thirsty and dreams of drinking, but, after he has been awakened, he still languishes in thirst, and his soul is empty. So shall the multitude of all the nations be, who have struggled against Mount Zion.
{29:9} Be stupefied and in wonder! Shake and quiver! Be inebriated, but not from wine! Stagger, but not from drunkenness!
{29:10} For the Lord has mixed for you a spirit of deep sleep. He will close your eyes. He will cover your prophets and leaders, who see visions.
{29:11} And the vision of all will be to you like the words of a sealed book, which, when they have given it to someone who knows how to read, they will say, “Read this,” but he will respond, “I cannot; for it has been sealed.”
{29:12} But if the book is given to someone who does not know how to read, and it is said to him, “Read,” then he will respond, “I do not know how to read.”
{29:13} And the Lord said: Since this people have drawn near to me only with their mouth, and their lips glorify me while their heart is far from me, and their fear of me is based on the commandments and doctrines of men,
{29:14} for this reason, behold, I will proceed to accomplish a wonder for this people, a great and mystifying miracle. For wisdom will perish from their wise, and the understanding of their prudent will be concealed.
{29:15} Woe to you who use the depths of the heart, so that you may hide your intentions from the Lord. Their works are done in darkness, and so they say: “Who sees us?” and “Who knows us?”
{29:16} This intention of yours is perverse. It is as if the clay were to plan against the potter, or as if the work were to say to its maker: “You did not make me.” Or it is as if what has been formed were to say to the one who formed it, “You do not understand.”
{29:17} In not more than a little while and a brief time, Lebanon will be turned into a fruitful field, and a fruitful field will be considered to be a forest.
{29:18} And in that day, the deaf will hear the words of a book, and out of darkness and obscurity the eyes of the blind will see.
{29:19} And the meek will increase their rejoicing in the Lord, and the poor among men will exult in the Holy One of Israel.
{29:20} For the one who was prevailing has failed, the one who was mocking has been consumed, and all those who were standing guard over iniquity have been cut down.
{29:21} For they caused men to sin by a word, and they supplanted him who argued against them at the gates, and they turned away from justice in vain.
{29:22} Because of this, thus says the Lord, he who has redeemed Abraham, to the house of Jacob: From now on, Jacob will not be confounded; from now on his countenance will not blush with shame.
{29:23} Instead, when he sees his children, they will be the work of my hands in his midst, sanctifying my name, and they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and they will preach the God of Israel.
{29:24} And those who had gone astray in spirit will know understanding, and those who had murmured will learn the law.
{30:1} “Woe to the sons of apostasy!” says the Lord. For you would take advice, but not from me. And you would begin to weave, but not by my spirit. Thus do you add sin upon sin!
{30:2} You are walking so as to descend into Egypt, and you have not sought answers from my mouth, instead hoping for assistance from the strength of Pharaoh and placing trust in the shadow of Egypt.
{30:3} And so, the strength of Pharaoh will be your confusion, and trust in the shadow of Egypt will be your disgrace.
{30:4} For your leaders were at Tanis, and your messengers have traveled even as far as Hanes.
{30:5} They have all been confounded because of a people who were not able to offer profit to them, who were not of assistance, nor of other usefulness, except to offer confusion and reproach.
{30:6} The burden of the beasts in the south. In a land of tribulation and anguish, from which go forth the lioness and the lion, the viper and the flying king snake, they carry their riches upon the shoulders of beasts of burden, and their valuables upon the humps of camels, to a people who are not able to offer profit to them.
{30:7} For Egypt will offer assistance, but without purpose or success. Therefore, concerning this, I cried out: “It is only arrogance! Remain calm.”
{30:8} Now, therefore, enter and write for them upon a tablet, and note it diligently in a book, and this shall be a testimony in the last days, and even unto eternity.
{30:9} For they are a people who provoke to wrath, and they are lying sons, sons unwilling to listen to the law of God.
{30:10} They say to the seers, “Do not see,” and to those who behold: “Do not behold for us the things that are right. Speak to us of pleasing things. See errors for us.
{30:11} Take me from the way. Avert me from the path. Let the Holy One of Israel cease from before our face.”
{30:12} Because of this, thus says the Holy One of Israel: Since you have rejected this word, and you have hoped in calumny and rebellion, and since you have depended upon these things,
{30:13} for this reason, this iniquity will be to you like a breach that has fallen, and like a gap in a high wall. For its destruction will happen suddenly, when it is not expected.
{30:14} And it will be crushed, just as the earthen vessel of a potter is destroyed by a sharp blow. And not even a fragment of its earthenware will be found, which might carry a little fire from the hearth, or which might draw a little water from a hollow.
{30:15} For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: If you return and are quiet, you shall be saved. Your strength will be found in silence and in hope. But you are not willing!
{30:16} And you have said: “Never! Instead, we will flee by horseback.” For this reason, you will be put to flight. And you have said, “We will climb upon swift ones.” For this reason, those who pursue you will be even swifter.
{30:17} A thousand men will flee in terror from the face of one, and you will flee in terror from the face of five, until you who have been left behind are like the mast of a ship at the top of a mountain, or like a sign on a hill.
{30:18} Therefore, the Lord waits, so that he may take pity on you. And therefore, he will be exalted for sparing you. For the Lord is the God of judgment. Blessed are all those who wait for him.
{30:19} For the people of Zion will live in Jerusalem. Bitterly, you will not weep. Mercifully, he will take pity on you. At the voice of your outcry, as soon as he hears, he will respond to you.
{30:20} And the Lord will give you thick bread and accessible water. And he will not cause your teacher to fly away from you anymore. And your eyes will behold your instructor.
{30:21} And your ears will listen to the word of one admonishing you behind your back: “This is the way! Walk in it! And do not turn aside, neither to the right, nor to the left.”
{30:22} And you will defile the plates of your silver graven images and the vestment of your gold molten idols. And you will throw these things away like the uncleanness of a menstruating woman. You will say to it, “Go away!”
{30:23} And wherever you sow seed upon the earth, rain will be given to the seed. And bread from the grain of the earth will be very plentiful and full. In that day, the lamb will pasture in the spacious land of your possession.
{30:24} And your bulls, and the colts of the donkeys that work the ground, will eat a mix of grains like that winnowed on the threshing floor.
{30:25} And there will be, on every lofty mountain, and on every elevated hill, rivers of running water, in the day of the slaughter of many, when the tower will fall.
{30:26} And the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold, like the light of seven days, in the day when the Lord will bind the wound of his people, and when he will heal the stroke of their scourge.
{30:27} Behold, the name of the Lord arrives from far away. His fury is burning and heavy to bear. His lips have been filled with indignation, and his tongue is like a devouring fire.
{30:28} His Spirit is like a torrent, inundating, even as high as the middle of the neck, in order to reduce the nations to nothing, along with the bridle of error that was in the jaws of the people.
{30:29} There will be a song for you, as in the night of a sanctified solemnity, and a joy of heart, as when one travels with music to arrive at the mountain of the Lord, to the Strong One of Israel.
{30:30} And the Lord will cause the glory of his voice to be heard, and, with a threatening fury and a devouring flame of fire, he will reveal the terror of his arm. He will crush with the whirlwind and with hailstones.
{30:31} For at the voice of the Lord, Assur will dread being struck with the staff.
{30:32} And when the passage of the staff has been begun, the Lord will cause it to rest upon him, with timbrels and harps. And with special battles, he will fight against them.
{30:33} For a burning place, deep and wide, has been prepared from yesterday, prepared by the King. Its nourishment is fire and much wood. The breath of the Lord, like a torrent of brimstone, kindles it.
{31:1} Woe to those who descend into Egypt for assistance, hoping in horses, and putting their trust in four-horse chariots because they are many, and in horsemen because they are exceedingly strong. And they have not believed in the Holy One of Israel, and they have not sought the Lord.
{31:2} Therefore, being wise, he has permitted harm, and he has not removed his words, and he will rise up against the house of the wicked and against those who assist the workers of iniquity.
{31:3} Egypt is man, and not God. And their horses are flesh, and not spirit. And so, the Lord will reach down his hand, and the helper will fall, and the one who was being helped will fall, and they will all be consumed together.
{31:4} For the Lord says this to me: In the same way that a lion roars, and a young lion is over his prey, and though a multitude of shepherds may meet him, he will not dread their voice, nor be afraid of their number, so will the Lord of hosts descend in order to battle upon mount Zion and upon its hill.
{31:5} Like birds flying, so will the Lord of hosts protect Jerusalem, protecting and freeing, passing over and saving.
{31:6} Be converted to the same depth that you have drawn away, O sons of Israel.
{31:7} For in that day, a man will cast away his idols of silver and his idols of gold, which your hands have made for you unto sin.
{31:8} And Assur will fall by a sword not of man, and a sword not of man will devour him. And he will not flee from the face of the sword, and his young men will be subject to a penalty.
{31:9} And his strength will pass away in terror, and his princes will flee in fear. The Lord has said it. His fire is in Zion, and his furnace is at Jerusalem.
{32:1} Behold, the king will reign in justice, and the princes will rule in judgment.
{32:2} And a man will be like someone hidden from the wind, who conceals himself from a storm, or like rivers of waters in a time of thirst, or like the shadow of a rock that juts out in a desert land.
{32:3} The eyes of those who see will not be obscured, and the ears of those who hear will listen closely.
{32:4} And the heart of the foolish will understand knowledge, and the tongue of those with impaired speech will speak quickly and plainly.
{32:5} He who is foolish will no longer be called leader, nor will the deceitful be called greater.
{32:6} For a foolish man speaks foolishness and his heart works iniquity in order to accomplish deception. And he speaks to the Lord deceitfully, so as to empty the soul of the hungry and to take away drink from the thirsty.
{32:7} The tools of the deceitful are very wicked. For they have concocted plans to destroy the meek by lying words, though the poor speak judgment.
{32:8} Yet truly, the prince will plan things that are worthy of a prince, and he will stand above the rulers.
{32:9} You opulent women, rise up and listen to my voice! O confident daughters, play close attention to my eloquence!
{32:10} For after a year and some days, you who are confident will be disturbed. For the vintage has been completed; the gathering will no longer occur.
{32:11} Be stupefied, you opulent women! Be disturbed, O confident ones! Strip yourselves, and be confounded; gird yourselves at the waist.
{32:12} Mourn over your breasts, over the delightful country, over the fruitful vineyard.
{32:13} Thorn and brier will rise up, over the soil of my people. How much more over all the houses of gladness, over the city of exultation?
{32:14} For the house has been forsaken. The multitude of the city has been abandoned. A darkness and a covering have been placed over its dens, even unto eternity. It will be the gladness of wild donkeys and the pasture of flocks,
{32:15} until the Spirit is poured over us from on high. And the desert will be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field will be considered as a forest.
{32:16} And judgment will live in solitude, and justice will be seated in a fruitful place.
{32:17} And the work of justice will be peace. And the service of justice will be quiet and secure, forever.
{32:18} And my people will be seated in the beauty of peacefulness, and in the tabernacles of faithfulness, and in the opulence of restfulness.
{32:19} But hail will be in the descent of the forest, and the city will be brought exceedingly low.
{32:20} Blessed are you who sow over any waters, sending the feet of the ox and the donkey there.
{33:1} Woe to you who plunder! Will you yourselves not also be plundered? And woe to you who despise! Will you yourselves not also be despised? When you will have completed your plundering, you will be plundered. When, out of fatigue, you will have ceased acting with contempt, you will be treated with contempt.
{33:2} O Lord, take pity on us. For we have waited for you. Be our arm in the morning and our salvation in the time of tribulation.
{33:3} From the voice of the Angel, the people fled. And from your exultation, the nations were scattered.
{33:4} And your spoils will be gathered together, just as the locusts are collected when the ditches have become filled with them.
{33:5} The Lord has been magnified, because he has lived on high. He has filled Zion with judgment and justice.
{33:6} And there will be faith in your times: the riches of salvation, wisdom and knowledge. For the fear of the Lord is his treasure.
{33:7} Behold, outside, those who see will cry out. The Angels of peace will weep bitterly.
{33:8} The roads have become desolate. Travelers have ceased along the paths. The covenant has been nullified. He has tossed aside cities. He has disregarded men.
{33:9} The earth has mourned and languished. Lebanon has been confounded and desecrated. And Sharon has become like a desert. And Bashan and Carmel have been struck together.
{33:10} “Now, I will rise up!” says the Lord. “Now I will be exalted! Now I will lift myself up!”
{33:11} You will conceive heat. You will give birth to stubble. Your own spirit will devour you like fire.
{33:12} And the people will be like the ashes from a fire. They will be consumed by fire like a bundle of thorns.
{33:13} “You who are far away, listen to what I have done! And you who are near, acknowledge my strength!”
{33:14} The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling has taken hold of the hypocrites. Who among you is able to live with a devouring fire? Who among you will live with an everlasting flame?
{33:15} The one who walks in justice and speaks the truth, who casts out avarice with oppression and shakes all bribes from his hands, who blocks his ears so that he may not listen to blood, and closes his eyes so that he may not see evil.
{33:16} Such a one will live on high; the fortification of rocks will be his lofty place. Bread has been given to him; his waters are reliable.
{33:17} His eyes will see the king in his elegance; they will discern the land from far away.
{33:18} Your heart will meditate on fear. Where are the learned? Where are those who ponder the words of the law? Where are the teachers of little ones?
{33:19} You will not look upon a shameless people, a people of exalted words. For you are not able to understand the dissertation of a tongue in which there is no wisdom.
{33:20} Look with favor upon Zion, the city of our solemnity. Your eyes will behold Jerusalem: an opulent habitation, a tabernacle that can never be taken away. Its stakes will not be taken away forever, nor will any of its cords be broken.
{33:21} For only in that place has our Lord been magnified. It is a place of rivers, very broad and open. No ship with oars will cross through it, nor will the great Greek ship pass through it.
{33:22} For the Lord is our judge. The Lord is our lawgiver. The Lord is our king. He himself will save us.
{33:23} Your ropes have become loose, and they will not prevail. Your mast will be such that you will not be able to unfurl a flag. Then the spoils of much plunder will be divided. The lame will seize the spoils.
{33:24} He who is nearby will not say: “I am too weak.” The people who live in it will have their iniquity taken away from them.
{34:1} O nations and peoples: draw near, and listen, and pay attention! Let the earth and its fullness hear, the entire world and all its offspring.
{34:2} For the indignation of the Lord is over all the nations, and his fury is over all their armies. He has put them to death, and he has given them over to slaughter.
{34:3} Their slain will be cast out, and from their carcasses a foul odor will rise up. The mountains will languish because of their blood.
{34:4} And the entire army of the heavens will languish, and the heavens will be folded like a book. And their entire army will fall away, as a leaf falls from the vine or from the fig tree.
{34:5} “For my sword in heaven has been inebriated. Behold, it will descend upon Idumea, and upon the people of my slaughter, unto judgment.”
{34:6} The sword of the Lord has been filled with blood. It has been thickened by the blood of lambs and he-goats, by the innermost blood of rams. For the victim of the Lord is in Bozrah, and a great slaughter is in the land of Edom.
{34:7} And the single-horned beasts will descend with them, and the bulls along with the mighty. Their land will be inebriated by blood, and their ground by the fat of their lazy ones.
{34:8} For this is the day of the vengeance of the Lord, the year of retribution for the judgment of Zion.
{34:9} And its torrents will be turned into tar, and its soil into sulfur. And its land will become burning tar.
{34:10} Night and day, it will not be extinguished; its smoke will rise up without ceasing. From generation to generation it will remain desolate. No one will pass through it, forever and ever.
{34:11} The pelican and the hedgehog will possess it. And the ibis and the raven will live in it. And a measuring line will be extended over it, so that it may be reduced to nothing, and a plumb line, unto desolation.
{34:12} Its nobles will not be in that place. Instead, they will call upon the king, and all its leaders will be as nothing.
{34:13} And thorns and nettles will rise up in its houses, and the thistle in its fortified places. And it will be the lair of serpents and the pasture of ostriches.
{34:14} And demons and monsters will meet, and the hairy ones will cry out to one another. There, the ogress has lain down and found rest for herself.
{34:15} In that place, the hedgehog has kept its den, and has raised its young, and has dug around them, and has kept them warm in its shadow. In that place, the birds of prey have joined together, one to another.
{34:16} Search and read diligently in the book of the Lord. Not one of them was lacking; not one has sought for the other. For what has proceeded from my mouth, he has commanded, and his very Spirit has gathered them.
{34:17} And he has cast lots over them. And his hand has distributed this to them by measure. They will possess it, even unto eternity. From generation to generation, they will dwell in it.
{35:1} The desolate and impassable land will rejoice, and the place of solitude will exult, and it will flourish like the lily.
{35:2} It will spring up and blossom, and it will exult with rejoicing and praising. The glory of Lebanon has been given to it, with the beauty of Carmel and Sharon. These will see the glory of the Lord and the beauty of our God.
{35:3} Strengthen the lax hands, and confirm the weak knees!
{35:4} Say to the fainthearted: “Take courage and fear not! Behold, your God will bring the vindication of retribution. God himself will arrive to save you.”
{35:5} Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be cleared.
{35:6} Then the disabled will leap like a buck, and the tongue of the mute will be untied. For the waters have burst forth in the desert, and torrents in solitary places.
{35:7} And the land that was dry will have a pond, and the thirsty land will have fountains of water. In the hollows where the serpents lived before, there will rise up the greenery of reed and bulrush.
{35:8} And there shall be a path and a road in that place. And it will be called the Holy Way. The defiled will not pass through it. For this will be an upright path for you, so much so that the foolish will not wander along it.
{35:9} There will be no lions in that place, and harmful wild animals will neither climb up to it, nor be found there. Only those who have been freed will walk in that place.
{35:10} And the redeemed of the Lord will be converted, and they will return to Zion with praising. And everlasting joy will be upon their heads. They will obtain gladness and rejoicing. For pain and sorrow will flee away.
{36:1} And it happened that, in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians, went up against all the fortified cities of Judah, and he seized them.
{36:2} And the king of the Assyrians sent Rabshakeh from Lachish into Jerusalem, to king Hezekiah, with a great force, and he stood near the aqueduct of the upper pool, at the road to the fuller’s field.
{36:3} And those who went to him were Eliakim, son of Hilkiah, who was over the house, and Shebna, the scribe, and Joah, son of Asaph, the historian.
{36:4} And Rabshakeh said to them: “Tell Hezekiah: Thus says the great king, the king of the Assyrians: What is this faith in which you believe?
{36:5} And by what counsel or strength would you prepare to rebel? In whom do you have faith, so much so that you would withdraw from me?
{36:6} Behold, you are trusting in Egypt, in that broken staff of a reed. But if a man were to lean against it, it would enter his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, to all who trust in him.
{36:7} But if you answer me by saying: ‘We trust in the Lord our God.’ Is it not his high places and altars that Hezekiah has taken away? And he has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, ‘You shall worship before this altar.’
{36:8} And now, hand yourselves over to my lord, the king of the Assyrians, and I will give you two thousand horses, and you will not be able to find riders for them on your own.
{36:9} So how will you withstand the face of the ruler of even one place, of even the least of my lord’s subordinates? But if you trust in Egypt, in four-horse chariots and in horsemen:
{36:10} do I intend to go up against this land to destroy it without the Lord? But the Lord said to me, ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’ ”
{36:11} And Eliakim, and Shebna, and Joah said to Rabshakeh: “Speak to your servants in the Syrian language. For we understand it. Do not speak to us in the Jewish language, in the hearing of the people, who are upon the wall.”
{36:12} And Rabshakeh said to them: “Has my lord sent me to your lord and to you in order to speak all these words, and not even more so to the men who are sitting on the wall, so that they may eat their own dung and drink their own urine with you?”
{36:13} Then Rabshakeh stood up, and he cried out with a loud voice in the Jewish language, and he said: “Listen to the words of the great king, the king of the Assyrians.
{36:14} Thus says the king: Do not let Hezekiah deceive you. For he will not be able to rescue you.
{36:15} And do not let Hezekiah cause you to trust in the Lord, saying: ‘The Lord will rescue and free us. This city will not be given into the hands of the king of the Assyrians.’
{36:16} Do not listen to Hezekiah. For the king of the Assyrians says this: Act with me to your own benefit, and come out to me. And let each one eat from his own vine, and each one from his own fig tree. And let each one drink water from his own well,
{36:17} until I arrive and take you away to a land which is like your own: a land of grain and of wine, a land of bread and of vineyards.
{36:18} But you should not let Hezekiah disturb you, saying, ‘The Lord will deliver us.’ Have any of the gods of each of the nations delivered their land from the hand of the king of the Assyrians?
{36:19} Where is the god of Hamath and of Arpad? Where is the god of Sepharvaim? Have they freed Samaria from my hand?
{36:20} Who is there, among all the gods of these lands, who has rescued his land from my hand, so that the Lord would rescue Jerusalem from my hand?”
{36:21} And they remained silent and did not answer a word to him. For the king had commanded them, saying, “You shall not respond to him.”
{36:22} And Eliakim, son of Hilkiah, who was over the house, and Shebna, the scribe, and Joah, son of Asaph, the historian, entered to Hezekiah with their garments rent, and they reported to him the words of Rabshakeh.
{37:1} And it happened that, when king Hezekiah had heard this, he rent his garments, and he wrapped himself in sackcloth, and he entered the house of the Lord.
{37:2} And he sent Eliakim, who was over the house, and Shebna, the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah, the son of Amoz, the prophet.
{37:3} And they said to him: “Thus says Hezekiah: This day is a day of tribulation, and of rebuke, and of blasphemy. For the sons have arrived at the time for birth, but there is not enough strength to bring them forth.
{37:4} Perhaps, somehow, the Lord your God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of the Assyrians, his lord, has sent to blaspheme the living God, and will rebuke the words that the Lord your God has heard. Therefore, lift up your prayers on behalf of the remnant which has been left behind.”
{37:5} And so the servants of king Hezekiah went to Isaiah.
{37:6} And Isaiah said to them: “You shall say this to your lord: Thus says the Lord: Do not be afraid to face the words that you have heard, by which the servants of the king of the Assyrians blasphemed me.
{37:7} Behold, I will send a spirit to him, and he will hear a message, and he will return to his own land. And I will cause him to fall by the sword, in his own land.”
{37:8} Then Rabshakeh returned, and he found the king of the Assyrians fighting against Libnah. For he had heard that he had set out from Lachish.
{37:9} And he heard from Tirhakah, the king of Ethiopia: “He has gone forth so that he may fight against you.” And when he had heard this, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying:
{37:10} “You shall say this to Hezekiah, the king of Judah, saying: Do not let your God, in whom you trust, deceive you by saying: ‘Jerusalem will not be given into the hands of the king of the Assyrians.’
{37:11} Behold, you have heard about all that the kings of the Assyrians have done to all the lands that they have conquered, and so, how can you be delivered?
{37:12} Have the gods of the nations rescued those whom my fathers have conquered: Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the sons of Eden who were at Telassar?
{37:13} Where is the king of Hamath and the king of Arpad, or the king of the city of Sepharvaim, or of Hena and Ivvah?”
{37:14} And Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers, and he read it, and he went up to the house of the Lord, and Hezekiah spread it out in the sight of the Lord.
{37:15} And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord, saying:
{37:16} “O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel who sits upon the Cherubim: you alone are God of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.
{37:17} O Lord, incline your ear and listen. O Lord, open your eyes and see. And hear all the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to blaspheme the living God.
{37:18} For truly, O Lord, the kings of the Assyrians have laid waste to countries and territories.
{37:19} And they have cast their gods into the fire. For these were not gods, but the works of men’s hands, of wood and of stone. And they broke them into pieces.
{37:20} And now, O Lord our God, save us from his hand. And let all the kingdoms of the earth acknowledge that you alone are Lord.”
{37:21} And Isaiah, the son of Amoz, sent to Hezekiah, saying: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Because of what you have prayed to me about Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians,
{37:22} this is the word that the Lord has spoken over him: The virgin daughter of Zion has despised you and mocked you. The daughter of Jerusalem has shaken her head at you.
{37:23} Whom have you insulted? And whom have you blasphemed? And against whom have you lifted up your voice and raised up your eyes on high? Against the Holy One of Israel!
{37:24} By the hand of your servants, you have reproached the Lord. And you have said: ‘With a multitude of my four-horse chariots, I have ascended the heights of the mountains adjoining Lebanon. And I will cut down its lofty cedars and its choice pine trees. And I will reach the top of its summit, to the forest of its Carmel.
{37:25} I dug deep, and I drank water, and I dried up all the river banks with the sole of my foot.’
{37:26} Have you not heard what I have done to it in past times? In ancient times, I formed it. And now I have brought it forth. And it has been made so that the hills and the fortified cities would fight together, unto its destruction.
{37:27} Their inhabitants had unsteady hands. They trembled and were confused. They became like the plants of the field, and the grass of the pastures, and like the weeds on the rooftops, which wither before they are mature.
{37:28} I know your habitation, and your arrival, and your departure, and your madness against me.
{37:29} When you became angry against me, your arrogance rose up to my ears. Therefore, I will place a ring in your nose, and a bit between your lips. And I will turn you back on the road by which you arrived.
{37:30} But this shall be a sign for you: Eat, in this year, whatever springs up on its own. And in the second year, eat fruits. But in the third year, sow and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat their fruit.
{37:31} And what will be saved from the house of Judah, and what is left behind, will form deep roots, and will bear high fruits.
{37:32} For from Jerusalem, a remnant shall go forth, and salvation from mount Zion. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.
{37:33} For this reason, thus says the Lord about the king of the Assyrians: He will not enter this city, nor shoot an arrow into it, nor overtake it with a shield, nor dig a rampart all around it.
{37:34} He will return on the road by which he arrived. And into this city, he will not enter, says the Lord.
{37:35} And I will protect this city, so that I may save it for my own sake, and for the sake of David, my servant.”
{37:36} Then the Angel of the Lord went forth and struck down, in the camp of the Assyrians, one hundred eighty-five thousand. And they arose in the morning, and behold, all these were dead bodies.
{37:37} And Sennacherib, the king of the Assyrians, departed and went away. And he returned and lived at Nineveh.
{37:38} And it happened that, as he was adoring his god in the temple of Nisroch, his sons, Adramelech and Sharezer, struck him with the sword. And they fled into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon, his son, reigned in his place.
{38:1} In those days Hezekiah became ill and was near death. And so, Isaiah, the son of Amoz, the prophet, entered to him, and he said to him: “Thus says the Lord: Put your house in order, for you shall die, and you shall not live.”
{38:2} And Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and he prayed to the Lord.
{38:3} And he said: “I beg you, Lord, I beseech you, to remember how I walked before you in truth and with a whole heart, and that I have done what is good in your sight.” And Hezekiah wept with a great weeping.
{38:4} And the word of the Lord came to Isaiah, saying:
{38:5} “Go and say to Hezekiah: Thus says the Lord, the God of David, your father: I have heard your prayer, and I have seen your tears. Behold, I will add fifteen years to your days.
{38:6} And I will rescue you and this city from the hand of the king of the Assyrians, and I will protect it.
{38:7} And this will be a sign for you from the Lord, that the Lord will do this word, which he has spoken:
{38:8} Behold, I will cause the shadow of the lines, which has now descended on the sundial of Ahaz, to move in reverse for ten lines.” And so, the sun moved backward by ten lines, through the degrees by which it had descended.
{38:9} The writing of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, after he had fallen ill and had recovered from his sickness:
{38:10} “I said: In the middle of my days, I will go to the gates of Hell. So I sought the remainder of my years.
{38:11} I said: I will not see the Lord God in the land of the living. I will no longer behold man, nor the habitation of rest.
{38:12} My longevity has been taken away; it has been folded up and taken from me, like the tent of a shepherd. My life has been cut off, as if by a weaver. While I was still beginning, he cut me off. From morning until evening, you have marked out my limits.
{38:13} I hoped, even until morning. Like a lion, so has he crushed all my bones. From morning until evening, you have marked my limits.
{38:14} I will cry out, like a young swallow. I will meditate, like a dove. My eyes have been weakened by gazing upward. O Lord, I suffer violence! Answer in my favor.
{38:15} What can I say, or what would he answer me, since he himself has done this? I will acknowledge to you all my years, in the bitterness of my soul.
{38:16} O Lord, if such is life, and if the life of my spirit is of such a kind, may you correct me and may you cause me to live.
{38:17} Behold, in peace my bitterness is most bitter. But you have rescued my soul, so that it would not perish. You have cast all my sins behind your back.
{38:18} For Hell will not confess to you, and death will not praise you. Those who descend into the pit will not hope for your truth.
{38:19} The living, the living, these will give praise to you, as I also do this day! The father will make the truth known to the sons.
{38:20} O Lord, save me! And we will sing our psalms, all the days of our life, in the house of the Lord.”
{38:21} Now Isaiah had ordered them to take a paste of figs, and to spread it like plaster over the wound, so that he would be healed.
{38:22} And Hezekiah said, “What will be the sign that I may go up to the house of the Lord?”
{39:1} At that time, Merodach Baladan, the son of Baladan, the king of Babylon, sent letters and gifts to Hezekiah. For he had heard that he had fallen ill and had recovered.
{39:2} And Hezekiah rejoiced over them, and he showed them the storehouses of his aromatic spices, and of the silver and gold, and of the perfumes and precious ointments, and all the repositories for his belongings, and all the things that were found in his treasures. There was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah did not show them.
{39:3} Then Isaiah the prophet entered before king Hezekiah, and he said to him, “What did these men say, and from where did they come to you?” And Hezekiah said, “They came to me from a far away land, from Babylon.”
{39:4} And he said, “What did they see in your house?” And Hezekiah said: “They have seen all the things that are in my house. There was nothing that I did not show them among my treasures.”
{39:5} And Isaiah said to Hezekiah: “Hear the word of the Lord of hosts:
{39:6} Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and all that your fathers have stored up, even to this day, will be taken away to Babylon. There will be nothing left behind, says the Lord.
{39:7} And your children, who will issue from you, whom you will produce, they will be taken away. And they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.”
{39:8} And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The word of the Lord which he has spoken is good.” And he said, “But let there be peace and truth in my days.”
{40:1} “Be consoled, be consoled, O my people!” says your God.
{40:2} Speak to the heart of Jerusalem, and call out to her! For her malice has reached its end. Her iniquity has been forgiven. She has received double for all her sins from the hand of the Lord.
{40:3} The voice of one crying out in the desert: “Prepare the way of the Lord! Make straight the paths of our God, in a solitary place.
{40:4} Every valley will be exalted, and every mountain and hill will be brought low. And the crooked will be straightened, and the uneven will become level ways.
{40:5} And the glory of the Lord will be revealed. And all flesh together will see that the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
{40:6} The voice of one saying, “Cry out!” And I said, “What should I cry out?” “All flesh is grass, and all its glory is like the flower of the field.
{40:7} The grass has dried up, and the flower has fallen. For the Spirit of the Lord has blown over it. Truly, the people are like grass.
{40:8} The grass has dried up, and the flower has fallen. But the Word of our Lord remains for eternity.”
{40:9} You who evangelize Zion, climb a high mountain! You who evangelize Jerusalem, lift up your voice with strength! Lift it up! Do not be afraid! Say to the cities of Judah: “Behold, your God!”
{40:10} Behold, the Lord God will arrive in strength, and his arm will rule. Behold, his reward is with him, and his work is before him.
{40:11} He will pasture his flock like a shepherd. He will gather together the lambs with his arm, and he will lift them up to his bosom, and he himself will carry the very young.
{40:12} Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and who has weighed the heavens with his palm? Who has suspended the mass of the earth with three fingers, and who has weighed the mountains on a balance and the hills on a scale?
{40:13} Who has assisted the Spirit of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor and has revealed things to him?
{40:14} With whom has he consulted? And who has instructed him, and taught him the path of justice, and guided him to knowledge, and revealed the way of understanding to him?
{40:15} Behold, the nations are like a drop of water in a bucket, and they are considered as the smallest grain on a balance. Behold, the islands are like a little dust.
{40:16} And Lebanon will not be sufficient to start a fire, and its animals will not be sufficient for a burnt offering.
{40:17} All the nations in his sight are as if they did not exist, and they are considered by him as if they were nothingness and emptiness.
{40:18} Therefore, to whom would you liken God? Or with what image would you replace him?
{40:19} Should the workman cast a statue? Or has the goldsmith formed it with gold, or the silversmith with plates of silver?
{40:20} He has chosen strong wood that will not decay. The skillful artisan seeks a way to set up an idol that cannot be moved.
{40:21} Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been announced to you from the beginning? Have you not understood the foundations of the earth?
{40:22} He is the One who sits upon the globe of the earth, and its inhabitants are like locusts. He extends the heavens as if they were nothing, and he spreads them out like a tent, in which to dwell.
{40:23} He has brought those who examine what is secret to nothingness. He has brought the judges of the earth to emptiness.
{40:24} And certainly, their stalk was neither planted, nor sown, nor rooted in the ground. He has suddenly blown across them, and they have withered, and a whirlwind will carry them away like chaff.
{40:25} “And to whom would you compare me or equate me?” says the Holy One.
{40:26} Lift up your eyes on high, and see who has created these things. He leads forth their army by number, and he calls them all by name. Because of the fullness of his strength and robustness and virtue, not one of them was left behind.
{40:27} Why do you say this, O Jacob, and why do you speak this way, O Israel? “My way has been hidden from the Lord, and my judgment escaped notice by my God.”
{40:28} Do you not know, or have you not heard? The Lord is the eternal God, who has created the limits of the earth. He does not diminish, and he does not struggle. Neither is his wisdom searchable.
{40:29} It is he who gives strength to the weary, and it is he who increases fortitude and strength in those who are failing.
{40:30} Servants will struggle and fail, and young men will fall into infirmity.
{40:31} But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will take up wings like eagles. They will run and not struggle. They will walk and not tire.
{41:1} Let the islands be silent before me, and let the nations take new strength. Let them draw near, and then speak. Let us apply for judgment together.
{41:2} Who has raised up a just man from the east, and has called him to follow him? He will place the nations under his gaze, and he will rule over kings. He will cause them to be like dust before his sword, like chaff driven by the wind before his bow.
{41:3} He will pursue them. He will pass by in peace. No trace will appear after his feet.
{41:4} Who has worked and accomplished these things, calling to the generations from the beginning? “It is I, the Lord! I am the first and the last.”
{41:5} The islands saw it and were afraid. The ends of the earth were stupefied. They drew near and arrived.
{41:6} Each one will help his neighbor and will say to his brother, “Be strengthened.”
{41:7} The coppersmith striking with the mallet encouraged him who was forging at that time, saying, “It is ready for soldering.” And he strengthened it with nails, so that it would not be moved.
{41:8} But you, O Israel, are my servant, O Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of my friend Abraham.
{41:9} For his sake, I have taken you from the ends of the earth, and I have called you from its distant places. And I said to you: “You are my servant. I have chosen you, and I have not cast you aside.”
{41:10} Do not be afraid, for I am with you. Do not turn away, for I am your God. I have strengthened you, and I have assisted you, and the right hand of my just one has upheld you.
{41:11} Behold, all who fight against you shall be confounded and ashamed. They will be as if they did not exist, and the men who contradict you will perish.
{41:12} You will seek them, and you will not find them. The men who rebel against you will be as if they did not exist. And the men who make war against you will be like something that has been consumed.
{41:13} For I am the Lord your God. I take you by your hand, and I say to you: Do not be afraid. I have helped you.
{41:14} Fear not, O worm of Jacob, you who are dead within Israel. I have helped you, says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.
{41:15} I have established you like a new threshing cart, having serrated blades. You will thresh the mountains and crush them. And you will turn the hills into chaff.
{41:16} You will winnow them, and the wind will blow them away, and the whirlwind will scatter them. And you shall exult in the Lord; you shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
{41:17} The indigent and the poor are seeking water, but there is none. Their tongue has been dried up by thirst. I, the Lord, will heed them. I, the God of Israel, will not abandon them.
{41:18} I will open rivers in the high hills, and fountains in the midst of the plains. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the impassable land into streams of water.
{41:19} I will plant the cedar in a deserted place, with the thorn, and the myrtle, and the olive tree. In the desert, I will plant the pine, and the elm, and the box tree together,
{41:20} so that they may see and know, acknowledge and understand, together, that the hand of the Lord has accomplished this, and that the Holy One of Israel has created it.
{41:21} Bring your case forward, says the Lord. Bring it here, if you have anything to allege, says the King of Jacob.
{41:22} Let them approach and announce to us the things that will occur. Announce to us the things that were before. And we will apply our heart to them, and we will know their end. And so, reveal to us the things that will occur.
{41:23} Announce the things that will occur in the future, and we will know that you are gods. Likewise, accomplish good or evil, if you are able, and let us speak of it and see it together.
{41:24} Behold, you exist out of nothing, and your work is from what does not exist; he who has chosen you is an abomination.
{41:25} I have raised up one from the north, and he will arrive from the rising of the sun. He will call upon my name, and he will reduce magistrates to mud, like a potter working with clay.
{41:26} Who has announced this from its rising, so that we may know it, or from its beginning, so that we may say, “You are just.” There is no one who either announces, or predicts, or hears your words.
{41:27} The first one will say to Zion: “Behold, they are here,” and to Jerusalem, “I will present an evangelist.”
{41:28} And I saw, and there was no one among any of them to consult, or who, when I asked, could answer a word.
{41:29} Behold, they are all unjust, and their works are empty. Their idols are wind and emptiness.
{42:1} Behold my servant, I will uphold him, my elect, with him my soul is well-pleased. I have sent my Spirit upon him. He will offer judgment to the nations.
{42:2} He will not cry out, and he will not show favoritism to anyone; neither will his voice be heard abroad.
{42:3} The bruised reed he will not break, and the smoldering wick he will not extinguish. He will lead forth judgment unto truth.
{42:4} He will not be saddened or troubled, until he establishes judgment on earth. And the islands will await his law.
{42:5} Thus says the Lord God, who created the heavens and expanded it, who formed the earth and all that springs from it, who gives breath to the people in it, and spirit to those walking on it.
{42:6} I, the Lord, have called you in justice, and I have taken your hand and preserved you. And I have presented you as a covenant of the people, as a light to the Gentiles,
{42:7} so that you may open the eyes of the blind, and lead out the prisoner from confinement and those sitting in darkness from the house of incarceration.
{42:8} I am the Lord; this is my name. I will not give my glory to another, nor my praise to graven things.
{42:9} The things that were first, behold, they have arrived. And I also announce what is new. Before these things arise, I will cause you to hear about them.
{42:10} Sing to the Lord a new canticle, sing his praise from the ends of the earth, you who descend into the sea and all its fullness, the islands and their inhabitants.
{42:11} Let the desert and its cities be lifted up. Kedar will dwell in houses. O inhabitants of the rock, give praise! They will cry out from the top of the mountains.
{42:12} They will give glory to the Lord, and they will announce his praise to the islands.
{42:13} The Lord will go forth like a strong man; like a man of battle, he will stir up zeal. He will shout and cry out. He will prevail against his enemies.
{42:14} I have always been quiet; I have been silent; I have been patient. I will speak like a woman giving birth. I will destroy and consume, all at once.
{42:15} I will desolate the mountains and the hills, and I will wither all their grass. And I will turn rivers into islands, and I will dry up the pools of water.
{42:16} And I will lead the blind along a way which they do not know. And I will cause them to walk along paths with which they were unfamiliar. I will turn darkness into light before them, and crooked into straight. These things I have done for them. For I have not abandoned them.
{42:17} They have been converted again. Let those who trust in graven idols be greatly confounded, for they say to a molten thing, “You are our god.”
{42:18} You who are deaf, hear! You who are blind, turn your gaze and see!
{42:19} Who is blind, except my servant? Who is deaf, except the one to whom I have sent my messengers? Who is blind, except the one who has been sold? And who is blind, except the servant of the Lord?
{42:20} You who see many things, will you not keep them? You who have open ears, will you not listen?
{42:21} And the Lord was willing to sanctify him, and to magnify the law, and to exalt him.
{42:22} But this same people has robbed and laid waste. All their youth are a snare, and they have been hidden in houses of confinement. They have become victims; there is no one who may rescue them. They have been plundered; there is no one who may say, “Restore.”
{42:23} Who is there among you who will hear this, who will listen closely and heed this in the future?
{42:24} Who has handed over Jacob into plunder, and Israel into devastation? Is it not the Lord himself, against whom we have sinned? And they were not willing to walk in his ways, and they have not listened to his law.
{42:25} And so, he poured out over him the indignation of his fury and a strong battle. And he burned him all around, and he did not realize it. And he set him on fire, and he did not understand it.
{43:1} And now thus says the Lord who created you, O Jacob, and who formed you, O Israel: Do not be afraid. For I have redeemed you, and I have called you by your name. You are mine.
{43:2} When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and the rivers will not cover you. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned, and the flames will not scorch you.
{43:3} For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I have presented Egypt as your atonement, Ethiopia and Seba on your behalf.
{43:4} Since then, you have become honorable in my eyes, and glorious. I have loved you, and I will present men on behalf of you, and people on behalf of your life.
{43:5} Fear not, for I am with you. I will lead your offspring from the East, and I will gather you from the West.
{43:6} I will say to the North, “Release him,” and to the South, “Do not turn him away.” Bring my sons from far away, and my daughters from the ends of the earth.
{43:7} And each one who calls upon my name, I have created for my glory. I have formed him, and I have made him.
{43:8} Lead forth the people who are blind and have eyes, who are deaf and have ears.
{43:9} All the nations have been assembled together, and the tribes have been collected. Who among you will announce this, and who will cause us to listen to the things that are first? Let them present their witnesses. Let them act justly, and listen, and say: “It is true.”
{43:10} You are my witnesses, says the Lord, and you are my servant, whom I have chosen, so that you may know, and may believe in me, and so that you may understand that I am the same. Before me, there was no god formed, and after me there will be none.
{43:11} I am. I am the Lord. And there is no savior apart from me.
{43:12} I have announced, and I have saved. I have caused it to be heard. And there was no stranger among you. You are my witnesses, says the Lord, and I am God.
{43:13} And from the beginning, I am the same. And there is no one who can rescue from my hand. I act, and who can turn it aside?
{43:14} Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: For your sake, I sent to Babylon, and tore down all their bars, with the Chaldeans who glory in their ships.
{43:15} I am the Lord, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King.
{43:16} Thus says the Lord, who gave you a way through the sea and a path through the torrent of waters,
{43:17} who led out the chariot and the horse, the column of robust troops. They went to sleep together, and they will not arise. They have been crushed like flax, and they have been extinguished.
{43:18} You need not call to mind the past, nor consider the things of antiquity.
{43:19} Behold, I am accomplishing new things. And presently, they will spring forth. With certainty, you will know them. I will make a way in the desert, and rivers in an impassible place.
{43:20} The wild beasts of the field will glorify me, with the serpents and the ostriches. For I have brought waters to the desert, rivers to inaccessible places, in order to give drink to my people, to my elect.
{43:21} This is the people whom I have formed for myself. They will speak my praise.
{43:22} But you have not called upon me, O Jacob, nor have you struggled for me, O Israel.
{43:23} You have not offered me the ram of your holocaust, and you have not glorified me with your victims. I have not burdened you with oblations, nor have I wearied you with incense.
{43:24} You have bought me no sweet cane with money, and you have not inebriated me with the fat of your victims. Yet truly, you have burdened me with your sins; you have wearied me with your iniquities.
{43:25} I am. I am the very One who wipes away your iniquities for my own sake. And I will not remember your sins.
{43:26} Call me to mind, and let us go to judgment together. If you have anything to justify yourself, explain it.
{43:27} Your first father sinned, and your interpreters have betrayed me.
{43:28} And so, I have defiled the holy leaders. I have handed over Jacob to slaughter, and Israel to calumny.
{44:1} And now, listen, Jacob, my servant, and Israel, whom I have chosen.
{44:2} Thus says the Lord, who made and formed you, your Helper from the womb: Do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant and my most righteous, whom I have chosen.
{44:3} For I will pour out waters upon the thirsty ground, and rivers upon the dry land. I will pour out my Spirit upon your offspring, and my benediction upon your stock.
{44:4} And they will spring up among the plants, like willows beside running waters.
{44:5} This one will say, “I am the Lord’s,” and that one will call himself by the name of Jacob, and yet another will write with his hand, “For the Lord,” and he will take the name Israel.
{44:6} Thus says the Lord, the King and Redeemer of Israel, the Lord of hosts: I am the first, and I am the last, and there is no God apart from me.
{44:7} Who is like me? Let him call out and announce it. And let him explain to me the order of things, since it is I who appointed the ancient people. The things of the near and the distant future, let him announce them.
{44:8} Do not be afraid, and do not be disturbed. From the time when I caused you to listen, I also announced it. You are my witnesses. Is there another God beside me, also a Maker, whom I have not known?
{44:9} All of those who create idols are nothing, and their most beloved things will not benefit them. These are their witnesses, for they do not see, and they do not understand, so that they might be confounded.
{44:10} Who has formed a god or cast a molten image, which is useful for nothing?
{44:11} Behold, all those who partake in this will be confounded. For these makers are men. They will all assemble together. They will stand and be terrified. And they will be confounded together.
{44:12} The maker of iron has wrought with his file. With coals and hammers, he has formed it, and he has wrought with the strength of his arm. He will hunger and grow faint. He will not drink water, and he will become weary.
{44:13} The maker of wood has extended his ruler. He has formed it with a plane. He has made it with corners, and he has smoothed its curves. And he has made the image of a man, a seemingly beautiful man, dwelling in a house.
{44:14} He has cut down cedars; he has taken the evergreen oak, and the oak that stood among the trees of the forest. He has planted the pine tree, which the rain has nourished.
{44:15} And it is used by men for fuel. He took from it and warmed himself. And he set it on fire and baked bread. But from the remainder, he made a god, and he adored it. He made an idol, and he bowed down before it.
{44:16} Part of it, he burned with fire, and with part of it, he cooked meat; he boiled food and was filled. And he was warmed, and so he said: “Ah, I am warm. I have gazed at the fire.”
{44:17} But from its remainder, he made a god and a graven image for himself. He bowed down before it, and he adored it, and he prayed to it, saying: “Free me! For you are my god.”
{44:18} They have neither known nor understood. For their eyes are obscured, lest they see with their eyes and understand with their heart.
{44:19} They do not consider in their mind, nor do they know, nor do they think to say: “I have burned part of it in the fire, and I have baked bread upon its coals. I have cooked flesh and I have eaten. And from its remainder, should I make an idol? Should I fall prostrate before the trunk of a tree?”
{44:20} Part of it is ashes. His foolish heart adores it. And he will not liberate his soul, and he will not say, “Perhaps there is a lie in my right hand.”
{44:21} Remember these things, O Jacob, O Israel. For you are my servant. I have formed you. You are my servant, Israel. Do not forget me.
{44:22} I have wiped away your iniquities like a cloud, and your sins like a mist. Return to me, because I have redeemed you.
{44:23} Give praise, O heavens! For the Lord has shown mercy. Shout with joy, O ends of the earth! Let the mountains resound with praise, with the forest and all its trees. For the Lord has redeemed Jacob, and Israel will be glorified.
{44:24} Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, and your Maker from the womb: I am the Lord, who makes all things, who alone extends the heavens, who makes the earth firm. And there is no one with me.
{44:25} I make the signs of the diviners useless, and I turn the seers to madness. I turn the wise backwards, and make their knowledge into foolishness.
{44:26} I lift up the word of my servant, and I fulfill the counsel of my messengers. I say to Jerusalem, “You shall be inhabited,” and to the cities of Judah, “You shall be rebuilt,” and I will lift up its deserts.
{44:27} I say to the depths, “Be desolate,” and, “I will dry up your rivers.”
{44:28} I say to Cyrus, “You are my shepherd, and you will accomplish all that I will.” I say to Jerusalem, “You shall be built,” and to the Temple, “Your foundations shall be laid.”
{45:1} Thus says the Lord to my anointed Cyrus, whose right hand I hold, so that I may subjugate the nations before his face, and I may turn the backs of kings, and I may open the doors before him, and so that the gates will not be shut.
{45:2} I will go before you. And I will humble the glorious ones of the earth. I will shatter the gates of brass, and I will break apart the bars of iron.
{45:3} And I will give you hidden treasures and the knowledge of secret things, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who calls your name.
{45:4} For the sake of Jacob, my servant, and Israel, my elect, I have even called you by your name. I have taken you up, and you have not known me.
{45:5} I am the Lord, and there is no one else. There is no god beside me. I girded you, and you have not known me.
{45:6} So may those who are from the rising of the sun, and those who are from its setting, know that there is no one beside me. I am the Lord, and there is no other.
{45:7} I form the light and create the darkness. I make peace and create disaster. I, the Lord, do all these things.
{45:8} Send down dew from above, O heavens, and let the clouds rain down upon the just! Let the earth open and spring forth a savior! And let justice rise up at once! I, the Lord, have created him.
{45:9} Woe to him who contradicts his Maker, a mere shard from an earthen vessel! Should the clay say to the potter, “What are you making?” or, “Your work is not made by your hands?”
{45:10} Woe to him who says to his father, “Why did you conceive?” or to a woman, “Why did you give birth?”
{45:11} Thus says the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, his Maker: Would you question me about the future, concerning my sons, and command me concerning the work of my hands?
{45:12} I made the earth, and I created man upon it. My hand stretched out the heavens, and I have commanded all their hosts.
{45:13} I have raised him up unto justice, and I will direct all his ways. He himself will build my city and release my captives, but not for ransom or gifts, says the Lord, the God of hosts.
{45:14} Thus says the Lord: The labor of Egypt, and the business dealings of Ethiopia, and of the Sabeans, men of stature, will pass to you and will be yours. They will walk behind you. They will travel, bound in irons. And they will adore you and petition you: “In you alone is God, and there is no God apart from you.
{45:15} Truly, you are a hidden God, the God of Israel, the Savior.”
{45:16} They have all been confounded and should be ashamed! These fabricators of errors have departed together into confusion!
{45:17} Israel is saved in the Lord by an eternal salvation. You will not be confounded, and you will not be ashamed, even forever and ever.
{45:18} For thus says the Lord, who created the heavens, God himself who formed the earth and made it, the very Molder of it. He did not create it to no purpose. He formed it so that it would be inhabited. I am the Lord, and there is no other.
{45:19} I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth. I have not said to the offspring of Jacob, “Seek me in vain.” I am the Lord, who speaks justice, who announces what is right.
{45:20} Assemble yourselves, and approach, and draw near together, you who have been saved among the Gentiles. They lack knowledge, who lift up the wood of their sculpture, and who petition a god unable to save.
{45:21} Announce it, and approach, and consult together. Who has caused this to be heard from the beginning, and who has foretold it from that time? Is it not I, the Lord? And is there some other god beside me? I am a just God who saves, and there is no one except me.
{45:22} All ends of the earth, be converted to me, and you will be saved. For I am God, and there is no other.
{45:23} I have sworn by myself. The Word of justice will proceed from my mouth, and it will not turn back.
{45:24} For every knee shall bend to me, and every tongue shall swear it.
{45:25} Therefore, he will say, “In the Lord are my justices and my dominion.” They will go to him. And all who fight against him will be confounded.
{45:26} In the Lord, all the offspring of Israel will be justified and praised.
{46:1} Bel has been broken. Nebo has been crushed. Their idols have been placed upon beasts and cattle, your grievous heavy burdens, even unto exhaustion.
{46:2} They have been melted down, or have been smashed together. They were not able to save the one who carried them, and their life will go into captivity.
{46:3} Listen to me, house of Jacob, all the remnant of the house of Israel, who are carried in my bosom, who were born from my womb.
{46:4} Even to your old age, I am the same. And even with your grey hairs, I will carry you. I have made you, and I will sustain you. I will carry you, and I will save you.
{46:5} To whom would you liken me, or equate me, or compare me, or consider me to be similar?
{46:6} You take gold from a bag, and you weigh silver on a scale, so as to hire a goldsmith to make a god. And they fall prostrate and adore.
{46:7} They carry him on their shoulders, supporting him, and they set him in his place. And he will stand still and will not move from his place. But even when they will cry out to him, he will not hear. He will not save them from tribulation.
{46:8} Remember this, and be confounded. Return, you transgressors, to the heart.
{46:9} Remember the past ages. For I am God, and there is no other god. There is no one like me.
{46:10} From the beginning, I announce the last things, and from the start, the things that have not yet been done, saying: My plan will stand firm, and my entire will shall be done.
{46:11} I call a bird from the east, and from a far away land, the man of my will. And I have spoken it, and I will carry it out. I have created, and I will act.
{46:12} Hear me, you who are hard of heart, who are far from justice!
{46:13} I have brought my justice near. It will not be far away, and my salvation will not be delayed. I will grant salvation in Zion, and my glory in Israel.
{47:1} Descend, sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon! Sit on the ground. There is no throne for the daughter of the Chaldeans. For you shall no longer be called delicate and tender.
{47:2} Take a millstone and grind meal. Uncover your shame, bare your shoulder, reveal your legs, cross the streams.
{47:3} Your disgrace will be revealed, and your shame will be seen. I will seize vengeance, and no man will withstand me.
{47:4} Our Redeemer, the Lord of hosts is his name, the Holy One of Israel.
{47:5} Sit in silence, and enter into darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans! For you shall no longer be called the noblewoman of kingdoms.
{47:6} I was angry with my people. I have polluted my inheritance, and I have given them into your hand. You have not shown mercy to them. You have greatly increased the burden of your yoke upon the elders.
{47:7} And you have said: “I will be a noblewoman forever.” You have not set these things upon your heart, and you have not remembered your end.
{47:8} And now, hear these things, you who are delicate and have confidence, who say in your heart: “I am, and there is no one greater than me. I will not sit as a widow, and I will not know barrenness.”
{47:9} These two things will suddenly overwhelm you in one day: barrenness and widowhood. All things shall overwhelm you, because of the multitude of your sorceries and because of the great cruelty of your enchantments.
{47:10} And you have trusted in your malice, and you have said: “There is no one who sees me.” Your wisdom and your knowledge, these have deceived you. And you have said in your heart: “I am, and beside me there is no other.”
{47:11} Evil will overwhelm you, and you will not notice its rising. And calamity will fall violently over you, and you will not be able to avert it. You will suddenly be overwhelmed by a misery such as you have never known.
{47:12} Stand with your incantations, and with the multitude of your sorceries, in which you have labored from your youth, as if somehow it might benefit you, or as if it were able to make you stronger.
{47:13} You have failed in the multitude of your plans! Let the seers stand and save you, those who were contemplating the stars, and figuring the months, so that from these they might announce to you the things to come.
{47:14} Behold, they have become like stubble. Fire has consumed them. They will not free themselves from the power of the flames. These are not coals by which they may be warmed, nor is this a fire which they may sit beside.
{47:15} So have all these things, in which you have labored, become to you. Your merchants from your youth, each one has erred in his own way. There is no one who can save you.
{48:1} Listen to these things, O house of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel, and who went forth from the waters of Judah. You swear by the name of the Lord and you call to mind the God of Israel, but not in truth, and not in justice.
{48:2} For they have been called from the holy city, and they have been founded upon the God of Israel. The Lord of hosts is his name.
{48:3} From that time, I announced the former things. They went forth from my mouth, and I have caused them to be heard. I wrought these things suddenly, and they were fulfilled.
{48:4} For I knew that you are stubborn, and that your neck is like an iron sinew, and that your forehead is like brass.
{48:5} From that time, I foretold to you. Before these things happened, I revealed them to you, lest you say: “My idols have accomplished these things, and my graven and molten images have commanded them.”
{48:6} See all the things that you have heard. But were you the ones who announced them? From that time, I caused you to hear about new things, and you do not know how these were preserved.
{48:7} They are created now, and not in that time. And even before today, you did not hear of them; otherwise, you might say, “Behold, I knew them.”
{48:8} You have neither heard, nor known, nor were your ears open in that time. For I knew that you would transgress greatly, and so I called you a transgressor from the womb.
{48:9} For the sake of my name, I will take the face of my fury far away. And for the sake of my praise, I will bridle you, lest you perish.
{48:10} Behold, I have refined you, but not like silver. I have chosen you for the furnace of poverty.
{48:11} For my sake, for my own sake, I will do it, so that I may not be blasphemed. For I will not give my glory to another.
{48:12} Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel whom I call. I am the same, I am the first, and I am the last.
{48:13} Also, my hand has founded the earth, and my right hand has measured the heavens. I will call them, and they will stand together.
{48:14} Gather together, all of you, and listen. Who among them has announced these things? The Lord has loved him; he will do his will with Babylon, and his arm is upon the Chaldeans.
{48:15} I am, I have spoken, and I have called him. I have led him forward, and his way has been straight.
{48:16} Draw near to me, and listen to this. From the beginning, I have not spoken in secret. From the time before it happened, I was there. And now, the Lord God has sent me, and his Spirit.
{48:17} Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I am the Lord, your God, who teaches you beneficial things, who guides you in the way that you walk.
{48:18} If only you had paid attention to my commandments! Your peace would have been like a river, and your justice would have been like the waves of the sea,
{48:19} and your offspring would have been like the sand, and the stock from your loins would have been like its stones. His name would not have passed away, nor would it have been worn away before my face.
{48:20} Depart from Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans! Announce it with a voice of exultation. Cause it to be heard, and carry it even to the ends of the earth. Say: “The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob.”
{48:21} They did not thirst in the desert, when he led them out. He produced water from the rock for them. For he split the rock, and the waters flowed out.
{48:22} “There is no peace for the impious,” says the Lord.
{49:1} Pay attention, you islands, and listen closely, you far away peoples. The Lord has called me from the womb; from the womb of my mother, he has been mindful of my name.
{49:2} And he has appointed my mouth as a sharp sword. In the shadow of his hand, he has protected me. And he has appointed me as an elect arrow. In his quiver, he has hidden me.
{49:3} And he has said to me: “You are my servant, Israel. For in you, I will glory.”
{49:4} And I said: “I have labored toward emptiness. I have consumed my strength without purpose and in vain. Therefore, my judgment is with the Lord, and my work is with my God.”
{49:5} And now, says the Lord, who formed me from the womb as his servant, so that I may bring back Jacob to him, for Israel will not be gathered together, but I have been glorified in the eyes of the Lord and my God has become my strength,
{49:6} and so he has said: “It is a small thing that you should be my servant so as to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and so as to convert the dregs of Israel. Behold, I have offered you as a light for the Gentiles, so that you may be my salvation, even to the furthest regions of the earth.”
{49:7} Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to a contemptible soul, to an abominable nation, to the servant of lords: The kings will see, and the princes will rise up, and they will adore, because of the Lord. For he is faithful, and he is the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.
{49:8} Thus says the Lord: In a pleasing time, I have heeded you, and in the day of salvation, I have assisted you. And I have preserved you, and I have presented you as a covenant of the people, so that you would lift up the earth, and possess the scattered inheritances,
{49:9} so that you would say to those who are bound, “Go forth!” and to those who are in darkness, “Be released!” They will pasture along the roads, and their pastures will be in every open place.
{49:10} They will not hunger or thirst, nor will the heat of the sun beat down upon them. For the one who takes pity on them will rule them, and he will give them to drink from fountains of waters.
{49:11} And I will make all my mountains into a road, and my paths will be exalted.
{49:12} Behold, some will come from far away, and behold, others from the north and from the sea, and still others from the land of the south.
{49:13} Give praise, O heavens! And exult, O earth! Let the mountains give praise with jubilation! For the Lord has consoled his people, and he will take pity on his poor ones.
{49:14} And Zion said: “The Lord has abandoned me, and the Lord has forgotten me.”
{49:15} Can a woman forget her infant, so as not to take pity on the child of her womb? But even if she would forget, still I shall never forget you.
{49:16} Behold, I have engraved you on my hands. Your walls are always before my eyes.
{49:17} Your builders have arrived. Those who would tear you down and destroy you, they will depart from you.
{49:18} Lift up your eyes all around, and see: all these have been gathered together; they have come to you. As I live, says the Lord, you shall be clothed with all these things, as if with an ornament. And like a bride, you shall wrap these things all around you.
{49:19} For your deserts, and your solitary places, and the land of your ruination will now be too narrow, because of all the inhabitants. And those who devoured you will be chased far away.
{49:20} Even the children of your barrenness will say in your ears: “This place is too narrow for me. Make me a spacious place in which to dwell.”
{49:21} And you will say in your heart: “Who has conceived them? I was barren and unable to give birth. I was taken away and held captive. And so, who has raised them? I was destitute and alone. And so, where have they been?”
{49:22} Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will lift up my hand to the Gentiles, and I will exalt my sign before the peoples. And they will carry your sons in their arms, and they will bear your daughters on their shoulders.
{49:23} And kings will be your caretakers, and queens will be your nursemaids. They will reverence you with their face to the ground, and they will lick the dust at your feet. And you will know that I am the Lord. For those who hope in him will not be confounded.
{49:24} Can prey be taken from the strong? Or is anything taken captive by the powerful able to be saved?
{49:25} For thus says the Lord: Certainly, even the captives will be taken away from the strong, even what has been taken by the powerful will be saved. And truly, I will judge those who have judged you, and I will save your children.
{49:26} And I will feed your enemies their own flesh. And they will be inebriated with their own blood, as with new wine. And all flesh will know that I am the Lord, who saves you, and your Redeemer, the Strong One of Jacob.
{50:1} Thus says the Lord: What is this bill of divorce for your mother, by which I have dismissed her? Or who is my creditor, to whom I have sold you? Behold, you were sold by your iniquities, and I have dismissed your mother for your wickedness.
{50:2} For I arrived, and there was no man. I called out, and there was no one who would hear. Has my hand been shortened and become small, so that I am unable to redeem? Or is there no power in me to deliver? Behold, at my rebuke, I will make the sea into a desert. I will turn rivers into dry land. The fish will rot for lack of water and will die of thirst.
{50:3} I will clothe the heavens in darkness, and I will make sackcloth their covering.
{50:4} The Lord has given me a learned tongue, so that I would know how to uphold with a word, one who has weakened. He rises in the morning, he rises to my ear in the morning, so that I may heed him like a teacher.
{50:5} The Lord God has opened my ear. And I do not contradict him. I have not turned back.
{50:6} I have given my body to those who strike me, and my cheeks to those who plucked them. I have not averted my face from those who rebuked me and who spit on me.
{50:7} The Lord God is my helper. Therefore, I have not been confounded. Therefore, I have set my face like a very hard rock, and I know that I will not be confounded.
{50:8} He who justifies me is near. Who will speak against me? Let us stand together. Who is my adversary? Let him approach me.
{50:9} Behold, the Lord God is my helper. Who is the one who would condemn me? Behold, they will all be worn away like a garment; the moth will devour them.
{50:10} Who is there among you who fears the Lord? Who hears the voice of his servant? Who has walked in darkness, and there is no light in him? Let him hope in the name of the Lord, and let him lean upon his God.
{50:11} Behold, all you who kindle a fire, wrapped in flames: walk in the light of your fire and in the flames that you have kindled. This has been done to you by my hand. You will sleep in anguish.
{51:1} Listen to me, you who follow what is just and who seek the Lord. Pay attention to the rock from which you have been hewn, and to the walls of the pit from which you have been dug.
{51:2} Pay attention to Abraham, your father, and to Sarah, who bore you. For I called him alone, and I blessed him, and I multiplied him.
{51:3} Therefore, the Lord will console Zion, and he will console all its ruins. And he will turn her desert into a place of delights, and her wilderness into a garden of the Lord. Gladness and rejoicing will be found in her, thanksgiving and a voice of praise.
{51:4} Pay attention to me, my people, and listen to me, my tribes. For a law will go forth from me, and my judgment will rest as a light for the nations.
{51:5} My just one is near. My savior has gone forth. And my arms will judge the people. The islands will hope in me, and they will patiently wait for my arm.
{51:6} Lift up your eyes to heaven, and look down to the earth below. For the heavens will vanish like smoke, and the earth will be worn away like a garment, and its inhabitants will pass away in like manner. But my salvation will be forever, and my justice will not fail.
{51:7} Listen to me, you who know what is just, my people who have my law in their heart. Do not be afraid of disgrace among men, and do not dread their blasphemies.
{51:8} For the worm will consume them like a garment, and the moth will devour them like wool. But my salvation will be forever, and my justice will be from generation to generation.
{51:9} Rise up, Rise up! Clothe yourself in strength, O arm of the Lord! Rise up as in the days of antiquity, as in generations long past. Have you not struck the arrogant one and wounded the dragon?
{51:10} Have not you dried up the sea, the waters of the great abyss, and turned the depths of the sea into a road, so that the delivered could cross over it?
{51:11} And now, those who have been redeemed by the Lord will return. And they will arrive in Zion, praising. And everlasting rejoicing will be upon their heads. They will take hold of gladness and rejoicing. Anguish and mourning will flee away.
{51:12} It is I, I myself, who will console you. Who are you that you would be afraid of a mortal man, and of a son of man, who will wither like the grass?
{51:13} And have you forgotten the Lord, your Maker, who extended the heavens, and who founded the earth? And have you been in constant dread, all day long, at the face of his fury, of the one who afflicted you and who had prepared to destroy you? Where is the fury of the oppressor now?
{51:14} Advancing quickly, he will arrive to be revealed, and he will not kill unto utter destruction, nor will his bread fail.
{51:15} But I am the Lord, your God, who stirs up the sea, and who makes the waves swell. The Lord of hosts is my name.
{51:16} I have placed my words in your mouth, and I have protected you in the shadow of my hand, so that you might plant the heavens, and found the earth, and so that you might say to Zion, “You are my people.”
{51:17} Lift up, Lift up! Arise, O Jerusalem! You drank, from the hand of the Lord, the cup of his wrath. You drank, even to the bottom of the cup of deep sleep. And you were given to drink, all the way to the dregs.
{51:18} There is no one who can uphold her, out of all the sons whom she has conceived. And there is no one who would take her by the hand, out of all the sons whom she has raised.
{51:19} There are two things which have happened to you. Who will be saddened over you? There is devastation and destruction, and famine and sword. Who will console you?
{51:20} Your sons have been cast out. They have slept at the head of all the roads, and they have been ensnared like a gazelle. They have been filled by the indignation of the Lord, by the rebuke of your God.
{51:21} Therefore, listen to this, O poor little ones, and you who have been inebriated, but not by wine.
{51:22} Thus says your Sovereign, the Lord, and your God, who will fight on behalf of his people: Behold, I have taken the cup of deep sleep from your hand. You shall no longer drink from the bottom of the cup of my indignation.
{51:23} And I will set it in the hand of those who have humiliated you, and who have said to your soul: “Bow down, so that we pass over.” And you placed your body on the ground, as a path for them to pass over.
{52:1} Rise up, Rise up! Clothe yourself in strength, O Zion! Put on the garments of your glory, O Jerusalem, the city of the Holy One! For the uncircumcised and the unclean will no longer pass through you.
{52:2} Shake yourself from the dust! Arise and sit up, O Jerusalem! Loose the chains from your neck, O captive daughter of Zion!
{52:3} For thus says the Lord: You were sold for nothing, and you will be redeemed without money.
{52:4} For thus says the Lord God: My people descended into Egypt, in the beginning, in order to sojourn there. But the Assyrian oppressed them, without any cause at all.
{52:5} And now, what is left for me here, says the Lord? For my people have been taken away without cause. Their lords treat them unjustly, says the Lord. And my name is being continually blasphemed all day long.
{52:6} Because of this, my people will know my name, in that day. For it is I myself who is speaking. Behold, I am here.
{52:7} How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger and the preacher of peace! Announcing good and preaching peace, they are saying to Zion, “Your God will reign!”
{52:8} It is the voice of your watchmen. They have lifted up their voice. They will praise together. For they will see eye to eye, when the Lord converts Zion.
{52:9} Be glad and rejoice together, O deserts of Jerusalem! For the Lord has consoled his people. He has redeemed Jerusalem.
{52:10} The Lord has prepared his holy arm, in the sight of all the Gentiles. And all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.
{52:11} Depart, depart, get out of here! Do not be willing to touch what is polluted. Go out from her midst! Be cleansed, you who bear the vessels of the Lord.
{52:12} For you will not go out in a tumult, nor will you take flight in a hurry. For the Lord will precede you, and the God of Israel will gather you.
{52:13} Behold, my servant will understand; he will be exalted and lifted up, and he will be very sublime.
{52:14} Just as they were stupefied over you, so will his countenance be without glory among men, and his appearance, among the sons of men.
{52:15} He will sprinkle many nations; kings will close their mouth because of him. And those to whom he was not described, have seen. And those who have not heard, have considered.
{53:1} Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
{53:2} And he will rise up like a tender plant in his sight, and like a root from the thirsty ground. There is no beautiful or stately appearance in him. For we looked upon him, and there was no aspect, such that we would desire him.
{53:3} He is despised and the least among men, a man of sorrows who knows infirmity. And his countenance was hidden and despised. Because of this, we did not esteem him.
{53:4} Truly, he has taken away our weaknesses, and he himself has carried our sorrows. And we thought of him as if he were a leper, or as if he had been struck by God and humiliated.
{53:5} But he himself was wounded because of our iniquities. He was bruised because of our wickedness. The discipline of our peace was upon him. And by his wounds, we are healed.
{53:6} We have all gone astray like sheep; each one has turned aside to his own way. And the Lord has placed all our iniquity upon him.
{53:7} He was offered up, because it was his own will. And he did not open his mouth. He will be led like a sheep to the slaughter. And he will be mute like a lamb before his shearer. For he will not open his mouth.
{53:8} He was lifted up from anguish and judgment. Who will describe his life? For he has been cut off from the land of the living. Because of the wickedness of my people, I have struck him down.
{53:9} And he will be given a place with the impious for his burial, and with the rich for his death, though he has done no iniquity, nor was deceit in his mouth.
{53:10} But it was the will of the Lord to crush him with infirmity. If he lays down his life because of sin, he will see offspring with long lives, and the will of the Lord will be directed by his hand.
{53:11} Because his soul has labored, he will see and be satisfied. By his knowledge, my just servant will himself justify many, and he himself will carry their iniquities.
{53:12} Therefore, I will allot to him a great number. And he will divide the spoils of the strong. For he has handed over his life to death, and he was reputed among criminals. And he has taken away the sins of many, and he has prayed for the transgressors.
{54:1} Give praise, you who are barren and unable to conceive. Sing praise and make a joyful noise, you who have not given birth. For many are the children of the desolate, more so than of her who has a husband, says the Lord.
{54:2} Enlarge the place of your tent and extend the skins of your tabernacles, unsparingly. Lengthen your cords, and strengthen your stakes.
{54:3} For you shall extend to the right and to the left. And your offspring shall inherit the nations, and you shall inhabit the desolate cities.
{54:4} Do not be afraid! For you will not be confounded, and you will not blush. And you will not be put to shame, because you shall forget the confusion of your youth, and you shall no longer remember the disgrace of your widowhood.
{54:5} For the One who made you will rule over you. The Lord of hosts is his name. And your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, will be called the God of all the earth.
{54:6} For the Lord has called you, like a woman forsaken and mourning in spirit, and like a wife rejected in her youth, said your God.
{54:7} For a brief moment, I have forsaken you, and with great pities, I will gather you.
{54:8} In a moment of indignation, I have hidden my face from you, for a little while. But with everlasting mercy, I have taken pity on you, said your Redeemer, the Lord.
{54:9} For me, it is just as in the days of Noah, to whom I swore that I would no longer bring in the waters of Noah over the earth. Thus have I sworn not to be angry with you, and not to rebuke you.
{54:10} For the mountains will be moved, and the hills will tremble. But my mercy will not depart from you, and the covenant of my peace will not be shaken, said the Lord, who has compassion on you.
{54:11} O poor little ones, convulsed by the tempest, away from any consolation! Behold, I will set your stones in order, and I will lay your foundation with sapphires,
{54:12} and I will make your ramparts out of jasper, and your gates out of sculpted stones, and all your borders out of desirable stones.
{54:13} All your children will be taught by the Lord. And great will be the peace of your children.
{54:14} And you will be founded in justice. Depart far from oppression, for you will not be afraid. And depart from terror, for it will not approach you.
{54:15} Behold, a settler will arrive, who was not with me, a certain new arrival will be joined to you.
{54:16} Behold, I created the smith who fans the coals of the fire and produces an object by his work, and I have created the slayer who destroys.
{54:17} No object which has been formed to use against you will succeed. And every tongue that resists you in judgment, you shall judge. This is the inheritance of the servants of the Lord, and this is their justice with me, says the Lord.
{55:1} All you who thirst, come to the waters. And you who have no money: hurry, buy and eat. Approach, buy wine and milk, without money and without barter.
{55:2} Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and expend your labor for what does not satisfy? Listen very closely to me, and eat what is good, and then your soul will be delighted by a full measure.
{55:3} Incline your ear and draw near to me. Listen, and your soul will live. And I will make an everlasting covenant with you, by the faithful mercies of David.
{55:4} Behold, I have presented him as a witness to the people, as a commander and instructor to the nations.
{55:5} Behold, you will call to a nation that you did not know. And nations that did not know you will rush to you, because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel. For he has glorified you.
{55:6} Seek the Lord, while he is able to be found. Call upon him, while he is near.
{55:7} Let the impious one abandon his way, and the iniquitous man his thoughts, and let him return to the Lord, and he will take pity on him, and to our God, for he is great in forgiveness.
{55:8} For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways, says the Lord.
{55:9} For just as the heavens are exalted above the earth, so also are my ways exalted above your ways, and my thoughts above your thoughts.
{55:10} And in the same manner as rain and snow descend from heaven, and no longer return there, but soak the earth, and water it, and cause it to bloom and to provide seed to the sower and bread to the hungry,
{55:11} so also will my word be, which will go forth from my mouth. It will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish whatever I will, and it will prosper in the tasks for which I sent it.
{55:12} For you will go forth rejoicing, and you will be led forward in peace. The mountains and the hills will sing praise before you, and all the trees of the countryside will clap their hands.
{55:13} In place of the shrub, the pine tree will arise, and in place of the nettle, the myrtle tree will grow. And the Lord will be named with an eternal sign, which will not be taken away.
{56:1} Thus says the Lord: Preserve judgment, and accomplish justice. For my salvation is close to its arrival, and my justice is close to being revealed.
{56:2} Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds to this, keeping the Sabbath and not profaning it, guarding his hands and not doing any evil.
{56:3} And let not the son of the new arrival, who adheres to the Lord, speak, saying, “The Lord will divide and separate me from his people.” And let not the eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry tree.”
{56:4} For thus says the Lord to the eunuchs: They will keep my Sabbaths, and they will choose the things that I will, and they will hold to my covenant.
{56:5} I will give them a place in my house, within my walls, and a name better than sons and daughters. I will give them an everlasting name, which will never perish.
{56:6} And the sons of the new arrival, who adhere to the Lord so as to worship him and to love his name, shall be his servants: all who keep the Sabbath without profaning it, and who hold to my covenant.
{56:7} I will lead them to my holy mountain, and I will gladden them in my house of prayer. Their holocausts and their victims will be pleasing to me upon my altar. For my house will be called the house of prayer for all peoples.
{56:8} The Lord God, who gathers the dispersed of Israel, says: Even now, I will gather his congregation to him.
{56:9} All beasts of the field, all the beasts of the forest: approach and devour!
{56:10} His watchmen are all blind. They are all ignorant. They are mute dogs without the ability to bark, seeing empty things, sleeping and loving dreams.
{56:11} And these very imprudent dogs have never known satisfaction. The shepherds themselves do not know understanding. All have turned aside in their own way, each one to his own avarice, from the highest even to the least:
{56:12} “Come, let us take wine, and be filled by inebriation. And as it is today, so shall it be tomorrow and for a long time.”
{57:1} The just man perishes, and there is no one who acknowledges it in his heart; and men of mercy are taken away, for there is no one who understands. For the just man has been taken away before the face of malice.
{57:2} Let peace arrive. Let he who has walked in his righteousness find rest on his bed.
{57:3} But come here, you sons of the prophetess, you offspring of an adulterous man and a fornicating woman.
{57:4} Whom are you mocking? Against whom have you opened your mouth wide and wagged your tongue? Are you not sons of wickedness, a lying offspring,
{57:5} who are being consoled by idols under every leafy tree, immolating little children at the torrents, under the high rocks?
{57:6} Your portion is in the currents of the torrent; this is your lot! And you yourselves have poured out libations to them; you have offered sacrifice. Should I not be angry over these things?
{57:7} Upon a high and lofty mountain, you have placed your bed, and you have ascended to that place to immolate victims.
{57:8} And behind the door, and beyond the post, you have set up your memorial. For you uncovered yourself next to me, and you received an adulterer. You widened your bed, and you formed a pact with them. You loved their bed with an open hand.
{57:9} And you have adorned yourself for the king with ointments, and you have increased your cosmetics. You have sent your representatives to distant places, and you have debased yourself all the way to Hell.
{57:10} You have been wearied by the multitude of your own ways. Yet you did not say, “I will cease.” You have found life by your own hand; because of this, you have not prayed.
{57:11} For whose sake have you been anxiously afraid, so that you would lie and not be mindful of me, nor consider me in your heart? For I am silent, and I am like someone who does not see, and so you have forgotten me.
{57:12} I will announce your justice, and your works will not benefit you.
{57:13} When you cry out, let your followers free you. But the wind will carry them all away; a breeze will take them up. But he who has faith in me will inherit the earth and will possess my holy mountain.
{57:14} And I will say: “Make way! Grant passage! Move to the side of the path! Take the obstacles out of the way of my people!”
{57:15} For this is said by the Most High, the Sublime One, who dwells in eternity. And his name is Holy, for he dwells in the exalted and holy place, and he acts with a restrained and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite.
{57:16} For I will not contend unceasingly, and I will not be angry to the end. For I will exhale my breath, and the Spirit will go forth from my face.
{57:17} Because of the iniquity of his avarice, I was angry, and I struck him down. I concealed my face from you, and I was angry. And he went astray by wandering in his heart.
{57:18} I saw his ways, and I healed him, and I led him back again, and I restored consolations to him and to those who mourn for him.
{57:19} I created the fruit of the lips: peace, peace to him who is far away, and peace to him who is near, said the Lord, and I healed him.
{57:20} But the impious are like the raging sea, which is not able to be quieted, and its waves stir up dirt and mud.
{57:21} There is no peace for the impious, says the Lord God.
{58:1} Cry out! Cease not! Exalt your voice like a trumpet, and announce to my people their wicked acts, and to the house of Jacob their sins.
{58:2} For they also seek me, from day to day, and they are willing to know my ways, like a nation which has done justice and has not abandoned the judgment of their God. They petition me for judgments of justice. They are willing to draw near to God.
{58:3} “Why have we fasted, and you have not taken notice? Why have we humbled our souls, and you have not acknowledged it?” Behold, in the day of your fasting, your own will is found, and you petition for payment from all your debtors.
{58:4} Behold, you fast with strife and contention, and you strike with the fist impiously. Do not choose to fast as you have done even to this day. Then your outcry will be heard on high.
{58:5} Is this a fast such as I have chosen: for a man to afflict his soul for a day, to contort his head in a circle, and to spread sackcloth and ashes? Should you call this a fast and a day acceptable to the Lord?
{58:6} Is not this, instead, the kind of fast that I have chosen? Release the constraints of impiety; relieve the burdens that oppress; freely forgive those who are broken; and break apart every burden.
{58:7} Break your bread with the hungry, and lead the destitute and the homeless into your house. When you see someone naked, cover him, and do not despise your own flesh.
{58:8} Then your light will break forth like the morning, and your health will improve quickly, and your justice will go before your face, and the glory of the Lord will gather you up.
{58:9} Then you will call, and the Lord will heed; you will cry out, and he will say, “Here I am,” if you take away the chains from your midst, and cease to point your finger and to speak what is not beneficial.
{58:10} When you pour out your life for the hungry, and you satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light will rise up in darkness, and your darkness will be like the midday.
{58:11} And the Lord will give you rest continually, and he will fill your soul with splendor, and he will free your bones, and you will be like a watered garden and like a fountain of water whose waters will not fail.
{58:12} And places that have been desolate for ages will be built up by you. You will raise a foundation for generation after generation. And you will be called the repairer of hedges, who turns the roadways into quiet places.
{58:13} If you restrain your foot on the Sabbath, from doing your own will on my holy day, and if you call the Sabbath delightful, and the Holy of the Lord glorious, and if you glorify him, while you do not act according to your own ways, and your own will is not found, not even to speak a word,
{58:14} then you will find delight in the Lord, and I will take you up, above the heights of the earth, and I will nourish you with the inheritance of Jacob, your father. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
{59:1} Behold, the hand of the Lord has not been shortened, so that it cannot save, and his ear has not been blocked, so that it cannot hear.
{59:2} But your iniquities have made a division between you and your God, and your sins have concealed his face from you, so that he would not hear.
{59:3} For your hands have been polluted by blood, and your fingers by iniquity. Your lips have spoken lies, and your tongue utters iniquity.
{59:4} There is no one who calls for justice, and there is no one who judges truly. For they trust in nothing, and they speak emptiness. They have conceived hardship, and they have given birth to iniquity.
{59:5} They have ruptured the eggs of asps, and they have woven the webs of spiders. Whoever will eat of their eggs will die. For what has been incubated will hatch into a king snake.
{59:6} Their weavings will not be for clothing, nor will they cover themselves with their handiwork. Their works are useless things, and the work of iniquity is in their hands.
{59:7} Their feet run to evil, and they rush to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are useless thoughts; devastation and destruction are in their ways.
{59:8} They have not known the way of peace, and there is no judgment in their steps. Their paths have become crooked for them. Anyone who treads in them knows no peace.
{59:9} Because of this, judgment is far from us, and justice will not take hold of us. We waited for light, and behold, darkness; we waited for brightness, and we walked in darkness.
{59:10} We groped for the wall, like one who is blind, and we felt our way, like one without eyes. We stumbled at midday, as if in darkness; and in darkness, as if in death.
{59:11} We will all roar like bears, and we will sigh like despondent doves. We hoped for judgment, and there is none; for salvation, and it is far from us.
{59:12} For our iniquities have been multiplied in your sight, and our sins have answered us. For our wickedness is with us, and we have acknowledged our iniquities:
{59:13} sinning and lying against the Lord. And we have turned away, not so as to go after our God, and so that we were speaking calumny and transgression. We have conceived, and spoken from the heart, words of falsehood.
{59:14} And judgment has been turned backwards, and justice has stood far away. For truth has fallen down in the street, and fairness was not able to enter.
{59:15} And the truth has gone into oblivion. And he who withdraws from evil endures plunder. And the Lord saw this, and it seemed evil in his eyes. For there is no judgment.
{59:16} And he saw that there was no good man. And he was astonished that there was no one to meet him. And his own arm brought salvation to him, and his own justice strengthened him.
{59:17} He clothed himself with justice as with a breastplate, and with a helmet of salvation upon his head. He put on the vestments of vengeance, and he was covered with zeal as with a cloak.
{59:18} This was for vindication, as a repayment of indignation to his adversaries, and as a sudden reversal for his enemies. He will repay the islands in their turn.
{59:19} And those from the west will fear the name of the Lord, and those from the rising of the sun will fear his glory, when he arrives like a violent river, which the Spirit of the Lord urges on.
{59:20} And the Redeemer will arrive in Zion, and to those who return from the iniquity within Jacob, says the Lord.
{59:21} This is my pact with them, says the Lord. My Spirit is within you, and my words, which I have put in your mouth, will not withdraw from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring, says the Lord, from this moment, and even forever.
{60:1} Rise up to be illuminated, O Jerusalem! For your light has arrived, and the glory of the Lord has risen over you.
{60:2} For behold, darkness will cover the earth, and thick darkness will cover the peoples. Then the Lord will rise above you, and his glory will be seen in you.
{60:3} And the nations will walk in your light, and the kings will walk by the splendor of your rising.
{60:4} Lift up your eyes all around and see! All these have been gathered together; they have arrived before you. Your sons will arrive from far away, and your daughters will rise up from your side.
{60:5} Then you will see, and you will overflow, and your heart will be amazed and expanded. When the multitude of the sea will have been converted to you, the strength of the nations will approach you.
{60:6} A multitude of camels will inundate you: the dromedaries from Midian and Ephah. All those from Sheba will arrive, carrying gold and frankincense, and announcing praise to the Lord.
{60:7} All the flocks of Kedar will be gathered together before you; the rams of Nebaioth will minister to you. They will be offered upon my pleasing altar, and I will glorify the house of my majesty.
{60:8} Who are these ones, who fly like the clouds and like doves to their windows?
{60:9} For the islands await me, and the ships of the sea in the beginning, so that I may lead your sons from far away, their silver and their gold with them, to the name of the Lord your God and to the Holy One of Israel. For he has glorified you.
{60:10} And the sons of sojourners will build up your walls, and their kings will minister to you. For in my wrath, I have struck you. And in my reconciliation, I have taken pity on you.
{60:11} And your gates will be open continually. They will not be closed day or night, so that the strength of the nations may be brought before you, and their kings may be lead in.
{60:12} For the nation and the kingdom that will not serve you will perish. And the Gentiles will be devastated by solitude.
{60:13} The glory of Lebanon will arrive before you, the fir tree and the box tree and the pine tree together, to adorn the place of my sanctification. And I will glorify the place of my feet.
{60:14} And the sons of those who humiliate you will approach and will bow down before you. And all who detract you will reverence the path of your feet. And they will call you the City of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
{60:15} For though you were forsaken, and held in hatred, and there was no one who would pass near you, I will establish you as an everlasting glory, as a gladness from generation to generation.
{60:16} And you will drink the milk of the Gentiles, and you will be nursed at the breasts of kings, and you will know that I am the Lord, your Savior and your Redeemer, the Strong One of Jacob.
{60:17} In exchange for brass, I will bring gold; and in exchange for iron, I will bring silver; and for wood, brass; and for stones, iron. And I will make your visitation into peace, and your leaders into justice.
{60:18} Iniquity will no longer be heard in your land, nor devastation and destruction in your borders. And salvation will occupy your walls, and praise will occupy your gates.
{60:19} The sun will no longer be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon illuminate you. Instead, the Lord will be an everlasting light for you, and your God will be your glory.
{60:20} Your sun will no longer set, and your moon will not diminish. For the Lord will be an everlasting light for you, and the days of your mourning will be completed.
{60:21} And your people will all be just. They will inherit the earth in perpetuity, the seedling of my planting, the work of my hand, so as to glorify me.
{60:22} The least will become a thousand, and a little one will become a very strong nation. I, the Lord, will accomplish this, suddenly, in its time.
{61:1} The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me. He has sent me to bring good news to the meek, so as to heal the contrite of heart, to preach leniency to captives and release to the confined,
{61:2} and so to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord and the day of vindication of our God: to console all who are mourning,
{61:3} to take up the mourners of Zion and to give them a crown in place of ashes, an oil of joy in place of mourning, a cloak of praise in place of a spirit of grief. And there, they shall be called the strong ones of justice, the planting of the Lord, unto glorification.
{61:4} And they will rebuild the deserted places of past ages, and they will raise up the ruins of antiquity, and they will repair the desolate cities, which had been dissipated for generation after generation.
{61:5} And foreigners will stand up and will pasture your flocks. And the sons of sojourners will be your farmers and the workers of your vineyards.
{61:6} But you yourselves will be called the priests of the Lord. It will be said to you, “You are the ministers of our God.” You will eat from the strength of the Gentiles, and you will pride yourself on their glory.
{61:7} Instead of your double confusion and shame, they will praise their portion. Because of this, they will possess double in their land. Everlasting joy will be for them.
{61:8} For I am the Lord, who loves judgment and who holds hatred for robbery within a burnt offering. And I will turn their work into truth, and I will forge a perpetual covenant with them.
{61:9} And they will know their offspring among the nations, and their progeny in the midst of the peoples. All who see them will recognize them: that these are the offspring whom the Lord has blessed.
{61:10} I will rejoice greatly in the Lord, and my soul will exult in my God. For he has clothed me with the vestments of salvation, and he has wrapped me in the clothing of justice, like a groom arrayed with a crown, and like a bride adorned with her jewels.
{61:11} For as the earth brings forth its seedlings and the garden produces its seeds, so will the Lord God bring forth justice and praise in the sight of all the nations.
{62:1} For the sake of Zion, I will not be silent, and for the sake of Jerusalem, I will not rest, until her Just One advances in splendor, and her Savior is kindled like a lamp.
{62:2} And the Gentiles will see your Just One, and all the kings will see your Renowned One. And you shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord will choose.
{62:3} And you shall be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
{62:4} You will no longer be called Forsaken. And your land will no longer be called Desolate. Instead, you shall be called My Will within it, and your land shall be called Inhabited. For the Lord has been well pleased with you, and your land will be inhabited.
{62:5} For the young man will live with the virgin, and your children will live with you. And the groom will rejoice over the bride, and your God will rejoice over you.
{62:6} Upon your walls, O Jerusalem, I have stationed watchmen all day and all night unceasingly; they will not be silent. You who are mindful of the Lord, you should not be silent,
{62:7} and you should not grant silence to him, until he makes firm and establishes Jerusalem as a praise upon the earth.
{62:8} The Lord has sworn with his right hand and with the arm of his strength: “Certainly, I will no longer permit your grain to be the food of your enemies. And the sons of foreigners will not drink your wine, for which you have labored.”
{62:9} For those who gather it will eat it, and they will praise the Lord. And those who bring it together will drink it in my holy courts.
{62:10} Pass through, pass through the gates! Prepare a way for the people! Make the road level, remove the stones, and lift up a sign for the people!
{62:11} Behold, the Lord has caused it to be heard to the ends of the earth. Tell the daughter of Zion: “Behold, your Savior approaches! Behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him.”
{62:12} And they will call them: The holy people, the redeemed of the Lord. Then you will be called: A city sought, and not forsaken.
{63:1} Who is this, who arrives from Edom with dyed garments from Bozrah? This is the Handsome One in his robe, advancing by the fullness of his strength. It is I, the Speaker of Justice, and I am the Fighter for Salvation.
{63:2} So then, why is your garment red, and why are your vestments like the ones of those who tread the winepress?
{63:3} I have trod the winepress alone. And among the nations, there is no man beside me. I have trampled on them in my fury, and I have tread them down in my wrath. And so, their blood has been sprinkled on my vestments, and I have stained all my garments.
{63:4} For the day of vengeance is in my heart. The year of my redemption has arrived.
{63:5} I gazed around, and there was no one to assist. I sought, and there was no one who would help. And so, my own arm has saved for me, and my own wrath itself has assisted me.
{63:6} And I have trampled the peoples in my fury, and I have inebriated them with my indignation, and I have torn down their strength to the ground.
{63:7} I will remember the compassion of the Lord, the praise of the Lord over all that the Lord has bestowed on us, and over the multitude of his good things for the house of Israel, which he has granted to them according to his leniency, and according to the multitude of his mercies.
{63:8} And he said: “Yet truly, these are my people, sons who have not been disowned.” And he became their Savior.
{63:9} Throughout all their tribulation, he was not troubled, for the Angel of his presence saved them. With his love, and by his leniency, he has redeemed them, and he has carried them and lifted them up, throughout all the days of the ages.
{63:10} But they themselves provoked to wrath and afflicted his Holy Spirit, and he was turned to be for them like an enemy, and he himself went to war against them.
{63:11} And he remembered the days of ancient times, the days of Moses and his people. Where is he who led them out of the sea, with the shepherds of his flock? Where is he who placed his Holy Spirit in their midst?
{63:12} He led Moses by the right hand, with the arm of his majesty. He split the waters before them, in order to make an everlasting name for himself.
{63:13} He led them through the abyss, like a horse which does not stumble, in the desert.
{63:14} Like an animal who descends to an open field, the Spirit of the Lord was their guide. Thus did you lead your people, in order to make a glorious name for yourself.
{63:15} Gaze down from heaven, and behold from your holy habitation and from your glory. Where is your zeal, and your strength, the fullness of your heart and of your compassion? They have held themselves back from me.
{63:16} For you are our Father, and Abraham has not known us, and Israel has been ignorant of us. You are our Father, O Lord our Redeemer. Your name is beyond all ages.
{63:17} Why have you allowed us to stray from your ways, O Lord? Why have you hardened our heart, so that we do not fear you? Return, for the sake of your servants, the tribes of your inheritance.
{63:18} They have possessed your holy people as if it were nothing. Our enemies have trampled your sanctuary.
{63:19} We have become as we were in the beginning, when you did not rule over us, and when we were not called by your name.
{64:1} I wish that you would rend the heavens, and then descend! The mountains would flow away before your face.
{64:2} They would melt, as if thoroughly burned by fire. The waters would burn with fire, so that your name might be made known to your enemies, so that the nations would be stirred up before your face.
{64:3} When you will perform miracles, we will not be able to withstand them. You descended, and the mountains flowed away before your presence.
{64:4} From ages past, they have not heard it, and they have not perceived it with the ears. Apart from you, O God, the eye has not seen what you have prepared for those who await you.
{64:5} You have met with those who rejoice in doing justice. By your ways, they will remember you. Behold, you have been angry, for we have sinned. In this, we have continued, but we will be saved.
{64:6} And we have all become like the unclean. And all our justices are like a rag of menstruation. And we have all fallen away, like a leaf. And our iniquities have carried us away, like the wind.
{64:7} There is no one who calls upon your name, who rises up and holds fast to you. You have concealed your face from us, and you have crushed us with the hand of our own iniquity.
{64:8} And now, O Lord, you are our Father, yet truly, we are clay. And you are our Maker, and we are all the works of your hands.
{64:9} Do not be so angry, O Lord, and no longer call to mind our iniquity. Behold, consider that we are all your people.
{64:10} The city of your sanctuary has become a desert. Zion has become a desert. Jerusalem is desolate.
{64:11} The house of our sanctification and of our glory, where our fathers praised you, has been completely consumed by fire, and all our admirable things have been turned into ruins.
{64:12} Should you restrain yourself, O Lord, concerning these things? Should you remain silent, and afflict us vehemently?
{65:1} Those who before were not asking for me have sought me. Those who have not sought me have found me. I said, “Behold, it is I! Behold, it is I!” to a nation which was not invoking my name.
{65:2} I have extended my hands all day long to an unbelieving people, who advance along a way that is not good, following their own thoughts,
{65:3} to a people who provoke me to anger before my face continually, who immolate in the gardens, and who sacrifice upon the bricks.
{65:4} They live in sepulchers, and they sleep in the shrines of idols. They eat the flesh of swine, and a profane elixir is in their vessels.
{65:5} They say: “Depart from me! Do not approach me, for you are unclean!” Such as these will be the smoke in my fury, a fire burning all day long.
{65:6} Behold, it has been written in my sight; I will not be silent. Instead, I will render retribution into their sinews.
{65:7} Your iniquities are joined with the iniquities of your fathers, says the Lord. For they have sacrificed upon the mountains, and they have offended me upon the hills. And so, I will measure back to them, from their first work, into their sinews.
{65:8} Thus says the Lord: In the same way as it is said about a grain found in a cluster, “Do not destroy it, because it is a blessing,” so will I act for the sake of my servants, so that I may not destroy the whole.
{65:9} And I will lead forth an offspring from Jacob, and a possessor of my mountains from Judah. And my elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall live there.
{65:10} And the open plains will become sheepfolds for the flocks, and the valley of Achor will become a domicile for the herds, for my people who have sought me.
{65:11} And you who have forsaken the Lord, who have forgotten my holy mountain, who set a table for Fortune, and who offer libations concerning her:
{65:12} I will number you with the sword, and you will all fall by slaughter. For I called and you did not respond; I spoke, and you did not listen. And you did what is evil in my eyes; and what I did not will, you have chosen.
{65:13} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Behold, my servants will eat, and you will be hungry. Behold, my servants will drink, and you will be thirsty.
{65:14} Behold, my servants will rejoice, and you will be confounded. Behold, my servants will give praise in exultation of heart, and you will cry out in sorrow of heart, and you will wail in contrition of spirit.
{65:15} And you will leave behind your name to my elect as a curse. And the Lord God will put you to death, and he will call his servants by another name.
{65:16} By that name, whoever is blessed on earth, will be blessed in God. Amen! And whoever swears on earth, will swear by God. Amen! For the past anguishes have been delivered into oblivion, and they have been hidden from my eyes.
{65:17} For behold, I create the new heavens and the new earth. And the former things will not be in memory and will not enter into the heart.
{65:18} But you will be glad and exult, even forever, in these things that I create. For behold, I create Jerusalem as an exultation, and its people as a joy.
{65:19} And I will exult in Jerusalem, and I will rejoice in my people. And neither a voice of weeping, nor a voice of outcry, will be heard in her anymore.
{65:20} There will no longer be an infant of only a few days there, nor an elder who does not complete his days. For a mere child dies at a hundred years of age, and a sinner of a hundred years will be accursed.
{65:21} And they will build houses, and will inhabit them. And they will plant vineyards, and will eat their fruits.
{65:22} They will not build, so that another may inhabit. They will not plant, so that another may eat. For according to the days of a tree, so will be the days of my people. And the works of their hands will be long-standing.
{65:23} My elect will not labor in vain, and they will not bring forth in disorder. For they are the offspring of the blessed of the Lord, and their posterity are with them.
{65:24} And this shall be: before they call out, I will perceive; while they are still speaking, I will hear.
{65:25} The wolf and the lamb will pasture together. The lion and the ox will eat hay. And dust will be the food of the serpent. They will not harm, and they will not kill, on all my holy mountain, says the Lord.
{66:1} Thus says the Lord: Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What is this house that you would build for me? And what is this place of my rest?
{66:2} My hand has made all these things, and all these things have been made, says the Lord. But upon whom will I look with favor, except upon a poor little one, who is contrite in spirit, and who trembles at my words?
{66:3} Whoever immolates an ox, it is as if he slaughters a man. Whoever sacrifices a sheep, it is as if he is smashing the head of a dog. Whoever offers an oblation, it is as if he is offering swine’s blood. Whoever makes remembrance with incense, it is as if he is blessing an idol. All these things, they have chosen according to their own ways, and their soul has taken delight in their own abominations.
{66:4} Therefore, I also will choose their illusions, and I will lead over them the things that they feared. For I called, and there was no one who would respond. I have spoken, and they have not listened. And they have done evil in my eyes; and what I did not will, they have chosen.
{66:5} Listen to the word of the Lord, you who tremble at his word. Your brothers, who hate you and who cast you out because of my name, have said: “Let the Lord be glorified, and we will see by your rejoicing.” But they themselves will be confounded.
{66:6} A voice of the people from the city! A voice from the temple! The voice of the Lord repaying retribution to his enemies!
{66:7} Before she was in labor, she gave birth. Before her time arrived for delivery, she gave birth to a male child.
{66:8} Who has ever heard of such a thing? And who has seen anything like this? Will the earth give birth in one day? Or will a nation be born all at once? For Zion has been in labor, and she has given birth to her sons.
{66:9} Will I, who causes others to give birth, not also give birth myself, says the Lord? Will I, who bestows generation upon others, be barren myself, says the Lord your God?
{66:10} Rejoice with Jerusalem, and exult in her, all you who love her! Rejoice greatly with her, all you who mourn over her!
{66:11} So may you nurse and be filled, from the breasts of her consolations. So may you receive milk and overflow with delights, from every portion of her glory.
{66:12} For thus says the Lord: Behold, I will turn a river of peace toward her, with an inundating torrent: the glory of the Gentiles, from which you will nurse. You will be carried at the breasts, and they will caress you upon the knees.
{66:13} In the manner of one whom a mother caresses, so will I console you. And you will be consoled in Jerusalem.
{66:14} You will see, and your heart will be glad, and your bones will flourish like a plant, and the hand of the Lord will be known to his servants, and he will be angry with his enemies.
{66:15} For behold, the Lord will arrive with fire, and his four-horse chariots will be like a whirlwind: to render his wrath with indignation, and his rebuke with flames of fire.
{66:16} For the Lord will divide with fire, and with his sword among all flesh, and those slain by the Lord will be many.
{66:17} Those who were sanctified, who thought themselves to be clean in the gardens behind the inner gate, who were eating swine’s flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse: they will be consumed all at once, says the Lord.
{66:18} But I know their works and their thoughts. I am arriving, so that I may gather them together with all nations and languages. And they will approach, and they will see my glory.
{66:19} And I will set a sign among them. And I will send some of those who will have been saved to the Gentiles in the sea, to Africa, and to those who draw the bow in Lydia, to Italy and Greece, to islands far away, to those who have not heard of me, and to those who have not seen my glory. And they will announce my glory to the Gentiles.
{66:20} And they will lead all of your brothers from all of the Gentiles as a gift to the Lord, on horses, and in four-horse chariots, and on stretchers, and on mules, and in coaches, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, says the Lord, in the same manner that the sons of Israel would carry an offering in a pure vessel into the house of the Lord.
{66:21} And I will take from them to be priests and Levites, says the Lord.
{66:22} For in like manner as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will cause to stand before me, says the Lord, so will your offspring and your name stand.
{66:23} And there will be month after month, and Sabbath after Sabbath. And all flesh will approach, so as to adore before my face, says the Lord.
{66:24} And they will go out, and they will view the carcasses of the men who have transgressed against me. Their worm will not die, and their fire will not be extinguished. And they will be a sight to all flesh even unto revulsion.
{1:1} The words of Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah of the priests who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin.
{1:2} The word of the Lord, which came to him in the days of Josiah, the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign,
{1:3} and which came to him in the days of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, even until the completion of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, even until the transmigration of Jerusalem in the fifth month.
{1:4} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{1:5} “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. And before you went forth from the womb, I sanctified you. And I made you a prophet to the nations.”
{1:6} And I said: “Alas, alas, alas, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am a boy.”
{1:7} And the Lord said to me: “Do not choose to say, ‘I am a boy.’ For you shall go forth to everyone to whom I will send you. And you shall speak all that I will command you.
{1:8} You should not be afraid before their face. For I am with you, so that I may deliver you,” says the Lord.
{1:9} And the Lord put forth his hand, and he touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me: “Behold, I have placed my words in your mouth.
{1:10} Behold, today I have appointed you over nations and over kingdoms, so that you may root up, and pull down, and destroy, and scatter, and so that you may build and plant.”
{1:11} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “What do you see, Jeremiah?” And I said, “I see a staff, keeping watch.”
{1:12} And the Lord said to me: “You have seen well. For I will keep watch over my word, so that I may accomplish it.”
{1:13} And the word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying, “What do you see?” And I said, “I see a cooking pot upon a fire, and its face is before the face of the north.”
{1:14} And the Lord said to me: “From the north, an evil will spread over all the inhabitants of the earth.
{1:15} For behold, I will call together all the close associates of the kingdoms of the north, says the Lord. And they will arrive, and each one of them will place his throne at the entrance to the gates of Jerusalem, and over all its surrounding walls, and over all the cities of Judah.
{1:16} And I will speak my judgments with them, concerning all the wickedness of those who have forsaken me, and who have offered libations to strange gods, and who have adored the work of their own hands.
{1:17} Therefore, you should gird your waist, and rise up, and speak to them everything that I instruct you. You should not have dread before their face. For I will cause you to be unafraid of their countenance.
{1:18} For certainly, this day, I have made you like a fortified city, and an iron pillar, and a brass wall, over all the land, to the kings of Judah, to its leaders, and to the priests, and to the people of the land.
{1:19} And they will make war against you, but they will not prevail. For I am with you, says the Lord, so that I may free you.”
{2:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{2:2} “Go, and cry out to the ears of Jerusalem, saying: Thus says the Lord: I have remembered you, taking pity on your youth and on the charity of your betrothal, when you followed me into the desert, into a land which is not sown.
{2:3} Israel is holy to the Lord, the first of his fruits. All those who devour him commit an offense. Evils will overwhelm them, says the Lord.”
{2:4} Listen to the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob, and all you families of the house of Israel.
{2:5} Thus says the Lord: “What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they would draw far away from me, and would walk after emptiness, and would become empty?
{2:6} And they have not said: ‘Where is the Lord, who caused us to ascend from the land of Egypt; who led us through the desert, through an uninhabited and impassable land, through a land of drought and of the image of death, through a land in which no one walked and in which no man lived?’
{2:7} And I led you into the land of Carmel, so that you would eat from its fruit and from its excellence. And having entered it, you defiled my land, and you turned my inheritance into an abomination.
{2:8} The priests have not said: ‘Where is the Lord?’ And those who held the law did not know me. And the pastors betrayed me. And the prophets prophesied in Baal and followed idols.
{2:9} Because of this, I will still contend in judgment against you, says the Lord, and I will dispute with your sons.
{2:10} Cross over to the isles of Kittim, and gaze. And send to Kedar, and consider diligently. And see if anything like this has ever been done.
{2:11} See if a nation has ever changed their gods, though certainly those are not gods. Yet truly, my people have exchanged their glory for an idol.
{2:12} Be astonished at this, O heavens, and be utterly desolate, O gates of heaven, says the Lord.
{2:13} For my people have done two evils. They have forsaken me, the Fountain of living water, and they have dug for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that are unable to hold water.
{2:14} Is Israel a servant, or one born into slavery? Then why has he become a prey?
{2:15} The lions have roared over him, and they have uttered their voice. They have set his land in solitude; his cities have been burned up, and there is no one who lives in them.
{2:16} Likewise, the sons of Memphis and of Tahpanhes have defiled you, even to the top of the head.
{2:17} Has this not been done to you because you abandoned the Lord your God, in that time when he was leading you by the way?
{2:18} And now what do you want from the way of Egypt, but to drink their turbid water? And what do you want from the way of the Assyrians, but to drink the water of their river?
{2:19} Your own malice will reprove you, and your own apostasy will rebuke you! But know and perceive this: it is an evil and bitter thing for you to forsake the Lord your God, and to be without my fear within you, says the Lord, the God of hosts.
{2:20} From ancient times, you have broken my yoke; you have torn apart my bonds, and you have said, ‘I will not serve.’ For on every high hill, and under every leafy tree, you have been debased, O harlot.
{2:21} Yet I planted you as an elect vineyard, with only true seed. Then how have you been turned away from me, toward that which is depraved, O strange vineyard?
{2:22} Even if you wash yourself with soap, and increase your use of herbal soaps, you are still stained by your iniquity in my sight, says the Lord God.
{2:23} How can you say: ‘I have not been polluted. I have not walked after Baal?’ Consider your ways in the steep valley. Acknowledge what you have done, so that you may be like a swift runner, following his course.
{2:24} A wild donkey accustomed to solitude, out of the desire in his soul, caught the scent of his lover. Now nothing will turn him away from her. All those who seek her will not cease. But they will find her in her menstruation.
{2:25} You should keep your foot from being naked, and your throat from being thirsty. But you have said: ‘I have lost hope. I will not do it. For certainly, I have loved strangers, and I will walk after them.’
{2:26} In the same way that a thief is confounded when he has been apprehended, so the house of Israel has been confounded, they and their kings, their leaders and priests and prophets.
{2:27} For they say to a piece of wood, ‘You are my father,’ and to a stone, ‘You have conceived me.’ They have turned their back to me, and not their face. But in the time of their affliction, they will say: ‘Rise up and deliver us.’
{2:28} Where are your gods that you made for yourselves? Let them rise up and deliver you in the time of your affliction. For certainly, your gods were like the number of your cities, O Judah.
{2:29} Why do you want to contend against me in judgment? You have all forsaken me, says the Lord.
{2:30} I have struck your children to no effect; they have not accepted discipline. Your own sword has devoured your prophets. Your generation is like a raging lion.
{2:31} Consider the word of the Lord. Have I become like a wilderness to Israel, or like a land late to bear fruit? Then why have my people said, ‘We are withdrawing; we will no longer approach you’?
{2:32} Can a virgin forget her ornament, or a bride the covering across her breast? Yet truly, my people have forgotten me, for innumerable days.
{2:33} Why are you striving to claim that your way is good, as if to seek my love, when all the while you are also displaying your malice by your own way,
{2:34} and in your armpits there is found the blood of poor and innocent souls? I have found them, not in ditches, but everywhere that I mentioned previously.
{2:35} And you have said: ‘I am innocent and without sin. And because of this, let your fury be turned away from me.’ Behold, I will contend with you in judgment, because you have said: ‘I have not sinned.’
{2:36} How exceedingly vile you have become, repeating your ways again and again! And so, you will be ashamed of Egypt, just as you were ashamed of Assur.
{2:37} For you will also depart from that place, and your hand will be upon your head. For the Lord has crushed your confidence, and you will have nothing prosperous by it.”
{3:1} “It is commonly said: ‘If a man has divorced his wife, and she departs from him, she will marry another man.’ So why would he return to her again? Is not that woman polluted and defiled? But you have fornicated yourself with many lovers. Even so, return to me, says the Lord, and I will accept you.
{3:2} Lift your eyes straight up, and see where you did not debase yourself. You were sitting in the roadways, waiting for them, like a robber in the wilderness. And you have polluted the land by your fornications and by your wickedness.
{3:3} For this reason, the rain showers were withheld, and there were no late season rains. You made your face like that of a promiscuous woman; you were not willing to blush.
{3:4} Therefore, at least from this moment on, call out to me: ‘You are my father, the guide of my virginity.’
{3:5} Why should you be angry unceasingly? And will you continue in this to the end? Behold, you have spoken and done evil, for you were able to do so.”
{3:6} And, in the days of king Josiah, the Lord said to me: “Have you not seen what the apostate Israel has done? She has brought herself up to every lofty mountain, and she has lain down under every leafy tree, and she has committed fornication there.
{3:7} And when she had done all these things, I said: ‘Return to me.’ But she did not return. And her deceitful sister Judah saw this:
{3:8} that because the apostate Israel had committed adultery, I had dismissed her and had given her a bill of divorce. Yet her deceitful sister Judah was not afraid. But she, too, went and committed fornication herself.
{3:9} And by the act of her fornication, she defiled the land. For she committed adultery with that which is stone and wood.
{3:10} And after all these things, her deceitful sister Judah has not returned to me with her whole heart, but with lies, says the Lord.”
{3:11} And the Lord said to me: “The apostate Israel has justified her own soul by comparing herself to the deceitful Judah.
{3:12} Go, and proclaim these words toward the north, and you shall say: Return, O apostate Israel, says the Lord. For I will not avert my face from you. For I am holy, says the Lord, and I will not be angry forever.
{3:13} So then, truly acknowledge your iniquity, that you have betrayed the Lord your God, and that you have spread your ways to strangers, under every leafy tree, and that you have not listened to my voice, says the Lord.
{3:14} Convert, O rebellious sons, says the Lord. For I am your leader. And so, I will take you, one from a city, and two from a family, and I will lead you into Zion.
{3:15} And I will give you pastors according to my own heart. And they will feed you with knowledge and doctrine.
{3:16} And when you have been multiplied and increased in the land in those days, says the Lord, they will no longer say: ‘The Ark of the covenant of the Lord!’ And it will not enter into the heart, and they will not call it to mind. It will neither be visited, nor made use of, any longer.
{3:17} In that time, Jerusalem will be called: ‘The Throne of the Lord.’ And all the nations will be gathered to it, in the name of the Lord, in Jerusalem. And they will not walk after the depravity of their own most wicked heart.
{3:18} In those days, the house of Judah will go to the house of Israel, and they will come from the land of the north, at the same time, to the land that I gave to your fathers.
{3:19} But I said: How shall I place you among the sons, and distribute to you a desirable land, the preeminent inheritance of the host of the Gentiles? And I said: You will call me Father, and you will not cease to walk after me.
{3:20} But, in the same way that a woman spurns her lover, so also has the house of Israel spurned me, says the Lord.”
{3:21} A voice has been heard in the highways, the weeping and wailing of the sons of Israel. For they have made their own ways sinful; they have forgotten the Lord their God.
{3:22} “Convert, O rebellious sons! And I will heal your rebelliousness.” “Behold, we are returning to you. For you are the Lord our God!
{3:23} Truly, the hills were liars, with the multitude of the mountains. Truly, the salvation of Israel is in the Lord our God.
{3:24} Confusion has devoured the labor of our fathers, from our youth, with their flocks and their herds, with their sons and their daughters.
{3:25} We will sleep in our confusion, and our disgrace will cover us. For we have sinned against the Lord our God: we and our fathers, from our youth, even to this day. And we have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God.”
{4:1} “O Israel, if you would return, says the Lord, then be converted to me. If you remove your offense from before my face, then you will not be shaken.
{4:2} And you will swear, ‘As the Lord lives,’ in truth and in judgment and in justice.” And the Gentiles will bless him, and they will praise him.
{4:3} For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and of Jerusalem: “Break new ground, and do not choose to sow upon thorns.
{4:4} Be circumcised to the Lord, and take away the foreskins from your hearts, O men of Judah, O inhabitants of Jerusalem. Otherwise my indignation may burst forth and flare up like a fire. And then there will be no one who can extinguish it, because of the wickedness of your thoughts.
{4:5} Declare it in Judah, and make it known in Jerusalem! Speak out and sound the trumpet in the land! Cry out strongly and say: ‘Gather yourselves! And let us go forth to fortified cities!’
{4:6} Lift up a standard in Zion. Be strengthened! Do not choose to stand still. For I am bringing an evil from the north, with great destruction.
{4:7} The lion has ascended from his den, and the pillager of the nations has lifted himself up. He has gone forth from his place, so that he may set your land in desolation. Your cities will be laid waste, remaining without an inhabitant.
{4:8} Concerning this, wrap yourselves in haircloth, mourn and wail: ‘For the wrath of the fury of the Lord has not been turned away from us.’
{4:9} And this shall be in that day, says the Lord: The heart of the king will perish, with the heart of the princes. And the priests will be stupefied, and the prophets will be in consternation.”
{4:10} And I said: “Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God! Could it be that you have deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying: ‘Peace shall be yours,’ while, behold, the sword reaches even to the soul?”
{4:11} “In that time, it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem: ‘A burning wind is in the ways that are in the desert, along the way of the daughter of my people, but not to winnow and not to cleanse.’
{4:12} A full spirit from these places will come to me. And now I will speak my judgments over them.
{4:13} Behold, he will ascend like a cloud, and his chariot will ascend like a tempest. His horses are swifter than eagles. ‘Woe to us! For we are being devastated!’
{4:14} Wash your heart from malice, O Jerusalem, so that you may be saved. How long will harmful thoughts abide in you?
{4:15} For there is a voice, of someone announcing from Dan, and he is making known the idol from mount Ephraim.
{4:16} Say to the nations: ‘Behold, it has been heard in Jerusalem! Guardians are coming from a far away land, to utter their voice against the cities of Judah.’
{4:17} They have been stationed over her, like the guardians of fields, all around. For she has provoked me to wrath, says the Lord.
{4:18} Your ways and your thoughts have brought these things upon you. This is your own wickedness. And it is bitter, because it has touched your heart.
{4:19} I am afflicted in my heart, in my heart. The senses of my heart have been stirred up within me. I will not remain silent. For my soul has heard the voice of the trumpet, the clamor of the battle.
{4:20} Destruction upon destruction has been called forth. And the entire earth has been devastated. My tabernacles have been destroyed suddenly, and my tents in an instant.
{4:21} How long shall I watch those who are fleeing, and listen to the voice of the trumpet?
{4:22} For my foolish people have not known me. They are foolish and mad sons. They are clever in doing evil, but they do not know how to do good.
{4:23} I gazed upon the earth, and behold, it was empty and brought to nothing. And I gazed upon the heavens, but there was no light in them.
{4:24} I watched the mountains, and behold, they trembled, and all the hills were shaken.
{4:25} I looked, and there was no man. And all the flying things of the air had gone away.
{4:26} I gazed, and behold, Carmel was a desert, and all its cities were destroyed before the face of the Lord, and before the face of the wrath of his fury.”
{4:27} For thus says the Lord: “All the earth will be desolate, but I will not yet bring about its consummation.
{4:28} The earth will mourn, and the heavens will lament from above. For I have spoken, I have decided, and I have not regretted. Neither will I be turned away from it.
{4:29} Before the voice of the horsemen and of those who send forth arrows, the entire city has fled. They have entered steep places, and they have ascended the cliffs. All of the cities have been abandoned, and no man lives within them.
{4:30} So then, when you have been devastated, what will you do? Though you will clothe yourself with scarlet, though you will adorn yourself with a gold necklace and tint your eyes with cosmetics, you will be dressing yourself up in vain. Your lovers have spurned you; they will be seeking your life.
{4:31} For I have heard a voice, like that of a woman giving birth, during the difficulties of labor. It is the voice of the daughter of Zion, dying, extending her hands: ‘Woe to me! For my soul is failing because of those who have been slain!’ ”
{5:1} “Travel the streets of Jerusalem; and gaze, and consider, and seek, in its wide streets. If you can find a man exercising judgment and seeking faith, then I will be forgiving to them.
{5:2} For even though they say, ‘As the Lord lives,’ in this, too, they swear falsely.”
{5:3} O Lord, your eyes look with favor upon faith. You have struck them, and they have not grieved. You have bruised them, and they have refused to accept discipline. They have hardened their faces more than rock, and they are not willing to return.
{5:4} But I said: Perhaps these are the poor and the senseless, who are ignorant of the way of the Lord, of the judgment of their God.
{5:5} Therefore, I will go to great men, and I will speak with them. For they have known the way of the Lord, the judgment of their God. And behold, these ones have broken the yoke all the more; they have torn apart the bonds.
{5:6} For this reason, a lion from the forest has struck them down, a wolf toward evening has laid waste to them, a leopard lies in wait over their cities. All who go out from there will be taken. For their transgressions have been multiplied; their rebellions have been strengthened.
{5:7} “Over which things am I able to be merciful to you? Your sons have forsaken me, and they swear by those who are not gods. I gave them everything, and they committed adultery, and they indulged themselves in the house of the harlot.
{5:8} They have become like wild horses in heat; each one was neighing after his neighbor’s wife.
{5:9} Shall I not visit against these things, says the Lord? And shall my soul not take vengeance on a nation such as this?
{5:10} Scale its walls and tear them down. But do not be willing to bring about its very end. Take away its plantings, for they are not the Lord’s.
{5:11} For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have greatly transgressed against me, says the Lord.
{5:12} They have denied the Lord, and they have said, ‘It is not him,’ and, ‘Evil will not overwhelm us. We will not see famine and the sword.’
{5:13} The prophets have spoken into the wind, and there was no answer with them. Therefore, these things will happen to them.”
{5:14} Thus says the Lord, the God of hosts: “Since you have spoken this word, behold, I will make my words in your mouth like fire and this people like wood, and it will devour them.
{5:15} Behold, O house of Israel, I will lead over you a far away nation, says the Lord, a robust nation, an ancient nation, a nation whose language you will not know, nor will you understand what they are saying.
{5:16} Their quiver is like an open sepulcher. They are all strong.
{5:17} And they will consume your grain fields and your bread. They will devour your sons and your daughters. They will consume your flocks and your herds. They will consume your vineyards and your figs. And with the sword, they will crush your fortified cities, in which you have placed your trust.
{5:18} Yet truly, in those days, says the Lord, I will not bring the consummation over you.
{5:19} And if they say, ‘Why has the Lord our God done all these things to us?’ You shall say to them: ‘Just as you have abandoned me and have served a strange god in your own land, so will you serve strangers in a land not your own.’
{5:20} Announce this to the house of Jacob, and make it known in Judah, saying:
{5:21} Listen, O foolish people who have no heart! You have eyes, but you do not see, and ears, but you do not hear.
{5:22} So then, will you not fear me, says the Lord. And will you not have sorrow before my face? I have placed the shore as a limit for the sea, as an everlasting precept that it will not transgress. And its waves will crash, but they will not prevail; and its waves will swell, but they will not go across.
{5:23} But the heart of this people has become incredulous and provocative; they have turned away and departed.
{5:24} And they have not said in their heart: ‘Let us dread the Lord our God, who gives us the timely and the late rains, in their proper time, who guards the full measure of the yearly harvest for us.’
{5:25} Your iniquities have turned these things away, and your sins have held back good things from you.
{5:26} For the impious are found among my people; they lie in ambush like fowlers setting snares, for they set traps to catch men.
{5:27} Just as a snare is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit. As a result, they have become exalted and enriched.
{5:28} They have grown stout and fat. And they have transgressed my words most wickedly. They have not judged the case of the widow; they have not given guidance to the case of the orphan; and they have not judged a judgment for the poor.
{5:29} Shall I not visit against these things, says the Lord? Or shall my soul not take vengeance on a nation of this kind?
{5:30} Astonishing and wondrous things have been done upon the earth.
{5:31} The prophets have prophesied lies, and the priests have applauded with their hands, and my people have loved these things. So then, what shall be done at the very end?”
{6:1} “O sons of Benjamin, be strengthened in the midst of Jerusalem, and sound the trumpet in Tekoa, and lift up a banner over the house of Haccherem. For an evil has been seen from the north, with great destruction.
{6:2} I have compared the daughter of Zion to a beautiful and delicate woman.
{6:3} The pastors will come to her with their flocks. They have pitched their tents against her all around. Each one will feed those who are under his hand.
{6:4} ‘Sanctify a war against her! Rise up together, and let us ascend at midday.’ ‘Woe to us! For the day has declined; for the shadows of the evening have grown longer.’
{6:5} ‘Rise up, and let us ascend in the night, and let us destroy her houses.’ ”
{6:6} For thus says the Lord of hosts: “Cut down her trees, and build a rampart around Jerusalem. This is the city of visitation! Every kind of false claim is in her midst.
{6:7} Just as a cistern makes its water cold, so has she made her wickedness cold. Iniquity and devastation will be heard in her; sickness and wounds will be ever before me.
{6:8} O Jerusalem, accept instruction, lest perhaps my soul may withdraw from you; lest perhaps I may set you in a desert, in an uninhabitable land.”
{6:9} Thus says the Lord of hosts: “They will gather the remnant of Israel, even as a single cluster of grapes is gathered from a vine. Direct your hand, as a grape-gatherer directs his hand to the basket.
{6:10} To whom should I speak, and to whom should I testify, so as to be heard? Behold, their ears are uncircumcised, and so they are unable to hear. Behold, for them, the word of the Lord has become a disgrace. And so they will not accept it.
{6:11} For this reason, I have been filled with the fury of the Lord. I labor to bear it. Let it be poured out upon the child outside, or upon a group of young men meeting together. For a man will be taken captive with a woman, an elder will be taken captive with one who is full of days.
{6:12} And their houses will be given over to others, with both their lands and their wives. For I will extend my hand over the inhabitants of the earth, says the Lord.
{6:13} Certainly, from the least of them even to the greatest, all of them practice greed. And from the prophet even to the priest, all of them act with deceit.
{6:14} And they healed the destruction of the daughter of my people with disgrace, by saying: ‘Peace, peace.’ And there was no peace.
{6:15} They were confounded, because they committed an abomination. Or rather, they were not confounded with shame, because they did not know how to blush. For this reason, they will fall among those who are being destroyed. In the time of their visitation, they will fall, says the Lord.”
{6:16} Thus says the Lord: “Stand above the ways, and see and ask, about the ancient paths, as to which is the good way, and then walk in it. And you will find refreshment for your souls. But they said: ‘We will not walk.’
{6:17} And I appointed watchers over you, saying: ‘Listen for the sound of the trumpet.’ And they said: ‘We will not listen.’
{6:18} For this reason, hear, O Gentiles, and know, O congregation, how much I will do to them.
{6:19} Hear, O earth! Behold, I will lead evils over this people, as the fruits of their own thoughts. For they have not listened to my words, and they have cast aside my law.
{6:20} For what reason are you bringing me frankincense from Sheba, and sweet smelling reeds from a far away land? Your holocausts are not acceptable, and your sacrifices are not pleasing to me.”
{6:21} Therefore, thus says the Lord: “Behold I will bring this people to utter ruin, and they will fall, with their fathers and sons; neighbor and relative will perish together.”
{6:22} Thus says the Lord: “Behold, a people is coming from the land of the north, and a great nation will rise up from the ends of the earth.
{6:23} They will take hold of arrow and shield. They are cruel, and they will not take pity. Their voice will roar like the ocean. And they will climb upon horses, for they have been prepared like men for battle, against you, O daughter of Zion.
{6:24} ‘We have heard of their fame. Our hands have become weakened. Tribulation has overtaken us, like the pains of a woman giving birth.’
{6:25} Do not choose to go out into the fields, and you should not walk along the roadway. For the sword and the terror of the enemy is on every side.
{6:26} Wrap yourself in haircloth, O daughter of my people. And sprinkle yourself with ashes. Make a mourning for yourself, as for an only son, a bitter lamentation: ‘for the destroyer will overwhelm us suddenly.’
{6:27} I have presented you as a strong tester among my people. And you will test and know their way.
{6:28} All these leaders who are turning away and walking deceitfully, they are brass and iron; they have all been corrupted.
{6:29} The bellows has failed; the lead has been consumed by fire; the molten metal was melted to no purpose. For their wickedness has not been consumed.
{6:30} Call them: ‘Rejected silver.’ For the Lord has cast them aside.”
{7:1} The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying:
{7:2} “Stand at the gate to the house of the Lord, and preach this word there, and say: Listen to the word of the Lord, all you of Judah who enter through these gates to adore the Lord.
{7:3} Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Make your ways and your intentions good, and I will live with you in this place.
{7:4} Do not choose to trust in lying words, saying: ‘This is the temple of the Lord! The temple of the Lord! The temple of the Lord!’
{7:5} For if you direct your ways and your intentions well, if you exercise judgment between a man and his neighbor,
{7:6} if you do not act with deceit toward the new arrival, the orphan, and the widow, and if you do not pour out innocent blood in this place, and if you do not walk after strange gods, which is to your own harm,
{7:7} then I will live with you in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers from the beginning and even forever.
{7:8} Behold, you trust in false words, which will not benefit you,
{7:9} so as to steal, to murder, to commit adultery, to swear falsely, to offer libations to Baal, and to go after strange gods, which you do not know.
{7:10} And you arrived and stood before me in this house, where my name is invoked, and you said: ‘We have been freed because we carried out all these abominations.’
{7:11} So then, has this house, where my name has been invoked, become a den of robbers in your eyes? It is I, I am, I have seen, says the Lord.
{7:12} Go to my place in Shiloh, where my name has lived from the beginning, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of my people Israel.
{7:13} And now, because you have done all these works, says the Lord, and because I have spoken to you from your morning rising, and because I was speaking, but you were not listening, and because I have called you, but you have not responded:
{7:14} I will do to this house, in which my name is invoked, and in which you have confidence, even to this place which I gave to you and to your fathers, just as I have done to Shiloh.
{7:15} And I will cast you away from my face, just as I have cast away all your brothers, the entire offspring of Ephraim.
{7:16} Therefore, you should not pray for this people, nor take up praise and supplication on their behalf. And you should not stand in opposition to me. For then I will not heed you.
{7:17} Have you not seen what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?
{7:18} The sons gather the wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the wives spread the grease, so as to make cakes to the queen of heaven and to offer libations to strange gods, and so as to provoke me to anger.
{7:19} But are they provoking me to anger, says the Lord? Are they not provoking themselves, to the confusion of their own faces?”
{7:20} Therefore, thus says the Lord God: “Behold, my fury and my indignation is kindled against this place, over men and over beasts, and over the trees of the countryside and over the fruits of the land, and it will burn and not be extinguished.”
{7:21} Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Add your holocausts to your sacrifices, and eat the flesh.
{7:22} For concerning the matter of holocausts and sacrifices, I did not speak with your fathers, and I did not instruct them, in the day when I led them away from the land of Egypt.
{7:23} But on this matter I did instruct them, saying: Listen to my voice, and I will be your God, and you will be my people. And walk in the entire way that I have commanded you, so that it may be well with you.
{7:24} But they did not listen, nor did they incline their ear. Instead, they walked by their own will and in the depravity of their own wicked heart. And so, they went backward, and not forward,
{7:25} from the day when their fathers went forth from the land of Egypt, even to this day. And I have sent all my servants, the prophets, to you, throughout the day, rising at first light and sending them.
{7:26} But they have not listened to me, nor have they inclined their ear. Instead, they have stiffened their neck, and they have behaved worse than their fathers did.
{7:27} And so, you will speak to them all these words, but they will not listen to you. And you will call to them, but they will not respond to you.
{7:28} And you will say to them: This is the nation that has not listened to the voice of the Lord their God, nor accepted discipline. Faith has perished and been taken away from their mouth.
{7:29} Cut off your hair, and cast it away. And take up a lamentation on high. For the Lord has cast aside and abandoned this generation of his fury.
{7:30} For the sons of Judah have done evil in my eyes, says the Lord. They have stationed their abominations in the house where my name is invoked, so that they may defile it.
{7:31} And they have built the exalted places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of the son of Hinnom, so that they may burn their sons and their daughters with fire, something I neither instructed, nor thought in my heart.
{7:32} For this reason, behold, the days will arrive, says the Lord, when it will no longer be called Topheth, nor the Valley of the son of Hinnom, but instead the Valley of Slaughter. Yet they will bury in Topheth, because there will be no other place.
{7:33} And the corpses of this people will be food for the birds of the air and for the wild beasts of the land, and there will be no one to drive them away.
{7:34} And from the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem, I will cause the cessation of the voice of gladness and the voice of rejoicing, the voice of the groom and the voice of the bride. For the land will be in utter desolation.”
{8:1} “In that time, says the Lord, they will cast out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of its leaders, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of those who were living in Jerusalem, from their graves.
{8:2} And they will spread them out before the sun and the moon and the entire army of the heavens, which they have loved, and served, and followed, and which they have sought and adored. They will not be collected, and they will not be buried. They will be like manure upon the face of the earth.
{8:3} And they will greatly prefer death to life: all those who will have been left from this wicked kindred, in all the forsaken places to which I will cast them out, says the Lord of hosts.
{8:4} And you will say to them: Thus says the Lord: He who falls, will he not rise again? And he who has been turned away, will he not return?
{8:5} Then why have this people in Jerusalem turned away with a contentious loathing? They have taken hold of what is false, and they are not willing to return.
{8:6} I paid close attention and I listened carefully. No one is speaking what is good. There is no one who does penance for his sin, saying: ‘What have I done?’ They have all turned to their own course, like a horse rushing with fury into battle.
{8:7} The hawk in the heavens has known her time. The turtledove, and the swallow, and the stork have kept the time of their arrival. But my people have not known the judgment of the Lord.
{8:8} How can you say: ‘We are wise, and the law of the Lord is with us?’ Truly, the lying pen of the scribes has wrought falsehood.
{8:9} The wise men have been confounded; they were terrified and captured. For they cast aside the word of the Lord, and there is no wisdom in them.
{8:10} Because of this, I will give their wives to outsiders and their fields to others as an inheritance. For from the least, even to the greatest, they all pursue avarice; from the prophet, even to the priest, they all act with deceit.
{8:11} And they healed the destruction of the daughter of my people with disgrace, by saying: ‘Peace, peace,’ though there was no peace.
{8:12} They have been confounded because they committed abomination. Or rather, they have not been confounded with shame, for they do not know how to blush. For this reason, they will fall among the fallen. In the time of their visitation, they will fall, says the Lord.
{8:13} When gathering, I will gather them together, says the Lord. There are no grapes on the vine, and there are no figs on the fig tree. The leaves have fallen. And I have given them the things that have passed away.”
{8:14} “Why are we sitting still? Assemble, and let us enter the fortified city, and let us remain silent there. For the Lord our God has brought us to silence, and he has given us the water of gall as a drink. For we have sinned against the Lord.
{8:15} We expected peace, but there was nothing good. We expected a time of health, and behold, dread.”
{8:16} “From Dan, the snorting of his horses was heard; the entire land was shaken by the voice of the neighing of his fighters. And they arrived and devoured the land and its plenitude, the city and its inhabitants.
{8:17} For behold, I will send among you serpents, king snakes, against which there is no charm, and they will bite you, says the Lord.
{8:18} My sorrow is beyond sorrow; my heart mourns within me.
{8:19} Behold, the voice of the daughter of my people from a far away land. Is the Lord not with Zion, and is her king not within her? Then why have they provoked me to wrath by their graven images, and by their strange vanities?
{8:20} The harvest has passed by, the summer is at an end, and we have not been saved.
{8:21} Over the destruction of the daughter of my people, I am contrite and saddened; astonishment has taken hold of me.
{8:22} Is there no balm in Gilead? Or is there no physician there? Then why has the wound of the daughter of my people not been closed?”
{9:1} “Who will provide water for my head, and a fount of tears for my eyes? And then I will weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people.
{9:2} Who will provide me, in the wilderness, with a lodging place along the road? And then I will forsake my people, and withdraw from them. For they are all adulterers, a union of transgressors.
{9:3} And they have bent their tongue, like a bow, to send forth lies and not the truth. They have been strengthened upon the earth. And they have gone from one evil to another. But they have not known me, says the Lord.
{9:4} Let each one guard himself against his neighbor, and let him have no trust in any brother of his. For every brother will utterly overthrow, and every friend will advance deceitfully.
{9:5} And a man will deride his brother, and they will not speak the truth. For they have taught their tongue to speak lies; they have labored to commit iniquity.
{9:6} Your habitation is in the midst of deceit. In their deceitfulness, they have refused to know me, says the Lord.”
{9:7} Because of this, thus says the Lord of hosts: “Behold, I will refine them, and I will test them. For what else can I do before the face of the daughter of my people?
{9:8} Their tongue is a wounding arrow; it has spoken deceit. With his mouth, he speaks peace with his friend, and then he secretly lies in ambush for him.
{9:9} Shall I not visit upon them concerning these things, says the Lord? Or shall my soul not take vengeance on a nation of this kind?
{9:10} I will take up weeping and lamentation over the mountains, and mourning over the beautiful places in the desert. For they have been scorched because no man is passing through them. And they have not heard the voice of any occupant. From the birds of the air, even to the cattle, they have migrated and withdrawn.
{9:11} And I will make Jerusalem into piles of sand and into a lair for serpents. And I will make the cities of Judah desolate, so much so that there will be no inhabitant.
{9:12} Who is the wise man who understands this, and to whom a word from the mouth of the Lord may be given, so that he may announce this: why the land has perished, and has been scorched like a desert, so much so that no one passes through it?”
{9:13} And the Lord said: “It is because they have abandoned my law, which I gave to them, and they have not listened to my voice, and they have not walked by it.
{9:14} And they have gone after the depravity of their own heart, and after Baal, which they learned from their fathers.”
{9:15} For this reason, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Behold, I will feed this people with absinthe, and I will give them the water of gall to drink.
{9:16} And I will disperse them among nations, which they and their fathers have not known. And I will send the sword after them, until they are consumed.”
{9:17} Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Consider and call upon the women mourners, and let them approach. And send to those women who are wise, and let them hurry.
{9:18} ‘Let them hasten to take up a lamentation over us. Let our eyes shed tears, and our eyelids run with water.’
{9:19} For a voice of lamentation has been heard from Zion: ‘How is it that we have been devastated and greatly confounded? Our tabernacles have been thrown down because we have forsaken the land.’ ”
{9:20} “Therefore, listen, O women, to the word of the Lord! And let your ears take up the word of his mouth. And teach your daughters to lament. And let each one teach her neighbor to mourn:
{9:21} ‘For death has climbed through our windows. It has entered our houses to perish the little children from the outdoors, the youths from the streets.’ ”
{9:22} “Speak: Thus says the Lord: And the corpses of men will fall like manure over the face of the countryside, and like hay behind the back of the reaper, and there will be no one to gather it.”
{9:23} Thus says the Lord: “The wise man should not glory in his wisdom, and the strong man should not glory in his strength, and the rich man should not glory in his riches.
{9:24} But he who glories should glory in this: to know me and to know me well. For I am the Lord, who accomplishes mercy and judgment and justice upon the earth. For these things are pleasing to me, says the Lord.
{9:25} Behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when I will visit upon all who are uncircumcised:
{9:26} upon Egypt, and upon Judah, and upon Edom, and upon the sons of Ammon, and upon Moab, and upon all who have shaved off their hair, living in the desert. For all the nations are uncircumcised in body, but all the house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.”
{10:1} Listen to the word that the Lord has spoken concerning you, O house of Israel.
{10:2} Thus says the Lord: “Do not choose to learn according to the ways of the Gentiles. And do not be willing to dread the signs of heaven, which the Gentiles fear.
{10:3} For the laws of the people are empty. For the work of the hand of the craftsman has cut a tree from the forest with an axe.
{10:4} He has adorned it with silver and gold. He has put it together with nail and hammer, so that it will not fall apart.
{10:5} They have been fabricated in the likeness of a palm tree, and they will not speak. They must be carried to be moved, because they do not have the ability to walk. Therefore, do not be willing to fear them, for they can do neither evil nor good.”
{10:6} O Lord, there is nothing similar to you. You are great, and your name is great in strength.
{10:7} Who will not fear you, O King of the nations? For honor is yours. Among all the wise of the nations, and within all their kingdoms, there is nothing similar to you.
{10:8} Together, they will all be proven to be unwise and foolish. The doctrine of their vanity is made of wood.
{10:9} Rolled silver is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz. It is the work of a craftsman, and of the hand of a coppersmith. Hyacinth and purple is their clothing. All these things are the work of artists.
{10:10} But the Lord is the true God. He is the living God and the everlasting King. Before his indignation, the earth will shake. And the Gentiles will not be able to withstand his threats.
{10:11} “And so, you shall speak to them in this way: The gods that have not made heaven and earth, let them perish from the earth and from among those places which are under heaven.
{10:12} He made the earth by his power, he prepared the world in his wisdom, and he stretched out the heavens with his understanding.
{10:13} At his voice, he grants a multitude of waters in the heavens, and he lifts up the clouds from the ends of the earth. He causes the lightning with the rain, and he leads forth the wind from his storehouses.
{10:14} Every man has become a fool concerning knowledge; every artist has been confounded by his graven image. For what he has formed is false, and there is no spirit in these things.
{10:15} These things are empty, and they are a work deserving of ridicule. In the time of their visitation, they will perish.
{10:16} Jacob’s portion is not like their portion. For his portion is from the One who formed all things. And Israel is the staff of his inheritance. The Lord of hosts is his name.
{10:17} Gather your shame from the earth, you who are living under siege.”
{10:18} For thus says the Lord: “Behold, in this turn, I will cast the inhabitants of the land far away. And I will afflict them no matter where they may be found.”
{10:19} Woe to me, concerning my destruction! My wound is very grievous. And yet I said: Clearly, this infirmity is mine, and I will carry it.
{10:20} My tent has been destroyed. All my cords have been broken. My sons have gone away from me; they did not remain. There is no one to stretch out my tent any more, nor to set up my curtains.
{10:21} For the pastors have acted foolishly, and they have not sought the Lord. Because of this, they have not understood, and all their flock has been dispersed.
{10:22} Behold, the sound of a voice approaches, a great commotion from the land of the north: so that he may make the cities of Judah into a wilderness and into a dwelling place for serpents.
{10:23} I know, O Lord, that the way of man is not his own. Neither is it given to man to walk and to direct his own steps.
{10:24} Correct me, O Lord, yet truly, do so with judgment, and not in your fury. Otherwise, you will reduce me to nothing.
{10:25} Pour out your indignation upon the nations that have not known you, and upon the provinces that have not invoked your name. For they have fed upon Jacob, and devoured him, and consumed him, and they have utterly destroyed his honor.
{11:1} The word that came from the Lord to Jeremiah, saying:
{11:2} “Listen to the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
{11:3} And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Cursed is the man who will not listen to the words of this covenant,
{11:4} which I commanded to your fathers in the day when I led them away from the land of Egypt, away from the iron furnace, saying: Listen to my voice, and do all that I command you, and then you will be my people and I will be your God.
{11:5} So shall I uphold the oath which I swore to your fathers, that I would give them a land flowing with milk and honey, just as it is this day.” And I answered by saying: “Amen, O Lord.”
{11:6} And the Lord said to me: “Shout all these words in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying: Listen to the words of the covenant, and do them.
{11:7} For when testing, I tested your fathers in the day when I led them away from the land of Egypt, even until this day. Rising early, I tested them, and I said: Listen to my voice.
{11:8} But they did not listen, nor did they incline their ear. Instead, each one of them walked in the depravity of his own evil heart. And so, I brought over them all the words of this covenant, which I instructed them to do. But they would not do them.”
{11:9} And the Lord said to me: “A conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
{11:10} They have returned to the former iniquities of their fathers, who refused to listen to my words. And likewise, they have gone after strange gods, so that they may serve them. The house of Israel and the house of Judah have treated as void my covenant, which I made with their fathers.
{11:11} For this reason, thus says the Lord: Behold, I will lead evils over them, from which they will not be able to escape. And they will cry out to me, and I will not heed them.
{11:12} And the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go forth, and they will cry out to the gods, to whom they offer libations, and they will not save them in the time of their affliction.
{11:13} For according to the number of your cities, so were your gods, O Judah. And according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem, so did you establish altars of confusion, altars to offer libations to Baal.
{11:14} Therefore, you should not choose to pray for this people, and you should not take up praise and petitioning on their behalf. For I will not heed them in the time of their outcry to me, in the time of their affliction.
{11:15} Why has my beloved wrought great wickedness in my house? How can the holy flesh take away from you your wickedness, in which you have gloried?
{11:16} The Lord has called your name: a beautiful, fruitful, splendid, and productive olive tree. At the voice of a word, a great fire was kindled in it, and its greenery was burned up.
{11:17} And the Lord of hosts, who planted you, has pronounced an evil against you, concerning the evils of the house of Israel and the house of Judah, which they have done to themselves so as to provoke me, by offering libations to Baal.”
{11:18} But you, O Lord, have revealed this to me, and I have understood. Then you displayed their efforts to me.
{11:19} And I was like a meek lamb, who is being carried to be a victim. And I did not realize that they had devised plans against me, saying: “Let us place wood upon his bread, and let us eradicate him from the land of the living, and let his name no longer be remembered.”
{11:20} But you, O Lord of hosts, who judges justly, and who tests the temperament and the heart, let me see your vengeance against them. For I have revealed my case to you.
{11:21} “Because of this, thus says the Lord to the men of Anathoth, who are seeking your life, and who are saying: ‘You shall not prophesy in the name of the Lord, and you shall not die by our hands.’
{11:22} Because of this, thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will visit upon them. Their young men will die by the sword. Their sons and their daughters will die by famine.
{11:23} And there will be nothing left of them. For I will lead an evil over the men of Anathoth: the year of their visitation.”
{12:1} Certainly, O Lord, you are just. But if I may contend with you, while still speaking what is just to you: Why does the way of the impious prosper? Why is it well with all those who transgress and act unfairly?
{12:2} You planted them, and they took root. They are prospering and bearing fruit. You are near to their mouths, but far from their hearts.
{12:3} And you, O Lord, have known me well. You have seen me, and you have tested my heart with you. Gather them together like a flock for the sacrifice and sanctify them for the day of slaughter.
{12:4} How long shall the earth mourn? And how long shall the plants of every field whither because of the wickedness of the inhabitants within them? It has consumed the wild animals and the birds. For they said: “He will not see our very end.”
{12:5} “If you have struggled to run on foot, how will you be able to compete with horses? And if you have been secure in a land of peace, what will you do about the arrogance of the Jordan?
{12:6} For even your brothers, and the house of your father, even these have fought against you. And they have cried out after you with loud voice: ‘You should not believe them, when they speak good things to you.’ ”
{12:7} “I have abandoned my house. I have disowned my inheritance. I have given my beloved soul into the hand of its enemies.
{12:8} My inheritance has become for me like a lion in the forest. It has uttered a voice against me, therefore, I have hated it.
{12:9} Is my inheritance to me like a discolored bird? Is it like a bird that has entirely changed color? Approach and assemble, all beasts of the earth! Hurry, so that you may devour!
{12:10} Many pastors have demolished my vineyard. They have trampled my portion. They have made my desirable portion into a desert of solitude.
{12:11} They have squandered it, and it has grieved concerning me. The entire earth has become utterly desolate, because there is no one who understands with the heart.”
{12:12} The devastators have arrived, over all the ways of the wilderness. For the sword of the Lord will devour, from one end of the earth even to its furthest limits. There is no peace for all that is flesh.
{12:13} They sowed wheat, but they reaped thorns. They received an inheritance, but it will not benefit them. You will be confounded by your own fruits, because of the wrath of the fury of the Lord.
{12:14} Thus says the Lord against all my wicked neighbors, who touch the inheritance that I have distributed to my people Israel: “Behold, I will root them out of their own land, and I will root the house of Judah out of their midst.
{12:15} And when I have rooted them out, I will turn back and take pity on them. And I will lead them back, one man to his inheritance, and another man to his land.
{12:16} And this shall be: if they are taught and they learn the ways of my people, so that they swear by my name, ‘As the Lord lives,’ just as they had taught my people to swear by Baal, then they will be built up in the midst of my people.
{12:17} But if they will not listen, I will uproot that nation unto utter destruction and perdition, says the Lord.”
{13:1} Thus says the Lord to me: “Go, and obtain for yourself a linen waistcloth. And you shall place it over your loins, and you shall not put it into water.”
{13:2} And so I obtained a waistcloth, according to the word of the Lord, and I placed it around my loins.
{13:3} And the word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying:
{13:4} “Take the waistcloth, which you obtained, which is around your loins, and, rising up, go to the Euphrates, and hide it there in an opening of the rock.”
{13:5} And so I went, and I hid it by the Euphrates, just as the Lord had instructed me.
{13:6} And it happened that, after many days, the Lord said to me: “Rise up, go to the Euphrates, and take from there the waistcloth, which I instructed you to hide there.”
{13:7} And so I went to the Euphrates, and I dug up and took the waistcloth from the place where I had hidden it. And behold, the waistcloth had rotted, so that it was not fit for any use.
{13:8} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{13:9} “Thus says the Lord: In the same way, I will cause the arrogance of Judah and the arrogance of Jerusalem to rot.
{13:10} This most wicked people, they are not willing to listen to my words, for they walk in the depravity of their own heart, and they have gone after strange gods, so as to serve them and to adore them. And so, they will become like this waistcloth, which is not fit for any use.
{13:11} For just as the waistcloth clings to the loins of a man, so have I brought close to me the entire house of Israel and the entire house of Judah, says the Lord, so that they would be to me: a people, and a name, and a praise, and a glory. But they did not listen.
{13:12} Therefore, you shall speak to them this word: Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Every bottle will be filled with wine.’ And they will say to you: ‘Are we ignorant that every bottle will be filled with wine?’
{13:13} And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this land, and the kings from the stock of David who sit upon his throne, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, unto inebriation.
{13:14} And I will scatter them, a man from his brother, and fathers and sons similarly, says the Lord. I will not spare them, and I will not pardon them, and I will not take pity, so as not to destroy them.”
{13:15} Hear and pay close attention. Do not choose to lift yourself up, for the Lord has spoken.
{13:16} Give glory to the Lord your God, before darkness falls, and before your feet stumble on the darkened mountains. You will expect light, but he will turn it into the shadow of death and into utter darkness.
{13:17} But if you will not listen to this, then my soul will weep in secret before the face of your pride. It will weep bitterly, and my eyes will flow with tears, because the flock of the Lord has been taken captive.
{13:18} “Say to the king and to the female ruler: Humble yourselves, sit down. For the crown of your glory has gone down from your head.
{13:19} The cities of the south have been closed, and there is no one who may open them. All of Judah has been taken away into complete captivity.
{13:20} Lift up your eyes and see, you who are arriving from the north. Where is the flock that was given to you, your famous cattle?
{13:21} What will you say when he visits upon you? For you have taught them against you, and you have instructed them with your own head. Will not pains take hold of you, as with a woman in labor?
{13:22} But if you say in your heart, ‘Why have these things happened to me?’ it is because of the greatness of your iniquity that your shame has been uncovered and the soles of your feet have been defiled.
{13:23} If the Ethiopian is able to change his skin, or the leopard is able to change his spots, then you also may be able to do well, though you have learned evil.
{13:24} And I will scatter them like chaff, which is carried away by the wind in the desert.
{13:25} This is your lot, and this is the portion of your measure from me, says the Lord, because you have forgotten me, and you have had confidence in what is false.
{13:26} Therefore, I have even bared your thighs before your face, and your shame has been seen.
{13:27} For I have seen your adulteries, and your neighing for the wickedness of your fornication, and your abominations upon the hills in the field. Woe to you, Jerusalem! How much longer before you will be made clean after me?”
{14:1} The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the words of the drought.
{14:2} “Judea has mourned. And its gates have fallen and become hard to discern on the ground. And the outcry of Jerusalem has ascended.
{14:3} The greater ones have sent their lesser ones to the water. They went to draw water; they did not find water; they carried their vessels back empty. They were confounded and afflicted, and so they covered their heads.
{14:4} Because of the devastation of the earth, because rain did not fall upon the earth, the farmers were confounded; they covered their heads.
{14:5} For even the doe has given birth in the field, and then left it behind. For there was no grass.
{14:6} And the wild donkeys stood upon the rocks; like dragons, they drew in the wind, but their eyes failed. For there was no grass.”
{14:7} “O Lord, if our iniquities have responded against us, let it be for the sake of your name. For our rebellions are many; we have sinned against you.
{14:8} O Hope of Israel, its Savior in time of tribulation, why would you be like a sojourner in the land, and like a traveler turning aside for lodging?
{14:9} Why would you be like a wandering man, like a strong man who is unable to save? But you, O Lord, are with us, and your name is invoked over us, so do not abandon us!”
{14:10} Thus says the Lord to this people, who have loved to move their feet, and who have not rested, but who have not pleased the Lord: “Now he will remember their iniquities, and now he will visit against their sins.”
{14:11} And the Lord said to me: “Do not choose to pray for this people for good.
{14:12} When they will fast, I will not heed their petitions. And if they offer holocausts and victims, I will not accept them. For I will consume them by the sword, and by famine, and by pestilence.”
{14:13} And I said: “Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God! The prophets are saying to them: ‘You will not see the sword, and there will be no famine among you. Instead, he will give you true peace in this place.’ ”
{14:14} And the Lord said to me: “The prophets prophesy falsely in my name. I did not send them, and I did not instruct them, and I have not spoken to them. They prophesy to you a lying vision, and a divination, and a fraud, and a seduction from their own heart.
{14:15} For this reason, thus says the Lord about the prophets who prophesy in my name, whom I have not sent, who say: ‘Sword and famine will not be in this land.’ By sword and famine those prophets will be consumed.
{14:16} And the people, to whom they prophesy, will be cast into the streets of Jerusalem, due to famine and the sword, and there will be no one who may bury them, they and their wives, their sons and daughters, and I will pour out their own evil upon them.
{14:17} And you shall speak this word to them: Let my eyes shed tears throughout the night and day, and let them not cease. For the virgin daughter of my people has been crushed by a great affliction, by a very grievous wound.”
{14:18} “If I go out into the fields: behold, those slain by the sword. And if I enter into the city: behold, those weakened by famine. Likewise, the prophet, too, and the priest, have gone into a land that they did not know.
{14:19} Could you have utterly cast out Judah? Or has your soul abhorred Zion? Then why have you struck us, so much so that there is no health for us? We have waited for peace, but there is nothing good, and for the time of healing, and behold, trouble.
{14:20} O Lord, we acknowledge our impieties, the iniquities of our fathers, that we have sinned against you.
{14:21} For the sake of your name, do not give us over into disgrace. And do not dishonor in us the throne of your glory. Remember, do not make void, your covenant with us.
{14:22} Could any of the graven images of the Gentiles send rain? Or are the heavens able to give showers? Have we not hoped in you, the Lord our God? For you have made all these things.”
{15:1} And the Lord said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel were to stand before me, my soul would not be toward this people. Cast them away from my face, and let them depart!
{15:2} And if they say to you, ‘Where shall we go?’ you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord: Those who go to death, shall go to death. And those who go to the sword, shall go to the sword, and those go to famine, shall go to famine, and those who go to captivity, shall go to captivity.
{15:3} And I will visit against them in four ways, says the Lord: by the sword, to kill; and by dogs, to tear apart; and by the birds of the air and by the beasts of the earth, to devour and to scatter.
{15:4} And I will give them over to the fervor of all the kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, because of all that he did in Jerusalem.
{15:5} For who will take pity on you, O Jerusalem? Or who will feel sorrow for you? Or who will go to prayer for the sake of your peace?
{15:6} You have abandoned me, says the Lord. You have gone backwards. And so, I will extend my hand over you, and I will destroy you. I have labored to plead with you.
{15:7} And I will scatter them with a winnowing fan at the gates of the land. I have killed and dispersed my people, and yet they have not turned back from their ways.
{15:8} Their widows have been multiplied by me, more so than the sand of the sea. I have led them against the mother of a youth like an attacker at midday. I have sent a terror suddenly against the cities.
{15:9} She who gave birth to seven has become weak. Her life has faded away. Her sun has set while it was still daytime. She has been confounded and shamed. And the remainder of them I will give over to the sword in the sight of their enemies, says the Lord.”
{15:10} “O my mother, woe to me! Why did you conceive me, a man of strife, a man of discord to all the earth? I have not lent money at interest, nor has anyone lent money at interest to me. Yet everyone is cursing me.”
{15:11} The Lord says: “Certainly, it will be well with your remnant. Certainly, I will run to meet you, in the time of affliction and in the time of tribulation, against the enemy.
{15:12} But how can iron be joined with the iron from the north or with brass?
{15:13} Your riches and your treasures I will give over to be freely despoiled, because of all your sins, even throughout all your borders.
{15:14} And I will lead in your enemies from a land that you do not know. For a fire has been kindled in my fury; it will burn upon you.”
{15:15} “You know me, O Lord. Remember me, and visit me, and watch over me, because of those who persecute me. In your patience, do not choose to let me endure. You know I have suffered reproach because of you.
{15:16} I discovered your words and I consumed them. And your word became to me as the gladness and joy of my heart. For your name has been invoked over me, O Lord, the God of hosts.
{15:17} I did not sit in the company of mockers, nor did I glorify myself before the presence of your hand. I sat alone, because you filled me with threats.
{15:18} Why has my sorrow become never-ending, and why has my wound become so dire that it refuses to be cured? It has become for me like the deception of untrustworthy waters.”
{15:19} Because of this, thus says the Lord: “If you will be converted, I will convert you. And you will stand before my face. And you will separate what is precious from what is vile. You will be my mouthpiece. They will be converted to you, but you will not be converted to them.
{15:20} And I will present you to this people as a strong wall of brass. And they will fight against you, and they will not prevail. For I am with you, so as to save you and to rescue you, says the Lord.
{15:21} And I will free you from hand of those who are most wicked, and I will redeem you from the hand of the powerful.”
{16:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{16:2} “You shall not take a wife, and there shall be no sons or daughters for you in this place.
{16:3} For thus says the Lord concerning the sons and daughters who are conceived in this place, and concerning their mothers who give birth to them, and concerning their fathers, from whose stock they have been born in this land:
{16:4} They will die from grievous mortal illnesses. They will not be mourned, and they will not be buried. They will be like manure on the face of the earth. And they will be consumed by sword and by famine. And their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the land.”
{16:5} For thus says the Lord: “You shall not enter the house of feasting, and you shall not go to mourn or to console them. For I have taken away from this people, says the Lord, my peace, my mercy, and my pity.
{16:6} Both the great and the small will die in this land. They will not be buried, and they will not be mourned. And no one will cut themselves or make themselves bald on their behalf.
{16:7} And they will not break bread among themselves for the sake of him who mourns, so as to console him over the dead. And they will not give them a chalice to drink, so as to console them over their father and mother.
{16:8} And so, you shall not enter the house of feasting, so as to sit with them, and to eat and drink.”
{16:9} For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Behold, I will take away from this place, in your sight and in your days, the voice of gladness and the voice of rejoicing, the voice of the groom and the voice of the bride.
{16:10} And when you announce all these words to this people, they will say to you: ‘Why would the Lord pronounce all this great evil against us? What is our iniquity and what is our sin that we have committed against the Lord our God?’
{16:11} And you shall say to them: It is because your fathers abandoned me, says the Lord. And they went after strange gods, and they served them and adored them. And they abandoned me, and they did not keep my law.
{16:12} But you have acted even worse than your fathers. For behold, each one walks after the depravity of his own evil heart, so that he does not listen to me.
{16:13} And so, I will cast you out of this land, into a land that you do not know, and that your fathers did not know. And in that place, you will serve, day and night, strange gods who will not give you rest.
{16:14} Therefore, behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when it will no longer be said, ‘As the Lord lives, who led the sons of Israel away from the land of Egypt,’
{16:15} but instead, ‘As the Lord lives, who led the sons of Israel away from the land of the north,’ and from all the lands to which I have cast them out. And I will lead them back into their own land, which I gave to their fathers.
{16:16} Behold, I will send many fishermen, says the Lord, and they will fish for them. And after this, I will send many hunters to them, and they will hunt for them on every mountain, and on every hilltop, and in the caverns of the rocks.
{16:17} For my eyes are upon all their ways. They have not been hidden from my face, and their iniquity has not been concealed from my eyes.
{16:18} But first, I will repay their double iniquities and their sins. For they have defiled my land with the dead bodies of their idols, and they have filled my inheritance with their abominations.”
{16:19} “O Lord, my strength, and my health, and my refuge in the day of tribulation: the Gentiles will approach you from the ends of the earth, and they will say: ‘Truly, our fathers possessed a lie, an emptiness that has not benefited them.’
{16:20} How can man make gods for himself, though these are not gods?”
{16:21} “Concerning this, behold: I will make it clear to them, in this turn. I will reveal to them my hand and my virtue. And they will know that the Lord is my name.”
{17:1} “The sin of Judah has been written with a pen of iron and a point of diamond. It has been engraved upon the breadth of their heart and upon the horns of their shrines.
{17:2} And their sons make a remembrance of their shrines, and their sacred groves, and their leafy trees on high mountains,
{17:3} by sacrificing in the field. And so, I will give over your strength and all your treasures to be despoiled, along with your exalted places of sin, within all your borders.
{17:4} And you will be left behind without your inheritance, which I gave to you. And I will cause you to serve your enemies in a land that you do not know. For you have kindled a fire in my fury; it shall burn, even unto eternity.”
{17:5} Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is a man who trusts in man, and who establishes what is flesh as his right arm, and whose heart withdraws from the Lord.
{17:6} For he will be like a saltcedar tree in the desert. And he will not perceive it, when what is good has arrived. Instead, he will live in dryness, in a desert, in a land of salt, which is uninhabitable.
{17:7} Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, for the Lord will be his confidence.
{17:8} And he will be like a tree planted beside waters, which sends out its roots to moist soil. And it will not fear when the heat arrives. And its leaves will be green. And in the time of drought, it will not be anxious, nor will it cease at any time to bear fruit.
{17:9} The heart is depraved above all things, and it is unsearchable, who can know it?
{17:10} I am the Lord, who examines the heart and tests the temperament, who gives to each one according to his way and according to the fruit of his own decisions.
{17:11} A partridge has hatched eggs that she did not lay; a man has gathered riches, but without judgment. In the midst of his days, he will leave it all behind, and he will be foolish concerning his very end.”
{17:12} “A high and glorious throne is the place of our sanctification from the beginning.
{17:13} O Lord, Hope of Israel: all who forsake you will be confounded. Those who withdraw from you will be written into the earth. For they have abandoned the Lord, the Source of living waters.
{17:14} Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed. Save me, and I will be saved. For you are my praise.
{17:15} Behold, they themselves are saying to me: ‘Where is the word of the Lord? Let it come.’
{17:16} But I am not troubled; I am following you as my shepherd. And I have not desired the day of man, as you know. That which has gone forth from my lips has been right in your sight.
{17:17} May you not be a dread to me. You are my hope in the day of affliction.
{17:18} May those who persecute me be confounded, but may I not be confounded. May they be fearful, and may I not be fearful. Lead over them the day of affliction, and crush them with a double destruction.”
{17:19} Thus says the Lord to me: “Go, and stand at the gate of the sons of the people, through which the kings of Judah enter and depart, and at all the gates of Jerusalem.
{17:20} And you shall say to them: Listen to the word of the Lord, O kings of Judah, and all of Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who enter through these gates.”
{17:21} Thus says the Lord: “Guard your souls, and do not choose to carry heavy things on the day of the Sabbath, nor should you carry these things through the gates of Jerusalem.
{17:22} And do not be willing to cast burdens out of your houses on the day of the Sabbath, nor should you do any work. Sanctify the day of the Sabbath, just as I instructed your fathers.
{17:23} But they did not listen, nor did they incline their ear. Instead, they hardened their neck, lest they listen to me and receive discipline.
{17:24} And this shall be: If you listen to me, says the Lord, so that you do not carry in burdens through the gates of this city on the day of the Sabbath, and if you sanctify the day of the Sabbath, so that you do not do work in it,
{17:25} then there will enter through the gates of this city: kings and princes, sitting on the throne of David, and riding on chariots and horses, they and their princes, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And this city will be inhabited forever.
{17:26} And they will arrive from the cities of Judah and from all around Jerusalem, and from the land of Benjamin, and from the plains, and from the mountainous regions, and from the south, carrying holocausts, and victims, and sacrifices, and frankincense. And they will carry an oblation into the house of the Lord.
{17:27} But if you will not listen to me, to sanctify the day of the Sabbath, and not to carry burdens, and not to bring these things through the gates of Jerusalem on the day of the Sabbath, then I will kindle a fire at its gates, and it will devour the houses of Jerusalem, and it will not be extinguished.”
{18:1} The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying:
{18:2} “Rise up and descend into the house of the potter, and there you will hear my words.”
{18:3} And I descended into the house of the potter, and behold, he was making a work on the wheel.
{18:4} And the vessel, which he was making with his hands out of clay, broke. And turning away, he made another vessel, for it had been pleasing in his eyes to make it.
{18:5} Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{18:6} “Am I not able to do with you, O house of Israel, just as this potter has done, says the Lord? Behold, like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.
{18:7} Suddenly, I will speak against a nation and against a kingdom, so that I may uproot, and destroy, and scatter it.
{18:8} If that nation, against which I have spoken, will repent from their evil, I too will repent from the evil that I have decided I would do to them.
{18:9} And soon, I will speak about a nation and about a kingdom, so that I may build and plant it.
{18:10} If it does evil in my sight, so as not to listen to my voice, I will repent of the good that I have said I would do to it.
{18:11} Now, therefore, speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying: Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am forming an evil against you, and I am considering a plan against you. Let each one of you return from his evil way, and direct your ways and your intentions well.”
{18:12} And they said: “We have lost hope. And so we will follow our own thoughts, and each of us will act according to the depravity of his own evil heart.”
{18:13} For this reason, thus says the Lord: “Inquire among the Gentiles. Who has heard of such horrible things as the virgin of Israel has done to excess?
{18:14} Do the snows of Lebanon fail to fall on the rocks of the field? Or are the cold waters, which burst forth and flow down, able to be rooted out?
{18:15} Yet my people have forgotten me, offering useless libations, and stumbling in their ways, in the paths of the world, so that they walk by these on an unmarked route.
{18:16} And so their land has been given over to desolation and to perpetual hissing. Each one who passes by will be astonished and will shake his head.
{18:17} Like a burning wind, I will disperse them in the sight the enemy. I will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their perdition.”
{18:18} And they said: “Come, and let us devise a plan against Jeremiah. For the law will not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor a sermon from the prophet. Come, and let us strike him with the tongue, and let us pay no attention to any of his words.”
{18:19} Attend to me, O Lord, and hear the voice of my adversaries.
{18:20} Should evil be rendered for good? For they have dug a pit for my soul! Remember that I have stood in your sight, so as to speak on their behalf for good, and to avert your indignation from them.
{18:21} Because of this, give their sons over to famine, and bring them to the hand of the sword. Let their wives be widows without children. And let their husbands be slain by death. Let their youths be stabbed with the sword in battle.
{18:22} Let an outcry be heard from their houses. For you will lead the robber upon them suddenly. For they have dug a pit, so that they may seize me, and they have hidden snares for my feet.
{18:23} But you, O Lord, know all their plans against me unto death. May you not forgive their iniquity, and do not allow their sin be taken away from your face. Let them be thrown down in your sight, in the time of your fury, so that you may destroy them.
{19:1} Thus says the Lord: “Go, and take a potter’s earthen bottle from the elders of the people and from the elders of the priests.
{19:2} And go out to the valley of the son of Hinnom, which is near the entrance to the earthen gate, and there you shall proclaim the words that I will speak to you.
{19:3} And you shall say: Listen to the word of the Lord, O kings of Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will lead an affliction over this place, so much so that it will ring in the ears of all who hear about it.
{19:4} For they have abandoned me, and they have made this place foreign, and they have offered libations in it to foreign gods, whom neither they, nor their fathers, nor the kings of Judah have known. And they have filled this place with the blood of the innocent.
{19:5} And they have built the exalted places of Baal, in order to burn their children with fire as a holocaust to Baal, something that I did not instruct or speak of, nor did it enter into my heart.
{19:6} Because of this, behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when this place will no longer be called Topheth, or the valley of the son of Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter.
{19:7} And I will scatter the counsel of Judah and of Jerusalem in this place. And I will overthrow them with the sword, in the sight of their enemies and by the hand of those who seek their lives. And I will give their carcasses to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the land as food.
{19:8} And I will set this city amid stupor and hissing. Everyone who passes by it will be stupefied, and they will hiss over all its wounds.
{19:9} And I will feed them with the flesh of their sons and with the flesh of their daughters. And each one of them will eat the flesh of his friend during the blockade and the embargo by which their enemies, and those who seek their lives, will enclose them.
{19:10} And you shall crush the bottle in the sight of the men who will go with you.
{19:11} And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord of hosts: In the same way, I will crush this people and this city, just as the potter’s vessel was crushed and cannot be made whole again. And they will be buried at Topheth, because there will be no other place for burial.
{19:12} So will I do to this place and to its inhabitants, says the Lord. And I will make this city to be like Topheth.
{19:13} And the houses of Jerusalem and the houses of the kings of Judah will be unclean, just like the place of Topheth: all the houses on whose roofs they sacrificed to all the armies of heaven and poured out libations to strange gods.”
{19:14} Then Jeremiah arrived from Topheth, where the Lord had sent him to prophesy, and he stood in the atrium of the house of the Lord, and he said to all the people:
{19:15} “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will lead over this community, and over all its cities, all the evils that I have spoken against it. For they have hardened their necks, so that they would not heed my words.”
{20:1} And Pashhur, the son of Immer, the priest who had been appointed leader in the house of the Lord, heard Jeremiah prophesying these words.
{20:2} And Pashhur struck the prophet Jeremiah, and he sent him to the stocks, which were at the upper gate of Benjamin at the house of the Lord.
{20:3} And when it had become light on the next day, Pashhur led Jeremiah from the stocks. And Jeremiah said to him: “The Lord has not called your name: ‘Pashhur,’ but instead: ‘Fear all around.’ ”
{20:4} For thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will give you over to fear, you and all your friends, and they will fall by the sword of their enemies, and your eyes will see it. And I will give all of Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon. And he will lead them away to Babylon, and he will strike them with the sword.
{20:5} And I will give away the entire substance of this city, and all its labor, and every precious thing. And I will give all the treasures of the kings of Judah into the hands of their enemies. And they will plunder them, and take them away, and lead them into Babylon.
{20:6} But you, Pashhur, and all the inhabitants of your house, will go into captivity. And you will go to Babylon. And there you shall die. And there you shall be buried, you and all your friends, to whom you have prophesied a lie.”
{20:7} “You have led me away, O Lord, and I have been led away. You have been stronger than I, and you have prevailed. I have become a derision all day long; everyone mocks me.
{20:8} For I speak now as I have long spoken: crying out against iniquity and proclaiming devastation. And the word of the Lord has been made into a reproach against me and a derision, all day long.
{20:9} Then I said: I will not call him to mind, nor will I speak any longer in his name. And my heart became like a raging fire, enclosed within my bones. And I became weary of continuing to bear it.
{20:10} For I heard the insults of many, and terror all around: ‘Persecute him!’ and, ‘Let us persecute him!’ from all the men who had been at peace with me and who had kept watch by my side. ‘If only there were some way that he might be deceived, and we might prevail against him and obtain vengeance from him!’
{20:11} But the Lord is with me, like a strong warrior. For this reason, those who persecute me will fall, and they will be ineffective. They will be greatly confounded. For they have not understood the everlasting disgrace that will never be wiped away.
{20:12} And you, O Lord of hosts, the Tester of the just, who sees the temperament and the heart: I beg you to let me see your vengeance upon them. For I have revealed my case to you.
{20:13} Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord! For he has freed the soul of the poor from the hand of the wicked.
{20:14} Cursed is the day on which I was born! The day on which my mother gave birth to me: let it not be blessed!
{20:15} Cursed is the man who announced it to my father, saying, ‘A male child has been born to you,’ causing him to rejoice with gladness.
{20:16} Let that man be like the cities that the Lord has overthrown without regret. Let him hear an outcry in the morning, and wailing at the time of midday!
{20:17} So let him be, who did not put me to death from the womb, so that my mother would have been my sepulcher, and her womb would have been my eternal resting place!
{20:18} Why did I depart from the womb, so that I would see hardship and sorrow, and so that my days would be consumed by trouble?”
{21:1} The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, when king Zedekiah sent Pashhur, the son of Malchiah, and Zephaniah, the son of Maaseiah, the priest, to him, saying:
{21:2} “Question the Lord on our behalf, for Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, is fighting against us. Perhaps it may be that the Lord will act toward us according to all his wonders, and he may withdraw from us.”
{21:3} And Jeremiah said to them: “This is what you shall say to Zedekiah:
{21:4} Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, with which you fight against the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans, who besiege you at the surrounding walls. And I will gather these things together in the midst of this city.
{21:5} And I myself will make war against you: with an outstretched hand, and with a strong arm, and in fury, and in indignation, and in great wrath.
{21:6} And I will strike the inhabitants of this city; men and beasts will die from a great pestilence.
{21:7} And afterward, thus says the Lord: I will give Zedekiah, the king of Judah, and his servants, and his people, and those who have been left behind in this city after pestilence and the sword and famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their lives. And he will strike them with the edge of the sword. And he will not waver, and he will not be lenient, and he will not take pity.
{21:8} And to this people, you shall say: Thus says the Lord: Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death.
{21:9} Whoever lives in this city will die by the sword, and by famine, and by pestilence. But whoever will have departed and fled away to the Chaldeans, who besiege you, will live, and his life will be to him like a spoil.
{21:10} For I have set my face against this city for evil, and not for good, says the Lord. It will be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it with fire.
{21:11} And to the house of the king of Judah, you shall say: Listen to the word of the Lord,
{21:12} O house of David! Thus says the Lord: Judge with judgment from early morning, and rescue anyone who is oppressed by violence from the hand of a false accuser. Otherwise, my indignation may go forth like a fire, and may flare up, and there will be no one who can extinguish it, because of the evil of your intentions.
{21:13} Behold, I am against you, O inhabitants of a valley with firm and level ground, says the Lord. And you say: ‘Who can strike us? And who can enter into our houses?’
{21:14} But I will visit against you according to the fruit of your intentions, says the Lord. And I will kindle a fire in its forest. And it shall devour everything around it.”
{22:1} Thus says the Lord: “Descend to the house of the king of Judah, and there you shall speak this word.
{22:2} And you shall say: Listen to the word of the Lord, O king of Judah, who sits upon the throne of David: you and your servants, and your people, who enter through these gates.
{22:3} Thus says the Lord: Exercise judgment and justice, and free anyone who is oppressed by violence from the hand of a false accuser. And do not be willing to sadden the new arrival, or the orphan, or the widow, nor should you burden them unfairly. And you shall not shed innocent blood in this place.
{22:4} For if you will indeed accomplish this word, then there will enter through the gates of this house kings from the stock of David, sitting on his throne, and riding on chariots and on horses: they, and their servants, and their people.
{22:5} But if you will not listen to these words, I swear by myself, says the Lord, that this house will be in desolation.
{22:6} For thus says the Lord about the house of the king of Judah: You are to me like Gilead, the head of Lebanon. Certainly, I will make you desolate, with uninhabitable cities.
{22:7} And I will sanctify over you the destroying man and his weapons. And they will cut down your select cedars and throw them violently into the fire.
{22:8} And many nations will pass through this city. And each one will say to his neighbor: ‘Why has the Lord acted in this way toward this great city?’
{22:9} And they will answer: ‘It is because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord their God, and they adored strange gods and served them.’
{22:10} You should not choose to weep for the dead, nor should you mourn over them with tears. Lament for him who is departing, for he will return no more, nor will he see his native land again.
{22:11} For thus says the Lord to Shallum, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, who reigned in place of his father, who has departed from this place: He will not return here again.
{22:12} Instead, he will die in the place to which I have transferred him, and he will not see this land anymore.
{22:13} Woe to one who builds his house with injustice and his upper rooms without judgment, who oppresses his friend without cause and does not pay him his wages.
{22:14} And he says: ‘I will build a broad house for myself, with spacious upper rooms.’ He makes windows for himself, and he builds the roof out of cedar, and he paints it with red ocher.
{22:15} Will you reign because you compare yourself to the cedar? Did your father not eat and drink, and act with judgment and justice, so that it would be well with him?
{22:16} He judged the case of the poor and the indigent for their good. Was this not because he knew me, says the Lord?
{22:17} Yet truly, your eyes and your heart are toward avarice and the shedding of innocent blood, and toward false accusations and the pursuit of evil deeds.
{22:18} Because of this, thus says the Lord toward Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah: They will not mourn for him by saying, ‘Alas,’ to a brother, or, ‘Alas,’ to a sister. They will not make a noise for him and say, ‘Alas,’ to a master, or, ‘Alas,’ to a nobleman.
{22:19} He will be buried with the burial of a donkey, having rotted and been thrown out of the gates of Jerusalem.
{22:20} Ascend to Lebanon and cry out! And utter your voice in Bashan, and cry out to those passing by. For all your lovers have been crushed.
{22:21} I spoke to you in your abundance, and you said, ‘I will not listen.’ This has been your way from your youth, for you have not listened to my voice.
{22:22} The wind will feed all your shepherds, and your lovers will go into captivity. And then you will be confounded, and you will be ashamed of all your wickedness.
{22:23} You who sit in Lebanon, and who nest in the cedars, in what way did you mourn when suffering came to you, like the suffering of a woman giving birth?
{22:24} As I live, says the Lord, if Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, were a ring on my right hand, I would remove him from there.
{22:25} And I will deliver you into the hand of those who seek your life, and into the hand of those whose face you dread, and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans.
{22:26} And I will send you, and your mother who conceived you, into a foreign land, in which you were not born, and there you shall die.
{22:27} And to the land about which they lift up their mind, thinking to return there, they shall not return.
{22:28} Is this man, Jeconiah, a broken earthenware vessel? Is he a vessel which is entirely unpleasing? Why have they been cast out, he and his offspring, cast out even into a land that they have not known?
{22:29} O earth, O earth, O earth! Listen to the word of the Lord!
{22:30} Thus says the Lord: Write: this man is barren; he is a man who will not prosper in his days. For there will not be a man from among his offspring who will sit upon the throne of David, or have authority in Judah, anymore.”
{23:1} “Woe to the shepherds who scatter and tear apart the sheep of my pasture, says the Lord.
{23:2} Because of this, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to the shepherds who pasture my people: You have scattered my flock, and you have driven them away, and you have not visited them. Behold, I will visit upon you because of your evil pursuits, says the Lord.
{23:3} And I will gather together the remnant of my flock from the entire earth, from the places to which I had cast them out. And I will return them to their own fields. And they will increase and be multiplied.
{23:4} And I will raise up shepherds over them, and they will pasture them. They will no longer dread, and they will no longer fear. And no one among their number will be seeking more, says the Lord.
{23:5} Behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when I will raise up to David a righteous branch. And a king will reign, and he will be wise. And he will exercise judgment and justice upon the earth.
{23:6} In those days, Judah will be saved, and Israel will live in confidence. And this is the name that they will call him: ‘The Lord, our Just One.’
{23:7} Because of this, behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when they will no longer say, ‘As the Lord lives, who led the sons of Israel away from the land of Egypt,’
{23:8} but instead, ‘As the Lord lives, who led away and brought back the offspring of the house of Israel from the land of the north and from the entire earth,’ from the places to which I had cast them out. And they will live in their own land.”
{23:9} To the prophets: “My heart is crushed within me. All my bones are trembling. I have become like an inebriated man, and like a man maddened by wine, before the face of the Lord, and before the face of his holy words.
{23:10} For the earth is full of adulterers! And the earth has mourned before the face of evil talk. The plains of the desert have dried up, and their course has become hazardous, and their firmness has become uneven.”
{23:11} “For both the prophet and the priest have become polluted, and I have found their wickedness within my own house, says the Lord.
{23:12} For this reason, their way will be like a slippery path in the dark. For they will be impelled forward, and they will fall in it. For I will bring evils over them, in the year of their visitation, says the Lord.
{23:13} And I have seen the foolishness of the prophets of Samaria. They have prophesied in Baal, and they have deceived my people Israel.
{23:14} And in the prophets of Jerusalem, I have seen the likeness of adulterers and the path of falsehood. And they have strengthened the hands of the wicked, so that each one would not convert from his malice. They have all become to me like Sodom, and its inhabitants have become like Gomorrah.”
{23:15} Because of this, thus says the Lord of hosts to the prophets: “Behold, I will feed them absinthe, and I will give them gall to drink. For from the prophets of Jerusalem corruption has gone forth over the entire earth.”
{23:16} Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Do not choose to listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you and deceive you. They speak a vision from their own heart, and not from the mouth of the Lord.
{23:17} To those who blaspheme me, they say: ‘The Lord has said: You shall have peace.’ And to everyone who walks in the depravity of his own heart, they have said: ‘No evil will overwhelm you.’ ”
{23:18} For who has been present in the counsel of the Lord, and who has seen and heard his word? Who has considered his word and heard it?
{23:19} Behold, the whirlwind of the Lord’s indignation will go forth, and a tempest will break out; it will overwhelm the head of the impious.
{23:20} The fury of the Lord will not return until it succeeds, and until it completes the plan of his heart. In the last days, you will understand this counsel.
{23:21} “I did not send these prophets, yet they hurry forward. I was not speaking to them, yet they were prophesying.
{23:22} If they had stood in my counsel, and if I had made my words known to my people, certainly I would have turned them away from their evil ways and from their most wicked plans.
{23:23} Do you not realize that I am a God close by, says the Lord, and not a God far away?
{23:24} If a man is hidden in concealed places, do I not see him, says the Lord? Do I not fill up heaven and earth, says the Lord?
{23:25} I have heard what the prophets have said, prophesying falsehoods in my name, and also saying: ‘I have dreamed! I have dreamed!’
{23:26} How long will this be in the heart of the prophets who predict what is false, and who prophesy deceptions from their own heart?
{23:27} They want to cause my people to forget my name, by means of their dreams, which each of them describes to his neighbor, just as their fathers forgot my name for the sake of Baal.
{23:28} The prophet who has had a dream, let him describe the dream. And he who receives my word, let him speak my word in truth. For what has the chaff to do with the wheat, says the Lord?
{23:29} Are not my words like a fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer crushing rock?
{23:30} Therefore, behold: I am against the prophets, says the Lord, who steal my words, each one from his neighbor.
{23:31} Behold, I am against the prophets, says the Lord, who take up their tongues and say: ‘The Lord says it.’
{23:32} Behold, I am against the prophets, who dream what is false, says the Lord; who explain and so seduce my people with their falsehoods and with their miracles, though I did not send them, nor did I command them. They have offered nothing beneficial to this people, says the Lord.
{23:33} Therefore, if this people, or a prophet, or a priest questions you, saying, ‘What is the burden of the Lord?’ you shall say to them, ‘You are the burden. And certainly I will cast you away, says the Lord.’
{23:34} And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people who say, ‘The burden of the Lord!’ I will visit upon that man and upon his house.
{23:35} And then you will speak in this way, each one to his neighbor and to his brother: ‘What has the Lord answered? And what has the Lord said?’
{23:36} And the burden of the Lord will no longer be called to mind. For each one’s own word will be a burden. For you have perverted the words of the living God, of the Lord of hosts, our God.
{23:37} And then you will speak in this way to the prophet: ‘What has the Lord answered you? And what has the Lord spoken?’
{23:38} But if you say, ‘The burden of the Lord!’ then because of this, thus says the Lord: Since you have spoken this word, ‘The burden of the Lord!’ though I sent to you telling you not to say: ‘The burden of the Lord,’
{23:39} because of this, behold, I will take you away, like a burden, and I will forsake you, as well as the city that I gave to you and to your fathers, before my face.
{23:40} And I will give you over to an everlasting reproach and an eternal disgrace, which shall never be wiped away into oblivion.”
{24:1} The Lord revealed to me, and behold, two baskets full of figs were set before the temple of the Lord, after Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, carried away Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and his leaders, and the craftsmen and engravers of Jerusalem, and led them into Babylon.
{24:2} One basket had exceedingly good figs, like the figs usually found early in the season, and the other basket had exceedingly bad figs, which could not be eaten because they were so bad.
{24:3} And the Lord said to me: “What do you see, Jeremiah?” And I said: “Figs: the good figs are very good, and the bad figs are very bad and cannot be eaten because they are so bad.”
{24:4} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{24:5} “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Just like these good figs, so will I regard as good the captives of Judah, whom I have sent from this place into the land of the Chaldeans.
{24:6} And I will set my eyes upon them, so as to be pleased. And I will lead them back into this land. And I will build them up, and I will not tear them down. And I will plant them, and I will not uproot them.
{24:7} And I will give them a heart, so that they may know me, that I am the Lord. And they will be my people, and I will be their God. For they shall return to me with their whole heart.
{24:8} And just like the very bad figs, which cannot be eaten because they are so bad, thus says the Lord: so will I regard Zedekiah, the king of Judah, and his leaders, and the rest of Jerusalem, those who have remained in this city, and those who are living in the land of Egypt.
{24:9} And I will give them over, with upheaval and affliction, to all the kingdoms of the earth: to be a disgrace, and a parable, and a proverb, and a curse in all the places to which I have cast them out.
{24:10} And I will send among them the sword, and famine, and pestilence: until they have been worn away from the land, which I gave to them and to their fathers.”
{25:1} The word that came to Jeremiah about all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah. The same is the first year of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon.
{25:2} And the prophet Jeremiah spoke to all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying:
{25:3} “From the thirteenth year of Josiah, the son of Amon, the king of Judah, even until this day, which is the twenty-third year, the word of the Lord has been given to me, and I have spoken to you, rising while it was still night, and speaking, and yet you have not listened.
{25:4} And the Lord has sent to you all his servants, the prophets, rising at first light, and sending, and yet you have not listened, and you have not inclined your ears, so that you would hear,
{25:5} when he said: Return, each one from his evil way, and from your wicked thoughts. And you shall dwell in the land, which the Lord has given to you and to your fathers, from ancient times and even forever.
{25:6} And do not choose to go after strange gods, so that you would serve them and adore them. And do not provoke me to wrath by the works of your hands. And then I will not afflict you.
{25:7} And yet you have not listened to me, says the Lord, and so you have provoked me to anger with the works of your hands, to your own harm.”
{25:8} Because of this, thus says the Lord of hosts: “Since you have not listened to my words,
{25:9} behold, I will send for and take all the associates of the north, says the Lord, and Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will lead them over this land, and over its inhabitants, and over all the nations that are around it. And I will destroy them, and I will set them in the midst of stupor and hissing, and continual desolations.
{25:10} And I will perish from them the voice of gladness and the voice of rejoicing, the voice of the groom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstone and the light of the lamp.
{25:11} And this entire land will be in desolation and in stupor. And all these nations will serve the king of Babylon, for seventy years.
{25:12} And when the seventy years have been completed, I will visit their iniquity upon the king of Babylon, and upon that nation, and upon the land of the Chaldeans, says the Lord. And I will set it in continual desolations.
{25:13} And I will lead over that land all my words, which I have spoken against it, all that has been written in this book, everything whatsoever that Jeremiah has prophesied against all the nations.
{25:14} For they have served them, though these were populous nations and great kings. And I will repay them according to their works and according to the deeds of their hands.”
{25:15} For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Take the chalice of the wine of this fury from my hand. And you shall cause all the nations, to which I will send you, to drink from it.
{25:16} And they will drink, and be stirred up, and become maddened, before the face of the sword that I will send among them.”
{25:17} And I received the chalice from the hand of the Lord, and I caused all the nations, to which the Lord has sent me, to drink from it:
{25:18} Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and its kings, and its leaders, so that I gave them over to desolation, and stupor, and hissing, and a curse, just as it is this day.
{25:19} “But as for Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and his servants, and his leaders, and all his people,
{25:20} and the entire populace in general: all the kings of the land of the south, and all the kings of the land of the Philistines, and Ashkelon, and Gaza, and Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod,
{25:21} and Idumea, and Moab, and the sons of Ammon,
{25:22} and all the kings of Tyre, and all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the land of the islands that are across the sea,
{25:23} and Dedan, and Tema, and Buz, and all those who have shaved off their hair,
{25:24} and all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the west, who live in the desert,
{25:25} and all the kings of Zimri, and all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of Media,
{25:26} and likewise, all the kings of the north from near to far, each one facing his brother, and all the kingdoms upon the face of the earth, and the king of Sesac: all these shall drink after them.
{25:27} And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Drink, and be inebriated, and vomit, and fall down. And you shall not rise up before the face of the sword that I will send among you.
{25:28} And if they refuse to receive the cup from your hand and to drink, you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord of hosts: Certainly, you shall drink!
{25:29} For behold, I am beginning to afflict the city in which my name has been invoked, and will you be innocent and immune? You will not be immune! For I will call the sword over all the inhabitants of the earth, says the Lord of hosts.
{25:30} And you shall prophesy to them all these words, and you shall say to them: The Lord will roar from on high, and he will utter his voice from his holy habitation. When roaring, he will roar over the place of his beauty. He will call out, like those who chant in rhythm as they trample the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.
{25:31} The sound of it will penetrate even to the ends of the earth. For the Lord is entering into judgment with the nations. He himself is entering into judgment with all flesh. I have delivered the impious to the sword, says the Lord.”
{25:32} Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Behold, an affliction will go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind will go forth from the ends of the earth.
{25:33} And the slain of the Lord will be, on that day, from one end of the earth, even to the other end. They will not be mourned, and they will not be gathered, and they will not be buried. They will lie upon the face of the earth like dung.
{25:34} Wail, O shepherds, and cry out! And sprinkle yourselves with ashes, O nobles of the flock! For the days have been completed that lead to your slaughter and your destruction. And you will fall like precious vessels.
{25:35} And escape will flee from the shepherds, and safety will flee from the nobility of the flock.”
{25:36} There is a voice of outcry from the shepherds, and a wailing among the nobles among the flock! For the Lord has laid waste to their pastures.
{25:37} And the fields of peace have been silenced before the face of the fury of the Lord.
{25:38} He has abandoned those he sheltered like a lion. For the earth has become a desolation before the face of the anger of the dove, and before the face of the fury of the Lord.
{26:1} In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, this word came from the Lord, saying:
{26:2} “Thus says the Lord: Stand in the atrium of the house of the Lord, and speak to all the cities of Judah, from which they come to adore in the house of the Lord, all the words that I have commanded you to speak to them. Do not choose to subtract any word.
{26:3} So may they hear and be converted, each one from his evil way. And then I may repent of the evil that I plan to do to them because of the wickedness of their pursuits.
{26:4} And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord: If you will not listen to me, so that you walk in my law, which I have given to you,
{26:5} so that you listen to the words of my servants, the prophets, whom I have sent to you, who arise while it is still night, and though they give guidance, you do not listen,
{26:6} then I will make this house like Shiloh, and I will make this city into a curse for all the nations of the earth.”
{26:7} And the priests, and the prophets, and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord.
{26:8} And when Jeremiah had completed speaking all that the Lord had instructed him to speak to all the people, then the priests, and the prophets, and all the people apprehended him, saying: “You shall be put to death.”
{26:9} “Why has he prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying: ‘Like Shiloh, so shall this house be,’ and, ‘This city shall be made desolate, even without an inhabitant?’ ” And all the people were gathered together against Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.
{26:10} And the leaders of Judah heard these words. And they ascended from the house of the king to the house of the Lord, and they sat at the entrance by the new gate of the house of the Lord.
{26:11} And the priests and the prophets spoke to the leaders and to all the people, saying: “A judgment of death is for this man. For he has prophesied against this city, just as you have heard with your own ears.”
{26:12} And Jeremiah spoke to all the leaders and to the entire people, saying: “The Lord has sent me to prophesy, about this house and about this city, all the words that you have heard.
{26:13} Now, therefore, make your ways and your intentions good, and heed the voice of the Lord your God. And then the Lord will repent of the evil that he has spoken against you.
{26:14} But as for me, behold, I am in your hands. Do to me what is good and right in your eyes.
{26:15} Yet truly, know and understand this: if you kill me, you will be bringing innocent blood against yourselves, and against this city and its inhabitants. For in truth, the Lord sent me to you, so as to speak all these words in your hearing.”
{26:16} And then the leaders and all the people said to the priests and to the prophets: “There is no judgment of death against this man. For he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God.”
{26:17} Then some of the elders of the land rose up. And they spoke to the entire assembly of the people, saying:
{26:18} “Micah from Moresheth was a prophet in the days of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, and he spoke to all the people of Judah, saying: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: Zion will be ploughed like a field. And Jerusalem will be a pile of stones. And the mountain of the house will be like the forests of high places.’
{26:19} Did the king of Judah, Hezekiah, with all of Judah, condemn him to death? Did they not fear the Lord, and petition the face of the Lord? And so the Lord repented of the evil that he had spoken against them. Therefore, we are committing a great evil against our own souls.
{26:20} Likewise, there was a man prophesying in the name of the Lord: Uriah, the son of Shemaiah, of Kiriath-jearim. And he prophesied against this city and against this land, in accord with all the words of Jeremiah.
{26:21} And king Jehoiakim, with all his warriors and leaders, heard these words. And so the king sought to put him to death. And Uriah heard, and was afraid, and fled, and he entered into Egypt.
{26:22} And king Jehoiakim sent men into Egypt: Elnathan, the son of Achbor, and the men who went with him into Egypt.
{26:23} And they led Uriah out of Egypt. And they brought him to king Jehoiakim, and he struck him down with the sword. And he cast his dead body among the graves of the common people.”
{26:24} But the hand of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, was with Jeremiah, so that he would not be delivered into the hands of the people, and so that they would not put him to death.
{27:1} In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying:
{27:2} “Thus says the Lord to me: Make bands and chains for yourself. And you shall place them on your neck.
{27:3} And you shall send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the sons of Ammon, and to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Sidon, by the hand of the messengers who came to Jerusalem, to Zedekiah, the king of Judah.
{27:4} And you shall instruct them to say to their masters: Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: You shall say these things to your masters:
{27:5} I made the earth, and the men and beasts which are upon the face of the earth, by my great strength and by my outstretched arm. And I have given it to whomever it was pleasing in my eyes.
{27:6} And now, therefore, I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant. Moreover, I have given to him also the beasts of the field, so that they may serve him.
{27:7} And all the nations will serve him, and his son, and his son’s son. Many nations and great kings will serve him, until the time arrives for him and his land.
{27:8} But the nation or kingdom that will not serve Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and whoever will not bend his neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, I will visit upon that nation with the sword, and with famine, and with pestilence, says the Lord, until I consume them by his hand.
{27:9} Therefore, you should not choose to listen to your own prophets, and diviners, and dreamers, and soothsayers, and sorcerers, who say to you: ‘You shall not serve the king of Babylon.’
{27:10} For they prophesy lies to you, so that they may cause you to be far from your own country, and may cast you out, and may cause you to perish.
{27:11} Furthermore, the nation which will bend its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and which will serve him, I will permit them to remain in their own land, says the Lord. And they will cultivate it, and they will live in it.”
{27:12} And I spoke to Zedekiah, the king of Judah, according to all these words, saying: “Subject your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and you will live.
{27:13} Why should you suffer death, you and your people, by the sword, and famine, and pestilence, just as the Lord has spoken against any nation that refuses to serve the king of Babylon?
{27:14} Do not choose to listen to the words of the prophets, saying to you: ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon.’ For they are speaking a lie to you.
{27:15} For I have not sent them, says the Lord. And they prophesy falsely in my name, so that they may cast you out, and so that you may perish, both you and the prophets who make predictions for you.”
{27:16} I spoke also to the priests and to this people, saying: “Thus says the Lord: Do not choose to listen to the words of your prophets, who prophesy to you, saying: ‘Behold, the vessels of the Lord will now quickly be returned from Babylon.’ For they are prophesying to you a lie.
{27:17} Therefore, do not choose to listen to them, but instead, serve the king of Babylon, so that you may live. Why should this city be given over into desolation?
{27:18} But if they are prophets, and if the word of the Lord is in them, then let them intercede before the Lord of hosts, so that the vessels that were left behind in the house of the Lord, and in the house of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem, may not go to Babylon.
{27:19} For thus says the Lord of hosts to the pillars, and to the sea of brass, and to the bases, and to the remainder of the vessels that have been left behind in this city,
{27:20} which Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, did not take when he carried away Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, from Jerusalem into Babylon, with all the nobility of Judah and Jerusalem:
{27:21} For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to the vessels that were left behind in the house of the Lord and in the house of the king of Judah and Jerusalem:
{27:22} They shall be carried away to Babylon, and there they shall be, until the day of their visitation, says the Lord. And then I will cause them to be carried back, and to be restored to this place.
{28:1} And it happened in that year, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah, the king of Judah, in the fourth year, in the fifth month, that Hananiah, the son of Azur, the prophet from Gibeon, spoke to me, in the house of the Lord, in the sight of the priests and all the people, saying:
{28:2} “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon.
{28:3} There are still two years of days, and then I will cause to be carried back to this place all the vessels of the house of the Lord that Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, took from this place and carried away to Babylon.
{28:4} And I will return to this place: Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, and all those taken captive from Judah, who were brought into Babylon, says the Lord. For I will crush the yoke of the king of Babylon.”
{28:5} And Jeremiah the prophet spoke to Hananiah the prophet, before the eyes of the priests and before the eyes of all the people who were standing in the house of the Lord.
{28:6} And Jeremiah the prophet said: “Amen, may the Lord accomplish this; may the Lord act upon your words, which you have prophesied, so that the vessels may be carried back to the house of the Lord, and so that all those taken captive may return from Babylon to this place.
{28:7} Yet truly, listen to this word, which I am speaking to your ears and to the ears of all the people.
{28:8} The prophets, who were before me and before you, from the beginning, have prophesied over many lands and over great kingdoms, about war, and about affliction, and about famine.
{28:9} The prophet who has predicted peace, if his word will occur, then the prophet will be known as one whom the Lord has sent in truth.”
{28:10} And Hananiah the prophet took the chain from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet, and he broke it.
{28:11} And Hananiah spoke in the sight of all the people, saying: “Thus says the Lord: So shall I break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, after two years of days, from the neck of all the people.”
{28:12} And Jeremiah the prophet went his own way. And after Hananiah the prophet had broken the chain from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying:
{28:13} “Go, and you shall say to Hananiah: Thus says the Lord: You have broken chains of wood, and so you will make for them chains of iron.
{28:14} For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: I have placed a yoke of iron on the neck of all these nations, so that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon. And they shall serve him. Moreover, I have given to him even the beasts of the earth.”
{28:15} And Jeremiah the prophet said to Hananiah the prophet: “Listen, Hananiah! The Lord has not sent you, and so you have caused this people to trust in a lie.
{28:16} For this reason, thus says the Lord: Behold, I will send you away from the face of the earth. This year, you shall die. For you have spoken against the Lord.”
{28:17} And Hananiah the prophet died in that year, in the seventh month.
{29:1} And these are the words of the letter which Jeremiah, the prophet, sent from Jerusalem to the remnant of the elders of the transmigration, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had led away from Jerusalem to Babylon,
{29:2} after king Jeconiah, with the queen, and the eunuchs, and the leaders of Judah and of Jerusalem, and the craftsmen and engravers, had departed from Jerusalem.
{29:3} It was sent by the hand of Elasah, the son of Shaphan, and by Gemariah, the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah, the king of Judah, sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, saying:
{29:4} “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all who have been taken away, whom I have caused to be transferred from Jerusalem to Babylon:
{29:5} Build houses and live in them. And plant gardens, and eat from their fruit.
{29:6} Take wives, and conceive sons and daughters. And give wives to your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, and let them bear sons and daughters. And be multiplied there, and do not choose to be few in number.
{29:7} And seek the peace of the city, to which I have caused you to be taken away, and pray to the Lord on its behalf. For your peace will be in its peace.
{29:8} For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not allow your prophets and your diviners, who are in your midst, to seduce you. And you should pay no attention to your dreams, which you are dreaming.
{29:9} For they prophesy falsely to you in my name, and I have not sent them, says the Lord.
{29:10} For thus says the Lord: When the seventy years will begin to be completed in Babylon, I will visit you. And I will raise up over you my good word, so that I may lead you back to this place.
{29:11} For I know the thoughts that I think over you, says the Lord: thoughts of peace and not of affliction, so that I may give you patience and an end.
{29:12} And you shall call upon me, and you shall go forth. And you shall pray to me, and I will heed you.
{29:13} You shall seek me. And you will find me, when you have sought me with your whole heart.
{29:14} And I will be found by you, says the Lord. And I will lead you back from your captivity. And I will gather you from all the nations and all the places, to which I have expelled you, says the Lord. And I will return you from the place to which I sent you into captivity.
{29:15} For you have said: ‘The Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylon.’
{29:16} For thus says the Lord, to the king who sits upon the throne of David, and to all the people who live in this city, to your brothers who have not departed with you in the transmigration:
{29:17} Thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will send among them the sword, and famine, and pestilence. And I will make them like the bad figs, which cannot be eaten, because they are very bad.
{29:18} And I will pursue them with the sword, and with famine, and with pestilence. And I will give them over to affliction, amid all the kingdoms of the earth: as a curse, and in stupor, and with hissing, and as a disgrace among all the nations to which I have driven them out.
{29:19} For they have not listened to my words, says the Lord, which I sent to them through my servants, the prophets, rising while it was still night, and sending. But you have not listened, says the Lord.
{29:20} Therefore, listen to the word of the Lord, all you of the transmigration, whom I have sent away from Jerusalem into Babylon.
{29:21} Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to Ahab, the son of Kolaiah, and to Zedekiah, the son of Maaseiah, who prophesy falsely to you in my name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and he will strike them down before your eyes.
{29:22} And a curse will be taken up about them, by all the captives of Judah that are in Babylon, saying: ‘May the Lord make you like Zedekiah, and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon fried in the fire!’
{29:23} For they have acted foolishly in Israel, and they have committed adultery with the wives of their friends, and they have spoken lying words in my name, which I did not command them. I am the Judge and the Witness, says the Lord.
{29:24} And to Shemaiah of Nehelam, you shall say:
{29:25} Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Similarly, you have sent letters in your name to all the people that are in Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah, the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and to all the priests, saying:
{29:26} ‘The Lord has made you priest in place of Jehoiada, the priest, so that you would be the ruler in the house of the Lord over every man who raves and prophesies, to send him to the stocks and to prison.
{29:27} And now why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth, who prophesies to you?
{29:28} For about this, he has sent to us in Babylon, saying: It is a long time. Build houses and live in them. And plant gardens, and eat from their fruits.’ ”
{29:29} Thus, Zephaniah, the priest, read this letter, in the hearing of Jeremiah the prophet.
{29:30} And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying:
{29:31} “Send to all those of the transmigration, saying: Thus says the Lord to Shemaiah of Nehelam: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, though I did not send him, and because he has caused you to trust in a lie:
{29:32} For this reason, thus says the Lord: Behold, I will visit upon Shemaiah of Nehelam, and upon his offspring. There will not be, for him, even one man sitting in the midst of this people. And he will not see the good that I will accomplish for my people, says the Lord. For he has spoken a betrayal against the Lord.”
{30:1} This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying:
{30:2} “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, saying: You shall write in a book all the words that I have spoken to you.
{30:3} For behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when I will convert the turning away of my people, Israel and Judah, says the Lord. And I will return them to the land which I gave to their fathers, and they will possess it.”
{30:4} And these are the words which the Lord has spoken to Israel and to Judah:
{30:5} For thus says the Lord: ‘We have heard a voice of terror. There is dread, and there is no peace.’
{30:6} Inquire and see, does a male give birth? Then why have I seen every man with his hand on his lower back, like a woman bearing a child? And why have all of their faces turned pale?
{30:7} Woe! For that day is great, and there is nothing like it. For it is the time of tribulation for Jacob, but he will be saved from it.
{30:8} And this shall be in that day, says the Lord of hosts: I will crush his yoke from your neck, and I will break open his bands. And strangers will no longer rule over him.
{30:9} Instead, they will serve the Lord their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.
{30:10} Therefore, O my servant Jacob, you should not be afraid, says the Lord, and you should not be frightened, O Israel. For behold, I will save you from a far away land, and your offspring from the land of their captivity. And Jacob will return and have rest, and he shall flow with every good thing. And there will be no one for him to dread.
{30:11} For I am with you, says the Lord, so that I may save you. For I will bring about the consummation of all the nations, among which I have scattered you. But I will not bring about your consummation. Instead, I will chastise you in judgment, so that you will not seem innocent to yourself.”
{30:12} For thus says the Lord: “Your fracture is incurable; your wound is very serious.
{30:13} There is no one who may judge your judgment, so as to bandage it; there is no useful treatment for you.
{30:14} All your lovers have forgotten you, and they will not seek you. For I have wounded you with the strike of an enemy, with a cruel chastisement. Your sins have become hardened because of the multitude of your iniquities.
{30:15} Why do you cry out over your affliction? Your pain is incurable. I have done these things to you because of the multitude of your iniquity and because of your hardened sins.
{30:16} Because of this, all those who devour you, will be devoured. And all your enemies will be led into captivity. And those who devastate you, will be devastated. And all those who prey upon you, I will offer as a prey.
{30:17} For I will close up your scar, and I will heal you of your wounds, says the Lord. For they have called you an outcast, O Zion: ‘This is she who has no one asking for her.’ ”
{30:18} Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will turn back the turning away of the tabernacles of Jacob, and I will take pity on his roofs. And the city will be built up in her heights, and the temple will be founded according to its order.
{30:19} And praise will go forth from them, with the voice of those who play. And I will multiply them, and they will not be lessened. And I will glorify them, and they will not be weakened.
{30:20} And their sons will be as in the beginning. And their assembly will remain in my sight. And I will visit against all those who trouble them.
{30:21} And their ruler will be one of their own. And their prince will be led forward from their midst. And I will draw him near, and he will cling to me. For who is the one who applies his heart, so that he may draw near to me, says the Lord?
{30:22} And you shall be my people, and I will be your God.”
{30:23} Behold the whirlwind of the Lord, his fury going forth, a destroying storm! It will rest upon the head of the impious.
{30:24} The Lord will not turn back the wrath of his indignation, until he has accomplished and completed the plan of his heart. In the last days, you shall understand these things.
{31:1} “In that time, says the Lord, I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they will be my people.”
{31:2} Thus says the Lord: “The people who had remained after the sword, found grace in the desert. Israel will go to his rest.”
{31:3} The Lord appeared to me from a distance: “And I have loved you in perpetual charity. Therefore, showing pity, I have drawn you.
{31:4} And I will build you up again. And you shall be built up, O virgin of Israel. Still shall you be adorned with your timbrels, and still shall you go forth to the singing of those who play.
{31:5} Still shall you plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria. The planters will plant, and they will not gather the vintage until the time arrives.
{31:6} For there will be a day on which the guardians on mount Ephraim will cry out: ‘Arise! And let us ascend on Zion to the Lord our God!’ ”
{31:7} For thus says the Lord: “Exult in the joy of Jacob, and neigh before the head of the Gentiles. Shout, and sing, and say: ‘O Lord, save your people, the remnant of Israel!’
{31:8} Behold, I will lead them from the land of the north, and I will gather them from the ends of the earth. Among them will be the blind and the lame, she who is with child, together with she who is giving birth: a great assembly returning to this place.
{31:9} They will approach with weeping. And I will lead them back with mercy. And I will lead them through the torrents of water, by an upright way, and they will not stumble in it. For I have become Father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn.”
{31:10} Listen to the word of the Lord, O Gentiles, and announce it amid the islands that are far away, and say: “Whoever has scattered Israel will gather him, and he will guard him as a shepherd guards his flock.”
{31:11} For the Lord has redeemed Jacob, and he has freed him from the hand of one more powerful.
{31:12} And they will arrive and give praise on Mount Zion. And they will flow together, to the good things of the Lord, over grain, and wine, and oil, and the offspring of cattle and herds. And their soul will be like an irrigated garden, and they will no longer be hungry.
{31:13} Then the virgin will rejoice with singing, the young and the old together, and I will turn their mourning into gladness, and I will console them and gladden them after their sorrow.
{31:14} And I will inebriate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people will be filled with my good things, says the Lord.”
{31:15} Thus says the Lord: “A voice has been heard on high: of lamentation, mourning, and weeping; of Rachel crying for her sons and refusing to be consoled over them, because they are not.”
{31:16} Thus says the Lord: “Let your voice cease from crying and your eyes from tears. For there is a reward for your work, says the Lord. And they will return from the land of the enemy.
{31:17} And there is hope for your very end, says the Lord. And the sons will return to their own borders.
{31:18} Listening, I heard Ephraim going into captivity: ‘You have chastised me, and I was instructed, like a young untamed bull. Convert me, and I shall be converted. For you are the Lord my God.
{31:19} For after you converted me, I did penance. And after you revealed to me, I struck my thigh. I am confounded and ashamed. For I have endured the disgrace of my youth.’
{31:20} Certainly, Ephraim is an honorable son to me; surely, he is a tender child. For I will still remember him, as in the time when I first spoke about him. Because my heart is stirred up over him, surely I will take pity on him, says the Lord.
{31:21} Establish a watchtower for yourself. Place yourself in bitterness. Direct your heart into the upright way, in which you used to walk. Return, return, O virgin of Israel, to these your cities!
{31:22} How long will you be absorbed in delights, O wandering daughter? For the Lord has created something new upon the earth: a woman will encompass a man.”
{31:23} Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Still they will speak this word in the land of Judah, and in its cities, when I will convert their captivity: ‘May the Lord bless you, the beauty of justice, the holy mountain.’
{31:24} And they will live in it: Judah together with all its cities, the farmer and those who drive the flocks.
{31:25} For I have inebriated the weary soul, and I have satisfied every hungry soul.
{31:26} Over this, I was awakened, as if from a deep sleep. And I saw, and my sleep became sweet to me.
{31:27} Behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the offspring of men and with the offspring of cattle.
{31:28} And just as I have watched over them, so that I may root up, and tear down, and scatter, and destroy, and afflict, so will I watch over them, so that I may build and plant them, says the Lord.
{31:29} In those days, they will no longer say: ‘The fathers ate a bitter grape, and the teeth of the sons have been affected.’
{31:30} Instead, each one will die for his own iniquity. Each man who will have eaten a bitter grape, his own teeth will be affected.
{31:31} Behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when I will form a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah,
{31:32} not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers, in the day when I took them by the hand, so as to lead them away from the land of Egypt, the covenant which they nullified, though I was the ruler over them, says the Lord.
{31:33} But this will be the covenant that I will form with the house of Israel, after those days, says the Lord: I will give my law to their inner most being, and I will write it upon their heart. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
{31:34} And they will no longer teach, a man his neighbor, and a man his brother, saying: ‘Know the Lord.’ For all will know me, from the littlest of them even to the greatest, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will no longer remember their sin.
{31:35} Thus says the Lord, who gives the sun as the light of the day, who puts the moon and the stars in order as the light of the night, who stirs up the sea and makes its waves roar: the Lord of hosts is his name.
{31:36} If these laws fail in my sight, says the Lord, then the offspring of Israel will also fail, so that they will not be a people in my sight for all time.”
{31:37} Thus says the Lord: “If the heavens above are able to be measured, and if the foundations of the earth beneath can be examined, I also will cast aside all the offspring of Israel, because of all that they have done, says the Lord.
{31:38} Behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when a city will be built for the Lord from the tower of Hananel, even to the Gate of the Corner;
{31:39} and the measuring line will go on even further in his sight, over the hill of Gareb, and it will encircle Goah
{31:40} and the entire Valley of dead bodies and ashes, and the entire region of death, even to the torrent of Kedron, and to the corner of the Horse Gate to the east. All this will be the holy place of the Lord. It will not be rooted up, and it will not be torn down, anymore, forever.”
{32:1} The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of Zedekiah, the king of Judah. The same is the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar.
{32:2} It was then that the army of the king of Babylon besieged Jerusalem. And Jeremiah, the prophet, was confined to the atrium of the prison, which was in the house of the king of Judah.
{32:3} For Zedekiah, the king of Judah, had confined him, saying: “Why do you make predictions, saying: ‘Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it?
{32:4} And Zedekiah, the king of Judah, will not escape from the hand of the Chaldeans. Instead, he will be delivered into the hands of the king of Babylon. And he will speak to him, mouth to mouth, and he will see him, eye to eye.
{32:5} And he will lead Zedekiah to Babylon. And he will be there until I visit him, says the Lord. So then, if you contend against the Chaldeans, you will have no success.’ ”
{32:6} And Jeremiah said: “The word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{32:7} Behold, Hanamel, the son of Shallum, your cousin, will come to you, saying: ‘Buy for yourself my field, which is in Anathoth. For it is your right, as next of kin, to buy it.’
{32:8} And in accord with the word of the Lord, Hanamel, the son of my uncle, came to me, to the entrance of the prison, and he said to me: ‘Take possession of my field, which is in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. For the right of inheritance is yours, and as the next of kin you may possess it.’ Then I understood that this was the word of the Lord.
{32:9} And I bought the field, which is in Anathoth, from Hanamel, the son of my uncle. And I weighed out the money to him, seven small coins and ten pieces of silver.
{32:10} And I wrote it in a book and signed it, and I summoned witnesses. And I weighed out the silver on a scale.
{32:11} And I received the signed deed of possession, and the stipulations, and the ratifications, with the exterior seals.
{32:12} And I gave the deed of possession to Baruch, the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the sight of Hanamel, the son of my uncle, in the sight of the witnesses who had been recorded in the book of the purchase, and in the sight of all the Jews who were sitting in the atrium of the prison.
{32:13} And I instructed Baruch, in their sight, saying:
{32:14} Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Take these writings, this sealed deed of purchase, and this deed which is open, and place them in an earthen vessel, so that they will be preserved for many days.’
{32:15} For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Houses, and fields, and vineyards will be possessed still, in this land.’
{32:16} And after I had delivered the deed of possession to Baruch, the son of Neri, I prayed to the Lord, saying:
{32:17} Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God! Behold, you have made heaven and earth, by your great strength and by your outstretched arm. No word is difficult for you.
{32:18} You act with mercy a thousand-fold, but you repay the iniquity of the fathers into the sinews of their sons after them. The Lord of hosts is your name: most strong, great, and powerful!
{32:19} You are great in counsel and incomprehensible in thought. Your eyes are open upon all the ways of the sons of Adam, so that you may repay each one according to his ways and according to the fruit of his intentions.
{32:20} You caused signs and portents in the land of Egypt, and in Israel, and among men, even until this day. And you have made a name for yourself, just as in this day.
{32:21} And you have led your people Israel away from the land of Egypt, with signs and portents, and with a robust hand and an outstretched arm, and with great terror.
{32:22} And you have given them this land, which you swore, to their fathers, that you would give to them, a land flowing with milk and honey.
{32:23} And they entered it and possessed it. But they did not obey your voice, and they did not walk in your law. And they did not do all of the things that you commanded them to do. And so, all of these evils have happened to them.
