The Bible Wisdom of Sirach Chapter 24
Wisdom of Sirach 24
Σοφία Σειράχ
1 ΑΙΝΕΣΙΣ ΣΟΦΙΑΣ. Ἡ σοφία αἰνέσει ψυχὴν αὐτῆς καὶ ἐν μέσῳ λαοῦ αὐτῆς καυχήσεται.
Wisdom shall praise herself, and shall glory in the midst of her people.
2 ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ Ὑψίστου στόμα αὐτῆς ἀνοίξει καὶ ἔναντι δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ καυχήσεται·
In the congregation of the most High shall she open her mouth, and triumph before his power.
3 ἐγὼ ἀπὸ στόματος Ὑψίστου ἐξῆλθον, καὶ ὡς ὁμίχλη κατεκάλυψα γῆν·
I came out of the mouth of the most High, and covered the earth as a cloud.
4 ἐγὼ ἐν ὑψηλοῖς κατεσκήνωσα, καὶ ὁ θρόνος μου ἐν στύλῳ νεφέλης·
I lived in high places, and my throne is in a cloudy pillar.
5 γῦρον οὐρανοῦ ἐκύκλωσα μόνη καὶ ἐν βάθει ἀβύσσων περιεπάτησα·
I alone compassed the circuit of heaven, and walked in the bottom of the deep.
6 ἐν κύμασι θαλάσσης καὶ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ καὶ ἐν παντὶ λαῷ καὶ ἔθνει ἐκτησάμην.
In the waves of the sea and in all the earth, and in every people and nation, I got a possession.
7 μετὰ τούτων πάντων ἀνάπαυσιν ἐζήτησα καὶ ἐν κληρονομίᾳ τίνος αὐλισθήσομαι.
With all these I sought rest: and in whose inheritance shall I abide?
8 τότε ἐνετείλατό μοι ὁ κτίστης ἁπάντων, καὶ ὁ κτίσας με κατέπαυσε τὴν σκηνήν μου καὶ εἶπεν· ἐν Ἰακὼβ κατασκήνωσον καὶ ἐν Ἰσραὴλ κατακληρονομήθητι.
So the Creator of all things gave me a commandment, and he that made me caused my tabernacle to rest, and said, Let your dwelling be in Jacob, and your inheritance in Israel.
9 πρὸ τοῦ αἰῶνος ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς ἔκτισέ με, καὶ ἕως αἰῶνος οὐ μὴ ἐκλίπω.
He created me from the beginning before the world, and I shall never fail.
10 ἐν σκηνῇ ἁγίᾳ ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ ἐλειτούργησα καὶ οὕτως ἐν Σιὼν ἐστηρίχθην·
In the holy tabernacle I served before him; and so was I established in Sion.
11 ἐν πόλει ἠγαπημένῃ ὁμοίως με κατέπαυσε, καὶ ἐν Ἱερουσαλὴμ ἡ ἐξουσία μου·
Likewise in the beloved city he gave me rest, and in Jerusalem was my power.
12 καὶ ἐρρίζωσα ἐν λαῷ δεδοξασμένῳ, ἐν μερίδι Κυρίου κληρονομίας αὐτοῦ.
And I took root in an honourable people, even in the portion of the Lord's inheritance.
13 ὡς κέδρος ἀνυψώθην ἐν τῷ Λιβάνῳ καὶ ὡς κυπάρισσος ἐν ὄρεσιν Ἀερμών·
I was exalted like a cedar in Libanus, and as a cypress tree upon the mountains of Hermon.
14 ὡς φοῖνιξ ἀνυψώθην ἐν αἰγιαλοῖς καὶ ὡς φυτὰ ρόδου ἐν Ἱεριχώ, ὡς ἐλαία εὐπρεπὴς ἐν πεδίῳ, καὶ ἀνυψώθην ὡς πλάτανος.
I was exalted like a palm tree in En-gaddi, and as a rose plant in Jericho, as a fair olive tree in a pleasant field, and grew up as a plane tree by the water.
15 ὡς κιννάμωμον καὶ ἀσπάλαθος ἀρωμάτων δέδωκα ὀσμὴν καὶ ὡς σμύρνα ἐκλεκτὴ διέδωκα εὐωδίαν, ὡς χαλβάνη καὶ ὄνυξ καὶ στακτὴ καὶ ὡς λιβάνου ἀτμὶς ἐν σκηνῇ.
I gave a sweet smell like cinnamon and aspalathus, and I yielded a pleasant odour like the best myrrh, as galbanum, and onyx, and sweet storax, and as the fume of frankincense in the tabernacle.
16 ἐγὼ ὡς τερέμινθος ἐξέτεινα κλάδους μου, καὶ οἱ κλάδοι μου κλάδοι δόξης καὶ χάριτος.
As the turpentine tree I stretched out my branches, and my branches are the branches of honour and grace.
17 ἐγὼ ὡς ἄμπελος βλαστήσασα χάριν, καὶ τὰ ἄνθη μου καρπὸς δόξης καὶ πλούτου. [18 ἐγὼ μήτηρ τῆς ἀγαπήσεως τῆς καλῆς, καὶ φόβου καὶ γνώσεως καὶ τῆς ὁσίας ἐλπίδος, δίδομαι οὖν πᾶσι τοῖς τέκνοις μου, ἀειγενὴς τοῖς λεγομένοις ὑπ' αὐτοῦ].