{32:24} Behold, fortifications were built against the city, so as to capture it. And the city was given into the hands of the Chaldeans, who fight against it, before the face of the sword, and of famine, and of pestilence. And what you have spoken has occurred, just as you yourself discern.
{32:25} So why, O Lord God, are you saying to me: ‘Buy a field with money, and summon witnesses,’ while the city is being given into the hands of the Chaldeans?”
{32:26} And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying:
{32:27} “Behold, I am the Lord God; I am above all flesh. Can any word be difficult for me?
{32:28} Therefore, thus says the Lord: Behold, I will deliver this city into the hands of the Chaldeans, and into the hands of the king of Babylon, and they will capture it.
{32:29} And the Chaldeans fighting against this city will advance, and set fire to it, and burn it, along with the houses on whose roofs they were offering sacrifice to Baal and were pouring out libations to strange gods, so that they provoked me to wrath.
{32:30} For the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah, from their youth, have continually done evil in my eyes. The sons of Israel, even until now, have been provoking me with the work of their hands, says the Lord.
{32:31} For this city has been a cause of fury and indignation to me, from the day when they built it, until this day, in which it will be taken away from my sight,
{32:32} because of all the wickedness of the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah, which they have done, provoking me to wrath, they and their kings, their leaders and their priests and their prophets, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
{32:33} And they have turned their backs to me, and not their faces. And though I taught them and instructed them, rising at first light, they were not willing to listen, so that they would receive discipline.
{32:34} And they have placed their idols in the house where my name is invoked, so that they defiled it.
{32:35} And they have built the exalted places of Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, so that they may initiate their sons and their daughters into Molech, though I did not command, nor did it enter into my heart, that they should do this abomination, and so lead Judah into sin.
{32:36} And now, because of these things, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to this city, about which you say that it will be delivered into the hands of the king of Babylon by the sword, and by famine, and by pestilence:
{32:37} Behold, I will gather them together from all the lands to which I have cast them out in my fury, and in my wrath, and in my great indignation. And I will lead them back to this place, and I will cause them to live in confidence.
{32:38} And they will be my people, and I will be their God.
{32:39} And I will give to them one heart and one way, so that they may fear me all their days, and so that it may be well with them, and with their sons after them.
{32:40} And I will form an everlasting covenant with them, and I will not cease to do good for them. And I will put my fear into their heart, so that they do not withdraw from me.
{32:41} And I will rejoice over them, while I do good for them. And I will plant them in this land, in truth, with my whole heart and with my whole soul.
{32:42} For thus says the Lord: Just as I have led over this people all this great evil, so will I lead over them all the good that I am speaking to them now.
{32:43} And fields will be possessed in this land, about which you say that it is desolate because there remains neither man nor beast, and because it has been given into the hands of the Chaldeans.
{32:44} Fields will be bought for money, and deeds will be written and signed, and witnesses will be summoned, in the land of Benjamin and all around Jerusalem, in the cities of Judah, and in the cities on the mountains, and in the cities on the plains, and in the cities that are toward the south. For I will convert their captivity, says the Lord.”
{33:1} And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still confined to the atrium of the prison, saying:
{33:2} “Thus says the Lord, who will prepare, and form, and accomplish it; the Lord is his name.
{33:3} Cry out to me and I will heed you. And I will announce to you great things, things that are certain, though you do not know them.
{33:4} For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to the houses of this city, and to the houses of the king of Judah, which have been destroyed, and to the fortifications, and to the sword
{33:5} of those who have arrived, so that they may fight with the Chaldeans, and so that they may have their fill of the dead bodies of the men whom I have struck down in my fury and in my indignation, concealing my face from this city, because of all their wickedness:
{33:6} Behold, I will lead over them scars and health, and I will cure them. And I will reveal to them an invocation of peace and truth.
{33:7} And I will convert the turning away of Judah and the turning away of Jerusalem. And I will build them up, just as from the beginning.
{33:8} And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, by which they have sinned against me. And I will forgive all their iniquities, by which they have offended against me and have despised me.
{33:9} And this will be for me: a name, and a joy, and a praise, and an exultation, among all the nations of the earth who will hear about all the good things that I will accomplish for them. And they will be afraid and troubled over all these good things, and over all the peace, that I will accomplish for them.
{33:10} Thus says the Lord: Still shall there be heard in this place, (which you say is desolate, because there is neither man nor beast,) and in the cities of Judah and outside of Jerusalem, (which are desolate, without man, and without an inhabitant and without cattle,)
{33:11} the voice of gladness and the voice of rejoicing, the voice of the groom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who will say: ‘Confess to the Lord of hosts! For the Lord is good! For his mercy is eternal!’ and the voice of those fulfilling their vows in the house of the Lord. For I will lead back the turning away of the land, just as from the beginning, says the Lord.”
{33:12} Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Still shall there be in this place, (which is desolate without man and without beast,) and in all of its cities: a habitation for the shepherds giving rest to their flocks.
{33:13} For even in the cities on the mountains, and in the cities on the plains, and in the cities that are toward the south, and in the land of Benjamin, and all around Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, still shall the flocks travel by the hand of him who numbers them, says the Lord.
{33:14} Behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the good word that I have spoken to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.
{33:15} In those days and at that time, I will cause the seedling of justice to spring up from David, and he will accomplish judgment and justice upon the earth.
{33:16} In those days, Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will live in confidence. And this is the name that they will call him: ‘The Lord, our Just One.’
{33:17} For thus says the Lord: There shall not cease to be a man from David sitting upon the throne of the house of Israel.
{33:18} And there shall not cease to be a man from the priests and from the Levites before my face, who offers holocausts, and burns sacrifices, and kills victims, for days without end.”
{33:19} And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying:
{33:20} “Thus says the Lord: If my covenant with the day is able to be nullified, or my covenant with the night, such that there would be no day and no night in their time,
{33:21} then, too, my covenant with David, my servant, may be nullified, such that he would not have a son who reigns upon his throne, with both the Levites and the priests as my ministers.
{33:22} Just as the stars of heaven are not able to be numbered, and the sand of the sea is not able to be measured, so will I multiply the offspring of David, my servant, and the Levites, my ministers.”
{33:23} And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying:
{33:24} “Have you not seen what this people has spoken? They say: ‘The two families which the Lord had chosen have been rejected.’ And so they have despised my people, as if they were no longer a nation in their sight.
{33:25} Thus says the Lord: If I have not established my covenant with the day and the night, and my laws over heaven and earth,
{33:26} then truly I will also cast aside the offspring of Jacob, and of David, my servant, so that I do not take up any of his offspring to be leaders over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will lead back their turning away, and I will take pity on them.”
{34:1} The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, when Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and his entire army, and all the kingdoms of the earth that were under the authority of his hand, and all the people were making war against Jerusalem and against all of its cities, saying:
{34:2} “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Go, and speak to Zedekiah, the king of Judah. And you shall say to him: Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will deliver this city into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it with fire.
{34:3} And you will not escape from his hand. Instead, you will be overtaken and captured, and you will be delivered into his hand. And your eyes will see the eyes of the king of Babylon, and his mouth will speak with your mouth, and you will enter into Babylon.
{34:4} Even so, listen to the word of the Lord, Zedekiah, king of Judah: Thus says the Lord to you: You will not die by the sword.
{34:5} Instead, you will die in peace. And, in accord with the burnings of your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so will they burn you. And they will mourn you, saying: ‘Alas, lord!’ For I have spoken the word, says the Lord.”
{34:6} And Jeremiah, the prophet, spoke all these words to Zedekiah, the king of Judah, in Jerusalem.
{34:7} And the army of the king of Babylon fought against Jerusalem and against all the cities of Judah that remained, against Lachish and against Azekah. For only these remained out of the cities of Judah that were fortified cities.
{34:8} The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after king Zedekiah had struck a pact with all the people in Jerusalem, proclaiming
{34:9} that each one should release his man servant, and each one his woman servant, as a free Hebrew man and a free Hebrew woman, and that they should never be rulers over them, that is, over the Jews, their own brothers.
{34:10} Then all the leaders and all the people who entered into the pact, heard that each one should release his man servant, and each one his woman servant, to be free, and that they should no longer rule over them. Therefore, they listened, and they released them.
{34:11} But later on, they turned back. And they took back again their man servants and their woman servants, whom they had released to be free. And they subjugated them as male and female servants.
{34:12} And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying:
{34:13} “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I struck a pact with your fathers in the day when I led them away from the land of Egypt, from the house of servitude, saying:
{34:14} ‘When seven years have been completed, let each one release his brother, a Hebrew, who had been sold to him. And so he will serve you for six years, and then you shall release him to be free from you.’ But your fathers did not listen to me, nor did they incline their ear.
{34:15} And today you converted, and you did what is right in my eyes, so that you proclaimed liberty, each one to his friend. And you entered into a pact in my sight, in the house in which and over which my name is invoked.
{34:16} But now you have turned back, and you have stained my name. For you have led back again, each one his man servant, and each one his woman servant, whom you had released so that they would be free and under their own authority. And you have subjugated them, so that they would be your servants and handmaids.”
{34:17} Because of this, thus says the Lord: “You have not heeded me, though you proclaimed liberty, each one to his brother and each one to his friend. Behold, I am proclaiming a liberty for you, says the Lord, to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine. And I will cause you to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth.
{34:18} And I will give over the men who have betrayed my covenant, and who have not observed the words of the covenant, to which they assented in my sight when they cut the calf into two parts and passed between its parts:
{34:19} the leaders of Judah, and the leaders of Jerusalem, the eunuchs and the priests, and all the people of the land, who have passed between the parts of the calf.
{34:20} And I will give them into the hands of their enemies and into the hands of those who are seeking their life. And their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth.
{34:21} And Zedekiah, the king of Judah, and his leaders, I will give over to the hands of their enemies, and to the hands of those who are seeking their lives, and to the hands of the armies of the king of Babylon, which had withdrawn from you.
{34:22} Behold, I will command, says the Lord, and I will lead them back to this city, and they will fight against it, and seize it, and set it on fire. And I will make the cities of Judah into a desolation, for there shall be no inhabitant.”
{35:1} The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, saying:
{35:2} “Go to the house of the Rechabites, and speak to them, and lead them into the house of the Lord, into one of the halls of the treasuries. And you shall give them wine to drink.”
{35:3} And so I took Jaazaniah, the son of Jeremiah, the son of Habazziniah, and his brothers, and all his sons, and the entire house of the Rechabites,
{35:4} and I led them into the house of the Lord, to the treasury of the sons of Hanan, the son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which was near the treasury of the princes, above the storehouse of Maaseiah, the son of Shallum, who was the guardian of the entrance.
{35:5} And I placed before the sons of the house of the Rechabites bowls filled with wine, and chalices. And I said to them, “Drink wine.”
{35:6} And they responded: “We will not drink wine. For Jonadab, the son of Rechab, our father, instructed us, saying: ‘You shall not drink wine, you and your sons, in perpetuity.
{35:7} And you shall not build houses, and you shall not sow any seeds, and you shall not plant or have vineyards. Instead, you shall live in tents all your days, so that you may live many days upon the face of the earth, in which you are sojourners.’
{35:8} Therefore, we have obeyed the voice of Jonadab, the son of Rechab, our father, in all that he has commanded us, so that we do not drink wine all our days, we and our wives, our sons and daughters.
{35:9} And we do not build houses in which to live. And we do not have vineyard, or field, or seed to sow.
{35:10} Instead, we live in tents, and we have been obedient in accord with all that Jonadab, our father, has instructed us.
{35:11} But when Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had ascended to our land, we said: ‘Come and let us enter into Jerusalem, before the face of the army of the Chaldeans, and before the face of the army of Syria.’ And we have remained in Jerusalem.”
{35:12} And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying:
{35:13} “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Go, and say to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem: Will you not accept discipline, so that you obey my words, says the Lord?
{35:14} The words of Jonadab, the son of Rechab, in which he instructed his sons, so that they would not drink wine, have prevailed. And they have not drunk wine, even to this day. For they have obeyed the instruction of their father. But I have spoken to you, rising and speaking from early morning, and you did not obey me.
{35:15} And I have sent to you all my servants, the prophets, rising at first light, and sending, and saying: ‘Convert, each one from his wicked way, and make your intentions good. And do not choose to follow strange gods, nor shall you worship them. And then you shall live in the land which I gave to you and to your fathers.’ And yet you have not inclined your ear, and you have not heeded me.
{35:16} So the sons of Jonadab, the son of Rechab, have remained firm in the commandment of their father, which he instructed to them, while this people has not been obedient to me.
{35:17} For this reason, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will lead over Judah and over all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, every evil that I have declared against them. For I have spoken to them, and they have not listened. I have called to them, and they have not responded to me.”
{35:18} Then Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites: “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab, your father, and have kept all his precepts, and have done all that he has instructed you,
{35:19} because of this, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: There will not be a man lacking from the stock of Jonadab, the son of Rechab, standing in my sight, for all days.”
{36:1} And it happened in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah: it happened that this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying:
{36:2} “Take the volume of a book, and you shall write in it all the words that I have spoken to you against Israel and Judah, and against all the nations, from the day when I first spoke to you, from the days of Josiah, even to this day.
{36:3} Perhaps it may be that the house of Judah, upon hearing all the evils that I have decided to do to them, may return, each one from his wicked way, and then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin.”
{36:4} Therefore, Jeremiah called Baruch, the son of Neriah, and Baruch wrote, from the mouth of Jeremiah, all the words of the Lord, which he had spoken to him, in the volume of a book.
{36:5} And Jeremiah instructed Baruch, saying: “I am confined, and so I am unable to enter into the house of the Lord.
{36:6} Therefore, you shall enter and read from the volume, in which you have written from my mouth the words of the Lord, in the hearing of the people in the house of the Lord on the day of the fast. Moreover, you shall also read them in the hearing of all those of Judah who are arriving from their cities.
{36:7} Perhaps it may happen that they pray in the sight of the Lord, and each one may return from his wicked way. For great is the fury and indignation that the Lord has declared against this people.”
{36:8} And Baruch, the son of Neriah, acted in accord with all that Jeremiah, the prophet, had instructed him, reading from the volume the words of the Lord, in the house of the Lord.
{36:9} And it happened that, in the fifth year of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, in the ninth month, they proclaimed a fast, in the sight of the Lord, to all the people in Jerusalem, and to the entire multitude which had flowed together, from the cities of Judah, into Jerusalem.
{36:10} And Baruch read from the volume the words of Jeremiah in the house of the Lord, at the treasury of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, the scribe, in the upper vestibule, at the entrance to the new gate of the house of the Lord, in the hearing of all the people.
{36:11} And when Micaiah, the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, had heard all the words of the Lord from the book,
{36:12} he descended to the house of the king, to the treasury of the scribe. And behold, all the leaders were sitting there: Elishama, the scribe, and Delaiah, the son of Shemaiah, and Elnathan, the son of Achbor, and Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah, the son of Hananiah, and all the leaders.
{36:13} And Micaiah announced to them all the words that he had heard when Baruch read from the volume to the ears of the people.
{36:14} And so, all the leaders sent Jehudi, the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to Baruch, saying, “Take in your hand the volume, from which you have read in the hearing of the people, and come.” Therefore, Baruch, the son of Neriah, took the volume in his hand, and he went to them.
{36:15} And they said to him, “Sit and read these things in our hearing.” And Baruch read in their hearing.
{36:16} Therefore, when they had heard all the words, each one looked at his neighbor in astonishment, and they said to Baruch: “We ought to report all these words to the king.”
{36:17} And they questioned him, saying, “Describe to us how you wrote all these words from his mouth.”
{36:18} Then Baruch said to them: “He was speaking with his mouth, as if reading to me. And I wrote in a volume with ink.”
{36:19} And the leaders said to Baruch: “Go away and hide, you and Jeremiah, and let no one know where you are.”
{36:20} And they entered to the king, in the court. Furthermore, they stored the volume in the treasury of Elishama, the scribe. And they announced all the words in the hearing of the king.
{36:21} And the king sent Jehudi to take the volume. And bringing it from the treasury of Elishama, the scribe, he read it in the hearing of the king and of all the leaders who were standing around the king.
{36:22} Now the king was sitting in the winter house, in the ninth month. And there was a hearth placed before him, filled with burning coals.
{36:23} And when Jehudi had read three or four pages, he cut it with a small knife, and he threw it into the fire which was upon the hearth, until the entire volume was consumed by the fire which was upon the hearth.
{36:24} And the king and all his servants, who had heard all these words, were not afraid, and they did not rend their garments.
{36:25} Yet truly, Elnathan, and Delaiah, and Gemariah contradicted the king, so that he might not burn the book. But he did not listen to them.
{36:26} And the king instructed Jerahmeel, the son of Amelech, and Seraiah, the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah, the son of Abdeel, so that they would apprehend Baruch, the scribe, and Jeremiah, the prophet. But the Lord concealed them.
{36:27} And after the king had burned the volume and the words that Baruch had written from the mouth of Jeremiah, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, the prophet, saying:
{36:28} “Again, take another volume and write in it all the former words, which were in the first volume that Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, has burned.
{36:29} And you shall say to Jehoiakim, the king of Judah: Thus says the Lord: You have burned that volume, saying: ‘Why have you written in it, announcing that the king of Babylon will advance quickly, and will devastate this land, and will cause both man and beast to cease from it?’
{36:30} Because of this, thus says the Lord against Jehoiakim, the king of Judah: There will be, from him, no one who may sit upon the throne of David. And his dead body shall be cast out: to the heat by day, and to the frost by night.
{36:31} And I will visit against him, and against his offspring, and against his servants for their iniquities. And I will lead over them, and over the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and over the men of Judah, all the evil that I have declared against them, for they have not listened.”
{36:32} Then Jeremiah took up another volume, and he gave it to Baruch, the son of Neriah, the scribe, who wrote in it, from the mouth of Jeremiah, all the words of the book that Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, had burned with fire. And moreover, there were many more words added than there had been before.
{37:1} And then king Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, reigned in place of Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim. For Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, appointed him as king in the land of Judah.
{37:2} And neither he himself, nor his servants, nor the people of the land, obeyed the words of the Lord, which he spoke by the hand of Jeremiah, the prophet.
{37:3} And king Zedekiah sent Jehucal, the son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah, the son of Maaseiah, the priest, to Jeremiah the prophet, saying: “Pray to the Lord our God for us.”
{37:4} Now Jeremiah was walking freely in the midst of the people. For they had not yet sent him into the custody of the prison. And then the army of Pharaoh went forth from Egypt. And hearing this, the Chaldeans, who were besieging Jerusalem, withdrew from Jerusalem.
{37:5} And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, saying:
{37:6} “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: So shall you say to the king of Judah, who sent you to question me: Behold, the army of Pharaoh, which has gone forth in assistance to you, will return to their own land, into Egypt.
{37:7} And the Chaldeans will return and will make war against this city. And they will seize it and burn it with fire.
{37:8} Thus says the Lord: Do not be willing to deceive your own souls, saying: ‘The Chaldeans will certainly withdraw and go away from us.’ For they will not go away.
{37:9} But even if you were to strike down the entire army of the Chaldeans who are fighting against you, and if there were left behind from among them only a few wounded men, they would rise up, each one from his tent, and they would burn this city with fire.”
{37:10} Therefore, when the army of the Chaldeans had withdrawn from Jerusalem because of Pharaoh’s army,
{37:11} Jeremiah went forth from Jerusalem, to go into the land of Benjamin, and to distribute a possession there, in the sight of the citizens.
{37:12} And when he had arrived at the gate of Benjamin, the keeper of the gate, whose turn it was to be there, was named Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah. And he apprehended Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “You are fleeing to the Chaldeans.”
{37:13} And Jeremiah responded: “That is false. I am not fleeing to the Chaldeans.” But he did not listen to him. And so Irijah took Jeremiah, and he brought him to the leaders.
{37:14} Therefore, the leaders were angry with Jeremiah, and so they beat him and sent him to the prison that was in the house of Jonathan, the scribe. For he was the chief over the prison.
{37:15} And so Jeremiah went into the house of the prison and into a dungeon. And Jeremiah sat there for many days.
{37:16} Then Zedekiah the king, sending, took him out and questioned him secretly in his house, and he said: “Do you think that there is any word from the Lord?” And Jeremiah said: “There is.” And he said: “You will be delivered into the hands of the king of Babylon.”
{37:17} And Jeremiah said to king Zedekiah: “How have I sinned against you, or your servants, or your people, such that you would cast me into a house of imprisonment?
{37:18} Where are your prophets, who were prophesying to you, and who were saying: ‘The king of Babylon will not overwhelm you and this land?’
{37:19} Now therefore, listen, I beg you, my lord the king. Let my petition prevail in your sight. And do not send me back into the house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there.”
{37:20} Then king Zedekiah instructed that Jeremiah be confined to the vestibule of the prison, and that they should give him a twist of bread daily, along with stew, until all the bread in the city had been consumed. And Jeremiah remained at the entrance of the prison.
{38:1} Then Shephatiah, the son of Mattan, and Gedaliah, the son of Pashhur, and Jehucal, the son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur, the son of Malchiah, heard the words that Jeremiah was speaking to all the people, saying:
{38:2} “Thus says the Lord: Whoever will remain in this city will die by the sword, and by famine, and by pestilence. But whoever will flee away from the Chaldeans, will live, and his soul will dwell in safety.
{38:3} Thus says the Lord: This city will certainly be delivered into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.”
{38:4} And the leaders said to the king: “We petition you to put this man to death. For he is deliberately weakening the hands of the men of war, who have remained in this city, and the hands of the people, by speaking to them with these words. For this man is certainly not seeking peace for this people, but evil.”
{38:5} And king Zedekiah said: “Behold, he is in your hands. For it is not fitting for the king to deny you anything.”
{38:6} Therefore, they took Jeremiah and cast him into the pit of Malchiah, the son of Amelech, which was at the entrance to the prison. And they lowered Jeremiah by ropes into the pit, in which there was no water, but only mud. And so Jeremiah descended into the mire.
{38:7} Now Ebedmelech, an Ethiopian man, a eunuch who was in the king’s house, heard that they had sent Jeremiah into the pit, and also that the king was sitting at the gate of Benjamin.
{38:8} And so Ebedmelech departed from the king’s house, and he spoke to the king, saying:
{38:9} “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have perpetrated against Jeremiah the prophet, casting him into the pit so that he would die there from famine. For there is no more bread in the city.”
{38:10} And so the king instructed Ebedmelech, the Ethiopian, saying: “Take with you thirty men from here, and lift Jeremiah the prophet from the pit, before he dies.”
{38:11} Therefore, Ebedmelech, taking the men with him, entered into the king’s house to a place below the storehouse. And he took from there old garments, no longer in use, and he sent them down by rope to Jeremiah in the pit.
{38:12} And Ebedmelech, the Ethiopian, said to Jeremiah: “Place these old garments, and these cut and decaying cloths, under your arms and over the ropes.” And Jeremiah did so.
{38:13} And they pulled up Jeremiah with the ropes, and they led him away from the pit. And Jeremiah remained in the vestibule of the prison.
{38:14} And king Zedekiah sent and took Jeremiah the prophet to him at the third gate, which was at the house of the Lord. And the king said to Jeremiah: “I will question you about a matter. You shall conceal nothing from me.”
{38:15} Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah: “If I announce to you, will you not put me to death? And if I give you counsel, you will not listen to me.”
{38:16} Then king Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah, secretly, saying: “As the Lord lives, who made this soul for us, I will not kill you, nor will I deliver you into the hands of those men who are seeking your life.”
{38:17} And Jeremiah said to Zedekiah: “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: If, having set out, you go to the rulers of the king of Babylon, your soul will live, and this city will not be burned with fire. And you and your house will be safe.
{38:18} But if you will not go to the rulers of the king of Babylon, this city will be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans, and they will burn it with fire. And you will not escape from their hand.”
{38:19} And king Zedekiah said to Jeremiah: “I am anxious, because of the Jews who have crossed over to the Chaldeans, lest perhaps I may be delivered into their hands, and they may abuse me.”
{38:20} But Jeremiah responded: “They will not deliver you. Listen, I ask you, to the voice of the Lord, which I am speaking to you, and it will be well with you, and your soul will live.
{38:21} But if you refuse to depart, this is the word that the Lord has revealed to me:
{38:22} Behold, all the women who remain in the house of the king of Judah will be led away to the rulers of the king of Babylon. And the women will say: ‘Your men of peacefulness have led you astray, and they have prevailed against you. They have immersed your feet in mud and have set them in a slippery place. And they have withdrawn from you.’
{38:23} And all your wives and your sons will be led away to the Chaldeans, and you will not escape from their hands. Instead, you will be seized by the hand of the king of Babylon. And he will burn this city with fire.”
{38:24} Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah: “Let no one know of these words, and you will not die.
{38:25} But if the leaders hear that I have spoken with you, and if they come to you, and say to you: ‘Tell us what you said to the king. Do not conceal it from us, and we will not put you to death. And tell us what the king said to you,’
{38:26} then you shall say to them: ‘I presented my supplication before the king, so that he would not order me to be led back to the house of Jonathan, to die there.’ ”
{38:27} Then all the leaders came to Jeremiah, and they questioned him. And he spoke to them in accord with all the words that the king had commanded him. And they withdrew from him, for they had learned nothing.
{38:28} Yet truly, Jeremiah remained at the entrance of the prison, until the day when Jerusalem was seized. And it happened that Jerusalem was captured.
{39:1} In the ninth year of Zedekiah, the king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem, with his entire army, and they besieged it.
{39:2} Then, in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the fifth of the month, the city was opened.
{39:3} And all the rulers of the king of Babylon entered and were seated at the middle gate: Nergal-Sharezer, the priest of Nebo, Sarsechim, the chief eunuch, Nergal-Sharezer, the chief magi, and all the other rulers of the king of Babylon.
{39:4} And when Zedekiah, the king of Judah, with all the men of war, had seen them, they fled. And they departed from the city at night, by way of the king’s garden, and through the gate which was between the two walls. And they departed along the way of the desert.
{39:5} But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them. And they overtook Zedekiah in the plain of the desert of Jericho. And having captured him, they led him to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, at Riblah, which is in the land of Hamath. And he declared a judgment against him
{39:6} And the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah, at Riblah, before his eyes. And the king of Babylon killed all the nobles of Judah.
{39:7} Also, he plucked out the eyes of Zedekiah. And he bound him with fetters, to be led away to Babylon.
{39:8} Also, the Chaldeans burned the house of the king and the house of the people with fire, and they overturned the wall of Jerusalem.
{39:9} And Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, carried away captive to Babylon the remnant of the people who had remained in the city, and the fugitives who had fled to him, and all the rest of the people who had remained.
{39:10} And Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, released some of the poor people, those who had almost nothing, into the land of Judah. And he gave them vineyards and cisterns in that day.
{39:11} Now Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had instructed Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, about Jeremiah, saying:
{39:12} “Take him, and set your eyes on him, and you shall do no harm to him at all. But as he is willing, so shall you do with him.”
{39:13} Therefore, Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, sent, and Nebushazban, the chief eunuch, and Nergal-Sharezer, the chief magi, and all the nobles of the king of Babylon sent,
{39:14} and they took Jeremiah from the vestibule of the prison, and they delivered him to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, so that he could enter a house and live among the people.
{39:15} But the word of the Lord had come to Jeremiah, when he had been confined to the vestibule of the prison, saying: “Go, and speak to Ebedmelech, the Ethiopian, saying:
{39:16} Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will bring my words over this city for evil, and not for good; and they shall be in your sight in that day.
{39:17} And I will free you in that day, says the Lord. And you will not be delivered into the hands of the men whom you dread.
{39:18} But when delivering, I will free you. And you will not fall by the sword. Instead, your life will be saved for you, because you had faith in me, says the Lord.”
{40:1} The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, had released him from Ramah, where he had taken him, bound in chains, along with all those who were being carried away from Jerusalem and from Judah, and were being led to Babylon.
{40:2} Therefore, the leader of the military, taking Jeremiah, said to him: “The Lord your God has declared this evil over this place,
{40:3} and he has brought it. And the Lord has done just as he has spoken. For you have sinned against the Lord, and you have not heeded his voice, and so this word has happened to you.
{40:4} Now therefore, behold, I have released you this day from the chains which were on your hands. If it pleases you to come with me into Babylon, then come. And I will set my eyes upon you. But if it displeases you to come with me into Babylon, then remain. Behold, all the land is in your sight. Whatever you will choose, and wherever it will please you to go, so shall you go, proceeding to that place.
{40:5} And you may decline to come with me. For you may live with Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has made governor over the cities of Judah. Therefore, you may live with him in the midst of the people. And you may go wherever it will please you to go.” And the leader of the military also gave him foods and gifts, and he released him.
{40:6} Then Jeremiah went to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, at Mizpah. And he lived with him in the midst of the people, those who had been left behind in the land.
{40:7} And when all the leaders of the army, who had been dispersed throughout the regions, they and their associates, had heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, governor of the land, and that he had committed to him the men, and women, and children, and the poor of the land, who had not been carried away to Babylon,
{40:8} they went to Gedaliah at Mizpah, with Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan and Jonathan, the sons of Kareah, and Seraiah, the son of Tanhumeth, and the sons of Ephai, who were of Netophathi, and Jezaniah, the son of Maacathi, they and their men.
{40:9} And Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, swore to them and to their companions, saying: “Do not be afraid to serve the Chaldeans. Live in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it will be well with you.
{40:10} Behold, I live at Mizpah, so that I may follow the instruction of the Chaldeans who are sent to us. But as for you, gather the vintage, and the harvest, and the oil, and store it up in your vessels, and dwell in your cities, which you hold.”
{40:11} So then, all the Jews, who were in Moab, and among the sons of Ammon, and in Idumea, and in all the regions, when they had heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant in Judea, and that he had made Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, governor over them,
{40:12} all the Jews, I say, returned from all the places to which they had fled, and they came into the land of Judah, to Gedaliah at Mizpah. And they gathered wine and an exceedingly great harvest.
{40:13} Then Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the army, who had been dispersed in the regions, came to Gedaliah at Mizpah.
{40:14} And they said to him: “Know that Baalis, the king of the sons of Ammon, has sent Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, to strike down your life.” And Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, did not believe them.
{40:15} But Johanan, the son of Kareah, spoke to Gedaliah, separately, at Mizpah, saying: “I will go, and I will strike down Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, without anyone knowing; otherwise he may kill you, and all the Jews will be scattered who have been gathered to you, and the remnant of Judah will perish.”
{40:16} And Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, said to Johanan, the son of Kareah: “Do not do this word. For what you have said about Ishmael is false.”
{41:1} And it happened that, in the seventh month, Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama of royal descent, with the nobles of the king, and accompanied by ten men, went to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, at Mizpah. And they ate bread together there, in Mizpah.
{41:2} Then Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, rose up, and the ten men who were with him, and they struck down Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword, and they killed him whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land.
{41:3} Likewise, Ishmael struck down all the Jews who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah, with the Chaldeans who were found there, and the men of war.
{41:4} Then, on the second day after he had killed Gedaliah, while no one yet knew of it,
{41:5} men arrived from Shechem, and from Shiloh, and from Samaria, eighty men, with their beards shaved, and their garments rent, and unbathed. And they had gifts and frankincense in hand, so that they might make an offering in the house of the Lord.
{41:6} Therefore, Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, departing from Mizpah to meet them, went forth weeping as he was walking. And when he had met them, he said to them, “Come to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam.”
{41:7} And when they had arrived at the center of the city, Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, put them to death around the public cistern, he and the men who were with him.
{41:8} But ten men were found among them, who said to Ishmael: “Do not kill us! For in the field we have storehouses of grain and barley and oil and honey.” And so he ceased, and he did not put them to death with their brothers.
{41:9} Now the cistern, into which Ishmael cast all the dead bodies of the men whom he had struck down because of Gedaliah, is the same one that king Asa made out of fear of Baasha, the king of Israel. This same cistern Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, filled with those who were slain.
{41:10} Then Ishmael led away captive all the remnant of the people who were at Mizpah, the king’s daughters as well as all the people who remained at Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, had committed to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam. And Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, seized them and went away, so that he might go over to the sons of Ammon.
{41:11} But Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the fighters who were with him, heard about all the evil that Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, had done.
{41:12} And taking all the men, they set out to make war against Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah. And they found him at the great waters that are in Gibeon.
{41:13} And when all the people who were with Ishmael had seen Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the fighters who were with him, they rejoiced.
{41:14} And all the people whom Ishmael had seized turned back to Mizpah. And they returned and went over to Johanan, the son of Kareah.
{41:15} But Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, fled with eight men from the face of Johanan, and they went over to the sons of Ammon.
{41:16} Therefore, Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the fighters who were with him, took from Mizpah the entire remnant of the common people, whom they had led away from Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, after he had struck down Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam. These were strong men of battle, and women, and children, and eunuchs: those whom he had led away from Gibeon.
{41:17} And they went away and settled as sojourners at Chimham, which is near Bethlehem, so that they might continue on and enter into Egypt,
{41:18} away from the face of the Chaldeans. For they were afraid of them, because Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, had struck down Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon had made governor in the land of Judah.
{42:1} And all the leaders of the warriors, and Johanan, the son of Kareah, and Azariah, the son of Hoshaiah, and the rest of the common people, from the least even to the greatest, drew near.
{42:2} And they said to Jeremiah the prophet: “Let our supplication fall before your sight. And pray for us to the Lord your God, on behalf of this entire remnant. For few out of many have been left behind, just as your eyes behold us.
{42:3} And so, may the Lord your God announce to us the way that we must travel, and the word that we must accomplish.”
{42:4} Then Jeremiah, the prophet, said to them: “I have listened. Behold, I will pray to the Lord your God according to your words. And whatever word he will respond to me, I will declare to you. And I will conceal nothing from you.”
{42:5} And they said to Jeremiah: “May the Lord be the witness between us of truth and fidelity, if we do not act according to whatever word the Lord your God will send by you to us.
{42:6} Whether it is for good or for harm, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God, to whom we are sending you. So may it be well with us, when we heed the voice of the Lord our God.”
{42:7} Then, when ten days had been completed, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah.
{42:8} And he called Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of warriors who were with him, and all the people, from the least even to the greatest.
{42:9} And he said to them: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to whom you have sent me, so that I may present your petitions in his sight:
{42:10} If you dwell quietly in this land, I will build you up, and I will not tear you down. I will plant you, and I will not uproot you. For now I have been appeased by the harm that I have done to you.
{42:11} Do not be afraid before the face of the king of Babylon, whom you have dreaded with great fear. Do not dread him, says the Lord. For I am with you, so that I may accomplish your salvation, and so that I may rescue you from his hand.
{42:12} And I will give you mercies, and I will take pity on you, and I will cause you to live in your own land.
{42:13} But if you say: ‘We will not live in this land, nor will we heed the voice of the Lord our God,’
{42:14} saying: ‘Never! Instead, we will travel to the land of Egypt, where we will not see war, and we will not hear the blast of the trumpet, and we will not endure famine. And there we shall live.’
{42:15} Because of this, hear now the word of the Lord, O remnant of Judah: Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: If you set your faces so as to advance into Egypt, and if you enter so that you may live there,
{42:16} the sword which you dread will overtake you there, in the land of Egypt, and the famine, about which you are anxious, will cling to you in Egypt, and there you shall die.
{42:17} And all the men, who have set their faces so that they may advance to Egypt in order to live there, will die by the sword, and by famine, and by pestilence. None of them will remain, nor will they escape from the face of the evil that I will bring over them.
{42:18} For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Just as my fury and my indignation has been enflamed over the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so will my indignation be enflamed over you, when you will have entered into Egypt. And so you will be an oath, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a disgrace. And you will never see this place again.
{42:19} This is the word of the Lord concerning you, O remnant of Judah: Do not choose to enter into Egypt, for certainly you understand what I have sworn to you this day.
{42:20} For you have deceived your own souls. For you have sent me to the Lord our God, saying: ‘Pray on our behalf to the Lord our God. And in accord with anything whatsoever that the Lord our God will tell you, announce this to us, and we will do it.’
{42:21} And I have announced it to you this day, and you have not heeded the voice of the Lord your God, concerning everything about which he has sent me to you.
{42:22} Therefore, know with certainty now, that you will die by the sword, and by famine, and by pestilence, in the place which you wish to enter so that you may live there.”
{43:1} Then it happened that, when Jeremiah had finished speaking all the words of the Lord their God to the people, all those words concerning which the Lord their God had sent him to them,
{43:2} Azariah, the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the exalted men, spoke to Jeremiah, saying: “You are speaking a lie! The Lord our God has not sent you to say: ‘You shall not enter into Egypt so as to live in that place.’
{43:3} Instead, Baruch, the son of Neriah, has incited you against us, so as to deliver us into the hands of the Chaldeans, to put us to death and to cause us to be led away into Babylon.”
{43:4} And so Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the warriors, and all the people, did not heed the voice of the Lord to remain in the land of Judah.
{43:5} But Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the warriors, took away all the remnant of Judah, who had returned from all the nations (to which they had been scattered before) to live in the land of Judah:
{43:6} men, and women, and children, and the daughters of the king, and every soul that Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, had left behind with Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, as well as Jeremiah, the prophet, and Baruch, the son of Neriah.
{43:7} And they entered into the land of Egypt. For they did not obey the voice of the Lord. And they went as far as Tahpanhes.
{43:8} And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah at Tahpanhes, saying:
{43:9} “Take great stones in your hand, and you shall conceal them in the crypt which is under the brick wall at the gate of the house of Pharaoh at Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah.
{43:10} And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will send for and take Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will set his throne over these stones which I have concealed, and he will establish his throne upon them.
{43:11} And he will come and strike the land of Egypt: those who are meant for death, shall go to death, and those for captivity, to captivity, and those for the sword, to the sword.
{43:12} And he will kindle a fire in the shrines of the gods of Egypt, and he will burn them down, and he will lead them away captive. And he will clothe himself with the land of Egypt, just as a shepherd is clothed with his cloak. And he will go forth from that place in peace.
{43:13} And he will crush the statues of the house of the Sun, those that are in the land of Egypt, and the shrines of the gods of Egypt he will burn up with fire.”
{44:1} The word that came through Jeremiah to all the Jews who were living in the land of Egypt, living at Migdol, and at Tahpanhes, and at Memphis, and in the land of Pathros, saying:
{44:2} “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: You yourselves have seen all this evil that I have led over Jerusalem and over all the cities of Judah. And behold, they are desolate to this day, and there is no inhabitant in them,
{44:3} because of the wickedness which they have done, so that they provoked me to wrath, and because they went to offer sacrifice and worship to strange gods, which neither they, nor you, nor your fathers knew.
{44:4} And I sent to you all my servants, the prophets, rising in the night, and sending, and saying: ‘Do not choose to do this abominable word, which I hate.’
{44:5} But they did not listen, nor did they incline their ear, so that they would convert from their evil, and so that they would not sacrifice to strange gods.
{44:6} And so my indignation and my fury was fanned and kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. And they have been turned into desolation and devastation, just as it is this day.
{44:7} And now, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Why do you commit this great evil against your own souls, so that, among you, man and woman, child and infant would pass away from the midst of Judah, and so that no remnant at all would be left behind of you?
{44:8} For you have provoked me by the works of your hands, by sacrificing to strange gods in the land of Egypt, into which you have entered in order to live there, and so that you would perish and become a curse and a disgrace before all the nations of the earth.
{44:9} How could you have forgotten the evils of your fathers, and the evils of the kings of Judah, and the evils of their wives, and your own evils, and the evils of your own wives, which they have done in the land of Judah and in the regions of Jerusalem?
{44:10} They have not been cleansed, even to this day. And they have not feared, and they have not walked in the law of the Lord and in my precepts, which I have given before you and before your fathers.
{44:11} For this reason, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will set my face upon you for evil. And I will disperse all of Judah.
{44:12} And I will take the remnant of Judah, who had set their faces so that they would enter into the land of Egypt and live there, and they will all be consumed in the land of Egypt. They will fall by the sword and by famine. And they will be consumed, from the least, even to the greatest. By sword and by famine shall they die. And they will be an oath, and a wonder, and a curse, and a disgrace.
{44:13} And I will visit against those who are living in the land of Egypt, just as I have visited against Jerusalem: with the sword, and with famine, and with pestilence.
{44:14} And there will be no one who escapes, of those who remain among the remnant of the Jews, those who have gone to sojourn in the land of Egypt. And they wish to be returned to the land of Judah, for they lift up their souls so that they might return and live there. But there will be no one who may return, except those who will flee.”
{44:15} Then all the men, knowing that their wives were sacrificing to strange gods, and all of the women, a great multitude of whom were standing there, and all of the people who were living in the land of Egypt at Pathros, responded to Jeremiah, by saying:
{44:16} “Concerning the word that you have spoken to us in the name of the Lord, we will not heed you.
{44:17} But we will continue to do every word which proceeds from our own mouth, so that we sacrifice to the queen of heaven, and we pour out libations to her, just as we and our fathers have done, our kings and our leaders, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. For we were filled with bread, and it was well with us, and we saw no evil.
{44:18} But since the time that we ceased to offer sacrifice to the queen of heaven, and to pour out libations to her, we have been in need of all things, and we have been consumed by the sword and by famine.
{44:19} But when we offer sacrifice to the queen of heaven and pour out libations to her, do we make cakes for her worship and offer libations to her without our husbands?”
{44:20} And Jeremiah spoke to all the people, facing the men, and facing the women, and facing all the people who had responded this word to him, saying:
{44:21} “Was this not the sacrifice that you offered in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, you and your fathers, your kings and your leaders, and the people of the land, which has been called to mind by the Lord and which has entered into his heart?
{44:22} And the Lord could no longer bear this, because of the evil of your intentions, and because of the abominations that you have done. And so, your land has become a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, and it is without an inhabitant, even to this day.
{44:23} This is because you have sacrificed to idols, and you have sinned against the Lord. And you have not heeded the voice of the Lord, and you have not walked in his law, and in his precepts, and in his testimonies. It is for this reason that these evils have happened to you, just as it is today.”
{44:24} Then Jeremiah said to all the people and to all the women: “Listen to the word of the Lord, all you of Judah who are in the land of Egypt:
{44:25} Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying: You and your wives have spoken it with your mouth, and have fulfilled it with your hands, saying: ‘Let us perform our vows that we have made, so that we may offer sacrifice to the queen of heaven, and pour out libations to her.’ You have fulfilled your vows and accomplished their works.
{44:26} Because of this, listen to the word of the Lord, all you of Judah, who live in the land of Egypt: Behold, I have sworn by my great name, says the Lord, that my name will never again be invoked by the mouth of any man of Judah in the land of Egypt, saying: ‘As the Lord God lives.’
{44:27} Behold, I will be vigilant over them for harm, and not for good. And all the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt will be consumed, by the sword and by famine, until they are thoroughly consumed.
{44:28} And a few men, who will flee from the sword, will return from the land of Egypt into the land of Judah. And all the remnant of Judah, who had entered into the land of Egypt so as to live there, will know whose word will be completed, mine or theirs.
{44:29} And this will be a sign to you, says the Lord, that I will visit against you in this place, so that truly you may know that my words will be completed against you for harm.”
{44:30} Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will deliver Pharaoh Hophra, the king of Egypt, into the hand of his enemies, and into the hand of those who are seeking his life, just as I delivered Zedekiah, the king of Judah, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, his enemy and the one who was seeking his life.”
{45:1} The word that Jeremiah the prophet spoke to Baruch, the son of Neriah, when he had written these words in a book, from the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, saying:
{45:2} “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to you, Baruch:
{45:3} You have said: ‘Woe to me, a wretched man! For the Lord has added sorrow to my sorrow. I have labored in my groaning, and I have not found rest.’
{45:4} Thus says the Lord: So shall you say to him: Behold, those whom I have built up, I destroy, and those whom I have planted, I uproot, even this entire land.
{45:5} And are you seeking great things for yourself? Do not choose to seek them. For behold, I will lead evil over all that is flesh, says the Lord. But I will give your life to you unto salvation, in every place, wherever you may travel.”
{46:1} The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Gentiles,
{46:2} about Egypt, against the army of Pharaoh Neco, the king of Egypt, which was beside the river Euphrates at Carchemish, which Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, struck down, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, the king of Judah:
{46:3} “ ‘Prepare the heavy and the light shield, and advance to war!
{46:4} Harness the horses, and let the horsemen climb upon them! Stand forth with helmets! Sharpen the lances! Clothe yourselves in armor!’
{46:5} And what is next? I have seen them terrified, and turning their backs, their strong ones cut down. They have fled in disorder and have not looked back. Terror on every side, says the Lord.
{46:6} Let not the swift take flight; let not the strong ones think to save themselves. They have been conquered and ruined, toward the north, near the river Euphrates.
{46:7} Who is this, who ascends like a flood, and whose streams swell up, like those of the rivers?
{46:8} Egypt ascends in the form of a river, and its waves will be moved like those of a river. And he will say: ‘I will ascend and cover the earth! I will perish the city and its inhabitants!’
{46:9} Mount the horses, and exult upon chariots, and let the strong ones advance: the Ethiopians, and the Libyans, who hold the heavy shield, and the Lydians, who grasp and shoot arrows.
{46:10} For this is the day of the Lord, the God of hosts, a day of vengeance, so that he may vindicate himself of his enemies. The sword will devour, and be satiated, and be inebriated with their blood. For there is a victim of the Lord, the God of hosts, in the land of the north, beside the river Euphrates.
{46:11} Ascend to Gilead, and take its balm, O virgin daughter of Egypt! It is in vain that you multiply medicines; there will be no health for you!
{46:12} The nations have heard of your disgrace, and your wailing has filled the earth. For the strong have stumbled against the strong, and both have fallen together.”
{46:13} The word that the Lord spoke to Jeremiah the prophet, concerning how Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, would arrive and strike the land of Egypt:
{46:14} “Announce it to Egypt, and make it heard in Migdol, and let it resonate in Memphis and in Tahpanhes. Say this: Stand and prepare yourself! For the sword will devour everything around you.
{46:15} Why have your strong ones decayed? They have not stood firm, because the Lord has overthrown them.
{46:16} He has multiplied those in ruin, and each man has fallen beside his neighbor. And they will say: ‘Rise up, and let us return to our own people and to the land of our nativity, away from the face of the sword of the dove.
{46:17} Call the name of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt: ‘Time has brought tumult.’
{46:18} As I live, says the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts, just as Tabor is among the mountains, and just as Carmel is beside the sea, so will he come.
{46:19} Equip yourself for the transmigration, O daughter who inhabits Egypt. For Memphis will be in desolation, and it will be deserted and uninhabited.
{46:20} Egypt is like a stately and finely-formed calf. The one who will goad her will come from the north.
{46:21} Her hired hands also, who move within her midst, like fatted calves have been turned back, and they have fled at the same time, and they are not able to stand firm. For the day of their passing away has overwhelmed them; it is the time of their visitation.
{46:22} Her voice will sound out like brass. For they will rush forward with an army, and with axes they will come against her, like those who chop wood.
{46:23} They have cut down her forest, says the Lord, which was not able to be counted. They have been multiplied more than locusts, and they are without number.
{46:24} The daughter of Egypt has been confounded, and she has been delivered into the hand of the people of the north.
{46:25} The Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, said: Behold, I will visit against the tumult of Alexandria, and against Pharaoh, and against Egypt, and against her gods, and against her kings, and against Pharaoh, and against those who trust in him.
{46:26} And I will give them over to the hand of those who seek their lives, and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and into the hand of his servants. And after this, it shall be inhabited, just as in the former days, says the Lord.
{46:27} And as for you, my servant Jacob, you should not be afraid, and you should not dread, O Israel. For behold, I will bring your salvation from afar, and your offspring from the land of your captivity. And Jacob will return and have rest, and he will prosper. And there will be no one who may terrify him.
{46:28} And as for you, my servant Jacob, do not be afraid, says the Lord. For I am with you. For I will consume all the nations to which I have cast you out. Yet truly, I will not consume you. Instead, I will chastise you in judgment, but neither will I spare you, as if you were innocent.”
{47:1} The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah, the prophet, against the Philistines, before Pharaoh struck Gaza.
{47:2} Thus says the Lord: “Behold, waters will rise up from the north, and they will be like an inundating torrent, and they will cover the land and its plenitude, the city and its inhabitants. The men will cry out, and all the inhabitants of the land will wail,
{47:3} before the uproar of a procession of weapons and of his soldiers, before the commotion of his four-horse chariots and the multitude of his wheels. The fathers have not looked back for the sons, because of feebleness of hands,
{47:4} because of the arrival of the day on which all the Philistines will be devastated, and Tyre and Sidon will be destroyed, with all the rest of their helpers. For the Lord has depopulated the Philistines, the remnant of the island of Cappadocia.
{47:5} Baldness has arrived over Gaza. Ashkelon has been silenced, along with the remnant of their valley. And how long will you continue to be cut down?
{47:6} O sharp sword of the Lord, how long will you be without rest? Enter your sheath; be refreshed and silenced.
{47:7} But how can it find rest, when the Lord has ordered it against Ashkelon and against its maritime regions, and when a task has been appointed to it there?”
{48:1} Against Moab, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Woe upon Nebo! For it has been devastated and confounded. Kiriathaim has been seized; the strong one has been confounded and has trembled.
{48:2} There is no longer any rejoicing in Moab over Heshbon. They have devised evil. ‘Come and let us destroy it as a nation.’ Then you will be utterly silenced, and the sword will pursue you.
{48:3} A voice of clamor from Horonaim: devastation and great destruction!
{48:4} Moab has been crushed. Announce an outcry for her little ones.
{48:5} For, along the ascent of Luhith, the mourner will ascend with weeping. For, on the descent of Horonaim, the enemies have heard the wailing of devastation.
{48:6} Flee, save your lives! And you shall be like a saltcedar tree in the desert.
{48:7} For because you have had faith in your fortifications and in your storehouses, you too will be seized. And Chemosh will go into captivity: his priests and his leaders together.
{48:8} And the despoiler will overwhelm every city, and not a single city will be saved. And the valleys will perish, and the fields will be destroyed. For the Lord has spoken.
{48:9} Give a blossom to Moab. For it will depart when it is blossoming. And its cities will become desolate and uninhabited.
{48:10} Cursed is he who does the work of the Lord deceitfully. And cursed is he who prohibits his sword from blood.
{48:11} Moab has been fertile from his youth, and he has rested amid his brood. And he has not been transferred from vessel to vessel, nor has he gone into the transmigration. Therefore, his taste has remained with him, and his scent has not changed.
{48:12} Because of this, behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when I will send to him those who will line up and knock down his bottles, and they will knock him down and empty his vessels, and they will break their bottles against one another.
{48:13} And Moab will be confounded by Chemosh, just as the house of Israel was shamed by Bethel, in which they had faith.
{48:14} How can you say: ‘We are strong and robust men of battle?’
{48:15} Moab has been devastated, and they have cut down her cities. And her elect young men have descended to slaughter. So says the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts.
{48:16} The passing away of Moab draws near and arrives. Its evil will rush forward with great speed.
{48:17} Console him, all you who surround him and all you who know his name. Say: ‘How has the strong staff become broken, the glorious staff?’
{48:18} Descend from your glory, and sit in thirst, O habitation of the daughter of Dibon! For the destroyer of Moab has ascended to you; he has dissipated your fortifications.
{48:19} Stand in the way, and gaze out, O habitation of Aroer! Question him who is fleeing, and say to him who has escaped: ‘What has happened?’
{48:20} Moab has been confounded, because he has been conquered. Wail and cry out! Announce it in Arnon: Moab has been devastated,
{48:21} and judgment has arrived upon the land of the plains: upon Holon, and upon Jahzah, and upon Mephaath,
{48:22} and upon Dibon, and upon Nebo, and upon the house of Deblathaim,
{48:23} and upon Kiriathaim, and upon the house of Gamul, and upon the house of Meon,
{48:24} and upon Kerioth, and upon Bozrah, and upon all the cities of the land of Moab, those far away and those nearby.
{48:25} The horn of Moab has been cut away, and his arm has been crushed, says the Lord.
{48:26} Inebriate him, for he has lifted himself up against the Lord. And Moab will thrust his hand into his own vomit, and also now he himself will become a derision.
{48:27} For Israel had been a derision to them. It was as if you had discovered him among thieves. Because of your own words, then, which you have spoken against him, you will be led away captive.
{48:28} Relinquish the cities, and live upon a rock, O inhabitants of Moab, and be like a dove nesting at the mouth of an opening at the summit.
{48:29} We have listened to the arrogance of Moab; he is very proud: his exaltation, and arrogance, and pride, and the loftiness of his heart.
{48:30} I myself know, says the Lord, his boasting, and that his ability is not in accord with it, nor is it in accord with what he has been striving to do.
{48:31} For this reason, I will wail over Moab, and I will cry out to all of Moab, to the men on the brick wall who are lamenting.
{48:32} O vineyard of Sibmah, I will weep for you, with the mourning of Jazer. Your offshoots have crossed over the sea. They have reached even to the sea of Jazer. The despoiler has rushed over your harvest and your vintage.
{48:33} Rejoicing and exultation has been taken away from Carmel and from the land of Moab. And I have taken the wine from the winepresses. The treader of grapes will no longer sing the usual rhythmic chant.
{48:34} From the outcry of Heshbon, even to Elealeh and Jahzah, they have uttered their voice; from Zoar, even to Horonaim, like a three year old calf. So too, the waters of Nimrim will be very bad.
{48:35} And I will take away from Moab, says the Lord, the one who makes offerings in exalted places, and the one who sacrifices to his gods.
{48:36} Because of this, my heart will resound for Moab, like the pipes, and my heart will make a sound like the pipes for the men on the brick wall. For he has done more than he was able, yet still they have perished.
{48:37} For every head will be bald, and every beard will be shaved. All the hands will be bound together, and there will be haircloth on every back.
{48:38} Over all the rooftops of Moab, and in its streets, everyone will mourn. For I have crushed Moab like a useless vessel, says the Lord.
{48:39} How was it conquered, so that they would wail? How is it that Moab has cast down his neck and been confounded? And Moab will be a derision and an example to everyone around him.”
{48:40} Thus says the Lord: “Behold, he will fly like the eagle, and he will extend his wings to Moab.
{48:41} Kerioth has been captured, and the fortifications have been taken. And in that day, the heart of the strong ones of Moab will be like the heart of a woman giving birth.
{48:42} And Moab will cease to be a people. For he has been glorified against the Lord.
{48:43} Terror and the pit and the snare will overwhelm you, O inhabitant of Moab, says the Lord.
{48:44} Whoever flees from the terror will fall into the pit. And whoever climbs out of the pit will be seized by the snare. For I will lead over Moab the year of their visitation, says the Lord.
{48:45} Those fleeing from the snare stood in the shadow of Heshbon. For a fire has gone forth from Heshbon, and a flame from the midst of Sihon, and it will devour the portion of Moab, and the top of the head of the sons of tumult.
{48:46} Woe to you, O Moab! You have been ruined, O people of Chemosh! For your sons and your daughters have been taken into captivity.
{48:47} But I will convert the captivity of Moab in the last days, says the Lord.” Such are the judgments of Moab thus far.
{49:1} Against the sons of Ammon. Thus says the Lord: “Does Israel have no sons? Or is there no heir for him? Then why has Milcom possessed the inheritance of Gad, and why have his people lived in his cities?
{49:2} Therefore, behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when I will cause the noise of battle to be heard over Rabbah of the sons of Ammon. And it will be scattered into a tumult, and her daughters will be burned with fire. And Israel shall possess those who had possessed him, says the Lord.
{49:3} Wail, O Heshbon! For Ai has been devastated. Cry out, O daughters of Rabbah! Wrap yourselves with haircloth. Mourn and circle the hedges. For Milcom will be led into the transmigration: his priests and his leaders together.
{49:4} Why have you gloried in the valleys? Your valley has flowed away, O delicate daughter, for you had confidence in your treasures, and you were saying, ‘Who can approach me?’
{49:5} Behold, I will lead a terror over you, says the Lord, the God of hosts, from those who are all around you. And you will be dispersed, each one from before your sight. There will be no one who will gather together those who are fleeing.
{49:6} And after this, I will cause the captives of the sons of Ammon to return, says the Lord.”
{49:7} Against Idumea. Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Is there no longer any wisdom in Teman? Counsel has perished from the sons. Their wisdom has become useless.
{49:8} Flee and turn your backs! Descend into the chasm, O inhabitants of Dedan! For I have brought the perdition of Esau over him, the time of his visitation.
{49:9} If those who gather grapes had passed by you, would they not have left behind a cluster? If there were thieves in the night, they would seize what was enough for themselves.
{49:10} Yet truly, I have stripped Esau bare. I have revealed his secrets, and he is not able to be concealed. His offspring has been devastated, with his brothers and his neighbors, and he himself will not exist.
{49:11} Leave behind your orphans. I will make sure that they live. And your widows will hope in me.”
{49:12} For thus says the Lord: “Behold, those who judged that they would not drink the cup, will certainly drink. And so, will you be released as if you were innocent? You will not be released as if innocent. Instead, you shall certainly drink.
{49:13} For I have sworn by myself, says the Lord, that Bozrah will be a desolation, and a disgrace, and a wasteland, and a curse. And all her cities will be a perpetual wilderness.
{49:14} I have heard a report from the Lord, and a legate has been sent to the nations: ‘Gather yourselves together, and go forth against her, and let us rise up to battle.’
{49:15} For behold, I have made you little among the nations, contemptible among men.
{49:16} Your arrogance has deceived you, by the pride of your heart, you who live in the caverns of the rock and who strive to take hold of the height of the hill. But even if you make your nest like that of an eagle, I will pull you down from there, says the Lord.
{49:17} And Idumea will be a desert. Everyone who passes by it will be stupefied and will hiss over all its wounds.
{49:18} Just as Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighbors were overthrown, says the Lord: there will not be a man living there, and no son of man will tend it.
{49:19} Behold, he will ascend like a lion from the arrogance of the Jordan, against the robust beauty. For I will cause him to rush against her suddenly. And who will be the elect one, whom I may appoint over her? For who is like me? And who can endure me? And who is that pastor who can withstand my countenance?
{49:20} Because of this, listen to the counsel of the Lord, which he has undertaken concerning Edom, and to his thoughts, which he has devised concerning the inhabitants of Teman. Certainly, the little ones of the flock will cast them down, unless they scatter them with their habitation.
{49:21} The earth has been shaken at the noise of their destruction. The outcry of their voice has been heard at the Red Sea.
{49:22} Behold, he will ascend like an eagle and will fly. And he will spread his wings over Bozrah. And in that day, the heart of the strong ones of Idumea will be like the heart of a woman giving birth.”
{49:23} Against Damascus. “Hamath has been confounded, with Arpad. For they have heard a most grievous report. They have been stirred up like the sea. Because of anxiousness, they were not able to rest.
{49:24} Damascus has been broken. She has been turned to flight. Trembling has taken hold of her. Anguish and sorrows have seized her, like a woman giving birth.
{49:25} How could they have abandoned the praiseworthy city, the city of rejoicing?
{49:26} For this reason, her young men will fall in her streets. And all the men of battle will be silenced in that day, says the Lord of hosts.
{49:27} And I will kindle a fire at the wall of Damascus, and it will devour the defensive walls of Ben-hadad.”
{49:28} Against Kedar and against the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, has struck down. Thus says the Lord: “Rise up and ascend to Kedar, and lay waste to the sons of the East.
{49:29} They will seize their tabernacles and their flocks. And they will take for themselves their tents, and all their vessels, and their camels. And they will call down a terror upon them on every side.
{49:30} Flee, go away urgently! Sit in deep pits, you who inhabit Hazor, says the Lord. For Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, has undertaken a counsel against you, and he has devised plans against you.
{49:31} Rise up, and ascend to a nation that is quiet and lives in confidence, says the Lord. They have neither gates nor bars. They dwell alone.
{49:32} And their camels will be a spoil, and the multitude of their cattle will be a prey. And I will disperse, into every wind, those who have shaved their hair. And from all their confines, I will lead great destruction over them, says the Lord.
{49:33} And Hazor will be a habitation for serpents, deserted even unto eternity. No man will abide there, nor will a son of man tend it.”
{49:34} The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet against Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah, the king of Judah, saying:
{49:35} “Thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will break the bow of Elam, and the summit of their strength.
{49:36} And I will lead the four winds over Elam, from the four corners of heaven. And I will scatter them into all these winds. And there will be no nation to which the fugitives of Elam will not travel.
{49:37} And I will cause Elam to be terrified before their enemies and in the sight of those who seek their life. And I will lead an evil over them, the wrath of my fury, says the Lord. And I will send the sword after them, until I consume them.
{49:38} And I will set my throne in Elam, and I will perish the kings and princes from there, says the Lord.
{49:39} But in the last days, I will cause the captives of Elam to return, says the Lord.”
{50:1} The word that the Lord has spoken about Babylon and about the land of the Chaldeans, by the hand of Jeremiah the prophet.
{50:2} “Announce it among the Gentiles, and make it known. Lift up a sign. Proclaim it and do not conceal it. Say this: ‘Babylon has been captured. Bel has been confounded. Merodach has been conquered. Their graven things have been confounded. Their idols have not survived.’
{50:3} For a nation has ascended against her from the north, which will set her land in desolation. And there will be no one who may live within it, from man even to beast. For they have been removed and have gone away.
{50:4} In those days and in that time, says the Lord, the sons of Israel will advance, they and the sons of Judah together. Weeping as they walk, they will hurry on, and they will seek the Lord their God.
{50:5} They will ask the way to Zion; their faces will be set toward this place. They will arrive and will be joined to the Lord by an everlasting covenant, which nothing will wipe away into oblivion.
{50:6} My people have become a lost flock. Their shepherds have led them astray and have caused them to wander in the mountains. They have crossed from mountain to hill. They have forgotten their resting place.
{50:7} All whom they have found, they have devoured. And their enemies have said: ‘We have not sinned. For it is they who have sinned against the Lord, the beauty of justice, and against the Lord, the hope of their fathers.’
{50:8} Withdraw from the midst of Babylon, and go forth from the land of the Chaldeans. And be like young goats before the flock.
{50:9} For behold, I am raising up, and I will lead against Babylon, a congregation of great nations from the land of the north. And they will be prepared against her, and from there she will be taken. Their arrows, like those of a strong man, a killer, will not return empty.
{50:10} And Chaldea will become a prey. All who lay waste to her will be filled, says the Lord.
{50:11} For you exult and you speak great things, plundering my inheritance. For you have spread out like calves upon the grass, and you have bellowed like bulls.
{50:12} Your mother has been exceedingly shamed, and she who bore you has become equal to the dust. Behold, she will be the last among the nations, a desert, impassable and dry.
{50:13} By the wrath of the Lord, it will not be inhabited. Instead, it will be entirely desolate. Everyone who passes by Babylon will be stupefied and will hiss over all her wounds.
{50:14} Prepare yourselves against Babylon, on every side, all you who bend the bow. Make war against her! You should not spare the arrows, for she has sinned against the Lord.
{50:15} Cry out against her! For where she has put forth a hand, her foundations have fallen, her walls have been destroyed. For it is the vengeance of the Lord. Take vengeance against her! Just as she has done, do so to her.
{50:16} Destroy the founder from Babylon, and the one who holds the sickle in the time of harvest. Before the face of the sword of the dove, each one will turn back to his people, and every one will flee to his own land.
{50:17} Israel is a scattered flock. The lions have driven him away. First, the king of Assyria devoured him. And last, this Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, has taken away his bones.
{50:18} Because of this, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will visit the king of Babylon and his land, just as I have visited the king of Assyria.
{50:19} And I will lead back Israel to his habitation. And he will pasture on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul will be satiated at mount Ephraim and Gilead.
{50:20} In those days and at that time, says the Lord, the iniquity of Israel will be sought, and there will be none. And the sin of Judah will be sought, and none will be found. For I will be forgiving to them, whom I will leave behind.
{50:21} Ascend against the land of the rulers, and visit against its inhabitants! Scatter and destroy whatever has been left behind them, says the Lord, and act according to all that I have instructed you.
{50:22} A voice of war in the land, and great destruction!
{50:23} How has the mallet of the entire earth been broken and crushed? How has Babylon been turned into a desert among the nations?
{50:24} I have ensnared you, and you have been captured, O Babylon, and you did not realize it. You have been discovered and seized, because you provoked the Lord.
{50:25} The Lord has opened his storehouse, and he has brought forth the instruments of his wrath. For there is work for the Lord, the God of hosts, within the land of the Chaldeans.
{50:26} Advance against her from the furthest regions! Open, so that those who will trample her may go out! Take stones from the road, and gather them into piles, and destroy her. And let there be nothing left of her.
{50:27} Scatter all her strong ones. Let them descend to the slaughter. Woe to them! For their day has arrived, the time of their visitation.
{50:28} It is the voice of those who are fleeing and of those who have escaped from the land of Babylon: to announce in Zion the revenge of the Lord our God, the revenge of his Temple.
{50:29} Announce it to the many in Babylon, to all who bend the bow. Stand together against her all around, and let no one escape. Repay her according to her work. In accord with all that she has done, do to her. For she has raised herself up against the Lord, against the Holy One of Israel.
{50:30} For this reason, her young men will fall in her streets. And all her men of war will be silenced, in that day, says the Lord.
{50:31} Behold, I am against you, O proud one, says the Lord, the God of hosts. For your day has arrived, the time of your visitation.
{50:32} And the proud one will fall and be ruined. And there will be no one who may lift him up. And I will kindle a fire in his cities, and it will devour everything around him.”
{50:33} Thus says the Lord of hosts: “The sons of Israel and the sons of Judah have endured calumny together. All who have seized them are holding them and refusing to release them.
{50:34} Their redeemer is strong. The Lord of hosts is his name. He will defend their case in judgment, so that he may terrify the land and disturb the inhabitants of Babylon.
{50:35} A sword is for the Chaldeans, says the Lord, and for the inhabitants of Babylon, and for her leaders, and for her wise ones.
{50:36} A sword is for her diviners, who will be fooled. A sword is for her strong ones, who will be afraid.
{50:37} A sword is for their horses, and for their chariots, and for all the common people who are in her midst. And they will be like women. A sword is for her storehouses, and they will be plundered.
{50:38} A drought is over her waters, and they will be dried up. For it is a land of graven images, and they glory in portents.
{50:39} Because of this, dragons will live there with the fig fauns, and ostriches will live in it. And it will no longer be inhabited, even in perpetuity, nor will it be raised up, even from generation to generation.
{50:40} Just as the Lord overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and their neighboring towns, says the Lord, no man will live there, and a son of man will not tend it.
{50:41} Behold, a people arrives from the north, and a great nation. And many kings will rise up from the ends of the earth.
{50:42} They will take up the bow and the shield. They are cruel and merciless. Their voice will sound out, like the sea, and they will ride upon horses, like a man prepared for battle against you, O daughter of Babylon.
{50:43} The king of Babylon has heard the report about them, and his hands have been weakened. Anguish has overtaken him, like the pains of a woman giving birth.
{50:44} Behold, he will ascend like a lion from the arrogance of the Jordan to the robust beauty. For I will cause him to rush upon her suddenly. And who will be the elect one, whom I may appoint over her? For who is like me? And who can endure me? And who is that pastor who can withstand my countenance?”
{50:45} Because of this, listen to the counsel of the Lord, which he has conceived in his mind against Babylon, and to his thoughts, which he has devised against the land of the Chaldeans: “Certainly the little ones of the flocks will pull them down, unless their habitation will have been destroyed with them.
{50:46} At the voice of the captivity of Babylon, the earth has been moved, and an outcry has been heard among the nations.”
{51:1} Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will raise up, over Babylon and over its inhabitants, who have lifted up their heart against me, something like a pestilent wind.
{51:2} And I will send winnowers into Babylon, and they will winnow her, and they will demolish her land. For they will overwhelm her from every side in the day of her affliction.
{51:3} Let him who draws the bow, not draw his bow. And let him who wears armor, not rise up. Do not spare her young men. Destroy her entire military.
{51:4} And the slain will fall in the land of the Chaldeans, and the wounded in its regions.
{51:5} Yet Israel and Judah have not been widowed by their God, the Lord of hosts, though their land has been filled with transgression against the Holy One of Israel.
{51:6} Flee from the midst of Babylon! And let each one save his own life. Do not be silent about her iniquity. For it is the time of revenge from the Lord. He himself will repay her, in her turn.
{51:7} Babylon is a gold cup in the hand of the Lord, inebriating the entire earth. The nations have drunk from her wine, and therefore they have staggered.
{51:8} Suddenly, Babylon has fallen and been crushed. Wail over her! Take a balm to her pain, if perhaps she may be healed.”
{51:9} “We would have cured Babylon, but there is no cure. Let us abandon her, and let each one of us go to his own land. For her judgment has reached even to the heavens, and has been lifted up even to the clouds.
{51:10} The Lord has brought forth our justices. Come and let us describe in Zion the work of the Lord our God.”
{51:11} Sharpen the arrows, fill the quivers. The Lord has raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes. And his mind is against Babylon, so that he may destroy her. For this is the vengeance of the Lord, the vengeance of his temple.
{51:12} Upon the walls of Babylon, lift up a sign. Increase the watch! Rouse the watchmen! Prepare ambushes! For the Lord has planned and has accomplished all that he has spoken, against the inhabitants of Babylon.
{51:13} You who live above many waters, rich in treasures: your end has arrived, your measure has been cut short.
{51:14} The Lord of hosts has sworn by himself, saying: “For I will fill you with men as with locusts, and they will sing a rhythmic chant against you.”
{51:15} The One who made the earth by his strength, who prepared the world by his wisdom, and who stretched out the heavens by his prudence:
{51:16} when he utters his voice, the waters will be multiplied in the heavens. The One who lifts up the clouds from the ends of the earth: he has turned lightning into rain, and he has brought forth wind from his storehouses.
{51:17} Each man has become foolish before his own knowledge. Each sculptor has been confounded by his own sculpture. For what he has formed of them is a lie, and there is no spirit in them.
{51:18} They are empty works, deserving of ridicule. In the time of their visitation, they will perish.
{51:19} The portion of Jacob is not like their portion. For the One who made all things is his portion, and Israel is the scepter of his inheritance. The Lord of hosts is his name:
{51:20} “For me, you strike together the instruments of war; and with you, I will strike together nations; and with you, I will scatter the kingdoms.
{51:21} And with you, I will strike together the horse and his rider; and with you, I will strike together the chariot and its rider.
{51:22} And with you, I will strike together man and woman; and with you, I will strike together the old man and the boy; and with you, I will strike together the young man and the virgin.
{51:23} And with you, I will strike together the pastor and his flock; and with you, I will strike together the farmer and his yoke of oxen; and with you, I will strike together military leaders and civil leaders.
{51:24} And I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea for all their evil that they have done in Zion, before your eyes, says the Lord.
{51:25} Behold, I am against you, you pestilent mountain, says the Lord, for you are corrupting the entire earth. And I will extend my hand over you, and I will roll you down from the rocks, and I will make you into a burning mountain.
{51:26} And they will not take from you a stone for the corner, nor a stone for the foundations. Instead, you will be destroyed unto eternity,” says the Lord.
{51:27} Lift up a sign in the land! Sound the trumpet among the nations! Sanctify the nations against her. Announce against her the kings of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. Number against her Taphsar. Lead in the horse, like the stinging locust.
{51:28} Sanctify the nations against her: the kings of Media, their military leaders, and all their civil leaders, and the entire land under their authority.
{51:29} And the earth will be shaken and will be disturbed. For the plan of the Lord against Babylon will awaken, so that he may make the land of Babylon desolate and uninhabitable.
{51:30} The strong ones of Babylon have ceased to do battle. They have lived in fortresses. Their health has been devoured, and they have become like women. Her tabernacles have been set ablaze; her bars have been broken.
{51:31} Runner will go forth to meet runner, and messenger will meet messenger, so as to tell the king of Babylon that his city has been captured, from one end to the other,
{51:32} and that the fords were seized in advance, and that the marshes have been burned with fire, and that the men of war have been set in disarray.
{51:33} For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor. This is the time of her threshing. A little while longer, and the time of her harvest will arrive.”
{51:34} “Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, has consumed me, has devoured me. He has made me like an empty vessel. He has swallowed me like a dragon. He has filled his belly with my tender ones, and he has cast me out.
{51:35} This iniquity is against me, and so my flesh is upon Babylon,” says the habitation of Zion. “And my blood is upon the inhabitants of Chaldea,” says Jerusalem.
{51:36} Because of this, thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will judge your case, and I will avenge your vengeance, and I will make her sea into a desert, and I will dry up her spring.
{51:37} And Babylon will become a tumult, the habitation of dragons, an astonishment, and a hissing, because there is no inhabitant.
{51:38} They will roar together, like lions, they will shake their manes, like young lions.
{51:39} In their heat, I will give them a drink, and I will inebriate them, so that they become drowsy, and sleep an everlasting sleep, and do not rise up, says the Lord.
{51:40} I will lead them away, like lambs to the slaughter, and like rams with young goats.
{51:41} How was Sesac captured, and how was the renowned one of all the earth seized? How has Babylon become an astonishment among the nations?
{51:42} The sea has ascended over Babylon; she has been covered by the multitude of its waves.
{51:43} Her cities have become an astonishment, an uninhabited and desolate land, a land in which no one may live, nor may a son of man pass through it.
{51:44} And I will visit against Bel in Babylon, and I will cast from his mouth what he has swallowed. And the nations will no longer flow together before him. For even the wall of Babylon will also fall.
{51:45} Go forth from her midst, my people, so that each one may save his life from the wrath of the fury of the Lord.
{51:46} For otherwise, your heart may faint, and you may be afraid at the news that is heard in the land. And the news will arrive within a year, and after that year more news will arrive. And iniquity will be in the land, and one ruler will be over another ruler.
{51:47} Because of this, behold, the days are approaching, when I will visit against the graven images of Babylon. And her entire land will be confounded, and all her slain will fall in her midst.
{51:48} And the heavens and the earth, and all the things that are in them, will give praise over Babylon. For despoilers will approach her from the north, says the Lord.
{51:49} And in the manner that Babylon has caused the slain to fall in Israel, so the slain of Babylon will fall over the entire earth.
{51:50} You who have fled from the sword, approach, do not stand still. Remember from afar the Lord, and let Jerusalem rise up in your heart.
{51:51} We have been confounded, for we heard reproach. Shame has covered our faces, for strangers have overwhelmed the holiness of the house of the Lord.
{51:52} Because of this, behold, the days are approaching, says the Lord, when I will visit against her graven images, and within all her land the wounded will groan.
{51:53} If Babylon were to ascend to heaven, and establish her strength on high, her despoilers would go forth from me, says the Lord.”
{51:54} A voice of outcry from Babylon, and great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans!
{51:55} For the Lord has despoiled Babylon, and he has perished the great voice from her. And their wave will make a sound like many waters. Their voice has uttered a noise.
{51:56} For the despoiler has overwhelmed her, that is, Babylon, and her strong ones have been apprehended, and their bow has been weakened. For the Lord, the powerful revenger, will certainly repay.
{51:57} “And I will inebriate her leaders, and her wise ones, and her military rulers, and her civil rulers, and her strong ones. And they will sleep an everlasting sleep, and they will not awaken,” says the King: the Lord of hosts is his name.
{51:58} Thus says the Lord of hosts: “That very wide wall of Babylon will be utterly overturned, and her exalted gates will be burned with fire, and the labors of the people will be as nothing, and the labors of the nations will be sent into the fire and will perish.”
{51:59} The word that Jeremiah, the prophet, instructed to Seraiah, the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he traveled with king Zedekiah into Babylon, in the fourth year of his reign. Now Seraiah was the leader of the prophets.
{51:60} And Jeremiah wrote in one book all the evil that was to overwhelm Babylon; all these words were written against Babylon.
{51:61} And Jeremiah said to Seraiah: “When you will enter into Babylon, and you will see and read all these words,
{51:62} you will say: ‘O Lord, you have spoken against this place so that you may destroy it, so that there would not be anyone, from man even to beast, who may live in it, and so that it may be desolate forever.’
{51:63} And when you will have completed reading this book, you will tie a stone to it, and you will cast it into the midst of the Euphrates.
{51:64} And you will say: ‘So shall Babylon be submerged! And she will not rise up before the face of the affliction that I will lead over her. And she will be broken.’ ” The words of Jeremiah thus far.
{52:1} Zedekiah was a son of twenty-one years when he first began to reign. And he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem. And the name of his mother was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah from Libnah.
{52:2} And he did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord, in accord with all that Jehoiakim had done.
{52:3} And so the fury of the Lord was toward Jerusalem, and toward Judah, even until he cast them away from his face. And Zedekiah drew away from the king of Babylon.
{52:4} And it happened that, in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth of the month, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, he and his entire army, came against Jerusalem. And they besieged it, and they built fortifications against it, on every side.
{52:5} And the city was besieged, until the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.
{52:6} Then, in the fourth month, on the ninth of the month, a famine gripped the city. And there was no nourishment for the people of the land.
{52:7} And the city was broken, and all the men of war fled, and they departed from the city at night by way of the gate which is between the two walls, and which leads to the king’s garden, while the Chaldeans were besieging the city all around, and they went away by the road that leads to the wilderness.
{52:8} But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king. And they overtook Zedekiah in the desert which is near Jericho. And all of his companions fled away from him.
{52:9} And when they had captured the king, they led him away to the king of Babylon at Riblah, which is in the land of Hamath. And he spoke a judgment against him.
{52:10} And the king of Babylon cut the throats of the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and he also killed all the leaders of Judah at Riblah.
{52:11} And he plucked out the eyes of Zedekiah, and he bound him with shackles, and the king of Babylon led him away to Babylon, and he placed him in the prison house, even until the day of his death.
{52:12} Then, in the fifth month, on the tenth of the month, which is the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, arrived. And he was standing before the king of Babylon at Jerusalem.
{52:13} And he set fire to the house of the Lord, and to the house of the king, and to all the houses of Jerusalem. And every great house he burned with fire.
{52:14} And the entire army of the Chaldeans, who were with the chief of the military, destroyed the entire wall all around Jerusalem.
{52:15} Then Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, took away some of the poor people, and some of the rest of the common people, who had remained in the city, and some of the fugitives, who had fled over to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the multitude.
{52:16} Yet truly, some of the poor of the land, Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, left behind as vinedressers and farmers.
{52:17} The Chaldeans also broke apart the bronze pillars that were in the house of the Lord, and the bases, and the sea of brass that was in the house of the Lord. And they took all the brass of these things to Babylon.
{52:18} And they took the cooking pots, and the hooks, and the psalteries, and the bowls, and the little mortars, and all the bronze vessels that had been used in the ministry.
{52:19} And the chief of the military took the water pots, and the censers, and the pitchers, and the basins, and the lampstands, and the mortars, and the little cups, whatever was gold, for the gold, and whatever was silver, for the silver,
{52:20} as well as the two pillars, and the one brass sea, and the twelve oxen of brass that were under the bases, which king Solomon had made in the house of the Lord. There was no weight of brass left behind out of all these vessels.
{52:21} Now concerning the pillars, one pillar was eighteen cubits high, and a cord of twelve cubits encircled it. Moreover, its thickness was four fingers, and the interior was hollow.
{52:22} And heads of brass were upon both. And the height of one head was five cubits. And little nets with pomegranates were upon the heads all around, all of brass. The second pillar was similar, and the pomegranates.
{52:23} And there were ninety-six pomegranates hanging down; and there were one hundred pomegranates in all, surrounded by the little nets.
{52:24} And the chief of the military took Seraiah, the first priest, and Zephaniah, the second priest, and the three keepers of the vestibule.
{52:25} He also took from the city one eunuch who was in charge of the men of war, and seven men among those who served before the face of the king, who were found in the city, and a scribe, a leader of the military, who tested the new recruits, and sixty men from the people of the land, who were found in the midst of the city.
{52:26} Then Nebuzaradan, the chief of the military, took them, and he led them to the king of Babylon at Riblah.
{52:27} And the king of Babylon struck them and put them to death at Riblah, in the land of Hamath. And Judah was carried away from his land.
{52:28} This is the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away: in the seventh year, three thousand and twenty-three Jews;
{52:29} in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar, eight hundred thirty-two souls from Jerusalem;
{52:30} in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan, the chief of the military, carried away of the Jews seven hundred forty-five souls. Therefore, all the souls were four thousand six hundred.
{52:31} And it happened that, in the thirty-seventh year of the transmigration of Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth of the month, Evilmerodach, the king of Babylon, in the very first year of his reign, lifted up the head of Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, and he brought him out of the prison house.
{52:32} And he spoke with him for good, and he set his throne above the thrones of the kings who were after him in Babylon.
{52:33} And he changed his prison garments, and he ate bread in his sight always, all the days of his life.
{52:34} And for his meals, a continual provision was allotted to him by the king of Babylon, a measure for every single day, until the day of his death, all the days of his life.
{P:1} And it happened that, after Israel was driven into captivity, and Jerusalem was deserted,
{P:2} the prophet Jeremiah sat weeping, and he wailed this lamentation in Jerusalem.
{P:3} And sighing with a bitter soul, and mourning, he said:
{1:1} ALEPH. O how a city once filled with people now sits alone! The Governess of the Gentiles has become like a widow. The Prince of the provinces has been placed under tribute.
{1:2} BETH. Weeping, she has wept through the night, and her tears are on her cheeks. There is no one to be a comfort to her and to all her beloved. All her friends have spurned her, and they have become her enemies.
{1:3} GHIMEL. Judah has migrated because of affliction and great servitude. She has lived among the nations and not found rest. All of her persecutors have apprehended her, amid torments.
{1:4} DALETH. The pathways of Zion mourn, because there are none who approach for the solemnity. All her gates are destroyed. Her priests groan. Her virgins are filthy. And she is overwhelmed with bitterness.
{1:5} HE. Her enemies have been made her leaders; her adversaries have been enriched. For the Lord has spoken against her, because of the multitude of her iniquities. Her little ones have been led into captivity before the face of the tribulator.
{1:6} VAU. And all her elegance has departed, from the daughter of Zion. Her leaders have become like rams that cannot find pasture, and they have gone away without strength before the face of the pursuer.
{1:7} ZAIN. Jerusalem has remembered the days of her affliction and the betrayal of all her desirable ones, whom she held from the days of antiquity, when her people fell into the hand of the enemy, and there was no one to be a helper. The enemies have looked upon her and mocked her Sabbaths.
{1:8} HETH. Jerusalem has sinned a grievous sin. Because of this, she has become unstable. All who glorified her have spurned her, because they have looked upon her disgrace. Then she groaned and turned away again.
{1:9} TETH. Her filth is on her feet, and her end has not been remembered. She has been vehemently put down, having no consolation. O Lord, look upon my affliction, for the adversary has been lifted up.
{1:10} JOD. The enemy has sent his hand against all her desirable ones. For she has watched the Gentiles enter her sanctuary, even though you instructed that they should not enter into your church.
{1:11} CAPH. All her people are groaning and seeking bread. They have given up whatever was precious in exchange for food, so as to remain alive. See, O Lord, and consider, for I have become vile.
{1:12} LAMED. O all you who pass by the way, attend, and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow. For he has made me a vintage, just as the Lord has spoken in the day of his furious anger.
{1:13} MEM. From on high, he has sent fire into my bones, and he has educated me. He has spread a net for my feet; he has turned me back. He has placed me in desolation, consumed by grief, all day long.
{1:14} NUN. Vigilant is the yoke of my iniquities. They have been folded together in his hand and imposed on my neck. My virtue has been weakened. The Lord has given me into a hand, out of which I am not able to rise.
{1:15} SAMECH. The Lord has taken away all of my great ones from my midst. He has called forth time against me, so as to crush my elect ones. The Lord has trampled the winepress, which was for the virgin daughter of Judah.
{1:16} AIN. For this I weep, and my eyes bring forth water. For the consoler has been far away from me, changing my soul. My sons have become lost, because the enemy has prevailed.
{1:17} PHE. Zion has reached out her hands; there is no one to console her. The Lord has given orders against Jacob; his enemies are all around him. Jerusalem among them is like a woman made unclean by menstruation.
{1:18} SADE. The Lord is just, for it is I who has provoked his mouth to wrath. I beg all people to listen and to see my sorrow. My virgins and my youths have gone into captivity.
{1:19} COPH. I called for my friends, but they deceived me. My priests and my elders have been consumed in the city. For they were seeking their food, so as to revive their life.
{1:20} RES. See, O Lord, that I am in tribulation. My bowels have been disturbed, my heart has been subverted within me, for I am filled with bitterness. Outside, the sword puts to death, and at home there is a similar death.
{1:21} SIN. They have heard that I groan and that there is no one to console me. All my enemies have heard of my misfortune; they have rejoiced that you caused it. You have brought in a day of consolation, and so they shall become like me.
{1:22} THAU. Let all their evil enter before you. And make vintage of them, just as you made vintage of me, because of all my iniquities. For my sighs are many, and my heart is grieving.
{2:1} ALEPH. O how the Lord has covered the daughter of Zion with gloom in his fury! O how he has thrown down from heaven to earth the famous one of Israel, and he has not remembered his footstool in the day of his fury.
{2:2} BETH. The Lord has cast down, and he has not been lenient, with all the beauties of Jacob. In his fury, he has destroyed the fortifications of the virgin of Judah, and he has thrown them down to the ground. He has polluted the kingdom and its leaders.
{2:3} GHIMEL. In the anger of his fury, he has broken the entire horn of Israel. He has drawn back his right hand before the face of the enemy. And he has kindled within Jacob a flaming fire, devouring all around.
{2:4} DALETH. He has bent his bow like an enemy. He has fixed his right hand like an adversary. And he has cut down all that was beautiful to behold in the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion. He has poured out his indignation like fire.
{2:5} HE. The Lord has become like an enemy. He has thrown down Israel. He has thrown down all of his defenses. He has torn apart his fortifications. And he has filled the daughter of Judah with humbled men and humbled women.
{2:6} VAU. And he has torn apart her tent like a garden. He has demolished her tabernacle. In Zion, the Lord has delivered feast and Sabbath into oblivion, and king and priest into disgrace, and into the indignation of his fury.
{2:7} ZAIN. The Lord has pushed away his own altar. He has cursed his own sanctuary. He has delivered the walls of its towers into the hand of the enemy. They have made a noise in the house of the Lord, as if on the day of a solemnity.
{2:8} HETH. The Lord has decided to tear down the wall of the daughter of Zion. He has stretched out his measuring line, and he has not turned away his hand from perdition. And the rampart has mourned, and with the wall it has been torn apart.
{2:9} TETH. Her gates have been buried in the ground. He has ruined and crushed its bars. Her king and her princes are with the Gentiles. There is no law, and her prophets have found no vision from the Lord.
{2:10} JOD. The elders of the daughter of Zion have become idle; they sit on the ground. They have sprinkled their heads with ashes. They have been wrapped with haircloth. The virgins of Jerusalem have cast their heads down to the ground.
{2:11} CAPH. My eyes have exhausted their tears. My internal organs have become disturbed. My liver has been poured out on the earth, over the grief of the daughter of my people, when the little ones and the infants passed away in the streets of the town.
{2:12} LAMED. They said to their mothers, “Where is the wheat and the wine?” when they fell like the wounded in the streets of the city, when they breathed out their lives into the bosoms of their mothers.
{2:13} MEM. To what shall I compare you, or to what shall I liken you, O daughter of Jerusalem? To what shall I equate you, so as to console you, O virgin daughter of Zion? For your destruction is as great as the sea. Who will cure you?
{2:14} NUN. Your prophets have seen false and foolish things for you. And they have not laid open your iniquity, so as to provoke you to repentance. Yet they have seen for you false revelations and banishments.
{2:15} SAMECH. All those who passed by the way have clapped their hands over you. They have hissed and shook their heads over the daughter of Jerusalem, saying, “Is this the city of perfect dignity, the joy of all the earth?”
{2:16} PHE. All your enemies have opened their mouth over you. They have hissed and gnashed their teeth, and they said: “We will devour her. Yes, this is the day we waited for. We have found it, we have seen it.”
{2:17} AIN. The Lord has done what he decided to do. He has fulfilled his word, which he instructed since the days of antiquity. He has destroyed, and he has not been lenient, and he has caused the enemy to rejoice over you, and he has exalted the horn of your adversaries.
{2:18} SADE. Their heart cried out to the Lord from the walls of the daughter of Zion. Let tears run down like a torrent throughout the day and the night. Do not give rest to yourself, and do not allow the pupil of your eye to cease.
{2:19} COPH. Rise up. Give praise in the night, in the first of the watches. Pour out your heart like water before the sight of the Lord. Lift up your hands to him on behalf of the souls of your little ones, who have passed away from famine at the head of all the crossroads.
{2:20} RES. O Lord, see and consider those whom you have made into such a vintage. So then, shall women eat their own fruit, little ones measured by the palm of the hand? Shall priest and prophet be killed in the sanctuary of the Lord?
{2:21} SIN. The boy and the old man lie down on the ground outside. My virgins and my youths have fallen by the sword. You have slain them in the day of your fury. You have struck down, and you have not shown pity.
{2:22} THAU. You have called, as if to a day of solemnity, those who would terrify me all around. And there was no one, in the day of the fury of the Lord, who escaped or was left behind. Those whom I educated and nourished, my enemy has consumed.
{3:1} ALEPH. I am a man watching my own poverty by the rod of his indignation.
{3:2} ALEPH. He has driven me and led me into darkness, and not into light.
{3:3} ALEPH. Against me only, he has turned and turned again his hand, all day long.
{3:4} BETH. My skin and my flesh, he has made old; he has crushed my bones.
{3:5} BETH. He has built all around me, and he has encircled me with gall and hardship.
{3:6} BETH. He has gathered me into darkness, like those who are forever dead.
{3:7} GHIMEL. He has built against me all around, so that I may not depart. He has increased the burden of my confinement.
{3:8} GHIMEL. Yet even when I cry out and beg, he excludes my prayer.
{3:9} GHIMEL. He has enclosed my ways with square stones; he has subverted my paths.
{3:10} DALETH. He has become to me like a bear lying in ambush, like a lion in hiding.
{3:11} DALETH. He has subverted my paths, and he has broken me. He has placed me in desolation.
{3:12} DALETH. He has bent his bow, and he has positioned me like a target for his arrows.
{3:13} HE. He has shot into my kidneys the daughters of his quiver.
{3:14} HE. I have become a derision to all my people, their song throughout the day.
{3:15} HE. He has filled me with bitterness; he has inebriated me with wormwood.
{3:16} VAU. And he has broken each one of my teeth; he has fed me with ashes.
{3:17} VAU. And my soul has been driven away from peace; I have forgotten what is good.
{3:18} VAU. And I said, “My end and my hope from the Lord has perished.”
{3:19} ZAIN. Remember my poverty and my transgression, the wormwood and the gall.
{3:20} ZAIN. I will call to mind the past, and my soul shall languish within me.
{3:21} ZAIN. These recollections are in my heart; therefore, I shall hope.
{3:22} HETH. By the mercies of the Lord, we are not consumed. For his compassion has not passed away.
{3:23} HETH. I know it at first light; great is your faithfulness.
{3:24} HETH. “The Lord is my portion,” said my soul. Because of this, I will wait for him.
{3:25} TETH. The Lord is good to those who hope in him, to the soul that seeks him.
{3:26} TETH. It is good to stand ready in silence for the salvation of God.
{3:27} TETH. It is good for a man, when he has carried the yoke from his youth.
{3:28} JOD. He shall sit solitary and silent. For he has lifted it upon himself.
{3:29} JOD. He shall place his mouth in the dirt, if perhaps there may be hope.
{3:30} JOD. He shall give his cheek to those who strike him; he shall be saturated with reproaches.
{3:31} CAPH. For the Lord will not rebuke forever.
{3:32} CAPH. For, if he has cast down, he will also have compassion, according to the multitude of his mercies.
{3:33} CAPH. For he has not humiliated from his heart, nor has he thrown aside the sons of men,
{3:34} LAMED. as if to crush under his feet all the prisoners of the land,
{3:35} LAMED. as if to turn aside the judgment of a man in the sight of the presence of the Most High,
{3:36} LAMED. as if to pervert a man in his judgment: the Lord does not do this.
{3:37} MEM. Who is this, who said to do what the Lord did not command?
{3:38} MEM. Does not both misfortune and good proceed from the mouth of the Most High?
{3:39} MEM. Why has a living man murmured, a man suffering for his sins?
{3:40} NUN. Let us examine our ways, and seek out, and return to the Lord.
{3:41} NUN. Let us lift up our hearts, with our hands, toward the Lord in the heavens.
{3:42} NUN. We have acted sinfully, and we have provoked to wrath. About this, you are relentless.
{3:43} SAMECH. You have covered us in your fury, and you have struck us. You have killed, and have not spared.
{3:44} SAMECH. You have set a cloud opposite you, lest our prayer pass through.
{3:45} SAMECH. In the midst of the peoples, you have uprooted me and cast me out.
{3:46} PHE. All our enemies have opened their mouths over us.
{3:47} PHE. Prediction has become for us a dread, and a snare, and a grief.
{3:48} PHE. My eye has brought forth streams of water at the contrition of the daughter of my people.
{3:49} AIN. My eye has been afflicted, and it has not been quieted, because there would be no rest
{3:50} AIN. until the Lord looked down and saw from the heavens.
{3:51} AIN. My eye has exhausted my soul over every one of the daughters of my city.
{3:52} SADE. My enemies have chased me, and they have caught me like a bird, without reason.
{3:53} SADE. My life has fallen into a pit, and they have placed a stone over me.
{3:54} SADE. The waters have flooded over my head. I said, “I am lost.”
{3:55} COPH. I called upon your name, O Lord, from the furthest pit.
{3:56} COPH. You have heard my voice. Do not turn away your ear from my sobbing and my cries.
{3:57} COPH. You drew near in the daytime, when I called upon you. You said, “Fear not.”
{3:58} RES. You have judged, O Lord, the case of my soul. You are the Redeemer of my life.
{3:59} RES. You have seen, O Lord, their iniquity against me. Judge my case.
{3:60} RES. You have seen all their fury, every one of their thoughts is against me.
{3:61} SIN. You have heard their reproach, O Lord, all their thoughts are against me.
{3:62} SIN. The lips of those who rise up against me, and their meditations, are against me all day long.
{3:63} SIN. Watch their sitting down and their rising up: I am their psalm.
{3:64} THAU. You shall pay a recompense to them, O Lord, according to the works of their hands.
{3:65} THAU. You shall give them a heavy shield of the heart: your hardship.
{3:66} THAU. You shall pursue them in fury, and you shall destroy them under the heavens, O Lord.
{4:1} ALEPH. O how the gold has become dulled, the finest color has been altered, the stones of the sanctuary have been scattered at the head of every street.
{4:2} BETH. The famous sons of Zion, and those clothed with the foremost gold: how they have become like earthen vessels, the work of the hands of a potter.
{4:3} GHIMEL. Yet even savages expose their breast and give milk to their young. But the daughter of my people is cruel, like the ostrich in the desert.
{4:4} DALETH. The tongue of the infant adheres to his palate out of thirst. The little ones have asked for bread, and there was no one to break it for them.
{4:5} HE. Those who were fed indulgently have passed away in the roads. Those who were nourished with saffron have welcomed filth.
{4:6} VAU. And the iniquity of the daughter of my people has been made greater than the sin of Sodom, which was overthrown in a moment, and yet hands did not take captives in her.
{4:7} ZAIN. Her Nazirites were whiter than snow, shinier than milk, more ruddy than ancient ivory, more beautiful than sapphire.
{4:8} HETH. Their face has been blacked more than coals, and they are not recognized in the streets. Their skin has adhered to their bones; it dried out and became like wood.
{4:9} TETH. It was better for those slain by the sword, than for those put to death by famine. For these waste away, being consumed by the sterility of the land.
{4:10} JOD. The hands of pitiable women have boiled their sons. They became their food in the grief of the daughter of my people.
{4:11} CAPH. The Lord has completed his fury; he has poured out the wrath of his indignation. And he has kindled a fire in Zion, and it has devoured its foundations.
{4:12} LAMED. The kings of the earth, and all the inhabitants of the world, did not believe that the adversary and the enemy would enter through the gates of Jerusalem.
{4:13} MEM. It is because of the sins of her prophets, and the iniquities of her priests, who have shed the blood of the just in her midst.
{4:14} NUN. They have wandered in the streets like the blind; they have been defiled with blood. And when they were not able, they held their garments.
{4:15} SAMECH. “Go back, you polluted ones!” they cried out to them. “Go back, go away, do not touch!” Of course, they argued, and being removed, they said among the Gentiles, “He will no longer dwell among them.”
{4:16} PHE. The face of the Lord has divided them. He will no longer respect them. They were not ashamed before the faces of the priests, nor did they take pity on the elderly.
{4:17} AIN. While we were still standing, our eyes failed, expecting help for us in vain, when we looked attentively toward a nation that was not able to save.
{4:18} SADE. Our footsteps have slipped on the paths of our own streets. Our end draws near. Our days have been completed, for our end has arrived.
{4:19} COPH. Our persecutors have been swifter than the eagles of the sky. They have been pursuing us above the mountains; they have lain in wait for us in the desert.
{4:20} RES. The spirit of our mouth, Christ the Lord, has been captured by our sins; to him, we said, “In your shadow, we will live among the Gentiles.”
{4:21} SIN. Be glad and rejoice, O daughter of Edom, who dwells in the Land of Uz. The cup will also pass to you; you will be inebriated as well as naked.
{4:22} THAU. Your iniquity has been completed, O daughter of Zion. He will no longer send you away to captivity. He has visited your iniquity, O daughter of Edom; he has uncovered your sins.
{5:1} Remember, O Lord, what has befallen us. Consider and look kindly upon our disgrace.
{5:2} Our inheritance has been turned over to foreigners; our houses to outsiders.
{5:3} We have become orphans without a father; our mothers are like widows.
{5:4} We paid for our drinking water. We acquired our wood for a price.
{5:5} We were dragged by our necks. Being weary, no rest was given to us.
{5:6} We have given our hand to Egypt and to the Assyrians, so that we may be satisfied with bread.
{5:7} Our fathers have sinned, and are not. And we have carried their iniquities.
{5:8} Servants have become rulers over us. There was no one to redeem us from their hand.
{5:9} We obtained our bread at the risk of our lives, before the face of the sword, in the wilderness.
{5:10} Our skin was burned, as if by an oven, before the face of the tempest of the famine.
{5:11} They humiliated the women in Zion and the virgins in the cities of Judah.
{5:12} The leaders were suspended by their hand. They were not ashamed before the faces of the elders.
{5:13} They have sexually abused the adolescents, and the children were corrupted in the wood.
{5:14} The elders have ceased from the gates, the youths from the choir of the psalms.
{5:15} The gladness of our heart has failed, our singing has been turned into mourning.
{5:16} The crown has fallen from our head. Woe to us, for we have sinned.
{5:17} Because of this, our heart became gloomy; for this reason, our eyes have been darkened:
{5:18} because of mount Zion, because it was ruined. Foxes have wandered upon it.
{5:19} But you, O Lord, shall remain for eternity, your throne from generation to generation.
{5:20} Why would you forget us forever? Why would you forsake us for a long time?
{5:21} Convert us, O Lord, to you, and we shall be converted. Renew our days, as from the beginning.
{5:22} But you have utterly rejected us; you are vehemently angry against us.
{1:1} And these are the words of the book, which Baruch the son of Neraiah, the son of Mahseiah, the son of Zedekiah, the son of Hasadiah, the son Hilkiah, wrote in Babylon,
{1:2} in the fifth year, on the seventh day of the month, since the time when the Chaldeans captured Jerusalem and set it on fire.
{1:3} And Baruch read the words of this book to the ears of Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and to the ears of the entire people, who came to the book:
{1:4} even to the ears of the powerful sons of kings, and to the ears of the elders, and to the ears of the people, from the least to the greatest of them, of all those living in Babylon, near the river Sud.
{1:5} And upon hearing it, they wept and fasted and prayed in the sight of the Lord.
{1:6} And they collected money in accordance with whatever each one was able to handover.
{1:7} And they sent it to Jerusalem to Jehoiakim, the son of Hilkiah, the son of Shalum the priest, and to the priests, and to all the people, who were found with him in Jerusalem.
{1:8} At that time, he received the vessels of the temple of the Lord (which had been carried away from the temple) so as to return them to the land of Judah, on the tenth day of the month Sivan. These were the silver vessels, which Zedekiah, the son of Josiah king of Judah, had made.
{1:9} After this, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, captured Jeconiah, and the leaders, and all the powerful, and the people of the land, and led them captive from Jerusalem to Babylon.
{1:10} And they said, “Behold we have sent you money with which to buy holocausts and frankincense. Therefore, make manna and offer it for sin at the altar of the Lord our God.
{1:11} And pray for the life of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and for the life of Belshazzar his son, so that their days may be just like the days of the heaven above the earth,
{1:12} and so that the Lord may give virtue to us, and enlighten our eyes, so that we may live under the shadow of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and under the shadow of Belshazzar his son, and so that we may serve them for many days and may find favor in their sight.
{1:13} And pray for us also to the Lord our God, for we have sinned against the Lord our God, and the madness of our sin has not been driven away from us even to this day.
{1:14} And read this book, which we have sent to you to be recited in the temple of the Lord, on solemn days and on other suitable days.
{1:15} And you will say, ‘To the Lord our God is justice, but to us is confusion of our face, just as it is this day for all of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
{1:16} even for our kings, and our leaders, and our priests, and our prophets, and our fathers.
{1:17} We have sinned before the Lord our God and we have not believed, lacking confidence in him.
{1:18} And we have not been submissive to him, and we have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God, so as to walk in his commandments, which he has given to us.
{1:19} From the day that he led our fathers out of the land of Egypt, even to this day, we were unfaithful to the Lord our God, and, having been scattered, we fell away. We did not listen to his voice.
{1:20} And we joined ourselves to many evils and to the curses which the Lord established through Moses, his servant, who led our fathers out of the land of Egypt, to give us a land flowing with milk and honey, just as it is in the present day.
{1:21} And we have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God, according to all the words of the prophets whom he sent to us.
{1:22} And we have gone astray, each one after the inclinations of his own malignant heart, serving strange gods and doing evil before the eyes of the Lord our God.
{2:1} “ ‘For this reason, the Lord our God has fulfilled his word, which he has spoken to us, and to our judges, who have judged Israel, and to our kings, and to our leaders, and to all Israel and Judah.
{2:2} And so the Lord has brought upon us great evils, such as never before happened under heaven, (but which have come to pass in Jerusalem according to what was written in the law of Moses)
{2:3} even that a man would eat the flesh of his son and the flesh of his daughter.
{2:4} And so he placed them under the hand of all the kings who surround us, in disgrace and desolation among all the people where the Lord has scattered us.
{2:5} And we were brought down low and were not raised up, because we sinned against the Lord our God, by not obeying his voice.
{2:6} To the Lord our God is justice, but to us and to our fathers is confusion of face, just as on this day.
{2:7} For the Lord has pronounced against us all these evils, which have overcome us.
{2:8} And we have not beseeched the face of the Lord our God, so that we might return, each one of us from our most sinful ways.
{2:9} And the Lord has watched over us for evil and has brought it upon us, because the Lord is just in all his works that he has commanded us,
{2:10} and we have not listened to his own voice, so as to walk according to the teachings of the Lord, which he has set before our face.
{2:11} And now, O Lord God of Israel, who has led your people out of the land of Egypt with a strong hand, and with signs, and with wonders, and with your great power, and with an exalted arm, and has made a name for yourself, just as on this day,
{2:12} we have sinned, we have become impious, we have acted unjustly, O Lord our God, against all your principles.
{2:13} May your wrath be turned away from us because, having been forsaken, we are few among the irreligious where you have scattered us.
{2:14} Heed, O Lord, our petitions and our prayers, and deliver us for your own sake, and grant that we may find favor before the face of those who have led us away,
{2:15} so that all the earth may know that you are the Lord our God, and because your name has been invoked over Israel and over his posterity.
{2:16} Gaze upon us, O Lord, from your holy home, and incline your ear, and heed us.
{2:17} Open your eyes and see, because the dead, who are in the underworld, whose spirit has been taken away from their vital organs, will not give honor and justification to the Lord.
{2:18} But the soul that is sorrowful for the greatness of evil, approaches bowed down and weak, and the failing eyes and the hungering soul give glory and justice to you, the Lord.
{2:19} For it is not according to the righteousness of our fathers that we pour out our petitions and beg mercy in your sight, O Lord our God,
{2:20} but because you have sent your wrath and your fury upon us, just as you have spoken by the hand of your children the prophets, saying:
{2:21} “Thus says the Lord, ‘Bow down your shoulder and your neck, and do work for the king of Babylon, and settle in the land which I gave to your fathers,
{2:22} because, if you will not listen to the voice of the Lord your God, to serve the king of Babylon, I will cause you to depart from the cities of Judah and from the gates of Jerusalem.
{2:23} And I will take away from you the voice of cheerfulness and the voice of joy, and the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, and all the land will be without any trace of its inhabitants.’ ”
{2:24} And they did not listen to your voice, that they should serve the king of Babylon, and so you have fulfilled your words, which you spoke by the hands of your children the prophets, so that the bones of our kings and the bones of our fathers would be carried away from their place.
{2:25} And, behold, they have been cast out into the heat of the sun and the frost of the night, and they have died by means of grievous evils, by famine, and by the sword, and by banishment.
{2:26} And you have set up the temple, in which your name itself was called upon, just as it is on this day, because of the iniquity of the house of Israel and the house of Judah.
{2:27} And you have accomplished in us, O Lord our God, according to all your goodness and according to all your great mercy,
{2:28} just as you spoke by the hand of your child Moses, in the day when you commanded him to write your law before the sons of Israel,
{2:29} saying: “If you will not listen to my voice, this great multitude will be changed into the least among the peoples, where I will scatter them.
{2:30} For I know that the people will not listen to me, for the people are stiff necked. But they will have a change of their heart in the land of their captivity,
{2:31} and they will know that I am the Lord their God. And I will give them a heart, and they will understand, ears, and they will hear.
{2:32} And they will praise me in the land of their captivity, and will remember my name.
{2:33} And they will turn themselves away from their stiff back, and from their wicked deeds, for they will call to mind the way of their fathers, who sinned against me.
{2:34} And I will restore them to the land which I pledged to their fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and they will rule over it, and I will multiply them, and they will not be diminished.
{2:35} And I will establish for them a new and everlasting covenant, so that I will be their God and they will be my people. And I will no longer move my people, the sons of Israel, out of the land which I have given them.”
{3:1} “ ‘And now, O Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, the soul in anguish and the troubled spirit cry out to you.
{3:2} Listen, O Lord, and be merciful, for you are a merciful God, and so be merciful to us, for we have sinned before you.
{3:3} For you are enthroned in eternity, but we will pass away in time.
{3:4} O Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, listen now to the prayer of the dead of Israel and of their sons, who have sinned before you and have not listened to the voice of the Lord their God, and have joined themselves to evil.
{3:5} Remember not the iniquities of our fathers, but remember your hand and your name at this time.
{3:6} For you are the Lord our God, and we will praise you, O Lord.
{3:7} And for this reason, you have imparted your fear into our hearts, and also, so that we may call upon your name and may praise you in our captivity, for we are converted from the iniquity of our fathers, who sinned before you.
{3:8} And, behold, we are still in our captivity on this day, where you have scattered us into disgrace, and into slander, and into sin, according to all the iniquities of our fathers, who withdrew from you, O Lord our God.
{3:9} Listen, O Israel, to the commandments of life! Pay attention, so that you may learn prudence!
{3:10} How is it, O Israel, that you are in the land of your enemies,
{3:11} that you have grown old in a foreign land, that you are defiled with the dead, that you are regarded as among those who are descending into hell?
{3:12} You have forsaken the fountain of wisdom.
{3:13} For if you had walked in the way of God, you would certainly have lived in everlasting peace.
{3:14} Learn where prudence is, where virtue is, where understanding is, so that you may know at the same time where long life and prosperity are, where the light of the eyes and peace are.
{3:15} Who has discovered its place? And who has entered its treasure chamber?
{3:16} Where are the leaders of the peoples, and those who rule over the beasts that are upon the earth,
{3:17} who play among the birds of the air,
{3:18} who store up treasures of silver and gold, in which men trust, and with whom there is no end to their acquiring, who work with silver and are anxious about it, and whose works are inexplicable?
{3:19} They have been banished and have descended to hell, and others are risen up in their place.
{3:20} The youth have seen the light and have dwelt upon the earth, yet they are ignorant of the way of instruction.
{3:21} They have neither understood the paths of it, nor have their sons accepted it. It is far from their face.
{3:22} It has not been heard of in the land of Canaan, nor has it been seen in Teman.
{3:23} It is likewise with the sons of Hagar, who search for the practicality that is of the earth, the negotiators of Merran and Teman, and the storytellers, and the searchers of discretion and intelligence. Yet the way of wisdom they have not known, nor have they called to mind its paths.
{3:24} O Israel, how great is the house of God, and how vast is the place of his possession!
{3:25} It is great and has no end! It is exalted and immense!
{3:26} There were those who were called giants, who existed from the beginning, of great stature, expert in war.
{3:27} The Lord did not choose them, nor did they discover the way of instruction; for this reason they perished,
{3:28} and, because they did not have wisdom, they passed away as a result of their foolishness.
{3:29} Who has gone up into heaven, and taken her, and brought her down from the clouds?
{3:30} Who has crossed the sea, and found her, and brought her, chosen instead of gold?
{3:31} There is no one who is able to know her ways, nor any who can search out her paths.
{3:32} Yet he who knows the universe is familiar with her, and in his foresight he invented her, he who prepared the earth for time without end, and filled it with cattle and four-footed beasts,
{3:33} who sends out the light, and it goes, and who summoned it, and it obeyed him in fear.
{3:34} Yet the stars have given light from their posts, and they rejoiced.
{3:35} They were called, and so they said, “Here we are,” and they shined with cheerfulness to him who made them.
{3:36} This is our God, and no other can compare to him.
{3:37} He invented the way of all instruction, and delivered it to Jacob his child, and to Israel his beloved.
{3:38} After this, he was seen on earth, and he conversed with men.
{4:1} “ ‘This is the book of the commandments of God and of the law, which exists in eternity. All those who keep it will attain to life, but those who have forsaken it, to death.
{4:2} Convert, O Jacob, and embrace it, walk in the way of its splendor, facing its light.
{4:3} Do not surrender your glory to another, nor your value to a foreign people.
{4:4} We have been happy, O Israel, because the things that are pleasing to God have been made clear to us.
{4:5} Be ever more peaceful in soul, O people of God, the memorial of Israel.
{4:6} You have been sold to the nations, not into destruction, but because of this, in resentment, you provoked God to wrath, and so you have been delivered to adversity.
{4:7} For you have exasperated him who made you, the eternal God, by sacrificing to evil spirits, and not to God.
{4:8} For you have forgotten God, who nurtured you, and you have saddened Jerusalem, your nurse.
{4:9} For she saw the wrath of God approaching you, and she said, “Listen, region of Zion, for God has brought upon me great sorrow.
{4:10} For I have seen the captivity of my people, my sons and daughters, which the Eternal has led over them.
{4:11} For I nurtured them with joy, but I sent them away with weeping and sorrow.
{4:12} Let no one rejoice over me, a widow and a desolation, for I am forsaken by many because of the sins of my sons, because they strayed from the law of God.
{4:13} And they have not known his righteousness, nor walked in the ways of the commandments of God, nor have they advanced with justice along the paths of his truth.
{4:14} Let the region of Zion approach, and remember the captivity of my sons and daughters, which the Eternal led over them.
{4:15} For he has brought a far away people upon them, a guilty people, and of another language,
{4:16} who have not reverenced the aged, nor had mercy on the children, and who have led away the beloved of the widow, leaving me deserted and alone, without sons.
{4:17} But as for me, how am I able to help you?
{4:18} For he who has brought these evils upon you, will rescue you from the hands of your enemies.
{4:19} Walk on, sons, walk on, for I have been abandoned and I am alone.
{4:20} I have taken off the garment of peace and have put on the sackcloth of supplication, and I will cry out to the most High in my days.
{4:21} Be ever more peaceful, sons. Cry out to the Lord, and he will rescue you from the hand of the hostile leaders.
{4:22} For I have placed my hope in your eternal salvation, and joy approaches me from the Holy One, over the mercy which will come to you by our eternal salvation.
{4:23} For I sent you forth with sorrow and weeping, but the Lord will restore you to me with joy and gladness for eternity.
{4:24} For just as the neighbors of Zion have seen your captivity from God, so also will they soon see your salvation from God, which will overcome you with great honor and eternal splendor.
{4:25} Sons, endure patiently the wrath that has come upon you, for your enemy has persecuted you, but you will quickly see his destruction and you will climb over his neck.
{4:26} My delicate ones have walked rough ways, for they were regarded as a flock torn apart by enemies.
{4:27} Be ever more peaceful in soul, sons, and call out to the Lord, for you will be remembered by him who led you away.
{4:28} For as much as you thought to go astray from God, ten times as much again he will require of you when converting.
{4:29} For he who led you into evil, he himself will again lead you to eternal happiness with your salvation.”
{4:30} Be ever more peaceful in soul, Jerusalem, for he who has named you, has been affected by you.
{4:31} The criminals who have troubled you, will perish, and those who rejoiced in your ruin, will be punished.
{4:32} The cities that your sons have served, will be punished, and also, she who received your sons.
{4:33} For just as she was glad at your ruin, and she rejoiced in your fall, so also will she be grieved in her own desolation,
{4:34} and the exaltation of her multitude will be cut off, and her gladness will be turned to sorrow.
{4:35} For fire will overcome her from the Eternal for many days, and she will be inhabited by evil spirits for a long time.
{4:36} Look around, Jerusalem, towards the east, and see the happiness that comes to you from God.
{4:37} For behold, your sons approach, whom you sent away scattered. They approach, gathering together, from the east all the way to the west, at the word of the Holy One, rejoicing in the honor of God.
{5:1} “ ‘Take off, O Jerusalem, the garment of your sorrow and troubles, and put on your beauty and the honor of that eternal glory, which you have from God.
{5:2} God will surround you with a double garment of justice, and he will set a crown on your head of everlasting honor.
{5:3} For God will reveal his splendor in you to all who are under heaven.
{5:4} For your name will be given to you by God for eternity: the peace of justice and the honor of piety.
{5:5} Arise, O Jerusalem, and stand in exaltation, and look around towards the east, and see your sons, gathering together, from the rising of the sun to the setting of the sun, by the word of the Holy One, rejoicing in the remembrance of God.
{5:6} For they went out from you on foot, led by the enemies, but the Lord will lead them to you, being carried in honor like sons of the kingdom.
{5:7} For God has resolved to humble every high mountain and the longstanding cliffs, and to fill up the steep valleys in order to level the ground, so that Israel may walk diligently in the honor of God.
{5:8} Yet the woods and every sweet-smelling tree have provided shade for Israel by the commandment of God.
{5:9} For God will lead Israel with joy into the light of his majesty, with mercy and justice, which is from him.’ ”
{6:1} This is a copy of the letter that Jeremiah sent to those who would be taken captive into Babylon by the king of Babylon, so as to prophesy to them according to the warning he had received about them from God. “Because of the sins which you have sinned before God, you will be carried away into the captivity of Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon.
{6:2} And so, having been taken into Babylon, you will be there many years and for a long time, even to seven generations, yet after this, I will lead you away from there with peace.
{6:3} But now, you will see in Babylon gods of gold and of silver, and of stone and of wood, carried upon shoulders, an awful display for the peoples.
{6:4} See to it, then, that you do not in effect become like these strangers and become afraid, so that in awe you would be carried away into their midst.
{6:5} And so, seeing the turmoil, behind you and in front of you, as they are worshiping, say in your hearts, ‘You ought to be adored, O Lord.’
{6:6} For my angel is with you. And I myself will examine your souls.
{6:7} For their tongue is polished by the craftsman, and they themselves are even inlaid with gold and silver, yet they are false and unable to speak.
{6:8} And, just like a virgin who loves to decorate herself, so do they take up gold and make designs with it.
{6:9} Their gods have crowns of certified gold upon their heads, from which the priests subtract gold and silver, and spend it on themselves.
{6:10} Moreover, they even give from it to prostitutes, and use it to adorn kept women, and when they receive it back from the kept women, they use it to adorn their gods.
{6:11} But these cannot be freed from rust and moths.
{6:12} Although they are covered with a purple garment, they must wipe off their face, because of the dust of the house, which is very great around them.
{6:13} Yet he who holds a scepter like a man, like the judge of the region, cannot put to death one who sins against him.
{6:14} And though he holds in his hand a sword and an axe, yet he cannot free himself from war and robbers. From this let it be known to you that they are not gods.
{6:15} Therefore, do not fear them. For just as the vessel a man uses becomes useless when broken, so also are their gods.
{6:16} When they are set up in a house, their eyes are full of dust from the feet of those who enter.
{6:17} And like one who has offended the king and is surrounded at every door, or like a corpse about to be carried to the grave, so do the priests secure the doors with bars and locks, lest they be plundered by robbers.
{6:18} They light candles to them, and in great number, and still they are unable to see, for they are like logs in the house.
{6:19} It is truly said that the creeping things, which are of the earth, gnaw their hearts, and yet when these devour them and their garments, they do not feel it.
{6:20} Their faces are made black by the smoke that is made in the house.
{6:21} Over their bodies and over their heads fly owls and swallows and birds, and similarly, even cats.
{6:22} From this you should understand that they are not gods. Therefore, neither should you fear them.
{6:23} Furthermore, the gold which they have is shiny, but unless someone wipes off the rust, they will not shine. And even when they were molten, they did not feel it.
{6:24} They acquire all kinds of costly things, yet there is no breath in them.
{6:25} Without feet, they are carried upon shoulders, showing their unworthiness to all men. And so, may those who worship them be confounded.
{6:26} Because of this, if they fall to the ground, they do not get up by themselves; and if someone sets it upright, they will not stand firm on their own; yet, just like the dead, offerings are placed next to them.
{6:27} The priests themselves sell their sacrifices, and they spend it wastefully; and, in like manner, their wives take part of it, never sharing anything with the sick or the beggars.
{6:28} Fertile and menstruous women contaminate their sacrifices. And so, knowing from this that they are not gods, you should not fear them.
{6:29} For what reason are they called gods? It is because the women serve before the gods of silver and gold and wood,
{6:30} and the priests sit in their houses, with torn garments, and their heads and beards shaven, and nothing on their heads.
{6:31} But they roar, shouting out to their gods, just as at a feast for the dead.
{6:32} The priests take away the garments of their gods, and clothe their wives and their sons.
{6:33} And whether they endure evil from someone, or good, they are not able to repay it. They can neither establish a king, nor remove him.
{6:34} Similarly, they can neither give riches, nor avenge evil. If anyone makes a vow to them, and does not keep it, they cannot require it.
{6:35} They cannot free a man from death, nor rescue the weak from the strong.
{6:36} They cannot restore sight to the blind, nor free a man from need.
{6:37} They will not have mercy on the widow, nor do good to orphans.
{6:38} Their gods of wood, and of stone, and of gold, and of silver, are like stones from the mountain; and those who worship them will be confounded.
{6:39} In what way, then, is it to be supposed or said that they are gods?
{6:40} For even the Chaldeans themselves do not honor these, who, when they hear about a mute, unable to speak, they offer him to Bel, asking from him that he may speak,
{6:41} as if these, who are unable to move, would be able to perceive. And even they themselves, when they shall understand this, will abandon them, for, having come to their senses, they do not consider them to be gods.
{6:42} Yet the women, wrapped in cords, sit by the roads, burning olive-stones.
{6:43} And when any one of them, having been attracted by someone passing by, would sleep with him, she reproaches her neighbor because she was not found worthy, as she was, nor was her cord broken.
{6:44} But all things that occur with them are false; in what way, then, is it to be considered or said that they are gods?
{6:45} Yet they have been made by the workmen and the goldsmiths. They will be nothing else but what the priests want them to be.
{6:46} For the artisans themselves, who make them, do not exist for a long time. So then, can these things, which have been made by them, be gods?
{6:47} Yet they have bequeathed falsehoods and disgrace after this to the future.
{6:48} For when they are overcome by battle or evil, the priests consider among themselves where they may hide themselves with them.
{6:49} Therefore, why would they be perceived to be gods, who can neither free themselves from war, nor rescue themselves from evils?
{6:50} For, in as much as they are only wood, inlaid with gold and silver, so let it be known henceforth, by all nations and kings, that they are false; because it has been revealed that they are not gods, but the work of men’s hands, and there is no work of God in them.
{6:51} For this reason, then, it has been accepted that they are not gods, but are works of the hands of men, and no work of God is in them.
{6:52} They have not raised up a king in the region, nor will they give rain to men.
{6:53} They will not discern a judgment for anyone, nor will they free a region from injury, because they can do nothing, like crows in the middle of heaven and earth.
{6:54} And, indeed, when there happens to be a fire in the house of these gods of wood, silver, and gold, the priests will certainly run away and save themselves, but these will truly be burned up like logs in the midst of it.
{6:55} Yet they cannot withstand a king and war. In what way, then, is it to be considered or accepted that they are gods?
{6:56} These gods of wood and stone, inlaid with gold and silver, can free themselves neither from thieves nor from robbers; whoever is stronger than they are,
{6:57} will take up these things, the gold and the silver, and the garments which cover them, and will get away; neither will they be able to help themselves.
{6:58} Therefore, it is better to be a king displaying his power, or a useful vessel in a house, about which he who owns it will boast, or a door in the house, which keeps safe what is inside, than to be these gods of falsehood.
{6:59} For the sun, and the moon, and the constellations, though they are brilliant and have been sent forth to be useful, are obedient.
{6:60} Similarly, the lightning, when it appears and is evident, and, in like manner, the wind blowing in every region,
{6:61} and the clouds, when God orders them to make their rounds over the whole world, each carries out what was commanded.
{6:62} Furthermore, the fire, having been sent from above so that it may consume mountains and woods, does what it has been instructed to do. Yet these are not similar, neither in splendor, nor in power, to any one of them.
{6:63} From this, it should neither be supposed, nor said, that they are gods; since they are neither able to give judgment, nor to accomplish anything for men.
{6:64} And so, knowing that they are not gods, therefore, have no fear of them.
{6:65} For they can neither curse kings, nor bless them.
{6:66} Besides, they show no signs in heaven to the nations; they neither shine like the sun, nor give light like the moon.
{6:67} Beasts are better than they are, for they can flee under a covering, and so protect themselves.
{6:68} Therefore, in no way is it clear to us that they are gods; because of this, you should not fear them.
{6:69} For just as a scarecrow in a cucumber field protects nothing, so are their gods of wood, and silver, and inlaid gold.
{6:70} They are just the same as a white thorn in a garden, on which all the birds sit; they are even like a corpse thrown out into the darkness, just so are these gods of wood, and inlaid gold, and inlaid silver.
{6:71} By the purple, and likewise the Royal purple, moth-eaten garments upon them, you will then know that they are not gods. And finally, they themselves are consumed and will be a disgrace in the region.
{6:72} Better is the just man who has no such images, for he will be far from disgrace.”
{1:1} And it happened that, in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth of the month, when I was in the midst of the captives beside the river Chebar, the heavens were opened, and I saw the visions of God.
{1:2} On the fifth of the month, the same is the fifth year of the transmigration of king Joachin,
{1:3} the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel, a priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans, next to the river Chebar. And the hand of the Lord was over him there.
{1:4} And I saw, and behold, a whirlwind arrived from the north. And a great cloud, wrapped in fire and brightness, was all around it. And from its midst, that is, from the midst of the fire, there was something with the appearance of amber.
{1:5} And in its midst, there was the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: the likeness of a man was in them.
{1:6} Each one had four faces, and each one had four wings.
{1:7} Their feet were straight feet, and the sole of their foot was like the sole of the foot of a calf, and they sparkled with the appearance of glowing brass.
{1:8} And they had the hands of a man under their wings on the four sides. And they had faces with the wings on the four sides.
{1:9} And their wings were joined to one another. They did not turn as they went. Instead, each one advanced before his face.
{1:10} But as for the likeness of their face, there was the face of a man, and the face of a lion on the right of each of the four, then the face of an ox on the left of each of the four, and the face of an eagle above each of the four.
{1:11} Their faces and their wings were extended above: two wings of each one were joined together, and two covered their bodies.
{1:12} And each one of them advanced before his face. Wherever the impetus of the spirit was to go, there they went. And they did not turn as they advanced.
{1:13} And as for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like that of burning coals of fire, and like the appearance of lamps. This was the vision dashing in the midst of the living creatures, a bright fire, with lightning going forth from the fire.
{1:14} And the living creatures went and returned like flashes of lightning.
{1:15} And as I beheld the living creatures, there appeared above the earth, next to the living creatures, one wheel having four faces.
{1:16} And the appearance of the wheels and their work was like the appearance of the sea. And each of the four were similar to one another. And their appearance and work was like a wheel in the center of a wheel.
{1:17} Going forth, they went by means of their four parts. And they did not turn as they went.
{1:18} Also, the size and height and appearance of the wheels was dreadful. And the entire body was full of eyes all around each of the four.
{1:19} And when the living creatures advanced, the wheels advanced together with them. And when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels, too, were lifted up at the same time.
{1:20} Wherever the spirit went, as the spirit was going forth to that place, the wheels, too, were lifted up together, so as to follow them. For the spirit of life was in the wheels.
{1:21} When going forth, they went forth, and when standing still, they stood still. And when they were lifted up from the earth, the wheels, too, were lifted up together, so as to follow them. For the spirit of life was in the wheels.
{1:22} And above the heads of the living creatures was the likeness of a firmament: similar to crystal, but dreadful to behold, and extending over their heads from above.
{1:23} And their wings were straight under the firmament, one toward the other. One of them was covered by two wings on his body, and the other was covered similarly.
{1:24} And I heard the sound of their wings, like the sound of many waters, like the sound of the sublime God. When they walked, it was like the sound of a multitude, like the sound of an army. And when they stood still, their wings were let down.
{1:25} For when a voice came from above the firmament, which was over their heads, they stood still, and they put down their wings.
{1:26} And above the firmament, which was suspended over their heads, there was the likeness of a throne, with the appearance of the sapphire stone. And over the likeness of the throne, there was a likeness with the appearance of a man above it.
{1:27} And I saw something with the appearance of amber, with the likeness of fire within it and all around it. And from his waist and upward, and from his waist downward, I saw something with the appearance of fire shining all around.
{1:28} There was the appearance of the rainbow, as when it is in a cloud on a rainy day. This was the appearance of the splendor on every side.
{2:1} This was the vision of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And I saw, and I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of someone speaking. And he said to me: “Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak with you.”
{2:2} And after this was spoken to me, the Spirit entered into me, and he set me on my feet. And I heard him speaking to me,
{2:3} and saying: “Son of man, I am sending you to the sons of Israel, to an apostate nation, which has withdrawn from me. They and their fathers have betrayed my covenant, even to this day.
{2:4} And those to whom I am sending you are sons with a hard face and an unyielding heart. And you shall say to them: ‘Thus says the Lord God.’
{2:5} Perhaps it may be that they will hear, and perhaps they may be quieted. For they are a provoking house. And they shall know that there has been a prophet in their midst.
{2:6} But as for you, son of man, you should not fear them, and you should not dread their words. For you are among unbelievers and subversives, and you are living with scorpions. You should not fear their words, and you should not dread their faces. For they are a provoking house.
{2:7} Therefore, you shall speak my words to them, so that perhaps they may hear and be quieted. For they are provoking.
{2:8} But as for you, son of man, listen to all that I say to you. And do not choose to be provoking, as that house is a provoker. Open your mouth, and eat whatever I give to you.”
{2:9} And I looked, and behold: a hand was put forth toward me; there was a scroll rolled up in it. And he spread it out before me, and there was writing on the inside and on the outside. And there were written in it lamentations, and verses, and woes.
{3:1} And he said to me: “Son of man, eat whatever you will find; eat this scroll, and, going forth, speak to the sons of Israel.”
{3:2} And I opened my mouth, and he fed me that scroll.
{3:3} And he said to me: “Son of man, your stomach shall eat, and your interior shall be filled with this scroll, which I am giving to you.” And I ate it, and in my mouth it became as sweet as honey.
{3:4} And he said to me: “Son of man, go to the house of Israel, and you shall speak my words to them.
{3:5} For you will be sent, not to a people of profound words or of an unknown language, but to the house of Israel,
{3:6} and not to many peoples of profound words or of an unknown language, whose words you would not be able to understand. But if you were sent to them, they would listen to you.
{3:7} Yet the house of Israel is not willing to listen to you. For they are not willing to listen to me. Certainly, the entire house of Israel has a brazen forehead and a hardened heart.
{3:8} Behold, I have made your face stronger than their faces, and your forehead harder than their foreheads.
{3:9} I have made your face like hardened iron and like flint. You should not fear them, and you should not have dread before their face. For they are a provoking house.”
{3:10} And he said to me: “Son of man, listen with your ears, and take into your heart, all my words, which I am speaking to you.
{3:11} And go forth and enter to those of the transmigration, to the sons of your people. And you shall speak to them. And you shall say to them: ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ Perhaps it may be that they will listen and be quieted.”
{3:12} And the Spirit took me up, and I heard behind me the voice of a great commotion, saying, “Blessed is the glory of the Lord from his place,”
{3:13} and the voice of the wings of the living creatures striking against one another, and the voice of the wheels following the living creatures, and the voice of a great commotion.
{3:14} Then the Spirit lifted me and took me away. And I went forth in bitterness, with the indignation of my spirit. For the hand of the Lord was with me, strengthening me.
{3:15} And I went to those of the transmigration, to the stockpile of new crops, to those who were living beside the river Chebar. And I sat where they were sitting. And I remained there for seven days, while mourning in their midst.
{3:16} Then, when seven days had passed, the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{3:17} “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. And so, you shall listen to the word from my mouth, and you shall announce it to them from me.
{3:18} If, when I say to the impious man, ‘You shall certainly die,’ you do not announce it to him, and you do not speak so that he may turn aside from his impious way and live, then the same impious man will die in his iniquity. But I will attribute his blood to your hand.
{3:19} But if you announce it to the impious man, and he is not converted from his impiety and from his impious way, then indeed he will die in his iniquity. But you will have delivered your own soul.
{3:20} Moreover, if the just man turns aside from his justice and commits iniquity, I will place a stumbling block before him. He shall die, because you have not announced to him. He shall die in his sin, and his justices that he did shall not be remembered. Yet truly, I will attribute his blood to your hand.
{3:21} But if you announce to the just man, so that the just man may not sin, and he does not sin, then he shall certainly live, because you have announced to him. And you will have delivered your own soul.”
{3:22} And the hand of the Lord was over me. And he said to me: “Rise up, and go out to the plain, and there I will speak with you.”
{3:23} And I rose up, and I went out to the plain. And behold, the glory of the Lord was standing there, like the glory that I saw beside the river Chebar. And I fell upon my face.
{3:24} And the Spirit entered into me, and set me upon my feet. And he spoke to me, and he said to me: “Enter and enclose yourself in the midst of your house.
{3:25} And as for you, son of man, behold: they shall put chains upon you and bind you with them. And you shall not go out from their midst.
{3:26} And I will cause your tongue to adhere to the roof of your mouth. And you will be mute, not like a man who reproaches. For they are a provoking house.
{3:27} But when I will speak to you, I will open your mouth, and you shall say to them: ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ Whoever is listening, let him hear. And whoever is quieted, let him be quieted. For they are a provoking house.”
{4:1} “And as for you, son of man, take up for yourself a tablet, and you shall set it before you. And you shall draw upon it the city of Jerusalem.
{4:2} And you shall set up a blockade against it, and you shall build fortifications, and you shall put together a rampart, and you shall encamp opposite it, and you shall place battering rams around it.
{4:3} And you shall take up for yourself an iron frying pan, and place it as an iron wall between you and the city. And harden your face against it, and it shall be under a siege, and you shall surround it. This is a sign to the house of Israel.
{4:4} And you shall sleep on your left side. And you shall place the iniquities of the house of Israel on it by the number of days that you will sleep on it. And you shall take upon yourself their iniquity.
{4:5} For I have given to you the years of their iniquity, by the number of the days: three hundred and ninety days. And you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.
{4:6} And when you will have completed this, you shall sleep a second time, on your right side, and you shall assume the iniquity of the house of Judah for forty days: one day for each year; one day, I say, for each year, have I given to you.
{4:7} And you shall turn your face toward the siege of Jerusalem, and your arm shall be extended. And you shall prophesy against it.
{4:8} Behold, I have surrounded you with chains. And you shall not turn yourself from one side to the other side, until you have completed the days of your siege.
{4:9} And you shall take for yourself wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and vetch. And you shall set them in one vessel, and you shall make for yourself bread by the number of days that you will sleep upon your side: three hundred and ninety days shall you shall eat from it.
{4:10} But your food, which you will eat, shall be in weight twenty staters a day. You shall eat it from time to time.
{4:11} And you shall drink water by measure, one sixth part of a hin. You shall drink it from time to time.
{4:12} And you shall eat it like barley bread baked under ashes. And you shall cover it, in their sight, with the dung that goes out of a man.”
{4:13} And the Lord said: “So shall the sons of Israel eat their bread, polluted among the Gentiles, to whom I will cast them out.”
{4:14} And I said: “Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God! Behold, my soul has not been polluted, and from my infancy even until now, I have not eaten anything that has died of itself, nor that which has been torn up by beasts, and no unclean flesh at all has entered into my mouth.”
{4:15} And he said to me: “Behold, I have given to you cow manure in place of human dung, and you shall make your bread with it.”
{4:16} And he said to me: “Son of man, behold: I will crush the staff of bread in Jerusalem. And they will eat bread by weight and with anxiety. And they will drink water by measure and with anguish.
{4:17} So then, when bread and water fail, each one may fall against his brother. And they shall waste away in their iniquities.”
{5:1} “And as for you, son of man, obtain for yourself a sharp knife for shaving hair, and you shall take it and draw it across your head and across your beard. And you shall obtain for yourself a balance for weighing, and you shall divide the hair.
{5:2} A third part you shall burn with fire in the midst of the city, according to the completion of the days of the siege. And you shall take a third part, and you shall cut it with the knife all around. Yet truly, the other third, you shall scatter to the wind, for I will unsheathe the sword after them.
{5:3} And you shall take from there a small number. And you shall bind them in the end of your cloak.
{5:4} And again, you shall take from them, and you shall throw them into the midst of the fire, and you shall burn them with fire. And from it, there shall go forth a fire to the entire house of Israel.”
{5:5} Thus says the Lord God: “This is Jerusalem. I have placed her in the midst of the Gentiles and of the lands all around her.
{5:6} And she has despised my judgments, so as to be more impious than the Gentiles, and my precepts, more so than the lands that are all around her. For they have cast aside my judgments, and they have not walked in my precepts.”
{5:7} For this reason, thus says the Lord God: “Since you have surpassed the Gentiles who are all around you, and have not walked in my precepts, and have not accomplished my judgments, and have not even acted in accord with the judgments of the Gentiles who are all around you:
{5:8} therefore, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, and I myself will accomplish judgments in your midst, in the sight of the Gentiles.
{5:9} And I will do in you what I have not done before, and the likes of which I will not do again, because of all your abominations.
{5:10} Therefore, the fathers shall consume the sons in your midst, and the sons shall consume their fathers. And I will execute judgments in you, and I will winnow your entire remnant in every wind.
{5:11} Therefore, as I myself live says the Lord God, because you have violated my sanctuary with all your offenses and with all your abominations, I also will break into pieces, and my eye will not be lenient, and I will not take pity.
{5:12} One third part of you will die by pestilence or be consumed by famine in your midst. And one third part of you will fall by the sword all around you. Yet truly, one third part of you I will scatter to every wind, and I will unsheathe the sword after them.
{5:13} And I will fulfill my fury, and I will cause my indignation to rest upon them, and I will be consoled. And they shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken in my zeal, when I will have fulfilled my indignation in them.
{5:14} And I will make you desolate, and a disgrace among the Gentiles, who are all around you, in the sight of all who pass by.
{5:15} And you shall be a disgrace and a blasphemy, an example and an astonishment, among the Gentiles, who are all around you, when I will have executed judgments in you, in fury and in indignation and with rebukes of wrath.
{5:16} I, the Lord, have spoken. At that time, I will send among them the most grievous arrows of famine, which shall bring death, and which I will send so that I may destroy you. And I will gather a famine over you, and I will crush the staff of bread among you.
{5:17} And I will send among you famine and very harmful beasts, even unto utter ruin. And pestilence and blood shall pass through you. And I will bring the sword over you. I, the Lord, have spoken.”
{6:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{6:2} “Son of man, set your face toward the mountains of Israel, and you shall prophesy against them,
{6:3} and you shall say: O mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Lord God! Thus says the Lord God to the mountains and hills and cliffs and valleys: Behold, I will lead over you the sword. And I will destroy your exalted places.
{6:4} And I will demolish your altars. And your graven images will be broken apart. And I will throw down your slain before your idols.
{6:5} And I will lay the dead bodies of the sons of Israel before the face of your idols. And I will scatter your bones around your altars.
{6:6} In all of your habitations, the cities will be made desolate, and the exalted places will be torn down and scattered. And your altars will be broken and destroyed. And your idols will cease to exist. And your shrines will be crushed. And your works will be wiped away.
{6:7} And the slain will fall in your midst. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{6:8} And I will leave among you those who will escape the sword among the Gentiles, when I will have dispersed you upon the earth.
{6:9} And your liberated shall remember me among the nations to which they were led away as captives. For I have crushed their heart, which fornicated and withdrew from me, and their eyes, which fornicated after their idols. And they will be displeased with themselves over the evils that they have done by all their abominations.
{6:10} And they shall know that I, the Lord, have not spoken in vain, that I would do this evil to them.”
{6:11} Thus says the Lord God: “Strike with your hand, and stomp with your foot, and say: ‘Alas, to all the abominations of the evils of the house of Israel!’ For they will fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.
{6:12} Whoever is far away will die of pestilence. But whoever is near will fall by the sword. And whoever remains and is besieged will die by famine. And I will fulfill my indignation among them.
{6:13} And you shall know that I am the Lord, when your slain will be in the midst of your idols, all around your altars, on every exalted hill, and on the summits of all the mountains, and under every dense tree, and under every leafy oak: the places where they burned sweet-smelling incense to all their idols.
{6:14} And I will extend my hand over them. And I will make the earth desolate and destitute: from the desert of Riblah to all their dwelling places. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
{7:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{7:2} “And as for you, son of man: Thus says the Lord God to the land of Israel: The end is coming, the end is coming, over the four regions of the earth.
{7:3} Now the end is over you, and I will send my fury upon you. And I will judge you according to your ways. And I will place all your abominations before you.
{7:4} And my eye will not be lenient over you, and I will not take pity. Instead, I will set your ways upon you, and your abominations will be in your midst. And you shall know that I am the Lord.”
{7:5} Thus says the Lord God: “One affliction, behold, one affliction is approaching.
{7:6} The end is coming, the end is coming. It has been vigilant against you. Behold, it is approaching.
{7:7} Destruction is coming over you, who live upon the earth. The time is approaching, the day of slaughter is near, and it is not of the glory of the mountains.
{7:8} Now, very soon, I will pour out my wrath upon you, and I will fulfill my fury in you. And I will judge you according to your ways, and I will set upon you all your crimes.
{7:9} And my eye will not be lenient, nor will I take pity. Instead, I will place your ways upon you, and your abominations will be in your midst. And you shall know that I am the Lord, who is striking.
{7:10} Behold, the day! Behold, it approaches! Destruction has gone forth, the rod has blossomed, arrogance has germinated.
{7:11} Iniquity has risen up into a rod of impiety. There shall be nothing left of them, and of their people, and of the sound of them. And there shall be no rest for them.
{7:12} The time is approaching; the day is very near. Whoever buys should not rejoice. And whoever sells should not mourn. For wrath is over all of their people.
{7:13} For whoever sells will not return to what he has sold, but as yet their life will be among the living. For the vision concerning their entire multitude will not turn back. And man will not be strengthened in the iniquity of his life.
{7:14} Sound the trumpet! Let everyone be prepared! And yet there is no one who may go to battle. For my wrath is over all their people.
{7:15} The sword is outside, and the pestilence and the famine are inside. Whoever is in the field will die by the sword. And whoever is in the city will be devoured by the pestilence and the famine.
{7:16} And those who flee from among them will be saved. And they will be among the mountains, like doves in steep valleys, with every one of them trembling, each one because of his iniquity.
{7:17} All hands will be weakened, and all knees will flow with water.
{7:18} And they will wrap themselves with haircloth, and dread will cover them. And shame will be upon every face, and baldness will be upon all of their heads.
{7:19} Their silver will be thrown away, and their gold will be like a dunghill. Their silver and their gold will have no power to free them in the day of the fury of the Lord. They will not satisfy their soul, and their bellies will not be filled, because of the scandal of their iniquity.
{7:20} And they have set arrogance as the ornament of their necklaces, and they have made images of their abominations and graven idols. Because of this, I have let it be an uncleanness for them.
{7:21} And I will give it into the hands of foreigners as a spoil, and to the impious of the earth as a prey, and they will defile it.
{7:22} And I will avert my face from them, and they will violate my place of mystery. And untamed persons will enter into it, and they will defile it.
{7:23} Cause it to be closed. For the land has been filled with the judgment of blood, and the city is full of iniquity.
{7:24} And I will lead in the most sinful among the Gentiles, and they will possess their houses. And I will cause the arrogance of the powerful to be quieted. And they will possess their sanctuaries.
{7:25} When anguish overwhelms them, they will seek peace, and there will be none.
{7:26} Disturbance will follow after disturbance, and rumor after rumor. And they will seek the vision of the prophet, and the law will perish from the priest, and counsel will perish from the elders.
{7:27} The king will mourn, and the prince will be clothed with grief, and the hands of the people of the earth will be greatly disturbed. I will act toward them in accord with their own way, and I will judge them in accord with their own judgments. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
{8:1} And it happened that, in the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth of the month, I was sitting in my house, and the elders of Judah were sitting before me, and the hand of the Lord God fell upon me there.
{8:2} And I saw, and behold, there was an image with the appearance of fire. From the appearance of his waist, and downward, there was fire. And from his waist, and upward, there was the appearance of splendor, like the sight of amber.
{8:3} And as the image of a hand went out, it took hold of me by a lock of my head. And the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven. And he brought me into Jerusalem, within a vision of God, next to the inner gate that looked toward the north, where there was stationed an idol of rivalry, so as to provoke an envious emulation.
{8:4} And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, in accord with the vision that I had seen in the plain.
{8:5} And he said to me: “Son of man, lift up your eyes to the way of the north.” And I lifted up my eyes to the way of the north. And behold, from the north of the gate of the altar was the idol of rivalry, at the same entrance.
{8:6} And he said to me: “Son of man, you see what these ones are doing, the great abominations that the house of Israel is committing here. Do you not think, then, that I should withdraw far away from my own sanctuary? But if you turn again, you will see even greater abominations.”
{8:7} And he led me in by the door of the atrium. And I saw, and behold, there was an opening in the wall.
{8:8} And he said to me: “Son of man, dig in the wall.” And when I had dug in the wall, there appeared one door.
{8:9} And he said to me: “Enter and see the most wicked abominations which they are committing here.”
{8:10} And entering, I saw, and behold, every kind of image of reptiles and animals, the abominations, and all of the idols of the house of Israel were depicted on the wall all around, throughout the entire place.
{8:11} And there were seventy men out of the elders of the house of Israel, with Jaazaniah, the son of Shaphan, standing in their midst, and they stood before the pictures. And each one had a censer in his hand. And a cloud of smoke rose up from the incense.
{8:12} And he said to me: “Certainly, son of man, you see what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the darkness, each one while hidden in his chamber. For they say: ‘The Lord does not see us. The Lord has forsaken the earth.’ ”
{8:13} And he said to me: “If you turn again, you will see even greater abominations, which these ones are committing.”
{8:14} And he led me in through the door of the gate of the Lord’s house, which looked toward the north. And behold, women were sitting there, mourning for Adonis.
{8:15} And he said to me: “Certainly, son of man, you have seen. But if you turn again, you will see even greater abominations than these.”
{8:16} And he led me into the inner atrium of the house of the Lord. And behold, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the vestibule and the altar, there were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east. And they were adoring toward the rising of the Sun.
{8:17} And he said to me: “Certainly, son of man, you have seen. Can this be so trivial to the house of Judah, when they commit these abominations, just as they have committed here, that, having filled the earth with iniquity, they now turn to provoke me? And behold, they are applying a branch to their nose.
{8:18} Therefore, I also will act toward them in my fury. My eye will not be lenient, nor will I take pity. And when they will have cried out to my ears with a loud voice, I will not heed them.”
{9:1} And he cried out in my ears with a loud voice, saying: “The visitations of the city have drawn near, and each one has equipment for killing in his hand.”
{9:2} And behold, six men were approaching from the way of the upper gate, which looks to the north. And each one had equipment for killing in his hand. Also, one man in their midst was clothed with linen, and an instrument for writing was at his waist. And they entered and stood beside the bronze altar.
{9:3} And the glory of the Lord of Israel was taken up, from the cherub upon which he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called out to the man who was clothed with linen and had an instrument for writing at his waist.
{9:4} And the Lord said to him: “Cross through the middle of the city, in the center of Jerusalem, and seal a Tau upon the foreheads of the grieving men, who are mourning over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst.”
{9:5} And he said to the others, in my hearing: “Cross through the city after him, and strike! Your eye shall not be lenient, and you shall not take pity.
{9:6} Kill, even to utter destruction, old men, young men, and virgins, little ones, and women. But all upon whom you see the Tau, you shall not kill. And begin from my sanctuary.” Therefore, they began with the men among the elders, who were before the face of the house.
{9:7} And he said to them: “Defile the house, and fill its courts with the slain! Go forth!” And they went forth and struck down those who were in the city.
{9:8} And when the slaughter was completed, I remained. And I fell upon my face, and crying out, I said: “Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God! Will you now destroy the entire remnant of Israel, by pouring out your fury upon Jerusalem?”
{9:9} And he said to me: “The iniquity of the house of Israel, and of Judah, is vast and exceedingly great, and the land has been filled with blood, and the city has been filled with what is abhorrent. For they have said: ‘The Lord has forsaken the earth,’ and, ‘The Lord does not see.’
{9:10} Therefore, my eye will not be lenient, and I will not take pity. I will repay their own way upon their head.”
{9:11} And behold, the man who was clothed with linen, who had a writing instrument at his back, responded a word, saying: “I have done just as you instructed me.”
{10:1} And I saw, and behold, in the firmament that was over the heads of the cherubim, there appeared above them something like the sapphire stone, with the sight of the likeness of a throne.
{10:2} And he spoke to the man who was clothed with linen, and he said: “Enter, between the wheels that are under the cherubim, and fill your hand with the coals of fire that are between the cherubim, and pour them upon the city.” And he entered, in my sight.
{10:3} Now the cherubim were standing before the right side of the house, when the man entered. And a cloud filled the inner court.
{10:4} And the glory of the Lord was lifted up, from above the cherubim, to the threshold of the house. And the house was filled with the cloud. And the court was filled with the splendor of the glory of the Lord.
{10:5} And the sound of the wings of the cherubim was heard even in the outer court, like the voice of Almighty God speaking.
{10:6} And when he had instructed the man who was clothed with linen, saying, “Take fire from the midst of the wheels that are between the cherubim,” he entered and stood next to the wheel.
{10:7} And one cherub extended his hand, from the midst of the cherubim, to the fire that was between the cherubim. And he took and gave it into the hands of the one who was clothed with linen, and he accepted it and went forth.
{10:8} And there appeared amid the cherubim the likeness of the hand of a man, under their wings.
{10:9} And I saw, and behold, there were four wheels beside the cherubim. One wheel was next to one cherub, and another wheel was next to another cherub. And the appearance of the wheels was like the sight of the chrysolite stone.
{10:10} And in their appearance, each one of the four were similar, as if a wheel were in the midst of a wheel.
{10:11} And when they went, they advanced in four parts. And they did not turn as they went. Instead, to the place to which they were inclined to go at first, the rest also followed, and they did not turn back.
{10:12} And their entire body, with their necks and their hands and their wings and the circles, were full of eyes all around the four wheels.
{10:13} And in my hearing, he called these wheels: “constantly changing.”
{10:14} Now each one had four faces. One face was the face of a cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and in the third was the face of a lion, and in the fourth was the face of an eagle.
{10:15} And the cherubim were lifted up. This is the living creature, which I had seen beside the river Chebar.
{10:16} And when the cherubim advanced, the wheels also went beside them. And when the cherubim lifted up their wings in order to be raised up from the earth, the wheels did not remain behind, but they also were beside them.
{10:17} When they were standing, these stood still. And when they were lifted up, these were lifted up. For the spirit of life was in them.
{10:18} And the glory of the Lord went forth from the threshold of the temple, and stood above the cherubim.
{10:19} And the cherubim, lifting up their wings, were raised up from the earth in my sight. And as they went away, the wheels also followed. And it stood at the entrance to the east gate of the house of the Lord. And the glory of the God of Israel was over them.
{10:20} This is the living creature, which I saw under the God of Israel beside the river Chebar. And I understood that they were cherubim.
{10:21} Each one had four faces, and each one had four wings. And the likeness of the hand of a man was under their wings.
{10:22} And, concerning the appearance of their faces, these were the same faces that I had seen beside the river Chebar, and the gaze and force of each one of them was to go before his face.
{11:1} And the Spirit lifted me up, and he brought me to the east gate of the house of the Lord, which looks toward the rising of the sun. And behold, at the entrance to the gate were twenty-five men. And I saw, in their midst, Jaazaniah, the son of Azzur, and Pelatiah, the son of Benaiah, leaders of the people.
{11:2} And he said to me: “Son of man, these are men who devise iniquity. And they offer a wicked counsel in this city,
{11:3} saying: ‘Was it so long ago that houses were being built? This city is a cooking pot, and we are the meat.’
{11:4} Therefore, prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man.”
{11:5} And the Spirit of the Lord fell upon me, and he said to me: “Speak: Thus says the Lord: So have you spoken, O house of Israel. And I know the thoughts of your heart.
{11:6} You have killed very many in this city, and you have filled its streets with the slain.
{11:7} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Your slain, whom you have placed in its midst, these are the meat, and this city is the cooking pot. And I will draw you out of its midst.
{11:8} You have dread the sword, and so I will lead the sword over you, says the Lord God.
{11:9} And I will cast you out of its midst, and I will give you over to the hand of the enemies, and I will execute judgments among you.
{11:10} You will fall by the sword. I will judge you within the borders of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{11:11} This city will not be a cooking pot for you, and you will not be like meat in its midst. I will judge you within the borders of Israel.
{11:12} And you shall know that I am the Lord. For you have not walked in my precepts, and you have not accomplished my judgments. Instead, you have acted in accord with the judgments of the Gentiles, who are all around you.”
{11:13} And it happened that, when I prophesied, Pelatiah, the son of Benaiah, died. And I fell upon my face, and I cried out with a loud voice, and I said: “Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God! Will you cause the consummation of the remnant of Israel?”
{11:14} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{11:15} “Son of man, your brothers, the men among your close relatives, your brothers and the entire house of Israel, are all among those to whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said: ‘Withdraw far from the Lord; the earth has been given to us as a possession.’
{11:16} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Since I have caused them to be far away, among the Gentiles, and since I have dispersed them among the lands, I will be a little sanctuary for them within the lands to which they have gone.
{11:17} Because of this, say to them: Thus says the Lord God: I will gather you from among the peoples, and I will unite you, from the lands into which you were dispersed, and I will give the soil of Israel to you.
{11:18} And they shall go to that place, and they shall remove all the offenses and all its abominations from that place.
{11:19} And I will give them one heart. And I will distribute a new spirit to their interior. And I will take away the heart of stone from their body. And I will give them a heart of flesh.
{11:20} So may they may walk in my precepts, and observe my judgments, and accomplish them. And so may they be my people, and I will be their God.
{11:21} But as for those whose heart walks after their offenses and abominations, I will set their own way upon their head, says the Lord God.”
{11:22} And the cherubim lifted up their wings, and the wheels with them. And the glory of the God of Israel was above them.
{11:23} And the glory of the Lord ascended from the midst of the city and stood above the mountain, which is to the east of the city.
{11:24} And the Spirit lifted me up, and he brought me into Chaldea, to those of the transmigration, in a vision, in the Spirit of God. And the vision that I had seen was raised up, away from me.
{11:25} And I spoke, to those of the transmigration, all the words of the Lord that he had revealed to me.
{12:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{12:2} “Son of man, you live in the midst of a provoking house. They have eyes to see, and they do not see; and ears to hear, and they do not hear. For they are a provoking house.
{12:3} As for you, then, son of man, prepare for yourself the supplies for traveling far away, and travel away in the daytime in their sight. And you shall travel from your place to another place in their sight, so that perhaps they may consider it. For they are a provoking house.
{12:4} And you shall carry your supplies outside, like the supplies of one who is traveling far away, in the daytime in their sight. Then you shall go forth in the evening in their presence, just as one goes forth who is moving far away.
{12:5} Dig for yourself through the wall, before their eyes. And you shall go out through it.
{12:6} In their sight, you shall be carried on shoulders, you shall be carried in the dark. You shall cover your face, and you shall not see the ground. For I have appointed you as a portent for the house of Israel.”
{12:7} Therefore, I did just as he had instructed me. I brought out my supplies in the daytime, like the supplies of one who is moving far away. And in the evening, I dug myself through the wall by hand. And I went out in the dark, and I was carried on shoulders, in their sight.
{12:8} And the word of the Lord came to me, in the morning, saying:
{12:9} “Son of man, has not the house of Israel, the provoking house, said to you: ‘What are you doing?’
{12:10} Say to them: Thus says the Lord God: This is the burden concerning my leader who is in Jerusalem, and concerning the entire house of Israel, who are in their midst.
{12:11} Say: I am your portent. Just as I have done, so shall it be done to them. They will be taken captive and moved far away.
{12:12} And the leader who is in their midst will be carried on shoulders; he will go forth in darkness. They will dig through the wall, so that they may lead him away. His face will be covered, so that he may not see the land with his eye.
{12:13} And I will extend my net over him, and he will be captured in my dragnet. And I will lead him to Babylon, into the land of the Chaldeans, but he himself will not see it. And there he shall die.
{12:14} And all who are around him, his guards and his companies, I will scatter into every wind. And I will unsheathe the sword after them.
{12:15} And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have dispersed them among the Gentiles, and will have sowed them among the lands.
{12:16} And I will leave behind a few men of them, apart from the sword, and the famine, and the pestilence, so that they may declare all their wicked deeds among the Gentiles, to whom they will go. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
{12:17} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{12:18} “Son of man, eat your bread in consternation. Moreover, drink your water hurriedly and in sorrow.
{12:19} And say to the people of the land: Thus says the Lord God, to those who are living in Jerusalem, in the land of Israel: They shall eat their bread in anxiety, and drink their water in desolation, so that the land may be desolate before its multitude, because of the iniquity of all who are living in it.
{12:20} And cities that are now inhabited will become desolate, and the land will be forsaken. And you shall know that I am the Lord.”
{12:21} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{12:22} “Son of man, what is this proverb that you have in the land of Israel? saying: ‘The days shall be extended in length, and every vision shall perish.’
{12:23} Therefore, say to them: Thus says the Lord God: I will cause this proverb to cease, and it shall no longer be a common saying in Israel. And tell them that the days are approaching, and the word of every vision.
{12:24} For there shall no longer be any empty visions, nor any ambiguous divination in the midst of the sons of Israel.
{12:25} For I, the Lord, will speak. And whatever word I will speak, it shall be done, and it shall not be delayed any more. Instead, in your days, O provoking house, I will speak a word and do it, says the Lord God.”
{12:26} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{12:27} “Son of man, behold the house of Israel, those who are saying: ‘The visions that this one sees is many days away,’ and, ‘This man prophesies about times that are far away.’
{12:28} Because of this, say to them: Thus says the Lord God: No word of mine will be delayed any longer. The word that I will speak will be fulfilled, says the Lord God.”
{13:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{13:2} “Son of man, prophesy to the prophets of Israel who are prophesying, and you shall say to those who prophesy from their own heart: Hear the word of the Lord:
{13:3} Thus says the Lord God: Woe to the foolish prophets, who are following their own spirit, and who see nothing.
{13:4} Your prophets, O Israel, were like foxes in the deserts.
{13:5} You have not gone up against the adversary, and you have not established a wall for the house of Israel, so as to stand in battle on the day of the Lord.
{13:6} They see emptiness, and they foretell falsehoods, saying, ‘The Lord says,’ though the Lord has not sent them. And they continued to affirm what they said.
{13:7} Have you not seen a futile vision and spoken a lying divination? And yet you say, ‘The Lord says,’ though I have not spoken.
{13:8} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Since you have spoken emptiness and have seen falsehoods, therefore: behold, I am against you, says the Lord God.
{13:9} And my hand will be over the prophets who are seeing emptiness and divining lies. They shall not be in the council of my people, and they shall not be written in the writing of the house of Israel. Neither shall they enter into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord God.
{13:10} For they have deceived my people, saying, ‘Peace,’ and there is no peace. And they have built a wall, but they have covered it in clay without straw.
{13:11} Say to those who spread mortar without mixing, that it will fall apart. For there will be an inundating rain, and I will cause full-grown hailstones to rush down from above, and a windstorm to dissipate it.
{13:12} So then, behold: when the wall has fallen, will it not be said to you: ‘Where is the mortar with which you covered it?’
{13:13} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: And I will cause a violent wind to burst forth in my indignation, and there will be an inundating rain in my fury, and great hailstones in wrath, to consume.
{13:14} And I will destroy the wall that you have covered without tempering it. And I will level it to the ground, and its foundation will be revealed. And it will fall and be consumed in its midst. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{13:15} And I will fulfill my indignation against the wall, and against those who cover it without mixing the mortar, and I will say to you: The wall is no more, and those who covered it are no more:
{13:16} the prophets of Israel, who prophesy to Jerusalem, and who see visions of peace for her when there is no peace, says the Lord God.
{13:17} And as for you, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people, who prophesy from their own heart. And prophesy about them,
{13:18} and say: Thus says the Lord God: Woe to those who sew together little pillows under every forearm, and who make little cushions for the heads of every stage of life, in order to capture souls. And when they have seized the souls of my people, they became the life of their souls.
{13:19} And they violated me among my people, for the sake of a handful of barley and a fragment of bread, so that they would kill the souls that should not die, and enliven the souls that should not live, lying to my people who believe in falsehoods.
{13:20} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against your little pillows, with which you catch flying souls. And I will tear them away from your arms. And I will release the souls that you are capturing, the souls that should fly.
{13:21} And I will tear away your little cushions. And I will free my people from your hand. And they shall no longer be a prey in your hands. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{13:22} For by deception you have caused the heart of the just to grieve, whom I would not sadden. And I have strengthened the hands of the impious, so that he would not be turned back from his evil way and live.
{13:23} Therefore, you shall not see emptiness, and you shall not divine divinations, any more. And I will rescue my people from your hand. And you shall know that I am the Lord.”
{14:1} And men among the elders of Israel came to me, and they sat down before me.
{14:2} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{14:3} “Son of man, these men have placed their uncleanness in their hearts, and they have stationed the scandal of their iniquities before their face. So why should I respond when they inquire of me?
{14:4} Because of this, speak to them, and you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: The man, the man of the house of Israel, who places his uncleanness in his heart, and who stations the scandal of his iniquities before his face, and who approaches a prophet, so as to inquire of me through him: I, the Lord, will respond to him in accord with the multitude of his uncleannesses,
{14:5} so that the house of Israel may be seized within their own heart, by which they have withdrawn from me to all their idols.
{14:6} Because of this, say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: Be converted, and withdraw from your idols, and turn your faces away from all your abominations.
{14:7} For the man, the man of the house of Israel, and the new arrival among the converts who may be in Israel, if he is alienated from me, and he sets his idols in his heart, and he stations the scandal of his iniquity before his face, and he approaches the prophet, so that he may inquire of me through him: I, the Lord, will respond to him through myself.
{14:8} And I will set my face against that man, and I will make him an example and a proverb. And I will perish him from the midst of my people. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{14:9} And when a prophet has gone astray and has spoken a word: I, the Lord, have deceived that prophet. And I will extend my hand over him, and I will wipe him away from the midst of my people, Israel.
{14:10} And they shall bear their iniquity. In accord with the iniquity of the one who inquires, so shall the iniquity of the prophet be.
{14:11} So may the house of Israel no longer go astray from me, nor be polluted by all their transgressions. Instead, may they be my people, and may I be their God, says the Lord of hosts.”
{14:12} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{14:13} “Son of man, when a land will have sinned against me, so that it transgresses grievously, I will extend my hand over it, and I will crush the staff of its bread. And I will send a famine upon it, and I will destroy from it both man and beast.
{14:14} And if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver their own souls by their justice, says the Lord of hosts.
{14:15} And if I also lead in very harmful beasts upon the land, so that I devastate it, and it becomes impassable, so that no one may cross through it because of the beasts,
{14:16} if these three men were in it, as I live, says the Lord God, they will deliver neither sons, nor daughters. But only they themselves will be delivered, for the land shall be desolated.
{14:17} Or if I lead in the sword upon that land, and if I say to the sword, ‘Pass through the land,’ and so I destroy from it both man and beast,
{14:18} and if these three men were in its midst, as I live, says the Lord God, they will deliver neither sons, nor daughters, but only they themselves will be delivered.
{14:19} Then, if I also send the pestilence upon that land, and I pour out my indignation upon it with blood, so that I take away from it both man and beast,
{14:20} and if Noah, and Daniel, and Job were in its midst, as I live, says the Lord God, they will deliver neither son, nor daughter, but they will deliver only their own souls by their justice.
{14:21} For thus says the Lord God: Even though I will send upon Jerusalem my four most grievous judgments, sword and famine and harmful beasts and pestilence, so that I destroy from it both man and beast,
{14:22} yet still there shall be left within it some who will be saved, who shall lead away their own sons and daughters. Behold, they will enter to you, and you will see their way and their accomplishments. And you shall be consoled concerning the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, concerning all the things that I have brought to bear upon it.
{14:23} And they shall console you, when you see their ways and their accomplishments. And you shall know that I have not acted to no purpose in all that I have done within it, says the Lord God.”
{15:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{15:2} “Son of man, what can be made from the stalk of a vine, compared to all the plants of the woods that are among the trees of the forests?
{15:3} Can any wood be taken from it, so that it may be made into a work, or formed into a peg so as to hang some kind of vessel upon it?
{15:4} Behold, it is used in the fire as fuel. The fire consumes both its ends; and its middle is reduced to ashes. So how can it be useful for any work?
{15:5} Even when it was whole, it was unsuitable for a work. How much more so, when fire has devoured it and burned it up, will nothing of it be useful?
{15:6} Therefore, thus says the Lord God: Like the stalk of the vine among the trees of the forests, which I have given to be devoured by fire, so will I deliver the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
{15:7} And I will set my face against them. They will go away from fire, and yet fire will consume them. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have set my face against them,
{15:8} and when I will have made their land impassable and desolate. For they have stood forth as transgressors, says the Lord God.”
{16:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{16:2} “Son of man, make known to Jerusalem her abominations.
{16:3} And you shall say: Thus says the Lord God to Jerusalem: Your root and your lineage is from the land of Canaan; your father was an Amorite, and your mother was a Cethite.
{16:4} And when you were born, on the day of your nativity, your umbilical cord was not cut, and you were not washed with water for health, nor salted with salt, nor wrapped with cloths.
{16:5} No eye took pity on you, so as to do even one of these things to you, out of compassion for you. Instead, you were cast upon the face of the earth, in the abjection of your soul, on the day when you were born.
{16:6} But, passing by you, I saw that you were wallowing in your own blood. And I said to you, when you were in your blood: ‘Live.’ I tell you that I said to you, in your blood: ‘Live.’
{16:7} I multiplied you like the seedling of the field. And you were multiplied and became great, and you advanced and arrived at the ornament of a woman. Your breasts rose up, and your hair grew. And you were naked and full of shame.
{16:8} And I passed by you and saw you. And behold, your time was the time of lovers. And I spread my garment over you, and I covered your disgrace. And I swore to you, and I entered into a covenant with you, says the Lord God, and you became mine.
{16:9} And I washed you with water, and I cleansed you of your blood. And I anointed you with oil.
{16:10} And I covered you with embroidery, and I put violet shoes upon you, and I wrapped you in fine linen, and I clothed you with delicate garments.
{16:11} I adorned you with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon your hands and a necklace around your neck.
{16:12} And I put gold upon your face, and earrings in your ears, and a beautiful crown upon your head.
{16:13} And you were adorned with gold and silver, and you were clothed in fine linen, woven with many colors. You ate fine flour, and honey, and oil. And you became very beautiful. And you advanced to royal power.
{16:14} And your renown went forth among the Gentiles, because of your beauty. For you were perfected by my beauty, which I had placed upon you, says the Lord God.
{16:15} But, having confidence in your own beauty, you fornicated in your fame. And you presented your fornication to every passer-by, so as to become his.
{16:16} And taking from your garments, you made for yourself exalted things, having sewed together disparate pieces. And you fornicated upon them, in a way that has not been done before, nor will be in the future.
{16:17} And you took your beautiful items, made of my gold and my silver, which I gave to you, and you made for yourself images of men, and you fornicated with them.
{16:18} And you used your multicolored vestments to cover these things. And you placed my oil and my incense before them.
{16:19} And my bread, which I gave to you, the fine flour, and the oil, and the honey, by which I nourished you, you placed in their sight as a sweet fragrance. And so it was done, says the Lord God.
{16:20} And you took your sons and your daughters, whom you bore for me, and you immolated them to be devoured. Is your fornication a small matter?
{16:21} You have immolated my sons, and you have consecrated and delivered my sons to them.
{16:22} And after all your abominations and fornications, you have not remembered the days of your youth, when you were naked and full of shame, wallowing in your own blood.
{16:23} And it happened that, after all your wickedness, (woe, woe to you, says the Lord God)
{16:24} you built for yourself a brothel, and you made for yourself a place of prostitution in every street.
{16:25} At the head of every way, you set up a banner of your prostitution. And you caused your beauty to become abominable. And you distributed your feet to every passer-by. And you multiplied your fornications.
{16:26} And you fornicated with the sons of Egypt, your neighbors, who have large bodies. And you multiplied your fornications, so as to provoke me.
{16:27} Behold, I will extend my hand over you, and I will take away your justification. And I will give you to the souls of those who hate you, the daughters of the Philistines, who are ashamed of your wicked way.
{16:28} You also fornicated with the sons of the Assyrians, for you were not yet done. And after you fornicated, even then, you were not satisfied.
{16:29} And you multiplied your fornications in the land of Canaan with the Chaldeans. And even then, you were not satisfied.
{16:30} With what can I cleanse your heart, says the Lord God, since you do all these things, the works of a woman who is a shameless prostitute?
{16:31} For you have built your brothel at the head of every way, and you have made your exalted place on every street. And you have not even been like a choosy prostitute, increasing her price,
{16:32} but instead like a woman who is an adulteress, who prefers strangers to her own husband.
{16:33} Wages are given to all prostitutes. But you have given wages to all your lovers, and you have given gifts to them, so that they would enter to you from every side, in order to fornicate with you.
{16:34} And it is done with you, in your fornications, contrary to the custom of women, and even after you, there will be no such fornication. For in as much as you have given payment, and not taken payment, what has been done in you is the contrary.”
{16:35} Because of this, O harlot, listen to the word of the Lord.
{16:36} Thus says the Lord God: “Because your money has been poured out, and your disgrace has been uncovered, in your fornications with your lovers and with the idols of your abominations, in the blood of your sons, whom you gave to them:
{16:37} Behold, I will gather all your lovers, with whom you have united, and all those whom you have loved, together with all those whom you have hated. And I will gather them together against you on every side. And I will uncover your disgrace before them, and they will see all your indecency.
{16:38} And I will judge you with the judgment of adulteresses and of those who shed blood. And I will give you over to blood, in fury and in zeal.
{16:39} And I will deliver you into their hands. And they will destroy your brothel and demolish your place of prostitution. And they will strip you of your vestments. And they will take away the ornaments of your beauty. And they will leave you behind, naked and full of disgrace.
{16:40} And they will lead over you a multitude. And they will stone you with stones, and massacre you with their swords.
{16:41} And they will burn up your houses with fire, and they will carry out judgments against you in the sight of many women. And you will cease from fornication, and no longer give payment.
{16:42} And my indignation will be quieted in you. And my zeal will be taken from you. And I will rest, and no longer be angry.
{16:43} For you have not remembered the days of your youth, and you have provoked me in all these things. Because of this, I also have delivered all your ways upon your head, says the Lord God, but I have not acted in accord with your wickedness in all your abominations.
{16:44} Behold, all who speak a common proverb will take this up against you, saying: ‘Like the mother, so also is her daughter.’
{16:45} You are your mother’s daughter, for she cast away her husband and her children. And you are the sister of your sisters, for they cast away their husbands and their children. Your mother was a Cethite, and your father was an Amorite.
{16:46} And your older sister is Samaria, she and her daughters are those who live to your left. But your younger sister, who lives to your right, is Sodom and her daughters.
{16:47} But neither have you walked in their ways. For you have done only a little less compared to their wickedness. You have acted almost more wickedly, in all your ways, than they have acted.
{16:48} As I live, says the Lord God, your sister Sodom herself, and her daughters, have not done as you and your daughters have done.
{16:49} Behold, this was the iniquity of Sodom, your sister: arrogance, indulgence in bread and abundance, and the idleness of her and her daughters; and they did not reach out their hand to the needy and the poor.
{16:50} And they were exalted, and they committed abominations before me. And so I took them away, just as you have seen.
{16:51} But Samaria has not committed even half of your sins. For you have exceeded them in your wickedness, and you have justified your sisters by all your abominations, which you have wrought.
{16:52} Therefore, you also bear your shame, for you have exceeded your sisters with your sins, acting more wickedly than they did. So they have been justified above you. By this also, you are confounded, and you bear your disgrace, for you have justified your sisters.
{16:53} But I will convert and restore them, by converting Sodom with her daughters, and by converting Samaria and her daughters. And I will convert your return in their midst.
{16:54} So may you bear your disgrace and be confounded over all that you have done, consoling them.
{16:55} And your sister Sodom and her daughters will return to their ancient state. And Samaria and her daughters will return to their ancient state. And you and your daughters will be returned to your ancient state.
{16:56} Your sister Sodom was not heard from your mouth, then, in the day of your pride,
{16:57} before your malice was revealed, as it is at this time, with the reproach of the daughters of Syria and of all the daughters of Palestine, who surround you, who encircle you on every side.
{16:58} You have borne your wickedness and your disgrace, says the Lord God.”
{16:59} For thus says the Lord God: “I will act toward you, just as you have despised the oath, so that you would make void the covenant.
{16:60} And I will remember my covenant with you in the days of your youth. And I will raise up for you an everlasting covenant.
{16:61} And you shall remember your ways and be confounded, when you will have received your sisters, your elder with your younger. And I will give them to you as daughters, but not by your covenant.
{16:62} And I will raise up my covenant with you. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{16:63} So may you remember and be confounded. And it will no longer be for you to open your mouth, because of your shame, when I will have been pacified toward you over all that you have done, says the Lord God.”
{17:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{17:2} “Son of man, propose an enigma and describe a parable to the house of Israel,
{17:3} and you shall say: Thus says the Lord God: A large eagle, with great wings and elongated pinions, full of feathers with many colors, came to Lebanon. And he took the kernel of the cedar.
{17:4} He tore off the summit of its branches, and he transported it to the land of Canaan; he placed it in a city of merchants.
{17:5} And he took from the seed of the land and placed it in the ground for seed, so that it might take firm root above many waters; he placed it at the surface.
{17:6} And when it had germinated, it increased into a more extensive vine, low in height, with its branches facing toward itself. And its roots were underneath it. And so, it became a vine, and sprouted branches, and produced shoots.
{17:7} And there was another large eagle, with great wings and many feathers. And behold, this vine seemed to bend its roots towards him, extending its branches toward him, so that he might irrigate it from the garden of its germination.
{17:8} It had been planted in a good land, above many waters, so that it would produce branches and bear fruit, so that it would become a large vine.
{17:9} Speak: Thus says the Lord God: What if it does not prosper? Should he not pull up its roots, and strip off its fruit, and dry up all the branches that it has produced, and let it wither, though he is without a strong arm and without many people to pull it up by the root?
{17:10} Behold, it has been planted. What if it does not prosper? Should it not be dried up when the burning wind touches it, and should it not wither in the garden of its germination?”
{17:11} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{17:12} “Say to the provoking house: Do you not know what these things signify? Say: Behold, the king of Babylon arrives in Jerusalem. And he will take away its king and princes, and he will lead them away to himself in Babylon.
{17:13} And he will take one from the offspring of the king, and he will strike a pact with him and receive an oath from him. Moreover, he will take away the strong ones of the land,
{17:14} so that it may be a lowly kingdom, and may not lift itself up, and may instead keep his pact and serve it.
{17:15} But, withdrawing from him, he sent messengers to Egypt, so that it would give him horses and many people. Should he who has done these things prosper and obtain safety? And should he who has broken the pact go free?
{17:16} As I live, says the Lord God, in the place of the king, who appointed him as king, whose oath he has made void, and whose pact he has broken, under which he was living with him, in the midst of Babylon, he shall die.
{17:17} And not with a great army, nor with many people will Pharaoh undertake a battle against him, when he will cast up ramparts and build defenses, in order to put to death many souls.
{17:18} For he has despised an oath, in that he broke the pact. And behold, he had given his hand. And so, since he has done all these things, he shall not escape.
{17:19} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: As I live, I will place upon his head the oath that he has spurned and the pact that he has betrayed.
{17:20} And I will spread my net over him, and he will be captured in my dragnet. And I will lead him into Babylon, and I will judge him there for the transgression by which he has despised me.
{17:21} And all his fugitives, with all his procession, will fall by the sword. Then the remainder will be scattered into every wind. And you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken.”
{17:22} Thus says the Lord God: “I myself will take from the kernel of the exalted cedar, and I will establish it. I will tear off a tender twig from the top of its branches, and I will plant it on a mountain, lofty and exalted.
{17:23} On the sublime mountains of Israel, I will plant it. And it shall spring forth in buds and bear fruit, and it shall be a great cedar. And all the birds will live under it, and every bird will make its nest under the shadow of its branches.
{17:24} And all the trees of the regions will know that I, the Lord, have brought low the sublime tree, and have exalted the lowly tree, and have dried up the green tree, and have caused the dry tree to flourish. I, the Lord, have spoken and acted.”
{18:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{18:2} “Why is it that you circulate among yourselves this parable, as a proverb in the land of Israel, saying: ‘The fathers ate a bitter grape, and the teeth of the sons have been affected.’
{18:3} As I live, says the Lord God, this parable shall no longer be a proverb for you in Israel.
{18:4} Behold, all souls are mine. Just as the soul of the father is mine, so also is the soul of the son. The soul that sins, the same shall die.
{18:5} And if a man is just, and he accomplishes judgment and justice,
{18:6} and if he does not eat upon the mountains, nor lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, and if he has not violated the wife of his neighbor, nor approached a menstruating woman,
{18:7} and if he has not grieved any man, but has restored the collateral to the debtor, if he has seized nothing by violence, has given his bread to the hungry, and has covered the naked with a garment,
{18:8} if he has not lent upon usury, nor taken any increase, if he has averted his hand from iniquity, and has executed true judgment between man and man,
{18:9} if he has walked in my precepts and kept my judgments, so that he acts in accord with truth, then he is just; he shall certainly live, says the Lord God.
{18:10} But if he raises a son who is a robber, who sheds blood, and who does any of these things,
{18:11} (even though he himself does not do any of these things,) and who eats upon the mountains, and who defiles the wife of his neighbor,
{18:12} who grieves the needy and the poor, who seizes with violence, who does not restore the collateral, and who lifts up his eyes to idols, committing abomination,
{18:13} who lends upon usury, and who takes an increase, then shall he live? He shall not live. Since he has done all these detestable things, he shall certainly die. His blood shall be upon him.
{18:14} But if he raises a son, who, seeing all his father’s sins that he has done, is afraid and so does not act in a way similar to him,
{18:15} who does not eat upon the mountains, nor lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, and who does not violate the wife of his neighbor,
{18:16} and who has not grieved any man, nor withheld the collateral, nor seized by violence, but instead has given his bread to the hungry, and has covered the naked with a garment,
{18:17} who has averted his hand from injuring the poor, who has not taken usury and an overabundance, who has acted according to my judgments and walked in my precepts, then this one shall not die for the iniquity of his father; instead, he shall certainly live.
{18:18} As for his father, because he oppressed and did violence to his brother, and worked evil in the midst of his people, behold, he has died by his own iniquity.
{18:19} And you say, ‘Why has not the son borne the iniquity of the father?’ Clearly, since the son has worked judgment and justice, has observed all my precepts, and has done them, he shall certainly live.
{18:20} The soul that sins, the same shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, and the father shall not bear the iniquity of the son. The justice of the just man shall be upon himself, but the impiety of the impious man shall be upon himself.
{18:21} But if the impious man does penance for all his sins which he has committed, and if he keeps all my precepts, and accomplishes judgment and justice, then he shall certainly live, and he shall not die.
{18:22} I will not remember all his iniquities, which he has worked; by his justice, which he has worked, he shall live.
{18:23} How could it be my will that an impious man should die, says the Lord God, and not that he should be converted from his ways and live?
{18:24} But if a just man turns himself away from his justice, and does iniquity in accord with all the abominations that the impious man so often does, why should he live? All his justices, which he has accomplished, shall not be remembered. By the transgression, in which he has transgressed, and by his sin, in which he has sinned, by these he shall die.
{18:25} And you have said, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ Therefore, listen, O house of Israel. How could it be that my way is not fair? And is it not instead your ways that are perverse?
{18:26} For when the just man turns himself away from his justice, and commits iniquity, he shall die by this; by the injustice that he has worked, he shall die.
{18:27} And when the impious man turns himself away from his impiety, which he has done, and accomplishes judgment and justice, he shall cause his own soul to live.
{18:28} For by considering and turning himself away from all his iniquities, which he has worked, he shall certainly live, and he shall not die.
{18:29} And yet the sons of Israel say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ How could it be that my ways are not fair, O house of Israel? And is it not instead your ways that are perverse?
{18:30} Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge each one according to his ways, says the Lord God. Be converted, and do penance for all your iniquities, and then iniquity will not be your ruin.
{18:31} Cast all your transgressions, by which you have transgressed, away from you, and make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. And then why should you die, O house of Israel?
{18:32} For I do not desire the death of one who dies, says the Lord God. So return and live.”
{19:1} “And as for you, take up a lament over the leaders of Israel,
{19:2} and you shall say: Why did your mother, the lioness, recline among the male lions, and raise her little ones in the midst of young lions?
{19:3} And she led away one of her little ones, and he became a lion. And he learned to seize prey and to consume men.
{19:4} And the Gentiles heard about him, and they seized him, but not without receiving wounds. And they led him away in chains to the land of Egypt.
{19:5} Then, when she had seen that she was weakened, and that her hope had perished, she took one of her little ones, and appointed him as a lion.
{19:6} And he advanced among the lions, and he became a lion. And he learned to seize prey and to devour men.
{19:7} He learned to make widows, and to lead their citizens into the desert. And the land, with its plenitude, was made desolate by the voice of his roaring.
{19:8} And the Gentiles came together against him, on every side, from the provinces, and they spread their net over him; by their wounds, he was captured.
{19:9} And they put him into a cage; they led him in chains to the king of Babylon. And they cast him into a prison, so that his voice would no longer be heard upon the mountains of Israel.
{19:10} Your mother is like a vine, in your blood, planted by the water; her fruit and her branches have increased because of many waters.
{19:11} And her strong branches were made into scepters for the rulers, and her stature was exalted among the branches. And she saw her own loftiness among the multitude of her branches.
{19:12} But she was uprooted in wrath, and cast upon the ground. And the burning wind dried up her fruit. Her robust branches withered and were dried up. A fire consumed her.
{19:13} And now she has been transplanted into the desert, into a land impassable and dry.
{19:14} And a fire has gone forth from a rod of her branches, which has consumed her fruit. And there is no strong branch in her to become a scepter for the rulers. This is a lamentation, and it shall be a lamentation.”
{20:1} And it happened that, in the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth of the month, men from the elders of Israel arrived, so that they might inquire of the Lord, and they sat before me.
{20:2} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{20:3} “Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel, and you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: Have you arrived in order to inquire of me? As I live, I will not answer you, says the Lord God.
{20:4} If you judge them, if you judge, O son of man, reveal to them the abominations of their fathers.
{20:5} And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: In the day when I chose Israel, and I lifted up my hand on behalf of the stock of the house of Jacob, and I appeared to them in the land of Egypt, and I lifted up my hand on their behalf, saying, ‘I am the Lord your God,’
{20:6} in that day, I lifted up my hand for their sake, so that I would lead them away from the land of Egypt, into a land which I had provided for them, flowing with milk and honey, which was singular among all lands.
{20:7} And I said to them: ‘Let each one cast away the offenses of his eyes, and do not choose to defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’
{20:8} But they provoked me, and they were not willing to listen to me. Each one of them did not cast away the abominations of his eyes, nor did they leave behind the idols of Egypt. And so, I said that I would pour out my indignation upon them, and fulfill my wrath against them, in the midst of the land of Egypt.
{20:9} But I acted for the sake of my name, so that it would not be violated in the sight of the Gentiles, in the midst of whom they were, and among whom I appeared to them, so that I might lead them away from the land of Egypt.
{20:10} Therefore, I cast them out of the land of Egypt, and I led them away into the desert.
{20:11} And I gave them my precepts, and I revealed to them my judgments, which, if a man does them, he shall live by them.
{20:12} Moreover, I also gave to them my Sabbaths, so that these would be a sign between me and them, and so that they would know that I am the Lord, who sanctifies them.
{20:13} But the house of Israel provoked me in the desert. They did not walk in my precepts, and they cast aside my judgments, which, if a man does them, he shall live by them. And they grievously violated my Sabbaths. Therefore, I said that I would pour out my fury upon them in the desert, and that I would consume them.
{20:14} But I acted for the sake of my name, lest it be violated before the Gentiles, from whom I cast them out, in their sight.
{20:15} And so I lifted up my hand over them in the desert, so as not to lead them into the land that I had given to them, flowing with milk and honey, the foremost of all lands.
{20:16} For they cast aside my judgments, and they did not walk in my precepts, and they violated my Sabbaths. For their heart went after idols.
{20:17} Yet my eye was lenient concerning them, so that I did not utterly destroy them, nor did I consume them in the desert.
{20:18} Then I said to their sons in the wilderness: ‘Do not choose to advance by the precepts of your fathers, nor should you observe their judgments. And do not be defiled by their idols.
{20:19} I am the Lord your God. Walk in my precepts, and observe my judgments, and accomplish them.
{20:20} And sanctify my Sabbaths, so that these may be a sign between me and you, and so that you may know that I am the Lord your God.’
{20:21} But their sons provoked me. They did not walk in my precepts. And they did not observe my judgments, so as to do them; for if a man does them, he shall live by them. And they violated my Sabbaths. And so, I threatened that I would pour out my fury upon them, and that I would fulfill my wrath among them in the desert.
{20:22} But I turned aside my hand, and I acted for the sake of my name, so that it would not be violated before the Gentiles, from whom I cast them out, before their eyes.
{20:23} Again, I lifted up my hand against them, in the wilderness, so that I would disperse them among the nations, and scatter them among the lands.
{20:24} For they had not accomplished my judgments, and they had rejected my precepts, and they had violated my Sabbaths. And their eyes had been after the idols of their fathers.
{20:25} Therefore, I also gave them precepts that were not good, and judgments by which they shall not live.
{20:26} And I defiled them by their own gifts, when they offered everything that opened the womb, because of their offenses. And they shall know that I am the Lord.
{20:27} For this reason, son of man, speak to the house of Israel, and you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God. Yet also in this did your fathers blaspheme me, after they had spurned and despised me,
{20:28} though I had led them into the land, about which I lifted up my hand, so that I might give it to them: They saw every lofty hill and every leafy tree, and there they immolated their victims, and there they presented the provocation of their oblations, and there they stationed their sweet fragrances, and poured out their libations.
{20:29} And I said to them, ‘What is exalted about the place to which you go?’ And yet its name is called ‘Exalted,’ even to this day.
{20:30} Because of this, say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: Certainly, you are defiled by the way of your fathers, and you have fornicated after their stumbling blocks.
{20:31} And you are being defiled by all of your idols, even to this day, by the oblation of your gifts, when you lead your sons through the fire. And should I respond to you, O house of Israel? As I live, says the Lord God, I will not answer you.
{20:32} And the plan of your mind will not occur, saying: ‘We will be like the Gentiles, and like the families of the earth, so that we worship what is wood and stone.’
{20:33} As I live, says the Lord God, I will reign over you with a strong hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured forth.
{20:34} And I will lead you away from the peoples. And I will gather you from the lands into which you were dispersed. I will reign over you with a powerful hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out.
{20:35} And I will lead you into the desert of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you, face to face.
{20:36} Just as I contended in judgment against your fathers in the desert of the land of Egypt, so also will I enter into judgment with you, says the Lord God.
{20:37} And I will subject you to my scepter, and I will lead you into the bonds of the covenant.
{20:38} And I will select, from among you, the transgressors and the impious. And I will lead them away from the land of their sojourn, but they shall not enter into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{20:39} And as for you, house of Israel: thus says the Lord God: Walk, each one of you, after your idols and serve them. But if in this also you will not listen to me, and you continue to defile my holy name with your gifts and with your idols,
{20:40} on my holy mountain, on the exalted mountain of Israel, says the Lord God, there all the house of Israel shall serve me; all of them, I say, in the land in which they shall please me, and there I will require your first-fruits, and the foremost of your tithes, with all your sanctifications.
{20:41} I will receive from you a fragrance of sweetness, when I will have led you away from the peoples, and gathered you from the lands into which you were dispersed. And I will be sanctified in you before the eyes of the nations.
{20:42} And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have led you into the land of Israel, into the land about which I lifted up my hand, so that I would give it to your fathers.
{20:43} And there you shall remember your ways and all your wickedness, by which you have been defiled. And you will be displeased with yourselves in your own sight, over all your evil deeds which you did.
{20:44} And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have acted well toward you for the sake of my name, and not according to your evil ways, nor according to your very great wickedness, O house of Israel, says the Lord God.”
{20:45} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{20:46} “Son of man, set your face against the way of the south, and pour in drops toward Africa, and prophesy against the forest of the field of the meridian.
{20:47} And you shall say to the meridian forest: Listen to the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will kindle a fire in you, and I will burn up within you every green tree and every dry tree. The flame of the kindling will not be extinguished. And every face will be burned up within it, from the south, even to the north.
{20:48} And all flesh will see that I, the Lord, have kindled it, and that it will not be extinguished.”
{20:49} And I said: “Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God! They are saying about me: ‘Does this man not speak except through parables?’ ”
{21:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{21:2} “Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, and pour in drops toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the soil of Israel.
{21:3} And you shall say to the land of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, and I will cast my sword from its sheath, and I will slay the just and the impious among you.
{21:4} But in as much as I have slain among you the just and the impious, for this reason my sword will go forth from its sheath against all flesh, from the south even to the north.
{21:5} So may all flesh know that I, the Lord, have led my sword out of its sheath irrevocably.
{21:6} And as for you, son of man, groan in the breaking of your back, and groan in bitterness before them.
{21:7} And when they will say to you, ‘Why are you groaning?’ you shall say: ‘On behalf of the report, for it is approaching. And every heart will waste away, and every hand will be broken, and every spirit will be weakened, and water will flow across every knee.’ Behold, it is approaching and it will happen, says the Lord God.”
{21:8} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{21:9} “Son of man, prophesy, and you shall say: Thus says the Lord God: Speak: The sword! The sword has been sharpened and polished!
{21:10} It has been sharpened, so that it may cut down victims! It has been polished, so that it may shine! You are disturbing the scepter of my son. You have cut down every tree.
{21:11} And I have sent it to be made smooth, so that it may be handled. This sword has been sharpened, and it has been polished, so that it may be in the hand of the one who kills.
{21:12} Cry out and wail, O son of man! For this has been done among my people, this is among all the leaders of Israel, who have fled. They have been handed over to the sword, with my people. Therefore, slap your thigh,
{21:13} for it has been tested. And this one, when he will have overthrown the scepter, will not be, says the Lord God.
{21:14} You therefore, O son of man, prophesy, and strike hand against hand, and let the sword be doubled, and let the sword of the slain be tripled. This is the sword of the great slaughter, which causes them to be utterly stupefied,
{21:15} and to waste away in heart, and which multiplies ruin. At all their gates, I have presented the consternation of the sword, which has been sharpened and polished so as to shine, which has been dressed for the slaughter.
{21:16} Be sharpened! Go to the right or to the left, whichever way is the desire of your face.
{21:17} And then I will clap hand against hand, and I will fulfill my indignation. I, the Lord, have spoken.”
{21:18} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{21:19} “And as for you, son of man, set for yourself two ways, so that the sword of the king of Babylon may approach. Both shall go forth from one land. And with a hand, he will grasp and cast lots; he will cast at the head of the way of the community.
{21:20} You shall appoint a way, so that the sword may approach to Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, or to Judah, into Jerusalem, greatly fortified.
{21:21} For the king of Babylon stood at the fork, at the head of the two ways, seeking divination, shuffling arrows; he inquired of idols, and he consulted entrails.
{21:22} To his right was set the divination over Jerusalem, to place battering rams so as to open a mouth for the slaughter, to lift up the voice of wailing, to place battering rams opposite the gates, to cast up a rampart, to build fortifications.
{21:23} And he shall be, in their eyes, like someone consulting an oracle in vain, or imitating the leisure of Sabbaths. But he will call to mind iniquities, so that it will be captured.
{21:24} Therefore, thus says the Lord God: Because you have been remembered in your iniquities, and you have revealed your betrayals, and your sins have appeared within all your plans, because, I say, you have been remembered, you will be captured by a hand.
{21:25} But as for you, O impious leader of Israel, whose day has arrived that was predetermined at the time of iniquity:
{21:26} Thus says the Lord God: Take away the diadem, remove the crown. Is this not what has exalted the lowly one, and brought low the sublime one?
{21:27} Iniquity, iniquity, iniquity I will make it. And this was not done until the one arrived to whom judgment belongs, and I will hand it over to him.
{21:28} And as for you, son of man, prophesy, and say: Thus says the Lord God to the sons of Ammon, and to their disgrace, and you shall say: O sword, O sword, unsheathe yourself so as to slay; polish yourself so as to kill and to shine,
{21:29} while they look upon you in vain, and they divine lies, so that you may be given over to the necks of the wounded impious, whose day has arrived that was predetermined at the time of iniquity.
{21:30} Be returned to your sheath! I will judge you in the place where you were created, in the land of your nativity.
{21:31} And I will pour out upon you my indignation. In the fire of my fury, I will fan you, and I will give you over to the hands of cruel men, who have devised destruction.
{21:32} You will be food for the fire; your blood will be in the midst of the land; you will be delivered to oblivion. For I, the Lord, have spoken.”
{22:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{22:2} “And you, son of man, should you not judge, should you not judge the city of blood?
{22:3} And you shall reveal to her all her abominations. And you shall say: Thus says the Lord God: This is the city which sheds blood in her midst, so that her time may come, and which has made idols against herself, so that she may be defiled.
{22:4} You have offended by your blood, which you shed from yourself. And you have been defiled by your idols which you yourself made. And you have caused your days to approach, and you have brought on the time of your years. Because of this, I have made you a disgrace to the Gentiles, and a derision to all the lands.
{22:5} Those that are near and those that are far from you will triumph over you. You are filthy, infamous, great in destruction.
{22:6} Behold, the leaders of Israel have each used his arm to shed blood within you.
{22:7} They have abused father and mother within you. The new arrival has been oppressed in your midst. They have grieved the orphan and the widow among you.
{22:8} You have spurned my sanctuaries, and you have defiled my Sabbaths.
{22:9} Maligning men were within you, in order to shed blood, and they have eaten upon the mountains within you. They have worked wickedness in your midst.
{22:10} They have uncovered the nakedness of their father within you. They have debased the uncleanness of the menstruous woman within you.
{22:11} And each one has committed abomination with the wife of his neighbor. And the father-in-law has heinously defiled his daughter-in-law. The brother has oppressed his sister, the daughter of his father, within you.
{22:12} They have accepted bribes among you to shed blood. You have received usury and superabundance, and in avarice you have oppressed your neighbors. And you have forgotten me, says the Lord God.
{22:13} Behold, I have clapped my hands over your avarice, which you have worked, and over the blood that has been shed in your midst.
{22:14} How can your heart endure, or your hands prevail, in the days that I will bring upon you? I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will act.
{22:15} And I will disperse you among the nations, and I will scatter you among the lands, and I will cause your uncleanness to fade away from you.
{22:16} And I will possess you in the sight of the Gentiles. And you shall know that I am the Lord.”
{22:17} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{22:18} “Son of man, the house of Israel has become like dross to me. All these are brass, and tin, and iron, and lead in the midst of the furnace; they have become like the dross of silver.
{22:19} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Since you have all turned into dross, therefore, behold, I will gather you together in the midst of Jerusalem,
{22:20} just as they gather silver, and brass, and tin, and iron, and lead in the midst of the furnace, so that I may kindle in it a fire to melt it. So will I gather you together in my fury and in my wrath, and I will be quieted, and I will melt you down.
{22:21} And I will gather you together, and I will burn you in the fire of my fury, and you will be melted in its midst.
{22:22} Just as silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so will you be in its midst. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have poured out my indignation upon you.”
{22:23} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{22:24} “Son of man, say to her: You are a land unclean and not rained upon, in the day of fury.
{22:25} There is a conspiracy of prophets in her midst. Like a lion, roaring and seizing the prey, they have devoured souls. They have taken riches and a price. They have multiplied widows in her midst.
{22:26} Her priests have despised my law, and they have defiled my sanctuaries. They have held no distinction between holy and profane. And they have not understood the difference between defiled and clean. And they have averted their eyes from my Sabbaths. And I was profaned in their midst.
{22:27} Her leaders in her midst are like wolves seizing the prey: to shed blood, and to perish souls, and to continually pursue profit with avarice.
{22:28} And her prophets have covered them without tempering the mortar, seeing emptiness, and divining lies for them, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord God,’ when the Lord has not spoken.
{22:29} The people of the land have oppressed with slander and have seized with violence. They have afflicted the needy and the poor, and they have oppressed the new arrival by accusations without judgment.
{22:30} And I sought among them for a man who might set up a hedge, and stand in the gap before me on behalf of the land, so that I might not destroy it; and I found no one.
{22:31} And so I poured out my indignation upon them; in the fire of my wrath I consumed them. I have rendered their own way upon their head, says the Lord God.”
{23:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{23:2} “Son of man, two women were daughters of one mother,
{23:3} and they fornicated in Egypt; they committed fornication in their youth. In that place, their breasts were conquered; the breasts of their adolescence were subdued.
{23:4} Now their names were Oholah, the elder, and Oholibah, her younger sister. And I held them, and they bore sons and daughters. As for their names: Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.
{23:5} And then, Oholah committed fornication against me, and she acted madly with her lovers, with the Assyrians who approached her,
{23:6} who were clothed with hyacinth: rulers and magistrates, passionate youths and all of the horsemen, mounted on horses.
{23:7} And she distributed her fornications to those chosen men, all of them sons of the Assyrians. And she defiled herself with the uncleanness of all those whom she madly desired.
{23:8} Moreover, she also did not abandon her fornications, which she had done in Egypt. For they also slept with her in her youth, and they bruised the breasts of her virginity, and they poured out their fornication upon her.
{23:9} Because of this, I have delivered her into the hands of her lovers, into the hands of the sons of the Assur, whom she has lustfully desired.
{23:10} They uncovered her shame; they took away her sons and daughters; and they slew her with the sword. And they became infamous women. And they carried out judgments in her.
{23:11} And when her sister, Oholibah, had seen this, she was even more mad with lust than the other. And her fornication was beyond the fornication of her sister.
{23:12} She shamelessly offered herself to the sons of the Assyrians, to the rulers and magistrates who brought themselves to her clothed with colorful garments, to the horsemen who were carried by horses, and to the youths, all of them exceptional in appearance.
{23:13} And I saw that she had been defiled, and that they both took the same path.
{23:14} And she increased her fornications. And when she had seen men depicted on the wall, the images of the Chaldeans, expressed in colors,
{23:15} with belts wrapped around the waist, and with dyed headdresses on their heads, having seen the appearance of all the rulers, the likenesses of the sons of Babylon and of the land of the Chaldeans in which they were born,
{23:16} she became mad for them with the desire of her eyes, and she sent messengers to them in Chaldea.
{23:17} And when the sons of Babylon had gone to her, to the bed of breasts, they defiled her with their fornications, and she was polluted by them, and her soul was gorged by them.
{23:18} Also, her fornications were uncovered, and her shame was revealed. And my soul withdrew from her, as my soul had withdrawn from her sister.
{23:19} For she multiplied her fornications, remembering the days of her youth, in which she fornicated in the land of Egypt.
{23:20} And she was mad with lust after lying with them, whose flesh is like the flesh of donkeys, and whose flow is like the flow of horses.
{23:21} And you have revisited the crimes of your youth, when your breasts were conquered in Egypt, and the breasts of your adolescence were subdued.
{23:22} Because of this, Oholibah, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will raise up against you all of your lovers, with whom your soul has been gorged. And I will gather them together against you all around:
{23:23} the sons of Babylon, and all the Chaldeans, the nobles, the sovereigns and princes, all the sons of the Assyrians, youths of exceptional form, all the rulers and magistrates, the leaders among leaders, and the renowned riders of horses.
{23:24} And they will overwhelm you, well-equipped with chariot and wheel, a multitude of peoples. They will be armed against you on every side with armor and shield and helmet. And I will give judgment to their eyes, and they will judge you with their judgments.
{23:25} And against you, I will set my zeal, which they will execute upon you with fury. They will cut off your nose and your ears. And what remains will fall by the sword. They will seize your sons and your daughters, and your youngest will be devoured by fire.
{23:26} And they will strip you of your vestments, and take away the articles of your glory.
{23:27} And I will cause your wickedness to cease from you, and your fornication to cease from the land of Egypt. Neither shall you lift up your eyes toward them, and you shall no longer remember Egypt.
{23:28} For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will deliver you into the hands of those whom you have hated, into the hands by which your soul has been gorged.
{23:29} And they will act toward you with hatred, and they will take away all your labors, and they will send you away naked and filled with disgrace. And the shame of your fornication will be revealed: your crimes and your fornications.
{23:30} They have done these things to you, because you have fornicated after the Gentiles, among whom you were defiled by their idols.
{23:31} You have walked in the way of your sister, and so I will give her chalice into your hand.
{23:32} Thus says the Lord God: You will drink the chalice of your sister, deep and wide. You will be held in derision and in ridicule, to a very great extent.
{23:33} You will be filled with inebriation and sorrow, by the chalice of grief and sadness, by the chalice of your sister Samaria.
{23:34} And you will drink it, and you will empty it, even to the dregs. And you will consume even its particles. And you will wound your own breasts. For I have spoken, says the Lord God.
{23:35} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Since you have forgotten me, and you have cast me behind your body, so also will you bear your wickedness and your fornications.”
{23:36} And the Lord spoke to me, saying: “Son of man, should you not judge Oholah and Oholibah, and announce to them their crimes?
{23:37} For they are adulteresses, and blood is in their hands, and they have fornicated with their idols. Moreover, they have offered even their children, whom they bore for me, to them to be devoured.
{23:38} But they have done even this to me: They have defiled my sanctuary on the same day, and they have profaned my Sabbaths.
{23:39} And when they immolated their children to their idols, they also entered my sanctuary on the same day, so that they defiled it. They have done these things, even in the midst of my house.
{23:40} They sent for men who were coming from far away, to whom they had sent a messenger. And so, behold, they arrived, those for whom you washed yourself, and smeared cosmetics around your eyes, and were adorned with feminine ornaments.
{23:41} You sat upon a very beautiful bed, and a table was adorned before you, on which you placed my incense and my ointment.
{23:42} And the voice of a multitude was exulting within her. And concerning certain men, who were being led out of a multitude of persons, and who were arriving from the desert, they placed bracelets on their hands and beautiful crowns on their heads.
{23:43} And I said about her, as she was being worn away by her adulteries, ‘Even now, she continues in her fornication!’
{23:44} And they entered to her, as if to a kept woman. So did they enter to Oholah and Oholibah, nefarious women.
{23:45} But there are just men; these shall judge them with the judgment of adulteresses and with the judgment of those who shed blood. For they are adulteresses, and blood is on their hands.
{23:46} For thus says the Lord God: Lead upon them a multitude, and hand them over to tumult and to pillaging.
{23:47} And may they be stoned with the stones of the peoples, and may they be pierced with their own swords. They will put to death their sons and daughters, and they will burn their houses with fire.
{23:48} And I will take away wickedness from the land. And all women shall learn not to act according to their wickedness.
{23:49} And they will set your own crimes upon you, and you will bear the sins of your idols. And you shall know that I am the Lord God.”
{24:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, in the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, saying:
{24:2} “Son of man, write for yourself the name of this day, on which the king of Babylon was confirmed against Jerusalem today.
{24:3} And you shall speak, through a proverb, a parable to the inciting house. And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: Set out a cooking pot; set it out, I say, and put water into it.
{24:4} Pile together within it every morsel, every good piece, the thigh and the shoulder, the choice pieces and those full of bones.
{24:5} Take the fattest from the flock, and arrange also a heap of bones under it. Its cooking has boiled over, and its bones in its midst have been thoroughly cooked.
{24:6} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Woe to the city of blood, to the cooking pot that has rust in it, and whose rust has not gone out of it! Cast it out piece by piece! No lot has fallen upon it.
{24:7} For her blood is in her midst; she has shed it upon the smoothest rock. She has not shed it upon the ground, so that it could be covered with dust.
{24:8} So shall I bring my indignation over her, and take my vengeance. I have presented her blood upon the smoothest rock, so that it would not be covered.
{24:9} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Woe to the city of blood, out of which I will make a great funeral pyre.
{24:10} Pile together the bones, which I will burn with fire. The flesh shall be consumed, and the entire composition shall be boiled, and the bones shall deteriorate.
{24:11} Also, place it empty on burning coals, so that it may be heated, and its brass may melt. And let the filth of it be melted in its midst, and let its rust be consumed.
{24:12} There has been much sweat and labor, and yet its extensive rust has not gone out of it, not even by fire.
{24:13} Your uncleanness is execrable. For I wanted to cleanse you, and you have not been cleansed from your filth. So then, neither will you be cleansed before I cause my indignation over you to cease.
{24:14} I, the Lord, have spoken. It shall happen, and I will act. I will not pass over, nor be lenient, nor be placated. I will judge you according to your ways and according to your intentions, says the Lord.”
{24:15} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{24:16} “Son of man, behold, I am taking away from you, with a stroke, the desire of your eyes. And you shall not lament, and you shall not weep. And your tears shall not flow down.
{24:17} Groan silently; you shall make no mourning for the dead. Let the band of your crown be on you, and let your shoes be on your feet. And you shall not cover your face, nor shall you eat the food of those who mourn.”
{24:18} Therefore, I spoke to the people in the morning. And my wife died in the evening. And in the morning, I did just as he had instructed me.
{24:19} And the people said to me: “Why won’t you explain to us what these things signify, which you are doing?”
{24:20} And I said to them: “The word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{24:21} ‘Speak to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will defile my sanctuary, the pride of your realm, and the desire of your eyes, and the dread of your soul. Your sons and your daughters, whom you have forsaken, will fall by the sword.’
{24:22} And so, you shall do just as I have done. You shall not cover your faces, and you shall not eat the food of those who mourn.
{24:23} You shall have crowns on your heads, and shoes on your feet. You shall not lament, and you shall not weep. Instead, you will waste away in your iniquities, and each one will groan to his brother.
{24:24} ‘And Ezekiel shall be a portent for you. In accord with all that he has done, so shall you do, when this will happen. And you shall know that I am the Lord God.’ ”
{24:25} “And as for you, son of man, behold, in the day when I will take away from them their strength, and the joy of their dignity, and the desire of their eyes, in which their souls find rest: their sons and their daughters,
{24:26} in that day, when one who is fleeing will come to you, so that he may report to you,
{24:27} in that day, I say, your mouth shall be opened to him who has fled. And you shall speak, and you shall no longer be silent. And you shall be for them a portent. And you shall know that I am the Lord.”
{25:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{25:2} “Son of man, set your face against the sons of Ammon, and you shall prophesy about them.
{25:3} And you shall say to the sons of Ammon: Listen to the word of the Lord God: Thus says the Lord God: Because you have said, ‘Well, well!’ over my sanctuary, when it was profaned, and over the land of Israel, when it was desolated, and over the house of Judah, when they were led into captivity,
{25:4} therefore, I will deliver you to the sons of the East, as an inheritance. And they will arrange their fences within you, and they will place their tents within you. They will eat your crops, and they will drink your milk.
{25:5} And I will make Rabbah into the habitation of camels, and the sons of Ammon into the resting place of cattle. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{25:6} For thus says the Lord God: Because you have clapped your hands and stomped your foot, and have rejoiced with all your heart against the land of Israel,
{25:7} therefore, behold, I will extend my hand over you, and I will deliver you as a spoil of the Gentiles. And I will destroy you from the peoples, and I will perish you from the lands, and I will crush you. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{25:8} Thus says the Lord God: Because Moab and Seir have said, ‘Behold, the house of Judah is like all the Gentiles!’
{25:9} therefore, behold, I will open the shoulder of Moab from the cities, from his cities, I say, and from his borders, the famous cities of the land of Beth-Jesimoth, and Baal-meon, and Kiriathaim,
{25:10} with the sons of Ammon, to the sons of the East, and I will give it to them as an inheritance, so that there may no longer be a remembrance of the sons of Ammon among the Gentiles.
{25:11} And I will execute judgments in Moab. And they shall know that I am the Lord.
{25:12} Thus says the Lord God: Because Idumea has taken vengeance, so as to vindicate herself against the sons of Judah, and has sinned grievously, and has sought revenge against them,
{25:13} therefore, thus says the Lord God: I will extend my hand over Idumea, and I will take from it both man and beast, and I will make it desolate from the south. And those who are in Dedan will fall by the sword.
{25:14} And I will issue my vengeance upon Idumea, by the hand of my people, Israel. And they shall act in Idumea in accord with my wrath and my fury. And they shall know my vengeance, says the Lord God.
{25:15} Thus says the Lord God: Because the Philistines have taken vengeance, and have revenged themselves with all their soul, destroying, and fulfilling ancient hostilities,
{25:16} because of this, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will extend my hand over the Philistines, and I will destroy those who destroy, and I will perish the remnant of the maritime regions.
{25:17} And I will execute great vengeance against them, reproving them in fury. And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I will send my vengeance upon them.”
{26:1} And it happened that, in the eleventh year, on the first of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{26:2} “Son of man, because Tyre has said about Jerusalem: ‘It is Well! The gates of the peoples have been broken! She has been turned toward me. I will be filled. She will be deserted!’
{26:3} because of this, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and I will cause many nations to rise up against you, just as the waves of the sea rise up.
{26:4} And they will break apart the walls of Tyre, and they will destroy its towers. And I will scrape her dust from her, and I will make her into the barest rock.
{26:5} She will be a drying place for nets from the midst of the sea. For I have spoken, says the Lord God. And she will be a spoil for the Gentiles.
{26:6} Likewise, her daughters who are in the field will be slain by the sword. And they shall know that I am the Lord.
{26:7} For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will lead into Tyre: Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, a king among kings, from the north, with horses, and chariots, and horsemen, and companies, and a great people.
{26:8} Your daughters who are in the field, he will kill with the sword. And he will surround you with fortifications, and he will put together a rampart on all sides. And he will lift up a shield against you.
{26:9} And he will combine moveable shelters and battering rams before your walls, and he will destroy your towers with his armaments.
{26:10} He will cover you with the inundation of his horses and with their dust. Your walls will shake at the sound of horsemen and wheels and chariots, when they will have entered your gates, as if through the entrance of a city that has been broken open.
{26:11} With the hoofs of his horses, he will trample all your streets. He will cut down your people with the sword, and your noble statues will fall to the ground.
{26:12} They will lay waste to your wealth. They will despoil your businesses. And they will tear down your walls and overturn your eminent houses. And they will put your stones and your timber and your dust into the midst of the waters.
{26:13} And I will cause the multitude of your songs to cease. And the sound of your stringed instruments will no longer be heard.
{26:14} And I will make you like the barest rock; you will be a drying place for nets. And you will no longer be built up. For I have spoken, says the Lord God.”
{26:15} Thus says the Lord God to Tyre: “Will not the islands shake at the sound of your ruin and at the groans of your slain, when they will have been cut down in your midst?
{26:16} And all the leaders of the sea will descend from their thrones. And they will cast aside their outer garments and their colorful clothing, and they will be clothed in stupor. They will sit on the ground, and they will wonder with astonishment at your sudden downfall.
{26:17} And taking up a lamentation over you, they will say to you: ‘How could you have perished, you who live in the sea, the famous city that was strong in the sea, with your inhabitants, of whom the whole world was in dread?’
{26:18} Now the ships will be stupefied, in the day of your terror. And the islands of the sea will be disturbed, because no one goes out from you.
{26:19} For thus says the Lord God: When I will have made you a desolate city, like the cities that are uninhabited, and when I will have led the abyss over you, and many waters will have covered you,
{26:20} and when I will have dragged you down with those who descend into the pit to the everlasting people, and when I will have assembled you in the lowest parts of the earth, like the desolate places of antiquity, with those who have been brought down into the pit, so that you will be uninhabited, and moreover, when I will have given glory to the land of the living:
{26:21} I will reduce you to nothing, and you shall not be, and if you are sought, you will no longer be found, in perpetuity, says the Lord God.”
{27:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{27:2} “You, therefore, son of man, take up a lamentation over Tyre.
{27:3} And you shall say to Tyre, which lives at the entrance to the sea, which is the marketplace of the peoples for the many islands: Thus says the Lord God: O Tyre, you have said, ‘I am of perfect beauty,
{27:4} for I have been positioned at the heart of the sea!’ Your neighbors, who built you, have filled up your beauty.
{27:5} They constructed you with spruce from Senir, with all the planks of the sea. They have taken cedars from Lebanon, so that they might make a mast for you.
{27:6} They have formed your oars from the oaks of Bashan. And they have made your crossbeams from Indian ivory, and the pilothouse is from the islands of Italy.
{27:7} Colorful fine linen from Egypt was woven for you as a sail to be placed upon the mast; hyacinth and purple from the islands of Elishah were made into your covering.
{27:8} The inhabitants of Sidon and of Arwad were your rowers. Your wise ones, O Tyre, were your navigators.
{27:9} The elders of Gebal and its experts were considered as sailors making use of your diverse equipment. All the ships of the sea and their sailors were your merchants among the people.
{27:10} The Persians, and the Lydians, and the Libyans were your men of war in your army. They suspended shield and helmet within you for your adornment.
{27:11} The sons of Arwad were with your army upon your walls all around. And even the Gammadim, who were in your towers, suspended their quivers on your walls on all sides; they completed your beauty.
{27:12} The Carthaginians, your merchants, supplied your festivals with a multitude of diverse riches, with silver, iron, tin, and lead.
{27:13} Greece, Tubal, and Meshech, these were your peddlers; they traveled to your people with slaves and with brass vessels.
{27:14} From the house of Togarmah, they brought horses, and horsemen, and mules to your market.
{27:15} The sons of Dedan were your merchants. The many islands were the marketplace of your hand. They traded teeth of ivory and of ebony for your price.
{27:16} The Syrian was your merchant. Because of the multitude of your works, they offered jewels, and purple, and patterned cloth, and fine linen, and silk, and other valuables in your market.
{27:17} Judah and the land of Israel, these were your peddlers of the best grain; they offered balsam, and honey, and oil, and resins at your festivals.
{27:18} The Damascene was your trader in the multitude of your works, in greatly diverse wealth, in rich wine, in wool with the finest coloring.
{27:19} Dan, and Greece, and Mosel have offered works made of iron at your festivals. Storax ointment and sweet flag were in your marketplace.
{27:20} The men of Dedan were your peddlers of tapestries used as seats.
{27:21} Arabia and all the leaders of Kedar, these were the merchants at your hand. Your merchants came to you with lambs, and rams, and young goats.
{27:22} The vendors of Sheba and Raamah, these were your merchants, with all the finest aromatics, and precious stones, and gold, which they offered in your marketplace.
{27:23} Haran, and Canneh, and Eden were your merchants. Sheba, Assur, and Chilmad were your sellers.
{27:24} These were your merchants in many places, with windings of hyacinth and of colorful weavings, and with precious treasures, which were wrapped and bound with cords. Also, they had works of cedar among your merchandise.
{27:25} The ships of the sea were important to your business dealings. For you were replenished and exceedingly glorified in the heart of the sea.
{27:26} Your rowers have brought you into many waters. The south wind has worn you down in the heart of the sea.
{27:27} Your riches, and your treasures, and your versatile equipment, your sailors and your navigators, who handle your goods and who were first among your people, likewise your men of war, who were among you, and your entire multitude that is in your midst: they will fall in the heart of the sea on the day of your ruin.
{27:28} Your fleets will be disturbed by the sound of an outcry from your navigators.
{27:29} And all who were handling the oar will descend from their ships; the sailors and all the navigators of the sea will stand upon the land.
{27:30} And they will howl over you with a great voice, and they will cry out with bitterness. And they will cast dust upon their heads, and they will be sprinkled with ashes.
{27:31} And they will shave their heads because of you, and they will be wrapped in haircloth. And they will weep for you with bitterness of soul, with a very bitter weeping.
{27:32} And they will take up a mournful verse over you, and they will lament you: ‘What city is like Tyre, which has become mute in the midst of the sea?’
{27:33} For by the going forth of your merchandise by sea, you supplied many peoples; by the multitude of your riches and of your people, you enriched the kings of the earth.
{27:34} Now you have been worn away by the sea, your opulence is in the depths of the waters, and your entire multitude that was in your midst has fallen.
{27:35} All the inhabitants of the islands have been stupefied over you; and all their kings, having been struck by the tempest, have changed their expression.
{27:36} The merchants of the peoples have hissed over you. You have been reduced to nothing, and you shall not be again, even forever.”
{28:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{28:2} “Son of man, say to the leader of Tyre: Thus says the Lord God: Because your heart has been exalted, and you have said, ‘I am God, and I sit in the chair of God, in the heart of the sea,’ though you are a man, and not God, and because you have presented your heart as if it were the heart of God:
{28:3} Behold, you are wiser than Daniel; no secret is concealed from you.
{28:4} By your wisdom and prudence, you have made yourself strong, and you have acquired gold and silver for your storehouses.
{28:5} By the multitude of your wisdom, and by your business dealings, you have multiplied strength for yourself. And your heart has been exalted by your strength.
{28:6} Therefore, thus says the Lord God: Because your heart has been exalted as if it were the heart of God,
{28:7} for this reason, behold, I will lead over you foreigners, the most robust among the Gentiles. And they will bare their swords over the beauty of your wisdom, and they will defile your beauty.
{28:8} They will destroy you and pull you down. And you will die the death of those slain in the heart of the sea.
{28:9} So then, will you speak, in the presence of those who are destroying you, before the hand of those who are killing you, saying, ‘I am God,’ though you are a man, and not God?
{28:10} You will die the death of the uncircumcised at the hand of foreigners. For I have spoken, says the Lord God.”
{28:11} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying: “Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre,
{28:12} and you shall say to him: Thus says the Lord God: You were the seal of similitudes, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
{28:13} You were with the delights of the Paradise of God. Every precious stone was your covering: sardius, topaz, and jasper, chrysolite, and onyx, and beryl, sapphire, and garnet, and emerald. The work of your beauty was of gold, and your fissures were ready in the day when you were formed.
{28:14} You were a cherub, stretched out and protecting, and I stationed you on the holy mountain of God. You have walked in the midst of stones containing fire.
{28:15} You were perfect in your ways, from the day of your formation, until iniquity was found in you.
{28:16} By the multitude of your business dealings, your interior was filled with iniquity, and you sinned. And I cast you away from the mountain of God, and I perished you, O protecting cherub, from the midst of the stones containing fire.
{28:17} And your heart was exalted by your beauty; you have destroyed your own wisdom by your beauty. I have cast you to the ground. I have presented you before the face of kings, so that they may examine you.
{28:18} You have defiled your sanctuaries, by the multitude of your iniquities and by the iniquity of your business dealings. Therefore, I will produce a fire from your midst, which will consume you, and I will make you into ashes upon the earth, in the sight of all who are watching you.
{28:19} All who gaze upon you among the Gentiles will be stupefied over you. You were made out of nothing, and you shall not be, forever.”
{28:20} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{28:21} “Son of man, set your face against Sidon, and you shall prophesy about it.
{28:22} And you shall say: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, Sidon, and I will be glorified in your midst. And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have executed judgments in her, and when I will have been sanctified in her.
{28:23} And I will send a pestilence upon her, and there will be blood in her streets. And they will fall, slain by the sword, on every side in her midst. And they shall know that I am the Lord.
{28:24} And the house of Israel will no longer be a stumbling block of bitterness, nor a thorn bringing pain everywhere around them, to those who turn against them. And they shall know that I am the Lord God.”
{28:25} Thus says the Lord God: “When I will have gathered together the house of Israel, from the peoples among whom they have been dispersed, I shall be sanctified in them in the sight of the Gentiles. And they shall live in their own land, which I gave to my servant Jacob.
{28:26} And they shall live within it securely. And they shall build houses and plant vineyards. And they shall live in confidence, when I will have executed judgments upon all those who turn against them on every side. And they shall know that I am the Lord their God.”
{29:1} In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the eleventh day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{29:2} “Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and you shall prophesy about him and about all of Egypt.
{29:3} Speak, and you shall say: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, Pharaoh, king of Egypt, you great dragon, who rests in the midst of your rivers. And you say: ‘Mine is the river, and I have made myself.’
{29:4} But I will place a bridle in your jaws. And I will adhere the fish of your rivers to your scales. And I will draw you out of the midst of your rivers, and all your fish will adhere to your scales.
{29:5} And I will cast you into the desert, with all the fish of your river. You will fall upon the surface of the earth; you will not be taken up, nor gathered together. I have given you to the beasts of the earth and to the birds of the air, to be devoured.
{29:6} And all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the Lord. For you have been a staff made of reed to the house of Israel.
{29:7} When they took hold of you with the hand, you broke, and so you wounded all of their shoulders. And when they leaned on you, you shattered, and so you injured all of their lower backs.
{29:8} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will lead the sword over you, and I will destroy both man and beast from among you.
{29:9} And the land of Egypt will be a desert and a wilderness. And they shall know that I am the Lord. For you have said, ‘The river is mine, and I have made it.’
{29:10} Therefore, behold, I am against you and against your rivers. And I will make the land of Egypt into a wilderness, destroyed by the sword from the tower of Syene all the way to the borders of Ethiopia.
{29:11} The foot of man will not pass through it, and the foot of cattle will not walk in it. And it will be uninhabited for forty years.
{29:12} And I will set the land of Egypt in desolation, in the midst of desolate lands, and its cities in the midst of overturned cites. And they will be desolate for forty years. And I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and I will disperse them among the lands.
{29:13} For thus says the Lord God: After the end of forty years, I will gather the Egyptians from the peoples among whom they had been scattered.
{29:14} And I will lead back the captivity of Egypt, and I will collect them in the land of Pathros, in the land of their nativity. And in that place, they will be a lowly kingdom.
{29:15} It will be the lowest among the other kingdoms, and it will no longer be exalted above the nations. And I will diminish them, lest they rule over the Gentiles.
{29:16} And they will no longer be the confidence of the house of Israel, teaching iniquity, so that they may flee and follow them. And they shall know that I am the Lord God.”
{29:17} And it happened that, in the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{29:18} “Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, has caused his army to serve with great servility against Tyre. Every head was shaven, and every shoulder was stripped of hair. And wages have not been paid to him, nor to his army, for Tyre, for the service by which he served for me against it.
{29:19} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will station Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, in the land of Egypt. And he will take its multitude, and he will prey upon its profits, and he will plunder its spoils. And this shall be the wages for his army
{29:20} and for the work by which he has served against it. I have given to him the land of Egypt, because he has labored for me, says the Lord God.
{29:21} In that day, a horn will spring forth for the house of Israel, and I will give to you an open mouth in their midst. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
{30:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{30:2} “Son of man, prophesy and say: Thus says the Lord God: Wail: ‘Woe, woe to the day!’
{30:3} For the day is near, and the day of the Lord is approaching! It is a day of gloom; it will be the time of the Gentiles.
{30:4} And the sword will come to Egypt. And there will be dread in Ethiopia, when the wounded will have fallen in Egypt, and its multitude will have been taken away, and its foundations will have been destroyed.
{30:5} Ethiopia, and Libya, and Lydia, and all the rest of the common people, and Chub, and the sons of the land of the covenant, will fall with them by the sword.
{30:6} Thus says the Lord God: And those who prop up Egypt will fall, and the arrogance of its reign will be brought down. They will fall in it by the sword, before the tower of Syene, says the Lord, the God of hosts.
{30:7} And they will be scattered into the midst of desolate lands, and its cities will be in the midst of cities that have been deserted.
{30:8} And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have brought a fire into Egypt, and when all its helpers will have been worn away.
{30:9} In that day, messengers will go forth from my face in Greek warships, in order to crush the confidence of Ethiopia. And there will be dread among them in the day of Egypt; for without doubt, it will happen.
{30:10} Thus says the Lord God: By the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, I will cause the multitude of Egypt to cease.
{30:11} He, and his people with him, the strongest of the Gentiles, will be brought forth in order to destroy the land. And they will draw their swords over Egypt. And they will fill the land with the slain.
{30:12} And I will cause the channels of the rivers to dry up. And I will deliver the land into the hand of the most wicked. And by the hands of foreigners, I will utterly destroy the land and its plenitude. I, the Lord, have spoken.
{30:13} Thus says the Lord God: And I will destroy the graven images, and I will cause the idols of Memphis to cease. And there will no longer be a commander of the land of Egypt. And I will send terror upon the land of Egypt.
{30:14} And I will destroy the land of Pathros, and I will send a fire upon Tahpanhes, and I will execute judgments in Alexandria.
{30:15} And I will pour out my indignation upon Pelusium, the strength of Egypt, and I will kill the multitude of Alexandria.
{30:16} And I will send a fire upon Egypt. Pelusium will be in pain, like a woman giving birth. And Alexandria will be utterly destroyed. And in Memphis, there will be anguish every day.
{30:17} The young men of Heliopolis and Pibeseth will fall by the sword, and the young women will be led into captivity.
{30:18} And in Tahpanhes, the day will grow black, when, in that place, I will break the scepters of Egypt. And the arrogance of her authority will fail within her; a gloom will cover her. Then her daughters will be led into captivity.
{30:19} And I will execute judgments in Egypt. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
{30:20} And it happened that, in the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{30:21} “Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. And behold, it has not been wrapped, so that it might be restored to health; it has not been bound with cloths, or bandaged with linen, so that, having recovered strength, it would be able to hold the sword.
{30:22} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and I will shatter his strong arm, which has already been broken. And I will cast the sword away from his hand.
{30:23} And I will disperse Egypt among the nations, and I will scatter them among the lands.
{30:24} And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon. And I will put my sword into his hand. And I will break the arms of Pharaoh. And they will groan acutely, when they are slain before his face.
{30:25} And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon. And the arms of Pharaoh will fall. And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have given my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon, and when he will have extended it over the land of Egypt.
{30:26} And I will disperse Egypt among the nations, and I will scatter them among the lands. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
{31:1} And it happened that, in the eleventh year, in the third month, on the first of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{31:2} “Son of man, speak to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and to his people: To whom can you be compared in your greatness?
{31:3} Behold, Assur is like the cedar of Lebanon, with fair branches, and full of leaves, and of high stature, and his summit has been elevated above the thick branches.
{31:4} The waters have nourished him. The abyss has exalted him. Its rivers have flowed around his roots, and it has sent forth its streams to all the trees of the regions.
{31:5} Because of this, his height was exalted above all the trees of the regions, and his groves were multiplied, and his own branches were elevated, because of the many waters.
{31:6} And when he had extended his shadow, all the birds of the air made their nests in his branches, and all the beasts of the forest conceived their young under his foliage, and an assembly of the many peoples lived under his shadow.
{31:7} And he was most beautiful in his greatness and in the expansion of his groves. For his root was near many waters.
{31:8} The cedars in the Paradise of God were not higher than he was. The spruce trees were not equal to his summit, and the plane trees were not equal to his fullness. No tree in the Paradise of God was similar to him or to his beauty.
{31:9} For I made him beautiful, and dense with many branches. And all the trees of delight, which were in the Paradise of God, were jealous of him.
{31:10} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Since he was sublime in height, and he made his summit green and dense, and his heart was exalted because of his height,
{31:11} I have delivered him into the hands of the most powerful one among the Gentiles, so that he will deal with him. I have cast him out, in accord with his impiety.
{31:12} And foreigners, and the most cruel among the nations, will cut him down. And they will cast him on the mountains. And his branches will fall in every steep valley, and his grove will be broken apart on every cliff of the earth. And all the peoples of the earth will withdraw from his shadow, and abandon him.
{31:13} All the birds of the air lived upon his ruins, and all the beasts of the countryside were among his branches.
{31:14} For this reason, none of the trees among the waters will exalt themselves because of their height, nor will they place their summits above the thick branches and foliage, nor will any of those that are irrigated stand out because of their height. For they have all been delivered unto death, to the lowest part of the earth, into the midst of the sons of men, those who descend into the pit.
{31:15} Thus says the Lord God: In the day when he descended into hell, I led in grieving. I covered him with the abyss. And I held back its rivers, and I restrained the many waters. Lebanon was saddened over him, and all the trees of the field were struck together.
{31:16} I shook the Gentiles with the sound of his ruin, when I led him down to hell, with those who were descending into the pit. And all the trees of delights, the finest and best in Lebanon, all that were irrigated with waters, were consoled in the deepest parts of the earth.
{31:17} For they, too, will descend with him into hell, to those who have been slain by the sword. And the arm of each one will reside under his shadow, in the midst of the nations.
{31:18} To whom can you be compared, O famous and sublime one, among the trees of pleasure? Behold, you have been brought down, with the trees of pleasure, to the lowest part of the earth. You will sleep in the midst of the uncircumcised, with those who have been slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh, and all his multitude, says the Lord God.”
{32:1} And it happened that, in the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{32:2} “Son of man, take up a lamentation over Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and you shall say to him: You are like the lion of the Gentiles, and like the dragon that is in the sea. And you brandished a horn among your rivers, and you disturbed the waters with your feet, and you trampled upon their rivers.
{32:3} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: I will spread my net over you, with the multitude of many peoples, and I will draw you into my dragnet.
{32:4} And I will throw you upon the land. I will cast you upon the surface of the field. And I will cause all the birds of the air to live upon you. And I will satiate the beasts of the entire earth with you.
{32:5} And I will place your flesh upon the mountains. And I will fill up your hills with your decaying flesh.
{32:6} And I will irrigate the earth with your rotting blood upon the mountains. And the valleys will be filled with you.
{32:7} And I will cover heaven, when you will have been extinguished. And I will cause its stars to grow dark. I will shroud the sun with gloom, and the moon will not give her light.
{32:8} I will cause all the lights of heaven to grieve over you. And I will bring darkness upon your land, says the Lord God, when your wounded will have fallen in the midst of the land, says the Lord God.
{32:9} And I will provoke the heart of many peoples to anger, when I will have led in your destruction among the Gentiles, over the lands that you have not known.
{32:10} And I will cause many peoples to be stupefied over you. And their kings will be afraid, with great horror, over you, when my sword will begin to fly above their faces. And suddenly, they will be struck with astonishment, each one concerning his own life, on the day of their ruination.
{32:11} For thus says the Lord God: The sword of the king of Babylon will come to you.
{32:12} By the swords of the strong, I will cast down your multitude. All these nations are invincible, and they will lay waste to the arrogance of Egypt, and so its multitude will be destroyed.
{32:13} And I will perish all its cattle, which were above the many waters. And the foot of man will no longer disturb them, and the hoof of cattle will no longer trouble them.
{32:14} Then I will cause their waters to be very pure, and their rivers to be like oil, says the Lord God,
{32:15} when I will have set the land of Egypt in desolation. And the land will be deprived of her plenitude, when I will have struck all its inhabitants. And they shall know that I am the Lord.
{32:16} This is the lamentation. And they shall lament it. The daughters of the Gentiles shall lament it. They shall lament it over Egypt and over its multitude, says the Lord God.”
{32:17} And it happened that, in the twelfth year, on the fifteenth of the month, the word of the Lord came to me saying:
{32:18} “Son of man, sing mournfully over the multitude of Egypt. And cast her down, both her and the daughters of the robust nations, to the lowest part of the earth, with those who descend into the pit.
{32:19} Whom do you exceed in beauty? Descend and sleep with the uncircumcised!
{32:20} They will fall by the sword in the midst of the slain. The sword has been given. They have dragged her down, with all her people.
{32:21} The most powerful among the strong will speak to him from the midst of hell, those who descended with his helpers and who went to sleep uncircumcised, slain by the sword.
{32:22} Assur is in that place, with all his multitude. Their graves are all around him: all of the slain and those who fell by the sword.
{32:23} Their graves have been placed in the lowest parts of the pit. And his multitude was stationed on all sides of his grave: all of the slain, and those who fell by the sword, who formerly spread terror in the land of the living.
{32:24} Elam is in that place, with all his multitude, on all sides of his grave, all those who were slain or who fell by the sword, who descended uncircumcised to the lowest part of the earth, who caused their terror in the land of the living. And they have borne their disgrace, with those who descend into the pit.
{32:25} They have appointed him a place to lie among all his people, in the midst of the slain. Their graves are all around him. All these are uncircumcised and were slain by the sword. For they spread their terror in the land of the living, and they have borne their disgrace, with those who descend into the pit. They have been stationed in the midst of the slain.
{32:26} Meshech and Tubal are in that place, with all their multitude. Their graves are all around him: all these are uncircumcised, and they were slain and fell by the sword. For they spread their terror in the land of the living.
{32:27} But they shall not sleep with the strong, and with those who also fell uncircumcised, who descended to hell with their weapons, and who placed their swords under their heads, while their iniquities were in their bones. For they were the terror of the strong in the land of the living.
{32:28} Therefore, you also will be broken in the midst of the uncircumcised, and you will sleep with those who were slain by the sword.
{32:29} Idumea is in that place, with her kings and all her commanders, who with their army have been given to those who were slain by the sword. And they have slept with the uncircumcised and with those who descend into the pit.
{32:30} All the leaders of the north are in that place, with all the hunters, who were brought down with the slain, fearful and confounded in their strength, who have gone to sleep uncircumcised, with those who were slain by the sword. And they have borne their disgrace, with those who descend into the pit.
{32:31} Pharaoh saw them, and he was consoled over all his multitude, which was slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his army, says the Lord God.
{32:32} For I have spread my terror in the land of the living, and he has gone to sleep in the midst of the uncircumcised, with those who were slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, says the Lord God.”
{33:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{33:2} “Son of man, speak to the sons of your people, and you shall say to them: Concerning the land, when I will have led the sword over it: if the people of the land take a man, one of their least, and appoint him over themselves as a watchman,
{33:3} and if he sees the sword approaching over the land, and he sounds the trumpet, and he announces to the people,
{33:4} then, having heard the sound of the trumpet, whoever he is, if he also does not take care of himself, and the sword arrives and takes him: his blood will be upon his own head.
{33:5} He heard the sound of the trumpet, and he did not take care of himself, so his blood will be upon him. But if he guards himself, he will save his own life.
{33:6} And if the watchman sees the sword approaching, and he does not sound the trumpet, and so the people do not guard themselves, and the sword arrives and takes some of their lives, certainly these have been taken due to their own iniquity. But I will attribute their blood to the hand of the watchman.
{33:7} And as for you, son of man, I have made you a watchman to the house of Israel. Therefore, having heard the word from my mouth, you shall announce it to them from me.
{33:8} When I say to the impious, ‘O impious man, you will die a death,’ if you have not spoken so that the impious man will keep himself from his way, then that impious man will die in his iniquity. But I will attribute his blood to your hand.
{33:9} But if you have announced to the impious man, so that he may be converted from his ways, and he has not converted from his way, then he will die in his iniquity. Yet you will have freed your own soul.
{33:10} You, therefore, O son of man, say to the house of Israel: You have spoken in this way, saying: ‘Our iniquities and our sins are upon us, and we waste away in them. So then, how would we be able to live?’
{33:11} Say to them: As I live, says the Lord God, I do not desire the death of the impious, but that the impious should convert from his way and live. Be converted, be converted from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?
{33:12} And as for you then, son of man, say to the sons of your people: The justice of the just man will not deliver him, on whatever day he will have sinned. And the impiety of the impious man will not harm him, on whatever day he will have been converted from his impiety. And the just man will not be able to live by his justice, on whatever day he will have sinned.
{33:13} Even now, if I say to the just man that he shall certainly live, and so, with confidence in his justice, he commits iniquity, all his justices will be delivered into oblivion, and by his iniquity, which he has done, by this he shall die.
{33:14} And if I say to the impious man, ‘You shall certainly die,’ and yet he repents from his sin, and he does judgment and justice,
{33:15} and if that impious man returns the collateral, and repays what he has taken by force, and if he walks in the commandments of life, and does not do anything unjust, then he shall certainly live, and he shall not die.
{33:16} None of his sins, which he has committed, will be imputed to him. He has done judgment and justice, so he shall certainly live.
{33:17} And the sons of your people have said, ‘The way of the Lord is not a fair balance,’ even while their own way is unjust.
{33:18} For when the just man will have withdrawn from his justice, and committed iniquities, he shall die by these.
{33:19} And when the impious man will have withdrawn from his impiety, and have done judgment and justice, he shall live by these.
{33:20} And yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not right.’ But I shall judge each one of you according to his own ways, O house of Israel.”
{33:21} And it happened that, in the twelfth year of our transmigration, in the tenth month, on the fifth of the month, one who had fled from Jerusalem arrived saying, “The city has been laid waste.”
{33:22} But the hand of the Lord had been upon me in the evening, before the one who had fled arrived. And he opened my mouth, until he came to me in the morning. And since my mouth had been opened, I was no longer silent.
{33:23} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{33:24} “Son of man, as for those who live in these ruinous ways on the soil of Israel, when speaking, they say: ‘Abraham was one man, and he possessed the land as an inheritance. But we are many; the land has been given to us as a possession.’
{33:25} Therefore, you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: You who eat even the blood, and who lift up your eyes to your uncleannesses, and who shed blood: will you possess the land as an inheritance?
{33:26} You stood by your swords, you committed abominations, and each one has defiled his neighbor’s wife. And will you possess the land as an inheritance?
{33:27} You shall say these things to them: So says the Lord God: As I live, those who live in ruinous ways will fall by the sword. And whoever is in the field will be delivered over to wild beasts to be devoured. But those who are in fortresses and in caves will die of the pestilence.
{33:28} And I will make the land into a wilderness and a desert. And its arrogant strength will fail. And the mountains of Israel will be desolate; for there will be no one who crosses through them.
{33:29} And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have made their land desolate and deserted, because of all their abominations, which they have worked.
{33:30} And as for you, O son of man: the sons of your people speak about you beside the walls and in the doorways of houses. And they speak to one another, each man to his neighbor, saying: ‘Come, and let us hear what may be the word going forth from the Lord.’
{33:31} And they come to you, as if the people were entering, and my people sit before you. And they listen to your words, but they do not do them. For they turn them into a song for their mouth, but their heart pursues their own avarice.
{33:32} And you are to them like a verse set to music, which is sung with a sweet and pleasing voice. And they hear your words, but they do not do them.
{33:33} And when what has been predicted occurs, for behold it is approaching, then they shall know that a prophet was among them.”
{34:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{34:2} “Son of man, prophesy about the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy, and you shall say to the shepherds: Thus says the Lord God: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Should not the flocks be fed by the shepherds?
{34:3} You consumed the milk, and you covered yourselves with the wool, and you killed what was fattened. But my flock you did not feed.
{34:4} What was weak, you have not strengthened, and what was sick, you have not healed. What was broken, you have not bound, and what was cast aside, you have not led back again, and what was lost, you have not sought. Instead, you ruled over them with severity and with power.
{34:5} And my sheep were scattered, because there was no shepherd. And they became devoured by all the wild beasts of the field, and they were dispersed.
{34:6} My sheep have wandered to every mountain and to every exalted hill. And my flocks have been scattered across the face of the earth. And there was no one who sought them; there was no one, I say, who sought them.
{34:7} Because of this, O shepherds, listen to the word of the Lord:
{34:8} As I live, says the Lord God, since my flocks have become a prey, and my sheep have been devoured by all the wild beasts of the field, since there was no shepherd, for my shepherds did not seek my flock, but instead the shepherds fed themselves, and they did not feed my flocks:
{34:9} because of this, O shepherds, listen to the word of the Lord:
{34:10} Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I myself will be over the shepherds. I will require my flock at their hand, and I will cause them to cease, so that they no longer refrain from feeding the flock. Neither will the shepherds feed themselves any more. And I will deliver my flock from their mouth; and it will no longer be food for them.
{34:11} For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I myself will seek my sheep, and I myself will visit them.
{34:12} Just as a shepherd visits his flock, in the day when he will be in the midst of his sheep that were scattered, so will I visit my sheep. And I will deliver them from all the places to which they had been scattered in the day of gloom and darkness.
{34:13} And I will lead them away from the peoples, and I will gather them from the lands, and I will bring them into their own land. And I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, by the rivers, and in all the settlements of the land.
{34:14} I will feed them in very fertile pastures, and their pastures will be on the lofty mountains of Israel. There they will rest on the green grass, and they will be fed in the fat pastures, on the mountains of Israel.
{34:15} I will feed my sheep, and I will cause them to lie down, says the Lord God.
{34:16} I will seek what had been lost. And I will lead back again what had been cast aside. And I will bind up what had been broken. And I will strengthen what had been infirm. And I will preserve what was fat and strong. And I will feed them on judgment.
{34:17} But as for you, O my flocks, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, among rams and among he-goats.
{34:18} Was it not enough for you to feed upon good pastures? For you even trample with your feet upon the remainder of your pastures. And when you drank the purist water, you disturbed the remainder with your feet.
{34:19} And my sheep were pastured from what you had trampled with your feet, and they drank from what your feet had disturbed.
{34:20} Because of this, thus says the Lord God to you: Behold, I myself am judging between the fat cattle and the lean.
{34:21} For you have pushed with your sides and shoulders, and you have threatened all the weak cattle with your horns, until they were scattered abroad.
{34:22} I will save my flock, and it will no longer be a prey, and I will judge between cattle and cattle.
{34:23} And I will raise up over them ONE SHEPHERD, who will feed them, my servant David. He himself will feed them, and he will be their shepherd.
{34:24} And I, the Lord, will be their God. And my servant David will be the leader in their midst. I, the Lord, have spoken.
{34:25} And I will make a covenant of peace with them. And I will cause the very harmful beasts to cease from the land. And those who are living in the desert will sleep securely in the forests.
{34:26} And I will make them a blessing all around my hill. And I will send the rain in due time; there will be showers of blessing.
{34:27} And the tree of the field will yield its fruit, and the land will yield its crop. And they will be in their own land without fear. And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have crushed the chains of their yoke, and when I will have rescued them from the hand of those who rule over them.
{34:28} And they will no longer be a prey to the Gentiles, nor will the wild beasts of the earth devour them. Instead, they will live in confidence without any terror.
{34:29} And I will raise up for them a renowned branch. And they will be no longer be diminished by famine in the land, nor will they carry any longer the reproach of the Gentiles.
{34:30} And they shall know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, and that they are my people, the house of Israel, says the Lord God.
{34:31} For you are my flocks; the flocks of my pasture are men. And I am the Lord your God, says the Lord God.”
{35:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{35:2} “Son of man, set your face against mount Seir, and you shall prophesy about it, and you shall say to it:
{35:3} Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, mount Seir, and I will extend my hand over you, and I will make you desolate and deserted.
{35:4} I will tear down your cities, and you will be deserted. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{35:5} For you have been a continual adversary, and you have enclosed the sons of Israel, by the hands of the sword, in the time of their affliction, in the time of extreme iniquity.
{35:6} Because of this, as I live, says the Lord God, I will hand you over to blood, and blood will pursue you. Even though you have hated blood, blood will pursue you.
{35:7} And I will make mount Seir desolate and deserted. And I will take away from it the one who departs and the one who returns.
{35:8} And I will fill up its mountains with its slain. In your hills, and in your valleys, as well as in your torrents, the slain will fall by the sword.
{35:9} I will hand you over to everlasting desolations, and your cities will not be inhabited. And you shall know that I am the Lord God.
{35:10} For you have said, ‘Two nations and two lands will be mine, and I will possess them as an inheritance,’ though the Lord was in that place.
{35:11} Because of this, as I live, says the Lord God, I will act in accord with your own wrath, and in accord with your own zeal, by which you have acted with hatred toward them. And I will be made known by them, when I will have judged you.
{35:12} And you shall know that I, the Lord, have heard all your disgraces, which you have spoken about the mountains of Israel, saying: ‘They are deserted. They have been given to us to devour.’
{35:13} And you rose up against me with your mouth, and you disparaged against me with your words. I have heard.
{35:14} Thus says the Lord God: When the whole earth will rejoice, I will reduce you to solitude.
{35:15} Just as you have rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel, when it was laid waste, so will I act toward you. You will be laid waste, O mount Seir, with all of Idumea. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
{36:1} “But as for you, son of man, prophesy over the mountains of Israel, and you shall say: O mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Lord.
{36:2} Thus says the Lord God: Because the enemy has said about you: ‘It is well! The everlasting heights have been given to us as an inheritance!’
{36:3} because of this, prophesy and say: Thus says the Lord God: Because you have been made desolate, and you have been trampled on every side, and you have been made into an inheritance for the remainder of the nations, and because you rose up, over the tip of the tongue and over the shame of the people,
{36:4} because of this, O mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Lord God. Thus says the Lord God to the mountains, and to the hills, to the torrents, and to the valleys, and to the deserts, and to the ruins, and to the forsaken cities, which have been depopulated and ridiculed by the remainder of the nations all around:
{36:5} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: In the fire of my zeal, I have spoken about the remainder of the nations, and about all of Idumea, who have given my land to themselves, joyfully, as an inheritance, and with all the heart and mind, and who have cast it out, so that they may lay waste to it.
{36:6} Therefore, prophesy over the soil of Israel, and you shall say to the mountains, and to the hills, to the ridges, and to the valleys: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I have spoken in my zeal and in my fury, because you have endured the shame of the Gentiles.
{36:7} Therefore, thus says the Lord God: I have lifted up my hand, so that the Gentiles, who are all around you, will themselves bear their shame.
{36:8} But as for you, O mountains of Israel, spring forth your branches, and bear your fruit, to my people Israel. For they are close to their advent.
{36:9} For behold, I am for you, and I will turn to you, and you will be plowed, and you will receive seed.
{36:10} And I will multiply men among you and among all the house of Israel. And the cities shall be inhabited, and the ruinous places shall be restored.
{36:11} And I will fill you again with men and with cattle. And they will be multiplied, and they will increase. And I will cause you to live as from the beginning, and I will give you even greater gifts than those you had from the start. And you shall know that I am the Lord.
{36:12} And I will lead men over you, over my people Israel, and they will possess you as an inheritance. And you shall be to them as an inheritance. And you shall no longer be permitted to be without them.
{36:13} Thus says the Lord God: Because they are saying about you, ‘You are a woman who devours men, and you are strangling your own nation,’
{36:14} because of this, you shall no longer consume men, and you shall no longer harm your own nation, says the Lord God.
{36:15} Neither will I permit men to discover in you the shame of the Gentiles any more. And you shall never again bear the reproach of the peoples. And you shall not send your people away any more, says the Lord God.”
{36:16} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{36:17} “Son of man, the house of Israel lived on their own soil, and they defiled it with their ways and with their intentions. Their way, in my sight, became like the uncleanness of a menstruous woman.
{36:18} And so I poured out my indignation upon them, because of the blood which they shed upon the land, and because they defiled it with their idols.
{36:19} And I dispersed them among the Gentiles, and they have been scattered among the lands. I have judged them according to their ways and their plans.
{36:20} And when they walked among the Gentiles, to whom they had entered, they defiled my holy name, though it was being said about them: ‘This is the people of the Lord,’ and ‘They went forth from his land.’
{36:21} But I have spared my holy name, which the house of Israel has defiled among the Gentiles, to whom they entered.
{36:22} For this reason, you shall say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: I will act, not for your sake, O house of Israel, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have defiled among the Gentiles, to whom you entered.
{36:23} And I will sanctify my great name, which was defiled among the Gentiles, which you have defiled in their midst. So may the Gentiles know that I am the Lord, says the Lord of hosts, when I will have been sanctified in you, before their eyes.
{36:24} Certainly, I will take you away from the Gentiles, and I will gather you together from all the lands, and I will lead you into your own land.
{36:25} And I will pour clean water over you, and you shall be cleansed from all your filth, and I will cleanse you from all your idols.
{36:26} And I will give to you a new heart, and I will place in you a new spirit. And I will take away the heart of stone from your body, and I will give to you a heart of flesh.
{36:27} And I will place my Spirit in your midst. And I will act so that you may walk in my precepts and keep my judgments, and so that you may fulfill them.
{36:28} And you shall live in the land that I gave to your fathers. And you shall be my people, and I will be your God.
{36:29} And I will save you from all your filth. And I will call for grain, and I will multiply it, and I will not impose a famine upon you.
{36:30} And I will multiply the fruit of the tree and the produce of the field, so that you may no longer bear the disgrace of famine among the nations.
{36:31} And you shall remember your very wicked ways and your intentions, which were not good. And you will be displeased by your own iniquities and your own crimes.
{36:32} It is not for your sakes that I will act, says the Lord God; let this be known to you. Be confounded and ashamed over your own ways, O house of Israel.
{36:33} Thus says the Lord God: In the day when I will have cleansed you from all your iniquities, and when I will have caused the cities to be inhabited, and when I will have restored the ruinous places,
{36:34} and when the deserted land will have been cultivated, which previously was desolate to the eyes of all who passed by,
{36:35} then they shall say: ‘This uncultivated land has become a garden of delight, and the cities, which were deserted and destitute and overturned, have been settled and fortified.’
{36:36} And the Gentiles, those who remain around you, shall know that I, the Lord, have built up what was destroyed, and have planted what was uncultivated. I, the Lord, have spoken and acted.
{36:37} Thus says the Lord God: Even in this time, the house of Israel shall find me, so that I may act for them. I will multiply them like a flock of men,
{36:38} like a holy flock, like the flock of Jerusalem in her solemnities. So shall the deserted cities be filled with flocks of men. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
{37:1} The hand of the Lord was set upon me, and he led me away in the Spirit of the Lord, and he released me in the midst of a plain which was full of bones.
{37:2} And he led me around, through them, on every side. Now they were very many upon the face of the plain, and they were exceedingly dry.
{37:3} And he said to me, “Son of man, do you think that these bones will live?” And I said, “O Lord God, you know.”
{37:4} And he said to me, “Prophesy about these bones. And you shall say to them: Dry bones, listen to the word of the Lord!
{37:5} Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will send spirit into you, and you shall live.
{37:6} And I will set sinews upon you, and I will cause flesh to grow over you, and I will extend skin over you. And I will give you spirit, and you shall live. And you shall know that I am the Lord.”
{37:7} And I prophesied, just as he had instructed me. But a noise occurred, as I was prophesying, and behold: a commotion. And the bones joined together, each one at its joint.
{37:8} And I saw, and behold: sinews and flesh rose up over them; and skin was extended over them. But they had no spirit within them.
{37:9} And he said to me: “Prophesy to the spirit! Prophesy, O son of man, and you shall say to the spirit: Thus says the Lord God: Approach, O spirit, from the four winds, and blow across these ones who were slain, and revive them.”
{37:10} And I prophesied, just as he had instructed me. And spirit entered into them, and they lived. And they stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army.
{37:11} And he said to me: “Son of man: All these bones are the house of Israel. They say: ‘Our bones are dried out, and our hope has perished, and we have been cut off.’
{37:12} Because of this, prophesy, and you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your tombs, and I will lead you away from your sepulchers, O my people. And I will lead you into the land of Israel.
{37:13} And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have opened your sepulchers, and when I will have led you away from your tombs, O my people.
{37:14} And I will place my Spirit within you, and you shall live. And I will cause you to rest upon your own soil. And you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and acted, says the Lord God.”
{37:15} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{37:16} “And as for you, son of man, take up a piece of wood for yourself, and write upon it: ‘For Judah, and for the sons of Israel, his companions.’ And take up another piece of wood, and write upon it: ‘For Joseph, the wood of Ephraim, and for the entire house of Israel, and for his companions.’
{37:17} And join these, one to the other, for yourself, as one piece of wood. And they will be united in your hand.
{37:18} Then, when the sons of your people will speak to you, saying: ‘Will you not tell us what you intend by this?’
{37:19} you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will take up the wood of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, which are joined to him, and I will put them together with the wood of Judah, and I will make them one piece of wood. And they will be one in his hand.
{37:20} Then the pieces of wood, on which you have written, will be in your hand, before their eyes.
{37:21} And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will take up the sons of Israel, from the midst of the nations to which they have gone, and I will gather them together on every side, and I will lead them onto their own soil.
{37:22} And I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king will be ruler over all. And they will no longer be two nations, nor will they be divided any more into two kingdoms.
{37:23} And they will no longer be defiled by their idols, and by their abominations, and by all their iniquities. And I will save them, out of all the settlements in which they have sinned, and I will cleanse them. And they will be my people, and I will be their God.
{37:24} And my servant David shall be the king over them, and they shall have one shepherd. They shall walk in my judgments, and they shall keep my commandments, and they shall do them.
{37:25} And they shall live upon the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, in which your fathers lived. And they shall live upon it, they and their sons, and the sons of their sons, even for all time. And David, my servant, shall be their leader, in perpetuity.
{37:26} And I will strike a covenant of peace with them. This will be an everlasting covenant for them. And I will establish them, and multiply them. And I will set my sanctuary in their midst, unceasingly.
{37:27} And my tabernacle shall be among them. And I will be their God, and they will be my people.
{37:28} And the Gentiles shall know that I am the Lord, the Sanctifier of Israel, when my sanctuary will be in their midst, forever.”
{38:1} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{38:2} “Son of man, set your face against Gog, the land of Magog, the prince of the head of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy about him.
{38:3} And you shall say to him: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, prince of the head of Meshech and Tubal.
{38:4} And I will turn you around, and I will place a bit in your jaws. And I will lead you away, with all your army, the horses and the horsemen all clothed in armor, a great multitude, equipped with spears and light shields and swords,
{38:5} the Persians, the Ethiopians, and the Libyans with them, all with heavy shields and helmets,
{38:6} Gomer, and all his companies, the house of Togarmah, the northern parts, and all his strength, and the many peoples with you.
{38:7} Prepare and equip yourself, with all your multitude which has been assembled to you. And you shall be like a commandment to them.
{38:8} After many days, you will be visited. At the end of the years, you will arrive at the land which was turned back by the sword, and which has been gathered from many peoples to the mountains of Israel that have been continually abandoned. These ones have been led away from the peoples, and all of them will be living confidently within it.
{38:9} But you will ascend and arrive like a tempest and like a cloud, so that you may cover the land, you and all your companies, and the many peoples with you.
{38:10} Thus says the Lord God: In that day, words will climb into your heart, and you will invent a most wicked plan.
{38:11} And you will say: ‘I will ascend to the land without a wall. I will go to those who are resting and dwelling securely. All these live without a wall; they have no bars or gates.’
{38:12} Thus, you will plunder spoils, and you will take possession of prey, so that you may lay your hand upon those who had been abandoned, and afterwards were restored, and upon a people who were gathered away from the Gentiles, a people who have begun to possess, and to be the inhabitants of, the navel of the earth.
{38:13} Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, and all its lions will say to you: ‘Could you have arrived in order to purchase from the spoils? Behold, you have gathered your multitude in order to plunder a prey, so that you may take silver and gold, and carry away equipment and substance, and plunder immeasurable wealth.’
{38:14} Because of this, son of man, prophesy, and you shall say to Gog: Thus says the Lord God: How is it that you do not know of that day, when my people, Israel, will be living in confidence?
{38:15} And you will advance from your place, from the parts of the north, you and the many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great assembly and an immense army.
{38:16} And you will rise up over my people, Israel, like a cloud, so that you may cover the earth. In the latter days, you will be. And I will lead you over my own land, so that the Gentiles may know me, when I will have been sanctified in you, O Gog, before their eyes.
{38:17} Thus says the Lord God: Therefore, you are the one, about whom I spoke in the days of antiquity, by the hand of my servants the prophets of Israel, who prophesied in the days of those times that I would lead you over them.
{38:18} And this shall be in that day, in the day of the advent of Gog over the land of Israel, says the Lord God: my indignation will rise up in my fury.
{38:19} And I have spoken, in my zeal and in the fire of my wrath, that there shall be a great commotion over the land of Israel, in that day.
{38:20} And before my face there shall be stirred up: the fish of the sea, and the flying things of the air, and the beasts of the field, and every crawling thing that moves across the soil, and all the men who are upon the face of the earth. And the mountains will be overturned, and the hedges will fall, and every wall will fall in ruin to the ground.
{38:21} And I will call for the sword against him on all my mountains, says the Lord God. Each one’s sword will be directed toward his brother.
{38:22} And I will judge him by pestilence, and blood, and violent rainstorms, and immense hailstones. I will rain fire and brimstone upon him, and upon his army, and upon the many peoples who are with him.
{38:23} And I will be magnified and sanctified. And I will be known in the eyes of the many nations. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
{39:1} “But as for you, son of man, prophesy against Gog, and you shall say: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am above you, O Gog, prince of the head of Meshech and Tubal.
{39:2} And I will turn you around, and I will lead you away, and I will cause you to rise up from the parts of the north. And I will bring you over the mountains of Israel.
{39:3} And I will strike your bow in your left hand, and I will cast away your arrows from your right hand.
{39:4} You will fall upon the mountains of Israel, you and all your companies, and your peoples who are with you. I have given you over to the wild animals, to the birds, and to every flying thing, and to the beasts of the earth, in order to be devoured.
{39:5} You will fall upon the face of the field. For I have spoken, says the Lord God.
{39:6} And I will send a fire upon Magog, and upon those who are living confidently in the islands. And they shall know that I am the Lord.
{39:7} And I will make known my holy name in the midst of my people, Israel, and my holy name will no longer be defiled. And the Gentiles shall know that I am the Lord, the Holy One of Israel.
{39:8} Behold, it approaches, and it is done, says the Lord God. This is the day, about which I have spoken.
{39:9} And the inhabitants from the cities of Israel will go forth, and they will kindle and burn the weapons, the shields and the spears, the bows and the arrows, and the staff and the lance. And they will kindle fires with them for seven years.
{39:10} And they will not carry wood from the countryside, and they will not cut from the forests. For they will kindle the weapons with fire. And they will prey upon those who had preyed upon them, and they will plunder those who had plundered them, says the Lord God.
{39:11} And this shall be in that day: I will give Gog a renowned place as a sepulcher in Israel, the valley of the wayfarers to the east of the sea, which will cause astonishment in those who pass by. And in that place, they will bury Gog and all his multitude, and it will be called the valley of the multitude of Gog.
{39:12} And the house of Israel will bury them, so that they may cleanse the land, for seven months.
{39:13} Then all the people of the earth will bury them, and this shall be for them a renowned day, on which I have been glorified, says the Lord God.
{39:14} And they shall appoint men to continually examine the earth, so that they may seek out and bury those who have remained on the surface of the earth, so that they may cleanse it. Then, after seven months, they will begin to seek.
{39:15} And they will go around, traveling the earth. And when they will have seen the bone of a man, they will station a marker beside it, until the undertakers may bury it in the valley of the multitude of Gog.
{39:16} And the name of the city will be: the Multitude. And they shall cleanse the earth.
{39:17} As for you, then, son of man, thus says the Lord God: Say to every flying thing, and to all the birds, and to all the beasts of the field: Assemble! Hurry! Rush together from every side to my victim, which I have immolated for you, a great victim upon the mountains of Israel, so that you may consume flesh, and drink blood!
{39:18} You shall eat the flesh of the powerful, and you shall drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams and lambs and he-goats and bulls, and of fattened birds and all that is fat.
{39:19} And you shall consume the fat unto satiation, and you shall drink the blood unto inebriation, from the victim that I will immolate for you.
{39:20} And you shall be satiated, upon my table, from horses and powerful horsemen, and from all the men of war, says the Lord God.
{39:21} And I will set my glory among the Gentiles. And all the nations shall see my judgment, which I have accomplished, and my hand, which I have laid upon them.
{39:22} And the house of Israel shall know that I am the Lord, their God, from that day and thereafter.
{39:23} And the Gentiles shall know that the house of Israel was taken captive because of their own iniquity, because they abandoned me. And so I concealed my face from them, and I delivered them into the hands of their enemies, and they all fell by the sword.
{39:24} I have acted toward them in accord with their uncleanness and wickedness, and so I concealed my face from them.
{39:25} Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Now I will lead back the captivity of Jacob, and I will take pity upon the entire house of Israel. And I will act with zeal on behalf of my holy name.
{39:26} And they shall bear their shame and all their transgression, by which they betrayed me, though they were living in their own land confidently, dreading no one.
{39:27} And I will lead them back from among the peoples, and I will gather them together from the lands of their enemies, and I will be sanctified in them, in the sight of the many nations.
{39:28} And they shall know that I am the Lord, their God, because I carried them away to the nations, and I gathered them upon their own land, and I did not abandon any of them there.
{39:29} And I will no longer conceal my face from them, for I have poured out my Spirit upon the entire house of Israel, says the Lord God.”
{40:1} In the twenty-fifth year of our transmigration, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city was struck, on this very day, the hand of the Lord was placed upon me, and he brought me to that place.
{40:2} In the visions of God, he brought me into the land of Israel, and he released me on an exceedingly high mountain, on which there was something like the edifice of a city, verging toward the south.
{40:3} And he led me into that place. And behold, there was a man, whose appearance was like the appearance of brass, with a linen rope in his hand, and a measuring reed in his hand. And he was standing at the gate.
{40:4} And the same man said to me: “Son of man, look with your eyes, and listen with your ears, and set your heart upon all that I will reveal to you. For you have been brought to this place, so that these things may be revealed to you. Announce all that you see to the house of Israel.”
{40:5} And behold, there was a wall outside of the house, encircling it all around, and in the man’s hand was a measuring reed of six cubits and a palm. And he measured the width of the edifice with one reed; likewise, the height with one reed.
{40:6} And he went to the gate which looked toward the east, and he ascended by its steps. And he measured the width of the threshold of the gate as one reed, that is, one threshold was one reed in width.
{40:7} And a chamber was one reed in length and one reed in width. And between the chambers, there were five cubits.
{40:8} And the threshold of the gate, next to the inner vestibule of the gate, was one reed.
{40:9} And he measured the vestibule of the gate as eight cubits, and its front as two cubits. But the vestibule of the gate was inside.
{40:10} Moreover, the chambers of the gate, toward the way of the east, were three from one side to the other. The three were of one measure, and the fronts were of one measure, on both sides.
{40:11} And he measured the width of the threshold of the gate as ten cubits, and the length of the gate as thirteen cubits.
{40:12} And before the chambers, the border was one cubit. And on both sides, the border was one cubit. But the chambers were six cubits, from one side to the other.
{40:13} And he measured the gate, from the roof of one chamber to the roof of another, twenty-five cubits in width, from door to door.
{40:14} And he found the fronts to be sixty cubits. And at the front, there was a court for the gate on every side all around.
{40:15} And before the face of the gate, which extended even to the face of the vestibule of the gate of the interior, there were fifty cubits.
{40:16} And there were slanting windows in the chambers and at their fronts, which were within the gate on every side all around. And similarly, there were also windows in the vestibules all around the interior, and there were images of palm trees before the fronts.
{40:17} And he led me away to the outer court, and behold, there were storerooms and a layer of pavement stones throughout the court. Thirty storerooms encircled the pavement.
{40:18} And the pavement in front of the gates, along the length of the gates, was lower.
{40:19} And he measured the width, from the face of the lower gate to the front of the outer part of the inner court, to be one hundred cubits, to the east and to the north.
{40:20} Likewise, he measured the gate of the outer court, which looked to the way of the north, to be as much in length as in width.
{40:21} And its chambers were three from one side to the other. And its front and its vestibule, in accord with the measure of the former gate, were fifty cubits in its length and twenty-five cubits in width.
{40:22} Now its windows, and the vestibule, and the engravings were in accord with the measure of the gate which looked to the east. And its ascent was by seven steps, and a vestibule was before it.
{40:23} And the gate of the inner court was opposite the gate of the north, and that of the east. And he measured from gate to gate as one hundred cubits.
{40:24} And he led me to the way of the south, and behold, there was a gate which looked toward the south. And he measured its front and its vestibule to be the same as the measures above.
{40:25} And its windows and the vestibule all around were like the other windows: fifty cubits in length and twenty-five cubits in width.
{40:26} And there were seven steps to ascend to it, and a vestibule before its doors. And there were engraved palm trees, one on each side, at its front.
{40:27} And there was a gate at the inner court, on the way to the south. And he measured from one gate to another, on the way to the south, to be one hundred cubits.
{40:28} And he led me into the inner court, to the south gate. And he measured the gate to be in accord with the measures above.
{40:29} Its chamber, and its front, and its vestibule had the same measures. And its windows and its vestibule all around were fifty cubits in length, and twenty-five cubits in width.
{40:30} And the vestibule all around was twenty-five cubits in length, and five cubits in width.
{40:31} And its vestibule was toward the outer court, and its palm trees were at the front. And there were eight steps to ascend to it.
{40:32} And he led me into the inner court, along the way of the east. And he measured the gate to be in accord with the measures above.
{40:33} Its chamber, and its front, and its vestibule were as above. And its windows and its vestibules all around were fifty cubits in length, and twenty-five cubits in width.
{40:34} And it had a vestibule, that is, at the outer court. And the engraved palm trees at its front were on one side and the other. And its ascent was by eight steps.
{40:35} And he led me to the gate which looked toward the north. And he measured it to be in accord with the measures above.
{40:36} Its chamber, and its front, and its vestibule, and its windows all around were fifty cubits in length, and twenty-five cubits in width.
{40:37} And its vestibule looked toward the outer court. And an engraving of palm trees at its front was on one side and the other. And its ascent was by eight steps.
{40:38} And at each one of the storerooms, there was a door at the front of the gates. There, they washed the holocaust.
{40:39} And at the vestibule of the gate, there were two tables on one side, and two tables on the other side, so that the holocaust, and the offering for sin, and the offering for transgression could be immolated upon them.
{40:40} And at the outer side, which ascends to the door of the gate that goes toward the north, there were two tables. And at the other side, before the vestibule of the gate, there were two tables.
{40:41} Four tables were on one side, and four tables were on the other side; along the sides of the gate, there were eight tables, upon which they immolated.
{40:42} Now the four tables for the holocausts were constructed of square stones: one and a half cubit in length, and one and a half cubits in width, and one cubit in height. Upon these, they placed the vessels, in which the holocaust and the victim were immolated.
{40:43} And their edges were one palm in width, turned inward all around. And the flesh of the oblation was on the tables.
{40:44} And outside the interior gate, there were storerooms for the cantors, in the inner court, which was beside the gate that looks toward the north. And their face was opposite the way to the south; one was beside the east gate, which looked toward the way of the north.
{40:45} And he said to me: “This is the storeroom that looks toward the south; it shall be for the priests who keep watch for the protection of the temple.
{40:46} Moreover, the storeroom that looks toward the north will be for the priests who keep watch over the ministry of the altar. These are the sons of Zadok, those among the sons of Levi who may draw near to the Lord, so that they may minister to him.”
{40:47} And he measured the court to be one hundred cubits in length, and one hundred cubits in width, with four equal sides. And the altar was before the face of the temple.
{40:48} And he led me into the vestibule of the temple. And he measured the vestibule to be five cubits on one side, and five cubits on the other side. And the width of the gate was three cubits on one side, and three cubits on the other side.
{40:49} Now the length of the vestibule was twenty cubits, and the width was eleven cubits, and there were eight steps to ascend to it. And there were pillars at the front, one on this side and another on that side.
{41:1} And he led me into the temple, and he measured the front to be six cubits in width on one side, and six cubits in width on the other side, which is the width of the tabernacle.
{41:2} And the width of the gate was ten cubits. And the sides of the gate were five cubits on one side, and five cubits on the other side. And he measured its length to be forty cubits, and the width to be twenty cubits.
{41:3} And proceeding inward, he measured the front of the gate to be two cubits. And the gate was six cubits, and the width of the gate was seven cubits.
{41:4} And he measured its length to be twenty cubits, and its width to be twenty cubits, before the face of the temple. And he said to me, “This is the Holy of Holies.”
{41:5} And he measured the wall of the house to be six cubits, and the width of the sides to be four cubits, all around the house on every side.
{41:6} Now the side chambers were side by side, and twice thirty-three. And they projected outward, so that they might enter along the wall of the house, on the sides all around, in order to contain, but not touch, the wall of the temple.
{41:7} And there was a broad circular path, rising upward by winding, and it led to the cenacle of the temple by a circular course. As a result, the temple was wider in the higher parts. And so, from the lower parts, they rose up to the higher parts, in the center.
{41:8} And in the house, I saw the height all around the foundations of the side chambers, which were the measure of a reed, the space of six cubits.
{41:9} And the width of the exterior wall for the side chambers was five cubits. And the inner house was within the side chambers of the house.
{41:10} And between the storerooms, there was the width of twenty cubits, all around the house on every side.
{41:11} And the door of the side chambers was toward the place of prayer. One door was toward the way of the north, and one door was toward the way of the south. And the width of the place for prayer was five cubits all around.
{41:12} And the edifice, which was separate, and which verged toward the way looking toward the sea, was seventy cubits in width. But the wall of the edifice was five cubits in width on all sides, and its length was ninety cubits.
{41:13} And he measured the length of the house to be one hundred cubits, and the edifice, which was separate, with its walls, to be one hundred cubits in length.
{41:14} Now the width before the face of the house, and of that which was separate facing the east, was one hundred cubits.
{41:15} And he measured the length of the edifice opposite its face, which was separated at the back, and the porticos on both sides, to be one hundred cubits, with the inner temple and the vestibules of the court.
{41:16} The thresholds, and the oblique windows, and the porticoes, encircling it on three sides, were opposite the threshold of each one, and were floored with wood throughout the entire area. But the floor reached even to the windows, and the windows were closed above the doors;
{41:17} and it reached even to the inner house, and to the exterior, throughout the entire wall, all around the interior and exterior, for the entire extent.
{41:18} And there were cherubim and palm trees wrought, and each palm tree was between one cherub and another, and every cherub had two faces.
{41:19} The face of a man was closest to the palm tree on one side, and the face of a lion was closest to the palm tree on the other side. This was depicted throughout the entire house all around.
{41:20} From the floor, even to the upper parts of the gate, there were cherubim and palm trees engraved in the wall of the temple.
{41:21} The square threshold and the face of the sanctuary were one sight facing the other.
{41:22} The altar of wood was three cubits in height, and its length was two cubits. And its corners, and its length, and its walls were of wood. And he said to me, “This is the table in the sight of the Lord.”
{41:23} And there were two doors in the temple and in the sanctuary.
{41:24} And in the two doors, on both sides, were two little doors, which were folded within each other. For two doors were on both sides of the doors.
{41:25} And cherubim were engraved in the same doors of the temple, with the figures of palm trees, as were depicted also on the walls. For this reason also, the boards were thicker in the front of the vestibule on the exterior.
{41:26} Upon these were the oblique windows, with the representation of palm trees on one side as well as on the other, at the sides of the vestibule, in accord with the sides of the house, and the width of the walls.
{42:1} And he led me into the outer court by the way that leads to the north, and he led me into the storeroom that was opposite the separate edifice, and opposite the shrine that verges toward the north.
{42:2} The length of the face of the north gate was one hundred cubits, and the width was fifty cubits.
{42:3} Opposite the twenty cubits of the interior court, and opposite the layer of pavement stones in the outer court, in that place, there was a portico joined to a triple portico.
{42:4} And before the storerooms, there was a walkway of ten cubits in width, looking toward the interior along a way of one cubit. And their doors were toward the north.
{42:5} In that place, there were storerooms in the upper part of the lower level. For they supported the porticos, which projected from them out of the lower level, and out of the middle of the building.
{42:6} For they were of three levels, and they did not have pillars, as they were like the pillars of the courts. Because of this, they projected from the lower levels and from the middle, fifty cubits from the ground.
{42:7} And the exterior enclosing wall, adjacent to the storerooms that were along the way of the exterior court in front of the storerooms, was fifty cubits long.
{42:8} For the length of the storerooms of the exterior court was fifty cubits, and the length before the face of the temple was one hundred cubits.
{42:9} And under these storerooms, there was an entrance from the east, for those who were entering into it from the outer court.
{42:10} In the width of the enclosing wall of the court that was opposite the way of the east, at the face of the separate edifice, there were also storerooms, before the edifice.
{42:11} And the way before their face was in accord with the form of the storerooms which were along the way of the north. As was their length, so also was their width. And the entire entrance, and the likenesses, and their doors
{42:12} were in accord with the doors of the storerooms that were on the way looking toward the Renown. There was a door at the head of the way, and the way was before a separate vestibule, along the way entering toward the east.
{42:13} And he said to me: “The storerooms of the north, and the storerooms of the south, which are before the separate edifice, these are holy storerooms, in which the priests, who draw near to the Lord in the Holy of Holies, shall eat. There they shall station the Holy of Holies, and the offering for sin, and for trespasses. For it is a holy place.
{42:14} And when the priests will have entered, they shall not depart from the holy places into the outer court. And in that place, they shall set their vestments, in which they minister, for they are holy. And they shall be clothed with other vestments, and in this manner they shall go forth to the people.”
{42:15} And when he had completed measuring the inner house, he led me out along the way of the gate that looked toward the way of the east. And he measured it on every side all around.
{42:16} Then he measured facing the east wind with the measuring reed: five hundred reeds with the measuring reed throughout the course.
{42:17} And he measured facing the wind of the north: five hundred reeds with the measuring reed throughout the course.
{42:18} And toward the south wind, he measured five hundred reeds with the measuring reed throughout the course.
{42:19} And toward the west wind, he measured five hundred reeds with the measuring reed.
{42:20} By the four winds, he measured its wall, on every side throughout the course: five hundred cubits in length and five hundred cubits in width, dividing between the sanctuary and the place of the common people.
{43:1} And he led me to the gate which looked toward the way of the east.
{43:2} And behold, the glory of the God of Israel entered along the way of the east. And his voice was like the voice of many waters. And the earth was resplendent before his majesty.
{43:3} And I saw a vision in accord with the form that I had seen when he arrived so that he might destroy the city. And the form was in accord with the sight that I had seen beside the river Chebar. And I fell upon my face.
{43:4} And the majesty of the Lord advanced into the temple, along the way of the gate which looked toward the east.
{43:5} And the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court. And behold, the house was filled with the glory of the Lord.
{43:6} And I heard someone speaking to me from the house, and the man who was standing beside me
{43:7} said to me: “Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the steps of my feet, is where I live: in the midst of the sons of Israel forever. And the house of Israel, they and their kings, shall no longer defile my holy name by their fornications, and by the ruinous ways of their kings, and by exalted places.
{43:8} They have fabricated their threshold beside my threshold, and their doorposts beside my doorposts. And there was a wall between me and them. And they defiled my holy name by the abominations which they committed. Because of this, I consumed them in my wrath.
{43:9} Now therefore, let them drive away their fornications, and the ruinous ways of their kings, from before me. And I will live in their midst forever.
{43:10} But as for you, son of man, reveal the temple to the house of Israel, and let them be confounded by their iniquities, and let them measure the fabrication,
{43:11} and let them be ashamed at all the things that they have done. Reveal to them the form and the fabrication of the house, its exits and entrances, and its entire description, and all of its precepts, and its entire order, and all of its laws. And you shall write in their sight, so that they may observe its entire description and its precepts, and so that they may accomplish them.”
{43:12} This is the law of the house at the summit of the mountain, with all its parts all around. It is the Holy of Holies. Therefore, this is the law of the house.
{43:13} Now these are the measures of the altar by the most true cubit, which has a cubit and a palm. Its bend was a cubit, and it was a cubit in width. And its boundary, even to its edge and all around, was the width of one palm. The trough of the altar was like this also.
{43:14} And from the bend at the floor even to the furthest rim was two cubits, and the width was one cubit. And from the lesser rim even to the greater rim was four cubits, and the width was one cubit.
{43:15} Now the hearth itself was four cubits. And from the hearth going upward, there were four horns.
{43:16} And the hearth was twelve cubits in length by twelve cubits in width, foursquare, with equal sides.
{43:17} And the rim was fourteen cubits in length, by fourteen cubits in width, at its four corners. And the crown all around it was one half cubit, and its bend was one cubit all around. And its steps turned toward the east.
{43:18} And he said to me: “Son of man, thus says the Lord God: These are the rituals of the altar, in whatever day it will be made, so that holocausts may be offered upon it, and blood may be poured out.
{43:19} And you shall present these to the priests and to the Levites, who are of the offspring of Zadok, those who draw near to me, says the Lord God, so that they may offer to me a calf from the herd on behalf of sin.
{43:20} And you shall take from its blood, and you shall place it on its four horns, and on the four corners of the rim, and on the crown all around. And so shall you cleanse and expiate it.
{43:21} And you shall take the calf, which will be offered for sin, and you shall burn it in a separate place in the house, outside of the sanctuary.
{43:22} And on the second day, you shall offer an immaculate he-goat from among the she-goats on behalf of sin. And they shall expiate the altar, just as they expiated it with the calf.
{43:23} And when you will have completed expiating it, you shall offer an immaculate calf from the herd and an immaculate ram from the flock.
{43:24} And you shall offer them in the sight of the Lord. And the priests shall sprinkle salt over them, and they shall offer them as a holocaust to the Lord.
{43:25} For seven days, you shall offer daily a he-goat on behalf of sin. Also, they shall offer a calf from the herd, and a ram from the flock, ones that are immaculate.
{43:26} For seven days, they shall expiate the altar, and they shall cleanse it, and they shall fill its hand.
{43:27} Then, when the days have been completed, on the eighth day and thereafter, the priests shall offer your holocausts upon the altar along with the peace offering. And I will be pleased with you, says the Lord God.”
{44:1} And he turned me back, toward the way of the gate of the outer sanctuary, which looked toward the east. And it was closed.
{44:2} And the Lord said to me: “This gate will be closed; it will not be opened. And man shall not cross through it. For the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered through it, and it shall be closed
{44:3} to the prince. The prince himself will sit at it, so that he may eat bread before the Lord; he will enter by the way of the vestibule of the gate, and he will depart by the same way.”
{44:4} And he led me in, along the way of the north gate, in the sight of the house. And I saw, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord. And I fell upon my face.
{44:5} And the Lord said to me: “Son of man, set within your heart, and see with your eyes, and hear with your ears all that I am speaking to you about all the ceremonies of the house of the Lord and about all its laws. And set your heart upon the ways of the temple, along all the exits of the sanctuary.
{44:6} And you shall say to the house of Israel, which provokes me: Thus says the Lord God: Let all your wicked deeds be sufficient for you, O house of Israel.
{44:7} For you bring in foreign sons, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, so that they may be in my sanctuary and may defile my house. And you offer my bread, the fat, and the blood, yet you have broken my covenant by all your wicked deeds.
{44:8} And you have not observed the precepts of my sanctuary, yet you have stationed observers of my vigil in my sanctuary for yourselves.
{44:9} Thus says the Lord God: Any foreigner, any foreign son who is in the midst of the sons of Israel, who is uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, shall not enter into my sanctuary.
{44:10} And as for the Levites, they have withdrawn far away from me, in the errors of the sons of Israel, and they have gone astray from me after their idols, and they have borne their iniquity.
{44:11} They will be caretakers in my sanctuary, and doorkeepers at the gates of the house, and ministers to the house. They will slay the holocausts and the victims of the people. And they will stand before them, so that they may minister to them.
{44:12} But because they ministered to them in the sight their idols, and they became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel, for this reason, I have lifted up my hand against them, says the Lord God, and they will bear their iniquity.
{44:13} And they shall not draw near to me, so as to exercise the priesthood for me, and they shall not approach to any of my holy things, which are near the Holy of Holies. Instead, they will bear their shame and their wicked deeds, which they committed.
{44:14} And I will make them doorkeepers of the house, for all its ministries and for all that will be done within it.
{44:15} But the priests and the Levites who are the sons of Zadok, who observed the ceremonies of my sanctuary when the sons of Israel went astray from me, these shall draw near to me, so that they may minister for me. And they shall stand in my sight, so that they may offer to me the fat and the blood, says the Lord God.
{44:16} They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall draw near to my table, so that they may minister for me, and so that they may observe my ceremonies.
{44:17} And when they enter the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments. Neither shall anything woolen be placed over them, when they minister within the gates of the inner and the outer court.
{44:18} They shall have linen bands on their heads, and linen undergarments over their loins, and they shall not be girded so as to sweat.
{44:19} And when they go forth to the outer court to the people, they shall strip off their vestments, in which they ministered, and they shall place them in the storeroom of the sanctuary, and they shall clothe themselves with other garments. And they shall not sanctify the people in their vestments.
{44:20} Now they shall not shave their heads, and they shall not grow long hair. Instead, they shall trim the hair of their heads.
{44:21} And no priest shall drink wine, when he will be entering into the inner court.
{44:22} And they shall not take as wife a widow or one who has been divorced. Instead, they shall take virgins from the offspring of the house of Israel. But they may also take a widow, if she is the widow of a priest.
{44:23} And they shall teach my people the difference between holy and defiled, and they shall distinguish for them between clean and unclean.
{44:24} And when there has been a controversy, they shall stand in my judgments, and they shall judge. They shall observe my laws and my precepts, in all my solemnities, and they shall sanctify my Sabbaths.
{44:25} And they shall not enter to a dead person, lest they be defiled, except to father or mother, or son or daughter, or brother, or to a sister who does not have another man. By these, they may become unclean.
{44:26} And after he will have been cleansed, they shall number for him seven days.
{44:27} And on the day when he enters into the sanctuary, to the inner court, so that he may minister to me in the sanctuary, he shall make an offering because of his offense, says the Lord God.
{44:28} And there shall be no inheritance for them. I am their inheritance. And you shall not give them any possession in Israel. For I am their possession.
{44:29} They shall eat the victim both for sin and for offenses. And every vowed offering in Israel shall be theirs.
{44:30} And the first-fruits of all the firstborn, and all the libations out of all that is offered, shall belong to the priests. And you shall give the first-fruits of your foods to the priest, so that he may return a blessing to your house.
{44:31} The priests shall not consume anything which has died on its own, or which was seized by a beast, whether from the fowl or the cattle.”
{45:1} “And when you will begin to divide the land by lot, separate as first-fruits for the Lord a sanctified portion of the land, in length twenty-five thousand and in width ten thousand. It will be holy within all its borders all around.
{45:2} And there shall be, out of the entire region, a sanctified portion of five hundred by five hundred, foursquare all around, with fifty cubits for its suburbs on all sides.
{45:3} And with this measure, you shall measure a length of twenty-five thousand, and a width of ten thousand, and within it shall be the temple and the Holy of Holies.
{45:4} The sanctified portion of the land shall be for the priests, the ministers of the sanctuary, who approach for the ministry of the Lord. And it shall be a place for their houses, and for the holy place of the sanctuary.
{45:5} Now twenty-five thousand in length, and ten thousand in width shall be for the Levites, who minister in the house. They shall possess twenty storerooms.
{45:6} And you shall appoint a possession in the city of five thousand in width, and twenty-five thousand in length, in accord with the separation of the sanctuary, for the entire house of Israel.
{45:7} Appoint the same for the prince, on one side and on the other, in the separation of the sanctuary, and in the possession of the city, opposite the face of the separation of the sanctuary, and opposite the face of the possession of the city, from the side of the sea even to the sea, and from the side of the east even to the east. And the length shall be just as in each part, from the western border even to the eastern border.
{45:8} A portion of the land in Israel shall be for him. And the princes shall no longer plunder my people. Instead, they shall give the land to the house of Israel according to their tribes.
{45:9} Thus says the Lord God: Let this be sufficient for you, O princes of Israel! Cease from iniquity and robberies, and execute judgment and justice. Separate your confines from my people, says the Lord God.
{45:10} You shall have just scales, and a just unit of dry measure, and a just unit of liquid measure.
{45:11} The units of dry and liquid measure shall be one uniform measure, so that a bath contains one tenth part of a cor, and an ephah contains one tenth part of a cor; each shall be of equal volume in accord with the measure of a cor.
{45:12} Now the shekel consists of twenty obols. Furthermore, twenty shekels, and twenty-five shekels, and fifteen shekels makes one mina.
{45:13} And these are the first-fruits that you shall take: a sixth part of an ephah from each cor of wheat, and a sixth part of an ephah from each cor of barley.
{45:14} Likewise, a measure of oil, a bath of oil, is one tenth part of a cor. And ten baths make one cor. For ten baths complete one cor.
{45:15} And take one ram from each flock of two hundred, out of those that Israel tends for sacrifice and holocausts and peace offerings, in order to make an expiation for them, says the Lord God.
{45:16} All the people of the land will take hold of these first-fruits for the prince in Israel.
{45:17} And concerning the prince, there shall be holocausts and sacrifice and libations, on solemnities and new moons and Sabbaths, and on all the solemnities of the house of Israel. He himself shall offer the sacrifice for sin, and the holocaust, and the peace offerings, in order to make expiation for the house of Israel.
{45:18} Thus says the Lord God: In the first month, on the first of the month, you shall take an immaculate calf from the herd, and you shall expiate the sanctuary.
{45:19} And the priest shall take from the blood that will be for the sin offering. And he shall place it on the doorposts of the house, and on the four corners of the rim of the altar, and on the posts of the gate of the inner court.
{45:20} And so shall you do on the seventh day of the month, on behalf of each one who was ignorant or who was deceived by error. And you shall make expiation for the house.
{45:21} In the first month, the fourteenth day of the month shall be for you the solemnity of the Passover. For seven days, unleavened bread shall be eaten.
{45:22} And on that day, the prince shall offer, on behalf of himself and on behalf of all the people of the land, a calf for sin.
{45:23} And during the solemnity of the seven days, he shall offer a holocaust to the Lord of seven immaculate calves and seven immaculate rams, daily for seven days, and a he-goat from among the she-goats, daily for sin.
{45:24} And he shall offer the sacrifice of an ephah for each calf, and an ephah for each ram, and a hin of oil for every ephah.
{45:25} In the seventh month, on the fifteenth day of the month, during the solemnities, he shall do just as was said above for the seven days, as much for the sin offering, as for the holocaust and sacrifice and oil.”
{46:1} Thus says the Lord God: “The gate of the inner court which looks toward the east shall be closed for the six days on which work is done. Then, on the Sabbath day, it shall be opened. But also on the day of the new moon, it shall be opened.
{46:2} And the prince shall enter from outside, by the way of the vestibule of the gate, and he shall stand at the threshold of the gate. And the priests shall offer his holocaust and his peace offerings. And he shall adore upon the threshold of the gate, and then depart. But the gate shall not be closed until evening.
{46:3} And the people of the land shall adore at the entrance of the same gate, on the Sabbaths and on the new moons, in the sight of the Lord.
{46:4} Now this holocaust, which the prince shall offer to the Lord on the Sabbath day, shall be six immaculate lambs, and one immaculate ram.
{46:5} The sacrifice shall be one ephah for each ram. But for the lambs, the sacrifice shall be whatever his hand shall give. And there shall be one hin of oil for each ephah.
{46:6} Then, on the day of the new moon, he shall offer one immaculate calf from the herd. Both the six lambs and the rams shall be immaculate.
{46:7} And he shall offer the sacrifice of one ephah for each calf, and also one ephah for each ram. But for the lambs, it shall be just as his hand will find. And there shall be one hin of oil for each ephah.
{46:8} And when the prince will enter, let him enter by the way of the vestibule of the gate, and let him go out by the same way.
{46:9} And when the people of the land will enter in the sight of the Lord on the solemnities, whoever enters by the north gate so that he may adore, shall depart by the way of the south gate. And whoever enters by the way of the south gate shall depart by the way of the north gate. He shall not return by way of the gate through which he entered. Instead, he shall depart from the direction opposite to it.
{46:10} But the prince in their midst shall enter when they enter, and he shall depart when they depart.
{46:11} And during the feasts and the solemnities, there shall be the sacrifice of one ephah for each calf, and one ephah for each ram. But for the lambs, the sacrifice shall be just as his hand will find. And there shall be one hin of oil for each ephah.
{46:12} But when the prince will offer a voluntary holocaust or a voluntary peace offering to the Lord, the gate which looks toward the east shall be opened to him. And he shall offer his holocaust and his peace offerings, just as is usually done on the Sabbath day. And he shall depart, and the gate shall be closed after he has gone out.
{46:13} And daily he shall offer, as a holocaust to the Lord, an immaculate lamb of the same age. He shall offer it always in the morning.
{46:14} And he shall offer as a sacrifice with it, morning after morning, one sixth part of an ephah, and one third part of a hin of oil, to be mixed with the fine flour, as a sacrifice to the Lord, by a continual and everlasting ordinance.
{46:15} He shall offer the lamb and the sacrifice and the oil, morning after morning, as an everlasting holocaust.
{46:16} Thus says the Lord God: If the prince grants a gift to any of his sons, the inheritance of it will go to his sons; they shall possess it as an inheritance.
{46:17} But if he grants a legacy from his inheritance to one of his servants, it shall be his only until the year of remission, and then it shall be returned to the prince. For his inheritance shall go to his sons.
{46:18} And the prince shall not take from the inheritance of the people by force, nor from their possession. Instead, from his own possession, he shall give an inheritance to his sons, so that my people will not be scattered, each one from his possession.”
{46:19} And he led me in by the entrance which was at the side of the gate, into the storerooms of the sanctuary for the priests, which looked toward the north. And there was a place there which verged toward the west.
{46:20} And he said to me: “This is the place where the priests will cook the offering for sin and the offering for trespasses. Here, they shall cook the sacrifice, so that they need not carry it to the outer court, and so that the people may be sanctified.”
{46:21} And he led me away to the outer court, and he led me around by the four corners of the court. And behold, there was a little atrium at the corner of the court; a little atrium was at each corner of the court.
{46:22} At the four corners of the court, little atriums were positioned, forty cubits in length, and thirty in width; each of the four were of the same measure.
{46:23} And there was a wall all around, encircling the four little atriums. And kitchens had been constructed under the porticos on all sides.
{46:24} And he said to me: “This is the house of the kitchens, in which the ministers of the house of the Lord will cook the victims of the people.”
{47:1} And he turned me back to the gate of the house. And behold, waters went out, from under the threshold of the house, toward the east. For the face of the house looked toward the east. But the waters descended on the right side of the temple, toward the south of the altar.
{47:2} And he led me out, along the way of the north gate, and he turned me back toward the way outside the exterior gate, the way which looked toward the east. And behold, the waters overflowed on the right side.
{47:3} Then the man who held the rope in his hand departed toward the east, and he measured one thousand cubits. And he led me forward, through the water, up to the ankles.
{47:4} And again he measured one thousand, and he led me forward, through the water, up to the knees.
{47:5} And he measured one thousand, and he led me forward, through the water, up to the waist. And he measured one thousand, into a torrent, through which I was not able to pass. For the waters had risen to become a profound torrent, which was not able to be crossed.
{47:6} And he said to me: “Son of man, certainly you have seen.” And he led me out, and he turned me back to the bank of the torrent.
{47:7} And when I had turned myself around, behold, on the bank of the torrent, there were very many trees on both sides.
{47:8} And he said to me: “These waters, which go forth toward the hillocks of sand to the east, and which descend to the plains of the desert, will enter the sea, and will go out, and the waters will be healed.
{47:9} And every living soul that moves, wherever the torrent arrives, will live. And there will be more than enough fish, after these waters have arrived there, and they will be healed. And all things will live, where the torrent arrives.
{47:10} And fishermen will stand over these waters. There will be the drying of nets, from Engedi even to Eneglaim. There will be very many kinds of fish within it: a very great multitude, like the fish of the great sea.
{47:11} But on its shore and in the marshes, they will not be healed. For these will be made into salt pits.
{47:12} And above the torrent, on its banks on both sides, every kind of fruit tree will rise up. Their foliage will not fall away, and their fruit will not fail. Every single month they will bring forth first-fruits. For its waters will go forth from the sanctuary. And its fruits will be for food, and its leaves will be for medicine.”
{47:13} Thus says the Lord God: “This is the border, by which you shall possess the land, in accord with the twelve tribes of Israel. For Joseph shall have a double portion.
{47:14} And you shall possess it, each one in equal manner as his brother. I lifted up my hand over it, so that I might give it to your fathers. And this land shall fall to you as a possession.
{47:15} Now this is the border of the land toward the northern region, from the great sea, by the way of Hethlon, arriving at Zedad:
{47:16} Hamath, Berothah, Sibraim, which is between the border of Damascus and the confines of Hamath, the house of Ticon, which is beside the border of Hauran,
{47:17} and the border will be from the sea, even to the entrance of Enon, at the border of Damascus, and from the north to the north, at the border of Hamath, on the northern side.
{47:18} Moreover, the eastern region will be from the midst of Hauran, and from the midst of Damascus, and from the midst of Gilead, and from the midst of the land of Israel, to the Jordan, marking the boundary to the eastern sea. For so shall you measure the eastern region.
{47:19} Now the southern region, toward the meridian, will be from Tamar, even to the Waters of Contradiction at Kadesh, and from the Torrent, even to the great sea. And this is the southern region, toward the meridian.
{47:20} And the region toward the sea will have its confines from the great sea continuing directly until one arrives at Hamath. This is the region of the sea.
{47:21} And you shall divide this land among yourselves according to the tribes of Israel.
{47:22} And you shall distribute it by lot as an inheritance, for yourselves and for the new arrival who will be added to you, who will conceive sons in your midst. And they shall be to you as the indigenous among the sons of Israel. They shall divide the possession with you, in the midst of the tribes of Israel.
{47:23} And in whatever tribe the new arrival will be, there you shall give a possession to him, says the Lord God.”
{48:1} “And these are the names of the tribes, from the parts of the north, beside the way of Hethlon, continuing on to Hamath, at the entrance of Enon, to the border of Damascus toward the north, beside the way of Hamath. And from the region of the east to the sea, there will be one portion for Dan.
{48:2} And beyond the border of Dan, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Asher.
{48:3} And beyond the border of Asher, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Naphtali.
{48:4} And beyond the border of Naphtali, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Manasseh.
{48:5} And beyond the border of Manasseh, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Ephraim.
{48:6} And beyond the border of Ephraim, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Reuben.
{48:7} And beyond the border of Reuben, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Judah.
{48:8} And beyond the border of Judah, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be the first-fruits, which you shall separate, twenty-five thousand in width, and in length, the same as each one of the portions from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea. And the sanctuary shall be in its midst.
{48:9} The first-fruits, which you shall separate to the Lord, shall be, in length, twenty-five thousand, and in width, ten thousand.
{48:10} And these shall be the first-fruits for the sanctuary of the priests: toward the north, in length, twenty-five thousand, and toward the sea, in width, ten thousand, but also, toward the east, in width, ten thousand, and toward the south, in length, twenty-five thousand. And the sanctuary of the Lord shall be in its midst.
{48:11} The sanctuary shall be for the priests from the sons of Zadok, who observed my ceremonies and did not go astray, when the sons of Israel went astray, just as the Levites also went astray.
{48:12} And so the foremost of the first-fruits of the land, the Holy of Holies, beside the border of the Levites, shall be for them.
{48:13} But also the Levites, similarly, shall have, beside the borders of the priests, twenty-five thousand in length, and ten thousand in width. The entire length shall be twenty-five thousand, and the width shall be ten thousand.
{48:14} And they shall not sell from it, nor exchange, and the first-fruits of the land shall not be transferred. For these have been sanctified to the Lord.
{48:15} But the five thousand that is left over, out of the twenty-five thousand in width, will be a profane place of the city for dwelling and for the suburbs. And the city shall be in the center.
{48:16} And these shall be its measurements: on the northern side, four thousand and five hundred; and on the southern side, four thousand and five hundred; and on the eastern side, four thousand and five hundred; and on the western side, four thousand and five hundred.
{48:17} But the suburbs of the city shall be: to the north, two hundred and fifty; and to the south, two hundred and fifty; and to the east, two hundred and fifty; and to the sea, two hundred and fifty.
{48:18} Now what will remain of the length, in accord with the first-fruits of the sanctuary, ten thousand in the east, and ten thousand in the west, shall be as the first-fruits of the sanctuary. And its produce will be for the bread of those who serve the city.
{48:19} And those who serve the city will be taken from all the tribes of Israel.
{48:20} All the first-fruits, of the twenty-five thousand by twenty-five thousand square, shall be separated as the first-fruits of the sanctuary and as the possession of the city.
{48:21} And what will remain shall be for the prince out of every portion of the first-fruits of the sanctuary and of the possession of the city, from the region of the twenty-five thousand of the first-fruits, even to the eastern border. But also to the sea from the region of the twenty-five thousand, even to the border of the sea, similarly shall be the portion of the prince. And the first-fruits of the sanctuary, and the sanctuary of the temple, shall be in its center.
{48:22} Now from the possession of the Levites, and from the possession of the city, which are in the midst of the prince’s portions, whatever is between the border of Judah and the border of Benjamin, shall also belong to the prince.
{48:23} And for the remainder of the tribes, from the eastern region, even to the western region, there shall be one portion for Benjamin.
{48:24} And opposite the border of Benjamin, from the eastern region, even to the western region, there shall be one portion for Simeon.
{48:25} And beyond the border of Simeon, from the eastern region, even to the western region, there shall be one portion for Issachar.
{48:26} And beyond the border of Issachar, from the eastern region, even to the western region, there shall be one portion for Zebulun.
{48:27} And beyond the border of Zebulun, from the eastern region, even to the region of the sea, there shall be one portion for Gad.
{48:28} And beyond the border of Gad, toward the southern region, in the meridian, the last part shall be from Tamar, even to the Waters of Contradiction at Kadesh, as the inheritance opposite the great sea.
{48:29} This is the land that you shall distribute by lot to the tribes of Israel, and these shall be their portions, says the Lord God.
{48:30} And these shall be the exits of the city: from the northern region, you shall measure four thousand and five hundred.
{48:31} And the gates of the city shall be according to the names of the tribes of Israel. There shall be three gates from the north: the gate of Reuben one, the gate of Judah one, the gate of Levi one.
{48:32} And to the eastern region, there shall be four thousand and five hundred. And there shall be three gates: the gate of Joseph one, the gate of Benjamin one, the gate of Dan one.
{48:33} And to the southern region, you shall measure four thousand and five hundred. And there shall be three gates: the gate of Simeon one, the gate of Issachar one, the gate of Zebulun one.
{48:34} And to the western region, there shall be four thousand and five hundred, and their three gates: the gate of Gad one, the gate of Asher one, the gate of Naphtali one.
{48:35} Along the circumference, there shall be eighteen thousand. And the name of the city, from that day, shall be: ‘The Lord is in that very place.’ ”
{1:1} In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it.
{1:2} And the Lord delivered into his hand Jehoiakim the king of Judah and a portion of the vessels of the house of God. And he carried them away into the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and he brought the vessels into the treasure chamber of his god.
{1:3} And the king told Ashpenaz, the chief of the eunuchs, that he should bring in some of the sons of Israel, and some of the offspring of the king and of the sovereigns:
{1:4} young men, in whom there was no blemish, noble in appearance, and accomplished in all wisdom, cautious in knowledge, and well-educated, and who could stand in the palace of the king, so that he might teach them the letters and the language of the Chaldeans.
{1:5} And the king appointed for them provisions for each day, from his own food and from the wine which he himself drank, so that, after being nourished for three years, they would stand in the sight of the king.
{1:6} Now, among those of the sons of Judah, there were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.
{1:7} And the chief of the eunuchs assigned names to them: to Daniel, Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego.
{1:8} But Daniel resolved in his heart that he would not be polluted with the king’s meal, nor with the wine he drank, and he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not be contaminated.
{1:9} And so God gave Daniel grace and mercy in the sight of the leader of the eunuchs.
{1:10} And the leader of the eunuchs said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has appointed food and drink for you, who, if he should see that your faces are leaner than those of the other youths your age, you would condemn my head to the king.”
{1:11} And Daniel said to Malasar, whom the leader of the eunuchs had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah,
{1:12} “I beg you to test us, your servants, for ten days, and let roots be given to us to eat and water to drink,
{1:13} and then observe our faces, and the faces of the children who eat the king’s food, and then deal with your servants according to what you see.”
{1:14} When he had heard these words, he tested them for ten days.
{1:15} But, after ten days, their faces appeared better and fatter than all the children who had eaten from the king’s food.
{1:16} Thereafter, Malasar took away their portions and their wine for drinking, and he gave them roots.
{1:17} Yet, to these children, God gave knowledge and instruction in every book, and wisdom, but to Daniel, also the understanding of all visions and dreams.
{1:18} And when the time was completed, after which the king had said that they would be brought in, the chief of the eunuchs brought them in before the sight of Nebuchadnezzar.
{1:19} And, when the king conversed with them, there had not been found any so great in all the world as Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; and so they stood in the sight of the king.
{1:20} And in every concept of wisdom and understanding, about which the king consulted with them, he found them to be ten times better than all the seers and astrologers put together, who were in his entire kingdom.
{1:21} And so Daniel remained, even until the first year of king Cyrus.
{2:1} In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar saw a dream, and his spirit was terrified, and his dream fled from him.
{2:2} Yet the king commanded that the seers, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans be gathered together to reveal to the king his dreams. When they arrived, they stood in front of the king.
{2:3} And the king said to them, “I saw a dream, and, being confused in mind, I do not know what I saw.”
{2:4} And the Chaldeans answered the king in Syriac, “O king, live forever. Tell the dream to your servants, and we will reveal its interpretation.”
{2:5} And in answer, the king said to the Chaldeans, “The memory of it has slipped away from me. Unless you reveal the dream to me, and its meaning, you will be put to death, and your houses will be confiscated.
{2:6} But if you explain the dream and its meaning, you will receive from me rewards, and gifts, and great honor. Therefore, reveal to me the dream and its interpretation.”
{2:7} They answered again and said, “Let the king tell the dream to his servants, and we will reveal its interpretation.”
{2:8} The king answered and said, “I am certain that you are stalling for time because you know that the memory of it has slipped away from me.
{2:9} Therefore, if you do not reveal to me the dream, there is only one conclusion to be reached about you, that the interpretation is likewise false, and packed full of deception, so as to speak before me until the time passes away. And so, tell me the dream, so that I will also know that the interpretation that you tell me is likewise true.”
{2:10} Then the Chaldeans answered before the king, and they said, “There is no man on earth who can accomplish your word, O king. For neither has any king, however great and mighty, asked for an answer of this kind from every seer, and astrologer, and Chaldean.
{2:11} For the answer that you seek, O king, is very difficult. Neither can anyone be found who can reveal it in the sight of the king, except the gods, whose conversation is not with men.”
{2:12} When he heard this, the king commanded, in fury and in great wrath, that all the wise men of Babylon should be destroyed.
{2:13} And when the decree had gone forth, the wise men were put to death; and Daniel and his companions were sought, to be destroyed.
{2:14} Then Daniel inquired, about the law and the sentence, of Arioch, the general of the king’s army, who had gone forth to execute the wise men of Babylon.
{2:15} And he asked him, who had received the orders of the king, for what reason such a cruel sentence had gone forth from the face of the king. And so, when Arioch had revealed the matter to Daniel,
{2:16} Daniel went in and asked of the king that he would grant him time to reveal the solution to the king.
{2:17} And he went into his house and explained the task to Hananiah, and Mishael, and Azariah, his companions,
{2:18} so that they would seek mercy before the face of the God of heaven, about this mystery, and so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the other wise men of Babylon.
{2:19} Then the secret was revealed to Daniel by a vision in the night. And Daniel blessed the God of heaven,
{2:20} and speaking aloud, he said, “May the name of the Lord be blessed by the present generation and forever; for wisdom and fortitude are his.
{2:21} And he alters the times and the ages. He takes away kingdoms and he establishes them. He gives wisdom to those who are wise and teaching skills to those who understand.
{2:22} He reveals deep and hidden things, and he knows what has been established in darkness. And the light is with him.
{2:23} To you, God of our fathers, I confess, and you, I praise. For you have given wisdom and fortitude to me, and now you have revealed to me what we asked of you, for you have uncovered for us the king’s thoughts.”
{2:24} After this, Daniel went in to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon, and he spoke to him in this way, “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon. Bring me in before the king, and I will explain the solution to the king.”
{2:25} Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel to the king, and he said to him, “I have found a man of the sons of the transmigration of Judah, who would announce the solution to the king.”
{2:26} The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Do you really think that you can reveal to me the dream that I saw and its interpretation?”
{2:27} And Daniel, facing the king, answered and said, “The secret that the king seeks, the wise men, the seers, and the soothsayers are unable to reveal to the king.
{2:28} But there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, who has revealed to you, king Nebuchadnezzar, what will happen in the latter times. Your dream and the visions of your head upon your bed, are such as these.
{2:29} You, O king, began to think, while in your blanket, about what will be hereafter. And he who reveals secrets showed you what will happen.
{2:30} To me, likewise, this mystery is revealed, not according to the wisdom that is in me more than in other living things, but so that the interpretation might be made manifest to the king, and so that you may know the thoughts of your mind.
{2:31} You, O king, saw, and behold, something like a great statue. This statue, which was great and high, stood exalted above you, and you considered how terrible it was.
{2:32} The head of this statue was of the finest gold, but the breast and the arms were of silver, and further on, the belly and the thighs were of brass;
{2:33} but the shins were of iron, a certain part of the feet were of iron and another part were of clay.
{2:34} And so you looked until a stone was broken off without hands from a mountain, and it struck the statue on its feet, which were of iron and clay, and it shattered them.
{2:35} Then the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold were crushed together and diminished like the ashes of a summer courtyard, and they were quickly taken away by the wind, and no place was found for them; but the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
{2:36} This is the dream; we will also tell its interpretation before you, O king.
{2:37} You are a king among kings, and the God of heaven has given to you a kingdom, and fortitude, and power, and glory,
{2:38} and all the places wherein the sons of men and the beasts of the field dwell. He has likewise given the flying creatures of the air into your hand, and he has placed all things under your realm. Therefore, you are the head of gold.
{2:39} And after you, another kingdom will rise up, inferior to you, of silver, and another third kingdom of brass, which will rule over the whole world.
{2:40} And the fourth kingdom will be like iron. Just as iron shatters and conquers all things, so will it shatter and crush all these.
{2:41} Furthermore, because you saw the feet and the toes to be part of potter’s clay and part of iron, the kingdom will be divided, but still, from the slip of iron it will take its origin, since you saw the iron mingled with the earthenware from clay.
{2:42} And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, part of the kingdom will be strong and part will be crushed.
{2:43} Yet, because you saw the iron mingled with pottery from the earth, they will indeed be combined together with the offspring of man, but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron cannot be mixed with earthenware.
{2:44} But in the days of those kingdoms, the God of heaven will inspire a kingdom that will never be destroyed, and his kingdom will not be handed over to another people, and it will crush and will consume all these kingdoms, and this kingdom itself will stand in eternity.
{2:45} In accordance with what you saw, because the stone was torn away from the mountain without hands, and it crushed the earthenware, and the iron, and the brass, and the silver, and the gold, the great God has shown the king what will happen after this. And the dream is true, and its interpretation is faithful.”
{2:46} Then king Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face and adored Daniel, and he commanded that they should offer in sacrifice to him victims and incense.
{2:47} And so the king spoke with Daniel and said, “Truly, your God is the God of gods, and Lord of kings, and also a revealer of secrets, since you could uncover this mystery.”
{2:48} Then the king raised Daniel to a high rank and gave him many great gifts, and he appointed him as leader over all the provinces of Babylon and as chief of the magistrates over all the other wise men of Babylon.
{2:49} However, Daniel required of the king that he appoint Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the works of the province of Babylon. But Daniel himself was at the king’s door.
{3:1} King Nebuchadnezzar made a statue of gold, sixty cubits high and six cubits wide, and he set it up in the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.
{3:2} Then king Nebuchadnezzar sent to gather together the governors, magistrates and judges, generals and sovereigns and commanders, and all the leaders of the regions, to come together for the dedication of the statue, which king Nebuchadnezzar had raised.
{3:3} Then the governors, magistrates and judges, generals and sovereigns and nobles, who were appointed to power, and all the leaders of the regions were brought together so as to convene for the dedication of the statue, which king Nebuchadnezzar had raised. And so they stood before the statue that king Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
{3:4} And a herald proclaimed loudly, “To you it is said, to you peoples, tribes, and languages,
{3:5} that in the hour when you will hear the sound of the trumpet and the pipe and the lute, the harp and the psaltery, and of the symphony and every kind of music, you must fall down and adore the gold statue, which king Nebuchadnezzar has set up.
{3:6} But if anyone will not bow down and adore, in the same hour he will be cast into a furnace of burning fire.”
{3:7} After this, therefore, as soon as all the people heard the sound of the trumpet, the pipe and the lute, the harp and the psaltery, and of the symphony and every kind of music, all the peoples, tribes, and languages fell down and adored the gold statue, which king Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
{3:8} And soon, about the same time, some influential Chaldeans came and accused the Jews,
{3:9} and they said to king Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever.
{3:10} You, O king, have established a decree, so that every man who might hear the sound of the trumpet, the pipe and the lute, the harp and the psaltery, and of the symphony and every kind of music, will prostrate himself and adore the gold statue.
{3:11} But if any man will not fall down and adore, he would be cast into a furnace of burning fire.
{3:12} Yet there are influential Jews, whom you have appointed over the works of the region of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, have scorned your decree. They do not worship your gods, and they do not adore the gold statue which you have raised up.”
{3:13} Then Nebuchadnezzar, in fury and in wrath, commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego should be brought, and so, without delay, they were brought before the king.
{3:14} And king Nebuchadnezzar addressed them and said, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not worship my gods, nor adore the gold statue, which I have set up?
{3:15} Therefore, if you are prepared now, whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet, pipe, lute, harp and psaltery, and of the symphony and every kind of music, prostrate yourselves and adore the statue which I have made. But if you will not adore, in the same hour you will be cast into the furnace of burning fire. And who is the God that will rescue you from my hand?”
{3:16} Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to king Nebuchadnezzar, “It is not right for us to obey you in this matter.
{3:17} For behold our God, whom we worship, is able to rescue us from the oven of burning fire and to free us from your hands, O king.
{3:18} But even if he will not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not worship your gods, nor adore the gold statue, which you have raised up.”
{3:19} Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury and the appearance of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and he commanded that the furnace should be heated to seven times its usual fire.
{3:20} And he ordered the strongest men of his army to bind the feet of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the furnace of burning fire.
{3:21} And immediately these men were bound, and along with their coats, and their hats, and their shoes, and their garments, were cast into the middle of the furnace of burning fire.
{3:22} But the king’s order was so urgent that the furnace was heated excessively. As a result, those men who had cast in Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, were killed by the flame of the fire.
{3:23} But these three men, that is, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, having been bound, fell down in the middle of the oven of burning fire.
{3:24} And they were walking in the midst of the flame, praising God and blessing the Lord.
{3:25} Then Azariah, while standing, prayed in this manner, and opening his mouth in the midst of the fire, he said:
{3:26} “Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers, and your name is praiseworthy and glorious for all ages.
{3:27} For you are just in all the things that you have accomplished for us, and all your works are true, and your ways are right, and all your judgments are true.
{3:28} For you have made equally true judgments in all the things that you have brought upon us and upon Jerusalem, the holy city of our fathers. For in truth and in judgment, you have brought down all these things because of our sins.
{3:29} For we have sinned, and we have committed iniquity in withdrawing from you, and we have offended in all things.
{3:30} And we have not listened to your precepts, nor have we observed or done as you have ordered us, so that it might go well with us.
{3:31} Therefore, everything that you have brought upon us, and all that you have done for us, you have done in true judgment.
{3:32} And you have delivered us into the hands of our enemies: traitors, unjust and most wicked, and to a king, unjust and most wicked, even more so than all others on earth.
{3:33} And now we are not able to open our mouths. We have become a shame and a disgrace to your servants and to those who worship you.
{3:34} Do not hand us over forever, we ask you, because of your name, and do not abolish your covenant.
{3:35} And do not withdraw your mercy from us, because of Abraham, your beloved, and Isaac, your servant, and Israel, your holy one.
{3:36} You have spoken with them, promising that you would multiply their offspring like the stars of heaven and like the sand on the seashore.
{3:37} For we, O Lord, are diminished more than all other peoples, and we are brought low throughout all the earth, this day, because of our sins.
{3:38} Neither is there, at this time, a leader, or a ruler, or a prophet, nor any holocaust, or sacrifice, or oblation, or incense, or place of first fruits, in your eyes,
{3:39} so that we may be able to find your mercy. Nevertheless, with a contrite soul and humble spirit, let us be accepted.
{3:40} Just as in the holocausts of rams and bullocks, and as in thousands of fat lambs, so let our sacrifice be in your sight this day, in order to please you. For there is no shame for those who trust in you.
{3:41} And now we follow you wholeheartedly, and we fear you, and we seek your face.
{3:42} Do not put us to shame, but deal with us in agreement with your clemency and according to the multitude of your mercies.
{3:43} And rescue us by your wonders and give glory to your name, O Lord.
{3:44} And let all those be confounded who lead your servants towards evil. May they be confounded by all your power and may their strength be crushed.
{3:45} And may they know that you are the Lord, the only God, and glorious above the world.”
{3:46} And they did not cease, those attendants of the king who had cast them in, to heat the furnace with oil, and flax, and pitch, and brush.
{3:47} And the flame streamed forth above the furnace for forty-nine cubits.
{3:48} And the fire erupted and burnt those of the Chaldeans within its reach near the furnace.
{3:49} But the angel of the Lord descended with Azariah and his companions into the furnace; and he cast the flame of the fire out of the furnace.
{3:50} And he made the middle of the furnace like the blowing of a damp wind, and the fire did not touch them, nor afflict them, nor bother them at all.
{3:51} Then these three, as if with one voice, praised and glorified and blessed God, in the furnace, saying:
{3:52} “Blessed are you, Lord, God of our fathers: praiseworthy, and glorious, and exalted above all forever. And blessed is the holy name of your glory: praiseworthy, and exalted above all, for all ages.
{3:53} Blessed are you in the holy temple of your glory: praiseworthy above all and exalted above all forever.
{3:54} Blessed are you on the throne of your kingdom: praiseworthy above all and exalted above all forever.
{3:55} Blessed are you who beholds the abyss and sits upon the cherubim: praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.
{3:56} Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven: praiseworthy and glorious forever.
{3:57} All works of the Lord, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:58} Angels of the Lord, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:59} Heaven, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:60} All waters that are above the heavens, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:61} All powers of the Lord, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:62} Sun and moon, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:63} Stars of heaven, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:64} Every rain and dew, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:65} Every breath of God, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:66} Fire and steam, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:67} Cold and heat, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:68} Dews and frost, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:69} Sleet and winter, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:70} Ice and snow, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:71} Nights and days, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:72} Light and darkness, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:73} Lightning and clouds, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:74} May the land bless the Lord: and praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:75} Mountains and hills, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:76} All things that grow in the land, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:77} Fountains, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:78} Seas and rivers, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:79} Whales and all things that move in the waters, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:80} All things that fly in the heavens, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:81} All beasts and cattle, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:82} Sons of men, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:83} May Israel bless the Lord: and praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:84} Priests of the Lord, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:85} Servants of the Lord, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:86} Spirits and souls of the just, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:87} Those who are holy and humble in heart, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever.
{3:88} Hananiah, Azariah, Mishael, bless the Lord: praise and exalt him above all forever. For he has delivered us from the underworld, and saved us from the hand of death, and freed us from the midst of the burning flame, and rescued us from the midst of the fire.
{3:89} Give thanks to the Lord because he is good: because his mercy is forever.
{3:90} All those who are pious, bless the Lord, the God of gods: praise him and acknowledge him because his mercy is for all generations.”
{3:91} Then king Nebuchadnezzar was astonished, and he quickly got up and said to his nobles: “Did we not cast three men shackled into the midst of the fire?” Answering the king, they said, “True, O king.”
{3:92} He answered and said, “Behold, I see four men unbound and walking in the midst of the fire, and no harm is in them, and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of God.”
{3:93} Then Nebuchadnezzar approached the entrance of the furnace of burning fire, and he said, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the supreme God, come out and approach.” And immediately Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego went out from the midst of the fire.
{3:94} And when the governors, and the magistrates, and the judges, and the powerful of the king had gathered together, they considered these men because the fire had no power against their bodies, and not a hair of their head had been scorched, and their pants had not been affected, and the smell of the fire had not passed onto them.
{3:95} Then Nebuchadnezzar, bursting out, said, “Blessed is their God, the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who sent his angel and rescued his servants who believed in him. And they altered the verdict of the king, and they delivered up their bodies, so that they would not serve or adore any god except their God.
{3:96} Therefore, this decree is established by me: that every people, tribe, and language, whenever they have spoken blasphemy against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, will perish and their homes will be destroyed. For there is no other God who is able to save in this way.”
{3:97} Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
{3:98} NEBUCHADNEZZAR, the king, to all peoples, nations, and languages, who dwell in the whole world, may peace be increased with you.
{3:99} The supreme God has accomplished signs and wonders with me. Therefore, it has pleased me to proclaim
{3:100} his signs, which are great, and his wonders, which are mighty. For his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his power continues from generation to generation.
{4:1} I, Nebuchadnezzar, was content in my house and prospering in my palace.
{4:2} I saw a dream that terrified me, and my thoughts on my bed and the visions in my head disturbed me.
{4:3} And so a decree was established by me, that all of the wise men of Babylon should be brought in before me, and that they should reveal to me the answer to the dream.
{4:4} Then the seers, the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers entered, and I explained about the dream in their presence, but they did not reveal its answer to me.
{4:5} And then their colleague came in before me, Daniel, (whose name is Belteshazzar according to the name of my god,) who has the spirit of the holy gods within his very self, and I told the dream directly to him.
{4:6} Belteshazzar, leader of the seers, since I know that you have in you the spirit of the holy gods, and that no mystery is unreachable to you, explain to me the visions of my dreams, which I saw, and the solution to them.
{4:7} This was the vision of my head on my bed. I looked, and behold, a tree in the middle of the earth, and its height was exceedingly great.
{4:8} The tree was great and strong, and its height reached up to heaven. It could be seen all the way to the ends of the entire earth.
{4:9} Its leaves were very beautiful, and its fruit was very abundant, and in it was food for the whole world. Under it, animals and beasts were dwelling, and in its branches, the birds of the sky were sheltered, and from it, all flesh was fed.
{4:10} I saw in the vision of my head upon my blanket, and behold, a watcher and a holy one descended from heaven.
{4:11} He cried out loudly, and he said this: “Cut down the tree and prune its branches; shake off its leaves and scatter its fruits; let flee the beasts, which are under it, and the birds from its branches.
{4:12} Nevertheless, leave the stump of its roots in the earth, and let it be bound with a band of iron and brass among the plants, which are close by, and let it be touched by the dew of heaven, and let its place be with the wild animals among the plants of the earth.
{4:13} Let his heart be changed from being human, and let the heart of a wild animal be given to him, and let seven periods of time pass over him.
{4:14} This is the decree from the judgment of the watchers, and the decision and proclamation of the holy ones, until the living shall know that the Supreme One is ruler in the kingdom of men, and that he will give it to whomever he wills, and he will appoint the lowest man over it.”
{4:15} I, king Nebuchadnezzar, saw this dream. And so you, Belteshazzar, must quickly explain to me the interpretation because all the wise men of my kingdom are not able to declare the meaning of it to me. But you are able because the spirit of the holy gods is in you.
{4:16} Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, began silently to think within himself for about one hour, and his thoughts troubled him. But the king responded, saying, “Belteshazzar, do not let the dream and its interpretation disturb you.” Belteshazzar answered and said, “My lord, the dream is for those who hate you, and its interpretation may be for your enemies.
{4:17} The tree that you saw was lofty and strong; its height reached toward heaven, and it could be seen throughout the whole world.
{4:18} And its branches were very beautiful, and its fruit very abundant, and in it was food for all. Under it, dwelt the beasts of the field, and in its branches, the birds of the air stayed.
{4:19} It is you, O king, who has been greatly esteemed, and you have grown strong. And you have increased your power, and it reaches towards heaven, and your rule is to the ends of the whole earth.
{4:20} Yet the king also saw a watcher and a holy one descend from heaven and say: ‘Cut down the tree and scatter it; however, leave the stump of its roots in the earth, and let it be bound with iron and brass, among the surrounding plants, and let it be sprinkled with the dew of heaven, and let his feeding be with the wild beasts, until seven periods of time pass over him.’
{4:21} This is the interpretation of the judgment of the Most High, which has reached my lord, the king.
{4:22} They will expel you from among men, and your dwelling will be with the beasts and the wild animals, and you will eat hay like an ox, and you will be drenched with the dew of heaven. Likewise, seven periods of time will pass over you, until you know that the Supreme One rules over the kingdom of men, and he gives it to whomever he wills.
{4:23} But, since he commanded that the stump of its roots, that is, of the tree, should be left behind, your kingdom will be left for you, after you have realized that power is from divinity.
{4:24} Because of this, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you. And redeem your sins with alms, and your iniquities with mercy towards the poor. Perhaps he will forgive your offenses.”
{4:25} All these things came upon king Nebuchadnezzar.
{4:26} After the end of twelve months, he was taking a walk in the palace of Babylon.
{4:27} And the king spoke out loud, saying, “Isn’t this the great Babylon, which I have built, as the home of the kingdom, by the strength of my power and in the glory of my excellence?”
{4:28} And while the words were still in the king’s mouth, a voice rushed down from heaven, “To you, O king Nebuchadnezzar, it is said: ‘Your kingdom will be taken away from you,
{4:29} and they will expel you from among men, and your dwelling will be with the beasts and the wild animals. You will eat hay like an ox, and seven times will pass over you, until you know that the Supreme One rules in the kingdom of men, and he gives it to whomever he wills.’ ”
{4:30} The same hour, the sentence was fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar, and he was driven away from among men, and he ate hay like an ox, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until his hair increased like the feathers of eagles, and his nails like those of birds.
{4:31} Therefore, at the end of these days, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted up my eyes to heaven, and my mind was restored to me. And I blessed the Most High, and I praised and glorified him who lives forever. For his power is an everlasting power, and his kingdom is from generation to generation.
{4:32} And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing before him. For he acts according to his own will, with the inhabitants of the earth just as with the holy inhabitants of heaven. And there is no one who can resist his hand, or say to him, “Why have you done this?”
{4:33} At the same time, my mind returned to me, and I arrived at the honor and glory of my kingdom. And my appearance was given back to me. And my nobles and my magistrates needed me. And I was restored to my kingdom, and even greater majesty was added to me.
{4:34} Therefore I, Nebuchadnezzar, now praise, and magnify, and glorify the King of heaven, because all his works and the judgments of his way are true, and those who go forth in arrogance, he is able to bring low.
{5:1} Belshazzar, the king, made a great feast for a thousand of his nobles, and each one of them drank according to his age.
{5:2} And so, when they were drunk, he instructed that the vessels of gold and silver should be brought, which Nebuchadnezzar, his father, had carried away from the temple, which was in Jerusalem, so that the king, and his nobles, and his wives, and the concubines, might drink from them.
{5:3} Then the gold and silver vessels were presented, which he had carried away from the temple and which had been in Jerusalem, and the king, and his nobles, wives, and concubines, drank from them.
{5:4} They drank wine, and they praised their gods of gold, and silver, brass, iron, and wood and stone.
{5:5} In the same hour, there appeared fingers, as of the hand of a man, writing on the surface of the wall, opposite the candlestick, in the king’s palace. And the king observed the part of the hand that wrote.
{5:6} Then the king’s countenance was changed, and his thoughts disturbed him, and he lost his self-control, and his knees knocked against one other.
{5:7} And the king cried out loudly for them to bring in the astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers. And the king proclaimed to the wise men of Babylon, saying, “Whoever will read this writing and make known to me its interpretation will be clothed with purple, and will have a golden chain on his neck, and will be third in my kingdom.”
{5:8} Then, in came all the wise men of the king, but they could neither read the writing, nor reveal the interpretation to the king.
{5:9} Therefore, king Belshazzar was quite confused, and his face was altered, and even his nobles were disturbed.
{5:10} But the queen, because of what had happened to the king and his nobles, entered the banquet house. And she spoke out, saying, “O king, live forever. Do not let your thoughts confuse you, neither should your face be altered.
{5:11} There is a man in your kingdom, who has the spirit of the holy gods within himself, and in the days of your father, knowledge and wisdom were found in him. For king Nebuchadnezzar, your father, appointed him leader of the astrologers, enchanters, Chaldeans, and soothsayers, even your father, I say to you, O king.
{5:12} For a greater spirit, and foresight, and understanding, and interpretation of dreams, and the revealing of secrets, and the solution to difficulties were found in him, that is, in Daniel, to whom the king gave the name Belteshazzar. Now, therefore, let Daniel be summoned, and he will explain the interpretation.”
{5:13} Then Daniel was brought in before the king. And the king spoke to him, saying, “Are you Daniel, of the sons of the captivity of Judah, whom my father the king led out of Judea?
{5:14} I have heard of you, that you have the spirit of the gods, and that greater knowledge, as well as understanding and wisdom, have been found in you.
{5:15} And now the wise astrologers have entered into my presence, so as to read this writing and to reveal to me its interpretation. And they were not able to tell me the meaning of this writing.
{5:16} Furthermore, I have heard about you that you can interpret obscure things and solve difficulties. So then, if you succeed in reading the writing, and in revealing its interpretation, you will be clothed with purple, and you will have a chain of gold around your neck, and you will be the third leader in my kingdom.”
{5:17} To this Daniel responded by saying directly to the king, “Your rewards should be for yourself, and the gifts of your house you may give to another, but I will read to you the writing, O king, and I will reveal to you its interpretation.
{5:18} O king, the Most High God gave to Nebuchadnezzar, your father, a kingdom and greatness, glory and honor.
{5:19} And because of the greatness that he gave to him, all peoples, tribes, and languages trembled and were afraid of him. Whomever he wished, he put to death; and whomever he wished, he destroyed; and whomever he wished, he exalted; and whomever he wished, he lowered.
{5:20} But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit was hardened in arrogance, he was deposed from the throne of his kingdom and his glory was taken away.
{5:21} And he was expelled from the sons of men, and so his heart was placed with the beasts, and his dwelling was with the wild donkeys, and he ate hay like an ox, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he realized that the Most High holds power over the kingdom of men, and that whoever he wishes, he will set over it.
{5:22} Likewise, you, his son Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all these things.
{5:23} But you have lifted yourself up against the Lord of heaven. And the vessels of his house have been presented before you. And you, and your nobles, and your wives, and your concubines, have drunk wine from them. Likewise, you have praised the gods of silver, and gold, and brass, iron, and wood and stone, who neither see, nor hear, nor feel, yet you have not glorified the God who holds your breath and all your ways in his hand.
{5:24} Therefore, he has sent the part of the hand which has written this, which has been inscribed.
{5:25} But this is the writing that has been decreed: MANE, THECEL, PHARES.
{5:26} And this is the interpretation of the words. MANE: God has numbered your kingdom and has finished it.
{5:27} THECEL: you have been weighed on the scales and found lacking.
{5:28} PHARES: your kingdom has been divided and has been given to the Medes and the Persians.
{5:29} Then, by the king’s command, Daniel was dressed with purple, and a chain of gold was placed around his neck, and it was proclaimed of him that he held power as the third in the kingdom.
{5:30} That same night, king Belshazzar the Chaldean was killed.
{5:31} And Darius the Mede succeeded to the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two years.
{6:1} It pleased Darius, and so he appointed over the kingdom one hundred twenty governors, to be placed throughout his whole kingdom.
{6:2} And over these, three leaders, of whom Daniel was one, so that the governors would be accountable to them and the king would have no trouble.
{6:3} And so Daniel excelled above all the leaders and governors, because a greater spirit of God was in him.
{6:4} Furthermore, the king considered setting him over the entire kingdom; whereupon the leaders and the governors sought to find a complaint against Daniel and in favor of the king. And they could find no case, or even suspicion, because he was faithful, and no fault or suspicion was found in him.
{6:5} Therefore, these men said, “We will not find any complaint against this Daniel, unless it is against the law of his God.”
{6:6} Then the leaders and governors took the king aside privately and spoke to him in this way: “King Darius, live forever.
{6:7} All the leaders of your kingdom, the magistrates and governors, the senators and judges, have taken counsel that an imperial decree and edict should be published, so that all who ask any petition of any god or man for thirty days, except of you, O king, will be cast into the den of lions.
{6:8} Now, therefore, O king, confirm this judgment and write the decree, so that what is established by the Medes and Persians may not be altered, nor will any man be allowed to transgress it.”
{6:9} And so king Darius set forth the decree and established it.
{6:10} Now when Daniel learned of this, namely, that the law had been established, he entered his house, and, opening the windows in his upper room towards Jerusalem, he knelt down three times a day, and he adored and gave thanks before his God, as he had been accustomed to do previously.
{6:11} Therefore, these men, inquiring diligently, discovered that Daniel was praying and making supplication to his God.
{6:12} And they approached and spoke to the king about the edict. “O king, did you not decree that every man who makes a request to any of the gods or men for thirty days, except to yourself, O king, would be cast into the den of lions?” To which the king replied, saying, “The sentence is true, and according to the decree of the Medes and Persians, it is not lawful to violate it.”
{6:13} Then they answered and said before the king, “Daniel, of the sons of the captivity of Judah, is not concerned about your law, nor about the decree that you have established, but three times a day he prays his supplication.”
{6:14} Now when the king had heard these words, he was greatly grieved, and, on behalf of Daniel, he set his heart to free him, and he labored even until sunset to rescue him.
{6:15} But these men, knowing the king, said to him, “You know, O king, that the law of the Medes and Persians is that every decree which the king has established may not be altered.”
{6:16} Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel and cast him into the den of lions. And the king said to Daniel, “Your God, whom you always serve, he himself will free you.”
{6:17} And a stone was brought, and it was placed over the mouth of the den, which the king sealed with his own ring, and with the ring of his nobles, so that no one would act against Daniel.
{6:18} And the king departed into his house, and he went to bed without eating, and food was not set before him, moreover, even sleep fled from him.
{6:19} Then the king, getting himself up at first light, went quickly to the den of lions.
{6:20} And coming near to the den, he cried out with a tearful voice to Daniel and spoke to him. “Daniel, servant of the living God, your God, whom you serve always, do you believe he has prevailed to free you from the lions?”
{6:21} And Daniel, answering the king, said, “O king, live forever.
{6:22} My God has sent his angel, and he has closed the mouths of the lions, and they have not harmed me, because before him justice has been found in me, and, even before you, O king, I have committed no offense.”
{6:23} Then was the king exceedingly glad for him, and he commanded that Daniel should be taken out of the den. And Daniel was taken out of the den, and no wound was found in him, because he believed in his God.
{6:24} Moreover, by order of the king, those men were brought who had accused Daniel, and they were cast into the lions’ den, they, and their sons, and their wives, and they did not reach the bottom of the den before the lions seized them and crushed all their bones.
{6:25} Then king Darius wrote to all peoples, tribes, and languages dwelling in all the land. “May peace be increased with you.
{6:26} It is hereby established by my decree that, in all my empire and my kingdom, they shall begin to tremble and fear the God of Daniel. For he is the living and eternal God forever, and his kingdom will not be destroyed, and his power will last forever.
{6:27} He is the liberator and the savior, performing signs and wonders in heaven and on earth, who has freed Daniel from the lions’ den.”
{6:28} Thereafter, Daniel continued through the reign of Darius until the reign of Cyrus, the Persian.
{7:1} In the first year of Belshazzar, king of Babylon, Daniel saw a dream and a vision in his head on his bed. And, writing down the dream, he understood it in a concise manner, and so, summarizing it tersely, he said:
{7:2} I saw in my vision at night, and behold, the four winds of the heavens fought upon the great sea.
{7:3} And four great beasts, different from one another, ascended from the sea.
{7:4} The first was like a lioness and had the wings of an eagle. I watched as its wings were plucked off, and it was raised from the earth and stood on its feet like a man, and the heart of a man was given to it.
{7:5} And behold, another beast, like a bear, stood to one side, and there were three rows in its mouth and in its teeth, and they spoke to it in this way: “Arise, devour much flesh.”
{7:6} After this, I watched, and behold, another like a leopard, and it had wings like a bird, four upon it, and four heads were on the beast, and power was given to it.
{7:7} After this, I watched in the vision of the night, and behold, a fourth beast, terrible yet wondrous, and exceedingly strong; it had great iron teeth, eating yet crushing, and trampling down the remainder with his feet, but it was unlike the other beasts, which I had seen before it, and it had ten horns.
{7:8} I considered the horns, and behold, another little horn rose out of the midst of them. And three of the first horns were rooted out by its presence. And behold, eyes like the eyes of a man were in this horn, and a mouth speaking unnatural things.
{7:9} I watched until thrones were set up, and the Ancient of days sat down. His garment was radiant like snow, and the hair of his head like clean wool; his throne was flames of fire, its wheels had been set on fire.
{7:10} A river of fire rushed forth from his presence. Thousands upon thousands ministered to him, and ten thousand times hundreds of thousands attended before him. The trial began, and the books were opened.
{7:11} I watched because of the voice of the great words which that horn was speaking, and I saw that the beast had been destroyed, and its body was ruined and had been handed over to be burnt with fire.
{7:12} Likewise, the power of the other beasts was taken away, and a limited time of life was appointed to them, until one time and another.
{7:13} I watched, therefore, in the vision of the night, and behold, with the clouds of heaven, one like a son of man arrived, and he approached all the way to the Ancient of days, and they presented him before him.
{7:14} And he gave him power, and honor, and the kingdom, and all peoples, tribes, and languages will serve him. His power is an eternal power, which will not be taken away, and his kingdom, one which will not be corrupted.
{7:15} My spirit was terrified. I, Daniel, was fearful at these things, and the visions of my head disturbed me.
{7:16} I approached one of the attendants and asked the truth from him about all these things. He told me the interpretation of the words, and he instructed me:
{7:17} “These four great beasts are four kingdoms, which will rise from the earth.
{7:18} Yet it is the saints of the Most High God who will receive the kingdom, and they will hold the kingdom from this generation, and forever and ever.”
{7:19} After this, I wanted to learn diligently about the fourth beast, which was very different from all, and exceedingly terrible; his teeth and claws were of iron; he devoured and crushed, and the remainder he trampled with his feet;
{7:20} and about the ten horns, which he had on his head, and about the other, which had sprung up, before which three horns fell, and about that horn which had eyes and a mouth speaking great things, and which was more powerful than the rest.
{7:21} I watched, and behold, that horn made war against the holy ones and prevailed over them,
{7:22} until the Ancient of days came and gave judgment to the holy ones of the Supreme One, and the time arrived, and the holy ones obtained the kingdom.
{7:23} And thus he said, “The fourth beast will be the fourth kingdom on earth, which will be greater than all the kingdoms, and will devour the whole earth, and will trample and crush it.
{7:24} Moreover, the ten horns of the same kingdom will be ten kings, and another will rise up after them, and he will be mightier than the ones before him, and he will bring down three kings.
{7:25} And he will speak words against the Supreme One, and will exhaust the holy ones of the Most High, and he will think about what it would take to change the times and the laws, and they will be given into his hand until a time, and times, and half a time.
{7:26} And a trial will begin, so that his power may be taken away, and be crushed, and be undone all the way to the end.
{7:27} Yet the kingdom, and the power, and the greatness of that kingdom, which is under all of heaven, shall be given to the people of the holy ones of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all kings will serve and obey him.”
{7:28} And here is the end of the message. I, Daniel, was greatly disturbed by my thoughts, and my mood was changed in me, but I preserved the message in my heart.
{8:1} In the third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king, a vision appeared to me. After that which I had seen in the beginning, I, Daniel,
{8:2} saw in my vision, that I was in the capital city of Susa, which is in the region of Elam, yet I saw in the vision that I was over the gate of Ulai.
{8:3} And I lifted up my eyes and saw, and behold, a single ram stood before the marsh, having two high horns, and one was higher than the other and growing higher still.
{8:4} After this, I saw the ram brandishing his horns against the West, and against the North, and against the Meridian, and all the beasts could not withstand him, nor be freed from his hand, and he did according to his own will, and he became great.
{8:5} And I understood, and behold, a he-goat among she-goats came from the West above the face of the entire earth, and he did not touch the ground. Furthermore, the he-goat had a preeminent horn between his eyes.
{8:6} And he went all the way to the ram that had the horns, which I had seen standing before the gate, and he ran towards him in the force of his strength.
{8:7} And when he approached near to the ram, he was enraged against him, and he struck the ram, and broke his two horns, and the ram could not withstand him, and when he had cast him down on the ground, he trampled him, and no one was able to free the ram from his hand.
{8:8} But the he-goat among she-goats became exceedingly great, and when he had prospered, the great horn was shattered, and four horns were rising up beneath it by means of the four winds of heaven.
{8:9} But from one of them came forth one little horn, and it became great against the Meridian, and against the East, and against the strength.
{8:10} And it was magnified even towards the strength of heaven, and it threw down those of the strength and of the stars, and it trampled them.
{8:11} And it was magnified, even to the leader of the strength, and it took away from him the continual sacrifice, and cast down the place of his sanctuary.
{8:12} And the advantage was given to him against the continual sacrifice, because of the sins, and truth will be struck down to the ground, and he will act, and he will prosper.
{8:13} And I heard one of the holy ones speaking, and one saint said to another, (I know not to whom he was speaking,) “What is the extent of the vision, and the continual sacrifice, and the sin of the desolation, which has happened, and of the sanctuary and the strength, which will be trampled?”
{8:14} And he said to him, “From evening until morning, two thousand three hundred days, and so the sanctuary will be cleansed.”
{8:15} But it came to pass, when I, Daniel, saw the vision and sought understanding that, behold, there stood in my sight something like the appearance of a man.
{8:16} And I heard the voice of a man within Ulai, and he called out and said, “Gabriel, make this one understand the vision.”
{8:17} And he came and stood next to where I was standing, and when he approached, I fell on my face, trembling, and he said to me, “Understand, son of man, for in the time of the end the vision will be fulfilled.”
{8:18} And when he spoke to me, I fell forward onto the ground, and so he touched me and stood me upright.
{8:19} And he said to me, “I will reveal to you what the future things are in the earlier tribulation, for the time has its end.
{8:20} The ram, which you saw to have horns, is the king of the Medes and Persians.
{8:21} Furthermore, the he-goat among she-goats is the king of the Greeks, and the great horn, which was between his eyes, is the same one, the first king.
{8:22} And since, having been shattered, there grew four in its place, four kings will rise up from his people, but not in his strength.
{8:23} And after their reign, when iniquities will be increased, there will arise a king of shameless face and understanding negotiations.
{8:24} And his advantage will be strengthened, but not by his kind of force, and other than what he will be able to trust, everything will be eradicated, and he will prosper, and he will act. And he will execute the successful and the people of the saints,
{8:25} according to his will, and treachery will be guided by his hand. And his heart will be inflated, and by the abundance of everything he will kill many, and he will rise up against the Lord of lords, and he will be knocked down without a hand.
{8:26} And the vision of the evening and the morning, which was told, is true. Therefore, you must seal the vision, because, after many days, it will occur.”
{8:27} And I, Daniel, languished and was sick for some days, and when I had lifted myself up, I performed the king’s works, and I was astonished at the vision, and there was none who could interpret it.
{9:1} In the first year of Darius, the son of Ahasuerus, of the offspring of the Medes, who ruled over the kingdom of the Chaldeans,
{9:2} in year one of his reign, I, Daniel, understood in the books the number of the years, concerning the word of the Lord which came to Jeremiah, the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would be completed in seventy years.
{9:3} And I set my face to the Lord, my God, to ask and make supplication with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes.
{9:4} And I prayed to the Lord, my God, and I confessed, and I said, “I beg you, O Lord God, great and terrible, preserving the covenant and mercy for those who love you and keep your commandments.
{9:5} We have sinned, we have committed iniquity, we acted impiously and have withdrawn, and we have turned aside from your commandments as well as your judgments.
{9:6} We have not obeyed your servants, the prophets, who have spoken in your name to our kings, our leaders, our fathers, and all the people of the land.
{9:7} To you, O Lord, is justice, but to us is confusion of face, just as it is on this day for the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and all Israel, for those who are near and those who are far off, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of their iniquities by which they have sinned against you.
{9:8} O Lord, to us belongs confusion of face: to our kings, our leaders, and our fathers, who have sinned.
{9:9} But to you, the Lord our God, is mercy and atonement, for we have withdrawn from you,
{9:10} and we have not listened to the voice of the Lord, our God, so as to walk in his law, which he established for us by his servants, the prophets.
{9:11} And all Israel has transgressed your law and has turned away, not listening to your voice, and so the condemnation and the curse, which is written in the book of Moses, servant of God, has rained down upon us, because we have sinned against him.
{9:12} And he has fulfilled his words, which he has spoken over us and over our leaders who judged us, that he would lead over us a great evil, such as has never before existed under all of heaven, according to what has been done in Jerusalem.
{9:13} Just as it has been written in the law of Moses, all this evil has come upon us, and we did not entreat your face, O Lord our God, so that we might turn back from our iniquities and consider your truth.
{9:14} And the Lord kept watch over the evil and has led it over us; the Lord, our God, is just in all his works, which he has accomplished, for we have not listened to his voice.
{9:15} And now, O Lord, our God, who has led your people out of the land of Egypt with a strong hand and has made yourself a name in accordance with this day: we have sinned, we have done wrong.
{9:16} O Lord, for all your righteousness, turn away, I beg you, your anger and your fury from your city, Jerusalem, and from your holy mountain. For, because of our sins and the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people are a reproach to all who surround us.
{9:17} Now, therefore, heed, O God, the prayer of your servant and his requests, and reveal your face over your sanctuary, which is desolate, for your own sake.
{9:18} Incline your ear, O my God, and hear, open your eyes and see our desolation and the city over which your name is invoked. For it is not through our justifications that we offer requests before your face, but through the fullness of your compassion.
{9:19} Heed, O Lord. Be pleased, O Lord. Turn and act. Do not delay, for your own sake, O my God, because your name is invoked over your city and over your people.”
{9:20} And while I was still speaking and praying and confessing my sins, and the sins of my people, Israel, and offering my prayers in the sight of my God, on behalf of the holy mountain of my God,
{9:21} as I was still speaking in prayer, behold, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, flying swiftly, touched me at the time of the evening sacrifice.
{9:22} And he instructed me, and he spoke to me and said, “Now, Daniel, I have come forth to teach you and to help you understand.
{9:23} At the beginning of your prayers, the message came forth, yet I have come to explain it to you because you are a man who is seeking. Therefore, you must pay close attention to the message and understand the vision.
{9:24} Seventy weeks of years are concentrated on your people and on your holy city, so that transgression shall be finished, and sin shall reach an end, and iniquity shall be wiped away, and so that everlasting justice shall be brought in, and vision and prophecy shall be fulfilled, and the Saint of saints shall be anointed.
{9:25} Therefore, know and take heed: from the going forth of the word to build up Jerusalem again, until the Christ leader, there will be seven weeks of years, and sixty-two weeks of years; and the wide path will be built again, and the walls, in a time of anguish.
{9:26} And after sixty-two weeks of years, the Christ leader will be slain. And the people who have denied him will not be his. And the people, when their leader arrives, will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will be devastation, and, after the end of the war, the desolation will be set up.
{9:27} But he will confirm a covenant with many for one week of years; and for half of the week of years, victim and sacrifice will nearly cease; but there will be in the temple the abomination of desolation. And the desolation will continue even to the consummation and the end.”
{10:1} In the third year of Cyrus, king of the Persians, a message was revealed to Daniel, called Belteshazzar, and a true word, and great strength. And he understood the message, for understanding is needed in a vision.
{10:2} In those days, I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks of days.
{10:3} I ate no desirable bread, and neither meat, nor wine, entered my mouth, neither was I anointed with ointment, until the three weeks of days were completed.
{10:4} But on the twenty-fourth day of the first month, I was next to the great river, which is the Tigris.
{10:5} And I lifted up my eyes, and I saw, and behold, one man clothed in linen, and his waist was wrapped with the finest gold,
{10:6} and his body was like the golden stone, and his face had the appearance of lightning, and his eyes that of a burning lamp, and his arms and all that is downward all the way to the feet had the appearance of glowing brass, and his speaking voice was like the voice of a multitude.
{10:7} But I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see it, but an exceedingly great terror rushed over them, and they fled into hiding.
{10:8} And I, having been left alone, saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me, moreover, my appearance was altered, and I languished, not having any strength.
{10:9} And I heard the voice of his words, and when I heard, I lay down in confusion on my face, and my face was close to the ground.
{10:10} And behold, a hand touched me, and raised me onto my knees and the knuckles of my hands.
{10:11} And he said to me, “Daniel, man of longing, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand yourself upright, for I am now sent to you.” And when he had said these words to me, I stood trembling.
{10:12} And he said to me, “Do not be afraid, Daniel, because from the first day that you set your heart to understand, by afflicting yourself in the sight of your God, your words have been heeded, and I have arrived because of your words.
{10:13} But the leader of the kingdom of the Persians resisted me for twenty-one days, and behold, Michael, one of the primary leaders, came to help me, and I remained there next to the king of the Persians.
{10:14} But I have come to teach you what will happen to your people in the latter days, because the vision is for a long time from now.”
{10:15} And while he was speaking words to me in this way, I cast my face down to the ground and was silent.
{10:16} And behold, something in the likeness of a son of man touched my lips. Then, opening my mouth, I spoke and said to him who stood before me, “My lord, at the sight of you, my limbs became weak and no strength has remained in me.
{10:17} And so, how can the servant of my lord speak with my lord? For no strength remains in me; and even my breathing is hindered.”
{10:18} Therefore, he who looked like a man, touched me again and strengthened me.
{10:19} And he said, “Fear not, O man of longing. May peace be with you. Take courage and be strong.” And when he spoke to me, I recovered, and I said, “Speak, my lord, for you have strengthened me.”
{10:20} And he said, “Do you not know why I have come to you? And next I will return, to fight against the leader of the Persians. When I was leaving, there appeared the leader of the Greeks arriving.
{10:21} But, in truth, I announce to you what is expressed in the scripture of truth. And no one is my helper in all these things, except Michael your leader.”
{11:1} “And so, from the first year of Darius the Mede, I stood firm, so that he might be reinforced and strengthened.
{11:2} And now I will announce to you the truth. Behold, up to a certain point, three kings will stand in Persia, and the fourth will be exceedingly enriched in power above them all. And when he has grown strong by his resources, he will stir up all against the kingdom of Greece.
{11:3} But there will rise up a strong king, and he will rule with great power, and he will do what he pleases.
{11:4} And when he has been firmly established, his kingdom will be shattered and will be divided towards the four winds of the heaven, but not to his posterity, nor according to his power with which he ruled. For his kingdom will be torn to pieces, even for the outsiders who have been expelled from these.
{11:5} And the king of the South will be reinforced, yet one of his leaders will prevail over him, and he will rule with riches, for great is his domain.
{11:6} And after the end of years, they will form a federation, and the daughter of the king of the South will come to the king of the North to make friendship, but she will not obtain the strength of arms, neither will her offspring stand firm, and she will be handed over, along with those who brought her, her young men, and those who comforted her in these times.
{11:7} And a transplant from the germination of her roots will stand up, and he will come with an army, and will enter into the province of the king of the North, and he will abuse them, and will hold it fast.
{11:8} And, in addition, he will carry away captive into Egypt their gods, and their graven images, and likewise their precious vessels of gold and silver. He will prevail against the king of the North.
{11:9} And the king of the South will enter into the kingdom, and will return to his own land.
{11:10} But his sons will be challenged, and they will assemble a multitude of very many forces. And he will arrive rushing and overflowing. And he will be turned back, and he will be enraged, and he will join the battle in his redness.
{11:11} And the king of the South, having being challenged, will go forth and will fight against the king of the North, and he will prepare an exceedingly great multitude, and a multitude will be given into his hand.
{11:12} And he will seize a multitude, and his heart will be exalted, and he will cast down many thousands, but he will not prevail.
{11:13} For the king of the North will change strategy and will prepare a multitude much greater than before, and at the end of times and years, he will rush forward with a great army and exceedingly great resources.
{11:14} And in those times, many will rise up against the king of the South. And likewise the sons of the deceivers among your people will extol themselves, so as to fulfill the vision, and they will collapse.
{11:15} And the king of the North will arrive and will transport siege works, and he will seize the most fortified cities. And the arms of the South will not withstand him, and his elect will rise up to resist, but the strength will not.
{11:16} And when he arrives, he will do just as he pleases, and there will be none who stand against his face. And he will stand in the illustrious land, and it will be consumed by his hand.
{11:17} And he will set his face to strive to hold his entire kingdom, and he will make fair conditions with him. And he will give him a daughter among women, so as to overthrow it. But she will not stand, neither will she be for him.
{11:18} And he will turn his face towards the islands, and he will seize many. And he will cause the leader of his reproach to cease, and his reproach will be turned around for him.
{11:19} And he will turn his face to the empire of his own land, and he will strike, and will overthrow, but he will not succeed.
{11:20} And there will stand up in his place one who is most worthless and unworthy of kingly honor. And in a short time, he will be worn out, but not in fury, nor in battle.
{11:21} And there will stand up in his place the despicable one, and he will not be assigned the honor of a king. And he will arrive in secret, and he will obtain the kingdom by deceitfulness.
{11:22} And the arms of the fighting will be assaulted before his face and will be shattered, and, in addition, the leader of the federation.
{11:23} And, after making friends, he will trick him, and he will go up and will overcome with a small people.
{11:24} And he will enter into rich and resourceful cities, and he will do what his fathers never did, nor his fathers’ fathers. He will scatter their spoils, and their prey, and their riches, and will form a plan against the most steadfast, and this until a time.
{11:25} And his strength and his heart will be enraged against the king of the South with a great army. And the king of the South will be provoked into going to war by having many allies and exceedingly good circumstances, and yet these will not stand, for they will form plans against him.
{11:26} And those who eat bread with him will crush him, and his army will be suppressed, and very many will die, having been executed.
{11:27} And the heart of two kings will be similar, to do harm, and they will speak lies at one table, but they will not succeed, because as yet the end is for another time.
{11:28} And he will return to his land with many resources. And his heart will be against the holy testament, and he will act, and he will return to his own land.
{11:29} At the appointed time, he will return, and he will approach the South, but the latter time will not be like the former.
{11:30} And the Greek warships and the Romans will come upon him, and he will be pierced, and will retreat, and will have scorn against the testament of the sanctuary, and he will act. And he will return and will consult their adversaries, who have forsaken the covenant of the sanctuary.
{11:31} And arms will take his side, and they will pollute the sanctuary of the strength, and they will take away the continual sacrifice and will replace it with the abomination of desolation.
{11:32} And the impious within the testament will imitate deceitfully, but the people, knowing their God, will persevere and will act.
{11:33} And the teachers among the people will teach many, but they will be ruined by the sword, and by fire, and by captivity, and by assaults for many days.
{11:34} And when they have fallen, they will be supported with a little help, but many will apply to them deceitfully.
{11:35} And some of the learned will be ruined, that they may be kindled and chosen and purified, up to the predetermined time, because there will be still another time.
{11:36} And the king will act according to his will, and he will be lifted up and will be extolled against every god. And he will speak great things against the God of gods, and he will control, until the passion is completed. Once accomplished, the limit is reached with certainty.
{11:37} And he will give no thought to the God of his fathers, and he will be in the desire of women, and he will not attend to any gods, because he will rise up against all things.
{11:38} But he will do homage to the god Maozim in his place, and, a god whom his fathers did not know, he will worship with gold, and silver, and precious stones, and costly things.
{11:39} And he will act to reinforce Maozim with an alien god, of whom he has become aware, and he will increase their glory, and will give them power over many, and he will distribute land for free.
{11:40} And, at the predetermined time, the king of the South will fight against him, and the king of the North will come against him like a tempest, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with a great fleet, and he will enter into the lands, and will crush and pass through.
{11:41} And he will enter into the glorious land, and many will fall. But only these will be saved from his hand: Edom, and Moab, and the first part of the sons of Ammon.
{11:42} And he will cast his hand upon the lands, and the land of Egypt will not escape.
{11:43} And he will rule over the treasure chests of gold, and silver, and all the precious things of Egypt, and likewise he will pass through Libya and Ethiopia.
{11:44} And rumors from the East and from the North will trouble him. And he will arrive with a great multitude to destroy and to execute many.
{11:45} And he will fasten his tabernacle, Apadno, between the seas, upon an illustrious and holy mountain, and he will come even to its summit, and no one will help him.”
{12:1} “But at that time Michael will rise up, the great leader, who stands up for the sons of your people. And a time will come, such as has not been from the time that nations began, even until that time. And, at that time, your people will be saved, all who will be found written in the book.
{12:2} And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth will awaken: some to everlasting life, and others to a reproach that they will always see.
{12:3} But those who have taught will shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who instruct many towards justice, like the stars for unending eternity.
{12:4} But you, Daniel, close the message and seal the book, until the established time. Many will pass through, and knowledge will be increased.”
{12:5} And I, Daniel, looked, and behold, similarly two others stood up, one over here, on the bank of the river, and the other over there, on the other bank of the river.
{12:6} And I said to the man, who was clothed in linen, who stood over the waters of the river, “How long will it be until the end of these wonders?”
{12:7} And I heard the man, who was clothed in linen, who stood over the waters of the river, when he had lifted his right hand and his left hand up to heaven, and had sworn by He who lives forever, that it would be for a time, and times, and half a time. And when the dispersion of the hand of the holy people is completed, all these things will be completed.
{12:8} And I heard and did not understand. And I said, “My lord, what will be after these things?”
{12:9} And he said, “Go, Daniel, for the words are closed and sealed until the predetermined time.
{12:10} Many will be chosen and purified, and, as if by fire, they will be tested, and the impious will act impiously, and none of the impious will understand, yet the teachers will understand.
{12:11} And from the time when the continual sacrifice will be taken away and the abomination of desolation will be set up, there will be one thousand two hundred ninety days.
{12:12} Blessed is he who waits and reaches until one thousand three hundred thirty-five days.
{12:13} But you, go, until the predetermined time, and you will rest and will stand in your allotted place at the end of days.
{13:1} And there was a man living in Babylon, and his name was Joakim.
{13:2} And he received a wife named Susanna, the daughter of Hilkiah, who was very beautiful and God-fearing.
{13:3} For her parents, because they were righteous, had educated their daughter according to the law of Moses.
{13:4} But Joakim was very wealthy, and he had an orchard near his house, and the Jews flocked to him, because he was the most honorable of them all.
{13:5} And two elder judges had been appointed among the people that year, about whom the Lord has said, “Iniquity has come out of Babylon, from the elder judges, who seemed to govern the people.”
{13:6} These frequented the house of Joakim, and all came to them, who had need of judgment.
{13:7} But when the people departed at noontime, Susanna went in and walked around in her husband’s orchard.
{13:8} And the elders saw her entering and walking around every day, and they were inflamed with desire towards her.
{13:9} And they perverted their reason and turned away their eyes, so that they would not look to heaven, nor call to mind just judgments.
{13:10} And so they were both wounded by the love of her, yet they did not reveal their grief to one another.
{13:11} For they were ashamed to reveal to each other their desire, wanting to lie with her.
{13:12} And so they watched carefully every day to see her. And one said to the other,
{13:13} “Let us go home, for it is lunch time.” And going out, they departed one from another.
{13:14} And returning again, they came to the same place, and, each asking the other the reason, they admitted their desire. And then they agreed to set a time when they would be able to find her alone.
{13:15} But it happened, while they watched for an opportune day, that she entered at a particular time, just as yesterday and the day before, with only two maids, and she wanted to wash in the orchard, because it was so hot.
{13:16} And there was no one there, except the two elders in hiding, and they were studying her.
{13:17} And so she said to the maids, “Bring me oil and ointments, and shut the doors of the orchard, so that I may wash.”
{13:18} And they did as she ordered them. And they shut the doors of the orchard and left through a back door to fetch what she required, and they did not know that the elders were hiding within.
{13:19} But when the maids had departed, the two elders arose and hurried to her, and they said,
{13:20} “Behold, the doors of the orchard are closed, and no one can see us, and we are in desire for you. Because of these things, consent to us and lie with us.
{13:21} But if you will not, we will bear witness against you that a young man was with you and, for this reason, you sent your maids away from you.”
{13:22} Susanna sighed and said, “I am closed in on every side. For if I do this thing, it is death to me; yet if I do not do it, I will not escape your hands.
{13:23} But it is better for me to fall unavoidably into your hands, than to sin in the sight of the Lord.”
{13:24} And Susanna cried out with a loud voice, but the elders also cried out against her.
{13:25} And one of them hurried to the door of the orchard and opened it.
{13:26} And so, when the servants of the house heard the outcry in the orchard, they rushed in by the back door to see what was happening.
{13:27} But after the old men had spoken, the servants were greatly ashamed, for there had never been anything of this kind said about Susanna. And it happened on the next day,
{13:28} when the people came to Joakim her husband, that the two appointed elders also came, full of wicked plans against Susanna, in order to put her to death.
{13:29} And they said before the people, “Send for Susanna, daughter of Hilkiah, the wife of Joakim.” And immediately they sent for her.
{13:30} And she arrived with her parents, and sons, and all her relatives.
{13:31} Moreover, Susanna was exceedingly delicate and beautiful in appearance.
{13:32} But those wicked ones commanded that her face should be uncovered, (for she was covered,) so that at least they might be satisfied with her beauty.
{13:33} Therefore, her own and all who knew her wept.
{13:34} Yet the two appointed elders, rising up in the midst of the people, set their hands upon her head.
{13:35} And weeping, she gazed up to heaven, for her heart had faith in the Lord.
{13:36} And the appointed elders said, “While we were taking a walk in the orchard alone, this one came in with two maids, and she shut the doors of the orchard, and she sent the maids away from her.
{13:37} And a young man came to her, who was in hiding, and he lay down with her.
{13:38} Furthermore, since we were in a corner of the orchard, seeing this wickedness, we ran up to them, and we saw them consorting together.
{13:39} And, indeed, we were unable to catch him, because he was stronger than us, and opening the doors, he leaped out.
{13:40} But, since we had apprehended this one, we demanded to know who the young man was, but she was unwilling to tell us. On this matter, we are witnesses.”
{13:41} The multitude believed them, just as if they were elders and the judges of the people, and they condemned her to death.
{13:42} But Susanna cried out with a loud voice and said, “Eternal God, who knows what is hidden, who knows all things before they happen,
{13:43} you know that they have borne false witness against me, and behold, I must die, though I have done none of these things, which these men have maliciously invented against me.”
{13:44} But the Lord heeded her voice.
{13:45} And when she was led away to death, the Lord raised up the holy spirit of a young boy, whose name was Daniel.
{13:46} And he cried out with a loud voice, “I am clean of the blood of this one.”
{13:47} And all the people, turning back towards him, said, “What is this word that you are saying?”
{13:48} But he, while standing in the midst of them, said, “Are you so foolish, sons of Israel, that without judging and without knowing what the truth is, you have condemned a daughter of Israel?
{13:49} Return to judgment, because they have spoken false witness against her.”
{13:50} Therefore, the people returned with haste, and the old men said to him, “Come and sit down in our midst and show us, since God has given you the honor of old age.”
{13:51} And Daniel said to them, “Separate these at a distance from one another, and I will judge between them.”
{13:52} And so, when they were divided, one from the other, he called one of them, and he said to him, “You deep-rooted ancient evil, now your sins have come out, which you have committed before,
{13:53} judging unjust judgments, oppressing the innocent, and setting free the guilty, though the Lord declares, ‘The innocent and the just you must not put to death.’
{13:54} Now then, if you saw her, declare under which tree you saw them conversing together.” He said, “Under an evergreen mastic tree.”
{13:55} But Daniel said, “Truly, you have lied against your own head. For behold, the angel of God, having received the sentence from him, will split you down the middle.
{13:56} And, having put him aside, he commanded the other to approach, and he said to him, “You offspring of Canaan, and not of Judah, beauty has deceived you, and desire has perverted your heart.
{13:57} Thus did you do to the daughters of Israel, and they, out of fear, consorted with you, but a daughter of Judah would not tolerate your iniquity.
{13:58} Now then, declare to me, under which tree you caught them conversing together.” He said, “Under an evergreen oak tree.”
{13:59} And Daniel said to him, “Truly, you also have lied against your own head. For the angel of the Lord waits, holding a sword, to cut you down the middle and put you to death.”
{13:60} And then the entire assembly cried out in a loud voice, and they blessed God, who saves those who hope in him.
{13:61} And they rose up against the two appointed elders, (for Daniel had convicted them, by their own mouth, of bearing false witness,) and they did to them just as they had wickedly done against their neighbor,
{13:62} so as to act according to the law of Moses. And they put them to death, and innocent blood was saved on that day.
{13:63} But Hilkiah and his wife praised God for their daughter, Susanna, with Joakim, her husband, and all her relatives, because there had been found in her no disgrace.
{13:64} And so Daniel became great in the sight of the people from that day, and thereafter.
{13:65} And king Astyages was laid to rest with his fathers. And Cyrus the Persian received his kingdom.
{14:1} And so Daniel was living with the king, and he was honored above all his friends.
{14:2} Now there was an idol with the Babylonians named Bel. And each day there was expended on him twelve great measures of fine flour, and forty sheep, and six vessels of wine.
{14:3} The king likewise worshipped him and went each day to adore him, but Daniel adored his God. And the king said to him, “Why do you not adore Bel?”
{14:4} And answering, he said to him, “Because I do not worship idols made with hands, but the living God, who created heaven and earth, and who holds power over all flesh.”
{14:5} And the king said to him, “Does not Bel seem to you to be a living god? Do you not see how much he eats and drinks every day?”
{14:6} Then Daniel said, smiling, “O king, do not make a mistake, for this one is clay on the inside and brass on the outside, and he has never eaten.”
{14:7} And the king, being angry, called for his priests and said to them, “If you do not tell me who it is that has eaten these expenses, you will die.
{14:8} But if you can show that Bel has eaten these, Daniel will die, because he has blasphemed against Bel.” And Daniel said to the king, “Let it be according to your word.”
{14:9} Now the priests of Bel were seventy, besides their wives, and little ones, and sons. And the king went with Daniel into the temple of Bel.
{14:10} And the priests of Bel said, “Behold, we are going out, and you, O king, set out the meats, and mix the wine, and close the door, and seal it with your ring.
{14:11} And when you have entered in the morning, if you have not found that Bel has consumed all, we will suffer death, or else Daniel will, who has lied against us.”
{14:12} But they had no concern because they had made a secret entrance under the table, and they always went in through it and devoured those things.
{14:13} And so it happened, after they had departed, that the king set the foods before Bel, and Daniel commanded his servants, and they brought ashes, and he sifted them throughout the temple in the sight of the king, and, as they left, they shut the door, and after sealing it with the king’s ring, they departed.
{14:14} But the priests entered by night, according to their custom, with their wives, and their sons, and they ate and drank everything.
{14:15} But the king arose at first light, and Daniel with him.
{14:16} And the king said, “Are the seals unbroken, Daniel?” And he answered, “They are unbroken, O king.”
{14:17} And as soon as he had opened the door, the king stared at the table, and cried out with a loud voice, “Great are you, O Bel, and there is not any deceit with you.”
{14:18} And Daniel laughed, and he held back the king, so that he would not enter, and he said, “Look at the pavement, notice whose footsteps these are.”
{14:19} And the king said, “I see the footsteps of men, and women, and children.” And the king was angry.
{14:20} Then he apprehended the priests, and their wives, and their sons, and they showed him the secret doors through which they entered and consumed the things that were on the table.
{14:21} Therefore, the king slaughtered them and delivered Bel into the power of Daniel, who overturned him and his temple.
{14:22} And there was a great dragon in that place, and the Babylonians worshipped him.
{14:23} And the king said to Daniel, “Behold, now you cannot say that this is not a living god; therefore, adore him.”
{14:24} And Daniel said, “I adore the Lord, my God, for he is the living God. But that one is not a living god.
{14:25} Therefore, you give me the power, O king, and I will execute this dragon without sword or club.” And the king said, “I give it to you.”
{14:26} And so Daniel took pitch, and fat, and hair, and cooked them together. And he made lumps and put them into the dragon’s mouth, and the dragon burst open. And he said, “Behold, this is what you worship.”
{14:27} When the Babylonians had heard this, they were greatly indignant. And gathering together against the king, they said, “The king has become a Jew. He has destroyed Bel, he has executed the dragon, and he has slaughtered the priests.”
{14:28} And when they came to the king, they said, “Deliver Daniel to us, otherwise we will execute you and your house.”
{14:29} Thus the king saw that they pressured him vehemently, and so, being compelled by necessity, he delivered Daniel to them.
{14:30} And they cast him into the den of lions, and he was there for six days.
{14:31} Furthermore, in the den there were seven lions, and they had given to them two carcasses every day, and two sheep, but then they were not given to them, so that they would devour Daniel.
{14:32} Now there was in Judea a prophet called Habakkuk, and he had cooked a small meal and had broken bread in a bowl, and he was going into the field, to bring it to the harvesters.
{14:33} And the angel of the Lord said to Habakkuk, “Carry the meal that you have into Babylon, to Daniel, who is in the lions’ den.”
{14:34} And Habakkuk said, “Lord, I have not seen Babylon, and I do not know the den.”
{14:35} And the angel of the Lord seized him by the top of his head, and carried him by the hair of his head, and set him in Babylon, over the den, by the force of his spirit.
{14:36} And Habakkuk shouted, saying, “Daniel, servant of God, take the dinner that God has sent you.”
{14:37} And Daniel said, “You have remembered me, O God, and you have not abandoned those who love you.”
{14:38} And Daniel arose and ate. And then the angel of the Lord immediately returned Habakkuk to his place.
{14:39} And so, on the seventh day, the king came to mourn Daniel. And he came to the den, and gazed in, and behold, Daniel was sitting in the midst of the lions.
{14:40} And the king cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Great are you, O Lord, the God of Daniel.” And he pulled him out of the lions’ den.
{14:41} Furthermore, those who had been the cause of his downfall, he hurled into the den, and they were devoured in a moment before him.
{14:42} Then the king said, “Let all the inhabitants of the whole earth fear the God of Daniel. For he is the Savior, working signs and miracles on earth, who has freed Daniel from the lions’ den.”
{1:1} The word of the Lord that came to Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam, the son of Joash, king of Israel.
{1:2} The beginning of the Lord’s conversation with Hosea. And the Lord said to Hosea: “Go, take to yourself a wife of fornications, and make for yourself sons of fornications, because, by fornicating, the land will fornicate away from the Lord.”
{1:3} And he went out and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; and she conceived and bore him a son.
{1:4} And the Lord said to him: “Call his name Jezreel because, after a little while, I will visit the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and I will put the kingdom of the house of Israel to rest.
{1:5} And in that day, I will crush the stronghold of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.”
{1:6} And after a while, she conceived and bore a daughter. And he said to him: “Call her name, Without Mercy, for I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel, but I will utterly forget them.
{1:7} Yet I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the Lord their God. And I will not save them by bow and sword and battle and horses and horsemen.”
{1:8} And she weaned her, who was called Without Mercy. And she conceived and bore a son.
{1:9} And he said: “Call his name, Not My People, for you are not my people, and I will not be yours.
{1:10} And the number of the sons of Israel will be like the sand of the sea, which is without measure and cannot be numbered. And in the place where it will be said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ this will happen: it will be said to them, ‘You are the sons of the living God.’
{1:11} And the sons of Judah, and the sons of Israel, will be gathered together. And they will place over themselves one head, and they will rise up from the earth, for great is the day of Jezreel.”
{2:1} “Say to your brothers, ‘You are my people,’ and to your sister, ‘You have obtained mercy.’
{2:2} Judge your mother, judge: for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband. Let her remove her fornications from before her face and her adulteries from between her breasts.
{2:3} Otherwise, I may expose her nakedness and set her as on the day of her birth, and I may establish her as a wilderness and set her as an impassable land, and I may execute her with thirst.
{2:4} And I will not have mercy on her sons, for they are the sons of fornications.
{2:5} For their mother has been fornicating; she who conceived them has been brought to ruin. For she said, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, my oil and my drink.’
{2:6} Because of this, behold, I will fence in your way with thorns, and I will surround it with a wall, and she will not find her paths.
{2:7} And she will pursue her lovers, but she will not obtain them, and she will seek them, but she will not find them, and she will say, ‘I will go and return to my first husband, because it was to some extent better for me then, than it is now.’
{2:8} And she did not know that I gave her grain and wine and oil, and that I increased her silver and gold, which they made into Baal.
{2:9} For this reason, I will turn back, and I will take away my grain in its time and my wine in its time, and I will set free my wool and my flax, which had covered her disgrace.
{2:10} And now, I will reveal her foolishness by the eyes of her lovers, and no man will rescue her from my hand.
{2:11} And I will cause all her joy to cease: her solemnities, her new moons, her Sabbaths, and all her feast dates.
{2:12} And I will corrupt her vines and her fig trees, about which she said, ‘These rewards, they are mine, my lovers have given them to me.’ And I will place her in a narrow forest, and the beasts of the field will devour her.
{2:13} And I will inflict on her the days of the Baals, for whom she burned incense, and ornamented herself with earrings and necklace, and went after her lovers, and forgot about me,” says the Lord.
{2:14} “Because of this, behold, I will attract her, and I will lead her into the wilderness, and I will speak to her heart.
{2:15} And I will give to her, from the same place, her vinedressers, and the valley of Achor as a passage of hope. And she will sing there as in the days of her youth, and as in the days of her ascension from the land of Egypt.
{2:16} And it will be in that day,” says the Lord, “that she will call me, ‘My Husband,’ and she will no longer call me, ‘My Baal.’
{2:17} And I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, and she will no longer remember their name.
{2:18} And in that day, I will strike a deal with them, with the beasts of the field, and with the birds of the sky, and with the creatures of the earth. And I will crush the bow and the sword, and I will wipe away war from the earth. And I will let them sleep securely.
{2:19} And I will betroth you to me forever, and I will betroth you to me in justice and judgment, and in mercy and compassion.
{2:20} And I will wed you to me in faith, and you will know that I am the Lord.
{2:21} And this will happen in that day: I will listen closely,” says the Lord. “I will hear the heavens, and they will hear the earth.
{2:22} And the land will pay attention to the grain, and the wine, and the oil; and these will hear Jezreel.
{2:23} And I will plant her for me in the land, and I will have mercy on her, though she had been called Without Mercy.
{2:24} And I will say to Not My People, ‘You are my people,’ and they will say, ‘You are my God.’ ”
{3:1} And the Lord said to me: “Go yet again, and love a woman, beloved by a friend, yet an adulteress, for so does the Lord love the sons of Israel, yet they look to strange gods, and love the seeds of grapes.”
{3:2} And I contracted her to me for fifteen silver coins, and for a basket of barley, and half a basket of barley.
{3:3} And I said to her, “You will wait for me for many days. You will not commit fornication, and you will not be with a man. But I also will wait for you.”
{3:4} For the sons of Israel will sit for many days without a king, and without a leader, and without sacrifice, and without altar, and without priestly vestments, and without religious symbols.
{3:5} And after this, the sons of Israel will return, and they will seek the Lord their God and David their king, and they will be terrified by the Lord and by his goodness, in the last days.
{4:1} Listen to the word of the Lord, sons of Israel, for the Lord is judge of the inhabitants of the land. Yet there is no truth, and there is no mercy, and there is no knowledge of God, in the land.
{4:2} Slander, and lying, and killing, and theft, and adultery have overflowed, and bloodshed has brought more bloodshed.
{4:3} Because of this, the land will mourn, and all who dwell in it will languish, with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air. And the fishes of the sea also will be gathered together.
{4:4} So, truly, let each and every one not judge, and let no man be accused, for your people are just like those who speak against the priesthood.
{4:5} And you will be ruined on this day, and now the prophet will be ruined with you. In the night, I have made your mother to be silent.
{4:6} My people have become silent because they had no knowledge. Since you have rejected knowledge, I will drive you away; you do not perform the duties of the priesthood for me, and you have forgotten the law of your God, and so I will forget your sons.
{4:7} According to the multitude of them, so have they sinned against me. I will change their glory into disgrace.
{4:8} They will devour the sins of my people, and they will lift up their souls towards their iniquity.
{4:9} And, just as it is with the people, so will it be with the priest; and I will visit their ways upon them, and I will repay them for their intentions.
{4:10} And they will eat and not be satisfied. They have been committing fornication, and they did not cease. Since they have abandoned the Lord, they will not be safeguarded.
{4:11} Fornication, and wine, and drunkenness, have taken away their heart.
{4:12} My people have inquired of their stave, and their staff has announced to them. For the spirit of fornication has deceived them, and they have been fornicating before their God.
{4:13} They have offered sacrifice on the tops of the mountains and burnt incense on the hills, under the oak, and the poplar, and the terebinth tree, because its shadow was good; therefore, your daughters will commit fornication and your spouses will be adulteresses.
{4:14} I will not send afflictions on your daughters, when they will commit fornication, nor on your spouses, when they will commit adultery, because you yourselves have associated with harlots and have offered sacrifice with the effeminate, and because the people who do not understand will be defeated.
{4:15} If you commit fornication, Israel, at least let Judah not commit offenses; and do not be willing to enter into Gilgal, nor to ascend to Bethaven, and neither should you swear, “As the Lord lives.”
{4:16} For Israel has gone astray like a wanton heifer; so now the Lord will pasture them like a young lamb in a wide expanse.
{4:17} Ephraim participates in idolatry, so send him away.
{4:18} Their feasting has been set aside; they have committed fornication after fornication. They love to bring disgrace to their protectors.
{4:19} The wind has fastened them to its wings, and they will be confounded because of their sacrifices.
{5:1} Hear this, priests, and pay attention, house of Israel, and listen closely, house of the king. For there is a judgment against you, because you have become a trap for those you watched over, and a net stretched out over Tabor.
{5:2} And you have led astray victims into the depths, though I am the teacher of them all.
{5:3} I know Ephraim, and Israel has not been hidden from me, yet now Ephraim has committed fornication, and Israel has been contaminated.
{5:4} They will not set their thoughts to return to their God, for the spirit of fornication is in the midst of them, and they have not known the Lord.
{5:5} And the arrogance of Israel will answer to his face. And Israel and Ephraim will fall in their iniquity, and even Judah will fall with them.
{5:6} With their flocks and their herds, they will go to seek the Lord, and they will not find him. He has taken himself away from them.
{5:7} They have sinned against the Lord. For they have conceived sons that are strangers. Now one month will devour them with all their own.
{5:8} Sound the bugle in Gibeah, the trumpet in Ramah. Shout in Bethaven, behind your back, O Benjamin.
{5:9} Ephraim will be in desolation on the day of correction, for within the tribes of Israel, I have revealed faith.
{5:10} The leaders of Judah have become like those who assume the end. I will pour my wrath over them like water.
{5:11} Ephraim has been enduring malicious slander and broken judgment, because he began to go after filth.
{5:12} And I will be like a moth to Ephraim, and like decay to the house of Judah.
{5:13} And Ephraim saw his own weakness, and Judah his chains. And Ephraim went to Assur, and he sent to the Avenging king. But he will not be able to heal you, nor is he able to release you from your chains.
{5:14} For I will be like a lioness to Ephraim, and like a lion’s offspring to the house of Judah. I myself will seize and go forth. I will take away, and there is no one who can rescue.
{5:15} I will go and return to my place, until you shall grow faint and seek my face.
{6:1} In their tribulation, they will arise early to me. Come, let us return to the Lord.
{6:2} For he has seized us, and he will heal us. He will strike, and he will cure us.
{6:3} He will revive us after two days; on the third day he will raise us up, and we will live in his sight. We will understand, and we will continue on, so that we may know the Lord. His landing place has been prepared like the first light of morning, and he will come to us like the early and the late rains of the land.
{6:4} What am I to do with you, Ephraim? What am I to do with you, Judah? Your mercy is like the morning mist, and like the dew passing away in the morning.
{6:5} Because of this, I have cut them with the prophets, I have slain them with the words of my mouth; and your opinions will depart like the light.
{6:6} For I desired mercy and not sacrifice, and knowledge of God more than holocausts.
{6:7} But they, like Adam, have transgressed the covenant; in this, they have been dishonest with me.
{6:8} Gilead is a city that manufactures idols; it has been tripped up by family relations.
{6:9} And, like those who rob with skillful words, they, by conspiring with the priests, bring a death sentence to travelers on a pilgrimage from Shechem; for they have been performing evil deeds.
{6:10} I have seen horrible things in the house of Israel; the fornications of Ephraim are there. Israel has been contaminated.
{6:11} But you, Judah, set a harvest for yourself, while I reverse the captivity of my people.
{7:1} When I was willing to heal Israel, the iniquity of Ephraim was discovered, and the malice of Samaria, for they had been manufacturing lies. And the thief steals from inside, the robber from outside.
{7:2} And, so that they may not say in their hearts that I am the one who has called to mind all of their wickedness: now their own inventions have encircled them. These things have happened in my presence.
{7:3} The king has rejoiced at their wickedness, and the leaders have rejoiced in their lies.
{7:4} They are all adulterers; like an oven heating up before baking, the city rested a little before the leaven was mixed in, until the whole was leavened.
{7:5} On the day of our king, the leaders began to be mad with wine; he extended his hand with those who fabricate illusions.
{7:6} For they have used their heart like an oven, while he laid snares for them; he slept through the night baking them, and by morning he himself was heated like a burning fire.
{7:7} They have all become hot like an oven, and they have devoured their judges. All their kings have fallen. There is no one who calls to me among them.
{7:8} Ephraim himself has been mingled with the nations. Ephraim has become like bread, baked under ashes, that has not been turned over.
{7:9} Strangers have devoured his strength, and he did not know it. And grey hairs also have spread across him, and he is ignorant of it.
{7:10} And the pride of Israel will be brought low before his face, for they have not returned to the Lord their God, nor have they sought him in all of this.
{7:11} And Ephraim has become like a pigeon that has been led astray, not having a heart; for they called upon Egypt, they went to the Assyrians.
{7:12} And when they will set out, I will spread my net over them. I will pull them down like the birds of the sky; I will cut them down in accordance with the reports of their meetings.
{7:13} Woe to them, for they have withdrawn from me. They will waste away because they have been dishonest with me. And I redeemed them, and they have spoken lies against me.
{7:14} And they have not cried out to me in their heart, but they howled on their beds. They have obsessed about wheat and wine; they have withdrawn from me.
{7:15} And I have educated them, and I have reinforced their arms; and they have imagined evil against me.
{7:16} They returned so that they might be without a yoke. They have become like a deceitful bow. Their leaders will fall by the sword because of the madness of their words. This is their derision in the land of Egypt.
{8:1} Let there be a trumpet in your throat, like an eagle over the house of the Lord, on behalf of those who have transgressed my covenant and violated my law.
{8:2} They will call on me: “O my God, we, Israel, know you.”
{8:3} Israel has thrown away goodness; the enemy will overtake him.
{8:4} They have reigned, but not by me. Leaders have emerged, and I did not recognize them. Their silver and their gold, they have made into idols for themselves, so that they might cross over.
{8:5} Your calf, Samaria, has been rejected. My fury has been enraged against them. How long will they be incapable of being cleansed?
{8:6} For it is itself also from Israel: a workman made it, and it is not God. For the calf of Samaria will be used for the webs of spiders.
{8:7} For they will sow wind and reap a whirlwind. It does not have a firm stalk; the bud will yield no grain. But if it does yield, strangers will eat it.
{8:8} Israel has been devoured. Now, among the nations, it has become like an unclean vessel.
{8:9} For they have gone up to Assur, a wild ass alone by himself. Ephraim has given presents to his lovers.
{8:10} But even when they will have brought the nations together for the sake of money, now I will assemble them. And they will rest for a little while from the burden of the king and the leaders.
{8:11} For Ephraim multiplied altars to sin, and sanctuaries have become an offense for him.
{8:12} I will write to him my intricate laws, which have been treated like strangers.
{8:13} They will offer victims, they will immolate flesh and will eat, and the Lord will not accept them. For now he will remember their iniquity, and he will repay their sins: they will be turned back to Egypt.
{8:14} And Israel has forgotten his Maker and has built shrines. And Judah has increased its fortified cities. And I will send fire upon his cities, and it will devour its structures.
{9:1} Do not choose to rejoice, Israel; do not celebrate as the crowds do. For you have been committing fornication against your God; you have loved a prize upon every threshing floor of wheat.
{9:2} The threshing floor and the oil press will not feed them, and the wine will deceive them.
{9:3} They will not dwell in the land of the Lord. Ephraim has been returned to Egypt, and he has eaten polluted things among the Assyrians.
{9:4} They will not offer a libation of wine to the Lord, and they will not please him. Their sacrifices will be like the bread of mourners. All those who eat it will be defiled. For their bread is of their soul; it will not enter into the house of the Lord.
{9:5} What will you do on the solemn day, on the day of the feast of the Lord?
{9:6} For, behold, they have been sent away by devastation. Egypt will gather them together; Memphis will bury them. Nettles will inherit their desired silver; the burr will be in their tabernacles.
{9:7} The days of visitation have arrived; the days of retribution are here. Know this, Israel: that the prophet was foolish, the spiritual man was mad, because of the multitude of your iniquities and the great extent of your foolishness.
{9:8} The watcher of Ephraim was with my God. The prophet has become a snare of ruin over all his ways; insanity is in the house of his God.
{9:9} They have sinned profoundly, just as in the days of Gibeah. He will remember their iniquity, and he will repay their sin.
{9:10} I discovered Israel like grapes in the desert. Like the first fruits of the fig tree, I saw their fathers on the end of its branches. But they went in to Baal-peor, and they have been estranged by intermingling, and they have become abominable, just like the things that they chose to love.
{9:11} Ephraim has chased away their glory like a bird: from birth, and from the womb, and from conception.
{9:12} And even if they should nurture their sons, I will make them without children among men. Yes, and woe to them, when I have withdrawn from them.
{9:13} Ephraim, as I see it, was a Tyre, founded by beauty. And Ephraim will lead his sons to execution.
{9:14} Give them, O Lord. What will you give them? Give them a womb without children, and dry breasts.
{9:15} All their wickedness is in Gilgal, for I held them there, in their hatred. Because of the malice of their inventions, I will expel them from my house. I will no longer say that I love them; all their leaders have retreated.
{9:16} Ephraim has been struck; their root has been dried out: by no means will they yield fruit. And even if they should conceive, I will execute the most beloved of their womb.
{9:17} My God will cast them aside because they have not listened to him; and they will be wanderers among the nations.
{10:1} Israel is a leafy vine, its fruit has been suitable to him. According to the multitude of his fruit, he has multiplied altars; according to the fertility of his land, he has abounded with graven images.
{10:2} His heart has been divided, so now they will cross the divide. He will break apart their images; he will plunder their sanctuaries.
{10:3} For now they will say, “We have no king. For we do not fear the Lord. And what would a king do for us?”
{10:4} You speak words about a useless vision, and you will strike a deal. And judgment will spring up like bitterness in the furrows of the field.
{10:5} The inhabitants of Samaria have worshipped the calf of Bethaven. For the keepers of its temple, who had exulted over it in its glory, and its people, have mourned over it because it migrated from there.
{10:6} If, indeed, it also has been offered to Assur, as a gift for the Avenging king, confusion will seize Ephraim, and Israel will be confounded by his own will.
{10:7} Samaria has required her king to pass by, like foam on the face of the water.
{10:8} And the heights of the idol, the sin of Israel, will be utterly destroyed. The burr and the thistle will rise up over their altars. And they will say to the mountains, ‘Cover us,’ and to the hills, ‘Fall on us.’
{10:9} From the days of Gibeah, Israel has sinned; in this, they remained firm. The battle in Gibeah against the sons of iniquity will not take hold of them.
{10:10} According to my desire, I will correct them. And the peoples will be gathered together over them, while they are chastised for their two iniquities.
{10:11} Ephraim is a heifer that has been taught to love treading out the grain, but I passed over the beauty of her neck. I will rise over Ephraim. Judah will plough; Jacob will break up the soil for himself.
{10:12} Sow for yourselves in justice, and harvest in the mouth of mercy; renew your fallow land. But the time when you will seek the Lord is the time when he will arrive who will teach you justice.
{10:13} You have ploughed impiety; you have harvested iniquity; you have eaten the fruit of lies. For you had confidence in your ways, in the multitude of your good fortunes.
{10:14} A tumult will arise among your people. And all your fortifications will be laid waste, just as Salman was destroyed by the house of him that judged Baal on the day of the battle, the mother having been crushed against her sons.
{10:15} So has Bethel done to you, before the face of your malicious wickedness.
{11:1} Just as the morning passes, so has the king of Israel passed by. For Israel was a child and I loved him; and out of Egypt I called my son.
{11:2} They called them, and so they departed before their face. They offered victims to the Baals, and they sacrificed to graven images.
{11:3} And I was like a foster father to Ephraim. I carried them in my arms. And they did not know that I healed them.
{11:4} I will draw them with the cords of Adam, with the bands of love. And I will be to them like one who raises the yoke over their jaws. And I will reach down to him so that he may eat.
{11:5} He will not return to the land of Egypt, but Assur himself will be the king over him, because they were not willing to be converted.
{11:6} The sword has begun in his cities, and it will consume his elect and devour their heads.
{11:7} And my people will long for my return. But a yoke will be imposed on them together, which will not be taken away.
{11:8} How will I provide for you, Ephraim; how will I protect you, Israel? How will I provide for you as for Adam; will I set you like Zeboiim? My heart has changed within me; together with my regret, it has been stirred up.
{11:9} I will not act on the fury of my wrath. I will not turn back to utterly destroy Ephraim. For I am God, and not man, the Divine in your midst, and I will not advance upon the city.
{11:10} They will walk after the Lord; he will roar like a lion. For he himself will roar, and the sons of the sea will dread.
{11:11} And they will fly like a bird out of Egypt, and like a dove from the land of the Assyrians. And I will arrange them in their own houses, says the Lord.
{11:12} Ephraim has besieged me with denials, and the house of Israel with deceit. But Judah went down as a witness before God and the holy ones of faith.
{12:1} Ephraim feeds on wind and follows burning heat; all day long he multiplies lies and desolation. And he has entered into a pact with the Assyrians, and he has carried oil into Egypt.
{12:2} Therefore, the judgment of the Lord is with Judah and a visitation is upon Jacob. He will repay him according to his ways and according to his inventions.
{12:3} In the womb, he supplanted his brother; for in his good fortune, he had been guided by an angel.
{12:4} And he prevailed over an angel, for he had been strengthened. He wept and petitioned him. He found him in Bethel, and there he has spoken to us.
{12:5} And the Lord God of hosts, the Lord is his memorial.
{12:6} And so, you should convert to your God. Keep mercy and judgment, and have hope in your God always.
{12:7} Canaan, in his hand is a deceitful balance, he has chosen false accusations.
{12:8} And Ephraim has said, “Nevertheless, I have become rich; I have found an idol for myself. All of my labors will not reveal to me the iniquity that I have committed.”
{12:9} And I, the Lord your God from the land of Egypt, nevertheless will cause you to dwell in tabernacles, just as during the days of the feast.
{12:10} And I have spoken through the prophets, and I have multiplied visions, and I have used parables through the hands of the prophets.
{12:11} If Gilead is an idol, then they have been sacrificing cattle in Gilgal to no purpose. For even their altars are like clutter on the soil of the field.
{12:12} Jacob fled into the region of Syria, and Israel served like a wife, and was served by a wife.
{12:13} Yet by a prophet the Lord led Israel out of Egypt, and he was served by a prophet.
{12:14} Ephraim has provoked me to wrath with his bitterness, and his blood will overcome him, and his Lord will requite him for his shamefulness.
{13:1} While Ephraim was speaking, a horror entered Israel, and he offended by Baal, and he died.
{13:2} And now they add that they will be sinning more. And they have made themselves an image cast from their silver, just like the image of idols; but the whole thing has been made by craftsmen. These say to them, “Sacrifice men, you who adore calves.”
{13:3} For this reason, they will be like the morning clouds, and like the morning dew that passes away, just like the dust that is driven by a whirlwind away from the threshing floor, and like the smoke from a chimney.
{13:4} But I am the Lord your God from the land of Egypt, and you will not know God apart from me, and there is no Savior except me.
{13:5} I knew you in the desert, in the land of solitude.
{13:6} According to their pastures, they have been filled up and have been satisfied. And they have lifted up their heart, and they have forgotten me.
{13:7} And I will be to them like a lioness, like a leopard in the way of the Assyrians.
{13:8} I will run to meet them like a bear that has been robbed of her young, and I will split open the middle of their liver. And I will devour them there like a lion; the beast of the field will tear them apart.
{13:9} Perdition is yours, Israel. Your help is only in me.
{13:10} Where is your king? Now, especially, let him save you in all your cities, and from your judges, about whom you said, “Give me kings and princes.”
{13:11} I will give you a king in my wrath, and I will take him away in my indignation.
{13:12} The iniquity of Ephraim has been bound; his sin has been engulfed.
{13:13} The pains of giving birth will reach him. He is an unwise son. For now he will not remain firm during the contrition of his sons.
{13:14} I will free them from the hand of death; from death I will redeem them. Death, I will be your death. Hell, I will be your deadly wound. Consolation is hidden from my eyes.
{13:15} For he will make a division among brothers. The Lord will bring a burning wind, rising up from the desert, and it will dry up his streams, and it will make his fountain desolate, and he will tear apart every collection of desirable useful things.
{14:1} Let Samaria perish, because she has urged her God towards bitterness. Let them perish by the sword, let their little ones be thrown down, and let their pregnant women be cut in two.
{14:2} Israel, convert to the Lord your God. For you have been ruined by your own iniquity.
{14:3} Take these words with you and return to the Lord. And say to him, “Remove all iniquity and accept the good. And we will repay the calves of our lips.
{14:4} Assur will not save us; we will not ride on horses. Neither will we say any more, ‘The works of our hands are our gods,’ for those that are in you will have mercy on the orphan.”
{14:5} I will heal their contrition; I will love them spontaneously. For my wrath has been turned away from them.
{14:6} I will be like the dew; Israel will spring forth like the lily, and his root will spread out like that of the cedars of Lebanon.
{14:7} His branches will advance, and his glory will be like the olive tree, and his fragrance will be like that of the cedars of Lebanon.
{14:8} They will be converted, sitting in his shadow. They will live on wheat, and they will grow like a vine. His memorial will be like the wine of the cedars of Lebanon.
{14:9} Ephraim will say, “What are idols to me anymore?” I will listen to him, and I will set him straight like a healthy spruce tree. Your fruit has been found by me.
{14:10} Who is wise and will understand this? Who has understanding and will know these things? For the ways of the Lord are straight, and the just will walk in them, but truly, the traitors will fall in them.
{1:1} The word of the Lord that came to Joel, the son of Pethuel.
{1:2} Listen to this, elders, and pay close attention, all inhabitants of the land. Did this ever happen in your days or in the days of your fathers?
{1:3} Talk this over with your sons, and your sons with their sons, and their sons with another generation.
{1:4} The locust has eaten what the caterpillar has left, and the beetle has eaten what the locust has left, and the mildew has eaten what the beetle has left.
{1:5} Rouse yourselves, you drunkards, and weep and wail, all you who delight in drinking wine; for it has been cut off from your mouth.
{1:6} For a nation has ascended over my land: strong and without number. His teeth are like the teeth of a lion, and his molars are like that of a lion’s young.
{1:7} He has put my vineyard into desolation, and he has pulled off the bark of my fig tree. He has stripped it bare and cast it away; its branches have become white.
{1:8} Lament like a betrothed virgin, wrapped in sackcloth at the loss of the husband of her youth.
{1:9} Sacrifice and libation have perished from the house of the Lord; the priests who are ministers of the Lord have mourned.
{1:10} The region has been depopulated, the soil has mourned. For the wheat has been devastated, the wine has been disfigured, the oil has languished.
{1:11} The farmers have been confounded, the vineyard workers have wailed over the crop and the barley, because the harvest of the field has perished.
{1:12} The vineyard is in ruin, and the fig tree has languished. The pomegranate tree, and the palm tree, and the fruit tree, and all the trees of the field have withered. For joy has been thrown into disorder before the sons of men.
{1:13} Priests, gird yourselves and lament. Ministers of the altars, wail. Enter, ministers of my God, lie in sackcloth. For sacrifice and libation have passed away from the house of your God.
{1:14} Sanctify a fast, call an assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of your God. And cry out to the Lord:
{1:15} “Ah, ah, ah, the day!” For the day of the Lord is near, and it will arrive, like a devastation, before the powerful.
{1:16} Has not your nourishment perished from before your eyes, joy and gladness from the house of our God?
{1:17} The mules have rotted in their own manure, the barns have been demolished, the wine cellars have been destroyed, because the grain has been ruined.
{1:18} Why have the animals groaned, the herds of cattle bellowed? because there is no pasture for them. Yes, and even the flocks of sheep have been lost.
{1:19} To you, O Lord, I will cry out, because fire has devoured the beauty of the wilderness, and the flame has burned all the trees of the countryside.
{1:20} Yes, and even the beasts of the field have gazed up at you, like the dry ground thirsting for rain, because the fountains of waters have dried up, and fire has devoured the beauty of the wilderness.
{2:1} Blow the trumpet in Zion, wail on my holy mountain, let all the inhabitants of the land be stirred up. For the day of the Lord is on its way; for it is near:
{2:2} a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and whirlwinds. Like the morning reaching over the mountains, they are a numerous and strong people. Nothing like them has existed since the beginning, nor will exist after them, even in the years of generation upon generation.
{2:3} Before their face is a devouring fire, and behind them is a burning flame. The land before them is like a lush garden, and behind them is a desolate desert, and there is no one who can escape them.
{2:4} Their appearance is like the appearance of horses, and they will rush forward like horsemen.
{2:5} Like the sound of a four-horse chariot, they will leap over the tops of the mountains. Like the sound of a burning flame devouring stubble, they are as a strong people prepared for battle.
{2:6} Before their face, the people will be tortured; each one’s appearance will retreat, as if into a jar.
{2:7} They will rush forward, as if they were strong. Like valiant warriors, they will ascend the wall. The men will advance, each one on his own way, and they will not turn aside from their path.
{2:8} And each one will not hem in his brother; every one will walk in his own rough path. Moreover, they will drop through the breach and not be harmed.
{2:9} They will advance into the city; they will rush through the wall. They will scale the houses; they will go in through the windows, like a thief.
{2:10} Before their face, the earth has trembled, the heavens have been moved. The sun and moon have been obscured, and the stars have retracted their splendor.
{2:11} And the Lord has bestowed his voice before the face of his army. For its military camps are very numerous; for they are strong and they carry out his word. For the day of the Lord is great and so very terrible, and who can withstand it?
{2:12} Now, therefore, the Lord says: “Be converted to me with your whole heart, in fasting and weeping and mourning.”
{2:13} And rend your hearts, and not your garments, and convert to the Lord your God. For he is gracious and merciful, patient and full of compassion, and steadfast despite ill will.
{2:14} Who knows if he might convert and forgive, and bequeath a blessing after him, a sacrifice and a libation to the Lord your God?
{2:15} Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call an assembly.
{2:16} Gather the people, sanctify the church, unite the elders, gather together the little ones and infants at the breast. Let the bridegroom depart from his bed, and the bride from her bridal chamber.
{2:17} Between the vestibule and the altar, the priests, the ministers of the Lord, will weep, and they will say: “Spare, O Lord, spare your people. And do not bequeath your inheritance into disgrace, so that the nations would rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’ ”
{2:18} The Lord has been zealous for his land, and he has spared his people.
{2:19} And the Lord responded, and he said to his people: “Behold, I will send you grain and wine and oil, and you will again be filled with them. And I will no longer give you disgrace among the Gentiles.
{2:20} And he who is from the North, I will drive far from you. And I will expel him into an impassable land, and into the desert, with his face opposite the Eastern sea, and his furthest part towards the furthest sea. And his stench will ascend, and his rottenness will ascend, because he has acted arrogantly.
{2:21} Earth, do not be afraid. Exult and rejoice. For the Lord has great esteem for what he has done.
{2:22} Animals of the countryside, do not be afraid. For the beauty of the wilderness has sprung forth. For the tree has borne its fruit. The fig tree and the vine have bestowed their virtue.
{2:23} And you, sons of Zion, exult and rejoice in the Lord your God. For he has given you a teacher of justice, and he will make the early and the late rains descend to you, just as it was in the beginning.
{2:24} And the threshing floors will be filled with grain, and the presses will overflow with wine and oil.
{2:25} And I will repay you for the years which the locust, and the beetle, and the mildew, and the caterpillar consumed: my great strength which I sent upon you.
{2:26} And you will eat with enjoyment, and you will be satisfied, and you will praise the name of the Lord your God, who has worked miracles with you, and my people will not be confounded forever.
{2:27} And you will know that I am in the midst of Israel, and I am the Lord your God, and there is no other, and my people will not be confounded forever.
{2:28} And after this, it will happen that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters will prophesy; your elders will dream dreams, and your youths will see visions.
{2:29} Moreover, in those days I will pour out my spirit upon my servants and handmaids.
{2:30} And I will grant wonders in the sky and on earth: blood and fire and the vapor of smoke.
{2:31} The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord shall arrive.
{2:32} And it will happen that everyone who will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved. For on Mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and in the remnant whom the Lord will call, there will be salvation, just as the Lord has said.
{3:1} For, behold, in those days and in that time, when I will have converted the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,
{3:2} I will gather all the Gentiles, and will lead them into the valley of Jehoshaphat. And there I will dispute with them over my people, and over Israel, my inheritance, for they have scattered them among the nations and have divided my land.
{3:3} And they have cast lots over my people; and the boy they have placed in the brothel, and the girl they have sold for wine, so that they might drink.
{3:4} Truly, what is there between you and me, Tyre and Sidon and all the distant places of the Philistines? How will you take vengeance on me? And if you were to revenge yourselves against me, I would deliver a repayment to you, quickly and soon, upon your head.
{3:5} For you have carried away my silver and gold. And my desirable and most beautiful, you have taken into your shrines.
{3:6} And you, sons of Judah and sons of Jerusalem, you have sold the sons of the Greeks, so that you might drive them far from their own territory.
{3:7} Behold, I will raise them up from the place into which you have sold them, and I will turn back your retribution on your own head.
{3:8} And I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hands of the sons of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, a distant nation, for the Lord has spoken.
{3:9} Proclaim this among the Gentiles: “Sanctify a war, raise up the strong. Approach, ascend, all men of war.
{3:10} Cut your ploughs into swords and your hoes into spears. Let the weak say, ‘For I am strong.’
{3:11} Break out and advance, all nations of the world, and gather together. There the Lord will cause all your strong ones to meet death.”
{3:12} Let them arise and ascend to the valley of Jehoshaphat. For there I will sit, so as to judge all the nations of the world.
{3:13} Send forth the sickles, because the harvest has matured. Advance and descend, for the press is full, the pressing room is overflowing. For their malice has been increasing.
{3:14} Nations, nations in the valley of being cut to pieces: for the day of the Lord fittingly takes place in the valley of being cut to pieces.
{3:15} The sun and the moon have been darkened, and the stars have withdrawn their splendor.
{3:16} And the Lord will roar from Zion and utter his voice from Jerusalem. And the heavens and the earth will be moved. And the Lord will be the hope of his people and the strength of the sons of Israel.
{3:17} And you will know that I am the Lord your God, dwelling on Zion, my holy mountain. And Jerusalem will be holy, and strangers will not cross through it anymore.
{3:18} And it will happen, in that day, that the mountains will drip sweetness, and the hills will flow with milk. And the waters will pass through all the rivers of Judah. And a fountain will go forth from the house of the Lord, and it will irrigate the desert of thorns.
{3:19} Egypt will be in desolation, and Edom will be a wilderness destroyed, because of what they have unfairly done to the sons of Judah, and because they have shed innocent blood in their land.
{3:20} And Judea will be inhabited forever, and Jerusalem for generation upon generation.
{3:21} And I will cleanse their blood, which I had not cleansed. And the Lord will remain in Zion.
{1:1} The words of Amos, who was among the shepherds of Tekoa, which he saw about Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.
{1:2} And he said: The Lord will roar from Zion, and from Jerusalem he will utter his voice. And the beautiful pastures have mourned, and the top of Carmel has become dry.
{1:3} Thus says the Lord: For three wicked deeds of Damascus, and for four, I will not convert it, in so far as they have threshed Gilead into iron wagons.
{1:4} And I will send fire onto the house of Hazael, and it will devour the houses of Ben-hadad.
{1:5} And I will shatter the crowbar of Damascus, and I will destroy the inhabitants of the camp of the idol and the holder of the scepter of the house of pleasure; and the people of Syria will be transferred to Cyrene, says the Lord.
{1:6} Thus says the Lord: For three wicked deeds of Gaza, and for four, I will not convert it, in so far as they have carried out an excellent captivity, so as to enclose them in Idumea.
{1:7} And I will send a fire onto the wall of Gaza, and it will devour its buildings.
{1:8} And I will destroy the inhabitant from Ashdod, and the holder of the scepter of Ashkelon. And I will turn my hand against Ekron, and the remainder of the Philistines will perish, says the Lord God.
{1:9} Thus says the Lord: For three wicked deeds of Tyre, and for four, I will not convert it, in so far as they have completed an excellent captivity in Idumea and have not considered the bond among brothers.
{1:10} And I will send a fire onto the wall of Tyre, and it will devour its buildings.
{1:11} Thus says the Lord: For three wicked deeds of Edom, and for four, I will not convert him, in so far as he has been pursuing his brother with the sword and has outraged his brother’s compassion, and he has gone beyond his anger and has held onto his indignation until the end.
{1:12} I will send a fire onto Teman, and it will devour the buildings of Bozrah.
{1:13} Thus says the Lord: For three wicked deeds of the sons of Ammon, and for four, I will not convert him, in so far as he has cut up the pregnant women of Gilead, so as to expand his limits.
{1:14} And I will ignite a fire on the wall of Rabbah. And it will devour its buildings, with wailing on the day of war, and with a whirlwind on the day of commotion.
{1:15} And Melchom will go into captivity, he and his leaders together, says the Lord.
{2:1} Thus says the Lord: For three wicked deeds of Moab, and for four, I will not convert him, in so far as he has burned the bones of the king of Idumea, all the way to ashes.
{2:2} And I will send a fire onto Moab, and it will devour the buildings of Kerioth. And Moab will die with a noise, with the blare of a trumpet.
{2:3} And I will destroy the judge in their midst, and I will execute all his leaders with him, says the Lord.
{2:4} Thus says the Lord: For three wicked deeds of Judah, and for four, I will not convert him, in so far as he has rejected the law of the Lord and has not kept his commandments. For their idols, which their fathers followed, have deceived them.
{2:5} And I will send a fire onto Judah, and it will devour the buildings of Jerusalem.
{2:6} Thus says the Lord: For three wicked deeds of Israel, and for four, I will not convert him, in so far as he has sold the just for silver and the poor for shoes.
{2:7} They grind the heads of the poor into the dust of the earth, and they divert the way of the humble. And the son, as well as his father, have gone to the same girl, so that they outrage my holy name.
{2:8} And they have lain on garments taken in pledge next to every altar. And they drank the wine of the damned in the house of their God.
{2:9} Yet I exterminated the Amorites before their face, whose height was like the height of cedars, and whose strength was like the oak. And I crushed his fruit from above and his roots below.
{2:10} It is I who caused you to ascend from the land of Egypt, and I led you in the wilderness for forty years, so that you might possess the land of the Amorite.
{2:11} And I stirred up prophets from your sons, and Nazirites from your young men. Is it not so, sons of Israel, says the Lord?
{2:12} Yet you would offer wine to the Nazirites, and you would command the prophets, saying: “Do not prophesy.”
{2:13} Behold, I will creak under you, just as a wagon creaks that is laden with hay.
{2:14} And flight will perish from the swift, and the strong will not maintain his strength, and the healthy will not save his life.
{2:15} And one holding the bow will not stand firm, and the swift of foot will not be saved, and the rider on the horse will not save his life.
{2:16} And the stout of heart among the strong will flee away naked in that day, says the Lord.
{3:1} Listen to the word which the Lord has spoken about you, sons of Israel, concerning the whole family that I led out of the land of Egypt, saying:
{3:2} I have known only you in such a way, out of all the families of the earth. For this reason, I will visit upon you all your iniquities.
{3:3} Will two walk together, unless they have agreed to do so?
{3:4} Will a lion roar in the forest, unless he has prey? Will the lion’s young cry out from his den, unless he has taken something?
{3:5} Will a bird fall into a snare on the ground, if there is no bird-catcher? Will a snare be taken away from the ground, before it has caught something?
{3:6} Will the trumpet sound in a city, and the people not become frightened? Will there be disaster in a city, which the Lord has not done?
{3:7} For the Lord God does not fulfill his word, unless he has revealed his secret to his servants the prophets.
{3:8} The lion will roar, who will not fear? The Lord God has spoken, who will not prophesy?
{3:9} Let it be heard in the buildings of Ashdod and in the buildings of the land of Egypt, and say: Gather together across the mountains of Samaria, and see the many absurdities in its midst, and those who are suffering false accusations in its inner most places.
{3:10} And they do not know how to make it right, says the Lord, storing up iniquity and plunder in their buildings.
{3:11} Because of these things, thus says the Lord God: The land will be encircled and squeezed together. And your strength will be drawn away from you, and your buildings will be torn apart.
{3:12} Thus says the Lord: Just as if a shepherd had rescued two legs from the mouth of a lion, or the tip of an ear, so also will the sons of Israel be rescued, who dwell in the sick bed of Samaria, and in the cot of Damascus.
{3:13} Listen and give testimony in the house of Jacob, says the Lord God of hosts:
{3:14} that in the day, when I will begin to visit the betrayals of Israel, I will visit upon him and upon the altars of Bethel. And the horns of the altars will be cut off and will fall to the ground.
{3:15} And I will strike the winter house with the summer house; and the houses of ivory will perish, and many buildings will be torn apart, says the Lord.
{4:1} Listen to this word, you fat cows that are on the mountain of Samaria, you who make false accusations against the destitute and crush the poor, who say to your nobles, “Bring, and we will drink.”
{4:2} The Lord God has sworn in his holiness: behold, the days that will overcome you and that will impale you on poles, and that will place what remains of you in boiling pots.
{4:3} And you will go out through the breaches, one over another, and you will be cast out into Harmon, says the Lord.
{4:4} Come to Bethel and behave impiously, to Gilgal and increase betrayals. And bring daybreak to your victims, your tithes in three days.
{4:5} And offer a sacrifice of praise with leaven. And call for voluntary oblations, and announce it. For such is your will, sons of Israel, says the Lord God.
{4:6} Therefore, because of this, I have given you dull teeth in every one of your cities, and a lack of bread in all your places. And you have not been turned back towards me, says the Lord.
{4:7} Therefore, I have withheld the rains from you, when there were still three months left until the harvest. And I rained on one city, and I did not rain on another city; one part was rained on, and the part on which I did not rain, dried out.
{4:8} And two and three cities went to one city, in order to drink water, and they were not satisfied. And you did not return to me, says the Lord.
{4:9} I struck you with a burning wind and with yellowing; the caterpillar has consumed your many gardens and your vineyards, your olive groves and your fig groves. And you did not return to me, says the Lord.
{4:10} I sent death to you by way of Egypt; I struck your youths with the sword, even bringing captivity to your horses. And I made the stench of your camp ascend into your nostrils. And you did not return to me, says the Lord.
{4:11} I overturned you, just as God overturned Sodom and Gomorrah, and you became like an ember seized from the fire. And you did not return to me, says the Lord.
{4:12} Because of this, I will do these things to you, Israel. But after I have done these things to you, Israel, be prepared to meet your God.
{4:13} For behold, he who forms the mountains and creates the wind and announces his speech to man, who makes the morning mist and steps over the heights of the earth: the Lord God of hosts is his name.
{5:1} Listen to this word, which I lift over you in lamentation. The house of Israel has fallen, and it will no longer rise again.
{5:2} The virgin of Israel has been thrown onto her land, there is no one who can raise her up.
{5:3} For thus says the Lord God: In the city from which a thousand departed, a hundred will remain, and in that from which a hundred departed, ten will remain, in the house of Israel.
{5:4} For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel: Seek me and you will live.
{5:5} But do not be willing to seek Bethel, and do not be willing to enter Gilgal, and you will not cross into Beer-sheba. For Gilgal will be led into captivity, and Bethel will be useless.
{5:6} Seek the Lord and live. Otherwise, the house of Joseph may be destroyed with fire, and it will devour, and there will be no one who can extinguish Bethel.
{5:7} You turn judgment into wormwood, and you abandon justice on earth.
{5:8} The Maker of Arcturus and Orion, who turns darkness into daybreak and who changes day into night; who calls forth the waters of the sea and who pours them out over the face of the earth: The Lord is his name.
{5:9} It is he who smiles destruction on the healthy, and who brings pillaging upon the powerful.
{5:10} They held hatred for the one who corrects at the gate, and they have abhorred the one who speaks perfectly.
{5:11} Therefore, on his behalf, because you have torn apart the poor and stolen choice prey from him: you will build houses with square stones and you will not dwell in them; you will plant the most delightful vineyards, and you will not drink wine from them.
{5:12} For I know your many wicked deeds and the strength of your sins, you enemies of the just, accepting bribes, and depriving the poor at the gate.
{5:13} Therefore, the prudent will be silent at that time, for it is an evil time.
{5:14} Seek good and not evil, so that you may live. And the Lord God of hosts will be with you, just as you have asked.
{5:15} Hate evil and love good, and establish judgment at the gate. Perhaps then the Lord God of hosts may have mercy on the remnant of Joseph.
{5:16} Therefore, thus says the Lord God of hosts, the Sovereign: In all the streets, there will be wailing. And in every place where they are outdoors, they will say, “Woe, woe!” And they will call the farmer to mourn, and those who know mourning to lamentation.
{5:17} And in all the vineyards there will be wailing. For I will cross through your midst, says the Lord.
{5:18} Woe to those who desire the day of the Lord. What is it to you? The day of the Lord is this: darkness and not light.
{5:19} It is as if a man flees from the face of a lion, only to have a bear meet him; or, he enters a house and leans with his hand against the wall, only to have a snake bite him.
{5:20} Will not the day of the Lord be darkness and not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?
{5:21} I hate and have rejected your feasts; and I will not accept the odor from your gatherings.
{5:22} For if you offer me holocausts and your gifts, I will not receive them; and I will not look upon the vows of your fatness.
{5:23} Take away from me the tumult of your songs, and I will not listen to the canticles of your lyre.
{5:24} And judgment will be revealed like water, and justice like a mighty torrent.
{5:25} Was it you who offered victims and sacrifices to me in the desert for forty years, house of Israel?
{5:26} And you carried a tabernacle for your Moloch and the image of your idols: the star of your god, which you made for yourselves.
{5:27} And I will cause you to go into captivity across Damascus, says the Lord. The God of hosts is his name.
{6:1} Woe to you who have been wealthy in Zion, and to you who have confidence in the mountain of Samaria: aristocrats, heads of the people, who advance with a retinue into the house of Israel.
{6:2} Cross over to Calneh and see, and go from there into Hamath the great, and descend into Gath of the Philistines, and to the best kingdoms of these, if their limits are wider than your limits.
{6:3} You have been set aside for the day of disaster, and you approach the throne of iniquity.
{6:4} You sleep on beds of ivory, and you are lustful on your couches. You devour lambs from the flock and calves from the midst of the herd.
{6:5} You sing to the sound of stringed instruments; they consider themselves to have the musical abilities of David.
{6:6} You drink wine in bowls, and you anoint with the best ointments; and they suffer nothing over the grief of Joseph.
{6:7} Because of this, now they will depart at the head of those who go into captivity; and the faction of the lustful will be removed.
{6:8} The Lord God has sworn by his own soul, the Lord God of hosts says: I detest the arrogance of Jacob, and I hate his houses, and I will hand over the city with its inhabitants.
{6:9} For if there were ten men remaining in one house, even they will die.
{6:10} And his closest relative will steal him away and will burn him, so that he may carry the bones out of the house. And he will say to him that is in the inner most rooms of the house, “Now is there any left that still belongs to you?”
{6:11} And he will answer, “It is finished.” And he will say to him, “Be silent and do not call to mind the name of the Lord.”
{6:12} For behold, the Lord has commanded, and he will strike the greater house with catastrophes, and the lesser house with divisions.
{6:13} Can horses gallop across rocks, or is anyone able to plough with gazelles? For you have turned judgment into bitterness and the fruit of justice into wormwood.
{6:14} You rejoice in emptiness. You say, “Have we not, by our own strength, taken horns for ourselves?”
{6:15} For behold, house of Israel, I will raise up a people over you, says the Lord God of hosts, and they will crush you from the entrance of Hamath all the way to the burning of the desert.
{7:1} These things the Lord God has revealed to me. And behold, the locust was formed at the beginning of the germination during the latter rains, and behold, the latter rains came after the thundering of the king.
{7:2} And it happened, when they had finally eaten all the grass in the land, that I said, “Lord God, be gracious, I beg you. Who will raise up Jacob, for he is little?”
{7:3} The Lord has been merciful about this. “It will not be,” said the Lord.
{7:4} These things the Lord God has revealed to me. And behold, the Lord God called for judgment unto fire, and it devoured the manifold abyss, and it consumed simultaneously in every direction.
{7:5} And I said, “Lord God, cease, I beg you. Who will raise up Jacob, for he is little?”
{7:6} The Lord has been merciful about this. “And even this will not be,” said the Lord God.
{7:7} These things the Lord revealed to me. And behold, the Lord was standing near a plastered wall, and in his hand was a mason’s trowel.
{7:8} And the Lord said to me, “What do you see, Amos?” And I said, “A mason’s trowel.” And the Lord said, “Behold, I will place the trowel in the midst of my people Israel. I will no longer plaster over them.
{7:9} And the heights of the idol will be demolished, and the sanctuaries of Israel will be desolate. And I will rise up against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.”
{7:10} And Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying: “Amos has rebelled against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land is not able to withstand all his sermons.
{7:11} For Amos says this: ‘Jeroboam will die by the sword, and Israel will be taken captive out of their own land.’ ”
{7:12} And Amaziah said to Amos, “You, seer, go out and flee into the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there.
{7:13} And in Bethel, do not prophesy any longer, because it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is the house of the kingdom.”
{7:14} And Amos responded, and he said to Amasias, “I am not a prophet, and I am not the son of a prophet, but I am a herdsman plucking from wild fig trees.
{7:15} And the Lord took me, when I was following the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ ”
{7:16} And now, hear the word of the Lord: You say, “You will not prophesy about Israel, and you will not rain your words upon the house of the idol.”
{7:17} Because of that, the Lord says this: “Your wife will fornicate in the city, and your sons and your daughters will fall by the sword, and your soil will be measured with a string. And you will die on polluted land, and Israel will be taken into captivity out of their land.”
{8:1} These things the Lord has revealed to me. And behold, a hook to draw down fruit.
{8:2} And he said, “What do you see, Amos?” And I said, “A hook to draw down fruit.” And the Lord said to me, “The end has come for my people Israel. I will no longer pass through them.”
{8:3} And the hinges of the temple will creak in that day, says the Lord God. Many will die. Silence will be thrown away in all places.
{8:4} Hear this, you who crush the poor and who make those in need of land to do without.
{8:5} You say, “When will the first day of the month be over, so we can sell our wares, and the Sabbath, so we can open the grain: in order that we may decrease the measure, and increase the price, and substitute deceitful scales,
{8:6} in order that we may possess the destitute with money, and the poor for a pair of shoes, and may sell even the refuse of the grain?”
{8:7} The Lord has sworn by the arrogance of Jacob: I will not forget, even to the end, all their works.
{8:8} Will not the earth shudder over this, and all its inhabitants mourn, and all rise up like a river, and be cast out, and flow away like the river of Egypt?
{8:9} And it will be in that day, says the Lord God, that the sun will decline at midday, and I will cause the earth to become dark on the day of light.
{8:10} And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your hymns into lamentation. And I will put sackcloth over every one of your backs, and baldness on every head. And I will begin it like the mourning for an only-begotten son, and complete it like a bitter day.
{8:11} Behold, the days pass, says the Lord, and I will send a famine on the earth: not a famine of bread, nor of thirst for water, but for hearing the word of the Lord.
{8:12} And they will move even from sea to sea, and from the North all the way to the East. They will wander around seeking the word of the Lord, and they will not find it.
{8:13} In that day, beautiful virgins, and young men, will fail because of thirst.
{8:14} They swear by the offense of Samaria, and they say, “As your God lives, Dan,” and “The way of Beer-sheba lives.” And they will fall, and they will not rise up any more.
{9:1} I saw the Lord standing over an altar, and he said: “Strike the hinges, and let the lintels be shaken. For there is avarice at the head of them all, and I will execute the very last of them with the sword. There will be no escape for them. They will flee, and he who flees from among them will not be saved.
{9:2} If they descend even to the underworld, from there my hand will draw them out; and if they ascend even to the sky, from there will I pull them down.
{9:3} And if they were hiding at the top of Carmel, when searching there, I would steal them away, and if they conceal themselves from my eyes in the depths of the sea, I will command the serpent there and he will bite them.
{9:4} And if they go into captivity in the sight of their enemies, there I will command the sword, and it will kill them. And I will set my eyes over them for harm and not for good.”
{9:5} And the Lord God of hosts, he touches the earth and it will melt. And all who dwell in it will mourn. And everyone will rise up like a river, and will flow away like the river of Egypt.
{9:6} He establishes his ascension into heaven, and he has founded his bundle on the earth. He calls the waters of the ocean, and pours them over the face of the earth. The Lord is his name.
{9:7} Sons of Israel, are you not like the sons of the Ethiopians to me, says the Lord? Did I not cause Israel to rise up out of the land of Egypt, and the Philistines out of Cappadocia, and the Syrians out of Cyrene?
{9:8} Behold, the eyes of the Lord God are on the sinning kingdom, and I will wipe it from the face of the earth. Though truly, when destroying, I will not wipe away the house of Jacob, says the Lord.
{9:9} For behold, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all the nations, as wheat is sifted in a sieve. And not even one small stone will fall to the ground.
{9:10} All the sinners of my people will die by the sword. They say, “Disaster will not come near us, and it will not overcome us.”
{9:11} In that day, I will raise up the tabernacle of David, which is fallen. And I will repair the breaches in its walls, and I will restore that which collapsed. And I will rebuild it, just as in the days of antiquity,
{9:12} so that they may possess the remnant of Idumea and all the nations, for my name has been invoked over them, says the Lord who does this.
{9:13} Behold, the days pass, says the Lord, and the plower will overtake the harvester, and the treader of grapes will overtake the sower of seed. And the mountains will drip sweetness, and every hill will be cultivated.
{9:14} And I will turn back the captivity of my people Israel. And they will rebuild the deserted cities and inhabit them. And they will plant vineyards and drink their wine. And they will create gardens and eat their fruits.
{9:15} And I will plant them on their own soil. And I will no longer root them out of their own land, which I have given them, says the Lord your God.
{1:1} The vision of Obadiah. Thus says the Lord God to Edom: We have heard a report from the Lord, and he has sent an envoy to the nations: “Arise, and let us together rise up in battle against him.”
{1:2} Behold, I have made you little among the nations. You are greatly contemptible.
{1:3} The arrogance of your heart has lifted you up, living in the clefts of the rocks, exalting your throne. You say in your heart, “Who will pull me down to the ground?”
{1:4} Though you have been lifted high like an eagle, and though you have placed your nest among the stars, from there I will pull you down, says the Lord.
{1:5} If thieves had approached you, if robbers by night, how would you have remained unnoticed? Would they not have stolen all that they wanted? If the grape-pickers had approached you, would they not have left you at least a cluster?
{1:6} In what way have they been examining Esau? They investigated his secrets.
{1:7} They have sent you out all the way to the limit. All the men of your alliance have deceived you. Your men of peace have prevailed against you. Those who eat with you will place snares under you. There is no foresight in him.
{1:8} Shall I not, in that day, says the Lord, wipe away understanding from Idumea and foresight from the mount of Esau?
{1:9} And your strong from the Meridian will be afraid, so that man may perish from the mount of Esau.
{1:10} Because of the execution, and because of the iniquity against your brother Jacob, confusion will cover you, and you will pass away into eternity.
{1:11} In the day when you stood against him, when strangers seized his army, and foreigners entered into his gates, and they cast lots over Jerusalem: you also were just like one of them.
{1:12} But you shall not show disdain for the day of your brother in the day of his sojourn. And you shall not rejoice over the sons of Judah in the day of their perdition. And you shall not magnify your mouth in the day of anguish.
{1:13} And neither shall you enter into the gate of my people in the day of their ruin. And neither shall you also show disdain for his troubles in the day of his desolation. And you shall not send out against his army in the day of his desolation.
{1:14} Neither shall you stand at the exits to execute those who will flee. And you shall not enclose their remnant in the day of tribulation.
{1:15} For the day of the Lord is near, over all nations. Just as you have done, so will it be done to you. He will turn back your retribution on your own head.
{1:16} For in the manner that you drank on my holy mountain, so shall all nations drink continually. And they will drink, and they will absorb, and they will be as if they were not.
{1:17} And on mount Zion there will be salvation, and it will be holy. And the house of Jacob will possess those who had possessed them.
{1:18} And the house of Jacob will be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau stubble. And they will be set on fire among them, and they will devour them. And there will be no remnant of the house of Esau, for the Lord has spoken.
{1:19} And those who are towards the South, and who are in the camps of the Philistines, will inherit the mount of Esau. And they will possess the region of Ephraim, and the region of Samaria. And Benjamin will possess Gilead.
{1:20} And the exiles of this army of the sons of Israel, all the places of the Canaanites all the way to Sarepta, and the exiles of Jerusalem who are in Bosphoro, will possess the cities of the South.
{1:21} And the saviors will ascend to mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau. And the kingdom will be for the Lord.
{1:1} And the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying:
{1:2} Rise and go to Nineveh, the great city, and preach in it. For its malice has ascended before my eyes.
{1:3} And Jonah rose in order to flee from the face of the Lord to Tarshish. And he went down to Joppa and found a ship bound for Tarshish. And he paid its fare, and he went down into it, in order to go with them to Tarshish from the face of the Lord.
{1:4} But the Lord sent a great wind into the sea. And a great tempest took place in the sea, and the ship was in danger of being crushed.
{1:5} And the mariners were afraid, and the men cried out to their god. And they threw the containers that were in the ship into the sea in order to lighten it of them. And Jonah went down into the interior of the ship, and he fell into a painful deep sleep.
{1:6} And the helmsman approached him, and he said to him, “Why are you weighed down with sleep? Rise, call upon your God, so perhaps God will be mindful of us and we might not perish.”
{1:7} And a man said to his shipmate, “Come, and let us cast lots, so that we may know why this disaster is upon us.” And they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah.
{1:8} And they said to him: “Explain to us what is the reason that this disaster is upon us. What is your work? Which is your country? And where are you going? Or which people are you from?”
{1:9} And he said to them, “I am Hebrew, and I fear the Lord God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”
{1:10} And the men were greatly afraid, and they said to him, “Why have you done this?” (For the men knew that he was fleeing from the face of the Lord, because he had told them.)
{1:11} And they said to him, “What are we to do with you, so that the sea will cease for us?” For the sea flowed and swelled.
{1:12} And he said to them, “Take me, and cast me into the sea, and the sea will cease for you. For I know that it is because of me that this great tempest has come upon you.”
{1:13} And the men were rowing, so as to return to dry land, but they did not succeed. For the sea flowed and swelled against them.
{1:14} And they cried out to the Lord, and they said, “We beseech you, Lord, do not let us perish for this man’s life, and do not attribute to us innocent blood. For you, Lord, have done just as it pleased you.”
{1:15} And they took Jonah and cast him into the sea. And the sea was stilled from its fury.
{1:16} And the men feared the Lord greatly, and they sacrificed victims to the Lord, and they made vows.
{2:1} And the Lord prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights.
{2:2} And Jonah prayed to the Lord, his God, from the belly of the fish.
{2:3} And he said: “I cried out to the Lord from my tribulation, and he heeded me. From the belly of hell, I cried out, and you heeded my voice.
{2:4} And you have thrown me into the deep, in the heart of the sea, and a flood has encircled me. All your whirlpools and your waves have passed over me.
{2:5} And I said: I am expelled from the sight of your eyes. Yet, truly, I will see your holy temple again.
{2:6} The waters surrounded me, even to the soul. The abyss has walled me in. The ocean has covered my head.
{2:7} I descended to the base of the mountains. The bars of the earth have enclosed me forever. And you will raise up my life from corruption, Lord, my God.
{2:8} When my soul was in anguish within me, I called to mind the Lord, so that my prayer might come to you, to your holy temple.
{2:9} Those who in vain observe vanities, abandon their own mercy.
{2:10} But I, with a voice of praise, will sacrifice to you. I will repay whatever I have vowed to the Lord, because of my salvation.”
{2:11} And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
{3:1} And the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying:
{3:2} Rise, and go to Nineveh, the great city. And preach in it the preaching that I say to you.
{3:3} And Jonah rose, and he went to Nineveh in accordance with the word of the Lord. And Nineveh was a great city of three days’ journey.
{3:4} And Jonah began to enter into the city one day’s journey. And he cried out and said, “Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed.”
{3:5} And the men of Nineveh believed in God. And they proclaimed a fast, and they put on sackcloth, from the greatest all the way to the least.