As the vine brought I forth pleasant savour, and my flowers are the fruit of honour and riches.
I am the mother of fair love, and fear, and knowledge, and holy hope: I therefore, being eternal, am given to all my children which are named of him. (Brenton's 24:18, which the Greek of this edition does not have)
19 προσέλθετε πρός με οἱ ἐπιθυμοῦντές μου, καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν γεννημάτων μου ἐμπλήσθητε·
Come to me, all you⌃ that be desirous of me, and fill yourselves with my fruits.
20 τὸ γὰρ μνημόσυνόν μου ὑπὲρ τὸ μέλι γλυκύ, καὶ ἡ κληρονομία μου ὑπὲρ μέλιτος κηρίον.
For my memorial is sweeter than honey, and my inheritance than the honeycomb.
21 οἱ ἐσθίοντές με ἔτι πεινάσουσι, καὶ οἱ πίνοντές με ἔτι διψήσουσιν.
They that eat me shall yet be hungry, and they that drink me shall yet be thirsty.
22 ὁ ὑπακούων μου οὐκ αἰσχυνθήσεται, καὶ οἱ ἐργαζόμενοι ἐν ἐμοὶ οὐχ ἁμαρτήσουσι.
He that obeys me shall never be confounded, and they that work by me shall not do amiss.
23 ταῦτα πάντα βίβλος διαθήκης Θεοῦ Ὑψίστου, νόμον ὃν ἐνετείλατο ἡμῖν Μωυσῆς κληρονομίαν συναγωγαῖς Ἰακώβ. [24 μὴ ἐκλύεσθε ἰσχὺν ἐν Κυρίῳ, κολλᾶσθε δὲ πρὸς αὐτόν, ἵνα κραταιώσῃ ὑμᾶς, Κύριος παντοκράτωρ Θεὸς μόνος ἐστί, καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἔτι πλὴν αὐτοῦ σωτήρ].
All these things are the book of the covenant of the most high God, even the law which Moses commanded for an heritage to the congregations of Jacob.
Faint not to be strong in the Lord; that he may confirm you, cleave to him: for the Lord Almighty is God alone, and beside him there is no other Saviour. (Brenton's 24:24, which the Greek of this edition does not have)
25 ὁ πιμπλῶν ὡς Φεισὼν σοφίαν καὶ ὡς Τίγρις ἐν ἡμέραις νέων,
He fills all things with his wisdom, as Phison and as Tigris in the time of the new fruits.
26 ὁ ἀναπληρῶν ὡς Εὐφράτης σύνεσιν καὶ ὡς Ἰορδάνης ἐν ἡμέραις θερισμοῦ,
He makes the understanding to abound like Euphrates, and as Jordan in the time of the harvest.
27 ὁ ἐκφαίνων ὡς φῶς παιδείαν, ὡς Γηὼν ἐν ἡμέραις τρυγητοῦ.
He makes the doctrine of knowledge appear as the light, and as Geon in the time of vintage.
28 οὐ συνετέλεσεν ὁ πρῶτος γνῶναι αὐτήν, καὶ οὕτως ὁ ἔσχατος οὐκ ἐξιχνίασεν αὐτήν·
The first man knew her not perfectly: no more shall the last find her out.
29 ἀπὸ γὰρ θαλάσσης ἐπληθύνθη διανόημα αὐτῆς καὶ ἡ βουλὴ αὐτῆς ἀπὸ ἀβύσσου μεγάλης.
For her thoughts are more than the sea, and her counsels profounder than the great deep.
30 κἀγὼ ὡς διῶρυξ ἀπὸ ποταμοῦ καὶ ὡς ὑδραγωγὸς ἐξῆλθον εἰς παράδεισον·
I also came out as a brook from a river, and as a conduit into a garden.
31 εἶπα· ποτιῶ μου τὸν κῆπον καὶ μεθύσω μου τὴν πρασιάν· καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐγένετό μοι ἡ διῶρυξ εἰς ποταμόν, καὶ ὁ ποταμός μου ἐγένετο εἰς θάλασσαν.
I said, I will water my best garden, and will water abundantly my garden bed: and, behold, my brook became a river, and my river became a sea.
32 ἔτι παιδείαν ὡς ὄρθρον φωτιῶ καὶ ἐκφανῶ αὐτὰ ἕως εἰς μακράν·
I will yet make doctrine to shine as the morning, and will send forth her light afar off.
33 ἔτι διδασκαλίαν ὡς προφητείαν ἐκχεῶ καὶ καταλείψω αὐτὴν εἰς γενεὰς αἰώνων.
I will yet pour out doctrine as prophecy, and leave it to all ages for ever.
34 ἴδετε ὅτι οὐκ ἐμοὶ μόνῳ ἐκοπίασα, ἀλλὰ πᾶσι τοῖς ἐκζητοῦσιν αὐτήν.
Behold that I have not laboured for myself only, but for all them that seek wisdom.
Greek: the Septuagint as the Orthodox Media Network published it (Mount Athos); 2 Maccabees and the Prayer of Manasseh from Brenton's edition (1851). English: Brenton's translation (1851), its spelling updated by Michael Paul Johnson; public domain. About these texts.