{3:6} And word reached the king of Nineveh. And he rose from his throne, and he threw off his robe from himself and was clothed in sackcloth, and he sat in ashes.
{3:7} And he cried out and spoke: “In Nineveh, from the mouth of the king and of his princes, let it be said: Men and beasts and oxen and sheep may not taste anything. Neither shall they feed or drink water.
{3:8} And let men and beasts be covered with sackcloth, and let them cry out to the Lord with strength, and may man be converted from his evil way, and from the iniquity that is in their hands.
{3:9} Who knows if God may turn and forgive, and may turn away from his furious wrath, so that we might not perish?”
{3:10} And God saw their works, that they had been converted from their evil way. And God took pity on them, concerning the harm that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.
{4:1} And Jonah was afflicted with a great affliction, and he was angry.
{4:2} And he prayed to the Lord, and he said, “I beg you, Lord, was this not my word, when I was still in my own land? Because of this, I knew beforehand to flee into Tarshish. For I know that you are a lenient and merciful God, patient and great in compassion, and forgiving despite ill will.
{4:3} And now, Lord, I ask you to take my life from me. For it is better for me to die than to live.”
{4:4} And the Lord said, “Do you really think you are right to be angry?”
{4:5} And Jonah went out of the city, and he sat opposite the east of the city. And he made himself a shelter there, and he was sitting under it in the shadow, until he might see what would befall the city.
{4:6} And the Lord God prepared an ivy, and it ascended over the head of Jonah so as to be a shadow over his head, and to protect him (for he had labored hard). And Jonah rejoiced because of the ivy, with great rejoicing.
{4:7} And God prepared a worm, when dawn approached on the next day, and it struck the ivy, and it dried up.
{4:8} And when the sun had risen, the Lord ordered a hot and burning wind. And the sun beat down on the head of Jonah, and he burned. And he petitioned for his soul that he might die, and he said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”
{4:9} And the Lord said to Jonah, “Do you really think that you are right to be angry because of the ivy?” And he said, “I am right to be angry even unto death.”
{4:10} And the Lord said, “You grieve for the ivy, for which you have not labored and which you did not cause to grow, though it had been born during one night, and during one night perished.
{4:11} And shall I not spare Nineveh, the great city, in which there are more than one hundred and twenty thousand men, who do not know the difference between their right and their left, and many beasts?”
{1:1} The word of the Lord that came to Micah the Moreshethite, in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw about Samaria and Jerusalem.
{1:2} All peoples, listen. And may the earth and its fullness pay attention. And may the Lord God be a witness to you, the Lord from his holy temple.
{1:3} For behold, the Lord will go forth from his place. And he will descend, and he will trample over the high places of the earth.
{1:4} And the mountains will be consumed under him, and the valleys will be torn apart, like wax before the face of fire, and like waters that rush swiftly downward.
{1:5} All this is for the wickedness of Jacob and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the wickedness of Jacob? Is it not Samaria? And what is the loftiness of Judah? Is it not Jerusalem?
{1:6} And I will place Samaria like a pile of stones in the field, when a vineyard is planted. And I will pull down its stones into the valley, and I will reveal her foundations.
{1:7} And all her graven images will be cut to pieces, and all her rewards will be burned with fire, and I will place all her idols in perdition. For they have been gathered together from the pay of a kept woman, and even to the pay of a kept woman, they will return.
{1:8} I will lament and wail about this. I will go out despoiled and naked. I will make a howl like the dragons, and a mourning like the ostriches.
{1:9} For her wound has been in despair. For it has come even to Judah. It has touched the gate of my people, even to Jerusalem.
{1:10} Do not be willing to announce it in Gath; may you not lament with tears. In the house of Dust, besprinkle yourselves with dust.
{1:11} And cross over to your dwelling place, Beauty, bewildered by disgrace. She did not depart, who dwells at the place of departure. The House nearby, which remained firm by herself, will receive mourning from you.
{1:12} For she has been weakened in goodness, who dwells in bitterness. For disaster has descended from the Lord to the gate of Jerusalem.
{1:13} A tumult of four-horse chariots has stupefied the inhabitants of Lachish. The beginning has been sin for the daughter of Zion, because in you have been found the evil deeds of Israel.
{1:14} Because of this, she will send emissaries to the inheritance of Gath: the house of Lying in order to deceive the kings of Israel.
{1:15} Nevertheless, I will lead an heir to you, who dwell in Mareshah: the glory of Israel will reach all the way to Adullam.
{1:16} Become bald and shaved for your delicate sons. Increase your baldness like the eagle. For they have been carried into captivity from you.
{2:1} Woe to you who devise useless things and who work evil in your beds. In the morning light, they undertake it, because their hand is against God.
{2:2} And they have desired fields and have taken them by violence, and they have stolen houses. And they have made false accusations against a man and his house, a man and his inheritance.
{2:3} For this reason, thus says the Lord: Behold, I devise an evil against this family, from which you will not steal away your necks. And you will not walk in arrogance, because this is a most wicked time.
{2:4} In that day, a parable will be taken up about you, and a song will be sung with sweetness, saying: “We have been devastated by depopulation.” The fate of my people has been altered. How can he withdraw from me, when he might be turned back, he who might tear apart our country?
{2:5} Because of this, there will be for you no casting of the cord of fate in the assembly of the Lord.
{2:6} Do not speak by saying, “It will not drop on these ones; shame will not embrace them.”
{2:7} The house of Jacob says, “Has the Spirit of the Lord been weakened, or are such things his thoughts?” Are not my words good for him who walks uprightly?
{2:8} But, to the contrary, my people have risen up in opposition. You have lifted the cover from the undergarment, and those who passed by harmlessly, you have converted into war.
{2:9} You have evicted the women among my people from their delicate houses. You have taken my praise forever from their little ones.
{2:10} Rise and depart, for there is no relief for you here. Because of its uncleanness, it will be corrupted with a most wicked decay.
{2:11} I wish that I were not a man who has breath, and that I rather spoke a lie. I will drop it down to you in wine and in drunkenness. And it will be this people on whom it will rain down.
{2:12} I will gather together in a congregation all of you, Jacob. I will lead together as one, the remnant of Israel. I will set them together like a flock in the fold, like a sheep in the midst of the sheep pen. They will cause a tumult before the multitude of men.
{2:13} For he will ascend, opening the way before them. They will separate, and they will cross the gate and enter through it. And their king will pass by, before their very eyes, and the Lord will be at their head.
{3:1} And I said: Listen, leaders of Jacob and chiefs of the house of Israel. Does it not belong to you to know judgment,
{3:2} you who hold hatred for good, and love evil, who violently steal their skins from over them and their flesh from over their bones?
{3:3} They have devoured the flesh of my people, and have stripped their skin from over them, and they have shattered and chopped their bones, as if for the kettle, and like flesh in the middle of the pot.
{3:4} Then they will cry out to the Lord, and he will not heed them. And he will hide his face from them in that time, just as they have acted wickedly with their inventions.
{3:5} Thus says the Lord about the prophets who seduce my people: They bite with their teeth and preach peace, and if anyone does not give something to their mouth, they sanctify a battle against him.
{3:6} Because of this, night will be yours for vision, and darkness yours for divination, and the sun will meet with death over the prophets, and the day will be darkened over them.
{3:7} And those who see visions will be confounded, and the diviners will be confounded. And they will all cover their faces, because there is no response from God.
{3:8} Nevertheless, truly I have been filled with the strength of the Spirit of the Lord, with judgment and virtue, in order to announce to Jacob his wickedness and to Israel his sin.
{3:9} Hear this, leaders of the house of Jacob and judges of the house of Israel, you who abominate judgment and who pervert all that is right.
{3:10} You build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity.
{3:11} Her leaders have judged for tributes, and her priests have taught for payment, and her prophets divined for money. And they leaned upon the Lord, saying: “Is not the Lord in our midst? No disaster will overcome us.”
{3:12} For this reason, because of you, Zion will be plowed under like a field, and Jerusalem will become like a pile of stones, and the mountain of the temple like the high places of the forests.
{4:1} And this shall be: In the last days, the mountain of the house of the Lord will be prepared at the top of the mountains and high above the hills. And the people will flow to it.
{4:2} And many nations will hurry, and will say: “Come, let us ascend to the mountain of the Lord and to the house of the God of Jacob. And he will teach us about his ways, and we will walk in his paths.” For the law will go forth from Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
{4:3} And he will judge among the many peoples, and he will correct strong nations, even from afar. And they will cut up their swords into plows, and their spears into hoes. Nation will not take up the sword against nation, and they will no longer learn to wage war.
{4:4} And a man will sit under his vine and under his fig tree, and there will be no one to fear, for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken.
{4:5} For all people will walk, each one in the name of his god. But we will walk in the name of the Lord our God, forever and ever.
{4:6} In that day, says the Lord, I will gather together the lame. And I will recover her whom I had rejected, and her whom I had afflicted.
{4:7} And I will place the lame within the remnant, and she who had been in distress, within a healthy people. And the Lord will reign over them on Mount Zion, from the present time and even unto eternity.
{4:8} And you, cloudy tower of the flock of the daughter of Zion, even to you it will come. And the first power will arrive, the kingdom to the daughter of Jerusalem.
{4:9} Now, why have you come together in grief? Is there not a king in you, or has your counselor gone away? For sorrow has overtaken you, like the pain of giving birth.
{4:10} Be grieved and overwhelmed, daughter of Zion, like a woman giving birth. For now you must depart from the city and dwell in the countryside, and you will approach even to Babylon. There you will be delivered. There the Lord will redeem you from the hand of your adversaries.
{4:11} And now many peoples have been gathered together against you, and they say, “Let her be stoned and let our eyes gaze upon Zion.”
{4:12} But they have not known the thoughts of the Lord, and they have not understood his counsel. For he has gathered them together like hay on a threshing floor.
{4:13} Rise and thresh, daughter of Zion. For I will set your horn like iron, and I will set your hoofs like brass. And you will shatter many peoples, and you will immolate their spoils for the Lord, and their strength for the Lord of the whole earth.
{5:1} Now you will be devastated, you daughter of a robber. They have placed a blockade against us, with a rod they will strike the jaw of the judge of Israel.
{5:2} And you, Bethlehem Ephrata, are a little one among the thousands of Judah. From you will go forth he who shall be the ruler in Israel, and his landing place has been set from the beginning, from the days of eternity.
{5:3} Because of this, he will provide for them, even until the time in which she who bears him gives birth. And the remnant of his brothers will be converted to the sons of Israel.
{5:4} And he will stand firm and feed on the strength of the Lord, according to the sublime name of the Lord his God. And they will be converted, for now he will be magnified, even to the ends of the earth.
{5:5} And this man will be our peace, when the Assyrian will come into our land, and when he will trample on our houses; and we will raise against him seven shepherds and eight principal men.
{5:6} And they will graze on the land of Assur with the sword, and the land of Nimrod with its spears; and he will free us from Assur, when he will come into our land, and when he will trample our borders.
{5:7} And there will be a remnant of Jacob in the midst of many peoples, like a dew from the Lord and like drops upon the grass, which awaits no man and does not stand before the sons of men.
{5:8} And there will be a remnant of Jacob within the Gentiles, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forests, and like a young lion among the flocks of sheep, who, when he will pass through and trample down and seize, there is none who can rescue.
{5:9} Your hand will be exalted over your enemies, and all your adversaries will pass away.
{5:10} And it will be in that day, says the Lord: I will take away your horses from your midst, and I will utterly ruin your four-horse chariots.
{5:11} And I will destroy the cities of your land, and I will pull down all your fortifications, and I will take away evil-doing from your hand, and there will be no divinations among you.
{5:12} And I will cause your graven images to perish, and your statues, from your midst. And you will no longer adore the works of your hands.
{5:13} And I will root out your sacred groves from your midst, and I will crush your cities.
{5:14} And I will exact vengeance, in fury and in indignation, among all the nations which have not listened.
{6:1} Listen to what the Lord says: Rise, contend in judgment against the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice.
{6:2} Let the mountains listen to the judgment of the Lord, and the strong foundations of the earth. For the judgment of the Lord is with his people, and he will enter into judgment with Israel.
{6:3} My people, what have I done to you, or how have I assailed you? Respond to me.
{6:4} For I led you out of the land of Egypt, and I freed you from the house of servitude, and I sent before your face Moses, and Aaron, and Miriam.
{6:5} My people, remember, I ask you, what Balak the king of Moab planned, and how Balaam the son of Beor responded to him, from Shittim even to Gilgal, so that you may know the justice of the Lord.
{6:6} What worthy thing might I offer to the Lord, as I bend the knee before God on high? How could I offer holocausts to him, and one year-old calves?
{6:7} Would the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with many thousands of fat he-goats? How could I give up my firstborn because of my evil deed, the fruit of my womb because of the sin of my soul?
{6:8} I will reveal to you, O man, what is good, and what the Lord requires from you, and how to act with judgment, and to love mercy, and to walk carefully with your God.
{6:9} The voice of the Lord cries out to the city, “Listen, you tribes,” and who will confirm it? And salvation will be for those who fear your name.
{6:10} Nevertheless, there is a fire in the house of the impious, the treasury of iniquity, and a small measure, filled with wrath.
{6:11} Shall I justify unfaithful balances, and the deceitful weighing of a small bag?
{6:12} By this, her wealthy have been filled with iniquity, and her inhabitants have spoken lies, and their tongue was deceitful in their mouth.
{6:13} And I, therefore, began to strike you with perdition because of your sins.
{6:14} You will consume and not be satisfied, and your humiliation will be in your midst. And you will take hold, and not save, and those whom you will save, I will deliver to the sword.
{6:15} You will sow, and not reap. You will tread the olives, and not be anointed with oil, and crush the grapes, and not drink the wine.
{6:16} For you have kept the precepts of Omri, and all the works of the house of Ahab. And you have walked according their wills, so that I should give you over to perdition and its hissing inhabitants, and you would carry the disgrace of my people.
{7:1} Woe to me, for I have become just like one who gleans the clusters of the vintage in autumn. There is no cluster of grapes to consume; my soul desired figs out of season.
{7:2} The holy ones pass away from the land, and there is no one righteous among men. All wait in ambush for blood; a man hunts his brother to death.
{7:3} The evil of their hands, they call good. The leader is demanding, and the judge is yielding, and the great is speaking the desire of his soul, and they have confused it.
{7:4} Whoever is best among them is like a thorny plant, and he who is righteous is like a thorny hedge. The day of your inspection, your visitation, arrives. Now will be their ruination.
{7:5} Do not be willing to believe a friend. And do not be willing to confide in a commander. From her, who sleeps in your bosom, keep the doors of your mouth closed.
{7:6} For the son acts with contempt for the father, and the daughter rises up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, and a man’s enemies are those of his own household.
{7:7} But I will look towards the Lord. I will wait for God, my Savior. My God will hear me.
{7:8} You, my enemy, should not rejoice over me because I have fallen. I will rise up, when I sit in darkness. The Lord is my light.
{7:9} I will carry the wrath of the Lord, because I have sinned against him, until he may judge my case and execute judgment for me. He will lead me into the light. I will behold his justice.
{7:10} And my enemy will look, and she will be covered with confusion, she who says to me, “Where is the Lord your God?” My eyes will look upon her. Now she will be trampled underfoot like the mud of the streets.
{7:11} The day that your walls will be rebuilt, in that day the law will be far away.
{7:12} In that day also, they will come towards you even from Assur, and even to the fortified cities, and from the fortified cities even to the river, and from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain.
{7:13} And the land will be in desolation, because of its inhabitants and because of the fruit of their intentions.
{7:14} With your rod, pasture your people, the flock of your inheritance, living alone in the narrow forest, in the midst of Carmel. They will graze in Bashan and Gilead, as in the ancient days.
{7:15} As in the days of your departure from the land of Egypt, I will reveal miracles to him.
{7:16} The nations will look, and they will be confounded at the strength of them all. They will place hand over mouth; their ears will be deaf.
{7:17} They will lick the dust like serpents, and, like the creeping things of the earth, they will be disturbed in their houses. They will dread the Lord our God, and they will fear you.
{7:18} What God is like you, who takes away iniquity and passes over the sin of the remnant of your inheritance? No longer will he send forth his fury, because he is willing to be merciful.
{7:19} He will turn back and have mercy on us. He will put away our iniquities, and he will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.
{7:20} You will give the truth to Jacob, mercy to Abraham, which you swore to our fathers from the ancient days.
{1:1} The burden of Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.
{1:2} God is a rival, and the Lord is avenging. The Lord is avenging, and one who applies wrath. The Lord is avenging with his enemies, and he becomes angry with his adversaries.
{1:3} The Lord is patient and great in strength, and those who are not clean, he makes innocent. The Lord is in a tempest, and his way is a whirlwind, and the clouds are dust at his feet.
{1:4} He is the one who rebukes the sea, and who dries it up, and who leads all the rivers to the desert. Basan has been weakened, and also Carmel, and the flower of Lebanon has languished.
{1:5} The mountains have trembled before him, and the hills have become desolate, and the earth has quaked before his face, both the world and all that dwells in it.
{1:6} Who can stand firm before the face of his indignation? And who can continue against the fury of his wrath? His indignation has broken out like a fire, and the rocks have been dissolved before him.
{1:7} The Lord is good, and a comforter in the day of tribulation, and he knows those who hope in him.
{1:8} And in the flood that passes over, he brings to consummation the end of his place. And darkness shall pursue his adversaries.
{1:9} What are you thinking up against the Lord? He will accomplish the consummation. There shall not rise up a double tribulation.
{1:10} For just as thorns entwine one another, so also, while they are feasting and drinking together, they will be consumed like stubble that is completely dry.
{1:11} Out of you will go forth one who thinks up evil against the Lord, dragging betrayals through his mind.
{1:12} Thus says the Lord: If they had been perfect, and many of them so, yet still they would be pruned, and it will cross through them. I have afflicted you, and I shall afflict you no more.
{1:13} And now I will shatter his rod from your back, and I will break open your bonds.
{1:14} And the Lord will place a commandment over you; nothing more from your name will be sown. From the house of your God, I will order destroyed the graven image and the molten image. I will prepare your grave, because you are not honorable.
{1:15} Behold, over the mountains, the feet of the Evangelizer and the Announcer of peace. Judah, celebrate your festivals and keep your vows. For Belial will never again pass through you; he has completely passed away.
{2:1} He ascends, who would scatter before your eyes, who would maintain the blockade. Contemplate the way, fortify your back, reinforce virtue greatly.
{2:2} For the Lord has repaid the arrogance of Jacob, just like the arrogance of Israel. For the despoilers have scattered them, and they have corrupted their procreation.
{2:3} The shield of his strong ones is fire, the men of war are in scarlet. The reins of the chariot are fiery in the day of his preparation, and the drivers have been drugged.
{2:4} They have become confused on their journey. The four-horse chariots have collided in the streets. Their appearance is like torches, like lightning dashing around.
{2:5} He will call to mind his strong ones; they will destroy along their journey. They will quickly ascend its walls, and a shelter will be prepared.
{2:6} The gates of the rivers have been opened, and the temple has been pulled down to the ground.
{2:7} And the foot soldier has been led away captive, and her handmaids were driven away, mourning like doves, murmuring in their hearts.
{2:8} And Nineveh, her waters are like a fish pond. Yet truly, they have fled away: “Stand, stand!” But there is no one who will turn back.
{2:9} Despoil the silver, despoil the gold. And there is no end to all the riches of desirable equipment.
{2:10} She has been scattered, and cut, and torn apart. And the heart melts, and the knees buckle, and weakness is in every temperament. And the faces of them all are like a black kettle.
{2:11} Where is the dwelling place of the lions, and the feeding ground of the young lions, to which the lion went, so as to open a way for the young lion, and so that there would be none to make them afraid?
{2:12} The lion seized enough for his young, and killed enough for his lionesses, and he filled his caves with prey, and his den with spoils.
{2:13} Behold, I will come to you, says the Lord of hosts, and I will burn your chariots even to smoke, and the sword will devour your young lions. And I will exterminate your prey from the land, and the voice of your messengers shall no longer be heard.
{3:1} Woe to the city of blood, filled with all manner of lies and violence. Crime shall not depart from you:
{3:2} the voice of the whip, and the voice of the turning wheels, and of the neighing horse, and the burning chariot, and the horsemen who ride,
{3:3} and of the flashing sword and the shining spear, and of a multitude executed and a grievous ruination. Neither is there an end to the dead bodies, and they will fall down upon their dead bodies.
{3:4} Because of the multitude of fornications of the kept woman, beautiful and pleasing and practicing evil deeds, who sold nations by her fornications, and families by her evil doing:
{3:5} behold, I will come to you, says the Lord of hosts, and I will reveal your shame to your face, and I will show your nakedness to the Gentiles, and your disgrace to kingdoms.
{3:6} And I will cast abominations over you, and I will afflict you with abuse, and I will make an example of you.
{3:7} And this shall be: everyone who sees you, will recoil from you, and he will say: “Nineveh has been devastated.” Who will shake his head over you? Where might I seek consolation for you?
{3:8} Are you better than the populous Alexandria, which dwells along the rivers? Waters encircle it: the sea, with its riches. The waters are its walls.
{3:9} Ethiopia and Egypt were its strength, and there is no limit. Africa and Northern Africa have been your helpers.
{3:10} Nevertheless, she has been led away with the transmigration into captivity. Her little ones have been dashed in pieces at the top of every street, and they have cast lots over her celebrities, and all her elite have been fastened together in shackles.
{3:11} Therefore, you also will become inebriated, and you will be despised, and you will seek help from the opposition.
{3:12} All your fortresses will be like fig trees with their green figs. If they are shaken violently, they will fall into the mouth of the one who devours.
{3:13} Behold, women are at the center of your people. The gates of your land will be opened wide for your enemies; fire will devour your bars.
{3:14} Draw in water because of the blockade; build up your fortresses. Go into the clay and tread; work it to make brick.
{3:15} There, fire will devour you. You will perish by the sword; it will devour you like the beetle. Gather together like the beetle. Multiply like the locust.
{3:16} You have made more negotiations than there are stars in the sky. The beetle has spread out and flown away.
{3:17} Your guardians are like locusts, and your little ones are like locusts among locusts, which alight on hedges on a cold day. The sun rose up, and they flew away, and there was no way to know the place where they had been.
{3:18} Your shepherds have become drowsy, king Assur. Your princes will be buried. Your people have remained hidden in the mountains, and there is no one to gather them.
{3:19} Your destruction is not hidden; your wound is grievous. All who have heard of your fame have clenched their hands over you, because over whom has your wickedness not trampled continually?
{1:1} The burden that Habakkuk the prophet saw.
{1:2} How long, O Lord, shall I cry out, and you will not heed? Shall I shout to you while suffering violence, and you will not save?
{1:3} Why have you revealed to me iniquity and hardship, to see plunder and injustice opposite me? And there has been judgment, but the opposition is more powerful.
{1:4} Because of this, the law has been torn apart, and judgment does not persevere to its conclusion. For the impious prevail against the just. Because of this, a perverse judgment is issued.
{1:5} Gaze among the nations, and see. Admire, and be astounded. For a work has been done in your days, which no one will believe when it is told.
{1:6} For behold, I will raise up the Chaldeans, a bitter and swift people, marching across the width of the earth, to possess tabernacles not their own.
{1:7} It is dreadful and terrible. From themselves, judgment and their burden will issue.
{1:8} Their horses are more nimble than leopards and swifter than wolves in the evening; their horsemen will spread out. And then their horsemen will approach from far away; they will fly like the eagle, hurrying to devour.
{1:9} They will all approach towards the prey; their face is like a burning wind. And they will gather captives together like sand.
{1:10} And concerning kings, he will triumph, and sovereign rulers will be his laughingstock, and he will laugh over every fortress, and he will transport a rampart and seize it.
{1:11} Then his spirit will be altered, and he will cross over and fall. Such is his strength from his god.
{1:12} Have you not existed from the beginning, Lord my God, my holy one, and so we shall not die? Lord, you have stationed him for judgment, and you have establish that his strength will be swept away.
{1:13} Your eyes are pure, you do not behold evil, and you cannot look towards iniquity. Why do you look upon the agents of iniquity, and remain silent, while the impious is devouring one who is more just than himself?
{1:14} And you will make men like the fish of the sea and like the creeping things that have no ruler.
{1:15} He lifted up everything with his hook. He drew them in with his dragnet, and gathered them into his netting. Over this, he will rejoice and exult.
{1:16} For this reason, he will offer victims to his dragnet, and he will sacrifice to his netting. For through them, his portion has been made fat, and his meals elite.
{1:17} Because of this, therefore, he expands his dragnet and will not be lenient in continually putting to death the peoples.
{2:1} I will stand firm during my watch, and fix my position over the fortification. And I will observe carefully, to see what might be said to me and what I might respond to my opponent.
{2:2} And the Lord responded to me and said: Write the vision and explain it on tablets, so that he who reads it may run through it.
{2:3} For as yet the vision is far off, and it will appear in the end, and it will not lie. If it expresses any delay, wait for it. For it is arriving and it will arrive, and it will not be hindered.
{2:4} Behold, he who is unbelieving, his soul will not be right within himself; but he who is just shall live in his faith.
{2:5} And in the manner that wine deceives the heavy drinker, so will the arrogant man be deceived, and he will not be honored. He has enlarged his life like hellfire, and himself like death, and he is never fulfilled. And he will gather to himself all nations, and he will amass for himself all peoples.
{2:6} Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and an enigmatic utterance about him? And it will be said, “Woe to him who increases what is not his own.” How long, then, will he lay down dense clay against himself?
{2:7} Shall they not suddenly rise up, who would bite you, and be stirred up, who would tear you, so that you will be a prey for them?
{2:8} Because you have despoiled many peoples, all those who are left of the people shall despoil you, because of the blood of men, and the iniquity of the earth, of the city and all who dwell therein.
{2:9} Woe to him who gathers together an evil greed for his house, so that his nest may be exalted, and thinking that he might free himself from the hand of evil.
{2:10} You have devised confusion for your house, you have cut to pieces many peoples, and your soul has sinned.
{2:11} For the stone will cry out from the wall, and the wood that is between the joints of the building will respond.
{2:12} Woe to him who builds a town with blood and prepares a city by iniquity.
{2:13} Are not these things before the Lord of hosts? For the people will labor amid a great fire, and the nations will labor in emptiness, and they will fail.
{2:14} For the earth shall be filled, that they might know the glory of the Lord, like the waters spreading over the sea.
{2:15} Woe to anyone who gives a drink to a friend, releasing a drug and inebriating, so as to look upon their nakedness.
{2:16} You are filled with disgrace in place of glory. So then, drink and fall fast asleep, for the cup of the right hand of the Lord will surround you, and a disgraceful vomit will cover your glory.
{2:17} For the iniquity of Lebanon will cover you, and the devastation of animals which will deter them from the blood of men, and the iniquity of the earth and the city, and of all who dwell therein.
{2:18} Of what benefit is the graven image? For its maker has formed it, a molten and imaginary deception. For its maker has hoped in a figment of his own creation, so as to make a dumb likeness.
{2:19} Woe to him who says to wood, “Awaken,” to the silent stone, “Arise.” Is it able to teach? Behold, it has been entirely covered with gold and silver; and there is no spirit at all in its inner workings.
{2:20} But the Lord is in his holy temple. May all the earth be silent before his face.
{3:1} A Prayer of Habakkuk the Prophet on Behalf of Those Who Are Ignorant.
{3:2} Lord, I heard what has been said about you, and I was afraid. Lord, your work, in the midst of years, revive it. In the midst of years, you will make it known. When you have become angry, you will remember mercy.
{3:3} God will come from the south, and the Holy One from mount Pharan. His glory has covered the heavens, and the earth is full of his praise.
{3:4} His brightness shall be like the light; horns are in his hands. There, his strength has been hidden.
{3:5} Death will go forth before his face. And the devil shall depart before his feet.
{3:6} He stood, and measured the earth. He looked, and dissolved the Gentiles. And the mountains of ages past have been shattered. The hills of the world became curved by the journeys of his eternity.
{3:7} I saw the tents of Ethiopia for their iniquity; the tent-skins of the land of Midian will be thrown into confusion.
{3:8} Could you have been angry with the rivers, Lord? Or was your fury within the rivers, or your indignation in the sea? He will ascend upon your horses, and your four-horse chariots are salvation.
{3:9} Being stirred up, you will take up your bow, the oaths you have spoken to the tribes. You will split apart the rivers of the earth.
{3:10} They saw you, and the mountains grieved. The great body of waters crossed over. The abyss uttered its voice. The pinnacle lifted up its hands.
{3:11} The sun and the moon have stood firm in their dwelling place; with the light of your arrows, they shall go forth in the splendor of your flashing spear.
{3:12} With a roar, you will trample the earth. In your fury, you will cause the nations to be stupefied.
{3:13} You have gone forth for the salvation of your people, for salvation with your Christ. You struck the head of the house of the impious. You have laid bare his foundation all the way to the neck.
{3:14} You have cursed his scepters, the head of his warriors, those who approached like a whirlwind so as to scatter me. Their exultation was like one who devours the poor in secret.
{3:15} You made a way in the sea for your horses, in the mud of great waters.
{3:16} I heard, and my stomach became troubled. My lips trembled at the voice. Let decay enter into my bones and gush forth from within me. Then I may rest in the day of tribulation, so that I may ascend to our people well-prepared.
{3:17} For the fig tree will not flower, and there will be no bud on the vines. The labor of the olive tree will be misleading, and the farmland will produce no food. The sheep will be cut off from the sheepfold, and there will be no herd at the manger.
{3:18} But I will rejoice in the Lord; and I will exult in God my Jesus.
{3:19} The Lord God is my strength. And he will set my feet like those of the stag. And he, the victor, will lead me beyond my high places while singing psalms.
{1:1} The word of the Lord that came to Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.
{1:2} While gathering, I will gather together all things from the face of the earth, says the Lord.
{1:3} I will gather man and cattle; I will gather the flying things of the air and the fish of the sea. And the impious will be a catastrophe. And I will disperse men before the face of the earth, says the Lord.
{1:4} And I will extend my hand over Judah and over all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And I will disperse from this place the remnant of Baal, and the names of the administrators along with the priests,
{1:5} and those who adore the military campaign over the ceiling of the sky, both those who adore and swear by the Lord, and those who swear by Melchom,
{1:6} both those who turn aside from following after the Lord, and those who have not sought the Lord, nor inquired about him.
{1:7} Be silent before the face of the Lord God. For the day of the Lord is near; for the Lord has prepared a victim, he has sanctified those he has called.
{1:8} And this shall be: in the day of the victim of the Lord, I will visit upon the leaders, and upon the sons of the king, and upon all who have been clothed with strange garments.
{1:9} And I will visit upon all who enter arrogantly over the threshold in that day, those who fill the house of the Lord their God with iniquity and deceit.
{1:10} And this shall be in that day, says the Lord: the voice of an outcry from the fish gate, and a howling from the Second, and a great contrition from the hills.
{1:11} Howl, inhabitants of the Pillar. All the people of Canaan have fallen silent. All were ruined who had been wrapped in silver.
{1:12} And this shall be in that time: I will scrutinize Jerusalem with lamps, and I will visit upon the men who have become stuck in the dregs, who say in their hearts, “The Lord will not do good, and he will not do evil.”
{1:13} And their strength will be in plundering, and their houses in the desert. And they will build houses and not dwell in them, and they will plant vineyards and not drink their wine.
{1:14} The great day of the Lord is near; it is near and exceedingly swift. The voice of the day of the Lord is bitter; the strong will be tested there.
{1:15} That day is a day of wrath, a day of tribulation and anguish, a day of calamity and misery, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and whirlwinds,
{1:16} a day of the trumpet and the trumpet blast over fortified cities and over exalted ramparts.
{1:17} And I will trouble men, and they will walk like the blind, because they have sinned against the Lord. And their blood will be poured out like soil, and their bodies like manure.
{1:18} Neither their silver, nor their gold, will be able to free them in the day of the wrath of the Lord. All the land will be devoured in the fire of his zeal, for with all speed, he will bring to consummation every inhabitant of the land.
{2:1} Assemble, be gathered together, O people not worthy to be loved.
{2:2} Until the decree settles accounts, the day like dust is passing away, before which the wrath of the fury of the Lord may overcome you, before which the day of the anger of the Lord may overcome you.
{2:3} Seek the Lord, all you meek of the earth; you who have been working are his judgment. Seek the just, seek the meek. So then, in some way, you might be hidden in the day of the fury of the Lord.
{2:4} For Gaza will be destroyed, and Ashkelon will be in the desert; they will expel Ashdod at midday, and Ekron will be eradicated.
{2:5} Woe to you who inhabit the coast of the sea, you people of perdition. The word of the Lord is over you, Canaan, the land of the Philistines, and I will disperse you, so that not one inhabitant will be left.
{2:6} And the coastline of the sea will be a resting place for shepherds and a fence line for cattle.
{2:7} And it will be the line of him who will remain from the house of Judah. There they will pasture. In the houses of Ashkelon, they will rest towards evening. For the Lord their God will visit them, and he will turn away their captivity.
{2:8} I have heard about the disgrace of Moab and the blasphemies of the sons of Ammon, by which they have defamed my people and have been magnified beyond their borders.
{2:9} Because of this, as I live, says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Moab will be like Sodom, and the sons of Ammon like Gomorrah, like the dryness of thorns, and piles of salt, and a desert, all the way to eternity. The remnant of my people will despoil them, and the residue of my nation will possess them.
{2:10} This will come upon them for their arrogance, because they have blasphemed and have been magnified over the people of the Lord of hosts.
{2:11} The Lord will be a horror over them, and he will reduce all the gods of the earth. And they will adore him, each man from his own place, all the islands of the Gentiles.
{2:12} Even so, you Ethiopians, you will be executed by my sword.
{2:13} And he will extend his hand over the North, and he will destroy Assur. And he will set the Beautiful in the wilderness, and in an impassable place, and like a desert.
{2:14} And flocks will lie down in its midst, all the beasts of the Gentiles. And the pelican and the hedgehog will stay at its threshold; the voice of the singing bird will be at the window, with the crow above its threshold, for I will diminish her strength.
{2:15} This is the glorious city, dwelling in trust, which said in her heart, “I am and there is no one other than me.” How has she become a lair for beasts in the desert? All who pass through her will hiss and wag their hand.
{3:1} Woe to the provocatrix and the redeemed city, the dove.
{3:2} She has not heeded the voice, nor has she accepted discipline. She has not trusted in the Lord; she did not draw near to her God.
{3:3} Her leaders are in her midst like roaring lions. Her judges are evening wolves; they leave nothing for the morning.
{3:4} Her prophets are crazed; men without faith. Her priests have polluted what is holy; they have acted unjustly against the law.
{3:5} The just Lord is in their midst; he will not do iniquity. In the morning, in the morning, he will bring his judgment into the light, and it will not be hidden. But the impious one has not known shame.
{3:6} I have dispersed the nations, and their towers have been torn down. I have made their ways deserts, until there were none who passed through. Their cities have become desolate, with no man remaining, nor any inhabitant.
{3:7} I said: Nevertheless, you will fear me; you will accept discipline. And her dwelling place will not perish, despite all the things about which I have visited her. Yet truly, they arose with the dawn and corrupted all their thoughts.
{3:8} Because of this, expect me, says the Lord, in the day of my resurrection in the future, for my judgment is to gather together the Gentiles, and to collect the kingdoms, and to pour out over them my indignation, all the fury of my anger. For by the fire of my zeal, all the earth will be devoured.
{3:9} For then I will restore to the people a chosen lip, so that all may invoke the name of the Lord and may serve him with one shoulder.
{3:10} From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, my supplicants, the sons of my diaspora, will carry a gift to me.
{3:11} In that day, you will not be ashamed over all of your inventions, by which you have transgressed against me. For then I will take away from your midst your arrogant boasters, and you will no longer be exalted on my holy mountain.
{3:12} And I will bequeath into your midst a poor and needy people, and they will hope in the name of the Lord.
{3:13} The remnant of Israel will not do iniquity, nor speak lies, and a deceitful tongue will not be found in their mouth. For they will pasture and will recline, and there will be no one to strike them with terror.
{3:14} Give praise, daughter of Zion. Shout joyfully, Israel. Rejoice and exult with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem.
{3:15} The Lord has taken away your judgment; he has turned aside your foes. The king of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall no longer fear evil.
{3:16} In that day, it will be said to Jerusalem, “Do not be afraid,” and to Zion, “Do not let your hands be weakened.”
{3:17} The Lord your God is the strength in your midst; he will save. He will rejoice over you with gladness. In his love, he will be silent. He will exult over you with praise.
{3:18} The triflers who withdrew from the law, I will gather together, because they were from you, so that you may no longer suffer disgrace over them.
{3:19} Behold, I will execute all who have afflicted you in that time, and I will save those who are lame, and I will gather together her who had been cast out. And I will place them in praise and in renown, in all the land where they had been put to shame,
{3:20} in that time, when I will lead to you, and in the time when I will gather for you. For I will deliver you into renown and into praise, among all the peoples of the earth, when I will have converted your captivity before your very eyes, says the Lord.
{1:1} In the second year of king Darius, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came, by the hand of Haggai the prophet, to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Jesus the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying:
{1:2} Thus says the Lord of hosts, saying: This people claims that the time has not yet arrived for building the house of the Lord.
{1:3} But the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet, saying:
{1:4} Is it time for you to dwell in paneled houses, while this house is deserted?
{1:5} And now, thus says the Lord of hosts: Set your hearts upon your ways.
{1:6} You sowed much and have brought in little. You consumed and have not been satisfied. You drank and have not been inebriated. You covered yourselves and have not been warmed. And whoever gathered wages, has put them in a bag with holes.
{1:7} Thus says the Lord of hosts: Set your hearts upon your ways.
{1:8} Ascend to the mountain, bring wood and build the house, and it shall be acceptable to me, and I shall be glorified, says the Lord.
{1:9} You have looked for more, and behold, it became less, and you brought it home, and I blew it away. What is the cause of this, says the Lord of hosts? It is because my house is desolate, yet you have hurried, each one to his own house.
{1:10} Because of this, the heavens over you have been prohibited from giving dew, and the earth has been prohibited from giving her sprouts.
{1:11} And I called a drought over the land, and over the mountains, and over the wheat, and over the wine, and over the oil, and whatever the soil would bring forth, and over men, and over beasts of burden, and over all the labor of hands.
{1:12} And Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jesus the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and all the remnant of the people heeded the voice of the Lord their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, just as the Lord their God sent him to them. And the people were fearful before the face of the Lord.
{1:13} And Haggai, a messenger of the Lord among messengers of the Lord, spoke to the people, saying: the Lord says, “I am with you.”
{1:14} And the Lord stirred the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Jesus the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of the remainder of all the people. And they entered and performed work in the house of the Lord of hosts their God.
{2:1} On the twenty-fourth day of the month, in the sixth month, in the second year of king Darius, they began.
{2:2} And in the seventh month, on the twenty-first of the month, the word of the Lord came, by the hand of Haggai the prophet, saying:
{2:3} Speak to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, the governor of Judah, and to Jesus the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remainder of the people, saying:
{2:4} Who is left among you, who saw this house in its first glory? And how do you see it now? Is it not, in comparison to that, as nothing in your eyes?
{2:5} And now be strengthened, Zerubbabel, says the Lord. And be strengthened, Jesus the son of Jehozadak, the high priest. And be strengthened, all people of the land, says the Lord of hosts. For I am with you, says the Lord of hosts.
{2:6} And act according to the word that I planted with you when you departed from the land of Egypt. And my Spirit will be in your midst. Do not be afraid.
{2:7} For thus says the Lord of hosts: There is yet one brief time, and I will move heaven and earth, and the sea and the dry land.
{2:8} And I will move all nations. And the Desired of all nations will arrive. And I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts.
{2:9} Mine is the silver, and mine is the gold, says the Lord of hosts.
{2:10} Great shall be the glory of this house, the last more than the first, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place, I will bestow peace, says the Lord of hosts.
{2:11} On the twenty-fourth of the ninth month, in the second year of king Darius, the word of the Lord came to Haggai the prophet, saying:
{2:12} Thus says the Lord of hosts: the priests question the law, saying:
{2:13} If a man will have carried sanctified flesh in the pocket of his garment, and the top of it touches his bread, or appetizer, or wine, or oil, or any food, shall it be sanctified? But the priests responded by saying, “No.”
{2:14} And Haggai said, “If the polluted in soul will have touched any of all these things, shall it be contaminated?” And the priests responded and said, “It shall be contaminated.”
{2:15} And Haggai answered and he said: Such is this people, and such is this nation before my face, says the Lord, and such is all the work of their hands. And so all that they have offered there has been contaminated.
{2:16} And now, consider in your hearts, from this day and beyond, before stone may be placed upon stone in the temple of the Lord:
{2:17} when you approached a pile of twenty measures, and they became ten, and you entered to the press, to press out fifty bottles, and they became twenty,
{2:18} how I struck you with a burning wind, and a mildew, and a hailstorm, all the works of your hand, yet there was no one among you who returned to me, says the Lord.
{2:19} Set your hearts from this day and into the future, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, from the day that the foundations of the temple of the Lord have been uttered, and place it upon your heart.
{2:20} Has the seed been germinated yet? And has the vine, and the fig tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive tree still not flourished? From this day on, I will bless you.
{2:21} And the word of the Lord came a second time to Haggai, on the twenty-fourth of the month, saying:
{2:22} Speak to Zerubbabel the governor of Judah, saying: I will move both heaven and earth.
{2:23} And I will overturn the throne of kingdoms, and I will crush the strength of the kingdom of the Gentiles. And I will overturn the four-horse chariot, and its rider; and the horses and their riders shall be brought down, a man by the sword of his brother.
{2:24} In that day, says the Lord of hosts, I will take you, Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, my servant, says the Lord, and will set you like a seal, for I have chosen you, says the Lord of hosts.
{1:1} In the eighth month, in the second year of king Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, the prophet, saying:
{1:2} The Lord has become angry over the resentful anger of your fathers.
{1:3} And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord of hosts: Turn to me, says the Lord of hosts, and I will turn to you, says the Lord of hosts.
{1:4} Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets cried out, saying: Thus says the Lord of hosts: Turn from your evil ways and from your wicked thoughts. But they did not heed, and neither did they pay attention to me, says the Lord.
{1:5} Your fathers, where are they? And will the prophets live unceasingly?
{1:6} Yet truly my words and my lawfulness, which I entrusted to my servants the prophets, were indeed comprehended by your fathers, and so they were converted, and they said: Just as the Lord of hosts decided to do to us, according to our ways and according to our inventions, so has he done to us.
{1:7} On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is called Shevat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, the prophet, saying:
{1:8} I saw by night, and behold, a man riding on a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees, which were in the chasm. And behind him were horses: red, speckled, and white.
{1:9} And I said, “What are these, my lord?” And the angel, who was speaking with me, said to me, “I will reveal to you what these are.”
{1:10} And the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, “These are they, whom the Lord has sent in order to walk through the earth.”
{1:11} And those who stood among the myrtle trees answered the angel of the Lord, and they said, “We have walked through the earth, and behold, all the earth is inhabited and is at rest.”
{1:12} And the angel of the Lord answered and said, “Lord of hosts, how long will you not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, with which you have been angry? This is now the seventieth year.”
{1:13} And the Lord answered the angel, who had been speaking with me, good words, consoling words.
{1:14} And the angel, who was speaking with me, said to me: Cry out, saying: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I have been zealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great zeal.
{1:15} And, with a great anger, I am angry with the wealthy nations. Though I had been angry a little, truly they advanced further in evil.
{1:16} Because of this, thus says the Lord: I will be turned back, towards Jerusalem, with mercies; and my house will be built upon this, says the Lord of hosts. And the building line will be extended over Jerusalem.
{1:17} Until then, cry out saying: Thus says the Lord of hosts: Until then, my cities will flow with good things, and, until then, the Lord will comfort Zion, and, until then, he will single out Jerusalem.
{1:18} And I lifted up my eyes, and I saw. And behold: four horns.
{1:19} And I said to the angel, who was speaking with me, “What are these?” And he said to me, “These are the horns that have winnowed Judah and Israel and Jerusalem.”
{1:20} And the Lord showed me four workmen.
{1:21} And I said, “What have these come to do?” He spoke, saying, “These are the horns that have winnowed Judah, through every single man, and none of them lifted up his head. And these have come to frighten them away, so as to cast down the horns of the Gentiles, which have lifted up a horn over the land of Judah, so as to scatter it.”
{2:1} And I lifted up my eyes, and I saw, and behold, a man, and in his hand was a measuring line.
{2:2} And I said, “Where are you going?” And he said to me, “To measure Jerusalem, so that I may see how great its width and how great its length may be.”
{2:3} And behold, the angel, who had been speaking with me, departed, and another angel went out to meet him.
{2:4} And he said to him: Hurry, speak to this young man, saying: Jerusalem will be inhabited without walls, because of the multitude of men and beasts of burden in its midst.
{2:5} And I will be to it, says the Lord, a wall of fire all around. And in glory, I will be in its midst.
{2:6} O, O flee from the land of the North, says the Lord, for I have scattered you into the four winds of heaven, says the Lord.
{2:7} O Zion, flee, you who dwell with the daughter of Babylon.
{2:8} For thus says the Lord of hosts: After the glory, he has sent me to the Gentiles, which have despoiled you. For he who touches you, touches the pupil of my eye.
{2:9} For behold, I lift up my hand over them, and they will be a prey to those who had served them. And you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me.
{2:10} Sing praise and rejoice, daughter of Zion. For behold, I approach, and I will dwell in your midst, says the Lord.
{2:11} And many nations will be joined to the Lord in that day, and they will be my people, and I will dwell in your midst. And you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you.
{2:12} And the Lord will possess his portion, Judah, in the sanctified land, and still he will single out Jerusalem.
{2:13} Let all flesh be silent before the face of the Lord: for he has arisen from his holy dwelling place.
{3:1} And the Lord revealed to me: Jesus the high priest, standing in the sight of the angel of the Lord. And Satan stood before his right hand, so as to be his adversary.
{3:2} And the Lord said to Satan, “May the Lord rebuke you, Satan! And may the Lord, who chose Jerusalem, rebuke you! Are you not a firebrand plucked from the fire?”
{3:3} And Jesus was clothed with filthy garments. And he stood before the face of an angel.
{3:4} He answered and spoke to those who stood before him, saying, “Take away the filthy garments from him.” And he said to him, “Behold, I have taken away from you your iniquity, and I have clothed you with a change of clothing.”
{3:5} And he said, “Place a clean diadem on his head.” And they placed a clean diadem on his head, and they clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord remained standing.
{3:6} And the angel of the Lord contested with Jesus, saying:
{3:7} Thus says the Lord of hosts: If you will walk in my ways and keep my charge, you likewise will judge my house and will keep my courts, and I will give you some of those who now attend here to walk with you.
{3:8} Listen, Jesus the high priest, you and your friends, who dwell before you, who have been portending to men. For behold, I will lead my servant to the East.
{3:9} For behold, the stone that I have bestowed before Jesus. Upon one stone, there are seven eyes. Behold, I will carve its engraving, says the Lord of hosts. And I will take away the iniquity of that land in one day.
{3:10} On that day, says the Lord of hosts, every man will call his friend from under the vine and from under the fig tree.
{4:1} And the angel who had been speaking with me returned, and he awakened me, like a man who is awakened from his sleep.
{4:2} And he said to me, “What do you see?” And I said, “I looked, and behold, a candlestick entirely in gold, and its lamp was at its top, and seven oil lamps of it were upon it, and there were seven funnels for the oil lamps that were at its top.
{4:3} And there were two olive trees upon it: one to the right of the lamp, and one to its left.”
{4:4} And I answered and spoke to the angel who was speaking with me, saying, “What are these, my lord?”
{4:5} And the angel who was speaking with me answered, and he said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” And I said, “No, my lord.”
{4:6} And he answered and spoke to me, saying: This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel, saying: Not by an army, nor by might, but in my spirit, says the Lord of hosts.
{4:7} What are you, great mountain, in the sight of Zerubbabel? You are among the plains. And he will lead out the primary stone, and he will give equal grace to its grace.
{4:8} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{4:9} The hand of Zerubbabel has founded this house, and his hands will complete it. And you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you.
{4:10} For who has despised the little days? And they will rejoice and will see the silver and lead stone in the hand of Zerubbabel. These are the seven eyes of the Lord, which roam quickly through all the earth.
{4:11} And I responded and said to him, “What are these two olive trees to the right of the candlestick, and to its left?”
{4:12} And I responded a second time and said to him, “What are the two olive branches, which are next to the two golden ridges, in which are the pouring spouts of gold?”
{4:13} And he spoke to me, saying, “Do you not know what these are?” And I said, “No, my lord.”
{4:14} And he said, “These are the two sons of oil, who attend before the Sovereign of all the earth.”
{5:1} And I turned and lifted up my eyes. And I saw, and behold, a book flying.
{5:2} And he said to me, “What do you see?” And I said, “I see a book flying. Its length is twenty cubits, and its width is ten cubits.”
{5:3} And he said to me, “This is the curse that goes forth over the face of the whole earth. For every thief will be judged, just as it has been written there, and everyone who swears by this, will be judged in like manner.”
{5:4} I will bring it forth, says the Lord of hosts, and it will approach to the house of the thief, and to the house of him who swears falsely by my name, and it will remain in the midst of his house and will consume it, with its wood and its stones.
{5:5} And the angel had departed, who was speaking with me. And he said to me, “Lift up your eyes, and see what this is, that goes forth.”
{5:6} And I said, “What, then, is it?” And he said, “This is a container going forth.” And he said, “This is their eye in all the earth.”
{5:7} And behold, a talent of lead was being carried; and behold, one woman sitting in the middle of the container.
{5:8} And he said, “This is impiety.” And he cast her into the middle of the container, and he sent the weight of lead into its mouth.
{5:9} And I lifted up my eyes and I saw. And behold, two women were departing, and a spirit was in their wings, and they had wings like the wings of a kite, and they lifted up the container between earth and heaven.
{5:10} And I said to the angel who was speaking with me, “Where are they taking the container?”
{5:11} And he said to me, “To a house that may be built for it in the land of Shinar, and so that it may be established and set there upon its own base.”
{6:1} And I turned, and I lifted up my eyes and I saw. And behold, four four-horse chariots went out from the middle of two mountains. And the mountains were mountains of brass.
{6:2} In the first chariot were red horses, and in the second chariot were black horses,
{6:3} and in the third chariot were white horses, and in the fourth chariot were speckled horses, and they were strong.
{6:4} And I responded and said to the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these, my lord?”
{6:5} And the angel answered and said to me, “These are the four winds of heaven, which go forth to stand in the presence of the Sovereign of all the earth.”
{6:6} The one with the black horses was departing into the land of the North, and the white went forth after them, and the speckled went forth towards the land of the South.
{6:7} Yet those who were the most strong, went out, and sought to go and to roam quickly through all the earth. And he said, “Go, walk throughout the earth.” And they walked throughout the earth.
{6:8} And he called me and spoke with me, saying, “Behold, those who go forth to the land of the North, have quieted my spirit in the land of the North.”
{6:9} And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
{6:10} From those of the captivity, take from Heldai, and from Tobijah, and from Jedaiah. You will approach in that day, and you will go into the house of Josiah, the son of Zephaniah, who came from Babylon.
{6:11} And you will take gold and silver; and you will make crowns, and you will set them on the head of Jesus the son of Jehozadak, the high priest.
{6:12} And you will speak to him, saying: Thus says the Lord of hosts, saying: Behold, a man; the Rising is his name. And under him, he will rise up, and he will build a temple to the Lord.
{6:13} And he will raise a temple to the Lord. And he will carry the glory, and he will sit and rule upon his throne. And he will be a priest upon his throne, and a counsel of peace will be between the two of them.
{6:14} And the crowns will be to Heldai, and Tobijah, and Jedaiah, as well as to Hem, the son of Zephaniah, as a memorial in the temple of the Lord.
{6:15} And those who are far away, will approach, and will build in the temple of the Lord. And you will know that the Lord of hosts sent me to you. Yet this shall be only if, when hearing, you will have heeded the voice of the Lord your God.
{7:1} And it happened, in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, on the fourth day of the ninth month, which is Kislev.
{7:2} And Sharezer and Regemmelech, and the men who were with them, sent to the house of God, to entreat the face of the Lord,
{7:3} to speak to the priests of the house of the Lord of hosts and to the prophets, saying: “Must there be weeping with me in the fifth month, and must I sanctify myself, as I have now done for many years?”
{7:4} And the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying:
{7:5} Speak to all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying: Although you may have fasted and mourned in the fifth and the seventh month for these seventy years, did you indeed keep a fast unto me?
{7:6} And when you did eat and drink, did you not eat for yourselves, and drink only for yourselves?
{7:7} Are not these the words that the Lord has spoken by the hand of the former prophets, when Jerusalem was still inhabited, so that it would prosper, itself and the cities around it, and those inhabitants towards the South and in the plains?
{7:8} And the word of the Lord came to Zechariah, saying:
{7:9} Thus says the Lord of hosts, saying: Judge with true judgment, and act with mercy and compassion, each and every one with his brother.
{7:10} And do not find fault with the widow, and the orphan, and the newcomer, and the poor. And let not a man consider evil in his heart towards his brother.
{7:11} But they were not willing to pay attention, and they turned aside their shoulder to depart, and they pressed upon their ears, so that they would not hear.
{7:12} And they set their heart like the hardest stone, so that they would not hear the law and the words that the Lord of hosts has sent with his Spirit by the hand of the former prophets. And so a great indignation came from Lord of hosts.
{7:13} And it happened, just as he had spoken, and they did not pay attention. So then, they shall cry out, and I will not heed, says the Lord of hosts.
{7:14} And I dispersed them throughout all the kingdoms that they did not know. And the land was left desolate behind them, so that no one was passing through or returning. And they made the desirable land into a deserted place.
{8:1} And the word of the Lord of hosts came, saying:
{8:2} Thus says the Lord of hosts: I have been zealous for Zion with a great zeal, and with a great indignation have I been zealous for her.
{8:3} Thus says the Lord of hosts: I have been turned back towards Zion, and I will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. And Jerusalem will be called: “The City of Truth,” and “The Mountain of the Lord of Hosts, the Sanctified Mountain.”
{8:4} Thus says the Lord of hosts: Then elderly men and elderly women will dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, and every man will be with his walking stick in his hand, because of the multitude of days.
{8:5} And the streets of the city will be filled with toddlers and children, playing in its streets.
{8:6} Thus says the Lord of hosts: If it seems difficult in the eyes of the remnant of this people in those days, could it indeed be difficult in my eyes, says the Lord of hosts?
{8:7} Thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will save my people from the land of the East, and from the land of the setting of the sun.
{8:8} And I will lead them, and they will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. And they will be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in justice.
{8:9} Thus says the Lord of hosts: Let your hands be strengthened, you who, in those days, are listening to these words by the mouth of the prophets, in the day that the house of the Lord of hosts has been founded, so that the temple may be built.
{8:10} Indeed, before those days, there was no pay for men, nor was there pay for beasts of burden, and neither was there peace for those entering, nor for those exiting, because of the tribulation. And I had dismissed all men, each one against his neighbor.
{8:11} But now, I will not act towards the remnant of this people according to the former days, says the Lord of hosts.
{8:12} But there will be a seed of peace: the vine will give her fruit, and the earth will give her seedlings, and the heavens will give their dew. And I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things.
{8:13} And this shall be: just as you were a curse among the Gentiles, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid. Let your hands be strengthened.
{8:14} For thus says the Lord of hosts: Just as I intended to afflict you, when your fathers had provoked me to wrath, says the Lord,
{8:15} and I did not show mercy, so have I turned back, thinking in these days to do good to the house of Judah and to Jerusalem. Do not be afraid.
{8:16} Therefore, these are the words that you shall do: Speak the truth, each one to his neighbor. With truth and a judgment of peace, judge at your gates.
{8:17} And let not anyone think up evil against his friend in your hearts. And do not choose to swear falsely. For all these are things that I hate, says the Lord.
{8:18} And the word of the Lord of hosts came to me, saying:
{8:19} Thus says the Lord of hosts: The fast of the fourth, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth will be for the house of Judah in joy and gladness and with bright solemnities. So then, love truth and peace.
{8:20} Thus says the Lord of hosts, then the people may arrive and dwell in many cities,
{8:21} and the inhabitants may hurry, one saying to another: “Let us go and entreat the face of the Lord, and let us seek the Lord of hosts. I will go also.”
{8:22} And many peoples and strong nations will approach, seeking the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to entreat the face of the Lord.
{8:23} Thus says the Lord of hosts: In those days, then, ten men from every language of the Gentiles will grasp and cling to the hem of one man of Judea, saying: “We will go with you. For we have heard that God is with you.”
{9:1} The burden of the word of the Lord in the land of Hadrach and its respite in Damascus. For the eye of man and of all the tribes of Israel is of the Lord.
{9:2} Hamath also is at its limits, and Tyre and Sidon. For, of course, they have assumed themselves to be exceedingly wise.
{9:3} And Tyre has built herself a fortress, and she has piled together silver, as if it were soil, and gold, as if it were the mud of the streets.
{9:4} Behold, the Lord will possess her, and he will strike her strength in the sea, and she will be devoured by fire.
{9:5} Ashkelon will see and be afraid. Both Gaza and he will be very sorrowful, as well as Ekron, because her hope has been confounded. And the king will pass away from Gaza, and Ashkelon will not be inhabited.
{9:6} And the divider will sit in Ashdod, and I will scatter the arrogance of the Philistines.
{9:7} And I will take away his blood from his mouth, and his abominations from between his teeth, and yet he will be left for our God, and he will be like a governor in Judah, and Ekron will be like a Jebusite.
{9:8} And I will encircle my house with those who serve me in war, going and returning, and the exactor will no longer pass over them. For now I have seen with my eyes.
{9:9} Rejoice well, daughter of Zion, shout for joy, daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, your King will come to you: the Just One, the Savior. He is poor and riding upon a donkey, and upon a colt, the son of a donkey.
{9:10} And I will scatter the four-horse chariot out of Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem, and the bow of war will be destroyed. And he will speak peace to the Gentiles, and his power will be from sea to sea, and from the rivers even to the end of the earth.
{9:11} You, likewise, by the blood of your testimony, have sent forth your prisoners from the pit, in which there is no water.
{9:12} Turn back to the fortress, prisoners of hope. Today, I also announce that I will repay you double,
{9:13} because I have stretched out Judah for myself, like a bow; I have filled Ephraim. And I will raise up your sons, Zion, above your sons, Greece. And I will set you as the sword of the strength.
{9:14} And the Lord God will be seen over them, and his arrow will go forth like lightning. And the Lord God will sound the trumpet, and he will go forth into the whirlwind of the South.
{9:15} The Lord of hosts will protect them. And they will devour and subdue with the stones of the sling. And, when drinking, they will become inebriated, as if with wine, and they will be filled like bowls and like the horns of the altar.
{9:16} And in that day, the Lord their God will save them as the flock of his people. For holy stones will be lifted up over his land.
{9:17} For what is his goodness and what is his beauty, other than grain among the elect and wine springing forth virgins?
{10:1} Petition before the Lord for rain in the latter time, and the Lord will produce snows and will give showers of rain to them, to each blade in the field.
{10:2} For the images have been speaking what is useless, and the diviners have seen a lie, and the dreamers have been speaking false hope: they have comforted in vain. For this reason, they have been led away like a flock; they will be afflicted, because they have no shepherd.
{10:3} My fury has been kindled over the shepherds, and I will visit upon the he-goats. For the Lord of hosts has visited his flock, the house of Judah, and he has set them like the horse of his glory in the war.
{10:4} From him will go forth the angle, from him the wooden peg, from him the bow of battle, from him every exactor at the same time.
{10:5} And they will be like the strong, trampling the mud of the ways in battle. And they will fight, for the Lord is with them. And the riders of the horses will be confounded.
{10:6} And I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will convert them, because I will have mercy on them. And they will be as they were when I had not cast them away. For I am the Lord their God, and I will hear them.
{10:7} And they will be like the strong of Ephraim, and their heart will rejoice as if by wine, and their sons will see and will rejoice, and their heart will exult in the Lord.
{10:8} I will whistle for them, and I will gather them together, because I have redeemed them. And I will multiply them, as they had been multiplied before.
{10:9} And I will sow them among the peoples, and from far away they will remember me. And they will live with their sons, and they will return.
{10:10} And I will lead them back from the land of Egypt, and I will gather them from among the Assyrians, and I will lead them to the land of Gilead and Lebanon, and no place will be left that has not been found by them.
{10:11} And he will pass over the narrow passage of the sea, and he will strike the waves of the sea, and all the depths of the river will be confounded, and the arrogance of Assyria will be brought low, and the scepter of Egypt will withdraw.
{10:12} I will strengthen them in the Lord, and they will walk in his name, says the Lord.
{11:1} Open your gates, Lebanon, and let fire consume your cedars.
{11:2} Howl, you fir tree, for the cedar has fallen, because the magnificent have been devastated. Howl, you oaks of Bashan, because the secure forest passage has been cut down.
{11:3} The voice of the howling of the shepherds: for their magnificence has been devastated. The voice of the roaring of the lions: because the arrogance of the Jordan has been devastated.
{11:4} Thus says the Lord my God: Feed the flock of the slaughter,
{11:5} which those who possessed them cut down, and they did not feel sorrow, and they sold them, saying: “Blessed be the Lord; we have become wealthy. Even their shepherds did not spare them.”
{11:6} And so, I will no longer spare the inhabitants upon the earth, says the Lord. Behold, I will deliver men, each one into the hand of his neighbor and into the hand of his king. And they will cut down the land, and I will not rescue it from their hand.
{11:7} And I will pasture the flock of the slaughter, because of this, O poor of the flock. And I took to myself two staffs: the one I called Handsome, and the other I called Rope, and I pastured the flock.
{11:8} And I cut down three shepherds in one month. And my soul became contracted concerning them, just as their soul also varied concerning me.
{11:9} And I said: I will not pasture you. Whatever dies, let it die. And whatever is cut down, let it be cut down. And let the rest of them devour, each one the flesh of his neighbor.
{11:10} And I took my staff, which was called Handsome, and I tore it apart, so as to invalidate my pact, which I had struck with all of the people.
{11:11} And it became invalid in that day. And so they understood, just like the poor of the flock who stay close to me, that this is the word of the Lord.
{11:12} And I said to them: If it is good in your eyes, bring me my wages. And if not, remain still. And they weighed for my wages thirty silver coins.
{11:13} And the Lord said to me: Cast it towards the statuary, the handsome price at which I have been valued by them. And I took the thirty silver coins, and I cast them into the house of the Lord, towards the statuary.
{11:14} And I cut short my second staff, which was called Rope, so that I might dissolve the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.
{11:15} And the Lord said to me: Still they are to you the equipment of a foolish shepherd.
{11:16} For behold, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, who will not visit what is forsaken, nor seek what is scattered, nor heal what is broken, nor nourish what remains standing, and he will consume the flesh of the fatted ones and break their hoofs.
{11:17} O shepherd and idol, abandoning the flock, with a sword upon his arm and over his right eye: his arm will be withered by drought, and his right eye will be obscured by darkness.
{12:1} The burden of the word of the Lord upon Israel. The Lord, stretching forth the heavens and founding the earth and forming the spirit of man within him, says:
{12:2} Behold, I will set Jerusalem as a lintel of the effects of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, yet even Judah will be in the blockade against Jerusalem.
{12:3} And this shall be: In that day, I will set Jerusalem as a burdensome stone to every people. All who will lift it up will be torn to pieces. And all the kingdoms of the earth will be gathered together against her.
{12:4} In that day, says the Lord, I will strike every horse with stupor and his rider with madness. And I will open my eyes upon the house of Judah, and I will strike every horse of the people with blindness.
{12:5} And the governors of Judah will say in their heart, “Let the inhabitants of Jerusalem be strengthened for me, in the Lord of hosts, their God.”
{12:6} In that day, I will set the governors of Judah like a flaming furnace among wood, and like a flaming torch among hay. And they will devour, to the right and to the left, all the surrounding peoples. And Jerusalem will be inhabited again, in her own place, in Jerusalem.
{12:7} And the Lord will save the tabernacles of Judah, just as in the beginning, so that the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not glorify themselves boastfully against Judah.
{12:8} In that day, the Lord will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and even he who will have offended from them, in that day, will be like David, and the house of David will be like that of God, just like an angel of the Lord in their sight.
{12:9} And this shall be in that day: I will seek to crush all the Gentiles that come against Jerusalem.
{12:10} And I will pour out upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of prayers. And they will look upon me, whom they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only son, and they will feel sorrow over him, as one would be sorrowful at the death of a firstborn.
{12:11} In that day, there will be a great lamentation in Jerusalem, like the lamentation of Hadadrimmon in the plain of Megiddo.
{12:12} And the earth will mourn: families and families separately; the families of the house of David separately, and their women separately;
{12:13} the families of the house of Nathan separately, and their women separately; the families of the house of Levi separately, and their women separately; the families of Shimei separately, and their women separately;
{12:14} all the rest of the families, families and families separately, and their women separately.
{13:1} In that day, there will be a fountain open to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for the washing of the transgressor and of the defiled woman.
{13:2} And this shall be in that day, says the Lord of hosts: I will disperse the names of the idols from the earth, and they will not be remembered any longer. And I will take away the false prophets and the unclean spirit from the earth.
{13:3} And this shall be: when any devotee will continue to prophesy, his father and his mother, who conceived him, will say to him, “You shall not live, because you have been speaking a lie in the name of the Lord.” And his father and his mother, his own parents, will pierce him, when he will prophesy.
{13:4} And this shall be: In that day, the prophets will be confounded, each one by his own vision, when he will prophesy. Neither will they be covered with a garment of sackcloth in order to deceive.
{13:5} But he will say, “I am not a prophet; I am a man of agriculture. For Adam has been my example from my youth.”
{13:6} And they will say to him, “What are these wounds in the middle of your hands?” And he will say, “I was wounded with these in the house of those who love me.”
{13:7} Awake, O spear, against my shepherd and against the man that clings to me, says the Lord of hosts. Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered. And I will turn my hand to the little ones.
{13:8} And there will be in all the earth, says the Lord, two parts in it will be scattered and will pass away, and the third part will be left behind.
{13:9} And I will lead the third part through fire, and I will burn them just as silver is burned, and I will test them just as gold is tested. They will call on my name, and I will heed them. I will say, “You are my people.” And they will say, “The Lord is my God.”
{14:1} Behold, the days of the Lord will arrive, and your spoils will be divided in your midst.
{14:2} And I will gather all the Gentiles in battle against Jerusalem, and the city will be captured, and the houses will be ravaged, and the women will be violated. And the central part of the city will go forth into captivity, and the remainder of the people will not be taken away from the city.
{14:3} Then the Lord will go forth, and he will fight against those Gentiles, just as when he fought in the day of conflict.
{14:4} And his feet will stand firm, in that day, upon the Mount of Olives, which is opposite Jerusalem towards the East. And the mount of Olives will be divided down its center part, towards the East and towards the West, with a very great rupture, and the center of the mountain will be separated towards the North, and its center towards the Meridian.
{14:5} And you will flee to the valley of those mountains, because the valley of the mountains will be joined all the way to the next. And you will flee, just as you fled from the face of the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. And the Lord my God will arrive, and all the saints with him.
{14:6} And this shall be in that day: there will not be light, only cold and frost.
{14:7} And there will be one day, which is known to the Lord, not day and not night. And in the time of the evening, there will be light.
{14:8} And this shall be in that day: the living waters will go out from Jerusalem, half of them towards the East sea, and half of them towards the furthest sea. They will be in summer and in winter.
{14:9} And the Lord will be King over all the earth. In that day, there will be one Lord, and his name will be one.
{14:10} And all the land will return even to the desert, from the hill of Rimmon to the South of Jerusalem. And she will be exalted, and she will dwell in her own place, from the gate of Benjamin even to the place of the former gate, and even to the gate of the corners, and from the tower of Hananel even to the pressing room of the king.
{14:11} And they will dwell in it, and there will be no further anathema, but Jerusalem shall sit securely.
{14:12} And this will be the plague by which the Lord will strike all the Gentiles that have fought against Jerusalem. The flesh of each one will waste away while they are standing on their feet, and their eyes will be consumed in their sockets, and their tongue will be consumed in their mouth.
{14:13} In that day, there will be a great tumult from the Lord among them. And a man will take the hand of his neighbor, and his hand will be clasped upon the hand of his neighbor.
{14:14} And even Judah will fight against Jerusalem. And the riches of all the Gentiles will be gathered together around them: gold, and silver, and more than enough garments.
{14:15} And, like the ruin of the horse, and the mule, and the camel, and the donkey, and all the beasts of burden, which will have been in those encampments, so will be this ruination.
{14:16} And all those who will be the remnant of all the Gentiles that came against Jerusalem, will go up, from year to year, to adore the King, the Lord of hosts, and to celebrate the feast of tabernacles.
{14:17} And this shall be: whoever will not go up, from the families of the earth to Jerusalem, so as to adore the King, the Lord of hosts, there will be no showers upon them.
{14:18} But if even the family of Egypt will go not up, nor approach, neither will it be upon them, but there will be ruin, by which the Lord will strike all the Gentiles, who will not go up to celebrate the feast of tabernacles.
{14:19} This will be the sin of Egypt, and this will be the sin of all the Gentiles, who will not go up to celebrate the feast of tabernacles.
{14:20} In that day, that which is on the bridle of the horse will be holy to the Lord. And even the cooking pots in the house of the Lord will be like holy vessels before the altar.
{14:21} And every cooking pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be sanctified to the Lord of hosts. And all those who make sacrifices will come and take from them, and will cook with them. And the merchant will no longer be in the house of the Lord of hosts, in that day.
{1:1} The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by the hand of Malachi.
{1:2} I have loved you, says the Lord, and you have said, “In what way have you loved us?” Was not Esau brother to Jacob, says the Lord? And have I not loved Jacob,
{1:3} but held hatred for Esau? And I have set his mountains in solitude, and his inheritance with the serpents of the desert.
{1:4} But if Idumea will say, “We have been destroyed, but when we return, we will build up what has been destroyed,” thus says the Lord of hosts: They will build up, and I will destroy. And they will be called “The limits of impiety,” and, “The people with whom the Lord has been angry, even to eternity.”
{1:5} And your eyes will see. And you will say, “May the Lord be magnified beyond the limits of Israel.”
{1:6} The son honors the father, and the servant his master. If, therefore, I am Father, where is my honor? And if I am Master, where is my fear? says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. And you have said, “In what way, have we despised your name?”
{1:7} You offer polluted bread upon my altar, and you say, “In what way, have we polluted you?” In that you say, “The table of the Lord has been despised.”
{1:8} If you offer the blind for sacrifice, is this not evil? And if you offer the lame and the sick, is this not evil? Offer it to your leader, if he will be pleased with it, or if he will accept your face, says the Lord of hosts.
{1:9} And now, beseech the face of God, so that he may have mercy on you (for by your hand has this been done) if, in any way, he might accept your faces, says the Lord of hosts.
{1:10} Who is there among you that would close the doors and enflame my altar without pay? I have no favor in you, says the Lord of hosts. And I will not accept a gift from your hand.
{1:11} For, from the rising of the sun even to its setting, my name is great among the Gentiles, and in every place, a clean oblation is being sacrificed and offered to my name. For my name is great among the Gentiles, says the Lord of hosts.
{1:12} And you have polluted it, in that you say, “The table of the Lord has been contaminated; and that which is placed upon it is contemptible, compared with the fire that devours it.”
{1:13} And you have said, “Behold our labor,” and you have exhaled it away, says the Lord of hosts. And you brought in by plunder the lame, and the sick, and brought it in as a gift. How can I receive this from your hand, says the Lord?
{1:14} Cursed is the deceitful, who holds in his flock a male, and, when making a vow, offers in sacrifice that which is feeble to the Lord. For I am a great King, says the Lord of hosts, and my name is dreadful among the Gentiles.
{2:1} And now, O priests, this command is to you.
{2:2} If you will refuse to listen, and if you will refuse to take it to heart, so as to give glory to my name, says the Lord of hosts, I will send destitution upon you, and I will curse your blessings; yes, I will curse them. For you have not taken it to heart.
{2:3} Behold, I will cast forth an arm to you, and I will scatter across your face the dung of your solemnities, and it will take you to itself.
{2:4} And you will know that I sent you this commandment, so that my covenant might be with Levi, says the Lord of hosts.
{2:5} My covenant was with him for life and peace. And I gave him fear, and he feared me, and he was afraid before the face of my name.
{2:6} The law of truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and integrity, and he turned away many from iniquity.
{2:7} For the lips of the priests will keep knowledge, and they will request the law from his mouth, because he is an angel of the Lord of hosts.
{2:8} But you have withdrawn from the way, and you have scandalized very many in the law. You have nullified the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of hosts.
{2:9} Because of this, I also have made you contemptible and debased to all the people, just as you have not served my ways, and you have accepted a face in the law.
{2:10} Is there not one Father of us all? Did not one God create us? Why, then, does each one of us despise his brother, violating the covenant of our fathers?
{2:11} Judah has transgressed, and abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has contaminated the sanctified of the Lord, which he loved, and has held the daughter of a strange god.
{2:12} The Lord will drive away the man who has done this, both the teacher and the disciple, from the tabernacles of Jacob and from those offering a gift to the Lord of hosts.
{2:13} And you have done this repeatedly: you have covered the altar of the Lord with tears, with weeping and bellowing, to such an extent that I no longer have respect towards the sacrifice, nor do I accept any appeasement that is from your hands.
{2:14} And you have said, “What is the reason for this?” It is because the Lord has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, whom you have despised. Yet she was your partner, and the wife of your covenant.
{2:15} Did not One make her, and is she not the remainder of his spirit? And what does one seek, except offspring of God? So then, preserve your spirit, and do not despise the wife of your youth.
{2:16} If you would hold hatred, dismiss her, says the Lord, the God of Israel. But iniquity will cover his garment, says the Lord of hosts. Preserve your spirit, and do not be willing to despise.
{2:17} You have wearied the Lord with your speeches, and you have said, “In what way, have we wearied him?” In that you say, “Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and such as these please him,” or certainly, “Where is the God of judgment?”
{3:1} Behold, I send my angel, and he will prepare the way before my face. And presently the Sovereign, whom you seek, and the angel of testimony, whom you desire, will arrive at his temple. Behold, he approaches, says the Lord of hosts.
{3:2} And who will be able to consider the day of his advent, and who will stand firm in order to see him? For he is like a refining fire, and like the fuller’s herb.
{3:3} And he will sit refining and cleansing the silver, and he will purge the sons of Levi, and he will gather them like gold and like silver, and they will offer sacrifices to the Lord in justice.
{3:4} And the sacrifice of Judah and of Jerusalem will please the Lord, just as in the days of past generations, and as in the ancient years.
{3:5} And I will approach you in judgment, and I will be a swift witness against evil-doers, and adulterers, and perjurers, and those who cheat the hired hand in his wages, the widows and the orphans, and who oppress the traveler, and who have not feared me, says the Lord of hosts.
{3:6} For I am the Lord, and I do not change. And you, the sons of Jacob, have not been consumed.
{3:7} For, from the days of your fathers, you have withdrawn from my ordinances and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. And you have said, “In what way, shall we return?”
{3:8} If a man will afflict God, then you greatly afflict me. And you have said, “In what way, do we afflict you?” In tithes and in first-fruits.
{3:9} And you have been cursed with privation, and you greatly afflict me, even your entire people.
{3:10} Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, and let there be food in my house. And test me about this, says the Lord, as to whether I will not open to you the floodgates of heaven, and pour out to you a blessing, all the way to abundance.
{3:11} And I will rebuke for your sakes the devourer, and he will not corrupt the fruit of your land. Neither will the vine in the field be barren, says the Lord of hosts.
{3:12} And all nations will call you blessed. For you will be a desirable land, says the Lord of hosts.
{3:13} Your words have gathered strength over me, says the Lord.
{3:14} And you have said, “What have we spoken against you?” You have said, “He labors in vain who serves God,” and, “What advantage is it that we have kept his precepts, and that we have walked sorrowfully in the sight of the Lord of hosts?”
{3:15} Now, therefore, we call the arrogant blessed, as if those who work impiety have been built up, and as if they have tempted God and been saved.
{3:16} Then those who fear the Lord spoke, each one with his neighbor. And the Lord paid attention and heeded. And a book of remembrance was written in his sight, for those who fear the Lord and for those who consider his name.
{3:17} And they will be my special possession, says the Lord of hosts, on the day that I act. And I will spare them, just as a man spares his son who serves him.
{3:18} And you shall be converted, and you will see the difference between the just and the impious, and between those who serve God and those who do not serve him.
{4:1} For, behold, the day will arrive, kindled like a furnace, and all the arrogant and all those who act impiously will be stubble. And the approaching day will inflame them, says the Lord of hosts; it will leave behind for them neither root, nor sprout.
{4:2} But unto you, who fear my name, the Sun of justice will arise, and health will be in his wings. And you will go forth and leap like the calves of the herd.
{4:3} And you will trample the impious, while they will be ashes under the sole of your foot, on the day that I act, says the Lord of hosts.
{4:4} Remember the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded him on Horeb for all Israel, the precepts and the judgments.
{4:5} Behold, I will send to you Elijah the prophet, before the arrival of the great and terrible day of the Lord.
{4:6} And he will turn the heart of the fathers to the sons, and the heart of the sons to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with anathema.
{1:1} And it happened afterwards that Alexander, the son of Philip the Macedonian, who first reigned in Greece having come from the land of Kittim, struck Darius the king of the Persians and the Medes.
{1:2} He appointed many battles, and he took hold of all the fortifications, and he executed the kings of the earth.
{1:3} And he passed through even to the ends of the earth. And he received the spoils of many nations. And the earth was silenced in his sight.
{1:4} And he gathered together power, and an exceedingly strong army. And he was exalted, and his heart was lifted up.
{1:5} And he captured the regions of nations and of sovereign leaders, and they became tributaries to him.
{1:6} And after these things, he fell down on his bed, and he knew that he would die.
{1:7} And he called his servants, nobles who were raised with him from his youth. And he divided his kingdom to them, while he was still alive.
{1:8} And Alexander reigned twelve years, and then he died.
{1:9} And his servants obtained his kingdom, each one in his place.
{1:10} And they all put diadems on themselves after his death, and their sons after them, for many years; and evils were multiplied on the earth.
{1:11} And there went forth from among them a sinful root, Antiochus the illustrious, the son of king Antiochus, who had been a hostage at Rome. And he reigned in the one hundred and thirty-seventh year of the kingdom of the Greeks.
{1:12} In those days, there went forth from Israel sons of iniquity, and they persuaded many, saying: “Let us go and negotiate a covenant with the Gentiles that are all around us. For since we have withdrawn from them, many evils have found us.”
{1:13} And the word seemed good in their eyes.
{1:14} And some of the people determined to do this, and they went to the king. And he gave them the power to act according to the justice of the Gentiles.
{1:15} And they built a sports arena in Jerusalem, according to the laws of the Nations.
{1:16} And they made themselves uncircumcised, and they withdrew from the holy covenant, and they were joined to the nations, and they were sold into evil-doing.
{1:17} And the kingdom was ready in the sight of Antiochus, and he began to reign over the land of Egypt, so that he might reign over two kingdoms.
{1:18} And he entered into Egypt with an oppressive multitude, with swift chariots, and elephants, and horsemen, and a great abundance of ships.
{1:19} And he appointed a war against Ptolemy, the king of Egypt, and Ptolemy was filled with dread before his face, and he fled, and many fell down wounded.
{1:20} And he took hold of the fortified cities in the land of Egypt, and he received the spoils of the land of Egypt.
{1:21} And Antiochus turned back, after he struck Egypt, in the one hundred and forty-third year, and he ascended against Israel.
{1:22} And he ascended to Jerusalem, with an oppressive multitude.
{1:23} And he entered into the sanctuary with arrogance, and he took the golden altar, and the lampstand of light, and all the vessels, and the table for the bread of the Presence, and the vessels of libation, and the vials, and the little mortars of gold, and the veil, and the crowns, and the golden ornament, which was at the face of the temple. And he crushed them all.
{1:24} And he took the silver and gold, and the precious vessels, and he took the hidden treasures, which he found. And having taken all these things away, he departed into his own land.
{1:25} And he caused a massacre of men, and he was speaking with great arrogance.
{1:26} And there was great wailing in Israel and in all of their places.
{1:27} And the leaders and elders mourned, and the virgins and young men became weak, and the splendor of the women was changed.
{1:28} Every bridegroom took up lamentation, and those who sat in the marriage bed mourned.
{1:29} And the land shook on behalf of the inhabitants in it, and the entire house of Jacob was clothed with confusion.
{1:30} And after two years of days, the king sent the prince of his tributes to the cities of Judah, and he came to Jerusalem with a great crowd.
{1:31} And he spoke peaceful words to them, in deceitfulness; and they believed him.
{1:32} And he rushed upon the city suddenly, and he struck it with a great scourging, and he destroyed many of the people of Israel.
{1:33} And he took the spoils of the city, and he burned it with fire, and he destroyed its houses and the walls around it.
{1:34} And they led away the women as captives, and they possessed the children and the cattle.
{1:35} And they built up the city of David with a great and strong wall, and with strong towers, and it became a stronghold for them.
{1:36} And they set up in that place a sinful people, wicked men, and together they grew strong in it. And they stored up weapons and provisions. And they gathered together the spoils of Jerusalem,
{1:37} and deposited them in that place. And they became a great snare.
{1:38} And this became a place of ambush against the sanctuary and a diabolical evil in Israel.
{1:39} And they poured out innocent blood around the sanctuary, and they contaminated the sanctuary.
{1:40} And the inhabitants of Jerusalem fled because of them, and the city became the dwelling place of outsiders, and she became a stranger to her own offspring, and her own children abandoned her.
{1:41} Her sanctuary was desolate, like a place of solitude, her feast days were turned into mourning, her Sabbaths into disgrace, her honors into nothing.
{1:42} Her shame was multiplied according to her glory, and her loftiness was turned into lamentation.
{1:43} And king Antiochus wrote to all his kingdom, that all the people must be one, and that each one should relinquish his own law.
{1:44} And all Gentiles consented, according to the word of king Antiochus.
{1:45} And many out of Israel consented to his servitude, and they sacrificed to idols, and they polluted the Sabbath.
{1:46} And the king sent letters, by the hand of messengers, to Jerusalem and to all the cities of Judah: that they should follow the law of the Nations of the earth,
{1:47} and that they should prohibit holocausts and sacrifices and atonements to be made in the temple of God,
{1:48} and that they should prohibit the celebration of the Sabbath and the solemn days.
{1:49} And he ordered the holy places to be defiled, along with the holy people of Israel.
{1:50} And he ordered altars to be built, and temples, and idols, and he ordered the immolation of the flesh of swine and of unclean cattle,
{1:51} and that they should leave their sons uncircumcised, and defile their souls with all that is unclean, and with abominations, so that they would forget the law and would alter all the justifications of God,
{1:52} and that whoever would not act according to the word of king Antiochus should be put to death.
{1:53} According to all these words, he wrote to all his kingdom. And he appointed leaders over the people, who would compel them to do these things.
{1:54} And these ordered the cities of Judah to sacrifice.
{1:55} And many from the people, who had abandoned the law of the Lord, were gathered together by them. And they committed evils upon the land.
{1:56} And they drove the people of Israel into hiding and into the secret places of fugitives.
{1:57} On the fifteenth day of the month of Kislev, in the one hundred and forty-fifth year, king Antiochus set up the abominable idol of desolation on the altar of God, and they built altars throughout all the surrounding cities of Judah.
{1:58} And they burned frankincense, and they sacrificed before the doors of houses and in the streets.
{1:59} And they cut up the books of the law of God and destroyed them with fire.
{1:60} And all those who were found with the books of the testament of the Lord, and whoever observed the law of the Lord, they butchered, according to the edict of the king.
{1:61} By their power, they did these things to the people of Israel, as they were discovered in the cities, month after month.
{1:62} And on the twenty-fifth day of the month, they sacrificed on that altar which was opposite the high altar.
{1:63} And the women who circumcised their sons were butchered, according to the order of king Antiochus.
{1:64} And they suspended the children by their necks in all their houses, and those who had circumcised them, they butchered.
{1:65} And many of the people of Israel decided within themselves that they would not eat unclean things. And they chose to die, rather than to be defiled with unclean foods.
{1:66} And they were not willing to infringe upon the holy law of God, and they were butchered.
{1:67} And there was a very great wrath upon the people.
{2:1} In those days, there rose up Mattathias, the son of John, the son of Simeon, a priest of the sons of Joarib from Jerusalem, and he settled on the mountain of Modin.
{2:2} And he had five sons: John, who was surnamed Gaddi,
{2:3} and Simon, who was surnamed Thassi,
{2:4} and Judas, who was called Maccabeus,
{2:5} and Eleazar, who was surnamed Avaran, and Jonathan, who was surnamed Apphus.
{2:6} These saw the evils that were done among the people of Judah and in Jerusalem.
{2:7} And Mattathias said: “Woe to me, for why was I born to see the grief of my people and the grief of the holy city, and to sit there, while it is given into the hands of the enemies?
{2:8} The holy places have fallen into the hands of outsiders. Her temple is like a man without honor.
{2:9} The vessels of her glory have been taken away captive. Her old men have been butchered in the streets, and her young men have fallen by the sword of the enemies.
{2:10} What nation has not inherited her kingdom and taken from her spoils?
{2:11} All her beauty has been taken away. She who was free, has become a slave.
{2:12} And behold, our sanctuary, and our beauty, and our splendor has been desolated, and the Gentiles have defiled them.
{2:13} Therefore, what is it to us that we still live?”
{2:14} And Mattathias and his sons tore their garments, and they covered themselves with haircloth, and they lamented greatly.
{2:15} And those who had been sent from king Antiochus came to that place, to compel those who fled into the city of Modin to immolate, and to burn frankincense, and to depart from the law of God.
{2:16} And many of the people of Israel consented and came to them. But Mattathias and his sons stood firm.
{2:17} And those who had been sent from Antiochus, responding, said to Mattathias: “You are a ruler, and very splendid and great in this city, and you are adorned with sons and brothers.
{2:18} Therefore, approach first, and carryout the order of the king, as all the nations have done, and the men of Judah, and those who remained in Jerusalem. And you and your sons will be among the friends of the king, and enriched with gold and silver and many gifts.”
{2:19} And Mattathias responded, and he said with a loud voice: “Even if all nations obey king Antiochus, so that each one departs from the service of the law of his fathers and consents to his commandments,
{2:20} I and my sons and my brothers will obey the law of our fathers.
{2:21} May God be forgiving to us. It is not useful for us to abandon the law and the justices of God.
{2:22} We will not listen to the words of king Antiochus, nor will we sacrifice, transgressing the commandments of our law, so as to set out on another way.”
{2:23} And, as he ceased speaking these words, a certain Jew approached in the sight of all to sacrifice to the idols upon the altar in the city of Modin, according to the order of the king.
{2:24} And Mattathias saw, and he grieved, and his temperament trembled, and his fury was enkindled according to the judgment of the law, and leaping up, he slaughtered him on the altar.
{2:25} Moreover, the man whom king Antiochus had sent, who compelled them to immolate, he killed at the same time, and he destroyed the altar,
{2:26} and he was zealous for the law, just as Phinehas did to Zimri, the son of Salomi.
{2:27} And Mattathias exclaimed with a loud voice in the city, saying, “All who hold zeal for the law, maintaining the covenant, let them follow me.”
{2:28} And he and his sons fled to the mountains, and they left behind whatever they had in the city.
{2:29} Then many who sought judgment and justice went down into the desert.
{2:30} And they camped there, with their sons, and their wives, and their herds, because evils had overwhelmed them.
{2:31} And it was reported to the king’s men, and to the army that was in Jerusalem, in the city of David, that certain men, who had cast aside the commandment of the king, had departed into the hidden places in the desert, and that many had followed after them.
{2:32} And immediately, they went out to them, and they arranged a battle against them, on the day of the Sabbath.
{2:33} And they said to them: “And now, do you still resist? Go out and act according to the word of king Antiochus, and you will live.”
{2:34} And they said, “We will not go out, and we will not do the king’s word, so as to profane the day of the Sabbath.”
{2:35} And they rushed against them in battle.
{2:36} But they did not respond, nor did they cast a stone at them, nor did they barricade the hidden places,
{2:37} for they said, “Let us all die in our simplicity. And heaven and earth will testify for us, that you destroyed us unjustly.”
{2:38} So they carried out a battle on the Sabbath. And they were put to death, with their wives, and their sons, and their cattle, even to the number of a thousand souls of men.
{2:39} And Mattathias and his friends heard of it, and they held a very great lamentation for them.
{2:40} And every man said to his neighbor, “If we all do just as our brothers have done, and if we do not fight against the Gentiles for the sake of our lives and our justifications, then they will quickly eradicate us from the earth.”
{2:41} And they decided, on that day, saying: “Every man, who will come against us in warfare on the day of the Sabbath, we will fight against him. And we will not all die, like our brothers who were put to death in the hidden places.”
{2:42} Then there was assembled before them the synagogue of the Hasideans, strong men from Israel, each one with a will for the law.
{2:43} And all those who fled from the evils added themselves to them, and they became a firmament to them.
{2:44} And they gathered together an army, and they struck down the sinners in their wrath and the wicked men in their indignation. And the others fled to the nations, so as to escape.
{2:45} And Mattathias and his friends traveled around, and they destroyed the altars.
{2:46} And they circumcised all the uncircumcised boys, whom they found within the limits of Israel, and they acted with fortitude.
{2:47} And they pursued the sons of arrogance, and the work was prosperous in their hands.
{2:48} And they obtained the law from the hands of the Gentiles, and from the hands of the kings. And they did not surrender the horn to the sinner.
{2:49} Then the days drew near when Mattathias would die, and he said to his sons: “Now arrogance and chastisement have been strengthened, and it is a time of overturning and of the wrath of indignation.
{2:50} Now therefore, O sons, be imitators of the law, and give your lives for the sake of the covenant of your fathers.
{2:51} And call to mind the works of the fathers, which they have done in their generations. And you will receive great glory and an eternal name.
{2:52} Was not Abraham found to be faithful in temptation, and so it was accounted to him as justice?
{2:53} Joseph, in the time of his anguish, kept the commandment, and he was made ruler of Egypt.
{2:54} Phinehas our father, being zealous in the zeal of God, received the covenant of an eternal priesthood.
{2:55} Jesus, since he fulfilled the word, was made a commander in Israel.
{2:56} Caleb, since he testified in the assembly, received an inheritance.
{2:57} David, in his mercy, obtained the throne of a kingdom for all generations.
{2:58} Elijah, since he was zealous with a zeal for the law, was received into heaven.
{2:59} Hananiah and Azariah and Mishael, by believing, were delivered from the flame.
{2:60} Daniel, in his simplicity, was delivered from the mouth of the lions.
{2:61} And so, consider that, through generation after generation of all those who trusted in him, none have failed in strength.
{2:62} And fear not the words of a sinful man, for his glory is dung and worms.
{2:63} Today he is extolled, and tomorrow he will not be found, because he has returned into his earth and his thinking has perished.
{2:64} Therefore, you sons, be strengthened and act manfully in the law. For by it, you shall become glorious.
{2:65} And behold, I know that your brother Simon is a man of counsel. Heed him always, and he will be a father to you.
{2:66} And Judas Maccabeus, who has been strong and resourceful from his youth, let him be the leader of your militia, and he will manage the war of the people.
{2:67} And you shall add to yourselves all who observe the law, and you shall claim the vindication of your people.
{2:68} Render to the Gentiles their retribution, and pay attention to the precepts of the law.”
{2:69} And he blessed them, and he was added to his fathers.
{2:70} And he passed away in the one hundred and forty-sixth year, and he was buried by his sons in the sepulchers of his fathers, in Modin, and all Israel mourned for him with a great mourning.
{3:1} And his son Judas, who was called Maccabeus, rose up in his place.
{3:2} And all his brothers assisted him, along with all those who had joined themselves to his father. And they fought the battle of Israel with rejoicing.
{3:3} And he expanded the glory of his people, and he clothed himself with a breastplate like a giant, and he surrounded himself his weapons of war in battles, and he protected the camp with his sword.
{3:4} In his actions, he became like a lion, and like a young lion roaring in the hunt.
{3:5} And he pursued the wicked and tracked them down. And those who disturbed his people, he burned with fire.
{3:6} And his enemies were repelled by the fear of him, and all the workers of iniquity were troubled. And salvation was well-directed in his hand.
{3:7} And he provoked many kings, and he gave joy to Jacob by his works, and his memory will be a blessing for all generations.
{3:8} And he traveled through the cities of Judah, and he destroyed the impious out of them, and he turned wrath away from Israel.
{3:9} And he was renowned, even to the utmost part of the earth, and he gathered together those who were perishing.
{3:10} And so Apollonius gathered together the Gentiles, with a numerous and great army from Samaria, to make war against Israel.
{3:11} And Judas knew about it, and he went forth to meet him. And he struck him and killed him. And many fell down wounded, and the rest fled away.
{3:12} And he took away their spoils. And Judas took possession of the sword of Apollonius, and he fought with it during all his days.
{3:13} And Seron, the leader of the army of Syria, heard that Judas had gathered together a company of the faithful and an assembly with him.
{3:14} And he said, “I will make a name for myself, and I will be glorified in the kingdom, and I will defeat Judas in warfare, and those who are with him, who have spurned the word of the king.”
{3:15} And he prepared himself. And the camp of the impious went up with him, with strong auxiliaries, so as to act with vengeance upon the sons of Israel.
{3:16} And they approached even as far as Bethhoron. And Judas went forth to meet him, with a few men.
{3:17} But when they saw the army coming to meet them, they said to Judas, “How will we few be able to fight against so great and so strong a multitude, even though we are weakened by fasting today?”
{3:18} And Judas said: “It is easy for many to be enclosed in the hands of a few, for there is no difference in the sight of the God of heaven to liberate by means of many, or by means of few.
{3:19} For victory in warfare is not in the multitude of the army, but in the strength from heaven.
{3:20} They come to us with a contemptuous multitude and with arrogance, in order to destroy us, with our wives and our sons, and to despoil us.
{3:21} In truth, we will fight on behalf of our souls and our laws.
{3:22} And the Lord himself will crush them before our face. But as for you, do not fear them.”
{3:23} And as soon as he had ceased speaking, he attacked them suddenly. And Seron and his army were crushed in his sight.
{3:24} And he pursued him from the descent of Bethhoron, even to the plains. And eight hundred of their men were cut down, but the rest fled into the land of the Philistines.
{3:25} And the fear and dread of Judas, as well as his brothers, fell upon all the nations around them.
{3:26} And his name reached even to the king, and all the nations told stories of the battles of Judas.
{3:27} But when king Antiochus heard these accounts, he was angry to his very soul. And he sent and gathered together forces from his entire kingdom, a very strong army.
{3:28} And he opened his treasury, and he gave out stipends to the army for a year. And he commanded them to make ready for all things.
{3:29} And he saw that the money from his treasures had failed, and that the tributes of the country were small, because of the dissension and the scourging that he had caused on earth in order to take away the legitimate laws, which had been since the first days.
{3:30} And he feared, lest he not have enough the second time as the first, for expenses and gifts, which he had given before with a liberal hand. For his excesses were more than the kings who had been before him.
{3:31} And he was alarmed to his very soul, and he intended to go into Persia, and to take tributes from the regions, and to gather together much money.
{3:32} And he left behind Lysias, a nobleman of royal family, to preside over the kingdom from the river Euphrates, even to the river of Egypt,
{3:33} and to raise his son, Antiochus, until he would return.
{3:34} And he handed over to him half of the army, and the elephants. And he commanded him concerning all that he wanted, and concerning the inhabitants of Judea and Jerusalem:
{3:35} so that he would send an army against them to crush and to root out the virtue of Israel and the remnant of Jerusalem, and to take away the memory of them from that place,
{3:36} and so that he would establish dwelling places for the sons of foreigners in all their parts, and would distribute their land by lot.
{3:37} And so, the king took the remaining part of the army, and he went forth from Antioch, the city of his kingdom, in the one hundred and forty-seventh year. And he crossed over the river Euphrates, and he traveled through the upper regions.
{3:38} Then Lysias chose Ptolemy, the son of Dorymenes, and Nicanor and Gorgias, powerful men from among the king’s friends.
{3:39} And he sent them with forty thousand men, and seven thousand horsemen, to enter into the land of Judah, and to destroy it, according to the word of the king.
{3:40} And so, they proceeded with all their power, and they arrived and took a position near Emmaus, in the land of the plains.
{3:41} And the merchants of the regions heard of their name. And they took very much silver, and gold, and servants, and they came into the camp to take the sons of Israel into servitude. And armies from Syria and from the lands of foreigners were added to them.
{3:42} And Judas and his brothers saw that evils were being multiplied, and that armies had been positioned near their borders. And they knew the words of the king, which ordered the people to be put to death and to be utterly consumed.
{3:43} And they said, each one to his neighbor, “Let us relieve the dejection of our people, and let us fight on behalf of our people and our sacred places.”
{3:44} And an assembly was gathered together, so that they would be prepared for battle, and so that they could pray and ask for mercy and compassion.
{3:45} Now Jerusalem was not inhabited, but was like a desert. There was no one who entered or exited from among her children. And the sanctuary was trampled upon, and the sons of foreigners were in the stronghold. This place was the habitation of the Gentiles. And delight was taken away from Jacob, and the music of flute and harp ceased in that place.
{3:46} And they gathered together and came to Mizpah, opposite Jerusalem. For a place of prayer was in Mizpah, in the former Israel.
{3:47} And they fasted on that day, and they clothed themselves with haircloth, and they placed ashes on their heads, and they tore their garments.
{3:48} And they laid open the books of the law, in which the Gentiles searched for the likeness of their idols.
{3:49} And they brought the priestly ornaments, and the first fruits and tithes, and they roused the Nazirites, who had fulfilled their days.
{3:50} And they cried out with a loud voice toward heaven, saying: “What shall we do with these, and where shall we take them?
{3:51} For your holy things have been trampled and defiled, and your priests have been in mourning and in humiliation.
{3:52} And behold, the Nations gather together against us, to destroy us. You know what they intend against us.
{3:53} How shall we be able to stand before their face, unless you, O God, assist us?”
{3:54} Then they sounded the trumpets with a loud call.
{3:55} And after this, Judas appointed commanders over the people: over thousands, and over hundreds, and over fifties, and over tens.
{3:56} And he said to those who were building houses, or who had betrothed wives, who were planting vineyards, or who were terribly afraid, that they should return, each one to his own house, according to the law.
{3:57} So they moved the camp, and relocated to the south of Emmaus.
{3:58} And Judas said: “Gird yourselves, and be sons of power, and be ready in the morning, so that you may fight against these nations that have assembled against us, so as to destroy us and our sacred things.
{3:59} For it is better for us to die in battle, than to see evils come to our nation and to the sacred places.
{3:60} Nevertheless, as it shall be willed in heaven, so let it be.”
{4:1} Then Gorgias took five thousand men and a thousand chosen horsemen, and they moved out of the camp by night,
{4:2} so that they might set upon the camp of the Jews and strike them suddenly. And the sons who were from the stronghold were their guides.
{4:3} And Judas heard of it, and he rose up, with his powerful men, to strike the force from the king’s army that was in Emmaus.
{4:4} For the army was still dispersed from the camp.
{4:5} And Gorgias came by night, into the camp of Judas, and found no one, and he sought them in the mountains. For he said, “These men flee from us.”
{4:6} And when it had become day, Judas appeared in the plain with only three thousand men, who had neither armor nor swords.
{4:7} And they saw the strength of the camp of the Gentiles, and the men in armor, and the horsemen surrounding them, and that these were trained to fight.
{4:8} And Judas said to the men who were with him: “Do not be afraid of their multitude, and do not dread their attack.
{4:9} Remember in what way salvation came to our fathers in the Red Sea, when Pharaoh pursued them with a great army.
{4:10} And now, let us cry out to heaven, and the Lord will have mercy on us, and he will remember the covenant of our fathers, and he will crush this army before our face this day.
{4:11} And all nations shall know that there is One who redeems and frees Israel.”
{4:12} And the foreigners lifted up their eyes, and they saw them coming against them.
{4:13} And they went out of the camp into battle, and those who were with Judas sounded the trumpet.
{4:14} And they came together. And the Gentiles were crushed, and they fled into the plains.
{4:15} But the last of them all fell by the sword, and they pursued them even to Gazara, and even to the plains of Idumea, and Azotus, and Jamnia. And there fell from them as many as three thousand men.
{4:16} And Judas returned, with his army following him.
{4:17} And he said to the people: “Do not desire the spoils; for there is war before us.
{4:18} And Gorgias and his army are near us on the mountain. But stand firm now against our enemies, and fight against them, and you shall take the spoils afterwards, securely.”
{4:19} And while Judas was speaking these words, behold, a certain part of them appeared, looking out from the mountain.
{4:20} And Gorgias saw that his men were put to flight, and that they had set fire to the camp. For the smoke that he saw declared what had happened.
{4:21} When they had seen this, they became very afraid, seeing at the same time both Judas and his army in the plains prepared to do battle.
{4:22} So they all fled away into the encampment of the foreigners.
{4:23} And Judas returned to take the spoils of the camp, and they obtained much gold and silver, and hyacinth, and purple of the sea, and great riches.
{4:24} And returning, they sang a canticle, and they blessed God in heaven, because he is good, because his mercy is with every generation.
{4:25} And so, a great salvation occurred in Israel in that day.
{4:26} But those among the foreigners who escaped went and reported to Lysias all that had happened.
{4:27} And when he heard these things, he was discouraged, being alarmed to his very soul. For things had not occurred in Israel according to his wishes, nor as the king had commanded.
{4:28} And, in the following year, Lysias gathered together sixty thousand chosen men and five thousand horsemen, so that he might defeat them in warfare.
{4:29} And they came into Judea, and they positioned their camp in Bethzur, and Judas met them with ten thousand men.
{4:30} And they saw the strength of the army, and so he prayed, and he said: “Blessed are you, Savior of Israel, who crushed the assault of the powerful by the hand of your servant David, and who delivered up the camp of the foreigners into the hand of Jonathan, the son of Saul, and his armor bearer.
{4:31} Enclose this army in the hand of your people Israel, and let them be confounded in their soldiers and their horsemen.
{4:32} Strike them with dread, and melt away the boldness of their strength, and let them shudder in their grief.
{4:33} Cast them down with the sword of those who love you, and let all who know your name praise you with hymns.”
{4:34} And they went forth to battle, and there fell from the army of Lysias five thousand men.
{4:35} But Lysias, seeing their flight and the boldness of the Jews, and that they were prepared either to live or to die with fortitude, went to Antioch and chose soldiers, so that they might come back to Judea with greater numbers.
{4:36} Then Judas and his brothers said: “Behold, our enemies have been crushed. Let us go up now to cleanse and renew the holy places.”
{4:37} And all the army gathered together, and they ascended to Mount Zion.
{4:38} And they saw the sanctuary deserted, and the altar profaned, and the gates burned, and weeds growing up in the courts, as in a forest or as on the mountains, and the adjoining chambers demolished.
{4:39} And they rent their garments, and they made a great wailing, and they placed ashes on their heads.
{4:40} And they fell to the ground on their faces, and they sounded the trumpets of alarm, and they cried out toward heaven.
{4:41} Then Judas numbered men to fight against those who were in the stronghold, until they had cleansed the holy places.
{4:42} And he chose priests without blemish, whose will held to the law of God.
{4:43} And they cleansed the holy places, and they took away the stones of defilement to an unclean place.
{4:44} And he considered the altar of holocausts, which had been profaned, as to what he should do with it.
{4:45} And a good counsel fell upon them, to destroy it, lest it might become a reproach to them, because the Gentiles had defiled it; so they demolished it.
{4:46} And they stored the stones in the mountain house, in a fitting place, until there should come a prophet, who would provide an answer about these.
{4:47} Then they took whole stones, according to the law, and they built a new altar, according to that which was before.
{4:48} And they rebuilt the holy places and the things that were in the inner parts of the temple, and they sanctified the temple and the courts.
{4:49} And they made new holy vessels, and they brought the lampstand, and the altar of incense, and the table into the temple.
{4:50} And they placed incense on the altar, and they lit the lamps, which were on the lampstand, and they gave light in the temple.
{4:51} And they placed the bread on the table, and they hung up the veils, and they completed all the works which they had begun.
{4:52} And they arose before the morning, on the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month, (which is the month of Kislev) in the one hundred and forty-eighth year.
{4:53} And they offered sacrifice, according to the law, on the new altar of holocausts that they made.
{4:54} According to the time and according to the day, on which the Gentiles had contaminated it, on the same day, it was renewed with canticles, and lutes, and lyres, and cymbals.
{4:55} And all the people fell upon their faces, and they adored, and they blessed, toward heaven, him that had prospered them.
{4:56} And they kept the dedication of the altar for eight days, and they offered holocausts with joy, and sacrifices of salvation and praise.
{4:57} And they adorned the face of the temple with crowns of gold and small shields. And they dedicated the gates and the adjoining chambers, and they set up doors on them.
{4:58} And there was very great rejoicing among the people, and the disgrace of the Gentiles was averted.
{4:59} And Judas, and his brothers, and all the assembly of Israel decreed that the day of the dedication of the altar must be kept in its time, from year to year, for eight days, from the twenty-fifth day of the month of Kislev, with joy and gladness.
{4:60} And they built up, at that time, Mount Zion, with high walls and strong towers all around, lest the Gentiles should at any time come and trample upon it, as they did before.
{4:61} And he stationed a garrison there, to keep it, and he fortified it, in order to guard Bethzur, so that the people might have a fortification opposite the face of Idumea.
{5:1} And it happened that, when the surrounding nations heard that the altar and the sanctuary had been rebuilt as before, they were very angry.
{5:2} And they intended to destroy the people of Jacob that were among them, and they began to kill some of the people, and to persecute them.
{5:3} Then Judas defeated in warfare the sons of Esau in Idumea, and those who were in Akrabattene, because they besieged the Israelites, and he struck them with a great scourging.
{5:4} And he remembered the malice of the sons of Baean, who were a snare and a scandal to the people, lying in ambush for them in the way.
{5:5} And they were trapped by him in the towers, and he took up a position near them, and he anathematized them, and he burned their towers with fire, along with all who were in them.
{5:6} Then he crossed over to the sons of Ammon, and he found a strong hand, and an abundant people, and Timothy was their commander.
{5:7} And he engaged in many battles with them, and they were crushed in their sight, and he struck them down.
{5:8} And he seized the city of Jazer, and her sister cities, and he returned to Judea.
{5:9} And the Gentiles, who were in Gilead, gathered together against the Israelites, who were within their borders, to take them away, and so they fled into the fortress of Dathema.
{5:10} And they sent letters to Judas and his brothers, saying: “The Gentiles all around have been gathering together against us to carry us away.
{5:11} And they are preparing to come and occupy the fortress into which we have fled. And Timothy is the commander of their army.
{5:12} Now, therefore, come and rescue us from their hands, for many of us have fallen.
{5:13} And all our brothers, who were in the places of Tob, have been put to death. And they have led away as captives their wives, and their children, and their spoils. And they have slain nearly a thousand men in that place.”
{5:14} And while they were still reading these letters, behold, there arrived from Galilee other messengers, with torn garments, who announced according to these words:
{5:15} saying that those of Ptolemais and Tyre and Sidon have assembled against them, “and all of Galilee has been filled with foreigners, in order to consume us.”
{5:16} So then, when Judas and the people heard these words, a great assembly came together, to consider what they should do for their brothers who were in trouble and were being assailed by them.
{5:17} And Judas said to Simon his brother: “Choose men for yourself, and go, and free your brothers in Galilee. But I and my brother Jonathan, will go into the country of Gilead.”
{5:18} And he left behind Joseph, son of Zachariah, and Azariah, as commanders of the people, with the remainder of the army, in Judea, to guard it.
{5:19} And he instructed them, saying, “Take charge of this people, but do not go to war against the Gentiles, until we return.”
{5:20} Now three thousand men were divided to Simon, to go into Galilee, but eight thousand were divided to Judas, to go into the land of Gilead.
{5:21} And Simon went into Galilee, and he engaged in many battles with the Gentiles, and the Gentiles were crushed before his face, and he pursued them even to the gates of Ptolemais.
{5:22} And there fell of the Gentiles nearly three thousand men, and he took their spoils.
{5:23} And he took with him those who were in Galilee and in Arbatta, with their wives and children, and all that was theirs, and he led them into Judea with great rejoicing.
{5:24} And Judas Maccabeus, and Jonathan his brother, crossed over the Jordan, and they traveled three days’ journey through the desert.
{5:25} And the Nabateans met them, and they accepted them peacefully, and they described to them all that had happened to their brothers in the land of Gilead,
{5:26} and that many of them were trapped in Bozrah, and Bosor, and Alema, and in Chaspho, and Maked, and Carnaim. All these are large and fortified cities.
{5:27} Moreover, they were held in their grasp in the other cities of Gilead, and they had arranged to move their army, on the next day, to these cities, and to seize them, and to destroy them all in one day.
{5:28} Then Judas and his army unexpectedly turned their path into the desert, to Bosor, and they occupied the city. And he killed every male by the edge of the sword, and took all their spoils, and burned it with fire.
{5:29} And they arose from there by night, and they went forth all the way to the fortress.
{5:30} And it happened that, at first light, when they lifted up their eyes, behold, there was a multitude of people, which could not be numbered, bringing ladders and machines, in order to seize the fortress, and to assault them.
{5:31} And Judas saw that the fight had begun, and the cry of the battle went up to heaven like a trumpet, and a great cry went out of the city.
{5:32} And he said to his army, “Fight today on behalf of your brothers.”
{5:33} And he came, with three companies behind them, and they sounded the trumpets, and they cried out in prayer.
{5:34} And the camp of Timothy knew that it was Maccabeus, and they took flight before his face. And they struck them with a great scourging. And there fell from them in that day nearly eight thousand men.
{5:35} And Judas diverted to Mizpah, and he fought and seized it. And he killed all of its males, and he took its spoils, and he burned it with fire.
{5:36} From there, he continued on, and he seized Chaspho, and Maked, and Bosor, and the rest of the cities of Gilead.
{5:37} But after these events, Timothy gathered together another army, and he positioned his camp opposite Raphon, across the torrent.
{5:38} And Judas sent men to catch sight of the army. And they reported back to him, saying: “All the nations that surround us have assembled before him, with an exceedingly great army.
{5:39} And they have brought the Arabians as auxiliaries to them, and they have set up camp across the torrent, in preparation to come against you in battle.” And Judas went to meet them.
{5:40} And Timothy said to the leaders of his army: “When Judas and his army approach, close to the torrent of water, if he crosses over to us first, we will not be able to withstand him. For he will be able to prevail against us.
{5:41} If, truly, he is afraid to cross over, and so he sets up camp across the river, we will cross over to them, and we will prevail against him.”
{5:42} But when Judas approached, close to the torrent of water, he stationed the scribes of the people near the torrent, and he commanded them, saying, “Permit no man to stay behind, but let all come into the battle.”
{5:43} And he crossed over to them first, and all the people after him. And all the Gentiles were crushed before their face, and they threw away their weapons, and they fled to the temple that was in Carnaim.
{5:44} And he occupied that city, and he burned the temple with fire, along with all the things that were in it. And Carnaim was subdued, and it could not stand against the face of Judas.
{5:45} And Judas gathered together all the Israelites who were in the land of Gilead, from the least even to the greatest, with their wives and children, and a very great army, to come into the land of Judah.
{5:46} And they came as far as Ephron. And this was a great city, positioned at the entrance, strongly fortified, and there was no way to go around it on the right or on the left, but the path was through the midst of it.
{5:47} And those who were in the city shut themselves in and barricaded the gates with stones. And so Judas sent to them with words of peace,
{5:48} saying, “Let us cross through your land, to go into our own land, and no one will harm you; we will only cross through on foot.” But they were not willing to open to them.
{5:49} Then Judas instructed a proclamation to be made in the camp, that they would engage them, each one from the place where he was.
{5:50} And the men of the army drew close. And he assaulted that city all day and all night. And the city was delivered into his hand.
{5:51} And they destroyed every male with the edge of the sword, and he eradicated the city, and he took its spoils, and he crossed through the entire city, over those who had been slain.
{5:52} Then they crossed over the Jordan to the great plain that is opposite the face of Bethshan.
{5:53} And Judas was gathering the stragglers and exhorting the people, throughout the entire way, until they came into the land of Judah.
{5:54} And they ascended to mount Zion with joy and gladness, and they offered holocausts, because not one of them had fallen, until they had returned in peace.
{5:55} Now in the days that Judas and Jonathan were in the land of Gilead, and Simon his brother was in Galilee against the face of Ptolemais:
{5:56} Joseph, the son of Zachariah, and Azariah, the leader of the army, heard good things about the battles that were fought.
{5:57} And he said, “Let us also make a name for ourselves, and let us go to fight against the Gentiles that are all around us.”
{5:58} And he gave orders to those who were in his army, and they went out towards Jamnia.
{5:59} And Gorgias and his men exited the city, to meet them in the fight.
{5:60} And Joseph and Azariah were forced to flee, even to the borders of Judea. And there fell on that day, from the people of Israel, up to two thousand men, and it was a great defeat for the people.
{5:61} For they did not listen to Judas and his brothers, supposing that they should act boldly.
{5:62} But these were not of the offspring of those men by whom salvation was brought to Israel.
{5:63} And the men of Judah were magnified greatly in the sight of all Israel and of all the nations where their name was heard.
{5:64} And the people gathered to them with favorable acclamations.
{5:65} And so Judas and his brothers went out and assailed the sons of Esau, in the land that is toward the south, and he struck Hebron and her sister cities, and he burned its walls and the towers all around it with fire.
{5:66} And he moved his camp to go into the land of the foreigners, and he traveled through Samaria.
{5:67} In that day, some priests fell in battle. Since they desired to act boldly, they went out, without counsel, into the battle.
{5:68} And Judas turned aside to Azotus, into the land of the foreigners, and he destroyed their altars, and he burned the statues of their gods with fire. And he seized the spoils of the cities, and he returned to the land of Judah.
{6:1} And king Antiochus was traveling through the upper regions, and he heard that the city of Elymais in Persia was very noble and abundant in silver and gold,
{6:2} and that the temple in it was very opulent, and that there were, in that place, coverings of gold, and breastplates and shields, which Alexander, the son of Philip, king of Macedonia, who reigned first in Greece, had left behind.
{6:3} So he came and sought to seize the city and to pillage it. And he was not able, because this plan became known to those who were in the city.
{6:4} And they rose up in battle, and he fled away from there, and he departed with great sadness, and he returned into Babylon.
{6:5} And someone arrived to report to him in Persia, that those who were in the land of Judah were forced to flee the camp,
{6:6} and that Lysias went forth with a particularly strong army, and he was forced to flee before the face of the Jews, and that they were strengthened by the weapons, and resources, and many spoils which they seized from the camps they demolished,
{6:7} and that they had destroyed the abomination, which he had established on the altar that was in Jerusalem, and that the sanctuary, just as before, had been encircled with high walls, along with Bethzur, his city.
{6:8} And it happened that, when the king heard these words, he was terrified and very moved. And he fell down on his bed, and he fell into feebleness out of grief. For it had not happened to him as he had intended.
{6:9} And he was in that place through many days. For a great grief was renewed in him, and he concluded that he would die.
{6:10} And he called all his friends, and he said to them: “Sleep has withdrawn from my eyes, and I am declining, and my heart has collapsed out of anxiety.
{6:11} And I said in my heart: How much trouble has come to me, and what floods of sorrow there are, where I am now! I used to be cheerful and beloved in my power!
{6:12} Truly, now, I remember the evils that I did in Jerusalem, from which place I also took away all the spoils of gold and silver that were in it, and I sent to carry away the inhabitants of Judah without cause.
{6:13} Therefore, I know that it is because of this that these evils have found me. And behold, I perish with great sorrow in a foreign land.”
{6:14} Then he called Philip, one of his friends, and he placed him first over all his kingdom.
{6:15} And he gave him the diadem, and his robe, and his ring, so that he would guide Antiochus, his son, and raise him, and so that he would reign.
{6:16} And king Antiochus died there, in the one hundred and forty-ninth year.
{6:17} And Lysias knew that the king was dead, and he appointed Antiochus, his son, to reign, whom he had raised from adolescence. And he called his name Eupator.
{6:18} And those who were in the stronghold had enclosed the Israelites by surrounding the holy places. And they continually sought to do evil to them and to support the Gentiles.
{6:19} And Judas intended to disperse them. And he called together all the people, in order to besiege them.
{6:20} And they came together and besieged them in the one hundred and fiftieth year, and they made catapults and other machines.
{6:21} And certain ones of these, who were besieged, escaped. And some of the impious out of Israel joined themselves to them.
{6:22} And they went to the king, and they said: “How long will you not act with judgment and vindicate our brothers?
{6:23} We resolved to serve your father, and to walk according to his precepts, and to obey his edicts.
{6:24} And because of this, the sons of our people have alienated themselves from us, and they have put to death as many of us as they could find, and they have torn apart our inheritances.
{6:25} And they have not extended their hand against us only, but also against all within our borders.
{6:26} And behold, this day they have taken a position near the stronghold of Jerusalem to occupy it, and they have fortified the stronghold of Bethzur.
{6:27} And, unless you quickly act to prevent them, they will do greater things than these, and you will not be able to subdue them.”
{6:28} And the king was angry when he heard this. And he called together all his friends, and the leaders of his army, and those who were over the horsemen.
{6:29} But there even came to him mercenary armies from other kingdoms and from the islands of the sea.
{6:30} And the number of his army was one hundred thousand footmen, and twenty thousand horsemen, and thirty-two elephants trained for battle.
{6:31} And they traveled through Idumea, and they took a position near Bethzur. And they fought for many days, and they made machines of war. But they came out and burnt them with fire, and they fought manfully.
{6:32} And Judas departed from the stronghold, and he moved the camp to Bethzechariah, opposite the camp of the king.
{6:33} And the king rose up, before it was light, and he forced his troops to march toward the way of Bethzechariah. And the armies prepared themselves for battle, and they sounded the trumpets.
{6:34} And they showed the elephants the blood of grapes and mulberries, to provoke them to fight.
{6:35} And they divided the beasts by the legions, and there stood by every elephant a thousand men, with shields joined together and with brass helmets on their heads. And five hundred well-ordered horsemen were chosen for every beast.
{6:36} These were ready beforehand, and wherever the beast was, they were there; and whenever it moved, they moved, and they did not depart from it.
{6:37} Moreover, upon them there were strong wooden turrets, watching over every beast, with machines upon them, and on them were thirty-two valiant men, who fought from above, and an Indian to rule each beast.
{6:38} And the rest of the horsemen, he stationed here and there, in two parts, with trumpets to stir up the army and to urge on those who were slow to move within its legions.
{6:39} And so, when the sun reflected off the shields of gold and of brass, the mountains were resplendent from them, and they glowed like lamps of fire.
{6:40} And part of the king’s army was divided to the high mountains, and the other part to the low places. And they went forth with order and caution.
{6:41} And all the inhabitants of the land were shaken at the voice of their multitude, and at the advance of the company, and at the clash of the armor. For the army was very great and strong.
{6:42} And Judas and his army drew near for battle. And there fell of the king’s army six hundred men.
{6:43} And Eleazar, the son of Saura, saw one of the beasts shielded with the king’s shield, and it was higher than the other beasts. So it seemed to him that the king must be on it.
{6:44} And he gave himself for the freedom of his people, and to obtain for himself a name in eternity.
{6:45} And he ran up to it boldly in the midst of the legion, killing on the right and on the left, and they fell down before him on this side and that.
{6:46} And he went between the feet of the elephant, and put himself under it, and he killed it. And it fell to the ground upon him, and he died there.
{6:47} And, seeing the strength of the king and the forcefulness of his army, they turned themselves away from them.
{6:48} But the king’s camp went up against them in Jerusalem. And the king’s camp took up a position near Judea and Mount Zion.
{6:49} And he made peace with those who were in Bethzur. And they went out of the city, because they had no provisions in their confinement, for it was the Sabbath of the land.
{6:50} And the king captured Bethzur, and he stationed a garrison there to keep it.
{6:51} And he turned his camp against the place of sanctification for many days. And he stationed there catapults and other machines: machines to cast fire, and windlasses to cast stones and darts, and small catapults to cast arrows and metal.
{6:52} But they also made machines against their machines, and they fought for many days.
{6:53} But there were no foods in the city, because it was the seventh year. And those who had remained in Judea were from the Gentiles, so they consumed all that they had left from what had been stored up.
{6:54} And there remained in the holy places a few men, for the famine had prevailed over them. And they were scattered, each one to his own place.
{6:55} Then Lysias heard that Philip, whom king Antiochus had appointed, when he was still alive, to raise his son, Antiochus, and to reign,
{6:56} had returned from Persia and Media, with the army that went with him, and that he sought to take upon himself the affairs of the kingdom.
{6:57} He hurried to go and to say to the king and the commanders of the army: “We are weakened every day, and our food is limited, and the place that we besiege is strong, and it is incumbent upon us to put the kingdom in order.
{6:58} And so now, let us bestow a pledge to these men, and make peace with them and with all their nation.
{6:59} And let us establish for them that they may walk according to their own laws, just as before. For, because of their laws, which we despised, they have become angry and have done all these things.”
{6:60} And the idea was pleasing in the sight of the king and the leaders. And he sent to them to make peace. And they accepted it.
{6:61} And the king and the leaders swore to them. And they went out of the stronghold.
{6:62} Then the king entered into Mount Zion, and saw the fortifications of the place, and so he abruptly broke the oath that he had sworn, and he commanded the surrounding wall to be destroyed.
{6:63} And he departed in haste and returned to Antioch, where he found Philip ruling the city. And he fought against him and occupied the city.
{7:1} In the one hundred and fifty-first year, Demetrius, the son of Seleucus, departed from the city of Rome, and he went up with a few men to a maritime city, and he reigned there.
{7:2} And it happened that, as he entered into the house of the kingdom of his fathers, the army captured Antiochus and Lysias, to bring them to him.
{7:3} And the matter became known to him, and he said, “Do not show me their face.”
{7:4} And so the army killed them. And Demetrius sat upon the throne of his kingdom.
{7:5} And there came to him iniquitous and impious men from Israel. And Alcimus was their leader, who wanted to be made a priest.
{7:6} And they accused the people to the king, saying: “Judas and his brothers have destroyed all your friends, and he has scattered us from our land.
{7:7} Now, therefore, send a man, whom you trust, and let him go and see all the destruction he has done to us and to the regions of the king. And let him punish all his friends and their helpers.”
{7:8} And so the king chose, from among his friends, Bacchides, who ruled across the great river in the kingdom, and who was faithful to the king. And he sent him
{7:9} to see the destruction that Judas had done. Moreover, he appointed the wicked Alcimus to the priesthood, and he commanded him to take revenge on the sons of Israel.
{7:10} And they rose up and came forth with a great army into the land of Judah. And they sent messengers, who spoke to Judas and his brothers with words of peace, in deceitfulness.
{7:11} But they did not heed their words, for they saw that they arrived with a great army.
{7:12} Then there assembled to Alcimus and Bacchides, a congregation of scribes, to seek just terms.
{7:13} And first, the Hasideans, who were among the sons of Israel, also sought peace from them.
{7:14} For they said, “A man who is a priest from the offspring of Aaron has arrived; he will not deceive us.”
{7:15} And he spoke to them peaceful words, and he swore to them, saying, “We will not carry out any evil against you or your friends.”
{7:16} And they believed him. And he captured sixty of their men and killed them in one day, according to the word that is written:
{7:17} The flesh of your saints, and their blood, they have poured out all around Jerusalem, and there was no one who would bury them.
{7:18} Then fear and trembling hovered over all the people. For they said: “There is no truth or judgment among them. For they have transgressed the agreement and the oath that they swore.”
{7:19} And Bacchides moved the camp from Jerusalem, and he took up a position at Bethzaith. And he sent and captured many of those who had fled from him, and some of the people he killed in sacrifice, and he threw them into a great pit.
{7:20} Then he committed the country to Alcimus, and he left behind troops with him to assist him. And so Bacchides went away to the king.
{7:21} And Alcimus did what he pleased by means of his leadership of the priesthood.
{7:22} And all those who disturbed the people assembled before him, and they obtained the land of Judah, and they caused a great scourging in Israel.
{7:23} And Judas saw all the evils that Alcimus, and those who were with him, did to the sons of Israel, even more than the Gentiles did.
{7:24} And he went out into all the parts surrounding Judea, and he took vengeance on the men who had rebelled, and they ceased to go forth into the region any longer.
{7:25} But Alcimus saw that Judas, and those who were with him, prevailed. And he knew that he was not able to withstand them. And so he returned to the king, and he accused them of many crimes.
{7:26} And the king sent Nicanor, one of his principal noblemen, who was a cultivator of hostility against Israel. And he commanded him to overthrow the people.
{7:27} And Nicanor came to Jerusalem with a great army, and he sent to Judas and his brothers words of peace, with deceitfulness,
{7:28} saying: “Let there be no fighting between me and you. I will come with a few men, to see your faces with peace.”
{7:29} And he came to Judas, and they greeted one another in turns, peaceably. And the enemies were prepared to abduct Judas.
{7:30} And the plan became known to Judas, that he came to him with deceit. And so he became very afraid of him, and he was no longer willing to see his face.
{7:31} And Nicanor knew that his plan had been exposed, and he went out to meet Judas in battle near Capharsalama.
{7:32} And there fell of the army of Nicanor nearly five thousand men, and they fled into the city of David.
{7:33} And after these events, Nicanor ascended to mount Zion. And some of the priests of the people went out to greet him in peace, and to show him the holocausts that were offered for the king.
{7:34} But he mocked and despised them, and he defiled them. And he spoke arrogantly,
{7:35} and he swore with anger, saying, “Unless Judas and his army have been delivered into my hands, when I return in peace, I will burn this house.” And he went out with great anger.
{7:36} And the priests went in and stood before the face of the altar and the temple. And weeping, they said:
{7:37} “You, O Lord, have chosen this house so that your name may be invoked in it, so that it may be a house of prayer and supplication for your people.
{7:38} Accomplish vindication with this man and his army, and let them fall by the sword. Remember their blasphemies, and do not allow them to continue.”
{7:39} Then Nicanor departed from Jerusalem, and he positioned his camp near Bethhoron, and an army of Syria met him there.
{7:40} And Judas took a position in Adasa with three thousand men. And Judas prayed, and he said:
{7:41} “O Lord, when those who were sent by king Sennacherib blasphemed against you, an angel went out and struck one hundred and eighty-five thousand of them.
{7:42} Just so, crush this army in our sight today, and so let the others know that he has spoken evil against your sanctuary. And judge him according to his wickedness.”
{7:43} And the armies were sent into battle together on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar. And the camp of Nicanor was crushed, and he himself was among the first slain in the battle.
{7:44} So then, when his army saw that Nicanor had fallen, they threw away their weapons and fled.
{7:45} And they pursued them for one day’s journey from Adasa, even until one comes into Gazara, and they sounded the trumpets after them with signals.
{7:46} And they went forth from all of the towns all around Judea. And they herded them with the horns, and they turned back again to them, and they were all felled with the sword, and there was not so much as one of them left behind.
{7:47} And they took their spoils like a prey, and they cut off the head of Nicanor, and his right hand, which he had extended arrogantly, and they brought it, and hung it up opposite Jerusalem.
{7:48} And the people rejoiced exceedingly, and they spent that day in great joy.
{7:49} And he established that this day should be kept every year, on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar.
{7:50} And the land of Judah was quieted for a brief time.
{8:1} And Judas heard of the fame of the Romans, that they are powerful and strong, and that they willingly agree to all things that are asked of them; and that, whoever was agreeable to them, they established a friendship with them, and so they are powerful and resourceful.
{8:2} And they heard of their battles, and the successful works that they had accomplished in Galatia, how they had subdued them and brought them under tribute,
{8:3} and what great things they had accomplished in the region of Spain, and that they had driven under their power the mines of silver and gold which are there, and that they had obtained possession of the entire place by their counsel and patience,
{8:4} and that they had overcome places that were very far from them, and kings, who came against them from the ends of the earth, and had crushed them and struck them with a great scourging, while the rest pay tribute to them every year,
{8:5} and that they had defeated in battle Philip, and Perses the king of the Ceteans, and the others who had taken up arms against them, and had crushed them in warfare and subdued them,
{8:6} and how Antiochus, the great king of Asia, who brought a fight against them, having one hundred and twenty elephants, with horsemen, and swift chariots, and a very great army, was crushed by them,
{8:7} and how they had captured him alive and had decreed to him that both he and those who would reign after him would pay a great tribute, and that he should provide hostages bound to an agreement,
{8:8} and that regions from the Indians, and from the Medes, and from the Lydians, from among their best regions, with those whom they had taken from them, they gave to king Eumenes.
{8:9} And those who were in Greece wanted to go out and defeat them, but they became aware of this plan.
{8:10} And so they sent one general to them, and he fought against them, and many of them fell, and they led into captivity their wives, and their sons, and they despoiled them and took possession of their land, and they destroyed their walls and drove them into servitude, even to this day.
{8:11} And the remaining kingdoms and islands, which at any time had resisted them, they destroyed and drove under their power.
{8:12} But with their friends, and with those who remained at peace with them, they maintained friendship and conquered kingdoms: those that were near, and those that were far off. For all those who heard of their name were afraid of them.
{8:13} In fact, whomever they wanted to help become ruler, these reigned, but whomever they wanted, they deposed from the kingdom. And they were greatly exalted.
{8:14} And of all these, none wore a diadem or was clothed in purple, to be magnified in this.
{8:15} And also, they had made themselves a senate house, and they consulted daily with three hundred and twenty men, continually acting as a counsel for the multitude, so that they would do the things that were right.
{8:16} And they commit their government to one man each year, to rule over their entire land, and they all obey this one, and there is no envy or jealousy among them.
{8:17} And so Judas chose Eupolemus, the son of John, the son of Jacob, and Jason, the son of Eleazar, and he sent them to Rome to make an agreement of friendship and an alliance with them,
{8:18} and so that they would take away from them the yoke of the Grecians, for they saw that they oppressed the kingdom of Israel with servitude.
{8:19} And they went to Rome, a very long journey, and they entered the senate house, and they said,
{8:20} “Judas Maccabeus, and his brothers, and the people of the Jews, have sent us to you to establish with you an alliance and peace, and so that we may be registered among your associates and friends.”
{8:21} And the word was pleasing in their sight.
{8:22} And this is a copy of the writing, which they rewrote on tablets of brass and sent to Jerusalem, so that it would be with them in that place as a memorial of the peace and alliance:
{8:23} “May all be well with the Romans and with the nation of the Jews, at sea and on land, forever, and may sword and enemy be far away from them.
{8:24} But if a war is instituted against the Romans first, or against any of their allies in all their dominions,
{8:25} the nation of the Jews will bring help to them, just as the situation shall direct, whole-heartedly.
{8:26} And those who do battle, they need not provide with supplies of wheat, or arms, or money, or ships, just as it seems good to the Romans, and they shall obey their orders, while taking nothing from them.
{8:27} But in like manner also, if war will have fallen upon the nation of the Jews first, the Romans shall help them willingly, just as the situation permits them.
{8:28} And those who give assistance will not be provided with wheat, or arms, or money, or ships, just as it seems good to the Romans. And they shall obey their orders without deceit.
{8:29} According to these words, the Romans have made an agreement with the people of the Jews.
{8:30} And, if after these words, one or another would want to add anything to, or take anything from these, they may do as they propose. And whatever they add or take away, it shall be ratified.
{8:31} Moreover, concerning the evils that king Demetrius did to them, we have written to him, saying, ‘Why have you made your yoke heavy upon our friends and allies, the Jews?
{8:32} If, therefore, they come again to us against you, we will render judgment for them, and we will make war against you by sea and by land.’ ”
{9:1} Meanwhile, when Demetrius heard that Nicanor and his army had fallen in battle, he again positioned Bacchides and Alcimus in Judea, and the right horn of his army with them.
{9:2} And they traveled by the way that leads to Gilgal, and they set up camp in Mesaloth, which is in Arbela. And they occupied it, and they destroyed the lives of many men.
{9:3} In the first month of the one hundred and fifty-second year, they positioned the army near Jerusalem.
{9:4} And they rose up and went to Berea, with twenty thousand men and two thousand horsemen.
{9:5} Now Judas had stationed his camp in Elasa, and three thousand chosen men were with him.
{9:6} And they saw the multitude of the army, that they were many, and they became very afraid. And many withdrew themselves from the camp, and there remained of them no more than eight hundred men.
{9:7} And Judas saw that his army had slipped away and that the battle pressed upon him, and his heart was shattered, because he did not have time to gather them together, and he was very discouraged.
{9:8} And so, he said to those who were remaining, “Let us rise up and go against our enemies, perhaps we may be able to fight against them.”
{9:9} But they dissuaded him, saying: “We will not be able, but let us try to save our lives and return to our brothers, and then we will fight against them. For we are but few.”
{9:10} And Judas said: “Far be it from us, to do this thing, so as to flee away from them. But if our time has drawn near, let us die with virtue, on behalf of our brothers, and let us not inflict guilt upon our glory.”
{9:11} And the army moved from the camp, and they stood to meet them. And the horsemen were divided into two parts, and the stone-slingers and archers went before the army, and the first ones were all powerful men, experienced in combat.
{9:12} Moreover, Bacchides was with the right horn, and the legion drew near on both sides, and they sounded the trumpets.
{9:13} But those also who were from the side of Judas, these also now cried out, and the earth shook at the noise of the armies. And the battle was joined from morning, even until evening.
{9:14} And Judas saw that the stronger part of the army of Bacchides was on the right side, and all the steadfast in heart came together with him.
{9:15} And the right part was crushed by them, and he pursued them even to Mount Azotus.
{9:16} And those who were with the left horn saw that the right horn was crushed, and so they followed after Judas, and those who were with him, at their back.
{9:17} And the battle was hard fought, and there fell many wounded from one side and the other.
{9:18} And Judas fell, and the others fled away.
{9:19} And Jonathan and Simon carried Judas, their brother, and they buried him in the sepulcher of their fathers, in the city of Modin.
{9:20} And all the people of Israel wept for him with a great wailing, and they mourned him for many days.
{9:21} And they said, “Such a powerful man has fallen, who accomplished the salvation of the people of Israel!”
{9:22} But the rest of the words, about the wars of Judas, and the virtuous acts that he did, and his magnitude, have not been written. For they were very many.
{9:23} And it happened that, after the death of Judas, the iniquitous began to emerge in all the parts of Israel, and they began to encourage all those who worked iniquity.
{9:24} In those days, there occurred a very great famine, and the entire region handed itself over to Bacchides.
{9:25} And Bacchides chose impious men, and he appointed them as rulers of the region.
{9:26} And they sought out and persecuted the friends of Judas, and they led them to Bacchides, and he took vengeance on them and abused them.
{9:27} And there occurred a great tribulation in Israel, such as had never been, since the day that there was no prophet seen in Israel.
{9:28} And all the friends of Judas gathered together, and they said to Jonathan:
{9:29} “Since your brother Judas has fallen away, there is not a man like him to go forth against our enemies, against Bacchides and those who are the enemies of our nation.
{9:30} And so now, we have chosen you in his place, on this day, to be our leader and commander in order to wage our wars.”
{9:31} And so, at that time, Jonathan took upon himself the leadership, and he rose up in the place of Judas, his brother.
{9:32} And Bacchides knew of it, and he sought to kill him.
{9:33} And Jonathan and his brother Simon knew of this, and so did all who were with them. And they fled into the desert of Tekoa, and they settled by the water of lake Asphar.
{9:34} And Bacchides knew of it, and on the day of the Sabbath, he himself arrived, with all his army, across the Jordan.
{9:35} And Jonathan sent his brother, a commander of the people, to ask the Nabateans, his friends, to lend them their equipment, which was abundant.
{9:36} And the sons of Jambri went forth from Medeba, and they captured John, and all that he had, and they went away in possession of these.
{9:37} After these events, it was reported to Jonathan and his brother Simon that the sons of Jambri were having a great marriage celebration, and that they would be leading the bride, a daughter of one of the great leaders of Canaan, out of Medeba with great fanfare.
{9:38} And they remembered the blood of John, their brother. And they went up and hid themselves under the cover of the mountain.
{9:39} And they lifted up their eyes and saw. And behold, a tumult and a well-prepared multitude. And the bridegroom proceeded, with his friends and his brothers, to meet them with timbrels, and musical instruments, and many weapons.
{9:40} And they rose up against them out of ambush, and they killed them, and there fell many wounded, and the remainder fled into the mountains, and they took all their spoils.
{9:41} And the marriage celebration was turned into mourning, and the voice of their musical instruments into lamentation.
{9:42} And they took revenge for the blood of their brother, and they returned to the bank of the Jordan.
{9:43} And Bacchides heard about this, and he came on the day of the Sabbath all the way to the coast of the Jordan, with a great force.
{9:44} And Jonathan said to his own: “Let us rise up and fight against our enemies. For it is not today, as it was yesterday, or the day before.
{9:45} For behold, the war is before us, and truly, with the water of the Jordan here and there, and the banks, and the marshes, and the woods: there is no place for us to turn aside.
{9:46} Therefore, cry out now to heaven so that you may be freed from the hand of your enemies.” And they joined together in warfare.
{9:47} And Jonathan extended his hand to strike Bacchides, but he turned away from him in retreat.
{9:48} And Jonathan, and those who were with him, leaped forward into the Jordan, and they swam across the Jordan to them.
{9:49} And there fell from the side of Bacchides on that day one thousand men. And they returned to Jerusalem.
{9:50} And they built fortified cities in Judea: the fortification that was in Jericho, and in Emmaus, and in Bethhoron, and in Bethel, and Timnath, and Pharathon, and Tephon, with high walls, and gates, and bars.
{9:51} And he stationed garrisons in them, so that those in Israel became trained in warfare.
{9:52} And he fortified the city of Bethzur, and of Gazara, and the stronghold, and he stationed auxiliaries in them, with supplies of rations.
{9:53} And he took the sons of the leaders of the region for hostages, and put them in the stronghold in Jerusalem under guard.
{9:54} Now in the second month of the one hundred and fifty-third year, Alcimus instructed that the walls of the inner court of the sanctuary be destroyed, and that the works of the prophets be destroyed. And he began to destroy them.
{9:55} At that time, Alcimus was struck, and his works were hindered, and his mouth was closed shut, and he was weakened with paralysis, so that he was no longer able speak a word, nor to give orders concerning his house.
{9:56} And Alcimus died at that time, in great torment.
{9:57} And Bacchides saw that Alcimus was dead. And he returned to the king. And the land was quiet for two years.
{9:58} And all the iniquitous considered together, saying, “Behold, Jonathan, and those who are with him, live in quietude and confidence. Now, therefore, let us bring forth Bacchides, and he will capture them all, in one night.”
{9:59} So they went and gave counsel to him.
{9:60} And he rose up, so as to advance with a great army. And he secretly sent letters to his associates who were in Judea, to seize Jonathan and those who were with him. But they were not able, for their plan became known to them.
{9:61} And he apprehended, from the men of the region, those who were the leaders of this malice, fifty men. And he killed them.
{9:62} And Jonathan, and Simon, and those who were with him, withdrew into Bethbasi, which is in the desert. And he repaired its breaches, and they fortified it.
{9:63} And Bacchides knew about it, and he gathered together all his multitude. And he reported it to those who were from Judea.
{9:64} And he came and made camp above Bethbasi, and he fought against it for many days, and he made machines of war.
{9:65} But Jonathan left behind his brother Simon in the city, and he went out into the country, and he approached with a number of men,
{9:66} and he struck Odomera and his brothers, and the sons of Phasiron, in their tents. And he began to slaughter and to increase in forces.
{9:67} In truth, Simon, and those who were with him, went forth from the city and burned the machines of war,
{9:68} and they fought against Bacchides, and he was crushed by them. And they afflicted him greatly, because his counsel and his meetings were in vain.
{9:69} And he was angry with the men of iniquity who had given him counsel to come into their region, and he killed many of them. But he decided to depart with the remainder into their country.
{9:70} And Jonathan knew of it, and he sent ambassadors to him to arrange a peace with him, and to restore the captives to him.
{9:71} And he accepted it willingly, and he acted according to his words, and he swore that he would do him no evil all the days of his life.
{9:72} And he restored to him the captives which he previously had been given from the land of Judah. And he turned back and went away into his own land, and he no longer drew near, in order to enter into their borders.
{9:73} And so the sword ceased from Israel. And Jonathan lived in Michmash, and, in that place, Jonathan began to judge the people, and he destroyed the impious out of Israel.
{10:1} And in the one hundred and sixtieth year, Alexander, the son of Antiochus, who was surnamed the illustrious, came up and occupied Ptolemais, and they received him, and he reigned there.
{10:2} And king Demetrius heard of it, and he gathered together an exceedingly great army, and he went forth to meet him in battle.
{10:3} And Demetrius sent a letter to Jonathan, with peaceful words, to magnify him.
{10:4} For he said, “Let us first make a peace with him, before he makes one with Alexander against us.
{10:5} For he will remember all the evils that we have done to him, and to his brother, and to his nation.”
{10:6} And he gave him the authority to gather together an army, and to fabricate weapons, so that he would be his associate. And the hostages who were in the stronghold, he ordered to be handed over to him.
{10:7} And Jonathan came to Jerusalem, and he read the letters in the hearing of all the people and of those who were in the stronghold.
{10:8} And they were struck with a great fear, because they heard that the king gave him the authority to gather together an army.
{10:9} And the hostages were handed over to Jonathan, and he restored them to their parents.
{10:10} And Jonathan lived in Jerusalem, and he began to rebuild and repair the city.
{10:11} And he told those doing the work to build up the walls, and mount Zion, all around, with square stones, as a fortification. And they did so.
{10:12} Then the foreigners, who were in the fortifications that Bacchides had built, fled away.
{10:13} And each one abandoned his place and departed into his own land.
{10:14} Only in Bethzur did there remain some others of these, who had forsaken the law and the precepts of God. For this was a refuge for them.
{10:15} And king Alexander heard of the promises that Demetrius promised to Jonathan. And they described the battles to him, and the virtuous deeds that he and his brothers had done, and the hardships that they had endured.
{10:16} And he said: “Would we ever find another such man? And so now, let us make him our friend and our associate.”
{10:17} And so, he wrote a letter, and he sent it to him, according to these words, saying:
{10:18} “King Alexander to his brother, Jonathan: greetings.
{10:19} We have heard of you, that you are a man of power and strength, and that you are fit to be our friend.
{10:20} And so now, on this day, we appoint that you be high priest of your people, and that you be called the king’s friend, (and he sent him a purple robe, and a crown of gold,) and that you be of one mind with us in our affairs, and that you keep friendship with us.”
{10:21} Then Jonathan clothed himself with the holy vestment, in the seventh month, in the one hundred and sixtieth year, on the solemn day of the Feast of Tabernacles. And he gathered together an army, and he made an abundance of weapons.
{10:22} And Demetrius heard these words, and he was exceedingly sorrowful, and he said:
{10:23} “What have we done in this, that Alexander has gone before us to obtain the friendship of the Jews to strengthen himself?
{10:24} I also will write to them words of petition, and offer positions of rank and gifts, so that they may act in assistance to me.”
{10:25} And he wrote to them in these words: “King Demetrius to the nation of the Jews: greetings.
{10:26} Since you have kept the peace with us, and have remained in our friendship, and have not made agreements with our enemies, we have heard of this, and we are glad.
{10:27} And so now, persevere still to remain faithful to us, and we will reward you with good things for what you have done for us.
{10:28} And we will repay you for your many expenses, and we will give you gifts.
{10:29} And now, I release you, and all the Jews, from tributes, and I grant to you the payments of salt, and I send back the crowns and the thirds of the seed.
{10:30} And the one half portion of the fruit from the trees, which is my share, I relinquish to you from this day and hereafter, so that it shall not be taken from the land of Judah, nor from the three cities that have been added to it from Samaria and Galilee, from this day and for all time.
{10:31} And let Jerusalem be holy and free within its borders, and let the tenths and tributes be for itself.
{10:32} And I even return authority over the stronghold, which is in Jerusalem, and I give it to the high priest, in order to appoint in it any such men as he will choose, who will guard it.
{10:33} And every soul of the Jews who were taken captive from the land of Judah in all my kingdom, I set at liberty without charge, so that they are all released from tributes, even of their cattle.
{10:34} And all the days of solemnities, and the Sabbaths, and the new moons, and the decreed days, and the three days before the solemn day, and three days after the solemn day, shall all be days of immunity and remission for all the Jews who are in my kingdom.
{10:35} And no one will have the authority to do anything, or to incite any plots, against any of them, in all cases.
{10:36} And let there be enrolled from the Jews, into the army of the king, up to thirty thousand men. And allowances shall be given to them, just as is due to all the king’s army. And some of them shall be appointed to be in the fortresses of the great king.
{10:37} And some of them shall be set over the affairs of the kingdom, those who act with faith, and let the leaders be from them, and let them walk by their own laws, just as the king has commanded in the land of Judah.
{10:38} And the three cities that have been added to Judea from the region of Samaria, let them be counted with Judea, so that they may be united as one, and so that they may obey no other authority, except the high priest.
{10:39} Ptolemais and its confines, I give as a free gift to the holy places that are in Jerusalem, for the necessary expenses of the holy things.
{10:40} And I give, every year, fifteen thousand shekels of silver from the allotment of the king, from what belongs to me.
{10:41} And all that has been left over, which those who were set over the affairs in prior years have not paid: from this time, they will give it to the works of the house.
{10:42} And beyond this, they shall receive five thousand shekels of silver from the allotment of the holy places each year, and this will belong to the priests who perform the ministry.
{10:43} And whoever will flee into the temple that is in Jerusalem, or in any of its parts, being liable before the king in any matter, let them be released, and all that is theirs in my kingdom, let them have it freely.
{10:44} And as to the works of rebuilding and repairing the holy places, the expenses shall be given from the king’s revenues.
{10:45} And as to the raising of the walls of Jerusalem and the fortifications all around it, the expenses shall be given from the king’s revenues, as also for the building of the walls in Judea.”
{10:46} So when Jonathan and the people heard these words, they did not believe or accept them, because they remembered the great malice that he had done in Israel, for he had troubled them greatly.
{10:47} And so they were pleased with Alexander, because he had been to them a leader with words of peace, and they were of assistance to him every day.
{10:48} And so king Alexander gathered together a great army, and he moved his camp against Demetrius.
{10:49} And the two kings joined together in battle, and the army of Demetrius fled away, and Alexander followed after him, and he closed in on them.
{10:50} And the battle was hard fought, until the sun went down. And Demetrius was slain on that day.
{10:51} And Alexander sent ambassadors to Ptolemy, the king of Egypt, according to these words, saying:
{10:52} “Know that I have returned to my kingdom, and I am seated upon the throne of my fathers, and I have obtained the leadership, and I have crushed Demetrius, and I have taken possession of our country,
{10:53} and I have joined battle with him, and both he and his camp have been crushed by us, and we are seated on the throne of his kingdom.
{10:54} And now, let us establish a friendship with one with another. And give me your daughter as a wife, and I will be your son-in-law, and I will give gifts that are worthy of you, to both you and her.”
{10:55} And king Ptolemy responded by saying: “Happy is the day on which you were returned to the land of your fathers, and you sat on the throne of their kingdom.
{10:56} And now, I will do for you as you have written. But meet with me at Ptolemais, so that we may see one another, and so that I may espouse her to you, just as you have said.”
{10:57} And so Ptolemy departed from Egypt, both he and his daughter Cleopatra, and he arrived at Ptolemais in the one hundred and sixty-second year.
{10:58} And king Alexander met him, and he gave him Cleopatra, his daughter. And he celebrated her marriage at Ptolemais with great glory, just as befits kings.
{10:59} And king Alexander wrote to Jonathan, that he should come to meet him.
{10:60} And he went forth with glory to Ptolemais, and he met the two kings there, and he gave them much silver, and gold, and gifts. And he found favor in their sight.
{10:61} And some of the pestilent men of Israel, men of iniquity, came together against him, interrupting with objections against him. And the king did not attend to them.
{10:62} And he ordered that Jonathan’s garments be taken away from him, and that he be clothed in purple. And they did so. And the king arranged for him to sit with him.
{10:63} And he said to his princes, “Go out with him into the midst of the city, and make a proclamation, so that no one may raise objections against him in any matter, and so that no one may bother him for any reason.”
{10:64} And so it happened that, when his accusers saw his glory being proclaimed, and him clothed in purple, they all fled away.
{10:65} And the king magnified him, and he enrolled him among his foremost friends, and he gave him a position as governor and as a participant in his dominion.
{10:66} And Jonathan returned to Jerusalem with peace and joy.
{10:67} In the one hundred and sixty-fifth year, Demetrius, the son of Demetrius, came from Crete into the land of his fathers.
{10:68} And king Alexander heard of it, and he was very sorrowful, and he returned to Antioch.
{10:69} And king Demetrius appointed Apollonius as his general, who was in charge of Coelesyria. And he gathered together a great army, and he drew near to Jamnia. And he sent to Jonathan, the high priest,
{10:70} saying: “You alone resist us, and so I have been brought to derision and disgrace, because you exercise your power against us in the mountains.
{10:71} Now, therefore, if you trust in your forces, descend to us in the plains, and there let us contest one another. For the power of war is with me.
{10:72} Inquire, and learn who I am, and the others, who are auxiliaries to me, who also say that your feet cannot stand before our face, for your fathers have twice been put to flight in their own land.
{10:73} And now, how will you be able to withstand the horsemen, and so great an army in the plains, where there is no stone, or rock, or place to flee?”
{10:74} But when Jonathan heard the words of Apollonius, he was moved in his soul. And he chose ten thousand men, and he departed from Jerusalem, and Simon, his brother, met him to help him.
{10:75} And they positioned their tents near Joppa, but they excluded him from the city, because a garrison from Apollonius was in Joppa. And so, he attacked it.
{10:76} And those who were in the city, being terrified, opened to him. And so Jonathan obtained Joppa.
{10:77} And Apollonius heard of it, and he moved three thousand horsemen, and a great army.
{10:78} And he went toward Azotus, like one making a journey, but he suddenly departed into the plains, because he had a great number of horsemen, and he trusted in them. And Jonathan followed after him to Azotus, and they joined together in battle.
{10:79} And Apollonius secretly left behind them in the camp a thousand horsemen.
{10:80} And Jonathan realized that there was an ambush behind him, and they surrounded his camp, and they cast darts at the people from morning until evening.
{10:81} But the people stood firm, just as Jonathan had instructed them, and their horses suffered hardships.
{10:82} Then Simon drew forth his army, and he sent them against the legion. For the horsemen were wearied. And they were crushed by him, and they fled.
{10:83} And those who were scattered throughout the plains fled to Azotus, and they entered into Bethdagon, so that, by their idol in that place, they might save themselves.
{10:84} But Jonathan set fire to Azotus and to the cities that were all around it, and he captured their spoils and the temple of Dagon. And he burned with fire all those who had fled into it.
{10:85} And so it was that those who fell by the sword, with those who were burned, were nearly eight thousand men.
{10:86} And Jonathan, removed his encampment from there, and he took up a position against Askalon. And they went out of the city to meet him with great glory.
{10:87} And Jonathan returned to Jerusalem with his own, having many spoils.
{10:88} And it happened that, when king Alexander heard these words, he added still more glory to Jonathan.
{10:89} And he sent him a clasp of gold, as is customary to be given to those who are of royal lineage. And he gave him Ekron, and all its borders, as a possession.
{11:1} And the king of Egypt gathered together an army, like the sand that is along the shore of the sea, and many ships. And he sought to obtain the kingdom of Alexander by deceit, and to add it to his own kingdom.
{11:2} And he departed into Syria with words of peace, and they opened the cities to him, and they were meeting with him. For king Alexander had commanded them to go out to meet him, because he was his father-in-law.
{11:3} But when Ptolemy entered a city, he placed garrisons of soldiers in each of the cities.
{11:4} And when he drew near to Azotus, they revealed to him that the temple of Dagon had been burned with fire, and Azotus and its suburbs had been demolished, and bodies had been abandoned, and that, for those who had been cut to pieces in the war, they had made a tomb along the way.
{11:5} And they told the king that Jonathan had done these things, so as to make him hated. But the king remained silent.
{11:6} And Jonathan went to meet the king at Joppa with glory, and they greeted one another, and they stayed there.
{11:7} And Jonathan went with the king as far as the river, which is called Eleutherus. And he returned to Jerusalem.
{11:8} But king Ptolemy obtained the dominion of the coastal cities, as far as Seleucia, and he devised evil plans against Alexander.
{11:9} And he sent ambassadors to Demetrius, saying: “Come, let us compose a pact between us, and I will give you my daughter, whom Alexander had, and you will reign in the kingdom of your father.
{11:10} For I regret that I have given him my daughter. For he has sought to kill me.”
{11:11} And he slandered him, because he coveted his kingdom.
{11:12} And he took away his daughter, and he gave her to Demetrius, and he alienated himself from Alexander, and his hostilities were made manifest.
{11:13} And Ptolemy entered Antioch, and he placed two diadems upon his head, that of Egypt, and that of Asia.
{11:14} Now king Alexander was in Cilicia at that time, because the people of those places were rebelling.
{11:15} And when Alexander heard of it, he came against him in warfare. And king Ptolemy led forth his army, and he met him with a strong hand, and he put him to flight.
{11:16} And Alexander fled into Arabia, so as to be protected there. And king Ptolemy was exalted.
{11:17} And Zabdiel the Arab took off the head of Alexander, and he sent it to Ptolemy.
{11:18} And king Ptolemy died on the third day, and those who were in the strongholds were destroyed by those who were in the camp.
{11:19} And Demetrius reigned in the one hundred and sixty-seventh year.
{11:20} In those days, Jonathan gathered together those who were in Judea, in order to fight against the stronghold that was in Jerusalem. And they made many machines of war against it.
{11:21} And so, certain men of iniquity, who hated their own people, went forth to king Demetrius, and they reported to him that Jonathan was besieging the stronghold.
{11:22} And when he heard it, he became angry. And immediately he came to Ptolemais, and he wrote to Jonathan that he should not besiege the stronghold, but that he should meet with him promptly, for a discussion.
{11:23} But when Jonathan heard this, he ordered them to besiege it. And he chose some from the elders of Israel and from the priests, and he put himself in danger.
{11:24} And he took gold, and silver, and vestments, and many other presents, and he went to the king at Ptolemais, and he found favor in his sight.
{11:25} And some of the iniquitous from his nation came forward with objections against him.
{11:26} And the king treated him just as those who were before him had treated him. And he exalted him in the sight of all his friends.
{11:27} And he confirmed him in the high priesthood and in all the other honors that he held before, and he made him the leader of his friends.
{11:28} And Jonathan requested of the king that he would make Judea free from tribute, along with the three districts, and Samaria, and its confines. And he promised him three hundred talents.
{11:29} And the king consented. And he wrote letters to Jonathan about all these things, continuing in this way:
{11:30} “King Demetrius to his brother Jonathan, and to the nation of the Jews: greetings.
{11:31} We are sending you a copy of the letter that we wrote to Lasthenes, our parent, about you, so that you will know.
{11:32} ‘King Demetrius to Lasthenes, his parent: greetings.
{11:33} We have determined to do good to the people of the Jews, who are our friends and who keep to what is just with us, because of their good will, which they hold toward us.
{11:34} Therefore, we have assigned to them all the parts of Judea, and the three cities, Lydda and Ramatha, which were added to Judea from Samaria, and all their confines, to be set apart for all those sacrificing in Jerusalem, in place of that which the king previously received from them each year, and in place of the fruits of the land and of the fruit trees.
{11:35} And, as for the rest of that which pertains to us from tithes and tributes, from this time forward, we release them from these, as well as from the drying areas of salt and the crowns that were presented to us.
{11:36} All these, we concede to them, and nothing of these shall be revoked, from this time forward and for all time.
{11:37} Now, therefore, take care to make a copy of these things, and let it be given to Jonathan and set upon the holy mountain, in an honorable place.’ ”
{11:38} And king Demetrius, seeing that the land was quieted in his sight and that nothing resisted him, sent all his forces away, each one to his own place, except the foreign army, which he had drawn together from the islands of the nations. And so all the troops of his fathers were hostile to him.
{11:39} But there was a certain one, Trypho, who was previously on Alexander’s side. And he saw that all the army murmured against Demetrius, and so he went to Imalkue the Arab, who raised Antiochus, the son of Alexander.
{11:40} And he persuaded him to deliver him to him, so that he would reign in his father’s place. And he reported to him what Demetrius had done, and that his army was hostile to him. And he remained there for many days.
{11:41} And Jonathan sent to king Demetrius, so that he would cast out those who were in the stronghold in Jerusalem and those who were with the garrisons, because they fought against Israel.
{11:42} And Demetrius sent to Jonathan, saying: “I will not only do this for you and your people, but I will elevate your glory and your nation, when opportunity shall serve.
{11:43} Now, therefore, you will do well if you send men as auxiliaries to me. For all my army has withdrawn from me.”
{11:44} And Jonathan sent three thousand strong men to him at Antioch. And they came to the king, and the king was delighted at their arrival.
{11:45} And those who were of the city gathered together, one hundred and twenty thousand men, and they wanted to execute the king.
{11:46} And the king fled into the royal court. And those who were of the city, occupied the passageways of the city, and they began to fight.
{11:47} And the king called the Jews to his assistance. And they came together before him at the same time, and then they all dispersed themselves throughout the city.
{11:48} And they killed, in that day, one hundred thousand men, and they set fire to the city, and they seized many spoils in that day, and they freed the king.
{11:49} And those who were of the city saw that the Jews had taken the city, just as they wanted, and they were weakened in their resolve, and they cried out to the king with supplication, saying,
{11:50} “Grant us a pledge, and let the Jews cease from assailing us and the city.”
{11:51} And they threw down their arms, and they made peace. And the Jews were glorified in the sight of the king and in the sight of all who were in his realm. And they became renowned in the kingdom, and they returned to Jerusalem, holding many spoils.
{11:52} And so king Demetrius sat on the throne of his kingdom. And the land was quieted in his sight.
{11:53} And he falsified everything whatsoever that he had said. And he alienated himself from Jonathan, and he did not repay him according to the benefits that he had received in tribute from him. And he vexed him greatly.
{11:54} But after this, Trypho returned, and with him was Antiochus, the adolescent boy, and he reigned, and he put a diadem on himself.
{11:55} And there assembled before him all the troops, which Demetrius had dispersed, and they fought against him. And he turned his back and fled.
{11:56} And Trypho took the elephants, and he obtained Antioch.
{11:57} And young Antiochus wrote to Jonathan, saying: “I confirm you in the priesthood, and I appoint you over the four cities, so as to be among the king’s friends.”
{11:58} And he sent him vessels of gold for his ministry, and he gave him the authority to drink from gold, and to be clothed in purple, and to have a golden clasp.
{11:59} And he appointed his brother Simon as governor, from the borders of Tyre, all the way to the borders of Egypt.
{11:60} Then Jonathan went out, and he passed through the cities across the river. And all the armies of Syria were gathered together in assistance to him, and he came to Askalon, and those from the city met him honorably.
{11:61} And he went from there to Gaza. And those who were in Gaza closed themselves in. And so he besieged it, and he burned all that was around the city, and he plundered it.
{11:62} And those of Gaza petitioned Jonathan, and he pledged to them with his right hand, and he accepted their sons as hostages and sent them to Jerusalem. And he traveled through the country, as far as Damascus.
{11:63} And Jonathan heard that the leaders of Demetrius were acting treacherously at Kadesh, which is in Galilee, with a great army, intending to remove him from the affairs of the kingdom.
{11:64} And he went to meet them. But he left his brother Simon behind in the countryside.
{11:65} And Simon took a position against Bethzur, and he assailed it for many days, and he closed them in.
{11:66} And they asked him to accept a pledge, and he granted this to them. And he cast them out of there, and he seized the city, and he placed a garrison in it.
{11:67} And Jonathan and his camp took a position by the water of Gennesaret, and, before first light, they were standing watch in the plains of Hazor.
{11:68} And behold, an army of foreigners met him in the plains. And they set up an ambush against him in the mountains. But he met them from the opposite direction.
{11:69} Yet those lying in ambush then rose up from their places and joined them in combat.
{11:70} And all those who were from Jonathan’s side fled, and not one of them was left, except Mattathias, the son of Absalom, and Judas, the son of Chalphi, the leader of military training.
{11:71} And so Jonathan tore his garments, and he placed dirt on his head, and he prayed.
{11:72} And Jonathan turned back toward them in battle, and he put them to flight, and they fought.
{11:73} And when those from his side, who had fled, saw this, they returned to him, and with him they all pursued them, even to Kadesh, to their camp, and they even passed beyond there.
{11:74} And there fell from the foreigners on that day three thousand men. And Jonathan returned to Jerusalem.
{12:1} And Jonathan saw that time was on his side, and he chose men, and he sent them to Rome, to confirm and renew the peace agreement with them.
{12:2} And he sent letters to the Spartans, and to other places, according to the same form.
{12:3} And they went to Rome and entered into the senate house, and they said, “Jonathan, the high priest, and the nation of the Jews, have sent us to renew the peace and alliance, as it was before.”
{12:4} And they gave letters to them, to those in each place, so that they would lead them into the land of Judah with peace.
{12:5} And this is a copy of the letters that Jonathan wrote to the Spartans:
{12:6} “Jonathan, the high priest, and the elders of the people, and the priests, and the rest of the people of the Jews, to the Spartans, their brothers: greetings.
{12:7} Now, some time ago, letters were sent to Onias, the high priest from Arius, who reigned then among you, so that you would be our brothers, just as the copy that is written below states.
{12:8} And Onias received the man whom you had sent with honor. And he received the letters, in which was conveyed the alliance and peace treaty.
{12:9} We, though, have no need of these things, having for our solace the sacred books, which are in our hands.
{12:10} We prefer to send to you, so as to renew the brotherhood and friendship, lest we should, in effect, become a stranger to you, for much time has passed since you sent to us.
{12:11} Therefore, we will remember you, at all times without ceasing, in our solemnities and other days, when it is fitting, in the sacrifices that we offer, and in our observances, just as it is fitting and right to remember brothers.
{12:12} And so, we rejoice at your glory.
{12:13} But many tribulations and many wars have surrounded us, and the kings who are around us have fought against us.
{12:14} But we are not willing to trouble you, nor the rest of our allies and friends, about these battles.
{12:15} For we have assistance from heaven, and we have been delivered, and our enemies have been humbled.
{12:16} And so, we have chosen Numenius, the son of Antiochus, and Antipater, the son of Jason, and we have sent them to the Romans, to renew the former peace treaty and alliance with them.
{12:17} And so, we have commanded them to also come to you, and to greet you, and to deliver our letters to you, about the renewal of our brotherhood.
{12:18} And now, you would do well to respond to us about these things.”
{12:19} And this is a copy of the letters that he sent to Onias:
{12:20} “Arius, king of the Spartans, to Onias, the great priest: greetings.
{12:21} It is found in scripture, about the Spartans and the Jews, that they are brothers, and that they are of the family of Abraham.
{12:22} And since we know these things, you would do well to write to us about your peace.
{12:23} But we also have written back to you that our cattle and our possessions are yours, and yours are ours. And so, we have commanded that these things should be announced to you.”
{12:24} And Jonathan heard that the leaders from Demetrius had returned again with a greater army than before, so as to fight against him.
{12:25} And so, he departed from Jerusalem, and he met them in the region of Hamath. For he did not give them time to enter into his own region.
{12:26} And he sent spies into their camp, and, returning, they reported that they planned to come upon them in the night.
{12:27} And when the sun had set, Jonathan instructed his men to stand watch, and to be in arms, ready to fight, all night long, and he stationed guards around the camp.
{12:28} And the adversaries heard that Jonathan was prepared, with his own, for warfare. And they were struck with fear and dread in their heart. And they kindled fires in their camp.
{12:29} But Jonathan, and those who were with him, did not know about it until morning. For they saw the lights burning.
{12:30} And Jonathan pursued them, but did not overtake them. For they had crossed the river Eleutherus.
{12:31} And Jonathan diverted toward the Arabians, who are called Zabadeans. And he struck them and took their spoils.
{12:32} And he regrouped and came to Damascus, and he passed through all that region.
{12:33} But Simon went forth and came as far as Askalon, and the nearby fortresses, but he turned aside to Joppa and occupied it,
{12:34} (for he had heard that they intended to hand over the fortress that was on the side of Demetrius) and he stationed a guard there to keep it.
{12:35} And Jonathan returned, and he called together the elders of the people, and he decided with them to build fortresses in Judea,
{12:36} and to build up the walls in Jerusalem, and to raise a great height between the stronghold and the city, in order to separate it from the city, so that it would stand alone and would have neither buying, nor selling there.
{12:37} And they came together to build up the city. And the wall that was over the brook, toward the rising of the sun, was fallen. And he repaired that which is called Chaphenatha.
{12:38} And Simon rebuilt Adida in Shephelah, and he fortified it, and he set up gates and bars.
{12:39} And so, when Trypho had decided to reign over Asia, and to assume the diadem, and to extend his hand against king Antiochus,
{12:40} he was afraid, lest Jonathan might not permit him, but might fight against him. So he sought to seize him and to kill him. And he rose up and went to Bethshan.
{12:41} And Jonathan went out to meet him with forty thousand men chosen for battle, and he came to Bethshan.
{12:42} And when Trypho saw that Jonathan came with a great army to extend his hand against him, he was afraid.
{12:43} And so he received him with honor, and he commended him to all his friends, and he gave him gifts. And he instructed his troops to obey him, just as himself.
{12:44} And he said to Jonathan: “Why have you troubled all the people, when there is no war between us?
{12:45} And now, send them back to their houses, but choose for yourself a few men, who may remain with you, and come with me to Ptolemais, and I will deliver it to you, and the rest of the fortresses, and the army, and all who are in charge of governing, and I will turn and go away. For this is the reason that I came.”
{12:46} And Jonathan believed him, and he did as he said. And he sent away his army, and they departed into the land of Judah.
{12:47} But he retained with him three thousand men, of whom he sent two thousand into Galilee, and one thousand came with him.
{12:48} But when Jonathan entered into Ptolemais, those of Ptolemais closed the gates of the city, and they captured him. And all those who entered with him, they executed with the sword.
{12:49} And Trypho sent an army and horsemen into Galilee, and into the great plain, to destroy all the associates of Jonathan.
{12:50} But, when they had thought that Jonathan had been captured and slain, along with all who were with him, they encouraged one another, and they went out prepared for battle.
{12:51} Then those who had pursued them, seeing that they stood for their lives, were turned back.
{12:52} And so, they all came into the land of Judah with peace. And they bewailed Jonathan, and those who had been with him, exceedingly. And Israel mourned with great lamentation.
{12:53} Then all the nations that were all around them sought to crush them. For they said:
{12:54} “They have no leader or helper. Now therefore, let us fight against them and take away the memory of them from among men.”
{13:1} And Simon heard that Trypho had gathered together an immense army to come to the land of Judah and to lay waste to it.
{13:2} Seeing that the people were fearful and trembling, he went up to Jerusalem, and he gathered together the people.
{13:3} And exhorting them, he said: “You know what great battles I, and my brothers, and the house of my father, have fought for the laws and for the holy places, and the anguish that we have seen.
{13:4} As a result of these things, all my brothers have perished for the sake of Israel, and I have been left alone.
{13:5} And now, it is not necessary for me to spare my life in any time of tribulation. For I am not better than my brothers.
{13:6} And so, I will vindicate my people and the sanctuary, and likewise our children and wives. For all the Gentiles have gathered together to crush us, solely out of malice.”
{13:7} And the spirit of the people was immediately enkindled, when they heard these words.
{13:8} And they responded with a loud voice, saying: “You are our leader in place of Judas and of Jonathan, your brother.
{13:9} Fight our battles, and we will do whatever you tell us to do.”
{13:10} And so, gathering together all the men of war, he accelerated the completion of all the walls of Jerusalem, and he fortified it all around.
{13:11} And he sent Jonathan, the son of Absalom, and with him a new army, into Joppa, and he cast out those who were in it, and he himself remained there.
{13:12} And Trypho moved from Ptolemais, with a great army, to come into the land of Judah, and Jonathan was with him in custody.
{13:13} But Simon took up a position at Addus, opposite the face of the plains.
{13:14} And when Trypho realized that Simon rose up in the place of his brother, Jonathan, and that he would be joining in battle with him, he sent messengers to him,
{13:15} saying: “We have detained your brother, Jonathan, because of the money that he owed to the king’s account, because of the matters for which he was responsible.
{13:16} And now, send a hundred talents of silver, and two of his sons for hostages, so that when he is dismissed, he may not flee from us. And then we will release him.”
{13:17} And Simon knew that he was speaking deceitfully to him. Yet he ordered the money and the boys to be given, lest he should bring upon himself a great hostility from the people of Israel, who might have said,
{13:18} “It is because he did not send the money and the boys that he perished.”
{13:19} So he sent the boys and one hundred talents. And he was lying and did not dismiss Jonathan.
{13:20} And after this, Trypho came into the country, to crush it. And they circled around by the way that leads to Adora. And Simon and his camp marched into every place, wherever they went.
{13:21} But those who were in the stronghold sent messengers to Trypho, so that he would hurry to come through the desert, and to send them provisions.
{13:22} And Trypho prepared all his horsemen to arrive on that night. But there was a very great snowfall, and he did not come into Gilead.
{13:23} And when he approached toward Baskama, he killed Jonathan and his sons there.
{13:24} And Trypho turned back and went into his own land.
{13:25} And Simon sent and took the bones of Jonathan, his brother, and he buried them in Modin, the city of his fathers.
{13:26} And all Israel bewailed him with great lamentation. And they mourned him for many days.
{13:27} And Simon built, over the sepulcher of his father and of his brothers, a building, lofty to see, of polished stone, front and back.
{13:28} And he set up seven pyramids, one against another, for his father, and his mother, and his four brothers.
{13:29} And around these he placed great columns; and upon the columns, weapons, as a continual memorial; and beside the weapons, carvings of ships, which might be seen by all those who sail the sea.
{13:30} This is the sepulcher that he made in Modin, even to this day.
{13:31} But Trypho, when he was on a journey with the young king, Antiochus, killed him by deceit.
{13:32} And he reigned in his place, and he put on the diadem of Asia, and he caused great scourges upon the land.
{13:33} And Simon built up the strongholds of Judea, fortifying them with high towers, and great walls, and gates and bars. And he placed provisions in the fortresses.
{13:34} And Simon chose men, and he sent to king Demetrius, so that he would grant a remission to the region, for all that Trypho did was to carry out plundering.
{13:35} And king Demetrius responded to this word, and he wrote a letter in this manner:
{13:36} “King Demetrius to Simon, the high priest and friend of kings, and to the elders, and to the people of the Jews: greetings.
{13:37} The golden crown and the bahem that you sent, we have received. And we are prepared to make a great peace with you, and to write to the officers of the king to remit to you the things that we have released.
{13:38} For whatever we have established remains in force for you. The strongholds that you have built, let them be yours.
{13:39} Likewise, any oversight or fault, even to this day, we forgive it, along with the crown that you owed. And if anything else was taxed in Jerusalem, now let it not be taxed.
{13:40} And if any of you is fit to be enrolled among our own, let them be enrolled. And let there be peace between us.”
{13:41} In the one hundred and seventieth year, the yoke of the Gentiles was taken away from Israel.
{13:42} And the people of Israel began to write in the tablets and the public records, in the first year under Simon: high priest, great commander, and leader of the Jews.
{13:43} In those days, Simon took up a position at Gaza, and he encamped around it, and he made machines of war, and he applied them to the city, and he struck one tower and captured it.
{13:44} And those who were within the machine broke forth into the city. And a great commotion occurred in the city.
{13:45} And those who were in the city ascended upon the wall, with their wives and children, having torn their tunics. And they cried out with a loud voice, asking Simon to grant them a pledge.
{13:46} And they said, “Do not repay us according to our malice, but according to your mercy.”
{13:47} And weeping, Simon did not destroy them. Yet he cast them out of the city, and he cleansed the buildings, in which there had been idols. And then he entered into it with hymns, blessing the Lord.
{13:48} And, having cast out of it all uncleanness, he placed in it men who would observe the law. And he fortified it and made it his dwelling place.
{13:49} But those who were in the stronghold of Jerusalem were prohibited from going out and entering the region, and from buying and selling. And they were very hungry, and many of them perished through famine.
{13:50} And they cried out to Simon, that they might receive a pledge, and he granted it to them. And he cast them out of there, and he cleansed the stronghold from contaminations.
{13:51} And they entered into it on the twenty-third day of the second month, in the one hundred and seventy-first year, with thanksgiving, and palm branches, and lyres, and cymbals, and psalteries, and hymns, and canticles, because a great enemy had been crushed out of Israel.
{13:52} And he established that these days should be kept every year with rejoicing.
{13:53} And he fortified the mountain of the temple, which was near the stronghold, and he lived there himself, along with those who were with him.
{13:54} And Simon saw that John, his son, was a valiant man in battle. And so he appointed him as commander of all the forces. And he lived in Gazara.
{14:1} In the one hundred and seventy-second year, king Demetrius gathered together his army, and he went into Media to obtain auxiliaries to fight against Trypho.
{14:2} And Arsaces, the king of Persia and Media, heard that Demetrius entered his confines, and so he sent one of his princes to capture him alive and to bring him to him.
{14:3} And he went out and struck the camp of Demetrius. And captured him and brought him to Arsaces, and he placed him under guard.
{14:4} And the entire land of Judah was quiet during all the days of Simon, and he sought what was good for his people. And his power and his glory pleased them through all his days.
{14:5} And, with all his glory, he accepted Joppa as a port, and he made it an entrance to the islands of the sea.
{14:6} And he enlarged the boundaries of his nation, and he controlled the countryside.
{14:7} And he gathered together many captives, and he was the ruler of Gazara and Bethzur, and the stronghold. And he took uncleanness away from it, and there was no one who could withstand him.
{14:8} And each one cultivated his land in peace, and the land of Judah produced its fruits, and the trees of the fields their fruit.
{14:9} All the elders sat in the streets, and they discussed what was good for the country, and the youths clothed themselves in glory and in the robes of war.
{14:10} And he gave tributes of provisions to the cities, and he decreed that they would have equipment for fortification, so that the fame of his glory was renowned, even to the ends of the earth.
{14:11} He caused there to be peace over the land, and Israel was rejoicing with great joy.
{14:12} And each one sat under his vine and under his fig tree. And there was no one who would terrify them.
{14:13} There was nothing left of those who might fight against them in the land; kings had been crushed in those days.
{14:14} And he confirmed all the humble of his people, and he sought the law, and he took away every iniquity and evil.
{14:15} He glorified the sanctuary, and he multiplied the vessels of the holy places.
{14:16} And it was heard at Rome, and even in Sparta, that Jonathan had passed away. And they were very sorrowful.
{14:17} But when they heard that Simon, his brother, had been made high priest in his place, and that he obtained the entire country and the cities in it,
{14:18} they wrote to him on tablets of brass, so as to renew the friendship and alliance, which they had made with Judas and with Jonathan, his brothers.
{14:19} And they were read in the sight of the assembly at Jerusalem. And this is a copy of the letters that the Spartans sent:
{14:20} “The leaders and the cities of the Spartans, to Simon, the great priest, and to the elders, and the priests, and the rest of the people of the Jews, their brothers: greetings.
{14:21} The ambassadors who were sent to our people have reported to us of your glory, and honor, and rejoicing. And we were glad at their arrival.
{14:22} And we wrote down what was said by them in the councils of the people, as follows: ‘Numenius, the son of Antiochus, and Antipater, the son of Jason, ambassadors of the Jews, came to us to renew the former friendship with us.
{14:23} And it pleased the people to receive the men gloriously, and to place a copy of their words in a section of the public books, so as to be a memorial for the people of the Spartans. Furthermore, we have written a copy of them to Simon, the great priest.’ ”
{14:24} But after this, Simon sent Numenius to Rome, in possession of a great shield of gold, weighing over a thousand pounds, to confirm the association with them.
{14:25} But when the people of Rome had heard these words, they said: “With what deeds of thanksgiving shall we repay Simon and his sons?
{14:26} For he has vindicated his brothers, and he has fought off the enemies of Israel from them.” And so, they decreed him free, and they registered it on tablets of brass and placed it in an inscription on mount Zion.
{14:27} And this is a copy of the writing: “On the eighteenth day of the month Elul, in the one hundred and seventy-second year, the third year under Simon, the great priest at Asaramel,
{14:28} in a great convocation of the priests, and the people, and the leaders of the nation, and the elders of the country, these things were noted: ‘Now there have often been battles in our country.
{14:29} And Simon, the son of Mattathias, of the sons of Jarib, and his brothers, have put themselves in danger, and have withstood the enemies of their nation, so as to establish their holy places and the law. And they have glorified their people with great glory.
{14:30} And Jonathan gathered together his nation, and he was made their great priest, and he was laid to rest among his people.
{14:31} And their enemies wanted to trample and lay waste to their country, and to extend their hands against their holy places.
{14:32} Then Simon resisted, and he fought for his nation, and he requested much money, and he armed the valiant men of his nation and gave them wages.
{14:33} And he fortified the cities of Judea and Bethzur, which are along the borders of Judea, where the weaponry of the enemies was before. And he placed a garrison of Jewish men there.
{14:34} And he fortified Joppa, which is by the sea, and Gazara, which is on the border of Azotus, where the enemies stayed before, and he placed Jews there. And he positioned with them whatever was fitting for their preparations.
{14:35} And the people saw the acts of Simon, and the glory that he intended to bring to his nation, and they made him their commander and first priest, because he had done all these things, and because of the justice and faith that he maintained for his nation, and because he sought to exalt his people by all means.
{14:36} And in his days, there was prosperity by his hands, so that the Gentiles were taken away from their country, and also those who were in the city of David, in Jerusalem, in the stronghold, from which they went out and contaminated all the places that were around the sanctuary, and from which they brought a great scourging against chastity.
{14:37} And he placed in it Jewish men, as a means of protection for the region and the city, and he raised the walls of Jerusalem.
{14:38} And king Demetrius confirmed him in the high priesthood.
{14:39} According to these things, he made him his friend, and he glorified him with great glory.
{14:40} For he heard that the Romans had called the Jews their friends, and associates, and brothers, and that they received the ambassadors of Simon with glory,
{14:41} and that the Jews and their priests had consented that he should be their governor and high priest unceasingly, until there should arise a faithful prophet,
{14:42} and that he should be the commander over them, and that he should take care of the sanctuary, and that he should appoint foremen over their works, and over the country, and over the weapons, and over the strongholds,
{14:43} and that he should take care of the holy places, and that he should be obeyed by all, and that all the records in the country should be recorded in his name, and that he should be clothed in purple and gold,
{14:44} and that it should not be lawful for any of the people or the priests to make void any of these things, nor to contradict things that are said by him, nor to call together an assembly in the country without him, nor to be clothed in purple, nor to use a clasp of gold.
{14:45} And whoever will do otherwise, or who will make void any of these things, shall be guilty.
{14:46} And it pleased all the people to appoint Simon, and to act according to these words.
{14:47} And Simon accepted it, and he was pleased to perform the office of the high priesthood, and to be the commander and leader of the people of the Jews, and of the priests, and to be foremost over them all.
{14:48} And they asked that this writing be placed on tablets of brass, and be placed within the precinct of the sanctuary in a celebrated place,
{14:49} and that a copy of these be placed in the treasury, so that Simon and his sons may have it.’ “
{15:1} And king Antiochus, the son of Demetrius, sent letters from the islands of the sea to Simon, the priest and leader of the nation of the Jews, and to all the people.
{15:2} And these continued in this way: “King Antiochus to Simon, the great priest, and to the people of the Jews: greetings.
{15:3} Since certain pestilent persons have obtained the kingdom of our fathers, it is my will, then, to vindicate the kingdom and to restore it, just as it was before. And so, I have chosen a great army, and I have built ships of war.
{15:4} Furthermore, I intend to pass through the region, so that I may take revenge on those who have corrupted our country and who have desolated many cities in my kingdom.
{15:5} Now, therefore, I confirm to you all the oblations that all the kings before me have remitted to you, and whatever other gifts they remitted to you.
{15:6} And I permit you to make a striking of your own coins for your country.
{15:7} Moreover, let Jerusalem be holy and free. And all the weapons that have been made, and the fortresses that you have constructed, or that you hold, let them remain with you.
{15:8} And all that is owed to the king, and what should belong to the king in the future, from this time and for all time, is remitted to you.
{15:9} Yet, when we have obtained our kingdom, we will glorify you, and your nation, and the temple with great glory, so much so that your glory shall be made manifest in all the earth.”
{15:10} In the one hundred and seventy-fourth year, Antiochus went into the land of his fathers, and all the armies came over to him, so that few were left with Trypho.
{15:11} And king Antiochus followed him as he fled along the sea coast and came to Dora.
{15:12} For he knew that evils had gathered together upon him, and that his troops had forsaken him.
{15:13} And Antiochus took up a position above Dora, with one hundred and twenty thousand men of warfare and eight thousand horsemen.
{15:14} And he encircled the city, and the ships drew near by sea. And they assailed the city by land and by sea, and they permitted no one to go in or out.
{15:15} But Numenius, and those who had been with him, came from the city of Rome, having letters written to the kings and the regions, in which was contained these things:
{15:16} “Lucius, consul of the Romans, to king Ptolemy: greetings.
{15:17} The ambassadors of the Jews, our friends, came to us, to renew the former friendship and alliance, having been sent from Simon, the leader of the priests and the people of the Jews.
{15:18} And they also brought a shield of gold of over a thousand pounds.
{15:19} And so, it was pleasing to us to write to the kings and the regions, that they should do no harm to them, nor fight against them, and their cities, and their regions, and that they should bear no assistance to those fighting against them.
{15:20} And it seemed good to us to receive the shield from them.
{15:21} If, therefore, those who are pestilent have taken refuge with you from their region, hand them over to Simon, the leader of the priests, so that he may give a verdict to them according to their law.”
{15:22} These same things were written to king Demetrius, and to Attalus, and to Ariarathes, and to Arsaces,
{15:23} and to all the regions, and to Lampsacus and to the Spartans, and to Delos, and Myndos, and Sicyon, and Caria, and Samos, and Pamphylia, and Lycia, and Halicarnassus, and Cos, and Side, and Aradus, and Rhodes, and Phaselis, and Gortyna, and Gnidus, and Cyprus, and Cyrene.
{15:24} Moreover, they wrote a copy of these things to Simon, the leader of the priests and the people of the Jews.
{15:25} But king Antiochus positioned his camp near Dora a second time, moving his hand against it continually, and making machines of war. And he enclosed Trypho, lest he escape.
{15:26} And Simon sent two thousand chosen men to him as auxiliaries, and silver, and gold, and an abundance of equipment.
{15:27} And he was not willing to receive them, but he broke all of the pact that he made with him before, and he alienated himself from him.
{15:28} And he sent to him Athenobius, one of his friends, to deal with him, saying: “You hold Joppa and Gazara, and the stronghold that is in Jerusalem, which are cities of my kingdom.
{15:29} You have desolated their parts, and you have caused a great scourging in the land, and you have become ruler throughout many places in my kingdom.
{15:30} Now, therefore, hand over the cities that you occupy, and the tributes of the places where you have become ruler beyond the borders of Judea.
{15:31} But if not, give me for them five hundred talents of silver, and for the destruction that you have caused, and for the tributes of the cities, another five hundred talents. But if not, we will come and fight against you.”
{15:32} So Athenobius, the friend of the king, came to Jerusalem and saw the glory of Simon, and his splendor in gold and silver, and his abundance of equipment, and he was astonished. And he repeated the words of the king to him.
{15:33} And Simon responded to him, and he said to him: “We have not taken foreign land, nor do we hold anything foreign, but we hold the inheritance of our fathers, which was for some time unjustly possessed by our enemies.
{15:34} In truth, since we have the opportunity, we claim the inheritance of our fathers.
{15:35} And as to Joppa and Gazara, which you demand, they brought a great scourging on the people and our country. For these, we will give one hundred talents.” And Athenobius did not respond a word to him.
{15:36} But, returning with anger to the king, he reported to him these words, and the glory of Simon, and all that he had seen. And the king became angry with a great anger.
{15:37} But Trypho fled by ship to Orthosia.
{15:38} And the king appointed Cendebeus as commander of the seacoast, and he gave him an army of foot soldiers and horsemen.
{15:39} And he commanded him to move with his camp against the face of Judea. And he commanded him to build up Kedron, and to barricade the gates of the city, and to make war against the people. But the king pursued Trypho.
{15:40} And Cendebeus passed through to Jamnia, and he began to provoke the populace, and to trample Judea, and to take the people captive, and to execute, and to build up Kedron.
{15:41} And he stationed horsemen and an army there, so that they could go out and travel through the ways of Judea, as the king appointed him to do.
{16:1} And so, John came up from Gazara, and he reported to Simon, his father, what Cendebeus had done against their people.
{16:2} And Simon called his two eldest sons, Judas and John, and he said to them: “I and my brothers, and my father’s house, have fought against the enemies of Israel from our youth, even to this day. And this work has prospered in our hands, so that we have delivered Israel several times.
{16:3} And now that I am old, you must act in place of me and my brothers, and go out to fight for our nation. Truly, may the help of heaven be with you.”
{16:4} Then he chose from the region twenty thousand men of warfare, and horsemen; and they started out toward Cendebeus. And they rested in Modin.
{16:5} And they rose up in the morning and went out into the plains. And behold, an abundant army of foot soldiers and horsemen was there to meet them, and there was a river flowing between them.
{16:6} And he and his people moved their camp opposite their face, and he saw the trepidation of the people to cross over the river, and so he crossed over first. And seeing him, the men also crossed after him.
{16:7} And he divided the people and the horsemen into the midst of the foot soldiers. But the horsemen of the adversary were exceedingly numerous.
{16:8} And they sounded the holy trumpets. And Cendebeus and his army were turned back. And many of them fell wounded. But the rest fled into the fortress.
{16:9} Then Judas, the brother of John, was wounded. But John pursued them, until he came to Kedron, which he had built.
{16:10} And they fled all the way to the towers that were in the fields of Azotus, and he burnt them with fire. And there fell of them two thousand men, and he returned to Judea in peace.
{16:11} Now Ptolemy, the son of Abubus, was appointed commander over the plain of Jericho, and he held much silver and gold.
{16:12} For he was the son-in-law of the high priest.
{16:13} And his heart was exalted, and he wanted to obtain the region, and he devised treachery against Simon and his sons, so as to destroy them.
{16:14} Now when Simon was traveling through the cities that were in the region of Judea, and acting with concern for them, he went down to Jericho, he and Mattathias and Judas, his sons, in the one hundred and seventy-seventh year, in the eleventh month; this is the month of Shevat.
{16:15} And the son of Abubus received them, with deceitfulness, into a little fortress, which is called Dok, that he had built. And he made them a great feast, and he hid men there.
{16:16} And when Simon and his sons became inebriated, Ptolemy and his men rose up, and took their weapons, and entered into the gathering. And they killed him, and his two sons, and some of his servants.
{16:17} And he committed a great treachery in Israel, and he repaid good with evil.
{16:18} And Ptolemy wrote about these things, and he sent to the king, so that he would send him an army to assist him, and he could deliver to him the region, and their cities and tributes.
{16:19} And he sent others to Gazara to destroy John. And he sent letters to the tribunes to come to him, and he would give them silver, and gold, and gifts.
{16:20} And he sent others to occupy Jerusalem and the mountain of the temple.
{16:21} Now a certain one, running ahead, reported to John in Gazara, that his father and his brothers perished, and that “he sent to kill you also.”
{16:22} But when he heard it, he was very afraid, and he apprehended the men who came to destroy him, and he killed them. For he knew that they sought to destroy him.
{16:23} And the rest of the stories about John, and his wars, and the virtuous deeds that he performed with fortitude, and the building of the walls that he raised, and the things that he did,
{16:24} behold, these have been written in the book of the days of his priesthood, from the time that he became high priest, after his father.
{1:1} To the brothers, the Jews, who are throughout Egypt: the brothers, the Jews, who are in Jerusalem and in the region of Judea, send greetings and good peace.
{1:2} May God be gracious to you, and may he remember his covenant, which was spoken to Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, his faithful servants.
{1:3} And may he give all of you the heart to worship him, and to do his will, with a great heart and a willing soul.
{1:4} May he throw open your heart with his law and with his precepts, and may he create peace.
{1:5} May he heed your prayers and be reconciled to you, and may he not forsake you in the evil time.
{1:6} And now, in this place, we are praying for you.
{1:7} When Demetrius reigned, in the one hundred and sixty-ninth year, we Jews wrote to you during the tribulation and assaults which overcame us in those years, from the time that Jason withdrew from the holy land and from the kingdom.
{1:8} They burnt the gate, and they shed innocent blood. And we prayed to the Lord and were heard, and we brought forth sacrifices and fine wheat flour, and we kindled the lamps and set forth the loaves.
{1:9} And now, celebrate the days of shelters in the month of Kislev.
{1:10} In the one hundred and eighty-eighth year, from the people who are at Jerusalem and in Judea, and from the Senate and Judas: to Aristobulus, the magistrate of king Ptolemy, who is of the ancestry of anointed priests, and to those Jews who are in Egypt: greetings and good health.
{1:11} Having been freed by God from great peril, we give thanks to him greatly, in as much as we have been struggling against so great a king.
{1:12} For he caused those who fought against us and against the holy city to burst forth from Persia.
{1:13} For when the commander himself was in Persia, and with him an immense army, he fell in the temple of Nanea, having been deceived by the counsel of the priests of Nanea.
{1:14} For Antiochus also came to the place with his friends, as if to live with her, and so that he would receive much money in the name of a dowry.
{1:15} And when the priests of Nanea had made the proposal, and he had entered with a few men into the vestibule of the shrine, they closed the temple,
{1:16} after Antiochus had entered. And throwing open a hidden entrance to the temple, they cast stones, and they struck the leader and those who were with him. And, having severed their limbs and cut off their heads, they threw them outside.
{1:17} Blessed be God through all things, who has delivered up the impious.
{1:18} Therefore, establishing the purification of the temple on the twenty-fifth day of the month of Kislev, we considered it necessary to signify this to you, so that you, likewise, may keep the day of shelters, and the day of the fire that was given when Nehemiah offered sacrifice, after the temple and the altar had been built.
{1:19} For when our fathers were led into Persia, the priests, who at that time were worshippers of God, secretly took the fire from the altar, and they kept it hidden in a valley, where there was a deep and dry pit, and they kept it safe in that place, in such a way that the place would be unknown to all.
{1:20} But when many years had passed, and it pleased God that Nehemiah should be sent by the king of Persia, he sent some of the posterity of those priests who had hidden it to seek the fire. And, just as they told us, they did not find fire, but only deep water.
{1:21} Then he ordered them to draw it up and to carry it to him. And the priest, Nehemiah, ordered the sacrifices, which had been set out, to be sprinkled with the same water, both the wood and those things that were placed on it.
{1:22} And when this was done, and the time came when the sun shined brightly, which before was in a cloud, there was kindled a great fire, so much so that all were filled with wonder.
{1:23} But all the priests were reciting prayer, while the sacrifice was being consumed, with Jonathan beginning and the rest answering.
{1:24} And the prayer of Nehemiah was held in this way: “O Lord God, Creator of all, terrible and strong, just and merciful, you alone are the good King.
{1:25} You alone are excellent, you alone are just, and all-powerful, and eternal, who frees Israel from all evil, who created the chosen fathers and sanctified them.
{1:26} Receive the sacrifice on behalf of all of your people Israel, and preserve and sanctify your portion.
{1:27} Gather together our dispersion, free those who are in servitude to the Gentiles, and respect those who are despised and abhorred, so that the Gentiles may know that you are our God.
{1:28} Afflict those who, in their arrogance, are oppressing us and treating us abusively.
{1:29} Establish your people in your holy place, just as Moses said.”
{1:30} And so the priests sang hymns until the sacrifice had been consumed.
{1:31} But when the sacrifice had been consumed, Nehemiah ordered the remainder of the water to be poured upon the great stones.
{1:32} When this had been done, a flame was kindled from them, but it was consumed by the light that shined brightly from the altar.
{1:33} In truth, when this thing became known, it was reported to the king of Persia that in the place where the fire had been hidden by those priests who had been led away, water appeared, by which Nehemiah, and those who were with him, purified the sacrifices.
{1:34} But the king, considering and examining the matter diligently, made a temple for it, so that he might study what had happened.
{1:35} And when he had studied it, he gave the priests many goods and presents, of one kind or another, and using his own hands, he distributed these.
{1:36} And Nehemiah called this place Nephthar, which is interpreted as Purification. But with many it is called Nephi.
{2:1} Now it is found in the descriptions of the prophet Jeremiah that he ordered those who transmigrated to take the fire, just as it was signified and as he ordered, into the transmigration.
{2:2} And he gave them the law, so that they would never forget the commandments of the Lord, and so that they would not go astray in their minds, seeing the idols of gold and silver, and their ornaments.
{2:3} And in this manner, with other sayings, he exhorted them, lest they remove the law from their heart.
{2:4} Furthermore, it was in the same writing, how the prophet, by divine response, ordered that the tabernacle and the ark be made to accompany him, until he exited from the mountain, where Moses ascended and saw the inheritance of God.
{2:5} And arriving there, Jeremiah found a place in a cave. And he brought both the tabernacle, and the ark, and the altar of incense into that place, and he obstructed the opening.
{2:6} And certain ones of those who followed him, approached to make note of the location, but they were not able to find it.
{2:7} But when Jeremiah knew of it, he blamed them, saying: “The place shall be unknown, until God shall gather together the congregation of the people, and until he may be favorably inclined.
{2:8} And then the Lord will reveal these things, and the majesty of the Lord shall appear, and there will be a cloud, just as it was also manifested to Moses, and just as he manifested these when Solomon petitioned that the place should be sanctified to the great God.
{2:9} For he also drew upon wisdom magnificently, and so, having wisdom, he offered the sacrifice of the dedication and the consummation of the temple.
{2:10} And, just as Moses prayed to the Lord, and fire descended from heaven and consumed the holocaust, so also Solomon prayed and fire descended from heaven and consumed the holocaust.
{2:11} And Moses said that it was consumed because the sin offering was not eaten.
{2:12} And similarly, Solomon also celebrated the eight days of the dedication.
{2:13} Moreover, these same things were put into the descriptions and commentaries of Nehemiah, including how, when constructing a library, he gathered together from the regions the books of the Prophets, and of David, and the epistles of the kings, and from the holy gifts.
{2:14} And, similarly, Judas also gathered together all the things that were destroyed by the war that befell us, and these are with us.
{2:15} Therefore, if you desire these things, send those who may carry them to you.
{2:16} And so, since we will be celebrating the purification, we wrote to you. Therefore, you will do well, if you keep these days.
{2:17} But we hope that God, who has freed his people and has rendered to all the inheritance, and the kingdom, and the priesthood, and sanctification,
{2:18} just as he promised in the law, will quickly have mercy on us and will gather us together from under heaven into the holy place.
{2:19} For he has rescued us from great perils, and he has purged the place.
{2:20} The truth about Judas Maccabeus, and his brothers, and the purification of the great temple, and the dedication of the altar,
{2:21} and also about the battles, which pertain to Antiochus the illustrious, and his son, Eupator,
{2:22} and about the illuminations, which came from heaven to those who acted on behalf of the Jews with fortitude, was such that they, though few, vindicated the entire region and put to flight a multitude of the barbarous,
{2:23} and recovered the most famous temple in the whole world, and freed the city, and restored the laws that were abolished. For the Lord, with all tranquility, was acting favorably toward them.
{2:24} And similar things as have been comprised in five books by Jason the Cyrenean, we have attempted to abridge into one volume.
{2:25} For, considering the multitude of the books, and the difficulty that those who are willing to undertake the narrations of histories find, due to the multitude of events,
{2:26} we have taken care, so that, indeed, those who are willing to read may have delights of the mind, and so that, in truth, the studious may more easily be able to commit it to memory, and also so that all readers may find it useful.
{2:27} And indeed, we ourselves, who have taken up the task of abridging this work, have no easy labor. For, in truth, more correctly, we have assumed an activity full of vigilance and sweat.
{2:28} Just as those who prepare a feast also seek to be attentive to the will of others, for the sake of the gratitude of many, we willingly undertake the labor.
{2:29} Indeed, leaving to the authors the truths about particular details, we instead have been devoted to this form, striving to be brief.
{2:30} For, just as the architect of a new house will have concern for the entire structure, and, in truth, he who takes care to paint it will seek out what is fitting to adorn it, so also should such things be considered by us.
{2:31} Moreover, to collect knowledge, and to order words, and to discuss every particular point attentively, is the duty of the author of a history.
{2:32} Yet truly, to pursue brevity of speech, and to shun the extension of matters, is conceded to an abbreviator.
{2:33} Therefore, here we will begin the narration. Let so much be sufficient to say in preface. For it is foolish to go on and on before the account, when the account itself is succinct.
{3:1} Therefore, when the holy city was inhabited with all peace, and also the laws were still being kept very well because of the piety of Onias, the high priest, and the hatred that his soul held for evil,
{3:2} it happened that even the kings and princes themselves considered the place worthy of the highest honor, and so they glorified the temple with very great gifts,
{3:3} so much so that Seleucus, king of Asia, furnished from his revenues all of the expenses for the ministry pertaining to the sacrifices.
{3:4} But Simon, from the tribe of Benjamin, having been appointed as overseer of the temple, obstructed the chief priest, in order to undertake some kind of iniquity in the city.
{3:5} But when he was not able to overcome Onias, he went to Apollonius, the son of Tarsus, who at that time was governor of Coelesyria and Phoenicia,
{3:6} and he announced to him that the treasury in Jerusalem was full of innumerable sums of money, and that the common storehouse, which did not pertain to the allotment for the sacrifices, was immense, and that it would be possible for all of this to fall under the power of the king.
{3:7} And when he had presented the news that he brought back to king Apollonius about the money, he summoned Heliodorus, who was in charge of this matter, and he sent him with orders, in order to transport the aforesaid money.
{3:8} And immediately Heliodorus set forth on the way, indeed, appearing as if sojourning to the cities of Coelesyria and Phoenicia, but in truth the reason was to complete the proposition of the king.
{3:9} But, when he had arrived at Jerusalem and had been kindly accepted into the city by the high priest, he explained to him the information that had been provided concerning the money. And he freely disclosed the cause for which he was present. But he questioned whether these things were truly so.
{3:10} Then the high priest revealed to him that these things had been deposited, along with provisions for the widows and the orphans.
{3:11} In truth, a certain part of that which impious Simon had reported belonged to Hyrcanus, son of Tobias, a very eminent man. But the entire amount was four hundred talents of silver and two hundred of gold.
{3:12} For in truth, to deceive those who had trusted in the place and the temple that is honored throughout the whole world for its veneration and sanctity would be altogether impossible.
{3:13} But because of those things that he held as orders from the king, he said that by all means the money must be transferred to the king.
{3:14} And so, on the appointed day, Heliodorus entered to set these things in order. Yet truly, there was no small amount of trepidation throughout the entire city.
{3:15} And so the priests threw themselves before the altar in their priestly vestments, and they called upon him from heaven, who had established the law about deposits, such that those with whom they had deposited it would keep it safe.
{3:16} Now truly, whoever saw the countenance of the high priest was wounded in mind. For his face and the changing of its color declared the inner sorrow of the soul.
{3:17} For this one man was so immersed in grief and in physical dread that it was clear to those who beheld him that sorrow had affected his heart.
{3:18} And now, others flowed together in flocks from the houses, pleading and making public supplication, on behalf of the place, which soon might be brought into contempt.
{3:19} And the women, wrapped with haircloth around the chest, flowed together through the streets. And even the virgins, who were cloistered, rushed forth to Onias, and others rushed to the walls, and, truly, certain ones looked through the windows.
{3:20} But every one of them, stretching forth their hands toward heaven, made supplication.
{3:21} For the expectation of the mixed multitude, and of the great priest in agony, would have endowed anyone with pity.
{3:22} And indeed, these called upon almighty God, so that the trust that had been entrusted to them would be preserved with all integrity.
{3:23} But Heliodorus completed the same thing that had been decreed, being himself present in the place, with his attendants, near the treasury.
{3:24} Then the Spirit of Almighty God made a great manifestation of his presence, so much so that all who had presumed to yield to him were turned aside by fainting and dread, falling by the power of God.
{3:25} For there appeared to them a certain horse, having a terrible rider, adorned with the best covering, and he rushed forth and assailed Heliodorus with his front hooves. And he who sat upon him seemed to have armor of gold.
{3:26} Moreover, there appeared two other youths with the appearance of power, the glory of nobility, and the apparel of splendor. These stood near him on each side, and they scourged him without ceasing, striking with many scourges.
{3:27} Then Heliodorus suddenly fell to the ground, and they quickly took him up, draped by a great darkness, and, having placed him onto a stretcher, they rushed him away.
{3:28} And so, he who had approached the aforesaid treasury, with so many officials and attendants, was carried away, with no one to bring help to him, the manifest power of God being made known.
{3:29} And indeed, through divine power, he lay mute and also was deprived of all hope of recovery.
{3:30} But they blessed the Lord, because he had magnified his place, and because the temple, which a little while before was filled with confusion and fear, became filled with joy and gladness, when the all-powerful Lord appeared.
{3:31} Then, truly, certain friends of Heliodorus came forth to petition Onias, so that he would call upon the Most High to grant life to him who was appointed to breathe his last breath.
{3:32} But the high priest, considering that the king might perhaps suspect that some malice against Heliodorus had been completed by the Jews, offered a beneficial sacrifice for the health of the man.
{3:33} And when the high priest was praying, the same youths, dressed in the same clothing, were standing by Heliodorus, and they said: “Give thanks to Onias the priest, for it is on his behalf that the Lord has granted life to you.
{3:34} But, having been scourged by God, you must announce to all the great things of God and his power.” And having said this, they disappeared.
{3:35} Then Heliodorus offered sacrifice to God and made great vows to him who had permitted him to live. And he gave thanks to Onias. And, gathering his troops, he returned to the king.
{3:36} But he testified to all about the works of the great God, which he had seen with his own eyes.
{3:37} And so, when the king questioned Heliodorus as to who might be fit to be sent once more to Jerusalem, he said:
{3:38} “If you have any enemy, or a traitor to your kingdom, send him there, and he will return to you scourged, if he even escapes. For truly, in that place, there is a certain power of God.
{3:39} Yes, he who has his dwelling in the heavens is the visitor and protector of that place, and he strikes and destroys those arriving to do evil.”
{3:40} Thus, the things about Heliodorus and the preservation of the treasury happened in this way.
{4:1} But the aforementioned Simon, who was a betrayer of the money and of his nation, spoke evil about Onias, as if he had instigated Heliodorus to do these things and as if he had been the inciter of evils.
{4:2} And he dared to say that he was a traitor to the kingdom, though he provided for the city, and defended his people, and was zealous for the law of God.
{4:3} But when the hostilities had proceeded to such an extent that even murders were committed by certain close associates of Simon,
{4:4} Onias, considering the peril of this contention, and Apollonius to be mad, though he was governor of Coelesyria and Phoenicia, which only augmented the malice of Simon, he brought himself before the king,
{4:5} not so as to be an accuser of a citizen, but in view of his own consideration for the common good of the entire multitude.
{4:6} For he saw that, without royal providence, it would be impossible to provide peace to events, nor would Simon ever cease from his foolishness.
{4:7} But after the life of Seleucus expired, when Antiochus, who was called the illustrious, had assumed the kingdom, Jason, the brother of Onias, was ambitious for the high priesthood.
{4:8} He went to the king, promising him three hundred and sixty talents of silver, and from other revenues eighty talents,
{4:9} and beyond these, he promised also one hundred and fifty more, if he would be granted the authority to establish a sports arena, and a school for boys, and to enroll those who were at Jerusalem as Antiochians.
{4:10} When the king had assented, and he had obtained the leadership, he immediately began to transfer his subjects to the rituals of the heathens.
{4:11} And taking away those things that had been established by the kings, by reason of the humanitarianism of the Jews, through John, the father of Eupolemus, who formed a friendship and alliance with the Romans, he discharged the legitimate legislations, voiding the oaths of the citizens, and he sanctioned depraved customs.
{4:12} For he even had the audacity to set up, below the very stronghold, a sports arena, and to place all of the best adolescent boys in brothels.
{4:13} Now this was not the beginning, but a certain increase and progression of heathenism and foreign practices, due to the nefarious and unheard of wickedness of the impious non-priest Jason,
{4:14} so much so that now the priests were not devoted to the concerns of services at the altar, but, despising the temple and neglecting the sacrifices, they hurried to become participants of the wrestling school, and of its prohibited injustices, and of the training of the discus.
{4:15} And, even holding the honors of their fathers to be nothing, they esteemed the glories of the Greeks as best.
{4:16} For the sake of these, they held a dangerous competition, and were imitators of their practices, and so, in all things, they desired to be similar to those who had been their enemies and destroyers.
{4:17} But acting impiously against the divine laws does not go unpunished, as these subsequent events will reveal.
{4:18} But when the competition that was celebrated every fifth year was at Tyre, the king being present,
{4:19} the villainous Jason sent sinful men from Jerusalem, carrying three hundred didrachmas of silver for the sacrifice of Hercules. But those who transported it asked that it might not be paid out for the sacrifices, because it was not needed, but might be used for other expenses.
{4:20} So, even though this was offered by him who sent it for the sacrifice of Hercules, it was instead given over to the manufacture of Greek warships, because of those presenting it.
{4:21} Then Apollonius, the son of Menestheus, was sent into Egypt because of the nobles of king Philometor of Ptolemy. But when Antiochus realized that he had been effectively alienated from the affairs of the kingdom, consulting his own interests, he started out from there and came to Joppa, and from there to Jerusalem.
{4:22} And he was received magnificently by Jason and the city, and he entered with the lights of little torches and with praises. And from there he turned back with his army to Phoenicia.
{4:23} And, after three years, Jason sent Menelaus, the brother of the above mentioned Simon, carrying money to the king, and bearing responses about essential matters.
{4:24} And he, being recommended to the king, when he had magnified the appearance of his power, usurped the high priesthood for himself, outbidding Jason by three hundred talents of silver.
{4:25} And so, having received orders from the king, he returned, holding nothing at all worthy of the priesthood, in truth, having the soul of a cruel tyrant and the rage of a wild beast.
{4:26} And indeed, Jason, who had taken captive his own brother, was himself deceived, and was expelled to become a fugitive in the region of the Ammonites.
{4:27} Then Menelaus, indeed, obtained the principality, but truly, concerning the money that he had promised to the king, nothing was done. Although Sostratus, who was first over the stronghold, attempted to collect it,
{4:28} since the collection of certain taxes pertained to him. For this reason, they were both called before the king.
{4:29} And Menelaus was removed from the priesthood, being succeeded by Lysimachus, his brother. Then Sostratus was appointed over the Cyprians.
{4:30} And while these things were occurring, it happened that those from Tarsus and Mallus incited a sedition, because they had been given as a gift to Antiochidi, the concubine of the king.
{4:31} And so, the king hurried to come and calm them, leaving behind Andronicus, one of his associates, as his deputy.
{4:32} Then Menelaus, believing that he had reached an opportune time, having stolen certain gold vessels out of the temple, gave them to Andronicus, along with others he had gained at Tyre and throughout the neighboring cities.
{4:33} But when Onias had realized this with certainty, he accused him, keeping himself in a safe place at Antioch beside Daphne.
{4:34} Meanwhile, Menelaus met with Andronicus, asking him to execute Onias. So he then went to Onias, and he gave him his right hand with an oath, and, even though he was suspicious of him, he persuaded him to venture out of asylum, and he immediately killed him, with no respect for justice.
{4:35} For this reason, not only the Jews, but also the other nations, were indignant and bore much grief for the unjust killing of so great a man.
{4:36} But when the king returned from the places of Cilicia, the Jews at Antioch, and similarly the Greeks, went to him, complaining of the iniquitous killing of Onias.
{4:37} And so Antiochus was grieved in his mind because of Onias, and, being moved to compassion, he shed tears, remembering the sobriety and modesty of the deceased.
{4:38} And, being inflamed in soul, he ordered the purple to be torn from Andronicus, and that he be led around, throughout the entire city, and that, in the same place where he had committed the impiety against Onias, the sacrilegious man should be deprived of his life, as his fitting punishment rendered by the Lord.
{4:39} But when many sacrileges were committed by Lysimachus in the temple through the counsel of Menelaus, and the news was divulged, the multitude gathered together against Lysimachus, though a great quantity of gold had been exported already.
{4:40} But when the multitude stirred up an insurrection, and their minds were filled with anger, Lysimachus armed about three thousand, who began to act with hands of iniquity. A certain tyrant was their leader, a man advanced both in age and in madness.
{4:41} But when they perceived the attempt of Lysimachus, some took hold of stones, others strong clubs, and, in truth, certain ones threw ashes upon Lysimachus.
{4:42} And indeed, many were wounded, and some were struck down; however, all were put to flight. And, as for the sacrilegious man, they executed him beside the treasury.
{4:43} Therefore, about these things, a judgment began to be stirred up against Menelaus.
{4:44} And when the king had arrived at Tyre, three men were sent from the elders to bring the matter to him.
{4:45} But when Menelaus was overcome, he promised to give much money to Ptolemy to persuade the king.
{4:46} And so, Ptolemy went to the king in a certain court where he was, as if merely to refresh himself, and he influenced him away from the sentence.
{4:47} And so Menelaus, though indeed guilty of all malice, was absolved of the crimes. Moreover, these pitiable men, who, even if they had pleaded their case before Scythians, would have been judged innocent, he condemned to death.
{4:48} Therefore, those who brought the case on behalf of the city, and the people, and the sacred vessels were quickly given an unjust punishment.
{4:49} For this reason, even the Tyrians, being indignant, proved to be very liberal toward their burial.
{4:50} Thus, because of the greed of those who were in power, Menelaus remained in authority, increasing in malice, to the betrayal of the citizens.
{5:1} At the same time, Antiochus prepared for a second journey into Egypt.
{5:2} But it happened, throughout the entire city of Jerusalem, that there were seen, for forty days, horsemen rushing through the air, having golden robes, and armed with spears, like a cohort of soldiers,
{5:3} and horses, set in order by ranks, running, coming together to engage in close combat, and the shaking of shields, and a helmeted multitude stretching forth swords, and the casting of darts, and the splendor of golden armor, and all kinds of breastplates.
{5:4} Because of this, everyone begged that these prodigies might be turned to good.
{5:5} But when a false rumor went out, as though the life of Antiochus had expired, Jason, taking with him no less than one thousand men, suddenly assaulted the city. And, though the citizens together rushed to the wall, the city at last was taken, and Menelaus fled into the stronghold.
{5:6} Truly, Jason did not spare his citizens from the slaughter; not realizing that success at the expense of kin is a very great evil, he considered those over whom he was victorious to be enemies, and not citizens.
{5:7} And so, he certainly did not obtain the leadership, but truly, in the end, received confusion for his betrayals, and he departed again to take refuge among the Ammonites.
{5:8} In the end, to his ruin, he was enclosed by Aretas, the sovereign of the Arabs. And then, fleeing from city to city, hated by all as a detestable fugitive from the laws, and as an enemy of his own nation and citizens, he was expelled into Egypt.
{5:9} And he who had expelled many from their native land perished abroad, starting out toward the Lacedaemonians, as if, for the sake of kinship, he should have refuge there.
{5:10} And he who cast out many, unburied, was himself also cast out, both unlamented and unburied, and without having use of either foreign burial or a share of the sepulcher of his fathers.
{5:11} And so, when these things were done, the king suspected that the Jews would desert the alliance. And because of this, departing from Egypt with a raging soul, he indeed took the city by force.
{5:12} Moreover, he ordered the military to execute, and not to spare, anyone they met, and to ascend through the houses to slay.
{5:13} Therefore, a massacre occurred of youths and elders, an extermination of women and children, a killing of virgins and little ones.
{5:14} And so, over three whole days, eighty thousand were executed, forty thousand were imprisoned, and no small number were sold.
{5:15} But, as if this were not enough, he even presumed to enter into the most holy temple in the entire world, with Menelaus, that traitor to the law and to his own nation, as his guide.
{5:16} And, taking in his wicked hands the holy vessels, which were given by other kings and cities for the adornment and glory of the place, he unworthily handled and contaminated them.
{5:17} So Antiochus, having gone astray in mind, did not consider that, because of the sins of the inhabitants of the city, God had become angry for a while, and so, for this reason, contempt had fallen upon the place.
{5:18} Otherwise, if it had not happened that they were involved in so many sins, as with Heliodorus, who was sent by king Seleucus to plunder the treasury, so also this one, as soon as he had arrived, certainly would have been scourged and driven away from his audacity.
{5:19} Truly, God did not choose the people because of the place, but the place because of the people.
{5:20} And therefore, the place itself also became a participant in the evils of the people. But afterwards, it shall be a companion to what is good. And she who was abandoned to the wrath of Almighty God shall be exalted again with the greatest glory, at the reconciliation of the great Lord.
{5:21} Therefore, when Antiochus had taken away from the temple one thousand eight hundred talents, he quickly returned to Antioch, thinking, in his arrogance, to navigate the earth, even by finding a passage leading across the open ocean: such was the elation of his mind.
{5:22} Yet he left behind rulers to afflict the people. In fact, at Jerusalem, Philip was by birth a Phrygian, but he was in manners more cruel than he who had appointed him.
{5:23} Yet Andronicus and Menelaus hung a heavier weight over the citizens at Garizim than the others.
{5:24} And when he had been appointed over the Jews, he sent that hateful leader, Apollonius, with an army of twenty-two thousand, instructing him to execute all men in the prime of life, and to sell the women and the youths.
{5:25} When he had arrived at Jerusalem, feigning peace, he remained quiet until the holy day of the Sabbath. And then, when the Jews were taking rest, he instructed his own to take up arms.
{5:26} And he slaughtered all those who were seen going out. And rushing throughout the city with armed men, he destroyed a vast multitude.
{5:27} But Judas Maccabeus, who was the tenth, had withdrawn himself to a deserted place, and there he lived life among the wild beasts in the mountains, with his own. And they remained there, consuming herbs as food, lest they be partakers in the defilement.
{6:1} But not much time later, the king sent a certain elder of Antioch, who compelled the Jews to transfer themselves from the laws of God and of their fathers,
{6:2} and also to contaminate the temple that was in Jerusalem, and to name it ‘Jupiter of Olympus,’ and in Garizim, ‘Jupiter of Hospitality,’ exactly like those who inhabited the place.
{6:3} Yet the worst and most grievous thing of all was the onrush of evils.
{6:4} For the temple was full of the luxuries and carousings of the Gentiles, and of consorting with promiscuous women. And the women hurried themselves unreservedly into the sacred buildings, bringing in things that were not lawful.
{6:5} And even the altar was filled with illicit things, which were prohibited by the laws.
{6:6} And also the Sabbaths were not kept, and the solemn days of the fathers were not observed, neither did anyone simply confess himself to be a Jew.
{6:7} And so, they were led by bitter necessity, on the birthday of the king, to the sacrifices. And, when the holy things of Liber were celebrated, they were forced to go around crowned with the ivy of Liber.
{6:8} Then a decree went out to the neighboring cities of the Gentiles, suggested by the Ptolemeans, that they too should act in a similar manner against the Jews, to oblige them to sacrifice,
{6:9} and that those who were not willing to conform to the institutions of the Gentiles should be executed. Therefore, there was misery to be seen.
{6:10} For two women were denounced for having had their boys circumcised. These, with the infants suspended at their breasts, when they had publicly led them around the city, they cast down from the walls.
{6:11} Truly, others, meeting together in nearby caves and celebrating the Sabbath day secretly, when they had been discovered by Philip, were burned with fire, because they showed reverence to the observances of religion, deciding to help themselves by their own hand.
{6:12} So then, I beg those who will read this Book, let them not be repelled by these adverse events, but let them consider that these things happened, not for the destruction, but for the correction, of our people.
{6:13} For it is also an indication of great benefits that sinners are not permitted to continue in their ways for a long time, but are promptly brought to punishment.
{6:14} For, as it is with other nations, (whom the Lord patiently awaits, so that, when the day of Judgment will arrive, he may punish them according to the plentitude of their sins,)
{6:15} not so does he also deal with us, as if to put off our sins until the end, so as to punish us for them eventually.
{6:16} Because of this, he certainly would never take away his mercy from us. Yet truly, chastising his people in adversity, he does not abandon them.
{6:17} But these few things have been spoken by us as a reminder to the reader. For now we have arrived at the narration.
{6:18} And so, Eleazar, one of the chief scribes, a man advanced in years and of stately countenance, was compelled to open his mouth wide to consume the flesh of swine.
{6:19} Yet he, embracing a most glorious death as greater than a detestable life, went forward voluntarily to the torments.
{6:20} And so, thinking over the manner by which he ought to approach it, enduring patiently, he was determined not to permit, due to a love for life, any unlawful things.
{6:21} Yet those who stood near, being moved by an iniquitous pity because of long friendship with the man, taking him aside privately, asked that flesh be brought which was lawful for him to eat, so that he could pretend to have eaten, just as the king had commanded, from the flesh of the sacrifice.
{6:22} So then, by doing this, he might be freed from death. And it was because of their old friendship with the man that they performed this kindness for him.
{6:23} But he began to consider the eminent dignity of his stage of life and old age, and the natural honor of gray hair, as well as his exemplary words and deeds from childhood. And he responded quickly, according also to the ordinances of the sacred law preserved by God, saying, that he would first be sent to the underworld.
{6:24} “For it is not worthy for those of our age,” he said, “to deceive, so that many adolescents might think that Eleazar, at ninety years, had converted to the life of the foreigners.
{6:25} And so, they, because of my pretense and for the sake of a brief time of a corruptible life, would be misled, and, through this stain and desecration, I would defile my last years.
{6:26} But if, in the present time, I were rescued from the torments of men, I would then not escape the hand of the Almighty, neither in life, nor in death.
{6:27} For this reason, by departing life with fortitude, I will show myself to be clearly worthy of my long life.
{6:28} And so, I will bequeath an example of fortitude to youths, if, with a ready soul and constancy, I carry out an honest death, for the sake of the most serious and most holy laws.” And having said this, he was immediately dragged away to execution.
{6:29} But those who led him, and who were more mild a little before, were turned to anger because of the words spoken by him, which they considered to have been brought forth by way of arrogance.
{6:30} But when he was ready to perish by the scourges, he groaned, and he said: “O Lord, who holds all holy knowledge, you clearly understand that, although I could be freed from death, I suffer grievous pains in body. Truly, according to the soul, I willingly endure these things, because of your fear.”
{6:31} And the way in which this man passed from this life, bequeathed, not only to youths, but also to the entire people, the memory of his death as an example of virtue and fortitude.
{7:1} And it happened also that seven brothers, united with their mother, were apprehended and compelled by the king to eat the flesh of swine against divine law, being tormented with scourges and whips.
{7:2} But one of them, who was first, spoke in this way: “What would you ask, or what would you want to learn from us? We are ready to die, rather than to betray the laws that our fathers received from God.”
{7:3} And so the king, being angry, ordered frying pans and bronze caldrons to be heated. When these were presently heated,
{7:4} he ordered the tongue of him who had spoken first to be cut off, and, once the skin of his head had been pulled off, likewise his hands and feet to be cut off at the top, while the rest of his brothers and his mother were watching.
{7:5} And when now he had been made helpless in all parts, he commanded him to be moved to the fire, and, while still breathing, to be fried in the frying pan. As he was suffering long torments therein, the rest, united with the mother, exhorted one another to die with fortitude,
{7:6} saying: “The Lord God will perceive the truth, and he will be consoled in us, in the way that Moses declared in the profession of the canticle: ‘And in his servants, he will be consoled.’ ”
{7:7} And so, when the first had died in this way, they led in the next one, so as to ridicule him. And when the skin of his head was pulled off with the hair, they asked him if he would eat, instead of being punished throughout the whole body in every limb.
{7:8} But responding in the language of his fathers, he said, “I will not do it.” Because of this, he also, in the next place, received the torments of the first.
{7:9} And when he had reached his last breath, he spoke in this way: “You, indeed, O most wicked man, are destroying us in this present life. But the King of the world will raise us up, in eternal life at the resurrection, for we die on behalf of his laws.”
{7:10} After this one, the third was ridiculed, and when he was asked, he quickly offered up his tongue, and he resolutely extended his hands.
{7:11} And he said with confidence, “I possess these from heaven, but, because of the laws of God, I now despise them, for I hope to receive them again from him.”
{7:12} So then, the king and those who were with him, wondered at the soul of this youth, because he considered the torments as if they were nothing.
{7:13} And after he had died in this way, they afflicted the fourth with similar tortures.
{7:14} And when he was about to die, he spoke in this way: “It is preferable, being put to death by men, to wait for hope from God, so as to be revived again by him. But the resurrection to life will not be for you.
{7:15} And when they had brought the fifth, they afflicted him. But he, gazing at him,
{7:16} said: “Having power among men, though you are corruptible, you do what you want, but do not think that our nation has been abandoned by God.
{7:17} And so, wait patiently for a while, and you will see his great power, by the manner in which he will torture you and your offspring.”
{7:18} After this one, they brought the sixth, and he, being about to die, spoke in this way: “Do not go astray in vain. For we suffer because of ourselves, having sinned against our God, yet things worthy of admiration have been accomplished in us.
{7:19} But do not consider that you will be without punishment, for you have attempted to fight against God.”
{7:20} Now the mother was wonderful beyond measure, and a worthy memorial of the good, for she watched her seven sons perish within the time of one day, and she bore it with a good soul, because of the hope that she had in God.
{7:21} And, with fortitude, she exhorted every one of them, in the language of the fathers, being filled with wisdom. And, joining masculine courage with feminine thinking,
{7:22} she said to them: “I do not know how you were formed in my womb. For I did not give you spirit, nor soul, nor life; neither did I construct each of your limbs.
{7:23} Nevertheless, the Creator of the world, who formed the nativity of man, and who founded the origins of all, will restore both spirit and life to you again, with his mercy, just as you now despise yourselves for the sake of his laws.”
{7:24} But Antiochus, thinking himself despised, and at the same time also despising the voice of the reproacher, when only the youngest was still left, not only exhorted him with words, but also assured him with an oath, that he would make him wealthy and happy, and, if he would convert from the laws of his fathers, he would have him as a friend, and he would provide him with necessary things.
{7:25} But, when the youth was not swayed by these things, the king called the mother and persuaded her to act toward the youth to save him.
{7:26} And so, when he had exhorted her with many words, she promised that she would counsel her son.
{7:27} Then, leaning towards him and mocking the cruel tyrant, she said in the language of the fathers: “My son, take pity on me, for I carried you for nine months in my womb, and I gave you milk for three years, and I nourished you and led you through to this stage of life.
{7:28} I ask you, child, gaze upon heaven and earth, and all that is in them, and understand that God made them, and the family of man, out of nothing.
{7:29} So shall it be that you will not fear this executioner, but, participating worthily with your brothers, you shall accept death, so that, by this mercy, I shall receive you again with your brothers.”
{7:30} While she was still saying these things, the youth said: “What are you waiting for? I will not obey the precepts of the king, but the precepts of the law, which was given to us through Moses.
{7:31} In truth, you, who have been the inventor of all malice against the Hebrews, will not escape the hand of God.
{7:32} For we suffer these things because of our sins.
{7:33} And if, for the sake of our chastisement and correction, the Lord our God is angry with us for a little while, yet still he will be reconciled again to his servants.
{7:34} But as for you, O wicked and most disgraceful of all men, do not be extolled over nothing, with vain hopes, while you are inflamed against his servants.
{7:35} For you have not yet escaped the judgment of Almighty God, who examines all things.
{7:36} Therefore, my brothers, having now sustained brief sorrow, have been brought under the covenant of eternal life. But, in truth, you, by the judgment of God, will be released into just punishment for your arrogance.
{7:37} But I, like my brothers, deliver up my soul and my body for the sake of the laws of the fathers, calling upon God so as to bring forgiveness upon our nation sooner, and so that you, with torments and lashings, may confess that he alone is God.
{7:38} Truly, in me and in my brothers, the wrath of the Almighty, which has been led over all our people justly, shall cease.”
{7:39} Then the king, burning with anger, raged against this one with cruelty beyond all the rest, bearing it indignantly that he himself was derided.
{7:40} And so this one also died in purity, trusting in the Lord through all things.
{7:41} Then, last of all, after the sons, the mother also was consumed.
{7:42} Therefore, about the sacrifices and about the exceedingly great cruelties, enough has been said.
{8:1} In truth, Judas Maccabeus, and those who were with him, went secretly into the villages, and, calling together their relatives and friends, and accepting among them those who persevered in Judaism, they brought six thousand men together.
{8:2} And they called upon the Lord: to look upon his people, who were downtrodden by all; and to take pity on the temple, which was defiled by the impious;
{8:3} and even to take pity on the city by utter destruction, for it was willing to be immediately leveled to the ground; and to hear the voice of the blood that was crying out to him,
{8:4} so that he would remember also the most iniquitous deaths of the innocent little ones, and the blasphemies brought upon his name; and to show his indignation over these things.
{8:5} And so Maccabeus, having gathered together a multitude, could not be withstood by the Gentiles. For the wrath of the Lord had turned into mercy.
{8:6} And so, overwhelming the towns and cities unexpectedly, he set them on fire. And, occupying strategic positions, he made no small slaughter of the enemies.
{8:7} Moreover, especially in the nights, he carried out expeditions in this way. And the fame of his virtuous strength was spread abroad everywhere.
{8:8} Then Philip, seeing that the man gained ground little by little, and that things frequently fell out in his favor, wrote to Ptolemy, governor of Coelesyria and Phoenicia, to send auxiliaries to carry out the work of the king.
{8:9} And so, he quickly sent Nicanor, son of Patroclus, from his foremost friends, providing him with no less than twenty thousand armed men from throughout the Gentiles, to wipe out the entire race of the Jews, joining with him Gorgias, a military man with very great experience in the things of warfare.
{8:10} Moreover, Nicanor decided to raise a tribute for the king of two thousand talents, which was to be given to the Romans, and which would be supplied by means of the captivity of the Jews.
{8:11} And immediately he sent to the maritime cities, calling them to the auction of the Jewish slaves, promising them a parcel of ninety slaves for one talent, not reflecting on the vengeance which would befall him subsequently from the Almighty.
{8:12} Then, when Judas learned that Nicanor was approaching, he revealed it to those Jews who were with him.
{8:13} And certain ones among them, being afraid and not trusting in the justice of God, turned and fled away.
{8:14} In truth, others sold all that was in excess, and together beseeched the Lord, that he would rescue them from the impious Nicanor, who had sold them before he even came near them,
{8:15} and if not for their sakes, then for the sake of the covenant which was made with their fathers, and for the sake of the invocation of his holy and magnificent name over them.
{8:16} But Maccabeus, calling together seven thousand who were with him, asked them not to be reconciled to the enemies, and not to fear the multitude of the enemies who came against them unjustly, but to struggle with fortitude,
{8:17} holding before their eyes the contempt that had been brought upon the holy place by them, and likewise also the mockery which they held to the injury of the city, even to the extent of overthrowing the institutions of old.
{8:18} For he said that these, indeed, trust in their weapons, as well as in their boldness; but we trust in the Almighty Lord, who is able to wipe out both those coming against us, and even the whole world, with one nod.
{8:19} Moreover, he reminded them also of the assistance of God which their parents had received; and how, under Sennacherib, one hundred and eighty-five thousand had perished;
{8:20} and of the battle by them, which was against the Galatians in Babylonia, how, when the event had arrived and the allies of the Macedonians hesitated, though they were only six thousand in all, yet they slew one hundred and twenty thousand, because of the help provided to them from heaven; and how, for the sake of these things, very many benefits followed.
{8:21} By these words, they were brought to constancy and were prepared to die for the laws and their nation.
{8:22} And so, he appointed his brothers as leaders over each division: Simon, and Joseph, and Jonathan, subjecting one thousand and five hundred men to each of them.
{8:23} And at that point, the holy book having been read to them by Esdras, and having given them a sign of the assistance of God, with himself leading the first point, he joined battle with Nicanor.
{8:24} And, with the Almighty as their helper, they slew over nine thousand men. Furthermore, having wounded and disabled the greater part of the army of Nicanor, they forced them to take flight.
{8:25} In fact, they took away the money from those who came to buy them, and they pursued them everywhere.
{8:26} But they turned back at the close of the hour, for it was before the Sabbath. For this reason, they did not continue the pursuit.
{8:27} But, having gathered together their weapons and spoils, they kept the Sabbath, blessing the Lord who had delivered them in that day, showering the beginning of mercy on them.
{8:28} In truth, after the Sabbath, they divided the spoils to the disabled, and the orphans, and the widows, and the remainder they kept for themselves and their own.
{8:29} And so, when these things were done, and supplication was made by all in common, they asked the merciful Lord to be reconciled to his servants unto the end.
{8:30} And, among those who were fighting against them with Timothy and Bacchides, they slew more than twenty thousand, and they obtained the high fortresses, and they divided many spoils, making equal portions for the disabled, the fatherless, and the widows, and even the aged.
{8:31} And when they had carefully collected their weapons, they stored them all in strategic places, and, in truth, the remainder of the spoils they carried to Jerusalem.
{8:32} And they put to death Philarches, a wicked man, who was with Timothy, who had brought many afflictions upon the Jews.
{8:33} And when they celebrated the song of victory at Jerusalem, they burned him who had set fire to the sacred doors, that is, Callisthenes, when he had taken refuge in a certain house, repaying him a worthy reward for his impieties.
{8:34} But as for that most vicious Nicanor, who had led in a thousand merchants for the sale of the Jews,
{8:35} he was brought low with the help of the Lord, and by those whom he considered to be worthless. Putting aside the glorious vestments, fleeing by an inland route, he arrived alone at Antioch, having been brought to the greatest unhappiness by the destruction of his army.
{8:36} And he who had promised to pay a tribute to the Romans from the captives of Jerusalem, now professed that the Jews had God as their protector, and, for this reason, they were invulnerable, because they followed the laws established by him.
{9:1} At the same time, Antiochus returned in dishonor from Persia.
{9:2} For he had entered into the city called Persepolis, and attempted to rob the temple, and to oppress the city, but the multitude, rushing to arms, turned them to flight, and so it happened that Antiochus, after fleeing, returned in disgrace.
{9:3} And when he had arrived near Ecbatana, he realized what had happened to Nicanor and Timothy.
{9:4} And so, rising up in anger, he thought to turn back upon the Jews the injury done by those who had put him to flight. And, therefore, he ordered his chariot to be driven without stopping along the way, for the judgment of heaven was urging him on, because he had spoken so arrogantly about how he would come to Jerusalem and make it into a mass grave for the Jews.
{9:5} But the Lord God of Israel, who oversees all things, struck him with an incurable and invisible plague. For, as soon as he had finished these words, a dire pain in his abdomen seized him, with bitter internal torments.
{9:6} And, indeed, it sprung forth justly, since he had tormented the internal organs of others with many strange and new tortures, yet he in no way ceased from his malice.
{9:7} But, beyond this, being filled with arrogance, breathing fire with his soul against the Jews, and instructing the task to be accelerated, it happened that, as he was rushing on forcefully, he fell from the chariot, and his limbs were afflicted with a serious bruising of the body.
{9:8} And he, being filled with arrogance beyond human means, seemed to himself to command even the waves of the sea and to weigh even the heights of the mountains in a balance. But now, humbled to the ground, he was carried on a stretcher, calling himself as a witness to the manifest virtue of God.
{9:9} So then, worms swarmed from his impious body, and, as he lived on in pain, his flesh fell away, and then his odorous stench oppressed the army.
{9:10} And him who, a little before, thought that he could touch the stars of heaven, no one could endure to carry, because of the intolerable stench.
{9:11} And so, from then on, being led away from his heavy arrogance by the admonishment of a divine plague, he began to come to an understanding of himself, with his pains increasing through every moment.
{9:12} And, when he could not even bear his own stench, he spoke in this way: “It is just to be subject to God, and a mortal should not consider himself equal to God.”
{9:13} Then this wicked one prayed to the Lord, from whom, subsequently, there might be no mercy.
{9:14} And the city, to which he was going in haste to pull it down to the ground and to make it a mass grave, he now wanted to make free.
{9:15} And the Jews, whom he had said he certainly did not consider worthy even to be buried, but would deliver them to be torn apart by birds and wild beasts, and would exterminate them with their little ones, he now promised to make equal with the Athenians.
{9:16} And even the holy temple, which before he had plundered, he would adorn with the best gifts, and increase the holy vessels, and pay out from his revenues the charges pertaining to the sacrifices.
{9:17} Beyond these things, he would even become a Jew himself, and would travel through every place on earth and declare the power of God.
{9:18} But, when his pains did not cease, (for the just judgment of God had overwhelmed him,) in despair he wrote to the Jews, in the manner of a supplication, a letter composed in this way:
{9:19} “To the very good citizens of the Jews, Antiochus, king and ruler, wishes much health, and welfare, and happiness.
{9:20} If you and your sons are faring well, and if everything is according to your will, we give very great thanks.
{9:21} And so, fixed in infirmity, yet kindly remembering you, I am returning from the places of Persia, and, having been seized by a serious infirmity, I considered it necessary to have a concern for the common good,
{9:22} not despairing in myself, but having a great hope to escape the infirmity.
{9:23} Moreover, considering that my father also, during the time that he led an army into the upper regions, revealed who would take up the leadership after him,
{9:24} so that, if anything contrary should occur, or any if difficulties should be reported, those who were in the regions, knowing to whom the whole matter had been bequeathed, would not be disturbed.
{9:25} In addition to these things, considering that whichever are the nearest powers and neighbors lie in ambush for the right time and await the right event, I have designated my son, Antiochus, as king, whom I frequently commended to many of you while traveling in the upper provinces. And I have written to him what I have added below.
{9:26} And so, I beg you and petition you, that remembering the public and private benefits, each one will continue to be faithful to me and to my son.
{9:27} For I trust that he will behave with moderation and humanity, and that, following my intentions, he will be impartial to you.”
{9:28} And so the murderer and blasphemer, having been struck very badly, just as he himself had treated others, passed from this life in a miserable death on a journey among the mountains.
{9:29} But Philip, who was nurtured with him, carried away his body, and, fearing the son of Antiochus, went into Egypt to Ptolemy Philometor.
{10:1} But Maccabeus and those who were with him, the Lord protecting them, even recovered the temple and the city.
{10:2} Then he demolished the altars, which the foreigners had constructed in the streets, and likewise the shrines.
{10:3} And, having purged the temple, they made another altar. And, taking glowing stones from the fire, they began to offer sacrifices again after two years, and they set out incense, and lamps, and the bread of the Presence.
{10:4} Having done these things, they petitioned the Lord, lying prostrate on the ground, lest they should fall once more into such evils, but also, if they should at any time sin, that they might be chastised by him more mildly, and not be delivered over to barbarians and blasphemous men.
{10:5} Then, on the day that the temple had been polluted by the foreigners, it happened on the same day that the purification was accomplished, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, which was Kislev.
{10:6} And they celebrated for eight days with joy, in the manner of the Feast of Tabernacles, remembering that, a little time before, they had celebrated the solemn days of the Feast of Tabernacles in mountains and caves, in the manner of wild beasts.
{10:7} Because of this, they now preferred to carry boughs and green branches and palms, for him who had prospered the cleansing of his place.
{10:8} And they decreed a common precept and decree, that all the people of the Jews should keep those days every year.
{10:9} Now certainly Antiochus, who was called illustrious, held himself to be so at the passing of his life.
{10:10} But next we will describe what happened with Eupator, the son of the impious Antiochus, abridging the evils which happened in the wars.
{10:11} For when he assumed the kingdom, he appointed, over the affairs of the kingdom, a certain Lysias, leader of the Phoenician and Syrian military.
{10:12} For Ptolemy, who was called Macer, decided to be strict in justice toward the Jews, especially because of the iniquity that had been done to them, and to deal with them peacefully.
{10:13} But, for this reason, he was accused before Eupator by his friends, and was frequently called a traitor. For he had deserted Cyprus, which Philometor had entrusted to him. And so, transferring to Antiochus the illustrious, he even withdrew from him. And he ended his life by poison.
{10:14} But Gorgias, when he was the leader of the places, taking to him new arrivals, frequently made war against the Jews.
{10:15} In truth, the Jews, who held the strategic fortresses, took in those who were fleeing from Jerusalem, and they attempted to make war.
{10:16} In fact, those who were with Maccabeus, petitioning the Lord through prayers to be their helper, made a forceful attack upon the fortresses of the Idumeans.
{10:17} And, persevering with much force, they obtained the places, killing those they met, and cutting down in all no less than twenty thousand.
{10:18} Yet certain ones, when they had fled into two well-fortified towers, gave all appearance of fighting back.
{10:19} So Maccabeus left behind Simon and Joseph, and likewise Zachaeus, and those who were with them, to fight against them. And since those who were with them were sufficient in number, he turned back to those who attacked more forcefully.
{10:20} In truth, those who were with Simon, being led by avarice, were persuaded by money from certain ones who were in the towers. And accepting seventy thousand didrachmas, they allowed certain ones to flee.
{10:21} But when what was done had been reported to Maccabeus, gathering together the leaders of the people, he accused those who had sold their brothers for money, having sent away their adversaries.
{10:22} Therefore, he executed these who had acted as traitors, and he quickly captured the two towers.
{10:23} And so, having success in arms and in all things that he took in hand, he destroyed more than twenty thousand in the two fortresses.
{10:24} And Timothy, who had been overcome by the Jews before, calling together a multitude of foreign troops and gathering horsemen from Asia, arrived as if he would capture Judea with arms.
{10:25} But Maccabeus, and those who were with him, as he was approaching, beseeched the Lord, sprinkling dirt on their heads and wrapping their waists with haircloth.
{10:26} And lying prostrate at the pedestal of the altar, they beseeched him to be forgiving to them, but to be an enemy to their enemies, and an adversary to their adversaries, just as the law says.
{10:27} And so, after prayer, taking up arms, they proceeded further from the city, and, reaching close proximity to the enemies, they settled in.
{10:28} But, as soon as the sun rose, both sides joined battle: these ones having the guarantee of victory and success by the strength of the Lord, yet the others having courage as their leader in battle.
{10:29} But, while they were fighting vehemently, to the adversaries there appeared from heaven five men on horses, which were adorned with bridles of gold, providing leadership to the Jews.
{10:30} Two of them, having Maccabeus in the middle and surrounding him with their weapons, kept him safe. But, at the enemy, they cast darts and lightning, so that they fell down, being both confused with blindness and filled with disturbances.
{10:31} Moreover, there were slain twenty thousand five hundred, along with six hundred horsemen.
{10:32} In fact, Timothy fled away to Gazara, to a fortified stronghold, where Chaereas was in charge.
{10:33} Then Maccabeus, and those who were with him, joyfully besieged the stronghold for four days.
{10:34} But those who were inside, trusting to the strength of the place, spoke evil without limit and cast out nefarious words.
{10:35} But when the fifth day began to dawn, twenty youths of those who were with Maccabeus, inflamed in soul because of the blasphemy, manfully approached to the wall, and, advancing with fierce courage, ascended it.
{10:36} Moreover, others also getting up after them, went to set fire to the towers and the gates, and to burn the blasphemers alive.
{10:37} Then, having continued throughout two days to lay waste to the fortress, they killed Timothy, who was found hiding himself in a certain place. And they also killed his brother Chaereas, and Apollophanes.
{10:38} When this was done, they blessed the Lord with hymns and confessions, who had done great things in Israel and had given them the victory.
{11:1} But a short time afterwards, Lysias, the procurator of the king and a near relative, who also was in charge of the government, was heavily weighed upon by what had happened.
{11:2} Gathering together eight thousand, along with all the horsemen, he came against the Jews, thinking that the city would certainly be captured, making it a dwelling place for the Gentiles,
{11:3} in truth, also thinking to make a profit in money from the temple, just as from the other shrines of the Gentiles, and to put the priesthood up for sale every year.
{11:4} Never recognizing the power of God, but inflated in mind, he trusted in the multitude of the foot soldiers, and in the thousands of horsemen, and in the eighty elephants.
{11:5} And so, he entered Judea, and, approaching Bethzur, which was in a narrow place, at an interval of five stadia from Jerusalem, he laid siege to that stronghold.
{11:6} But when Maccabeus and those who were with him realized that the strongholds were besieged, they and all the crowd together petitioned the Lord with weeping and tears, that he would send a good Angel to save Israel.
{11:7} And so the leader Maccabeus, taking up arms, exhorted the others, to undergo the peril together with him, and to bring assistance to their brothers.
{11:8} And when they together were going forth with a ready spirit, there appeared at Jerusalem a horseman, preceding them in radiant clothing and with weapons of gold, waving a spear.
{11:9} Then they all together blessed the merciful Lord, and strengthened their souls, being prepared to break through not only men, but also the most ferocious beasts and walls of iron.
{11:10} Thus, they went forth readily, having a helper from heaven, and with the Lord taking pity on them.
{11:11} Then, rushing violently against the enemy, in the manner of lions, they struck down from among them: eleven thousand foot soldiers and one thousand six hundred horsemen.
{11:12} And they turned all the rest to flight. But many of them, being wounded, escaped with nothing. And Lysias himself also escaped, fleeing in disgrace.
{11:13} And because he was not irrational, thinking to himself about the loss that had happened against him, and understanding the Hebrews to be invincible because they depend upon the help of Almighty God, he sent to them,
{11:14} and he promised that he would agree to all things that are just, and that he would persuade the king to be their friend.
{11:15} Then Maccabeus assented to the request of Lysias, considering it useful in every way. And whatever Maccabeus wrote to Lysias, concerning the Jews, the king consented to it.
{11:16} For there were letters written to the Jews from Lysias, which, indeed, were composed in this way: “Lysias, to the people of the Jews: greetings.
{11:17} John and Absalom, who had been sent from you to deliver your writings, requested that I would implement these things that were signified by them.
{11:18} Therefore, whatever things could be brought before the king, I have presented them. And he has conceded to those things that are permitted.
{11:19} If, therefore, you will keep yourselves faithful in these matters, then, from now on, I will endeavor to be a cause of your good.
{11:20} But as for other particulars, I have given orders by word, both to these, and to those who have been sent by me, to confer with you.
{11:21} Farewell. In the one hundred forty-eighth year, on the twenty-fourth day of the month of Dioscorus.”
{11:22} But the letter of the king contained this: “King Antiochus to Lysias, his brother: greetings.
{11:23} Since our father has been transferred among the gods, we are willing that those who are in our kingdom should act without tumult, and should attend diligently to their own concerns.
{11:24} We have heard that the Jews would not consent to my father to convert to the rites of the Greeks, but that they chose to keep to their own institutions, and, because of this, that they ask of us to leave them to their own laws.
{11:25} Therefore, wanting this nation, likewise, to be at rest, we have reached a judgment that the temple should be restored to them, so that they may act according to the custom of their ancestors.
{11:26} You will do well, therefore, if you send to them and grant them a pledge, so that our will becomes known, and they may be of good courage, and may look after their own needs.”
{11:27} Truly, the letter of the king to the Jews was such as this: “King Antiochus to the senate of the Jews, and to the rest of the Jews: greetings.
{11:28} If you are well, such is what we desire. But we ourselves are also well.
{11:29} Menelaus came to us, saying that you wished to come down to your own, who are among us.
{11:30} Therefore, we grant a pledge of security to those who come and go, even until the thirtieth day of the month of Xanthicus,
{11:31} so that the Jews may make use of their own foods and laws, just as also before, and so that none of them should endure any kind of trouble for things which have been done by ignorance.
{11:32} And so, we have also sent Menelaus, who will talk with you.
{11:33} Farewell. In the one hundred forty-eighth year, on the fifteenth day of the month of Xanthicus.”
{11:34} But the Romans also now sent a letter, having this in it: “Quintus Memmius and Titus Manilius, ambassadors of the Romans, to the people of the Jews: greetings.
{11:35} Concerning these things that Lysias, the relative of the king, has conceded to you, we also have conceded.
{11:36} But about such things as he judged should be referred to the king, send someone, as soon as you have diligently conferred among yourselves, so that we may make a decree, just as it is agreeable to you. For we are going to Antioch.
{11:37} And, therefore, make haste to write back, so that we may know whatever your will may be.
{11:38} Farewell. In the one hundred forty-eighth year, on the fifteenth day of the month of Xanthicus.”
{12:1} After these pacts were made, Lysias proceeded on to the king, but the Jews undertook the work of agriculture.
{12:2} However, those who had withdrawn: Timothy, and Apollonius, the son of Gennaeus, along with Hieronymus, and Demophon, and, in addition to these, Nicanor, the governor of Cyprus, would not permit them to live in peace and quiet.
{12:3} Truly, those of Joppa were also perpetrators of very shameful acts. They asked the Jews, who lived among them, to go up into small boats, which they had prepared, with their wives and sons, as if no underlying hostility was between them.
{12:4} And so, according to the common decree of the city, they acquiesced to them, having no suspicions and because there was peace. When they had proceeded out into deep water, they drowned no less than two hundred of them.
{12:5} When Judas learned of the cruelty done to the men of his nation, he informed the men who were with him, and, having called upon God, the Just Judge,
{12:6} he went against the executors of his brothers, and he even set the port on fire in the night; he burned the boats, but those who took refuge from the fire, he destroyed with the sword.
{12:7} And when he had done these things in this way, he departed, as if he would return again to eradicate all those of Joppa.
{12:8} But when he also realized those who were of Jamnia wanted to act in a similar way to the Jews living among them,
{12:9} he went against those of Jamnia also by night, and he set the port on fire, along with the ships, so much so that the light of the fire was seen at Jerusalem, two hundred and forty stadia away.
{12:10} When they had now gone from there nine stadia, and were making their way toward Timothy, they met in battle with those of Arabia: five thousand men and five hundred horsemen.
{12:11} And when a strong fight occurred, and, by the help of God, it ceased favorably, the remainder of the Arabians who were overcome petitioned Judas to give them a pledge, promising to give him pastures and to assist him in other things in the future.
{12:12} Then Judas, thinking that they truly might be useful in many ways, promised peace. And after receiving the pledge of his right hand, they withdrew to their tents.
{12:13} Then he also assaulted a certain strong city, surrounded with bridges and walls, which was inhabited by a crowd from many different nations, the name of which is Casphin.
{12:14} In truth, those who were inside, trusting in the strength of the walls and in the preparations of rations, acted irresponsibly, and they challenged Judas with evil words and blaspheming, as well as by speaking what is not lawful.
{12:15} But Maccabeus rushed fiercely to the walls, calling upon the great Leader of the world, who, without battering rams or machines of war, had thrown down the walls of Jericho in the time of Joshua.
{12:16} And, having captured the city through the will of the Lord, he made a slaughter without number, so much so that an adjoining pool, two stadia in width, was seen to flow with the blood of the slain.
{12:17} From there, they withdrew seven hundred and fifty stadia, and they came to Charax, to those Jews who are called Tubianites.
{12:18} And Timothy, indeed, they did not find in those places, for he withdrew before he completed any endeavor, having left behind a very strong garrison in a certain place.
{12:19} But Dositheus and Sosipater, who were commanders with Maccabeus, destroyed those who were left behind by Timothy in the stronghold: ten thousand men.
{12:20} And Maccabeus, having positioned six thousand men around him and having divided them into cohorts, went forth against Timothy, who had with him one hundred twenty thousand foot soldiers, and two thousand five hundred horsemen.
{12:21} But when Timothy learned of the arrival of Judas, he sent ahead the women, and the children, and the remainder of the preparations, into a fortress, which is called Carnion. For it was impregnable and difficult to access because of the narrowness of the places.
{12:22} And when the first cohort of Judas had appeared, the enemies were struck with fear by the presence of God, who beholds all things, and they were turned to flight, one over another, to such an extent that they were being knocked over by one another and were being wounded with the strokes of their own swords.
{12:23} But Judas pursued them vehemently, punishing the profane and striking down thirty thousand of their men.
{12:24} In truth, Timothy himself fell to the group under Dositheus and Sosipater. And with much begging, he pleaded with them to release him alive, because he held the parents and brothers of many of the Jews, who, at his death, might happen to be mistreated.
{12:25} And when he had given his faith that he would restore them according to the agreement, they released him unharmed, for the sake of their brothers’ well-being.
{12:26} Then Judas departed to Carnion, where he slew twenty-five thousand.
{12:27} After having put to flight or killed these, he moved his army to Ephron, a fortified city, in which there lived a multitude of diverse peoples. And hardy young men, standing upon the walls, put up a strong fight. Moreover, in this place, there were many machines of war, and equipment for casting darts.
{12:28} But when they had called upon the Almighty, who with his power breaks the strength of enemies, they seized the city. And they struck down twenty-five thousand of those who were inside.
{12:29} From there, they went to the city of Scythia, which was six hundred stadia away from Jerusalem.
{12:30} But the Jews, those who were among the Scythians, testified that they were treated kindly by them, and that, even in the times of unhappiness, they had treated them mildly.
{12:31} They gave thanks to them, exhorting them to be kind to their people, now and at other times. And they went to Jerusalem, as the solemn days of the seven weeks were underway.
{12:32} And, after Pentecost, they marched against Gorgias, the foremost leader over Idumea.
{12:33} And he went out with three thousand foot soldiers and four hundred horsemen.
{12:34} And when they came together, it happened that a few of the Jews were overthrown.
{12:35} In fact, a certain Dositheus, a horseman of Bacenor, a strong man, took hold of Gorgias. And when he would have captured him alive, a certain horseman of the Thracians rushed upon him and cut off his arm, and so, in this way, Gorgias escaped to Maresa.
{12:36} But when those who were with Esdris had fought all day and were fatigued, Judas called upon the Lord to be their helper and leader in the battle.
{12:37} Beginning in the language of the fathers, and loudly extolling hymns, he inspired the soldiers of Gorgias to take flight.
{12:38} Then Judas, having collected his army, went into the city Adullam. And, when the seventh day came, they purified themselves according to the custom, and they kept the Sabbath in the same place.
{12:39} And the following day, Judas came with his own, in order to take away the bodies of the fallen, and to place them in the sepulchers of their fathers with their ancestors.
{12:40} But they found, under the tunics of the slain, some of the treasures of the idols that were near Jamnia, which were prohibited to Jews by the law. Therefore, it became manifest that it was for this reason that they had been overthrown.
{12:41} And so, they all blessed the just judgment of the Lord, who had made hidden things manifest.
{12:42} So then, turning themselves to prayers, they petitioned him that the offense which had been done would be delivered into oblivion. And truly, the very strong Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves without sin, since they had seen with their own eyes what had happened because of the sins of those who were struck down.
{12:43} And, calling an assembly, he sent twelve thousand drachmas of silver to Jerusalem, to be offered for a sacrifice for the sins of the dead, thinking well and religiously about the resurrection,
{12:44} (for if he had not hoped that those who had fallen would be resurrected, it would have seemed superfluous and vain to pray for the dead,)
{12:45} and because he considered that those who had fallen asleep with piety had great grace stored up for them.
{12:46} Therefore, it is a holy and beneficial thought to pray on behalf of those who have passed away, so that they may be released from sins.
{13:1} In the one hundred and forty-ninth year, Judas realized that Antiochus Eupator was coming with a multitude against Judea.
{13:2} And with him was Lysias, the procurator, who was in charge of the government, having with him one hundred and ten thousand foot soldiers, five thousand horsemen, and twenty-two elephants, and three hundred swift chariots with curved blades.
{13:3} Menelaus also joined himself to them, and with many lies he pleaded with Antiochus, not for the welfare of his country, but hoping that he would be appointed as first ruler.
{13:4} But the King of kings awakened the mind of Antiochus against the sinner. And when Lysias was suggesting this to be the cause of all the evils, he ordered (as is the custom with them) that he should be apprehended and killed in the same place.
{13:5} Now there was, in the same place, a tower of fifty cubits, having a pile of ashes on every side. This had a lookout over a precipice.
{13:6} From there, he ordered this sacrilegious one to be thrown down into the ashes, with all propelling him into the afterlife.
{13:7} And by such a law, it turned out that the betrayer of the law, Menelaus, died, not having so much as a burial in the earth.
{13:8} And indeed, this satisfied justice, for just as he had committed many offenses toward the altar of God, the fire and ashes of which are holy, so was he condemned to die in ashes.
{13:9} But the king, with his mind being unbridled, came to reveal himself as more wicked to the Jews than his father was.
{13:10} When Judas understood this, he instructed the people to call upon the Lord day and night, so that, just as always, now also he would help them.
{13:11} Of course, they were afraid to be deprived of their law and their country, and of the holy temple, and also that he might allow the people, who had recently taken a breath for a little while, to be again subdued by blasphemous nations.
{13:12} And so, having together done all these things, and having sought mercy from the Lord with weeping and fasting, lying prostrate on the ground continually for three days, Judas exhorted them to prepare themselves.
{13:13} In truth, with the elders he decided that, before the king could move his army into Judea and obtain the city, they would go out and commit the outcome of the event to the judgment of the Lord.
{13:14} And so, giving everything to God, the Creator of the world, and having exhorted his own to contend with fortitude and to stand up, even unto death, for the laws, the temple, the city, their country and the citizens: he positioned his army around Modin.
{13:15} And having given his own a sign of the victory of God, he attacked the quarters of the king by night, with the strongest chosen young men, and he slew four thousand men in the camp, and the greatest of the elephants, along with those who would have been positioned on them.
{13:16} And so, having filled the camp of their enemies with the greatest fear and disturbance, they went away with good success.
{13:17} Now this was done at the first light of day, with the Lord assisting and protecting them.
{13:18} But the king, having received a taste of the audacity of the Jews, attempted to take the difficult places by craftiness.
{13:19} And so, he moved his camp to Bethzur, which was a fortified garrison of the Jews. But as he struck, he was put to flight and reduced in number.
{13:20} Then Judas sent necessities to those who were inside.
{13:21} But Rhodocus, a certain one from the Jewish army, reported the secrets to the enemies, so he was sought out, apprehended, and imprisoned.
{13:22} Again, the king held talks with those who were in Bethzur. He gave his right hand as a pledge, and accepted theirs, and he went away.
{13:23} He joined battle with Judas; he was overcome. But when he realized that Philip, who had been left out of these events, had rebelled at Antioch, he was in a consternation of mind, and, begging the Jews, and being submissive to them, he swore to all things that seemed just. And, being reconciled, he offered sacrifice, honored the temple, and left gifts.
{13:24} He embraced Maccabeus, and he made him commander and leader from Ptolemais all the way to the Gerrenians.
{13:25} But when he arrived at Ptolemais, the Ptolemaians considered the conditions of the alliance burdensome, being indignant lest perhaps they might break the pact.
{13:26} Then Lysias went up to the tribunal, and explained the reasons, and calmed the people, and so he returned to Antioch. And this is the way things went concerning the journey and return of the king.
{14:1} But after a time of three years, Judas and those who were with him realized that Demetrius of Seleucus had gone up to strategic places with a very strong multitude and a navy at the port of Tripoli,
{14:2} and had taken hold of the regions opposite Antiochus, and his commander, Lysias.
{14:3} Now a certain Alcimus, who had been high priest, but who had willfully defiled himself in the time of the co-mingling, considering there to be no means for his safety, nor access to the altar,
{14:4} went to king Demetrius in the one hundred and fiftieth year, offering to him a crown of gold, and a palm, and beyond these, some branches that seemed to belong to the temple. And, indeed, on that day, he was silent.
{14:5} But, having met with an opportune time for his madness, he was called to a counsel by Demetrius and asked what things the Jews relied upon and what were their counsels.
{14:6} He responded: “Those among the Jews who are called Hasideans, of whom Judas Maccabeus is foremost, nourish wars, and raise seditions, and will not permit the kingdom to be at peace.
{14:7} For I also, being cheated out of the glory of my ancestors (but I speak of the high priesthood), have come here,
{14:8} first, indeed, in faithful service to the king’s interests, but also as an advisor of the citizens. For our entire nation is no less afflicted by their depravity.
{14:9} But I beg you, O king, knowing each of these things, look after both the region and our people, according to your humanity, which is publicly known to all.
{14:10} For, as long as Judas survives, it is impossible for the matter to be at peace.”
{14:11} Then, having spoken such things before them, the rest of the allies, who held themselves to be enemies against Judas, further inflamed Demetrius.
{14:12} And immediately he sent Nicanor, the commander over the elephants, into the first position against Judea,
{14:13} giving him orders to be certain to capture Judas himself, and, truly, to scatter all those who were with him, and to appoint Alcimus as the high priest of the great temple.
{14:14} Then the Gentiles, who had fled from Judas away from Judea, mingled themselves in flocks with Nicanor, thinking that the miseries and calamities of the Jews would become the cause of their prosperity.
{14:15} And so, when the Jews heard of Nicanor’s arrival and that the nations were assembled, they, sprinkling dirt on their heads, petitioned him who established his people to preserve them in eternity, and who likewise protected his portion by clear signs.
{14:16} Then, at the command of their leader, they moved promptly from there, and together assembled at the town of Dessau.
{14:17} In truth, Simon, the brother of Judas, had joined battle with Nicanor, but he became frightened at the unexpected arrival of the adversaries.
{14:18} Even so, Nicanor, hearing of the virtue of the companions of Judas, and the great courage with which they struggled on behalf of their country, was afraid to accomplish judgment by the sword.
{14:19} For this reason, he sent ahead Posidonius, and Theodotus, and Matthias, so as to give and receive the pledge of right hands.
{14:20} And when a council was held all day about this, and the commander had brought it before the multitude, they were all of one opinion to consent to an alliance.
{14:21} And so, they appointed a day, on which they would act among themselves secretly, and seats were brought out and placed for each of them.
{14:22} But Judas instructed armed men to be in strategic places, lest some kind of malice might unexpectedly spring up from the enemies. And they had an agreeable conference.
{14:23} Then Nicanor stayed in Jerusalem, and he did no iniquity; he sent away the flocks of the crowds, which had been gathered together.
{14:24} And Judas always held him dear to the heart, and was favorably inclined toward the man.
{14:25} And he asked him to consider a wife, and to procreate sons. He got married; he lived quietly, and they all lived in common.
{14:26} But Alcimus seeing the love that they had for one another, and the agreements, went to Demetrius, and he told him that Nicanor had assented to foreign interests, and that he had chosen Judas, a traitor to the kingdom, as his successor.
{14:27} And so the king, being exasperated and provoked by this very wicked accusation, wrote to Nicanor, saying that he was certainly overburdened by the agreement of alliance, and he ordered him nevertheless to send Maccabeus quickly to Antioch in chains.
{14:28} When this was known, Nicanor was in consternation, and he took it grievously that he would make void the things that were agreed, having received no injury from the man.
{14:29} But, because he was not able to oppose the king, he watched for an opportunity to follow through with the orders.
{14:30} But Maccabeus, seeing that Nicanor acted more formally with him, and that, when they met together as usual, he exhibited insolence, understood this austerity not to be from goodness. So, gathering together a few men, he hid himself from Nicanor.
{14:31} But when he realized that he was effectively prevented by the man, he went to the greatest and holiest temple, and he ordered the priests, offering the usual sacrifices, to deliver the man to him.
{14:32} When these spoke oaths to him that they did not know where he who was being sought was, he extended his hand toward the temple,
{14:33} and he swore, saying: “Unless you deliver Judas to me in chains, I will reduce this shrine of God to the ground, and I will dig up the altar, and I will consecrate this temple to Liber the father.”
{14:34} And having said this, he departed. But the priests, extending their hands toward heaven, called upon him who had always fought for his people, saying this:
{14:35} “O Lord of the universe, who needs nothing, you willed that the temple of your dwelling should be with us.
{14:36} And now, O Lord, Holy of all holies, preserve unpolluted, until eternity, this house, which was recently made clean.”
{14:37} Then Razias, a certain one of the elders from Jerusalem, was brought before Nicanor; the man was of good reputation, and was one who loved the city. For his affection, he was called the father of the Jews.
{14:38} This one, for a long time, held on to his purpose of continuing in Judaism, and he was content to hand over body and life, so that he might persevere in it.
{14:39} Then Nicanor, being willing to manifest the hatred that he held for the Jews, sent five hundred soldiers to apprehend him.
{14:40} For he thought, if he mistreated him, it would bring great disaster upon the Jews.
{14:41} Now, as the group sought to rush into his house, and to break open the door, and wanting even to bring in fire, as he was about to be apprehended, he struck himself with the sword:
{14:42} choosing to prefer to die nobly rather than to become subject to sinners, or to suffer unworthy injustices against his birth.
{14:43} But, since he had, in haste, not obtained the certitude of a decisive wound, and the crowd was breaking in the doors, he, running boldly to the wall, manfully threw himself down upon the crowd.
{14:44} But they quickly provided a place for his fall, so he landed at the middle of the neck.
{14:45} And, since he was still breathing, and being inflamed in soul, he rose up, and as his blood flowed down in a great stream, being very gravely wounded, he ran through the crowd.
{14:46} And standing upon a certain steep rock, and being now almost without blood, grasping his intestines with both hands, he threw himself over the crowd, calling upon the Ruler of life as well as spirit, to restore these to him again. And so he passed away from this life.
{15:1} But when Nicanor discovered Judas to be in the places of Samaria, he decided to meet him in warfare with all violence, on the Sabbath day.
{15:2} In truth, the Jews who followed him out of necessity were saying: “Do not act so fiercely and barbarously, but give honor to the day of sanctification and reverence to him who beholds all things.”
{15:3} That unhappy man asked, “Is there a powerful One in heaven, who commanded the day of the Sabbath to be kept.”
{15:4} And they responded to him, “There is the living Lord himself in heaven, the powerful One, who ordered the seventh day to be kept.”
{15:5} And so he said: “I also am powerful upon the earth, so I command arms to be taken up and the king’s plans to be fulfilled.” Nevertheless, he did not succeed in accomplishing his plan.
{15:6} And Nicanor, being certainly lifted up with the greatest arrogance, had decided to establish a public monument of his victory over Judas.
{15:7} But Maccabeus, as always, trusted with all hope that God would be present to help them.
{15:8} And he exhorted his own not to fear the arrival of the nations, but to keep in mind the assistance they had received before from heaven, and now to hope for a future victory from the Almighty.
{15:9} And speaking to them from the law and the prophets, reminding them even of the conflicts they had fought before, he made them more willing.
{15:10} And so, having raised up their courage, at the same time he revealed the deceitful plan of the Gentiles and their betrayal of the oaths.
{15:11} Then he armed every one of them, not with the weapons of shield and spear, but with the best speeches and exhortations; and he explained to them a dream, worthy to be believed, in which he rejoiced with them all.
{15:12} Now the vision was in this manner: Onias, who had been high priest, a good and kind man, modest in appearance, gentle in manners, and noble in speech, and who from boyhood was trained in the virtues, extending his hands, prayed on behalf of all the people of the Jews.
{15:13} After this, there appeared also another man, admirable in age and glory, and with a bearing of great dignity about him.
{15:14} In truth, Onias responded by saying: “This one loves his brothers and the people of Israel. This is he who prays greatly for the people and for all the holy city: Jeremiah, the prophet of God.”
{15:15} Then Jeremiah extended his right hand, and he gave to Judas a sword of gold, saying:
{15:16} “Receive this holy sword as a gift from God, with it you shall cast down the adversaries of my people Israel.”
{15:17} And so, having been exhorted by the very good words of Judas, by which the readiness and courage of the young men were able to be raised and strengthened, they resolved to strive and to contend with fortitude, so that virtue would judge the matter, because the holy city and the temple were in peril.
{15:18} For their concern was less for their wives and sons, and likewise less for their brothers and relatives; in truth, their greatest and first fear was for the sanctity of the temple.
{15:19} But those also who were in the city had no small concern for those who had gathered together.
{15:20} And, when all now hoped that judgment would soon occur, and when the enemies were near, and the army was set in order, with the beasts and the horsemen positioned in strategic places,
{15:21} Maccabeus, considering the arrival of the multitude, and the various preparations of weapons, and the fierceness of the beasts, extending his hands to heaven, called upon the Lord, who works miracles, who gives victory to those who are worthy, not according to the power of the weapons, but just as it pleases him.
{15:22} Then, calling out in this way, he said: “You, O Lord, who sent your Angel under Hezekiah, king of Judah, and who killed one hundred and eighty-five thousand from the camp of Sennacherib,
{15:23} now also, O Ruler of the heavens, send your good Angel before us, who are in fear and trembling at the greatness of your arm,
{15:24} so that those who approach against your holy people with blasphemy may be afraid.” And in this way, indeed, he concluded his prayer.
{15:25} But Nicanor, and those who were with him, advanced with trumpets and songs.
{15:26} In truth, Judas, and those who were with him, calling upon God through prayers, came together against them.
{15:27} Indeed, fighting with their hands, but praying to the Lord with their hearts, they struck down no less than thirty-five thousand, being delighted by the presence of God.
{15:28} And when they had ceased and were returning with gladness, they realized, by his armor, that Nicanor had been slain.
{15:29} And so, making a loud noise and inciting a disturbance, they blessed the Almighty Lord in the language of the fathers.
{15:30} But Judas, who was prepared throughout all his body and soul to die for his citizens, instructed that Nicanor’s head, and his hand with the arm, should be cut off and carried through to Jerusalem.
{15:31} When it arrived, having called together his fellow tribesmen, and the priests to the altar, he summoned those also who were in the stronghold.
{15:32} And he displayed the head of Nicanor, and his nefarious hand, which he had extended against the holy house of Almighty God with magnificent boasting.
{15:33} He even ordered now that the tongue of the impious Nicanor should be cut up and given in pieces to the birds, but that the hand of this demented man should be suspended opposite the temple.
{15:34} Therefore, they all blessed the Lord of heaven, saying, “Blessed is he who has kept his own place uncontaminated.”
{15:35} Then he suspended Nicanor’s head at the top of the stronghold, so that it would be an evident and manifest sign of the assistance of God.
{15:36} And so, they all decreed by common counsel in no way to let this day pass without celebration,
{15:37} but to hold a celebration on the thirteenth day of the month of Adar, which was called in the Syrian language: the day before Mardochias’ day.
{15:38} Therefore, these things were accomplished concerning Nicanor, and from that time the city was possessed by the Hebrews. And so, I will bring an end to my narration here.
{15:39} And, indeed, if I have done well, so as to have made an adequate history, this also is what I wanted. But if it is less than worthy, may it be permitted me.
{15:40} For, just as it is adverse to drink always wine, or always water, so also it is pleasant to use sometimes the one, and sometimes the other. So, if the words were always exact, it would not be pleasing to the readers. Therefore, here it shall be completed.
{1:1} The book of the lineage of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
{1:2} Abraham conceived Isaac. And Isaac conceived Jacob. And Jacob conceived Judah and his brothers.
{1:3} And Judah conceived Perez and Zerah by Tamar. And Perez conceived Hezron. And Hezron conceived Ram.
{1:4} And Ram conceived Amminadab. And Amminadab conceived Nahshon. And Nahshon conceived Salmon.
{1:5} And Salmon conceived Boaz by Rahab. And Boaz conceived Obed by Ruth. And Obed conceived Jesse.
{1:6} And Jesse conceived king David. And king David conceived Solomon, by her who had been the wife of Uriah.
{1:7} And Solomon conceived Rehoboam. And Rehoboam conceived Abijah. And Abijah conceived Asa.
{1:8} And Asa conceived Jehoshaphat. And Jehoshaphat conceived Joram. And Joram conceived Uzziah.
{1:9} And Uzziah conceived Jotham. And Jotham conceived Ahaz. And Ahaz conceived Hezekiah.
{1:10} And Hezekiah conceived Manasseh. And Manasseh conceived Amos. And Amos conceived Josiah.
{1:11} And Josiah conceived Jechoniah and his brothers in the transmigration of Babylon.
{1:12} And after the transmigration of Babylon, Jechoniah conceived Shealtiel. And Shealtiel conceived Zerubbabel.
{1:13} And Zerubbabel conceived Abiud. And Abiud conceived Eliakim. And Eliakim conceived Azor.
{1:14} And Azor conceived Zadok. And Zadok conceived Achim. And Achim conceived Eliud.
{1:15} And Eliud conceived Eleazar. And Eleazar conceived Matthan. And Matthan conceived Jacob.
{1:16} And Jacob conceived Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
{1:17} And so, all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David to the transmigration of Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the transmigration of Babylon to the Christ, fourteen generations.
{1:18} Now the procreation of the Christ occurred in this way. After his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they lived together, she was found to have conceived in her womb by the Holy Spirit.
{1:19} Then Joseph, her husband, since he was just and was not willing to hand her over, preferred to send her away secretly.
{1:20} But while thinking over these things, behold, an Angel of the Lord appeared to him in his sleep, saying: “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to accept Mary as your wife. For what has been formed in her is of the Holy Spirit.
{1:21} And she shall give birth to a son. And you shall call his name JESUS. For he shall accomplish the salvation of his people from their sins.”
{1:22} Now all this occurred in order to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:
{1:23} “Behold, a virgin shall conceive in her womb, and she shall give birth to a son. And they shall call his name Emmanuel, which means: God is with us.”
{1:24} Then Joseph, arising from sleep, did just as the Angel of the Lord had instructed him, and he accepted her as his wife.
{1:25} And he knew her not, yet she bore her son, the firstborn. And he called his name JESUS.
{2:1} And so, when Jesus had been born in Bethlehem of Judah, in the days of king Herod, behold, Magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem,
{2:2} saying: “Where is he who was born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and we have come to adore him.”
{2:3} Now king Herod, hearing this, was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.
{2:4} And gathering together all the leaders of the priests, and the scribes of the people, he consulted with them as to where the Christ would be born.
{2:5} And they said to him: “In Bethlehem of Judea. For so it has been written by the prophet:
{2:6} ‘And you, Bethlehem, the land of Judah, are by no means least among the leaders of Judah. For from you shall go forth the ruler who shall guide my people Israel.’ ”
{2:7} Then Herod, quietly calling the Magi, diligently learned from them the time when the star appeared to them.
{2:8} And sending them into Bethlehem, he said: “Go and diligently ask questions about the boy. And when you have found him, report back to me, so that I, too, may come and adore him.”
{2:9} And when they had heard the king, they went away. And behold, the star that they had seen in the east went before them, even until, arriving, it stood still above the place where the child was.
{2:10} Then, seeing the star, they were gladdened by a very great joy.
{2:11} And entering the home, they found the boy with his mother Mary. And so, falling prostrate, they adored him. And opening their treasures, they offered him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
{2:12} And having received a response in sleep that they should not return to Herod, they went back by another way to their own region.
{2:13} And after they had gone away, behold, an Angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph, saying: “Rise up, and take the boy and his mother, and flee into Egypt. And remain there until I tell you. For it will happen that Herod will seek the boy to destroy him.”
{2:14} And getting up, he took the boy and his mother by night, and withdrew into Egypt.
{2:15} And he remained there, until the death of Herod, in order to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Out of Egypt, I called my son.”
{2:16} Then Herod, seeing that he had been fooled by the Magi, was very angry. And so he sent to kill all the boys who were in Bethlehem, and in all its borders, from two years of age and under, according to the time that he had learned by questioning the Magi.
{2:17} Then what was spoken through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled, saying:
{2:18} “A voice has been heard in Ramah, great weeping and wailing: Rachel crying for her sons. And she was not willing to be consoled, because they were no more.”
{2:19} Then, when Herod had passed away, behold, an Angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph in Egypt,
{2:20} saying: “Rise up, and take the boy and his mother, and go into the land of Israel. For those who were seeking the life of the boy have passed away.”
{2:21} And rising up, he took the boy and his mother, and he went into the land of Israel.
{2:22} Then, hearing that Archelaus reigned in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And being warned in sleep, he withdrew into parts of Galilee.
{2:23} And arriving, he lived in a city which is called Nazareth, in order to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets: “For he shall be called a Nazarene.”
{3:1} Now in those days, John the Baptist arrived, preaching in the desert of Judea,
{3:2} and saying: “Repent. For the kingdom of heaven has drawn near.”
{3:3} For this is the one who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah, saying: “A voice crying out in the desert: Prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight his paths.”
{3:4} Now the same John had a garment made from the hair of camels, and a leather belt around his waist. And his food was locusts and wild honey.
{3:5} Then Jerusalem, and all Judea, and the entire region around the Jordan went out to him.
{3:6} And they were baptized by him in the Jordan, acknowledging their sins.
{3:7} Then, seeing many of the Pharisees and Sadducees arriving for his baptism, he said to them: “Progeny of vipers, who warned you to flee from the approaching wrath?
{3:8} Therefore, produce fruit worthy of repentance.
{3:9} And do not choose to say within yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that God has the power to raise up sons to Abraham from these stones.
{3:10} For even now the axe has been placed at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that does not produce good fruit shall be cut down and cast into the fire.
{3:11} Indeed, I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who will come after me is more powerful than me. I am not worthy to carry his shoes. He will baptize you with the fire of the Holy Spirit.
{3:12} His winnowing fan is in his hand. And he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor. And he will gather his wheat into the barn. But the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
{3:13} Then Jesus came from Galilee, to John at the Jordan, in order to be baptized by him.
{3:14} But John refused him, saying, “I ought to be baptized by you, and yet you come to me?”
{3:15} And responding, Jesus said to him: “Permit this for now. For in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all justice.” Then he allowed him.
{3:16} And Jesus, having been baptized, ascended from the water immediately, and behold, the heavens were opened to him. And he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and alighting on him.
{3:17} And behold, there was a voice from heaven, saying: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
{4:1} Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert, in order to be tempted by the devil.
{4:2} And when he had fasted for forty days and forty nights, afterwards he was hungry.
{4:3} And approaching, the tempter said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
{4:4} And in response he said, “It has been written: ‘Not by bread alone shall man live, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”
{4:5} Then the devil took him up, into the holy city, and set him on the pinnacle of the temple,
{4:6} and said to him: “If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down. For it has been written: ‘For he has given charge of you to his angels, and they shall take you into their hands, lest perhaps you may hurt your foot against a stone.’ ”
{4:7} Jesus said to him, “Again, it has been written: ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’ ”
{4:8} Again, the devil took him up, onto a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory,
{4:9} and said to him, “All these things I will give to you, if you will fall down and adore me.”
{4:10} Then Jesus said to him: “Go away, Satan. For it has been written: ‘You shall adore the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’ ”
{4:11} Then the devil left him. And behold, Angels approached and ministered to him.
{4:12} And when Jesus had heard that John had been handed over, he withdrew into Galilee.
{4:13} And leaving behind the city of Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, near the sea, at the borders of Zebulun and of Naphtali,
{4:14} in order to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah:
{4:15} “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way of the sea across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles:
{4:16} A people who were sitting in darkness have seen a great light. And unto those sitting in the region of the shadow of death, a light has risen.”
{4:17} From that time, Jesus began to preach, and to say: “Repent. For the kingdom of heaven has drawn near.”
{4:18} And Jesus, walking near the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea (for they were fishermen).
{4:19} And he said to them: “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
{4:20} And at once, leaving behind their nets, they followed him.
{4:21} And continuing on from there, he saw another two brothers, James of Zebedee, and his brother John, in a ship with their father Zebedee, repairing their nets. And he called them.
{4:22} And immediately, leaving their nets and their father behind, they followed him.
{4:23} And Jesus traveled throughout all of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every infirmity among the people.
{4:24} And reports of him went out to all of Syria, and they brought to him all those who had maladies, those who were in the grasp of various sicknesses and torments, and those who were in the hold of demons, and the mentally ill, and paralytics. And he cured them.
{4:25} And a great crowd followed him from Galilee, and from the Ten Cities, and from Jerusalem, and from Judea, and from across the Jordan.
{5:1} Then, seeing the crowds, he ascended the mountain, and when he had sat down, his disciples drew near to him,
{5:2} and opening his mouth, he taught them, saying:
{5:3} “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
{5:4} Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the earth.
{5:5} Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be consoled.
{5:6} Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they shall be satisfied.
{5:7} Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
{5:8} Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
{5:9} Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
{5:10} Blessed are those who endure persecution for the sake of justice, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
{5:11} Blessed are you when they have slandered you, and persecuted you, and spoken all kinds of evil against you, falsely, for my sake:
{5:12} be glad and exult, for your reward in heaven is plentiful. For so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
{5:13} You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its saltiness, with what will it be salted? It is no longer useful at all, except to be cast out and trampled under by men.
{5:14} You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.
{5:15} And they do not light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, so that it may shine to all who are in the house.
{5:16} So then, let your light shine in the sight of men, so that they may see your good works, and may glorify your Father, who is in heaven.
{5:17} Do not think that I have come to loosen the law or the prophets. I have not come to loosen, but to fulfill.
{5:18} Amen I say to you, certainly, until heaven and earth pass away, not one iota, not one dot shall pass away from the law, until all is done.
{5:19} Therefore, whoever will have loosened one of the least of these commandments, and have taught men so, shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever will have done and taught these, such a one shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
{5:20} For I say to you, that unless your justice has surpassed that of the scribes and the Pharisees you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
{5:21} You have heard that it was said to the ancients: ‘You shall not murder; whoever will have murdered shall be liable to judgment.’
{5:22} But I say to you, that anyone who becomes angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment. But whoever will have called his brother, ‘Idiot,’ shall be liable to the council. Then, whoever will have called him, ‘Worthless,’ shall be liable to the fires of Hell.
{5:23} Therefore, if you offer your gift at the altar, and there you remember that your brother has something against you,
{5:24} leave your gift there, before the altar, and go first to be reconciled to your brother, and then you may approach and offer your gift.
{5:25} Be reconciled with your adversary quickly, while you are still on the way with him, lest perhaps the adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you will be thrown in prison.
{5:26} Amen I say to you, that you shall not go forth from there, until you have repaid the last quarter.
{5:27} You have heard that it was said to the ancients: ‘You shall not commit adultery.’
{5:28} But I say to you, that anyone who will have looked at a woman, so as to lust after her, has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
{5:29} And if your right eye causes you to sin, root it out and cast it away from you. For it is better for you that one of your members perish, than that your whole body be cast into Hell.
{5:30} And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it away from you. For it is better for you that one of your members perish, than that your whole body go into Hell.
{5:31} And it has been said: ‘Whoever would dismiss his wife, let him give her a bill of divorce.’
{5:32} But I say to you, that anyone who will have dismissed his wife, except in the case of fornication, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever will have married her who has been dismissed commits adultery.
{5:33} Again, you have heard that it was said to the ancients: ‘You shall not swear falsely. For you shall repay your oaths to the Lord.’
{5:34} But I say to you, do not swear an oath at all, neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God,
{5:35} nor by earth, for it is his footstool, nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great king.
{5:36} Neither shall you swear an oath by your own head, because you are not able to cause one hair to become white or black.
{5:37} But let your word ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ For anything beyond that is of evil.
{5:38} You have heard that it was said: ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’
{5:39} But I say to you, do not resist one who is evil, but if anyone will have struck you on your right cheek, offer to him the other also.
{5:40} And anyone who wishes to contend with you in judgment, and to take away your tunic, release to him your cloak also.
{5:41} And whoever will have compelled you for one thousand steps, go with him even for two thousand steps.
{5:42} Whoever asks of you, give to him. And if anyone would borrow from you, do not turn away from him.
{5:43} You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor, and you shall have hatred for your enemy.’
{5:44} But I say to you: Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. And pray for those who persecute and slander you.
{5:45} In this way, you shall be sons of your Father, who is in heaven. He causes his sun to rise upon the good and the bad, and he causes it to rain upon the just and the unjust.
{5:46} For if you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Do not even tax collectors behave this way?
{5:47} And if you greet only your brothers, what more have you done? Do not even the pagans behave this way?
{5:48} Therefore, be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
{6:1} “Pay attention, lest you perform your justice before men, in order to be seen by them; otherwise you shall not have a reward with your Father, who is in heaven.
{6:2} Therefore, when you give alms, do not choose to sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the towns, so that they may be honored by men. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward.
{6:3} But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
{6:4} so that your almsgiving may be in secret, and your Father, who sees in secret, will repay you.
{6:5} And when you pray, you should not be like the hypocrites, who love standing in the synagogues and at the corners of the streets to pray, so that they may be seen by men. Amen I say to you, they have received their reward.
{6:6} But you, when you pray, enter into your room, and having shut the door, pray to your Father in secret, and your Father, who sees in secret, will repay you.
{6:7} And when praying, do not choose many words, as the pagans do. For they think that by their excess of words they might be heeded.
{6:8} Therefore, do not choose to imitate them. For your Father knows what your needs may be, even before you ask him.
{6:9} Therefore, you shall pray in this way: Our Father, who is in heaven: May your name be kept holy.
{6:10} May your kingdom come. May your will be done, as in heaven, so also on earth.
{6:11} Give us this day our life-sustaining bread.
{6:12} And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.
{6:13} And lead us not into temptation. But free us from evil. Amen.
{6:14} For if you will forgive men their sins, your heavenly Father also will forgive you your offenses.
{6:15} But if you will not forgive men, neither will your Father forgive you your sins.
{6:16} And when you fast, do not choose to become gloomy, like the hypocrites. For they alter their faces, so that their fasting may be apparent to men. Amen I say to you, that they have received their reward.
{6:17} But as for you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,
{6:18} so that your fasting will not be apparent to men, but to your Father, who is in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will repay you.
{6:19} Do not choose to store up for yourselves treasures on earth: where rust and moth consume, and where thieves break in and steal.
{6:20} Instead, store up for yourselves treasures in heaven: where neither rust nor moth consumes, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
{6:21} For where your treasure is, there also is your heart.
{6:22} The lamp of your body is your eye. If your eye is wholesome, your entire body will be filled with light.
{6:23} But if your eye has been corrupted, your entire body will be darkened. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great will that darkness be!
{6:24} No one is able to serve two masters. For either he will have hatred for the one, and love the other, or he will persevere with the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.
{6:25} And so I say to you, do not be anxious about your life, as to what you will eat, nor about your body, as to what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
{6:26} Consider the birds of the air, how they neither sow, nor reap, nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of much greater value than they are?
{6:27} And which of you, by thinking, is able to add one cubit to his stature?
{6:28} And as for clothing, why are you anxious? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither work nor weave.
{6:29} But I say to you, that not even Solomon, in all his glory, was arrayed like one of these.
{6:30} So if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and cast into the oven tomorrow, how much more will he care for you, O little in faith?
{6:31} Therefore, do not choose to be anxious, saying: ‘What shall we eat, and what shall we drink, and with what shall we be clothed?’
{6:32} For the Gentiles seek all these things. Yet your Father knows that you need all these things.
{6:33} Therefore, seek first the kingdom of God and his justice, and all these things shall be added to you as well.
{6:34} Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow; for the future day will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its evil.”
{7:1} “Do not judge, so that you may not be judged.
{7:2} For with whatever judgment you judge, so shall you be judged; and with whatever measure you measure out, so shall it be measured back to you.
{7:3} And how can you see the splinter in your brother’s eye, and not see the board in your own eye?
{7:4} Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the splinter from your eye,’ while, behold, a board is in your own eye?
{7:5} Hypocrite, first remove the board from your own eye, and then you will see clearly enough to remove the splinter from your brother’s eye.
{7:6} Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not cast your pearls before swine, lest perhaps they may trample them under their feet, and then, turning, they may tear you apart.
{7:7} Ask, and it shall be given to you. Seek, and you shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened to you.
{7:8} For everyone who asks, receives; and whoever seeks, finds; and to anyone who knocks, it will be opened.
{7:9} Or what man is there among you, who, if his son were to ask him for bread, would offer him a stone;
{7:10} or if he were to ask him for a fish, would offer him a snake?
{7:11} Therefore, if you, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your sons, how much more will your Father, who is in heaven, give good things to those who ask him?
{7:12} Therefore, all things whatsoever that you wish that men would do to you, do so also to them. For this is the law and the prophets.
{7:13} Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate, and broad is the way, which leads to perdition, and many there are who enter through it.
{7:14} How narrow is the gate, and how straight is the way, which leads to life, and few there are who find it!
{7:15} Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
{7:16} You shall know them by their fruits. Can grapes be gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles?
{7:17} So then, every good tree produces good fruit, and the evil tree produces evil fruit.
{7:18} A good tree is not able to produce evil fruit, and an evil tree is not able to produce good fruit.
{7:19} Every tree which does not produce good fruit shall be cut down and cast into the fire.
{7:20} Therefore, by their fruits you will know them.
{7:21} Not all who say to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom of heaven. But whoever does the will of my Father, who is in heaven, the same shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.
{7:22} Many will say to me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and perform many powerful deeds in your name?’
{7:23} And then will I disclose to them: ‘I have never known you. Depart from me, you workers of iniquity.’
{7:24} Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and does them shall be compared to a wise man, who built his house upon the rock.
{7:25} And the rains descended, and the floods rose up, and the winds blew, and rushed upon that house, but it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
{7:26} And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them shall be like a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand.
{7:27} And the rains descended, and the floods rose up, and the winds blew, and rushed upon that house, and it did fall, and great was its ruin.”
{7:28} And it happened, when Jesus had completed these words, that the crowds were astonished at his doctrine.
{7:29} For he was teaching them as one who has authority, and not like their scribes and Pharisees.
{8:1} And when he had descended from the mountain, great crowds followed him.
{8:2} And behold, a leper, drawing near, adored him, saying, “Lord, if you are willing, you are able to cleanse me.”
{8:3} And Jesus, extending his hand, touched him, saying: “I am willing. Be cleansed.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
{8:4} And Jesus said to him: “See to it that you tell no one. But go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses instructed, as a testimony for them.”
{8:5} And when he had entered into Capernaum, a centurion approached, petitioning him,
{8:6} and saying, “Lord, my servant lies at home paralyzed and badly tormented.”
{8:7} And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.”
{8:8} And responding, the centurion said: “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant shall be healed.
{8:9} For I, too, am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
{8:10} And, hearing this, Jesus wondered. And he said to those following him: “Amen I say to you, I have not found so great a faith in Israel.
{8:11} For I say to you, that many shall come from the east and the west, and they shall sit at table with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
{8:12} But the sons of the kingdom shall be cast into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
{8:13} And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go, and just as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And the servant was healed at that very hour.
{8:14} And when Jesus had arrived at the house of Peter, he saw his mother-in-law lying ill with a fever.
{8:15} And he touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she rose up and ministered to them.
{8:16} And when evening arrived, they brought to him many who had demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word. And he healed all those having maladies,
{8:17} in order to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah, saying, “He took our infirmities, and he carried away our diseases.”
{8:18} Then Jesus, seeing the great crowds encircling him, gave orders to go across the sea.
{8:19} And one scribe, approaching, said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you will go.”
{8:20} And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have dens, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to rest his head.”
{8:21} Then another of his disciples said to him, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.”
{8:22} But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and allow the dead to bury their dead.”
{8:23} And climbing into a boat, his disciples followed him.
{8:24} And behold, a great tempest occurred in the sea, so much so that the boat was covered with waves; yet truly, he was sleeping.
{8:25} And his disciples drew near to him, and they awakened him, saying: “Lord, save us, we are perishing.”
{8:26} And Jesus said to them, “Why are you afraid, O little in faith?” Then rising up, he commanded the winds, and the sea. And a great tranquility occurred.
{8:27} Moreover, the men wondered, saying: “What kind of man is this? For even the winds and the sea obey him.”
{8:28} And when he had arrived across the sea, into the region of the Gerasenes, he was met by two who had demons, who were so exceedingly savage, as they went out from among the tombs, that no one was able to cross by that way.
{8:29} And behold, they cried out, saying: “What are we to you, O Jesus, the Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?”
{8:30} Now there was, not far from them, a herd of many swine feeding.
{8:31} Then the demons petitioned him, saying: “If you cast us from here, send us into the herd of swine.”
{8:32} And he said to them, “Go.” And they, going out, went into the swine. And behold, the entire herd suddenly rushed along a steep place into the sea. And they died in the waters.
{8:33} Then the shepherds fled, and arriving in the city, they reported on all this, and on those who had had the demons.
{8:34} And behold, the entire city went out to meet Jesus. And having seen him, they petitioned him, so that he would cross from their borders.
{9:1} And climbing into a boat, he crossed the sea, and he arrived at his own city.
{9:2} And behold, they brought to him a paralytic, lying on a bed. And Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, “Be strengthened in faith, son; your sins are forgiven you.”
{9:3} And behold, some of the scribes said within themselves, “He is blaspheming.”
{9:4} And when Jesus had perceived their thoughts, he said: “Why do you think such evil in your hearts?
{9:5} Which is easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise up and walk?’
{9:6} But, so that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins,” he then said to the paralytic, “Rise up, take up your bed, and go into your house.”
{9:7} And he arose and went into his house.
{9:8} Then the crowd, seeing this, was frightened, and they glorified God, who gave such power to men.
{9:9} And when Jesus passed on from there, he saw, sitting at the tax office, a man named Matthew. And he said to him, “Follow me.” And rising up, he followed him.
{9:10} And it happened that, as he was sitting down to eat in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners arrived, and they sat down to eat with Jesus and his disciples.
{9:11} And the Pharisees, seeing this, said to his disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
{9:12} But Jesus, hearing this, said: “It is not those who are healthy who are in need of a physician, but those who have maladies.
{9:13} So then, go out and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the just, but sinners.”
{9:14} Then the disciples of John drew near to him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast frequently, but your disciples do not fast?”
{9:15} And Jesus said to them: “How can the sons of the groom mourn, while the groom is still with them? But the days will arrive when the groom will be taken away from them. And then they shall fast.
{9:16} For no one would sew a patch of new cloth onto an old garment. For it pulls its fullness away from the garment, and the tear is made worse.
{9:17} Neither do they pour new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wineskins rupture, and the wine pours out, and the wineskins are destroyed. Instead, they pour new wine into new wineskins. And so, both are preserved.”
{9:18} As he was speaking these things to them, behold, a certain ruler approached and adored him, saying: “Lord, my daughter has recently passed away. But come and impose your hand upon her, and she will live.”
{9:19} And Jesus, rising up, followed him, with his disciples.
{9:20} And behold, a woman, who had suffered from a flow of blood for twelve years, approached from behind and touched the hem of his garment.
{9:21} For she said within herself, “If I will touch even his garment, I shall be saved.”
{9:22} But Jesus, turning and seeing her, said: “Be strengthened in faith, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And the woman was made well from that hour.
{9:23} And when Jesus had arrived in the house of the ruler, and he had seen the musicians and the tumultuous crowd,
{9:24} he said, “Depart. For the girl is not dead, but asleep.” And they derided him.
{9:25} And when the crowd had been sent away, he entered. And he took her by the hand. And the girl rose up.
{9:26} And the news of this went out to that entire land.
{9:27} And as Jesus passed from there, two blind men followed him, crying out and saying, “Take pity on us, Son of David.”
{9:28} And when he had arrived at the house, the blind men approached him. And Jesus said to them, “Do you trust that I am able to do this for you?” They say to him, “Certainly, Lord.”
{9:29} Then he touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith, so let it be done for you.”
{9:30} And their eyes were opened. And Jesus warned them, saying, “See to it that no one knows of this.”
{9:31} But going out, they spread the news of it to all that land.
{9:32} Then, when they had departed, behold, they brought him a man who was mute, having a demon.
{9:33} And after the demon was cast out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds wondered, saying, “Never has anything like this been seen in Israel.”
{9:34} But the Pharisees said, “By the prince of demons does he cast out demons.”
{9:35} And Jesus traveled throughout all of the cities and towns, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Gospel of the kingdom, and healing every illness and every infirmity.
{9:36} Then, seeing the multitudes, he had compassion on them, because they were distressed and were reclining, like sheep without a shepherd.
{9:37} Then he said to his disciples: “The harvest indeed is great, but the laborers are few.
{9:38} Therefore, petition the Lord of the harvest, so that he may sent out laborers to his harvest.”
{10:1} And having called together his twelve disciples, he gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out and to cure every sickness and every infirmity.
{10:2} Now the names of the twelve Apostles are these: the First, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother,
{10:3} James of Zebedee, and John his brother, Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the tax collector, and James of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus,
{10:4} Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
{10:5} Jesus sent these twelve, instructing them, saying: “Do not travel by the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter into the city of the Samaritans,
{10:6} but instead go to the sheep who have fallen away from the house of Israel.
{10:7} And going forth, preach, saying: ‘For the kingdom of heaven has drawn near.’
{10:8} Cure the infirm, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You have received freely, so give freely.
{10:9} Do not choose to possess gold, nor silver, nor money in your belts,
{10:10} nor provisions for the journey, nor two tunics, nor shoes, nor a staff. For the laborer deserves his portion.
{10:11} Now, into whatever city or town you will enter, inquire as to who is worthy within it. And stay there until you depart.
{10:12} Then, when you enter into the house, greet it, saying, ‘Peace to this house.’
{10:13} And if, indeed, that house is worthy, your peace will rest upon it. But if it is not worthy, your peace will return to you.
{10:14} And whoever has neither received you, nor listened to your words, departing from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet.
{10:15} Amen I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city.
{10:16} Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore, be as prudent as serpents and as simple as doves.
{10:17} But beware of men. For they will hand you over to councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues.
{10:18} And you shall be led before both rulers and kings for my sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles.
{10:19} But when they hand you over, do not choose to think about how or what to speak. For what to speak shall be given to you in that hour.
{10:20} For it is not you who will be speaking, but the Spirit of your Father, who will speak in you.
{10:21} And brother will hand over brother to death, and father will hand over son. And children will rise up against parents and bring about their deaths.
{10:22} And you will be hated by all for the sake of my name. But whoever will have persevered, even to the end, the same shall be saved.
{10:23} Now when they persecute you in one city, flee into another. Amen I say to you, you will not have exhausted all the cities of Israel, before the Son of man returns.
{10:24} The disciple is not above the teacher, nor is the servant above his master.
{10:25} It is sufficient for the disciple that he be like his teacher, and the servant, like his master. If they have called the Father of the family, ‘Beelzebub,’ how much more those of his household?
{10:26} Therefore, do not fear them. For nothing is covered that shall not be revealed, nor hidden that shall not be known.
{10:27} What I tell you in darkness, speak in the light. And what you hear whispered in the ear, preach above the rooftops.
{10:28} And do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. But instead fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Hell.
{10:29} Are not two sparrows sold for one small coin? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father.
{10:30} For even the hairs of your head have all been numbered.
{10:31} Therefore, do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows.
{10:32} Therefore, everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father, who is in heaven.
{10:33} But whoever will have denied me before men, I also will deny before my Father, who is in heaven.
{10:34} Do not think that I came to send peace upon the earth. I came, not to send peace, but the sword.
{10:35} For I came to divide a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
{10:36} And the enemies of a man will be those of his own household.
{10:37} Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever loves son or daughter above me is not worthy of me.
{10:38} And whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.
{10:39} Whoever finds his life, will lose it. And whoever will have lost his life because of me, shall find it.
{10:40} Whoever receives you, receives me. And whoever receives me, receives him who sent me.
{10:41} Whoever receives a prophet, in the name of a prophet, shall receive the reward of a prophet. And whoever receives the just in the name of the just shall receive the reward of the just.
{10:42} And whoever shall give, even to one of the least of these, a cup of cold water to drink, solely in the name of a disciple: Amen I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.”
{11:1} And it happened that, when Jesus had completed instructing his twelve disciples, he went away from there in order to teach and to preach in their cities.
{11:2} Now when John had heard, in prison, about the works of Christ, sending two of his disciples, he said to him,
{11:3} “Are you he who is to come, or should we expect another?”
{11:4} And Jesus, responding, said to them: “Go and report to John what you have heard and seen.
{11:5} The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead rise again, the poor are evangelized.
{11:6} And blessed is he who has found no offense in me.”
{11:7} Then, after they departed, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out to the desert to see? A reed shaken by the wind?
{11:8} So what did you go out to see? A man in soft garments? Behold, those who are clothed in soft garments are in the houses of kings.
{11:9} Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.
{11:10} For this is he, of whom it is written: ‘Behold, I send my Angel before your face, who shall prepare your way before you.’
{11:11} Amen I say to you, among those born of women, there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
{11:12} But from the days of John the Baptist, even until now, the kingdom of heaven has endured violence, and the violent carry it away.
{11:13} For all the prophets and the law prophesied, even until John.
{11:14} And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah, who is to come.
{11:15} Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.
{11:16} But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplace,
{11:17} who, calling out to their companions, say: ‘We played music for you, and you did not dance. We lamented, and you did not mourn.’
{11:18} For John came neither eating nor drinking; and they say, ‘He has a demon.’
{11:19} The Son of man came eating and drinking; and they say, ‘Behold, a man who eats voraciously and who drinks wine, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is justified by her sons.”
{11:20} Then he began to rebuke the cities in which many of his miracles were accomplished, for they still had not repented.
{11:21} “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in haircloth and ashes.
{11:22} Yet truly, I say to you, Tyre and Sidon shall be forgiven more than you, on the day of judgment.
{11:23} And you, Capernaum, would you be exalted all the way to heaven? You shall descend all the way to Hell. For if the miracles that were done in you had been done in Sodom, perhaps it would have remained, even to this day.
{11:24} Yet truly, I say to you, that the land of Sodom shall be forgiven more than you, on the day of judgment.”
{11:25} At that time, Jesus responded and said: “I acknowledge you, Father, Lord of Heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the prudent, and have revealed them to little ones.
{11:26} Yes, Father, for this was pleasing before you.
{11:27} All things have been delivered to me by my Father. And no one knows the Son except the Father, nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and those to whom the Son is willing to reveal him.
{11:28} Come to me, all you who labor and have been burdened, and I will refresh you.
{11:29} Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you shall find rest for your souls.
{11:30} For my yoke is sweet and my burden is light.”
{12:1} At that time, Jesus went out through the ripe grain on the Sabbath. And his disciples, being hungry, began to separate the grain and to eat.
{12:2} Then the Pharisees, seeing this, said to him, “Behold, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbaths.”
{12:3} But he said to them: “Have you not read what David did, when he was hungry, and those who were with him:
{12:4} how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests?
{12:5} Or have you not read in the law, that on the Sabbaths the priests in the temple violate the Sabbath, and they are without guilt?
{12:6} But I say to you, that something greater than the temple is here.
{12:7} And if you knew what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would never have condemned the innocent.
{12:8} For the Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”
{12:9} And when he had passed from there, he went into their synagogues.
{12:10} And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand, and they questioned him, so that they might accuse him, saying, “Is it lawful to cure on the Sabbaths?”
{12:11} But he said to them: “Who is there among you, having even one sheep, if it will have fallen into a pit on the Sabbath, would not take hold of it and lift it up?
{12:12} How much better is a man than a sheep? And so, it is lawful to do good on the Sabbaths.”
{12:13} Then he said to the man, “Extend your hand.” And he extended it, and it was restored to health, just like the other one.
{12:14} Then the Pharisees, departing, took council against him, as to how they might destroy him.
{12:15} But Jesus, knowing this, withdrew from there. And many followed him, and he cured them all.
{12:16} And he instructed them, lest they make him known.
{12:17} Then what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah was fulfilled, saying:
{12:18} “Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased. I will place my Spirit over him, and he shall announce judgment to the nations.
{12:19} He shall not contend, nor cry out, neither shall anyone hear his voice in the streets.
{12:20} He shall not crush the bruised reed, and he shall not extinguish the smoking wick, until he sends forth judgment unto victory.
{12:21} And the Gentiles shall hope in his name.”
{12:22} Then one who had a demon, who was blind and mute, was brought to him. And he cured him, so that he spoke and saw.
{12:23} And all the crowds were stupefied, and they said, “Could this be the son of David?”
{12:24} But the Pharisees, hearing it, said, “This man does not cast out demons, except by Beelzebub, the prince of the demons.”
{12:25} But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself will become desolate. And every city or house divided against itself will not stand.
{12:26} So if Satan casts out Satan, then he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?
{12:27} And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your own sons cast them out? Therefore, they shall be your judges.
{12:28} But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has arrived among you.
{12:29} Or how can anyone enter into the house of a strong man, and plunder his belongings, unless he first restrains the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.
{12:30} Whoever is not with me, is against me. And whoever does not gather with me, scatters.
{12:31} For this reason, I say to you: Every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven men, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven.
{12:32} And anyone who will have spoken a word against the Son of man shall be forgiven. But whoever will have spoken against the Holy Spirit shall not be forgiven, neither in this age, nor in the future age.
{12:33} Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree evil and its fruit evil. For certainly a tree is known by its fruit.
{12:34} Progeny of vipers, how are you able to speak good things while you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
{12:35} A good man offers good things from a good storehouse. And an evil man offers evil things from an evil storehouse.
{12:36} But I say to you, that for every idle word which men will have spoken, they shall render an account in the day of judgment.
{12:37} For by your words shall you be justified, and by your words shall you be condemned.”
{12:38} Then certain ones from the scribes and the Pharisees responded to him, saying, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from you.”
{12:39} And answering, he said to them: “An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign. But a sign will not be given to it, except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
{12:40} For just as Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days and three nights, so shall the Son of man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.
{12:41} The men of Nineveh shall arise in judgment with this generation, and they shall condemn it. For, at the preaching of Jonah, they repented. And behold, there is a greater than Jonah here.
{12:42} The Queen of the South shall arise in judgment with this generation, and she shall condemn it. For she came from the ends of the earth to hear the Wisdom_of_Solomon. And behold, there is a greater than Solomon here.
{12:43} Now when an unclean spirit departs from a man, he walks through dry places, seeking rest, and he does not find it.
{12:44} Then he says, ‘I will return to my house, from which I departed’. And arriving, he finds it vacant, swept clean, and decorated.
{12:45} Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and live there. And in the end, the man becomes worse than he was at first. So, too, shall it be with this most wicked generation.”
{12:46} While he was still speaking to the crowds, behold, his mother and his brothers were standing outside, seeking to speak with him.
{12:47} And someone said to him: “Behold, your mother and your brothers are standing outside, seeking you.”
{12:48} But responding to the one speaking to him, he said, “Which one is my mother, and who are my brothers?”
{12:49} And extending his hand to his disciples, he said: “Behold: my mother and my brothers.
{12:50} For anyone who does the will of my Father, who is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.”
{13:1} In that day, Jesus, departing from the house, sat down beside the sea.
{13:2} And such great crowds were gathered to him that he climbed into a boat and he sat down. And the entire multitude stood on the shore.
{13:3} And he spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow seed.
{13:4} And while he was sowing, some fell beside the road, and the birds of the air came and ate it.
{13:5} Then others fell in a rocky place, where they did not have much soil. And they sprung up promptly, because they had no depth of soil.
{13:6} But when the sun rose up, they were scorched, and because they had no roots, they withered.
{13:7} Still others fell among thorns, and the thorns increased and suffocated them.
{13:8} Yet some others fell upon good soil, and they produced fruit: some one hundred fold, some sixty fold, some thirty fold.
{13:9} Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”
{13:10} And his disciples drew near to him and said, “Why do you speak to them in parables?”
{13:11} Responding, he said to them: “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but it has not been given to them.
{13:12} For whoever has, it shall be given to him, and he shall have in abundance. But whoever has not, even what he has shall be taken away from him.
{13:13} For this reason, I speak to them in parables: because seeing, they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.
{13:14} And so, in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, who said, ‘Hearing, you shall hear, but not understand; and seeing, you shall see, but not perceive.
{13:15} For the heart of this people has grown fat, and with their ears they hear heavily, and they have closed their eyes, lest at any time they might see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and then I would heal them.’
{13:16} But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear.
{13:17} Amen I say to you, certainly, that many of the prophets and the just desired to see what you see, and yet they did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and yet they did not hear it.
{13:18} Listen, then, to the parable of the sower.
{13:19} With anyone who hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, evil comes and carries away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received the seed by the side of the road.
{13:20} Then whoever has received the seed upon a rocky place, this is one who hears the word and promptly accepts it with joy.
{13:21} But he has no root in himself, so it is only for a time; then, when tribulation and persecution occur because of the word, he promptly stumbles.
{13:22} And whoever has received the seed among thorns, this is he who hears the word, but the cares of this age and the falseness of riches suffocate the word, and he is effectively without fruit.
{13:23} Yet truly, whoever has received the seed into good soil, this is he who hears the word, and understands it, and so he bears fruit, and he produces: some a hundred fold, and another sixty fold, and another thirty fold.”
{13:24} He proposed another parable to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.
{13:25} But while the men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds amid the wheat, and then went away.
{13:26} And when the plants had grown, and had produced fruit, then the weeds also appeared.
{13:27} So the servants of the Father of the family, approaching, said to him: ‘Lord, did you not sow good seed in your field? Then how is it that it has weeds?’
{13:28} And he said to them, ‘A man who is an enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Is it your will that we should go and gather them up?’
{13:29} And he said: ‘No, lest perhaps in gathering the weeds, you might also root out the wheat together with it.
{13:30} Permit both to grow until the harvest, and at the time of the harvest, I will say to the reapers: Gather first the weeds, and bind them into bundles to burn, but the wheat gather into my storehouse.’ ”
{13:31} He proposed another parable to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field.
{13:32} It is, indeed, the least of all seeds, but when it has grown, it is greater than all the plants, and it becomes a tree, so much so that the birds of the air come and dwell in its branches.”
{13:33} He spoke another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of fine wheat flour, until it was entirely leavened.”
{13:34} All these things Jesus spoke in parables to the crowds. And he did not speak to them apart from parables,
{13:35} in order to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet, saying: “I will open my mouth in parables. I will proclaim what has been hidden since the foundation of the world.”
{13:36} Then, dismissing the crowds, he went into the house. And his disciples drew near to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
{13:37} Responding, he said to them: “He who sows the good seed is the Son of man.
{13:38} Now the field is the world. And the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom. But the weeds are the sons of wickedness.
{13:39} So the enemy who sowed them is the devil. And truly, the harvest is the consummation of the age; while the reapers are the Angels.
{13:40} Therefore, just as weeds are gathered up and burned with fire, so shall it be at the consummation of the age.
{13:41} The Son of man shall send out his Angels, and they shall gather from his kingdom all who lead astray and those who work iniquity.
{13:42} And he shall cast them into the furnace of fire, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
{13:43} Then the just ones shall shine like the sun, in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.
{13:44} The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. When a man finds it, he hides it, and, because of his joy, he goes and sells everything that he has, and he buys that field.
{13:45} Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking good pearls.
{13:46} Having found one pearl of great value, he went away and sold all that he had, and he bought it.
{13:47} Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net cast into the sea, which gathers together all kinds of fish.
{13:48} When it has been filled, drawing it out and sitting beside the shore, they selected the good into vessels, but the bad they threw away.
{13:49} So shall it be at the consummation of the age. The Angels shall go forth and separate the bad from the midst of the just.
{13:50} And they shall cast them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
{13:51} Have you understood all these things?” They say to him, “Yes.”
{13:52} He said to them, “Therefore, every scribe well-taught about the kingdom of heaven, is like a man, the father of a family, who offers from his storehouse both the new and the old.”
{13:53} And it happened that, when Jesus had completed these parables, he went away from there.
{13:54} And arriving in his own country, he taught them in their synagogues, so much so that they wondered and said: “How can such wisdom and power be with this one?
{13:55} Is this not the son of a workman? Is not his mother called Mary, and his brothers, James, and Joseph, and Simon, and Jude?
{13:56} And his sisters, are they not all with us? Therefore, from where has this one obtained all these things?”
{13:57} And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country and in his own house.”
{13:58} And he did not work many miracles there, because of their unbelief.
{14:1} In that time, Herod the Tetrarch heard the news about Jesus.
{14:2} And he said to his servants: “This is John the Baptist. He has risen from the dead, and that is why miracles are at work in him.”
{14:3} For Herod had apprehended John, and bound him, and put him in prison, because of Herodias, the wife of his brother.
{14:4} For John was telling him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.”
{14:5} And though he wanted to kill him, he feared the people, because they held him to be a prophet.
{14:6} Then, on Herod’s birthday, the daughter of Herodias danced in their midst, and it pleased Herod.
{14:7} And so he promised with an oath to give her whatever she would ask of him.
{14:8} But, having been advised by her mother, she said, “Give me here, on a platter, the head of John the Baptist.”
{14:9} And the king was greatly saddened. But because of his oath, and because of those who sat at table with him, he ordered it to be given.
{14:10} And he sent and beheaded John in prison.
{14:11} And his head was brought on a platter, and it was given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother.
{14:12} And his disciples approached and took the body, and they buried it. And arriving, they reported it to Jesus.
{14:13} When Jesus had heard it, he withdrew from there by boat, to a deserted place by himself. And when the crowds had heard of it, they followed him on foot from the cities.
{14:14} And going out, he saw a great multitude, and he took pity on them, and he cured their sick.
{14:15} And when evening had arrived, his disciples approached him, saying: “This is a deserted place, and the hour has now passed. Dismiss the crowds, so that, by going into the towns, they may buy food for themselves.”
{14:16} But Jesus said to them: “They have no need to go. Give them something to eat yourselves.”
{14:17} They answered him, “We have nothing here, except five loaves and two fish.”
{14:18} He said to them, “Bring them here to me.”
{14:19} And when he had ordered the multitude to sit down upon the grass, he took the five loaves and the two fish, and gazing up to heaven, he blessed and broke and gave the bread to the disciples, and then the disciples to the multitudes.
{14:20} And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up the remnants: twelve baskets full of fragments.
{14:21} Now the number of those who ate was five thousand men, besides women and children.
{14:22} And Jesus promptly compelled his disciples to climb into the boat, and to precede him in crossing the sea, while he dismissed the crowds.
{14:23} And having dismissed the multitude, he ascended alone onto a mountain to pray. And when evening arrived, he was alone there.
{14:24} But in the midst of the sea, the boat was being tossed about by the waves. For the wind was against them.
{14:25} Then, in the fourth watch of the night, he came to them, walking upon the sea.
{14:26} And seeing him walking upon the sea, they were disturbed, saying: “It must be an apparition.” And they cried out, because of fear.
{14:27} And immediately, Jesus spoke to them, saying: “Have faith. It is I. Do not be afraid.”
{14:28} Then Peter responded by saying, “Lord, if it is you, order me to come to you over the waters.”
{14:29} And he said, “Come.” And Peter, descending from the boat, walked over the water, so as to go to Jesus.
{14:30} Yet truly, seeing that the wind was strong, he was afraid. And as he began to sink, he cried out, saying: “Lord, save me.”
{14:31} And immediately Jesus extended his hand and took hold of him. And he said to him, “O little in faith, why did you doubt?”
{14:32} And when they had ascended into the boat, the wind ceased.
{14:33} Then those who were in the boat drew near and adored him, saying: “Truly, you are the Son of God.”
{14:34} And having crossed the sea, they arrived in the land of Genesaret.
{14:35} And when the men of that place had recognized him, they sent into all that region, and they brought to him all who had maladies.
{14:36} And they petitioned him, so that they might touch even the hem of his garment. And as many as touched it were made whole.
{15:1} Then the scribes and the Pharisees came to him from Jerusalem, saying:
{15:2} “Why do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread.”
{15:3} But responding, he said to them: “And why do you transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said:
{15:4} ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘Whoever will have cursed father or mother shall die a death.’
{15:5} But you say: ‘If anyone will have said to father or mother, “It is dedicated, so that whatever is from me will benefit you,”
{15:6} then he shall not honor his father or his mother.’ So have you nullified the commandment of God, for the sake of your tradition.
{15:7} Hypocrites! How well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:
{15:8} ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.
{15:9} For in vain do they worship me, teaching the doctrines and commandments of men.’ ”
{15:10} And having called the multitudes to him, he said to them: “Listen and understand.
{15:11} A man is not defiled by what enters into the mouth, but by what proceeds from the mouth. This is what defiles a man.”
{15:12} Then his disciples drew near and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees, upon hearing this word, were offended?”
{15:13} But in response he said: “Every plant which has not been planted by my heavenly Father shall be uprooted.
{15:14} Leave them alone. They are blind, and they lead the blind. But if the blind are in charge of the blind, both will fall into the pit.”
{15:15} And responding, Peter said to him, “Explain this parable to us.”
{15:16} But he said: “Are you, even now, without understanding?
{15:17} Do you not understand that everything that enters into the mouth goes into the gut, and is cast into the sewer?
{15:18} But what proceeds from the mouth, goes forth from the heart, and those are the things that defile a man.
{15:19} For from the heart go out evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false testimonies, blasphemies.
{15:20} These are the things that defile a man. But to eat without washing hands does not defile a man.”
{15:21} And departing from there, Jesus withdrew into the areas of Tyre and Sidon.
{15:22} And behold, a woman of Canaan, going out from those parts, cried out, saying to him: “Take pity on me, Lord, Son of David. My daughter is badly afflicted by a demon.”
{15:23} He did not say a word to her. And his disciples, drawing near, petitioned him, saying: “Dismiss her, for she is crying out after us.”
{15:24} And responding, he said, “I was not sent except to the sheep who have fallen away from the house of Israel.”
{15:25} But she approached and adored him, saying, “Lord, help me.”
{15:26} And responding, he said, “It is not good to take the bread of the children and cast it to the dogs.”
{15:27} But she said, “Yes, Lord, but the young dogs also eat from the crumbs that fall from the table of their masters.”
{15:28} Then Jesus, responding, said to her: “O woman, great is your faith. Let it be done for you just as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
{15:29} And when Jesus had passed from there, he arrived beside the sea of Galilee. And ascending onto a mountain, he sat down there.
{15:30} And great multitudes came to him, having with them the mute, the blind, the lame, the disabled, and many others. And they cast them down at his feet, and he cured them,
{15:31} so much so that the crowds wondered, seeing the mute speaking, the lame walking, the blind seeing. And they magnified the God of Israel.
{15:32} And Jesus, calling together his disciples, said: “I have compassion on the crowds, because they have persevered with me now for three days, and they do not have anything to eat. And I am not willing to dismiss them, fasting, lest they faint along the way.”
{15:33} And the disciples said to him: “From where, then, in the desert, would we obtain enough bread to satisfy so a great multitude?”
{15:34} And Jesus said to them, “How many loaves of bread do you have?” But they said, “Seven, and a few little fish.”
{15:35} And he instructed the crowds to recline upon the ground.
{15:36} And taking the seven loaves and the fish, and giving thanks, he broke and gave to his disciples, and the disciples gave to the people.
{15:37} And they all ate and were satisfied. And, from what was left over of the fragments, they took up seven full baskets.
{15:38} But those who ate were four thousand men, plus children and women.
{15:39} And having dismissed the crowd, he climbed into a boat. And he went into the coastal region of Magadan.
{16:1} And Pharisees and Sadducees approached him to test him, and they asked him to show them a sign from heaven.
{16:2} But he responded by saying to them: “When evening arrives, you say, ‘It will be calm, for the sky is red,’
{16:3} and in the morning, ‘Today there will be a storm, for the sky is red and gloomy.’ So then, you know how to judge the appearance of the sky, but you are unable to know the signs of the times?
{16:4} An evil and adulterous generation seeks a sign. And a sign shall not be given to it, except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” And leaving them behind, he went away.
{16:5} And when his disciples went across the sea, they forgot to bring bread.
{16:6} And he said to them, “Consider and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.”
{16:7} But they were thinking within themselves, saying, “It is because we have not brought bread.”
{16:8} Then Jesus, knowing this, said: “Why do you consider within yourselves, O little in faith, that it is because you have no bread?
{16:9} Do you not yet understand, nor remember, the five loaves among the five thousand men, and how many containers you took up?
{16:10} Or the seven loaves among the four thousand men, and how many baskets you took up?
{16:11} Why do you not understand that it was not because of bread that I said to you: Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees?”
{16:12} Then they understood that he was not saying that they should beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.
{16:13} Then Jesus went into parts of Caesarea Philippi. And he questioned his disciples, saying, “Who do men say that the Son of man is?”
{16:14} And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, and others say Elijah, still others say Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
{16:15} Jesus said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
{16:16} Simon Peter responded by saying, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
{16:17} And in response, Jesus said to him: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father, who is in heaven.
{16:18} And I say to you, that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it.
{16:19} And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatever you shall bind on earth shall be bound, even in heaven. And whatever you shall release on earth shall be released, even in heaven.”
{16:20} Then he instructed his disciples that they should tell no one that he is Jesus the Christ.
{16:21} From that time, Jesus began to reveal to his disciples that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, and to suffer much from the elders and the scribes and the leaders of the priests, and to be killed, and to rise again on the third day.
{16:22} And Peter, taking him aside, began to rebuke him, saying, “Lord, may it be far from you; this shall not happen to you.”
{16:23} And turning away, Jesus said to Peter: “Get behind me, Satan; you are an obstacle to me. For you are not behaving according to what is of God, but according to what is of men.”
{16:24} Then Jesus said to his disciples: “If anyone is willing to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
{16:25} For whoever would save his life, will lose it. But whoever will have lost his life for my sake, shall find it.
{16:26} For how does it benefit a man, if he gains the whole world, yet truly suffers damage to his soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
{16:27} For the Son of man will arrive in the glory of his Father, with his Angels. And then he will repay each one according to his works.
{16:28} Amen I say to you, there are some among those standing here, who shall not taste death, until they see the Son of man arriving in his reign.”
{17:1} And after six days, Jesus took Peter and James and his brother John, and he led them onto a lofty mountain separately.
{17:2} And he was transfigured before them. And his face shined brightly like the sun. And his garments were made white like snow.
{17:3} And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, speaking with him.
{17:4} And Peter responded by saying to Jesus: “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you are willing, let us make three tabernacles here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
{17:5} And while he was still speaking, behold, a shining cloud overshadowed them. And behold, there was a voice from the cloud, saying: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.”
{17:6} And the disciples, hearing this, fell prone on their face, and they were very afraid.
{17:7} And Jesus drew near and touched them. And he said to them, “Rise up and do not be afraid.”
{17:8} And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one, except Jesus alone.
{17:9} And as they were descending from the mountain, Jesus instructed them, saying, “Tell no one about the vision, until the Son of man has risen from the dead.”
{17:10} And his disciples questioned him, saying, “Why then do the scribes say that it is necessary for Elijah to arrive first?”
{17:11} But in response, he said to them: “Elijah, indeed, shall arrive and restore all things.
{17:12} But I say to you, that Elijah has already arrived, and they did not recognize him, but they did whatever they wanted to him. So also shall the Son of man suffer from them.”
{17:13} Then the disciples understood that he had spoken to them about John the Baptist.
{17:14} And when he had arrived at the multitude, a man approached him, falling to his knees before him, saying: “Lord, take pity on my son, for he is an epileptic, and he suffers harm. For he frequently falls into fire, and often also into water.
{17:15} And I brought him to your disciples, but they were not able to cure him.”
{17:16} Then Jesus responded by saying: “What an unbelieving and perverse generation! How long shall I be with you? How long shall I endure you? Bring him here to me.”
{17:17} And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon went out of him, and the boy was cured from that hour.
{17:18} Then the disciples approached Jesus privately and said, “Why were we unable to cast him out?”
{17:19} Jesus said to them: “Because of your unbelief. Amen I say to you, certainly, if you will have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it shall move. And nothing will be impossible for you.
{17:20} But this kind is not cast out, except through prayer and fasting.”
{17:21} And when they were conversing together in Galilee, Jesus said to them: “The Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men.
{17:22} And they will kill him, but he will rise again on the third day.” And they were extremely saddened.
{17:23} And when they had arrived at Capernaum, those who collected the half shekel approached Peter, and they said to him, “Doesn’t your Teacher pay the half shekel?”
{17:24} He said, “Yes.” And when he had entered into the house, Jesus went before him, saying: “How does it seem to you, Simon? The kings of the earth, from whom do they receive tribute or the census tax: from their own sons or from foreigners?”
{17:25} And he said, “From foreigners.” Jesus said to him: “Then the sons are free.
{17:26} But so that we may not become an obstacle to them: go to the sea, and cast in a hook, and take the first fish that is brought up, and when you have opened its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take it and give it to them, for me and for you.”
{18:1} In that hour, the disciples drew near to Jesus, saying, “Whom do you consider to be greater in the kingdom of heaven?”
{18:2} And Jesus, calling to himself a little child, placed him in their midst.
{18:3} And he said: “Amen I say to you, unless you change and become like little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
{18:4} Therefore, whoever will have humbled himself like this little child, such a one is greater in the kingdom of heaven.
{18:5} And whoever shall accept one such little child in my name, accepts me.
{18:6} But whoever will have led astray one of these little ones, who trust in me, it would be better for him to have a great millstone hung around his neck, and to be submerged in the depths of the sea.
{18:7} Woe to a world that leads people astray! Although it is necessary for temptations to arise, nevertheless: Woe to that man through whom temptation arises!
{18:8} So if your hand or your foot leads you to sin, cut it off and cast it away from you. It is better for you to enter into life disabled or lame, than to be sent into eternal fire having two hands or two feet.
{18:9} And if your eye leads you to sin, root it out and cast it away from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, than to be sent into the fires of Hell having two eyes.
{18:10} See to it that you do not despise even one of these little ones. For I say to you, that their Angels in heaven continually look upon the face of my Father, who is in heaven.
{18:11} For the Son of man has come to save what had been lost.
{18:12} How does it seem to you? If someone has one hundred sheep, and if one of them has gone astray, should he not leave behind the ninety-nine in the mountains, and go out to seek what has gone astray?
{18:13} And if he should happen to find it: Amen I say to you, that he has more joy over that one, than over the ninety-nine which did not go astray.
{18:14} Even so, it is not the will before your Father, who is in heaven, that one of these little ones should be lost.
{18:15} But if your brother has sinned against you, go and correct him, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you will have regained your brother.
{18:16} But if he will not listen you, invite with you one or two more, so that every word may stand by the mouth of two or three witnesses.
{18:17} And if he will not listen to them, tell the Church. But if he will not listen to the Church, let him be to you like the pagan and the tax collector.
{18:18} Amen I say to you, whatever you will have bound on earth, shall be bound also in heaven, and whatever you will have released on earth, shall be released also in heaven.
{18:19} Again I say to you, that if two of those among you have agreed on earth, about anything whatsoever that they have requested, it shall be done for them by my Father, who is in heaven.
{18:20} For wherever two or three are gathered in my name, there am I, in their midst.”
{18:21} Then Peter, drawing near to him, said: “Lord, how many times shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Even seven times?”
{18:22} Jesus said to him: “I do not say to you, even seven times, but even seventy times seven times.
{18:23} Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is compared to a man who was king, who wanted to take account of his servants.
{18:24} And when he had begun taking account, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.
{18:25} But since he did not have any way to repay it, his lord ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children, and all that he had, in order to repay it.
{18:26} But that servant, falling prostrate, begged him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will repay it all to you.’
{18:27} Then the lord of that servant, being moved with pity, released him, and he forgave his debt.
{18:28} But when that servant departed, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him one hundred denarius. And taking hold of him, he choked him, saying: ‘Repay what you owe.’
{18:29} And his fellow servant, falling prostrate, petitioned him, saying: ‘Have patience with me, and I will repay it all to you.’
{18:30} But he was not willing. Instead, he went out and had him sent to prison, until he would repay the debt.
{18:31} Now his fellow servants, seeing what was done, were greatly saddened, and they went and reported to their lord all that was done.
{18:32} Then his lord called him, and he said to him: ‘You wicked servant, I forgave you all your debt, because you pleaded with me.
{18:33} Therefore, should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I also had compassion on you?’
{18:34} And his lord, being angry, handed him over to the torturers, until he repaid the entire debt.
{18:35} So, too, shall my heavenly Father do to you, if each one of you will not forgive his brother from your hearts.”
{19:1} And it happened that, when Jesus had completed these words, he moved away from Galilee, and he arrived within the borders of Judea, across the Jordan.
{19:2} And great crowds followed him, and he healed them there.
{19:3} And the Pharisees approached him, testing him, and saying, “Is it lawful for a man to separate from his wife, no matter what the cause?”
{19:4} And he said to them in response, “Have you not read that he who made man from the beginning, made them male and female?” And he said:
{19:5} “For this reason, a man shall separate from father and mother, and he shall cling to his wife, and these two shall become one flesh.
{19:6} And so, now they are not two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no man separate.”
{19:7} They said to him, “Then why did Moses command him to give a bill of divorce, and to separate?”
{19:8} He said to them: “Although Moses permitted you to separate from your wives, due to the hardness of your heart, it was not that way from the beginning.
{19:9} And I say to you, that whoever will have separated from his wife, except because of fornication, and who will have married another, commits adultery, and whoever will have married her who has been separated, commits adultery.”
{19:10} His disciples said to him, “If such is the case for a man with a wife, then it is not expedient to marry.”
{19:11} And he said to them: “Not everyone is able to grasp this word, but only those to whom it has been given.
{19:12} For there are chaste persons who were born so from their mother’s womb, and there are chaste persons who have been made so by men, and there are chaste persons who have made themselves chaste for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Whoever is able to grasp this, let him grasp it.”
{19:13} Then they brought to him little children, so that he would place his hands upon them and pray. But the disciples rebuked them.
{19:14} Yet truly, Jesus said to them: “Allow the little children to come to me, and do not choose to prohibit them. For the kingdom of heaven is among such as these.”
{19:15} And when he had imposed his hands upon them, he went away from there.
{19:16} And behold, someone approached and said to him, “Good Teacher, what good should I do, so that I may have eternal life?”
{19:17} And he said to him: “Why do you question me about what is good? One is good: God. But if you wish to enter into life, observe the commandments.”
{19:18} He said to him, “Which?” And Jesus said: “You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not give false testimony.
{19:19} Honor your father and your mother. And, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
{19:20} The young man said to him: “All these I have kept from my childhood. What is still lacking for me?”
{19:21} Jesus said to him: “If you are willing to be perfect, go, sell what you have, and give to the poor, and then you will have treasure in heaven. And come, follow me.”
{19:22} And when the young man had heard this word, he went away sad, for he had many possessions.
{19:23} Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Amen, I say to you, that the wealthy shall enter with difficulty into the kingdom of heaven.
{19:24} And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for the wealthy to enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
{19:25} And upon hearing this, the disciples wondered greatly, saying: “Then who will be able to be saved?”
{19:26} But Jesus, gazing at them, said to them: “With men, this is impossible. But with God, all things are possible.”
{19:27} Then Peter responded by saying to him: “Behold, we have left behind all things, and we have followed you. So then, what will be for us?”
{19:28} And Jesus said to them: “Amen I say to you, that at the resurrection, when the Son of man shall sit on the seat of his majesty, those of you who have followed me shall also sit on twelve seats, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
{19:29} And anyone who has left behind home, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or land, for the sake of my name, shall receive one hundred times more, and shall possess eternal life.
{19:30} But many of those who are first shall be last, and the last shall be first.”
{20:1} “The kingdom of heaven is like the father of a family who went out in early morning to lead workers into his vineyard.
{20:2} Then, having made an agreement with the workers for one denarius per day, he sent them into his vineyard.
{20:3} And going out about the third hour, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace.
{20:4} And he said to them, ‘You may go into my vineyard, too, and what I will give you will be just.’
{20:5} So they went forth. But again, he went out about the sixth, and about the ninth hour, and he acted similarly.
{20:6} Yet truly, about the eleventh hour, he went out and found others standing, and he said to them, ‘Why have you stood here idle all day?’
{20:7} They say to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also may go into my vineyard.’
{20:8} And when evening had arrived, the lord of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning from the last, even to the first.’
{20:9} And so, when those who had arrived about the eleventh hour came forward, each received a single denarius.
{20:10} Then when the first ones also came forward, they considered that they would receive more. But they, too, received one denarius.
{20:11} And upon receiving it, they murmured against the father of the family,
{20:12} saying, ‘These last have worked for one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who worked bearing the weight and heat of the day.’
{20:13} But responding to one of them, he said: ‘Friend, I caused you no injury. Did you not agree with me to one denarius?
{20:14} Take what is yours and go. But it is my will to give to this last, just as to you.
{20:15} And is it not lawful for me to do what I will? Or is your eye wicked because I am good?’
{20:16} So then, the last shall be first, and the first shall be last. For many are called, but few are chosen.”
{20:17} And Jesus, ascending to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples aside in private and said to them:
{20:18} “Behold, we are ascending to Jerusalem, and the Son of man shall be handed over to the leaders of the priests and to the scribes. And they shall condemn him to death.
{20:19} And they shall hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and scourged and crucified. And on the third day, he shall rise again.”
{20:20} Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee approached him, with her sons, adoring him, and petitioning something from him.
{20:21} And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Declare that these, my two sons, may sit, one at your right hand, and the other at your left, in your kingdom.”
{20:22} But Jesus, responding, said: “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink from the chalice, from which I will drink?” They said to him, “We are able.”
{20:23} He said to them: “From my chalice, indeed, you shall drink. But to sit at my right or my left is not mine to give to you, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
{20:24} And the ten, upon hearing this, became indignant with the two brothers.
{20:25} But Jesus called them to himself and said: “You know that the first ones among the Gentiles are their rulers, and that those who are greater exercise power among them.
{20:26} It shall not be this way among you. But whoever will want to be greater among you, let him be your minister.
{20:27} And whoever will want to be first among you, he shall be your servant,
{20:28} even as the Son of man has not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a redemption for many.”
{20:29} And as they were departing from Jericho, a great crowd followed him.
{20:30} And behold, two blind men, sitting by the way, heard that Jesus was passing by; and they cried out, saying, “Lord, Son of David, take pity on us.”
{20:31} But the crowd rebuked them to be quiet. But they cried out all the more, saying, “Lord, Son of David, take pity on us.”
{20:32} And Jesus stood still, and he called them and said, “What do you want, that I might do for you?”
{20:33} They said to him, “Lord, that our eyes be opened.”
{20:34} Then Jesus, taking pity on them, touched their eyes. And immediately they saw, and they followed him.
{21:1} And when they had drawn near to Jerusalem, and had arrived at Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples,
{21:2} saying to them: “Go into the town that is opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Release them, and lead them to me.
{21:3} And if anyone will have said anything to you, say that the Lord has need of them. And he will promptly dismiss them.”
{21:4} Now all this was done in order to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet, saying,
{21:5} “Tell the daughter of Zion: Behold, your king comes to you meekly, sitting on a donkey and on a colt, the son of one accustomed to the yoke.”
{21:6} Then the disciples, going out, did just as Jesus instructed them.
{21:7} And they brought the donkey and the colt, and they laid their garments on them, and they helped him sit upon them.
{21:8} Then a very numerous crowd spread their garments on the way. But others cut branches from the trees and scattered them on the way.
{21:9} And the crowds that preceded him, and those that followed, cried out, saying: “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!”
{21:10} And when he had entered into Jerusalem, the entire city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?”
{21:11} But the people were saying, “This is Jesus, the Prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”
{21:12} And Jesus entered into the temple of God, and he cast out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money changers and the chairs of the vendors of doves.
{21:13} And he said to them: “It is written: ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer. But you have made it into a den of robbers.’ ”
{21:14} And the blind and the lame drew near to him in the temple; and he healed them.
{21:15} Then the leaders of the priests and the scribes became indignant, seeing the miracles that he wrought, and the children crying out in the temple, saying, “Hosanna to the Son of David!”
{21:16} And they said to him, “Do you hear what these ones are saying?” But Jesus said to them, “Certainly. Have you never read: For out of the mouth of babes and infants, you have perfected praise?”
{21:17} And leaving them behind, he went out, beyond the city, into Bethania, and he lodged here.
{21:18} Then, as he was returning to the city in the morning, he was hungry.
{21:19} And seeing a certain fig tree beside the way, he approached it. And he found nothing on it, except only leaves. And he said to it, “May fruit never spring forth from you, for all time.” And immediately the fig tree was dried up.
{21:20} And seeing this, the disciples wondered, saying, “How did it dry up so quickly?”
{21:21} And Jesus responded to them by saying: “Amen I say to you, if you have faith and do not hesitate, not only shall you do this, concerning the fig tree, but even if you would say to this mountain, ‘Take and cast yourself into the sea,’ it shall be done.
{21:22} And all things whatsoever that you shall ask for in prayer: believing, you shall receive.”
{21:23} And when he had arrived at the temple, as he was teaching, the leaders of the priests and the elders of the people approached him, saying: “By what authority do you do these things? And who has given this authority to you?”
{21:24} In response, Jesus said to them: “I also will question you with one word: if you tell me this, I also will tell you by what authority I do these things.
{21:25} The baptism of John, where was it from? Was it from heaven, or from men?” But they thought within themselves, saying:
{21:26} “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘From men,’ we have the crowd to fear, for they all hold John to be a prophet.”
{21:27} And so, they answered Jesus by saying, “We do not know.” So he also said to them: “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.
{21:28} But how does it seem to you? A certain man had two sons. And approaching the first, he said: ‘Son, go out today to work in my vineyard.’
{21:29} And responding, he said, ‘I am not willing.’ But afterwards, being moved by repentance, he went.
{21:30} And approaching the other, he spoke similarly. And answering, he said, ‘I am going, lord.’ And he did not go.
{21:31} Which of the two did the will of the father?” They said to him, “The first.” Jesus said to them: “Amen I say to you, that tax collectors and prostitutes shall precede you, into the kingdom of God.
{21:32} For John came to you in the way of justice, and you did not believe him. But the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. Yet even after seeing this, you did not repent, so as to believe him.
{21:33} Listen to another parable. There was a man, the father of a family, who planted a vineyard, and surrounded it with a hedge, and dug a press in it, and built a tower. And he loaned it out to farmers, and he set out to sojourn abroad.
{21:34} Then, when the time of the fruits drew near, he sent his servants to the farmers, so that they might receive its fruits.
{21:35} And the farmers apprehended his servants; they struck one, and killed another, and stoned yet another.
{21:36} Again, he sent other servants, more than before; and they treated them similarly.
{21:37} Then, at the very end, he sent his son to them, saying: ‘They will revere my son.’
{21:38} But the farmers, seeing the son, said among themselves: ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and then we will have his inheritance.’
{21:39} And apprehending him, they cast him outside the vineyard, and they killed him.
{21:40} Therefore, when the lord of the vineyard arrives, what will he do to those farmers?”
{21:41} They said to him, “He will bring those evil men to an evil end, and he will loan out his vineyard to other farmers, who shall repay to him the fruit in its time.”
{21:42} Jesus said to them: “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders have rejected has become the cornerstone. By the Lord has this been done, and it is wonderful in our eyes?’
{21:43} Therefore, I say to you, that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and it shall be given to a people who shall produce its fruits.
{21:44} And whoever will have fallen on this stone shall be broken, yet truly, on whomever it shall fall, it will crush him.”
{21:45} And when the leaders of the priests, and the Pharisees had heard his parables, they knew that he was speaking about them.
{21:46} And though they sought to take hold of him, they feared the crowds, because they held him to be a prophet.
{22:1} And responding, Jesus again spoke to them in parables, saying:
{22:2} “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who was king, who celebrated a wedding for his son.
{22:3} And he sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding. But they were not willing to come.
{22:4} Again, he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell the invited: Behold, I have prepared my meal. My bulls and fatlings have been killed, and all is ready. Come to the wedding.’
{22:5} But they ignored this and they went away: one to his country estate, and another to his business.
{22:6} Yet truly, the rest took hold of his servants and, having treated them with contempt, killed them.
{22:7} But when the king heard this, he was angry. And sending out his armies, he destroyed those murderers, and he burned their city.
{22:8} Then he said to his servants: ‘The wedding, indeed, has been prepared. But those who were invited were not worthy.
{22:9} Therefore, go out to the ways, and call whomever you will find to the wedding.’
{22:10} And his servants, departing into the ways, gathered all those whom they found, bad and good, and the wedding was filled with guests.
{22:11} Then the king entered to see the guests. And he saw a man there who was not clothed in a wedding garment.
{22:12} And he said to him, ‘Friend, how is it that you have entered here without having a wedding garment?’ But he was dumbstruck.
{22:13} Then the king said to the ministers: ‘Bind his hands and feet, and cast him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
{22:14} For many are called, but few are chosen.’ ”
{22:15} Then the Pharisees, going out, took counsel as to how they might entrap him in speech.
{22:16} And they sent their disciples to him, with the Herodians, saying: “Teacher, we know that you are truthful, and that you teach the way of God in truth, and that the influence of others is nothing to you. For you do not consider the reputation of men.
{22:17} Therefore, tell us, how does it seem to you? Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar, or not?”
{22:18} But Jesus, knowing their wickedness, said: “Why do you test me, you hypocrites?
{22:19} Show me the coin of the census tax.” And they offered him a denarius.
{22:20} And Jesus said to them, “Whose image is this, and whose inscription?”
{22:21} They said to him, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Then render to Caesar what is of Caesar; and to God what is of God.”
{22:22} And hearing this, they wondered. And having left him behind, they went away.
{22:23} In that day, the Sadducees, who say there is to be no resurrection, approached him. And they questioned him,
{22:24} saying: “Teacher, Moses said: If anyone will have died, having no son, his brother shall marry his wife, and he shall raise up offspring to his brother.
{22:25} Now there were seven brothers with us. And the first, having taken a wife, died. And having no offspring, he left his wife to his brother:
{22:26} similarly with the second, and the third, even to the seventh.
{22:27} And last of all, the woman also passed away.
{22:28} In the resurrection, then, whose wife of the seven will she be? For they all had her.”
{22:29} But Jesus responded to them by saying: “You have gone astray by knowing neither the Scriptures, nor the power of God.
{22:30} For in the resurrection, they shall neither marry, nor be given in marriage. Instead, they shall be like the Angels of God in heaven.
{22:31} But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken by God, saying to you:
{22:32} ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?’ He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.”
{22:33} And when the crowds heard this, they wondered at his doctrine.
{22:34} But the Pharisees, hearing that he had caused the Sadducees to be silent, came together as one.
{22:35} And one of them, a doctor of the law, questioned him, to test him:
{22:36} “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”
{22:37} Jesus said to him: “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God from all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
{22:38} This is the greatest and first commandment.
{22:39} But the second is similar to it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
{22:40} On these two commandments the entire law depends, and also the prophets.”
{22:41} Then, when the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus questioned them,
{22:42} saying: “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him, “David’s.”
{22:43} He said to them: “Then how can David, in the Spirit, call him Lord, saying:
{22:44} ‘The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool?’
{22:45} So then, if David calls him Lord, how can he be his son?”
{22:46} And no one was able to respond to him a word. And neither did anyone dare, from that day forward, to question him.
{23:1} Then Jesus spoke to the crowds, and to his disciples,
{23:2} saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have sat down in the chair of Moses.
{23:3} Therefore, all things whatsoever that they shall say to you, observe and do. Yet truly, do not choose to act according to their works. For they say, but they do not do.
{23:4} For they bind up heavy and unbearable burdens, and they impose them on men’s shoulders. But they are not willing to move them with even a finger of their own.
{23:5} Truly, they do all their works so that they may be seen by men. For they enlarge their phylacteries and glorify their hems.
{23:6} And they love the first places at feasts, and the first chairs in the synagogues,
{23:7} and greetings in the marketplace, and to be called Master by men.
{23:8} But you must not be called Master. For One is your Master, and you are all brothers.
{23:9} And do not choose to call anyone on earth your father. For One is your Father, who is in heaven.
{23:10} Neither should you be called teachers. For One is your Teacher, the Christ.
{23:11} Whoever is greater among you shall be your minister.
{23:12} But whoever has exalted himself, shall be humbled. And whoever has humbled himself, shall be exalted.
{23:13} So then: Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you close the kingdom of heaven before men. For you yourselves do not enter, and those who are entering, you would not permit to enter.
{23:14} Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you consume the houses of widows, praying long prayers. Because of this, you shall receive the greater judgment.
{23:15} Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you travel around by sea and by land, in order to make one convert. And when he has been converted, you make him twice the son of Hell that you are yourselves.
{23:16} Woe to you, blind guides, who say: ‘Whoever will have sworn by the temple, it is nothing. But whoever will have sworn by the gold of the temple is obligated.’
{23:17} You are foolish and blind! For which is greater: the gold, or the temple that sanctifies the gold?
{23:18} And you say: ‘Whoever will have sworn by the altar, it is nothing. But whoever will have sworn by the gift that is on the altar is obligated.’
{23:19} How blind you are! For which is greater: the gift, or the altar that sanctifies the gift?
{23:20} Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears by it, and by all that is on it.
{23:21} And whoever will have sworn by the temple, swears by it, and by him who dwells in it.
{23:22} And whoever swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God, and by him who sits upon it.
{23:23} Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you collect tithes on mint and dill and cumin, but you have abandoned the weightier things of the law: judgment and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, while not omitting the others.
{23:24} You blind guides, straining out a gnat, while swallowing a camel!
{23:25} Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you clean what is outside the cup and the dish, but on the inside you are full of avarice and impurity.
{23:26} You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the dish, and then what is outside becomes clean.
{23:27} Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed sepulchers, which outwardly appear brilliant to men, yet truly, inside, they are filled with the bones of the dead and with all filth.
{23:28} So also, you certainly appear to men outwardly to be just. But inwardly you are filled with hypocrisy and iniquity.
{23:29} Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites, who build the sepulchers of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the just.
{23:30} And then you say, ‘If we had been there in the days of our fathers, we would not have joined with them in the blood of the prophets.’
{23:31} And so you are witnesses against yourselves, that you are the sons of those who killed the prophets.
{23:32} Complete, then, the measure of your fathers.
{23:33} You serpents, you brood of vipers! How will you escape from the judgment of Hell?
{23:34} For this reason, behold, I send to you prophets and wise men, and scribes. And some of these you will put to death and crucify; and some you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city,
{23:35} so that upon you may fall all the blood of the just, which has been shed upon the earth, from the blood of Abel the just, even to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you killed between the temple and the altar.
{23:36} Amen I say to you, all these things shall fall upon this generation.
{23:37} Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone those who have been sent to you. How often I have wanted to gather your children together, in the way that a hen gathers her young under her wings. But you were not willing!
{23:38} Behold, your house shall be abandoned to you, having been deserted.
{23:39} For I say to you, you shall not see me again, until you say: ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”
{24:1} And Jesus departed from the temple and went away. And his disciples approached him, so as to show him the buildings of the temple.
{24:2} But he said to them in response: “Do you see all these things? Amen I say to you, there shall not remain here stone upon stone, which is not torn down.”
{24:3} Then, when he was seated at the Mount of Olives, the disciples drew near to him privately, saying: “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of your advent and of the consummation of the age?”
{24:4} And answering, Jesus said to them: “Pay attention, lest someone lead you astray.
{24:5} For many will come in my name saying, ‘I am the Christ.’ And they will lead many astray.
{24:6} For you will hear of battles and rumors of battles. Take care not to be disturbed. For these things must be, but the end is not so soon.
{24:7} For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be pestilences, and famines, and earthquakes in places.
{24:8} But all these things are just the beginning of the sorrows.
{24:9} Then they will hand you over to tribulation, and they will kill you. And you will be hated by all nations for the sake of my name.
{24:10} And then many will be led into sin, and will betray one another, and will have hatred for one another.
{24:11} And many false prophets will arise, and they will lead many astray.
{24:12} And because iniquity has abounded, the charity of many will grow cold.
{24:13} But whoever will have persevered until the end, the same shall be saved.
{24:14} And this Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached throughout the entire world, as a testimony to all nations. And then the consummation will occur.
{24:15} Therefore, when you will have seen the abomination of desolation, which was spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place, may he who reads understand,
{24:16} then those who are in Judea, let them flee to the mountains.
{24:17} And whoever is on the roof, let him not descend to take anything from his house.
{24:18} And whoever is in the field, let him not turn back to take his tunic.
{24:19} So then, woe to those who are pregnant or nursing in those days.
{24:20} But pray that your flight may not be in winter, or on the Sabbath.
{24:21} For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until the present, and such as will not be.
{24:22} And unless those days had been shortened, no flesh would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days shall be shortened.
{24:23} Then if anyone will have said to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘he is there,’ do not be willing to believe it.
{24:24} For there will arise false Christs and false prophets. And they will produce great signs and wonders, so much so as to lead into error even the elect (if this could be).
{24:25} Behold, I have warned you beforehand.
{24:26} Therefore, if they will have said to you, ‘Behold, he is in the desert,’ do not choose to go out, or, ‘Behold, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not be willing to believe it.
{24:27} For just as lightning goes out from the east, and appears even in the west, so shall it be also at the advent of the Son of man.
{24:28} Wherever the body shall be, there also will the eagles be gathered together.
{24:29} And immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
{24:30} And then the sign of the Son of man shall appear in heaven. And then all tribes of the earth shall mourn. And they shall see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven, with great power and majesty.
{24:31} And he shall send out his Angels with a trumpet and a great voice. And they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the heights of the heavens, even to their furthest limits.
{24:32} So, from the fig tree learn a parable. When its branch has now become tender and the leaves have sprung forth, you know that summer is near.
{24:33} So also, when you will have seen all these things, know that it is near, even at the threshold.
{24:34} Amen I say to you, that this lineage shall not pass away, until all these things have been done.
{24:35} Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
{24:36} But concerning that day and hour, no one knows, not even the Angels of the heavens, but only the Father.
{24:37} And just as in the days of Noah, so also will be the advent of the Son of man.
{24:38} For it will be just as it was in the days before the flood: eating and drinking, marrying and being given in marriage, even until that day when Noah entered into the ark.
{24:39} And they did not realize it, until the flood came and took them all away. So also will the advent of the Son of man be.
{24:40} Then two men will be in a field: one will be taken up, and one will be left behind.
{24:41} Two women will be grinding at a millstone: one will be taken up, and one will be left behind.
{24:42} Therefore, be vigilant. For you do not know at what hour your Lord will return.
{24:43} But know this: if only the father of the family knew at what hour the thief would arrive, he would certainly keep vigil and not permit his house to be broken into.
{24:44} For this reason, you also must be prepared, for you do not know at what hour the Son of man will return.
{24:45} Consider this: who is a faithful and prudent servant, who has been appointed by his lord over his family, to give them their portion in due time?
{24:46} Blessed is that servant, if, when his lord has arrived, he shall find him doing so.
{24:47} Amen I say to you, he shall appoint him over all of his goods.
{24:48} But if that evil servant has said in his heart, ‘My lord has been delayed in returning,’
{24:49} and so, he begins to strike his fellow servants, and he eats and drinks with the inebriated:
{24:50} then the lord of that servant will arrive on a day that he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know.
{24:51} And he shall separate him, and he shall place his portion with the hypocrites, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
{25:1} “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be like ten virgins, who, taking their lamps, went out to meet the groom and the bride.
{25:2} But five of them were foolish, and five were prudent.
{25:3} For the five foolish, having brought their lamps, did not take oil with them.
{25:4} Yet truly, the prudent ones brought the oil, in their containers, with the lamps.
{25:5} Since the bridegroom was delayed, they all fell asleep, and they were sleeping.
{25:6} But in the middle of the night, a cry went out: ‘Behold, the groom is arriving. Go out to meet him.’
{25:7} Then all those virgins rose up and trimmed their lamps.
{25:8} But the foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give to us from your oil, for our lamps are being extinguished.’
{25:9} The prudent responded by saying, ‘Lest perhaps there may not be enough for us and for you, it would be better for you to go to the vendors and buy some for yourselves.’
{25:10} But while they were going to buy it, the groom arrived. And those who were prepared entered with him to the wedding, and the door was closed.
{25:11} Yet truly, at the very end, the remaining virgins also arrived, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us.’
{25:12} But he responded by saying, ‘Amen I say to you, I do not know you.’
{25:13} And so you must be vigilant, because you do not know the day or the hour.
{25:14} For it is like a man setting out on a long journey, who called his servants and delivered to them his goods.
{25:15} And to one he gave five talents, and to another two, yet to another he gave one, to each according to his own ability. And promptly, he set out.
{25:16} Then he who had received five talents went out, and he made use of these, and he gained another five.
{25:17} And similarly, he who had received two gained another two.
{25:18} But he who had received one, going out, dug into the earth, and he hid the money of his lord.
{25:19} Yet truly, after a long time, the lord of those servants returned and he settled accounts with them.
{25:20} And when he who had received five talents approached, he brought another five talents, saying: ‘Lord, you delivered five talents to me. Behold, I have increased it by another five.’
{25:21} His lord said to him: ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. Since you have been faithful over a few things, I will appoint you over many things. Enter into the gladness of your lord.’
{25:22} Then he who had received two talents also approached, and he said: ‘Lord, you delivered two talents to me. Behold, I have gained another two.’
{25:23} His lord said to him: ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. Since you have been faithful over a few things, I will appoint you over many things. Enter into the gladness of your lord.’
{25:24} Then he who had received one talent, approaching, said: ‘Lord, I know that you are a hard man. You reap where you have not sown, and gather where you have not scattered.
{25:25} And so, being afraid, I went out and hid your talent in the earth. Behold, you have what is yours.’
{25:26} But his lord said to him in response: ‘You evil and lazy servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered.
{25:27} Therefore, you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and then, at my arrival, at least I would have received what is mine with interest.
{25:28} And so, take the talent away from him and give it to the one who has ten talents.
{25:29} For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he shall have in abundance. But from him who has not, even what he seems to have, shall be taken away.
{25:30} And cast that useless servant into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
{25:31} But when the Son of man will have arrived in his majesty, and all the Angels with him, then he will sit upon the seat of his majesty.
{25:32} And all the nations shall be gathered together before him. And he shall separate them from one another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
{25:33} And he shall station the sheep, indeed, on his right, but the goats on his left.
{25:34} Then the King shall say to those who will be on his right: ‘Come, you blessed of my Father. Possess the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
{25:35} For I was hungry, and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me to drink; I was a stranger, and you took me in;
{25:36} naked, and you covered me; sick, and you visited me; I was in prison, and you came to me.’
{25:37} Then the just will answer him, saying: ‘Lord, when have we seen you hungry, and fed you; thirsty, and given you drink?
{25:38} And when have we seen you a stranger, and taken you in? Or naked, and covered you?
{25:39} Or when did we see you sick, or in prison, and visit to you?’
{25:40} And in response, the King shall say to them, ‘Amen I say to you, whenever you did this for one of these, the least of my brothers, you did it for me.’
{25:41} Then he shall also say, to those who will be on his left: ‘Depart from me, you accursed ones, into the eternal fire, which was prepared for the devil and his angels.
{25:42} For I was hungry, and you did not give me to eat; I was thirsty, and you did not give me to drink;
{25:43} I was a stranger and you did not take me in; naked, and you did not cover me; sick and in prison, and you did not visit me.’
{25:44} Then they will also answer him, saying: ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to you?’
{25:45} Then he shall respond to them by saying: ‘Amen I say to you, whenever you did not do it to one of these least, neither did you do it to me.’
{25:46} And these shall go into eternal punishment, but the just shall go into eternal life.”
{26:1} And it happened that, when Jesus had completed all these words, he said to his disciples,
{26:2} “You know that after two days the Passover will begin, and the Son of man will be handed over to be crucified.”
{26:3} Then the leaders of the priests and the elders of the people were gathered together in the court of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas.
{26:4} And they took counsel so that by deceitfulness they might take hold of Jesus and kill him.
{26:5} But they said, “Not on the feast day, lest perhaps there may be a tumult among the people.”
{26:6} And when Jesus was in Bethania, in the house of Simon the leper,
{26:7} a woman drew near to him, holding an alabaster box of precious ointment, and she poured it over his head while he was reclining at table.
{26:8} But the disciples, seeing this, were indignant, saying: “What is the purpose of this waste?
{26:9} For this could have been sold for a great deal, so as to be given to the poor.”
{26:10} But Jesus, knowing this, said to them: “Why are you bothering this woman? For she has done a good deed to me.
{26:11} For the poor you will always have with you. But you will not always have me.
{26:12} For in pouring this ointment on my body, she has prepared for my burial.
{26:13} Amen I say to you, wherever this Gospel will be preached in the whole world, what she has done also shall be told, in memory of her.”
{26:14} Then one of the twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the leaders of the priests,
{26:15} and he said to them, “What are you willing to give me, if I hand him over to you?” So they appointed thirty pieces of silver for him.
{26:16} And from then on, he sought an opportunity to betray him.
{26:17} Then, on the first day of Unleavened Bread, the disciples approached Jesus, saying, “Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?”
{26:18} So Jesus said, “Go into the city, to a certain one, and say to him: ‘The Teacher said: My time is near. I am observing the Passover with you, along with my disciples.’ ”
{26:19} And the disciples did just as Jesus appointed to them. And they prepared the Passover.
{26:20} Then, when evening arrived, he sat at table with his twelve disciples.
{26:21} And while they were eating, he said: “Amen I say to you, that one of you is about to betray me.”
{26:22} And being greatly saddened, each one of them began to say, “Surely, it is not I, Lord?”
{26:23} But he responded by saying: “He who dips his hand with me into the dish, the same will betray me.
{26:24} Indeed, the Son of man goes, just as it has been written about him. But woe to that man by whom the Son of man will be betrayed. It would be better for that man if he had not been born.”
{26:25} Then Judas, who betrayed him, responded by saying, “Surely, it is not I, Master?” He said to him, “You have said it.”
{26:26} Now while they were eating the meal, Jesus took bread, and he blessed and broke and gave it to his disciples, and he said: “Take and eat. This is my body.”
{26:27} And taking the chalice, he gave thanks. And he gave it to them, saying: “Drink from this, all of you.
{26:28} For this is my blood of the new covenant, which shall be shed for many as a remission of sins.
{26:29} But I say to you, I will not drink again from this fruit of the vine, until that day when I will drink it new with you in the kingdom of my Father.”
{26:30} And after a hymn was sung, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
{26:31} Then Jesus said to them: “You will all fall away from me in this night. For it has been written: ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’
{26:32} But after I have risen again, I will go before you to Galilee.”
{26:33} Then Peter responded by saying to him, “Even if everyone else has fallen away from you, I will never fall away.”
{26:34} Jesus said to him, “Amen I say to you, that in this night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.”
{26:35} Peter said to him, “Even if it is necessary for me to die with you, I will not deny you.” And all the disciples spoke similarly.
{26:36} Then Jesus went with them to a garden, which is called Gethsemani. And he said to his disciples, “Sit down here, while I go there and pray.”
{26:37} And taking with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he began to be sorrowful and saddened.
{26:38} Then he said to them: “My soul is sorrowful, even unto death. Stay here and keep vigil with me.”
{26:39} And continuing on a little further, he fell prostrate on his face, praying and saying: “My Father, if it is possible, let this chalice pass away from me. Yet truly, let it not be as I will, but as you will.”
{26:40} And he approached his disciples and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter: “So, were you not able to keep vigil with me for one hour?
{26:41} Be vigilant and pray, so that you may not enter into temptation. Indeed, the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
{26:42} Again, a second time, he went and prayed, saying, “My Father, if this chalice cannot pass away, unless I drink it, let your will be done.”
{26:43} And again, he went and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy.
{26:44} And leaving them behind, again he went and prayed for the third time, saying the same words.
{26:45} Then he approached his disciples and said to them: “Sleep now and rest. Behold, the hour has drawn near, and the Son of man will be delivered into the hands of sinners.
{26:46} Rise up; let us go. Behold, he who will betray me draws near.”
{26:47} While he was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, arrived, and with him was a large crowd with swords and clubs, sent from the leaders of the priests and the elders of the people.
{26:48} And he who betrayed him gave them a sign, saying: “Whomever I will kiss, it is he. Take hold of him.”
{26:49} And quickly drawing close to Jesus, he said, “Hail, Master.” And he kissed him.
{26:50} And Jesus said to him, “Friend, for what purpose have you come?” Then they approached, and they put their hands on Jesus, and they held him.
{26:51} And behold, one of those who were with Jesus, extending his hand, drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.
{26:52} Then Jesus said to him: “Put your sword back in its place. For all who take up the sword shall perish by the sword.
{26:53} Or do you think that I cannot ask my Father, so that he would give me, even now, more than twelve legions of Angels?
{26:54} How then would the Scriptures be fulfilled, which say that it must be so?”
{26:55} In that same hour, Jesus said to the crowds: “You went out, as if to a robber, with swords and clubs to seize me. Yet I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not take hold of me.
{26:56} But all this has happened so that the Scriptures of the prophets may be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples fled, abandoning him.
{26:57} But those who were holding Jesus led him to Caiaphas, the high priest, where the scribes and the elders had joined together.
{26:58} Then Peter followed him from a distance, as far as the court of the high priest. And going inside, he sat down with the servants, so that he might see the end.
{26:59} Then the leaders of the priests and the entire council sought false testimony against Jesus, so that they might deliver him to death.
{26:60} And they did not find any, even though many false witnesses had come forward. Then, at the very end, two false witnesses came forward,
{26:61} and they said, “This man said: ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God, and, after three days, to rebuild it.’ ”
{26:62} And the high priest, rising up, said to him, “Have you nothing to respond to what these ones testify against you?”
{26:63} But Jesus was silent. And the high priest said to him, “I bind you by an oath to the living God to tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.”
{26:64} Jesus said to him: “You have said it. Yet truly I say to you, hereafter you shall see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of the power of God, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
{26:65} Then the high priest tore his garments, saying: “He has blasphemed. Why do we still need witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy.
{26:66} How does it seem to you?” So they responded by saying, “He is guilty unto death.”
{26:67} Then they spit in his face, and they struck him with fists. And others struck his face with the palms of their hands,
{26:68} saying: “Prophesy for us, O Christ. Who is the one that struck you?”
{26:69} Yet truly, Peter sat outside in the courtyard. And a maidservant approached him, saying, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.”
{26:70} But he denied it in the sight of them all, saying, “I do not know what you are saying.”
{26:71} Then, as he exited by the gate, another maidservant saw him. And she said to those who were there, “This man also was with Jesus of Nazareth.”
{26:72} And again, he denied it with an oath, “For I do not know the man.”
{26:73} And after a little while, those who were standing nearby came and said to Peter: “Truly, you also are one of them. For even your manner of speaking reveals you.”
{26:74} Then he began to curse and to swear that he had not known the man. And immediately the rooster crowed.
{26:75} And Peter remembered the words of Jesus, which he had said: “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And going outside, he wept bitterly.
{27:1} Then, when morning arrived, all the leaders of the priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus, so that they might deliver him to death.
{27:2} And they led him, bound, and handed him over to Pontius Pilate, the procurator.
{27:3} Then Judas, who betrayed him, seeing that he had been condemned, regretting his conduct, brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the leaders of the priests and the elders,
{27:4} saying, “I have sinned in betraying just blood.” But they said to him: “What is that to us? See to it yourself.”
{27:5} And throwing down the pieces of silver in the temple, he departed. And going out, he hanged himself with a snare.
{27:6} But the leaders of the priests, having taken up the pieces of silver, said, “It is not lawful to put them into the temple offerings, because it is the price of blood.”
{27:7} Then, having taken counsel, they bought the potter’s field with it, as a burying place for sojourners.
{27:8} For this reason, that field is called Haceldama, that is, ‘The Field of Blood,’ even to this very day.
{27:9} Then what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled, saying, “And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of the one being appraised, whom they appraised before the sons of Israel,
{27:10} and they gave it for the potter’s field, just as the Lord appointed to me.”
{27:11} Now Jesus stood before the procurator, and the procurator questioned him, saying, “You are the king of the Jews?” Jesus said to him, “You are saying so.”
{27:12} And when he was accused by the leaders of the priests and the elders, he responded nothing.
{27:13} Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how much testimony they speak against you?”
{27:14} And he did not respond any word to him, so that the procurator wondered greatly.
{27:15} Now on the solemn day, the procurator was accustomed to release to the people one prisoner, whomever they wished.
{27:16} And at that time, he had a notorious prisoner, who was called Barabbas.
{27:17} Therefore, having been gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Who is it that you want me to release to you: Barabbas, or Jesus, who is called Christ?”
{27:18} For he knew that it was out of envy they had handed him over.
{27:19} But as he was sitting in the place for the tribunal, his wife sent to him, saying: “It is nothing to you, and he is just. For I have experienced many things today through a vision for his sake.”
{27:20} But the leaders of the priests and the elders persuaded the people, so that they would ask for Barabbas, and so that Jesus would perish.
{27:21} Then, in response, the procurator said to them, “Which of the two do you want to be released to you?” But they said to him, “Barabbas.”
{27:22} Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do about Jesus, who is called Christ?” They all said, “Let him be crucified.”
{27:23} The procurator said to them, “But what evil has he done?” But they cried out all the more, saying, “Let him be crucified.”
{27:24} Then Pilate, seeing that he was able to accomplish nothing, but that a greater tumult was occurring, taking water, washed his hands in the sight of the people, saying: “I am innocent of the blood of this just man. See to it yourselves.”
{27:25} And the entire people responded by saying, “May his blood be upon us and upon our children.”
{27:26} Then he released Barabbas to them. But Jesus, having been scourged, he handed over to them, so that he would be crucified.
{27:27} Then the soldiers of the procurator, taking Jesus up to the praetorium, gathered the entire cohort around him.
{27:28} And stripping him, they put a scarlet cloak around him.
{27:29} And plaiting a crown of thorns, they placed it on his head, with a reed in his right hand. And genuflecting before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews.”
{27:30} And spitting on him, they took the reed and struck his head.
{27:31} And after they had mocked him, they stripped him of the cloak, and clothed him with his own garments, and they led him away to crucify him.
{27:32} But as they were going out, they came upon a man of Cyrene, named Simon, whom they compelled to take up his cross.
{27:33} And they arrived at the place which is called Golgotha, which is the place of Calvary.
{27:34} And they gave him wine to drink, mixed with gall. And when he had tasted it, he refused to drink it.
{27:35} Then, after they had crucified him, they divided his garments, casting lots, in order to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying: “They divided my garments among them, and over my vestment they cast lots.”
{27:36} And sitting down, they observed him.
{27:37} And they set his accusation above his head, written as: THIS IS JESUS, KING OF THE JEWS.
{27:38} Then two robbers were crucified with him: one on the right and one on the left.
{27:39} But those passing by blasphemed him, shaking their heads,
{27:40} and saying: “Ah, so you would destroy the temple of God and in three days rebuild it! Save your own self. If you are the Son of God, descend from the cross.”
{27:41} And similarly, the leaders of the priests, with the scribes and the elders, mocking him, said:
{27:42} “He saved others; he cannot save himself. If he is the King of Israel, let him descend now from the cross, and we will believe in him.
{27:43} He trusted in God; so now, let God free him, if he wills him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ”
{27:44} Then, the robbers who were crucified with him also reproached him with the very same thing.
{27:45} Now from the sixth hour, there was darkness over the entire earth, even until the ninth hour.
{27:46} And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying: “Eli, Eli, lamma sabacthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”
{27:47} Then certain ones who were standing and listening there said, “This man calls upon Elijah.”
{27:48} And one of them, running quickly, took a sponge and filled it with vinegar, and he set it on a reed and he gave it to him to drink.
{27:49} Yet truly, the others said, “Wait. Let us see whether Elijah will come to free him.”
{27:50} Then Jesus, crying out again with a loud voice, gave up his life.
{27:51} And behold, the veil of the temple was torn into two parts, from top to bottom. And the earth was shaken, and the rocks were split apart.
{27:52} And the tombs were opened. And many bodies of the saints, which had been sleeping, arose.
{27:53} And going out from the tombs, after his resurrection, they went into the holy city, and they appeared to many.
{27:54} Now the centurion and those who were with him, guarding Jesus, having seen the earthquake and the things that were done, were very fearful, saying: “Truly, this was the Son of God.”
{27:55} And in that place, there were many women, at a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to him.
{27:56} Among these were Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.
{27:57} Then, when evening had arrived, a certain wealthy man from Arimathea, named Joseph, arrived, who himself was also a disciple of Jesus.
{27:58} This man approached Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered the body to be released.
{27:59} And Joseph, taking the body, wrapped it in a clean finely-woven linen cloth,
{27:60} and he placed it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out of a rock. And he rolled a great stone to the door of the tomb, and he went away.
{27:61} Now Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the sepulcher.
{27:62} Then the next day, which is after the Preparation day, the leaders of the priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate together,
{27:63} saying: “Lord, we have remembered that this seducer said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days, I will rise again.’
{27:64} Therefore, order the sepulcher to be guarded until the third day, lest perhaps his disciples may come and steal him, and say to the people, ‘He has risen from the dead.’ And this last error would be worse than the first.”
{27:65} Pilate said to them: “You have a guard. Go, guard it as you know how.”
{27:66} Then, going out, they secured the sepulcher with guards, sealing the stone.
{28:1} Now on the morning of the Sabbath, when it began to grow light on the first Sabbath, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the sepulcher.
{28:2} And behold, a great earthquake occurred. For an Angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and as he approached, he rolled back the stone and sat down on it.
{28:3} Now his appearance was like lightning, and his vestment was like snow.
{28:4} Then, out of fear of him, the guards were terrified, and they became like dead men.
{28:5} Then the Angel responded by saying to the women: “Do not be afraid. For I know that you are seeking Jesus, who was crucified.
{28:6} He is not here. For he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where the Lord was placed.
{28:7} And then, go quickly, and tell his disciples that he has risen. And behold, he will precede you to Galilee. There you shall see him. Lo, I have told you beforehand.”
{28:8} And they went out of the tomb quickly, with fear and in great joy, running to announce it to his disciples.
{28:9} And behold, Jesus met them, saying, “Hail.” But they drew near and took hold of his feet, and they adored him.
{28:10} Then Jesus said to them: “Do not be afraid. Go, announce it to my brothers, so that they may go to Galilee. There they shall see me.”
{28:11} And when they had departed, behold, some of the guards went into the city, and they reported to the leaders of the priests all that had happened.
{28:12} And gathering together with the elders, having taken counsel, they gave an abundant sum of money to the soldiers,
{28:13} saying: “Say that his disciples arrived at night and stole him away, while we were sleeping.
{28:14} And if the procurator hears about this, we will persuade him, and we will protect you.”
{28:15} Then, having accepted the money, they did as they were instructed. And this word has been spread among the Jews, even to this day.
{28:16} Now the eleven disciples went on to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had appointed them.
{28:17} And, seeing him, they worshipped him, but certain ones doubted.
{28:18} And Jesus, drawing near, spoke to them, saying: “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
{28:19} Therefore, go forth and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
{28:20} teaching them to observe all that I have ever commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, even to the consummation of the age.”
{1:1} The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
{1:2} As it has been written by the prophet Isaiah: “Behold, I send my Angel before your face, who shall prepare your way before you.
{1:3} The voice of one crying out in the desert: Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight his paths.”
{1:4} John was in the desert, baptizing and preaching a baptism of repentance, as a remission of sins.
{1:5} And there went out to him all the region of Judea and all those of Jerusalem, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
{1:6} And John was clothed with camel’s hair and with a leather belt around his waist. And he ate locusts and wild honey.
{1:7} And he preached, saying: “One stronger than me comes after me. I am not worthy to reach down and loosen the laces of his shoes.
{1:8} I have baptized you with water. Yet truly, he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
{1:9} And it happened that, in those days, Jesus arrived from Nazareth of Galilee. And he was baptized by John in the Jordan.
{1:10} And immediately, upon ascending from the water, he saw the heavens opened and the Spirit, like a dove, descending, and remaining with him.
{1:11} And there was a voice from heaven: “You are my beloved Son; in you I am well pleased.”
{1:12} And immediately the Spirit prompted him into the desert.
{1:13} And he was in the desert for forty days and forty nights. And he was tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the Angels ministered to him.
{1:14} Then, after John was handed over, Jesus went into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the kingdom of God,
{1:15} and saying: “For the time has been fulfilled and the kingdom of God has drawn near. Repent and believe in the Gospel.”
{1:16} And passing by the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew, casting nets into the sea, for they were fishermen.
{1:17} And Jesus said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
{1:18} And at once abandoning their nets, they followed him.
{1:19} And continuing on a little ways from there, he saw James of Zebedee and his brother John, and they were mending their nets in a boat.
{1:20} And immediately he called them. And leaving behind their father Zebedee in the boat with his hired hands, they followed him.
{1:21} And they entered into Capernaum. And entering into the synagogue promptly on the Sabbaths, he taught them.
{1:22} And they were astonished over his doctrine. For he was teaching them as one who has authority, and not like the scribes.
{1:23} And in their synagogue, there was a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out,
{1:24} saying: “What are we to you, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are: the Holy One of God.”
{1:25} And Jesus admonished him, saying, “Be silent, and depart from the man.”
{1:26} And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, departed from him.
{1:27} And they were all so amazed that they inquired among themselves, saying: “What is this? And what is this new doctrine? For with authority he commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.”
{1:28} And his fame went out quickly, throughout the entire region of Galilee.
{1:29} And soon after departing from the synagogue, they went into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John.
{1:30} But the mother-in-law of Simon lay ill with a fever. And at once they told him about her.
{1:31} And drawing near to her, he raised her up, taking her by the hand. And immediately the fever left her, and she ministered to them.
{1:32} Then, when evening arrived, after the sun had set, they brought to him all who had maladies and those who had demons.
{1:33} And the entire city was gathered together at the door.
{1:34} And he healed many who were troubled with various illnesses. And he cast out many demons, but he would not permit them to speak, because they knew him.
{1:35} And rising up very early, departing, he went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed.
{1:36} And Simon, and those who were with him, followed after him.
{1:37} And when they had found him, they said to him, “For everyone is seeking you.”
{1:38} And he said to them: “Let us go into the neighboring towns and cities, so that I may preach there also. Indeed, it was for this reason that I came.”
{1:39} And he was preaching in their synagogues and throughout all of Galilee, and casting out demons.
{1:40} And a leper came to him, begging him. And kneeling down, he said to him, “If you are willing, you are able to cleanse me.”
{1:41} Then Jesus, taking pity on him, reached out his hand. And touching him, he said to him: “I am willing. Be cleansed.”
{1:42} And after he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed.
{1:43} And he admonished him, and he promptly sent him away.
{1:44} And he said to him: “See to it that you tell no one. But go and show yourself to the high priest, and offer for your cleansing that which Moses instructed, as a testimony for them.”
{1:45} But having departed, he began to preach and to disseminate the word, so that he was no longer able to openly enter a city, but had to remain outside, in deserted places. And they were gathered to him from every direction.
{2:1} And after some days, he again entered into Capernaum.
{2:2} And it was heard that he was in the house. And so many gathered that there was no room left, not even at the door. And he spoke the word to them.
{2:3} And they came to him, bringing a paralytic, who was being carried by four men.
{2:4} And when they were not able to present him to him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where he was. And opening it, they lowered down the stretcher on which the paralytic was lying.
{2:5} Then, when Jesus had seen their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.”
{2:6} But some of the scribes were sitting in that place and thinking in their hearts:
{2:7} “Why is this man speaking in this way? He is blaspheming. Who can forgive sins, but God alone?”
{2:8} At once, Jesus, realizing in his spirit that they were thinking this within themselves, said to them: “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts?
{2:9} Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise up, take up your stretcher, and walk?’
{2:10} But so that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins,” he said to the paralytic:
{2:11} “I say to you: Rise up, take up your stretcher, and go into your house.”
{2:12} And immediately he got up, and lifting up his stretcher, he went away in the sight of them all, so that they all wondered. And they honored God, by saying, “We have never seen anything like this.”
{2:13} And he departed again to the sea. And the entire crowd came to him, and he taught them.
{2:14} And as he was passing by, he saw Levi of Alphaeus, sitting at the customs office. And he said to him, “Follow me.” And rising up, he followed him.
{2:15} And it happened that, as he sat at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners sat at table together with Jesus and his disciples. For those who followed him were many.
{2:16} And the scribes and the Pharisees, seeing that he ate with tax collectors and sinners, said to his disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”
{2:17} Jesus, having heard this, said to them: “The healthy have no need of a doctor, but those who have maladies do. For I came not to call the just, but sinners.”
{2:18} And the disciples of John, and the Pharisees, were fasting. And they arrived and said to him, “Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?”
{2:19} And Jesus said to them: “How can the sons of the wedding fast while the groom is still with them? During whatever time they have the groom with them, they are not able to fast.
{2:20} But the days will arrive when the groom will be taken away from them, and then they shall fast, in those days.
{2:21} No one sews a patch of new cloth onto an old garment. Otherwise, the new addition pulls away from the old, and the tear becomes worse.
{2:22} And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the wineskins, and the wine will pour out, and the wineskins will be lost. Instead, new wine must be put into new wineskins.”
{2:23} And again, while the Lord was walking through the ripe grain on the Sabbath, his disciples, as they advanced, began to separate the ears of grains.
{2:24} But the Pharisees said to him, “Behold, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbaths?”
{2:25} And he said to them: “Have you never read what David did, when he had need and was hungry, both he and those who were with him?
{2:26} How he went into the house of God, under the high priest Abiathar, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful to eat, except for the priests, and how he gave it to those who were with him?”
{2:27} And he said to them: “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.
{2:28} And so, the Son of man is Lord, even of the Sabbath.”
{3:1} And again, he entered into the synagogue. And there was a man there who had a withered hand.
{3:2} And they observed him, to see if he would cure on the Sabbaths, so that they might accuse him.
{3:3} And he said to the man who had the withered hand, “Stand up in the middle.”
{3:4} And he said to them: “Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbaths, or to do evil, to give health to a life, or to destroy?” But they remained silent.
{3:5} And looking around at them with anger, being very saddened over the blindness of their hearts, he said to the man, “Extend your hand.” And he extended it, and his hand was restored to him.
{3:6} Then the Pharisees, going out, immediately took counsel with the Herodians against him, as to how they might destroy him.
{3:7} But Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea. And a great crowd followed him from Galilee and Judea,
{3:8} and from Jerusalem, and from Idumea and across the Jordan. And those around Tyre and Sidon, upon hearing what he was doing, came to him in a great multitude.
{3:9} And he told his disciples that a small boat would be useful to him, because of the crowd, lest they press upon him.
{3:10} For he healed so many, that as many of them as had wounds would rush toward him in order to touch him.
{3:11} And the unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell prostrate before him. And they cried out, saying,
{3:12} “You are the Son of God.” And he strongly admonished them, lest they make him known.
{3:13} And ascending onto a mountain, he called to himself those whom he willed, and they came to him.
{3:14} And he acted so that the twelve would be with him, and so that he might send them out to preach.
{3:15} And he gave them authority to cure infirmities, and to cast out demons:
{3:16} and he imposed on Simon the name Peter;
{3:17} and also he imposed on James of Zebedee, and John the brother of James, the name ‘Boanerges,’ that is, ‘Sons of Thunder;’
{3:18} and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus, and Simon the Canaanite,
{3:19} and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
{3:20} And they went to a house, and the crowd gathered together again, so much so that they were not even able to eat bread.
{3:21} And when his own had heard of it, they went out to take hold of him. For they said: “Because he has gone mad.”
{3:22} And the scribes who had descended from Jerusalem said, “Because he has Beelzebub, and because by the prince of demons does he cast out demons.”
{3:23} And having called them together, he spoke to them in parables: “How can Satan cast out Satan?
{3:24} For if a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom is not able to stand.
{3:25} And if a house is divided against itself, that house is not able to stand.
{3:26} And if Satan has risen up against himself, he would be divided, and he would not be able to stand; instead he reaches the end.
{3:27} No one is able to plunder the goods of a strong man, having entered into the house, unless he first binds the strong man, and then he shall plunder his house.
{3:28} Amen I say to you, that all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and the blasphemies by which they will have blasphemed.
{3:29} But he who will have blasphemed against the Holy Spirit shall not have forgiveness in eternity; instead he shall be guilty of an eternal offense.”
{3:30} For they said: “He has an unclean spirit.”
{3:31} And his mother and brothers arrived. And standing outside, they sent to him, calling him.
{3:32} And the crowd was sitting around him. And they said to him, “Behold, your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.”
{3:33} And responding to them, he said, “Who is my mother and my brothers?”
{3:34} And looking around at those who were sitting all around him, he said: “Behold, my mother and my brothers.
{3:35} For whoever has done the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister and mother.”
{4:1} And again, he began to teach by the sea. And a great crowd was gathered to him, so much so that, climbing into a boat, he was seated on the sea. And the entire crowd was on the land along the sea.
{4:2} And he taught them many things in parables, and he said to them, in his doctrine:
{4:3} “Listen. Behold, the sower went out to sow.
{4:4} And while he was sowing, some fell along the way, and the birds of the air came and ate it.
{4:5} Yet truly, others fell upon stony ground, where it did not have much soil. And it rose up quickly, because it had no depth of soil.
{4:6} And when the sun was risen, it was scorched. And because it had no root, it withered away.
{4:7} And some fell among thorns. And the thorns grew up and suffocated it, and it did not produce fruit.
{4:8} And some fell on good soil. And it brought forth fruit that grew up, and increased, and yielded: some thirty, some sixty, and some one hundred.”
{4:9} And he said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”
{4:10} And when he was alone, the twelve, who were with him, questioned him about the parable.
{4:11} And he said to them: “To you, it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God. But to those who are outside, everything is presented in parables:
{4:12} ‘so that, seeing, they may see, and not perceive; and hearing, they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they may be converted, and their sins would be forgiven them.’ ”
{4:13} And he said to them: “Do you not understand this parable? And so, how will you understand all the parables?
{4:14} He who sows, sows the word.
{4:15} Now there are those who are along the way, where the word is sown. And when they have heard it, Satan quickly comes and takes away the word, which was sown in their hearts.
{4:16} And similarly, there are those who were sown upon stony ground. These, when they have heard the word, immediately accept it with gladness.
{4:17} But they have no root in themselves, and so they are for a limited time. And when next tribulation and persecution arises because of the word, they quickly fall away.
{4:18} And there are others who are sown among thorns. These are those who hear the word,
{4:19} but worldly tasks, and the deception of riches, and desires about other things enter in and suffocate the word, and it is effectively without fruit.
{4:20} And there are those who are sown upon good soil, who hear the word and accept it; and these bear fruit: some thirty, some sixty, and some one hundred.”
{4:21} And he said to them: “Would someone enter with a lamp in order to place it under a basket or under a bed? Would it not be placed upon a lampstand?
{4:22} For there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed. Neither was anything done in secret, except that it may be made public.
{4:23} If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.”
{4:24} And he said to them: “Consider what you hear. With whatever measure you have measured out, it shall be measured back to you, and more shall be added to you.
{4:25} For whoever has, to him it shall be given. And whoever has not, from him even what he has shall be taken away.”
{4:26} And he said: “The kingdom of God is like this: it is as if a man were to cast seed on the land.
{4:27} And he sleeps and he arises, night and day. And the seed germinates and grows, though he does not know it.
{4:28} For the earth bears fruit readily: first the plant, then the ear, next the full grain in the ear.
{4:29} And when the fruit has been produced, immediately he sends out the sickle, because the harvest has arrived.”
{4:30} And he said: “To what should we compare the kingdom of God? Or to what parable should we compare it?
{4:31} It is like a grain of mustard seed which, when it has been sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds which are in the earth.
{4:32} And when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all the plants, and it produces great branches, so much so that the birds of the air are able to live under its shadow.”
{4:33} And with many such parables he spoke the word to them, as much as they were able to hear.
{4:34} But he did not speak to them without a parable. Yet separately, he explained all things to his disciples.
{4:35} And on that day, when evening had arrived, he said to them, “Let us cross over.”
{4:36} And dismissing the crowd, they brought him, so that he was in one boat, and other boats were with him.
{4:37} And a great wind storm occurred, and the waves broke over the boat, so that the boat was being filled.
{4:38} And he was in the stern of the boat, sleeping on a pillow. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, does it not concern you that we are perishing?”
{4:39} And rising up, he rebuked the wind, and he said to the sea: “Silence. Be stilled.” And the wind ceased. And a great tranquility occurred.
{4:40} And he said to them: “Why are you afraid? Do you still lack faith?” And they were struck with a great fear. And they said to one another, “Who do you think this is, that both wind and sea obey him?”
{5:1} And they went across the strait of the sea into the region of the Gerasenes.
{5:2} And as he was departing from the boat, he was immediately met, from among the tombs, by a man with an unclean spirit,
{5:3} who had his dwelling place with the tombs; neither had anyone been able to bind him, even with chains.
{5:4} For having been bound often with shackles and chains, he had broken the chains and smashed the shackles; and no one had been able to tame him.
{5:5} And he was always, day and night, among the tombs, or in the mountains, crying out and cutting himself with stones.
{5:6} And seeing Jesus from afar, he ran and adored him.
{5:7} And crying out with a loud voice, he said: “What am I to you, Jesus, the Son of the Most High God? I beseech you by God, that you not torment me.”
{5:8} For he said to him, “Depart from the man, you unclean spirit.”
{5:9} And he questioned him: “What is your name?” And he said to him, “My name is Legion, for we are many.”
{5:10} And he entreated him greatly, so that he would not expel him from the region.
{5:11} And in that place, near the mountain, there was a great herd of swine, feeding.
{5:12} And the spirits entreated him, saying: “Send us into the swine, so that we may enter into them.”
{5:13} And Jesus promptly gave them permission. And the unclean spirits, departing, entered into the swine. And the herd of about two thousand rushed down with great force into the sea, and they were drowned in the sea.
{5:14} Then those who pastured them fled, and they reported it in the city and in the countryside. And they all went out to see what was happening.
{5:15} And they came to Jesus. And they saw the man who had been troubled by the demon, sitting, clothed and with a sane mind, and they were afraid.
{5:16} And those who had seen it explained to them how he had dealt with the man who had the demon, and about the swine.
{5:17} And they began to petition him, so that he would withdraw from their borders.
{5:18} And as he was climbing into the boat, the man who had been troubled by the demons began to beg him, so that he might be with him.
{5:19} And he did not permit him, but he said to him, “Go to your own people, in your own house, and announce to them how great are the things that the Lord has done for you, and how he has taken pity on you.”
{5:20} And he went away and began to preach in the Ten Cities, how great were the things that Jesus had done for him. And everyone wondered.
{5:21} And when Jesus had crossed in the boat, over the strait again, a great crowd came together before him. And he was near the sea.
{5:22} And one of the rulers of the synagogue, named Jairus, approached. And seeing him, he fell prostrate at his feet.
{5:23} And he beseeched him greatly, saying: “For my daughter is near the end. Come and lay your hand on her, so that she may be healthy and may live.”
{5:24} And he went with him. And a great crowd followed him, and they pressed upon him.
{5:25} And there was a woman who had a flow of blood for twelve years.
{5:26} And she had endured much from several physicians, and she had spent everything she owned with no benefit at all, but instead she became worse.
{5:27} Then, when she had heard of Jesus, she approached through the crowd behind him, and she touched his garment.
{5:28} For she said: “Because if I touch even his garment, I will be saved.”
{5:29} And immediately, the source of her bleeding was dried up, and she sensed in her body that she had been healed from the wound.
{5:30} And immediately Jesus, realizing within himself that power that had gone out from him, turning to the crowd, said, “Who touched my garments?”
{5:31} And his disciples said to him, “You see that the crowd presses around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’ ”
{5:32} And he looked around to see the woman who had done this.
{5:33} Yet truly, the woman, in fear and trembling, knowing what had happened within her, went and fell prostrate before him, and she told him the whole truth.
{5:34} And he said to her: “Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace, and be healed from your wound.”
{5:35} While he was still speaking, they arrived from the ruler of the synagogue, saying: “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?”
{5:36} But Jesus, having heard the word that was spoken, said to the ruler of the synagogue: “Do not be afraid. You need only believe.”
{5:37} And he would not permit anyone to follow him, except Peter, and James, and John the brother of James.
{5:38} And they went to the house of the ruler of the synagogue. And he saw a tumult, and weeping, and much wailing.
{5:39} And entering, he said to them: “Why are you disturbed and weeping? The girl is not dead, but is asleep.”
{5:40} And they derided him. Yet truly, having put them all out, he took the father and mother of the girl, and those who were with him, and he entered to where the girl was lying.
{5:41} And taking the girl by the hand, he said to her, “Talitha koumi,” which means, “Little girl, (I say to you) arise.”
{5:42} And immediately the young girl rose up and walked. Now she was twelve years old. And they were suddenly struck with a great astonishment.
{5:43} And he instructed them sternly, so that no one would know about it. And he told them to give her something to eat.
{6:1} And departing from there, he went away to his own country; and his disciples followed him.
{6:2} And when the Sabbath arrived, he began to teach in the synagogue. And many, upon hearing him, were amazed at his doctrine, saying: “Where did this one get all these things?” and, “What is this wisdom, which has been given to him?” and, “Such powerful deeds, which are wrought by his hands!”
{6:3} “Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joseph, and Jude, and Simon? Are not his sisters also here with us?” And they took great offense at him.
{6:4} And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and in his own house, and among his own kindred.”
{6:5} And he was not able to perform any miracles there, except that he cured a few of the infirm by laying his hands on them.
{6:6} And he wondered, because of their unbelief, and he traveled around in the villages, teaching.
{6:7} And he called the twelve. And he began to send them out in twos, and he gave them authority over unclean spirits.
{6:8} And he instructed them not to take anything for the journey, except a staff: no traveling bag, no bread, and no money belt,
{6:9} but to wear sandals, and not to wear two tunics.
{6:10} And he said to them: “Whenever you have entered into a house, stay there until you depart from that place.
{6:11} And whoever will neither receive you, nor listen to you, as you go away from there, shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them.”
{6:12} And going out, they were preaching, so that people would repent.
{6:13} And they cast out many demons, and they anointed many of the sick with oil and healed them.
{6:14} And king Herod heard of it, (for his name had become well-known) and he said: “John the Baptist has risen again from the dead, and because of this, miracles are at work in him.”
{6:15} But others were saying, “Because it is Elijah.” Still others were saying, “Because he is a prophet, like one of the prophets.”
{6:16} When Herod had heard it, he said, “John whom I beheaded, the same has risen again from the dead.”
{6:17} For Herod himself had sent to capture John, and had chained him in prison, because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip; for he had married her.
{6:18} For John was saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”
{6:19} Now Herodias was devising treachery against him; and she wanted to kill him, but she was unable.
{6:20} For Herod was apprehensive of John, knowing him to be a just and holy man, and so he guarded him. And he heard that he was accomplishing many things, and so he listened to him willingly.
{6:21} And when an opportune time had arrived, Herod held a feast on his birthday, with the leaders, and the tribunes, and the first rulers of Galilee.
{6:22} And when the daughter of the same Herodias had entered, and danced, and pleased Herod, along with those who were at table with him, the king said to the girl, “Request from me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.”
{6:23} And he swore to her, “Anything that you request, I will give to you, even up to half my kingdom.”
{6:24} And when she had gone out, she said to her mother, “What shall I request?” But her mother said, “The head of John the Baptist.”
{6:25} And immediately, when she had entered with haste to the king, she petitioned him, saying: “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”
{6:26} And the king was greatly saddened. But because of his oath, and because of those who were sitting with him at table, he was not willing to disappoint her.
{6:27} So, having sent an executioner, he instructed that his head be brought on a platter.
{6:28} And he beheaded him in prison, and he brought his head on a platter. And he gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it her mother.
{6:29} When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and they placed it in a tomb.
{6:30} And the Apostles, returning to Jesus, reported to him everything that they had done and taught.
{6:31} And he said to them, “Go out alone, into a deserted place, and rest for a little while.” For there were so many who were coming and going, that they did not even have time to eat.
{6:32} And climbing into a boat, they went away to a deserted place alone.
{6:33} And they saw them going away, and many knew about it. And together they ran by foot from all the cities, and they arrived before them.
{6:34} And Jesus, going out, saw a great multitude. And he took pity on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd, and he began to teach them many things.
{6:35} And when many hours had now passed, his disciples drew near to him, saying: “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late.
{6:36} Send them away, so that by going out to nearby villages and towns, they might buy provisions for themselves to eat.”
{6:37} And responding, he said to them, “Give them something to eat yourselves.” And they said to him, “Let us go out and buy bread for two hundred denarii, and then we will give them something to eat.”
{6:38} And he said to them: “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.”
{6:39} And he instructed them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass.
{6:40} And they sat down in divisions by hundreds and by fifties.
{6:41} And having received the five loaves and the two fish, gazing up to heaven, he blessed and broke the bread, and he gave it to his disciples to set before them. And the two fish he divided among them all.
{6:42} And they all ate and were satisfied.
{6:43} And they brought together the remainder: twelve baskets full of fragments and of fish.
{6:44} Now those who ate were five thousand men.
{6:45} And without delay he urged his disciples to climb into the boat, so that they might precede him across the sea to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the people.
{6:46} And when he had dismissed them, he went to the mountain to pray.
{6:47} And when it was late, the boat was in the midst of the sea, and he was alone on the land.
{6:48} And seeing them struggling to row, (for the wind was against them,) and about the fourth watch of the night, he came to them, walking upon the sea. And he intended to pass by them.
{6:49} But when they saw him walking upon the sea, they thought it was an apparition, and they cried out.
{6:50} For they all saw him, and they were very disturbed. And immediately he spoke with them, and he said to them: “Be strengthened in faith. It is I. Do not be afraid.”
{6:51} And he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind ceased. And they became even more astonished within themselves.
{6:52} For they did not understand about the bread. For their heart had been blinded.
{6:53} And when they had crossed over, they arrived in the land of Genesaret, and they reached the shore.
{6:54} And when they had disembarked from the boat, the people immediately recognized him.
{6:55} And running throughout that entire region, they began to carry on beds those who had maladies, to where they heard that he would be.
{6:56} And in whichever place he entered, in towns or villages or cities, they placed the infirm in the main streets, and they pleaded with him that they might touch even the hem of his garment. And as many as touched him were made healthy.
{7:1} And the Pharisees and some of the scribes, arriving from Jerusalem, gathered together before him.
{7:2} And when they had seen certain ones from his disciples eating bread with common hands, that is, with unwashed hands, they disparaged them.
{7:3} For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat without repeatedly washing their hands, holding to the tradition of the elders.
{7:4} And when returning from the market, unless they wash, they do not eat. And there are many other things which have been handed down to them to observe: the washings of cups, and pitchers, and bronze containers, and beds.
{7:5} And so the Pharisees and the scribes questioned him: “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but they eat bread with common hands?”
{7:6} But in response, he said to them: “So well did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, just as it has been written: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.
{7:7} And in vain do they worship me, teaching the doctrines and precepts of men.’
{7:8} For abandoning the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men, to the washing of pitchers and cups. And you do many other things similar to these.”
{7:9} And he said to them: “You effectively nullify the precept of God, so that you may observe your own tradition.
{7:10} For Moses said: ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Whoever will have cursed father or mother, let him die a death.’
{7:11} But you say, ‘If a man will have said to his father or mother: Korban, (which is a gift) whatever is from me will be to your benefit,’
{7:12} then you do not release him to do anything for his father or mother,
{7:13} rescinding the word of God through your tradition, which you have handed down. And you do many other similar things in this way.”
{7:14} And again, calling the crowd to him, he said to them: “Listen to me, all of you, and understand.
{7:15} There is nothing from outside a man which, by entering into him, is able to defile him. But the things which proceed from a man, these are what pollute a man.
{7:16} Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”
{7:17} And when he had entered into the house, away from the crowd, his disciples questioned him about the parable.
{7:18} And he said to them: “So, are you also without prudence? Do you not understand that everything entering to a man from outside is not able to pollute him?
{7:19} For it does not enter into his heart, but into the gut, and it exits into the sewer, purging all foods.”
{7:20} “But,” he said “the things which go out from a man, these pollute a man.
{7:21} For from within, from the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
{7:22} thefts, avarice, wickedness, deceitfulness, homosexuality, an evil eye, blasphemy, self-exaltation, foolishness.
{7:23} All these evils proceed from within and pollute a man.”
{7:24} And rising up, he went from there to the area of Tyre and Sidon. And entering into a house, he intended no one to know about it, but he was not able to remain hidden.
{7:25} For a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit, as soon as she heard about him, entered and fell prostrate at his feet.
{7:26} For the woman was a Gentile, by birth a Syro-Phoenician. And she petitioned him, so that he would cast the demon from her daughter.
{7:27} And he said to her: “First allow the sons to have their fill. For it is not good to take away the bread of the sons and throw it to the dogs.”
{7:28} But she responded by saying to him: “Certainly, Lord. Yet the young dogs also eat, under the table, from the crumbs of the children.”
{7:29} And he said to her, “Because of this saying, go; the demon has gone out of your daughter.”
{7:30} And when she had gone to her house, she found the girl lying on the bed; and the demon had gone away.
{7:31} And again, departing from the borders of Tyre, he went by way of Sidon to the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the area of the Ten Cities.
{7:32} And they brought someone who was deaf and mute to him. And they begged him, so that he would lay his hand upon him.
{7:33} And taking him away from the crowd, he put his fingers into his ears; and spitting, he touched his tongue.
{7:34} And gazing up to heaven, he groaned and said to him: “Ephphatha,” which is, “Be opened.”
{7:35} And immediately his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was released, and he spoke correctly.
{7:36} And he instructed them not to tell anyone. But as much as he instructed them, so much more did they preach about it.
{7:37} And so much more did they wonder, saying: “He has done all things well. He has caused both the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.”
{8:1} In those days, again, when there was a great crowd, and they did not have anything to eat, calling together his disciples, he said to them:
{8:2} “I have compassion for the multitude, because, behold, they have persevered with me now for three days, and they do not have anything to eat.
{8:3} And if I were to send them away fasting to their home, they might faint on the way.” For some of them came from far away.
{8:4} And his disciples answered him, “From where would anyone be able to obtain enough bread for them in the wilderness?”
{8:5} And he questioned them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven.”
{8:6} And he instructed the crowd to sit down to eat on the ground. And taking the seven loaves, giving thanks, he broke and gave it to his disciples in order to place before them. And they placed these before the crowd.
{8:7} And they had a few small fish. And he blessed them, and he ordered them to be placed before them.
{8:8} And they ate and were satisfied. And they took up what had been leftover from the fragments: seven baskets.
{8:9} And those who ate were about four thousand. And he dismissed them.
{8:10} And promptly climbing into a boat with his disciples, he went into the parts of Dalmanutha.
{8:11} And the Pharisees went out and began to contend with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven, testing him.
{8:12} And sighing deeply in spirit, he said: “Why does this generation seek a sign? Amen, I say to you, if only a sign will be given to this generation!”
{8:13} And sending them away, he climbed into the boat again, and he went away across the sea.
{8:14} And they forgot to take bread. And they did not have any with them in the boat, except one loaf.
{8:15} And he instructed them, saying: “Consider and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the leaven of Herod.”
{8:16} And they discussed this with one another, saying, “For we have no bread.”
{8:17} And Jesus, knowing this, said to them: “Why do you consider that it is because you have no bread? Do you not yet know or understand? Do you still have blindness in your heart?
{8:18} Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? Do you not remember,
{8:19} when I broke the five loaves among the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments you took up?” They said to him, “Twelve.”
{8:20} “And when the seven loaves were among the four thousand, how many baskets of fragments did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.”
{8:21} And he said to them, “How is it that you do not yet understand?”
{8:22} And they went to Bethsaida. And they brought a blind man to him. And they petitioned him, so that he would touch him.
{8:23} And taking the blind man by the hand, he led him beyond the village. And putting spit on his eyes, laying his hands on him, he asked him if he could see anything.
{8:24} And looking up, he said, “I see men but they are like walking trees.”
{8:25} Next he placed his hands again over his eyes, and he began to see. And he was restored, so that he could see everything clearly.
{8:26} And he sent him to his house, saying, “Go into your own house, and if you enter into the town, tell no one.”
{8:27} And Jesus departed with his disciples into the towns of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way, he questioned his disciples, saying to them, “Who do men say that I am?”
{8:28} And they answered him by saying: “John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others perhaps one of the prophets.”
{8:29} Then he said to them, “Yet truly, who do you say that I am?” Peter responded by saying to him, “You are the Christ.”
{8:30} And he admonished them, not to tell anyone about him.
{8:31} And he began to teach them that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, and by the high priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.
{8:32} And he spoke the word openly. And Peter, taking him aside, began to correct him.
{8:33} And turning away and looking at his disciples, he admonished Peter, saying, “Get behind me, Satan, for you do not prefer the things that are of God, but the things that are of men.”
{8:34} And calling together the crowd with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone chooses to follow me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
{8:35} For whoever will have chosen to save his life, will lose it. But whoever will have lost his life, for my sake and for the Gospel, shall save it.
{8:36} For how does it benefit a man, if he gains the whole world, and yet causes harm to his soul?
{8:37} Or, what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
{8:38} For whoever has been ashamed of me and of my words, among this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of man also will be ashamed of him, when he will arrive in the glory of his Father, with the holy Angels.”
{8:39} And he said to them, “Amen I say to you, that there are some among those standing here who shall not taste death until they see the kingdom of God arriving in power.”
{9:1} And after six days, Jesus took with him Peter, and James, and John; and he led them separately to a lofty mountain alone; and he was transfigured before them.
{9:2} And his vestments became radiant and exceedingly white like snow, with such a brilliance as no fuller on earth is able to achieve.
{9:3} And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses; and they were speaking with Jesus.
{9:4} And in response, Peter said to Jesus: “Master, it is good for us to be here. And so let us make three tabernacles, one for you, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
{9:5} For he did not know what he was saying. For they were overwhelmed by fear.
{9:6} And there was a cloud overshadowing them. And a voice came from the cloud, saying: “This is my most beloved Son. Listen to him.”
{9:7} And immediately, looking around, they no longer saw anyone, except Jesus alone with them.
{9:8} And as they were descending from the mountain, he instructed them not to relate to anyone what they had seen, until after the Son of man will have risen again from the dead.
{9:9} And they kept the word to themselves, arguing about what “after he will have risen from the dead” might mean.
{9:10} And they questioned him, saying: “Then why do the Pharisees and the scribes say that Elijah must arrive first?”
{9:11} And in response, he said to them: “Elijah, when he will arrive first, shall restore all things. And in the manner that it has been written about the Son of man, so must he suffer many things and be condemned.
{9:12} But I say to you, that Elijah also has arrived, (and they have done to him whatever they wanted) just as it has been written about him.”
{9:13} And approaching his disciples, he saw a great crowd surrounding them, and the scribes were arguing with them.
{9:14} And soon all the people, seeing Jesus, were astonished and struck with fear, and hurrying to him, they greeted him.
{9:15} And he questioned them, “What are you arguing about among yourselves?”
{9:16} And one from the crowd responded by saying: “Teacher, I have brought to you my son, who has a mute spirit.
{9:17} And whenever it takes hold of him, it throws him down, and he foams and gnashes with his teeth, and he becomes unconscious. And I asked your disciples to cast him out, and they could not.”
{9:18} And answering them, he said: “O unbelieving generation, how long must I be with you? How long shall I endure you? Bring him to me.”
{9:19} And they brought him. And when he had seen him, immediately the spirit disturbed him. And having been thrown to the ground, he rolled around foaming.
{9:20} And he questioned his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” But he said: “From infancy.
{9:21} And often it casts him into fire or into water, in order to destroy him. But if you are able to do anything, help us and take pity on us.”
{9:22} But Jesus said to him, “If you are able to believe: all things are possible to one who believes.”
{9:23} And immediately the father of the boy, crying out with tears, said: “I do believe, Lord. Help my unbelief.”
{9:24} And when Jesus saw the crowd rushing together, he admonished the unclean spirit, saying to him, “Deaf and mute spirit, I command you, leave him; and do not enter into him anymore.”
{9:25} And crying out, and convulsing him greatly, he departed from him. And he became like one who is dead, so much so that many said, “He is dead.”
{9:26} But Jesus, taking him by the hand, lifted him up. And he arose.
{9:27} And when he had entered into the house, his disciples questioned him privately, “Why were we unable to cast him out?”
{9:28} And he said to them, “This kind is able to be expelled by nothing other than prayer and fasting.”
{9:29} And setting out from there, they passed through Galilee. And he intended that no one know about it.
{9:30} Then he taught his disciples, and he said to them, “For the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him, and having been killed, on the third day he will rise again.”
{9:31} But they did not understand the word. And they were afraid to question him.
{9:32} And they went to Capernaum. And when they were in the house, he questioned them, “What did you discuss on the way?”
{9:33} But they were silent. For indeed, on the way, they had disputed among themselves as to which of them was greater.
{9:34} And sitting down, he called the twelve, and he said to them, “If anyone wants to be first, he shall be the last of all and the minister of all.”
{9:35} And taking a child, he set him in their midst. And when he had embraced him, he said to them:
{9:36} “Whoever receives one such child in my name, receives me. And whoever receives me, receives not me, but him who sent me.”
{9:37} John responded to him by saying, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name; he does not follow us, and so we prohibited him.”
{9:38} But Jesus said: “Do not prohibit him. For there is no one who can act with virtue in my name and soon speak evil about me.
{9:39} For whoever is not against you is for you.
{9:40} For whoever, in my name, will give you a cup of water to drink, because you belong to Christ: Amen I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.
{9:41} And whoever will have scandalized one of these little ones who believe in me: it would be better for him if a great millstone were placed around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.
{9:42} And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off: it is better for you to enter into life disabled, than having two hands to go into Hell, into the unquenchable fire,
{9:43} where their worm does not die, and the fire is not extinguished.
{9:44} But if your foot causes you to sin, chop it off: it is better for you to enter into eternal life lame, than having two feet to be cast into the Hell of unquenchable fire,
{9:45} where their worm does not die, and the fire is not extinguished.
{9:46} But if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out: it is better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into the Hell of fire,
{9:47} where their worm does not die, and the fire is not extinguished.
{9:48} For all shall be salted with fire, and every victim shall be salted with salt.
{9:49} Salt is good: but if the salt has become bland, with what will you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace among yourselves.”
{10:1} And rising up, he went from there into the area of Judea beyond the Jordan. And again, the crowd came together before him. And just as he was accustomed to do, again he taught them.
{10:2} And approaching, the Pharisees questioned him, testing him: “Is it lawful for a man to dismiss his wife?”
{10:3} But in response, he said to them, “What did Moses instruct you?”
{10:4} And they said, “Moses gave permission to write a bill of divorce and to dismiss her.”
{10:5} But Jesus responded by saying: “It was due to the hardness of your heart that he wrote that precept for you.
{10:6} But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
{10:7} Because of this, a man shall leave behind his father and mother, and he shall cling to his wife.
{10:8} And these two shall be one in flesh. And so, they are now, not two, but one flesh.
{10:9} Therefore, what God has joined together, let no man separate.”
{10:10} And again, in the house, his disciples questioned him about the same thing.
{10:11} And he said to them: “Whoever dismisses his wife, and marries another, commits adultery against her.
{10:12} And if a wife dismisses her husband, and is married to another, she commits adultery.”
{10:13} And they brought to him the little children, so that he might touch them. But the disciples admonished those who brought them.
{10:14} But when Jesus saw this, he took offense, and he said to them: “Allow the little ones to come to me, and do not prohibit them. For of such as these is the kingdom of God.
{10:15} Amen I say to you, whoever will not accept the kingdom of God like a little child, will not enter into it.”
{10:16} And embracing them, and laying his hands upon them, he blessed them.
{10:17} And when he had departed on the way, a certain one, running up and kneeling before him, asked him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do, so that I may secure eternal life?”
{10:18} But Jesus said to him, “Why call me good? No one is good except the one God.
{10:19} You know the precepts: “Do not commit adultery. Do not kill. Do not steal. Do not speak false testimony. Do not deceive. Honor your father and mother.”
{10:20} But in response, he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have observed from my youth.”
{10:21} Then Jesus, gazing at him, loved him, and he said to him: “One thing is lacking to you. Go, sell whatever you have, and give to the poor, and then you will have treasure in heaven. And come, follow me.”
{10:22} But he went away grieving, having been greatly saddened by the word. For he had many possessions.
{10:23} And Jesus, looking around, said to his disciples, “How difficult it is for those who have riches to enter into the kingdom of God!”
{10:24} And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus, answering again, said to them: “Little sons, how difficult it is for those who trust in money to enter into the kingdom of God!
{10:25} It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for the rich to enter into the kingdom of God.”
{10:26} And they wondered even more, saying among themselves, “Who, then, can be saved?”
{10:27} And Jesus, gazing at them, said: “With men it is impossible; but not with God. For with God all things are possible.”
{10:28} And Peter began to say to him, “Behold, we have left all things and have followed you.”
{10:29} In response, Jesus said: “Amen I say to you, There is no one who has left behind house, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or children, or land, for my sake and for the Gospel,
{10:30} who will not receive one hundred times as much, now in this time: houses, and brothers, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and land, with persecutions, and in the future age eternal life.
{10:31} But many of the first shall be last, and the last shall be first.”
{10:32} Now they were on the way ascending to Jerusalem. And Jesus went ahead of them, and they were astonished. And those following him were afraid. And again, taking aside the twelve, he began to tell them what was about to happen to him.
{10:33} “For behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of man will be handed over to the leaders of the priests, and to the scribes, and the elders. And they will condemn him to death, and they will hand him over to the Gentiles.
{10:34} And they will mock him, and spit on him, and scourge him, and put him to death. And on the third day, he will rise again.”
{10:35} And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, drew near to him, saying, “Teacher, we wish that whatever we will ask, you would do for us.”
{10:36} But he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?”
{10:37} And they said, “Grant to us that we may sit, one at your right and the other at your left, in your glory.”
{10:38} But Jesus said to them: “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink from the chalice from which I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am to be baptized?”
{10:39} But they said to him, “We can.” Then Jesus said to them: “Indeed, you shall drink from the chalice, from which I drink; and you shall be baptized with the baptism, with which I am to be baptized.
{10:40} But to sit at my right, or at my left, is not mine to give to you, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.”
{10:41} And the ten, upon hearing this, began to be indignant toward James and John.
{10:42} But Jesus, calling them, said to them: “You know that those who seem to be leaders among the Gentiles dominate them, and their leaders exercise authority over them.
{10:43} But it is not to be this way among you. Instead, whoever would become greater shall be your minister;
{10:44} and whoever will be first among you shall be the servant of all.
{10:45} So, too, the Son of man has not come so that they would minister to him, but so that he would minister and would give his life as a redemption for many.”
{10:46} And they went to Jericho. And as he was setting out from Jericho with his disciples and a very numerous multitude, Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, a blind man, sat begging beside the way.
{10:47} And when he had heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and to say, “Jesus, Son of David, take pity on me.”
{10:48} And many admonished him to be quiet. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, take pity on me.”
{10:49} And Jesus, standing still, instructed him to be called. And they called the blind man, saying to him: “Be at peace. Arise. He is calling you.”
{10:50} And casting aside his garment, he leapt up and went to him.
{10:51} And in response, Jesus said to him, “What do you want, that I should do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Master, that I may see.”
{10:52} Then Jesus said to him, “Go, your faith has made you whole.” And immediately he saw, and he followed him on the way.
{11:1} And as they were approaching Jerusalem and Bethania, toward the mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples,
{11:2} and he said to them: “Go into the village that is opposite you, and immediately upon entering there, you will find a colt tied, on which no man has yet sat. Release him and bring him.
{11:3} And if anyone will say to you: ‘What are you doing?’ Say that the Lord has need of him. And he will immediately send him here.”
{11:4} And going out, they found the colt tied before the outer gate, at the meeting of two ways. And they untied him.
{11:5} And some of those who were standing there said to them, “What are you doing by releasing the colt?”
{11:6} And they spoke to them just as Jesus had instructed them. And they permitted them.
{11:7} And they led the colt to Jesus. And they placed their garments on it; and he sat upon it.
{11:8} Then many spread their garments along the way; but others cut down leafy branches from trees and scattered them on the way.
{11:9} And those who went ahead, and those who followed, cried out saying: “Hosanna! Blessed is he who has arrived in the name of the Lord.
{11:10} Blessed is the advent of the kingdom of our father David. Hosanna in the highest!”
{11:11} And he entered into Jerusalem, into the temple. And having looked around at everything, since it was now the evening hour, he went out to Bethania with the twelve.
{11:12} And the next day, as they were departing from Bethania, he was hungry.
{11:13} And when he had seen a fig tree with leaves in the distance, he went to it, in case he might find something on it. And when he had gone to it, he found nothing but leaves. For it was not the season for figs.
{11:14} And in response, he said to it, “From now on and forever, may no one eat fruit from you again!” And his disciples heard this.
{11:15} And they went to Jerusalem. And when he had entered into the temple, he began to cast out the sellers and the buyers in the temple. And he overturned the tables of the moneychangers and the chairs of the vendors of doves.
{11:16} And he would not permit anyone to carry goods through the temple.
{11:17} And he taught them, saying: “Is it not written: ‘For my house shall be called the house of prayer for all nations?’ But you have made it into a den of robbers.”
{11:18} And when the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, had heard this, they sought a means by which they might destroy him. For they feared him, because the entire multitude was in admiration over his doctrine.
{11:19} And when evening had arrived, he departed from the city.
{11:20} And when they passed by in the morning, they saw that the fig tree had dried up from the roots.
{11:21} And Peter, remembering, said to him, “Master, behold, the fig tree that you cursed has withered.”
{11:22} And in response, Jesus said to them: “Have the faith of God.
{11:23} Amen I say to you, that whoever will say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and who will not have hesitated in his heart, but will have believed: then whatever he has said be done, it shall be done for him.
{11:24} For this reason, I say to you, all things whatsoever that you ask for when praying: believe that you will receive them, and they will happen for you.
{11:25} And when you stand to pray, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father, who is in heaven, may also forgive you your sins.
{11:26} But if you will not forgive, neither will your Father, who is in heaven, forgive you your sins.”
{11:27} And they went again to Jerusalem. And when he was walking in the temple, the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, and the elders approached him.
{11:28} And they said to him: “By what authority do you do these things? And who has given you this authority, so that you would do these things?”
{11:29} But in response, Jesus said to them: “I also will ask you one word, and if you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I do these things.
{11:30} The baptism of John: was it from heaven or from men? Answer me.”
{11:31} But they discussed it among themselves, saying: “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’
{11:32} If we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the people. For they all hold that John was a true prophet.”
{11:33} And answering, they said to Jesus, “We do not know.” And in response, Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”
{12:1} And he began to speak to them in parables: “A man dug a vineyard, and surrounded it with a hedge, and dug a pit, and built a tower, and he loaned it out to farmers, and he set out on a long journey.
{12:2} And in time, he sent a servant to the farmers, in order to receive some of the fruit of the vineyard from the farmers.
{12:3} But they, having apprehended him, beat him and sent him away empty.
{12:4} And again, he sent another servant to them. And they wounded him on the head, and they treated him with contempt.
{12:5} And again, he sent another, and him they killed, and many others: some they beat, but others they killed.
{12:6} Therefore, having still one son, most dear to him, he sent him also to them, at the very end, saying, ‘For they will reverence my son.’
{12:7} But the settlers said one to another: ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him. And then the inheritance will be ours.’
{12:8} And apprehending him, they killed him. And they cast him out of the vineyard.
{12:9} Therefore, what will the lord of the vineyard do?” “He will come and destroy the settlers. And he will give the vineyard to others.”
{12:10} “And so, have you not read this scripture?: ‘The stone which the builders have rejected, the same has been made the head of the corner.
{12:11} By the Lord has this been done, and it is wondrous in our eyes.’ ”
{12:12} And they sought to take hold of him, but they feared the crowd. For they knew that he had spoken this parable about them. And leaving him behind, they went away.
{12:13} And they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to him, so that they might trap him with words.
{12:14} And these, arriving, said to him: “Teacher, we know that you are truthful and that you do not favor anyone; for you do not consider the appearance of men, but you teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to give the tribute to Caesar, or should we not give it?”
{12:15} And knowing their skill in deception, he said to them: “Why do you test me? Bring me a denarius, so that I may see it.”
{12:16} And they brought it to him. And he said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar’s.”
{12:17} So in response, Jesus said to them, “Then render to Caesar, the things that are of Caesar; and to God, the things that are of God.” And they wondered over him.
{12:18} And the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, approached him. And they questioned him, saying:
{12:19} “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if any man’s brother will have died and left behind a wife, and not have left behind sons, his brother should take his wife to himself and should raise up offspring for his brother.
{12:20} So then, there were seven brothers. And the first took a wife, and he died without leaving behind offspring.
{12:21} And the second took her, and he died. And neither did he leave behind offspring. And the third acted similarly.
{12:22} And in like manner, each of the seven received her and did not leave behind offspring. Last of all, the woman also died.
{12:23} Therefore, in the resurrection, when they will rise again, to which of them will she be a wife? For each of the seven had her as wife.”
{12:24} And Jesus responded by saying to them: “But have you not gone astray, by knowing neither the scriptures, nor the power of God?
{12:25} For when they will be resurrected from the dead, they shall neither marry, nor be given in marriage, but they are like the Angels in heaven.
{12:26} But concerning the dead who rise again, have you not read in the book of Moses, how God spoke to him from the bush, saying: ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?’
{12:27} He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. Therefore, you have gone far astray.”
{12:28} And one of the scribes, who had heard them arguing, drew near to him. And seeing that he had answered them well, he questioned him as to which was the first commandment of all.
{12:29} And Jesus answered him: “For the first commandment of all is this: ‘Listen, O Israel. The Lord your God is one God.
{12:30} And you shall love the Lord your God from your whole heart, and from your whole soul, and from your whole mind, and from your whole strength. This is the first commandment.’
{12:31} But the second is similar to it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
{12:32} And the scribe said to him: Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth that there is one God, and there is no other beside him;
{12:33} and that he should be loved from the whole heart, and from the whole understanding, and from the whole soul, and from the whole strength. And to love one’s neighbor as one’s self is greater than all holocausts and sacrifices.”
{12:34} And Jesus, seeing that he had responded wisely, said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that, no one dared to question him.
{12:35} And while teaching in the temple, Jesus said in answer: “How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David?
{12:36} For David himself said in the Holy Spirit: ‘The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand, until I set your enemies as your footstool.’
{12:37} Therefore, David himself calls him Lord, and so how can he be his son?” And a great multitude listened to him willingly.
{12:38} And he said to them in his doctrine: “Beware of the scribes, who prefer to walk in long robes and to be greeted in the marketplace,
{12:39} and to sit in the first chairs in the synagogues, and to have the first seats at feasts,
{12:40} who devour the houses of widows under the pretense of long prayers. These shall receive the more extensive judgment.”
{12:41} And Jesus, sitting opposite the offertory box, considered the way in which the crowd cast coins into the offertory, and that many of the wealthy cast in a great deal.
{12:42} But when one poor widow had arrived, she put in two small coins, which is a quarter.
{12:43} And calling together his disciples, he said to them: “Amen I say to you, that this poor widow has put in more than all those who contributed to the offertory.
{12:44} For they all gave from their abundance, yet truly, she gave from her scarcity, even all that she had, her entire living.”
{13:1} And as he was departing from the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Teacher, observe these fine stones and fine structures.”
{13:2} And in response, Jesus said to him: “Do you see all these great buildings? There shall not be left stone upon stone, which is not torn down.”
{13:3} And as he sat at the Mount of Olives, opposite the temple, Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew questioned him privately.
{13:4} “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things will begin to be fulfilled?”
{13:5} And Jesus, answering, began to say to them: “See to it that no one leads you astray.
{13:6} For many will come in my name, saying, ‘For I am he,’ and they will lead many astray.
{13:7} But when you will have heard of wars and rumors of wars, you should not be afraid. For these things must be, but the end is not so soon.
{13:8} For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom over kingdom, and there shall be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are but the beginning of the sorrows.
{13:9} But see to yourselves. For they will hand you over to councils, and in the synagogues you will be beaten, and you shall stand before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony for them.
{13:10} And the Gospel must first be preached to all nations.
{13:11} And when they have seized you and handed you over, do not consider in advance what to say. But whatever will be given you in that hour, say that. For you will not be speaking, but the Holy Spirit.
{13:12} Then brother will betray brother to death, and the father, a son; and children will rise up against their parents and will bring about their death.
{13:13} And you will be hated by all for the sake of my name. But whoever will have persevered unto the end, the same will be saved.
{13:14} Then, when you have seen the abomination of desolation, standing where it ought not to be, let the reader understand: then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
{13:15} And let whoever is on the rooftop not descend to the house, nor enter so as to take anything from the house.
{13:16} And let whoever may be in the field not return to take his garment.
{13:17} But woe to those who are pregnant or nursing in those days.
{13:18} Truly, pray that these things may not happen in winter.
{13:19} For those days shall have such tribulations as have not been since the beginning of the creation that God founded, even until now, and shall not be.
{13:20} And unless the Lord had shortened the days, no flesh would be saved. But, for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened the days.
{13:21} And then, if anyone will have said to you: ‘Behold, here is the Christ. Behold, in that place.’ Do not believe it.
{13:22} For false Christs and false prophets will rise up, and they will present signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if it were possible, even the elect.
{13:23} Therefore, you must take heed. Behold, I have foretold all to you.
{13:24} But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give her splendor.
{13:25} And the stars of heaven will be falling down, and the powers that are in heaven will be moved.
{13:26} And then they shall see the Son of man arriving on the clouds, with great power and glory.
{13:27} And then he will send his Angels, and gather together his elect, from the four winds, from the limits of the earth, to the limits of heaven.
{13:28} Now from the fig tree discern a parable. When its branch becomes tender and the foliage has been formed, you know that summer is very near.
{13:29} So also, when you will have seen these things happen, know that it is very near, even at the doors.
{13:30} Amen I say to you, that this lineage shall not pass away, until all these things have happened.
{13:31} Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away.
{13:32} But concerning that day or hour, no one knows, neither the Angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
{13:33} Take heed, be vigilant, and pray. For you do not know when the time may be.
{13:34} It is like a man who, setting out on a sojourn, left behind his house, and gave his servants authority over every work, and instructed the doorkeeper to stand watch.
{13:35} Therefore, be vigilant, for you do not know when the lord of the house may arrive: in the evening, or in the middle of the night, or at first light, or in the morning.
{13:36} Otherwise, when he will have arrived unexpectedly, he may find you sleeping.
{13:37} But what I say to you, I say to all: Be vigilant.”
{14:1} Now the feast of Passover and of Unleavened Bread was two days away. And the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, were seeking a means by which they might deceitfully seize him and kill him.
{14:2} But they said, “Not on the feast day, lest perhaps there may be a tumult among the people.”
{14:3} And when he was in Bethania, in the house of Simon the leper, and was reclining to eat, a woman arrived having an alabaster container of ointment, of precious spikenard. And breaking open the alabaster container, she poured it over his head.
{14:4} But there were some who became indignant within themselves and who were saying: “What is the reason for this waste of the ointment?
{14:5} For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and been given to the poor.” And they murmured against her.
{14:6} But Jesus said: “Permit her. What is the reason that you trouble her? She has done a good deed for me.
{14:7} For the poor, you have with you always. And whenever you wish, you are able to do good to them. But you do not have me always.
{14:8} But she has done what she could. She has arrived in advance to anoint my body for burial.
{14:9} Amen I say to you, wherever this Gospel shall be preached throughout the entire world, the things she has done also shall be told, in memory of her.”
{14:10} And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went away, to the leaders of the priests, in order to betray him to them.
{14:11} And they, upon hearing it, were gladdened. And they promised him that they would give him money. And he sought an opportune means by which he might betray him.
{14:12} And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they immolate the Passover, the disciples said to him, “Where do you want us to go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?”
{14:13} And he sent two of his disciples, and he said to them: “Go into the city. And you will meet a man carrying a pitcher of water; follow him.
{14:14} And wherever he will have entered, say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says: Where is my dining room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’
{14:15} And he will show you a large cenacle, fully furnished. And there, you shall prepare it for us.”
{14:16} And his disciples departed and went into the city. And they found it just as he had told them. And they prepared the Passover.
{14:17} Then, when evening came, he arrived with the twelve.
{14:18} And while reclining and eating with them at table, Jesus said, “Amen I say to you, that one of you, who eats with me, will betray me.”
{14:19} But they began to be sorrowful and to say to him, one at a time: “Is it I?”
{14:20} And he said to them: “It is one of the twelve, who dips his hand with me in the dish.
{14:21} And indeed, the Son of man goes, just as it has been written of him. But woe to that man by whom the Son of man will be betrayed. It would be better for that man if he had never been born.”
{14:22} And while eating with them, Jesus took bread. And blessing it, he broke it and gave it to them, and he said: “Take. This is my body.”
{14:23} And having taken the chalice, giving thanks, he gave it to them. And they all drank from it.
{14:24} And he said to them: “This is my blood of the new covenant, which shall be shed for many.
{14:25} Amen I say to you, that I will no longer drink from this fruit of the vine, until that day when I will drink it new in the kingdom of God.”
{14:26} And having sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
{14:27} And Jesus said to them: “You will all fall away from me in this night. For it has been written: ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’
{14:28} But after I have risen again, I will go before you to Galilee.”
{14:29} Then Peter said to him, “Even if all will have fallen away from you, yet I will not.”
{14:30} And Jesus said to him, “Amen I say to you, that this day, in this night, before the rooster has uttered its voice twice, you will deny me three times.”
{14:31} But he spoke further, “Even if I must die along with you, I will not deny you.” And they all spoke similarly also.
{14:32} And they went to a country estate, by the name of Gethsemani. And he said to his disciples, “Sit here, while I pray.”
{14:33} And he took Peter, and James, and John with him. And he began to be afraid and wearied.
{14:34} And he said to them: “My soul is sorrowful, even unto death. Remain here and be vigilant.”
{14:35} And when he had proceeded on a little ways, he fell prostrate on the ground. And he prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass away from him.
{14:36} And he said: “Abba, Father, all things are possible to you. Take this chalice from me. But let it be, not as I will, but as you will.”
{14:37} And he went and found them sleeping. And he said to Peter: “Simon, are you sleeping? Were you not able to be vigilant for one hour?
{14:38} Watch and pray, so that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
{14:39} And going away again, he prayed, saying the same words.
{14:40} And upon returning, he found them sleeping yet again, (for their eyes were heavy) and they did not know how to respond to him.
{14:41} And he arrived for the third time, and he said to them: “Sleep now, and take rest. It is enough. The hour has arrived. Behold, the Son of man will be betrayed into the hands of sinners.
{14:42} Rise up, let us go. Behold, he who will betray me is near.”
{14:43} And while he was still speaking, Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, arrived, and with him was a large crowd with swords and clubs, sent from the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, and the elders.
{14:44} Now his betrayer had given them a sign, saying: “He whom I shall kiss, it is he. Take hold of him, and lead him away cautiously.”
{14:45} And when he had arrived, immediately drawing near to him, he said: “Hail, Master!” And he kissed him.
{14:46} But they laid hands on him and held him.
{14:47} Then a certain one of those standing near, drawing a sword, struck a servant of the high priest and cut off his ear.
{14:48} And in response, Jesus said to them: “Have you set out to apprehend me, just as if to a robber, with swords and clubs?
{14:49} Daily, I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not take hold of me. But in this way, the scriptures are fulfilled.”
{14:50} Then his disciples, leaving him behind, all fled away.
{14:51} Now a certain young man followed him, having nothing but a fine linen cloth over himself. And they took hold of him.
{14:52} But he, rejecting the fine linen cloth, escaped from them naked.
{14:53} And they led Jesus to the high priest. And all the priests and the scribes and the elders came together.
{14:54} But Peter followed him from a distance, even into the court of the high priest. And he sat with the servants at the fire and warmed himself.
{14:55} Yet truly, the leaders of the priests and the entire council sought testimony against Jesus, so that they might deliver him to death, and they found none.
{14:56} For many spoke false testimony against him, but their testimony did not agree.
{14:57} And certain ones, rising up, bore false witness against him, saying:
{14:58} “For we heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple, made with hands, and within three days I will build another, not made with hands.’ ”
{14:59} And their testimony did not agree.
{14:60} And the high priest, rising up in their midst, questioned Jesus, saying, “Do you have nothing to say in answer to the things that are brought against you by these ones?”
{14:61} But he was silent and gave no answer. Again, the high priest questioned him, and he said to him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed God?”
{14:62} Then Jesus said to him: “I am. And you shall see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of the power of God and arriving with the clouds of heaven.”
{14:63} Then the high priest, rending his garments, said: “Why do we still require witnesses?
{14:64} You have heard the blasphemy. How does it seem to you?” And they all condemned him, as guilty unto death.
{14:65} And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face and to strike him with fists, and to say to him, “Prophesy.” And the servants struck him with the palms their hands.
{14:66} And while Peter was in the court below, one of the maidservants of the high priest arrived.
{14:67} And when she had seen Peter warming himself, she stared at him, and she said: “You also were with Jesus of Nazareth.”
{14:68} But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you saying.” And he went outside, in front of the court; and a rooster crowed.
{14:69} Then again, when a maidservant had seen him, she began to say to the bystanders, “For this is one of them.”
{14:70} But he denied it again. And after a little while, again those standing near said to Peter: “In truth, you are one of them. For you, too, are a Galilean.”
{14:71} Then he began to curse and to swear, saying, “For I do not know this man, about whom you are speaking.”
{14:72} And immediately the rooster crowed again. And Peter remembered the word that Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he began to weep.
{15:1} And immediately in the morning, after the leaders of the priests had taken counsel with the elders and the scribes and the entire council, binding Jesus, they led him away and delivered him to Pilate.
{15:2} And Pilate questioned him, “You are the king of the Jews?” But in response, he said to him, “You are saying it.”
{15:3} And the leaders of the priests accused him in many things.
{15:4} Then Pilate again questioned him, saying: “Do you not have any response? See how greatly they accuse you.”
{15:5} But Jesus continued to give no response, so that Pilate wondered.
{15:6} Now on the feast day, he was accustomed to release to them one of the prisoners, whomever they requested.
{15:7} But there was one called Barabbas, who had committed murder in the sedition, who was confined with those of the sedition.
{15:8} And when the crowd had ascended, they began to petition him to do as he always did for them.
{15:9} But Pilate answered them and said, “Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?”
{15:10} For he knew that it was out of envy that the leaders of the priests had betrayed him.
{15:11} Then the chief priests incited the crowd, so that he would release Barabbas to them instead.
{15:12} But Pilate, responding again, said to them: “Then what do you want me to do with the king of the Jews?”
{15:13} But again they cried out, “Crucify him.”
{15:14} Yet truly, Pilate said to them: “Why? What evil has he done?” But they cried out all the more, “Crucify him.”
{15:15} Then Pilate, wishing to satisfy the people, released Barabbas to them, and he delivered Jesus, having severely scourged him, to be crucified.
{15:16} Then the soldiers led him away to the court of the praetorium. And they called together the entire cohort.
{15:17} And they clothed him with purple. And platting a crown of thorns, they placed it on him.
{15:18} And they began to salute him: “Hail, king of the Jews.”
{15:19} And they struck his head with a reed, and they spit on him. And kneeling down, they reverenced him.
{15:20} And after they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple, and they clothed him in his own garments. And they led him away, so that they might crucify him.
{15:21} And they compelled a certain passerby, Simon the Cyrenian, who was arriving from the countryside, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to take up his cross.
{15:22} And they led him through to the place called Golgotha, which means, ‘the Place of Calvary.’
{15:23} And they gave him wine with myrrh to drink. But he did not accept it.
{15:24} And while crucifying him, they divided his garments, casting lots over them, to see who would take what.
{15:25} Now it was the third hour. And they crucified him.
{15:26} And the title of his case was written as: THE KING OF THE JEWS.
{15:27} And with him they crucified two robbers: one at his right, and the other at his left.
{15:28} And the scripture was fulfilled, which says: “And with the iniquitous he was reputed.”
{15:29} And the passersby blasphemed him, shaking their heads and saying, “Ah, you who would destroy the temple of God, and in three days rebuild it,
{15:30} save yourself by descending from the cross.”
{15:31} And similarly the leaders of the priests, mocking him with the scribes, said to one another: “He saved others. He is not able to save himself.
{15:32} Let the Christ, the king of Israel, descend now from the cross, so that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also insulted him.
{15:33} And when the sixth hour arrived, a darkness occurred over the entire earth, until the ninth hour.
{15:34} And at the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lamma sabacthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”
{15:35} And some of those standing near, upon hearing this, said, “Behold, he is calling Elijah.”
{15:36} Then one of them, running and filling a sponge with vinegar, and placing it around a reed, gave it to him to drink, saying: “Wait. Let us see if Elijah will come to take him down.”
{15:37} Then Jesus, having emitted a loud cry, expired.
{15:38} And the veil of the temple was torn in two, from the top to the bottom.
{15:39} Then the centurion who stood opposite him, seeing that he had expired while crying out in this way, said: “Truly, this man was the Son of God.”
{15:40} Now there were also women watching from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph, and Salome,
{15:41} (and while he was in Galilee, they followed him and ministered to him) and many other women, who had ascended along with him to Jerusalem.
{15:42} And when evening had now arrived (because it was the Preparation Day, which is before the Sabbath)
{15:43} there arrived Joseph of Arimathea, a noble council member, who himself was also awaiting the kingdom of God. And he boldly entered to Pilate and petitioned for the body of Jesus.
{15:44} But Pilate wondered if he had already died. And summoning a centurion, he questioned him as to whether he was already dead.
{15:45} And when he had been informed by the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.
{15:46} Then Joseph, having bought a fine linen cloth, and taking him down, wrapped him in the fine linen and laid him in a sepulcher, which was hewn from a rock. And he rolled a stone to the entrance of the tomb.
{15:47} Now Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph observed where he was laid.
{16:1} And when the Sabbath had passed, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought aromatic spices, so that when they arrived they could anoint Jesus.
{16:2} And very early in the morning, on the first of the Sabbaths, they went to the tomb, the sun having now risen.
{16:3} And they said to one another, “Who will roll back the stone for us, away from the entrance of the tomb?”
{16:4} And looking, they saw that the stone was rolled back. For certainly it was very large.
{16:5} And upon entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, covered with a white robe, and they were astonished.
{16:6} And he said to them, “Do not become frightened. You are seeking Jesus of Nazareth, the Crucified One. He has risen. He is not here. Behold, the place where they laid him.
{16:7} But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you into Galilee. There you shall see him, just as he told you.”
{16:8} But they, going out, fled from the tomb. For trembling and fear had overwhelmed them. And they said nothing to anyone. For they were afraid.
{16:9} But he, rising early on the first Sabbath, appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons.
{16:10} She went and announced it to those who had been with him, while they were mourning and weeping.
{16:11} And they, upon hearing that he was alive and that he had been seen by her, did not believe it.
{16:12} But after these events, he was shown in another likeness to two of them walking, as they were going out to the countryside.
{16:13} And they, returning, reported it to the others; neither did they believe them.
{16:14} Finally, he appeared to the eleven, as they sat at table. And he rebuked them for their incredulity and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen that he had risen again.
{16:15} And he said to them: “Go forth to the whole world and preach the Gospel to every creature.
{16:16} Whoever will have believed and been baptized will be saved. Yet truly, whoever will not have believed will be condemned.
{16:17} Now these signs will accompany those who believe. In my name, they shall cast out demons. They will speak in new languages.
{16:18} They will take up serpents, and, if they drink anything deadly, it will not harm them. They shall lay their hands upon the sick, and they will be well.”
{16:19} And indeed, the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and he sits at the right hand of God.
{16:20} Then they, setting out, preached everywhere, with the Lord cooperating and confirming the word by the accompanying signs.
{1:1} Since, indeed, many have attempted to set in order a narrative of the things that have been completed among us,
{1:2} just as they have been handed on to those of us who from the beginning saw the same and were ministers of the word,
{1:3} so it seemed good to me also, having diligently followed everything from the beginning, to write to you, in an orderly manner, most excellent Theophilus,
{1:4} so that you might know the truthfulness of those words by which you have been instructed.
{1:5} There was, in the days of Herod, king of Judea, a certain priest named Zechariah, of the section of Abijah, and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
{1:6} Now they were both just before God, progressing in all of the commandments and the justifications of the Lord without blame.
{1:7} And they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they both had become advanced in years.
{1:8} Then it happened that, when he was exercising the priesthood before God, in the order of his section,
{1:9} according to the custom of the priesthood, the lot fell so that he would offer incense, entering into the temple of the Lord.
{1:10} And the entire multitude of the people was praying outside, at the hour of incense.
{1:11} Then there appeared to him an Angel of the Lord, standing at the right of the altar of incense.
{1:12} And upon seeing him, Zechariah was disturbed, and fear fell over him.
{1:13} But the Angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth shall bear a son to you. And you shall call his name John.
{1:14} And there will be joy and exultation for you, and many will rejoice in his nativity.
{1:15} For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and he will not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.
{1:16} And he will convert many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God.
{1:17} And he will go before him with the spirit and power of Elijah, so that he may turn the hearts of the fathers to the sons, and the incredulous to the prudence of the just, so as to prepare for the Lord a completed people.”
{1:18} And Zechariah said to the Angel: “How may I know this? For I am elderly, and my wife is advanced in years.”
{1:19} And in response, the Angel said to him: “I am Gabriel, who stands before God, and I have been sent to speak to you, and to proclaim these things to you.
{1:20} And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak, until the day on which these things shall be, because you have not believed my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”
{1:21} And the people were waiting for Zechariah. And they wondered why he was being delayed in the temple.
{1:22} Then, when he came out, he was unable to speak to them. And they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he was making signs to them, but he remained mute.
{1:23} And it happened that, after the days of his office were completed, he went away to his house.
{1:24} Then, after those days, his wife Elizabeth conceived, and she hid herself for five months, saying:
{1:25} “For the Lord did this for me, at the time when he decided to take away my reproach among men.”
{1:26} Then, in the sixth month, the Angel Gabriel was sent by God, to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,
{1:27} to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the name of the virgin was Mary.
{1:28} And upon entering, the Angel said to her: “Hail, full of grace. The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women.”
{1:29} And when she had heard this, she was disturbed by his words, and she considered what kind of greeting this might be.
{1:30} And the Angel said to her: “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found grace with God.
{1:31} Behold, you shall conceive in your womb, and you shall bear a son, and you shall call his name: JESUS.
{1:32} He will be great, and he will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father. And he will reign in the house of Jacob for eternity.
{1:33} And his kingdom shall have no end.”
{1:34} Then Mary said to the Angel, “How shall this be done, since I do not know man?”
{1:35} And in response, the Angel said to her: “The Holy Spirit will pass over you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. And because of this also, the Holy One who will be born of you shall be called the Son of God.
{1:36} And behold, your cousin Elizabeth has herself also conceived a son, in her old age. And this is the sixth month for her who is called barren.
{1:37} For no word will be impossible with God.”
{1:38} Then Mary said: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to your word.” And the Angel departed from her.
{1:39} And in those days, Mary, rising up, traveled quickly into the hill country, to a city of Judah.
{1:40} And she entered into the house of Zechariah, and she greeted Elizabeth.
{1:41} And it happened that, as Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
{1:42} And she cried out with a loud voice and said: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
{1:43} And how does this concern me, so that the mother of my Lord would come to me?
{1:44} For behold, as the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy.
{1:45} And blessed are you who believed, for the things that were spoken to you by the Lord shall be accomplished.”
{1:46} And Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord.
{1:47} And my spirit leaps for joy in God my Savior.
{1:48} For he has looked with favor on the humility of his handmaid. For behold, from this time, all generations shall call me blessed.
{1:49} For he who is great has done great things for me, and holy is his name.
{1:50} And his mercy is from generation to generations for those who fear him.
{1:51} He has accomplished powerful deeds with his arm. He has scattered the arrogant in the intentions of their heart.
{1:52} He has deposed the powerful from their seat, and he has exalted the humble.
{1:53} He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty.
{1:54} He has taken up his servant Israel, mindful of his mercy,
{1:55} just as he spoke to our fathers: to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”
{1:56} Then Mary stayed with her for about three months. And she returned to her own house.
{1:57} Now the time for Elizabeth to give birth arrived, and she brought forth a son.
{1:58} And her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had magnified his mercy with her, and so they congratulated her.
{1:59} And it happened that, on the eighth day, they arrived to circumcise the boy, and they called him by his father’s name, Zechariah.
{1:60} And in response, his mother said: “Not so. Instead, he shall be called John.”
{1:61} And they said to her, “But there is no one among your relatives who is called by that name.”
{1:62} Then they made signs to his father, as to what he wanted him to be called.
{1:63} And requesting a writing tablet, he wrote, saying: “His name is John.” And they all wondered.
{1:64} Then, at once, his mouth was opened, and his tongue loosened, and he spoke, blessing God.
{1:65} And fear fell upon all of their neighbors. And all these words were made known throughout all the hill country of Judea.
{1:66} And all those who heard it stored it up in their heart, saying: “What do you think this boy will be?” And indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him.
{1:67} And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit. And he prophesied, saying:
{1:68} “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel. For he has visited and has wrought the redemption of his people.
{1:69} And he has raised up a horn of salvation for us, in the house of David his servant,
{1:70} just as he spoke by the mouth of his holy Prophets, who are from ages past:
{1:71} salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all those who hate us,
{1:72} to accomplish mercy with our fathers, and to call to mind his holy testament,
{1:73} the oath, which he swore to Abraham, our father, that he would grant to us,
{1:74} so that, having been freed from the hand of our enemies, we may serve him without fear,
{1:75} in holiness and in justice before him, throughout all our days.
{1:76} And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High. For you will go before the face of the Lord: to prepare his ways,
{1:77} to give knowledge of salvation to his people for the remission of their sins,
{1:78} through the heart of the mercy of our God, by which, descending from on high, he has visited us,
{1:79} to illuminate those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to direct our feet in the way of peace.”
{1:80} And the child grew, and he was strengthened in spirit. And he was in the wilderness, until the day of his manifestation to Israel.
{2:1} And it happened in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, so that the whole world would be enrolled.
{2:2} This was the first enrollment; it was made by the ruler of Syria, Quirinius.
{2:3} And all went to be declared, each one to his own city.
{2:4} Then Joseph also ascended from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David,
{2:5} in order to be declared, with Mary his espoused wife, who was with child.
{2:6} Then it happened that, while they were there, the days were completed, so that she would give birth.
{2:7} And she brought forth her firstborn son. And she wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them at the inn.
{2:8} And there were shepherds in the same region, being vigilant and keeping watch in the night over their flock.
{2:9} And behold, an Angel of the Lord stood near them, and the brightness of God shone around them, and they were struck with a great fear.
{2:10} And the Angel said to them: “Do not be afraid. For, behold, I proclaim to you a great joy, which will be for all the people.
{2:11} For today a Savior has been born for you in the city of David: he is Christ the Lord.
{2:12} And this will be a sign for you: you will find the infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”
{2:13} And suddenly there was with the Angel a multitude of the celestial army, praising God and saying,
{2:14} “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will.”
{2:15} And it happened that, when the Angels had departed from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us cross over to Bethlehem and see this word, which has happened, which the Lord has revealed to us.”
{2:16} And they went quickly. And they found Mary and Joseph; and the infant was lying in a manger.
{2:17} Then, upon seeing this, they understood the word that had been spoken to them about this boy.
{2:18} And all who heard it were amazed by this, and by those things which were told to them by the shepherds.
{2:19} But Mary kept all these words, pondering them in her heart.
{2:20} And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, just as it was told to them.
{2:21} And after eight days were ended, so that the boy would be circumcised, his name was called JESUS, just as he was called by the Angel before he was conceived in the womb.
{2:22} And after the days of her purification were fulfilled, according to the law of Moses, they brought him to Jerusalem, in order to present him to the Lord,
{2:23} just as it is written in the law of the Lord, “For every male opening the womb shall be called holy to the Lord,”
{2:24} and in order to offer a sacrifice, according to what is said in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”
{2:25} And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and God-fearing, awaiting the consolation of Israel. And the Holy Spirit was with him.
{2:26} And he had received an answer from the Holy Spirit: that he would not see his own death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord.
{2:27} And he went with the Spirit to the temple. And when the child Jesus was brought in by his parents, in order to act on his behalf according to the custom of the law,
{2:28} he also took him up, into his arms, and he blessed God and said:
{2:29} “Now you may dismiss your servant in peace, O Lord, according to your word.
{2:30} For my eyes have seen your salvation,
{2:31} which you have prepared before the face of all peoples:
{2:32} the light of revelation to the nations and the glory of your people Israel.”
{2:33} And his father and mother were wondering over these things, which were spoken about him.
{2:34} And Simeon blessed them, and he said to his mother Mary: “Behold, this one has been set for the ruin and for the resurrection of many in Israel, and as a sign which will be contradicted.
{2:35} And a sword will pass through your own soul, so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
{2:36} And there was a prophetess, Anna, a daughter of Phanuel, from the tribe of Asher. She was very advanced in years, and she had lived with her husband for seven years from her virginity.
{2:37} And then she was a widow, even to her eighty-fourth year. And without departing from the temple, she was a servant to fasting and prayer, night and day.
{2:38} And entering at the same hour, she confessed to the Lord. And she spoke about him to all who were awaiting the redemption of Israel.
{2:39} And after they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their city, Nazareth.
{2:40} Now the child grew, and he was strengthened with the fullness of wisdom. And the grace of God was in him.
{2:41} And his parents went every year to Jerusalem, at the time of the solemnity of Passover.
{2:42} And when he had become twelve years old, they ascended to Jerusalem, according to the custom of the feast day.
{2:43} And having completed the days, when they returned, the boy Jesus remained in Jerusalem. And his parents did not realize this.
{2:44} But, supposing that he was in the company, they went a day’s journey, seeking him among their relatives and acquaintances.
{2:45} And not finding him, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking him.
{2:46} And it happened that, after three days, they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, listening to them and questioning them.
{2:47} But all who listened to him were astonished over his prudence and his responses.
{2:48} And upon seeing him, they wondered. And his mother said to him: “Son, why have you acted this way toward us? Behold, your father and I were seeking you in sorrow.”
{2:49} And he said to them: “How is it that you were seeking me? For did you not know that it is necessary for me to be in these things which are of my Father?”
{2:50} And they did not understand the word that he spoke to them.
{2:51} And he descended with them and went to Nazareth. And he was subordinate to them. And his mother kept all these words in her heart.
{2:52} And Jesus advanced in wisdom, and in age, and in grace, with God and men.
{3:1} Then, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being procurator of Judea, and Herod tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of Ituraea and of the region of Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene,
{3:2} under the high priests Annas and Caiaphas: the word of the Lord came to John, the son of Zechariah, in the wilderness.
{3:3} And he went into the entire region of the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins,
{3:4} just as it has been written in the book of the sermons of the prophet Isaiah: “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight his paths.
{3:5} Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low. And what is crooked shall be made straight. And the rough paths shall be made into level ways.
{3:6} And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”
{3:7} Therefore, he said to the crowd that went out in order to be baptized by him: “You progeny of vipers! Who told you to flee from the approaching wrath?
{3:8} So then, produce fruits worthy of repentance. And do not begin to say, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that God has the power to raise up sons to Abraham from these stones.
{3:9} For even now the axe has been placed at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that does not produce good fruit shall be cut down and cast into the fire.”
{3:10} And the crowed was questioning him, saying, “What then should we do?”
{3:11} But in response, he said to them: “Whoever has two coats, let him give to those who do not have. And whoever has food, let him act similarly.”
{3:12} Now the tax collectors also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?”
{3:13} But he said to them, “You should do nothing more than what has been appointed to you.”
{3:14} Then the soldiers also questioned him, saying, “And what should we do?” And he said to them: “You should strike no one, and you should not make false accusations. And be content with your pay.”
{3:15} Now all were thinking about John in their hearts, and the people were supposing that perhaps he might be the Christ.
{3:16} John responded by saying to everyone: “Indeed, I baptize you with water. But there will arrive one stronger than me, the laces of whose shoes I am not worthy to loosen. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit, and with fire.
{3:17} His winnowing fan is in his hand. And he will purify his threshing floor. And he will gather the wheat into the barn. But the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
{3:18} Indeed, he also proclaimed many other things, exhorting the people.
{3:19} But Herod the tetrarch, when he was corrected by him concerning Herodias, his brother’s wife, and concerning all the evils that Herod had done,
{3:20} added this also, above all else: that he confined John to prison.
{3:21} Now it happened that, when all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized; and as he was praying, heaven was opened.
{3:22} And the Holy Spirit, in a corporal appearance like a dove, descended upon him. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my beloved Son. In you, I am well pleased.”
{3:23} And Jesus himself was beginning to be about thirty years old, being (as it was supposed) the son of Joseph, who was of Heli, who was of Matthat,
{3:24} who was of Levi, who was of Melchi, who was of Jannai, who was of Joseph,
{3:25} who was of Mattathias, who was of Amos, who was of Nahum, who was of Esli, who was of Naggai,
{3:26} who was of Maath, who was of Mattathias, who was of Semein, who was of Josech, who was of Joda,
{3:27} who was of Joanan, who was of Rhesa, who was of Zerubbabel, who was of Shealtiel, who was of Neri,
{3:28} who was of Melchi, who was of Addi, who was of Cosam, who was of Elmadam, who was of Er,
{3:29} who was of Joshua, who was of Eliezer, who was of Jorim, who was of Matthat, who was of Levi,
{3:30} who was of Simeon, who was of Judah, who was of Joseph, who was of Jonam, who was of Eliakim,
{3:31} who was of Melea, who was of Menna, who was of Mattatha, who was of Nathan, who was of David,
{3:32} who was of Jesse, who was of Obed, who was of Boaz, who was of Salmon, who was of Nahshon,
{3:33} who was of Amminadab, who was of Aram, who was of Hezron, who was of Perez, who was of Judah,
{3:34} who was of Jacob, who was of Isaac, who was of Abraham, who was of Terah, who was of Nahor,
{3:35} who was of Serug, who was of Reu, who was of Peleg, who was of Eber, who was of Shelah,
{3:36} who was of Cainan, who was of Arphaxad, who was of Shem, who was of Noah, who was of Lamech,
{3:37} who was of Methuselah, who was of Enoch, who was of Jared, who was of Mahalalel, who was of Cainan,
{3:38} who was of Enos, who was of Seth, who was of Adam, who was of God.
{4:1} And Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan. And he was urged by the Spirit into the wilderness
{4:2} for forty days, and he was tested by the devil. And he ate nothing in those days. And when they were completed, he was hungry.
{4:3} Then the devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, speak to this stone, so that it may be made into bread.”
{4:4} And Jesus answered him, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’ ”
{4:5} And the devil led him onto a high mountain, and he showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time,
{4:6} and he said to him: “To you, I will give all this power, and its glory. For they have been handed over to me, and I give them to whomever I wish.
{4:7} Therefore, if you will worship before me, all will be yours.”
{4:8} And in response, Jesus said to him: “It is written: ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him alone.’ ”
{4:9} And he brought him to Jerusalem, and he set him on the parapet of the temple, and he said to him: “If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down from here.
{4:10} For it is written that he has given his Angels charge over you, so that they may guard you,
{4:11} and so that they may take you into their hands, lest perhaps you may hurt your foot against a stone.”
{4:12} And in response, Jesus said to him, “It is said: ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’ ”
{4:13} And when all the temptation was completed, the devil withdrew from him, until a time.
{4:14} And Jesus returned, in the power of the Spirit, into Galilee. And his fame spread throughout the entire region.
{4:15} And he taught in their synagogues, and he was magnified by everyone.
{4:16} And he went to Nazareth, where he had been raised. And he entered into the synagogue, according to his custom, on the Sabbath day. And he rose up to read.
{4:17} And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. And as he unrolled the book, he found the place where it was written:
{4:18} “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me; because of this, he has anointed me. He has sent me to evangelize the poor, to heal the contrite of heart,
{4:19} to preach forgiveness to captives and sight to the blind, to release the broken into forgiveness, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord and the day of retribution.”
{4:20} And when he had rolled up the book, he returned it to the minister, and he sat down. And the eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fixed on him.
{4:21} Then he began to say to them, “On this day, this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
{4:22} And everyone gave testimony to him. And they wondered at the words of grace that proceeded from his mouth. And they said, “Is this not the son of Joseph?”
{4:23} And he said to them: “Certainly, you will recite to me this saying, ‘Physician, heal yourself.’ The many great things that we have heard were done in Capernaum, do here also in your own country.”
{4:24} Then he said: “Amen I say to you, that no prophet is accepted in his own country.
{4:25} In truth, I say to you, there were many widows in the days of Elijah in Israel, when the heavens were closed for three years and six months, when a great famine had occurred throughout the entire land.
{4:26} And to none of these was Elijah sent, except to Zarephath of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.
{4:27} And there were many lepers in Israel under the prophet Elisha. And none of these was cleansed, except Naaman the Syrian.”
{4:28} And all those in the synagogue, upon hearing these things, were filled with anger.
{4:29} And they rose up and drove him beyond the city. And they brought him all the way to the edge of the mount, upon which their city had been built, so that they might throw him down violently.
{4:30} But passing through their midst, he went away.
{4:31} And he descended to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And there he taught them on the Sabbaths.
{4:32} And they were astonished at his doctrine, for his word was spoken with authority.
{4:33} And in the synagogue, there was a man who had an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice,
{4:34} saying: “Let us alone. What are we to you, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know you who you are: the Holy One of God.”
{4:35} And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent and depart from him.” And when the demon had thrown him into their midst, he departed from him, and he no longer harmed him.
{4:36} And fear fell over them all. And they discussed this among themselves, saying: “What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they depart.”
{4:37} And his fame spread to every place in the region.
{4:38} Then Jesus, rising up from the synagogue, entered into the house of Simon. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in the grip of a severe fever. And they petitioned him on her behalf.
{4:39} And standing over her, he commanded the fever, and it left her. And promptly rising up, she ministered to them.
{4:40} Then, when the sun had set, all those who had anyone afflicted with various diseases brought them to him. Then, laying his hands on each one of them, he cured them.
{4:41} Now demons departed from many of them, crying out and saying, “You are the son of God.” And rebuking them, he would not permit them to speak. For they knew him to be the Christ.
{4:42} Then, when it was daytime, going out, he went to a deserted place. And the crowds sought him, and they went all the way to him. And they detained him, so that he would not depart from them.
{4:43} And he said to them, “I must also preach the kingdom of God to other cities, because it was for this reason that I was sent.”
{4:44} And he was preaching in the synagogues of Galilee.
{5:1} Now it happened that, when the crowds pressed toward him, so that they might hear the word of God, he was standing beside the lake of Genesaret.
{5:2} And he saw two boats standing beside the lake. But the fishermen had climbed down, and they were washing their nets.
{5:3} And so, climbing into one of the boats, which belonged to Simon, he asked him to draw back a little from the land. And sitting down, he taught the crowds from the boat.
{5:4} Then, when he had ceased speaking, he said to Simon, “Lead us into deep water, and release your nets for a catch.”
{5:5} And in response, Simon said to him: “Teacher, working throughout the night, we caught nothing. But on your word, I will release the net.”
{5:6} And when they had done this, they enclosed such a copious multitude of fish that their net was rupturing.
{5:7} And they signaled to their associates, who were in the other boat, so that they would come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they were nearly submerged.
{5:8} But when Simon Peter had seen this, he fell down at the knees of Jesus, saying, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.”
{5:9} For astonishment had enveloped him, and all who were with him, at the catch of fish that they had taken.
{5:10} Now the same was true of James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were associates of Simon. And Jesus said to Simon: “Do not be afraid. From now on, you will be catching men.”
{5:11} And having led their boats to land, leaving behind everything, they followed him.
{5:12} And it happened that, while he was in a certain city, behold, there was a man full of leprosy who, upon seeing Jesus and falling to his face, petitioned him, saying: “Lord, if you are willing, you are able to cleanse me.”
{5:13} And extending his hand, he touched him, saying: “I am willing. Be cleansed.” And at once, the leprosy departed from him.
{5:14} And he instructed him that he should tell no one, “But go, show yourself to the priest, and make the offering for your cleansing, just as Moses has commanded, as a testimony for them.”
{5:15} Yet word of him traveled around all the more. And great crowds came together, so that they might listen and be cured by him from their infirmities.
{5:16} And he withdrew into the desert and prayed.
{5:17} And it happened, on a certain day, that he again sat down, teaching. And there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting nearby, who had come from every town of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was present, to heal them.
{5:18} And behold, some men were carrying in the bed of a man who was paralyzed. And they sought a way to bring him in, and to place him before him.
{5:19} And not finding a way by which they might bring him in, because of the crowd, they climbed up to the roof, and they let him down through the roof tiles with his bed, into their midst, in front of Jesus.
{5:20} And when he saw his faith, he said, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.”
{5:21} And the scribes and Pharisees began to think, saying: “Who is this, who is speaking blasphemies? Who is able to forgive sins, except God alone?”
{5:22} But when Jesus realized their thoughts, responding, he said to them: “What are you thinking in your hearts?
{5:23} Which is easier to say: ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise up and walk?’
{5:24} But so that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins,” he said to the paralytic, “I say to you to: Rise up, take up your bed, and go into your house.”
{5:25} And at once, rising up in their sight, he took up the bed on which he was lying, and he went away to his own house, magnifying God.
{5:26} And astonishment took hold of everyone, and they were magnifying God. And they were filled with fear, saying: “For we have seen miracles today.”
{5:27} And after these things, he went out, and he saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the customs office. And he said to him, “Follow me.”
{5:28} And leaving behind everything, rising up, he followed him.
{5:29} And Levi made a great feast for him in his own house. And there was a large crowd of tax collectors and others, who were sitting at table with them.
{5:30} But the Pharisees and scribes were murmuring, saying to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”
{5:31} And responding, Jesus said to them: “It is not those who are well who need a doctor, but those who have maladies.
{5:32} I have not come to call the just, but sinners to repentance.”
{5:33} But they said to him, “Why do the disciples of John fast frequently, and make supplications, and those of the Pharisees act similarly, while yours eat and drink?”
{5:34} And he said to them: “How can you cause the sons of the groom to fast, while the groom is still with them?
{5:35} But the days will come when the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast, in those days.”
{5:36} Then he also made a comparison for them: “For no one sews a patch from a new garment onto an old garment. Otherwise, he both disrupts the new one, and the patch from the new one does not join together with the old one.
{5:37} And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine ruptures the wineskins, and it will be poured out, and the wineskins will be lost.
{5:38} Instead, the new wine is put into new wineskins, and both are preserved.
{5:39} And no one who is drinking the old, soon wishes for the new. For he says, ‘The old is better.’ ”
{6:1} Now it happened that, on the second first Sabbath, as he passed through the grain field, his disciples were separating the ears of grain and eating them, by rubbing them in their hands.
{6:2} Then certain Pharisees said to them, “Why are you doing what is not lawful on the Sabbaths?”
{6:3} And responding to them, Jesus said: “Have you not read this, what David did when he was hungry, and those who were with him?
{6:4} How he entered into the house of God, and took the bread of the Presence, and ate it, and gave it to those who were with him, though it is not lawful for anyone to eat it, except the priests alone?”
{6:5} And he said to them, “For the Son of man is Lord, even of the Sabbath.”
{6:6} And it happened that, on another Sabbath, he entered into the synagogue, and he taught. And there was a man there, and his right hand was withered.
{6:7} And the scribes and Pharisees observed whether he would heal on the Sabbath, so that they might thereby find an accusation against him.
{6:8} Yet truly, he knew their thoughts, and so he said to the man who had the withered hand, “Rise up and stand in the middle.” And rising up, he stood still.
{6:9} Then Jesus said to them: “I ask you if it is lawful on the Sabbaths to do good, or to do evil? To give health to a life, or to destroy it?”
{6:10} And looking around at everyone, he said to the man, “Extend your hand.” And he extended it. And his hand was restored.
{6:11} Then they were filled with madness, and they discussed with one another, what, in particular, they might do about Jesus.
{6:12} And it happened that, in those days, he went out to a mountain to pray. And he was in the prayer of God throughout the night.
{6:13} And when daylight had arrived, he called his disciples. And he chose twelve out of them (whom he also named Apostles):
{6:14} Simon, whom he surnamed Peter, and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,
{6:15} Matthew and Thomas, James of Alphaeus, and Simon who is called the Zealot,
{6:16} and Jude of James, and Judas Iscariot, who was a traitor.
{6:17} And descending with them, he stood in a level place with a multitude of his disciples, and a copious multitude of people from all of Judea and Jerusalem and the seacoast, and Tyre and Sidon,
{6:18} who had come so that they might listen to him and be healed of their diseases. And those who were troubled by unclean spirits were cured.
{6:19} And the entire crowd was trying to touch him, because power went out from him and healed all.
{6:20} And lifting up his eyes to his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
{6:21} Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who are weeping now, for you shall laugh.
{6:22} Blessed shall you be when men will have hated you, and when they will have separated you and reproached you, and thrown out your name as if evil, because of the Son of man.
{6:23} Be glad in that day and exult. For behold, your reward is great in heaven. For these same things their fathers did to the prophets.
{6:24} Yet truly, woe to you who are wealthy, for you have your consolation.
{6:25} Woe to you who are satisfied, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.
{6:26} Woe to you when men will have blessed you. For these same things their fathers did to the false prophets.
{6:27} But I say to you who are listening: Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you.
{6:28} Bless those who curse you, and pray for those who slander you.
{6:29} And to him who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your coat, do not withhold even your tunic.
{6:30} But distribute to all who ask of you. And do not ask again of him who takes away what is yours.
{6:31} And exactly as you would want people to treat you, treat them also the same.
{6:32} And if you love those who love you, what credit is due to you? For even sinners love those who love them.
{6:33} And if you will do good to those who do good to you, what credit is due to you? Indeed, even sinners behave this way.
{6:34} And if you will loan to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is due to you? For even sinners lend to sinners, in order to receive the same in return.
{6:35} So truly, love your enemies. Do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return. And then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and to the wicked.
{6:36} Therefore, be merciful, just as your Father is also merciful.
{6:37} Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
{6:38} Give, and it will be given to you: a good measure, pressed down and shaken together and overflowing, they will place upon your lap. Certainly, the same measure that you use to measure out, will be used to measure back to you again.”
{6:39} Now he told them another comparison: “How can the blind lead the blind? Would they not both fall into a pit?
{6:40} The disciple is not above his teacher. But each one will be perfected, if he is like his teacher.
{6:41} And why do you see the straw that is in your brother’s eye, while the log that is in your own eye, you do not consider?
{6:42} Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, allow me to remove the straw from your eye,’ while you yourself do not see the log in your own eye? Hypocrite, first remove the log from your own eye, and then will you see clearly, so that you may lead out the straw from your brother’s eye.
{6:43} For there is no good tree which produces bad fruit, nor does an evil tree produce good fruit.
{6:44} For each and every tree is known by its fruit. For they do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather the grape from the bramble bush.
{6:45} A good man, from the good storehouse of his heart, offers what is good. And an evil man, from the evil storehouse, offers what is evil. For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
{6:46} But why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I say?
{6:47} Anyone who comes to me, and listens to my words, and does them: I will reveal to you what he is like.
{6:48} He is like a man building a house, who has dug deep and has laid the foundation upon the rock. Then, when the floodwaters came, the river was rushing against that house, and it was not able to move it. For it was founded upon the rock.
{6:49} But whoever hears and does not do: he is like a man building his house upon the soil, without a foundation. The river rushed against it, and it soon fell down, and the ruin of that house was great.”
{7:1} And when he had completed all his words in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum.
{7:2} Now the servant of a certain centurion was dying, due to an illness. And he was very dear to him.
{7:3} And when he had heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to him, petitioning him, so that he would come and heal his servant.
{7:4} And when they had come to Jesus, they petitioned him anxiously, saying to him: “He is worthy that you should provide this to him.
{7:5} For he loves our nation, and he has built a synagogue for us.”
{7:6} Then Jesus went with them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying: “Lord, do not trouble yourself. For I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof.
{7:7} Because of this, I also did not consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant shall be healed.
{7:8} For I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
{7:9} And upon hearing this, Jesus was amazed. And turning to the multitude following him, he said, “Amen I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith.”
{7:10} And those who had been sent, upon returning to the house, found that the servant, who had been sick, was now healthy.
{7:11} And it happened afterwards that he went to a city, which is called Nain. And his disciples, and an abundant crowd, went with him.
{7:12} Then, when he had drawn near to the gate of the city, behold, a deceased person was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her.
{7:13} And when the Lord had seen her, being moved by mercy over her, he said to her, “Do not weep.”
{7:14} And he drew near and touched the coffin. Then those who carried it stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.”
{7:15} And the dead youth sat up and began to speak. And he gave him to his mother.
{7:16} Then fear fell over all of them. And they magnified God, saying: “For a great prophet has risen up among us,” and, “For God has visited his people.”
{7:17} And this word about him went out to all of Judea and to the entire surrounding region.
{7:18} And the disciples of John reported to him concerning all these things.
{7:19} And John called two of his disciples, and he sent them to Jesus, saying, “Are you he who is to come, or should we wait for another?”
{7:20} But when the men had come to him, they said: “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying: ‘Are you he who is to come, or should we wait for another?’ ”
{7:21} Now in that same hour, he cured many of their diseases and wounds and evil spirits; and to many of the blind, he gave sight.
{7:22} And responding, he said to them: “Go and report to John what you have heard and seen: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead rise again, the poor are evangelized.
{7:23} And blessed is anyone who has not taken offense at me.”
{7:24} And when the messengers of John had withdrawn, he began to speak about John to the crowds. “What did you go out to the desert to see? A reed shaken by the wind?
{7:25} Then what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Behold, those who are in costly apparel and finery are in the houses of kings.
{7:26} Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Certainly, I tell you, and more than a prophet.
{7:27} This is he of whom it is written: “Behold, I send my Angel before your face, who shall prepare your way before you.”
{7:28} For I say to you, among those born of women, no one is greater than the prophet John the Baptist. But he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”
{7:29} And upon hearing this, all the people and the tax collectors justified God, by being baptized with the baptism of John.
{7:30} But the Pharisees and the experts in the law despised the counsel of God concerning themselves, by not being baptized by him.
{7:31} Then the Lord said: “Therefore, to what shall I compare the men of this generation? And to what are they similar?
{7:32} They are like children sitting in the marketplace, talking with one another, and saying: ‘We sang to you, and you did not dance. We lamented, and you did not weep.’
{7:33} For John the Baptist came, neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’
{7:34} The Son of man came, eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Behold, a voracious man and a drinker of wine, a friend of tax collectors and of sinners.’
{7:35} But wisdom is justified by all her children.”
{7:36} Then certain Pharisees petitioned him, so that they might eat with him. And he went into the house of the Pharisee, and he reclined at table.
{7:37} And behold, a woman who was in the city, a sinner, found out that he was reclining at table in the house of the Pharisee, so she brought an alabaster container of ointment.
{7:38} And standing behind him, beside his feet, she began to wash his feet with tears, and she wiped them with the hair of her head, and she kissed his feet, and she anointed them with ointment.
{7:39} Then the Pharisee, who had invited him, upon seeing this, spoke within himself, saying, “This man, if he were a prophet, would certainly know who and what kind of woman is this, who is touching him: that she is a sinner.”
{7:40} And in response, Jesus said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” So he said, “Speak, Teacher.”
{7:41} “A certain creditor had two debtors: one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.
{7:42} And since they did not have the ability to repay him, he forgave them both. So then, which of them loves him more?”
{7:43} In response, Simon said, “I suppose that it is he to whom he forgave the most.” And he said to him, “You have judged correctly.”
{7:44} And turning to the woman, he said to Simon: “Do you see this woman? I entered into your house. You gave me no water for my feet. But she has washed my feet with tears, and has wiped them with her hair.
{7:45} You gave no kiss to me. But she, from the time that she entered, has not ceased to kiss my feet.
{7:46} You did not anoint my head with oil. But she has anointed my feet with ointment.
{7:47} Because of this, I tell you: many sins are forgiven her, because she has loved much. But he who is forgiven less, loves less.”
{7:48} Then he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven you.”
{7:49} And those who sat at table with him began to say within themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?”
{7:50} Then he said to the woman: “Your faith has brought you salvation. Go in peace.”
{8:1} And it happened afterwards that he was making a journey through the cities and towns, preaching and evangelizing the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him,
{8:2} along with certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, who is called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had departed,
{8:3} and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many other women, who were ministering to him from their resources.
{8:4} Then, when a very numerous crowd was gathering together and hurrying from the cities to him, he spoke using a comparison:
{8:5} “The sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell beside the way; and it was trampled and the birds of the air devoured it.
{8:6} And some fell upon rock; and having sprung up, it withered away, because it had no moisture.
{8:7} And some fell among thorns; and the thorns, rising up with it, suffocated it.
{8:8} And some fell upon good soil; and having sprung up, it produced fruit one hundredfold.” As he said these things, he cried out, “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”
{8:9} Then his disciples questioned him as to what this parable might mean.
{8:10} And he said to them: “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God. But to the rest, it is in parables, so that: seeing, they may not perceive, and hearing, they may not understand.
{8:11} Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
{8:12} And those beside the way are those who hear it, but then the devil comes and takes the word from their heart, lest by believing it they may be saved.
{8:13} Now those upon rock are those who, when they hear it, accept the word with joy, but these have no roots. So they believe for a time, but in a time of testing, they fall away.
{8:14} And those which fell among thorns are those who have heard it, but as they go along, they are suffocated by the concerns and riches and pleasures of this life, and so they do not yield fruit.
{8:15} But those which were on good soil are those who, upon hearing the word with a good and noble heart, retain it, and they bring forth fruit in patience.
{8:16} Now no one, lighting a candle, covers it with a container, or sets it under a bed. Instead, he places it on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light.
{8:17} For there is nothing secret, which will not be made clear, nor is there anything hidden, which will not be known and be brought into plain sight.
{8:18} Therefore, take care how you listen. For whoever has, it will be given to him; and whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has will be taken away from him.”
{8:19} Then his mother and brothers came to him; but they were not able to go to him because of the crowd.
{8:20} And it was reported to him, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.”
{8:21} And in response, he said to them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”
{8:22} Now it happened, on a certain day, that he climbed into a little boat with his disciples. And he said to them, “Let us make a crossing over the lake.” And they embarked.
{8:23} And as they were sailing, he slept. And a windstorm descended over the lake. And they were taking on water and were in danger.
{8:24} Then, drawing near, they awakened him, saying, “Teacher, we are perishing.” But as he rose up, he rebuked the wind and the raging water, and they ceased. And a tranquility occurred.
{8:25} Then he said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they, being afraid, were amazed, saying to one another, “Who do you think this is, so that he commands both wind and sea, and they obey him?”
{8:26} And they sailed to the region of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee.
{8:27} And when he had gone out to the land, a certain man met him, who had now had a demon for a long time. And he did not wear clothes, nor did he stay in a house, but among the sepulchers.
{8:28} And when he saw Jesus, he fell down before him. And crying out in a loud voice, he said: “What is there between me and you, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you not to torture me.”
{8:29} For he was ordering the unclean spirit to depart from the man. For on many occasions, it would seize him, and he was bound with chains and held by fetters. But breaking the chains, he was driven by the demon into deserted places.
{8:30} Then Jesus questioned him, saying, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion,” because many demons had entered into him.
{8:31} And they petitioned him not to order them to go into the abyss.
{8:32} And in that place, there was a herd of many swine, pasturing on the mountain. And they petitioned him to permit them to enter into them. And he permitted them.
{8:33} Therefore, the demons departed from the man, and they entered into the swine. And the herd rushed violently down a precipice into the lake, and they were drowned.
{8:34} And when those who were pasturing them had seen this, they fled and reported it in the city and the villages.
{8:35} Then they went out to see what was happening, and they came to Jesus. And they found the man, from whom the demons had departed, sitting at his feet, clothed as well as in a sane mind, and they were afraid.
{8:36} Then those who had seen this also reported to them how he had been healed from the legion.
{8:37} And the entire multitude from the region of the Gerasenes pleaded with him to depart from them. For they were seized by a great fear. Then, climbing into the boat, he went back again.
{8:38} And the man from whom the demons had departed pleaded with him, so that he might be with him. But Jesus sent him away, saying,
{8:39} “Return to your house and explain to them what great things God has done for you.” And he traveled through the entire city, preaching about the great things that Jesus had done for him.
{8:40} Now it happened that, when Jesus had returned, the crowd received him. For they were all waiting for him.
{8:41} And behold, a man came, whose name was Jairus, and he was a leader of the synagogue. And he fell down at the feet of Jesus, asking him to enter into his house.
{8:42} For he had an only daughter, nearly twelve years old, and she was dying. And it happened that, as he was going there, he was hemmed in by the crowd.
{8:43} And there was a certain woman, with a flow of blood for twelve years, who had paid out all her substance on physicians, and she was unable to be cured by any of them.
{8:44} She approached him from behind, and she touched the hem of his garment. And at once the flow of her blood stopped.
{8:45} And Jesus said, “Who is it that touched me?” But as everyone was denying it, Peter, and those who were with him, said: “Teacher, the crowd hems you in and presses upon you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’ ”
{8:46} And Jesus said: “Someone has touched me. For I know that power has gone out from me.”
{8:47} Then the woman, upon seeing that she was not hidden, came forward, trembling, and she fell down before his feet. And she declared before all the people the reason that she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed.
{8:48} But he said to her: “Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”
{8:49} While he was still speaking, someone came to the ruler of the synagogue, saying to him: “Your daughter is dead. Do not trouble him.”
{8:50} Then Jesus, upon hearing this word, replied to the father of the girl: “Do not be afraid. Only believe, and she will be saved.”
{8:51} And when he had arrived at the house, he would not permit anyone to enter with him, except Peter and James and John, and the father and mother of the girl.
{8:52} Now all were weeping and mourning for her. But he said: “Do not weep. The girl is not dead, but only sleeping.”
{8:53} And they derided him, knowing that she had died.
{8:54} But he, taking her by the hand, cried out, saying, “Little girl, arise.”
{8:55} And her spirit returned, and she immediately rose up. And he ordered them to give her something to eat.
{8:56} And her parents were stupefied. And he instructed them not to tell anyone what had happened.
{9:1} Then calling together the twelve Apostles, he gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases.
{9:2} And he sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the infirm.
{9:3} And he said to them: “You should take nothing for the journey, neither staff, nor traveling bag, nor bread, nor money; and you should not have two tunics.
{9:4} And into whatever house you shall enter, lodge there, and do not move away from there.
{9:5} And whoever will not have received you, upon departing from that city, shake off even the dust on your feet, as a testimony against them.”
{9:6} And going forth, they traveled around, through the towns, evangelizing and curing everywhere.
{9:7} Now Herod the tetrarch heard about all the things that were being done by him, but he doubted, because it was said
{9:8} by some, “For John has risen from the dead,” yet truly, by others, “For Elijah has appeared,” and by still others, “For one of the prophets from of old has risen again.”
{9:9} And Herod said: “I beheaded John. So then, who is this, about whom I hear such things?” And he sought to see him.
{9:10} And when the Apostles returned, they explained to him all the things that they had done. And taking them with him, he withdrew to a deserted place apart, which belongs to Bethsaida.
{9:11} But when the crowd had realized this, they followed him. And he received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God. And those who were in need of cures, he healed.
{9:12} Then the day began to decline. And drawing near, the twelve said to him: “Dismiss the crowds, so that, by going into the surrounding towns and villages, they may separate and find food. For we are here in a deserted place.”
{9:13} But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said, “There is with us no more than five loaves and two fish, unless perhaps we are to go and buy food for this entire multitude.”
{9:14} Now there were about five thousand men. So he said to his disciples, “Have them recline to eat in groups of fifty.”
{9:15} And they did so. And they caused them all to recline to eat.
{9:16} Then, taking the five loaves and the two fish, he gazed up to heaven, and he blessed and broke and distributed them to his disciples, in order to set them before the crowd.
{9:17} And they all ate and were satisfied. And twelve baskets of fragments were taken up, which were left over from them.
{9:18} And it happened that, when he was praying alone, his disciples also were with him, and he questioned them, saying: “Who do the multitudes say that I am?”
{9:19} But they answered by saying: “John the Baptist. But some say Elijah. Yet truly, others say that one of the prophets from before has risen again.”
{9:20} Then he said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” In response, Simon Peter said, “The Christ of God.”
{9:21} But speaking sharply to them, he instructed them not to tell this to anyone,
{9:22} saying, “For the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and the leaders of the priests and the scribes, and be killed, and on the third day rise again.”
{9:23} Then he said to everyone: “If anyone is willing to come after me: let him deny himself, and take up his cross every day, and follow me.
{9:24} For whoever will have saved his life, will lose it. Yet whoever will have lost his life for my sake, will save it.
{9:25} For how does it benefit a man, if he were to gain the whole world, yet lose himself, or cause himself harm?
{9:26} For whoever will be ashamed of me and of my words: of him the Son of man will be ashamed, when he will have arrived in his majesty and that of his Father and of the holy Angels.
{9:27} And yet, I tell you a truth: There are some standing here who shall not taste death, until they see the kingdom of God.”
{9:28} And it happened that, about eight days after these words, he took Peter and James and John, and he ascended onto a mountain, so that he might pray.
{9:29} And while he was praying, the appearance of his countenance was altered, and his vestment became white and shining.
{9:30} And behold, two men were talking with him. And these were Moses and Elijah, appearing in majesty.
{9:31} And they spoke of his departure, which he would accomplish at Jerusalem.
{9:32} Yet truly, Peter and those who were with him were weighed down by sleep. And becoming alert, they saw his majesty and the two men who were standing with him.
{9:33} And it happened that, as these were departing from him, Peter said to Jesus: “Teacher, it is good for us to be here. And so, let us make three tabernacles: one for you, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” For he did not know what he was saying.
{9:34} Then, as he was saying these things, a cloud came and overshadowed them. And as these were entering into the cloud, they were afraid.
{9:35} And a voice came from the cloud, saying: “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”
{9:36} And while the voice was being uttered, Jesus was found to be alone. And they were silent and told no one, in those days, any of these things, which they had seen.
{9:37} But it happened on the following day that, as they were descending from the mountain, a great crowd met him.
{9:38} And behold, a man from the crowd cried out, saying, “Teacher, I beg you, look kindly on my son, for he is my only son.
{9:39} And behold, a spirit takes hold of him, and he suddenly cries out, and it throws him down and convulses him, so that he foams. And though it tears him apart, it leaves him only with difficulty.
{9:40} And I asked your disciples to cast him out, and they were unable.”
{9:41} And in response, Jesus said: “O unfaithful and perverse generation! How long will I be with you and endure you? Bring your son here.”
{9:42} And as he was approaching him, the demon threw him down and convulsed him.
{9:43} And Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and he healed the boy, and he restored him to his father.
{9:44} And all were astonished at the greatness of God. And as everyone was wondering over all that he was doing, he said to his disciples: “You must set these words in your hearts. For it shall be that the Son of man will be delivered into the hands of men.”
{9:45} But they did not understand this word, and it was concealed from them, so that they did not perceive it. And they were afraid to question him about this word.
{9:46} Now an idea entered into them, as to which of them was greater.
{9:47} But Jesus, perceiving the thoughts of their hearts, took a child and stood him beside him.
{9:48} And he said to them: “Whoever will receive this child in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives him who sent me. For whoever is the lesser among you all, the same is greater.”
{9:49} And responding, John said: “Teacher, we saw a certain one casting out demons in your name. And we prohibited him, for he does not follow with us.”
{9:50} And Jesus said to him: “Do not prohibit him. For whoever is not against you, is for you.”
{9:51} Now it happened that, while the days of his dissipation were being completed, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem.
{9:52} And he sent messengers before his face. And going on, they entered into a city of the Samaritans, to prepare for him.
{9:53} And they would not receive him, because his face was going toward Jerusalem.
{9:54} And when his disciples, James and John, had seen this, they said, “Lord, do you want us to call for fire to descend from heaven and consume them?”
{9:55} And turning, he rebuked them, saying: “Do you not know of whose spirit you are?
{9:56} The Son of man came, not to destroy lives, but to save them.” And they went into another town.
{9:57} And it happened that, as they were walking along the way, someone said to him, “I will follow you, wherever you will go.”
{9:58} Jesus said to him: “Foxes have dens, and the birds of the air have nests. But the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.”
{9:59} Then he said to another, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.”
{9:60} And Jesus said to him: “Let the dead bury their dead. But you go and announce the kingdom of God.”
{9:61} And another said: “I will follow you, Lord. But permit me first to explain this to those of my house.”
{9:62} Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow, and then looks back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”
{10:1} Then, after these things, the Lord also designated another seventy-two. And he sent them in pairs before his face, into every city and place where he was to arrive.
{10:2} And he said to them: “Certainly the harvest is great, but the workers are few. Therefore, ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers into his harvest.
{10:3} Go forth. Behold, I send you out like lambs among wolves.
{10:4} Do not choose to carry a purse, nor provisions, nor shoes; and you shall greet no one along the way.
{10:5} Into whatever house you will have entered, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’
{10:6} And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you.
{10:7} And remain in the same house, eating and drinking the things that are with them. For the worker is worthy of his pay. Do not choose to pass from house to house.
{10:8} And into whatever city you have entered and they have received you, eat what they set before you.
{10:9} And cure the sick who are in that place, and proclaim to them, ‘The kingdom of God has drawn near to you.’
{10:10} But into whatever city you have entered and they have not received you, going out into its main streets, say:
{10:11} ‘Even the dust which clings to us from your city, we wipe away against you. Yet know this: the kingdom of God has drawn near.’
{10:12} I say to you, that in that day, Sodom will be forgiven more than that city will be.
{10:13} Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that have been wrought in you, had been wrought in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in haircloth and ashes.
{10:14} Yet truly, Tyre and Sidon will be forgiven more in the judgment than you will be.
{10:15} And as for you, Capernaum, who would be exalted even up to Heaven: you shall be submerged into Hell.
{10:16} Whoever hears you, hears me. And whoever despises you, despises me. And whoever despises me, despises him who sent me.”
{10:17} Then the seventy-two returned with gladness, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us, in your name.”
{10:18} And he said to them: “I was watching as Satan fell like lightning from heaven.
{10:19} Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and upon all the powers of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.
{10:20} Yet truly, do not choose to rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
{10:21} In the same hour, he exulted in the Holy Spirit, and he said: “I confess to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the prudent, and have revealed them to little ones. It is so, Father, because this way was pleasing before you.
{10:22} All things have been delivered to me by my Father. And no one knows who the Son is, except the Father, and who the Father is, except the Son, and those to whom the Son has chosen to reveal him.”
{10:23} And turning to his disciples, he said: “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.
{10:24} For I say to you, that many prophets and kings wanted to see the things that you see, and they did not see them, and to hear the things that you hear, and they did not hear them.”
{10:25} And behold, a certain expert in the law rose up, testing him and saying, “Teacher, what must I do to possess eternal life?”
{10:26} But he said to him: “What is written in the law? How do you read it?”
{10:27} In response, he said: “You shall love the Lord your God from your whole heart, and from your whole soul, and from all your strength, and from all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”
{10:28} And he said to him: “You have answered correctly. Do this, and you will live.”
{10:29} But since he wanted to justify himself, he said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
{10:30} Then Jesus, taking this up, said: “A certain man descended from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he happened upon robbers, who now also plundered him. And inflicting him with wounds, they went away, leaving him behind, half-alive.
{10:31} And it happened that a certain priest was descending along the same way. And seeing him, he passed by.
{10:32} And similarly a Levite, when he was near the place, also saw him, and he passed by.
{10:33} But a certain Samaritan, being on a journey, came near him. And seeing him, he was moved by mercy.
{10:34} And approaching him, he bound up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them. And setting him on his pack animal, he brought him to an inn, and he took care of him.
{10:35} And the next day, he took out two denarii, and he gave them to the proprietor, and he said: ‘Take care of him. And whatever extra you will have spent, I will repay to you at my return.’
{10:36} Which of these three, does it seem to you, was a neighbor to him who fell among the robbers?”
{10:37} Then he said, “The one who acted with mercy toward him.” And Jesus said to him, “Go, and act similarly.”
{10:38} Now it happened that, while they were traveling, he entered into a certain town. And a certain woman, named Martha, received him into her home.
{10:39} And she had a sister, named Mary, who, while sitting beside the Lord’s feet, was listening to his word.
{10:40} Now Martha was continually busying herself with serving. And she stood still and said: “Lord, is it not a concern to you that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore, speak to her, so that she may help me.”
{10:41} And the Lord responded by saying to her: “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled over many things.
{10:42} And yet only one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the best portion, and it shall not be taken away from her.”
{11:1} And it happened that, while he was in a certain place praying, when he ceased, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”
{11:2} And he said to them: “When you are praying, say: Father, may your name be kept holy. May your kingdom come.
{11:3} Give us this day our daily bread.
{11:4} And forgive us our sins, since we also forgive all who are indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.”
{11:5} And he said to them: “Which of you will have a friend and will go to him in the middle of the night, and will say to him: ‘Friend, lend me three loaves,
{11:6} because a friend of mine has arrived from a journey to me, and I do not have anything to set before him.’
{11:7} And from within, he would answer by saying: ‘Do not disturb me. The door is closed now, and my children and I are in bed. I cannot get up and give it to you.’
{11:8} Yet if he will persevere in knocking, I tell you that, even though he would not get up and give it to him because he is a friend, yet due to his continued insistence, he will get up and give him whatever he needs.
{11:9} And so I say to you: Ask, and it shall be given to you. Seek, and you shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened to you.
{11:10} For everyone who asks, receives. And whoever seeks, finds. And whoever knocks, it shall be opened to him.
{11:11} So then, who among you, if he asks his father for bread, he would give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he would give him a serpent, instead of a fish?
{11:12} Or if he will ask for an egg, he would offer to him a scorpion?
{11:13} Therefore, if you, being evil, know how to give good things to your sons, how much more will your Father give, from heaven, a spirit of goodness to those who ask him?”
{11:14} And he was casting out a demon, and the man was mute. But when he had cast out the demon, the mute man spoke, and so the crowds were amazed.
{11:15} But some of them said, “It is by Beelzebub, the leader of demons, that he casts out demons.”
{11:16} And others, testing him, required a sign from heaven of him.
{11:17} But when he perceived their thoughts, he said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself will become desolate, and house will fall upon house.
{11:18} So then, if Satan is also divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that it is by Beelzebub that I cast out demons.
{11:19} But if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your own sons cast them out? Therefore, they shall be your judges.
{11:20} Moreover, if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then certainly the kingdom of God has overtaken you.
{11:21} When a strong armed man guards his entrance, the things that he possesses are at peace.
{11:22} But if a stronger one, overwhelming him, has defeated him, he will take away all his weapons, in which he trusted, and he will distribute his spoils.
{11:23} Whoever is not with me, is against me. And whoever does not gather with me, scatters.
{11:24} When an unclean spirit has departed from a man, he walks through waterless places, seeking rest. And not finding any, he says: ‘I will return to my house, from which I departed.’
{11:25} And when he has arrived, he finds it swept clean and decorated.
{11:26} Then he goes, and he takes in seven other spirits with him, more wicked than himself, and they enter and live there. And so, the end of that man is made worse than the beginning.”
{11:27} And it happened that, when he was saying these things, a certain woman from the crowd, lifting up her voice, said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breasts that nursed you.”
{11:28} Then he said, “Yes, but moreover: blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”
{11:29} Then, as the crowds were quickly gathering, he began to say: “This generation is a wicked generation: it seeks a sign. But no sign will be given to it, except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
{11:30} For just as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of man be to this generation.
{11:31} The queen of the South will rise up, at the judgment, with the men of this generation, and she will condemn them. For she came from the ends of the earth to hear the Wisdom_of_Solomon. And behold, more than Solomon is here.
{11:32} The men of Nineveh will rise up, at the judgment, with this generation, and they will condemn it. For at the preaching of Jonah, they repented. And behold, more than Jonah is here.
{11:33} No one lights a candle and places it in hiding, nor under a bushel basket, but upon a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light.
{11:34} Your eye is the light of your body. If your eye is wholesome, your entire body will be filled with light. But if it is wicked, then even your body will be darkened.
{11:35} Therefore, take care, lest the light that is within you become darkness.
{11:36} So then, if your entire body becomes filled with light, not having any part in darkness, then it will be entirely light, and, like a shining lamp, it will illuminate you.”
{11:37} And as he was speaking, a certain Pharisee asked him to eat with him. And going inside, he sat down to eat.
{11:38} But the Pharisee began to say, thinking within himself: “Why might it be that he has not washed before eating?”
{11:39} And the Lord said to him: “You Pharisees today clean what is outside the cup and the plate, but what is inside of you is full of plunder and iniquity.
{11:40} Fools! Did not he who made what is outside, indeed also make what is inside?
{11:41} Yet truly, give what is above as alms, and behold, all things are clean for you.
{11:42} But woe to you, Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, but you ignore judgment and the charity of God. But these things you ought to have done, without omitting the others.
{11:43} Woe to you, Pharisees! For you love the first seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the marketplace.
{11:44} Woe to you! For you are like graves that are not noticeable, so that men walk over them without realizing it.”
{11:45} Then one of the experts in the law, in response, said to him, “Teacher, in saying these things, you bring an insult against us as well.”
{11:46} So he said: “And woe to you experts in the law! For you weigh men down with burdens which they are not able to bear, but you yourselves do not touch the weight with even one of your fingers.
{11:47} Woe to you, who build the tombs of the prophets, while it is your fathers who killed them!
{11:48} Clearly, you are testifying that you consent to the actions of your fathers, because even though they killed them, you build their sepulchers.
{11:49} Because of this also, the wisdom of God said: I will send to them Prophets and Apostles, and some of these they will kill or persecute,
{11:50} so that the blood of all the Prophets, which has been shed since the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation:
{11:51} from the blood of Abel, even to the blood of Zachariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. So I say to you: it will be required of this generation!
{11:52} Woe to you, experts in the law! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You yourselves do not enter, and those who were entering, you would have prohibited.”
{11:53} Then, while he was saying these things to them, the Pharisees and the experts in the law began to insist strongly that he restrain his mouth about many things.
{11:54} And waiting to ambush him, they sought something from his mouth that they might seize upon, in order to accuse him.
{12:1} Then, as great crowds were standing so close that they were stepping on one another, he began to say to his disciples: “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
{12:2} For there is nothing covered, which will not be revealed, nor anything hidden, which will not be known.
{12:3} For the things that you have spoken in darkness will be declared in the light. And what you have said in the ear in bedrooms will be proclaimed from the housetops.
{12:4} So I say to you, my friends: Do not be fearful of those who kill the body, and afterwards have no more that they can do.
{12:5} But I will reveal to you whom you should fear. Fear him who, after he will have killed, has the power to cast into Hell. So I say to you: Fear him.
{12:6} Are not five sparrows sold for two small coins? And yet not one of these is forgotten in the sight of God.
{12:7} But even the very hairs of your head have all been numbered. Therefore, do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows.
{12:8} But I say to you: Everyone who will have confessed me before men, the Son of man will also confess him before the Angels of God.
{12:9} But everyone who will have denied me before men, he will be denied before the Angels of God.
{12:10} And everyone who speaks a word against the Son of man, it will be forgiven of him. But of him who will have blasphemed against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven.
{12:11} And when they will lead you to the synagogues, and to magistrates and authorities, do not choose to be worried about how or what you will answer, or about what you might say.
{12:12} For the Holy Spirit will teach you, in the same hour, what you must say.”
{12:13} And someone from the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.”
{12:14} But he said to him, “Man, who has appointed me as judge or arbitrator over you?”
{12:15} So he said to them: “Be cautious and wary of all avarice. For a person’s life is not found in the abundance of the things that he possesses.”
{12:16} Then he spoke to them using a comparison, saying: “The fertile land of a certain wealthy man produced crops.
{12:17} And he thought within himself, saying: ‘What should I do? For I have nowhere to gather together my crops.’
{12:18} And he said: ‘This is what I will do. I will tear down my barns and build larger ones. And into these, I will gather all the things that have been grown for me, as well as my goods.
{12:19} And I will say to my soul: Soul, you have many goods, stored up for many years. Relax, eat, drink, and be cheerful.’
{12:20} But God said to him: ‘Foolish one, this very night they require your soul of you. To whom, then, will those things belong, which you have prepared?’
{12:21} So it is with him who stores up for himself, and is not wealthy with God.”
{12:22} And he said to his disciples: “And so I say to you: Do not choose to be anxious about your life, as to what you may eat, nor about your body, as to what you will wear.
{12:23} Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.
{12:24} Consider the ravens. For they neither sow nor reap; there is no storehouse or barn for them. And yet God pastures them. How much more are you, compared to them?
{12:25} But which of you, by thinking, is able to add one cubit to his stature?
{12:26} Therefore, if you are not capable, in what is so little, why be anxious about the rest?
{12:27} Consider the lilies, how they grow. They neither work nor weave. But I say to you, not even Solomon, in all his glory, was clothed like one of these.
{12:28} Therefore, if God so clothes the grass, which is in the field today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, how much more you, O little in faith?
{12:29} And so, do not choose to inquire as to what you will eat, or what you will drink. And do not choose to be lifted up on high.
{12:30} For all these things are sought by the Gentiles of the world. And your Father knows that you have need of these things.
{12:31} Yet truly, seek first the kingdom of God, and his justice, and all these things shall be added to you.
{12:32} Do not be afraid, little flock; for it has pleased your Father to give you the kingdom.
{12:33} Sell what you possess, and give alms. Make for yourselves purses that will not wear out, a treasure that will not fall short, in heaven, where no thief approaches, and no moth corrupts.
{12:34} For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
{12:35} Let your waists be girded, and let lamps be burning in your hands.
{12:36} And let you yourselves be like men awaiting their lord, when he will return from the wedding; so that, when he arrives and knocks, they may open to him promptly.
{12:37} Blessed are those servants whom the Lord, when he returns, will find being vigilant. Amen I say to you, that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, while he, continuing on, will minister to them.
{12:38} And if he will return in the second watch, or if in the third watch, and if he will find them to be so: then blessed are those servants.
{12:39} But know this: that if the father of the family knew at what hour the thief would arrive, he would certainly stand watch, and he would not permit his house to be broken into.
{12:40} You also must be prepared. For the Son of man will return at an hour that you will not realize.”
{12:41} Then Peter said to him, “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or also to everyone?”
{12:42} So the Lord said: “Who do you think is the faithful and prudent steward, whom his Lord has appointed over his family, in order to give them their measure of wheat in due time?
{12:43} Blessed is that servant if, when his Lord will return, he will find him acting in this manner.
{12:44} Truly I say to you, that he will appoint him over all that he possesses.
{12:45} But if that servant will have said in his heart, ‘My Lord has made a delay in his return,’ and if he has begun to strike the men and women servants, and to eat and drink, and to be inebriated,
{12:46} then the Lord of that servant will return on a day which he hoped not, and at an hour which he knew not. And he will separate him, and he will place his portion with that of the unfaithful.
{12:47} And that servant, who knew the will of his Lord, and who did not prepare and did not act according to his will, will be beaten many times over.
{12:48} Yet he who did not know, and who acted in a way that deserves a beating, will be beaten fewer times. So then, of all to whom much has been given, much will be required. And of those to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be asked.
{12:49} I have come to cast a fire upon the earth. And what should I desire, except that it may be kindled?
{12:50} And I have a baptism, with which I am to be baptized. And how I am constrained, even until it may be accomplished!
{12:51} Do you think that I have come to give peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but division.
{12:52} For from this time on, there will be five in one house: divided as three against two, and as two against three.
{12:53} A father will be divided against a son, and a son against his father; a mother against a daughter and a daughter against a mother; a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”
{12:54} And he also said to the crowds: “When you see a cloud rising from the setting of the sun, immediately you say, ‘A rain cloud is coming.’ And so it does.
{12:55} And when a south wind is blowing, you say, ‘It will be hot.’ And so it is.
{12:56} You hypocrites! You discern the face of the heavens, and of the earth, yet how is it that you do not discern this time?
{12:57} And why do you not, even among yourselves, judge what is just?
{12:58} So, when you are going with your adversary to the ruler, while you are on the way, make an effort to be freed from him, lest perhaps he may lead you to the judge, and the judge may deliver you to the officer, and the officer may cast you into prison.
{12:59} I tell you, you will not depart from there, until you have paid the very last coin.”
{13:1} And there were present, at that very time, some who were reporting about the Galileans, whose blood Pilate mixed with their sacrifices.
{13:2} And responding, he said to them: “Do you think that these Galileans must have sinned more than all other Galileans, because they suffered so much?
{13:3} No, I tell you. But unless you repent, you will all perish similarly.
{13:4} And those eighteen upon whom the tower of Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they also were greater transgressors than all the men living in Jerusalem?
{13:5} No, I tell you. But if you do not repent, you will all perish similarly.”
{13:6} And he also told this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree, which was planted in his vineyard. And he came seeking fruit on it, but found none.
{13:7} Then he said to the cultivator of the vineyard: ‘Behold, for these three years I came seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I have found none. Therefore, cut it down. For why should it even occupy the land?’
{13:8} But in response, he said to him: ‘Lord, let it be for this year also, during which time I will dig around it and add fertilizer.
{13:9} And, indeed, it should bear fruit. But if not, in the future, you shall cut it down.’ ”
{13:10} Now he was teaching in their synagogue on the Sabbaths.
{13:11} And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years. And she was bent over; and she was unable to look upwards at all.
{13:12} And when Jesus saw her, he called her to himself, and he said to her, “Woman, you are released from your infirmity.”
{13:13} And he laid his hands upon her, and immediately she was straightened, and she glorified God.
{13:14} Then, as a result, the ruler of the synagogue became angry that Jesus had cured on the Sabbath, and he said to the crowd: “There are six days on which you ought to work. Therefore, come and be cured on those, and not on the day of the Sabbath.”
{13:15} Then the Lord said to him in response: “You hypocrites! Does not each one of you, on the Sabbath, release his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it to water?
{13:16} So then, should not this daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound for lo these eighteen years, be released from this restraint on the day of the Sabbath?”
{13:17} And as he was saying these things, all his adversaries were ashamed. And all the people rejoiced in everything that was being done gloriously by him.
{13:18} And so he said: “To what is the kingdom of God similar, and to what figure shall I compare it?
{13:19} It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took and cast into his garden. And it grew, and it became a great tree, and the birds of the air rested in its branches.”
{13:20} And again, he said: “To what figure shall I compare the kingdom of God?
{13:21} It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of fine wheat flour, until it was entirely leavened.”
{13:22} And he was traveling through the cities and towns, teaching and making his way to Jerusalem.
{13:23} And someone said to him, “Lord, are they few who are saved?” But he said to them:
{13:24} “Strive to enter through the narrow gate. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and not be able.
{13:25} Then, when the father of the family will have entered and shut the door, you will begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us.’ And in response, he will say to you, ‘I do not know where you are from.’
{13:26} Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’
{13:27} And he will say to you: ‘I do not know where you are from. Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity!’
{13:28} In that place, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, yet you yourselves are expelled outside.
{13:29} And they will arrive from the East, and the West, and the North, and the South; and they will recline at table in the kingdom of God.
{13:30} And behold, those who are last will be first, and those who are first will be last.”
{13:31} On the same day, some of the Pharisees approached, saying to him: “Depart, and go away from here. For Herod wishes to kill you.”
{13:32} And he said to them: “Go and tell that fox: ‘Behold, I cast out demons and accomplish healings, today and tomorrow. And on the third day I reach the end.’
{13:33} Yet truly, it is necessary for me to walk today and tomorrow and the following day. For it does not fall to a prophet to perish beyond Jerusalem.
{13:34} Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets, and you stone those who are sent to you. Daily, I wanted to gather together your children, in the manner of a bird with her nest under her wings, but you were not willing!
{13:35} Behold, your house will be left desolate for you. But I say to you, that you shall not see me, until it happens that you say: ‘Blessed is he who has arrived in the name of the Lord.’ ”
{14:1} And it happened that, when Jesus entered the house of a certain leader of the Pharisees on the Sabbath to eat bread, they were observing him.
{14:2} And behold, a certain man before him was afflicted with edema.
{14:3} And responding, Jesus spoke to the experts in the law and to the Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to cure on the Sabbath?”
{14:4} But they kept silent. Yet truly, taking hold of him, he healed him and sent him away.
{14:5} And responding to them, he said, “Which of you will have a donkey or an ox fall into a pit, and will not promptly pull him out, on the day of the Sabbath?”
{14:6} And they were unable to respond to him about these things.
{14:7} Then he also told a parable, to those who were invited, noticing how they chose the first seats at the table, saying to them:
{14:8} “When you are invited to a wedding, do not sit down in the first place, lest perhaps someone more honored than yourself may have been invited by him.
{14:9} And then he who called both you and him, approaching, may say to you, ‘Give this place to him.’ And then you would begin, with shame, to take the last place.
{14:10} But when you are invited, go, sit down in the lowest place, so that, when he who invited you arrives, he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the sight of those who sit at table together with you.
{14:11} For everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.”
{14:12} Then he also said to the one who had invited him: “When you prepare a lunch or dinner, do not choose to call your friends, or your brothers, or your relatives, or your wealthy neighbors, lest perhaps they might then invite you in return and repayment would made to you.
{14:13} But when you prepare a feast, call the poor, the disabled, the lame, and the blind.
{14:14} And you will be blessed because they do not have a way to repay you. So then, your recompense will be in the resurrection of the just.”
{14:15} When someone sitting at table with him had heard these things, he said to him, “Blessed is he who will eat bread in the kingdom of God.”
{14:16} So he said to him: “A certain man prepared a great feast, and he invited many.
{14:17} And he sent his servant, at the hour of the feast, to tell the invited to come; for now everything was ready.
{14:18} And at once they all began to make excuses. The first said to him: ‘I bought a farm, and I need to go out and see it. I ask you to excuse me.’
{14:19} And another said: ‘I bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to examine them. I ask you to excuse me.’
{14:20} And another said, ‘I have taken a wife, and therefore I am not able to go.’
{14:21} And returning, the servant reported these things to his lord. Then the father of the family, becoming angry, said to his servant: ‘Go out quickly into the streets and neighborhoods of the city. And lead here the poor, and the disabled, and the blind, and the lame.’
{14:22} And the servant said: ‘It has been done, just as you ordered, lord, and there is still room.’
{14:23} And the lord said to the servant: ‘Go out to the highways and hedges, and compel them to enter, so that my house may be filled.
{14:24} For I tell you, that none of those men who were invited will taste of my feast.’ ”
{14:25} Now great crowds traveled with him. And turning around, he said to them:
{14:26} “If anyone comes to me, and does not hate his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brothers, and sisters, and yes, even his own life, he is not able to be my disciple.
{14:27} And whoever does not bear his cross and come after me, is not able to be my disciple.
{14:28} For who among you, wanting to build a tower, would not first sit down and determine the costs that are required, to see if he has the means to complete it?
{14:29} Otherwise, after he will have laid the foundation and not been able to finish it, everyone who sees it may begin to mock him,
{14:30} saying: ‘This man began to build what he was not able to finish.’
{14:31} Or, what king, advancing to engage in war against another king, would not first sit down and consider whether he may be able, with ten thousand, to meet one who comes against him with twenty thousand?
{14:32} If not, then while the other is still far away, sending a delegation, he would ask him for terms of peace.
{14:33} Therefore, every one of you who does not renounce all that he possesses is not able to be my disciple.
{14:34} Salt is good. But if the salt has lost its flavor, with what will it be seasoned?
{14:35} It is useful neither in soil, nor in manure, so instead, it shall be thrown away. Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”
{15:1} Now tax collectors and sinners were drawing near to him, so that they might listen to him.
{15:2} And the Pharisees and the scribes murmured, saying, “This one accepts sinners and eats with them.”
{15:3} And he told this parable to them, saying:
{15:4} “What man among you, who has one hundred sheep, and if he will have lost one of them, would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the one whom he had lost, until he finds it?
{15:5} And when he has found it, he places it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
{15:6} And returning home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them: ‘Congratulate me! For I have found my sheep, which had been lost.’
{15:7} I say to you, that there will be so much more joy in heaven over one sinner repenting, than over the ninety-nine just, who do not need to repent.
{15:8} Or what woman, having ten drachmas, if she will have lost one drachma, would not light a candle, and sweep the house, and diligently search until she finds it?
{15:9} And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying: ‘Rejoice with me! For I have found the drachma, which I had lost.’
{15:10} So I say to you, there will be joy before the Angels of God over even one sinner who is repentant.”
{15:11} And he said: “A certain man had two sons.
{15:12} And the younger of them said to the father, ‘Father, give me the portion of your estate which would go to me.’ And he divided the estate between them.
{15:13} And after not many days, the younger son, gathering it all together, set out on a long journey to a distant region. And there, he dissipated his substance, living in luxury.
{15:14} And after he had consumed it all, a great famine occurred in that region, and he began to be in need.
{15:15} And he went and attached himself to one of the citizens of that region. And he sent him to his farm, in order to feed the swine.
{15:16} And he wanted to fill his belly with the scraps that the swine ate. But no one would give it to him.
{15:17} And returning to his senses, he said: ‘How many hired hands in my father’s house have abundant bread, while I perish here in famine!
{15:18} I shall rise up and go to my father, and I will say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you.
{15:19} I am not worthy to be called your son. Make me one of your hired hands.’
{15:20} And rising up, he went to his father. But while he was still at a distance, his father saw him, and he was moved with compassion, and running to him, he fell upon his neck and kissed him.
{15:21} And the son said to him: ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. Now I am not worthy to be called your son.’
{15:22} But the father said to his servants: ‘Quickly! Bring out the best robe, and clothe him with it. And put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet.
{15:23} And bring the fatted calf here, and kill it. And let us eat and hold a feast.
{15:24} For this son of mine was dead, and has revived; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to feast.
{15:25} But his elder son was in the field. And when he returned and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing.
{15:26} And he called one of the servants, and he questioned him as to what these things meant.
{15:27} And he said to him: ‘Your brother has returned, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has received him safely.’
{15:28} Then he became indignant, and he was unwilling to enter. Therefore, his father, going out, began to plead with him.
{15:29} And in response, he said to his father: ‘Behold, I have been serving you for so many years. And I have never transgressed your commandment. And yet, you have never given me even a young goat, so that I might feast with my friends.
{15:30} Yet after this son of yours returned, who has devoured his substance with loose women, you have killed the fatted calf for him.’
{15:31} But he said to him: ‘Son, you are with me always, and all that I have is yours.
{15:32} But it was necessary to feast and to rejoice. For this brother of yours was dead, and has revived; he was lost, and is found.’ ”
{16:1} And he also said to his disciples: “A certain man was wealthy, and he had a steward of his estate. And this man was accused to him of having dissipated his goods.
{16:2} And he called him and said to him: ‘What is this that I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship. For you can no longer be my steward.’
{16:3} And the steward said within himself: ‘What shall I do? For my lord is taking the stewardship away from me. I am not strong enough to dig. I am too ashamed to beg.
{16:4} I know what I will do so that, when I have been removed from the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.’
{16:5} And so, calling together each one of his lord’s debtors, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my lord?’
{16:6} So he said, ‘One hundred jars of oil.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your invoice, and quickly, sit down and write fifty.’
{16:7} Next, he said to another, ‘In truth, how much do you owe?’ And he said, ‘One hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your record books, and write eighty.’
{16:8} And the lord praised the iniquitous steward, in that he had acted prudently. For the sons of this age are more prudent with their generation than are the sons of light.
{16:9} And so I say to you, make friends for yourself using iniquitous mammon, so that, when you will have passed away, they may receive you into the eternal tabernacles.
{16:10} Whoever is faithful in what is least, is also faithful in what is greater. And whoever is unjust in what is small, is also unjust in what is greater.
{16:11} So then, if you have not been faithful with iniquitous mammon, who will trust you with what is true?
{16:12} And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?
{16:13} No servant is able to serve two lords. For either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will cling to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
{16:14} But the Pharisees, who were greedy, were listening to all these things. And they ridiculed him.
{16:15} And he said to them: “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the sight of men. But God knows your hearts. For what is lifted up by men is an abomination in the sight of God.
{16:16} The law and the prophets were until John. Since then, the kingdom of God is being evangelized, and everyone acts with violence toward it.
{16:17} But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away, than for one dot of the law to fall away.
{16:18} Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery. And whoever marries her who has been divorced by her husband commits adultery.
{16:19} A certain man was wealthy, and he was clothed in purple and in fine linen. And he feasted splendidly every day.
{16:20} And there was a certain beggar, named Lazarus, who lay at his gate, covered with sores,
{16:21} wanting to be filled with the crumbs which were falling from the wealthy man’s table. But no one gave it to him. And even the dogs came and licked his sores.
{16:22} Then it happened that the beggar died, and he was carried by the Angels into the bosom of Abraham. Now the wealthy man also died, and he was entombed in Hell.
{16:23} Then lifting up his eyes, while he was in torments, he saw Abraham far away, and Lazarus in his bosom.
{16:24} And crying out, he said: ‘Father Abraham, take pity on me and send Lazarus, so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water to refresh my tongue. For I am tortured in this fire.’
{16:25} And Abraham said to him: ‘Son, recall that you received good things in your life, and in comparison, Lazarus received bad things. But now he is consoled, and truly you are tormented.
{16:26} And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been established, so that those who might want to cross from here to you are not able, nor can someone cross from there to here.’
{16:27} And he said: ‘Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house, for I have five brothers,
{16:28} so that he may testify to them, lest they also come into this place of torments.’
{16:29} And Abraham said to him: ‘They have Moses and the prophets. Let them listen to them.’
{16:30} So he said: ‘No, father Abraham. But if someone were to go to them from the dead, they would repent.’
{16:31} But he said to him: ‘If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they believe even if someone has resurrected from the dead.’ ”
{17:1} And he said to his disciples: “It is impossible for scandals not to occur. But woe to him through whom they come!
{17:2} It would be better for him if a millstone were placed around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than to lead astray one of these little ones.
{17:3} Be attentive to yourselves. If your brother has sinned against you, correct him. And if he has repented, forgive him.
{17:4} And if he has sinned against you seven times a day, and seven times a day has turned back to you, saying, ‘I am sorry,’ then forgive him.”
{17:5} And the Apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
{17:6} But the Lord said: “If you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you may say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted, and be transplanted into the sea.’ And it would obey you.
{17:7} But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, would say to him, as he was returning from the field, ‘Come in immediately; sit down to eat,’
{17:8} and would not say to him: ‘Prepare my dinner; gird yourself and minister to me, while I eat and drink; and after these things, you shall eat and drink?’
{17:9} Would he be grateful to that servant, for doing what he commanded him to do?
{17:10} I think not. So too, when you have done all these things that have been taught to you, you should say: ‘We are useless servants. We have done what we should have done.’ ”
{17:11} And it happened that, while he was traveling to Jerusalem, he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.
{17:12} And as he was entering a certain town, ten leprous men met him, and they stood at a distance.
{17:13} And they lifted up their voice, saying, “Jesus, Teacher, take pity on us.”
{17:14} And when he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And it happened that, as they were going, they were cleansed.
{17:15} And one of them, when he saw that he was cleansed, returned, magnifying God with a loud voice.
{17:16} And he fell face down before his feet, giving thanks. And this one was a Samaritan.
{17:17} And in response, Jesus said: “Were not ten made clean? And so where are the nine?
{17:18} Was no one found who would return and give glory to God, except this foreigner?”
{17:19} And he said to him: “Rise up, go forth. For your faith has saved you.”
{17:20} Then he was questioned by the Pharisees: “When does the kingdom of God arrive?” And in response, he said to them: “The kingdom of God arrives unobserved.
{17:21} And so, they will not say, ‘Behold, it is here,’ or ‘Behold, it is there.’ For behold, the kingdom of God is within you.”
{17:22} And he said to his disciples: “The time will come when you will desire to see one day of the Son of man, and you will not see it.
{17:23} And they will say to you, ‘Behold, he is here,’ and ‘Behold, he is there.’ Do not choose to go out, and do not follow them.
{17:24} For just as lightning flashes from under heaven and shines to whatever is under heaven, so also will the Son of man be in his day.
{17:25} But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
{17:26} And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of man.
{17:27} They were eating and drinking; they were taking wives and being given in marriage, even until the day that Noah entered the ark. And the flood came and destroyed them all.
{17:28} It shall be similar to what happened in the days of Lot. They were eating and drinking; they were buying and selling; they were planting and building.
{17:29} Then, on the day that Lot departed from Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and it destroyed them all.
{17:30} According to these things, so shall it be in the day when the Son of man will be revealed.
{17:31} In that hour, whoever will be on the rooftop, with his goods in the house, let him not descend to take them. And whoever will be in the field, similarly, let him not turn back.
{17:32} Remember Lot’s wife.
{17:33} Whoever has sought to save his life, will lose it; and whoever has lost it, will bring it back to life.
{17:34} I say to you, in that night, there will be two in one bed. One will be taken up, and the other will be left behind.
{17:35} Two will be at the grindstone together. One will be taken up, and the other will be left behind. Two will be in the field. One will be taken up, and the other will be left behind.”
{17:36} Responding, they said to him, “Where, Lord?”
{17:37} And he said to them, “Wherever the body will be, in that place also, the eagles shall be gathered together.”
{18:1} Now he also told them a parable, that we should continually pray and not cease,
{18:2} saying: “There was a certain judge in a certain city, who did not fear God and did not respect man.
{18:3} But there was a certain widow in that city, and she went to him, saying, ‘Vindicate me from my adversary.’
{18:4} And he refused to do so for a long time. But afterwards, he said within himself: ‘Even though I do not fear God, nor respect man,
{18:5} yet because this widow is pestering me, I will vindicate her, lest by returning, she may, in the end, wear me out.’ ”
{18:6} Then the Lord said: “Listen to what the unjust judge said.
{18:7} So then, will not God grant the vindication of his elect, who cry out to him day and night? Or will he continue to endure them?
{18:8} I tell you that he will quickly bring vindication to them. Yet truly, when the Son of man returns, do you think that he will find faith on earth?”
{18:9} Now about certain persons who consider themselves to be just, while disdaining others, he told also this parable:
{18:10} “Two men ascended to the temple, in order to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector.
{18:11} Standing, the Pharisee prayed within himself in this way: ‘O God, I give thanks to you that I am not like the rest of men: robbers, unjust, adulterers, even as this tax collector chooses to be.
{18:12} I fast twice between Sabbaths. I give tithes from all that I possess.’
{18:13} And the tax collector, standing at a distance, was not willing to even lift up his eyes to heaven. But he struck his chest, saying: ‘O God, be merciful to me, a sinner.’
{18:14} I say to you, this one descended to his house justified, but not the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled; and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”
{18:15} And they were bringing little children to him, so that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw this, they rebuked them.
{18:16} But Jesus, calling them together, said: “Allow the children to come to me, and do not be an obstacle to them. For of such is the kingdom of God.
{18:17} Amen, I say to you, whoever will not accept the kingdom of God like a child, will not enter into it.”
{18:18} And a certain leader questioned him, saying: “Good teacher, what should I do to possess eternal life?”
{18:19} Then Jesus said to him: “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.
{18:20} You know the commandments: You shall not kill. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not give false testimony. Honor your father and mother.”
{18:21} And he said, “I have kept all these things from my youth.”
{18:22} And when Jesus heard this, he said to him: “One thing is still lacking for you. Sell all the things that you have, and give to the poor. And then you will have treasure in heaven. And come, follow me.”
{18:23} When he heard this, he became very sorrowful. For he was very rich.
{18:24} Then Jesus, seeing him brought to sorrow, said: “How difficult it is for those who have money to enter into the kingdom of God!
{18:25} For it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a wealthy man to enter into the kingdom of God.”
{18:26} And those who were listening to this said, “Then who is able to be saved?”
{18:27} He said to them, “Things that are impossible with men are possible with God.”
{18:28} And Peter said, “Behold, we have left everything, and we have followed you.”
{18:29} And he said to them: “Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has left behind home, or parents, or brothers, or a wife, or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God,
{18:30} who will not receive much more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”
{18:31} Then Jesus took the twelve aside, and he said to them: “Behold, we are ascending to Jerusalem, and everything shall be completed which was written by the prophets about the Son of man.
{18:32} For he will be handed over to the Gentiles, and he will be mocked and scourged and spit upon.
{18:33} And after they have scourged him, they will kill him. And on the third day, he will rise again.”
{18:34} But they understood none of these things. For this word was concealed from them, and they did not understand the things that were said.
{18:35} Now it happened that, as he was approaching Jericho, a certain blind man was sitting beside the way, begging.
{18:36} And when he heard the multitude passing by, he asked what this was.
{18:37} And they told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.
{18:38} And he cried out, saying, “Jesus, Son of David, take pity on me!”
{18:39} And those who were passing by rebuked him, so that he would be silent. Yet truly, he cried out all the more, “Son of David, take pity on me!”
{18:40} Then Jesus, standing still, ordered him to be brought to him. And when he had drawn near, he questioned him,
{18:41} saying, “What do you want, that I might do for you?” So he said, “Lord, that I may see.”
{18:42} And Jesus said to him: “Look around. Your faith has saved you.”
{18:43} And immediately he saw. And he followed him, magnifying God. And all the people, when they saw this, gave praise to God.
{19:1} And having entered, he walked through Jericho.
{19:2} And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. And he was the leader of the tax collectors, and he was wealthy.
{19:3} And he sought to see Jesus, to see who he was. But he was unable to do so, because of the crowd, for he was small in stature.
{19:4} And running ahead, he climbed up a sycamore tree, so that he might see him. For he was to pass near there.
{19:5} And when he had arrived at the place, Jesus looked up and saw him, and he said to him: “Zacchaeus, hurry down. For today, I should lodge in your house.”
{19:6} And hurrying, he came down, and he received him joyfully.
{19:7} And when they all saw this, they murmured, saying that he had turned aside to a sinful man.
{19:8} But Zacchaeus, standing still, said to the Lord: “Behold, Lord, one half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have cheated anyone in any matter, I will repay him fourfold.”
{19:9} Jesus said to him: “Today, salvation has come to this house; because of this, he too is a son of Abraham.
{19:10} For the Son of man has come to seek and to save what had been lost.”
{19:11} As they were listening to these things, continuing on, he spoke a parable, because he was nearing Jerusalem, and because they guessed that the kingdom of God might be manifested without delay.
{19:12} Therefore, he said: “A certain man of nobility traveled to a far away region, to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return.
{19:13} And calling his ten servants, he gave them ten pounds, and he said to them: ‘Do business until I return.’
{19:14} But his citizens hated him. And so they sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this one to reign over us.’
{19:15} And it happened that he returned, having received the kingdom. And he ordered the servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called so that he would know how much each one had earned by doing business.
{19:16} Now the first approached, saying: ‘Lord, your one pound has earned ten pounds.’
{19:17} And he said to him: ‘Well done, good servant. Since you have been faithful in a small matter, you will hold authority over ten cities.’
{19:18} And the second came, saying: ‘Lord, your one pound has earned five pounds.’
{19:19} And he said to him, ‘And so, you shall be over five cities.’
{19:20} And another approached, saying: ‘Lord, behold your one pound, which I kept stored in a cloth.
{19:21} For I feared you, because you are an austere man. You take up what you did not lay down, and you reap what you did not sow.’
{19:22} He said to him: ‘By your own mouth, do I judge you, O wicked servant. You knew that I am an austere man, taking up what I did not lay down, and reaping what I did not sow.
{19:23} And so, why did you not give my money to the bank, so that, upon my return, I might have withdrawn it with interest?’
{19:24} And he said to the bystanders, ‘Take the pound away from him, and give it to him who has ten pounds.’
{19:25} And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten pounds.’
{19:26} So then, I say to you, that to all who have, it shall be given, and he will have in abundance. And from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.
{19:27} ‘Yet truly, as for those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here, and put them to death before me.’ ”
{19:28} And having said these things, he went ahead, ascending to Jerusalem.
{19:29} And it happened that, when he had drawn near to Bethphage and Bethania, to the mount which is called Olivet, he sent two of his disciples,
{19:30} saying: “Go into the town which is opposite you. Upon entering it, you will find the colt of a donkey, tied, on which no man has ever sat. Untie it, and lead it here.
{19:31} And if anyone will ask you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this to him: ‘Because the Lord has requested its service.’ ”
{19:32} And those who were sent went out, and they found the colt standing, just as he told them.
{19:33} Then, as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?”
{19:34} So they said, “Because the Lord has need of it.”
{19:35} And they led it to Jesus. And casting their garments on the colt, they helped Jesus onto it.
{19:36} Then, as he was traveling, they were laying down their garments along the way.
{19:37} And when he was now drawing near to the descent of Mount Olivet, the entire crowd of his disciples began to praise God joyfully, with a loud voice, over all the powerful works which they had seen,
{19:38} saying: “Blessed is the king who has arrived in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory on high!”
{19:39} And certain Pharisees within the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.”
{19:40} And he said to them, “I tell you, that if these will keep silent, the stones themselves will cry out.”
{19:41} And when he drew near, seeing the city, he wept over it, saying:
{19:42} “If only you had known, indeed even in this your day, which things are for your peace. But now they are hidden from your eyes.
{19:43} For the days will overtake you. And your enemies will encircle you with a valley. And they will surround you and hem you in on every side.
{19:44} And they will knock you down to the ground, with your sons who are in you. And they will not leave stone upon stone within you, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”
{19:45} And entering into the temple, he began to cast out those who sold in it, and those who bought,
{19:46} saying to them: “It is written: ‘My house is a house of prayer.’ But you have made it into a den of robbers.”
{19:47} And he was teaching in the temple daily. And the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, and the leaders of the people were seeking to destroy him.
{19:48} But they could not find what to do to him. For all the people were listening to him attentively.
{20:1} And it happened that, on one of the days when he was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the Gospel, the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, gathered together with the elders,
{20:2} and they spoke to him, saying: “Tell us, by what authority do you do these things? Or, who is it that has given you this authority?”
{20:3} And in response, Jesus said to them: “I will also question you about one word. Respond to me:
{20:4} The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men?”
{20:5} So they discussed it among themselves, saying: “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’
{20:6} But if we say, ‘Of men,’ the whole people will stone us. For they are certain that John was a prophet.”
{20:7} And so they responded that they did not know where it was from.
{20:8} And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”
{20:9} Then he began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard, and he loaned it to settlers, and he was on a sojourn for a long time.
{20:10} And in due time, he sent a servant to the farmers, so that they would give to him from the fruit of the vineyard. And they beat him and drove him away, empty-handed.
{20:11} And he continued to send another servant. But beating him and treating him with contempt, they likewise sent him away, empty-handed.
{20:12} And he continued to send a third. And wounding him also, they drove him away.
{20:13} Then the lord of the vineyard said: ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son. Perhaps when they have seen him, they will respect him.’
{20:14} And when the settlers had seen him, they discussed it among themselves, saying: ‘This one is the heir. Let us kill him, so that the inheritance will be ours.’
{20:15} And forcing him outside of the vineyard, they killed him. What, then, will the lord of the vineyard do to them?”
{20:16} “He will come and destroy those settlers, and he will give the vineyard to others.” And upon hearing this, they said to him, “Let it not be.”
{20:17} Then, gazing at them, he said: “Then what does this mean, which is written: ‘The stone which the builders have rejected, the same has become the head of the corner?’
{20:18} Everyone who falls on that stone will be shattered. And anyone upon whom it falls will be crushed.”
{20:19} And the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, were seeking to lay hands on him in that same hour, but they feared the people. For they realized that he had spoken this parable about them.
{20:20} And being attentive, they sent traitors, who would pretend that they were just, so that they might catch him in his words and then hand him over to the power and authority of the procurator.
{20:21} And they questioned him, saying: “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach correctly, and that you do not consider anyone’s status, but you teach the way of God in truth.
{20:22} Is it lawful for us to pay the tribute to Caesar, or not?”
{20:23} But realizing their deceitfulness, he said to them: “Why do you test me?
{20:24} Show me a denarius. Whose image and inscription does it have?” In response, they said to him, “Caesar’s.”
{20:25} And so, he said to them: “Then repay the things that are Caesar’s, to Caesar, and the things that are God’s, to God.”
{20:26} And they were not able to contradict his word before the people. And being amazed at his answer, they were silent.
{20:27} Now some of the Sadducees, who deny that there is a resurrection, approached him. And they questioned him,
{20:28} saying: “Teacher, Moses wrote for us: If any man’s brother will have died, having a wife, and if he does not have any children, then his brother should take her as his wife, and he should raise up offspring for his brother.
{20:29} And so there were seven brothers. And the first took a wife, and he died without sons.
{20:30} And the next one married her, and he also died without a son.
{20:31} And the third married her, and similarly all seven, and none of them left behind any offspring, and they each died.
{20:32} Last of all, the woman also died.
{20:33} In the resurrection, then, whose wife will she be? For certainly all seven had her as a wife.”
{20:34} And so, Jesus said to them: “The children of this age marry and are given in marriage.
{20:35} Yet truly, those who shall be held worthy of that age, and of the resurrection from the dead, will neither be married, nor take wives.
{20:36} For they can no longer die. For they are equal to the Angels, and they are children of God, since they are children of the resurrection.
{20:37} For in truth, the dead do rise again, as Moses also showed beside the bush, when he called the Lord: ‘The God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’
{20:38} And so he is not the God of the dead, but of the living. For all are alive to him.”
{20:39} Then some of the scribes, in response, said to him, “Teacher, you have spoken well.”
{20:40} And they no longer dared to question him about anything.
{20:41} But he said to them: “How can they say that the Christ is the son of David?
{20:42} Even David himself says, in the book of Psalms: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand,
{20:43} until I set your enemies as your footstool.’
{20:44} Therefore, David calls him Lord. So how can he be his son?”
{20:45} Now in the hearing of all the people, he said to his disciples:
{20:46} “Be cautious of the scribes, who choose to walk in long robes, and who love greetings in the marketplace, and the first chairs in the synagogues, and the first places at table during feasts,
{20:47} who devour the houses of widows, feigning long prayers. These will receive the greater damnation.”
{21:1} And looking around, he saw the wealthy putting their donations into the offertory.
{21:2} Then he also saw a certain widow, a pauper, putting in two small brass coins.
{21:3} And he said: “Truly, I say to you, that this poor widow has put in more than all the others.
{21:4} For all these, out of their abundance, have added to the gifts for God. But she, out of what she needed, has put in all that she had to live on.”
{21:5} And when some of them were saying, about the temple, that it was adorned with excellent stones and gifts, he said,
{21:6} “These things that you see, the days will arrive when there will not be left behind stone upon stone, which is not thrown down.”
{21:7} Then they questioned him, saying: “Teacher, when will these things be? And what will be the sign when these things will happen?”
{21:8} And he said: “Be cautious, lest you be seduced. For many will come in my name, saying: ‘For I am he,’ and, ‘The time has drawn near.’ And so, do not choose to go after them.
{21:9} And when you will have heard of battles and seditions, do not be terrified. These things must happen first. But the end is not so soon.”
{21:10} Then he said to them: “People will rise up against people, and kingdom against kingdom.
{21:11} And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and pestilences, and famines, and terrors from heaven; and there will be great signs.
{21:12} But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, handing you over to synagogues and into custody, dragging you before kings and governors, because of my name.
{21:13} And this will be an opportunity for you to give testimony.
{21:14} Therefore, set this in your hearts: that you should not consider in advance how you might respond.
{21:15} For I will give to you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries will not be able to resist or contradict.
{21:16} And you will be handed over by your parents, and brothers, and relatives, and friends. And they will bring about the death of some of you.
{21:17} And you will be hated by all because of my name.
{21:18} And yet, not a hair of your head will perish.
{21:19} By your patience, you shall possess your souls.
{21:20} Then, when you will have seen Jerusalem encircled by an army, know then that its desolation has drawn near.
{21:21} Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and those who are in its midst withdraw, and those who are in the countryside not enter into it.
{21:22} For these are the days of retribution, so that all things may be fulfilled, which have been written.
{21:23} Then woe to those who are pregnant or nursing in those days. For there will be great distress upon the land and great wrath upon this people.
{21:24} And they will fall by the edge of the sword. And they will be led away as captives into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by the Gentiles, until the times of the nations are fulfilled.
{21:25} And there will be signs in the sun and the moon and the stars. And there will be, on earth, distress among the Gentiles, out of confusion at the roaring of the sea and of the waves:
{21:26} men withering away out of fear and out of apprehension over the things that will overwhelm the whole world. For the powers of the heavens will be moved.
{21:27} And then they will see the Son of man coming on a cloud, with great power and majesty.
{21:28} But when these things begin to happen, lift up your heads and look around you, because your redemption draws near.”
{21:29} And he told them a comparison: “Take notice of the fig tree and of all the trees.
{21:30} When presently they produce fruit from themselves, you know that summer is near.
{21:31} So you also, when you will have seen these things happen, know that the kingdom of God is near.
{21:32} Amen I say to you, this lineage shall not pass away, until all these things happen.
{21:33} Heaven and earth shall pass away. But my words shall not pass away.
{21:34} But be attentive to yourselves, lest perhaps your hearts may be weighed down by self-indulgence and inebriation and the cares of this life. And then that day may overwhelm you suddenly.
{21:35} For like a snare it will overwhelm all those who sit upon the face of the entire earth.
{21:36} And so, be vigilant, praying at all times, so that you may be held worthy to escape from all these things, which are in the future, and to stand before the Son of man.”
{21:37} Now in the daytime, he was teaching in the temple. But truly, departing in the evening, he lodged on the mount that is called Olivet.
{21:38} And all the people arrived in the morning to listen to him in the temple.
{22:1} Now the days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is called Passover, were approaching.
{22:2} And the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, were seeking a way to execute Jesus. Yet truly, they were afraid of the people.
{22:3} Then Satan entered into Judas, who was surnamed Iscariot, one of the twelve.
{22:4} And he went out and was speaking with the leaders of the priests, and the magistrates, as to how he might hand him over to them.
{22:5} And they were glad, and so they made an agreement to give him money.
{22:6} And he made a promise. And he was seeking an opportunity to hand him over, apart from the crowds.
{22:7} Then the day of Unleavened Bread arrived, on which it was necessary to kill the Pascal lamb.
{22:8} And he sent Peter and John, saying, “Go out, and prepare the Passover for us, so that we may eat.”
{22:9} But they said, “Where do you want us to prepare it?”
{22:10} And he said to them: “Behold, as you are entering into the city, a certain man will meet you, carrying a pitcher of water. Follow him to the house into which he enters.
{22:11} And you shall say to the father of the household: ‘The Teacher says to you: Where is the guestroom, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’
{22:12} And he will show you a large cenacle, fully furnished. And so, prepare it there.”
{22:13} And going out, they found it to be just as he had told them. And they prepared the Passover.
{22:14} And when the hour had arrived, he sat down at table, and the twelve Apostles with him.
{22:15} And he said to them: “With longing have I desired to eat this Passover with you, before I suffer.
{22:16} For I say to you, that from this time, I will not eat it, until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”
{22:17} And having taken the chalice, he gave thanks, and he said: “Take this and share it among yourselves.
{22:18} For I say to you, that I will not drink from the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God arrives.”
{22:19} And taking bread, he gave thanks and broke it and gave it to them, saying: “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this as a commemoration of me.”
{22:20} Similarly also, he took the chalice, after he had eaten the meal, saying: “This chalice is the new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you.
{22:21} But in truth, behold, the hand of my betrayer is with me at table.
{22:22} And indeed, the Son of man goes according to what has been determined. And yet, woe to that man by whom he will be betrayed.”
{22:23} And they began to inquire among themselves, as to which of them might do this.
{22:24} Now there was also a contention among them, as to which of them seemed to be the greater.
{22:25} And he said to them: “The kings of the Gentiles dominate them; and those who hold authority over them are called beneficent.
{22:26} But it must not be so with you. Instead, whoever is greater among you, let him become the lesser. And whoever is the leader, let him become the server.
{22:27} For who is greater: he who sits at table, or he who serves? Is not he who sits at table? Yet I am in your midst as one who serves.
{22:28} But you are those who have remained with me during my trials.
{22:29} And I dispose to you, just as my Father has disposed to me, a kingdom,
{22:30} so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and so that you may sit upon thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”
{22:31} And the Lord said: “Simon, Simon! Behold, Satan has asked for you, so that he may sift you like wheat.
{22:32} But I have prayed for you, so that your faith may not fail, and so that you, once converted, may confirm your brothers.”
{22:33} And he said to him, “Lord, I am prepared to go with you, even to prison and to death.”
{22:34} And he said, “I say to you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you have three times denied that you know me.” And he said to them,
{22:35} “When I sent you without money or provisions or shoes, did you lack anything?”
{22:36} And they said, “Nothing.” Then he said to them: “But now, let whoever has money take it, and likewise with provisions. And whoever does not have these, let him sell his coat and buy a sword.
{22:37} For I say to you, that what has been written must still be fulfilled in me: ‘And he was esteemed with the wicked.’ Yet even these things about me have an end.”
{22:38} So they said, “Lord, behold, there are two swords here.” But he said to them, “It is sufficient.”
{22:39} And departing, he went out, according to his custom, to the Mount of Olives. And his disciples also followed him.
{22:40} And when he had arrived at the place, he said to them: “Pray, lest you enter into temptation.”
{22:41} And he was separated from them by about a stone’s throw. And kneeling down, he prayed,
{22:42} saying: “Father, if you are willing, take this chalice away from me. Yet truly, let not my will, but yours, be done.”
{22:43} Then an Angel appeared to him from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony, he prayed more intensely;
{22:44} and so his sweat became like drops of blood, running down to the ground.
{22:45} And when he had risen up from prayer and had gone to his disciples, he found them sleeping out of sorrow.
{22:46} And he said to them: “Why are you sleeping? Rise up, pray, lest you enter into temptation.”
{22:47} While he was still speaking, behold, a crowd arrived. And he who is called Judas, one of the twelve, went ahead of them and approached Jesus, in order to kiss him.
{22:48} And Jesus said to him, “Judas, do you betray the Son of man with a kiss?”
{22:49} Then those who were around him, realizing what was about to happen, said to him: “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?”
{22:50} And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.
{22:51} But in response, Jesus said, “Permit even this.” And when he had touched his ear, he healed him.
{22:52} Then Jesus said to the leaders of the priests, and the magistrates of the temple, and the elders, who had come to him: “Have you gone out, as if against a thief, with swords and clubs?
{22:53} When I was with you each day in the temple, you did not extend your hands against me. But this is your hour and that of the power of darkness.”
{22:54} And apprehending him, they led him to the house of the high priest. Yet truly, Peter followed at a distance.
{22:55} Now as they were sitting around a fire, which had been kindled in the middle of the atrium, Peter was in their midst.
{22:56} And when a certain woman servant had seen him sitting in its light, and had looked at him intently, she said, “This one was also with him.”
{22:57} But he denied him by saying, “Woman, I do not know him.”
{22:58} And after a little while, another one, seeing him, said, “You also are one of them.” Yet Peter said, “O man, I am not.”
{22:59} And after the interval of about one hour had passed, someone else affirmed it, saying: “Truly, this one also was with him. For he is also a Galilean.”
{22:60} And Peter said: “Man, I do not know what you are saying.” And at once, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.
{22:61} And the Lord turned around and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord that he had said: “For before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.”
{22:62} And going out, Peter wept bitterly.
{22:63} And the men who were holding him ridiculed him and beat him.
{22:64} And they blindfolded him and repeatedly struck his face. And they questioned him, saying: “Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?”
{22:65} And blaspheming in many other ways, they spoke against him.
{22:66} And when it was daytime, the elders of the people, and the leaders of the priests, and the scribes convened. And they led him into their council, saying, “If you are the Christ, tell us.”
{22:67} And he said to them: “If I tell you, you will not believe me.
{22:68} And if I also question you, you will not answer me. Neither will you release me.
{22:69} But from this time, the Son of man will be sitting at the right hand of the power of God.”
{22:70} Then they all said, “So you are the Son of God?” And he said. “You are saying that I am.”
{22:71} And they said: “Why do we still require testimony? For we have heard it ourselves, from his own mouth.”
{23:1} And the entire multitude of them, rising up, led him to Pilate.
{23:2} Then they began to accuse him, saying, “We found this one subverting our nation, and prohibiting giving tribute to Caesar, and saying that he is Christ the king.”
{23:3} And Pilate questioned him, saying: “You are the king of the Jews?” But in response, he said: “You are saying it.”
{23:4} Then Pilate said to the leaders of the priests and to the crowds, “I find no case against this man.”
{23:5} But they continued more intensely, saying: “He has stirred up the people, teaching throughout all of Judea, beginning from Galilee, even to this place.”
{23:6} But Pilate, upon hearing Galilee, asked if the man were of Galilee.
{23:7} And when he realized that he was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him away to Herod, who was himself also at Jerusalem in those days.
{23:8} Then Herod, upon seeing Jesus, was very glad. For he had been wanting to see him for a long time, because he had heard so many things about him, and he was hoping to see some kind of sign wrought by him.
{23:9} Then he questioned him with many words. But he gave him no response at all.
{23:10} And the leaders of the priests, and the scribes, stood firm in persistently accusing him.
{23:11} Then Herod, with his soldiers, scorned him. And he ridiculed him, clothing him in a white garment. And he sent him back to Pilate.
{23:12} And Herod and Pilate became friends on that day. For previously they were enemies to one another.
{23:13} And Pilate, calling together the leaders of the priests, and the magistrates, and the people,
{23:14} said to them: “You have brought before me this man, as one who disturbs the people. And behold, having questioned him before you, I find no case against this man, in those things about which you accuse him.
{23:15} And neither did Herod. For I sent you all to him, and behold, nothing deserving of death was recorded about him.
{23:16} Therefore, I will chastise him and release him.”
{23:17} Now he was required to release one person for them on the feast day.
{23:18} But the entire crowd exclaimed together, saying: “Take this one, and release to us Barabbas!”
{23:19} Now he had been cast into prison because of a certain sedition that occurred in the city and for murder.
{23:20} Then Pilate spoke to them again, wanting to release Jesus.
{23:21} But they shouted in response, saying: “Crucify him! Crucify him!”
{23:22} Then he said to them a third time: “Why? What evil has he done? I find no case against him for death. Therefore, I will chastise him and release him.”
{23:23} But they persisted, with loud voices, in demanding that he be crucified. And their voices increased in intensity.
{23:24} And so Pilate issued a judgment granting their petition.
{23:25} Then he released for them the one who had been cast into prison for murder and sedition, whom they were requesting. Yet truly, Jesus he handed over to their will.
{23:26} And as they were leading him away, they apprehended a certain one, Simon of Cyrene, as he was returning from the countryside. And they imposed the cross on him to carry after Jesus.
{23:27} Then a great crowd of people followed him, with women who were mourning and lamenting him.
{23:28} But Jesus, turning to them, said: “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep over me. Instead, weep over yourselves and over your children.
{23:29} For behold, the days will arrive in which they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that have not borne, and the breasts that have not nursed.’
{23:30} Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall over us,’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’
{23:31} For if they do these things with green wood, what will be done with the dry?”
{23:32} Now they also led out two other criminals with him, in order to execute them.
{23:33} And when they arrived at the place that is called Calvary, they crucified him there, with the robbers, one to the right and the other to the left.
{23:34} Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them. For they know not what they do.” And truly, dividing his garments, they cast lots.
{23:35} And people were standing near, watching. And the leaders among them derided him, saying: “He saved others. Let him save himself, if this one is the Christ, the elect of God.”
{23:36} And the soldiers also ridiculed him, approaching him and offering him vinegar,
{23:37} and saying, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”
{23:38} Now there was also an inscription written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
{23:39} And one of those robbers who were hanging blasphemed him, saying, “If you are the Christ, save yourself and us.”
{23:40} But the other responded by rebuking him, saying: “Do you have no fear of God, since you are under the same condemnation?
{23:41} And indeed, it is just for us. For we are receiving what our deeds deserve. But truly, this one has done nothing wrong.”
{23:42} And he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
{23:43} And Jesus said to him, “Amen I say to you, this day you shall be with me in Paradise.”
{23:44} Now it was nearly the sixth hour, and a darkness occurred over the entire earth, until the ninth hour.
{23:45} And the sun was obscured. And the veil of the temple was torn down the middle.
{23:46} And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said: “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” And upon saying this, he expired.
{23:47} Now, the centurion, seeing what had happened, glorified God, saying, “Truly, this man was the Just One.”
{23:48} And the entire crowd of those who came together to see this spectacle also saw what had happened, and they returned, striking their breasts.
{23:49} Now all those who knew him, and the women who had followed him from Galilee, were standing at a distance, watching these things.
{23:50} And behold, there was a man named Joseph, who was a councilman, a good and just man,
{23:51} (for he had not consented to their decision or their actions). He was from Arimathea, a city of Judea. And he was himself also anticipating the kingdom of God.
{23:52} This man approached Pilate and petitioned for the body of Jesus.
{23:53} And taking him down, he wrapped him in a fine linen cloth, and he placed him in a tomb hewn from rock, in which no one had ever been placed.
{23:54} And it was the day of Preparation, and the Sabbath was drawing near.
{23:55} Now the women who had come with him from Galilee, by following, saw the tomb and the manner in which his body was placed.
{23:56} And upon returning, they prepared aromatic spices and ointments. But on the Sabbath, indeed, they rested, according to the commandment.
{24:1} Then, on the first Sabbath, at very first light, they went to the tomb, carrying the aromatic spices that they had prepared.
{24:2} And they found the stone rolled back from the tomb.
{24:3} And upon entering, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
{24:4} And it happened that, while their minds were still confused about this, behold, two men stood beside them, in shining apparel.
{24:5} Then, since they were afraid and were turning their faces toward the ground, these two said to them: “Why do you seek the living with the dead?
{24:6} He is not here, for he has risen. Recall how he spoke to you, when he was still in Galilee,
{24:7} saying: ‘For the Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again.’ ”
{24:8} And they called to mind his words.
{24:9} And returning from the tomb, they reported all these things to the eleven, and to all the others.
{24:10} Now it was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary of James, and the other women who were with them, who told these things to the Apostles.
{24:11} But these words seemed to them a delusion. And so they did not believe them.
{24:12} But Peter, rising up, ran to the tomb. And stooping down, he saw the linen cloths positioned alone, and he went away wondering to himself about what had happened.
{24:13} And behold, two of them went out, on the same day, to a town named Emmaus, which was the distance of sixty stadia from Jerusalem.
{24:14} And they spoke to one another about all of these things that had occurred.
{24:15} And it happened that, while they were speculating and questioning within themselves, Jesus himself, drawing near, traveled with them.
{24:16} But their eyes were restrained, so that they would not recognize him.
{24:17} And he said to them, “What are these words, which you are discussing with one another, as you walk and are sad?”
{24:18} And one of them, whose name was Cleopas, responded by saying to him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?”
{24:19} And he said to them, “What things?” And they said, “About Jesus of Nazareth, who was a noble prophet, powerful in works and in words, before God and all the people.
{24:20} And how our high priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death. And they crucified him.
{24:21} But we were hoping that he would be the Redeemer of Israel. And now, on top of all this, today is the third day since these things have happened.
{24:22} Then, too, certain women from among us terrified us. For before daytime, they were at the tomb,
{24:23} and, having not found his body, they returned, saying that they had even seen a vision of Angels, who said that he is alive.
{24:24} And some of us went out to the tomb. And they found it just as the women had said. But truly, they did not find him.”
{24:25} And he said to them: “How foolish and reluctant in heart you are, to believe everything that has been spoken by the Prophets!
{24:26} Was not the Christ required to suffer these things, and so enter into his glory?”
{24:27} And beginning from Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted for them, in all the Scriptures, the things that were about him.
{24:28} And they drew near to the town where they were going. And he conducted himself so as to go on further.
{24:29} But they were insistent with him, saying, “Remain with us, because it is toward evening and now daylight is declining.” And so he entered with them.
{24:30} And it happened that, while he was at table with them, he took bread, and he blessed and broke it, and he extended it to them.
{24:31} And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their eyes.
{24:32} And they said to one another, “Was not our heart burning within us, while he was speaking on the way, and when he opened the Scriptures to us?”
{24:33} And rising up at that same hour, they returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven gathered together, and those who were with them,
{24:34} saying: “In truth, the Lord has risen, and he has appeared to Simon.”
{24:35} And they explained the things that were done on the way, and how they had recognized him at the breaking of the bread.
{24:36} Then, while they were talking about these things, Jesus stood in their midst, And he said to them: “Peace be with you. It is I. Do not be afraid.”
{24:37} Yet truly, they were very disturbed and terrified, supposing that they saw a spirit.
{24:38} And he said to them: “Why are you disturbed, and why do these thoughts rise up in your hearts?
{24:39} See my hands and feet, that it is I myself. Look and touch. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see that I have.”
{24:40} And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet.
{24:41} Then, while they were still in disbelief and in wonder out of joy, he said, “Do you have anything here to eat?”
{24:42} And they offered him a piece of roasted fish and a honeycomb.
{24:43} And when he had eaten these in their sight, taking up what was left, he gave it to them.
{24:44} And he said to them: “These are the words that I spoke to you when I was still with you, because all things must be fulfilled which are written in the law of Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the Psalms about me.”
{24:45} Then he opened their mind, so that they might understand the Scriptures.
{24:46} And he said to them: “For so it is written, and so it was necessary, for the Christ to suffer and to rise up from the dead on the third day,
{24:47} and, in his name, for repentance and the remission of sins to be preached, among all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
{24:48} And you are witnesses of these things.
{24:49} And I am sending the Promise of my Father upon you. But you must stay in the city, until such time as you are clothed with power from on high.”
{24:50} Then he led them out as far as Bethania. And lifting up his hands, he blessed them.
{24:51} And it happened that, while he was blessing them, he withdrew from them, and he was carried up into heaven.
{24:52} And worshiping, they returned to Jerusalem with great joy.
{24:53} And they were always in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.
{1:1} In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word.
{1:2} He was with God in the beginning.
{1:3} All things were made through Him, and nothing that was made was made without Him.
{1:4} Life was in Him, and Life was the light of men.
{1:5} And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
{1:6} There was a man sent by God, whose name was John.
{1:7} He arrived as a witness to offer testimony about the Light, so that all would believe through him.
{1:8} He was not the Light, but he was to offer testimony about the Light.
{1:9} The true Light, which illuminates every man, was coming into this world.
{1:10} He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world did not recognize him.
{1:11} He went to his own, and his own did not accept him.
{1:12} Yet whoever did accept him, those who believed in his name, he gave them the power to become the sons of God.
{1:13} These are born, not of blood, nor of the will of flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
{1:14} And the Word became flesh, and he lived among us, and we saw his glory, glory like that of an only-begotten Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
{1:15} John offers testimony about him, and he cries out, saying: “This is the one about whom I said: ‘He who is to come after me, has been placed ahead of me, because he existed before me.’ ”
{1:16} And from his fullness, we all have received, even grace for grace.
{1:17} For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
{1:18} No one ever saw God; the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he himself has described him.
{1:19} And this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to him, so that they might ask him, “Who are you?”
{1:20} And he confessed it and did not deny it; and what he confessed was: “I am not the Christ.”
{1:21} And they questioned him: “Then what are you? Are you Elijah?” And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.”
{1:22} Therefore, they said to him: “Who are you, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?”
{1:23} He said, “I am a voice crying out in the desert, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ just as the prophet Isaiah said.”
{1:24} And some of those who had been sent were from among the Pharisees.
{1:25} And they questioned him and said to him, “Then why do you baptize, if you are not the Christ, and not Elijah, and not the Prophet?”
{1:26} John answered them by saying: “I baptize with water. But in your midst stands one, whom you do not know.
{1:27} The same is he who is to come after me, who has been placed ahead of me, the laces of whose shoes I am not worthy to loosen.”
{1:28} These things happened in Bethania, across the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
{1:29} On the next day, John saw Jesus coming toward him, and so he said: “Behold, the Lamb of God. Behold, he who takes away the sin of the world.
{1:30} This is the one about whom I said, ‘After me arrives a man, who has been placed ahead of me, because he existed before me.’
{1:31} And I did not know him. Yet it is for this reason that I come baptizing with water: so that he may be made manifest in Israel.”
{1:32} And John offered testimony, saying: “For I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove; and he remained upon him.
{1:33} And I did not know him. But he who sent me to baptize with water said to me: ‘He over whom you will see the Spirit descending and remaining upon him, this is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’
{1:34} And I saw, and I gave testimony: that this one is the Son of God.”
{1:35} The next day again, John was standing with two of his disciples.
{1:36} And catching sight of Jesus walking, he said, “Behold, the Lamb of God.”
{1:37} And two disciples were listening to him speaking. And they followed Jesus.
{1:38} Then Jesus, turning around and seeing them following him, said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi (which means in translation, Teacher), where do you live?”
{1:39} He said to them, “Come and see.” They went and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. Now it was about the tenth hour.
{1:40} And Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who had heard about him from John and had followed him.
{1:41} First, he found his brother Simon, and he said to him, “We have found the Messiah,” (which is translated as the Christ).
{1:42} And he led him to Jesus. And Jesus, gazing at him, said: “You are Simon, son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas,” (which is translated as Peter).
{1:43} On the next day, he wanted to go into Galilee, and he found Philip. And Jesus said to him, “Follow me.”
{1:44} Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.
{1:45} Philip found Nathanael, and he said to him, “We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the Law and the Prophets: Jesus, the son of Joseph, from Nazareth.”
{1:46} And Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good be from Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
{1:47} Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, and he said about him, “Behold, an Israelite in whom truly there is no deceit.”
{1:48} Nathanael said to him, “From where do you know me?” Jesus responded and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”
{1:49} Nathanael answered him and said: “Rabbi, you are the Son of God. You are the King of Israel.”
{1:50} Jesus responded and said to him: “Because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree, you believe. Greater things than these, you will see.”
{1:51} And he said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the Angels of God ascending and descending over the Son of man.”
{2:1} And on the third day, a wedding was held in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.
{2:2} Now Jesus was also invited to the wedding, with his disciples.
{2:3} And when the wine was failing, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”
{2:4} And Jesus said to her: “What is that to me and to you, woman? My hour has not yet arrived.”
{2:5} His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
{2:6} Now in that place, there were six stone water jars, for the purification ritual of the Jews, containing two or three measures each.
{2:7} Jesus said to them, “Fill the water jars with water.” And they filled them to the very top.
{2:8} And Jesus said to them, “Now draw from it, and carry it to the chief steward of the feast.” And they took it to him.
{2:9} Then, when the chief steward had tasted the water made into wine, since he did not know where it was from, for only the servants who had drawn the water knew, the chief steward called the groom,
{2:10} and he said to him: “Every man offers the good wine first, and then, when they have become inebriated, he offers what is worse. But you have kept the good wine until now.”
{2:11} This was the beginning of the signs that Jesus accomplished in Cana of Galilee, and it manifested his glory, and his disciples believed in him.
{2:12} After this, he descended to Capernaum, with his mother and his brothers and his disciples, but they did not remain there for many days.
{2:13} And the Passover of the Jews was near, and so Jesus ascended to Jerusalem.
{2:14} And he found, sitting in the temple, sellers of oxen and sheep and doves, and the moneychangers.
{2:15} And when he had made something like a whip out of little cords, he drove them all out of the temple, including the sheep and the oxen. And he poured out the brass coins of the moneychangers, and he overturned their tables.
{2:16} And to those who were selling doves, he said: “Take these things out of here, and do not make my Father’s house into a house of commerce.”
{2:17} And truly, his disciples were reminded that it is written: “Zeal for your house consumes me.”
{2:18} Then the Jews responded and said to him, “What sign can you show to us, that you may do these things?”
{2:19} Jesus responded and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
{2:20} Then the Jews said, “This temple has been built up over forty-six years, and you will raise it up in three days?”
{2:21} Yet he was speaking about the Temple of his body.
{2:22} Therefore, when he had resurrected from the dead, his disciples were reminded that he had said this, and they believed in the Scriptures and in the word that Jesus had spoken.
{2:23} Now while he was at Jerusalem during the Passover, on the day of the feast, many trusted in his name, seeing his signs that he was accomplishing.
{2:24} But Jesus did not trust himself to them, because he himself had knowledge of all persons,
{2:25} and because he had no need of anyone to offer testimony about a man. For he knew what was within a man.
{3:1} Now there was a man among the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews.
{3:2} He went to Jesus at night, and he said to him: “Rabbi, we know that you have arrived as a teacher from God. For no one would be able to accomplish these signs, which you accomplish, unless God were with him.”
{3:3} Jesus responded and said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless one has been reborn anew, he is not able to see the kingdom of God.”
{3:4} Nicodemus said to him: “How could a man be born when he is old? Surely, he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be reborn?”
{3:5} Jesus responded: “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless one has been reborn by water and the Holy Spirit, he is not able to enter into the kingdom of God.
{3:6} What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.
{3:7} You should not be amazed that I said to you: You must be born anew.
{3:8} The Spirit inspires where he wills. And you hear his voice, but you do not know where he comes from, or where he is going. So it is with all who are born of the Spirit.”
{3:9} Nicodemus responded and said to him, “How are these things able to be accomplished?”
{3:10} Jesus responded and said to him: “You are a teacher in Israel, and you are ignorant of these things?
{3:11} Amen, amen, I say to you, that we speak about what we know, and we testify about what we have seen. But you do not accept our testimony.
{3:12} If I have spoken to you about earthly things, and you have not believed, then how will you believe, if I will speak to you about heavenly things?
{3:13} And no one has ascended to heaven, except the one who descended from heaven: the Son of man who is in heaven.
{3:14} And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so also must the Son of man be lifted up,
{3:15} so that whoever believes in him may not perish, but may have eternal life.
{3:16} For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that all who believe in him may not perish, but may have eternal life.
{3:17} For God did not send his Son into the world, in order to judge the world, but in order that the world may be saved through him.
{3:18} Whoever believes in him is not judged. But whoever does not believe is already judged, because he does not believe in the name of the only-begotten Son of God.
{3:19} And this is the judgment: that the Light has come into the world, and men loved darkness more than light. For their works were evil.
{3:20} For everyone who does evil hates the Light and does not go toward the Light, so that his works may not be corrected.
{3:21} But whoever acts in truth goes toward the Light, so that his works may be manifested, because they have been accomplished in God.”
{3:22} After these things, Jesus and his disciples went into the land of Judea. And he was living there with them and baptizing.
{3:23} Now John was also baptizing, at Aenon near Salim, because there was much water in that place. And they were arriving and being baptized.
{3:24} For John had not yet been cast into prison.
{3:25} Then a dispute occurred between the disciples of John and the Jews, about purification.
{3:26} And they went to John and said to him: “Rabbi, the one who was with you across the Jordan, about whom you offered testimony: behold, he is baptizing and everyone is going to him.”
{3:27} John responded and said: “A man is not able to receive anything, unless it has been given to him from heaven.
{3:28} You yourselves offer testimony for me that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but that I have been sent before him.
{3:29} He who holds the bride is the groom. But the friend of the groom, who stands and listens to Him, rejoices joyfully at the voice of the groom. And so, this, my joy, has been fulfilled.
{3:30} He must increase, while I must decrease.
{3:31} He who comes from above, is above everything. He who is from below, is of the earth, and he speaks about the earth. He who comes from heaven is above everything.
{3:32} And what he has seen and heard, about this he testifies. And no one accepts his testimony.
{3:33} Whoever has accepted his testimony has certified that God is truthful.
{3:34} For he whom God has sent speaks the words of God. For God does not give the Spirit by measure.
{3:35} The Father loves the Son, and he has given everything into his hand.
{3:36} Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. But whoever is unbelieving toward the Son shall not see life; instead the wrath of God remains upon him.”
{4:1} And so, when Jesus realized that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made more disciples and baptized more than John,
{4:2} (though Jesus himself was not baptizing, but only his disciples)
{4:3} he left behind Judea, and he traveled again to Galilee.
{4:4} Now he needed to cross through Samaria.
{4:5} Therefore, he went into a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the estate which Jacob gave to his son Joseph.
{4:6} And Jacob’s well was there. And so Jesus, being tired from the journey, was sitting in a certain way on the well. It was about the sixth hour.
{4:7} A woman of Samaria arrived to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me to drink.”
{4:8} For his disciples had gone into the city in order to buy food.
{4:9} And so, that Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, being a Jew, are requesting a drink from me, though I am a Samaritan woman?” For the Jews do not associate with the Samaritans.
{4:10} Jesus responded and said to her: “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who is saying to you, ‘Give me to drink,’ perhaps you would have made a request of him, and he would have given you living water.”
{4:11} The woman said to him: “Lord, you do not have anything with which to draw water, and the well is deep. From where, then, do you have living water?
{4:12} Surely, you are not greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and who drank from it, with his sons and his cattle?”
{4:13} Jesus responded and said to her: “All who drink from this water will thirst again. But whoever shall drink from the water that I will give to him will not thirst for eternity.
{4:14} Instead, the water that I will give to him will become in him a fountain of water, springing up into eternal life.”
{4:15} The woman said to him, “Lord, give me this water, so that I may not thirst and may not come here to draw water.”
{4:16} Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and return here.”
{4:17} The woman responded and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her: “You have spoken well, in saying, ‘I have no husband.’
{4:18} For you have had five husbands, but he whom you have now is not your husband. You have spoken this in truth.”
{4:19} The woman said to him: “Lord, I see that you are a Prophet.
{4:20} Our fathers worshipped on this mountain, but you say that Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.”
{4:21} Jesus said to her: “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you shall worship the Father, neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem.
{4:22} You worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know. For salvation is from the Jews.
{4:23} But the hour is coming, and it is now, when true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth. For the Father also seeks such persons who may worship him.
{4:24} God is Spirit. And so, those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”
{4:25} The woman said to him: “I know that the Messiah is coming (who is called the Christ). And then, when he will have arrived, he will announce everything to us.”
{4:26} Jesus said to her: “I am he, the one who is speaking with you.”
{4:27} And then his disciples arrived. And they wondered that he was speaking with the woman. Yet no one said: “What are you seeking?” or, “Why are you talking with her?”
{4:28} And so the woman left behind her water jar and went into the city. And she said to the men there:
{4:29} “Come and see a man who has told me all the things that I have done. Is he not the Christ?”
{4:30} Therefore, they went out of the city and came to him.
{4:31} Meanwhile, the disciples petitioned him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.”
{4:32} But he said to them, “I have food to eat which you do not know.”
{4:33} Therefore, the disciples said to one another, “Could someone have brought him something to eat?”
{4:34} Jesus said to them: “My food is to do the will of the One who sent me, so that I may perfect his work.
{4:35} Do you not say, ‘There are still four months, and then the harvest arrives?’ Behold, I say to you: Lift up your eyes and look at the countryside; for it is already ripe for the harvest.
{4:36} For he who reaps, receives wages and gathers fruit unto eternal life, so that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.
{4:37} For in this the word is true: that it is one who sows, and it is another who reaps.
{4:38} I have sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.”
{4:39} Now many of the Samaritans from that city believed in him, because of the word of the woman who was offering testimony: “For he told me all the things that I have done.”
{4:40} Therefore, when the Samaritans had come to him, they petitioned him to lodge there. And he lodged there for two days.
{4:41} And many more believed in him, because of his own word.
{4:42} And they said to the woman: “Now we believe, not because of your speech, but because we ourselves have heard him, and so we know that he is truly the Savior of the world.”
{4:43} Then, after two days, he departed from there, and he traveled into Galilee.
{4:44} For Jesus himself offered testimony that a Prophet has no honor in his own country.
{4:45} And so, when he had arrived in Galilee, the Galileans received him, because they had seen all that he had done at Jerusalem, in the day of the feast. For they also went to the feast day.
{4:46} Then he went again into Cana of Galilee, where he made water into wine. And there was a certain ruler, whose son was sick at Capernaum.
{4:47} Since he had heard that Jesus came to Galilee from Judea, he sent to him and begged him to come down and heal his son. For he was beginning to die.
{4:48} Therefore, Jesus said to him, “Unless you have seen signs and wonders, you do not believe.”
{4:49} The ruler said to him, “Lord, come down before my son dies.”
{4:50} Jesus said to him, “Go, your son lives.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and so he went away.
{4:51} Then, as he was going down, his servants met him. And they reported to him, saying that his son was alive.
{4:52} Therefore, he asked them at which hour he had become better. And they said to him, “Yesterday, at the seventh hour, the fever left him.”
{4:53} Then the father realized that it was at the same hour that Jesus said to him, “Your son lives.” And both he and his entire household believed.
{4:54} This next sign was the second that Jesus accomplished, after he had arrived in Galilee from Judea.
{5:1} After these things, there was a feast day of the Jews, and so Jesus ascended to Jerusalem.
{5:2} Now at Jerusalem is the Pool of Evidence, which in Hebrew is known as the Place of Mercy; it has five porticos.
{5:3} Along these lay a great multitude of the sick, the blind, the lame, and the withered, waiting for the movement of the water.
{5:4} Now at times an Angel of the Lord would descend into the pool, and so the water was moved. And whoever descended first into the pool, after the motion of the water, he was healed of whatever infirmity held him.
{5:5} And there was a certain man in that place, having been in his infirmity for thirty-eight years.
{5:6} Then, when Jesus had seen him reclining, and when he realized that he had been afflicted for a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?”
{5:7} The invalid answered him: “Lord, I do not have any man to put me in the pool, when the water has been stirred. For as I am going, another descends ahead of me.”
{5:8} Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your stretcher, and walk.”
{5:9} And immediately the man was healed. And he took up his stretcher and walked. Now this day was the Sabbath.
{5:10} Therefore, the Jews said to the one who had been healed: “It is the Sabbath. It is not lawful for you to take up your stretcher.”
{5:11} He answered them, “The one who healed me, he said to me, ‘Take up your stretcher and walk.’ ”
{5:12} Therefore, they questioned him, “Who is that man, who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk?’ ”
{5:13} But the one who had been given health did not know who it was. For Jesus had turned aside from the crowd gathered in that place.
{5:14} Afterwards, Jesus found him in the temple, and he said to him: “Behold, you have been healed. Do not choose to sin further, otherwise something worse may happen to you.”
{5:15} This man went away, and he reported to the Jews that it was Jesus who had given him health.
{5:16} Because of this, the Jews were persecuting Jesus, for he was doing these things on the Sabbath.
{5:17} But Jesus answered them, “Even now, my Father is working, and I am working.”
{5:18} And so, because of this, the Jews were seeking to kill him even more so. For not only did he break the Sabbath, but he even said that God was his Father, making himself equal to God.
{5:19} Then Jesus responded and said to them: “Amen, amen, I say to you, the Son is not able to do anything of himself, but only what he has seen the Father doing. For whatever he does, even this does the Son do, similarly.
{5:20} For the Father loves the Son, and he shows him all that he himself does. And greater works than these will he show him, so much so that you shall wonder.
{5:21} For just as the Father raises the dead and gives life, so also does the Son give life to whomever he wills.
{5:22} For the Father does not judge anyone. But he has given all judgment to the Son,
{5:23} so that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son, does not honor the Father who sent him.
{5:24} Amen, amen, I say to you, that whoever hears my word, and believes in him who sent me, has eternal life, and he does not go into judgment, but instead he crosses from death into life.
{5:25} Amen, amen, I say to you, that the hour is coming, and it is now, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear it shall live.
{5:26} For just as the Father has life in himself, so also has he granted to the Son to have life in himself.
{5:27} And he has given him the authority to accomplish judgment. For he is the Son of man.
{5:28} Do not be amazed at this. For the hour is coming in which all who are in the grave shall hear the voice of the Son of God.
{5:29} And those who have done good shall go forth to the resurrection of life. Yet truly, those who have done evil shall go to the resurrection of judgment.
{5:30} I am not able to do anything of myself. As I hear, so do I judge. And my judgment is just. For I do not seek my own will, but the will of him who sent me.
{5:31} If I offer testimony about myself, my testimony is not true.
{5:32} There is another who offers testimony about me, and I know that the testimony which he offers about me is true.
{5:33} You sent to John, and he offered testimony to the truth.
{5:34} But I do not accept testimony from man. Instead, I say these things, so that you may be saved.
{5:35} He was a burning and shining light. So you were willing, at the time, to exult in his light.
{5:36} But I hold a greater testimony than that of John. For the works which the Father has given to me, so that I may complete them, these works themselves that I do, offer testimony about me: that the Father has sent me.
{5:37} And the Father who has sent me has himself offered testimony about me. And you have never heard his voice, nor have you beheld his appearance.
{5:38} And you do not have his word abiding in you. For the one whom he sent, the same you would not believe.
{5:39} Study the Scriptures. For you think that in them you have eternal life. And yet they also offer testimony about me.
{5:40} And you are not willing to come to me, so that you may have life.
{5:41} I do not accept glory from men.
{5:42} But I know you, that you do not have the love of God within you.
{5:43} I have come in the name of my Father, and you do not accept me. If another will arrive in his own name, him you will accept.
{5:44} How are you able to believe, you who accept glory from one another and yet do not seek the glory that is from God alone?
{5:45} Do not consider that I might accuse you with the Father. There is one who accuses you, Moses, in whom you hope.
{5:46} For if you were believing in Moses, perhaps you would believe in me also. For he wrote about me.
{5:47} But if you do not believe by his writings, how will you believe by my words?”
{6:1} After these things, Jesus traveled across the sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias.
{6:2} And a great multitude was following him, for they saw the signs that he was accomplishing toward those who were infirm.
{6:3} Therefore, Jesus went onto a mountain, and he sat down there with his disciples.
{6:4} Now the Passover, the feast day of the Jews, was near.
{6:5} And so, when Jesus had lifted up his eyes and had seen that a very great multitude came to him, he said to Philip, “From where should we buy bread, so that these may eat?”
{6:6} But he said this to test him. For he himself knew what he would do.
{6:7} Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii of bread would not be sufficient for each of them to receive even a little.”
{6:8} One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him:
{6:9} “There is a certain boy here, who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are these among so many?”
{6:10} Then Jesus said, “Have the men sit down to eat.” Now, there was much grass in that place. And so the men, in number about five thousand, sat down to eat.
{6:11} Therefore, Jesus took the bread, and when he had given thanks, he distributed it to those who were sitting down to eat; similarly also, from the fish, as much as they wanted.
{6:12} Then, when they were filled, he said to his disciples, “Gather the fragments that are left over, lest they be lost.”
{6:13} And so they gathered, and they filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which were left over from those who had eaten.
{6:14} Therefore, those men, when they had seen that Jesus had accomplished a sign, they said, “Truly, this one is the Prophet who is to come into the world.”
{6:15} And so, when he realized that they were going to come and take him away and make him king, Jesus fled back to the mountain, by himself alone.
{6:16} Then, when evening arrived, his disciples descended to the sea.
{6:17} And when they had climbed into a boat, they went across the sea to Capernaum. And darkness had now arrived, and Jesus had not returned to them.
{6:18} Then the sea was stirred up by a great wind that was blowing.
{6:19} And so, when they had rowed about twenty-five or thirty stadia, they saw Jesus walking on the sea, and drawing near to the boat, and they were afraid.
{6:20} But he said to them: “It is I. Do not be afraid.”
{6:21} Therefore, they were willing to receive him into the boat. But immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.
{6:22} On the next day, the crowd which was standing across the sea saw that there were no other small boats in that place, except one, and that Jesus had not entered into the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had departed alone.
{6:23} Yet truly, other boats came over from Tiberias, next to the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord gave thanks.
{6:24} Therefore, when the crowd had seen that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they climbed into the small boats, and they went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.
{6:25} And when they had found him across the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?”
{6:26} Jesus answered them and said: “Amen, amen, I say to you, you seek me, not because you have seen signs, but because you have eaten from the bread and were satisfied.
{6:27} Do not work for food that perishes, but for that which endures to eternal life, which the Son of man will give to you. For God the Father has sealed him.”
{6:28} Therefore, they said to him, “What should we do, so that we may labor in the works of God?”
{6:29} Jesus responded and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he sent.”
{6:30} And so they said to him: “Then what sign will you do, so that we may see it and believe in you? What will you work?
{6:31} Our fathers ate manna in the desert, just as it has been written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”
{6:32} Therefore, Jesus said to them: “Amen, amen, I say to you, Moses did not give you bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.
{6:33} For the bread of God is he who descends from heaven and gives life to the world.”
{6:34} And so they said to him, “Lord, give us this bread always.”
{6:35} Then Jesus said to them: “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.
{6:36} But I say to you, that even though you have seen me, you do not believe.
{6:37} All that the Father gives to me shall come to me. And whoever comes to me, I will not cast out.
{6:38} For I descended from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me.
{6:39} Yet this is the will of the Father who sent me: that I should lose nothing out of all that he has given to me, but that I should raise them up on the last day.
{6:40} So then, this is the will of my Father who sent me: that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
{6:41} Therefore, the Jews murmured about him, because he had said: “I am the living bread, who descended from heaven.”
{6:42} And they said: “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? Then how can he say: ‘For I descended from heaven?’ ”
{6:43} And so Jesus responded and said to them: “Do not choose to murmur among yourselves.
{6:44} No one is able to come to me, unless the Father, who has sent me, has drawn him. And I will raise him up on the last day.
{6:45} It has been written in the Prophets: ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has listened and learned from the Father comes to me.
{6:46} Not that anyone has seen the Father, except he who is from God; this one has seen the Father.
{6:47} Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me has eternal life.
{6:48} I am the bread of life.
{6:49} Your fathers ate manna in the desert, and they died.
{6:50} This is the bread which descends from heaven, so that if anyone will eat from it, he may not die.
{6:51} I am the living bread, who descended from heaven.
{6:52} If anyone eats from this bread, he shall live in eternity. And the bread that I will give is my flesh, for the life of the world.”
{6:53} Therefore, the Jews debated among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
{6:54} And so, Jesus said to them: “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you will not have life in you.
{6:55} Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.
{6:56} For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.
{6:57} Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.
{6:58} Just as the living Father has sent me and I live because of the Father, so also whoever eats me, the same shall live because of me.
{6:59} This is the bread that descends from heaven. It is not like the manna that your fathers ate, for they died. Whoever eats this bread shall live forever.”
{6:60} He said these things when he was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum.
{6:61} Therefore, many of his disciples, upon hearing this, said: “This saying is difficult,” and, “Who is able to listen to it?”
{6:62} But Jesus, knowing within himself that his disciples were murmuring about this, said to them: “Does this offend you?
{6:63} Then what if you were to see the Son of man ascending to where he was before?
{6:64} It is the Spirit who gives life. The flesh does not offer anything of benefit. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.
{6:65} But there are some among you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who were unbelieving and which one would betray him.
{6:66} And so he said, “For this reason, I said to you that no one is able to come to me, unless it has been given to him by my Father.”
{6:67} After this, many of his disciples went back, and they no longer walked with him.
{6:68} Therefore, Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?”
{6:69} Then Simon Peter answered him: “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life.
{6:70} And we have believed, and we recognize that you are the Christ, the Son of God.”
{6:71} Jesus answered them: “Have I not chosen you twelve? And yet one among you is a devil.”
{6:72} Now he was speaking about Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. For this one, even though he was one of the twelve, was about to betray him.
{7:1} Then, after these things, Jesus was walking in Galilee. For he was not willing to walk in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him.
{7:2} Now the feast day of the Jews, the Feast of Tabernacles, was near.
{7:3} And his brothers said to him: “Move away from here and go into Judea, so that your disciples there may also see your works that you do.
{7:4} Of course, no one does anything in secret, but he himself seeks to be in the public view. Since you do these things, manifest yourself to the world.”
{7:5} For neither did his brothers believe in him.
{7:6} Therefore, Jesus said to them: “My time has not yet come; but your time is always at hand.
{7:7} The world cannot hate you. But it hates me, because I offer testimony about it, that its works are evil.
{7:8} You may go up to this feast day. But I am not going up to this feast day, because my time has not yet been fulfilled.”
{7:9} When he had said these things, he himself remained in Galilee.
{7:10} But after his brothers went up, then he also went up to the feast day, not openly, but as if in secret.
{7:11} Therefore, the Jews were seeking him on the feast day, and they were saying, “Where is he?”
{7:12} And there was much murmuring in the crowd concerning him. For certain ones were saying, “He is good.” But others were saying, “No, for he seduces the crowds.”
{7:13} Yet no one was speaking openly about him, out of fear of the Jews.
{7:14} Then, about the middle of the feast, Jesus ascended into the temple, and he was teaching.
{7:15} And the Jews wondered, saying: “How does this one know letters, though he has not been taught?”
{7:16} Jesus responded to them and said: “My doctrine is not of me, but of him who sent me.
{7:17} If anyone has chosen to do his will, then he will realize, about the doctrine, whether it is from God, or whether I am speaking from myself.
{7:18} Whoever speaks from himself seeks his own glory. But whoever seeks the glory of him who sent him, this one is true, and injustice is not in him.
{7:19} Did not Moses give you the law? And yet not one among you keeps the law!
{7:20} Why are you seeking to kill me?” The crowd responded and said: “You must have a demon. Who is seeking to kill you?”
{7:21} Jesus responded and said to them: “One work have I done, and you all wonder.
{7:22} For Moses gave you circumcision, (not that it is of Moses, but of the fathers) and on the Sabbath you circumcise a man.
{7:23} If a man can receive circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you indignant toward me, because I have made a man whole on the Sabbath?
{7:24} Do not judge according to appearances, but instead judge a just judgment.”
{7:25} Therefore, some of those from Jerusalem said: “Is he not the one whom they are seeking to kill?
{7:26} And behold, he is speaking openly, and they say nothing to him. Could the leaders have decided that it is true this one is the Christ?
{7:27} But we know him and where he is from. And when the Christ has arrived, no one will know where he is from.”
{7:28} Therefore, Jesus cried out in the temple, teaching and saying: “You know me, and you also know where I am from. And I have not arrived of myself, but he who sent me is true, and him you do not know.
{7:29} I know him. For I am from him, and he has sent me.”
{7:30} Therefore, they were seeking to apprehend him, and yet no one laid hands on him, because his hour had not yet come.
{7:31} But many among the crowd believed in him, and they were saying, “When the Christ arrives, will he perform more signs than this man does?”
{7:32} The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things about him. And the leaders and the Pharisees sent attendants to apprehend him.
{7:33} Therefore, Jesus said to them: “For a brief time, I am still with you, and then I am going to him who sent me.
{7:34} You shall seek me, and you will not find me. And where I am, you are not able to go.”
{7:35} And so the Jews said among themselves: “Where is this place to which he will go, such that we will not find him? Will he go to those dispersed among the Gentiles and teach the Gentiles?
{7:36} What is this word that he spoke, ‘You will seek me and you will not find me; and where I am, you are not able to go?’ ”
{7:37} Then, on the last great day of the feast, Jesus was standing and crying out, saying: “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink:
{7:38} whoever believes in me, just as Scripture says, ‘From his chest shall flow rivers of living water.’ ”
{7:39} Now he said this about the Spirit, which those who believe in him would soon be receiving. For the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.
{7:40} Therefore, some from that crowd, when they had heard these words of his, were saying, “This one truly is the Prophet.”
{7:41} Others were saying, “He is the Christ.” Yet certain ones were saying: “Does the Christ come from Galilee?
{7:42} Does Scripture not say that the Christ comes from the offspring of David and from Bethlehem, the town where David was?”
{7:43} And so there arose a dissension among the multitude because of him.
{7:44} Now certain ones among them wanted to apprehend him, but no one laid hands upon him.
{7:45} Therefore, the attendants went to the high priests and the Pharisees. And they said to them, “Why have you not brought him?”
{7:46} The attendants responded, “Never has a man spoken like this man.”
{7:47} And so the Pharisees answered them: “Have you also been seduced?
{7:48} Have any of the leaders believed in him, or any of the Pharisees?
{7:49} But this crowd, which does not know the law, they are accursed.”
{7:50} Nicodemus, the one who came to him by night and who was one of them, said to them,
{7:51} “Does our law judge a man, unless it has first heard him and has known what he has done?”
{7:52} They responded and said to him: “Are you also a Galilean? Study the Scriptures, and see that a prophet does not arise from Galilee.”
{7:53} And each one returned to his own house.
{8:1} But Jesus continued on to the Mount of Olives.
{8:2} And early in the morning, he went again to the temple; and all the people came to him. And sitting down, he taught them.
{8:3} Now the scribes and Pharisees brought forward a woman caught in adultery, and they stood her in front of them.
{8:4} And they said to him: “Teacher, this woman was just now caught in adultery.
{8:5} And in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such a one. Therefore, what do you say?”
{8:6} But they were saying this to test him, so that they might be able to accuse him. Then Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the earth.
{8:7} And then, when they persevered in questioning him, he stood upright and said to them, “Let whoever is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.”
{8:8} And bending down again, he wrote on the earth.
{8:9} But upon hearing this, they went away, one by one, beginning with the eldest. And Jesus alone remained, with the woman standing in front of him.
{8:10} Then Jesus, raising himself up, said to her: “Woman, where are those who accused you? Has no one condemned you?”
{8:11} And she said, “No one, Lord.” Then Jesus said: “Neither will I condemn you. Go, and now do not choose to sin anymore.”
{8:12} Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me does not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”
{8:13} And so the Pharisees said to him, “You offer testimony about yourself; your testimony is not true.”
{8:14} Jesus responded and said to them: “Even though I offer testimony about myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going.
{8:15} You judge according to the flesh. I do not judge anyone.
{8:16} And when I do judge, my judgment is true. For I am not alone, but it is I and he who sent me: the Father.
{8:17} And it is written in your law that the testimony of two men is true.
{8:18} I am one who offers testimony about myself, and the Father who sent me offers testimony about me.”
{8:19} Therefore, they said to him, “Where is your Father?” Jesus answered: “You know neither me, nor my Father. If you did know me, perhaps you would know my Father also.”
{8:20} Jesus spoke these words at the treasury, while teaching in the temple. And no one apprehended him, because his hour had not yet come.
{8:21} Therefore, Jesus again spoke to them: “I am going, and you shall seek me. And you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you are not able to go.”
{8:22} And so the Jews said, “Is he going to kill himself, for he said: ‘Where I am going, you are not able to go?’ ”
{8:23} And he said to them: “You are from below. I am from above. You are of this world. I am not of this world.
{8:24} Therefore, I said to you, that you will die in your sins. For if you will not believe that I am, you will die in your sin.”
{8:25} And so they said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus said to them: “The Beginning, who is also speaking to you.
{8:26} I have much to say about you and to judge. But he who sent me is true. And what I have heard from him, this I speak within the world.”
{8:27} And they did not realize that he was calling God his Father.
{8:28} And so Jesus said to them: “When you will have lifted up the Son of man, then you shall realize that I am, and that I do nothing of myself, but just as the Father has taught me, so do I speak.
{8:29} And he who sent me is with me, and he has not abandoned me alone. For I always do what is pleasing to him.”
{8:30} As he was speaking these things, many believed in him.
{8:31} Therefore, Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him: “If you will abide in my word, you will truly be my disciples.
{8:32} And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.”
{8:33} They answered him: “We are the offspring of Abraham, and we have never been a slave to anyone. How can you say, ‘You shall be set free?’ ”
{8:34} Jesus answered them: “Amen, amen, I say to you, that everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.
{8:35} Now the slave does not abide in the house for eternity. Yet the Son does abide in eternity.
{8:36} Therefore, if the Son has set you free, then you will truly be free.
{8:37} I know that you are sons of Abraham. But you are seeking to kill me, because my word has not taken hold in you.
{8:38} I speak what I have seen with my Father. And you do what you have seen with your father.”
{8:39} They responded and said to him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them: “If you are the sons of Abraham, then do the works of Abraham.
{8:40} But now you are seeking to kill me, a man who has spoken the truth to you, which I have heard from God. This is not what Abraham did.
{8:41} You do the works of your father.” Therefore, they said to him: “We were not born out of fornication. We have one father: God.”
{8:42} Then Jesus said to them: “If God were your father, certainly you would love me. For I proceeded and came from God. For I did not come from myself, but he sent me.
{8:43} Why do you not recognize my speech? It is because you are not able to hear my word.
{8:44} You are of your father, the devil. And you will carry out the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning. And he did not stand in the truth, because the truth is not in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks it from his own self. For he is a liar, and the father of lies.
{8:45} But if I speak the truth, you do not believe me.
{8:46} Which of you can convict me of sin? If I speak the truth to you, why do you not believe me?
{8:47} Whoever is of God, hears the words of God. For this reason, you do not hear them: because you are not of God.”
{8:48} Therefore, the Jews responded and said to him, “Are we not correct in saying that you are a Samaritan, and that you have a demon?”
{8:49} Jesus responded: “I do not have a demon. But I honor my Father, and you have dishonored me.
{8:50} But I am not seeking my own glory. There is One who seeks and judges.
{8:51} Amen, amen, I say to you, if anyone will have kept my word, he will not see death for eternity.”
{8:52} Therefore, the Jews said: “Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham is dead, and the Prophets; and yet you say, ‘If anyone will have kept my word, he shall not taste death for eternity.’
{8:53} Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the prophets are dead. So who do you make yourself to be?”
{8:54} Jesus responded: “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me. And you say about him that he is your God.
{8:55} And yet you have not known him. But I know him. And if I were to say that I do not know him, then I would be like you, a liar. But I know him, and I keep his word.
{8:56} Abraham, your father, rejoiced that he might see my day; he saw it and was glad.”
{8:57} And so the Jews said to him, “You have not yet reached fifty years, and you have seen Abraham?”
{8:58} Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham was made, I am.”
{8:59} Therefore, they took up stones to cast at him. But Jesus hid himself, and he departed from the temple.
{9:1} And Jesus, while passing by, saw a man blind from birth.
{9:2} And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?”
{9:3} Jesus responded: “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but it was so that the works of God would be made manifest in him.
{9:4} I must work the works of him who sent me, while it is day: the night is coming, when no one is able to work.
{9:5} As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
{9:6} When he had said these things, he spat on the ground, and he made clay from the spittle, and he smeared the clay over his eyes.
{9:7} And he said to him: “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated as: one who has been sent). Therefore, he went away and washed, and he returned, seeing.
{9:8} And so the bystanders and those who had seen him before, when he was a beggar, said, “Is this not the one who was sitting and begging?” Some said, “This is he.”
{9:9} But others said, “Certainly not, but he is similar to him.” Yet truly, he himself said, “I am he.”
{9:10} Therefore, they said to him, “How were your eyes opened?”
{9:11} He responded: “That man who is called Jesus made clay, and he anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.’ And I went, and I washed, and I see.”
{9:12} And they said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”
{9:13} They brought the one who had been blind to the Pharisees.
{9:14} Now it was the Sabbath, when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.
{9:15} Therefore, again the Pharisees questioned him as to how he had seen. And he said to them, “He placed clay over my eyes, and I washed, and I see.”
{9:16} And so certain Pharisees said: “This man, who does not keep the Sabbath, is not from God.” But others said, “How could a sinful man accomplish these signs?” And there was a schism among them.
{9:17} Therefore, they spoke again to the blind man, “What do you say about him who opened your eyes?” Then he said, “He is a Prophet.”
{9:18} Therefore, the Jews did not believe, about him, that he had been blind and had seen, until they called the parents of him who had seen.
{9:19} And they questioned them, saying: “Is this your son, whom you say was born blind? Then how is it that he now sees?”
{9:20} His parents responded to them and said: “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind.
{9:21} But how it is that he now sees, we do not know. And who opened his eyes, we do not know. Ask him. He is old enough. Let him speak for himself.”
{9:22} His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jews. For the Jews had already conspired, so that if anyone were to confess him to be the Christ, he would be expelled from the synagogue.
{9:23} It was for this reason that his parents said: “He is old enough. Ask him.”
{9:24} Therefore, they again called the man who had been blind, and they said to him: “Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner.”
{9:25} And so he said to them: “If he is a sinner, I do not know it. One thing I do know, that although I was blind, now I see.”
{9:26} Then they said to him: “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?”
{9:27} He answered them: “I have already told you, and you heard it. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?”
{9:28} Therefore, they cursed him and said: “You be his disciple. But we are disciples of Moses.
{9:29} We know that God spoke to Moses. But this man, we do not know where he is from.”
{9:30} The man responded and said to them: “Now in this is a wonder: that you do not know where he is from, and yet he has opened my eyes.
{9:31} And we know that God does not hear sinners. But if anyone is a worshipper of God and does his will, then he heeds him.
{9:32} From ancient times, it has not been heard that anyone has opened the eyes of someone born blind.
{9:33} Unless this man were of God, he would not be able to do any such thing.”
{9:34} They responded and said to him, “You were born entirely in sins, and you would teach us?” And they cast him out.
{9:35} Jesus heard that they had cast him out. And when he had found him, he said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?”
{9:36} He responded and said, “Who is he, Lord, so that I may believe in him?”
{9:37} And Jesus said to him, “You have both seen him, and he is the one who is speaking with you.”
{9:38} And he said, “I believe, Lord.” And falling prostrate, he worshipped him.
{9:39} And Jesus said, “I came into this world in judgment, so that those who do not see, may see; and so that those who see, may become blind.”
{9:40} And certain Pharisees, who were with him, heard this, and they said to him, “Are we also blind?”
{9:41} Jesus said to them: “If you were blind, you would not have sin. Yet now you say, ‘We see.’ So your sin persists.”
{10:1} “Amen, amen, I say to you, he who does not enter through the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up by another way, he is a thief and a robber.
{10:2} But he who enters through the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
{10:3} To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name, and he leads them out.
{10:4} And when he has sent out his sheep, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, because they know his voice.
{10:5} But they do not follow a stranger; instead they flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers.”
{10:6} Jesus spoke this proverb to them. But they did not understand what he was saying to them.
{10:7} Therefore, Jesus spoke to them again: “Amen, amen, I say to you, that I am the door of the sheep.
{10:8} All others, as many as have come, are thieves and robbers, and the sheep did not listen to them.
{10:9} I am the door. If anyone has entered through me, he will be saved. And he shall go in and go out, and he shall find pastures.
{10:10} The thief does not come, except so that he may steal and slaughter and destroy. I have come so that they may have life, and have it more abundantly.
{10:11} I am the good Shepherd. The good Shepherd gives his life for his sheep.
{10:12} But the hired hand, and whoever is not a shepherd, to whom the sheep do not belong, he sees the wolf approaching, and he departs from the sheep and flees. And the wolf ravages and scatters the sheep.
{10:13} And the hired hand flees, because he is a hired hand and there is no concern for the sheep within him.
{10:14} I am the good Shepherd, and I know my own, and my own know me,
{10:15} just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for my sheep.
{10:16} And I have other sheep that are not of this fold, and I must lead them. They shall hear my voice, and there shall be one sheepfold and one shepherd.
{10:17} For this reason, the Father loves me: because I lay down my life, so that I may take it up again.
{10:18} No one takes it away from me. Instead, I lay it down of my own accord. And I have the power to lay it down. And I have the power to take it up again. This is the commandment that I have received from my Father.”
{10:19} A dissension occurred again among the Jews because of these words.
{10:20} Then many of them were saying: “He has a demon or he is insane. Why do you listen him?”
{10:21} Others were saying: “These are not the words of someone who has a demon. How would a demon be able to open the eyes of the blind?”
{10:22} Now it was the Feast of the Dedication at Jerusalem, and it was winter.
{10:23} And Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon.
{10:24} And so the Jews surrounded him and said to him: “How long will you hold our souls in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
{10:25} Jesus answered them: “I speak to you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in the name of my Father, these offer testimony about me.
{10:26} But you do not believe, because you are not of my sheep.
{10:27} My sheep hear my voice. And I know them, and they follow me.
{10:28} And I give them eternal life, and they shall not perish, for eternity. And no one shall seize them from my hand.
{10:29} What my Father gave to me is greater than all, and no one is able to seize from the hand of my Father.
{10:30} I and the Father are one.”
{10:31} Therefore, the Jews took up stones, in order to stone him.
{10:32} Jesus answered them: “I have shown you many good works from my Father. For which of those works do you stone me?”
{10:33} The Jews answered him: “We do not stone you for a good work, but for blasphemy and because, though you are a man, you make yourself God.”
{10:34} Jesus responded to them: “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said: you are gods?’
{10:35} If he called those to whom the word of God was given gods, and Scripture cannot be broken,
{10:36} why do you say, about him whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You have blasphemed,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God?’
{10:37} If I do not do the works of my Father, do not believe in me.
{10:38} But if I do them, even if you are not willing to believe in me, believe the works, so that you may know and believe that the Father is in me, and I am in the Father.”
{10:39} Therefore, they sought to apprehend him, but he escaped from their hands.
{10:40} And he went again across the Jordan, to that place where John first was baptizing. And he lodged there.
{10:41} And many went out to him. And they were saying: “Indeed, John accomplished no signs.
{10:42} But all things whatsoever that John said about this man were true.” And many believed in him.
{11:1} Now there was a certain sick man, Lazarus of Bethania, from the town of Mary and her sister Martha.
{11:2} And Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was sick.
{11:3} Therefore, his sisters sent to him, saying: “Lord, behold, he whom you love is sick.”
{11:4} Then, upon hearing this, Jesus said to them: “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.”
{11:5} Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister Mary, and Lazarus.
{11:6} Even so, after he heard that he was sick, he then still remained in the same place for two days.
{11:7} Then, after these things, he said to his disciples, “Let us go into Judea again.”
{11:8} The disciples said to him: “Rabbi, the Jews are even now seeking to stone you. And would you go there again?”
{11:9} Jesus responded: “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the daylight, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world.
{11:10} But if he walks in the nighttime, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.”
{11:11} He said these things, and after this, he said to them: “Lazarus our friend is sleeping. But I am going, so that I may awaken him from sleep.”
{11:12} And so his disciples said, “Lord, if he is sleeping, he shall be healthy.”
{11:13} But Jesus had spoken about his death. Yet they thought that he spoke about the repose of sleep.
{11:14} Therefore, Jesus then said to them plainly, “Lazarus has died.
{11:15} And I am glad for your sake that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”
{11:16} And then Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us go, too, so that we may die with him.”
{11:17} And so Jesus went. And he found that he had already been in the tomb for four days.
{11:18} (Now Bethania was near Jerusalem, about fifteen stadia.)
{11:19} And many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary, so as to console them over their brother.
{11:20} Therefore, Martha, when she heard that Jesus was arriving, went out to meet him. But Mary was sitting at home.
{11:21} And then Martha said to Jesus: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.
{11:22} But even now, I know that whatever you will request from God, God will give to you.”
{11:23} Jesus said to her, “Your brother shall rise again.”
{11:24} Martha said to him, “I know that he shall rise again, at the resurrection on the last day.”
{11:25} Jesus said to her: “I am the Resurrection and the Life. Whoever believes in me, even though he has died, he shall live.
{11:26} And everyone who lives and believes in me shall not die for eternity. Do you believe this?”
{11:27} She said to him: “Certainly, Lord. I have believed that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God, who has come into this world.”
{11:28} And when she had said these things, she went and called her sister Mary quietly, saying, “The Teacher is here, and he is calling you.”
{11:29} When she heard this, she rose up quickly and went to him.
{11:30} For Jesus had not yet arrived in the town. But he was still at that place where Martha had met him.
{11:31} Therefore, the Jews who were with her in the house and who were consoling her, when they had seen that Mary rose up quickly and went out, they followed her, saying, “She is going to the tomb, so that she may weep there.”
{11:32} Therefore, when Mary had arrived to where Jesus was, seeing him, she fell down at his feet, and she said to him. “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
{11:33} And then, when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had arrived with her weeping, he groaned in spirit and became troubled.
{11:34} And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.”
{11:35} And Jesus wept.
{11:36} Therefore, the Jews said, “See how much he loved him!”
{11:37} But some of them said, “Would not he who opened the eyes of one born blind have been able to cause this man not to die?”
{11:38} Therefore, Jesus, again groaning from within himself, went to the tomb. Now it was a cave, and a stone had been placed over it.
{11:39} Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of him who had died, said to him, “Lord, by now it will smell, for this is the fourth day.”
{11:40} Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you shall see the glory of God?”
{11:41} Therefore, they took away the stone. Then, lifting up his eyes, Jesus said: “Father, I give thanks to you because you have heard me.
{11:42} And I know that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the people who are standing nearby, so that they may believe that you have sent me.”
{11:43} When he had said these things, he cried in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.”
{11:44} And immediately, he who had been dead went forth, bound at the feet and hands with winding bands. And his face was bound with a separate cloth. Jesus said to them, “Release him and let him go.”
{11:45} Therefore, many of the Jews, who had come to Mary and Martha, and who had seen the things that Jesus did, believed in him.
{11:46} But certain ones among them went to the Pharisees and told them the things that Jesus had done.
{11:47} And so, the high priests and the Pharisees gathered a council, and they were saying: “What can we do? For this man accomplishes many signs.
{11:48} If we leave him alone, in this way all will believe in him. And then the Romans will come and take away our place and our nation.”
{11:49} Then one of them, named Caiaphas, since he was the high priest that year, said to them: “You do not understand anything.
{11:50} Nor do you realize that it is expedient for you that one man should die for the people, and that the entire nation should not perish.”
{11:51} Yet he did not say this from himself, but since he was the high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation.
{11:52} And not only for the nation, but in order to gather together as one the children of God who have been dispersed.
{11:53} Therefore, from that day, they planned to put him to death.
{11:54} And so, Jesus no longer walked in public with the Jews. But he went into a region near the desert, to a city which is called Ephraim. And he lodged there with his disciples.
{11:55} Now the Passover of the Jews was near. And many from the countryside ascended to Jerusalem before the Passover, so that they might sanctify themselves.
{11:56} Therefore, they were seeking Jesus. And they conferred with one another, while standing in the temple: “What do you think? Will he come to the feast day?”
{11:57} And the high priests and Pharisees had given an order, so that if anyone would know where he may be, he should reveal it, so that they might apprehend him.
{12:1} Then six days before the Passover, Jesus went to Bethania, where Lazarus had died, whom Jesus raised up.
{12:2} And they made a dinner for him there. And Martha was ministering. And truly, Lazarus was one of those who were sitting at table with him.
{12:3} And then Mary took twelve ounces of pure spikenard ointment, very precious, and she anointed the feet of Jesus, and she wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment.
{12:4} Then one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was soon to betray him, said,
{12:5} “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the needy?”
{12:6} Now he said this, not out of concern for the needy, but because he was a thief and, since he held the purse, he used to carry what was put into it.
{12:7} But Jesus said: “Permit her, so that she may keep it against the day of my burial.
{12:8} For the poor, you have with you always. But me, you do always not have.”
{12:9} Now a great multitude of the Jews knew that he was in that place, and so they came, not so much because of Jesus, but so that they might see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead.
{12:10} And the leaders of the priests planned to put Lazarus to death also.
{12:11} For many of the Jews, because of him, were going away and were believing in Jesus.
{12:12} Then, on the next day, the great crowd that had come to the feast day, when they had heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem,
{12:13} took branches of palm trees, and they went ahead to meet him. And they were crying out: “Hosanna! Blessed is he who arrives in the name of the Lord, the king of Israel!”
{12:14} And Jesus found a small donkey, and he sat upon it, just as it is written:
{12:15} “Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion. Behold, your king arrives, sitting on the colt of a donkey.”
{12:16} At first, his disciples did not realize these things. But when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about him, and that these things happened to him.
{12:17} And so the crowd that had been with him, when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead, offered testimony.
{12:18} Because of this, too, the crowd went out to meet him. For they heard that he had accomplished this sign.
{12:19} Therefore, the Pharisees said among themselves: “Do you see that we are accomplishing nothing? Behold, the entire world has gone after him.”
{12:20} Now there were certain Gentiles among those who went up so that they might worship on the feast day.
{12:21} Therefore, these approached Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and they petitioned him, saying: “Sir, we want to see Jesus.”
{12:22} Philip went and told Andrew. Next, Andrew and Philip told Jesus.
{12:23} But Jesus answered them by saying: “The hour arrives when the Son of man shall be glorified.
{12:24} Amen, amen, I say to you, unless the grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies,
{12:25} it remains alone. But if it dies, it yields much fruit. Whoever loves his life, will lose it. And whoever hates his life in this world, preserves it unto eternal life.
{12:26} If anyone serves me, let him follow me. And where I am, there too my minister shall be. If anyone has served me, my Father will honor him.
{12:27} Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say? Father, save me from this hour? But it is for this reason that I came to this hour.
{12:28} Father, glorify your name!” And then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”
{12:29} Therefore, the crowd, which was standing near and had heard it, said that it was like thunder. Others were saying, “An Angel was speaking with him.”
{12:30} Jesus responded and said: “This voice came, not for my sake, but for your sakes.
{12:31} Now is the judgment of the world. Now will the prince of this world be cast out.
{12:32} And when I have been lifted up from the earth, I will draw all things to myself.”
{12:33} (Now he said this, signifying what kind of death he would die.)
{12:34} The crowd answered him: “We have heard, from the law, that the Christ remains forever. And so how can you say, ‘The Son of man must be lifted up?’ Who is this Son of man?”
{12:35} Therefore, Jesus said to them: “For a brief time, the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. But whoever walks in darkness does not know where is he going.
{12:36} While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may be sons of the Light.” Jesus spoke these things, and then he went away and hid himself from them.
{12:37} And although he had done such great signs in their presence, they did not believe in him,
{12:38} so that the word of the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled, which says: “Lord, who has believed in our hearing? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”
{12:39} Because of this, they were not able to believe, for Isaiah said again:
{12:40} “He has blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart, so that they may not see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and be converted: and then I would heal them.”
{12:41} These things Isaiah said, when he saw his glory and was speaking about him.
{12:42} Yet truly, many of the leaders also believed in him. But because of the Pharisees, they did not confess him, so that they would not be cast out of the synagogue.
{12:43} For they loved the glory of men more than the glory of God.
{12:44} But Jesus cried out and said: “Whoever believes in me, does not believe in me, but in him who sent me.
{12:45} And whoever sees me, sees him who sent me.
{12:46} I have arrived as a light to the world, so that all who believe in me might not remain in darkness.
{12:47} And if anyone has heard my words and not kept them, I do not judge him. For I did not come so that I may judge the world, but so that I may save the world.
{12:48} Whoever despises me and does not accept my words has one who judges him. The word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him on the last day.
{12:49} For I am not speaking from myself, but from the Father who sent me. He gave a commandment to me as to what I should say and how I should speak.
{12:50} And I know that his commandment is eternal life. Therefore, the things that I speak, just as the Father has said to me, so also do I speak.”
{13:1} Before the feast day of the Passover, Jesus knew that the hour was approaching when he would pass from this world to the Father. And since he had always loved his own who were in the world, he loved them unto the end.
{13:2} And when the meal had taken place, when the devil had now put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray him,
{13:3} knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands and that he came from God and was going to God,
{13:4} he rose up from the meal, and he set aside his vestments, and when he had received a towel, he wrapped it around himself.
{13:5} Next he put water into a shallow bowl, and he began to wash the feet of the disciples and to wipe them with the towel with which he was wrapped.
{13:6} And then he came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to him, “Lord, would you wash my feet?”
{13:7} Jesus responded and said to him: “What I am doing, you do not now understand. But you shall understand it afterward.”
{13:8} Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you will have no place with me.”
{13:9} Simon Peter said to him, “Then Lord, not only my feet, but also my hands and my head!”
{13:10} Jesus said to him: “He who is washed need only wash his feet, and then he will be entirely clean. And you are clean, but not all.”
{13:11} For he knew which one would betray him. For this reason, he said, “You are not all clean.”
{13:12} And so, after he washed their feet and received his vestments, when he had sat down at table again, he said to them: “Do you know what I have done for you?
{13:13} You call me Teacher and Lord, and you speak well: for so I am.
{13:14} Therefore, if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash the feet of one another.
{13:15} For I have given you an example, so that just as I have done for you, so also should you do.
{13:16} Amen, amen, I say to you, the servant is not greater than his Lord, and the apostle is not greater than he who sent him.
{13:17} If you understand this, you shall be blessed if you will do it.
{13:18} I am not speaking about all of you. I know those whom I have chosen. But this is so that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘He who eats bread with me shall lift up his heel against me.’
{13:19} And I tell you this now, before it happens, so that when it has happened, you may believe that I am.
{13:20} Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever receives anyone whom I send, receives me. And whoever receives me, receives him who sent me.”
{13:21} When Jesus had said these things, he was troubled in spirit. And he bore witness by saying: “Amen, amen, I say to you, that one among you shall betray me.”
{13:22} Therefore, the disciples looked around at one another, uncertain about whom he spoke.
{13:23} And leaning against the bosom of Jesus was one of his disciples, the one whom Jesus loved.
{13:24} Therefore, Simon Peter motioned to this one and said to him, “Who is it that he is speaking about?”
{13:25} And so, leaning against the chest of Jesus, he said to him, “Lord, who is it?”
{13:26} Jesus responded, “It is he to whom I shall extend the dipped bread.” And when he had dipped the bread, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, son of Simon.
{13:27} And after the morsel, Satan entered into him. And Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.”
{13:28} Now none of those sitting at table knew why he had said this to him.
{13:29} For some were thinking that, because Judas held the purse, that Jesus had told him, “Buy those things which are needed by us for the feast day,” or that he might give something to the needy.
{13:30} Therefore, having accepted the morsel, he went out immediately. And it was night.
{13:31} Then, when he had gone out, Jesus said: “Now the Son of man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him.
{13:32} If God has been glorified in him, then God will also glorify him in himself, and he will glorify him without delay.
{13:33} Little sons, for a brief while, I am with you. You shall seek me, and just as I said to the Jews, ‘Where I am going, you are not able to go,’ so also I say to you now.
{13:34} I give you a new commandment: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, so also must you love one another.
{13:35} By this, all shall recognize that you are my disciples: if you will have love for one another.”
{13:36} Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus responded: “Where I am going, you are not able to follow me now. But you shall follow afterward.”
{13:37} Peter said to him: “Why am I unable to follow you now? I will lay down my life for you!”
{13:38} Jesus answered him: “You will lay down your life for me? Amen, amen, I say to you, the rooster will not crow, until you deny me three times.”
{14:1} “Do not let your heart be troubled. You believe in God. Believe in me also.
{14:2} In my Father’s house, there are many dwelling places. If there were not, I would have told you. For I go to prepare a place for you.
{14:3} And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will return again, and then I will take you to myself, so that where I am, you also may be.
{14:4} And you know where I am going. And you know the way.”
{14:5} Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”
{14:6} Jesus said to him: “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father, except through me.
{14:7} If you had known me, certainly you would also have known my Father. And from now on, you shall know him, and you have seen him.”
{14:8} Philip said to him, “Lord, reveal the Father to us, and it is enough for us.”
{14:9} Jesus said to him: “Have I been with you for so long, and you have not known me? Philip, whoever sees me, also sees the Father. How can you say, ‘Reveal the Father to us?’
{14:10} Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I am speaking to you, I do not speak from myself. But the Father abiding in me, he does these works.
{14:11} Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?
{14:12} Or else, believe because of these same works. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me shall also do the works that I do. And greater things than these shall he do, for I go to the Father.
{14:13} And whatever you shall ask the Father in my name, that I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
{14:14} If you shall ask anything of me in my name, that I will do.
{14:15} If you love me, keep my commandments.
{14:16} And I will ask the Father, and he will give another Advocate to you, so that he may abide with you for eternity:
{14:17} the Spirit of Truth, whom the world is not able to accept, because it neither perceives him nor knows him. But you shall know him. For he will remain with you, and he will be in you.
{14:18} I will not leave you orphans. I will return to you.
{14:19} Yet a little while and the world will not see me any longer. But you will see me. For I live, and you shall live.
{14:20} In that day, you shall know that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.
{14:21} Whoever holds to my commandments and keeps them: it is he who loves me. And whoever loves me shall be loved by my Father. And I will love him, and I will manifest myself to him.”
{14:22} Judas, not the Iscariot, said to him: “Lord, how does it happen that you will manifest yourself to us and not to the world?”
{14:23} Jesus responded and said to him: “If anyone loves me, he shall keep my word. And my Father will love him, and we will come to him, and we will make our dwelling place with him.
{14:24} Whoever does not love me, does not keep not my words. And the word that you have heard is not of me, but it is of the Father who sent me.
{14:25} These things I have spoken to you, while abiding with you.
{14:26} But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will suggest to you everything whatsoever that I have said to you.
{14:27} Peace I leave for you; my Peace I give to you. Not in the way that the world gives, do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, and let it not fear.
{14:28} You have heard that I said to you: I am going away, and I am returning to you. If you loved me, certainly you would be gladdened, because I am going to the Father. For the Father is greater than I.
{14:29} And now I have told you this, before it happens, so that, when it will happen, you may believe.
{14:30} I will not now speak at length with you. For the prince of this world is coming, but he does not have anything in me.
{14:31} Yet this is so that the world may know that I love the Father, and that I am acting according to the commandment that the Father has given to me. Rise up, let us go from here.”
{15:1} “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.
{15:2} Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, he will take away. And each one that does bear fruit, he will cleanse, so that it may bring forth more fruit.
{15:3} You are clean now, because of the word that I have spoken to you.
{15:4} Abide in me, and I in you. Just as the branch is not able to bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so also are you unable, unless you abide in me.
{15:5} I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me, and I in him, bears much fruit. For without me, you are able to do nothing.
{15:6} If anyone does not abide in me, he will be cast away, like a branch, and he will wither, and they will gather him and cast him into the fire, and he burns.
{15:7} If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, then you may ask for whatever you will, and it shall be done for you.
{15:8} In this, my Father is glorified: that you should bring forth very much fruit and become my disciples.
{15:9} As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Abide in my love.
{15:10} If you keep my precepts, you shall abide in my love, just as I also have kept my Father’s precepts and I abide in his love.
{15:11} These things I have spoken to you, so that my joy may be in you, and your joy may be fulfilled.
{15:12} This is my precept: that you love one another, just as I have loved you.
{15:13} No one has a greater love than this: that he lay down his life for his friends.
{15:14} You are my friends, if you do what I instruct you.
{15:15} I will no longer call you servants, for the servant does not know what his Lord is doing. But I have called you friends, because everything whatsoever that I have heard from my Father, I have made known to you.
{15:16} You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you. And I have appointed you, so that you may go forth and bear fruit, and so that your fruit may last. Then whatever you have asked of the Father in my name, he shall give to you.
{15:17} This I command you: that you love one another.
{15:18} If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before you.
{15:19} If you had been of the world, the world would love what is its own. Yet truly, you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world; because of this, the world hates you.
{15:20} Remember my saying that I told you: The servant is not greater than his Lord. If they have persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they have kept my word, they will keep yours also.
{15:21} But all these things they will do to you because of my name, for they do not know him who sent me.
{15:22} If I had not come and had not spoken to them, they would not have sin. But now they have no excuse for their sin.
{15:23} Whoever hates me, hates my Father also.
{15:24} If I had not accomplished among them works that no other person has accomplished, they would not have sin. But now they have both seen me, and they have hated me and my Father.
{15:25} But this is so that the word may be fulfilled which was written in their law: ‘For they hated me without cause.’
{15:26} But when the Advocate has arrived, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, he will offer testimony about me.
{15:27} And you shall offer testimony, because you are with me from the beginning.”
{16:1} “These things I have spoken to you, so that you would not stumble.
{16:2} They will put you out of the synagogues. But the hour is coming when everyone who puts you to death will consider that he is offering an excellent service to God.
{16:3} And they will do these things to you because they have not known the Father, nor me.
{16:4} But these things I have spoken to you, so that, when the hour for these things will have arrived, you may remember that I told you.
{16:5} But I did not tell you these things from the beginning, because I was with you. And now I am going to him who sent me. And no one among you has asked me, ‘Where are you going?’
{16:6} But because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.
{16:7} But I tell you the truth: it is expedient for you that I am going. For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you. But when I will have gone away, I will send him to you.
{16:8} And when he has arrived, he will argue against the world, about sin and about justice and about judgment:
{16:9} about sin, indeed, because they have not believed in me;
{16:10} about justice, truly, because I am going to the Father, and you will not see me any longer;
{16:11} about judgment, then, because the prince of this world has already been judged.
{16:12} I still have many things to say to you, but you are not able to bear them now.
{16:13} But when the Spirit of truth has arrived, he will teach the whole truth to you. For he will not be speaking from himself. Instead, whatever he will hear, he will speak. And he will announce to you the things that are to come.
{16:14} He shall glorify me. For he will receive from what is mine, and he will announce it to you.
{16:15} All things whatsoever that the Father has are mine. For this reason, I said that he will receive from what is mine and that he will announce it to you.
{16:16} A little while, and then you will not see me. And again a little while, and you will see me. For I am going to the Father.”
{16:17} Then some of his disciples said to one another: “What is this, that he is saying to us: ‘A little while, and you will not see me,’ and ‘Again a little while, and you will see me,’ and, ‘For I am going to the Father?’ ”
{16:18} And they said: “What is this, that he is saying, ‘A little while?’ We do not understand what he is saying.”
{16:19} But Jesus realized that they wanted to question him, and so he said to them: “Are you inquiring among yourselves about this, that I said: ‘A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me?’
{16:20} Amen, amen, I say to you, that you shall mourn and weep, but the world will rejoice. And you shall be greatly saddened, yet your sorrow shall be turned into joy.
{16:21} A woman, when she is giving birth, has sorrow, because her hour has arrived. But when she has given birth to the child, then she no longer remembers the difficulties, because of the joy: for a man has been born into the world.
{16:22} Therefore, you also, indeed, have sorrow now. But I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice. And no one will take away your joy from you.
{16:23} And, in that day, you will not petition me for anything. Amen, amen, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in my name, he will give it to you.
{16:24} Until now, you have not requested anything in my name. Ask, and you shall receive, so that your joy may be full.
{16:25} I have spoken these things to you in proverbs. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in proverbs; instead, I will announce to you plainly from the Father.
{16:26} In that day, you shall ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father for you.
{16:27} For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me, and because you have believed that I went forth from God.
{16:28} I went forth from the Father, and I have come into the world. Next I am leaving the world, and I am going to the Father.”
{16:29} His disciples said to him: “Behold, now you are speaking plainly and not reciting a proverb.
{16:30} Now we know that you know all things, and that you have no need for anyone to question you. By this, we believe that you went forth from God.”
{16:31} Jesus answered them: “Do you believe now?
{16:32} Behold, the hour is coming, and it has now arrived, when you will be scattered, each one on his own, and you will leave me behind, alone. And yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me.
{16:33} These things I have spoken to you, so that you may have peace in me. In the world, you will have difficulties. But have confidence: I have overcome the world.”
{17:1} Jesus said these things, and then, lifting up his eyes toward heaven, he said: “Father, the hour has arrived: glorify your Son, so that your Son may glorify you,
{17:2} just as you have given authority over all flesh to him, so that he may give eternal life to all those whom you have given to him.
{17:3} And this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
{17:4} I have glorified you on earth. I have completed the work that you gave me to accomplish.
{17:5} And now Father, glorify me within yourself, with the glory that I had with you before the world ever was.
{17:6} I have manifested your name to the men whom you have given to me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me. And they have kept your word.
{17:7} Now they realize that all the things that you have given me are from you.
{17:8} For I have given them the words that you gave to me. And they have accepted these words, and they have truly understood that I went forth from you, and they have believed that you sent me.
{17:9} I pray for them. I do not pray for the world, but for those whom you have given to me. For they are yours.
{17:10} And all that is mine is yours, and all that is yours is mine, and I am glorified in this.
{17:11} And though I am not in the world, these are in the world, and I am coming to you. Father most holy, preserve them in your name, those whom you have given to me, so that they may be one, even as we are one.
{17:12} While I was with them, I preserved them in your name. I have guarded those whom you have given to me, and not one of them is lost, except the son of perdition, so that the Scripture may be fulfilled.
{17:13} And now I am coming to you. But I am speaking these things in the world, so that they may have the fullness of my joy within themselves.
{17:14} I have given them your word, and the world has hated them. For they are not of the world, just as I, too, am not of the world.
{17:15} I am not praying that you would take them out of the world, but that you would preserve them from evil.
{17:16} They are not of the world, just as I also am not of the world.
{17:17} Sanctify them in truth. Your word is truth.
{17:18} Just as you have sent me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.
{17:19} And it is for them that I sanctify myself, so that they, too, may be sanctified in truth.
{17:20} But I am not praying for them only, but also for those who through their word shall believe in me.
{17:21} So may they all be one. Just as you, Father, are in me, and I am in you, so also may they be one in us: so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
{17:22} And the glory that you have given to me, I have given to them, so that they may be one, just as we also are one.
{17:23} I am in them, and you are in me. So may they be perfected as one. And may the world know that you have sent me and that you have loved them, just as you have also loved me.
{17:24} Father, I will that where I am, those whom you have given to me may also be with me, so that they may see my glory which you have given to me. For you loved me before the founding of the world.
{17:25} Father most just, the world has not known you. But I have known you. And these have known that you sent me.
{17:26} And I have made known your name to them, and I will make it known, so that the love in which you have loved me may be in them, and so that I may be in them.”
{18:1} When Jesus had said these things, he departed with his disciples across the Torrent of Kidron, where there was a garden, into which he entered with his disciples.
{18:2} But Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, for Jesus had frequently met with his disciples there.
{18:3} Then Judas, when he had received a cohort from both the high priests and the attendants of the Pharisees, approached the place with lanterns and torches and weapons.
{18:4} And so Jesus, knowing all that was about to happen to him, advanced and said to them, “Who are you seeking?”
{18:5} They answered him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” Jesus said to them, “I am he.” Now Judas, who betrayed him, was also standing with them.
{18:6} Then, when he said to them, “I am he,” they moved back and fell to the ground.
{18:7} Then again he questioned them: “Who are you seeking?” And they said, “Jesus the Nazarene.”
{18:8} Jesus responded: “I told you that I am he. Therefore, if you are seeking me, permit these others to go away.”
{18:9} This was so that the word might be fulfilled, which he said, “Of those whom you have given to me, I have not lost any of them.”
{18:10} Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it, and he struck the servant of the high priest, and he cut off his right ear. Now the name of the servant was Malchus.
{18:11} Therefore, Jesus said to Peter: “Set your sword into the scabbard. Should I not drink the chalice which my Father has given to me?”
{18:12} Then the cohort, and the tribune, and the attendants of the Jews apprehended Jesus and bound him.
{18:13} And they led him away, first to Annas, for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was the high priest that year.
{18:14} Now Caiaphas was the one who had given counsel to the Jews that it was expedient for one man to die for the people.
{18:15} And Simon Peter was following Jesus with another disciple. And that disciple was known to the high priest, and so he entered with Jesus into the court of the high priest.
{18:16} But Peter was standing outside at the entrance. Therefore, the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the woman who was the doorkeeper, and he led in Peter.
{18:17} Therefore, the woman servant keeping the door said to Peter, “Are you not also among the disciples of this man?” He said, “I am not.”
{18:18} Now the servants and attendants were standing before burning coals, for it was cold, and they were warming themselves. And Peter was standing with them also, warming himself.
{18:19} Then the high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and about his doctrine.
{18:20} Jesus responded to him: “I have spoken openly to the world. I have always taught in the synagogue and in the temple, where all the Jews meet. And I have said nothing in secret.
{18:21} Why do you question me? Question those who heard what I said to them. Behold, they know these things that I have said.”
{18:22} Then, when he had said this, one of the attendants standing nearby struck Jesus, saying: “Is this the way you answer the high priest?”
{18:23} Jesus answered him: “If I have spoken wrongly, offer testimony about the wrong. But if I have spoken correctly, then why do you strike me?”
{18:24} And Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas, the high priest.
{18:25} Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. Then they said to him, “Are you not also one of his disciples?” He denied it and said, “I am not.”
{18:26} One of the servants of the high priest (a relative of him whose ear Peter had cut off) said to him, “Did I not see you in the garden with him?”
{18:27} Therefore, again, Peter denied it. And immediately the rooster crowed.
{18:28} Then they led Jesus from Caiaphas into the praetorium. Now it was morning, and so they did not enter into the praetorium, so that they would not be defiled, but might eat the Passover.
{18:29} Therefore, Pilate went outside to them, and he said, “What accusation are you bringing against this man?”
{18:30} They responded and said to him, “If he were not an evil-doer, we would not have handed him over to you.”
{18:31} Therefore, Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him according to your own law.” Then the Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to execute anyone.”
{18:32} This was so that the word of Jesus would be fulfilled, which he spoke signifying what kind of death he would die.
{18:33} Then Pilate entered the praetorium again, and he called Jesus and said to him, “You are the king of the Jews?”
{18:34} Jesus responded, “Are you saying this of yourself, or have others spoken to you about me?”
{18:35} Pilate responded: “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the high priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?”
{18:36} Jesus responded: “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my ministers would certainly strive so that I would not be handed over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not now from here.”
{18:37} And so Pilate said to him, “You are a king, then?” Jesus answered, “You are saying that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world: so that I may offer testimony to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.”
{18:38} Pilate said to him, “What is truth?” And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and he said to them, “I find no case against him.
{18:39} But you have a custom, that I should release someone to you at the Passover. Therefore, do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?”
{18:40} Then they all cried out repeatedly, saying: “Not this one, but Barabbas.” Now Barabbas was a robber.
{19:1} Therefore, Pilate then took Jesus into custody and scourged him.
{19:2} And the soldiers, plaiting a crown of thorns, imposed it on his head. And they put a purple garment around him.
{19:3} And they were approaching him and saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they struck him repeatedly.
{19:4} Then Pilate went outside again, and he said to them: “Behold, I am bringing him out to you, so that you may realize that I find no case against him.”
{19:5} (Then Jesus went out, bearing the crown of thorns and the purple garment.) And he said to them, “Behold the man.”
{19:6} Therefore, when the high priests and the attendants had seen him, they cried out, saying: “Crucify him! Crucify him!” Pilate said to them: “Take him yourselves and crucify him. For I find no case against him.”
{19:7} The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to the law, he ought to die, for he has made himself the Son of God.”
{19:8} Therefore, when Pilate had heard this word, he was more fearful.
{19:9} And he entered into the praetorium again. And he said to Jesus. “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no response.
{19:10} Therefore, Pilate said to him: “Will you not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to crucify you, and I have authority to release you?”
{19:11} Jesus responded, “You would not have any authority over me, unless it were given to you from above. For this reason, he who has handed me over to you has the greater sin.”
{19:12} And from then on, Pilate was seeking to release him. But the Jews were crying out, saying: “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar. For anyone who makes himself a king contradicts Caesar.”
{19:13} Now when Pilate had heard these words, he brought Jesus outside, and he sat down in the seat of judgment, in a place which is called the Pavement, but in Hebrew, it is called the Elevation.
{19:14} Now it was the preparation day of the Passover, about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, “Behold your king.”
{19:15} But they were crying out: “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your king?” The high priests responded, “We have no king except Caesar.”
{19:16} Therefore, he then handed him over to them to be crucified. And they took Jesus and led him away.
{19:17} And carrying his own cross, he went forth to the place which is called Calvary, but in Hebrew it is called the Place of the Skull.
{19:18} There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on each side, with Jesus in the middle.
{19:19} Then Pilate also wrote a title, and he set it above the cross. And it was written: JESUS THE NAZARENE, KING OF THE JEWS.
{19:20} Therefore, many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was close to the city. And it was written in Hebrew, in Greek, and in Latin.
{19:21} Then the high priests of the Jews said to Pilate: Do not write, ‘King of the Jews,’ but that he said, ‘I am King of the Jews.’
{19:22} Pilate responded, “What I have written, I have written.”
{19:23} Then the soldiers, when they had crucified him, took his garments, and they made four parts, one part to each soldier, and the tunic. But the tunic was seamless, woven from above throughout the whole.
{19:24} Then they said to one another, “Let us not cut it, but instead let us cast lots over it, to see whose it will be.” This was so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, saying: “They have distributed my garments among themselves, and for my vesture they have cast lots.” And indeed, the soldiers did these things.
{19:25} And standing beside the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, and Mary of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.
{19:26} Therefore, when Jesus had seen his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold your son.”
{19:27} Next, he said to the disciple, “Behold your mother.” And from that hour, the disciple accepted her as his own.
{19:28} After this, Jesus knew that all had been accomplished, so in order that the Scripture might be completed, he said, “I thirst.”
{19:29} And there was a container placed there, full of vinegar. Then, placing a sponge full of vinegar around hyssop, they brought it to his mouth.
{19:30} Then Jesus, when he had received the vinegar, said: “It is consummated.” And bowing down his head, he surrendered his spirit.
{19:31} Then the Jews, because it was the preparation day, so that the bodies would not remain upon the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a great day), they petitioned Pilate in order that their legs might be broken, and they might be taken away.
{19:32} Therefore, the soldiers approached, and, indeed, they broke the legs of the first one, and of the other who was crucified with him.
{19:33} But after they had approached Jesus, when they saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.
{19:34} Instead, one of the soldiers opened his side with a lance, and immediately there went out blood and water.
{19:35} And he who saw this has offered testimony, and his testimony is true. And he knows that he speaks the truth, so that you also may believe.
{19:36} For these things happened so that the Scripture would be fulfilled: “You shall not break a bone of him.”
{19:37} And again, another Scripture says: “They shall look upon him, whom they have pierced.”
{19:38} Then, after these things, Joseph from Arimathea, (because he was a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear of the Jews) petitioned Pilate so that he might take away the body of Jesus. And Pilate gave permission. Therefore, he went and took away the body of Jesus.
{19:39} Now Nicodemus also arrived, (who had gone to Jesus at first by night) bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloe, weighing about seventy pounds.
{19:40} Therefore, they took the body of Jesus, and they bound it with linen cloths and the aromatic spices, just as it is the manner of the Jews to bury.
{19:41} Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden there was a new tomb, in which no one had yet been laid.
{19:42} Therefore, because of the preparation day of the Jews, since the tomb was nearby, they placed Jesus there.
{20:1} Then on the first Sabbath, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and she saw that the stone had been rolled away from the tomb.
{20:2} Therefore, she ran and went to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and she said to them, “They have taken the Lord away from the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.”
{20:3} Therefore, Peter departed with the other disciple, and they went to the tomb.
{20:4} Now they both ran together, but the other disciple ran more quickly, ahead of Peter, and so he arrived at the tomb first.
{20:5} And when he bowed down, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not yet enter.
{20:6} Then Simon Peter arrived, following him, and he entered the tomb, and he saw the linen cloths lying there,
{20:7} and the separate cloth which had been over his head, not placed with the linen cloths, but in a separate place, wrapped up by itself.
{20:8} Then the other disciple, who had arrived first at the tomb, also entered. And he saw and believed.
{20:9} For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that it was necessary for him to rise again from the dead.
{20:10} Then the disciples went away again, each by himself.
{20:11} But Mary was standing outside the tomb, weeping. Then, while she was weeping, she bowed down and gazed into the tomb.
{20:12} And she saw two Angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been placed, one at the head, and one at the feet.
{20:13} They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have placed him.”
{20:14} When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus.
{20:15} Jesus said to her: “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you seeking?” Considering that it was the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have moved him, tell me where you have placed him, and I will take him away.”
{20:16} Jesus said to her, “Mary!” And turning, she said to him, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher).
{20:17} Jesus said to her: “Do not touch me. For I have not yet ascended to my Father. But go to my brothers and tell them: ‘I am ascending to my Father and to your Father, to my God and to your God.’ ”
{20:18} Mary Magdalene went, announcing to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord, and these are the things that he said to me.”
{20:19} Then, when it was late on the same day, on the first of the Sabbaths, and the doors were closed where the disciples were gathered, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst, and he said to them: “Peace to you.”
{20:20} And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and side. And the disciples were gladdened when they saw the Lord.
{20:21} Therefore, he said to them again: “Peace to you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”
{20:22} When he had said this, he breathed on them. And he said to them: “Receive the Holy Spirit.
{20:23} Those whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them, and those whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.”
{20:24} Now Thomas, one of the twelve, who is called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus arrived.
{20:25} Therefore, the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I will see in his hands the mark of the nails and place my finger into the place of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
{20:26} And after eight days, again his disciples were within, and Thomas was with them. Jesus arrived, though the doors had been closed, and he stood in their midst and said, “Peace to you.”
{20:27} Next, he said to Thomas: “Look at my hands, and place your finger here; and bring your hand close, and place it at my side. And do not choose to be unbelieving, but faithful.”
{20:28} Thomas responded and said to him, “My Lord and my God.”
{20:29} Jesus said to him: “You have seen me, Thomas, so you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
{20:30} Jesus also accomplished many other signs in the sight of his disciples. These have not been written in this book.
{20:31} But these things have been written, so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and so that, in believing, you may have life in his name.
{21:1} After this, Jesus manifested himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias. And he manifested himself in this way.
{21:2} These were together: Simon Peter and Thomas, who is called the Twin, and Nathanael, who was from Cana of Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples.
{21:3} Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “And we are going with you.” And they went and climbed into the ship. And in that night, they caught nothing.
{21:4} But when morning arrived, Jesus stood on the shore. Yet the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
{21:5} Then Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any food?” They answered him, “No.”
{21:6} He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the ship, and you will find some.” Therefore, they cast it out, and then they were not able to draw it in, because of the multitude of fish.
{21:7} Therefore, the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” Simon Peter, when he had heard that it was the Lord, wrapped his tunic around himself, (for he was naked) and he cast himself into the sea.
{21:8} Then the other disciples arrived in a boat, (for they were not far from the land, only about two hundred cubits) dragging the net with the fish.
{21:9} Then, when they climbed down to the land they saw burning coals prepared, and fish already placed above them, and bread.
{21:10} Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just now caught.”
{21:11} Simon Peter climbed up and drew in the net to land: full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn.
{21:12} Jesus said to them, “Approach and dine.” And not one of them sitting down to eat dared to ask him, “Who are you?” For they knew that it was the Lord.
{21:13} And Jesus approached, and he took bread, and he gave it to them, and similarly with the fish.
{21:14} This was now the third time that Jesus was manifested to his disciples, after he had resurrected from the dead.
{21:15} Then, when they had dined, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.”
{21:16} He said to him again: “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.”
{21:17} He said to him a third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was very grieved that he had asked him a third time, “Do you love me?” And so he said to him: “Lord, you know all things. You know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my sheep.
{21:18} Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked wherever you wanted. But when you are older, you will extend your hands, and another shall gird you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
{21:19} Now he said this to signify by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when he had said this, he said to him, “Follow me.”
{21:20} Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, the one who also had leaned on his chest at supper and said, “Lord, who is it who shall betray you?”
{21:21} Therefore, when Peter had seen him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, but what about this one?”
{21:22} Jesus said to him: “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you? You follow me.”
{21:23} Therefore, the saying went out among the brothers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but only, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you?”
{21:24} This is the same disciple who offers testimony about these things, and who has written these things. And we know that his testimony is true.
{21:25} Now there are also many other things that Jesus did, which, if each of these were written down, the world itself, I suppose, would not be able to contain the books that would be written.
{1:1} Certainly, O Theophilus, I composed the first discourse about everything that Jesus began to do and to teach,
{1:2} instructing the Apostles, whom he had chosen through the Holy Spirit, even until the day on which he was taken up.
{1:3} He also presented himself alive to them, after his Passion, appearing to them throughout forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God with many elucidations.
{1:4} And dining with them, he instructed them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but that they should wait for the Promise of the Father, “about which you have heard,” he said, “from my own mouth.
{1:5} For John, indeed, baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit, not many days from now.”
{1:6} Therefore, those who had assembled together questioned him, saying, “Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom of Israel?”
{1:7} But he said to them: “It is not yours to know the times or the moments, which the Father has set by his own authority.
{1:8} But you shall receive the power of the Holy Spirit, passing over you, and you shall be witnesses for me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth.”
{1:9} And when he had said these things, while they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him from their sight.
{1:10} And while they were watching him going up to heaven, behold, two men stood near them in white vestments.
{1:11} And they said: “Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking up toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, shall return in just the same way that you have seen him going up to heaven.”
{1:12} Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain, which is called Olivet, which is next to Jerusalem, within a Sabbath day’s journey.
{1:13} And when they had entered into the cenacle, they ascended to the place where Peter and John, James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Jude of James, were staying.
{1:14} All these were persevering with one accord in prayer with the women, and with Mary, the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
{1:15} In those days, Peter, rising up in the midst of the brothers, said (now the crowd of men altogether was about one hundred and twenty):
{1:16} “Noble brothers, the Scripture must be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit predicted by the mouth of David about Judas, who was the leader of those who apprehended Jesus.
{1:17} He had been numbered among us, and he was chosen by lot for this ministry.
{1:18} And this man certainly possessed an estate from the wages of iniquity, and so, having been hanged, he burst open in the middle and all his internal organs poured out.
{1:19} And this became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that this field was called in their language, Akeldama, that is, ‘Field of Blood.’
{1:20} For it has been written in the book of Psalms: ‘Let their dwelling place be desolate and may there be no one who dwells within it,’ and ‘Let another take his episcopate.’
{1:21} Therefore, it is necessary that, out of these men who have been assembling with us throughout the entire time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,
{1:22} beginning from the baptism of John, until the day when he was taken up from us, one of these be made a witness with us of his Resurrection.”
{1:23} And they appointed two: Joseph, who was called Barsabbas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.
{1:24} And praying, they said: “May you, O Lord, who knows the heart of everyone, reveal which one of these two you have chosen,
{1:25} to take a place in this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas prevaricated, so that he might go to his own place.”
{1:26} And they cast lots concerning them, and the lot fell upon Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven Apostles.
{2:1} And when the days of Pentecost were completed, they were all together in the same place.
{2:2} And suddenly, there came a sound from heaven, like that of a wind approaching violently, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.
{2:3} And there appeared to them separate tongues, as if of fire, which settled upon each one of them.
{2:4} And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. And they began to speak in various languages, just as the Holy Spirit bestowed eloquence to them.
{2:5} Now there were Jews staying in Jerusalem, pious men from every nation that is under heaven.
{2:6} And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together and was confused in mind, because each one was listening to them speaking in his own language.
{2:7} Then all were astonished, and they wondered, saying: “Behold, are not all of these who are speaking Galileans?
{2:8} And how is it that we have each heard them in our own language, into which we were born?
{2:9} Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and those who inhabit Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,
{2:10} Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya which are around Cyrene, and new arrivals of the Romans,
{2:11} likewise Jews and new converts, Cretans and Arabs: we have heard them speaking in our own languages the mighty deeds of God.”
{2:12} And they were all astonished, and they wondered, saying to one another: “But what does this mean?”
{2:13} But others mockingly said, “These men are full of new wine.”
{2:14} But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and he spoke to them: “Men of Judea, and all those who are staying in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and incline your ears to my words.
{2:15} For these men are not inebriated, as you suppose, for it is the third hour of the day.
{2:16} But this is what was spoken of by the prophet Joel:
{2:17} ‘And this shall be: in the last days, says the Lord, I will pour out, from my Spirit, upon all flesh. And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. And your youths shall see visions, and your elders shall dream dreams.
{2:18} And certainly, upon my men and women servants in those days, I will pour out from my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.
{2:19} And I will bestow wonders in heaven above, and signs on earth below: blood and fire and the vapor of smoke.
{2:20} The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood, before the great and manifest day of the Lord arrives.
{2:21} And this shall be: whoever shall invoke the name of the Lord will be saved.’
{2:22} Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus the Nazarene is a man confirmed by God among you through the miracles and wonders and signs that God accomplished through him in your midst, just as you also know.
{2:23} This man, under the definitive plan and foreknowledge of God, was delivered by the hands of the unjust, afflicted, and put to death.
{2:24} And he whom God has raised up has broken the sorrows of Hell, for certainly it was impossible for him to be held by it.
{2:25} For David said about him: ‘I foresaw the Lord always in my sight, for he is at my right hand, so that I may not be moved.
{2:26} Because of this, my heart has rejoiced, and my tongue has exulted. Moreover, my flesh shall also rest in hope.
{2:27} For you will not abandon my soul to Hell, nor will you allow your Holy One to see corruption.
{2:28} You have made known to me the ways of life. You will completely fill me with happiness by your presence.’
{2:29} Noble brothers, permit me to speak freely to you about the Patriarch David: for he passed away and was buried, and his sepulcher is with us, even to this very day.
{2:30} Therefore, he was a prophet, for he knew that God had sworn an oath to him about the fruit of his loins, about the One who would sit upon his throne.
{2:31} Foreseeing this, he was speaking about the Resurrection of the Christ. For he was neither left behind in Hell, nor did his flesh see corruption.
{2:32} This Jesus, God raised up again, and of this we are all witnesses.
{2:33} Therefore, being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the Promise of the Holy Spirit, he poured this out, just as you now see and hear.
{2:34} For David did not ascend into heaven. But he himself said: ‘The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand,
{2:35} until I make your enemies your footstool.’
{2:36} Therefore, may the entire house of Israel know most certainly that God has made this same Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
{2:37} Now when they had heard these things, they were contrite in heart, and they said to Peter and to the other Apostles: “What should we do, noble brothers?”
{2:38} Yet truly, Peter said to them: “Do penance; and be baptized, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of your sins. And you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
{2:39} For the Promise is for you and for your sons, and for all who are far away: for whomever the Lord our God will have called.”
{2:40} And then, with very many other words, he testified and he exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this depraved generation.”
{2:41} Therefore, those who accepted his discourse were baptized. And about three thousand souls were added on that day.
{2:42} Now they were persevering in the doctrine of the Apostles, and in the communion of the breaking of the bread, and in the prayers.
{2:43} And fear developed in every soul. Also, many miracles and signs were accomplished by the Apostles in Jerusalem. And there was a great awe in everyone.
{2:44} And then all who believed were together, and they held all things in common.
{2:45} They were selling their possessions and belongings, and dividing them to all, just as any of them had need.
{2:46} Also, they continued, daily, to be of one accord in the temple and to break bread among the houses; and they took their meals with exultation and simplicity of heart,
{2:47} praising God greatly, and holding favor with all the people. And every day, the Lord increased those who were being saved among them.
{3:1} Now Peter and John went up to the temple at the ninth hour of prayer.
{3:2} And a certain man, who was lame from his mother’s womb, was being carried in. They would lay him every day at the gate of the temple, which is called the Beautiful, so that he might request alms from those entering into the temple.
{3:3} And this man, when he had seen Peter and John beginning to enter the temple, was begging, so that he might receive alms.
{3:4} Then Peter and John, gazing at him, said, “Look at us.”
{3:5} And he looked intently at them, hoping that he might receive something from them.
{3:6} But Peter said: “Silver and gold is not mine. But what I have, I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, rise up and walk.”
{3:7} And taking him by the right hand, he lifted him up. And immediately his legs and feet were strengthened.
{3:8} And leaping up, he stood and walked around. And he entered with them into the temple, walking and leaping and praising God.
{3:9} And all the people saw him walking and praising God.
{3:10} And they recognized him, that he was the same one who was sitting for alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple. And they were filled with awe and amazement at what had happened to him.
{3:11} Then, as he held on to Peter and John, all the people ran to them at the portico, which is called Solomon’s, in astonishment.
{3:12} But Peter, seeing this, responded to the people: “Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this? Or why do you stare at us, as if it were by our own strength or power that we caused this man to walk?
{3:13} The God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his Son Jesus, whom you, indeed, handed over and denied before the face of Pilate, when he was giving judgment to release him.
{3:14} Then you denied the Holy and Just One, and petitioned for a murderous man to be given to you.
{3:15} Truly, it was the Author of Life whom you put to death, whom God raised from the dead, to whom we are witnesses.
{3:16} And by faith in his name, this man, whom you have seen and known, has confirmed his name. And faith through him has given this man complete health in the sight of you all.
{3:17} And now, brothers, I know that you did this through ignorance, just as your leaders also did.
{3:18} But in this way God has fulfilled the things that he announced beforehand through the mouth of all the Prophets: that his Christ would suffer.
{3:19} Therefore, repent and be converted, so that your sins may be wiped away.
{3:20} And then, when the time of consolation will have arrived from the presence of the Lord, he will send the One who was foretold to you, Jesus Christ,
{3:21} whom heaven certainly must take up, until the time of the restoration of all things, which God has spoken of by the mouth of his holy prophets, from ages past.
{3:22} Indeed, Moses said: ‘For the Lord your God shall raise up a Prophet for you from your brothers, one like me; the same shall you listen to according to everything whatsoever that he shall speak to you.
{3:23} And this shall be: every soul who will not listen to that Prophet shall be exterminated from the people.’
{3:24} And all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and thereafter, have announced these days.
{3:25} You are sons of the prophets and of the testament which God has appointed for our fathers, saying to Abraham: ‘And by your offspring all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’
{3:26} God raised up his Son and sent him first to you, to bless you, so that each one may turn himself away from his wickedness.”
{4:1} But while they were speaking to the people, the priests and the magistrate of the temple and the Sadducees overwhelmed them,
{4:2} being grieved that they were teaching the people and announcing in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.
{4:3} And they laid hands on them, and they placed them under guard until the next day. For it was now evening.
{4:4} But many of those who had heard the word believed. And the number of men became five thousand.
{4:5} And it happened on the next day that their leaders and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem,
{4:6} including Annas, the high priest, and Caiaphas, and John and Alexander, and as many as were of the priestly family.
{4:7} And stationing them in the middle, they questioned them: “By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?”
{4:8} Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Leaders of the people and elders, listen.
{4:9} If we today are judged by a good deed done to an infirm man, by which he has been made whole,
{4:10} let it be known to all of you and to all of the people of Israel, that in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God has raised from the dead, by him, this man stands before you, healthy.
{4:11} He is the stone, which was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the head of the corner.
{4:12} And there is no salvation in any other. For there is no other name under heaven given to men, by which it is necessary for us to be saved.”
{4:13} Then, seeing the constancy of Peter and John, having verified that they were men without letters or learning, they wondered. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
{4:14} Also, seeing the man who had been cured standing with them, they were unable to say anything to contradict them.
{4:15} But they ordered them to withdraw outside, away from the council, and they conferred among themselves,
{4:16} saying: “What shall we do to these men? For certainly a public sign has been done through them, before all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. It is manifest, and we cannot deny it.
{4:17} But lest it spread further among the people, let us threaten them not to speak anymore in this name to any man.”
{4:18} And calling them in, they warned them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.
{4:19} Yet truly, Peter and John said in response to them: “Judge whether it is just in the sight of God to listen to you, rather than to God.
{4:20} For we are unable to refrain from speaking the things that we have seen and heard.”
{4:21} But they, threatening them, sent them away, having not found a way that they might punish them because of the people. For all were glorifying the things that had been done in these events.
{4:22} For the man in whom this sign of a cure had been accomplished was more than forty years old.
{4:23} Then, having been released, they went to their own, and they reported in full what the leaders of the priests and the elders had said to them.
{4:24} And when they had heard it, with one accord, they lifted up their voice to God, and they said: “Lord, you are the One who made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them,
{4:25} who, by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said: ‘Why have the Gentiles been seething, and why have the people been pondering nonsense?
{4:26} The kings of the earth have stood up, and the leaders have joined together as one, against the Lord and against his Christ.’
{4:27} For truly Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, joined together in this city against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed
{4:28} to do what your hand and your counsel had decreed would be done.
{4:29} And now, O Lord, look upon their threats, and grant to your servants that they may speak your word with all confidence,
{4:30} by extending your hand in cures and signs and miracles, to be done through the name of your holy Son, Jesus.”
{4:31} And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered was moved. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. And they were speaking the Word of God with confidence.
{4:32} Then the multitude of believers were of one heart and one soul. Neither did anyone say that any of the things that he possessed were his own, but all things were common to them.
{4:33} And with great power, the Apostles were rendering testimony to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord. And great grace was in them all.
{4:34} And neither was anyone among them in need. For as many as were owners of fields or houses, selling these, were bringing the proceeds of the things that they were selling,
{4:35} and were placing it before the feet of the Apostles. Then it was divided to each one, just as he had need.
{4:36} Now Joseph, who the Apostles surnamed Barnabas (which is translated as ‘son of consolation’), who was a Levite of Cyprian descent,
{4:37} since he had land, he sold it, and he brought the proceeds and placed these at the feet of the Apostles.
{5:1} But a certain man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a field,
{5:2} and he was deceitful about the price of the field, with his wife’s consent. And bringing only part of it, he placed it at the feet of the Apostles.
{5:3} But Peter said: “Ananias, why has Satan tempted your heart, so that you would lie to the Holy Spirit and be deceitful about the price of the land?
{5:4} Did it not belong to you while you retained it? And having sold it, was it not in your power? Why have you set this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God!”
{5:5} Then Ananias, upon hearing these words, fell down and expired. And a great fear overwhelmed all who heard of it.
{5:6} And the young men rose up and removed him; and carrying him out, they buried him.
{5:7} Then about the space of three hours passed, and his wife entered, not knowing what had happened.
{5:8} And Peter said to her, “Tell me, woman, if you sold the field for this amount?” And she said, “Yes, for that amount.”
{5:9} And Peter said to her: “Why have you agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they shall carry you out!”
{5:10} Immediately, she fell down before his feet and expired. Then the young men entered and found her dead. And they carried her out and buried her next to her husband.
{5:11} And a great fear came over the entire Church and over all who heard these things.
{5:12} And through the hands of the Apostles many signs and wonders were accomplished among the people. And they all met with one accord at Solomon’s portico.
{5:13} And among the others, no one dared to join himself to them. But the people magnified them.
{5:14} Now the multitude of men and women who believed in the Lord was ever increasing,
{5:15} so much so that they laid the infirm in the streets, placing them on beds and stretchers, so that, as Peter arrived, at least his shadow might fall upon any one of them, and they would be freed from their infirmities.
{5:16} But a multitude also hurried to Jerusalem from the neighboring cities, carrying the sick and those troubled by unclean spirits, who were all healed.
{5:17} Then the high priest and all those who were with him, that is, the heretical sect of the Sadducees, rose up and were filled with jealousy.
{5:18} And they laid hands on the Apostles, and they placed them in the common prison.
{5:19} But in the night, an Angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison and led them out, saying,
{5:20} “Go and stand in the temple, speaking to the people all these words of life.”
{5:21} And when they had heard this, they entered the temple at first light, and they were teaching. Then the high priest, and those who were with him, approached, and they called together the council and all the elders of the sons of Israel. And they sent to the prison to have them brought.
{5:22} But when the attendants had arrived, and, upon opening the prison, had not found them, they returned and reported to them,
{5:23} saying: “We found the prison certainly locked up with all diligence, and the guards standing before the door. But upon opening it, we found no one within.”
{5:24} Then, when the magistrate of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were uncertain about them, as to what should happen.
{5:25} But someone arrived and reported to them, “Behold, the men whom you placed in prison are in the temple, standing and teaching the people.”
{5:26} Then the magistrate, with the attendants, went and brought them without force. For they were afraid of the people, lest they be stoned.
{5:27} And when they had brought them, they stood them before the council. And the high priest questioned them,
{5:28} and said: “We strongly order you not to teach in this name. For behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and you wish to bring the blood of this man upon us.”
{5:29} But Peter and the Apostles responded by saying: “It is necessary to obey God, more so than men.
{5:30} The God of our fathers has raised up Jesus, whom you put to death by hanging him on a tree.
{5:31} It is he whom God has exalted at his right hand as Ruler and Savior, so as to offer repentance and the remission of sins to Israel.
{5:32} And we are witnesses of these things, with the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to all who are obedient to him.”
{5:33} When they had heard these things, they were deeply wounded, and they were planning to put them to death.
{5:34} But someone in the council, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law honored by all the people, rose up and ordered the men to be put outside briefly.
{5:35} And he said to them: “Men of Israel, you should be careful in your intentions about these men.
{5:36} For before these days, Theudas stepped forward, asserting himself to be someone, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined with him. But he was killed, and all who believed in him were scattered, and they were reduced to nothing.
{5:37} After this one, Judas the Galilean stepped forward, in the days of the enrollment, and he turned the people toward himself. But he also perished, and all of them, as many as had joined with him, were dispersed.
{5:38} And now therefore, I say to you, withdraw from these men and leave them alone. For if this counsel or work is of men, it will be broken.
{5:39} Yet truly, if it is of God, you will not be able to break it, and perhaps you might be found to have fought against God.” And they agreed with him.
{5:40} And calling in the Apostles, having beaten them, they warned them not to speak at all in the name of Jesus. And they dismissed them.
{5:41} And indeed, they went forth from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were considered worthy to suffer insult on behalf of the name of Jesus.
{5:42} And every day, in the temple and among the houses, they did not cease to teach and to evangelize Christ Jesus.
{6:1} In those days, as the number of disciples was increasing, there occurred a murmuring of the Greeks against the Hebrews, because their widows were treated with disdain in the daily ministration.
{6:2} And so the twelve, calling together the multitude of the disciples, said: “It is not fair for us to leave behind the Word of God to serve at tables also.
{6:3} Therefore, brothers, search among yourselves for seven men of good testimony, filled with the Holy Spirit and with wisdom, whom we may appoint over this work.
{6:4} Yet truly, we will be continually in prayer and in the ministry of the Word.”
{6:5} And the plan pleased the entire multitude. And they chose Stephen, a man filled with faith and with the Holy Spirit, and Philip and Prochorus and Nicanor and Timon and Parmenas and Nicolas, a new arrival from Antioch.
{6:6} These they set before the sight of the Apostles, and while praying, they imposed hands on them.
{6:7} And the Word of the Lord was increasing, and the number of disciples in Jerusalem was multiplied exceedingly. And even a large group of the priests were obedient to the faith.
{6:8} Then Stephen, filled with grace and fortitude, wrought great signs and miracles among the people.
{6:9} But certain ones, from the synagogue of the so-called Libertines, and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those who were from Cilicia and Asia rose up and were disputing with Stephen.
{6:10} But they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking.
{6:11} Then they suborned men who were to claim that they had heard him speaking words of blasphemy against Moses and against God.
{6:12} And thus did they stir up the people and the elders and the scribes. And hurrying together, they seized him and brought him to the council.
{6:13} And they set up false witnesses, who said: “This man does not cease to speak words against the holy place and the law.
{6:14} For we have heard him saying that this Jesus the Nazarene will destroy this place and will change the traditions, which Moses handed down to us.”
{6:15} And all those who were sitting in the council, gazing at him, saw his face, as if it had become the face of an Angel.
{7:1} Then the high priest said, “Are these things so?”
{7:2} And Stephen said: “Noble brothers and fathers, listen. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he stayed in Haran.
{7:3} And God said to him, ‘Depart from your country and from your kindred, and go into the land that I will show to you.’
{7:4} Then he went away from the land of the Chaldeans, and he lived at Haran. And later, after his father was dead, God brought him into this land, in which you now dwell.
{7:5} And he gave him no inheritance in it, not even the space of one step. But he promised to give it to him as a possession, and to his offspring after him, though he did not have a son.
{7:6} Then God told him that his offspring would be a settler in a foreign land, and that they would subjugate them, and treat them badly, for four hundred years.
{7:7} ‘And the nation whom they will serve, I will judge,’ said the Lord. ‘And after these things, they shall depart and shall serve me in this place.’
{7:8} And he gave him the covenant of circumcision. And so he conceived Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day. And Isaac conceived Jacob, and Jacob, the twelve Patriarchs.
{7:9} And the Patriarchs, being jealous, sold Joseph into Egypt. But God was with him.
{7:10} And he rescued him from all his tribulations. And he gave him grace and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. And he appointed him as governor over Egypt and over all his house.
{7:11} Then a famine occurred in all of Egypt and Canaan, and a great tribulation. And our fathers did not find food.
{7:12} But when Jacob had heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers first.
{7:13} And on the second occasion, Joseph was recognized by his brothers, and his ancestry was made manifest to Pharaoh.
{7:14} Then Joseph sent for and brought his father Jacob, with all his kindred, seventy-five souls.
{7:15} And Jacob descended into Egypt, and he passed away, and so did our fathers.
{7:16} And they crossed over into Shechem, and they were placed in the sepulcher which Abraham bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor, the son of Shechem.
{7:17} And when the time of the Promise that God had revealed to Abraham drew near, the people increased and were multiplied in Egypt,
{7:18} even until another king, who did not know Joseph, rose up in Egypt.
{7:19} This one, encompassing our kindred, afflicted our fathers, so that they would expose their infants, lest they be kept alive.
{7:20} In the same time, Moses was born. And he was in the grace of God, and he was nourished for three months in the house of his father.
{7:21} Then, having been abandoned, the daughter of Pharaoh took him in, and she raised him as her own son.
{7:22} And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians. And he was mighty in his words and in his deeds.
{7:23} But when forty years of age were completed in him, it rose up in his heart that he should visit his brothers, the sons of Israel.
{7:24} And when he had seen a certain one suffering injury, he defended him. And striking the Egyptian, he wrought a retribution for him who was enduring the injury.
{7:25} Now he supposed that his brothers would understand that God would grant them salvation through his hand. But they did not understand it.
{7:26} So truly, on the following day, he appeared before those who were arguing, and he would have reconciled them in peace, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers. So why would you harm one another?’
{7:27} But he who was causing the injury to his neighbor rejected him, saying: ‘Who has appointed you as leader and judge over us?
{7:28} Could it be that you want to kill me, in the same way that you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’
{7:29} Then, at this word, Moses fled. And he became a foreigner in the land of Midian, where he produced two sons.
{7:30} And when forty years were completed, there appeared to him, in the desert of Mount Sinai, an Angel, in a flame of fire in a bush.
{7:31} And upon seeing this, Moses was amazed at the sight. And as he drew near in order to gaze at it, the voice of the Lord came to him, saying:
{7:32} ‘I am the God of your fathers: the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses, being made to tremble, did not dare to look.
{7:33} But the Lord said to him: ‘Loosen the shoes from your feet. For the place in which you stand is holy ground.
{7:34} Certainly, I have seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning. And so, I am coming down to free them. And now, go forth and I will send you into Egypt.’
{7:35} This Moses, whom they rejected by saying, ‘Who has appointed you as leader and judge?’ is the one God sent to be leader and redeemer, by the hand of the Angel who appeared to him in the bush.
{7:36} This man led them out, accomplishing signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and at the Red Sea, and in the desert, for forty years.
{7:37} This is Moses, who said to the sons of Israel: ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your own brothers. You shall listen to him.’
{7:38} This is he who was in the Church in the wilderness, with the Angel who was speaking to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. It is he who received the words of life to give to us.
{7:39} It is he whom our fathers were not willing to obey. Instead, they rejected him, and in their hearts they turned away toward Egypt,
{7:40} saying to Aaron: ‘Make gods for us, which may go before us. For this Moses, who led us away from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him.’
{7:41} And so they fashioned a calf in those days, and they offered sacrifices to an idol, and they rejoiced in the works of their own hands.
{7:42} Then God turned, and he handed them over, to subservience to the armies of heaven, just as it was written in the Book of the Prophets: ‘Did you not offer victims and sacrifices to me for forty years in the desert, O house of Israel?
{7:43} And yet you took up for yourselves the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of your god Rephan, figures which you yourselves formed in order to adore them. And so I will carry you away, beyond Babylon.’
{7:44} The tabernacle of the testimony was with our fathers in the desert, just as God ordained for them, speaking to Moses, so that he would make it according to the form that he had seen.
{7:45} But our fathers, receiving it, also brought it, with Joshua, into the land of the Gentiles, whom God expelled before the face of our fathers, even until the days of David,
{7:46} who found grace before God and who asked that he might obtain a tabernacle for the God of Jacob.
{7:47} But it was Solomon who built a house for him.
{7:48} Yet the Most High does not live in houses built by hands, just as he said through the prophet:
{7:49} ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house would you build for me? says the Lord. And which is my resting place?
{7:50} Has not my hand made all these things?’
{7:51} Stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, you ever resist the Holy Spirit. Just as your fathers did, so also do you do.
{7:52} Which of the Prophets have your fathers not persecuted? And they killed those who foretold the advent of the Just One. And you have now become the betrayers and murderers of him.
{7:53} You received the law by the actions of Angels, and yet you have not kept it.”
{7:54} Then, upon hearing these things, they were deeply wounded in their hearts, and they gnashed their teeth at him.
{7:55} But he, being filled with the Holy Spirit, and gazing intently toward heaven, saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing at the right hand of God.”
{7:56} Then they, crying out with a loud voice, blocked their ears and, with one accord, rushed violently toward him.
{7:57} And driving him out, beyond the city, they stoned him. And witnesses placed their garments beside the feet of a youth, who was called Saul.
{7:58} And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out and said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
{7:59} Then, having been brought to his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep in the Lord. And Saul was consenting to his murder.
{8:1} Now in those days, there occurred a great persecution against the Church at Jerusalem. And they were all dispersed throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the Apostles.
{8:2} But God-fearing men arranged for Stephen’s funeral, and they made a great mourning over him.
{8:3} Then Saul was laying waste to the Church by entering throughout the houses, and dragging away men and women, and committing them to prison.
{8:4} Therefore, those who had been dispersed were traveling around, evangelizing the Word of God.
{8:5} Now Philip, descending to a city of Samaria, was preaching Christ to them.
{8:6} And the crowd was listening intently and with one accord to those things which were being said by Philip, and they were watching the signs which he was accomplishing.
{8:7} For many of them had unclean spirits, and, crying out with a loud voice, these departed from them.
{8:8} And many of the paralytics and the lame were cured.
{8:9} Therefore, there was great gladness in that city. Now there was a certain man named Simon, who formerly had been a magician in that city, seducing the people of Samaria, claiming himself to be someone great.
{8:10} And to all those who would listen, from the least even to the greatest, he was saying: “Here is the power of God, which is called great.”
{8:11} And they were attentive to him because, for a long time, he had deluded them with his magic.
{8:12} Yet truly, once they had believed Philip, who was evangelizing the kingdom of God, both men and women were baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
{8:13} Then Simon himself also believed and, when he had been baptized, he adhered to Philip. And now, seeing also the greatest signs and miracles being wrought, he was amazed and stupefied.
{8:14} Now when the Apostles who were in Jerusalem had heard that Samaria had received the Word of God, they sent Peter and John to them.
{8:15} And when they had arrived, they prayed for them, so that they might receive the Holy Spirit.
{8:16} For he had not yet come to any among them, since they were only baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
{8:17} Then they laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
{8:18} But when Simon had seen that, by the imposition of the hands of the Apostles, the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money,
{8:19} saying, “Give this power to me also, so that on whomever I will lay my hands, he may receive the Holy Spirit.” But Peter said to him:
{8:20} “Let your money be with you in perdition, for you have supposed that a gift of God might be possessed by money.
{8:21} There is no part or place for you in this matter. For your heart is not upright in the sight of God.
{8:22} And so, repent from this, your wickedness, and beg God, so that perhaps this plan of your heart might be forgiven you.
{8:23} For I perceive you to be in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.”
{8:24} Then Simon responded by saying, “Pray for me to the Lord, so that nothing of what you have said may happen to me.”
{8:25} And indeed, after testifying and speaking the Word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, and they evangelized the many regions of the Samaritans.
{8:26} Now an Angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, “Rise up and go toward the south, to the way which descends from Jerusalem into Gaza, where there is a desert.”
{8:27} And rising up, he went. And behold, an Ethiopian man, a eunuch, powerful under Candace, the queen of the Ethiopians, who was over all her treasures, had arrived in Jerusalem to worship.
{8:28} And while returning, he was sitting upon his chariot and reading from the prophet Isaiah.
{8:29} Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Draw near and join yourself to this chariot.”
{8:30} And Philip, hurrying, heard him reading from the prophet Isaiah, and he said, “Do you think that you understand what you are reading?”
{8:31} And he said, “But how can I, unless someone will have revealed it to me?” And he asked Philip to climb up and sit with him.
{8:32} Now the place in Scripture that he was reading was this: “Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter. And like a lamb silent before his shearer, so he opened not his mouth.
{8:33} He endured his judgment with humility. Who of his generation shall describe how his life was taken away from the earth?”
{8:34} Then the eunuch responded to Philip, saying: “I beg you, about whom is the prophet saying this? About himself, or about someone else?”
{8:35} Then Philip, opening his mouth and beginning from this Scripture, evangelized Jesus to him.
{8:36} And while they were going along the way, they arrived at a certain water source. And the eunuch said: “There is water. What would prevent me from being baptized?”
{8:37} Then Philip said, “If you believe from your whole heart, it is permitted.” And he responded by saying, “I believe the Son of God to be Jesus the Christ.”
{8:38} And he ordered the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch descended into the water. And he baptized him.
{8:39} And when they had ascended from the water, the Spirit of the Lord took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him anymore. Then he went on his way, rejoicing.
{8:40} Now Philip was found in Azotus. And continuing on, he evangelized all the cities, until he arrived in Caesarea.
{9:1} Now Saul, still breathing threats and beatings against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest,
{9:2} and he petitioned him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that, if he found any men or women belonging to this Way, he could lead them as prisoners to Jerusalem.
{9:3} And as he made the journey, it happened that he was approaching Damascus. And suddenly, a light from heaven shone around him.
{9:4} And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”
{9:5} And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he: “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goad.”
{9:6} And he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do you want me to do?”
{9:7} And the Lord said to him, “Rise up and go into the city, and there you will be told what you ought to do.” Now the men who were accompanying him were standing stupefied, hearing indeed a voice, but seeing no one.
{9:8} Then Saul rose up from the ground. And upon opening his eyes, he saw nothing. So leading him by the hand, they brought him into Damascus.
{9:9} And in that place, he was without sight for three days, and he neither ate nor drank.
{9:10} Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias. And the Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias!” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.”
{9:11} And the Lord said to him: “Rise up and go into the street that is called Straight, and seek, in the house of Judas, the one named Saul of Tarsus. For behold, he is praying.”
{9:12} (And Paul saw a man named Ananias entering and imposing hands upon him, so that he might receive his sight.)
{9:13} But Ananias responded: “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem.
{9:14} And he has authority here from the leaders of the priests to bind all who invoke your name.”
{9:15} Then the Lord said to him: “Go, for this one is an instrument chosen by me to convey my name before nations and kings and the sons of Israel.
{9:16} For I will reveal to him how much he must suffer on behalf of my name.”
{9:17} And Ananias departed. And he entered the house. And laying his hands upon him, he said: “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, he who appeared to you on the way by which you arrived, sent me so that you would receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
{9:18} And immediately, it was as if scales had fallen from his eyes, and he received his sight. And rising up, he was baptized.
{9:19} And when he had taken a meal, he was strengthened. Now he was with the disciples who were at Damascus for some days.
{9:20} And he was continuously preaching Jesus in the synagogues: that he is the Son of God.
{9:21} And all who heard him were astonished, and they said, “Is this not the one who, in Jerusalem, was fighting against those invoking this name, and who came here for this: so that he might lead them away to the leaders of the priests?”
{9:22} But Saul was increasing to a greater extent in ability, and so he was confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus, by affirming that he is the Christ.
{9:23} And when many days were completed, the Jews took counsel as one, so that they might put him to death.
{9:24} But their treachery became known to Saul. Now they were also watching the gates, day and night, so that they might put him to death.
{9:25} But the disciples, taking him away by night, sent him over the wall by letting him down in a basket.
{9:26} And when he had arrived in Jerusalem, he attempted to join himself to the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple.
{9:27} But Barnabas took him aside and led him to the Apostles. And he explained to them how he had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken to him, and how, in Damascus, he had acted faithfully in the name of Jesus.
{9:28} And he was with them, entering and departing Jerusalem, and acting faithfully in the name of the Lord.
{9:29} He also was speaking with the Gentiles and disputing with the Greeks. But they were seeking to kill him.
{9:30} And when the brothers had realized this, they brought him to Caesarea and sent him away to Tarsus.
{9:31} Certainly, the Church had peace throughout all of Judea and Galilee and Samaria, and it was being built up, while walking in the fear of the Lord, and it was being filled with the consolation of the Holy Spirit.
{9:32} Then it happened that Peter, as he traveled around everywhere, came to the saints who were living at Lydda.
{9:33} But he found there a certain man, named Aeneas, who was a paralytic, who had lain in bed for eight years.
{9:34} And Peter said to him: “Aeneas, the Lord Jesus Christ heals you. Rise up and arrange your bed.” And immediately he rose up.
{9:35} And all who were living in Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they were converted to the Lord.
{9:36} Now in Joppa there was a certain disciple named Tabitha, which in translation is called Dorcas. She was filled with the good works and almsgiving that she was accomplishing.
{9:37} And it happened that, in those days, she became ill and died. And when they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room.
{9:38} Now since Lydda was close to Joppa, the disciples, upon hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him, asking him: “Do not be slow in coming to us.”
{9:39} Then Peter, rising up, went with them. And when he had arrived, they led him to an upper room. And all the widows were standing around him, weeping and showing him the tunics and garments that Dorcas had made for them.
{9:40} And when they had all been sent outside, Peter, kneeling down, prayed. And turning to the body, he said: “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes and, upon seeing Peter, sat up again.
{9:41} And offering her his hand, he lifted her up. And when he had called in the saints and the widows, he presented her alive.
{9:42} Now this became known throughout all of Joppa. And many believed in the Lord.
{9:43} And it happened that he resided for many days in Joppa, with a certain Simon, a tanner.
{10:1} Now there was a certain man in Caesarea, named Cornelius, a centurion of the cohort which is called Italian,
{10:2} a devout man, fearing God with all his house, giving many alms to the people, and praying to God continually.
{10:3} This man saw in a vision clearly, at about the ninth hour of the day, the Angel of God entering to him and saying to him: “Cornelius!”
{10:4} And he, gazing at him, was seized by fear, and he said, “What is it, lord?” And he said to him: “Your prayers and your almsgiving have ascended as a memorial in the sight of God.
{10:5} And now, send men to Joppa and summon a certain Simon, who is surnamed Peter.
{10:6} This man is a guest with a certain Simon, a tanner, whose house is beside the sea. He will tell you what you must do.”
{10:7} And when the Angel who was speaking to him had departed, he called, out of those who were subject to him, two of his household servants and a soldier who feared the Lord.
{10:8} And when he had explained everything to them, he sent them to Joppa.
{10:9} Then, on the following day, while they were making the journey and approaching the city, Peter ascended to the upper rooms, so that he might pray, at about the sixth hour.
{10:10} And since he was hungry, he wanted to enjoy some food. Then, as they were preparing it, an ecstasy of mind fell over him.
{10:11} And he saw heaven opened, and a certain container descending, as if a great linen sheet were let down, by its four corners, from heaven to earth,
{10:12} on which were all four-footed beasts, and the crawling things of the earth and the flying things of the air.
{10:13} And a voice came to him: “Rise up, Peter! Kill and eat.”
{10:14} But Peter said: “Far be it from me, lord. For I have never eaten anything common or unclean.”
{10:15} And the voice, again a second time to him: “What God has purified, you shall not call common.”
{10:16} Now this was done three times. And immediately the container was taken up to heaven.
{10:17} Now while Peter was still hesitant within himself as to what the vision, which he had seen, might mean, behold, the men who had been sent from Cornelius stood at the gate, inquiring about Simon’s house.
{10:18} And when they had called out, they asked if Simon, who is surnamed Peter, was a guest in that place.
{10:19} Then, as Peter was thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men seek you.
{10:20} And so, rise up, descend, and go with them, doubting nothing. For I have sent them.”
{10:21} Then Peter, descending to the men, said: “Behold, I am the one whom you seek. What is the reason for which you have arrived?”
{10:22} And they said: “Cornelius, a centurion, a just and God-fearing man, who has good testimony from the entire nation of the Jews, received a message from a holy Angel to summon you to his house and to listen to words from you.”
{10:23} Therefore, leading them in, he received them as guests. Then, on following the day, rising up, he set out with them. And some of the brothers from Joppa accompanied him.
{10:24} And on the next day, he entered Caesarea. And truly, Cornelius was waiting for them, having called together his family and closest friends.
{10:25} And it happened that, when Peter had entered, Cornelius went to meet him. And falling before his feet, he reverenced.
{10:26} Yet truly, Peter, lifting him up, said: “Rise up, for I also am only a man.”
{10:27} And speaking with him, he entered, and he found many who had gathered together.
{10:28} And he said to them: “You know how abominable it would be for a Jewish man to be joined with, or to be added to, a foreign people. But God has revealed to me to call no man common or unclean.
{10:29} Because of this and without doubt, I came when summoned. Therefore, I ask you, for what reason have you summoned me?”
{10:30} And Cornelius said: “It is now the fourth day, to this very hour, since I was praying in my house at the ninth hour, and behold, a man stood before me in a white vestment, and he said:
{10:31} ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your almsgiving has been remembered in the sight of God.
{10:32} Therefore, send to Joppa and summon Simon, who is surnamed Peter. This man is a guest in the house of Simon, a tanner, near the sea.’
{10:33} And so, I promptly sent for you. And you have done well in coming here. Therefore, all of us are now present in your sight to hear all the things that were taught to you by the Lord.”
{10:34} Then, Peter, opening his mouth, said: “I have concluded in truth that God is not a respecter of persons.
{10:35} But within every nation, whoever fears him and works justice is acceptable to him.
{10:36} God sent the Word to the sons of Israel, announcing the peace through Jesus Christ, for he is the Lord of all.
{10:37} You know that the Word has been made known throughout all Judea. For beginning from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached,
{10:38} Jesus of Nazareth, whom God anointed with the Holy Spirit and with power, traveled around doing good and healing all those oppressed by the devil. For God was with him.
{10:39} And we are witnesses of all that he did in the region of Judea and in Jerusalem, he whom they killed by hanging him on a tree.
{10:40} God raised him up on the third day and permitted him to be made manifest,
{10:41} not to all the people, but to the witnesses preordained by God, to those of us who ate and drank with him after he rose again from the dead.
{10:42} And he instructed us to preach to the people, and to testify that he is the One who was appointed by God to be the judge of the living and of the dead.
{10:43} To him all the Prophets offer testimony that through his name all who believe in him receive the remission of sins.”
{10:44} While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell over all of those who were listening to the Word.
{10:45} And the faithful of the circumcision, who had arrived with Peter, were astonished that the grace of the Holy Spirit was also poured out upon the Gentiles.
{10:46} For they heard them speaking in tongues and magnifying God.
{10:47} Then Peter responded, “How could anyone prohibit water, so that those who have received the Holy Spirit would not be baptized, just as we also have been?”
{10:48} And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Then they begged him to remain with them for some days.
{11:1} Now the Apostles and brothers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the Word of God.
{11:2} Then, when Peter had gone up to Jerusalem, those who were of the circumcision argued against him,
{11:3} saying, “Why did you enter to uncircumcised men, and why did you eat with them?”
{11:4} And Peter began to explain to them, in an orderly manner, saying:
{11:5} “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and I saw, in an ecstasy of mind, a vision: a certain container descending, like a great linen sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners. And it drew near to me.
{11:6} And looking into it, I considered and saw the four-footed beasts of the earth, and the wild beasts, and the reptiles, and the flying things of the air.
{11:7} Then I also heard a voice saying to me: ‘Rise up, Peter. Kill and eat.’
{11:8} But I said: ‘Never, lord! For what is common or unclean has never entered into my mouth.’
{11:9} Then the voice responded a second time from heaven, ‘What God has cleansed, you shall not call common.’
{11:10} Now this was done three times. And then everything was taken up again into heaven.
{11:11} And behold, immediately there were three men standing near the house where I was, having been sent to me from Caesarea.
{11:12} Then the Spirit told me that I should go with them, doubting nothing. And these six brothers went with me also. And we entered into the house of the man.
{11:13} And he described for us how he had seen an Angel in his house, standing and saying to him: ‘Send to Joppa and summon Simon, who is surnamed Peter.
{11:14} And he shall speak to you words, by which you shall be saved with your whole house.’
{11:15} And when I had begun to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, just as upon us also, in the beginning.
{11:16} Then I remembered the words of the Lord, just as he himself said: ‘John, indeed, baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’
{11:17} Therefore, if God gave them the same grace, as also to us, who have believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I, that I would be able to prohibit God?”
{11:18} Having heard these things, they were silent. And they glorified God, saying: “So has God also given to the Gentiles repentance unto life.”
{11:19} And some of them, having been dispersed by the persecution that had occurred under Stephen, traveled around, even to Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the Word to no one, except to Jews only.
{11:20} But some of these men from Cyprus and Cyrene, when they had entered into Antioch, were speaking also to the Greeks, announcing the Lord Jesus.
{11:21} And the hand of the Lord was with them. And a great number believed and were converted to the Lord.
{11:22} Now the news came to the ears of the Church at Jerusalem about these things, and they sent Barnabas as far as Antioch.
{11:23} And when he had arrived there and had seen the grace of God, he was gladdened. And he exhorted them all to continue in the Lord with a resolute heart.
{11:24} For he was a good man, and he was filled with the Holy Spirit and with faith. And a great multitude was added to the Lord.
{11:25} Then Barnabas set out for Tarsus, so that he might seek Saul. And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch.
{11:26} And they were conversing there in the Church for an entire year. And they taught such a great multitude, that it was at Antioch that the disciples were first known by the name of Christian.
{11:27} Now in these days, prophets from Jerusalem went over to Antioch.
{11:28} And one of them, named Agabus, rising up, signified through the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine over the entire world, which did happen under Claudius.
{11:29} Then the disciples declared, according to what each one possessed, what they would offer to be sent to the brothers living in Judea.
{11:30} And so they did, sending it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.
{12:1} Now at the same time, king Herod extended his hand, in order to afflict some from the Church.
{12:2} Then he killed James, the brother of John, with the sword.
{12:3} And seeing that it pleased the Jews, he set out next to apprehend Peter also. Now it was the days of Unleavened Bread.
{12:4} So when he had apprehended him, he sent him into prison, handing him over into the custody of four groups of four soldiers, intending to produce him to the people after the Passover.
{12:5} And so Peter was detained in prison. But prayers were being made without ceasing, by the Church, to God on his behalf.
{12:6} And when Herod was ready to produce him, in that same night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, and was bound with two chains. And there were guards in front of the door, guarding the prison.
{12:7} And behold, an Angel of the Lord stood near, and a light shined forth in the cell. And tapping Peter on the side, he awakened him, saying, “Rise up, quickly.” And the chains fell from his hands.
{12:8} Then the Angel said to him: “Dress yourself, and put on your boots.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your garment around yourself and follow me.”
{12:9} And going out, he followed him. And he did not know this truth: that this was being done by an Angel. For he thought that he was seeing a vision.
{12:10} And passing by the first and second guards, they came to the iron gate which leads into the city; and it opened for them by itself. And departing, they continued on along a certain side street. And suddenly the Angel withdrew from him.
{12:11} And Peter, returning to himself, said: “Now I know, truly, that the Lord sent his Angel, and that he rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the people of the Jews were anticipating.”
{12:12} And as he was considering this, he arrived at the house of Mary, the mother of John, who was surnamed Mark, where many were gathered and were praying.
{12:13} Then, as he knocked at the door of the gate, a girl went out to answer, whose name was Rhoda.
{12:14} And when she recognized the voice of Peter, out of joy, she did not open the gate, but instead, running in, she reported that Peter stood before the gate.
{12:15} But they said to her, “You are crazy.” But she reaffirmed that this was so. Then they were saying, “It is his angel.”
{12:16} But Peter was persevering in knocking. And when they had opened, they saw him and were astonished.
{12:17} But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he explained how the Lord had led him away from prison. And he said, “Inform James and those brothers.” And going out, he went away to another place.
{12:18} Then, when daylight came, there was no small commotion among the soldiers, as to what had happened concerning Peter.
{12:19} And when Herod had requested him and did not obtain him, having had the guards interrogated, he ordered them led away. And descending from Judea into Caesarea, he lodged there.
{12:20} Now he was angry with those of Tyre and Sidon. But they came to him with one accord, and, having persuaded Blastus, who was over the bedchamber of the king, they petitioned for peace, because their regions were supplied with food by him.
{12:21} Then, on the appointed day, Herod was clothed in kingly apparel, and he sat in the judgment seat, and he gave a speech to them.
{12:22} Then the people were crying out, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!”
{12:23} And immediately, an Angel of the Lord struck him down, because he had not given honor to God. And having been consumed by worms, he expired.
{12:24} But the word of the Lord was increasing and multiplying.
{12:25} Then Barnabas and Saul, having completed the ministry, returned from Jerusalem, bringing with them John, who was surnamed Mark.
{13:1} Now there were, in the Church at Antioch, prophets and teachers, among whom were Barnabas, and Simon, who was called the Black, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manahen, who was the foster brother of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
{13:2} Now as they were ministering for the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said to them: “Separate Saul and Barnabas for me, for the work for which I have selected them.”
{13:3} Then, fasting and praying and imposing their hands upon them, they sent them away.
{13:4} And having been sent by the Holy Spirit, they went to Seleucia. And from there they sailed to Cyprus.
{13:5} And when they had arrived at Salamis, they were preaching the Word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they also had John in the ministry.
{13:6} And when they had traveled throughout the entire island, even to Paphos, they found a certain man, a magician, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-Jesu.
{13:7} And he was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man. This man, summoning Barnabas and Saul, wanted to hear the Word of God.
{13:8} But Elymas the magician (for so his name is translated) stood against them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the Faith.
{13:9} Then Saul, who is also called Paul, having been filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him,
{13:10} and he said: “So full of every deceit and of all falsehoods, son of the devil, enemy of all justice, you never cease to subvert the righteous ways of the Lord!
{13:11} And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you. And you will be blinded, not seeing the sun for a length of time.” And immediately a fog and a darkness fell over him. And wandering around, he was seeking someone who might lead him by the hand.
{13:12} Then the proconsul, when he had seen what was done, believed, being in wonder over the doctrine of the Lord.
{13:13} And when Paul and those who were with him had sailed from Paphos, they arrived at Perga in Pamphylia. Then John departed from them and returned to Jerusalem.
{13:14} Yet truly, they, traveling on from Perga, arrived at Antioch in Pisidia. And upon entering the synagogue on the Sabbath day, they sat down.
{13:15} Then, after the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent to them, saying: “Noble brothers, if there is in you any word of exhortation to the people, speak.”
{13:16} Then Paul, rising up and motioning for silence with his hand, said: “Men of Israel and you who fear God, listen closely.
{13:17} The God of the people of Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people, when they were settlers in the land of Egypt. And with an exalted arm, he led them away from there.
{13:18} And throughout a time of forty years, he endured their behavior in the desert.
{13:19} And by destroying seven nations in the land of Canaan, he divided their land among them by lot,
{13:20} after about four hundred and fifty years. And after these things, he gave them judges, even until the prophet Samuel.
{13:21} And later on, they petitioned for a king. And God gave them Saul, the son of Kish, a man from the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years.
{13:22} And having removed him, he raised up for them king David. And offering testimony about him, he said, ‘I have found David, the son of Jesse, to be a man according to my own heart, who will accomplish all that I will.’
{13:23} From his offspring, according to the Promise, God has brought Jesus the Savior to Israel.
{13:24} John was preaching, before the face of his advent, a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.
{13:25} Then, when John completed his course, he was saying: ‘I am not the one you consider me to be. For behold, one arrives after me, the shoes of whose feet I am not worthy to loosen.’
{13:26} Noble brothers, sons of the stock of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, it is to you the Word of this salvation has been sent.
{13:27} For those who were living in Jerusalem, and its rulers, heeding neither him, nor the voices of the Prophets that are read on every Sabbath, fulfilled these by judging him.
{13:28} And although they found no case for death against him, they petitioned Pilate, so that they might put him to death.
{13:29} And when they had fulfilled everything that had been written about him, taking him down from the tree, they placed him in a tomb.
{13:30} Yet truly, God raised him up from the dead on the third day.
{13:31} And he was seen for many days by those who went up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who even now are his witnesses to the people.
{13:32} And we are announcing to you that the Promise, which was made to our fathers,
{13:33} has been fulfilled by God for our children by raising up Jesus, just as it has been written in the second Psalm also: ‘You are my Son. This day I have begotten you.’
{13:34} Now, since he raised him from the dead, so as to no longer return to corruption, he has said this: ‘I will give to you the holy things of David, the faithful one.’
{13:35} And also then, in another place, he says: ‘You will not allow your Holy One to see corruption.’
{13:36} For David, when he had ministered to his generation in accordance with the will of God, fell asleep, and he was placed next to his fathers, and he saw corruption.
{13:37} Yet truly, he whom God has raised from the dead has not seen corruption.
{13:38} Therefore, let it be known to you, noble brothers, that through him is announced to you remission from sins and from everything by which you were not able to be justified in the law of Moses.
{13:39} In him, all who believe are justified.
{13:40} Therefore, be careful, lest what was said by the Prophets may overwhelm you:
{13:41} ‘You despisers! Look, and wonder, and be scattered! For I am working a deed in your days, a deed which you would not believe, even if someone were to explain it to you.’ ”
{13:42} Then, as they were departing, they asked them if, on the following Sabbath, they might speak these words to them.
{13:43} And when the synagogue had been dismissed, many among the Jews and the new worshipers were following Paul and Barnabas. And they, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God.
{13:44} Yet truly, on the following Sabbath, nearly the entire city came together to hear the Word of God.
{13:45} Then the Jews, seeing the crowds, were filled with envy, and they, blaspheming, contradicted the things that were being said by Paul.
{13:46} Then Paul and Barnabas said firmly: “It was necessary to speak the Word of God first to you. But because you reject it, and so judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles.
{13:47} For so has the Lord instructed us: ‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, so that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ”
{13:48} Then the Gentiles, upon hearing this, were gladdened, and they were glorifying the Word of the Lord. And as many as believed were preordained to eternal life.
{13:49} Now the word of the Lord was disseminated throughout the entire region.
{13:50} But the Jews incited some devout and honest women, and the leaders of the city. And they stirred up a persecution against Paul and Barnabas. And they drove them away from their parts.
{13:51} But they, shaking the dust from their feet against them, went on to Iconium.
{13:52} The disciples were likewise filled with gladness and with the Holy Spirit.
{14:1} Now it happened in Iconium that they entered together into the synagogue of the Jews, and they spoke in such a way that a copious multitude of both Jews and Greeks believed.
{14:2} Yet truly, the Jews who were unbelieving had incited and enflamed the souls of the Gentiles against the brothers.
{14:3} And so, they remained for a long time, acting faithfully in the Lord, offering testimony to the Word of his grace, providing signs and wonders done by their hands.
{14:4} Then the multitude of the city was divided. And certainly, some were with the Jews, yet truly others were with the Apostles.
{14:5} Now when an assault had been planned by the Gentiles and the Jews with their leaders, so that they might treat them with contempt and stone them,
{14:6} they, realizing this, fled together to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the entire surrounding region. And they were evangelizing in that place.
{14:7} And a certain man was sitting at Lystra, disabled in his feet, lame from his mother’s womb, who had never walked.
{14:8} This man heard Paul speaking. And Paul, gazing at him intently, and perceiving that he had faith, so that he might be healed,
{14:9} said with a loud voice, “Stand upright upon your feet!” And he leaped up and walked around.
{14:10} But when the crowds had seen what Paul had done, they lifted up their voice in the Lycaonian language, saying, “The gods, having taken the likenesses of men, have descended to us!”
{14:11} And they called Barnabas, ‘Jupiter,’ yet truly they called Paul, ‘Mercury,’ because he was the lead speaker.
{14:12} Also, the priest of Jupiter, who was outside the city, in front of the gate, bringing in oxen and garlands, was willing to offer sacrifice with the people.
{14:13} And as soon as the Apostles, Barnabas and Paul, had heard this, tearing their tunics, they leapt into the crowd, crying out
{14:14} and saying: “Men, why would you do this? We also are mortals, men like yourselves, preaching to you to be converted, from these vain things, to the living God, who made heaven and earth and the sea and all that is in them.
{14:15} In previous generations, he permitted all nations to walk in their own ways.
{14:16} But certainly, he did not leave himself without testimony, doing good from heaven, giving rains and fruitful seasons, filling their hearts with food and gladness.”
{14:17} And by saying these things, they were barely able to restrain the crowds from immolating to them.
{14:18} Now certain Jews from Antioch and Iconium arrived there. And having persuaded the crowd, they stoned Paul and dragged him outside of the city, thinking him to be dead.
{14:19} But as the disciples were standing around him, he got up and entered the city. And the next day, he set out with Barnabas for Derbe.
{14:20} And when they had evangelized that city, and had taught many, they returned again to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch,
{14:21} strengthening the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them that they should remain always in the faith, and that it is necessary for us to enter into the kingdom of God through many tribulations.
{14:22} And when they had established priests for them in each church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, in whom they believed.
{14:23} And traveling by way of Pisidia, they arrived in Pamphylia.
{14:24} And having spoken the word of the Lord in Perga, they went down into Attalia.
{14:25} And from there, they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work which they had now accomplished.
{14:26} And when they had arrived and had gathered together the church, they related what great things God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.
{14:27} And they remained for no small amount of time with the disciples.
{15:1} And certain ones, descending from Judea, were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”
{15:2} Therefore, when Paul and Barnabas made no small uprising against them, they decided that Paul and Barnabas, and some from the opposing side, should go up to the Apostles and priests in Jerusalem concerning this question.
{15:3} Therefore, being led by the church, they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, describing the conversion of the Gentiles. And they caused great joy among all the brothers.
{15:4} And when they had arrived in Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the Apostles and the elders, reporting what great things God had done with them.
{15:5} But some from the sect of the Pharisees, those who were believers, rose up saying, “It is necessary for them to be circumcised and to be instructed to keep the Law of Moses.”
{15:6} And the Apostles and elders came together to take care of this matter.
{15:7} And after a great contention had taken place, Peter rose up and said to them: “Noble brothers, you know that, in recent days, God has chosen from among us, by my mouth, Gentiles to hear the word of the Gospel and to believe.
{15:8} And God, who knows hearts, offered testimony, by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as to us.
{15:9} And he distinguished nothing between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.
{15:10} Now therefore, why do you tempt God to impose a yoke upon the necks of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear?
{15:11} But by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, we believe in order to be saved, in the same manner also as them.”
{15:12} Then the entire multitude was silent. And they were listening to Barnabas and Paul, describing what great signs and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles through them.
{15:13} And after they had been silent, James responded by saying: “Noble brothers, listen to me.
{15:14} Simon has explained in what manner God first visited, so as to take from the Gentiles a people to his name.
{15:15} And the words of the Prophets are in agreement with this, just as it was written:
{15:16} ‘After these things, I will return, and I will rebuild the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down. And I will rebuild its ruins, and I will raise it up,
{15:17} so that the rest of men may seek the Lord, along with all the nations over whom my name has been invoked, says the Lord, who does these things.’
{15:18} To the Lord, his own work has been known from eternity.
{15:19} Because of this, I judge that those who were converted to God from among the Gentiles are not to be disturbed,
{15:20} but instead that we write to them, that they should keep themselves from the defilement of idols, and from fornication, and from whatever has been suffocated, and from blood.
{15:21} For Moses, from ancient times, has had in each city those who preach him in the synagogues, where he is read on every Sabbath.”
{15:22} Then it pleased the Apostles and elders, with the whole Church, to choose men from among them, and to send to Antioch, with Paul and Barnabas, and Judas, who was surnamed Barsabbas, and Silas, preeminent men among the brothers,
{15:23} what was written by their own hands: “The Apostles and elders, brothers, to those who are at Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, brothers from the Gentiles, greetings.
{15:24} Since we have heard that some, going out from among us, have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, to whom we gave no commandment,
{15:25} it pleased us, being assembled as one, to choose men and to send them to you, with our most beloved Barnabas and Paul:
{15:26} men who have handed over their lives on behalf of the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{15:27} Therefore, we have sent Judas and Silas, who themselves also will, with the spoken word, reaffirm to you the same things.
{15:28} For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to impose no further burden upon you, other than these necessary things:
{15:29} that you abstain from things immolated to idols, and from blood, and from what has been suffocated, and from fornication. You will do well to keep yourselves from these things. Farewell.”
{15:30} And so, having been dismissed, they went down to Antioch. And gathering the multitude together, they delivered the epistle.
{15:31} And when they had read it, they were gladdened by this consolation.
{15:32} But Judas and Silas, being also prophets themselves, consoled the brothers with many words, and they were strengthened.
{15:33} Then, after spending some more time there, they were dismissed with peace, by the brothers, to those who had sent them.
{15:34} But it seemed good to Silas to remain there. So Judas alone departed to Jerusalem.
{15:35} And Paul and Barnabas remained at Antioch, with many others, teaching and evangelizing the Word of the Lord.
{15:36} Then, after some days, Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us return to visit the brothers throughout all the cities in which we have preached the Word of the Lord, to see how they are.”
{15:37} And Barnabas wanted to take John, who was surnamed Mark, with them also.
{15:38} But Paul was saying that he ought not to be received, since he withdrew from them at Pamphylia, and he had not gone with them in the work.
{15:39} And there occurred a dissension, to such an extent that they departed from one another. And Barnabas, indeed taking Mark, sailed to Cyprus.
{15:40} Yet truly, Paul, choosing Silas, set out, being delivered by the brothers to the grace of God.
{15:41} And he traveled through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the Churches, instructing them to keep the precepts of the Apostles and the elders.
{16:1} Then he arrived at Derbe and Lystra. And behold, a certain disciple named Timothy was there, the son of a faithful Jewish woman, his father a Gentile.
{16:2} The brothers who were at Lystra and Iconium rendered good testimony to him.
{16:3} Paul wanted this man to travel with him, and taking him, he circumcised him, because of the Jews who were in those places. For they all knew that his father was a Gentile.
{16:4} And as they were traveling through the cities, they delivered to them the dogmas to be kept, which were decreed by the Apostles and elders who were at Jerusalem.
{16:5} And certainly, the Churches were being strengthened in faith and were increasing in number every day.
{16:6} Then, while crossing through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were prevented by the Holy Spirit from speaking the Word in Asia.
{16:7} But when they had arrived in Mysia, they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not permit them.
{16:8} Then, when they had crossed through Mysia, they descended to Troas.
{16:9} And a vision in the night was revealed to Paul of a certain man of Macedonia, standing and pleading with him, and saying: “Cross into Macedonia and help us!”
{16:10} Then, after he saw the vision, immediately we sought to set out for Macedonia, having been assured that God had called us to evangelize to them.
{16:11} And sailing from Troas, taking a direct path, we arrived at Samothrace, and on the following day, at Neapolis,
{16:12} and from there to Philippi, which is the preeminent city in the area of Macedonia, a colony. Now we were in this city some days, conferring together.
{16:13} Then, on the Sabbath day, we were walking outside the gate, beside a river, where there seemed to be a prayer gathering. And sitting down, we were speaking with the women who had assembled.
{16:14} And a certain woman, named Lydia, a seller of purple in the city of Thyatira, a worshiper of God, listened. And the Lord opened her heart to be receptive to what Paul was saying.
{16:15} And when she had been baptized, with her household, she pleaded with us, saying: “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, enter into my house and lodge there.” And she convinced us.
{16:16} Then it happened that, as we were going out to prayer, a certain girl, having a spirit of divination, met with us. She was a source of great profit to her masters, through her divining.
{16:17} This girl, following Paul and us, was crying out, saying: “These men are servants of the Most High God! They are announcing to you the way of salvation!”
{16:18} Now she behaved in this way for many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you, in the name of Jesus Christ, to go out from her.” And it went away in that same hour.
{16:19} But her masters, seeing that the hope of their profit went away, apprehended Paul and Silas, and they brought them to the rulers at the courthouse.
{16:20} And presenting them to the magistrates, they said: “These men are disturbing our city, since they are Jews.
{16:21} And they are announcing a way which is not lawful for us to accept or to observe, since we are Romans.”
{16:22} And the people rushed together against them. And the magistrates, tearing their tunics, ordered them to be beaten with staffs.
{16:23} And when they had inflicted many scourges on them, they cast them into prison, instructing the guard to watch them diligently.
{16:24} And since he had received this kind of order, he cast them into the interior prison cell, and he restricted their feet with stocks.
{16:25} Then, in the middle of the night, Paul and Silas were praying and praising God. And those who were also in custody were listening to them.
{16:26} Yet truly, there was a sudden earthquake, so great that the foundations of the prison were moved. And immediately all the doors were opened, and the bindings of everyone were released.
{16:27} Then the prison guard, having been jarred awake, and seeing the doors of the prison open, drew his sword and intended to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had fled.
{16:28} But Paul cried out with a loud voice, saying: “Do no harm to yourself, for we are all here!”
{16:29} Then calling for a light, he entered. And trembling, he fell before the feet of Paul and Silas.
{16:30} And bringing them outside, he said, “Sirs, what must I do, so that I may be saved?”
{16:31} So they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and then you will be saved, with your household.”
{16:32} And they spoke the Word of the Lord to him, along with all those who were in his house.
{16:33} And he, taking them in the same hour of the night, washed their scourges. And he was baptized, and next his entire household.
{16:34} And when he had brought them into his own house, he set a table for them. And he was joyous, with his entire household, believing in God.
{16:35} And when daylight had arrived, the magistrates sent the attendants, saying, “Release those men.”
{16:36} But the prison guard reported these words to Paul: “The magistrates have sent to have you released. Now therefore, depart. Go in peace.”
{16:37} But Paul said to them: “They have beaten us publicly, though we were not condemned. They have cast men who are Romans into prison. And now they would drive us away secretly? Not so. Instead, let them come forward,
{16:38} and let us drive them away.” Then the attendants reported these words to the magistrates. And upon hearing that they were Romans, they were afraid.
{16:39} And arriving, they pleaded with them, and leading them out, they begged them to depart from the city.
{16:40} And they went away from the prison and entered into the house of Lydia. And having seen the brothers, they consoled them, and then they set out.
{17:1} Now when they had walked through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they arrived at Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews.
{17:2} Then Paul, according to custom, entered to them. And for three Sabbaths he disputed with them about the Scriptures,
{17:3} interpreting and concluding that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise again from the dead, and that “this is the Jesus Christ, whom I am announcing to you.”
{17:4} And some of them believed and were joined to Paul and Silas, and a great number of these were from the worshipers and the Gentiles, and not a few were noble women.
{17:5} But the Jews, being jealous, and joining with certain evildoers among the common men, caused a disturbance, and they stirred up the city. And taking up a position near the house of Jason, they sought to lead them out to the people.
{17:6} And when they had not found them, they dragged Jason and certain brothers to the rulers of the city, crying out: “For these are the ones who have stirred up the city. And they came here,
{17:7} and Jason has received them. And all these men act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.”
{17:8} And they incited the people. And the rulers of the city, upon hearing these things,
{17:9} and having received an explanation from Jason and the others, released them.
{17:10} Yet truly, the brothers promptly sent Paul and Silas away by night to Beroea. And when they had arrived, they entered the synagogue of the Jews.
{17:11} But these were more noble than those who were at Thessalonica. They received the Word with all enthusiasm, daily examining the Scriptures to see if these things were so.
{17:12} And indeed, many believed among them, as well as not a few among the honorable Gentile men and women.
{17:13} Then, when the Jews of Thessalonica had realized that the Word of God was also preached by Paul at Beroea, they went there also, stirring up and disturbing the multitude.
{17:14} And then the brothers quickly sent Paul away, so that he might travel by sea. But Silas and Timothy remained there.
{17:15} Then those who were leading Paul brought him as far as Athens. And having received an order from him to Silas and Timothy, that they should come to him quickly, they set out.
{17:16} Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred up within him, seeing the city given over to idolatry.
{17:17} And so, he was disputing with the Jews in the synagogue, and with the worshipers, and in public places, throughout each day, with whomever was there.
{17:18} Now certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were arguing with him. And some were saying, “What does this sower of the Word want to say?” Yet others were saying, “He seems to be an announcer for new demons.” For he was announcing to them Jesus and the Resurrection.
{17:19} And apprehending him, they brought him to the Areopagus, saying: “Are we able to know what this new doctrine is, about which you speak?
{17:20} For you bring certain new ideas to our ears. And so we would like to know what these things mean.”
{17:21} (Now all the Athenians, and arriving visitors, were occupying themselves with nothing other than speaking or hearing various new ideas.)
{17:22} But Paul, standing in the middle of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are rather superstitious.
{17:23} For as I was passing by and noticing your idols, I also found an altar, on which was written: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, what you worship in ignorance, this is what I am preaching to you:
{17:24} the God who made the world and all that is in it, the One who is the Lord of heaven and earth, who does not live in temples made with hands.
{17:25} Neither is he served by the hands of men, as if in need of anything, since it is he who gives to all things life and breath and all else.
{17:26} And he has made, out of one, every family of man: to live upon the face of the entire earth, determining the appointed seasons and the limits of their habitation,
{17:27} so as to seek God, if perhaps they may consider him or find him, though he is not far from each one of us.
{17:28} ‘For in him we live, and move, and exist.’ Just as some of your own poets have said. ‘For we are also of his family.’
{17:29} Therefore, since we are of the family of God, we must not consider gold or silver or precious stones, or the engravings of art and of the imagination of man, to be a representation of what is Divine.
{17:30} And indeed, God, having looked down to see the ignorance of these times, has now announced to men that everyone everywhere should do penance.
{17:31} For he has appointed a day on which he will judge the world in equity, through the man whom he has appointed, offering faith to all, by raising him from the dead.”
{17:32} And when they had heard about the Resurrection of the dead, indeed, some were derisive, while others said, “We will listen to you about this again.”
{17:33} So Paul departed from their midst.
{17:34} Yet truly, certain men, adhering to him, did believe. Among these were also Dionysius the Areopagite, and a woman named Damaris, and others with them.
{18:1} After these things, having departed from Athens, he arrived at Corinth.
{18:2} And upon finding a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently arrived from Italy with Priscilla his wife, (because Claudius had ordered all Jews to depart from Rome,) he met with them.
{18:3} And because he was of the same trade, he lodged with them and was working. (Now they were tentmakers by trade.)
{18:4} And he was arguing in the synagogue on every Sabbath, introducing the name of the Lord Jesus. And he was persuading Jews and Greeks.
{18:5} And when Silas and Timothy had arrived from Macedonia, Paul stood firm in the Word, testifying to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ.
{18:6} But since they were contradicting him and blaspheming, he shook out his garments and said to them: “Your blood is on your own heads. I am clean. From now on, I will go to the Gentiles.”
{18:7} And moving from that place, he entered into the house of a certain man, named Titus the Just, a worshiper of God, whose house was adjoined to the synagogue.
{18:8} Now Crispus, a leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, with his entire house. And many of the Corinthians, upon hearing, believed and were baptized.
{18:9} Then the Lord said to Paul, through a vision in the night: “Do not be afraid. Instead, speak out and do not be silent.
{18:10} For I am with you. And no one will take hold of you, so as to do you harm. For many of the people in this city are with me.”
{18:11} Then he settled there for a year and six months, teaching the Word of God among them.
{18:12} But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews rose up with one accord against Paul. And they brought him to the tribunal,
{18:13} saying, “He persuades men to worship God contrary to the law.”
{18:14} Then, when Paul was beginning to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews: “If this were some matter of injustice, or a wicked deed, O noble Jews, I would support you, as is proper.
{18:15} Yet if truly these are questions about a word and names and your law, you should see to it yourselves. I will not be the judge of such things.”
{18:16} And he ordered them from the tribunal.
{18:17} But they, apprehending Sosthenes, a leader of the synagogue, beat him in front of the tribunal. And Gallio showed no concern for these things.
{18:18} Yet truly, Paul, after he had remained for many more days, having said goodbye to the brothers, sailed into Syria, and with him were Priscilla and Aquila. Now he had shaved his head in Cenchreae, for he had made a vow.
{18:19} And he arrived at Ephesus, and he left them behind there. Yet truly, he himself, entering into the synagogue, was disputing with the Jews.
{18:20} Then, although they were asking him to remain for a longer time, he would not agree.
{18:21} Instead, saying goodbye and telling them, “I will return to you again, God willing,” he set out from Ephesus.
{18:22} And after going down to Caesarea, he went up to Jerusalem, and he greeted the Church there, and then he descended to Antioch.
{18:23} And having spent some length of time there, he set out, and he walked in order through the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.
{18:24} Now a certain Jew named Apollo, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man who was powerful with the Scriptures, arrived at Ephesus.
{18:25} He was learned in the Way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching the things that are of Jesus, but knowing only the baptism of John.
{18:26} And so, he began to act faithfully in the synagogue. And when Priscilla and Aquila had heard him, they took him aside and expounded the Way of the Lord to him more thoroughly.
{18:27} Then, since he wanted to go to Achaia, the brothers wrote an exhortation to the disciples, so that they might accept him. And when he had arrived, he held many discussions with those who had believed.
{18:28} For he was vehemently and publicly reproving the Jews, by revealing through the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.
{19:1} Now it happened that, while Apollo was at Corinth, Paul, after he had journeyed through the upper regions, arrived at Ephesus. And he met with certain disciples.
{19:2} And he said to them, “After believing, have you received the Holy Spirit?” But they said to him, “We have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
{19:3} Yet truly, he said, “Then with what have you been baptized?” And they said, “With the baptism of John.”
{19:4} Then Paul said: “John baptized the people with the baptism of repentance, saying that they should believe in the One who is to come after him, that is, in Jesus.”
{19:5} Upon hearing these things, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
{19:6} And when Paul had imposed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came over them. And they were speaking in tongues and prophesying.
{19:7} Now the men were about twelve in all.
{19:8} Then, upon entering the synagogue, he was speaking faithfully for three months, disputing and persuading them about the kingdom of God.
{19:9} But when certain ones became hardened and would not believe, cursing the Way of the Lord in the presence of the multitude, Paul, withdrawing from them, separated the disciples, disputing daily in a certain school of Tyrannus.
{19:10} Now this was done throughout two years, so that all who were living in Asia listened to the Word of the Lord, both Jews and Gentiles.
{19:11} And God was accomplishing powerful and uncommon miracles by the hand of Paul,
{19:12} so much so that even when small cloths and wrappings were brought from his body to the sick, the illnesses withdrew from them and the wicked spirits departed.
{19:13} Then, even some of the traveling Jewish exorcists had attempted to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “I bind you by oath through Jesus, whom Paul preaches.”
{19:14} And there were certain Jews, the seven sons of Sceva, leaders among the priests, who were acting in this way.
{19:15} But a wicked spirit responded by saying to them: “Jesus I know, and Paul I know. But who are you?”
{19:16} And the man, in whom there was a wicked spirit, leaping at them and getting the better of them both, prevailed against them, so that they fled from that house, naked and wounded.
{19:17} And so, this became known to all the Jews and Gentiles who were living at Ephesus. And a fear fell over them all. And the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.
{19:18} And many believers were arriving, confessing, and announcing their deeds.
{19:19} Then many of those who had followed odd sects brought together their books, and they burned them in the sight of all. And after determining the value of these, they found the price to be fifty thousand denarii.
{19:20} In this way, the Word of God was increasing strongly and was being confirmed.
{19:21} Then, when these things were completed, Paul decided in the Spirit, after crossing through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, “Then, after I have been there, it is necessary for me to see Rome also.”
{19:22} But sending two of those who were ministering to him, Timothy and Erastus, into Macedonia, he himself remained for a time in Asia.
{19:23} Now at that time, there occurred no small disturbance concerning the Way of the Lord.
{19:24} For a certain man named Demetrius, a silversmith making silver shrines for Diana, was providing no small profit to craftsmen.
{19:25} And calling them together, with those who were employed in the same way, he said: “Men, you know that our income is from this craft.
{19:26} And you are seeing and hearing that this man Paul, by persuasion, has turned away a great multitude, not only from Ephesus, but from nearly all of Asia, saying, ‘These things are not gods which have been made by hands.’
{19:27} Thus, not only is this, our occupation, in danger of being brought into repudiation, but also the temple of the great Diana will be reputed as nothing! Then even her majesty, whom all of Asia and the world worships, will begin to be destroyed.”
{19:28} Upon hearing this, they were filled with anger, and they cried out, saying, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!”
{19:29} And the city was filled with confusion. And having seized Gaius and Aristarchus of Macedonia, companions of Paul, they rushed violently, with one accord, into the amphitheater.
{19:30} Then, when Paul wanted to enter to the people, the disciples would not permit him.
{19:31} And some of the leaders from Asia, who were his friends, also sent to him, requesting that he not present himself in the amphitheater.
{19:32} But others were crying out various things. For the assembly was in confusion, and most did not know the reason they had been called together.
{19:33} So they dragged Alexander from the crowd, while the Jews were propelling him forward. And Alexander, gesturing with his hand for silence, wanted to give the people an explanation.
{19:34} But as soon as they realized him to be a Jew, all with one voice, for about two hours, were crying out, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians!”
{19:35} And when the scribe had calmed the crowds, he said: “Men of Ephesus, now what man is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is in the service of the great Diana and of the offspring of Jupiter?
{19:36} Therefore, since these things are not able to be contradicted, it is necessary for you to be calm and to do nothing rash.
{19:37} For you have brought forward these men, who are neither sacrilegious nor blasphemers against your goddess.
{19:38} But if Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a case against anyone, they can convene in the courts, and there are proconsuls. Let them accuse one another.
{19:39} But if you would inquire about other things, this can be decided in a lawful assembly.
{19:40} For now we are in peril of being convicted of sedition over today’s events, since there is no one guilty (against whom we are able to provide evidence) in this gathering.” And when he had said this, he dismissed the assembly.
{20:1} Then, after the tumult ceased, Paul, calling the disciples to himself and exhorting them, said farewell. And he set out, so that he might go into Macedonia.
{20:2} And when he had walked through those areas and had exhorted them with many sermons, he went into Greece.
{20:3} After he had spent three months there, treacheries were planned against him by the Jews, just as he was about to sail into Syria. And having been advised of this, he return through Macedonia.
{20:4} Now those accompanying him were Sopater, the son of Pyrrhus from Beroea; and also the Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus; and Gaius of Derbe, and Timothy; and also Tychicus and Trophimus from Asia.
{20:5} These, after they had gone ahead, waited for us at Troas.
{20:6} Yet truly, we sailed from Philippi, after the days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days we went to them at Troas, where we stayed for seven days.
{20:7} Then, on the first Sabbath, when we had assembled together to break bread, Paul discoursed with them, intending to set out the next day. But he prolonged his sermon into the middle of the night.
{20:8} Now there were plenty of lamps in the upper room, where we were gathered.
{20:9} And a certain adolescent named Eutychus, sitting on the window sill, was being weighed down by a heavy drowsiness (for Paul was preaching at length). Then, as he went to sleep, he fell from the third floor room downward. And when he was lifted up, he was dead.
{20:10} When Paul had gone down to him, he laid himself over him and, embracing him, said, “Do not worry, for his soul is still within him.”
{20:11} And so, going up, and breaking bread, and eating, and having spoken well on until daylight, he then set out.
{20:12} Now they had brought the boy in alive, and they were more than a little consoled.
{20:13} Then we climbed aboard the ship and sailed to Assos, where we were to take in Paul. For so he himself had decided, since he was making the journey by land.
{20:14} And when he had joined us at Assos, we took him in, and we went to Mitylene.
{20:15} And sailing from there, on the following day, we arrived opposite Chios. And next we landed at Samos. And on the following day we went to Miletus.
{20:16} For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so that he would not be delayed in Asia. For he was hurrying so that, if it were possible for him, he might observe the day of Pentecost at Jerusalem.
{20:17} Then, sending from Miletus to Ephesus, he called those greater by birth in the church.
{20:18} And when they had come to him and were together, he said to them: “You know that from the first day when I entered into Asia, I have been with you, for the entire time, in this manner:
{20:19} serving the Lord, with all humility and despite the tears and trials which befell me from the treacheries of the Jews,
{20:20} how I held back nothing that was of value, how well I have preached to you, and that I have taught you publicly and throughout the houses,
{20:21} testifying both to Jews and to Gentiles about repentance in God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
{20:22} And now, behold, being obliged in spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there,
{20:23} except that the Holy Spirit, throughout every city, has cautioned me, saying that chains and tribulations await me at Jerusalem.
{20:24} But I dread none of these things. Neither do I consider my life to be more precious because it is my own, provided that in some way I may complete my own course and that of the ministry of the Word, which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the Gospel of the grace of God.
{20:25} And now, behold, I know that you will no longer see my face, all of you among whom I have traveled, preaching the kingdom of God.
{20:26} For this reason, I call you as witnesses on this very day: that I am clean from the blood of all.
{20:27} For I have not turned aside in the least from announcing every counsel of God to you.
{20:28} Take care of yourselves and of the entire flock, over which the Holy Spirit has stationed you as Bishops to rule the Church of God, which he has purchased by his own blood.
{20:29} I know that after my departure ravenous wolves will enter among you, not sparing the flock.
{20:30} And from among yourselves, men will rise up, speaking perverse things in order to entice disciples after them.
{20:31} Because of this, be vigilant, retaining in memory that throughout three years I did not cease, night and day, with tears, to admonish each and every one of you.
{20:32} And now, I commend you to God and to the Word of his grace. He has the power to build up, and to give an inheritance to all who are sanctified.
{20:33} I have coveted neither silver and gold, nor apparel,
{20:34} as you yourselves know. For that which was needed by me and by those who are with me, these hands have provided.
{20:35} I have revealed all things to you, because by laboring in this way, it is necessary to support the weak and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
{20:36} And when he had said these things, kneeling down, he prayed with all of them.
{20:37} Then a great weeping occurred among them all. And, falling upon the neck of Paul, they kissed him,
{20:38} being grieved most of all over the word which he had said, that they would never see his face again. And they brought him to the ship.
{21:1} And after these things had happened, having reluctantly parted from them, we sailed a direct course, arriving at Cos, and on following the day at Rhodes, and from there to Patara.
{21:2} And when we had found a ship sailing across to Phoenicia, climbing aboard, we set sail.
{21:3} Then, after we had caught sight of Cyprus, keeping it to the left, we sailed on to Syria, and we arrived at Tyre. For the ship was going to unload its cargo there.
{21:4} Then, having found the disciples, we lodged there for seven days. And they were saying to Paul, through the Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem.
{21:5} And when the days were completed, setting out, we went on; and they all accompanied us with their wives and children, until we were outside of the city. And we kneeled down at the shore and prayed.
{21:6} And when we had said farewell to one another, we climbed aboard the ship. And they returned to their own.
{21:7} Yet truly, having completed our journey by boat from Tyre, we descended to Ptolemais. And greeting the brothers, we lodged with them for one day.
{21:8} Then, after setting out the next day, we arrived at Caesarea. And upon entering into the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, we stayed with him.
{21:9} Now this man had four daughters, virgins, who were prophesying.
{21:10} And while we were delayed for some days, a certain prophet from Judea, named Agabus, arrived.
{21:11} And he, when he had come to us, took Paul’s belt, and binding his own feet and hands, he said: “Thus says the Holy Spirit: The man whose belt this is, the Jews will bind in this way at Jerusalem. And they will deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.”
{21:12} And when we had heard this, both we and those who were from that place begged him not to go up to Jerusalem.
{21:13} Then Paul responded by saying: “What do you accomplish by weeping and afflicting my heart? For I am prepared, not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem, for the name of the Lord Jesus.”
{21:14} And since we were not able to persuade him, we quieted, saying: “May the will of the Lord be done.”
{21:15} Then, after those days, having made preparations, we ascended to Jerusalem.
{21:16} Now some of the disciples from Caesarea also went with us, bringing with them a certain Cypriot named Mnason, a very old disciple, whose guests we would be.
{21:17} And when we had arrived at Jerusalem, the brothers received us willingly.
{21:18} Then, on the following day, Paul entered with us to James. And all the elders were assembled.
{21:19} And when he had greeted them, he explained each thing that God had accomplished among the Gentiles through his ministry.
{21:20} And they, upon hearing it, magnified God and said to him: “You understand, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews who have believed, and they are all zealous for the law.
{21:21} Now they have heard about you, that you are teaching those Jews who are among the Gentiles to withdraw from Moses, telling them that they should not circumcise their sons, nor act according to custom.
{21:22} What is next? The multitude ought to be convened. For they will hear that you have arrived.
{21:23} Therefore, do this thing that we ask of you: We have four men, who are under a vow.
{21:24} Take these and sanctify yourself with them, and require them to shave their heads. And then everyone will know that the things that they have heard about you are false, but that you yourself walk in keeping with the law.
{21:25} But, about those Gentiles who have believed, we have written a judgment that they should keep themselves from what has been immolated to idols, and from blood, and from what has been suffocated, and from fornication.”
{21:26} Then Paul, taking the men on the next day, was purified with them, and he entered the temple, announcing the process of the days of purification, until an oblation would be offered on behalf of each one of them.
{21:27} But when the seven days were reaching completion, those Jews who were from Asia, when they had seen him in the temple, incited all the people, and they laid hands on him, crying out:
{21:28} “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who is teaching, everyone, everywhere, against the people and the law and this place. Furthermore, he has even brought Gentiles into the temple, and he has violated this holy place.”
{21:29} (For they had seen Trophimus, an Ephesian, in the city with him, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple.)
{21:30} And the entire city was stirred up. And it happened that the people ran together. And apprehending Paul, they dragged him outside of the temple. And immediately the doors were closed.
{21:31} Then, as they were seeking to kill him, it was reported to the tribune of the cohort: “All Jerusalem is in confusion.”
{21:32} And so, immediately taking soldiers and centurions, he rushed down to them. And when they had seen the tribune and the soldiers, they ceased to strike Paul.
{21:33} Then the tribune, drawing near, apprehended him and ordered that he be bound with two chains. And he was asking who he was and what he had done.
{21:34} Then they were crying out various things within the crowd. And since he could not understand anything clearly because of the noise, he ordered him to be brought into the fortress.
{21:35} And when he had arrived at the stairs, it happened that he was carried up by the soldiers, because of the threat of violence from the people.
{21:36} For the multitude of the people were following and crying out, “Take him away!”
{21:37} And as Paul was beginning to be brought into the fortress, he said to the tribune, “Is it permissible for me to say something to you?” And he said, “You know Greek?
{21:38} So then, are you not that Egyptian who before these days incited a rebellion and led out into the desert four thousand murderous men?”
{21:39} But Paul said to him: “I am a man, indeed a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of a well-known city. So I petition you, permit me to speak to the people.”
{21:40} And when he had given him permission, Paul, standing on the stairs, motioned with his hand to the people. And when a great silence occurred, he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, saying:
{22:1} “Noble brothers and fathers, listen to the explanation that I now give to you.”
{22:2} And when they heard him speaking to them in the Hebrew language, they offered a greater silence.
{22:3} And he said: “I am a Jewish man, born at Tarsus in Cilicia, but raised in this city beside the feet of Gamaliel, taught according to the truth of the law of the fathers, zealous for the law, just as all of you also are to this day.
{22:4} I persecuted this Way, even unto death, binding and delivering into custody both men and women,
{22:5} just as the high priest and all those greater by birth bear witness to me. Having received letters from them to the brothers, I journeyed to Damascus, so that I might lead them bound from there to Jerusalem, so that they might be punished.
{22:6} But it happened that, as I was traveling and was approaching Damascus at midday, suddenly from heaven a great light shone around me.
{22:7} And falling to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’
{22:8} And I responded, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And he said to me, ‘I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.’
{22:9} And those who were with me, indeed, saw the light, but they did not hear the voice of him who was speaking with me.
{22:10} And I said, ‘What should I do, Lord?’ Then the Lord said to me: ‘Rise up, and go to Damascus. And there, you shall be told all that you must do.’
{22:11} And since I could not see, because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by my companions, and I went to Damascus.
{22:12} Then a certain Ananias, a man in accord with the law, having the testimony of all the Jews who were living there,
{22:13} drawing near to me and standing close by, said to me, ‘Brother Saul, see!’ And in that same hour, I looked upon him.
{22:14} But he said: ‘The God of our fathers has preordained you, so that you would come to know his will and would see the Just One, and would hear the voice from his mouth.
{22:15} For you shall be his witness to all men about those things which you have seen and heard.
{22:16} And now, why do you delay? Rise up, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, by invoking his name.’
{22:17} Then it happened that, when I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, a mental stupor came over me,
{22:18} and I saw him saying to me: ‘Hurry! Depart quickly from Jerusalem! For they will not accept your testimony about me.’
{22:19} And I said: ‘Lord, they know that I am beating and enclosing in prison, throughout every synagogue, those who have believed in you.
{22:20} And when the blood of your witness Stephen was poured out, I stood nearby and was consenting, and I watched over the garments of those who put him to death.’
{22:21} And he said to me, ‘Go forth. For I am sending you to far away nations.’ ”
{22:22} Now they were listening to him, until this word, and then they lifted up their voice, saying: “Take this kind away from the earth! For it is not fitting for him to live!”
{22:23} And while they were shouting, and tossing aside their garments, and casting dust into the air,
{22:24} the tribune ordered him to be brought into the fortress, and to be scourged and tortured, in order to discover the reason that they were crying out in this way against him.
{22:25} And when they had tied him with straps, Paul said to the centurion who was standing near him, “Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman and has not been condemned?”
{22:26} Upon hearing this, the centurion went to the tribune and reported it to him, saying: “What do you intend to do? For this man is a Roman citizen.”
{22:27} And the tribune, approaching, said to him: “Tell me. Are you a Roman?” So he said, “Yes.”
{22:28} And the tribune responded, “I obtained this citizenship at great cost.” And Paul said, “But I was born to it.”
{22:29} Therefore, those who were going to torture him, immediately withdrew from him. The tribune was similarly afraid, after he realized that he was a Roman citizen, for he had bound him.
{22:30} But on the next day, wanting to discover more diligently what the reason was that he was accused by the Jews, he released him, and he ordered the priests to convene, with the entire council. And, producing Paul, he stationed him among them.
{23:1} Then Paul, gazing intently at the council, said, “Noble brothers, I have spoken with all good conscience before God, even to this present day.”
{23:2} And the high priest, Ananias, instructed those who were standing nearby to strike him on the mouth.
{23:3} Then Paul said to him: “God shall strike you, you whitewashed wall! For would you sit and judge me according to the law, when, contrary to the law, you order me to be struck?”
{23:4} And those who were standing nearby said, “Are you speaking evil about the high priest of God?”
{23:5} And Paul said: “I did not know, brothers, that he is the high priest. For it is written: ‘You shall not speak evil of the leader of your people.’ ”
{23:6} Now Paul, knowing that one group were Sadducees and the other were Pharisees, exclaimed in the council: “Noble brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees! It is over the hope and resurrection of the dead that I am being judged.”
{23:7} And when he had said this, a dissension occurred between the Pharisees and the Sadducees. And the multitude was divided.
{23:8} For the Sadducees claim that there is no resurrection, and neither angels, nor spirits. But the Pharisees confess both of these.
{23:9} Then there occurred a great clamor. And some of the Pharisees, rising up, were fighting, saying: “We find nothing evil in this man. What if a spirit has spoken to him, or an angel?”
{23:10} And since a great dissension had been made, the tribune, fearing that Paul might be torn apart by them, ordered the soldiers to descend and to seize him from their midst, and to bring him into the fortress.
{23:11} Then, on the following night, the Lord stood near him and said: “Be constant. For just as you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so also it is necessary for you to testify at Rome.”
{23:12} And when daylight arrived, some of the Jews gathered together and bound themselves with an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul.
{23:13} Now there were more than forty men who had taken this oath together.
{23:14} And they approached the leaders of the priests, and the elders, and they said: “We have sworn ourselves by an oath, so that we will taste nothing, until we have killed Paul.
{23:15} Therefore, with the council, you should now give notice to the tribune, so that he may bring him to you, as if you intended to determine something else about him. But before he approaches, we have made preparations to put him to death.”
{23:16} But when Paul’s sister’s son had heard of this, about their treachery, he went and entered into the fortress, and he reported it to Paul.
{23:17} And Paul, calling to him one of the centurions, said: “Lead this young man to the tribune. For he has something to tell him.”
{23:18} And indeed, he took him and led him to the tribune, and he said, “Paul, the prisoner, asked me to lead this young man to you, since he has something to say to you.”
{23:19} Then the tribune, taking him by the hand, withdrew with him by themselves, and he asked him: “What is it that you have to tell me?”
{23:20} Then he said: “The Jews have met to ask you to bring Paul tomorrow to the council, as if they intended to question him about something else.
{23:21} But truly, you should not believe them, for they would ambush him with more than forty men from among them, who have bound themselves by an oath neither to eat, nor to drink, until they have put him to death. And they are now prepared, hoping for an affirmation from you.”
{23:22} And then the tribune dismissed the young man, instructing him not to tell anyone that he had made known these things to him.
{23:23} Then, having called two centurions, he said to them: “Prepare two hundred soldiers, so that they may go as far as Caesarea, and seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen, for the third hour of the night.
{23:24} And prepare beasts of burden to carry Paul, so that they may lead him safely to Felix, the governor.”
{23:25} For he was afraid, lest perhaps the Jews might seize him and kill him, and that afterwards he would be falsely accused, as if he had accepted a bribe. And so he wrote a letter containing the following:
{23:26} “Claudius Lysias, to the most excellent governor, Felix: greetings.
{23:27} This man, having been apprehended by the Jews and being about to be put to death by them, I rescued, overwhelming them with soldiers, since I realized that he is a Roman.
{23:28} And wanting to know the reason that they objected to him, I brought him into their council.
{23:29} And I discovered him to be accused about questions of their law. Yet truly, nothing deserving of death or imprisonment was within the accusation.
{23:30} And when I had been given news of ambushes, which they had prepared against him, I sent him to you, notifying his accusers also, so that they may plead their accusations before you. Farewell.”
{23:31} Therefore the soldiers, taking Paul according to their orders, brought him by night to Antipatris.
{23:32} And the next day, sending the horsemen to go with him, they returned to the fortress.
{23:33} And when they had arrived at Caesarea and had delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul before him.
{23:34} And when he had read it and had asked which province he was from, realizing that he was from Cilicia, he said:
{23:35} “I will hear you, when your accusers have arrived.” And he ordered him to be kept in the praetorium of Herod.
{24:1} Then, after five days, the high priest Ananias came down with some of the elders and a certain Tertullus, a speaker. And they went to the governor against Paul.
{24:2} And having summoned Paul, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying: “Most excellent Felix, since we have much peace through you, and many things may be corrected by your providence,
{24:3} we acknowledge this, always and everywhere, with acts of thanksgiving for everything.
{24:4} But lest I speak at too great a length, I beg you, by your clemency, to listen to us briefly.
{24:5} We have found this man to be pestilent, to be inciting seditions among all the Jews in the entire world, and to be the author of the sedition of the sect of the Nazarenes.
{24:6} And he has even been attempting to violate the temple. And having apprehended him, we wanted him to be judged according to our law.
{24:7} But Lysias, the tribune, overwhelming us with great violence, snatched him away from our hands,
{24:8} ordering his accusers to come to you. From them, you yourself will be able, by judging about all these things, to understand the reason that we accuse him.”
{24:9} And then the Jews interjected, saying that these things were so.
{24:10} Then, since the governor had motioned for him to speak, Paul responded: “Knowing that you have been the judge over this nation for many years, I will give an explanation of myself with an honest soul.
{24:11} For, as you may realize, it has only been twelve days since I went up to worship in Jerusalem.
{24:12} And they did not find me in the temple arguing with anyone, nor causing a rally of the people: neither in the synagogues, nor in the city.
{24:13} And they are not able to prove to you the things about which they now accuse me.
{24:14} But I confess this to you, that according to that sect, which they call a heresy, so do I serve my God and Father, believing all that is written in the Law and the Prophets,
{24:15} having a hope in God, which these others themselves also expect, that there will be a future resurrection of the just and the unjust.
{24:16} And in this, I myself always strive to have a conscience that is lacking in any offense toward God and toward men.
{24:17} Then, after many years, I went to my nation, bringing alms and offerings and vows,
{24:18} through which I obtained purification in the temple: neither with a crowd, nor with a commotion.
{24:19} But certain Jews out of Asia are the ones who should have appeared before you to accuse me, if they have anything against me.
{24:20} Or let these ones here say if they have found in me any iniquity, while standing before the council.
{24:21} For while standing among them, I spoke out solely about this one matter: about the resurrection of the dead. It is about this that I am being judged today by you.”
{24:22} Then Felix, after having ascertained much knowledge about this Way, kept them waiting, by saying, “When Lysias the tribune has arrived, I will give you a hearing.”
{24:23} And he ordered a centurion to guard him, and to take rest, and not to prohibit any of his own from ministering to him.
{24:24} Then, after some days, Felix, arriving with his wife Drusilla who was a Jew, called for Paul and listened to him about the faith that is in Christ Jesus.
{24:25} And after he discoursed about justice and chastity, and about the future judgment, Felix was trembling, and he responded: “For now, go, but remain under guard. Then, at an opportune time, I will summon you.”
{24:26} He was also hoping that money might be given to him by Paul, and because of this, he frequently summoned him and spoke with him.
{24:27} Then, when two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Portius Festus. And since Felix wanted to show particular favor to the Jews, he left Paul behind as a prisoner.
{25:1} And so, when Festus had arrived in the province, after three days, he ascended to Jerusalem from Caesarea.
{25:2} And the leaders of the priests, and those first among the Jews, went to him against Paul. And they were petitioning him,
{25:3} asking for favor against him, so that he would order him to be led to Jerusalem, where they were maintaining an ambush in order to kill him along the way.
{25:4} But Festus responded that Paul was to be kept in Caesarea, and that he himself would soon go there.
{25:5} “Therefore,” he said, “let those among you who are able, descend at the same time, and if there is any guilt in the man, they may accuse him.”
{25:6} Then, having stayed among them no more than eight or ten days, he descended to Caesarea. And on the next day, he sat in the judgment seat, and he ordered Paul to be led in.
{25:7} And when he had been brought, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, throwing out many serious accusations, none of which they were able to prove.
{25:8} Paul offered this defense: “Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar, have I offended in any matter.”
{25:9} But Festus, wanting to show greater favor to the Jews, responded to Paul by saying: “Are you willing to ascend to Jerusalem and to be judged there about these things before me?”
{25:10} But Paul said: “I stand in Caesar’s tribunal, which is where I ought to be judged. I have done no harm to the Jews, as you well know.
{25:11} For if I have harmed them, or if I have done anything deserving of death, I do not object to dying. But if there is nothing to these things about which they accuse me, no one is able to deliver me to them. I appeal to Caesar.”
{25:12} Then Festus, having spoken with the council, responded: “You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you shall go.”
{25:13} And when some days had passed, king Agrippa and Bernice descended to Caesarea, to greet Festus.
{25:14} And since they remained there for many days, Festus spoke to the king about Paul, saying: “A certain man was left behind as a prisoner by Felix.
{25:15} When I was at Jerusalem, the leaders of the priests and the elders of the Jews came to me about him, asking for condemnation against him.
{25:16} I answered them that it is not the custom of the Romans to condemn any man, before he who is being accused has been confronted by his accusers and has received the opportunity to defend himself, so as to clear himself of the charges.
{25:17} Therefore, when they had arrived here, without any delay, on the following day, sitting in the judgment seat, I ordered the man to be brought.
{25:18} But when the accusers had stood up, they did not present any accusation about him from which I would suspect evil.
{25:19} Instead, they brought against him certain disputes about their own superstition and about a certain Jesus, who had died, but whom Paul asserted to be alive.
{25:20} Therefore, being in doubt about this kind of question, I asked him if he was willing go to Jerusalem and to be judged there about these things.
{25:21} But since Paul was appealing to be kept for a decision before Augustus, I ordered him to be kept, until I might send him to Caesar.”
{25:22} Then Agrippa said to Festus: “I myself also want to hear the man.” “Tomorrow,” he said, “you shall hear him.”
{25:23} And on the next day, when Agrippa and Bernice had arrived with great ostentation and had entered into the auditorium with the tribunes and the principal men of the city, Paul was brought in, at the order of Festus.
{25:24} And Festus said: “King Agrippa, and all who are present together with us, you see this man, about whom all the multitude of the Jews disturbed me at Jerusalem, petitioning and clamoring that he should not be allowed to live any longer.
{25:25} Truly, I have discovered nothing brought forth against him that is worthy of death. But since he himself has appealed to Augustus, it was my judgment to send him.
{25:26} But I have not determined what to write to the emperor about him. Because of this, I have brought him before you all, and especially before you, O king Agrippa, so that, once an inquiry has occurred, I may have something to write.
{25:27} For it seems to me unreasonable to send a prisoner and not to indicate the accusations set against him.”
{26:1} Yet truly, Agrippa said to Paul, “It is permitted for you to speak for yourself.” Then Paul, extending his hand, began to offer his defense.
{26:2} “I consider myself blessed, O king Agrippa, that I am to give my defense today before you, about everything of which I am accused by the Jews,
{26:3} especially since you know everything that pertains to the Jews, both customs and questions. Because of this, I beg you to listen to me patiently.
{26:4} And certainly, all the Jews know about my life from my youth, which had its beginning among my own people in Jerusalem.
{26:5} They knew me well from the beginning, (if they would be willing to offer testimony) for I lived according to the most determined sect of our religion: as a Pharisee.
{26:6} And now, it is in the hope of the Promise which was made by God to our fathers that I stand subject to judgment.
{26:7} It is the Promise that our twelve tribes, worshiping night and day, hope to see. About this hope, O king, I am accused by the Jews.
{26:8} Why should it be judged so unbelievable with you all that God might raise the dead?
{26:9} And certainly, I myself formerly considered that I ought to act in many ways which are contrary to the name of Jesus the Nazarene.
{26:10} This is also how I acted at Jerusalem. And so, I enclosed many holy persons in prison, having received authority from the leaders of the priests. And when they were to be killed, I brought the sentence.
{26:11} And in every synagogue, frequently while punishing them, I compelled them to blaspheme. And being all the more maddened against them, I persecuted them, even to foreign cities.
{26:12} Thereafter, as I was going to Damascus, with authority and permission from the high priest,
{26:13} at midday, O king, I and those who were also with me, saw along the way a light from heaven shining around me with a splendor greater than that of the sun.
{26:14} And when we had all fallen down to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me in the Hebrew language: ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goad.’
{26:15} Then I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
{26:16} But rise up and stand on your feet. For I appeared to you for this reason: so that I may establish you as a minister and a witness concerning the things that you have seen, and concerning the things that I will show to you:
{26:17} rescuing you from the people and the nations to which I am now sending you,
{26:18} in order to open their eyes, so that they may be converted from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive the remission of sins and a place among the saints, through the faith that is in me.’
{26:19} From then on, O king Agrippa, I was not unbelieving to the heavenly vision.
{26:20} But I preached, first to those who are at Damascus and at Jerusalem, and then to the entire region of Judea, and to the Gentiles, so that they would repent and convert to God, doing the works that are worthy of repentance.
{26:21} It was for this reason that the Jews, having apprehended me when I was in the temple, attempted to kill me.
{26:22} But having been aided by the help of God, even to this day, I stand witnessing to the small and the great, saying nothing beyond what the Prophets and Moses have said would be in the future:
{26:23} that the Christ would suffer, and that he would be the first from the resurrection of the dead, and that he would bring light to the people and to the nations.”
{26:24} While he was speaking these things and presenting his defense, Festus said with a loud voice: “Paul, you are insane! Too much studying has turned you to insanity.”
{26:25} And Paul said: “I am not insane, most excellent Festus, but rather I am speaking words of truth and sobriety.
{26:26} For the king knows about these things. To him also, I am speaking with constancy. For I think that none of these things are unknown to him. And neither were these things done in a corner.
{26:27} Do you believe the Prophets, O king Agrippa? I know that you believe.”
{26:28} Then Agrippa said to Paul, “To some extent, you persuade me to become a Christian.”
{26:29} And Paul said, “I hope to God that, both to a small extent and to a great extent, not only you, but also all those who hear me this day will become just as I also am, except for these chains.”
{26:30} And the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and those who were sitting with them.
{26:31} And when they had withdrawn, they were speaking among themselves, saying, “This man has done nothing worthy of death, nor of imprisonment.”
{26:32} Then Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been released, if he had not appealed to Caesar.”
{27:1} Then it was decided to send him by ship to Italy, and that Paul, with the others in custody, should be delivered to a centurion named Julius, of the cohort of Augusta.
{27:2} After climbing aboard a ship from Adramyttium, we set sail and began to navigate along the ports of Asia, with Aristarchus, the Macedonian from Thessalonica, joining us.
{27:3} And on the following day, we arrived at Sidon. And Julius, treating Paul humanely, permitted him to go to his friends and to look after himself.
{27:4} And when we had set sail from there, we navigated below Cyprus, because the winds were contrary.
{27:5} And navigating though the sea of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we arrived at Lystra, which is in Lycia.
{27:6} And there the centurion found a ship from Alexandria sailing to Italy, and he transferred us to it.
{27:7} And when we had sailed slowly for many days and had barely arrived opposite Cnidus, for the wind was hindering us, we sailed to Crete, near Salmone.
{27:8} And barely being able to sail past it, we arrived at a certain place, which is called Good Shelter, next to which was the city of Lasea.
{27:9} Then, after much time had passed, and since sailing would no longer be prudent because the Fast Day had now passed, Paul consoled them,
{27:10} and he said to them: “Men, I perceive that the voyage is now in danger of injury and much damage, not only to the cargo and the ship, but also to our own lives.”
{27:11} But the centurion put more trust in the captain and the navigator of the ship, than in the things being said by Paul.
{27:12} And since it was not a fitting port in which to winter, the majority opinion was to sail from there, so that somehow they might be able to arrive at Phoenicia, in order to winter there, at a port of Crete, which looks out toward the southwest and northwest.
{27:13} And since the south wind was blowing gently, they thought that they might reach their goal. And after they had set out from Asson, they weighed anchor at Crete.
{27:14} But not long afterward, a violent wind came against them, which is called the Northeast Wind.
{27:15} And once the ship had been caught in it and was not able to strive against the wind, giving over the ship to the winds, we were driven along.
{27:16} Then, being forced along a certain island, which is called the Tail, we were barely able to hold on to the ship’s lifeboat.
{27:17} When this was taken up, they used it to assist in securing the ship. For they were afraid that they might run aground. And having lowered the sails, they were being driven along in this way.
{27:18} Then, since we were being tossed about strongly by the tempest, on the following day, they threw the heavy items overboard.
{27:19} And on the third day, with their own hands, they threw the equipment of the ship overboard.
{27:20} Then, when neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no end to the storm was imminent, all hope for our safety was now taken away.
{27:21} And after they had fasted for a long time, Paul, standing in their midst, said: “Certainly, men, you should have listened to me and not set out from Crete, so as to cause this injury and loss.
{27:22} And now, let me persuade you to be courageous in soul. For there shall be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship.
{27:23} For an Angel of God, who is assigned to me and whom I serve, stood beside me this night,
{27:24} saying: ‘Do not be afraid, Paul! It is necessary for you to stand before Caesar. And behold, God has given to you all those who are sailing with you.’
{27:25} Because of this, men, be courageous in soul. For I trust God that this will happen in the same way that it has been told to me.
{27:26} But it is necessary for us to arrive at a certain island.”
{27:27} Then, after the fourteenth night arrived, as we were navigating in the sea of Adria, about the middle of the night, the sailors believed that they saw some portion of the land.
{27:28} And upon dropping a weight, they found a depth of twenty paces. And some distance from there, they found a depth of fifteen paces.
{27:29} Then, fearing that we might happen upon rough places, they cast four anchors out of the stern, and they were hoping for daylight to arrive soon.
{27:30} Yet truly, the sailors were seeking a way to flee from the ship, for they had lowered a lifeboat into the sea, on the pretext that they were attempting to cast anchors from the bow of the ship.
{27:31} So Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, “Unless these men remain in the ship, you will not be able to be saved.”
{27:32} Then the soldiers cut the ropes to the lifeboat, and they allowed it to fall.
{27:33} And when it began to be light, Paul requested that they all take food, saying: “This is the fourteenth day that you have been waiting and continuing to fast, taking nothing.
{27:34} For this reason, I beg you to accept food for the sake of your health. For not a hair from the head of any of you shall perish.”
{27:35} And when he had said these things, taking bread, he gave thanks to God in the sight of them all. And when he had broken it, he began to eat.
{27:36} Then they all became more peaceful in soul. And they also took food.
{27:37} Truly, we were two hundred and seventy-six souls on the ship.
{27:38} And having been nourished with food, they lightened the ship, casting the wheat into the sea.
{27:39} And when day had arrived, they did not recognize the landscape. Yet truly, they caught sight of a certain narrow inlet having a shore, into which they thought it might be possible to force the ship.
{27:40} And when they had taken up the anchors, they committed themselves to the sea, at the same time loosing the restraints of the rudders. And so, raising the mainsail to the gusting wind, they pressed on toward the shore.
{27:41} And when we happened upon a place open to two seas, they ran the ship aground. And indeed, the bow, being immobilized, remained fixed, but truly the stern was broken by the violence of the sea.
{27:42} Then the soldiers were in agreement that they should kill the prisoners, lest anyone, after escaping by swimming, might flee.
{27:43} But the centurion, wanting to save Paul, prohibited it from being done. And he ordered those who were able to swim to jump in first, and to escape, and to get to the land.
{27:44} And as for the others, some they carried on boards, and others on those things that belonged to the ship. And so it happened that every soul escaped to the land.
{28:1} And after we had escaped, we then realized that the island was called Malta. Yet truly, the natives offered us no small amount of humane treatment.
{28:2} For they refreshed us all by kindling a fire, because rain was imminent and because of the cold.
{28:3} But when Paul had gathered together a bundle of twigs, and had placed them on the fire, a viper, which had been drawn to the heat, fastened itself to his hand.
{28:4} And truly, when the natives saw the beast hanging from his hand, they were saying to one another: “Certainly, this man must be a murderer, for though he escaped from the sea, vengeance will not permit him to live.”
{28:5} But shaking off the creature into the fire, he indeed suffered no ill effects.
{28:6} But they were supposing that he would soon swell up, and then would suddenly fall down and die. But having waited a long time, and seeing no ill effects in him, they changed their minds and were saying that he was a god.
{28:7} Now among these places were estates owned by the ruler of the island, named Publius. And he, taking us in, showed us kind hospitality for three days.
{28:8} Then it happened that the father of Publius lay ill with a fever and with dysentery. Paul entered to him, and when he had prayed and had laid his hands on him, he saved him.
{28:9} When this had been done, all who had diseases on the island approached and were cured.
{28:10} And then they also presented us with many honors. And when we were ready to set sail, they gave us whatever we needed.
{28:11} And so, after three months, we sailed in a ship from Alexandria, whose name was ‘the Castors,’ and which had wintered at the island.
{28:12} And when we had arrived at Syracuse, we were delayed there for three days.
{28:13} From there, sailing close to the shore, we arrived at Rhegium. And after one day, with the south wind blowing, we arrived on the second day at Puteoli.
{28:14} There, after locating the brothers, we were asked to remain with them for seven days. And then we went on to Rome.
{28:15} And there, when the brothers had heard of us, they went to meet us as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns. And when Paul had seen them, giving thanks to God, he took courage.
{28:16} And when we had arrived at Rome, Paul was given permission to stay by himself, with a soldier to guard him.
{28:17} And after the third day, he called together the leaders of the Jews. And when they had convened, he said to them: “Noble brothers, I have done nothing against the people, nor against the customs of the fathers, yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans.
{28:18} And after they held a hearing about me, they would have released me, because there was no case for death against me.
{28:19} But with the Jews speaking against me, I was constrained to appeal to Caesar, though it was not as if I had any kind of accusation against my own nation.
{28:20} And so, because of this, I requested to see you and to speak to you. For it is because of the hope of Israel that I am encircled with this chain.”
{28:21} But they said to him: “We have not received letters about you from Judea, nor have any of the other new arrivals among the brothers reported or spoken anything evil against you.
{28:22} But we are asking to hear your opinions from you, for concerning this sect, we know that it is being spoken against everywhere.”
{28:23} And when they had appointed a day for him, very many persons went to him at his guest quarters. And he discoursed, testifying to the kingdom of God, and persuading them about Jesus, using the law of Moses and the Prophets, from morning until evening.
{28:24} And some believed the things that he was saying, yet others did not believe.
{28:25} And when they could not agree among themselves, they departed, while Paul was speaking this one word: “How well did the Holy Spirit speak to our fathers through the prophet Isaiah,
{28:26} saying: ‘Go to this people and say to them: Hearing, you shall hear and not understand, and seeing, you shall see and not perceive.
{28:27} For the heart of this people has grown dull, and they have listened with reluctant ears, and they have closed their eyes tightly, lest perhaps they might see with the eyes, and hear with the ears, and understand with the heart, and so be converted, and I would heal them.’
{28:28} Therefore, let it be known to you, that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they shall listen to it.”
{28:29} And when he had said these things, the Jews went away from him, though they still had many questions among themselves.
{28:30} Then he remained for two whole years in his own rented lodgings. And he received all who went in to him,
{28:31} preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which are from the Lord Jesus Christ, with all faithfulness, without prohibition.
{1:1} Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called as an Apostle, separated for the Gospel of God,
{1:2} which he had promised beforehand, through his Prophets, in the Holy Scriptures,
{1:3} about his Son, who was made for him from the offspring of David according to the flesh,
{1:4} the Son of God, who was predestined in virtue according to the Spirit of sanctification from the resurrection of the dead, our Lord Jesus Christ,
{1:5} through whom we have received grace and Apostleship, for the sake of his name, for the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles,
{1:6} from whom you also have been called by Jesus Christ:
{1:7} To all who are at Rome, the beloved of God, called as saints. Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:8} Certainly, I give thanks to my God, through Jesus Christ, first for all of you, because your faith is being announced throughout the entire world.
{1:9} For God is my witness, whom I serve in my spirit by the Gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I have kept a remembrance of you
{1:10} always in my prayers, pleading that in some way, at some time, I may have a prosperous journey, within the will of God, to come to you.
{1:11} For I long to see you, so that I may impart to you a certain spiritual grace to strengthen you,
{1:12} specifically, to be consoled together with you through that which is mutual: your faith and mine.
{1:13} But I want you to know, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you, (though I have been hindered even to the present time) so that I might obtain some fruit among you also, just as also among the other Gentiles.
{1:14} To the Greeks and to the uncivilized, to the wise and to the foolish, I am in debt.
{1:15} So within me there is a prompting to evangelize to you also who are at Rome.
{1:16} For I am not ashamed of the Gospel. For it is the power of God unto salvation for all believers, the Jew first, and the Greek.
{1:17} For the justice of God is revealed within it, by faith unto faith, just as it was written: “For the just one lives by faith.”
{1:18} For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven over every impiety and injustice among those men who fend off the truth of God with injustice.
{1:19} For what is known about God is manifest in them. For God has manifested it to them.
{1:20} For unseen things about him have been made conspicuous, since the creation of the world, being understood by the things that were made; likewise his everlasting virtue and divinity, so much so that they have no excuse.
{1:21} For although they had known God, they did not glorify God, nor give thanks. Instead, they became weakened in their thoughts, and their foolish heart was obscured.
{1:22} For, while proclaiming themselves to be wise, they became foolish.
{1:23} And they exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for the likeness of an image of corruptible man, and of flying things, and of four-legged beasts, and of serpents.
{1:24} For this reason, God handed them over to the desires of their own heart for impurity, so that they afflicted their own bodies with indignities among themselves.
{1:25} And they exchanged the truth of God for a lie. And they worshipped and served the creature, rather than the Creator, who is blessed for all eternity. Amen.
{1:26} Because of this, God handed them over to shameful passions. For example, their females have exchanged the natural use of the body for a use which is against nature.
{1:27} And similarly, the males also, abandoning the natural use of females, have burned in their desires for one another: males doing with males what is disgraceful, and receiving within themselves the recompense that necessarily results from their error.
{1:28} And since they did not prove to have God by knowledge, God handed them over to a morally depraved way of thinking, so that they might do those things which are not fitting:
{1:29} having been completely filled with all iniquity, malice, fornication, avarice, wickedness; full of envy, murder, contention, deceit, spite, gossiping;
{1:30} slanderous, hateful toward God, abusive, arrogant, self-exalting, devisers of evil, disobedient to parents,
{1:31} foolish, disorderly; without affection, without fidelity, without mercy.
{1:32} And these, though they had known the justice of God, did not understand that those who act in such a manner are deserving of death, and not only those who do these things, but also those who consent to what is done.
{2:1} For this reason, O man, each one of you who judges is inexcusable. For by that which you judge another, you condemn yourself. For you do the same things that you judge.
{2:2} For we know that the judgment of God is in accord with truth against those who do such things.
{2:3} But, O man, when you judge those who do such things as you yourself also do, do you think that you will escape the judgment of God?
{2:4} Or do you despise the riches of his goodness and patience and forbearance? Do you not know that the kindness of God is calling you to repentance?
{2:5} But in accord with your hard and impenitent heart, you store up wrath for yourself, unto the day of wrath and of revelation by the just judgment of God.
{2:6} For he will render to each one according to his works:
{2:7} To those who, in accord with patient good works, seek glory and honor and incorruption, certainly, he will render eternal life.
{2:8} But to those who are contentious and who do not acquiesce to the truth, but instead trust in iniquity, he will render wrath and indignation.
{2:9} Tribulation and anguish are upon every soul of man that works evil: the Jew first, and also the Greek.
{2:10} But glory and honor and peace are for all who do what is good: the Jew first, and also the Greek.
{2:11} For there is no favoritism with God.
{2:12} For whoever had sinned without the law, will perish without the law. And whoever had sinned in the law, will be judged by the law.
{2:13} For it is not the hearers of the law who are just before God, but rather it is the doers of the law who shall be justified.
{2:14} For when the Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature those things which are of the law, such persons, not having the law, are a law unto themselves.
{2:15} For they reveal the work of the law written in their hearts, while their conscience renders testimony about them, and their thoughts within themselves also accuse or even defend them,
{2:16} unto the day when God shall judge the hidden things of men, through Jesus Christ, according to my Gospel.
{2:17} But if you are called by name a Jew, and you rest upon the law, and you find glory in God,
{2:18} and you have known his will, and you demonstrate the more useful things, having been instructed by the law:
{2:19} you become confident within yourself that you are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness,
{2:20} an instructor to the foolish, a teacher to children, because you have a type of knowledge and truth in the law.
{2:21} As a result, you teach others, but you do not teach yourself. You preach that men should not steal, but you yourself steal.
{2:22} You speak against adultery, but you commit adultery. You abominate idols, but you commit sacrilege.
{2:23} You would glory in the law, but through a betrayal of the law you dishonor God.
{2:24} (For because of you the name of God is being blasphemed among the Gentiles, just as it was written.)
{2:25} Certainly, circumcision is beneficial, if you observe the law. But if you are a betrayer of the law, your circumcision becomes uncircumcision.
{2:26} And so, if the uncircumcised keep the justices of the law, shall not this lack of circumcision be counted as circumcision?
{2:27} And that which is by nature uncircumcised, if it fulfills the law, should it not judge you, who by the letter and by circumcision are a betrayer of the law?
{2:28} For a Jew is not he who seems so outwardly. Neither is circumcision that which seems so outwardly, in the flesh.
{2:29} But a Jew is he who is so inwardly. And circumcision of the heart is in the spirit, not in the letter. For its praise is not of men, but of God.
{3:1} So then, what more is the Jew, or what is the usefulness of circumcision?
{3:2} Much in every way: First of all, certainly, because the eloquence of God was entrusted to them.
{3:3} But what if some of them have not believed? Shall their unbelief nullify the faith of God? Let it not be so!
{3:4} For God is truthful, but every man is deceitful; just as it was written: “Therefore, you are justified in your words, and you will prevail when you give judgment.”
{3:5} But if even our injustice points to the justice of God, what shall we say? Could God be unfair for inflicting wrath?
{3:6} (I am speaking in human terms.) Let it not be so! Otherwise, how would God judge this world?
{3:7} For if the truth of God has abounded, through my falseness, unto his glory, why should I still be judged as such a sinner?
{3:8} And should we not do evil, so that good may result? For so we have been slandered, and so some have claimed we said; their condemnation is just.
{3:9} What is next? Should we try to excel ahead of them? By no means! For we have accused all Jews and Greeks to be under sin,
{3:10} just as it was written: “There is no one who is just.
{3:11} There is no one who understands. There is no one who seeks God.
{3:12} All have gone astray; together they have become useless. There is no one who does good; there is not even one.
{3:13} Their throat is an open sepulcher. With their tongues, they have been acting deceitfully. The venom of asps is under their lips.
{3:14} Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.
{3:15} Their feet are swift to shed blood.
{3:16} Grief and unhappiness are in their ways.
{3:17} And the way of peace they have not known.
{3:18} There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
{3:19} But we know that whatever the law speaks, it speaks to those who are in the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the entire world may be subject to God.
{3:20} For in his presence no flesh shall be justified by the works of the law. For knowledge of sin is through the law.
{3:21} But now, without the law, the justice of God, to which the law and the prophets have testified, has been made manifest.
{3:22} And the justice of God, through the faith of Jesus Christ, is in all those and over all those who believe in him. For there is no distinction.
{3:23} For all have sinned and all are in need of the glory of God.
{3:24} We have been justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
{3:25} whom God has offered as a propitiation, through faith in his blood, to reveal his justice for the remission of the former offenses,
{3:26} and by the forbearance of God, to reveal his justice in this time, so that he himself might be both the Just One and the Justifier of anyone who is of the faith of Jesus Christ.
{3:27} So then, where is your self-exaltation? It is excluded. Through what law? That of works? No, but rather through the law of faith.
{3:28} For we judge a man to be justified by faith, without the works of the law.
{3:29} Is God of the Jews only and not also of the Gentiles? On the contrary, of the Gentiles also.
{3:30} For One is the God who justifies circumcision by faith and uncircumcision through faith.
{3:31} Are we then destroying the law through faith? Let it not be so! Instead, we are making the law stand.
{4:1} So then, what shall we say that Abraham had achieved, who is our father according to the flesh?
{4:2} For if Abraham was justified by works, he would have glory, but not with God.
{4:3} For what does Scripture say? “Abram believed God, and it was reputed to him unto justice.”
{4:4} But for he who works, wages are not accounted according to grace, but according to debt.
{4:5} Yet truly, for he who does not work, but who believes in him who justifies the impious, his faith is reputed unto justice, according to the purpose of the grace of God.
{4:6} Similarly, David also declares the blessedness of a man, to whom God brings justice without works:
{4:7} “Blessed are they whose iniquities have been forgiven and whose sins have been covered.
{4:8} Blessed is the man to whom the Lord has not imputed sin.”
{4:9} Does this blessedness, then, remain only in the circumcised, or is it even in the uncircumcised? For we say that faith was reputed to Abraham unto justice.
{4:10} But then how was it reputed? In circumcision or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision.
{4:11} For he received the sign of circumcision as a symbol of the justice of that faith which exists apart from circumcision, so that he might be the father of all those who believe while uncircumcised, so that it might also be reputed to them unto justice,
{4:12} and he might be the father of circumcision, not only for those who are of circumcision, but even for those who follow the footsteps of that faith which is in the uncircumcision of our father Abraham.
{4:13} For the Promise to Abraham, and to his posterity, that he would inherit the world, was not through the law, but through the justice of faith.
{4:14} For if those who are of the law are the heirs, then faith becomes empty and the Promise is abolished.
{4:15} For the law works unto wrath. And where there is no law, there is no law-breaking.
{4:16} Because of this, it is from faith according to grace that the Promise is ensured for all posterity, not only for those who are of the law, but also for those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all before God,
{4:17} in whom he believed, who revives the dead and who calls those things that do not exist into existence. For it is written: “I have established you as the father of many nations.”
{4:18} And he believed, with a hope beyond hope, so that he might become the father of many nations, according to what was said to him: “So shall your posterity be.”
{4:19} And he was not weakened in faith, nor did he consider his own body to be dead (though he was then almost one hundred years old), nor the womb of Sarah to be dead.
{4:20} And then, in the Promise of God, he did not hesitate out of distrust, but instead he was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God,
{4:21} knowing most fully that whatever God has promised, he is also able to accomplish.
{4:22} And for this reason, it was reputed to him unto justice.
{4:23} Now this has been written, that it was reputed to him unto justice, not only for his sake,
{4:24} but also for our sake. For the same shall be reputed to us, if we believe in him who raised up our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead,
{4:25} who was handed over because of our offenses, and who rose again for our justification.
{5:1} Therefore, having been justified by faith, let us be at peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ.
{5:2} For through him we also have access by faith to this grace, in which we stand firm, and to glory, in the hope of the glory of the sons of God.
{5:3} And not only that, but we also find glory in tribulation, knowing that tribulation exercises patience,
{5:4} and patience leads to proving, yet truly proving leads to hope,
{5:5} but hope is not unfounded, because the love of God is poured forth in our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
{5:6} Yet why did Christ, while we were still infirm, at the proper time, suffer death for the impious?
{5:7} Now someone might barely be willing to die for the sake of justice, for example, perhaps someone might dare to die for the sake of a good man.
{5:8} But God demonstrates his love for us in that, while we were yet sinners, at the proper time,
{5:9} Christ died for us. Therefore, having been justified now by his blood, all the more so shall we be saved from wrath through him.
{5:10} For if we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, while we were still enemies, all the more so, having been reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.
{5:11} And not only that, but we also glory in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
{5:12} Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into this world, and through sin, death; so also death was transferred to all men, to all who have sinned.
{5:13} For even before the law, sin was in the world, but sin was not imputed while the law did not exist.
{5:14} Yet death reigned from Adam until Moses, even in those who have not sinned, in the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a figure of him who was to come.
{5:15} But the gift is not entirely like the offense. For though by the offense of one, many died, yet much more so, by the grace of one man, Jesus Christ, has the grace and gift of God abounded to many.
{5:16} And the sin through one is not entirely like the gift. For certainly, the judgment of one was unto condemnation, but the grace toward many offenses is unto justification.
{5:17} For though, by the one offense, death reigned through one, yet so much more so shall those who receive an abundance of grace, both of the gift and of justice, reign in life through the one Jesus Christ.
{5:18} Therefore, just as through the offense of one, all men fell under condemnation, so also through the justice of one, all men fall under justification unto life.
{5:19} For, just as through the disobedience of one man, many were established as sinners, so also through the obedience of one man, many shall be established as just.
{5:20} Now the law entered in such a way that offenses would abound. But where offenses were abundant, grace was superabundant.
{5:21} So then, just as sin has reigned unto death, so also may grace reign through justice unto eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
{6:1} So what shall we say? Should we remain in sin, so that grace may abound?
{6:2} Let it not be so! For how can we who have died to sin still live in sin?
{6:3} Do you not know that those of us who have been baptized in Christ Jesus have been baptized into his death?
{6:4} For through baptism we have been buried with him into death, so that, in the manner that Christ rose from the dead, by the glory of the Father, so may we also walk in the newness of life.
{6:5} For if we have been planted together, in the likeness of his death, so shall we also be, in the likeness of his resurrection.
{6:6} For we know this: that our former selves have been crucified together with him, so that the body which is of sin may be destroyed, and moreover, so that we may no longer serve sin.
{6:7} For he who has died has been justified from sin.
{6:8} Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live together with Christ.
{6:9} For we know that Christ, in rising up from the dead, can no longer die: death no longer has dominion over him.
{6:10} For in as much as he died for sin, he died once. But in as much as he lives, he lives for God.
{6:11} And so, you should consider yourselves to be certainly dead to sin, and to be living for God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
{6:12} Therefore, let not sin reign in your mortal body, such that you would obey its desires.
{6:13} Nor should you offer the parts of your body as instruments of iniquity for sin. Instead, offer yourselves to God, as if you were living after death, and offer the parts of your body as instruments of justice for God.
{6:14} For sin should not have dominion over you. For you are not under the law, but under grace.
{6:15} What is next? Should we sin because we are not under the law, but under grace? Let it not be so!
{6:16} Do you not know to whom you are offering yourselves as servants under obedience? You are the servants of whomever you obey: whether of sin, unto death, or of obedience, unto justice.
{6:17} But thanks be to God that, though you used to be the servants of sin, now you have been obedient from the heart to the very form of the doctrine into which you have been received.
{6:18} And having been freed from sin, we have become servants of justice.
{6:19} I am speaking in human terms because of the infirmity of your flesh. For just as you offered the parts of your body to serve impurity and iniquity, for the sake of iniquity, so also have you now yielded the parts of your body to serve justice, for the sake of sanctification.
{6:20} For though you were once the servants of sin, you have become the children of justice.
{6:21} But what fruit did you hold at that time, in those things about which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death.
{6:22} Yet truly, having been freed now from sin, and having been made servants of God, you hold your fruit in sanctification, and truly its end is eternal life.
{6:23} For the wages of sin is death. But the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
{7:1} Or do you not know, brothers, (now I am speaking to those who know the law) that the law has dominion over a man only so long as he lives?
{7:2} For example, a woman who is subject to a husband is obligated by the law while her husband lives. But when her husband has died, she is released from the law of her husband.
{7:3} Therefore, while her husband lives, if she has been with another man, she should be called an adulteress. But when her husband has died, she is freed from the law of her husband, such that, if she has been with another man, she is not an adulteress.
{7:4} And so, my brothers, you also have become dead to the law, through the body of Christ, so that you may be another one who has risen from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God.
{7:5} For when we were in the flesh, the passions of sins, which were under the law, operated within our bodies, so as to bear fruit unto death.
{7:6} But now we have been released from the law of death, by which we were being held, so that now we may serve with a renewed spirit, and not in the old way, by the letter.
{7:7} What should we say next? Is the law sin? Let it not be so! But I do not know sin, except through the law. For example, I would not have known about coveting, unless the law said: “You shall not covet.”
{7:8} But sin, receiving an opportunity through the commandment, wrought in me all manner of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead.
{7:9} Now I lived for some time apart from the law. But when the commandment had arrived, sin was revived,
{7:10} and I died. And the commandment, which was unto life, was itself found to be unto death for me.
{7:11} For sin, receiving an opportunity through the commandment, seduced me, and, through the law, sin killed me.
{7:12} And so, the law itself is indeed holy, and the commandment is holy and just and good.
{7:13} Then was what is good made into death for me? Let it not be so! But rather sin, in order that it might be known as sin by what is good, wrought death in me; so that sin, through the commandment, might become sinful beyond measure.
{7:14} For we know that the law is spiritual. But I am carnal, having been sold under sin.
{7:15} For I do things that I do not understand. For I do not do the good that I want to do. But the evil that I hate is what I do.
{7:16} So, when I do what I do not want to do, I am in agreement with the law, that the law is good.
{7:17} But I am then acting not according to the law, but according to the sin which lives within me.
{7:18} For I know that what is good does not live within me, that is, within my flesh. For the willingness to do good lies close to me, but the carrying out of that good, I cannot reach.
{7:19} For I do not do the good that I want to do. But instead, I do the evil that I do not want to do.
{7:20} Now if I do what I am not willing to do, it is no longer I who am doing it, but the sin which lives within me.
{7:21} And so, I discover the law, by wanting to do good within myself, though evil lies close beside me.
{7:22} For I am delighted with the law of God, according to the inner man.
{7:23} But I perceive another law within my body, fighting against the law of my mind, and captivating me with the law of sin which is in my body.
{7:24} Unhappy man that I am, who will free me from this body of death?
{7:25} The grace of God, by Jesus Christ our Lord! Therefore, I serve the law of God with my own mind; but with the flesh, the law of sin.
{8:1} Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, who are not walking according to the flesh.
{8:2} For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has freed me from the law of sin and death.
{8:3} For though this was impossible under the law, because it was weakened by the flesh, God sent his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and because of sin, in order to condemn sin in the flesh,
{8:4} so that the justification of the law might be fulfilled in us. For we are not walking according to the flesh, but according to the spirit.
{8:5} For those who are in agreement with the flesh are mindful of the things of the flesh. But those who are in agreement with the spirit are mindful of the things of the spirit.
{8:6} For the prudence of the flesh is death. But the prudence of the spirit is life and peace.
{8:7} And the wisdom of the flesh is inimical to God. For it is not subject to the law of God, nor can it be.
{8:8} So those who are in the flesh are not able to please God.
{8:9} And you are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if it is true that the Spirit of God lives within you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to him.
{8:10} But if Christ is within you, then the body is indeed dead, concerning sin, but the spirit truly lives, because of justification.
{8:11} But if the Spirit of him who raised up Jesus from the dead lives within you, then he who raised up Jesus Christ from the dead shall also enliven your mortal bodies, by means of his Spirit living within you.
{8:12} Therefore, brothers, we are not debtors to the flesh, so as to live according to the flesh.
{8:13} For if you live according to the flesh, you will die. But if, by the Spirit, you mortify the deeds of the flesh, you shall live.
{8:14} For all those who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God.
{8:15} And you have not received, again, a spirit of servitude in fear, but you have received the Spirit of the adoption of sons, in whom we cry out: “Abba, Father!”
{8:16} For the Spirit himself renders testimony to our spirit that we are the sons of God.
{8:17} But if we are sons, then we are also heirs: certainly heirs of God, but also co-heirs with Christ, yet in such a way that, if we suffer with him, we shall also be glorified with him.
{8:18} For I consider that the sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared with that future glory which shall be revealed in us.
{8:19} For the anticipation of the creature anticipates the revelation of the sons of God.
{8:20} For the creature was made subject to emptiness, not willingly, but for the sake of the One who made it subject, unto hope.
{8:21} For the creature itself shall also be delivered from the servitude of corruption, into the liberty of the glory of the sons of God.
{8:22} For we know that every creature groans inwardly, as if giving birth, even until now;
{8:23} and not only these, but also ourselves, since we hold the first-fruits of the Spirit. For we also groan within ourselves, anticipating our adoption as the sons of God, and the redemption of our body.
{8:24} For we have been saved by hope. But a hope which is seen is not hope. For when a man sees something, why would he hope?
{8:25} But since we hope for what we do not see, we wait with patience.
{8:26} And similarly, the Spirit also helps our weakness. For we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself asks on our behalf with ineffable sighing.
{8:27} And he who examines hearts knows what the Spirit seeks, because he asks on behalf of the saints in accordance with God.
{8:28} And we know that, for those who love God, all things work together unto good, for those who, in accordance with his purpose, are called to be saints.
{8:29} For those whom he foreknew, he also predestined, in conformity with the image of his Son, so that he might be the Firstborn among many brothers.
{8:30} And those whom he predestined, he also called. And those whom he called, he also justified. And those whom he justified, he also glorified.
{8:31} So, what should we say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
{8:32} He who did not spare even his own Son, but handed him over for the sake of us all, how could he not also, with him, have given us all things?
{8:33} Who will make an accusation against the elect of God? God is the One who justifies;
{8:34} who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus who has died, and who has indeed also risen again, is at the right hand of God, and even now he intercedes for us.
{8:35} Then who will separate us from the love of Christ? Tribulation? Or anguish? Or famine? Or nakedness? Or peril? Or persecution? Or the sword?
{8:36} For it is as it has been written: “For your sake, we are being put to death all day long. We are being treated like sheep for the slaughter.”
{8:37} But in all these things we overcome, because of him who has loved us.
{8:38} For I am certain that neither death, nor life, nor Angels, nor Principalities, nor Powers, nor the present things, nor the future things, nor strength,
{8:39} nor the heights, nor the depths, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
{9:1} I am speaking the truth in Christ; I am not lying. My conscience offers testimony to me in the Holy Spirit,
{9:2} because the sadness within me is great, and there is a continuous sorrow in my heart.
{9:3} For I was desiring that I myself might be anathemized from Christ, for the sake of my brothers, who are my kinsmen according to the flesh.
{9:4} These are the Israelites, to whom belongs adoption as sons, and the glory and the testament, and the giving and following of the law, and the promises.
{9:5} Theirs are the fathers, and from them, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is over all things, blessed God, for all eternity. Amen.
{9:6} But it is not that the Word of God has perished. For not all those who are Israelites are of Israel.
{9:7} And not all sons are the offspring of Abraham: “For your offspring will be invoked in Isaac.”
{9:8} In other words, those who are the sons of God are not those who are sons of the flesh, but those who are sons of the Promise; these are considered to be the offspring.
{9:9} For the word of promise is this: “I will return at the proper time. And there shall be a son for Sarah.”
{9:10} And she was not alone. For Rebecca also, having conceived by Isaac our father, from one act,
{9:11} when the children had not yet been born, and had not yet done anything good or bad (such that the purpose of God might be based on their choice),
{9:12} and not because of deeds, but because of a calling, it was said to her: “The elder shall serve the younger.”
{9:13} So also it was written: “I have loved Jacob, but I have hated Esau.”
{9:14} What should we say next? Is there unfairness with God? Let it not be so!
{9:15} For to Moses he says: “I will pity whomever I pity. And I will offer mercy to whomever I will pity.”
{9:16} Therefore, it is not based on those who choose, nor on those who excel, but on God who takes pity.
{9:17} For Scripture says to the Pharaoh: “I have raised you up for this purpose, so that I may reveal my power by you, and so that my name may be announced to all the earth.”
{9:18} Therefore, he takes pity on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.
{9:19} And so, you would say to me: “Then why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?”
{9:20} O man, who are you to question God? How can the thing that has been formed say to the One who formed him: “Why have you made me this way?”
{9:21} And does not the potter have the authority over the clay to make, from the same material, indeed, one vessel unto honor, yet truly another unto disgrace?
{9:22} What if God, wanting to reveal his wrath and to make his power known, endured, with much patience, vessels deserving wrath, fit to be destroyed,
{9:23} so that he might reveal the wealth of his glory, within these vessels of mercy, which he has prepared unto glory?
{9:24} And so it is with those of us whom he has also called, not only from among the Jews, but even from among the Gentiles,
{9:25} just as he says in Hosea: “I will call those who were not my people, ‘my people,’ and she who was not beloved, ‘beloved,’ and she who had not obtained mercy, ‘one who has obtained mercy.’
{9:26} And this shall be: in the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ there they shall be called the sons of the living God.”
{9:27} And Isaiah cried out on behalf of Israel: “When the number of the sons of Israel is like the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved.
{9:28} For he shall complete his word, while abbreviating it out of equity. For the Lord shall accomplish a brief word upon the earth.”
{9:29} And it is just as Isaiah predicted: “Unless the Lord of hosts had bequeathed offspring, we would have become like Sodom, and we would have been made similar to Gomorrah.”
{9:30} What should we say next? That the Gentiles who did not follow justice have attained justice, even the justice that is of faith.
{9:31} Yet truly, Israel, though following the law of justice, has not arrived at the law of justice.
{9:32} Why is this? Because they did not seek it from faith, but as if it were from works. For they stumbled over a stumbling block,
{9:33} just as it was written: “Behold, I am placing a stumbling block in Zion, and a rock of scandal. But whoever believes in him shall not be confounded.”
{10:1} Brothers, certainly the will of my heart, and my prayer to God, is for them unto salvation.
{10:2} For I offer testimony to them, that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.
{10:3} For, being ignorant of the justice of God, and seeking to establish their own justice, they have not subjected themselves to the justice of God.
{10:4} For the end of the law, Christ, is unto justice for all who believe.
{10:5} And Moses wrote, about the justice that is of the law, that the man who will have done justice shall live by justice.
{10:6} But the justice that is of faith speaks in this way: Do not say in your heart: “Who shall ascend into heaven?” (that is, to bring Christ down);
{10:7} “Or who shall descend into the abyss?” (that is, to call back Christ from the dead).
{10:8} But what does Scripture say? “The word is near, in your mouth and in your heart.” This is the word of faith, which we are preaching.
{10:9} For if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and if you believe in your heart that God has raised him up from the dead, you shall be saved.
{10:10} For with the heart, we believe unto justice; but with the mouth, confession is unto salvation.
{10:11} For Scripture says: “All those who believe in him shall not be confounded.”
{10:12} For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek. For the same Lord is over all, richly in all who call upon him.
{10:13} For all those who have called upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
{10:14} Then in what way will those who have not believed in him call upon him? Or in what way will those who have not heard of him believe in him? And in what way will they hear of him without preaching?
{10:15} And truly, in what way will they preach, unless they have been sent, just as it has been written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who evangelize peace, of those who evangelize what is good!”
{10:16} But not all are obedient to the Gospel. For Isaiah says: “Lord, who has believed our report?”
{10:17} Therefore, faith is from hearing, and hearing is through the Word of Christ.
{10:18} But I say: Have they not heard? For certainly: “Their sound has gone forth throughout all the earth, and their words unto the limits of the whole world.”
{10:19} But I say: Has Israel not known? First, Moses says: “I will lead you into a rivalry with those who are not a nation; in the midst of a foolish nation, I will send you into wrath.”
{10:20} And Isaiah dares to say: “I was discovered by those who were not seeking me. I appeared openly to those who were not asking about me.”
{10:21} Then to Israel he says: “All day long I have stretched out my hands to a people who do not believe and who contradict me.”
{11:1} Therefore, I say: Has God driven away his people? Let it not be so! For I, too, am an Israelite of the offspring of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.
{11:2} God has not driven away his people, whom he foreknew. And do you not know what Scripture says in Elijah, how he calls upon God against Israel?
{11:3} “Lord, they have slain your Prophets. They have overturned your altars. And I alone remain, and they are seeking my life.”
{11:4} But what is the Divine response to him? “I have retained for myself seven thousand men, who have not bent their knees before Baal.”
{11:5} Therefore, in the same way, again in this time, there is a remnant that has been saved in accord with the choice of grace.
{11:6} And if it is by grace, then it is not now by works; otherwise grace is no longer free.
{11:7} What is next? What Israel was seeking, he has not obtained. But the elect have obtained it. And truly, these others have been blinded,
{11:8} just as it was written: “God has given them a spirit of reluctance: eyes that do not perceive, and ears that do not hear, even until this very day.”
{11:9} And David says: “Let their table become like a snare, and a deception, and a scandal, and a retribution for them.
{11:10} Let their eyes be obscured, so that they may not see, and so that they may bow down their backs always.”
{11:11} Therefore, I say: Have they stumbled in such a way that they should fall? Let it not be so! Instead, by their offense, salvation is with the Gentiles, so that they may be a rival to them.
{11:12} Now if their offense is the riches of the world, and if their diminution is the riches of the Gentiles, how much more is their fullness?
{11:13} For I say to you Gentiles: Certainly, as long as I am an Apostle to the Gentiles, I will honor my ministry,
{11:14} in such a way that I might provoke to rivalry those who are my own flesh, and so that I may save some of them.
{11:15} For if their loss is for the reconciliation of the world, what could their return be for, except life out of death?
{11:16} For if the first-fruit has been sanctified, so also has the whole. And if the root is holy, so also are the branches.
{11:17} And if some of the branches are broken, and if you, being a wild olive branch, are grafted on to them, and you become a partaker of the root and of the fatness of the olive tree,
{11:18} do not glorify yourself above the branches. For though you glory, you do not support the root, but the root supports you.
{11:19} Therefore, you would say: The branches were broken off, so that I might be grafted on.
{11:20} Well enough. They were broken off because of unbelief. But you stand on faith. So do not choose to savor what is exalted, but instead be afraid.
{11:21} For if God has not spared the natural branches, perhaps also he might not spare you.
{11:22} So then, notice the goodness and the severity of God. Certainly, toward those who have fallen, there is severity; but toward you, there is the goodness of God, if you remain in goodness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off.
{11:23} Moreover, if they do not remain in unbelief, they will be grafted on. For God is able to graft them on again.
{11:24} So if you have been cut off from the wild olive tree, which is natural to you, and, contrary to nature, you are grafted on to the good olive tree, how much more shall those who are the natural branches be grafted on to their own olive tree?
{11:25} For I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, of this mystery (lest you seem wise only to yourselves) that a certain blindness has occurred in Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has arrived.
{11:26} And in this way, all of Israel may be saved, just as it was written: “From Zion shall arrive he who delivers, and he shall turn impiety away from Jacob.
{11:27} And this will be my covenant for them, when I will take away their sins.”
{11:28} Certainly, according to the Gospel, they are enemies for your sake. But according to the election, they are most beloved for the sake of the fathers.
{11:29} For the gifts and the call of God are without regret.
{11:30} And just as you also, in times past, did not believe in God, but now you have obtained mercy because of their unbelief,
{11:31} so also have these now not believed, for your mercy, so that they might obtain mercy also.
{11:32} For God has enclosed everyone in unbelief, so that he may have mercy on everyone.
{11:33} Oh, the depths of the richness of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How incomprehensible are his judgments, and how unsearchable are his ways!
{11:34} For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?
{11:35} Or who first gave to him, so that repayment would be owed?
{11:36} For from him, and through him, and in him are all things. To him is glory, for all eternity. Amen.
{12:1} And so, I beg you, brothers, by the mercy of God, that you offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, with the subservience of your mind.
{12:2} And do not choose to be conformed to this age, but instead choose to be reformed in the newness of your mind, so that you may demonstrate what is the will of God: what is good, and what is well-pleasing, and what is perfect.
{12:3} For I say, through the grace that has been given to me, to all who are among you: Taste no more than it is necessary to taste, but taste unto sobriety and just as God has distributed a share of the faith to each one.
{12:4} For just as, within one body, we have many parts, though all the parts do not have the same role,
{12:5} so also we, being many, are one body in Christ, and each one is a part, the one of the other.
{12:6} And we each have different gifts, according to the grace that has been given to us: whether prophecy, in agreement with the reasonableness of faith;
{12:7} or ministry, in ministering; or he who teaches, in doctrine;
{12:8} he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, in simplicity; he who governs, in solicitude; he who shows mercy, in cheerfulness.
{12:9} Let love be without falseness: hating evil, clinging to what is good,
{12:10} loving one another with fraternal charity, surpassing one another in honor:
{12:11} in solicitude, not lazy; in spirit, fervent; serving the Lord;
{12:12} in hope, rejoicing; in tribulation, enduring; in prayer, ever-willing;
{12:13} in the difficulties of the saints, sharing; in hospitality, attentive.
{12:14} Bless those who are persecuting you: bless, and do not curse.
{12:15} Rejoice with those who are rejoicing. Weep with those who are weeping.
{12:16} Be of the same mind toward one another: not savoring what is exalted, but consenting in humility. Do not choose to seem wise to yourself.
{12:17} Render to no one harm for harm. Provide good things, not only in the sight of God, but also in the sight of all men.
{12:18} If it is possible, in so far as you are able, be at peace with all men.
{12:19} Do not defend yourselves, dearest ones. Instead, step aside from wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is mine. I shall give retribution, says the Lord.”
{12:20} So if an enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. For in doing so, you will heap burning coals upon his head.
{12:21} Do not allow evil to prevail, instead prevail over evil by means of goodness.
{13:1} Let every soul be subject to higher authorities. For there is no authority except from God and those who have been ordained by God.
{13:2} And so, whoever resists authority, resists what has been ordained by God. And those who resist are acquiring damnation for themselves.
{13:3} For leaders are not a source of fear to those who work good, but to those who work evil. And would you prefer not to be afraid of authority? Then do what is good, and you shall have praise from them.
{13:4} For he is a minister of God for you unto good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid. For it is not without reason that he carries a sword. For he is a minister of God; an avenger to execute wrath upon whomever does evil.
{13:5} For this reason, it is necessary to be subject, not solely because of wrath, but also because of conscience.
{13:6} Therefore, you must also offer tribute. For they are the ministers of God, serving him in this.
{13:7} Therefore, render to all whatever is owed. Taxes, to whom taxes is due; revenue, to whom revenue is due; fear, to whom fear is due; honor, to whom honor is due.
{13:8} You should owe nothing to anyone, except so as to love one another. For whoever loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.
{13:9} For example: You shall not commit adultery. You shall not kill. You shall not steal. You shall not speak false testimony. You shall not covet. And if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this word: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
{13:10} The love of neighbor does no harm. Therefore, love is the plenitude of the law.
{13:11} And we know the present time, that now is the hour for us to rise up from sleep. For already our salvation is closer than when we first believed.
{13:12} The night has passed, and the day draws near. Therefore, let us cast aside the works of darkness, and be clothed with the armor of light.
{13:13} Let us walk honestly, as in the daylight, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in promiscuity and sexual immorality, not in contention and envy.
{13:14} Instead, be clothed with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in its desires.
{14:1} But accept those who are weak in faith, without disputing about ideas.
{14:2} For one person believes that he may eat all things, but if another is weak, let him eat plants.
{14:3} He who eats should not despise him who does not eat. And he who does not eat should not judge him who eats. For God has accepted him.
{14:4} Who are you to judge the servant of another? He stands or falls by his own Lord. But he shall stand. For God is able to make him stand.
{14:5} For one person discerns one age from the next. But another discerns unto every age. Let each one increase according to his own mind.
{14:6} He who understands the age, understands for the Lord. And he who eats, eats for the Lord; for he gives thanks to God. And he who does not eat, does not eat for the Lord, and he gives thanks to God.
{14:7} For none of us lives for himself, and none of us dies for himself.
{14:8} For if we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.
{14:9} For Christ died and rose again for this purpose: that he might be the ruler of both the dead and the living.
{14:10} So then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you despise your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
{14:11} For it is written: “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bend to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.”
{14:12} And so, each one of us shall offer an explanation of himself to God.
{14:13} Therefore, we should no longer judge one another. Instead, judge this to a greater extent: that you should not place an obstacle before your brother, nor lead him astray.
{14:14} I know, with confidence in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in and of itself. But to him who considers anything to be unclean, it is unclean to him.
{14:15} For if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are not now walking according to love. Do not allow your food to destroy him for whom Christ died.
{14:16} Therefore, what is good for us should not be a cause of blasphemy.
{14:17} For the kingdom of God is not food and drink, but rather justice and peace and joy, in the Holy Spirit.
{14:18} For he who serves Christ in this, pleases God and is proven before men.
{14:19} And so, let us pursue the things that are of peace, and let us keep to the things that are for the edification of one another.
{14:20} Do not be willing to destroy the work of God because of food. Certainly, all things are clean. But there is harm for a man who offends by eating.
{14:21} It is good to refrain from eating meat and from drinking wine, and from anything by which your brother is offended, or led astray, or weakened.
{14:22} Do you have faith? It belongs to you, so hold it before God. Blessed is he who does not judge himself in that by which he is tested.
{14:23} But he who discerns, if he eats, is condemned, because it is not of faith. For all that is not of faith is sin.
{15:1} But we who are stronger must bear with the feebleness of the weak, and not so as to please ourselves.
{15:2} Each one of you should please his neighbor unto good, for edification.
{15:3} For even Christ did not please himself, but as it was written: “The reproaches of those who reproached you fell upon me.”
{15:4} For whatever was written, was written to teach us, so that, through patience and the consolation of the Scriptures, we might have hope.
{15:5} So may the God of patience and solace grant you to be of one mind toward one another, in accord with Jesus Christ,
{15:6} so that, together with one mouth, you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{15:7} For this reason, accept one another, just as Christ also has accepted you, in the honor of God.
{15:8} For I declare that Christ Jesus was the minister of circumcision because of the truth of God, so as to confirm the promises to the fathers,
{15:9} and that the Gentiles are to honor God because of his mercy, just as it was written: “Because of this, I will confess you among the Gentiles, O Lord, and I will sing to your name.”
{15:10} And again, he says: “Rejoice, O Gentiles, along with his people.”
{15:11} And again: “All Gentiles, praise the Lord; and all peoples, magnify him.”
{15:12} And again, Isaiah says: “There shall be a root of Jesse, and he shall rise up to rule the Gentiles, and in him the Gentiles shall hope.”
{15:13} So may the God of hope fill you with every joy and with peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope and in the virtue of the Holy Spirit.
{15:14} But I am also certain about you, my brothers, that you also have been filled with love, completed with all knowledge, so that you are able to admonish one another.
{15:15} But I have written to you, brothers, more boldly than to the others, as if calling you to mind again, because of the grace which has been given to me from God,
{15:16} so that I may be a minister of Christ Jesus among the Gentiles, sanctifying the Gospel of God, in order that the oblation of the Gentiles may be made acceptable and may be sanctified in the Holy Spirit.
{15:17} Therefore, I have glory in Christ Jesus before God.
{15:18} So I dare not speak of any of those things which Christ does not effect through me, unto the obedience of the Gentiles, in word and deed,
{15:19} with the power of signs and wonders, by power of the Holy Spirit. For in this way, from Jerusalem, throughout its surroundings, as far as Illyricum, I have replenished the Gospel of Christ.
{15:20} And so I have preached this Gospel, not where Christ was known by name, lest I build upon the foundation of another,
{15:21} but just as it was written: “Those to whom he was not announced shall perceive, and those who have not heard shall understand.”
{15:22} Because of this also, I was greatly hindered in coming to you, and I have been prevented until the present time.
{15:23} Yet truly now, having no other destination in these regions, and having already had a great desire to come to you over the past many years,
{15:24} when I begin to set out on my journey to Spain, I hope that, as I pass by, I may see you, and I may be guided from there by you, after first having borne some fruit among you.
{15:25} But next I will set out for Jerusalem, to minister to the saints.
{15:26} For those of Macedonia and Achaia have decided to make a collection for those of the poor among the saints who are at Jerusalem.
{15:27} And this has pleased them, because they are in their debt. For, since the Gentiles have become partakers of their spiritual things, they also ought to minister to them in worldly things.
{15:28} Therefore, when I have completed this task, and have consigned to them this fruit, I shall set out, by way of you, to Spain.
{15:29} And I know that when I come to you I shall arrive with an abundance of the blessings of the Gospel of Christ.
{15:30} Therefore, I beg you, brothers, through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Holy Spirit, that you assist me with your prayers to God on my behalf,
{15:31} so that I may be freed from the unfaithful who are in Judea, and so that the oblation of my service may be acceptable to the saints in Jerusalem.
{15:32} So may I come to you with joy, through the will of God, and so may I be refreshed with you.
{15:33} And may the God of peace be with you all. Amen.
{16:1} Now I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is in the ministry of the church, which is at Cenchreae,
{16:2} so that you may receive her in the Lord with the worthiness of the saints, and so that you may be of assistance to her in whatever task she will have need of you. For she herself has also assisted many, and myself also.
{16:3} Greet Prisca and Aquila, my helpers in Christ Jesus,
{16:4} who have risked their own necks on behalf of my life, for whom I give thanks, not I alone, but also all the churches of the Gentiles;
{16:5} and greet the church at their house. Greet Epaenetus, my beloved, who is among the first-fruits of Asia in Christ.
{16:6} Greet Mary, who has labored much among you.
{16:7} Greet Andronicus and Junias, my kinsmen and fellow captives, who are noble among the Apostles, and who were in Christ prior to me.
{16:8} Greet Ampliatus, most beloved to me in the Lord.
{16:9} Greet Urbanus, our helper in Christ Jesus, and Stachys, my beloved.
{16:10} Greet Apelles, who has been tested in Christ.
{16:11} Greet those who are from the household of Aristobulus. Greet Herodian, my kinsman. Greet those who are of the household of Narcissus, who are in the Lord.
{16:12} Greet Tryphaena and Tryphosa, who labor in the Lord. Greet Persis, most beloved, who has labored much in the Lord.
{16:13} Greet Rufus, elect in the Lord, and his mother and mine.
{16:14} Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brothers who are with them.
{16:15} Greet Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them.
{16:16} Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.
{16:17} But I beg you, brothers, to take note of those who cause dissensions and offenses contrary to the doctrine that you have learned, and to turn away from them.
{16:18} For ones such as these do not serve Christ our Lord, but their inner selves, and, through pleasing words and skillful speaking, they seduce the hearts of the innocent.
{16:19} But your obedience has been made known in every place. And so, I rejoice in you. But I want you to be wise in what is good, and simple in what is evil.
{16:20} And may the God of peace quickly crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
{16:21} Timothy, my fellow laborer, greets you, and Lucius and Jason and Sosipater, my kinsmen.
{16:22} I, Tertius, who wrote this epistle, greet you in the Lord.
{16:23} Gaius, my host, and the entire church, greets you. Erastus, the treasurer of the city, greets you, and Quartus, a brother.
{16:24} The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
{16:25} But to him who is able to confirm you according to my Gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, in accord with the revelation of the mystery which has been hidden from time immemorial,
{16:26} (which now has been made clear through the Scriptures of the Prophets, in accord with the precept of the eternal God, unto the obedience of faith) which has been made known among all the Gentiles:
{16:27} to God, who alone is wise, through Jesus Christ, to him be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
{1:1} Paul, called as an Apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God; and Sosthenes, a brother:
{1:2} to the Church of God which is at Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints with all who are invoking the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place of theirs and of ours.
{1:3} Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:4} I give thanks to my God continuously for you because of the grace of God that has been given to you in Christ Jesus.
{1:5} By that grace, in all things, you have become wealthy in him, in every word and in all knowledge.
{1:6} And so, the testimony of Christ has been strengthened in you.
{1:7} In this way, nothing is lacking to you in any grace, as you await the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:8} And he, too, will strengthen you, even until the end, without guilt, until the day of the advent of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:9} God is faithful. Through him, you have been called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
{1:10} And so, I beg you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that every one of you speak in the same way, and that there be no schisms among you. So may you become perfect, with the same mind and with the same judgment.
{1:11} For it has been indicated to me, about you, my brothers, by those who are with Chloes, that there are contentions among you.
{1:12} Now I say this because each of you is saying: “Certainly, I am of Paul;” “But I am of Apollo;” “Truly, I am of Cephas;” as well as: “I am of Christ.”
{1:13} Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
{1:14} I give thanks to God that I have baptized none of you, except Crispus and Gaius,
{1:15} lest anyone say that you have been baptized in my name.
{1:16} And I also baptized the household of Stephanus. Other than these, I do not recall if I baptized any others.
{1:17} For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to evangelize: not through the wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ become empty.
{1:18} For the Word of the Cross is certainly foolishness to those who are perishing. But to those who have been saved, that is, to us, it is the power of God.
{1:19} For it has been written: “I will perish the wisdom of the wise, and I will reject the discernment of the prudent.”
{1:20} Where are the wise? Where are the scribes? Where are the truth-seekers of this age? Has not God made the wisdom of this world into foolishness?
{1:21} For the world did not know God through wisdom, and so, in the wisdom of God, it pleased God to accomplish the salvation of believers, through the foolishness of our preaching.
{1:22} For the Jews ask for signs, and the Greeks seek wisdom.
{1:23} But we are preaching Christ crucified. Certainly, to the Jews, this is a scandal, and to the Gentiles, this is foolishness.
{1:24} But to those who have been called, Jews as well as Greeks, the Christ is the virtue of God and the wisdom of God.
{1:25} For what is foolishness to God is considered wise by men, and that which is weakness to God is considered strong by men.
{1:26} So take care of your vocation, brothers. For not many are wise according to the flesh, not many are powerful, not many are noble.
{1:27} But God has chosen the foolish of the world, so that he may confound the wise. And God has chosen the weak of the world, so that he may confound the strong.
{1:28} And God has chosen the ignoble and contemptible of the world, those who are nothing, so that he may reduce to nothing those who are something.
{1:29} So then, nothing that is of the flesh should glory in his sight.
{1:30} But you are of him in Christ Jesus, who was made by God to be our wisdom and justice and sanctification and redemption.
{1:31} And so, in the same way, it was written: “Whoever glories, should glory in the Lord.”
{2:1} And so, brothers, when I came to you, announcing to you the testimony of Christ, I did not bring exalted words or lofty wisdom.
{2:2} For I did not judge myself to know anything among you, except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
{2:3} And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and with much trembling.
{2:4} And my words and preaching were not the persuasive words of human wisdom, but were a manifestation of the Spirit and of virtue,
{2:5} so that your faith would not be based on the wisdom of men, but on the virtue of God.
{2:6} Now, we do speak wisdom among the perfect, yet truly, this is not the wisdom of this age, nor that of the leaders of this age, which shall be reduced to nothing.
{2:7} Instead, we speak of the wisdom of God in a mystery which has been hidden, which God predestined before this age for our glory,
{2:8} something that none of the leaders of this world have known. For if they had known it, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory.
{2:9} But this is just as it has been written: “The eye has not seen, and the ear has not heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man, what things God has prepared for those who love him.”
{2:10} But God has revealed these things to us through his Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.
{2:11} And who can know the things that are of a man, except the spirit which is within that man? So also, no one knows the things which are of God, except the Spirit of God.
{2:12} But we have not received the spirit of this world, but the Spirit who is of God, so that we may understand the things that have been given to us by God.
{2:13} And we are also speaking of these things, not in the learned words of human wisdom, but in the doctrine of the Spirit, bringing spiritual things together with spiritual things.
{2:14} But the animal nature of man does not perceive these things that are of the Spirit of God. For it is foolishness to him, and he is not able to understand it, because it must be examined spiritually.
{2:15} But the spiritual nature of man judges all things, and he himself may be judged by no man.
{2:16} For who has known the mind of the Lord, so that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.
{3:1} And so, brothers, I was not able to speak to you as if to those who are spiritual, but rather as if to those who are carnal. For you are like infants in Christ.
{3:2} I gave you milk to drink, not solid food. For you were not yet able. And indeed, even now, you are not able; for you are still carnal.
{3:3} And since there is still envy and contention among you, are you not carnal, and are you not walking according to man?
{3:4} For if one says, “Certainly, I am of Paul,” while another says, “I am of Apollo,” are you not men? But what is Apollo, and what is Paul?
{3:5} We are only the ministers of him in whom you have believed, just as the Lord has granted to each of you.
{3:6} I planted, Apollo watered, but God provided the growth.
{3:7} And so, neither he who plants, nor he who waters, is anything, but only God, who provides the growth.
{3:8} Now he who plants, and he who waters, are one. But each shall receive his proper reward, according to his labors.
{3:9} For we are God’s assistants. You are God’s cultivation; you are God’s construction.
{3:10} According to the grace of God, which has been given to me, I have laid the foundation like a wise architect. But another builds upon it. So then, let each one be careful how he builds upon it.
{3:11} For no one is able to lay any other foundation, in place of that which has been laid, which is Christ Jesus.
{3:12} But if anyone builds upon this foundation, whether gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or stubble,
{3:13} each one’s work shall be made manifest. For the day of the Lord shall declare it, because it will be revealed by fire. And this fire will test each one’s work, as to what kind it is.
{3:14} If anyone’s work, which he has built upon it, remains, then he will receive a reward.
{3:15} If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer its loss, but he himself will still be saved, but only as through fire.
{3:16} Do you not know that you are the Temple of God, and that the Spirit of God lives within you?
{3:17} But if anyone violates the Temple of God, God will destroy him. For the Temple of God is holy, and you are that Temple.
{3:18} Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become foolish, so that he may be truly wise.
{3:19} For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. And so it has been written: “I will catch the wise in their own astuteness.”
{3:20} And again: “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain.”
{3:21} And so, let no one glory in men.
{3:22} For all is yours: whether Paul, or Apollo, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or the present, or the future. Yes, all is yours.
{3:23} But you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.
{4:1} Accordingly, let man consider us to be ministers of Christ and attendants of the mysteries of God.
{4:2} Here and now, it is required of attendants that each one be found to be faithful.
{4:3} But as for me, it is such a small thing to be judged by you, or by the age of mankind. And neither do I judge myself.
{4:4} For I have nothing on my conscience. But I am not justified by this. For the Lord is the One who judges me.
{4:5} And so, do not choose to judge before the time, until the Lord returns. He will illuminate the hidden things of the darkness, and he will make manifest the decisions of hearts. And then each one shall have praise from God.
{4:6} And so, brothers, I have presented these things in myself and in Apollo, for your sakes, so that you may learn, through us, that no one should be inflated against one person and for another, not beyond what has been written.
{4:7} For what distinguishes you from another? And what do you have that you have not received? But if you have received it, why do you glory, as if you had not received it?
{4:8} So, now you have been filled, and now you have been made wealthy, as if to reign without us? But I wish that you would reign, so that we, too, might reign with you!
{4:9} For I think that God has presented us as the last Apostles, as those destined for death. For we have been made into a spectacle for the world, and for Angels, and for men.
{4:10} So we are fools because of Christ, but you are discerning in Christ? We are weak, but you are strong? You are noble, but we are ignoble?
{4:11} Even to this very hour, we hunger and thirst, and we are naked and repeatedly beaten, and we are unsteady.
{4:12} And we labor, working with our own hands. We are slandered, and so we bless. We suffer and endure persecution.
{4:13} We are cursed, and so we pray. We have become like the refuse of this world, like the reside of everything, even until now.
{4:14} I am not writing these things in order to confound you, but in order to admonish you, as my dearest sons.
{4:15} For you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, but not so many fathers. For in Christ Jesus, through the Gospel, I have begotten you.
{4:16} Therefore, I beg you, be imitators of me, just as I am of Christ.
{4:17} For this reason, I have sent you Timothy, who is my dearest son, and who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my ways, which are in Christ Jesus, just as I teach everywhere, in every church.
{4:18} Certain persons have become inflated in thinking that I would not return to you.
{4:19} But I will return to you soon, if the Lord is willing. And I will consider, not the words of those who are inflated, but the virtue.
{4:20} For the kingdom of God is not in words, but in virtue.
{4:21} What would you prefer? Should I return to you with a rod, or with charity and a spirit of meekness?
{5:1} Above all else, it is being said that there is fornication among you, even fornication of a such kind that is not among the Gentiles, so that someone would have the wife of his father.
{5:2} And yet you are inflated, and you have not instead been grieved, so that he who has done this thing would be taken away from your midst.
{5:3} Certainly, though absent in body, I am present in spirit. Thus, I have already judged, as if I were present, him who has done this.
{5:4} In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, you have been gathered together with my spirit, in the power of our Lord Jesus,
{5:5} to hand over such a one as this to Satan, for the destruction of the flesh, so that the spirit may be saved in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{5:6} It is not good for you to glory. Do you not know that a little leaven corrupts the entire mass?
{5:7} Purge the old leaven, so that you may become the new bread, for you are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover, has now been immolated.
{5:8} And so, let us feast, not with the old leaven, not with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
{5:9} As I have written to you in an epistle: “Do not associate with fornicators,”
{5:10} certainly not with the fornicators of this world, nor with the greedy, nor with robbers, nor with the servants of idolatry. Otherwise, you ought to depart from this world.
{5:11} But now I have written to you: do not associate with anyone who is called a brother and yet is a fornicator, or greedy, or a servant of idolatry, or a slanderer, or inebriated, or a robber. With such a one as this, do not even take food.
{5:12} For what have I to do with judging those who are outside? But do not even you yourselves judge those who are inside?
{5:13} For those who are outside, God will judge. But send this evil person away from yourselves.
{6:1} How is it that anyone of you, having a dispute against another, would dare to be judged before the iniquitous, and not before the saints?
{6:2} Or do you not know that the saints from this age shall judge it? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you unworthy, then, to judge even the smallest matters?
{6:3} Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more the things of this age?
{6:4} Therefore, if you have matters to judge concerning this age, why not appoint those who are most contemptible in the Church to judge these things!
{6:5} But I am speaking so as to shame you. Is there no one among you wise enough, so that he might be able to judge between his brothers?
{6:6} Instead, brother contends against brother in court, and this before the unfaithful!
{6:7} Now there is certainly an offense among you, beyond everything else, when you have court cases against one another. Should you not accept injury instead? Should you not endure being cheated instead?
{6:8} But you are doing the injuring and the cheating, and this toward brothers!
{6:9} Do you not know that the iniquitous will not possess the kingdom of God? Do not choose to wander astray. For neither fornicators, nor servants of idolatry, nor adulterers,
{6:10} nor the effeminate, nor males who sleep with males, nor thieves, nor the avaricious, nor the inebriated, nor slanderers, nor the rapacious shall possess the kingdom of God.
{6:11} And some of you were like this. But you have been absolved, but you have been sanctified, but you have been justified: all in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
{6:12} All is lawful to me, but not all is expedient. All is lawful to me, but I will not be driven back by the authority of anyone.
{6:13} Food is for the stomach, and the stomach is for food. But God shall destroy both the stomach and food. And the body is not for fornication, but rather for the Lord; and the Lord is for the body.
{6:14} Truly, God has raised up the Lord, and he will raise us up by his power.
{6:15} Do you not know that your bodies are a part of Christ? So then, should I take a part of Christ and make it a part of a harlot? Let it not be so!
{6:16} And do you not know that whoever is joined to a harlot becomes one body? “For the two,” he said, “shall be as one flesh.”
{6:17} But whoever is joined to the Lord is one spirit.
{6:18} Flee from fornication. Every sin whatsoever that a man commits is outside of the body, but whoever fornicates, sins against his own body.
{6:19} Or do you not know that your bodies are the Temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?
{6:20} For you have been bought at a great price. Glorify and carry God in your body.
{7:1} Now concerning the things about which you wrote to me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman.
{7:2} But, because of fornication, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband.
{7:3} A husband should fulfill his obligation to his wife, and a wife should also act similarly toward her husband.
{7:4} It is not the wife, but the husband, who has power over her body. But, similarly also, it is not the husband, but the wife, who has power over his body.
{7:5} So, do not fail in your obligations to one another, except perhaps by consent, for a limited time, so that you may empty yourselves for prayer. And then, return together again, lest Satan tempt you by means of your abstinence.
{7:6} But I am saying this, neither as an indulgence, nor as a commandment.
{7:7} For I would prefer it if you were all like myself. But each person has his proper gift from God: one in this way, yet another in that way.
{7:8} But I say to the unmarried and to widows: It is good for them, if they would remain as they are, just as I also am.
{7:9} But if they cannot restrain themselves, they should marry. For it is better to marry, than to be burned.
{7:10} But to those who have been joined in matrimony, it is not I who commands you, but the Lord: a wife is not to separate from her husband.
{7:11} But if she has separated from him, she must remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband should not divorce his wife.
{7:12} Concerning the rest, I am speaking, not the Lord. If any brother has an unbelieving wife, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her.
{7:13} And if any woman has an unbelieving husband, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce her husband.
{7:14} For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through the believing wife, and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through the believing husband. Otherwise, your children would be unclean, whereas instead they are holy.
{7:15} But if the unbeliever departs, let him depart. For a brother or sister cannot be made subject to servitude in this way. For God has called us to peace.
{7:16} And how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?
{7:17} However, let each one walk just as the Lord has distributed to him, each one just as God has called him. And thus do I teach in all the churches.
{7:18} Has any circumcised man been called? Let him not cover his circumcision. Has any uncircumcised man been called? Let him not be circumcised.
{7:19} Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing; there is only the observance of the commandments of God.
{7:20} Let each and every one remain in the same calling to which he was called.
{7:21} Are you a servant who has been called? Do not be concerned about it. But if you ever have the ability to be free, make use of it.
{7:22} For any servant who has been called in the Lord is free in the Lord. Similarly, any free person who has been called is a servant in Christ.
{7:23} You have been bought with a price. Do not be willing to become the servants of men.
{7:24} Brothers, let each one, in whatever state he was called, remain in that state with God.
{7:25} Now, concerning virgins, I have no commandment from the Lord. But I give counsel, as one who has obtained the mercy of the Lord, so as to be faithful.
{7:26} Therefore, I consider this to be good, because of the present necessity: that it is good for a man to be such as I am.
{7:27} Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be freed. Are you free of a wife? Do not seek a wife.
{7:28} But if you take a wife, you have not sinned. And if a virgin has married, she has not sinned. Even so, such as these will have the tribulation of the flesh. But I would spare you from this.
{7:29} And so, this is what I say, brothers: The time is short. What remains of it is such that: those who have wives should be as if they had none;
{7:30} and those who weep, as though they were not weeping; and those who rejoice, as if they were not rejoicing; and those who buy, as if they possessed nothing;
{7:31} and those who use the things of this world, as if they were not using them. For the figure of this world is passing away.
{7:32} But I would prefer you to be without worry. Whoever is without a wife is worried about the things of the Lord, as to how he may please God.
{7:33} But whoever is with a wife is worried about the things of the world, as to how he may please his wife. And so, he is divided.
{7:34} And the unmarried woman and the virgin think about the things that are of the Lord, so that she may be holy in body and in spirit. But she who is married thinks about the things that are of the world, as to how she may please her husband.
{7:35} Furthermore, I am saying this for your own benefit, not in order to cast a snare over you, but toward whatever is honest and whatever may provide you with the ability to be without hindrance, so as to worship the Lord.
{7:36} But if any man considers himself to seem dishonorable, concerning a virgin who is of adult age, and so it ought to be, he may do as he wills. If he marries her, he does not sin.
{7:37} But if he has decided firmly in his heart, and he does not have any obligation, but only the power of his free will, and if he has judged this in his heart, to let her remain a virgin, he does well.
{7:38} And so, he who joins with his virgin in matrimony does well, and he who does not join with her does better.
{7:39} A woman is bound under the law for as long as her husband lives. But if her husband has died, she is free. She may marry whomever she wishes, but only in the Lord.
{7:40} But she will be more blessed, if she remains in this state, in accord with my counsel. And I think that I, too, have the Spirit of God.
{8:1} Now concerning those things that are sacrificed to idols: we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but charity builds up.
{8:2} But if anyone considers himself to know anything, he does not yet know in the way that he ought to know.
{8:3} For if anyone loves God, he is known by him.
{8:4} But as to the foods that are immolated to idols, we know that an idol in the world is nothing, and that no one is God, except One.
{8:5} For although there are things that are called gods, whether in heaven or on earth, (if one even considers there to be many gods and many lords)
{8:6} yet we know that there is only one God, the Father, from whom all things are, and in whom we are, and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom all things are, and by whom we are.
{8:7} But knowledge is not in everyone. For some persons, even now, with consent to an idol, eat what has been sacrificed to an idol. And their conscience, being infirm, becomes polluted.
{8:8} Yet food does not commend us to God. For if we eat, we will not have more, and if we do not eat, we will not have less.
{8:9} But be careful not to let your liberty become a cause of sin to those who are weak.
{8:10} For if anyone sees someone with knowledge sitting down to eat in idolatry, will not his own conscience, being infirm, be emboldened to eat what has been sacrificed to idols?
{8:11} And should an infirm brother perish by your knowledge, even though Christ died for him?
{8:12} So when you sin in this way against the brothers, and you harm their weakened conscience, then you sin against Christ.
{8:13} Because of this, if food leads my brother to sin, I will never eat meat, lest I lead my brother to sin.
{9:1} Am I not free? Am I not an Apostle? Have I not seen Christ Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?
{9:2} And if I am not an Apostle to others, yet still I am to you. For you are the seal of my Apostleship in the Lord.
{9:3} My defense with those who question me is this:
{9:4} Do we not have the authority to eat and to drink?
{9:5} Do we not have the authority to travel around with a woman who is a sister, just as do the other Apostles, and the brothers of the Lord, and Cephas?
{9:6} Or is it only myself and Barnabas who do not have the authority to act in this way?
{9:7} Who has ever served as a soldier and paid his own stipend? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat from its produce? Who pastures a flock and does not drink from the milk of the flock?
{9:8} Am I saying these things according to man? Or does the law not also say these things?
{9:9} For it is written in the law of Moses: “You shall not bind the mouth of an ox, while it is treading out the grain.” Is God here concerned with the oxen?
{9:10} Or is he saying this, indeed, for our sake? These things were written specifically for us, because he who plows, ought to plow in hope, and he who threshes, too, in hope of receiving the produce.
{9:11} If we have sown spiritual things in you, is it important if we harvest from your worldly things?
{9:12} If others are sharers in this authority over you, why are we not more entitled? And yet we have not used this authority. Instead, we bear all things, lest we give any hindrance to the Gospel of Christ.
{9:13} Do you not know that those who work in the holy place eat the things that are for the holy place, and that those who serve at the altar also share with the altar?
{9:14} So, too, has the Lord ordained that those who announce the Gospel should live by the Gospel.
{9:15} Yet I have used none of these things. And I have not written so that these things may be done for me. For it is better for me to die, rather than to let anyone empty out my glory.
{9:16} For if I preach the Gospel, it is not glory for me. For an obligation has been laid upon me. And woe to me, if I do not preach the Gospel.
{9:17} For if I do this willingly, I have a reward. But if I do this reluctantly, a dispensation is granted to me.
{9:18} And what, then, would be my reward? So, when preaching the Gospel, I should give the Gospel without taking, so that I may not misuse my authority in the Gospel.
{9:19} For when I was a free man to all, I made myself the servant of all, so that I might gain all the more.
{9:20} And so, to the Jews, I became like a Jew, so that I might gain the Jews.
{9:21} To those who are under the law, I became as if I were under the law, (though I was not under the law) so that I might gain those who were under the law. To those who were without the law, I became as if I were without the law, (though I was not without the law of God, being in the law of Christ) so that I might gain those who were without the law.
{9:22} To the weak, I became weak, so that I might gain the weak. To all, I became all, so that I might save all.
{9:23} And I do everything for the sake of the Gospel, so that I may become its partner.
{9:24} Do you not know that, of those who run in a race, all of them, certainly, are runners, but only one achieves the prize. Similarly, you must run, so that you may achieve.
{9:25} And one who competes in a contest abstains from all things. And they do this, of course, so that they may achieve a corruptible crown. But we do this, so that we may achieve what is incorruptible.
{9:26} And so I run, but not with uncertainty. And so I fight, but not by flailing in the air.
{9:27} Instead, I chastise my body, so as to redirect it into servitude. Otherwise, I might preach to others, but become myself an outcast.
{10:1} For I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and they all went across the sea.
{10:2} And in Moses, they all were baptized, in the cloud and in the sea.
{10:3} And they all ate of the same spiritual food.
{10:4} And they all drank of the same spiritual drink. And so, they all were drinking of the spiritual rock seeking to obtain them; and that rock was Christ.
{10:5} But with most of them, God was not well-pleased. For they were struck down in the desert.
{10:6} Now these things were done as an example for us, so that we might not desire evil things, just as they desired.
{10:7} And so, do not take part in idolatry, as some of them did, just as it was written: “The people sat down to eat and to drink, and then they rose up to amuse themselves.”
{10:8} And let us not commit fornication, as some of them fornicated, and so twenty-three thousand fell on one day.
{10:9} And let us not tempt Christ, as some of them tempted, and so they perished by serpents.
{10:10} And you should not murmur, as some of them murmured, and so they perished by the destroyer.
{10:11} Now all of these things happened to them as an example, and so they have been written for our correction, because the final age has fallen upon us.
{10:12} And so, whosoever considers himself to be standing, let him be careful not to fall.
{10:13} Temptation should not take hold of you, except what is human. For God is faithful, and he will not permit you to be tempted beyond your ability. Instead, he will effect his Providence, even during temptation, so that you may be able to bear it.
{10:14} Because of this, most beloved of mine, flee from the worship of idols.
{10:15} Since I am speaking to those who are prudent, judge what I say for yourselves.
{10:16} The cup of benediction that we bless, is it not a communion in the Blood of Christ? And the bread that we break, is it not a participation in the Body of the Lord?
{10:17} Through the one bread, we, though many, are one body: all of us who are partakers of the one bread.
{10:18} Consider Israel, according to the flesh. Are not those who eat from the sacrifices partakers of the altar?
{10:19} What is next? Should I say that what is immolated to idols is anything? Or that the idol is anything?
{10:20} But the things that the Gentiles immolate, they immolate to demons, and not to God. And I do not want you to become partakers with demons.
{10:21} You cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of demons. You cannot be partakers of the table of the Lord, and partakers of the table of demons.
{10:22} Or should we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he is? All is lawful to me, but not all is expedient.
{10:23} All is lawful to me, but not all is edifying.
{10:24} Let no one seek for himself, but for others.
{10:25} Whatever is sold in the market, you may eat, without asking questions for the sake of conscience.
{10:26} “The earth and all its fullness belong to the Lord.”
{10:27} If you are invited by any unbelievers, and you are willing to go, you may eat whatever is set before you, without asking questions for the sake of conscience.
{10:28} But if anyone says, “This has been sacrificed to idols,” do not eat it, for the sake of the one who told you, and for the sake of conscience.
{10:29} But I am referring to the conscience of the other person, not to yours. For why should my liberty be judged by the conscience of another?
{10:30} If I partake with thanksgiving, why should I be slandered over that for which I give thanks?
{10:31} Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever else you may do, do everything for the glory of God.
{10:32} Be without offense toward the Jews, and toward the Gentiles, and toward the Church of God,
{10:33} just as I also, in all things, please everyone, not seeking what is best for myself, but what is best for many others, so that they may be saved.
{11:1} Be imitators of me, as I also am of Christ.
{11:2} Now I praise you, brothers, because you are mindful of me in everything, in such a way as to hold to my precepts as I have handed them down to you.
{11:3} So I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ. But the head of woman is man. Yet truly, the head of Christ is God.
{11:4} Every man praying or prophesying with his head covered disgraces his head.
{11:5} But every woman praying or prophesying with her head not covered disgraces her head. For it is the same as if her head were shaven.
{11:6} So if a woman is not veiled, let her hair be cut off. Truly then, if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off, or to have her head shaven, then she should cover her head.
{11:7} Certainly, a man ought not to cover his head, for he is the image and glory of God. But woman is the glory of man.
{11:8} For man is not of woman, but woman is of man.
{11:9} And indeed, man was not created for woman, but woman was created for man.
{11:10} Therefore, a woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head, because of the Angels.
{11:11} Yet truly, man would not exist without woman, nor would woman exist without man, in the Lord.
{11:12} For just as woman came into existence from man, so also does man exist through woman. But all things are from God.
{11:13} Judge for yourselves. Is it proper for a woman to pray to God unveiled?
{11:14} Does not even nature herself teach you that, indeed, if a man grows his hair long, it is a disgrace for him?
{11:15} Yet truly, if a woman grows her hair long, it is a glory for her, because her hair has been given to her as a covering.
{11:16} But if anyone has a mind to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor does the Church of God.
{11:17} Now I caution you, without praising, about this: that you assemble together, and not for better, but for worse.
{11:18} First of all, indeed, I hear that when you assemble together in the church, there are schisms among you. And I believe this, in part.
{11:19} For there must also be heresies, so that those who have been tested may be made manifest among you.
{11:20} And so, when you assemble together as one, it is no longer in order to eat the Lord’s supper.
{11:21} For each one first takes his own supper to eat. And as a result, one person is hungry, while another is inebriated.
{11:22} Do you not have houses, in which to eat and drink? Or do you have such contempt for the Church of God that you would confound those who do not have such contempt? What should I say to you? Should I praise you? I am not praising you in this.
{11:23} For I have received from the Lord what I have also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the same night that he was handed over, took bread,
{11:24} and giving thanks, he broke it, and said: “Take and eat. This is my body, which shall be given up for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
{11:25} Similarly also, the cup, after he had eaten supper, saying: “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
{11:26} For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord, until he returns.
{11:27} And so, whoever eats this bread, or drinks from the cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be liable of the body and blood of the Lord.
{11:28} But let a man examine himself, and, in this way, let him eat from that bread, and drink from that cup.
{11:29} For whoever eats and drinks unworthily, eats and drinks a sentence against himself, not discerning it to be the body of the Lord.
{11:30} As a result, many are weak and sick among you, and many have fallen asleep.
{11:31} But if we ourselves were discerning, then certainly we would not be judged.
{11:32} Yet when we are judged, we are being corrected by the Lord, so that we might not be condemned along with this world.
{11:33} And so, my brothers, when you assemble together to eat, be attentive to one another.
{11:34} If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, so that you may not assemble together unto judgment. As for the rest, I will set it in order when I arrive.
{12:1} Now concerning spiritual things, I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers.
{12:2} You know that when you were Gentiles, you approached mute idols, doing what you were led to do.
{12:3} Because of this, I would have you know that no one speaking in the Spirit of God utters a curse against Jesus. And no one is able to say that Jesus is Lord, except in the Holy Spirit.
{12:4} Truly, there are diverse graces, but the same Spirit.
{12:5} And there are diverse ministries, but the same Lord.
{12:6} And there are diverse works, but the same God, who works everything in everyone.
{12:7} However, the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one toward what is beneficial.
{12:8} Certainly, to one, through the Spirit, is given words of wisdom; but to another, according to the same Spirit, words of knowledge;
{12:9} to another, in the same Spirit, faith; to another, in the one Spirit, the gift of healing;
{12:10} to another, miraculous works; to another, prophecy; to another, the discernment of spirits; to another, different kinds of languages; to another, the interpretation of words.
{12:11} But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one according to his will.
{12:12} For just as the body is one, and yet has many parts, so all the parts of the body, though they are many, are only one body. So also is Christ.
{12:13} And indeed, in one Spirit, we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Gentiles, whether servant or free. And we all drank in the one Spirit.
{12:14} For the body, too, is not one part, but many.
{12:15} If the foot were to say, “Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body,” would it then not be of the body?
{12:16} And if the ear were to say, “Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body,” would it then not be of the body?
{12:17} If the whole body were the eye, how would it hear? If the whole were hearing, how would it smell?
{12:18} But instead, God has placed the parts, each one of them, in the body, just as it has pleased him.
{12:19} So if they were all one part, how would it be a body?
{12:20} But instead, there are many parts, indeed, yet one body.
{12:21} And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need for your works.” And again, the head cannot say to the feet, “You are of no use to me.”
{12:22} In fact, so much more necessary are those parts of the body which seem to be weaker.
{12:23} And though we consider certain parts of the body to be less noble, we surround these with more abundant dignity, and so, those parts which are less presentable end up with more abundant respect.
{12:24} However, our presentable parts have no such need, since God has tempered the body together, distributing the more abundant honor to that which has the need,
{12:25} so that there might be no schism in the body, but instead the parts themselves might take care of one another.
{12:26} And so, if one part suffers anything, all the parts suffer with it. Or, if one part finds glory, all the parts rejoice with it.
{12:27} Now you are the body of Christ, and parts like any part.
{12:28} And indeed, God has established a certain order in the Church: first Apostles, second Prophets, third Teachers, next miracle-workers, and then the grace of healing, of helping others, of governing, of different kinds of languages, and of the interpretation of words.
{12:29} Are all Apostles? Are all Prophets? Are all Teachers?
{12:30} Are all workers of miracles? Do all have the grace of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret?
{12:31} But be zealous for the better charisms. And I reveal to you a yet more excellent way.
{13:1} If I were to speak in the language of men, or of Angels, yet not have charity, I would be like a clanging bell or a crashing cymbal.
{13:2} And if I have prophecy, and learn every mystery, and obtain all knowledge, and possess all faith, so that I could move mountains, yet not have charity, then I am nothing.
{13:3} And if I distribute all my goods in order to feed the poor, and if I hand over my body to be burned, yet not have charity, it offers me nothing.
{13:4} Charity is patient, is kind. Charity does not envy, does not act wrongly, is not inflated.
{13:5} Charity is not ambitious, does not seek for itself, is not provoked to anger, devises no evil.
{13:6} Charity does not rejoice over iniquity, but rejoices in truth.
{13:7} Charity suffers all, believes all, hopes all, endures all.
{13:8} Charity is never torn away, even if prophecies pass away, or languages cease, or knowledge is destroyed.
{13:9} For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part.
{13:10} But when the perfect arrives, the imperfect passes away.
{13:11} When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I understood like a child, I thought like a child. But when I became a man, I put aside the things of a child.
{13:12} Now we see through a glass darkly. But then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know, even as I am known.
{13:13} But for now, these three continue: faith, hope, and charity. And the greatest of these is charity.
{14:1} Pursue charity. Be zealous for spiritual things, but only so that you may prophesy.
{14:2} For whoever speaks in tongues, speaks not to men, but to God. For no one understands. Yet by the Spirit, he speaks mysteries.
{14:3} But whoever prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation.
{14:4} Whoever speaks in tongues edifies himself. But whoever prophesies edifies the Church.
{14:5} Now I want you all to speak in tongues, but more so to prophesy. For he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks in tongues, unless perhaps he interprets, so that the Church may receive edification.
{14:6} But now, brothers, if I were to come to you speaking in tongues, how would it benefit you, unless instead I speak to you in revelation, or in knowledge, or in prophecy, or in doctrine?
{14:7} Even those things that are without a soul can make sounds, whether it is a wind or a stringed instrument. But unless they present a distinction within the sounds, how will it be known which is from the pipe and which is from the string?
{14:8} For example, if the trumpet made an uncertain sound, who would prepare himself for battle?
{14:9} So it is with you also, for unless you utter with the tongue in plain speech, how will it be known what is said? For then you would be speaking into the air.
{14:10} Consider that there are so many different kinds of languages in this world, and yet none is without a voice.
{14:11} Therefore, if I do not understand the nature of the voice, then I shall be like a foreigner to the one with whom I am speaking; and he who is speaking will be like a foreigner to me.
{14:12} So it is with you also. And since you are zealous for what is spiritual, seek the edification of the Church, so that you may abound.
{14:13} For this reason, too, whoever speaks in tongues, let him pray for the interpretation.
{14:14} So, if I pray in tongues, my spirit prays, but my mind is without fruit.
{14:15} What is next? I should pray with the spirit, and also pray with the mind. I should sing psalms with the spirit, and also recite psalms with the mind.
{14:16} Otherwise, if you have blessed only with the spirit, how can someone, in a state of ignorance, add an “Amen” to your blessing? For he does not know what you are saying.
{14:17} In this case, certainly, you give thanks well, but the other person is not edified.
{14:18} I thank my God that I speak in tongues for all of you.
{14:19} But in the Church, I prefer to speak five words from my mind, so that I may instruct others also, rather than ten thousand words in tongues.
{14:20} Brothers, do not choose to have the minds of children. Instead, be free of malice like infants, but be mature in your minds.
{14:21} It is written in the law: “I will speak to this people with other tongues and other lips, and even so, they will not heed me, says the Lord.”
{14:22} And so, tongues are a sign, not for believers, but for unbelievers; and prophecies are not for unbelievers, but for believers.
{14:23} If then, the entire Church were to gather together as one, and if all were to speak in tongues, and then ignorant or unbelieving persons were to enter, would they not say that you were insane?
{14:24} But if everyone prophesies, and one who is ignorant or unbelieving enters, he may be convinced by it all, because he understands it all.
{14:25} The secrets of his heart are then made manifest. And so, falling to his face, he would adore God, proclaiming that God is truly among you.
{14:26} What is next, brothers? When you gather together, each one of you may have a psalm, or a doctrine, or a revelation, or a language, or an interpretation, but let everything be done for edification.
{14:27} If anyone is speaking in tongues, let there be only two, or at most three, and then in turn, and let someone interpret.
{14:28} But if there is no one to interpret, he should remain silent in the church, then he may speak when he is alone with God.
{14:29} And let the prophets speak, two or three, and let the others discern.
{14:30} But then, if something is revealed to another who is sitting, let the first one become silent.
{14:31} For you are all able to prophesy one at a time, so that all may learn and all may be encouraged.
{14:32} For the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets.
{14:33} And God is not of dissension, but of peace, just as I also teach in all the churches of the saints.
{14:34} Women should be silent in the churches. For it is not permitted for them to speak; but instead, they should be subordinate, as the law also says.
{14:35} And if they want to learn anything, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in church.
{14:36} So now, did the Word of God proceed from you? Or was it sent to you alone?
{14:37} If anyone seems to be a prophet or a spiritual person, he should understand these things which I am writing to you, that these things are the commandments of the Lord.
{14:38} If anyone does not recognize these things, he should not be recognized.
{14:39} And so, brothers, be zealous to prophesy, and do not prohibit speaking in tongues.
{14:40} But let everything be done respectfully and according to proper order.
{15:1} And so I make known to you, brothers, the Gospel that I preached to you, which you also received, and on which you stand.
{15:2} By the Gospel, too, you are being saved, if you hold to the understanding that I preached to you, lest you believe in vain.
{15:3} For I handed on to you, first of all, what I also received: that Christ died for our sins, according to the Scriptures;
{15:4} and that he was buried; and that he rose again on the third day, according to the Scriptures;
{15:5} and that he was seen by Cephas, and after that by the eleven.
{15:6} Next he was seen by more than five hundred brothers at one time, many of whom remain, even to the present time, although some have fallen asleep.
{15:7} Next, he was seen by James, then by all the Apostles.
{15:8} And last of all, he was seen also by me, as if I were someone born at the wrong time.
{15:9} For I am the least of the Apostles. I am not worthy to be called an Apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God.
{15:10} But, by the grace of God, I am what I am. And his grace in me has not been empty, since I have labored more abundantly than all of them. Yet it is not I, but the grace of God within me.
{15:11} For whether it is I or they: so we preach, and so you have believed.
{15:12} Now if Christ is preached, that he rose again from the dead, how is it that some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?
{15:13} For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not risen.
{15:14} And if Christ has not risen, then our preaching is useless, and your faith is also useless.
{15:15} Then, too, we would be found to be false witnesses of God, because we would have given testimony against God, saying that he had raised up Christ, when he had not raised him up, if, indeed, the dead do not rise again.
{15:16} For if the dead do not rise again, then neither has Christ risen again.
{15:17} But if Christ has not risen, then your faith is vain; for you would still be in your sins.
{15:18} Then, too, those who have fallen asleep in Christ would have perished.
{15:19} If we have hope in Christ for this life only, then we are more miserable than all men.
{15:20} But now Christ has risen again from the dead, as the first-fruits of those who sleep.
{15:21} For certainly, death came through a man. And so, the resurrection of the dead came through a man
{15:22} And just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be brought to life,
{15:23} but each one in his proper order: Christ, as the first-fruits, and next, those who are of Christ, who have believed in his advent.
{15:24} Afterwards is the end, when he will have handed over the kingdom to God the Father, when he will have emptied all principality, and authority, and power.
{15:25} For it is necessary for him to reign, until he has set all his enemies under his feet.
{15:26} Lastly, the enemy called death shall be destroyed. For he has subjected all things under his feet. And although he says,
{15:27} “All things have been subjected to him,” without doubt he does not include the One who has subjected all things to him.
{15:28} And when all things will have been subjected to him, then even the Son himself will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to him, so that God may be all in all.
{15:29} Otherwise, what will those who are being baptized for the dead do, if the dead do not rise again at all? Why then are they being baptized for them?
{15:30} Why also do we endure trials every hour?
{15:31} Daily I die, by means of your boasting, brothers: you whom I have in Christ Jesus our Lord.
{15:32} If, according to man, I fought with the beasts at Ephesus, how would that benefit me, if the dead do not rise again? “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we shall die.”
{15:33} Do not be led astray. Evil communication corrupts good morals.
{15:34} Be vigilant, you just ones, and do not be willing to sin. For certain persons have an ignorance of God. I say this to you with respect.
{15:35} But someone may say, “How do the dead rise again?” or, “What type of body do they return with?”
{15:36} How foolish! What you sow cannot be brought back to life, unless it first dies.
{15:37} And what you sow is not the body that will be in the future, but a bare grain, such as of wheat, or of some other grain.
{15:38} For God gives it a body according to his will, and according to each seed’s proper body.
{15:39} Not all flesh is the same flesh. But one is indeed of men, another truly is of beasts, another is of birds, and another is of fish.
{15:40} Also, there are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies. But while the one, certainly, has the glory of heaven, the other has the glory of earth.
{15:41} One has the brightness of the sun, another the brightness of the moon, and another the brightness of the stars. For even star differs from star in brightness.
{15:42} So it is also with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown in corruption shall rise to incorruption.
{15:43} What is sown in dishonor shall rise to glory. What is sown in weakness shall rise to power.
{15:44} What is sown with an animal body shall rise with a spiritual body. If there is an animal body, there is also a spiritual one.
{15:45} Just as it was written that the first man, Adam, was made with a living soul, so shall the last Adam be made with a spirit brought back to life.
{15:46} So what is, at first, not spiritual, but animal, next becomes spiritual.
{15:47} The first man, being earthly, was of the earth; the second man, being heavenly, will be of heaven.
{15:48} Such things as are like the earth are earthly; and such things as are like the heavens are heavenly.
{15:49} And so, just as we have carried the image of what is earthly, let us also carry the image of what is heavenly.
{15:50} Now I say this, brothers, because flesh and blood is not able to possess the kingdom of God; neither will what is corrupt possess what is incorrupt.
{15:51} Behold, I tell you a mystery. Certainly, we shall all rise again, but we shall not all be transformed:
{15:52} in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will rise up, incorruptible. And we shall be transformed.
{15:53} Thus, it is necessary for this corruptibility to be clothed with incorruptibility, and for this mortality to be clothed with immortality.
{15:54} And when this mortality has been clothed with immortality, then the word that was written shall occur: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
{15:55} “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
{15:56} Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
{15:57} But thanks be to God, who has given us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
{15:58} And so, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and unmovable, abounding always in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not useless in the Lord.
{16:1} Now concerning the collections which are made for the saints: just as I have arranged for the churches of Galatia, so should it also be done with you.
{16:2} On the first day of the week, the Sabbath, let each one of you take from himself, setting aside what will be well-pleasing to him, so that when I arrive, the collections will not have to be made then.
{16:3} And when I am present, whomever you shall approve through letters, these I shall send to bear your gifts to Jerusalem.
{16:4} And if it is fitting for me to go too, they shall go with me.
{16:5} Now I will visit you after I have passed through Macedonia. For I will pass through Macedonia.
{16:6} And perhaps I will stay with you, and even spend the winter, so that you may lead me on my way, whenever I depart.
{16:7} For I am not willing to see you now only in passing, since I hope that I may remain with you for some length of time, if the Lord permits.
{16:8} But I must remain at Ephesus, even until Pentecost.
{16:9} For a door, great and unavoidable, has opened to me, as well as many adversaries.
{16:10} Now if Timothy arrives, see to it that he may be among you without fear. For he is doing the work of the Lord, just as I also do.
{16:11} Therefore, let no one despise him. Instead, lead him on his way in peace, so that he may come to me. For I am awaiting him with the brothers.
{16:12} But concerning our brother, Apollo, I am letting you know that I pleaded with him greatly to go to you with the brothers, and clearly it was not his will to go at this time. But he will arrive when there is a space of time for him.
{16:13} Be vigilant. Stand with faith. Act manfully and be strengthened.
{16:14} Let all that is yours be immersed in charity.
{16:15} And I beg you, brothers: You know the house of Stephanus, and of Fortunatus, and of Achaicus, that they are the first-fruits of Achaia, and that they have dedicated themselves to the ministry of the saints.
{16:16} So you should be subject also to persons such as this, as well as to all who are cooperating and working with them.
{16:17} Now I rejoice in the presence of Stephanus and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because what was lacking in you, they have supplied.
{16:18} For they have refreshed my spirit and yours. Therefore, recognize persons such as this.
{16:19} The churches of Asia greet you. Aquila and Priscilla greet you greatly in the Lord, with the church of their household, where I also am a guest.
{16:20} All the brothers greet you. Greet one another with a holy kiss.
{16:21} This is a greeting from my own hand, Paul.
{16:22} If anyone does not love our Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema! Maran Atha.
{16:23} May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
{16:24} My charity is with all of you in Christ Jesus. Amen.
{1:1} Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy, a brother, to the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in all of Achaia:
{1:2} Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:3} Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation.
{1:4} He consoles us in all our tribulation, so that we too may be able to console those who are in any kind of distress, through the exhortation by which we also are being exhorted by God.
{1:5} For just as the Passion of Christ abounds in us, so also, through Christ, does our consolation abound.
{1:6} So, if we are in tribulation, it is for your exhortation and salvation, or if we are in consolation, it is for your consolation, or if we are exhorted, it is for your exhortation and salvation, which results in the patient endurance of the same passion which we also endure.
{1:7} So may our hope for you be made firm, knowing that, just as you are participants in the suffering, so also shall you be participants in the consolation.
{1:8} For we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, about our tribulation, which happened to us in Asia. For we were weighed down beyond measure, beyond our strength, so that we became weary, even of life itself.
{1:9} But we had within ourselves the response to death, so that we would not have faith in ourselves, but in God, who raises the dead.
{1:10} He has rescued us, and he is rescuing us, from great peril. In him, we hope that he will continue to rescue us.
{1:11} And you are assisting, with your prayers for us, so that from many persons, by that which is a gift in us, thanks may be given through many persons, because of us.
{1:12} For our glory is this: the testimony of our conscience, which is found in simplicity of heart and in sincerity toward God. And it is not with worldly wisdom, but in the grace of God, that we have conversed with this world, and more abundantly toward you.
{1:13} For we write nothing else to you other than what you have read and understood. And I hope that you will continue to understand, even unto the end.
{1:14} And just as you have acknowledged us in our role, that we are your glory, so also you are ours, unto the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:15} And with this confidence, I wanted to come to you sooner, so that you might have a second grace,
{1:16} and through you to pass into Macedonia, and to return to you again from Macedonia, and so be led by you on my way to Judea.
{1:17} Then, although I had intended this, did I act lightly? Or in the things that I consider, do I consider according to the flesh, so that there would be, with me, both Yes and No?
{1:18} But God is faithful, so our word, which was set before you, was not, in him, both Yes and No.
{1:19} For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you through us, through myself and Sylvanus and Timothy, was not Yes, and No; but was simply Yes in him.
{1:20} For whatever promises are of God are, in him, Yes. For this reason, too, through him: Amen to God for our glory.
{1:21} Now the One who confirms us with you in Christ, and who has anointed us, is God.
{1:22} And he has sealed us, and he has placed the pledge of the Spirit in our hearts.
{1:23} But I call God as a witness to my soul, that I was lenient with you, in that I did not return to Corinth:
{1:24} not because we have dominion over your faith, but because we are assistants of your joy. For by faith you stand.
{2:1} But I determined this within myself, not to return again to you in sorrow.
{2:2} For if I make you sorrowful, then who is it that can make me glad, except the one who is made sorrowful by me?
{2:3} And so, I wrote this same thing to you, so that I might not, when I arrive, add sorrow to sorrow for those with whom I ought to rejoice, having confidence in you in all things, so that my joy may be entirely yours.
{2:4} For with much tribulation and anguish of heart, I wrote to you with many tears: not so that you would be sorrowful, but so that you might know the charity that I have more abundantly toward you.
{2:5} But if anyone has brought sorrow, he has not sorrowed me. Yet, for my part, this is so that I might not burden all of you.
{2:6} Let this rebuke be sufficient for someone like this, for it has been brought by many.
{2:7} So then, to the contrary, you should be more forgiving and consoling, lest perhaps someone like this may be overwhelmed with excessive sorrow.
{2:8} Because of this, I beg you to confirm your charity toward him.
{2:9} It was for this reason, also, that I wrote, so that I might know, by testing you, whether you would be obedient in all things.
{2:10} But anyone whom you have forgiven of anything, I also forgive. And then, too, anyone I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, it was done in the person of Christ for your sakes,
{2:11} so that we would not be circumvented by Satan. For we are not ignorant of his intentions.
{2:12} And when I had arrived at Troas, because of the Gospel of Christ, and a door had opened to me in the Lord,
{2:13} I had no rest within my spirit, because I was not able to find Titus, my brother. So, saying goodbye to them, I set out for Macedonia.
{2:14} But thanks be to God, who always brings triumph to us in Christ Jesus, and who manifests the fragrance of his knowledge through us in every place.
{2:15} For we are the sweet fragrance of Christ for God, both with those who are being saved and with those who are perishing.
{2:16} To the one, certainly, the fragrance is of death unto death. But to the other, the fragrance is of life unto life. And concerning these things, who is so suitable?
{2:17} For we are not like many others, adulterating the Word of God. But instead, we speak with sincerity: from God, before God, and in Christ.
{3:1} Must we begin again to commend ourselves? Or are we in need (as some are) of epistles of commendation for you, or from you?
{3:2} You are our Epistle, written in our hearts, which is known and read by all men.
{3:3} It has been made manifest that you are the Epistle of Christ, ministered by us, and written down, not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God, and not on tablets of stone, but on the fleshly tablets of the heart.
{3:4} And we have such faith, through Christ, toward God.
{3:5} It is not that we are adequate to think anything of ourselves, as if anything was from us. But our adequacy is from God.
{3:6} And he has made us suitable ministers of the New Testament, not in the letter, but in the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
{3:7} But if the ministration of death, engraved with letters upon stones, was in glory, (so much so that the sons of Israel were not able to gaze intently upon the face of Moses, because of the glory of his countenance) even though this ministration was ineffective,
{3:8} how could the ministration of the Spirit not be in greater glory?
{3:9} For if the ministration of condemnation is with glory, so much more is the ministration of justice abundant in glory.
{3:10} And neither was it glorified by means of an excellent glory, though it was made illustrious in its own way.
{3:11} For if even what was temporary has its glory, then what is lasting has an even greater glory.
{3:12} Therefore, having such a hope, we act with much confidence,
{3:13} and not as Moses did, in placing a veil over his face, so that the sons of Israel would not gaze intently at his face. This was ineffective,
{3:14} for their minds were obtuse. And, even until this present day, the very same veil, in the readings from the Old Testament, remains not taken away (though, in Christ, it is taken away).
{3:15} But even until today, when Moses is read, a veil is still set over their hearts.
{3:16} But when they will have been converted to the Lord, then the veil shall be taken away.
{3:17} Now the Spirit is Lord. And wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
{3:18} Yet truly, all of us, as we gaze upon the unveiled glory of the face of the Lord, are transfigured into the same image, from one glory to another. And this is done by the Spirit of the Lord.
{4:1} Therefore, since we have this ministry, and in as much as we have obtained mercy for ourselves, we are not inadequate.
{4:2} For we renounce dishonorable and hidden acts, not walking by craftiness, nor by adulterating the Word of God. Instead, by the manifestation of truth, we commend ourselves to the conscience of each man before God.
{4:3} But if our Gospel is in some way hidden, it is hidden to those who are perishing.
{4:4} As for them, the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, would not shine in them.
{4:5} For we are not preaching about ourselves, but about Jesus Christ our Lord. We are merely your servants through Jesus.
{4:6} For God, who told the light to shine out of darkness, has shined a light into our hearts, to illuminate the knowledge of the splendor of God, in the person of Christ Jesus.
{4:7} But we hold this treasure in earthen vessels, so that what is sublime may be of the power of God, and not of us.
{4:8} In all things, we endure tribulation, yet we are not in anguish. We are constrained, yet we are not destitute.
{4:9} We suffer persecution, yet we have not been abandoned. We are thrown down, yet we do not perish.
{4:10} We ever carry around the mortification of Jesus in our bodies, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.
{4:11} For we who live are ever handed over unto death for the sake of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our mortal flesh.
{4:12} Therefore, death is at work in us, and life is at work in you.
{4:13} But we have the same Spirit of faith. And just as it is written, “I believed, and for that reason I spoke,” so we also believe, and for that reason, we also speak.
{4:14} For we know that the One who raised up Jesus will raise us up also with Jesus and will place us with you.
{4:15} Thus, all is for you, so that grace, abounding through many in thanksgiving, may abound to the glory of God.
{4:16} For this reason, we are not insufficient. But it is as though our outer man is corrupted, while our inner man is renewed from day to day.
{4:17} For though our tribulation is, at the present time, brief and light, it accomplishes in us the weight of a sublime eternal glory, beyond measure.
{4:18} And we are contemplating, not the things that are seen, but the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are temporal, whereas the things that are not seen are eternal.
{5:1} For we know that, when our earthly house of this habitation is dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in heaven.
{5:2} And for this reason also, we groan, desiring to be clothed from above with our habitation from heaven.
{5:3} If we are so clothed, then we will not be found to be naked.
{5:4} Then too, we who are in this tabernacle groan under the burden, because we do not want to be stripped, but rather to be clothed from above, so that what is mortal may be absorbed by life.
{5:5} Now the One who accomplishes this very thing in us is God, who has given us the pledge of the Spirit.
{5:6} Therefore, we are ever confident, knowing that, while we are in the body, we are on a pilgrimage in the Lord.
{5:7} For we walk by means of faith, and not by sight.
{5:8} So we are confident, and we have the good will to be on a pilgrimage in the body, so as to be present to the Lord.
{5:9} And thus we struggle, whether absent or present, to please him.
{5:10} For it is necessary for us to be manifested before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive the proper things of the body, according to his behavior, whether it was good or evil.
{5:11} Therefore, having knowledge of the fear of the Lord, we appeal to men, but we are made manifest before God. Yet I hope, too, that we may be made manifest in your consciences.
{5:12} We are not commending ourselves again to you, but rather we are presenting you with an opportunity to glory because of us, when you deal with those who glory in face, and not in heart.
{5:13} For if we are excessive in mind, it is for God; but if we are sober, it is for you.
{5:14} For the charity of Christ urges us on, in consideration of this: that if one died for all, then all have died.
{5:15} And Christ died for all, so that even those who live might not now live for themselves, but for him who died for them and who rose again.
{5:16} And so, from now on, we know no one according to the flesh. And though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him in this way no longer.
{5:17} So if anyone is a new creature in Christ, what is old has passed away. Behold, all things have been made new.
{5:18} But all is of God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ, and who has given us the ministry of reconciliation.
{5:19} For certainly God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, not charging them with their sins. And he has placed in us the Word of reconciliation.
{5:20} Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, so that God is exhorting through us. We beseech you for Christ: be reconciled to God.
{5:21} For God made him who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the justice of God in him.
{6:1} But, as a help to you, we exhort you not to receive the grace of God in vain.
{6:2} For he says: “In a favorable time, I heeded you; and on the day of salvation, I helped you.” Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
{6:3} May we never give offense to anyone, so that our ministry may not be disparaged.
{6:4} But in all things, let us exhibit ourselves as ministers of God with great patience: through tribulation, difficulties, and distress;
{6:5} despite wounds, imprisonment, and rebellion; with hard work, vigilance, and fasting;
{6:6} by chastity, knowledge, and longsuffering; in pleasantness, in the Holy Spirit, and in unfeigned charity;
{6:7} with the Word of truth, with the power of God, and with the armor of justice to the right and to the left;
{6:8} through honor and dishonor, despite good reports and bad, whether seen as deceivers or truth-tellers, whether ignored or acknowledged;
{6:9} as if dying and yet truly alive; as if chastised and yet not subdued;
{6:10} as if sorrowful and yet always rejoicing; as if needy and yet enriching many; as if having nothing and possessing everything.
{6:11} Our mouth is open to you, O Corinthians; our heart is enlarged.
{6:12} You are not narrowed by us, but it is by your own inner selves that you are narrowed.
{6:13} But since we have the same recompense, (I am speaking as if to my own sons), you, too, should be enlarged.
{6:14} Do not choose to bear the yoke with unbelievers. For how can justice be a participant with iniquity? Or how can the fellowship of light be a participant with darkness?
{6:15} And how can Christ join together with Belial? Or what part do the faithful have with the unfaithful?
{6:16} And what consensus does the temple of God have with idols? For you are the temple of the living God, just as God says: “I will dwell with them, and I will walk among them. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
{6:17} Because of this, you must depart from their midst and be separate, says the Lord. And do not touch what is unclean.
{6:18} Then I will accept you. And I will be a Father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.”
{7:1} Therefore, having these promises, most beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of the flesh and of the spirit, perfecting sanctification in the fear of God.
{7:2} Consider us. We have injured no one; we have corrupted no one; we have defrauded no one.
{7:3} I am not saying this to your condemnation. For we have told you before that you are in our hearts: to die together and to live together.
{7:4} Great is my confidence in you. Great is my glorying over you. I have been filled with consolation. I have a superabundant joy throughout all our tribulation.
{7:5} Then, too, when we had arrived in Macedonia, our flesh had no rest. Instead, we suffered every tribulation: exterior conflicts, interior fears.
{7:6} But God, who consoles the humble, consoled us by the arrival of Titus,
{7:7} and not only by his arrival, but also by the consolation with which he was consoled among you. For he brought to us your desire, your weeping, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced all the more.
{7:8} For though I made you sorrowful by my epistle, I do not repent. And if I did repent, but only for a time, having realized that the same epistle made you sorrowful,
{7:9} now I am glad: not because you were sorrowful, but because you were sorrowful unto repentance. For you became sorrowful for God, so that you might not suffer any harm from us.
{7:10} For the sorrow that is according to God accomplishes a repentance which is steadfast unto salvation. But the sorrow that is of the world accomplishes death.
{7:11} So consider this same idea, being sorrowful according to God, and what great solicitude it accomplishes in you: including protection, and indignation, and fear, and desire, and zeal, and vindication. In all things, you have shown yourselves to be uncorrupted by this sorrow.
{7:12} And so, though I wrote to you, it was not because of him who caused the injury, nor because of him who suffered from it, but so as to manifest our solicitude, which we have for you before God.
{7:13} Therefore, we have been consoled. But in our consolation, we have rejoiced even more abundantly over the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by all of you.
{7:14} And if I have gloried in anything to him about you, I have not been put to shame. But, just as we have spoken all things to you in truth, so also our glorying before Titus has been the truth.
{7:15} And his feelings are now more abundant toward you, since he remembers the obedience of you all, and how you received him with fear and trembling.
{7:16} I rejoice that in all things I have confidence in you.
{8:1} And so we are making known to you, brothers, the grace of God that has been given in the churches of Macedonia.
{8:2} For within a great experience of tribulation, they have had an abundance of joy, and their profound poverty has only increased the richness of their simplicity.
{8:3} And I bear witness to them, that they were willing to accept what was in accord with their ability, and even what was beyond their ability.
{8:4} For they were begging us, with great exhortation, for the grace and the communication of the ministry that is with the saints.
{8:5} And this is beyond what we had hoped, since they gave themselves, first of all to the Lord, and then also to us, through the will of God,
{8:6} so much so that we petitioned Titus, that in the same manner as he had begun, he would also complete in you this same grace.
{8:7} But, just as in all things you abound in faith and in word and in knowledge and in all solicitude, and even more so in your charity toward us, so also may you abound in this grace.
{8:8} I am speaking, not commanding. But through the solicitude of others, I approve of the good character of your charity.
{8:9} For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, he became poor for your sakes, so that through his poverty, you might become rich.
{8:10} And about this, I give my counsel. For this is useful to those of you who, only a year earlier, had just begun to act, or even to be willing to act.
{8:11} So, truly now, accomplish this in deed, so that, in the same manner as your willing mind is prompted, you may also act, out of that which you have.
{8:12} For when the will is prompted, it receives according to what that person has, not according to what that person does not have.
{8:13} And it is not that others should be relieved, while you are troubled, but that there should be an equality.
{8:14} In this present time, let your abundance supply their need, so that their abundance may also supply your need, in order that there may be an equality, just as it was written:
{8:15} “He with more did not have too much; and he with less did not have too little.”
{8:16} But thanks be to God, who has granted to the heart of Titus, this same solicitude for you.
{8:17} For certainly, he accepted the exhortation. But since he was more solicitous, he went to you of his own free will.
{8:18} And we have even sent with him a brother whose praise accompanies the Gospel throughout all the churches.
{8:19} And not only that, but he was also chosen by the churches to be a companion for our sojourn in this grace, which is ministered by us with our determined will, to the glory of the Lord.
{8:20} So let us avoid this, lest anyone disparage us over the abundance that is ministered by us.
{8:21} For we provide for what is good, not only in the sight of God, but also in the sight of men.
{8:22} And we have also sent with them our brother, whom we have proven to be frequently solicitous in many matters. But now there is a greater solicitousness, which is greatly entrusted to you;
{8:23} and whether it concerns Titus, who is a companion to me and a helper to you, or whether it concerns our brothers, the Apostles of the churches, it is to the glory of Christ.
{8:24} Therefore, in the sight of the churches, show them the proof of your charity and of our glorying about you.
{9:1} Now, concerning the ministry that is done toward the saints, it is not necessary for me to write to you.
{9:2} For I know your willing mind. I glory about you, concerning this, to the Macedonians. For Achaia has also been prepared, for the past year. And your example has inspired very many others.
{9:3} Now I have sent the brothers, so that what we glory about concerning you might not be empty in this matter, in order that (as I have explained) you may be prepared.
{9:4} Otherwise, if the Macedonians arrive with me and find you unprepared, we (not to mention you) would be ashamed in this matter.
{9:5} Therefore, I considered it necessary to ask the brothers to go to you in advance and to prepare this blessing as promised, and in this way, you may be ready as a blessing, not as an excess.
{9:6} But I say this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. And whoever sows with blessings shall also reap from blessings:
{9:7} each one giving, just as he has determined in his heart, neither out of sadness, nor out of obligation. For God loves a cheerful giver.
{9:8} And God is able to make every grace abound in you, so that, always having what you need in all things, you may abound unto every good work,
{9:9} just as it was written: “He has distributed widely, he has given to the poor; his justice remains from age to age.”
{9:10} And he who ministers seed to the sower will offer you bread to eat, and will multiply your seed, and will increase the growth of the fruits of your justice.
{9:11} So then, having been enriched in all things, you may abound in all simplicity, which works thanksgiving to God through us.
{9:12} For the ministration of this office not only supplies whatever the saints need, but also abounds through many thanksgivings in the Lord.
{9:13} And so, through the evidence of this ministry, you glorify God by the obedience of your confession in the Gospel of Christ, and by the simplicity of your communion with them and with everyone,
{9:14} and they offer prayers for you, being solicitous about you, because of the excellent grace of God within you.
{9:15} Thanks be to God for his ineffable gift.
{10:1} But I myself, Paul, am begging you, through the meekness and modesty of Christ. I am certainly, by appearances, lowly among you, yet I have confidence in you, even while I am absent.
{10:2} So I am petitioning you, lest I be bold, when present, with that bold confidence that I am considered to have by certain ones who judge us as if we were walking according to the flesh.
{10:3} For though we walk in the flesh, we do not battle according to the flesh.
{10:4} For the weapons of our battles are not carnal, yet still they are powerful with God, unto the destruction of fortifications: tearing down every counsel
{10:5} and height that extols itself contrary to the wisdom of God, and leading every intellect into the captivity of obedience to Christ,
{10:6} and standing ready to repudiate every disobedience, when your own obedience has been fulfilled.
{10:7} Consider the things that are in accord with appearances. If anyone trusts that by these things he belongs to Christ, let him reconsider this within himself. For just as he belongs to Christ, so also do we.
{10:8} And if I were even to glory somewhat more about our authority, which the Lord has given to us for your edification, and not for your destruction, I should not be ashamed.
{10:9} But let it not be said that I am scaring you by means of epistles.
{10:10} For they say: “His epistles, indeed, are weighty and strong. But his bodily presence is weak, and his speech is contemptible.”
{10:11} Let someone like this realize that whatever we are in word through epistles, while absent: we are much the same in deed, while present.
{10:12} For we would not dare to interpose or compare ourselves with certain ones who commend themselves. But we measure ourselves by ourselves, and we compare ourselves with ourselves.
{10:13} Thus, we will not glory beyond our measure, but rather according to the measure of the limit which God has measured out to us, a measure which extends even to you.
{10:14} For we are not overextending ourselves, as if we are not able to reach as far as you are able. For we have gone even as far as you have in the Gospel of Christ.
{10:15} We are not glorying immeasurably over the labors of others. Instead, we hold on to the hope of your growing faith, so as to be magnified in you, according to our own limits, but in abundance,
{10:16} and even so as to evangelize in those places that are beyond you, not in order to glory in the measure of others, but rather in those things which have already been prepared.
{10:17} But whoever glories, let him glory in the Lord.
{10:18} For it is not he who commends himself who is approved, but rather he whom God commends.
{11:1} I wish that you would endure a small amount of my foolishness, so as to bear with me.
{11:2} For I am jealous toward you, with the jealousy of God. And I have espoused you to one husband, offering you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
{11:3} But I am afraid lest, as the serpent led astray Eve by his cleverness, so your minds might be corrupted and might fall away from the simplicity which is in Christ.
{11:4} For if anyone arrives preaching another Christ, one whom we have not preached; or if you receive another Spirit, one whom you have not received; or another Gospel, one which you have not been given: you might permit him to guide you.
{11:5} For I consider that I have done nothing less than the great Apostles.
{11:6} For although I may be unskilled in speech, yet I am not so in knowledge. But, in all things, we have been made manifest to you.
{11:7} Or did I commit a sin by humbling myself so that you would be exalted? For I preached the Gospel of God to you freely.
{11:8} I have taken from other churches, receiving a stipend from them to the benefit of your ministry.
{11:9} And when I was with you and in need, I was burdensome to no one. For the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied whatever was lacking to me. And in all things, I have kept myself, and I will keep myself, from being burdensome to you.
{11:10} The truth of Christ is in me, and so this glorying shall not be broken away from me in the regions of Achaia.
{11:11} Why so? Is it because I do not love you? God knows I do.
{11:12} But what I am doing, I will continue to do, so that I may take away an opportunity from those who desire an opportunity by which they may glory, so as to be considered to be like us.
{11:13} For false apostles, such as these deceitful workers, are presenting themselves as if they were Apostles of Christ.
{11:14} And no wonder, for even Satan presents himself as if he were an Angel of light.
{11:15} Therefore, it is no great thing if his ministers present themselves as if they were ministers of justice, for their end shall be according to their works.
{11:16} I say again. And let no one consider me to be foolish. Or, at least, accept me as if I were foolish, so that I also may glory a small amount.
{11:17} What I am saying is not said according to God, but as if in foolishness, in this matter of glorying.
{11:18} Since so many glory according to the flesh, I will glory also.
{11:19} For you freely accept the foolish, though you yourselves claim to be wise.
{11:20} For you permit it when someone guides you into servitude, even if he devours you, even if he takes from you, even if he is extolled, even if he strikes you repeatedly on the face.
{11:21} I speak according to disgrace, as if we had been weak in this regard. In this matter, (I speak in foolishness) if anyone dares, I dare also.
{11:22} They are Hebrews; so am I. They are Israelites; so am I. They are the offspring of Abraham; so am I.
{11:23} They are the ministers of Christ (I speak as if I were less wise); more so am I: with many more labors, with numerous imprisonments, with wounds beyond measure, with frequent mortifications.
{11:24} On five occasions, I received forty stripes, less one, from the Jews.
{11:25} Three times, I was beaten with rods. One time, I was stoned. Three times, I was shipwrecked. For a night and a day, I was in the depths of the sea.
{11:26} I have made frequent journeys, through dangerous waters, in danger of robbers, in danger from my own nation, in danger from the Gentiles, in danger in the city, in danger in the wilderness, in danger in the sea, in danger from false brothers,
{11:27} with hardships and difficulties, with much vigilance, in hunger and thirst, with frequent fasts, in cold and nakedness,
{11:28} and, in addition to these things, which are external: there is my daily earnestness and solicitude for all the churches.
{11:29} Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is scandalized, and I am not being burned?
{11:30} If it is necessary to glory, I will glory of the things that concern my weaknesses.
{11:31} The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying.
{11:32} At Damascus, the governor of the nation under Aretas the king, watched over the city of the Damascenes, so as to apprehend me.
{11:33} And, through a window, I was let down along the wall in a basket; and so I escaped his hands.
{12:1} If it is necessary (though certainly not expedient) to glory, then I will next tell of visions and revelations from the Lord.
{12:2} I know a man in Christ, who, more than fourteen years ago (whether in the body, I do not know, or out of the body, I do not know: God knows), was enraptured to the third heaven.
{12:3} And I know a certain man (whether in the body, or out of the body, I do not know: God knows),
{12:4} who was enraptured into Paradise. And he heard words of mystery, which it is not permitted for man to speak.
{12:5} On behalf of someone like this, I will glory. But on behalf of myself, I will not glory about anything, except my infirmities.
{12:6} For even though I am willing to glory, I will not be foolish. But I will speak the truth. Yet I will do so sparingly, lest anyone may consider me to be anything more than what he sees in me, or anything more than what he hears from me.
{12:7} And lest the greatness of the revelations should extol me, there was given to me a prodding in my flesh: an angel of Satan, who struck me repeatedly.
{12:8} Because of this, three times I petitioned the Lord that it might be taken away from me.
{12:9} And he said to me: “My grace is sufficient for you. For virtue is perfected in weakness.” And so, willingly shall I glory in my weaknesses, so that the virtue of Christ may live within me.
{12:10} Because of this, I am pleased in my infirmity: in reproaches, in difficulties, in persecutions, in distresses, for the sake of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am powerful.
{12:11} I have become foolish; you have compelled me. For I ought to have been commended by you. For I have been nothing less than those who claim to be above the measure of Apostles, even though I am nothing.
{12:12} And the seal of my Apostleship has been set over you, with all patience, with signs and wonders and miracles.
{12:13} For what is there that you have had which is less than the other churches, except that I myself did not burden you? Forgive me this injury.
{12:14} Behold, this is the third time I have prepared to come to you, and yet I will not be a burden to you. For I am seeking not the things that are yours, but you yourselves. And neither should the children store up for the parents, but the parents for the children.
{12:15} And so, very willingly, I will spend and exhaust myself for the sake of your souls, loving you more, while being loved less.
{12:16} And so be it. I have not burdened you, but instead, being astute, I obtained you by guile.
{12:17} And yet, did I defraud you by means of any of those whom I sent to you?
{12:18} I asked for Titus, and I sent a brother with him. Did Titus defraud you? Did we not walk with the same spirit? Did we not walk in the same steps?
{12:19} Have you ever thought that we should explain ourselves to you? We speak in the sight of God, in Christ. But all things, most beloved, are for your edification.
{12:20} Yet I fear, lest perhaps, when I have arrived, I might not find you such as I would want, and I might be found by you, such as you would not want. For perhaps there may be among you: contention, envy, animosity, dissension, detraction, whispering, self-exaltation, and rebellion.
{12:21} If so, then, when I have arrived, God may again humble me among you. And so, I mourn for the many who sinned beforehand, and did not repent, over the lust and fornication and homosexuality, which they have committed.
{13:1} Behold, this is the third time that I am coming to you. By the mouth of two or three witnesses, every word shall stand.
{13:2} I have preached when present, and I will preach now while absent, to those who sinned before, and to all the others, because, when I arrive again, I will not be lenient with you.
{13:3} Do you seek evidence that it is Christ who speaks in me, who is not weak with you, but is powerful with you?
{13:4} For although he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by the power of God. And yes, we are weak in him. But we shall live with him by the power of God among you.
{13:5} Test yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Examine yourselves. Or do you yourselves not know whether Christ Jesus is in you? But perhaps you are reprobates.
{13:6} But I hope you know that we ourselves are not reprobates.
{13:7} Now we pray to God that you shall do nothing evil, not so that we may seem to be approved, but so that you may do what is good, even if we seem like reprobates.
{13:8} For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth.
{13:9} For we rejoice that we are weak, while you are strong. This is also what we pray for: your perfection.
{13:10} Therefore, I write these things while absent, so that, when present, I may not have to act more harshly, according to the authority which the Lord has given to me, for edification and not for destruction.
{13:11} As to the rest, brothers, rejoice, be perfect, be encouraged, have the same mind, have peace. And so the God of peace and love will be with you.
{13:12} Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you.
{13:13} The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the charity of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.
{1:1} Paul, an Apostle, not from men and not through man, but through Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead,
{1:2} and all the brothers who are with me: to the churches of Galatia.
{1:3} Grace and peace to you from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ,
{1:4} who gave himself on behalf of our sins, so that he might deliver us from this present wicked age, according to the will of God our Father.
{1:5} To him is glory forever and ever. Amen.
{1:6} I wonder that you have been so quickly transferred, from him who called you into the grace of Christ, over to another gospel.
{1:7} For there is no other, except that there are some persons who disturb you and who want to overturn the Gospel of Christ.
{1:8} But if anyone, even we ourselves or an Angel from Heaven, were to preach to you a gospel other than the one that we have preached to you, let him be anathema.
{1:9} Just as we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone has preached a gospel to you, other than that which you have received, let him be anathema.
{1:10} For am I now persuading men, or God? Or, am I seeking to please men? If I still were pleasing men, then I would not be a servant of Christ.
{1:11} For I would have you understand, brothers, that the Gospel which has been preached by me is not according to man.
{1:12} And I did not receive it from man, nor did I learn it, except through the revelation of Jesus Christ.
{1:13} For you have heard of my former behavior within Judaism: that, beyond measure, I persecuted the Church of God and fought against Her.
{1:14} And I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my equals among my own kind, having proven to be more abundant in zeal toward the traditions of my fathers.
{1:15} But, when it pleased him who, from my mother’s womb, had set me apart, and who has called me by his grace,
{1:16} to reveal his Son within me, so that I might evangelize him among the Gentiles, I did not next seek the consent of flesh and blood.
{1:17} Neither did I go to Jerusalem, to those who were Apostles before me. Instead, I went into Arabia, and next I returned to Damascus.
{1:18} And then, after three years, I went to Jerusalem to see Peter; and I stayed with him for fifteen days.
{1:19} But I saw none of the other Apostles, except James, the brother of the Lord.
{1:20} Now what I am writing to you: behold, before God, I am not lying.
{1:21} Next, I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia.
{1:22} But I was unknown by face to the churches of Judea, which were in Christ.
{1:23} For they had only heard that: “He, who formerly persecuted us, now evangelizes the faith which he once fought.”
{1:24} And they glorified God in me.
{2:1} Next, after fourteen years, I went up again to Jerusalem, taking with me Barnabas and Titus.
{2:2} And I went up according to revelation, and I debated with them about the Gospel that I am preaching among the Gentiles, but away from those who were pretending to be something, lest perhaps I might run, or have run, in vain.
{2:3} But even Titus, who was with me, though he was a Gentile, was not compelled to be circumcised,
{2:4} but only because of false brothers, who were brought in unknowingly. They entered secretly to spy on our liberty, which we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might reduce us to servitude.
{2:5} We did not yield to them in subjection, even for an hour, in order that the truth of the Gospel would remain with you,
{2:6} and away from those who were pretending to be something. (Whatever they might have been once, it means nothing to me. God does not accept the reputation of a man.) And those who were claiming to be something had nothing to offer me.
{2:7} But it was to the contrary, since they had seen that the Gospel to the uncircumcised was entrusted to me, just as the Gospel to the circumcised was entrusted to Peter.
{2:8} For he who was working the Apostleship to the circumcised in Peter, was also working in me among the Gentiles.
{2:9} And so, when they had acknowledged the grace that was given to me, James and Cephas and John, who seemed like pillars, gave to me and to Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, so that we would go to the Gentiles, while they went to the circumcised,
{2:10} asking only that we should be mindful of the poor, which was the very thing that I also was solicitous to do.
{2:11} But when Cephas had arrived at Antioch, I stood against him to his face, because he was blameworthy.
{2:12} For before certain ones arrived from James, he ate with the Gentiles. But when they had arrived, he drew apart and separated himself, fearing those who were of the circumcision.
{2:13} And the other Jews consented to his pretense, so that even Barnabas was led by them into that falseness.
{2:14} But when I had seen that they were not walking correctly, by the truth of the Gospel, I said to Cephas in front of everyone: “If you, while you are a Jew, are living like the Gentiles and not the Jews, how is it that you compel the Gentiles to keep the customs of the Jews?”
{2:15} By nature, we are Jews, and not of the Gentiles, sinners.
{2:16} And we know that man is not justified by the works of the law, but only by the faith of Jesus Christ. And so we believe in Christ Jesus, in order that we may be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law. For no flesh will be justified by the works of the law.
{2:17} But if, while seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves are also found to be sinners, would then Christ be the minister of sin? Let it not be so!
{2:18} For if I rebuild the things that I have destroyed, I establish myself as a prevaricator.
{2:19} For through the law, I have become dead to the law, so that I may live for God. I have been nailed to the cross with Christ.
{2:20} I live; yet now, it is not I, but truly Christ, who lives in me. And though I live now in the flesh, I live in the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and who delivered himself for me.
{2:21} I do not reject the grace of God. For if justice is through the law, then Christ died in vain.
{3:1} O senseless Galatians, who has so fascinated you that you would not obey the truth, even though Jesus Christ has been presented before your eyes, crucified among you?
{3:2} I wish to know only this from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
{3:3} Are you so foolish that, though you began with the Spirit, you would now end with the flesh?
{3:4} Have you been suffering so much without a reason? If so, then it is in vain.
{3:5} Therefore, does he who distributes the Spirit to you, and who works miracles among you, act by the works of the law, or by the hearing of the faith?
{3:6} It is just as it was written: “Abraham believed God, and it was reputed to him unto justice.”
{3:7} Therefore, know that those who are of faith, these are the sons of Abraham.
{3:8} Thus Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, foretold to Abraham: “All nations shall be blessed in you.”
{3:9} And so, those who are of faith shall be blessed with faithful Abraham.
{3:10} For as many as are of the works of the law are under a curse. For it has been written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all the things that have been written in the book of the Law, so as to do them.”
{3:11} And, since in the law no one is justified with God, this is manifest: “For the just man lives by faith.”
{3:12} But the law is not of faith; instead, “he who does these things shall live by them.”
{3:13} Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, since he became a curse for us. For it is written: “Cursed is anyone who hangs from a tree.”
{3:14} This was so that the blessing of Abraham might reach the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, in order that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
{3:15} Brothers (I speak according to man), if a man’s testament has been confirmed, no one would reject it or add to it.
{3:16} The promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. He did not say, “and to descendants,” as if to many, but instead, as if to one, he said, “and to your offspring,” who is Christ.
{3:17} But I say this: the testament confirmed by God, which, after four hundred and thirty years became the Law, does not nullify, so as to make the promise empty.
{3:18} For if the inheritance is of the law, then it is no longer of the promise. But God bestowed it to Abraham through the promise.
{3:19} Why, then, was there a law? It was established because of transgressions, until the offspring would arrive, to whom he made the promise, ordained by Angels through the hand of a mediator.
{3:20} Now a mediator is not of one, yet God is one.
{3:21} So then, was the law contrary to the promises of God? Let it not be so! For if a law had been given, which was able to give life, truly justice would be of the law.
{3:22} But Scripture has enclosed everything under sin, so that the promise, by the faith of Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.
{3:23} But before the faith arrived, we were preserved by being enclosed under the law, unto that faith which was to be revealed.
{3:24} And so the law was our guardian in Christ, in order that we might be justified by faith.
{3:25} But now that faith has arrived, we are no longer under a guardian.
{3:26} For you are all sons of God, through the faith which is in Christ Jesus.
{3:27} For as many of you as have been baptized in Christ have become clothed with Christ.
{3:28} There is neither Jew nor Greek; there is neither servant nor free; there is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.
{3:29} And if you are Christ’s, then are you the offspring of Abraham, heirs according to the promise.
{4:1} But I say that, during the time an heir is a child, he is no different from a servant, even though he is the owner of everything.
{4:2} For he is under tutors and caretakers, until the time which was predetermined by the father.
{4:3} So also we, when we were children, were subservient to the influences of the world.
{4:4} But when the fullness of time arrived, God sent his Son, formed from a woman, formed under the law,
{4:5} so that he might redeem those who were under the law, in order that we might receive the adoption of sons.
{4:6} Therefore, because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying out: “Abba, Father.”
{4:7} And so now he is not a servant, but a son. But if he is a son, then he is also an heir, through God.
{4:8} But then, certainly, while ignorant of God, you served those who, by nature, are not gods.
{4:9} But now, since you have known God, or rather, since you have been known by God: how can you turn away again, to weak and destitute influences, which you desire to serve anew?
{4:10} You serve the days, and months, and times, and years.
{4:11} I am afraid for you, lest perhaps I may have labored in vain among you.
{4:12} Brothers, I beg you. Be as I am. For I, too, am like you. You have not injured me at all.
{4:13} But you know that, in the weakness of the flesh, I have preached the Gospel to you for a long time, and that your trials are in my flesh.
{4:14} You did not despise or reject me. But instead, you accepted me like an Angel of God, even like Christ Jesus.
{4:15} Therefore, where is your happiness? For I offer to you testimony that, if it could be done, you would have plucked out your own eyes and would have given them to me.
{4:16} So then, have I become your enemy by telling you the truth?
{4:17} They are not imitating you well. And they are willing to exclude you, so that you might imitate them.
{4:18} But be imitators of what is good, always in a good way, and not only when I am present with you.
{4:19} My little sons, I am giving birth to you again, until Christ is formed in you.
{4:20} And I would willingly be present with you, even now. But I would alter my voice: for I am ashamed of you.
{4:21} Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, have you not read the law?
{4:22} For it is written that Abraham had two sons: one by a servant woman, and one by a free woman.
{4:23} And he who was of the servant was born according to the flesh. But he who was of the free woman was born by the promise.
{4:24} These things are said through an allegory. For these represent the two testaments. Certainly the one, on Mount Sinai, gives birth unto servitude, which is Hagar.
{4:25} For Sinai is a mountain in Arabia, which is related to the Jerusalem of the present time, and it serves with her sons.
{4:26} But that Jerusalem which is above is free; the same is our mother.
{4:27} For it was written: “Rejoice, O barren one, though you do not conceive. Burst forth and cry out, though you do not give birth. For many are the children of the desolate, even more than of her who has a husband.”
{4:28} Now we, brothers, like Isaac, are sons of the promise.
{4:29} But just as then, he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so also it is now.
{4:30} And what does Scripture say? “Cast out the woman servant and her son. For the son of a servant women shall not be an heir with the son of a free woman.”
{4:31} And so, brothers, we are not the sons of the servant woman, but rather of the free woman. And this is the freedom with which Christ has set us free.
{5:1} Stand firm, and do not be willing to be again held by the yoke of servitude.
{5:2} Behold, I, Paul, say to you, that if you have been circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you.
{5:3} For I again testify, about every man circumcising himself, that he is obligated to act according to the entire law.
{5:4} You are being emptied of Christ, you who are being justified by the law. You have fallen from grace.
{5:5} For in spirit, by faith, we await the hope of justice.
{5:6} For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision prevails over anything, but only faith which works through charity.
{5:7} You have run well. So what has impeded you, that you would not obey the truth?
{5:8} This kind of influence is not from him who is calling you.
{5:9} A little leaven corrupts the whole mass.
{5:10} I have confidence in you, in the Lord, that you will accept nothing of the kind. However, he who disturbs you shall bear the judgment, whomever he may be.
{5:11} And as for me, brothers, if I still preach circumcision, why am I still suffering persecution? For then the scandal of the Cross would be made empty.
{5:12} And I wish that those who disturb you would be torn away.
{5:13} For you, brothers, have been called to liberty. Only you must not make liberty into an occasion for the flesh, but instead, serve one another through the charity of the Spirit.
{5:14} For the entire law is fulfilled by one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
{5:15} But if you bite and devour one another, be careful that you are not consumed by one another!
{5:16} So then, I say: Walk in the spirit, and you will not fulfill the desires of the flesh.
{5:17} For the flesh desires against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh. And since these are against one another, you may not do whatever you want.
{5:18} But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
{5:19} Now the works of the flesh are manifest; they are: fornication, lust, homosexuality, self-indulgence,
{5:20} the serving of idols, drug use, hostility, contentiousness, jealousy, wrath, quarrels, dissensions, divisions,
{5:21} envy, murder, inebriation, carousing, and similar things. About these things, I continue to preach to you, as I have preached to you: that those who act in this way shall not obtain the kingdom of God.
{5:22} But the fruit of the Spirit is charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, forbearance,
{5:23} meekness, faith, modesty, abstinence, chastity. There is no law against such things.
{5:24} For those who are Christ’s have crucified their flesh, along with its vices and desires.
{5:25} If we live by the Spirit, we should also walk by the Spirit.
{5:26} Let us not become desirous of empty glory, provoking one another, envying one another.
{6:1} And, brothers, if a man has been overtaken by any offense, you who are spiritual should instruct someone like this with a spirit of leniency, considering that you yourselves might also be tempted.
{6:2} Carry one another’s burdens, and so shall you fulfill the law of Christ.
{6:3} For if anyone considers himself to be something, though he may be nothing, he deceives himself.
{6:4} So let each one prove his own work. And in this way, he shall have glory in himself only, and not in another.
{6:5} For each one shall carry his own burden.
{6:6} And let him who is being taught the Word discuss it with him who is teaching it to him, in every good way.
{6:7} Do not choose to wander astray. God is not to be ridiculed.
{6:8} For whatever a man will have sown, that also shall he reap. For whoever sows in his flesh, from the flesh he shall also reap corruption. But whoever sows in the Spirit, from the Spirit he shall reap eternal life.
{6:9} And so, let us not be deficient in doing good. For in due time, we shall reap without fail.
{6:10} Therefore, while we have time, we should do good works toward everyone, and most of all toward those who are of the household of the faith.
{6:11} Consider what kind of letters I have written to you with my own hand.
{6:12} For as many of you as they desire to please in the flesh, they compel to be circumcised, but only so that they might not suffer the persecution of the cross of Christ.
{6:13} And yet, neither do they themselves, who are circumcised, keep the law. Instead, they want you to be circumcised, so that they may glory in your flesh.
{6:14} But far be it from me to glory, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world is crucified to me, and I to the world.
{6:15} For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision prevails in any way, but instead there is a new creature.
{6:16} And whoever follows this rule: may peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.
{6:17} Concerning other matters, let no one trouble me. For I carry the stigmata of the Lord Jesus in my body.
{6:18} May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen.
{1:1} Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, to all the saints who are at Ephesus and to the faithful in Christ Jesus.
{1:2} Grace and peace to you from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:3} Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavens, in Christ,
{1:4} just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, so that we would be holy and immaculate in his sight, in charity.
{1:5} He has predestined us to adoption as sons, through Jesus Christ, in himself, according to the purpose of his will,
{1:6} for the praise of the glory of his grace, with which he has gifted us in his beloved Son.
{1:7} In him, we have redemption through his blood: the remission of sins in accord with the riches of his grace,
{1:8} which is superabundant in us, with all wisdom and prudence.
{1:9} So does he make known to us the mystery of his will, which he has set forth in Christ, in a manner well-pleasing to him,
{1:10} in the dispensation of the fullness of time, so as to renew in Christ everything that exists through him in heaven and on earth.
{1:11} In him, we too are called to our portion, having been predestined in accord with the plan of the One who accomplishes all things by the counsel of his will.
{1:12} So may we be, to the praise of his glory, we who have hoped beforehand in Christ.
{1:13} In him, you also, after you heard and believed the Word of truth, which is the Gospel of your salvation, were sealed with the Holy Spirit of the Promise.
{1:14} He is the pledge of our inheritance, unto the acquisition of redemption, to the praise of his glory.
{1:15} Because of this, and hearing of your faith that is in the Lord Jesus, and of your love toward all the saints,
{1:16} I have not ceased giving thanks for you, calling you to mind in my prayers,
{1:17} so that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give a spirit of wisdom and of revelation to you, in knowledge of him.
{1:18} May the eyes of your heart be illuminated, so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, and the wealth of the glory of his inheritance with the saints,
{1:19} and the preeminent magnitude of his virtue toward us, toward we who believe in accord with the work of his powerful virtue,
{1:20} which he wrought in Christ, raising him from the dead and establishing him at his right hand in the heavens,
{1:21} above every principality and power and virtue and dominion, and above every name that is given, not only in this age, but even in the future age.
{1:22} And he has subjected all things under his feet, and he has made him the head over the entire Church,
{1:23} which is his body and which is the fullness of him who accomplishes everything in everyone.
{2:1} And you were once dead in your sins and offenses,
{2:2} in which you walked in times past, according to the age of this world, according to the prince of the power of this sky, the spirit who now works in the sons of distrust.
{2:3} And we too were all conversant in these things, in times past, by the desires of our flesh, acting according to the will of the flesh and according to our own thoughts. And so we were, by nature, sons of wrath, even like the others.
{2:4} Yet still, God, who is rich in mercy, for the sake of his exceedingly great charity with which he loved us,
{2:5} even when we were dead in our sins, has enlivened us together in Christ, by whose grace you have been saved.
{2:6} And he has raised us up together, and he has caused us to sit down together in the heavens, in Christ Jesus,
{2:7} so that he may display, in the ages soon to arrive, the abundant wealth of his grace, by his goodness toward us in Christ Jesus.
{2:8} For by grace, you have been saved through faith. And this is not of yourselves, for it is a gift of God.
{2:9} And this is not of works, so that no one may glory.
{2:10} For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works which God has prepared and in which we should walk.
{2:11} Because of this, be mindful that, in times past, you were Gentiles in the flesh, and that you were called uncircumcised by those who are called circumcised in the flesh, something done by man,
{2:12} and that you were, in that time, without Christ, being foreign to the way of life of Israel, being visitors to the testament, having no hope of the promise, and being without God in this world.
{2:13} But now, in Christ Jesus, you, who were in times past far away, have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
{2:14} For he is our peace. He made the two into one, by dissolving the intermediate wall of separation, of opposition, by his flesh,
{2:15} emptying the law of commandments by decree, so that he might join these two, in himself, into one new man, making peace
{2:16} and reconciling both to God, in one body, through the cross, destroying this opposition in himself.
{2:17} And upon arriving, he evangelized peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near.
{2:18} For by him, we both have access, in the one Spirit, to the Father.
{2:19} Now, therefore, you are no longer visitors and new arrivals. Instead, you are citizens among the saints in the household of God,
{2:20} having been built upon the foundation of the Apostles and of the Prophets, with Jesus Christ himself as the preeminent cornerstone.
{2:21} In him, all that has been built is framed together, rising up into a holy temple in the Lord.
{2:22} In him, you also have been built together into a habitation of God in the Spirit.
{3:1} By reason of this grace, I, Paul, am a prisoner of Jesus Christ, for the sake of you Gentiles.
{3:2} Now certainly, you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God, which has been given to me among you:
{3:3} that, by means of revelation, the mystery was made known to me, just as I have written above in a few words.
{3:4} Yet, by reading this closely, you might be able to understand my prudence in the mystery of Christ.
{3:5} In other generations, this was unknown to the sons of men, even as it has now been revealed to his holy Apostles and Prophets in the Spirit,
{3:6} so that the Gentiles would be co-heirs, and of the same body, and partners together, by his promise in Christ Jesus, through the Gospel.
{3:7} Of this Gospel, I have been made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God, which has been given to me by means of the operation of his virtue.
{3:8} Although I am the least of all the saints, I have been given this grace: to evangelize among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,
{3:9} and to enlighten everyone concerning the dispensation of the mystery, hidden before the ages in God who created all things,
{3:10} so that the manifold wisdom of God may become well-known to the principalities and powers in the heavens, through the Church,
{3:11} according to that timeless purpose, which he has formed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
{3:12} In him we trust, and so we approach with confidence, through his faith.
{3:13} Because of this, I ask you not to be weakened by my tribulations on your behalf; for this is your glory.
{3:14} By reason of this grace, I bend my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
{3:15} from whom all paternity in heaven and on earth takes its name.
{3:16} And I ask him to grant to you to be strengthened in virtue by his Spirit, in accord with the wealth of his glory, in the inner man,
{3:17} so that Christ may live in your hearts through a faith rooted in, and founded on, charity.
{3:18} So may you be able to embrace, with all the saints, what is the width and length and height and depth
{3:19} of the charity of Christ, and even be able to know that which surpasses all knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
{3:20} Now to him who is able to do all things, more abundantly than we could ever ask or understand, by means of the virtue which is at work in us:
{3:21} to him be glory, in the Church and in Christ Jesus, throughout every generation, forever and ever. Amen.
{4:1} And so, as a prisoner in the Lord, I beg you to walk in a manner worthy of the vocation to which you have been called:
{4:2} with all humility and meekness, with patience, supporting one another in charity.
{4:3} Be anxious to preserve the unity of the Spirit within the bonds of peace.
{4:4} One body and one Spirit: to this you have been called by the one hope of your calling:
{4:5} one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
{4:6} one God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all, and in us all.
{4:7} Yet to each one of us there has been given grace according to the measure allotted by Christ.
{4:8} Because of this, he says: “Ascending on high, he took captivity itself captive; he gave gifts to men.”
{4:9} Now that he has ascended, what is left except for him also to descend, first to the lower parts of the earth?
{4:10} He who descended is the same one who also ascended above all the heavens, so that he might fulfill everything.
{4:11} And the same one granted that some would be Apostles, and some Prophets, yet truly others evangelists, and others pastors and teachers,
{4:12} for the sake of the perfection of the saints, by the work of the ministry, in the edification of the body of Christ,
{4:13} until we all meet in the unity of faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, as a perfect man, in the measure of the age of the fullness of Christ.
{4:14} So may we then no longer be little children, disturbed and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the wickedness of men, and by the craftiness which deceives unto error.
{4:15} Instead, acting according to truth in charity, we should increase in everything, in him who is the head, Christ himself.
{4:16} For in him, the whole body is joined closely together, by every underlying joint, through the function allotted to each part, bringing improvement to the body, toward its edification in charity.
{4:17} And so, I say this, and I testify in the Lord: that from now on you should walk, not as the Gentiles also walk, in the vanity of their mind,
{4:18} having their intellect obscured, being alienated from the life of God, through the ignorance that is within them, because of the blindness of their hearts.
{4:19} Such as these, despairing, have given themselves over to sexual immorality, carrying out every impurity with rapacity.
{4:20} But this is not what you have learned in Christ.
{4:21} For certainly, you have listened to him, and you have been instructed in him, according to the truth that is in Jesus:
{4:22} to set aside your earlier behavior, the former man, who was corrupted, by means of desire, unto error,
{4:23} and so be renewed in the spirit of your mind,
{4:24} and so put on the new man, who, in accord with God, is created in justice and in the holiness of truth.
{4:25} Because of this, setting aside lying, speak the truth, each one with his neighbor. For we are all part of one another.
{4:26} “Be angry, but do not be willing to sin.” Do not let the sun set over your anger.
{4:27} Provide no place for the devil.
{4:28} Whoever was stealing, let him now not steal, but rather let him labor, working with his hands, doing what is good, so that he may have something to distribute to those who suffer need.
{4:29} Let no evil words proceed from your mouth, but only what is good, toward the edification of faith, so as to bestow grace upon those who listen.
{4:30} And do not be willing to grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you have been sealed, unto the day of redemption.
{4:31} Let all bitterness and anger and indignation and outcry and blasphemy be taken away from you, along with all malice.
{4:32} And be kind and merciful to one another, forgiving one another, just as God has forgiven you in Christ.
{5:1} Therefore, as most beloved sons, be imitators of God.
{5:2} And walk in love, just as Christ also loved us and delivered himself for us, as an oblation and a sacrifice to God, with a fragrance of sweetness.
{5:3} But let not any kind of fornication, or impurity, or rapacity so much as be named among you, just as is worthy of the saints,
{5:4} nor any indecent, or foolish, or abusive talk, for this is without purpose; but instead, give thanks.
{5:5} For know and understand this: no one who is a fornicator, or lustful, or rapacious (for these are a kind of service to idols) holds an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
{5:6} Let no one seduce you with empty words. For because of these things, the wrath of God was sent upon the sons of unbelief.
{5:7} Therefore, do not choose to become participants with them.
{5:8} For you were darkness, in times past, but now you are light, in the Lord. So then, walk as sons of the light.
{5:9} For the fruit of the light is in all goodness and justice and truth,
{5:10} affirming what is well-pleasing to God.
{5:11} And so, have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead, refute them.
{5:12} For the things that are done by them in secret are shameful, even to mention.
{5:13} But all things that are disputed are made manifest by the light. For all that is made manifest is light.
{5:14} Because of this, it is said: “You who are sleeping: awaken, and rise up from the dead, and so shall the Christ enlighten you.”
{5:15} And so, brothers, see to it that you walk cautiously, not like the foolish,
{5:16} but like the wise: atoning for this age, because this is an evil time.
{5:17} For this reason, do not choose to be imprudent. Instead, understand what is the will of God.
{5:18} And do not choose to be inebriated by wine, for this is self-indulgence. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit,
{5:19} speaking among yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual canticles, singing and reciting psalms to the Lord in your hearts,
{5:20} giving thanks always for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to God the Father.
{5:21} Be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
{5:22} Wives should be submissive to their husbands, as to the Lord.
{5:23} For the husband is the head of the wife, just as Christ is the head of the Church. He is the Savior of his body.
{5:24} Therefore, just as the Church is subject to Christ, so also should wives be subject to their husbands in all things.
{5:25} Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the Church and handed himself over for her,
{5:26} so that he might sanctify her, washing her clean by water and the Word of life,
{5:27} so that he might offer her to himself as a glorious Church, not having any spot or wrinkle or any such thing, so that she would be holy and immaculate.
{5:28} So, too, husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.
{5:29} For no man has ever hated his own flesh, but instead he nourishes and cherishes it, as Christ also does to the Church.
{5:30} For we are a part of his body, of his flesh and of his bones.
{5:31} “For this reason, a man shall leave behind his father and mother, and he shall cling to his wife; and the two shall be as one flesh.”
{5:32} This is a great Sacrament. And I am speaking in Christ and in the Church.
{5:33} Yet truly, each and every one of you should love his wife as himself. And a wife should fear her husband.
{6:1} Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is just.
{6:2} Honor your father and your mother. This is the first commandment with a promise:
{6:3} so that it may be well with you, and so that you may have a long life upon the earth.
{6:4} And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but educate them with the discipline and correction of the Lord.
{6:5} Servants, be obedient to your lords according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the simplicity of your heart, as to Christ.
{6:6} Do not serve only when seen, as if to please men, but act as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.
{6:7} Serve with good will, as to the Lord, and not to men.
{6:8} For you know that whatever good each one will do, the same will he receive from the Lord, whether he is servant or free.
{6:9} And you, lords, act similarly toward them, setting aside threats, knowing that the Lord of both you and them is in heaven. For with him there is no favoritism toward anyone.
{6:10} Concerning the rest, brothers, be strengthened in the Lord, by the power of his virtue.
{6:11} Be clothed in the armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the treachery of the devil.
{6:12} For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the directors of this world of darkness, against the spirits of wickedness in high places.
{6:13} Because of this, take up the armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand the evil day and remain perfect in all things.
{6:14} Therefore, stand firm, having been girded about your waist with truth, and having been clothed with the breastplate of justice,
{6:15} and having feet which have been shod by the preparation of the Gospel of peace.
{6:16} In all things, take up the shield of faith, with which you may be able to extinguish all the fiery darts of the most wicked one.
{6:17} And take up the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit (which is the Word of God).
{6:18} Through every kind of prayer and supplication, pray at all times in spirit, and so be vigilant with every kind of earnest supplication, for all the saints,
{6:19} and also for me, so that words may be given to me, as I open my mouth with faith to make known the mystery of the Gospel,
{6:20} in such a manner that I may dare to speak exactly as I ought to speak. For I act as an ambassador in chains for the Gospel.
{6:21} Now, so that you also may know the things that concern me and what I am doing, Tychicus, a most beloved brother and a faithful minister in the Lord, will make known everything to you.
{6:22} I have sent him to you for this very reason, so that you may know the things that concern us, and so that he may console your hearts.
{6:23} Peace to the brothers, and charity with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
{6:24} May grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ, unto incorruption. Amen.
{1:1} Paul and Timothy, servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons.
{1:2} Grace and peace to you, from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:3} I give thanks to my God, with every remembrance of you,
{1:4} always, in all my prayers, making supplication for all of you with joy,
{1:5} because of your communion in the Gospel of Christ, from the first day even until now.
{1:6} I am confident of this very thing: that he who has begun this good work in you will perfect it, unto the day of Christ Jesus.
{1:7} So then, it is right for me to feel this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart, and because, in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the Gospel, you all are partakers of my joy.
{1:8} For God is my witness how, within the heart of Jesus Christ, I long for all of you.
{1:9} And this I pray: that your charity may abound more and more, with knowledge and with all understanding,
{1:10} so that you may be confirmed in what is better, in order that you may be sincere and without offense on the day of Christ:
{1:11} filled with the fruit of justice, through Jesus Christ, in the glory and praise of God.
{1:12} Now, brothers, I want you to know that the things concerning me happened for the advancement of the Gospel,
{1:13} in such a way that my chains have become manifest in Christ in every place of judgment and in all other such places.
{1:14} And many from among the brothers in the Lord, becoming confident through my chains, are now much bolder in speaking the Word of God without fear.
{1:15} Certainly, some do so even because of envy and contention; and others, too, do so because of a good will to preach Christ.
{1:16} Some act out of charity, knowing that I have been appointed for the defense of the Gospel.
{1:17} But others, out of contention, announce Christ insincerely, claiming that their difficulties lift them up to my chains.
{1:18} But what does it matter? As long as, by every means, whether under pretext or in truthfulness, Christ is announced. And about this, I rejoice, and moreover, I will continue to rejoice.
{1:19} For I know that this will bring me to salvation, through your prayers and under the ministration of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,
{1:20} by means of my own expectation and hope. For in nothing shall I be confounded. Instead, with all confidence, now just as always, Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
{1:21} For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
{1:22} And while I live in the flesh, for me, there is the fruit of works. But I do not know which I would choose.
{1:23} For I am constrained between the two: having a desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ, which is the far better thing,
{1:24} but then to remain in the flesh is necessary for your sake.
{1:25} And having this confidence, I know that I shall remain and that I shall continue to remain with all of you, for your advancement and for your joy in the faith,
{1:26} so that your rejoicing may abound in Christ Jesus for me, through my return to you again.
{1:27} Only let your behavior be worthy of the Gospel of Christ, so that, whether I return and see you, or whether, being absent, I hear about you, still you may stand firm with one spirit, with one mind, laboring together for the faith of the Gospel.
{1:28} And in nothing be terrified by the adversaries. For what is to them an occasion of perdition, is to you an occasion of salvation, and this is from God.
{1:29} For this has been given to you on behalf of Christ, not only so that you may believe in him, but even so that you may suffer with him,
{1:30} engaging in the same struggle, of a kind which you also have seen in me, and which you now have heard from me.
{2:1} Therefore, if there is any consolation in Christ, any solace of charity, any fellowship of the Spirit, any feelings of commiseration:
{2:2} complete my joy by having the same understanding, holding to the same charity, being of one mind, with the same sentiment.
{2:3} Let nothing be done by contention, nor in vain glory. Instead, in humility, let each of you esteem others to be better than himself.
{2:4} Let each of you not consider anything to be your own, but rather to belong to others.
{2:5} For this understanding in you was also in Christ Jesus:
{2:6} who, though he was in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be seized.
{2:7} Instead, he emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men, and accepting the state of a man.
{2:8} He humbled himself, becoming obedient even unto death, even the death of the Cross.
{2:9} Because of this, God has also exalted him and has given him a name which is above every name,
{2:10} so that, at the name of Jesus, every knee would bend, of those in heaven, of those on earth, and of those in hell,
{2:11} and so that every tongue would confess that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father.
{2:12} And so, my most beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but even more so now in my absence: work toward your salvation with fear and trembling.
{2:13} For it is God who works in you, both so as to choose, and so as to act, in accord with his good will.
{2:14} And do everything without murmuring or hesitation.
{2:15} So may you be without blame, simple sons of God, without reproof, in the midst of a depraved and perverse nation, among whom you shine like lights in the world,
{2:16} holding to the Word of Life, until my glory in the day of Christ. For I have not run in vain, nor have I labored in vain.
{2:17} Moreover, if I am to be immolated because of the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and give thanks with all of you.
{2:18} And over this same thing, you also should rejoice and give thanks, together with me.
{2:19} Now I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, in order that I may be encouraged, when I know the things concerning you.
{2:20} For I have no one else with such an agreeable mind, who, with sincere affection, is solicitous for you.
{2:21} For they all seek the things that are of themselves, not the things that are of Jesus Christ.
{2:22} So know this evidence of him: that like a son with a father, so has he served with me in the Gospel.
{2:23} Therefore, I hope to send him to you immediately, as soon as I see what will happen concerning me.
{2:24} But I trust in the Lord that I myself will also return to you soon.
{2:25} Now I have considered it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, and co-worker, and fellow soldier, and an attendant to my needs, but your Apostle.
{2:26} For certainly, he has desired all of you, and he was saddened because you had heard that he was sick.
{2:27} For he was sick, even unto death, but God took pity on him, and not only on him, but truly on myself also, so that I would not have sorrow upon sorrow.
{2:28} Therefore, I sent him more readily, in order that, by seeing him again, you may rejoice, and I may be without sorrow.
{2:29} And so, receive him with every joy in the Lord, and treat all those like him with honor.
{2:30} For he was brought close even to death, for the sake of the work of Christ, handing over his own life, so that he might fulfill what was lacking from you concerning my service.
{3:1} Concerning other things, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. It is certainly not tiresome for me to write the same things to you, but for you, it is not necessary.
{3:2} Beware of dogs; beware of those who work evil; beware of those who are divisive.
{3:3} For we are the circumcised, we who serve God in the Spirit and who glory in Christ Jesus, having no confidence in the flesh.
{3:4} Nevertheless, I might have confidence also in the flesh, for if anyone else seems to have confidence in the flesh, more so do I.
{3:5} For I was circumcised on the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, from the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew among Hebrews. According to the law, I was a Pharisee;
{3:6} according to zeal, I persecuted the Church of God; according to the justice that is in the law, I lived without blame.
{3:7} But the things which had been to my gain, the same have I considered a loss, for the sake of Christ.
{3:8} Yet truly, I consider everything to be a loss, because of the preeminent knowledge of Jesus Christ, my Lord, for whose sake I have suffered the loss of everything, considering it all to be like dung, so that I may gain Christ,
{3:9} and so that you may be found in him, not having my justice, which is of the law, but that which is of the faith of Christ Jesus, the justice within faith, which is of God.
{3:10} So shall I know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his Passion, having been fashioned according to his death,
{3:11} if, by some means, I might attain to the resurrection which is from the dead.
{3:12} It is not as though I have already received this, or were already perfect. But rather I pursue, so that by some means I might attain, that in which I have already been attained by Christ Jesus.
{3:13} Brothers, I do not consider that I have already attained this. Instead, I do one thing: forgetting those things that are behind, and extending myself toward those things that are ahead,
{3:14} I pursue the destination, the prize of the heavenly calling of God in Christ Jesus.
{3:15} Therefore, as many of us as are being perfected, let us agree about this. And if in anything you disagree, God will reveal this to you also.
{3:16} Yet truly, whatever point we reach, let us be of the same mind, and let us remain in the same rule.
{3:17} Be imitators of me, brothers, and observe those who are walking similarly, just as you have seen by our example.
{3:18} For many persons, about whom I have often told you (and now tell you, weeping,) are walking as enemies of the cross of Christ.
{3:19} Their end is destruction; their god is their belly; and their glory is in their shame: for they are immersed in earthly things.
{3:20} But our way of life is in heaven. And from heaven, too, we await the Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ,
{3:21} who will transform the body of our lowliness, according to the form of the body of his glory, by means of that power by which he is even able to subject all things to himself.
{4:1} And so, my most beloved and most desired brothers, my joy and my crown: stand firm in this way, in the Lord, most beloved.
{4:2} I ask Euodia, and I beg Syntyche, to have the same understanding in the Lord.
{4:3} And I also ask you, as my genuine companion, to assist those women who have labored with me in the Gospel, with Clement and the rest of my assistants, whose names are in the Book of Life.
{4:4} Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I say, rejoice.
{4:5} Let your modesty be known to all men. The Lord is near.
{4:6} Be anxious about nothing. But in all things, with prayer and supplication, with acts of thanksgiving, let your petitions be made known to God.
{4:7} And so shall the peace of God, which exceeds all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
{4:8} Concerning the rest, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is chaste, whatever is just, whatever is holy, whatever is worthy to be loved, whatever is of good repute, if there is any virtue, if there is any praiseworthy discipline: meditate on these.
{4:9} All the things that you have learned and accepted and heard and seen in me, do these. And so shall the God of peace be with you.
{4:10} Now I rejoice in the Lord exceedingly, because finally, after some time, your feelings for me have flourished again, just as you formerly felt. For you had been preoccupied.
{4:11} I am not saying this as if out of need. For I have learned that, in whatever state I am, it is sufficient.
{4:12} I know how to be humbled, and I know how to abound. I am prepared for anything, anywhere: either to be full or to be hungry, either to have abundance or to endure scarcity.
{4:13} Everything is possible in him who has strengthened me.
{4:14} Yet truly, you have done well by sharing in my tribulation.
{4:15} But you also know, O Philippians, that at the beginning of the Gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not a single church shared with me in the plan of giving and receiving, except you alone.
{4:16} For you even sent to Thessalonica, once, and then a second time, for what was useful to me.
{4:17} It is not that I am seeking a gift. Instead, I seek the fruit that abounds to your benefit.
{4:18} But I have everything in abundance. I have been filled up, having received from Epaphroditus the things that you sent; this is an odor of sweetness, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.
{4:19} And may my God fulfill all your desires, according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
{4:20} And to God our Father be glory forever and ever. Amen.
{4:21} Greet every saint in Christ Jesus.
{4:22} The brothers who are with me greet you. All the saints greet you, but especially those who are of Caesar’s household.
{4:23} May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
{1:1} Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy, a brother,
{1:2} to the saints and faithful brothers in Christ Jesus who are at Colossae.
{1:3} Grace and peace to you, from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying for you always.
{1:4} For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love that you have toward all the saints,
{1:5} because of the hope that has been stored up for you in heaven, which you have heard through the Word of Truth in the Gospel.
{1:6} This has reached you, just as it is present in the whole world, where it grows and bears fruit, as it has also done in you, since the day when you first heard and knew the grace of God in truth,
{1:7} just as you learned it from Epaphras, our most beloved fellow servant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ Jesus.
{1:8} And he has also manifested to us your love in the Spirit.
{1:9} Then, too, from the day when we first heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and requesting that you be filled with the knowledge of his will, with all wisdom and spiritual understanding,
{1:10} so that you may walk in a manner worthy of God, being pleasing in all things, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God,
{1:11} being strengthened in every virtue, in accord with the power of his glory, with all patience and longsuffering, with joy,
{1:12} giving thanks to God the Father, who has made us worthy to have a share in the portion of the saints, in the light.
{1:13} For he has rescued us from the power of darkness, and he has transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of his love,
{1:14} in whom we have redemption through his blood, the remission of sins.
{1:15} He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of every creature.
{1:16} For in him was created everything in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominations, or principalities, or powers. All things were created through him and in him.
{1:17} And he is before all, and in him all things continue.
{1:18} And he is the head of his body, the Church. He is the beginning, the first-born from the dead, so that in all things he may hold primacy.
{1:19} For the Father is well-pleased that all fullness reside in him,
{1:20} and that, through him, all things be reconciled to himself, making peace through the blood of his cross, for the things that are on earth, as well as the things that are in heaven.
{1:21} And you, though you had been, in times past, understood to be foreigners and enemies, with works of evil,
{1:22} yet now he has reconciled you, by his body of flesh, through death, so as to offer you, holy and immaculate and blameless, before him.
{1:23} So then, continue in the faith: well-founded and steadfast and immovable, by the hope of the Gospel that you have heard, which has been preached throughout all creation under heaven, the Gospel of which I, Paul, have become a minister.
{1:24} For now I rejoice in my passion on your behalf, and I complete in my flesh the things that are lacking in the Passion of Christ, for the sake of his body, which is the Church.
{1:25} For I have become a minister of the Church, according to the dispensation of God that has been given to me among you, so that I may fulfill the Word of God,
{1:26} the mystery which had remained hidden to past ages and generations, but which now is manifested to his saints.
{1:27} To them, God willed to make known the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ and the hope of his glory within you.
{1:28} We are announcing him, correcting every man and teaching every man, with all wisdom, so that we may offer every man perfect in Christ Jesus.
{1:29} In him, too, I labor, striving according to his action within me, which he works in virtue.
{2:1} For I want you to know the kind of solicitude that I have for you, and for those who are at Laodicea, as well as for those who have not seen my face in the flesh.
{2:2} May their hearts be consoled and instructed in charity, with all the riches of a plenitude of understanding, with knowledge of the mystery of God the Father and of Christ Jesus.
{2:3} For in him are hidden all treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
{2:4} Now I say this, so that no one may deceive you with grandiose words.
{2:5} For though I may be absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit. And I rejoice as I gaze upon your order and its foundation, which is in Christ, your faith.
{2:6} Therefore, just as you have received the Lord Jesus Christ, walk in him.
{2:7} Be rooted and continually built up in Christ. And be confirmed in the faith, just as you have also learned it, increasing in him with acts of thanksgiving.
{2:8} See to it that no one deceives you through philosophy and empty falsehoods, as found in the traditions of men, in accord with the influences of the world, and not in accord with Christ.
{2:9} For in him, all the fullness of the Divine Nature dwells bodily.
{2:10} And in him, you have been filled; for he is the head of all principality and power.
{2:11} In him also, you have been circumcised with a circumcision not made by hand, not by the despoiling of the body of flesh, but by the circumcision of Christ.
{2:12} You have been buried with him in baptism. In him also, you have risen again through faith, by the work of God, who raised him up from the dead.
{2:13} And when you were dead in your transgressions and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, he enlivened you, together with him, forgiving you of all transgressions,
{2:14} and wiping away the handwriting of the decree which was against us, which was contrary to us. And he has taken this away from your midst, affixing it to the Cross.
{2:15} And so, despoiling principalities and powers, he has led them away confidently and openly, triumphing over them in himself.
{2:16} Therefore, let no one judge you as concerns food or drink, or a particular feast day, or feast days of new moons, or of Sabbaths.
{2:17} For these are a shadow of the future, but the body is of Christ.
{2:18} Let no one seduce you, preferring base things and a religion of Angels, walking according to what he has not seen, being vainly inflated by the sensations of his flesh,
{2:19} and not holding up the head, with which the whole body, by its underlying joints and ligaments, is joined together and grows with an increase that is of God.
{2:20} So then, if you have died with Christ to the influences of this world, why do you still make decisions as if you were living in the world?
{2:21} Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle these things,
{2:22} which all lead to destruction by their very use, in accord with the precepts and doctrines of men.
{2:23} Such ideas have at least an intention to attain to wisdom, but through superstition and debasement, not sparing the body, and they are without any honor in satiating the flesh.
{3:1} Therefore, if you have risen together with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
{3:2} Consider the things that are above, not the things that are upon the earth.
{3:3} For you have died, and so your life is hidden with Christ in God.
{3:4} When Christ, your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
{3:5} Therefore, mortify your body, while it is upon the earth. For because of fornication, impurity, lust, evil desires, and avarice, which are a kind of service to idols,
{3:6} the wrath of God has overwhelmed the sons of unbelief.
{3:7} You, too, walked in these things, in times past, when you were living among them.
{3:8} But now you must set aside all these things: anger, indignation, malice, blasphemy, and indecent speech from your mouth.
{3:9} Do not lie to one another. Strip yourselves of the old man, with his deeds,
{3:10} and clothe yourself with the new man, who has been renewed by knowledge, in accord with the image of the One who created him,
{3:11} where there is neither Gentile nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian nor Scythian, servant nor free. Instead, Christ is everything, in everyone.
{3:12} Therefore, clothe yourselves like the elect of God: holy and beloved, with hearts of mercy, kindness, humility, modesty, and patience.
{3:13} Support one another, and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive one another. For just as the Lord has forgiven you, so also must you do.
{3:14} And above all these things have charity, which is the bond of perfection.
{3:15} And let the peace of Christ lift up your hearts. For in this peace, you have been called, as one body. And be thankful.
{3:16} Let the word of Christ live in you in abundance, with all wisdom, teaching and correcting one another, with psalms, hymns, and spiritual canticles, singing to God with the grace in your hearts.
{3:17} Let everything whatsoever that you do, whether in word or in deed, be done all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
{3:18} Wives, be submissive to your husbands, as is proper in the Lord.
{3:19} Husbands, love your wives, and do not be bitter toward them.
{3:20} Children, obey your parents in all things. For this is well-pleasing to the Lord.
{3:21} Fathers, do not provoke your children to indignation, lest they lose heart.
{3:22} Servants, obey, in all things, your lords according to the flesh, not serving only when seen, as if to please men, but serving in simplicity of heart, fearing God.
{3:23} Whatever you do, do it from the heart, as for the Lord, and not for men.
{3:24} For you know that you will receive from the Lord the repayment of an inheritance. Serve Christ the Lord.
{3:25} For whoever causes injury shall be repaid for what he has wrongfully done. And there no favoritism with God.
{4:1} You masters, supply your servants with what is just and equitable, knowing that you, too, have a Master in heaven.
{4:2} Pursue prayer. Be watchful in prayer with acts of thanksgiving.
{4:3} Pray together, for us also, so that God may open a door of speech to us, so as to speak the mystery of Christ, (because of which, even now, I am in chains)
{4:4} so that I may manifest it in the manner that I ought to speak.
{4:5} Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming this age.
{4:6} Let your speech be ever graceful, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to respond to each person.
{4:7} As for the things that concern me, Tychicus, a most beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord, will make everything known to you.
{4:8} I have sent him to you for this very purpose, so that he may know the things that concern you, and may console your hearts,
{4:9} with Onesimus, a most beloved and faithful brother, who is from among you. They shall make known to you everything that is happening here.
{4:10} Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, greets you, as does Mark, the near cousin of Barnabas, about whom you have received instructions, (if he comes to you, receive him)
{4:11} and Jesus, who is called Justus, and those who are of the circumcision. These alone are my assistants, unto the kingdom of God; they have been a consolation to me.
{4:12} Epaphras greets you, who is from among you, a servant of Christ Jesus, ever solicitous for you in prayer, so that you may stand, perfect and complete, in the entire will of God.
{4:13} For I offer testimony to him, that he has labored greatly for you, and for those who are at Laodicea, and for those at Hierapolis.
{4:14} Luke, a most beloved physician, greets you, as does Demas.
{4:15} Greet the brothers who are at Laodicea, and Nymphas, and those who are at his house, a church.
{4:16} And when this epistle has been read among you, cause it to be read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and you should read that which is from the Laodiceans.
{4:17} And tell Archippus: “See to the ministry that you have received in the Lord, in order to fulfill it.”
{4:18} The greeting of Paul by my own hand. Remember my chains. May grace be with you. Amen.
{1:1} Paul and Sylvanus and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians, in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:2} Grace and peace to you. We give thanks to God always for all of you, keeping the memory of you in our prayers without ceasing,
{1:3} remembering your work of faith, and hardship, and charity, and enduring hope, in our Lord Jesus Christ, before God our Father.
{1:4} For we know, brothers, beloved of God, of your election.
{1:5} For our Gospel has not been among you in word alone, but also in virtue, and in the Holy Spirit, and with a great fullness, in the same manner as you know we have acted among you for your sake.
{1:6} And so, you became imitators of us and of the Lord, accepting the Word in the midst of great tribulation, but with the joy of the Holy Spirit.
{1:7} So have you become a pattern for all who believe in Macedonia and in Achaia.
{1:8} For from you, the Word of the Lord was spread, not only in Macedonia and in Achaia, but also in every place. Your faith, which is toward God, has advanced so much so that we do not need to speak to you about anything.
{1:9} For others are reporting among us of the kind of acceptance we had among you, and how you were converted from idols to God, to the service of the living and true God,
{1:10} and to the expectation of his Son from heaven (whom he raised up from the dead), Jesus, who has rescued us from the approaching wrath.
{2:1} For you yourselves know, brothers, that our acceptance among you was not empty.
{2:2} Instead, having previously suffered and been treated shamefully, as you know, at Philippi, we had confidence in our God, so as to speak the Gospel of God to you with much solicitude.
{2:3} For our exhortation was not in error, nor from impurity, nor with deception.
{2:4} But, just as we have been tested by God, so that the Gospel would be entrusted to us, so also did we speak, not so as to please men, but rather to please God, who tests our hearts.
{2:5} And neither did we, at any time, become flattering in speech, as you know, nor did we seek an opportunity for avarice, as God is witness.
{2:6} Nor did we seek the glory of men, neither from you, nor from others.
{2:7} And although we could have been a burden to you, as Apostles of Christ, instead we became like little ones in your midst, like a nurse cherishing her children.
{2:8} So desirous were we for you that we were willing to hand over to you, not only the Gospel of God, but even our own souls. For you have become most beloved to us.
{2:9} For you remember, brothers, our hardship and weariness. We preached the Gospel of God among you, working night and day, so that we would not be burdensome to any of you.
{2:10} You are witnesses, as is God, of how holy and just and blameless we were with you who have believed.
{2:11} And you know the manner, with each one of you, like a father with his sons,
{2:12} in which we were pleading with you and consoling you, bearing witness, so that you would walk in a manner worthy of God, who has called you into his kingdom and glory.
{2:13} For this reason also, we give thanks to God without ceasing: because, when you had accepted from us the Word of the hearing of God, you accepted it not as the word of men, but (as it truly is) as the Word of God, who is working in you who have believed.
{2:14} For you, brothers, have become imitators of the churches of God which are at Judea, in Christ Jesus. For you, too, have suffered the same things from your fellow countrymen as they have suffered from the Jews,
{2:15} who also killed both the Lord Jesus, and the Prophets, and who have persecuted us. But they do not please God, and so they are adversaries to all men.
{2:16} They prohibit us to speak to the Gentiles, so that they may be saved, and thus do they continually add to their own sins. But the wrath of God will overtake them in the very end.
{2:17} And we, brothers, having been deprived of you for a short time, in sight, but not in heart, have hurried all the more to see your face, with a great desire.
{2:18} For we wanted to come to you, (indeed, I, Paul, attempted to do so once, and then again,) but Satan impeded us.
{2:19} For what is our hope, and our joy, and our crown of glory? Is it not you, before our Lord Jesus Christ at his return?
{2:20} For you are our glory and our joy.
{3:1} Because of this, willing to wait no longer, it was pleasing to us to remain at Athens, alone.
{3:2} And we sent Timothy, our brother and a minister of God in the Gospel of Christ, to confirm you and to exhort you, on behalf of your faith,
{3:3} so that no one would be disturbed during these tribulations. For you yourselves know that we have been appointed to this.
{3:4} For even while we were with you, we predicted to you that we would suffer tribulations, even as it has happened, and as you know.
{3:5} For this reason also, I was not willing to wait any longer, and I sent to find out about your faith, lest perhaps he who tempts may have tempted you, and our labor might have been in vain.
{3:6} But then, when Timothy arrived to us from you, he reported to us your faith and charity, and that you keep a good remembrance of us always, desiring to see us, just as we likewise desire to see you.
{3:7} As a result, we were consoled in you, brothers, in the midst of all our difficulties and tribulations, through your faith.
{3:8} For we now live so that you may stand firm in the Lord.
{3:9} For what thanks would we be able to repay to God because of you, for all the joy with which we rejoice over you before our God?
{3:10} For night and day, ever more abundantly, we are praying that we may see your face, and that we may complete those things that are lacking in your faith.
{3:11} But may God our Father himself, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way to you.
{3:12} And may the Lord multiply you, and make you abound in your charity toward one another and toward all, just as we also do toward you,
{3:13} in order to confirm your hearts without blame, in sanctity, before God our Father, unto the return of our Lord Jesus Christ, with all his saints. Amen.
{4:1} Therefore, concerning other things, brothers, we ask and beg you, in the Lord Jesus, that, just as you have received from us the way in which you ought to walk and to please God, so also may you walk, in order that you may abound all the more.
{4:2} For you know what precepts I have given to you through the Lord Jesus.
{4:3} For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from fornication,
{4:4} that each one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honor,
{4:5} not in passions of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God,
{4:6} and that no one should overwhelm or circumvent his brother in business. For the Lord is the vindicator of all these things, just as we have preached and testified to you.
{4:7} For God has not called us to impurity, but to sanctification.
{4:8} And so, whoever despises these teachings, does not despise man, but God, who has even provided his Holy Spirit within us.
{4:9} But concerning the charity of brotherhood, we have no need to write to you. For you yourselves have learned from God that you should love one another.
{4:10} For indeed, you act in this way with all the brothers in all of Macedonia. But we petition you, brothers, so that you may abound all the more,
{4:11} to choose work that allows you to be tranquil, and to carry out your business and to do your work with your own hands, just as we have instructed you,
{4:12} and to walk honestly with those who are outside, and to desire nothing belonging to another.
{4:13} And we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those who are sleeping, so as not to be sorrowful, like these others who do not have hope.
{4:14} For if we believe that Jesus has died and risen again, so also will God bring back with Jesus those who sleep in him.
{4:15} For we say this to you, in the Word of the Lord: that we who are alive, who remain until the return of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
{4:16} For the Lord himself, with a command and with the voice of an Archangel and with a trumpet of God, shall descend from heaven. And the dead, who are in Christ, shall rise up first.
{4:17} Next, we who are alive, who are remaining, shall be taken up quickly together with them into the clouds to meet Christ in the air. And in this way, we shall be with the Lord always.
{4:18} Therefore, console one another with these words.
{5:1} But concerning dates and times, brothers, you do not need us to write to you.
{5:2} For you yourselves thoroughly understand that the day of the Lord shall arrive much like a thief in the night.
{5:3} For when they will say, “Peace and security!” then destruction will suddenly overwhelm them, like the labor pains of a woman with child, and they will not escape.
{5:4} But you, brothers, are not in darkness, so that you would be overtaken by that day as by a thief.
{5:5} For all of you are sons of light and sons of daytime; we are not of nighttime, nor of darkness.
{5:6} Therefore, let us not sleep, as the rest do. Instead, we should be vigilant and sober.
{5:7} For those who sleep, sleep in the night; and those who are inebriated, are inebriated in the night.
{5:8} But we, who are of the daylight, should be sober, being clothed with the breastplate of faith and of charity and having, as a helmet, the hope of salvation.
{5:9} For God has not appointed us for wrath, but for the acquisition of salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
{5:10} who died for us, so that, whether we watch, or whether we sleep, we may live in union with him.
{5:11} Because of this, console one another and build up one another, just as you are doing.
{5:12} And we ask you, brothers, to recognize those who labor among you, and who preside over you in the Lord, and who admonish you,
{5:13} so that you may consider them with an abundance of charity, for the sake of their work. Be at peace with them.
{5:14} And we ask you, brothers: correct the disruptive, console the weak-minded, support the sick, be patient with everyone.
{5:15} See to it that no one repays evil for evil to anyone. Instead, always pursue whatever is good, with one another and with all.
{5:16} Rejoice always.
{5:17} Pray without ceasing.
{5:18} Give thanks in everything. For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for all of you.
{5:19} Do not choose to extinguish the Spirit.
{5:20} Do not spurn prophecies.
{5:21} But test all things. Hold on to whatever is good.
{5:22} Abstain from every kind of evil.
{5:23} And may the God of peace himself sanctify you through all things, so that your whole spirit and soul and body may be preserved without blame unto the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{5:24} He who has called you is faithful. He shall act even now.
{5:25} Brothers, pray for us.
{5:26} Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss.
{5:27} I bind you, through the Lord, that this epistle is to be read to all the holy brothers.
{5:28} May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
{1:1} Paul and Sylvanus and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians, in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:2} Grace and peace to you, from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:3} We ought to give thanks always to God for you, brothers, in a fitting manner, because your faith is increasing greatly, and because the charity of each of you toward one another is abundant,
{1:4} so much so that we ourselves even glory in you among the churches of God, because of your patience and faith in all of your persecutions and tribulations that you endure,
{1:5} which are a sign of the just judgment of God, so that you may be held worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer.
{1:6} For certainly, it is just for God to repay trouble to those who trouble you,
{1:7} and to repay you, who are being troubled, with a repose with us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with the Angels of his virtue,
{1:8} granting vindication, by a flame of fire, against those who do not know God and who are not obedient to the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:9} These shall be given the eternal punishment of destruction, apart from the face of the Lord and apart from the glory of his virtue,
{1:10} when he arrives to be glorified in his saints, and to become a wonder in all those who have believed, in that day, because our testimony has been believed by you.
{1:11} Because of this, too, we pray always for you, so that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may complete every act of his goodness, as well as his work of faith in virtue,
{1:12} in order that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, in accord with the grace of our God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
{2:1} But we ask you, brothers, concerning the advent of our Lord Jesus Christ and of our gathering to him,
{2:2} that you not be readily disturbed or terrified in your minds, by any spirit, or word, or epistle, supposedly sent from us, claiming that the day of the Lord is close by.
{2:3} Let no one deceive you in any way. For this cannot be, unless the apostasy will have arrived first, and the man of sin will have been revealed, the son of perdition,
{2:4} who is an adversary to, and who is lifted up above, all that is called God or that is worshipped, so much so that he sits in the temple of God, presenting himself as if he were God.
{2:5} Do you not recall that, when I was still with you, I told you these things?
{2:6} And now you know what it is that holds him back, so that he may be revealed in his own time.
{2:7} For the mystery of iniquity is already at work. And only one now holds back, and will continue to hold back, until he is taken from our midst.
{2:8} And then that iniquitous one shall be revealed, the one whom the Lord Jesus shall bring to ruin with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy at the brightness of his return:
{2:9} him whose advent is accompanied by the works of Satan, with every kind of power and signs and false miracles,
{2:10} and with every seduction of iniquity, toward those who are perishing because they have not accepted the love of truth, so that they may be saved. For this reason, God will send to them works of deception, so that they may believe in lies,
{2:11} in order that all those who have not believed in the truth, but who have consented to iniquity, may be judged.
{2:12} Yet we must always give thanks to God for you, brothers, beloved of God, because God has chosen you as first-fruits for salvation, by the sanctification of the Spirit and by faith in the truth.
{2:13} He has also called you into truth through our Gospel, unto the acquisition of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{2:14} And so, brothers, stand firm, and hold to the traditions that you have learned, whether by word or by our epistle.
{2:15} So may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who has loved us and who has given us an everlasting consolation and good hope in grace,
{2:16} exhort your hearts and confirm you in every good word and deed.
{3:1} Concerning other things, brothers, pray for us, so that the Word of God may advance and be glorified, just as it is among you,
{3:2} and so that we may be freed from pertinacious and evil men. For not everyone is faithful.
{3:3} But God is faithful. He will strengthen you, and he will guard you from evil.
{3:4} And we have confidence about you in the Lord, that you are doing, and will continue to do, just as we have instructed.
{3:5} And may the Lord direct your hearts, in the charity of God and with the patience of Christ.
{3:6} But we strongly caution you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to draw yourselves away from every brother who is walking in disorder and not according to the tradition that they received from us.
{3:7} For you yourselves know the manner in which you ought to imitate us. For we were not disorderly among you.
{3:8} Nor did we eat bread from anyone for free, but rather, we worked night and day, in hardship and weariness, so as not to be burdensome to you.
{3:9} It was not as if we had no authority, but this was so that we might present ourselves as an example to you, in order to imitate us.
{3:10} Then, too, while we were with you, we insisted on this to you: that if anyone was not willing to work, neither should he eat.
{3:11} For we have heard that there are some among you who act disruptively, not working at all, but eagerly meddling.
{3:12} Now we charge those who act in this way, and we beg them in the Lord Jesus Christ, that they work in silence and eat their own bread.
{3:13} And you, brothers, do not grow weak in doing good.
{3:14} But if anyone does not obey our word by this epistle, take note of him and do not keep company with him, so that he may be ashamed.
{3:15} But do not be willing to consider him as an enemy; instead, correct him as a brother.
{3:16} Then may the Lord of peace himself give you an everlasting peace, in every place. May the Lord be with all of you.
{3:17} The greeting of Paul with my own hand, which is the seal in every epistle. So do I write.
{3:18} May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
{1:1} Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ by the authority of God our Savior and Christ Jesus our hope,
{1:2} to Timothy, beloved son in the faith. Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and from Christ Jesus our Lord.
{1:3} Now I asked you to remain at Ephesus, while I went into Macedonia, so that you would speak strongly against certain ones who have been teaching a different way,
{1:4} against those who have been paying attention to fables and endless genealogies. These things present questions as if they were greater than the edification that is of God, which is in faith.
{1:5} Now the goal of instruction is charity from a pure heart, and a good conscience, and an unfeigned faith.
{1:6} Certain persons, wandering away from these things, have been turned aside to empty babbling,
{1:7} desiring to be teachers of the law, but understanding neither the things that they themselves are saying, nor what they are affirming about these things.
{1:8} But we know that the law is good, if one makes use of it properly.
{1:9} Knowing this, that the law was not set in place for the just, but for the unjust and the insubordinate, for the impious and sinners, for the wicked and the defiled, for those who commit patricide, matricide, or homicide,
{1:10} for fornicators, for males who sleep with males, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine,
{1:11} which is in accord with the Gospel of the glory of the blessed God, the Gospel which has been entrusted to me.
{1:12} I give thanks to him who has strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he has considered me faithful, placing me in the ministry,
{1:13} though previously I was a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and contemptuous. But then I obtained the mercy of God. For I had been acting ignorantly, in unbelief.
{1:14} And so the grace of our Lord has abounded greatly, with the faith and love that is in Christ Jesus.
{1:15} It is a faithful saying, and worthy of acceptance by everyone, that Christ Jesus came into this world to bring salvation to sinners, among whom I am first.
{1:16} But it was for this reason that I obtained mercy, so that in me as first, Christ Jesus would display all patience, for the instruction of those who would believe in him unto eternal life.
{1:17} So then, to the King of ages, to the immortal, invisible, solitary God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
{1:18} This precept I commend to you, my son Timothy, in accord with the prophets who preceded you: that you serve among them like a soldier in a good war,
{1:19} holding to faith and good conscience, against those who, by rejecting these things, have made a shipwreck of the faith.
{1:20} Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan, so that they may learn not to blaspheme.
{2:1} And so I beg you, first of all, to make supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings for all men,
{2:2} for kings, and for all who are in high places, so that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all piety and chastity.
{2:3} For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior,
{2:4} who wants all men to be saved and to arrive at an acknowledgment of the truth.
{2:5} For there is one God, and one mediator of God and of men, the man Christ Jesus,
{2:6} who gave himself as a redemption for all, as a testimony in its proper time.
{2:7} Of this testimony, I have been appointed a preacher and an Apostle, (I speak the truth, I do not lie) as a teacher of the Gentiles, in faith and in truth.
{2:8} Therefore, I want men to pray in every place, lifting up pure hands, without anger or dissension.
{2:9} Similarly also, women should be dressed fittingly, adorning themselves with compunction and restraint, and not with plaited hair, nor gold, nor pearls, nor costly attire,
{2:10} but in a manner proper for women who are professing piety by means of good works.
{2:11} Let a woman learn in silence with all subjection.
{2:12} For I do not permit a woman to teach, nor to be in authority over a man, but to be in silence.
{2:13} For Adam was formed first, then Eve.
{2:14} And Adam was not seduced, but the woman, having been seduced, was in transgression.
{2:15} Yet she will be saved by bearing children, if she has continued in faith and love, and in sanctification accompanied by self-restraint.
{3:1} It is a faithful saying: if a man desires the episcopate, he desires a good work.
{3:2} Therefore, it is necessary for a bishop to be beyond reproach, the husband of one wife, sober, prudent, gracious, chaste, hospitable, a teacher,
{3:3} not a drunkard, not combative but restrained, not quarrelsome, not covetous;
{3:4} but a man who leads his own house well, having children who are subordinate with all chastity.
{3:5} For if a man does not know how to lead his own house, how will he take care of the Church of God?
{3:6} He must not be a new convert, lest, being elated by pride, he may fall under the sentence of the devil.
{3:7} And it is necessary for him also to have good testimony from those who are outside, so that he may not fall into disrepute and the snare of the devil.
{3:8} Similarly, deacons must be chaste, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not pursuing tainted profit,
{3:9} holding to the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience.
{3:10} And these things should be proven first, and then they may minister, being without offense.
{3:11} Similarly, the women must be chaste, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things.
{3:12} Deacons should be the husband of one wife, men who lead their own children and their own houses well.
{3:13} For those who have ministered well will acquire for themselves a good position, and much confidence in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.
{3:14} I am writing these things to you, with the hope that I will come to you soon.
{3:15} But, if I am delayed, you should know the manner in which it is necessary to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar and the foundation of truth.
{3:16} And it is clearly great, this mystery of piety, which was manifested in the flesh, which was justified in the Spirit, which has appeared to Angels, which has been preached to the Gentiles, which is believed in the world, which has been taken up in glory.
{4:1} Now the Spirit has clearly said that, in the end times, some persons will depart from the faith, paying attention to spirits of error and the doctrines of devils,
{4:2} speaking lies in hypocrisy, and having their consciences seared,
{4:3} prohibiting marriage, abstaining from foods, which God has created to be accepted with thanksgiving by the faithful and by those who have understood the truth.
{4:4} For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected which is received with thanksgiving;
{4:5} for it has been sanctified by the Word of God and by prayer.
{4:6} By proposing these things to the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished by words of faith, and by the good doctrine that you have secured.
{4:7} But avoid the silly fables of old women. And exercise yourself so as to advance in piety.
{4:8} For the exercise of the body is somewhat useful. But piety is useful in all things, holding the promise of life, in the present and in the future.
{4:9} This is a faithful saying and worthy of full acceptance.
{4:10} For this reason we labor and are maligned: because we hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, most especially of the faithful.
{4:11} Instruct and teach these things.
{4:12} Let no one despise your youth, but be an example among the faithful in word, in behavior, in charity, in faith, in chastity.
{4:13} Until I arrive, attend to reading, to exhortation, and to doctrine.
{4:14} Do not be willing to neglect the grace that is within you, which was given to you through prophecy, with the imposition of the hands of the priesthood.
{4:15} Meditate on these things, so that your progress may be manifest to all.
{4:16} Pay attention to yourself and to doctrine. Pursue these things. For in doing so, you will save both yourself and those who listen to you.
{5:1} You should not rebuke an old man, but rather plead with him, as if he were your father; with young men, like brothers;
{5:2} with old women, like mothers; with young women, in all chastity, like sisters.
{5:3} Honor those widows who are true widows.
{5:4} But if any widow has children or grandchildren, let her first learn to manage her own household, and to fulfill, in turn, her own obligation to her parents; for this is acceptable before God.
{5:5} But she who is truly a widow and is destitute, let her hope in God, and let her be urgent in supplications and prayers, night and day.
{5:6} For she who is living in pleasures is dead, while living.
{5:7} And give instruction in this, so that they may be beyond reproach.
{5:8} But if anyone has no concern for his own, and especially for those of his own household, he has denied the faith, and he is worse than an unbeliever.
{5:9} Let a widow be chosen who is no less than sixty years of age, who was the wife of one husband,
{5:10} who has testimony of her good works: whether she has educated children, or has provided hospitality, or has washed the feet of the saints, or has ministered to those suffering tribulation, or has pursued any kind of good work.
{5:11} But avoid the younger widows. For once they have flourished in Christ, they will want to marry,
{5:12} resulting in damnation, because they have disregarded the primacy of faith.
{5:13} And being at the same time also idle, they learn to go from house to house, being not only idle, but also talkative and curious, speaking of things which do not concern them.
{5:14} Therefore, I want the younger women to marry, to procreate children, to be mothers of families, to provide no ready opportunity for the adversary to speak evil.
{5:15} For certain ones have already been turned back to Satan.
{5:16} If any among the faithful have widows, let him minister to them and not burden the Church, so that there may be enough for those who are true widows.
{5:17} Let priests who lead well be held worthy of twice the honor, especially those who labor in the Word and in doctrine.
{5:18} For Scripture says: “You shall not muzzle an ox as it is treading out the grain,” and, “The worker is worthy of his pay.”
{5:19} Do not be willing to accept an accusation against a priest, except under two or three witnesses.
{5:20} Reprove sinners in the sight of everyone, so that the others may have fear.
{5:21} I testify before God and Christ Jesus and the elect Angels, that you should observe these things without prejudgment, doing nothing which shows favoritism to either side.
{5:22} You should not be quick to impose hands on anyone, nor should you take part in the sins of outsiders. Keep yourself chaste.
{5:23} Do not continue to drink only water, but make use of a little wine, for the sake of your stomach and your frequent infirmities.
{5:24} The sins of some men have been made manifest, preceding them to judgment, but those of others are manifested later.
{5:25} Similarly, too, good deeds have been made manifest, but even when they are not, they cannot remain hidden.
{6:1} Whoever are servants under the yoke, let them consider their masters to be worthy of every honor, lest the name and doctrine of the Lord be blasphemed.
{6:2} But those who have believing masters, let them not despise them because they are brothers, but rather serve them all the more because they are believing and beloved, participants of the same service. Teach and exhort these things.
{6:3} If anyone teaches otherwise, and does not consent to the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to that doctrine which is in accord with piety,
{6:4} then he is arrogant, knowing nothing, yet languishing amid the questions and quarrels of words. From these arise envy, contention, blasphemy, evil suspicions:
{6:5} the conflicts of men who have been corrupted in mind and deprived of truth, who consider profit to be piety.
{6:6} But piety with sufficiency is great gain.
{6:7} For we brought nothing into this world, and there is no doubt that we can take nothing away.
{6:8} But, having nourishment and some kind of covering, we should be content with these.
{6:9} For those who want to become rich fall into temptation and into the snare of the devil and into many useless and harmful desires, which submerge men in destruction and in perdition.
{6:10} For desire is the root of all evils. Some persons, hungering in this way, have strayed from the faith and have entangled themselves in many sorrows.
{6:11} But you, O man of God, flee from these things, and truly pursue justice, piety, faith, charity, patience, meekness.
{6:12} Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you have been called, and make a good profession of faith in the sight of many witnesses.
{6:13} I charge you, in the sight of God, who enlivens all things, and in the sight of Christ Jesus, who gave the testimony of a good profession under Pontius Pilate,
{6:14} to observe the commandment, immaculately, irreproachably, unto the return of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{6:15} For at the proper time, he shall reveal the blessed and only Power, the King of kings and the Lord of lords,
{6:16} who alone holds immortality, and who inhabits the inaccessible light, whom no man has seen, nor even is able to see, to whom is honor and everlasting dominion. Amen.
{6:17} Instruct the wealthy of this age not to have a superior attitude, nor to hope in the uncertainty of riches, but in the living God, who offers us everything in abundance to enjoy,
{6:18} and to do good, to become rich in good works, to donate readily, to share,
{6:19} to gather for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may obtain true life.
{6:20} O Timothy, guard what has been deposited with you, avoiding the voice of profane novelties and of opposing ideas, which are falsely called knowledge.
{6:21} Certain persons, promising these things, have perished from the faith. May grace be with you. Amen.
{1:1} Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, in accord with the promise of the life which is in Christ Jesus,
{1:2} to Timothy, most beloved son. Grace, mercy, peace, from God the Father and from Christ Jesus our Lord.
{1:3} I give thanks to God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a pure conscience. For without ceasing I hold the remembrance of you in my prayers, night and day,
{1:4} desiring to see you, recalling your tears so as to be filled with joy,
{1:5} calling to mind the same faith, which is in you unfeigned, which also first dwelt in your grandmother, Lois, and in your mother, Eunice, and also, I am certain, in you.
{1:6} Because of this, I admonish you to revive the grace of God, which is in you by the imposition of my hands.
{1:7} For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of virtue, and of love, and of self-restraint.
{1:8} And so, do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me, his prisoner. Instead, collaborate with the Gospel in accord with the virtue of God,
{1:9} who has freed us and has called us to his holy vocation, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus, before the ages of time.
{1:10} And this has now been made manifest by the illumination of our Savior Jesus Christ, who certainly has destroyed death, and who has also illuminated life and incorruption through the Gospel.
{1:11} Of this Gospel, I have been appointed a preacher, and an Apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.
{1:12} For this reason, I also suffer these things. But I am not confounded. For I know in whom I have believed, and I am certain that he has the power to preserve what was entrusted to me, unto that day.
{1:13} Hold to the kind of sound words that you have heard from me in the faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.
{1:14} Guard the good entrusted to you through the Holy Spirit, who lives within us.
{1:15} Know this: that all those who are in Asia have turned away from me, among whom are Phigellus and Hermogenes.
{1:16} May the Lord have mercy on the house of Onesiphorus, because he has often refreshed me, and he has not been ashamed of my chains.
{1:17} Instead, when he had arrived in Rome, he anxiously sought me and found me.
{1:18} May the Lord grant to him to obtain mercy from the Lord in that day. And you know well in how many ways he has ministered to me at Ephesus.
{2:1} And as for you, my son, be strengthened by the grace which is in Christ Jesus,
{2:2} and by the things which you have heard from me through many witnesses. These things encourage faithful men, who shall then be suitable to teach others also.
{2:3} Labor like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
{2:4} No man, acting as a soldier for God, entangles himself in worldly matters, so that he may be pleasing to him for whom he has proven himself.
{2:5} Then, too, whoever strives in a competition is not crowned, unless he has competed lawfully.
{2:6} The farmer who labors ought to be the first to share in the produce.
{2:7} Understand what I am saying. For the Lord will give you understanding in all things.
{2:8} Be mindful that the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the offspring of David, has risen again from the dead, according to my Gospel.
{2:9} I labor in this Gospel, even while chained like an evildoer. But the Word of God is not bound.
{2:10} I endure all things for this reason: for the sake of the elect, so that they, too, may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus, with heavenly glory.
{2:11} It is a faithful saying: that if we have died with him, we will also live with him.
{2:12} If we suffer, we will also reign with him. If we deny him, he will also deny us.
{2:13} If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful: he is not able to deny himself.
{2:14} Insist on these things, testifying before the Lord. Do not be contentious about words, for this is useful for nothing but the subversion of listeners.
{2:15} Be solicitous in the task of presenting yourself before God as a proven and unashamed worker who has handled the Word of Truth correctly.
{2:16} But avoid profane or empty talk. For these things advance one greatly in impiety.
{2:17} And their word spreads like a cancer: among these are Hymenaeus and Philetus,
{2:18} who have fallen away from the truth by saying that the resurrection is already complete. And so they have subverted the faith of certain persons.
{2:19} But the firm foundation of God remains standing, having this seal: the Lord knows those who are his own, and all who know the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.
{2:20} But, in a large house, there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also those of wood and of clay; and certainly some are held in honor, but others in dishonor.
{2:21} If anyone, then, will have cleansed himself from these things, he shall be a vessel held in honor, sanctified and useful to the Lord, prepared for every good work.
{2:22} So then, flee from the desires of your youth, yet truly, pursue justice, faith, hope, charity, and peace, along with those who call upon the Lord from a pure heart.
{2:23} But avoid foolish and undisciplined questions, for you know that these produce strife.
{2:24} For the servant of the Lord must not be contentious, but instead he must be meek toward everyone, teachable, patient,
{2:25} correcting with self-restraint those who resist the truth. For at any time God may give them repentance, so as to recognize the truth,
{2:26} and then they may recover from the snares of the devil, by whom they are held captive at his will.
{3:1} And know this: that in the last days perilous times will press near.
{3:2} Men will be lovers of themselves, greedy, self-exalting, arrogant, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, wicked,
{3:3} without affection, without peace, false accusers, unchaste, cruel, without kindness,
{3:4} traitorous, reckless, self-important, loving pleasure more than God,
{3:5} even having the appearance of piety while rejecting its virtue. And so, avoid them.
{3:6} For among these are ones who penetrate houses and lead away, like captives, foolish women burdened with sins, who are led away by means of various desires,
{3:7} always learning, yet never achieving knowledge of the truth.
{3:8} And in the same manner that Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so also will these resist the truth, men corrupted in mind, reprobates from the faith.
{3:9} But they will not advance beyond a certain point. For the folly of the latter shall be made manifest to all, just as that of the former.
{3:10} But you have fully comprehended my doctrine, instruction, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, patience,
{3:11} persecutions, afflictions; such things as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra; how I endured persecutions, and how the Lord rescued me from everything.
{3:12} And all those who willingly live the piety in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.
{3:13} But evil men and deceivers will advance in evil, erring and sending into error.
{3:14} Yet truly, you should remain in those things which you have learned and which have been entrusted to you. For you know from whom you have learned them.
{3:15} And, from your infancy, you have known the Sacred Scriptures, which are able to instruct you toward salvation, through the faith which is in Christ Jesus.
{3:16} All Scripture, having been divinely inspired, is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in justice,
{3:17} so that the man of God may be perfect, having been trained for every good work.
{4:1} I testify before God, and before Jesus Christ, who shall judge the living and the dead through his return and his kingdom:
{4:2} that you should preach the word urgently, in season and out of season: reprove, entreat, rebuke, with all patience and doctrine.
{4:3} For there shall be a time when they will not endure sound doctrine, but instead, according to their own desires, they will gather to themselves teachers, with itching ears,
{4:4} and certainly, they will turn their hearing away from the truth, and they will be turned toward fables.
{4:5} But as for you, truly, be vigilant, laboring in all things. Do the work of an Evangelist, fulfilling your ministry. Show self-restraint.
{4:6} For I am already being worn away, and the time of my dissolution presses close.
{4:7} I have fought the good fight. I have completed the course. I have preserved the faith.
{4:8} As for the remainder, a crown of justice has been reserved for me, one which the Lord, the just judge, will render to me in that day, and not only to me, but also to those who look forward to his return. Hurry to return to me soon.
{4:9} For Demas has abandoned me, out of love for this age, and he has departed for Thessalonica.
{4:10} Crescens has gone to Galatia; Titus to Dalmatia.
{4:11} Luke alone is with me. Take Mark and bring him with you; for he is useful to me in the ministry.
{4:12} But Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus.
{4:13} When you return, bring with you the supplies that I left with Carpus at Troas, and the books, but especially the parchments.
{4:14} Alexander the coppersmith has shown me much evil; the Lord will repay him according to his works.
{4:15} And you should also avoid him; for he has strongly resisted our words.
{4:16} At my first defense, no one stood by me, but everyone abandoned me. May it not be counted against them!
{4:17} But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that through me the preaching would be accomplished, and so that all the Gentiles would hear. And I was freed from the mouth of the lion.
{4:18} The Lord has freed me from every evil work, and he will accomplish salvation by his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
{4:19} Greet Prisca, and Aquila, and the household of Onesiphorus.
{4:20} Erastus remained at Corinth. And Trophimus I left sick at Miletus.
{4:21} Hurry to arrive before winter. Eubulus, and Pudens, and Linus, and Claudia, and all the brothers greet you.
{4:22} May the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. May grace be with you. Amen.
{1:1} Paul, a servant of God and an Apostle of Jesus Christ, in accord with the faith of God’s elect and in acknowledgment of the truth which is accompanied by piety,
{1:2} in the hope of the eternal life that God, who does not lie, promised before the ages of time,
{1:3} which, at the proper time, he has manifested by his Word, in the preaching that has been entrusted to me by the command of God our Savior;
{1:4} to Titus, beloved son according to the common faith. Grace and peace, from God the Father and from Christ Jesus our Savior.
{1:5} For this reason, I left you behind in Crete: so that those things which are lacking, you would correct, and so that you would ordain, throughout the communities, priests, (just as I also ordained you)
{1:6} if such a man is without offense, the husband of one wife, having faithful children, not accused of self-indulgence, nor of insubordination.
{1:7} And a bishop, as a steward of God, must be without offense: not arrogant, not short-tempered, not a drunkard, not violent, not desiring tainted profit,
{1:8} but instead: hospitable, kind, sober, just, holy, chaste,
{1:9} embracing faithful speech which is in agreement with doctrine, so that he may be able to exhort in sound doctrine and to argue against those who contradict.
{1:10} For there are, indeed, many who are disobedient, who speak empty words, and who deceive, especially those who are of the circumcision.
{1:11} These must be reproved, for they subvert entire houses, teaching things which should not be taught, for the favor of shameful gain.
{1:12} A certain one of these, a prophet of their own kind, said: “The Cretans are ever liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”
{1:13} This testimony is true. Because of this, rebuke them sharply, so that they may be sound in the faith,
{1:14} not paying attention to Jewish fables, nor to the rules of men who have turned themselves away from the truth.
{1:15} All things are clean to those who are clean. But to those who are defiled, and to unbelievers, nothing is clean; for both their mind and their conscience have been polluted.
{1:16} They claim that they know God. But, by their own works, they deny him, since they are abominable, and unbelieving, and reprobate, toward every good work.
{2:1} But you are to speak the things that befit sound doctrine.
{2:2} Old men should be sober, chaste, prudent, sound in faith, in love, in patience.
{2:3} Old women, similarly, should be in holy attire, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teaching well,
{2:4} so that they may teach prudence to the young women, so that they may love their husbands, love their children,
{2:5} be sensible, chaste, restrained, have concern for the household, be kind, be subordinate to their husbands: so that the Word of God may be not blasphemed.
{2:6} Exhort young men similarly, so that they may show self-restraint.
{2:7} In all things, present yourself as an example of good works: in doctrine, with integrity, with seriousness,
{2:8} with sound words, irreproachably, so that he who is an opponent may dread that he has nothing evil to say about us.
{2:9} Exhort servants to be submissive to their masters, in all things pleasing, not contradicting,
{2:10} not cheating, but in all things showing good fidelity, so that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things.
{2:11} For the grace of God our Savior has appeared to all men,
{2:12} instructing us to reject impiety and worldly desires, so that we may live soberly and justly and piously in this age,
{2:13} looking forward to the blessed hope and the advent of the glory of the great God and of our Savior Jesus Christ.
{2:14} He gave himself for our sake, so that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and might cleanse for himself an acceptable people, pursuers of good works.
{2:15} Speak and exhort and argue these things with all authority. Let no one despise you.
{3:1} Admonish them to be subordinate to the rulers and authorities, to obey their dictates, to be prepared for every good work,
{3:2} to speak evil of no one, not to be litigious, but to be reserved, displaying all meekness toward all men.
{3:3} For, in times past, we ourselves were also unwise, unbelieving, erring, servants of various desires and pleasures, acting with malice and envy, being hateful and hating one another.
{3:4} But then the kindness and humanity of God our Savior appeared.
{3:5} And he saved us, not by works of justice that we had done, but, in accord with his mercy, by the washing of regeneration and by the renovation of the Holy Spirit,
{3:6} whom he has poured out upon us in abundance, through Jesus Christ our Savior,
{3:7} so that, having been justified by his grace, we may become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
{3:8} This is a faithful saying. And I want you to confirm these things, so that those who believe in God may take care to excel in good works. These things are good and useful to men.
{3:9} But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, as well as arguments against the law. For these are useless and empty.
{3:10} Avoid a man who is a heretic, after the first and second correction,
{3:11} knowing that one who is like this has been subverted, and that he offends; for he has been condemned by his own judgment.
{3:12} When I send Artemas or Tychicus to you, hurry to return to me at Nicopolis. For I have decided to winter there.
{3:13} Send Zenas the lawyer and Apollo ahead with care, and let nothing be lacking to them.
{3:14} But let our men also learn to excel in good works pertaining to the necessities of life, so that they may not be unfruitful.
{3:15} All those who are with me greet you. Greet those who love us in the faith. May the grace of God be with you all. Amen.
{1:1} Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy, a brother, to Philemon, our beloved fellow laborer,
{1:2} and to Apphia, most beloved sister, and to Archippus, our fellow soldier, and to the church which is in your house.
{1:3} Grace and peace to you, from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:4} I give thanks to my God, always keeping remembrance of you in my prayers,
{1:5} (for I am hearing of your charity and faith, which you have in the Lord Jesus and with all the saints)
{1:6} so that the participation of your faith may become evident by the recognition of every good work which is in you in Christ Jesus.
{1:7} For I have found great joy and consolation in your charity, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed by you, brother.
{1:8} Because of this, I have enough confidence in Christ Jesus to command you concerning certain things,
{1:9} but I beg you instead, for the sake of charity, since you are so much like Paul: an old man and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ.
{1:10} I beg you, on behalf of my son, whom I have begotten in my chains, Onesimus.
{1:11} In times past, he was useless to you, but now he is useful both to me and to you.
{1:12} So I have sent him back to you. And may you receive him like my own heart.
{1:13} I myself wanted to retain him with me, so that he might minister to me, on your behalf, while I am in the chains of the Gospel.
{1:14} But I was willing to do nothing without your counsel, so as not to make use of your good deed as if out of necessity, but only willingly.
{1:15} So perhaps, then, he departed from you for a time, so that you might receive him again for eternity,
{1:16} no longer as a servant, but, in place of a servant, a most beloved brother, especially to me: but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord!
{1:17} Therefore, if you hold me to be a companion, receive him as you would me.
{1:18} But if he has harmed you in any way, or if he is in your debt, charge it to me.
{1:19} I, Paul, have written this with my own hand: I will repay. And I need not tell you, that you are also in debt yourself, to me.
{1:20} So it is, brother. May I delight with you in the Lord! Refresh my heart in Christ.
{1:21} I have written to you, trusting in your obedience, knowing, too, that you will do even more than what I say.
{1:22} But also, at once, prepare a lodging for me. For I am hoping, through your prayers, to present myself to you.
{1:23} Greet Epaphras, my fellow captive in Christ Jesus,
{1:24} and Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my helpers.
{1:25} May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
{1:1} In many places and in many ways, in past times, God spoke to the fathers through the Prophets;
{1:2} lastly, in these days, he has spoken to us through the Son, whom he appointed as the heir of all things, and through whom he made the world.
{1:3} And since the Son is the brightness of his glory, and the figure of his substance, and is carrying all things by the Word of his virtue, thereby accomplishing a purging of sins, he sits at the right hand of Majesty on high.
{1:4} And having been made so much better than the Angels, he has inherited a name so much greater than theirs.
{1:5} For to which of the Angels has he ever said: “You are my Son; today have I begotten you?” Or again: “I will be a Father to him, and he shall be a Son to me?”
{1:6} And again, when he brings the only-begotten Son into the world, he says: “And let all the Angels of God adore him.”
{1:7} And about the Angels, certainly, he says: “He makes his Angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.”
{1:8} But about the Son: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever. The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of equity.
{1:9} You have loved justice, and you have hated iniquity. Because of this, God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of exultation, above your companions.”
{1:10} And: “In the beginning, O Lord, you founded the earth. And the heavens are the work of your hands.
{1:11} These shall pass away, but you will remain. And all will grow old like a garment.
{1:12} And you will change them like a cloak, and they shall be changed. Yet you are ever the same, and your years will not diminish.”
{1:13} But to which of the Angels has he ever said: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool?”
{1:14} Are they not all spirits of ministration, sent to minister for the sake of those who shall receive the inheritance of salvation?
{2:1} For this reason, it is necessary for us to observe more thoroughly the things that we have heard, lest we let them slip away.
{2:2} For if a word that was spoken through the Angels has been made firm, and every transgression and disobedience has received the recompense of a just retribution,
{2:3} in what way might we escape, if we neglect such a great salvation? For though initially it had begun to be described by the Lord, it was confirmed among us by those who heard him,
{2:4} with God testifying to it by signs and wonders, and by various miracles, and by the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, in accord with his own will.
{2:5} For God did not subject the future world, about which we are speaking, to the Angels.
{2:6} But someone, in a certain place, has testified, saying: “What is man, that you are mindful of him, or the Son of man, that you visit him?
{2:7} You have reduced him to a little less than the Angels. You have crowned him with glory and honor, and you have set him over the works of your hands.
{2:8} You have subjected all things under his feet.” For in as much as he has subjected all things to him, he has left nothing not subject to him. But in the present time, we do not yet perceive that all things have been made subject to him.
{2:9} Yet we understand that Jesus, who was reduced to a little less than the Angels, was crowned with glory and honor because of his Passion and death, in order that, by the grace of God, he might taste death for all.
{2:10} For it was fitting for him, because of whom and through whom all things exist, who had led many children into glory, to complete the authorship of their salvation through his Passion.
{2:11} For he who sanctifies, and those who are sanctified, are all from One. For this reason, he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying:
{2:12} “I will announce your name to my brothers. In the midst of the Church, I will praise you.”
{2:13} And again: “I will be faithful in him.” And again: “Behold, I and my children, whom God has given to me.”
{2:14} Therefore, because children have a common flesh and blood, he himself also, in like manner, has shared in the same, so that through death, he might destroy him who held the dominion of death, that is, the devil,
{2:15} and so that he might free those who, through the fear of death, had been condemned to servitude throughout their entire life.
{2:16} For at no time did he take hold of the Angels, but instead he took hold of the offspring of Abraham.
{2:17} Therefore, it is fitting for him to be made similar to his brothers in all things, so that he might become a merciful and faithful High Priest before God, in order that he might bring forgiveness to the offenses of the people.
{2:18} For in as much as he himself has suffered and has been tempted, he also is able to assist those who are tempted.
{3:1} Therefore, holy brothers, sharers in the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession: Jesus.
{3:2} He is faithful to the One who made him, just as Moses also was, with his entire house.
{3:3} For this Jesus was considered worthy of greater glory than Moses, so much so that the house which he has built holds a greater honor than the former one.
{3:4} For every house is built by someone, but God is the One who has created all things.
{3:5} And certainly Moses was faithful, with his entire house, like any servant, as a testimony to those things that would soon be said.
{3:6} Yet truly, Christ is like a Son in his own house. We are that house, if we firmly retain the faithfulness and the glory of hope, even unto the end.
{3:7} Because of this, it is just as the Holy Spirit says: “If today you hear his voice,
{3:8} harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, the very day of temptation, in the desert,
{3:9} where your fathers tested me, even though they had seen and examined my works for forty years.
{3:10} For this reason, I was enraged against this generation, and I said: They always wander astray in heart. For they have not known my ways.
{3:11} So it is as I swore in my wrath: They shall not enter into my rest!”
{3:12} Be cautious, brothers, lest perhaps there may be, in any of you, an evil heart of unbelief, turning aside from the living God.
{3:13} Instead, exhort one another every day, while it is still called ‘today,’ so that none of you may become hardened through the falseness of sin.
{3:14} For we have been made participants in Christ. This is only so, if we firmly retain the beginning of his substance, even unto the end.
{3:15} For it has been said: “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts, in the same manner as in the former provocation.”
{3:16} For some of those listening did provoke him. But not all of these had set forth from Egypt through Moses.
{3:17} So against whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not those who had sinned, whose dead bodies lay prostrate in the desert?
{3:18} But to whom did he swear that they would not enter into his rest, except to those who were incredulous?
{3:19} And so, we perceive that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.
{4:1} Therefore, we should be afraid, lest the promise of entering into his rest may be relinquished, and some of you may be judged to be lacking.
{4:2} For this was announced to us in a similar manner as to them. But the mere hearing of the word did not benefit them, since it was not joined together with a faith in those things that they heard.
{4:3} For we who have believed shall enter into rest, in the same manner as he said: “So it is as I have sworn in my wrath: They shall not enter into my rest!” And certainly, this is when the works from the foundation of the world have been finished.
{4:4} For, in a certain place, he spoke about the seventh day in this manner: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.”
{4:5} And in this place again: “They shall not enter into my rest!”
{4:6} Therefore, this is because certain ones remain who are to enter into it, and those to whom it was announced first did not enter into it, because of unbelief.
{4:7} Again, he defines a certain day, after so much time, saying in David, “Today,” just as it was stated above, “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”
{4:8} For if Jesus had offered them rest, he would never have spoken, afterward, about another day.
{4:9} And so, there remains a Sabbath of rest for the people of God.
{4:10} For whoever has entered into his rest, the same has also rested from his works, just as God did from his.
{4:11} Therefore, let us hasten to enter into that rest, so that no one may fall into the same example of unbelief.
{4:12} For the Word of God is living and effective: more piercing than any two-edged sword, reaching to the division even between the soul and the spirit, even between the joints and the marrow, and so it discerns the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
{4:13} And there is no created thing that is invisible to his sight. For all things are naked and open to the eyes of him, about whom we are speaking.
{4:14} Therefore, since we have a great High Priest, who has pierced the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, we should hold to our confession.
{4:15} For we do not have a high priest who is unable to have compassion on our infirmities, but rather one who was tempted in all things, just as we are, yet without sin.
{4:16} Therefore, let us go forth with confidence toward the throne of grace, so that we may obtain mercy, and find grace, in a helpful time.
{5:1} For every high priest, having been taken from among men, is appointed on behalf of men toward the things which pertain to God, so that he may offer gifts and sacrifices on behalf of sins;
{5:2} he is able to commiserate with those who are ignorant and who wander astray, because he himself is also encompassed by infirmity.
{5:3} And because of this, he also must make such offerings for sins even for himself, in the same manner as for the people.
{5:4} Neither does anyone take up this honor himself, but rather he who is called by God, just as Aaron was.
{5:5} Thus, even Christ did not glorify himself, so as to become High Priest, but instead, it was God who said to him: “You are my Son. Today I have begotten you.”
{5:6} And similarly, he says in another place: “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.”
{5:7} It is Christ who, in the days of his flesh, with a strong cry and tears, offered prayers and supplications to the One who was able to save him from death, and who was heard because of his reverence.
{5:8} And although, certainly, he is the Son of God, he learned obedience by the things that he suffered.
{5:9} And having reached his consummation, he was made, for all who are obedient to him, the cause of eternal salvation,
{5:10} having been called by God to be the High Priest, according to the order of Melchizedek.
{5:11} Our message about him is great, and difficult to explain when speaking, because you have been made feeble when listening.
{5:12} For even though it is the time when you ought to be teachers, you are still lacking, so that you must be taught the things that are the basic elements of the Word of God, and so you have been made like those who are in need of milk, and not of solid food.
{5:13} For anyone who is still feeding on milk is still unskillful in the Word of Justice; for he is like an infant.
{5:14} But solid food is for those who are mature, for those who, by practice, have sharpened their mind, so as to discern good from evil.
{6:1} Therefore, interrupting an explanation of the basics of Christ, let us consider what is more advanced, not presenting again the fundamentals of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
{6:2} of the doctrine of baptism, and also of the imposition of hands, and of the resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.
{6:3} And we shall do this, if indeed God permits it.
{6:4} For it is impossible for those who were once illuminated, and have even tasted of the heavenly gift, and have become sharers in the Holy Spirit,
{6:5} who, despite having tasted the good Word of God and the virtues of the future age, have yet fallen away,
{6:6} to be renewed again to penance, since they are crucifying again in themselves the Son of God and are still maintaining pretenses.
{6:7} For the earth accepts a blessing from God, by drinking in the rain that often falls upon it, and by producing plants that are useful to those by whom it is cultivated.
{6:8} But whatever brings forth thorns and briers is rejected, and is closest to what is accursed; their consummation is in combustion.
{6:9} But from you, most beloved, we are confident that there will be things better and closer to salvation; even though we speak in this way.
{6:10} For God is not unjust, such that he would forget your work and the love that you have shown in his name. For you have ministered, and you continue to minister, to the saints.
{6:11} Yet we desire that each one of you display the same solicitude toward the fulfillment of hope, even unto the end,
{6:12} so that you may not be slow to act, but instead may be imitators of those who, through faith and patience, shall inherit the promises.
{6:13} For God, in making promises to Abraham, swore by himself, (because he had no one greater by whom he might swear),
{6:14} saying: “Blessing, I shall bless you, and multiplying, I shall multiply you.”
{6:15} And in this way, by enduring patiently, he secured the promise.
{6:16} For men swear by what is greater than themselves, and an oath as confirmation is the end of all their controversy.
{6:17} In this matter, God, wanting to reveal more thoroughly the immutability of his counsel to the heirs of the promise, interposed an oath,
{6:18} so that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have the strongest solace: we who have fled together so as to hold fast to the hope set before us.
{6:19} This we have as an anchor of the soul, safe and sound, which advances even to the interior of the veil,
{6:20} to the place where the forerunner Jesus has entered on our behalf, so as to become the High Priest for eternity, according to the order of Melchizedek.
{7:1} For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham, as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him.
{7:2} And Abraham divided to him a tenth part of everything. And in translation his name is first, indeed, king of justice, and next also king of Salem, that is, king of peace.
{7:3} Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life, he is thereby likened to the Son of God, who remains a priest continuously.
{7:4} Next, consider how great this man is, since the Patriarch Abraham even gave tithes to him from the principal things.
{7:5} And indeed, those who are from the sons of Levi, having received the priesthood, hold a commandment to take tithes from the people in accord with the law, that is, from their brothers, even though they also went forth from the loins of Abraham.
{7:6} But this man, whose lineage is not enumerated with them, received tithes from Abraham, and he blessed even the one who held the promises.
{7:7} Yet this is without any contradiction, for what is less should be blessed by what is better.
{7:8} And certainly, here, men who receive tithes still die; but there, he bears witness that he lives.
{7:9} And so it may be said that even Levi, who received tithes, was himself a tithe through Abraham.
{7:10} For he was still in the loins of his father, when Melchizedek met him.
{7:11} Therefore, if consummation had occurred through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), then what further need would there be for another Priest to rise up according to the order of Melchizedek, one who was not called according to the order of Aaron?
{7:12} For since the priesthood has been transferred, it is necessary that the law also be transferred.
{7:13} For he about whom these things have been spoken is from another tribe, in which no one attends before the altar.
{7:14} For it is evident that our Lord arose out of Judah, a tribe about which Moses said nothing concerning priests.
{7:15} And yet it is far more evident that, according to the likeness of Melchizedek, there rises up another priest,
{7:16} who was made, not according to the law of a carnal commandment, but according to the virtue of an indissoluble life.
{7:17} For he testifies: “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.”
{7:18} Certainly, there is a setting aside of the former commandment, because of its weakness and lack of usefulness.
{7:19} For the law led no one to perfection, yet truly it introduced a better hope, through which we draw near to God.
{7:20} Moreover, it is not without an oath. For certainly, the others were made priests without an oath.
{7:21} But this man was made a priest with an oath, by the One who said to him: “The Lord has sworn and he will not repent. You are a priest forever.”
{7:22} By so much, Jesus has been made the sponsor of a better testament.
{7:23} And certainly, so many of the others became priests because, due to death, they were prohibited from continuing.
{7:24} But this man, because he continues forever, has an everlasting priesthood.
{7:25} And for this reason, he is able, continuously, to save those who approach God through him, since he is ever alive to make intercession on our behalf.
{7:26} For it was fitting that we should have such a High Priest: holy, innocent, undefiled, set apart from sinners, and exalted higher than the heavens.
{7:27} And he has no need, daily, in the manner of other priests, to offer sacrifices, first for his own sins, and then for those of the people. For he has done this once, by offering himself.
{7:28} For the law appoints men as priests, though they have infirmities. But, by the word of the oath that is after the law, the Son has been perfected for eternity.
{8:1} Now the main point in the things that have been stated is this: that we have so great a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of Majesty in the heavens,
{8:2} who is the minister of holy things, and of the true tabernacle, which was established by the Lord, not by man.
{8:3} For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices. Therefore, it is necessary for him also to have something to offer.
{8:4} And so, if he were upon the earth, he would not be a priest, since there would be others to offer gifts according to the law,
{8:5} gifts which serve as mere examples and shadows of the heavenly things. And so it was answered to Moses, when he was about to complete the tabernacle: “See to it,” he said, “that you make everything according to the example which was revealed to you on the mountain.”
{8:6} But now he has been granted a better ministry, so much so that he is also the Mediator of a better testament, which has been confirmed by better promises.
{8:7} For if the former one had been entirely without fault, then a place certainly would not have been sought for a subsequent one.
{8:8} For, finding fault with them, he says: “Behold, the days shall arrive, says the Lord, when I will consummate a New Testament over the house of Israel and the house of Judah,
{8:9} not according to the testament which I made with their fathers, on the day when I took them by the hand, so that I might lead them away from the land of Egypt. For they did not remain in my testament, and so I disregarded them, says the Lord.
{8:10} For this is the testament which I will set before the house of Israel, after those days, says the Lord. I will instill my laws in their minds, and I will inscribe my laws on their hearts. And so, I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
{8:11} And they will not teach, each one his neighbor, and each one his brother, saying: ‘Know the Lord.’ For all shall know me, from the least, even to the greatest of them.
{8:12} For I will forgive their iniquities, and I will no longer remember their sins.”
{8:13} Now in saying something new, he has made the former old. But that which decays and grows old is close to passing away.
{9:1} Certainly, the former also had the justifications of worship and a holy place for that age.
{9:2} For a tabernacle was made at first, in which were the lampstand, and the table, and the bread of the Presence, which is called Holy.
{9:3} Then, beyond the second veil, was the tabernacle, which is called the Holy of Holies,
{9:4} having a golden censer, and the ark of the testament, covered all around and on every part with gold, in which was a golden urn containing manna, and the rod of Aaron which had blossomed, and the tablets of the testament.
{9:5} And over the ark were the Cherubim of glory, overshadowing the propitiatory. There is not enough time to speak about each of these things.
{9:6} Yet truly, once such things were placed together, in the first part of the tabernacle, the priests were, indeed, continually entering, so as to carry out the duties of the sacrifices.
{9:7} But into the second part, once a year, the high priest alone entered, not without blood, which he offered on behalf of the neglectful offenses of himself and of the people.
{9:8} In this way, the Holy Spirit is signifying that the way to what is most holy was not yet made manifest, not while the first tabernacle was still standing.
{9:9} And this is a parable for the present time. Accordingly, those gifts and sacrifices that are offered are not able, as concerns the conscience, to make perfect those things that serve only as food and drink,
{9:10} as well as the various washings and justices of the flesh, which were imposed upon them until the time of correction.
{9:11} But Christ, standing as the High Priest of future good things, through a greater and more perfect tabernacle, one not made by hand, that is, not of this creation,
{9:12} entered once into the Holy of Holies, having obtained eternal redemption, neither by the blood of goats, nor of calves, but by his own blood.
{9:13} For if the blood of goats and oxen, and the ashes of a calf, when these are sprinkled, sanctify those who have been defiled, in order to cleanse the flesh,
{9:14} how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the Holy Spirit has offered himself, immaculate, to God, cleanse our conscience from dead works, in order to serve the living God?
{9:15} And thus he is the Mediator of the new testament, so that, by his death, he intercedes for the redemption of those transgressions which were under the former testament, so that those who have been called may receive the promise of an eternal inheritance.
{9:16} For where there is a testament, it is necessary for the death of the one who testifies to intervene.
{9:17} For a testament is confirmed by death. Otherwise, it as yet has no force, as long as the one who testifies lives.
{9:18} Therefore, indeed, the first was not dedicated without blood.
{9:19} For when every commandment of the law had been read by Moses to the entire people, he took up the blood of calves and goats, with water and with scarlet wool and hyssop, and he sprinkled both the book itself and the entire people,
{9:20} saying: “This is the blood of the testament which God has commanded for you.”
{9:21} And even the tabernacle, and all the vessels for the ministry, he similarly sprinkled with blood.
{9:22} And nearly everything, according to the law, is to be cleansed with blood. And without the shedding of blood, there is no remission.
{9:23} Therefore, it is necessary for the examples of heavenly things to be cleansed, just as, indeed, these things were. Yet the heavenly things are themselves better sacrifices than these.
{9:24} For Jesus did not enter by means of holy things made with hands, mere examples of the true things, but he entered into Heaven itself, so that he may appear now before the face of God for us.
{9:25} And he did not enter so as to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters into the Holy of Holies each year, with the blood of another.
{9:26} Otherwise, he would need to have suffered repeatedly since the beginning of the world. But now, one time, at the consummation of the ages, he has appeared in order to destroy sin though his own sacrifice.
{9:27} And in the same manner as it has been appointed for men to die one time, and after this, to be judged,
{9:28} so also Christ was offered, one time, in order to empty the sins of so many. He shall appear a second time without sin, for those who await him, unto salvation.
{10:1} For the law contains the shadow of future good things, not the very image of these things. So, by the very same sacrifices which they offer ceaselessly each year, they can never cause these to approach perfection.
{10:2} Otherwise, they would have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, once cleansed, would no longer be conscious of any sin.
{10:3} Instead, in these things, a commemoration of sins is made every year.
{10:4} For it is impossible for sins to be taken away by the blood of oxen and goats.
{10:5} For this reason, as Christ enters into the world, he says: “Sacrifice and oblation, you did not want. But you have fashioned a body for me.
{10:6} Holocausts for sin were not pleasing to you.
{10:7} Then I said, ‘Behold, I draw near.’ At the head of the book, it has been written of me that I should do your will, O God.”
{10:8} In the above, by saying, “Sacrifices, and oblations, and holocausts for sin, you did not want, nor are those things pleasing to you, which are offered according to the law;
{10:9} then I said, ‘Behold, I have come to do your will, O God,’ ” he takes away the first, so that he may establish what follows.
{10:10} For by this will, we have been sanctified, through the one time oblation of the body of Jesus Christ.
{10:11} And certainly, every priest stands by, ministering daily, and frequently offering the same sacrifices, which are never able to take away sins.
{10:12} But this man, offering one sacrifice for sins, sits at the right hand of God forever,
{10:13} awaiting that time when his enemies will be made his footstool.
{10:14} For, by one oblation, he has brought to fulfillment, for all time, those who are sanctified.
{10:15} Now the Holy Spirit also testifies for us about this. For afterward, he said:
{10:16} “And this is the testament which I will commit to them after those days, says the Lord. I will instill my laws in their hearts, and I will inscribe my laws on their minds.
{10:17} And I will no longer remember their sins and iniquities.”
{10:18} Now, when there is a remission of these things, there is no longer an oblation for sin.
{10:19} And so, brothers, have faith in the entrance into the Holy of Holies by the blood of Christ,
{10:20} and in the new and living Way, which he has initiated for us by the veil, that is, by his flesh,
{10:21} and in the Great Priest over the house of God.
{10:22} So, let us draw near with a true heart, in the fullness of faith, having hearts cleansed from an evil conscience, and bodies absolved with clean water.
{10:23} Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope, without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful.
{10:24} And let us be considerate of one another, so as to prompt ourselves to charity and to good works,
{10:25} not deserting our assembly, as some are accustomed to do, but consoling one another, and even more so as you see that the day is approaching.
{10:26} For if we sin willingly, after receiving knowledge of the truth, there is no sacrifice remaining for sins,
{10:27} but instead, a certain terrible expectation of judgment, and the rage of a fire that shall consume its adversaries.
{10:28} If someone dies for acting against the law of Moses, and is shown no compassion because of two or three witnesses,
{10:29} how much more, do you think, someone would deserve worse punishments, if he has tread upon the Son of God, and has treated the blood of the testament, by which he was sanctified, as unclean, and has acted with disgrace toward the Spirit of grace?
{10:30} For we know that he has said: “Vengeance is mine, and I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.”
{10:31} It is dreadful to fall into the hands of the living God.
{10:32} But call to mind the former days, in which, after being enlightened, you endured a great struggle of afflictions.
{10:33} And certainly, in one way, by insults and tribulations, you were made a spectacle, but in another way, you became the companions of those who were the object of such behavior.
{10:34} For you even had compassion on those who were imprisoned, and you accepted with gladness being deprived of your goods, knowing that you have a better and more lasting substance.
{10:35} And so, do not lose your confidence, which has a great reward.
{10:36} For it is necessary for you to be patient, so that, by doing the will of God, you may receive the promise.
{10:37} “For, in a little while, and somewhat longer, he who is to come will return, and he will not delay.
{10:38} For my just man lives by faith. But if he were to draw himself back, he would not please my soul.”
{10:39} So then, we are not sons who are drawn away to perdition, but we are sons of faith toward the securing of the soul.
{11:1} Now, faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not apparent.
{11:2} For this reason, the ancients were given testimony.
{11:3} By faith, we understand the world to be fashioned by the Word of God, so that the visible might be made by the invisible.
{11:4} By faith, Abel offered to God a much better sacrifice than that of Cain, through which he obtained testimony that he was just, in that God offered testimony to his gifts. And through that sacrifice, he still speaks to us, though he is dead.
{11:5} By faith, Enoch was transferred, so that he would not see death, and he was not found because God had transferred him. For before he was transferred, he had testimony that he pleased God.
{11:6} But without faith, it is impossible to please God. For whoever approaches God must believe that he exists, and that he rewards those who seek him.
{11:7} By faith, Noah, having accepted an answer about those things which were not yet seen, being afraid, fashioned an ark for the salvation of his house. Through the ark, he condemned the world, and was established as the heir of the justice that occurs through faith.
{11:8} By faith, the one called Abraham obeyed, going out to the place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.
{11:9} By faith, he stayed in the Land of the Promise as if in a foreign land, dwelling in cottages, with Isaac and Jacob, co-heirs of the same promise.
{11:10} For he was awaiting a city having firm foundations, whose designer and builder is God.
{11:11} By faith also, Sarah herself, being barren, received the ability to conceive offspring, even though she was past that age in life. For she believed him to be faithful, who had promised.
{11:12} Because of this, there were also born, from one who himself was as if dead, a multitude like the stars of heaven, who are, like the sand of the seashore, innumerable.
{11:13} All of these passed away, adhering to faith, not having received the promises, yet beholding them from afar and saluting them, and confessing themselves to be sojourners and guests upon the earth.
{11:14} For those who speak in this way are themselves indicating that they seek a homeland.
{11:15} And if, indeed, they had been mindful of the very place from which they departed, they certainly would have returned in time.
{11:16} But now they hunger for a better place, that is, Heaven. For this reason, God is not ashamed to be called their God. For he has prepared a city for them.
{11:17} By faith, Abraham, when he was tested, offered Isaac, so that he who had received the promises was offering up his only son.
{11:18} To him, it was said, “Through Isaac, shall your offspring be summoned,”
{11:19} indicating that God is even able to raise up from the dead. And thus, he also established him as a parable.
{11:20} By faith, also, Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau, concerning future events.
{11:21} By faith, Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph; and he reverenced the summit of his rod.
{11:22} By faith, Joseph, as he was dying, recalled the departure of the sons of Israel, and gave a commandment concerning his bones.
{11:23} By faith, Moses, after being born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they had seen that he was a graceful infant, and they did not fear the king’s edict.
{11:24} By faith, Moses, after growing up, denied himself a place as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,
{11:25} choosing to be afflicted with the people of God, rather than to have the pleasantness of sin for a time,
{11:26} valuing the reproach of Christ to be a greater wealth than the treasures of the Egyptians. For he looked forward to his reward.
{11:27} By faith, he abandoned Egypt, not dreading the animosity of the king. For he pressed on, as if seeing him who is unseen.
{11:28} By faith, he celebrated the Passover and the shedding of the blood, so that he who destroyed the firstborn might not touch them.
{11:29} By faith, they crossed the Red Sea, as if on dry land, yet when the Egyptians attempted it, they were swallowed up.
{11:30} By faith, the walls of Jericho collapsed, after being encircled for seven days.
{11:31} By faith, Rahab, the harlot, did not perish with the unbelievers, after receiving the spies with peace.
{11:32} And what should I say next? For time is not sufficient for me to give an account of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the Prophets:
{11:33} those who, by faith, conquered kingdoms, accomplished justice, obtained promises, closed the mouths of lions,
{11:34} extinguished the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, recovered from infirmities, showed strength in battle, turned back the armies of foreigners.
{11:35} Women received their dead by means of resurrection. But others suffered severe punishment, not yet receiving redemption, so that they would find a better resurrection.
{11:36} Truly, others were tested by mocking and lashes, and moreover by chains and imprisonment.
{11:37} They were stoned; they were cut; they were tempted. With the slaughter of the sword, they were killed. They wandered about in sheepskin and in goatskin, in dire need, in anguish afflicted.
{11:38} Of them, the world was not worthy, wandering in solitude on mountains, in the caves and caverns of the earth.
{11:39} And all these, having been proven by the testimony of faith, did not receive the Promise.
{11:40} God’s Providence holds something better for us, so that not without us would they be perfected.
{12:1} Furthermore, since we also have so great a cloud of witnesses over us, let us set aside every burden and sin which may surround us, and advance, through patience, to the struggle offered to us.
{12:2} Let us gaze upon Jesus, as the Author and the completion of our faith, who, having joy laid out before him, endured the cross, disregarding the shame, and who now sits at the right hand of the throne of God.
{12:3} So then, meditate upon him who endured such adversity from sinners against himself, so that you may not become weary, failing in your souls.
{12:4} For you have not yet resisted unto blood, while striving against sin.
{12:5} And you have forgotten the consolation which speaks to you like sons, saying: “My son, do not be willing to neglect the discipline of the Lord. Neither should you become weary, while being rebuked by him.”
{12:6} For whomever the Lord loves, he chastises. And every son whom he accepts, he scourges.
{12:7} Persevere in discipline. God presents you to himself as sons. But what son is there, whom his father does not correct?
{12:8} But if you are without that discipline in which all have become sharers, then you are of adultery, and you are not sons.
{12:9} Then, too, we have certainly had the fathers of our flesh as instructors, and we reverenced them. Should we not obey the Father of spirits all the more, and so live?
{12:10} And indeed, for a few days and according to their own wishes, they instructed us. But he does so to our benefit, so that we may receive his sanctification.
{12:11} Now every discipline, in the present time, does not seem a gladness, of course, but a grief. But afterwards, it will repay a most peaceful fruit of justice to those who become trained in it.
{12:12} Because of this, lift up your lazy hands and your lax knees,
{12:13} and straighten the path of your feet, so that no one, being lame, may wander astray, but instead may be healed.
{12:14} Pursue peace with everyone. Pursue sanctity, without which no one shall see God.
{12:15} Be contemplative, lest anyone lack the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness spring up and impede you, and by it, many might be defiled,
{12:16} lest any fornicator or worldly person be like Esau, who, for the sake of one meal, sold his birthright.
{12:17} For you know that afterwards, when he desired to inherit the benediction, he was rejected. For he found no place for repentance, even though he had sought it with tears.
{12:18} But you have not drawn near to a tangible mountain, or a burning fire, or a whirlwind, or a mist, or a storm,
{12:19} or the sound of a trumpet, or a voice of words. Those who had experienced these things excused themselves, lest the Word be spoken to them.
{12:20} For they could not bear what was said, and so, if even a beast would have touched the mountain, it would have been stoned.
{12:21} And what was seen was so terrible that even Moses said: “I am terrified, and so, I tremble.”
{12:22} But you have drawn near to mount Zion, and to the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, and to the company of many thousands of Angels,
{12:23} and to the Church of the first-born, those who have been inscribed in the heavens, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the just made perfect,
{12:24} and to Jesus, the Mediator of the New Testament, and to a sprinkling of blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel.
{12:25} Be careful not to reject the One who is speaking. For if those who rejected him who was speaking upon the earth were not able to escape, so much more we who might turn away from the One who is speaking to us from heaven.
{12:26} Then, his voice moved the earth. But now, he makes a promise, saying: “There is still one more time, and then I will move, not only the earth, but also heaven itself.”
{12:27} And so, in saying, “There is still one more time,” he declares the transfer of the moveable things of creation, so that those things which are immoveable may remain.
{12:28} Thus, in receiving an immoveable kingdom, we have grace. So, through grace, let us be of service, by pleasing God with fear and reverence.
{12:29} For our God is a consuming fire.
{13:1} May fraternal charity remain in you.
{13:2} And do not be willing to forget hospitality. For by it, certain persons, without realizing it, have received Angels as guests.
{13:3} Remember those who are prisoners, just as if you were imprisoned with them, and those who endure hardships, just as if you were in their place.
{13:4} May marriage be honorable in every way, and may the marriage bed be immaculate. For God will judge fornicators and adulterers.
{13:5} Let your behavior be without avarice; be content with what you are offered. For he himself has said, “I will not abandon you, and I will not neglect you.”
{13:6} So then, we may confidently say, “The Lord is my helper. I will not fear what man can do to me.”
{13:7} Remember your leaders, who have spoken the Word of God to you, whose faith you imitate, by observing the goal of their way of life:
{13:8} Jesus Christ, yesterday and today; Jesus Christ forever.
{13:9} Do not be led away by changing or strange doctrines. And it is best for the heart to be sustained by grace, not by foods. For the latter have not been as useful to those who walked by them.
{13:10} We have an altar: those who serve in the tabernacle have no authority to eat from it.
{13:11} For the bodies of those animals whose blood is carried into the Holy of holies by the high priest, on behalf of sin, are burned outside the camp.
{13:12} Because of this, Jesus, too, in order to sanctify the people by his own blood, suffered outside the gate.
{13:13} And so, let us go forth to him, outside the camp, bearing his reproach.
{13:14} For in this place, we have no everlasting city; instead, we seek one in the future.
{13:15} Therefore, through him, let us offer the sacrifice of continual praise to God, which is the fruit of lips confessing his name.
{13:16} But do not be willing to forget good works and fellowship. For God is deserving of such sacrifices.
{13:17} Obey your leaders and be subject to them. For they watch over you, as if to render an account of your souls. So then, may they do this with joy, and not with grief. Otherwise, it would not be as helpful to you.
{13:18} Pray for us. For we trust that we have a good conscience, being willing to conduct ourselves well in all things.
{13:19} And I beg you, all the more, to do this, so that I may be quickly returned to you.
{13:20} Then may the God of peace, who led back from the dead that great Pastor of sheep, our Lord Jesus Christ, with the blood of the eternal testament,
{13:21} equip you with all goodness, so that you may do his will. May he accomplish in you whatever is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom is glory forever and ever. Amen.
{13:22} And I beg you, brothers, that you may permit this word of consolation, especially since I have written to you with few words.
{13:23} Know that our brother Timothy has been set free. If he arrives soon, then I will see you with him.
{13:24} Greet all your leaders and all the saints. The brothers from Italy greet you.
{13:25} Grace be with you all. Amen.
{1:1} James, servant of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes of the dispersion, greetings.
{1:2} My brothers, when you have fallen into various trials, consider everything a joy,
{1:3} knowing that the proving of your faith exercises patience,
{1:4} and patience brings a work to perfection, so that you may be perfect and whole, deficient in nothing.
{1:5} But if anyone among you is in need of wisdom, let him petition God, who gives abundantly to all without reproach, and it shall be given to him.
{1:6} But he should ask with faith, doubting nothing. For he who doubts is like a wave on the ocean, which is moved about by the wind and carried away;
{1:7} then a man should not consider that he would receive anything from the Lord.
{1:8} For a man who is of two minds is inconstant in all his ways.
{1:9} Now a humble brother should glory in his exaltation,
{1:10} and a rich one, in his humiliation, for he will pass away like the flower of the grass.
{1:11} For the sun has risen with a scorching heat, and has dried the grass, and its flower has fallen off, and the appearance of its beauty has perished. So also will the rich one wither away, according to his paths.
{1:12} Blessed is the man who suffers temptation. For when he has been proven, he shall receive the crown of life which God has promised to those who love him.
{1:13} No one should say, when he is tempted, that he was tempted by God. For God does not entice toward evils, and he himself tempts no one.
{1:14} Yet truly, each one is tempted by his own desires, having been enticed and drawn away.
{1:15} Thereafter, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin. Yet truly sin, when it has been consummated, produces death.
{1:16} And so, do not choose to go astray, my most beloved brothers.
{1:17} Every excellent gift and every perfect gift is from above, descending from the Father of lights, with whom there is no change, nor any shadow of alteration.
{1:18} For by his own will he produced us through the Word of truth, so that we might be a kind of beginning among his creatures.
{1:19} You know this, my most beloved brothers. So let every man be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to anger.
{1:20} For the anger of man does not accomplish the justice of God.
{1:21} Because of this, having cast away all uncleanness and an abundance of malice, receive with meekness the newly-grafted Word, which is able to save your souls.
{1:22} So be doers of the Word, and not listeners only, deceiving yourselves.
{1:23} For if anyone is a listener of the Word, but not also a doer, he is comparable to a man gazing into a mirror upon the face that he was born with;
{1:24} and after considering himself, he went away and promptly forgot what he had seen.
{1:25} But he who gazes upon the perfect law of liberty, and who remains in it, is not a forgetful hearer, but instead a doer of the work. He shall be blessed in what he does.
{1:26} But if anyone considers himself to be religious, but he does not restrain his tongue, but instead seduces his own heart: such a one’s religion is vanity.
{1:27} This is religion, clean and undefiled before God the Father: to visit orphans and widows in their tribulations, and to keep yourself immaculate, apart from this age.
{2:1} My brothers, within the glorious faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, do not choose to show favoritism toward persons.
{2:2} For if a man has entered your assembly having a gold ring and splendid apparel, and if a poor man has also entered, in dirty clothing,
{2:3} and if you are then attentive to the one who is clothed in excellent apparel, so that you say to him, “You may sit in this good place,” but you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit below my footstool,”
{2:4} are you not judging within yourselves, and have you not become judges with unjust thoughts?
{2:5} My most beloved brothers, listen. Has not God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that God has promised to those who love him?
{2:6} But you have dishonored the poor. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you through power? And are not they the ones who drag you to judgment?
{2:7} Are not they the ones who blaspheme the good name which has been invoked over you?
{2:8} So if you perfect the regal law, according to the Scriptures, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” then you do well.
{2:9} But if you show favoritism to persons, then you commit a sin, having been convicted again by the law as transgressors.
{2:10} Now whoever has observed the whole law, yet who offends in one matter, has become guilty of all.
{2:11} For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not kill.” So if you do not commit adultery, but you kill, you have become a transgressor of the law.
{2:12} So speak and act just as you are beginning to be judged, by the law of liberty.
{2:13} For judgment is without mercy toward him who has not shown mercy. But mercy exalts itself above judgment.
{2:14} My brothers, what benefit is there if someone claims to have faith, but he does not have works? How would faith be able to save him?
{2:15} So if a brother or sister is naked and daily in need of food,
{2:16} and if anyone of you were to say to them: “Go in peace, keep warm and nourished,” and yet not give them the things that are necessary for the body, of what benefit is this?
{2:17} Thus even faith, if it does not have works, is dead, in and of itself.
{2:18} Now someone may say: “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without works! But I will show you my faith by means of works.
{2:19} You believe that there is one God. You do well. But the demons also believe, and they tremble greatly.
{2:20} So then, are you willing to understand, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?
{2:21} Was not our father Abraham justified by means of works, by offering his son Isaac upon the altar?
{2:22} Do you see that faith was cooperating with his works, and that by means of works faith was brought to fulfillment?
{2:23} And so the Scripture was fulfilled which says: “Abraham believed God, and it was reputed to him unto justice.” And so he was called the friend of God.
{2:24} Do you see that a man is justified by means of works, and not by faith alone?
{2:25} Similarly also, Rahab, the harlot, was she not justified by works, by receiving the messengers and sending them out through another way?
{2:26} For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.
{3:1} My brothers, not many of you should choose to become teachers, knowing that you shall receive a stricter judgment.
{3:2} For we all offend in many ways. If anyone does not offend in word, he is a perfect man. And he is then able, as if with a bridle, to lead the whole body around.
{3:3} For so we put bridles into the mouths of horses, in order to submit them to our will, and so we turn their whole body around.
{3:4} Consider also the ships, which, though they are great and may be driven by strong winds, yet they are turned around with a small rudder, to be directed to wherever the strength of the pilot might will.
{3:5} So also the tongue certainly is a small part, but it moves great things. Consider that a small fire can set ablaze a great forest.
{3:6} And so the tongue is like a fire, comprising all iniquity. The tongue, stationed in the midst of our body, can defile the entire body and inflame the wheel of our nativity, setting a fire from Hell.
{3:7} For the nature of all beasts and birds and serpents and others is ruled over, and has been ruled over, by human nature.
{3:8} But no man is able to rule over the tongue, a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
{3:9} By it we bless God the Father, and by it we speak evil of men, who have been made in the likeness of God.
{3:10} From the same mouth proceeds blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so!
{3:11} Does a fountain emit, out of the same opening, both sweet and bitter water?
{3:12} My brothers, can the fig tree yield grapes? Or the vine, figs? Then neither is salt water able to produce fresh water.
{3:13} Who is wise and well-taught among you? Let him show, by means of good conversation, his work in the meekness of wisdom.
{3:14} But if you hold a bitter zeal, and if there is contention in your hearts, then do not boast and do not be liars against the truth.
{3:15} For this is not wisdom, descending from above, but rather it is earthly, beastly, and diabolical.
{3:16} For wherever envy and contention is, there too is inconstancy and every depraved work.
{3:17} But within the wisdom that is from above, certainly, chastity is first, and next peacefulness, meekness, openness, consenting to what is good, a plenitude of mercy and good fruits, not judging, without falseness.
{3:18} And so the fruit of justice is sown in peace by those who make peace.
{4:1} Where do wars and contentions among you come from? Is it not from this: from your own desires, which battle within your members?
{4:2} You desire, and you do not have. You envy and you kill, and you are unable to obtain. You argue and you fight, and you do not have, because you do not ask.
{4:3} You ask and you do not receive, because you ask badly, so that you may use it toward your own desires.
{4:4} You adulterers! Do you not know that the friendship of this world is hostile to God? Therefore, whoever has chosen to be a friend of this world has been made into an enemy of God.
{4:5} Or do you think that Scripture says in vain: “The spirit which lives within you desires unto envy?”
{4:6} But he gives a greater grace. Therefore he says: “God resists the arrogant, but he gives grace to the humble.”
{4:7} Therefore, be subject to God. But resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
{4:8} Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners! And purify your hearts, you duplicitous souls!
{4:9} Be afflicted: mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your gladness into sorrow.
{4:10} Be humbled in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you.
{4:11} Brothers, do not choose to slander one another. Whoever slanders his brother, or whoever judges his brother, slanders the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge.
{4:12} There is one lawgiver and one judge. He is able to destroy, and he is able to set free.
{4:13} But who are you to judge your neighbor? Consider this, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into that city, and certainly we will spend a year there, and we will do business, and we will make our profit,”
{4:14} consider that you do not know what will be tomorrow.
{4:15} For what is your life? It is a mist that appears for a brief time, and afterwards will vanish away. So what you ought to say is: “If the Lord wills,” or, “If we live,” we will do this or that.
{4:16} But now you exult in your arrogance. All such exultation is wicked.
{4:17} Therefore, he who knows that he ought to do a good thing, and does not do it, for him it is a sin.
{5:1} Act now, you who are wealthy! Weep and wail in your miseries, which will soon come upon you!
{5:2} Your riches have been corrupted, and your garments have been eaten by moths.
{5:3} Your gold and silver have rusted, and their rust will be a testimony against you, and it will eat away at your flesh like fire. You have stored up wrath for yourselves unto the last days.
{5:4} Consider the pay of the workers who reaped your fields: it has been misappropriated by you; it cries out. And their cry has entered into the ears of the Lord of hosts.
{5:5} You have feasted upon the earth, and you have nourished your hearts with luxuries, unto the day of slaughter.
{5:6} You led away and killed the Just One, and he did not resist you.
{5:7} Therefore, be patient, brothers, until the advent of the Lord. Consider that the farmer anticipates the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently, until he receives the early and the late rains.
{5:8} Therefore, you too should be patient and should strengthen your hearts. For the advent of the Lord draws near.
{5:9} Brothers, do not complain against one another, so that you may not be judged. Behold, the judge stands before the door.
{5:10} My brothers, consider the Prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of departing from evil, of labor, and of patience.
{5:11} Consider that we beatify those who have endured. You have heard of the patient suffering of Job. And you have seen the end of the Lord, that the Lord is merciful and compassionate.
{5:12} But before all things, my brothers, do not choose to swear, neither by heaven, nor by the earth, nor in any other oath. But let your word ‘Yes’ be yes, and your word ‘No’ be no, so that you may not fall under judgment.
{5:13} Is any of you sad? Let him pray. Is he even-tempered? Let him sing psalms.
{5:14} Is anyone ill among you? Let him bring in the priests of the Church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.
{5:15} And a prayer of faith will save the infirm, and the Lord will alleviate him. And if he has sins, these will be forgiven him.
{5:16} Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be saved. For the unremitting prayer of a just person prevails over many things.
{5:17} Elijah was a mortal man like us, and in prayer he prayed that it would not rain upon the earth. And it did not rain for three years and six months.
{5:18} And he prayed again. And the heavens gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.
{5:19} My brothers, if anyone of you strays from the truth, and if someone converts him,
{5:20} he ought to know that whoever causes a sinner to be converted from the error of his ways will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
{1:1} Peter, Apostle of Jesus Christ, to the newly-arrived elect of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,
{1:2} in accord with the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, with the obedience and the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: May grace and peace be multiplied for you.
{1:3} Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy has regenerated us into a living hope, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead:
{1:4} unto an incorruptible and undefiled and unfading inheritance, which is reserved for you in heaven.
{1:5} By the power of God, you are guarded through faith for a salvation which is ready to be revealed in the end time.
{1:6} In this, you should exult, if now, for a brief time, it is necessary to be made sorrowful by various trials,
{1:7} so that the testing of your faith, which is much more precious than gold tested by fire, may be found in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
{1:8} For though you have not seen him, you love him. In him also, though you do not see him, you now believe. And in believing, you shall exult with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
{1:9} returning with the goal of your faith, the salvation of souls.
{1:10} About this salvation, the prophets inquired and diligently searched, those who prophesied about the future grace in you,
{1:11} inquiring as to what type of condition was signified to them by the Spirit of Christ, when foretelling those sufferings that are in Christ, as well as the subsequent glories.
{1:12} To them, it was revealed that they were ministering, not for themselves, but for you those things which have now been announced to you through those who have preached the Gospel to you, through the Holy Spirit, who was sent down from heaven to the One upon whom the Angels desire to gaze.
{1:13} For this reason, gird the waist of your mind, be sober, and hope perfectly in the grace that is offered to you in the revelation of Jesus Christ.
{1:14} Be like sons of obedience, not conforming to the desires of your former ignorance,
{1:15} but in accord with him who has called you: the Holy One. And in every behavior, you yourself must be holy,
{1:16} for it is written: “You shall be holy, for I am Holy.”
{1:17} And if you invoke as Father him who, without showing favoritism to persons, judges according to each one’s work, then act in fear during the time of your sojourning here.
{1:18} For you know that it was not with corruptible gold or silver that you were redeemed away from your useless behavior in the traditions of your fathers,
{1:19} but it was with the precious blood of Christ, an immaculate and undefiled lamb,
{1:20} foreknown, certainly, before the foundation of the world, and made manifest in these latter times for your sake.
{1:21} Through him, you have been faithful to God, who raised him up from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope would be in God.
{1:22} So chastise your souls with the obedience of charity, in fraternal love, and love one another from a simple heart, attentively.
{1:23} For you have been born again, not from corruptible seed, but from what is incorruptible, from the Word of God, living and remaining for all eternity.
{1:24} For all flesh is like the grass and all its glory is like the flower of the grass. The grass withers and its flower falls away.
{1:25} But the Word of the Lord endures for eternity. And this is the Word that has been evangelized to you.
{2:1} Therefore, set aside all malice and all deceitfulness, as well as falseness and envy and every detraction.
{2:2} Like newborn infants, desire the milk of reasonableness without guile, so that by this you may increase unto salvation,
{2:3} if it is true that you have tasted that the Lord is sweet.
{2:4} And approaching him as if he were a living stone, rejected by men, certainly, but elect and honored by God,
{2:5} be also yourselves like living stones, built upon him, a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, so as to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
{2:6} Because of this, Scripture asserts: “Behold, I am setting in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious. And whoever will have believed in him will not be confounded.”
{2:7} Therefore, to you who believe, he is honor. But to those who do not believe, the stone which the builders have rejected, the same has been made into the head of the corner,
{2:8} and a stone of offense, and a rock of scandal, to those who are offended by the Word; neither do they believe, though they also have been built upon him.
{2:9} But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, an acquired people, so that you may announce the virtues of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
{2:10} Though in past times you were not a people, yet now you are the people of God. Though you had not obtained mercy, yet now you have obtained mercy.
{2:11} Most beloved, I beg you, as new arrivals and sojourners, to abstain from carnal desires, which battle against the soul.
{2:12} Keep your behavior among the Gentiles to what is good, so that, when they slander you as if you were evildoers, they may, by the good works that are seen in you, glorify God on the day of visitation.
{2:13} Therefore, be subject to every human creature because of God, whether it is to the king as preeminent,
{2:14} or to leaders as having been sent from him for vindication over evildoers, it is truly for the praise of what is good.
{2:15} For such is the will of God, that by doing good you may bring about the silence of imprudent and ignorant men,
{2:16} in an open manner, and not as if cloaking malice with liberty, but like servants of God.
{2:17} Honor everyone. Love brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.
{2:18} Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and meek, but also to the unruly.
{2:19} For this is grace: when, because of God, a man willingly endures sorrows, suffering injustice.
{2:20} For what glory is there, if you sin and then suffer a beating? But if you do well and suffer patiently, this is grace with God.
{2:21} For you have been called to this because Christ also suffered for us, leaving you an example, so that you would follow in his footsteps.
{2:22} He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.
{2:23} And when evil was spoken against him, he did not speak evil. When he suffered, he did not threaten. Then he handed himself over to him who judged him unjustly.
{2:24} He himself bore our sins in his body upon the tree, so that we, having died to sin, would live for justice. By his wounds, you have been healed.
{2:25} For you were like wandering sheep. But now you have been turned back toward the Pastor and the Bishop of your souls.
{3:1} Similarly also, wives should be subject to their husbands, so that, even if some do not believe the Word, they may benefit without the Word, through the behavior of these wives,
{3:2} as they consider with fear your chaste behavior.
{3:3} For you, there should be no unnecessary adornment of the hair, or surrounding with gold, or the wearing of ornate clothing.
{3:4} Instead, you should be a hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptibility of a quiet and meek spirit, rich in the sight of God.
{3:5} For in this way, in past times also, holy women adorned themselves, hoping in God, being subject to their own husbands.
{3:6} For so Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. You are her daughters, well-behaved and unafraid of any disturbance.
{3:7} Similarly, you husbands should live with them in accord with knowledge, bestowing honor on the female as the weaker vessel and as co-heirs of the life of grace, so that your prayers may not be hindered.
{3:8} And finally, may you all be of one mind: compassionate, loving brotherhood, merciful, meek, humble,
{3:9} not repaying evil with evil, nor slander with slander, but, to the contrary, repaying with blessings. For to this you have been called, so that you may possess the inheritance of a blessing.
{3:10} For whoever wants to love life and to see good days should restrain his tongue from evil, and his lips, so that they utter no deceit.
{3:11} Let him turn away from evil, and do good. Let him seek peace, and pursue it.
{3:12} For the eyes of the Lord are upon the just, and his ears are with their prayers, but the countenance of the Lord is upon those who do evil.
{3:13} And who is it who can harm you, if you are zealous in what is good?
{3:14} And yet, even when you suffer something for the sake of justice, you are blessed. So then, do not be afraid with their fear, and do not be disturbed.
{3:15} But sanctify Christ the Lord in your hearts, being always ready to give an explanation to all who ask you the reason for that hope which is in you.
{3:16} But do so with meekness and fear, having a good conscience, so that, in whatever matter they may slander you, they shall be confounded, since they falsely accuse your good behavior in Christ.
{3:17} For it is better to suffer for doing good, if it is the will of God, than for doing evil.
{3:18} For Christ also died once for our sins, the Just One on behalf of the unjust, so that he might offer us to God, having died, certainly, in the flesh, but having been enlivened by the Spirit.
{3:19} And in the Spirit, he preached to those who were in prison, going to those souls
{3:20} who had been unbelieving in past times, while they waited for the patience of God, as in the days of Noah, when the ark was being built. In that ark, a few, that is, eight souls, were saved by water.
{3:21} And now you also are saved, in a similar manner, by baptism, not by the testimony of sordid flesh, but by the examination of a good conscience in God, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
{3:22} He is at the right hand of God, devouring death, so that we may be made heirs to eternal life. And since he has journeyed to heaven, the Angels and powers and virtues are subject to him.
{4:1} Since Christ has suffered in the flesh, you also should be armed with the same intention. For he who suffers in the flesh desists from sin,
{4:2} so that now he may live, for the remainder of his time in the flesh, not by the desires of men, but by the will of God.
{4:3} For the time that has passed is sufficient to have fulfilled the will of the Gentiles, those who have walked in luxuries, lusts, intoxication, feasting, drinking, and the illicit worship of idols.
{4:4} About this, they wonder why you do not rush with them into the same confusion of indulgences, blaspheming.
{4:5} But they must render an account to him who is prepared to judge the living and the dead.
{4:6} For because of this, the Gospel was also preached to the dead, so that they might be judged, certainly, just like men in the flesh, yet also, so that they might live according to God, in the Spirit.
{4:7} But the end of everything draws near. And so, be prudent, and be vigilant in your prayers.
{4:8} But, before all things, have a constant mutual charity among yourselves. For love covers a multitude of sins.
{4:9} Show hospitality to one another without complaining.
{4:10} Just as each of you has received grace, minister in the same way to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
{4:11} When anyone speaks, it should be like words of God. When anyone ministers, it should be from the virtue that God provides, so that in all things God may be honored through Jesus Christ. To him is glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
{4:12} Most beloved, do not choose to sojourn in the passion which is a temptation to you, as if something new might happen to you.
{4:13} But instead, commune in the Passion of Christ, and be glad that, when his glory will be revealed, you too may rejoice with exultation.
{4:14} If you are reproached for the name of Christ, you will be blessed, because that which is of the honor, glory, and power of God, and that which is of his Spirit, rests upon you.
{4:15} But let none of you suffer for being a murderer, or a thief, or a slanderer, or one who covets what belongs to another.
{4:16} But if one of you suffers for being a Christian, he should not be ashamed. Instead, he should glorify God in that name.
{4:17} For it is time that judgment begin at the house of God. And if it is first from us, what shall be the end of those who do not believe the Gospel of God?
{4:18} And if the just man will scarcely be saved, where will the impious and the sinner appear?
{4:19} Therefore, too, let those who suffer according to the will of God commend their souls by good deeds to the faithful Creator.
{5:1} Therefore, I beg the elders who are among you, as one who is also an elder and a witness of the Passion of Christ, who also shares in that glory which is to be revealed in the future:
{5:2} pasture the flock of God that is among you, providing for it, not as a requirement, but willingly, in accord with God, and not for the sake of tainted profit, but freely,
{5:3} not so as to dominate by means of the clerical state, but so as to be formed into a flock from the heart.
{5:4} And when the Leader of pastors will have appeared, you shall secure an unfading crown of glory.
{5:5} Similarly, young persons, be subject to the elders. And infuse all humility among one another, for God resists the arrogant, but to the humble he gives grace.
{5:6} And so, be humbled under the powerful hand of God, so that he may exalt you in the time of visitation.
{5:7} Cast all your cares upon him, for he takes care of you.
{5:8} Be sober and vigilant. For your adversary, the devil, is like a roaring lion, traveling around and seeking those whom he might devour.
{5:9} Resist him by being strong in faith, being aware that the same passions afflict those who are your brothers in the world.
{5:10} But the God of all grace, who has called us to his eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will himself perfect, confirm, and establish us, after a brief time of suffering.
{5:11} To him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
{5:12} I have written briefly, through Sylvanus, whom I consider to be a faithful brother to you, begging and testifying that this is the true grace of God, in which you have been established.
{5:13} The Church which is in Babylon, elect together with you, greets you, as does my son, Mark.
{5:14} Greet one another with a holy kiss. Grace be to all of you who are in Christ Jesus. Amen.
{1:1} Simon Peter, servant and Apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have been allotted an equal faith with us in the justice of our God and in our Savior Jesus Christ.
{1:2} Grace to you. And may peace be fulfilled according to the plan of God and of Christ Jesus our Lord,
{1:3} in the same manner that all things which are for life and piety have been given to us by his Divine virtue, through the plan of him who has called us to our own glory and virtue.
{1:4} Through Christ, he has given us the greatest and most precious promises, so that by these things you may become sharers in the Divine Nature, fleeing from the corruption of that desire which is in the world.
{1:5} But as for you, taking up every concern, minister virtue in your faith; and in virtue, knowledge;
{1:6} and in knowledge, moderation; and in moderation, patience; and in patience, piety;
{1:7} and in piety, love of brotherhood; and in love of brotherhood, charity.
{1:8} For if these things are with you, and if they abound, they will cause you to be neither empty, nor without fruit, within the plan of our Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:9} For he who does not have these things at hand is blind and groping, being forgetful of his purification from his former offenses.
{1:10} Because of this, brothers, be all the more diligent, so that by good works you may make certain your calling and election. For in doing these things, you do not sin at any time.
{1:11} For in this way, you shall be provided abundantly with an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
{1:12} For this reason, I will always begin to admonish you about these things, even though, certainly, you know them and are confirmed in the present truth.
{1:13} But I consider it just, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up with admonishments.
{1:14} For it is certain that the laying to rest of this, my tabernacle, is approaching swiftly, just as our Lord Jesus Christ has also indicated to me.
{1:15} Therefore, I will present a work for you to have, so that, frequently after my passing, you may call to mind these things.
{1:16} For it was not by following fanciful doctrines that we made known to you the power and presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were made eyewitnesses of his greatness.
{1:17} For he received honor and glory from God the Father, whose voice descended to him from the magnificent glory: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.”
{1:18} We also heard this voice conveyed from heaven, when we were with him on the holy mountain.
{1:19} And so, we have an even firmer prophetic word, to which you would do well to listen, as to a light shining within a dark place, until the day dawns, and the daystar rises, in your hearts.
{1:20} Understand this first: that every prophecy of Scripture does not result from one’s own interpretation.
{1:21} For prophecy was not conveyed by human will at any time. Instead, holy men were speaking about God while inspired by the Holy Spirit.
{2:1} But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be among you lying teachers, who will introduce divisions of perdition, and they will deny him who bought them, the Lord, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.
{2:2} And many persons will follow their indulgences; through such persons, the way of truth will be blasphemed.
{2:3} And in avarice, they will negotiate about you with false words. Their judgment, in the near future, is not delayed, and their perdition does not sleep.
{2:4} For God did not spare those Angels who sinned, but instead delivered them, as if dragged down by infernal ropes, into the torments of the underworld, to be reserved unto judgment.
{2:5} And he did not spare the original world, but he preserved the eighth one, Noah, the herald of justice, bringing the flood upon the world of the impious.
{2:6} And he reduced the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes, condemning them to be overthrown, setting them as an example to anyone who might act impiously.
{2:7} And he rescued a just man, Lot, who was oppressed by the unjust and lewd behavior of the wicked.
{2:8} For in seeing and in hearing, he was just, though he lived with those who, from day to day, crucified the just soul with works of iniquity.
{2:9} Thus, the Lord knows how to rescue the pious from trials, and how to reserve the iniquitous for torments on the day of judgment;
{2:10} even more so, those who walk after the flesh in unclean desires, and who despise proper authority. Boldly pleasing themselves, they do not dread to introduce divisions by blaspheming;
{2:11} whereas the Angels, who are greater in strength and virtue, did not bring against themselves such a deplorable judgment.
{2:12} Yet truly, these others, like irrational beasts, naturally fall into traps and into ruin by blaspheming whatever they do not understand, and so they shall perish in their corruption,
{2:13} receiving the reward of injustice, the fruition of valuing the delights of the day: defilements and stains, overflowing with self-indulgences, taking pleasure in their feasts with you,
{2:14} having eyes full of adultery and of incessant offenses, luring unstable souls, having a heart well-trained in avarice, sons of curses!
{2:15} Abandoning the straight path, they wandered astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of iniquity.
{2:16} Yet truly, he had a correction of his madness: the mute animal under the yoke, which, by speaking with a human voice, forbid the folly of the prophet.
{2:17} These ones are like fountains without water, and like clouds stirred up by whirlwinds. For them, the mist of darkness is reserved.
{2:18} For, speaking with the arrogance of vanity, they lure, by the desires of fleshly pleasures, those who are fleeing to some extent, who are being turned from error,
{2:19} promising them freedoms, while they themselves are the servants of corruption. For by whatever a man is overcome, of this also is he the servant.
{2:20} For if, after taking refuge from the defilements of the world in the understanding of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they again become entangled and overcome by these things, then the latter state becomes worse than the former.
{2:21} For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of justice than, after acknowledging it, to turn away from that holy commandment which was handed on to them.
{2:22} For the truth of the proverb has happened to them: The dog has returned to his own vomit, and the washed sow has returned to her wallowing in the mud.
{3:1} Consider, most beloved, this second epistle which I am writing to you, in which I stir up, by admonition, your sincere mind,
{3:2} so that you may be mindful of those words that I preached to you from the holy prophets, and of the precepts of the Apostles of your Lord and Savior.
{3:3} Know this first: that in the last days there will arrive deceitful mockers, walking according to their own desires,
{3:4} saying: “Where is his promise or his advent? For from the time that the fathers have slept, all things have continued just as they were from the beginning of creation.”
{3:5} But they willfully ignore this: that the heavens existed first, and that the earth, from water and through water, was established by the Word of God.
{3:6} By water, the former world then, having been inundated with water, perished.
{3:7} But the heavens and the earth that exist now were restored by the same Word, being reserved unto fire on the day of judgment, and unto the perdition of impious men.
{3:8} Yet truly, let this one thing not escape notice, most beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like one day.
{3:9} The Lord is not delaying his promise, as some imagine, but he does act patiently for your sake, not wanting anyone to perish, but wanting all to be turned back to penance.
{3:10} Then the day of the Lord shall arrive like a thief. On that day, the heavens shall pass away with great violence, and truly the elements shall be dissolved with heat; then the earth, and the works that are within it, shall be completely burned up.
{3:11} Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what kind of people ought you to be? In behavior and in piety, be holy,
{3:12} waiting for, and hurrying toward, the advent of the day of the Lord, by which the burning heavens shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt from the heat of the fire.
{3:13} Yet truly, in accord with his promises, we are looking forward to the new heavens and the new earth, in which justice lives.
{3:14} Therefore, most beloved, while awaiting these things, be diligent, so that you may be found to be immaculate and unassailable before him, in peace.
{3:15} And let the longsuffering of our Lord be considered salvation, as also our most beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you,
{3:16} just as he also spoke in all of his epistles about these things. In these, there are certain things which are difficult to understand, which the unlearned and the unsteady distort, as they also do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.
{3:17} But since you, brothers, know these things beforehand, be cautious, lest by being drawn into the error of the foolish, you may fall away from your own steadfastness.
{3:18} Yet truly, increase in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory, both now and in the day of eternity. Amen.
{1:1} He who was from the beginning, whom we have heard, whom we have seen with our eyes, upon whom we have gazed, and whom our hands have certainly touched: He is the Word of Life.
{1:2} And that Life has been made manifest. And we have seen, and we testify, and we announce to you: the Eternal Life, who was with the Father, and who appeared to us.
{1:3} He whom we have seen and heard, we announce to you, so that you, too, may have fellowship with us, and so that our fellowship may be with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.
{1:4} And this we write to you, so that you may rejoice, and so that your joy may be full.
{1:5} And this is the announcement which we have heard from him, and which we announce to you: that God is light, and in him there is no darkness.
{1:6} If we claim that we have fellowship with him, and yet we walk in darkness, then we are lying and not telling the truth.
{1:7} But if we walk in the light, just as he also is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.
{1:8} If we claim that we have no sin, then we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
{1:9} If we confess our sins, then he is faithful and just, so as to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all iniquity.
{1:10} If we claim that we have not sinned, then we make him a liar, and his Word is not in us.
{2:1} My little sons, this I write to you, so that you may not sin. But if anyone has sinned, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, the Just One.
{2:2} And he is the propitiation for our sins. And not only for our sins, but also for those of the whole world.
{2:3} And we can be sure that we have known him by this: if we observe his commandments.
{2:4} Whoever claims that he knows him, and yet does not keep his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
{2:5} But whoever keeps his word, truly in him the charity of God is perfected. And by this we know that we are in him.
{2:6} Whoever declares himself to remain in him, ought to walk just as he himself walked.
{2:7} Most beloved, I am not writing to you a new commandment, but the old commandment, which you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the Word, which you have heard.
{2:8} Then too, I am writing to you a new commandment, which is the Truth in him and in you. For the darkness has passed away, and the true Light is now shining.
{2:9} Whoever declares himself to be in the light, and yet hates his brother, is in the darkness even now.
{2:10} Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause of offense in him.
{2:11} But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness, and in darkness he walks, and he does not know where he is going. For the darkness has blinded his eyes.
{2:12} I am writing to you, little sons, because your sins are forgiven for the sake of his name.
{2:13} I am writing to you, fathers, because you have known him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, adolescents, because you have overcome the evil one.
{2:14} I am writing to you, little children, because you have known the Father. I am writing to you, young men, because you are strong, and the Word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one.
{2:15} Do not choose to love the world, nor the things that are in the world. If anyone loves the world, the charity of the Father is not in him.
{2:16} For all that is in the world is the desire of the flesh, and the desire of the eyes, and the arrogance of a life which is not of the Father, but is of the world.
{2:17} And the world is passing away, with its desire. But whoever does the will of God abides unto eternity.
{2:18} Little sons, it is the last hour. And, as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have arrived. By this, we know that it is the last hour.
{2:19} They went out from among us, but they were not of us. For, if they had been of us, certainly they would have remained with us. But in this way, it is made manifest that none of them are of us.
{2:20} Yet you have the anointing of the Holy One, and you know everything.
{2:21} I have not written to you as to ones who are ignorant of the truth, but as to ones who know the truth. For no lie is of the truth.
{2:22} Who is a liar, other than he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This one is the Antichrist, who denies the Father and the Son.
{2:23} No one who denies the Son also has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son, also has the Father.
{2:24} As for you, let what you have heard from the beginning remain in you. If what you have heard from the beginning remains in you, then you, too, shall abide in the Son and in the Father.
{2:25} And this is the Promise, which he himself has promised to us: Eternal Life.
{2:26} I have written these things to you, because of those who would seduce you.
{2:27} But as for you, let the Anointing that you have received from him abide in you. And so, you have no need of anyone to teach you. For his Anointing teaches you about everything, and it is the truth, and it is not a lie. And just as his Anointing has taught you, abide in him.
{2:28} And now, little sons, abide in him, so that when he appears, we may have faith, and we may not be confounded by him at his advent.
{2:29} If you know that he is just, then know, too, that all who do what is just are born of him.
{3:1} See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we would be called, and would become, the sons of God. Because of this, the world does not know us, for it did not know him.
{3:2} Most beloved, we are now the sons of God. But what we shall be then has not yet appeared. We know that when he does appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
{3:3} And everyone who holds this hope in him, keeps himself holy, just as he also is holy.
{3:4} Everyone who commits a sin, also commits iniquity. For sin is iniquity.
{3:5} And you know that he appeared in order that he might take away our sins. For in him there is no sin.
{3:6} Everyone who abides in him does not sin. For whoever sins has not seen him, and has not known him.
{3:7} Little sons, let no one deceive you. Whoever does justice is just, even as he also is just.
{3:8} Whoever commits sin is of the devil. For the devil sins from the beginning. For this reason, the Son of God appeared, so that he might eradicate the works of the devil.
{3:9} All those who have been born of God do not commit sin. For the offspring of God abides in them, and he is not able to sin, because he was born of God.
{3:10} In this way, the sons of God are made manifest, and also the sons of the devil. Everyone who is not just, is not of God, as also anyone who does not love his brother.
{3:11} For this is the announcement that you heard from the beginning: that you should love one another.
{3:12} Do not be like Cain, who was of the evil one, and who killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because his own works were wicked, but his brother’s works were just.
{3:13} If the world hates you, brothers, do not be surprised.
{3:14} We know that we have passed from death to life. For we love as brothers. Whoever does not love, abides in death.
{3:15} Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer. And you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding within him.
{3:16} We know the love of God in this way: because he laid down his life for us. And so, we must lay down our lives for our brothers.
{3:17} Whoever possesses the goods of this world, and sees his brother to be in need, and yet closes his heart to him: in what way does the love of God abide in him?
{3:18} My little sons, let us not love in words only, but in works and in truth.
{3:19} In this way, we will know that we are of the truth, and we will commend our hearts in his sight.
{3:20} For even if our heart reproaches us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows all things.
{3:21} Most beloved, if our heart does not reproach us, we can have confidence toward God;
{3:22} and whatever we shall request of him, we shall receive from him. For we keep his commandments, and we do the things that are pleasing in his sight.
{3:23} And this is his commandment: that we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he has commanded us.
{3:24} And those who keep his commandments abide in him, and he in them. And we know that he abides in us by this: by the Spirit, whom he has given to us.
{4:1} Most beloved, do not be willing to believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see if they are of God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.
{4:2} The Spirit of God may be known in this way. Every spirit who confesses that Jesus Christ has arrived in the flesh is of God;
{4:3} and every spirit who contradicts Jesus is not of God. And this one is the Antichrist, the one that you have heard is coming, and even now he is in the world.
{4:4} Little sons, you are of God, and so you have overcome him. For he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
{4:5} They are of the world. Therefore, they speak about the world, and the world listens to them.
{4:6} We are of God. Whoever knows God, listens to us. Whoever is not of God, does not listen to us. In this way, we know the Spirit of truth from the spirit of error.
{4:7} Most beloved, let us love one another. For love is of God. And everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.
{4:8} Whoever does not love, does not know God. For God is love.
{4:9} The love of God was made apparent to us in this way: that God sent his only-begotten Son into the world, so that we might live through him.
{4:10} In this is love: not as if we had loved God, but that he first loved us, and so he sent his Son as a propitiation for our sins.
{4:11} Most beloved, if God has so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
{4:12} No one has ever seen God. But if we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us.
{4:13} In this way, we know that we abide in him, and he in us: because he has given to us from his Spirit.
{4:14} And we have seen, and we testify, that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.
{4:15} Whoever has confessed that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.
{4:16} And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love. And he who abides in love, abides in God, and God in him.
{4:17} In this way, the love of God is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment. For as he is, so also are we, in this world.
{4:18} Fear is not in love. Instead, perfect love casts out fear, for fear pertains to punishment. And whoever fears is not perfected in love.
{4:19} Therefore, let us love God, for God first loved us.
{4:20} If anyone says that he loves God, but hates his brother, then he is a liar. For he who does not love his brother, whom he does see, in what way can he love God, whom he does not see?
{4:21} And this is the commandment that we have from God, that he who loves God must also love his brother.
{5:1} Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ, is born of God. And everyone who loves God, who provides that birth, also loves him who has been born of God.
{5:2} In this way, we know that we love those born of God: when we love God and do his commandments.
{5:3} For this is the love of God: that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not heavy.
{5:4} For all that is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that overcomes the world: our faith.
{5:5} Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God!
{5:6} This is the One who came by water and blood: Jesus Christ. Not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit is the One who testifies that the Christ is the Truth.
{5:7} For there are Three who give testimony in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit. And these Three are One.
{5:8} And there are three who give testimony on earth: the Spirit, and the water, and the blood. And these three are one.
{5:9} If we accept the testimony of men, then the testimony of God is greater. For this is the testimony of God, which is greater: that he has testified about his Son.
{5:10} Whoever believes in the Son of God, holds the testimony of God within himself. Whoever does not believe in the Son, makes him a liar, because he does not believe in the testimony which God has testified about his Son.
{5:11} And this is the testimony which God has given to us: Eternal Life. And this Life is in his Son.
{5:12} Whoever has the Son, has Life. Whoever does not have the Son, does not have Life.
{5:13} I am writing this to you, so that you may know that you have Eternal Life: you who believe in the name of the Son of God.
{5:14} And this is the confidence which we have toward God: that no matter what we shall request, in accord with his will, he hears us.
{5:15} And we know that he hears us, no matter what we request; so we know that we can obtain the things that we request of him.
{5:16} Anyone who realizes that his brother has sinned, with a sin that is not unto death, let him pray, and life shall be given to him who has sinned not unto death. There is a sin which is unto death. I am not saying that anyone should ask on behalf of that sin.
{5:17} All that is iniquity is sin. But there is a sin unto death.
{5:18} We know that everyone who is born of God does not sin. Instead, rebirth in God preserves him, and the evil one cannot touch him.
{5:19} We know that we are of God, and that the entire world is established in wickedness.
{5:20} And we know that the Son of God has arrived, and that he has given us understanding, so that we may know the true God, and so that we may remain in his true Son. This is the true God, and this is Eternal Life.
{5:21} Little sons, keep yourselves from false worship. Amen.
{1:1} The Elder to the Elect Lady, and those born of her, whom I love in the truth: and not I alone, but also all those who have known the truth,
{1:2} because the truth which dwells in us shall be with us for eternity.
{1:3} May grace, mercy, and peace be with you from God the Father, and from Christ Jesus, the Son of the Father, in truth and in love.
{1:4} I was very glad because I discovered some of your sons walking in the truth, just as we received the commandment from the Father.
{1:5} And now I petition you, Lady, not as if writing a new commandment to you, but instead that commandment which we have had from the beginning: that we love one another.
{1:6} And this is love: that we walk according to his commandments. For this is the commandment that you have heard in the same way from the beginning, and in which you should walk.
{1:7} For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess that Jesus Christ has arrived in the flesh. Such a one as this is a deceiver and an antichrist.
{1:8} Be cautious for yourselves, lest you lose what you have accomplished, and so that, instead, you may receive a full reward.
{1:9} Everyone who withdraws and does not remain in the doctrine of Christ, does not have God. Whoever remains in the doctrine, such a one as this has both the Father and the Son.
{1:10} If anyone comes to you, and does not bring this doctrine, do not be willing to receive him into the house, and do not speak a greeting to him.
{1:11} For whoever speaks a greeting to him, is speaking with his evil works.
{1:12} I have much more to write to you, but I am not willing to do so through paper and ink. For I hope that I may be with you in the future, and that I may speak face to face, so that your joy may be full.
{1:13} The sons of your Elect Sister greet you.
{1:1} The Elder, to Gaius, most beloved, whom I love in the truth.
{1:2} Most beloved, concerning everything, I make it my prayer that you may benefit by advancing and succeeding in whatever may be to the benefit of your soul.
{1:3} I was very glad when the brothers arrived, and when they offered testimony to the truth in you, that you are walking in the truth.
{1:4} I have no greater grace than this, when I hear that my sons are walking in the truth.
{1:5} Most beloved, you should act faithfully in whatever you do for the brothers, and those who are sojourners;
{1:6} they have given testimony to your charity in the sight of the Church. You would do well to lead these ones worthily to God.
{1:7} For they set out, on behalf of his name, accepting nothing from the unbelievers.
{1:8} Therefore, we must accept such as these, in order that we may cooperate with the truth.
{1:9} As it happens, I had written to the church. But Diotrephes, who loves to bear the highest rank among them, would not accept us.
{1:10} Because of this, when I come, I will admonish his works which he does, babbling against us with malicious words. And as if this were not sufficient for him, he himself does not receive the brothers. And those who do receive them, he hinders, and he ejects them from the church.
{1:11} Most beloved, do not be willing to imitate what is evil; instead imitate what is good. Whoever does good is of God. Whoever does evil has not seen God.
{1:12} Testimony is being given for Demetrius by everyone, and by the truth itself. And we also offer testimony. And you know that our testimony is true.
{1:13} I had many things to write to you, but I am not willing, through ink and pen, to write to you.
{1:14} Yet I hope to see you soon, and then we will speak face to face. Peace to you. The friends greet you. Greet the friends by name.
{1:1} Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are beloved in God the Father, and who are guarded and called in Jesus Christ:
{1:2} May mercy, and peace, and love be fulfilled in you.
{1:3} Most beloved, taking all care to write to you about your common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you in order to beg you to contend earnestly for the faith that was handed down once to the saints.
{1:4} For certain men entered unnoticed, who were written of beforehand unto this judgment: impious persons who are transforming the grace of our God into self-indulgence, and who are denying both the sole Ruler and our Lord Jesus Christ.
{1:5} So I want to caution you. Those who once knew everything that Jesus did, in saving the people from the land of Egypt, afterwards perished because they did not believe.
{1:6} And truly, the Angels, who did not keep to their first place, but instead abandoned their own domiciles, he has reserved with perpetual chains under darkness, unto the great day of judgment.
{1:7} And also Sodom and Gomorrah, and the adjoining cities, in similar ways, having given themselves over to fornication and to the pursuing of other flesh, were made an example, suffering the punishment of eternal fire.
{1:8} Similarly also, these ones certainly defile the flesh, and they despise proper authority, and they blaspheme against majesty.
{1:9} When Michael the Archangel, disputing with the devil, contended about the body of Moses, he did not dare to bring against him a judgment of blasphemy, so instead he said: “The Lord commands you.”
{1:10} But these men certainly blaspheme against whatever they do not understand. And yet, whatever they, like mute animals, know from nature, in these things they are corrupted.
{1:11} Woe to them! For they have gone after the way of Cain, and they have poured out the error of Balaam for profit, and they have perished in the sedition of Korah.
{1:12} These ones are defiled within their banquets, enjoying themselves and feeding themselves without fear; waterless clouds, which are tossed about by winds; autumn trees, unfruitful, twice dead, uprooted;
{1:13} raging waves of the sea, foaming from their own confusion; wandering stars, for whom the whirlwind of darkness has been reserved forever!
{1:14} And about these, Enoch, the seventh from Adam, also prophesied, saying: “Behold, the Lord is arriving with thousands of his saints,
{1:15} to execute judgment against everyone, and to reprove all the impious concerning all the works of their impiety, by which they have acted impiously, and concerning all the harsh things that impious sinners have spoken against God.”
{1:16} These ones are complaining murmurers, walking according to their own desires. And their mouth is speaking arrogance, admiring persons for the sake of gain.
{1:17} But as for you, most beloved, be mindful of the words which have been foretold by the Apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ,
{1:18} who declared to you that, in the end time, there would arrive mockers, walking according to their own desires, in impieties.
{1:19} These are the ones who segregate themselves; they are animals, not having the Spirit.
{1:20} But you, most beloved, are building yourselves up by your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,
{1:21} keeping yourselves in the love of God, and anticipating the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.
{1:22} So certainly, reprove them, after they have been judged.
{1:23} Yet truly, save them, seizing them from the fire. And have mercy on others: in fear, hating even that which is of the flesh, the defiled garment.
{1:24} Then, to him who has the power to keep you free from sin and to present you, immaculate, with exultation, before the presence of his glory at the advent of our Lord Jesus Christ,
{1:25} to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord: to him be glory and magnificence, dominion and power, before all ages, and now, and in every age, forever. Amen.
{1:1} The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to him, in order to make known to his servants the things that must soon occur, and which he signified by sending his Angel to his servant John;
{1:2} he has offered testimony to the Word of God, and whatever he saw is the testimony of Jesus Christ.
{1:3} Blessed is he who reads or hears the words of this Prophecy, and who keeps the things that have been written in it. For the time is near.
{1:4} John, to the seven Churches, which are in Asia. Grace and peace to you, from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are in the sight of his throne,
{1:5} and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the leader over the kings of the earth, who has loved us and has washed us from our sins with his blood,
{1:6} and who has made us into a kingdom and into priests for God and for his Father. To him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
{1:7} Behold, he arrives with the clouds, and every eye shall see him, even those who pierced him. And all the tribes of the earth shall lament for themselves over him. Even so. Amen.
{1:8} “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord God, who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.
{1:9} I, John, your brother, and a sharer in the tribulation and in the kingdom and in patient endurance for Christ Jesus, was on the island which is called Patmos, because of the Word of God and the testimony to Jesus.
{1:10} I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a great voice, like that of a trumpet,
{1:11} saying, “What you see, write in a book, and send it to the seven Churches, which are in Asia: to Ephesus, and to Smyrna, and to Pergamus, and to Thyatira, and to Sardis, and to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.”
{1:12} And I turned around, so as to see the voice which was speaking with me. And having turned around, I saw seven golden lampstands.
{1:13} And in the midst of the seven golden lampstands was one resembling the Son of man, clothed to the feet with a vestment, and wrapped to the breast with a wide belt of gold.
{1:14} But his head and hair were bright, like white wool, or like snow; and his eyes were like a flame of fire;
{1:15} and his feet resembled shining brass, just as in a burning furnace; and his voice was like the voice of many waters.
{1:16} And in his right hand, he held the seven stars; and from his mouth went out a sharp two-edged sword; and his face was like the sun, shining with all its might.
{1:17} And when I had seen him, I fell at his feet, like one who is dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last.
{1:18} And I am alive, though I was dead. And, behold, I live forever and ever. And I hold the keys of death and of Hell.
{1:19} Therefore, write the things which you have seen, and which are, and which must occur afterward:
{1:20} the mystery of the seven stars, which you have seen in my right hand, and of the seven golden lampstands. The seven stars are the Angels of the seven Churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven Churches.”
{2:1} “And to the Angel of the Church of Ephesus write: Thus says the One who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands:
{2:2} I know your works, and your hardship and patient endurance, and that you cannot stand those who are evil. And so, you have tested those who declare themselves to be Apostles and are not, and you have found them to be liars.
{2:3} And you have patient endurance for the sake of my name, and you have not fallen away.
{2:4} But I have this against you: that you have relinquished your first charity.
{2:5} And so, call to mind the place from which you have fallen, and do penance, and do the first works. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.
{2:6} But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
{2:7} Whoever has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches. To him who prevails, I will give to eat from the Tree of Life, which is in the Paradise of my God.
{2:8} And to the Angel of the Church of Smyrna write: Thus says the First and the Last, he who was dead and now lives:
{2:9} I know your tribulation and your poverty, but you are rich, and that you are blasphemed by those who declare themselves to be Jews and are not, but who are a synagogue of Satan.
{2:10} You should fear nothing amid those things which you will suffer. Behold, the devil will cast some of you into prison, so that you may be tested. And you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful even unto death, and I will give to you the crown of life.
{2:11} Whoever has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches. Whoever will prevail, he shall not be harmed by the second death.
{2:12} And to the Angel of the Church of Pergamus write: Thus says he who holds the sharp two-edged spear:
{2:13} I know where you dwell, where the seat of Satan is, and that you hold to my name and have not denied my faith, even in those days when Antipas was my faithful witness, who was slain among you, where Satan dwells.
{2:14} But I have a few things against you. For you have, in that place, those who hold to the doctrine of Balaam, who instructed Balak to cast a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat and to commit fornication.
{2:15} And you also have those who hold to the doctrine of the Nicolaitans.
{2:16} So do penance to the same extent. If you do less, I will come to you quickly and I will fight against these ones with the sword of my mouth.
{2:17} Whoever has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches. To him who prevails, I will give the hidden manna. And I will give to him a white emblem, and on the emblem, a new name has been written, which no one knows, except the one who receives it.
{2:18} And to the Angel of the Church of Thyatira write: Thus says the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and his feet are like shining brass.
{2:19} I know your works, and your faith and charity, and your ministry and patient endurance, and that your more recent works are greater than the earlier ones.
{2:20} But I have a few things against you. For you permit the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants, to commit fornication and to eat the food of idolatry.
{2:21} And I gave her a time, so that she might do penance, but she is not willing to repent from her fornication.
{2:22} Behold, I will cast her onto a bed, and those who commit adultery with her shall be in a very great tribulation, unless they repent from their works.
{2:23} And I will put her sons to death, and all the Churches shall know that I am the one who examines temperaments and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works. But I say to you,
{2:24} and to the others who are at Thyatira: Whoever does not hold to this doctrine, and who has not ‘known the depths of Satan,’ as they say, I will not set any other weight upon you.
{2:25} Even so, that which you have, hold on to it until I return.
{2:26} And whoever will prevail and will observe my works even unto the end, I will give to him authority over the nations.
{2:27} And he shall rule them with an iron rod, and they shall be broken like the earthenware of a potter.
{2:28} The same I also have received from my Father. And I will give to him the morning star.
{2:29} Whoever has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches.”
{3:1} “And to the Angel of the Church of Sardis write: Thus says he who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars: I know your works, that you have a name which is alive, but you are dead.
{3:2} Be vigilant, and confirm the things that remain, lest they soon die out. For I do not find your works to be full in the sight of my God.
{3:3} Therefore, keep in mind the way that you have received and heard, and then observe it and repent. But if you will not be vigilant, I will come to you like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.
{3:4} But you have a few names in Sardis who have not defiled their garments. And these shall walk with me in white, because they are worthy.
{3:5} Whoever prevails, so shall he be clothed in white vestments. And I will not delete his name from the Book of Life. And I will confess his name in the presence of my Father and in the presence of his Angels.
{3:6} Whoever has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches.
{3:7} And to the Angel of the Church of Philadelphia write: Thus says the Holy One, the True One, he who holds the key of David. He opens and no one closes. He closes and no one opens.
{3:8} I know your works. Behold, I have set an open door before you, which no one is able to close. For you have little power, and you have observed my word, and you have not denied my name.
{3:9} Behold, I will take from the synagogue of Satan those who declare themselves to be Jews and are not, for they are lying. Behold, I will cause them to approach and to reverence before your feet. And they shall know that I have loved you.
{3:10} Since you have kept the word of my patient endurance, I also will keep you from the hour of temptation, which shall overcome the whole world in order to test those living upon the earth.
{3:11} Behold, I am approaching quickly. Hold on to what you have, so that no one may take your crown.
{3:12} Whoever prevails, I will set him as a column in the temple of my God, and he shall not depart from it anymore. And I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem that descends out of heaven from my God, and my new name.
{3:13} Whoever has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches.
{3:14} And to the Angel of the Church of Laodicea write: Thus says the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, who is the Beginning of the creation of God:
{3:15} I know your works: that you are neither cold, nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot.
{3:16} But because you are lukewarm and are neither cold nor hot, I will begin to vomit you out of my mouth.
{3:17} For you declare, ‘I am wealthy, and I have been enriched further, and I have need of nothing.’ And you do not know that you are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.
{3:18} I urge you to buy from me gold, tested by fire, so that you may be enriched and may be clothed in white vestments, and so that the shame of your nakedness may disappear. And anoint your eyes with an eye salve, so that you may see.
{3:19} Those whom I love, I rebuke and chastise. Therefore, be zealous and do penance.
{3:20} Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone will hear my voice and will open the door to me, I will enter to him, and I will dine with him, and he with me.
{3:21} Whoever prevails, I will grant to him to sit with me on my throne, just as I also have overcome and have sat down with my Father on his throne.
{3:22} Whoever has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches.”
{4:1} After these things, I saw, and behold, a door was opened in heaven, and the voice that I heard speaking with me first was like a trumpet, saying: “Ascend to here, and I will reveal to you what must occur after these things.”
{4:2} And immediately I was in the Spirit. And behold, a throne had been placed in heaven, and there was One sitting upon the throne.
{4:3} And the One who was sitting there was similar in appearance to a stone of jasper and sardius. And there was an iridescence surrounding the throne, in aspect similar to an emerald.
{4:4} And surrounding the throne were twenty-four smaller thrones. And upon the thrones, twenty-four elders were sitting, clothed entirely in white vestments, and on their heads were gold crowns.
{4:5} And from the throne, lightnings and voices and thunders went forth. And there were seven burning lamps before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God.
{4:6} And in view of the throne, there was something that seemed like a sea of glass, similar to crystal. And in the middle of the throne, and all around the throne, there were four living creatures, full of eyes in front and in back.
{4:7} And the first living creature resembled a lion, and the second living creature resembled a calf, and the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature resembled a flying eagle.
{4:8} And each of the four living creatures had upon them six wings, and all around and within they are full of eyes. And they took no rest, day or night, from saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and who is, and who is to come.”
{4:9} And while those living creatures were giving glory and honor and blessings to the One sitting upon the throne, who lives forever and ever,
{4:10} the twenty-four elders fell prostrate before the One sitting upon the throne, and they adored him who lives forever and ever, and they cast their crowns before the throne, saying:
{4:11} “You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you have created all things, and they became and were created because of your will.”
{5:1} And in the right hand of the One sitting upon the throne, I saw a book, written inside and out, sealed with seven seals.
{5:2} And I saw a strong Angel, proclaiming with a great voice, “Who is worthy to open the book and to break its seals?”
{5:3} And no one was able, neither in heaven, nor on earth, nor under the earth, to open the book, nor to gaze upon it.
{5:4} And I wept greatly because no one was found worthy to open the book, nor to see it.
{5:5} And one of the elders said to me: “Weep not. Behold, the lion from the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has prevailed to open the book and to break its seven seals.”
{5:6} And I saw, and behold, in the midst of the throne and the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, a Lamb was standing, as if it were slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God, sent forth to all the earth.
{5:7} And he approached and received the book from the right hand of the One sitting upon the throne.
{5:8} And when he had opened the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having stringed instruments, as well as golden bowls full of fragrances, which are the prayers of the saints.
{5:9} And they were singing a new canticle, saying: “O Lord, you are worthy to receive the book and to open its seals, because you were slain and have redeemed us for God, by your blood, from every tribe and language and people and nation.
{5:10} And you have made us into a kingdom and into priests for our God, and we shall reign over the earth.”
{5:11} And I saw, and I heard the voice of many Angels surrounding the throne and the living creatures and the elders, (and their number was thousands of thousands)
{5:12} saying with a great voice: “The Lamb who was slain is worthy to receive power, and divinity, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing.”
{5:13} And every creature that is in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and all that is within the sea: I heard them all saying: “To the One sitting upon the throne and to the Lamb be blessing, and honor, and glory, and authority, forever and ever.”
{5:14} And the four living creatures were saying, “Amen.” And the twenty-four elders fell down on their faces, and they adored the One who lives forever and ever.
{6:1} And I saw that the Lamb had opened one of the seven seals. And I heard one of the four living creatures saying, in a voice like thunder: “Draw near and see.”
{6:2} And I saw, and behold, a white horse. And he who was sitting upon it was holding a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he went forth conquering, so that he might prevail.
{6:3} And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying: “Draw near and see.”
{6:4} And another horse went forth, which was red. And it was granted to him who was sitting upon it that he would take peace from the earth, and that they would kill one another. And a great sword was given to him.
{6:5} And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying: “Draw near and see.” And behold, a black horse. And he who was sitting upon it was holding a balance in his hand.
{6:6} And I heard something like a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A double measure of wheat for a denarius, and three double measures of barley for a denarius, but do no harm to wine and oil.”
{6:7} And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying: “Draw near and see.”
{6:8} And behold, a pale horse. And he who was sitting upon it, his name was Death, and Hell was following him. And authority was given to him over the four parts of the earth, to destroy by the sword, by famine, and by death, and by the creatures of the earth.
{6:9} And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw, under the altar, the souls of those who had been slain because of the Word of God and because of the testimony that they held.
{6:10} And they were crying out with a loud voice, saying: “How long, O Holy and True Lord, will you not judge and not vindicate our blood against those who dwell upon the earth?”
{6:11} And white robes were given to each of them. And they were told that they should rest for a brief time, until their fellow servants and their brothers, who were to be slain even as they were slain, would be completed.
{6:12} And when he had opened the sixth seal, I saw, and behold, a great earthquake occurred. And the sun became black, like a haircloth sack, and the entire moon became like blood.
{6:13} And the stars from heaven fell upon the earth, just as when a fig tree, shaken by a great wind, drops its immature figs.
{6:14} And heaven receded, like a scroll being rolled up. And every mountain, and the islands, were moved from their places.
{6:15} And the kings of the earth, and the rulers, and the military leaders, and the wealthy, and the strong, and everyone, servant and free, hid themselves in caves and among the rocks of the mountains.
{6:16} And they said to the mountains and the rocks: “Fall over us and hide us from the face of the One sitting upon the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.
{6:17} For the great day of their wrath has arrived. And who will be able to stand?”
{7:1} After these things, I saw four Angels standing above the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, so that they would not blow upon the earth, nor upon the sea, nor upon any tree.
{7:2} And I saw another Angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the Seal of the living God. And he cried out, in a great voice, to the four Angels to whom it was given to harm the earth and the sea,
{7:3} saying: “Do no harm to the earth, nor to the sea, nor to the trees, until we seal the servants of our God on their foreheads.”
{7:4} And I heard the number of those who were sealed: one hundred and forty-four thousand sealed, out of every tribe of the sons of Israel.
{7:5} From the tribe of Judah, twelve thousand were sealed. From the tribe of Reuben, twelve thousand were sealed. From the tribe of Gad, twelve thousand were sealed.
{7:6} From the tribe of Asher, twelve thousand were sealed. From the tribe of Naphtali, twelve thousand were sealed. From the tribe of Manasseh, twelve thousand were sealed.
{7:7} From the tribe of Simeon, twelve thousand were sealed. From the tribe of Levi, twelve thousand were sealed. From the tribe of Issachar, twelve thousand were sealed.
{7:8} From the tribe of Zebulun, twelve thousand were sealed. From the tribe of Joseph, twelve thousand were sealed. From the tribe of Benjamin, twelve thousand were sealed.
{7:9} After these things, I saw a great crowd, which no one could number, from all the nations and tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and in sight of the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands.
{7:10} And they cried out, with a great voice, saying: “Salvation is from our God, who sits upon the throne, and from the Lamb.”
{7:11} And all the Angels were standing around the throne, with the elders and the four living creatures. And they fell upon their faces in view of the throne, and they worshipped God,
{7:12} saying: “Amen. Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving, honor and power and strength to our God, forever and ever. Amen.”
{7:13} And one of the elders responded and said to me: “These ones who are clothed in white robes, who are they? And where did they come from?”
{7:14} And I said to him, “My lord, you know.” And he said to me: “These are the ones who have come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and have made them white by the blood of the Lamb.
{7:15} Therefore, they are before the throne of God, and they serve him, day and night, in his temple. And the One who sits upon the throne shall dwell over them.
{7:16} They shall not hunger, nor shall they thirst, anymore. Neither shall the sun beat down upon them, nor any heat.
{7:17} For the Lamb, who is in the midst of the throne, will rule over them, and he will lead them to the fountains of the waters of life. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
{8:1} And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.
{8:2} And I saw seven Angels standing in the sight of God. And seven trumpets were given to them.
{8:3} And another Angel approached, and he stood before the altar, holding a golden censer. And much incense was given to him, so that he might offer upon the golden altar, which is before the throne of God, the prayers of all the saints.
{8:4} And the smoke of the incense of the prayers of the saints ascended, in the presence of God, from the hand of the Angel.
{8:5} And the Angel received the golden censer, and he filled it from the fire of the altar, and he cast it down upon the earth, and there were thunders and voices and lightnings and a great earthquake.
{8:6} And the seven Angels who hold the seven trumpets prepared themselves, in order to sound the trumpet.
{8:7} And the first Angel sounded the trumpet. And there came hail and fire, mixed with blood; and it was cast down upon the earth. And a third part of the earth was burned, and a third part of the trees was entirely burned up, and all the green plants were burned.
{8:8} And the second Angel sounded the trumpet. And something like a great mountain, burning with fire, was cast down into the sea. And a third part of the sea became like blood.
{8:9} And a third part of the creatures that were living in the sea died. And a third part of the ships were destroyed.
{8:10} And the third Angel sounded the trumpet. And a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch. And it fell upon a third part of the rivers and upon the sources of water.
{8:11} And the name of the star is called Wormwood. And a third part of the waters were turned into wormwood. And many men died from the waters, because they were made bitter.
{8:12} And the fourth Angel sounded the trumpet. And a third part of the sun, and a third part of the moon, and a third part of the stars were struck, in such a way that a third part of them was obscured. And a third part of the day did not shine, and similarly the night.
{8:13} And I saw, and I heard the voice of a lone eagle flying through the midst of heaven, calling with a great voice: “Woe, Woe, Woe, to the inhabitants of the earth, from the remaining voices of the three Angels, who will soon sound the trumpet!”
{9:1} And the fifth Angel sounded the trumpet. And I saw upon the earth, a star that had fallen from heaven, and the key to the well of the abyss was given to him.
{9:2} And he opened the well of the abyss. And the smoke of the well ascended, like the smoke of a great furnace. And the sun and the air were obscured by the smoke of the well.
{9:3} And locusts went forth from the smoke of the well into the earth. And power was given to them, like the power that the scorpions of the earth have.
{9:4} And it was commanded of them that they must not harm the plants of the earth, nor anything green, nor any tree, but only those men who do not have the Seal of God upon their foreheads.
{9:5} And it was given to them that they would not kill them, but that they would torture them for five months. And their torture was like the torture of a scorpion, when he strikes a man.
{9:6} And in those days, men will seek death and they will not find it. And they will desire to die, and death will flee from them.
{9:7} And the likenesses of the locusts resembled horses prepared for battle. And upon their heads were something like crowns similar to gold. And their faces were like the faces of men.
{9:8} And they had hair like the hair of women. And their teeth were like the teeth of lions.
{9:9} And they had breastplates like iron breastplates. And the noise of their wings was like the noise of many running horses, rushing to battle.
{9:10} And they had tails similar to scorpions. And there were stingers in their tails, and these had the power to harm men for five months.
{9:11} And they had over them a king, the Angel of the abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Doom; in Greek, Destroyer; in Latin, Exterminator.
{9:12} One woe has gone out, but behold, there are still two woes approaching afterward.
{9:13} And the sixth Angel sounded the trumpet. And I heard a lone voice from the four horns of the golden altar, which is before the eyes of God,
{9:14} saying to the sixth Angel who had the trumpet: “Release the four Angels who were bound at the great river Euphrates.”
{9:15} And the four Angels were released, who had been prepared for that hour, and day, and month, and year, in order to kill one third part of men.
{9:16} And the number of the army of horsemen was two hundred million. For I heard their number.
{9:17} And I also saw the horses in the vision. And those who were sitting upon them had breastplates of fire and hyacinth and sulphur. And the heads of the horses were like the heads of lions. And from their mouths proceeded fire and smoke and sulphur.
{9:18} And one third part of men were slain by these three afflictions: by the fire and by the smoke and by the sulphur, which proceeded from their mouths.
{9:19} For the power of these horses is in their mouths and in their tails. For their tails resemble serpents, having heads; and it is with these that they cause harm.
{9:20} And the rest of men, who were not slain by these afflictions, did not repent from the works of their hands, so that they would not worship demons, or idols of gold and silver and brass and stone and wood, which can neither see, nor hear, nor walk.
{9:21} And they did not repent from their murders, nor from their drugs, nor from their fornication, nor from their thefts.
{10:1} And I saw another strong Angel, descending from heaven, clothed with a cloud. And a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was like the sun, and his feet were like columns of fire.
{10:2} And he held in his hand a small open book. And he stationed his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot upon the land.
{10:3} And he cried out with a great voice, in the manner of a lion roaring. And when he had cried out, seven thunders uttered their voices.
{10:4} And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write. But I heard a voice from heaven, saying to me: “Seal the things that the seven thunders have spoken, and do not write them.”
{10:5} And the Angel, whom I saw standing upon the sea and upon the land, lifted up his hand toward heaven.
{10:6} And he swore by the One who lives forever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that are in it; and the earth, and the things that are in it; and the sea, and the things that are in it: that the time will not be any longer,
{10:7} but in the days of the voice of the seventh Angel, when he shall begin to sound the trumpet, the mystery of God will be completed, just as he has proclaimed in the Gospel, through his servants the Prophets.
{10:8} And again, I heard a voice from heaven speaking with me and saying: “Go and receive the open book from the hand of the Angel who stands upon the sea and upon the land.”
{10:9} And I went to the Angel, saying to him that he should give the book to me. And he said to me: “Receive the book and consume it. And it shall cause bitterness in your stomach, but in your mouth it shall be sweet like honey.”
{10:10} And I received the book from the hand of the Angel, and I consumed it. And it was sweet like honey in my mouth. And when I had consumed it, my stomach was made bitter.
{10:11} And he said to me, “It is necessary for you to prophesy again about many nations and peoples and languages and kings.”
{11:1} And a reed, similar to a staff, was given to me. And it was said to me: “Rise up and measure the temple of God, and those who are worshiping in it, and the altar.
{11:2} But the atrium, which is outside of the temple, set it aside and do not measure it, because it has been given over to the Gentiles. And they shall trample upon the Holy City for forty-two months.
{11:3} And I will present my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy for one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.
{11:4} These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands, standing in the sight of the lord of the earth.
{11:5} And if anyone will want to harm them, fire shall go forth from their mouths, and it shall devour their enemies. And if anyone will want to wound them, so must he be slain.
{11:6} These have the power to close up the heavens, so that it may not rain during the days of their prophesying. And they have power over the waters, to convert them into blood, and to strike the earth with every kind of affliction as often as they will.
{11:7} And when they will have finished their testimony, the beast that ascended from the abyss will make war against them, and will overcome them, and will kill them.
{11:8} And their bodies shall lie in the streets of the Great City, which is figuratively called ‘Sodom’ and ‘Egypt,’ the place where their Lord also was crucified.
{11:9} And those from the tribes and peoples and languages and nations shall be watching their bodies for three and one half days. And they shall not permit their bodies to be placed in tombs.
{11:10} And the inhabitants of the earth will rejoice over them, and they will celebrate, and they will send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tortured those who were living upon the earth.
{11:11} And after three and one half days, the spirit of life from God entered into them. And they stood upright on their feet. And a great fear fell over those who saw them.
{11:12} And they heard a great voice from heaven, saying to them, “Ascend to here!” And they ascended into heaven on a cloud. And their enemies saw them.
{11:13} And at that hour, a great earthquake occurred. And one tenth part of the City fell. And the names of the men slain in the earthquake were seven thousand. And the remainder were thrown into fear, and they gave glory to the God of heaven.
{11:14} The second woe has gone out, but behold, the third woe approaches quickly.
{11:15} And the seventh Angel sounded the trumpet. And there were great voices in heaven, saying: “The kingdom of this world has become our Lord’s and his Christ’s, and he shall reign forever and ever. Amen.”
{11:16} And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones in the sight of God, fell upon their faces, and they adored God, saying:
{11:17} “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is, and who was, and who is to come. For you have taken your great power, and you have reigned.
{11:18} And the nations became angry, but your wrath arrived, and the time for the dead to be judged, and to render a reward to your servants the prophets, and to the saints, and to those who fear your name, small and great, and to exterminate those who have corrupted the earth.”
{11:19} And the temple of God was opened in heaven. And the Ark of his Testament was seen in his temple. And there were lightnings and voices and thunders, and an earthquake, and great hail.
{12:1} And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon was under her feet, and on her head was a crown of twelve stars.
{12:2} And being with child, she cried out while giving birth, and she was suffering in order to give birth.
{12:3} And another sign was seen in heaven. And behold, a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven diadems.
{12:4} And his tail drew down a third part of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman, who was about to give birth, so that, when she had brought forth, he might devour her son.
{12:5} And she brought forth a male child, who was soon to rule all the nations with an iron rod. And her son was taken up to God and to his throne.
{12:6} And the woman fled into solitude, where a place was being held ready by God, so that they might pasture her in that place for one thousand two hundred and sixty days.
{12:7} And there was a great battle in heaven. Michael and his Angels were battling with the dragon, and the dragon was fighting, and so were his angels.
{12:8} But they did not prevail, and a place for them was no longer found in heaven.
{12:9} And he was thrown out, that great dragon, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, who seduces the whole world. And he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were cast down with him.
{12:10} And I heard a great voice in heaven, saying: “Now have arrived salvation and virtue and the kingdom of our God and the power of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers has been cast down, he who accused them before our God day and night.
{12:11} And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of his testimony. And they loved not their own lives, even unto death.
{12:12} Because of this, rejoice, O heavens, and all who dwell within it. Woe to the earth and to the sea! For the devil has descended to you, holding great anger, knowing that he has little time.”
{12:13} And after the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who brought forth the male child.
{12:14} And the two wings of a great eagle were given to the woman, so that she might fly away, into the desert, to her place, where she is being nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
{12:15} And the serpent sent out from his mouth, after the woman, water like a river, so that he might cause her to be carried away by the river.
{12:16} But the earth assisted the woman. And the earth opened her mouth and absorbed the river, which the dragon sent out from his mouth.
{12:17} And the dragon was angry at the woman. And so he went away to do battle with the remainder of her offspring, those who keep the commandments of God and who hold to the testimony of Jesus Christ.
{12:18} And he stood upon the sand of the sea.
{13:1} And I saw a beast ascending from the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon its horns were ten diadems, and upon its heads were names of blasphemy.
{13:2} And the beast that I saw was similar to a leopard, and its feet were like the feet of a bear, and its mouth was like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave his own power and great authority to it.
{13:3} And I saw that one of its heads seemed to be slain unto death, but his deadly wound was healed. And the entire world was in wonder following the beast.
{13:4} And they worshiped the dragon, who gave authority to the beast. And they worshiped the beast, saying: “Who is like the beast? And who would be able to fight with it?”
{13:5} And there was given to it a mouth, speaking great things and blasphemies. And authority was given to him to act for forty-two months.
{13:6} And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme his name and his tabernacle and those who dwell in heaven.
{13:7} And it was given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given to him over every tribe and people and language and nation.
{13:8} And all who inhabit the earth worshiped the beast, those whose names have not been written, from the origin of the world, in the Book of Life of the Lamb who was slain.
{13:9} If anyone has an ear, let him hear.
{13:10} Whoever will be led into captivity, into captivity he goes. Whoever will kill with the sword, with the sword he must be killed. Here is the patient endurance and faith of the Saints.
{13:11} And I saw another beast ascending from the land. And she had two horns like the Lamb, but she was speaking like the dragon.
{13:12} And she acted with all the authority of the first beast in his sight. And she caused the earth, and those dwelling in it, to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.
{13:13} And she accomplished great signs, even so that she would cause fire to descend from the sky to the earth in the sight of men.
{13:14} And she seduced those living on the earth, by means of the signs that were given to her to perform in the sight of the beast, saying to those dwelling on the earth that they should make an image of the beast who had a wound of the sword and yet lived.
{13:15} And it was given to her to give a spirit to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast would speak. And she acted so that whoever would not worship the image of the beast would be slain.
{13:16} And she will cause everyone, small and great, wealthy and poor, free and servant, to have a character on their right hand or on their foreheads,
{13:17} so that no one may buy or sell, unless he has the character, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
{13:18} Here is wisdom. Whoever has intelligence, let him determine the number of the beast. For it is the number of a man, and his number is six hundred and sixty-six.
{14:1} And I saw, and behold, the Lamb was standing above mount Zion, and with him were one hundred and forty-four thousand, having his name and the name of his Father written on their foreheads.
{14:2} And I heard a voice from heaven, like the voice of many waters, and like the voice of a great thunder. And the voice that I heard was like that of singers, while playing on their stringed instruments.
{14:3} And they were singing what seemed like a new canticle before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. And no one was able to recite the canticle, except those one hundred and forty-four thousand, who were redeemed from the earth.
{14:4} These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are Virgins. These follow the Lamb wherever he will go. These were redeemed from men as the first-fruits for God and for the Lamb.
{14:5} And in their mouth, no lie was found, for they are without flaw before the throne of God.
{14:6} And I saw another Angel, flying through the midst of heaven, holding the eternal Gospel, so as to evangelize those sitting upon the earth and those of every nation and tribe and language and people,
{14:7} saying with a loud voice: “Fear the Lord, and give honor to him, for the hour of his judgment has arrived. And worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the sources of water.”
{14:8} And another Angel followed, saying: “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, who inebriated all nations with the wine of her wrath and of fornication.”
{14:9} And the third Angel followed them, saying with a great voice: “If anyone has worshiped the beast, or his image, or has received his character on his forehead or on his hand,
{14:10} he shall drink also from the wine of the wrath of God, which has been mixed with strong wine in the cup of his wrath, and he shall be tortured with fire and sulphur in the sight of the holy Angels and before the sight of the Lamb.
{14:11} And the smoke of their torments shall ascend forever and ever. And they shall have no rest, day or night, those who have worshiped the beast or his image, or who have received the character of his name.”
{14:12} Here is the patient endurance of the Saints, those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
{14:13} And I heard a voice from heaven, saying to me: “Write: Blessed are the dead, who die in the Lord, now and hereafter, says the Spirit, so that they may find rest from their labors. For their works follow them.”
{14:14} And I saw, and behold, a white cloud. And upon the cloud was one sitting, resembling a son of man, having a crown of gold on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand.
{14:15} And another Angel went forth from the temple, crying out in a great voice to the one sitting upon the cloud: “Send out your sickle and reap! For the hour of reaping has arrived, because the harvest of the earth has ripened.”
{14:16} And the one who was sitting upon the cloud sent out his sickle to the earth, and the earth was reaped.
{14:17} And another Angel went forth from the temple that is in heaven; he also had a sharp sickle.
{14:18} And another Angel went forth from the altar, who held power over fire. And he cried out in a great voice to him who held the sharp sickle, saying: “Send out your sharp sickle, and harvest the clusters of grapes from the vineyard of the earth, because its grapes have matured.”
{14:19} And the Angel sent out his sharp sickle to the earth, and he harvested the vineyard of the earth, and he cast it into the great basin of the wrath of God.
{14:20} And the basin was trodden beyond the city, and blood went forth from the basin, even as high as the harnesses of horses, out to one thousand six hundred stadia.
{15:1} And I saw another sign in heaven, great and wondrous: seven Angels, holding the seven last afflictions. For with them, the wrath of God is completed.
{15:2} And I saw something like a sea of glass mixed with fire. And those who had overcome the beast and his image and the number of his name, were standing upon the sea of glass, holding the harps of God,
{15:3} and singing the canticle of Moses, the servant of God, and the canticle of the Lamb, saying: “Great and wondrous are your works, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of all ages.
{15:4} Who shall not fear you, O Lord, and magnify your name? For you alone are blessed. For all nations shall approach and adore in your sight, because your judgments are manifest.”
{15:5} And after these things, I saw, and behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened.
{15:6} And the seven Angels went forth from the temple, holding the seven afflictions, clothed with clean white linen, and girded around the chest with wide golden belts.
{15:7} And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven Angels seven golden bowls, filled with the wrath of God, of the One who lives forever and ever.
{15:8} And the temple was filled with smoke from the majesty of God and from his power. And no one was able to enter into the temple, until the seven afflictions of the seven Angels were completed.
{16:1} And I heard a great voice from the temple, saying to the seven Angels: “Go forth and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God upon the earth.”
{16:2} And the first Angel went forth and poured out his bowl upon the earth. And a severe and most grievous wound occurred upon the men who had the character of the beast, and upon those who adored the beast or its image.
{16:3} And the second Angel poured out his bowl upon the sea. And it became like the blood of the dead, and every living creature in the sea died.
{16:4} And the third Angel poured out his bowl upon the rivers and the sources of water, and these became blood.
{16:5} And I heard the Angel of the waters saying: “You are just, O Lord, who is and who was: the Holy One who has judged these things.
{16:6} For they have shed the blood of the Saints and the Prophets, and so you have given them blood to drink. For they deserve this.”
{16:7} And from the altar, I heard another one, saying, “Even now, O Lord God Almighty, your judgments are true and just.”
{16:8} And the fourth Angel poured out his bowl upon the sun. And it was given to him to afflict men with heat and fire.
{16:9} And men were scorched by the great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God, who holds power over these afflictions, but they did not repent, so as to give him glory.
{16:10} And the fifth Angel poured out his bowl upon the throne of the beast. And his kingdom became darkened, and they gnawed at their tongues out of anguish.
{16:11} And they blasphemed the God of heaven, because of their anguish and wounds, but they did not repent from their works.
{16:12} And the sixth Angel poured out his bowl upon that great river Euphrates. And its water dried up, so that a way might be prepared for the kings from the rising of the sun.
{16:13} And I saw, from the mouth of the dragon, and from the mouth of the beast, and from the mouth of the false prophetess, three unclean spirits go out in the manner of frogs.
{16:14} For these are the spirits of the demons that were causing the signs. And they advanced to the kings of the entire earth, to gather them for battle on the great day of Almighty God.
{16:15} “Behold, I arrive like a thief. Blessed is he who is vigilant and who preserves his vestment, lest he walk naked and they see his disgrace.”
{16:16} And he shall gather them together at a place which is called, in Hebrew, Armageddon.
{16:17} And the seventh Angel poured out his bowl upon the air. And a great voice went out of the temple from the throne, saying: “It is done.”
{16:18} And there were lightnings and voices and thunders. And a great earthquake occurred, of a kind such as has never happened since men have been upon the earth, so great was this kind of earthquake.
{16:19} And the Great City became divided into three parts. And the cities of the Gentiles fell. And Babylon the great came to mind before God, to give her the cup of the wine of the indignation of his wrath.
{16:20} And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
{16:21} And hail as heavy as a talent descended from the sky upon men. And men blasphemed God, because of the affliction of the hail, for it was exceedingly great.
{17:1} And one of the seven Angels, those who hold the seven bowls, approached and spoke with me, saying: “Come, I will show you the condemnation of the great harlot, who sits upon many waters.
{17:2} With her, the kings of the earth have fornicated. And those who inhabit the earth have been inebriated by the wine of her prostitution.”
{17:3} And he carried me away in spirit to the desert. And I saw a woman sitting upon a scarlet beast, filled with names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
{17:4} And the woman was clothed all around with purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, holding a golden cup in her hand, filled with the abomination and with the filth of her fornication.
{17:5} And a name was written upon her forehead: Mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of the fornications and the abominations of the earth.
{17:6} And I saw that the woman was inebriated from the blood of the saints and from the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And I was amazed, when I had seen her, with a great wonder.
{17:7} And the Angel said to me: “Why do you wonder? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carries her, which has seven heads and ten horns.
{17:8} The beast that you saw, was, and is not, and is soon to ascend from the abyss. And he goes forth unto destruction. And the inhabitants upon the earth (those whose names have not been written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world) shall be amazed upon seeing the beast who was and is not.
{17:9} And this is for one who understands, who has wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains, upon which the woman sits, and they are seven kings.
{17:10} Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet arrived. And when he arrives, he must remain for a brief time.
{17:11} And the beast who was, and is not, the same is also the eighth, and he is of the seven, and he goes forth unto destruction.
{17:12} And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings; these have not yet received a kingdom, but they shall receive authority, as if they were kings, for one hour, after the beast.
{17:13} These hold to one plan, and they shall hand over their power and authority to the beast.
{17:14} These shall fight against the Lamb, and the Lamb shall conquer them. For he is the Lord of lords and the King of kings. And those who are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.”
{17:15} And he said to me: “The waters that you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples and nations and languages.
{17:16} And the ten horns that you saw on the beast, these shall hate the woman who fornicates, and they shall make her desolate and naked, and they shall chew her flesh, and they shall burn her completely with fire.
{17:17} For God has granted to their hearts that they may do to her whatever is pleasing, so that they may give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God may be completed.
{17:18} And the woman that you saw is the great City, which holds a kingdom above that of the kings of the earth.”
{18:1} And after these things, I saw another Angel, descending from heaven, having great authority. And the earth was illuminated by his glory.
{18:2} And he cried out with strength, saying: “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great. And she has become the habitation of demons, and the keepsake of every unclean spirit, and the possession of every unclean and hateful flying thing.
{18:3} For all the nations have imbibed the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And the kings of the earth have fornicated with her. And the merchants of the earth have become wealthy by the power of her pleasures.”
{18:4} And I heard another voice from heaven, saying: “Go away from her, my people, so that you may not be participants in her pleasures, and so that you may not be recipients of her afflictions.
{18:5} For her sins have pierced through even to heaven, and the Lord has remembered her iniquities.
{18:6} Render to her, as she has also rendered to you. And repay her doubly, according to her works. Mix for her a double portion, in the cup with which she mixed.
{18:7} As much as she has glorified herself and lived in pleasure, so much so give to her torment and grief. For in her heart, she has said: ‘I am enthroned as queen,’ and, ‘I am not a widow,’ and, ‘I shall not see sorrow.’
{18:8} For this reason, her afflictions shall arrive in one day: death and grief and famine. And she shall be burned with fire. For God, who will judge her, is strong.
{18:9} And the kings of the earth, who have fornicated with her and lived in luxury, shall weep and mourn for themselves over her, when they see the smoke of her conflagration,
{18:10} standing far away, out of fear of her torments, saying: ‘Woe! Woe! to Babylon, that great city, that strong city. For in one hour, your judgment has arrived.’
{18:11} And the businessmen of the earth shall weep and mourn over her, because no one will buy their merchandise anymore:
{18:12} merchandise of gold and silver and precious stones and pearls, and of fine linen and purple and silk and scarlet, and of every citrus tree wood, and of every tool of ivory, and of every tool from precious stone and brass and iron and marble,
{18:13} and of cinnamon and black cardamom, and of fragrances and ointments and incense, and of wine and oil and fine flour and wheat, and of beasts of burden and sheep and horses and four-wheeled wagons, and of slaves and the souls of men.
{18:14} And the fruits of the desires of your soul have gone away from you. And all things fat and splendid have perished from you. And they shall never find these things again.
{18:15} The merchants of these things, who were made wealthy, shall stand far away from her, out of fear of her torments, weeping and mourning,
{18:16} and saying: ‘Woe! Woe! to that great city, which was clothed with fine linen and purple and scarlet, and which was adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls.’
{18:17} For such great wealth was brought to destitution in one hour. And every shipmaster, and all who navigate on lakes, and mariners, and those who work at sea, stood far away.
{18:18} And they cried out, seeing the place of her conflagration, saying: ‘What city resembles this great city?’
{18:19} And they cast dust upon their heads. And they cried out, weeping and mourning, saying: ‘Woe! Woe! to that great city, by which all who had ships at sea were made rich from her treasures. For she has been made desolate in one hour.
{18:20} Exult over her, O heaven, O holy Apostles and Prophets. For God has judged your judgment upon her.’ ”
{18:21} And a certain strong Angel took up a stone, similar to a great millstone, and he cast it into the sea, saying: “With this force shall Babylon, that great city, be cast down. And she shall never be found again.
{18:22} And the sound of singers, and musicians, and flute and trumpet players shall not be heard in you again. And every artisan of every art shall not be found in you again. And the sound of the mill shall not be heard in you again.
{18:23} And the light of the lamp shall not shine in you again. And the voice of the groom and of the bride shall not be heard in you anymore. For your merchants were the leaders of the earth. For all the nations were led astray by your drugs.
{18:24} And in her was found the blood of the Prophets and of the Saints, and of all who were slain upon the earth.”
{19:1} After these things, I heard something like the voice of many multitudes in heaven, saying: “Alleluia! Praise and glory and power is for our God.
{19:2} For true and just are his judgments, he who has judged the great harlot that corrupted the earth by her prostitution. And he has vindicated the blood of his servants from her hands.”
{19:3} And again, they said: “Alleluia! For her smoke ascends forever and ever.”
{19:4} And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God, sitting upon the throne, saying: “Amen! Alleluia!”
{19:5} And a voice went out from the throne, saying: “Express praise to our God, all you his servants, and you who fear him, small and great.”
{19:6} And I heard something like the voice of a great multitude, and like the voice of many waters, and like the voice of great thunders, saying: “Alleluia! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, has reigned.
{19:7} Let us be glad and exult. And let us give glory to him. For the marriage feast of the Lamb has arrived, and his wife has prepared herself.”
{19:8} And it was granted to her that she should cover herself with fine linen, splendid and white. For the fine linen is the justifications of the Saints.
{19:9} And he said to me: “Write: Blessed are those who have been called to the wedding feast of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These words of God are true.”
{19:10} And I fell down before his feet, to adore him. And he said to me: “Be careful not to do so. I am your fellow servant, and I am among your brothers, who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Adore God. For the testimony of Jesus is a spirit of prophecy.”
{19:11} And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And he who was sitting upon it was called Faithful and True. And with justice does he judge and fight.
{19:12} And his eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, having a name written, which no one knows except himself.
{19:13} And he was clothed with a vestment sprinkled with blood. And his name is called: THE WORD OF GOD.
{19:14} And the armies that are in heaven were following him on white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
{19:15} And from his mouth proceeded a sharp two-edged sword, so that with it he may strike the nations. And he shall rule them with an iron rod. And he treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.
{19:16} And he has on his garment and on his thigh written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
{19:17} And I saw a certain Angel, standing in the sun. And he cried out with a great voice, saying to all the birds that were flying through the midst of the sky, “Come and gather together for the great supper of God,
{19:18} so that you may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of tribunes, and the flesh of the strong, and the flesh of horses and those sitting on them, and the flesh of all: free and servant, small and great.”
{19:19} And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies, having been gathered together to do battle against him who was sitting upon the horse, and against his army.
{19:20} And the beast was apprehended, and with him the false prophetess, who in his presence caused the signs, by which she seduced those who accepted the character of the beast and who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the pool of fire burning with sulphur.
{19:21} And the others were slain by the sword that proceeds from the mouth of him who was sitting upon the horse. And all the birds were sated with their flesh.
{20:1} And I saw an Angel, descending from heaven, holding in his hand the key of the abyss and a great chain.
{20:2} And he apprehended the dragon, the ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and he bound him for a thousand years.
{20:3} And he cast him into the abyss, and he closed and sealed it, so that he would no longer seduce the nations, until the thousand years are completed. And after these things, he must be released for a brief time.
{20:4} And I saw thrones. And they sat upon them. And judgment was given to them. And the souls of those beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus and because of the Word of God, and who did not adore the beast, nor his image, nor accept his character on their foreheads or on their hands: they lived and they reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
{20:5} The rest of the dead did not live, until the thousand years are completed. This is the First Resurrection.
{20:6} Blessed and holy is he who takes part in the First Resurrection. Over these the second death has no power. But they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and they shall reign with him for a thousand years.
{20:7} And when the thousand years will have been completed, Satan shall be released from his prison, and he will go out and seduce the nations which are upon the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog. And he will gather them together for battle, those whose number is like the sand of the sea.
{20:8} And they climbed across the breadth of the earth, and they encompassed the camp of the Saints and the Beloved City.
{20:9} And fire from God descended from heaven and devoured them. And the devil, who seduced them, was cast into the pool of fire and sulphur,
{20:10} where both the beast and the false prophetess shall be tortured, day and night, forever and ever.
{20:11} And I saw a great white throne, and One sitting upon it, from whose sight earth and heaven fled, and no place was found for them.
{20:12} And I saw the dead, great and small, standing in view of the throne. And books were opened. And another Book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged by those things that had been written in the books, according to their works.
{20:13} And the sea gave up the dead who were in it. And death and Hell gave up their dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.
{20:14} And Hell and death were cast into the pool of fire. This is the second death.
{20:15} And whoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the pool of fire.
{21:1} I saw the new heaven and the new earth. For the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and the sea is no more.
{21:2} And I, John, saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband.
{21:3} And I heard a great voice from the throne, saying: “Behold the tabernacle of God with men. And he will dwell with them, and they will be his people. And God himself will be their God with them.
{21:4} And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. And death shall be no more. And neither mourning, nor crying out, nor grief shall be anymore. For the first things have passed away.”
{21:5} And the One who was sitting upon the throne, said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And he said to me, “Write, for these words are entirely faithful and true.”
{21:6} And he said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To those who thirst, I will give freely from the fountain of the water of life.
{21:7} Whoever prevails shall possess these things. And I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
{21:8} But the fearful, and the unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and drug abusers, and idolaters, and all liars, these shall be a part of the pool burning with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.”
{21:9} And one of the seven Angels, those holding the bowls filled with the seven last afflictions, approached and spoke with me, saying: “Come, and I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”
{21:10} And he took me up in spirit to a great and high mountain. And he showed me the Holy City Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
{21:11} having the glory of God. And its light was like that of a precious stone, even like that of the jasper stone or like crystal.
{21:12} And it had a wall, great and high, having twelve gates. And at the gates were twelve Angels. And names were written upon them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel.
{21:13} On the East were three gates, and on the North were three gates, and on the South were three gates, and on the West were three gates.
{21:14} And the wall of the City had twelve foundations. And upon them were the twelve names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb.
{21:15} And he who was speaking with me was holding a golden measuring reed, in order to measure the City, and its gates and wall.
{21:16} And the city is laid out as a square, and so its length is as great as the width. And he measured the city with the golden reed for twelve thousand stadia, and its length and height and breadth were equal.
{21:17} And he measured its wall as one hundred and forty-four cubits, the measure of a man, which is of an Angel.
{21:18} And the structure of its wall was of jasper stone. Yet truly, the city itself was of pure gold, similar to pure glass.
{21:19} And the foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was of jasper, the second was of sapphire, the third was of chalcedony, the fourth was of emerald,
{21:20} the fifth was of sardonyx, the sixth was of sardius, the seventh was of chrysolite, the eighth was of beryl, the ninth was of topaz, the tenth was of chrysoprasus, the eleventh was of jacinth, the twelfth was of amethyst.
{21:21} And the twelve gates are twelve pearls, one for each, so that each gate was made from a single pearl. And the main street of the city was of pure gold, similar to transparent glass.
{21:22} And I saw no temple in it. For the Lord God Almighty is its temple, and the Lamb.
{21:23} And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine in it. For the glory of God has illuminated it, and the Lamb is its lamp.
{21:24} And the nations shall walk by its light. And the kings of the earth shall bring their glory and honor into it.
{21:25} And its gates shall not be closed throughout the day, for there shall be no night in that place.
{21:26} And they shall bring the glory and honor of the nations into it.
{21:27} There shall not enter into it anything defiled, nor anything causing an abomination, nor anything false, but only those who have been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb.
{22:1} And he showed me the river of the water of life, shining like crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb.
{22:2} In the midst of its main street, and on both sides of the river, was the Tree of Life, bearing twelve fruits, offering one fruit for each month, and the leaves of the tree are for the health of the nations.
{22:3} And every curse shall be no more. But the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants shall serve him.
{22:4} And they shall see his face. And his name shall be on their foreheads.
{22:5} And night shall be no more. And they will not need the light of a lamp, nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illuminate them. And they shall reign forever and ever.
{22:6} And he said to me: “These words are entirely faithful and true.” And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his Angel to reveal to his servant what must occur soon:
{22:7} “For behold, I am approaching quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”
{22:8} And I, John, heard and saw these things. And, after I had heard and seen, I fell down, so as to adore before the feet of the Angel, who was revealing these things to me.
{22:9} And he said to me: “Be careful not to do so. For I am your fellow servant, and I am among your brothers the prophets, and among those who keep the words of the prophecy of this book. Adore God.”
{22:10} And he said to me: “Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book. For the time is near.
{22:11} Whoever does harm, he might still do harm. And whoever is filthy, he might still be filthy. And whoever is just, he may still be just. And one who is holy, he may still be holy.”
{22:12} “Behold, I am approaching quickly! And my repayment is with me, to render to each one according to his works.
{22:13} I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”
{22:14} Blessed are those who wash their robes in the blood of the Lamb. So may they have a right to the tree of life; so may they enter through the gates into the City.
{22:15} Outside are dogs, and drug abusers, and the unchaste, and murderers, and those who serve idols, and all who love and do what is false.
{22:16} “I, Jesus, have sent my Angel, to testify to these things for you among the Churches. I am the Root and the Origin of David, the bright morning Star.”
{22:17} And the Spirit and the Bride say: “Draw near.” And whoever hears, let him say: “Draw near.” And whoever thirsts, let him draw near. And whoever is willing, let him accept the water of life, freely.
{22:18} For I call as witnesses all listeners of the words of the prophecy of this book. If anyone will have added to these, God will add upon him the afflictions written in this book.
{22:19} And if anyone will have taken away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his portion from the Book of Life, and from the Holy City, and from these things which have been written in this book.
{22:20} He who offers testimony to these things, says: “Even now, I am approaching quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
{22:21} The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
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