Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 39

¹He seeks out the wisdom of all the ancients,

and is concerned with prophecies;

²he preserves the sayings of the famous

and penetrates the subtleties of parables;

³he seeks out the hidden meanings of proverbs

and is at home with the obscurities of parables.

⁴He serves among the great

and appears before rulers;

he travels in foreign lands

and learns what is good and evil in the human lot.

⁵He sets his heart to rise early

to seek the Lord who made him,

and to petition the Most High;

he opens his mouth in prayer

and asks pardon for his sins.

⁶If the great Lord is willing,

he will be filled with the spirit of understanding;

he will pour forth words of wisdom of his own

and give thanks to the Lord in prayer.

⁷The Lord will direct his counsel and knowledge,[#39.7 Gk]

as he meditates on his mysteries.

⁸He will show the wisdom of what he has learned,

and will glory in the law of the Lord's covenant.

⁹Many will praise his understanding;

it will never be blotted out.

His memory will not disappear,

and his name will live through all generations.

¹⁰Nations will speak of his wisdom,

and the congregation will proclaim his praise.

¹¹If he lives long, he will leave a name greater than a thousand,

and if he goes to rest, it is enough for him.

A Hymn of Praise to God

¹²I have more on my mind to express;

I am full like the full moon.

¹³Listen to me, my faithful children, and blossom

like a rose growing by a stream of water.

¹⁴Send out fragrance like incense,

and put forth blossoms like a lily.

Scatter the fragrance, and sing a hymn of praise;

bless the Lord for all his works.

¹⁵Ascribe majesty to his name

and give thanks to him with praise,

with songs on your lips, and with harps;

this is what you shall say in thanksgiving:

¹⁶“All the works of the Lord are very good,

and whatever he commands will be done at the appointed time.

¹⁷No one can say, ‘What is this?’ or ‘Why is that?’—

for at the appointed time all such questions will be answered.

At his word the waters stood in a heap,

and the reservoirs of water at the word of his mouth.

¹⁸When he commands, his every purpose is fulfilled,

and none can limit his saving power.

¹⁹The works of all are before him,

and nothing can be hidden from his eyes.

²⁰From the beginning to the end of time he can see everything,

and nothing is too marvelous for him.

²¹No one can say, ‘What is this?’ or ‘Why is that?’—

for everything has been created for its own purpose.

²²“His blessing covers the dry land like a river,

and drenches it like a flood.

²³But his wrath drives out the nations,

as when he turned a watered land into salt.

²⁴To the faithful his ways are straight,

but full of pitfalls for the wicked.

²⁵From the beginning good things were created for the good,

but for sinners good things and bad.

²⁶The basic necessities of human life

are water and fire and iron and salt

and wheat flour and milk and honey,

the blood of the grape and oil and clothing.

²⁷All these are good for the godly,

but for sinners they turn into evils.

²⁸“There are winds created for vengeance,

and in their anger they can dislodge mountains;

on the day of reckoning they will pour out their strength

and calm the anger of their Maker.

²⁹Fire and hail and famine and pestilence,

all these have been created for vengeance;

³⁰the fangs of wild animals and scorpions and vipers,

and the sword that punishes the ungodly with destruction.

³¹They take delight in doing his bidding,

always ready for his service on earth;

and when their time comes they never disobey his command.”

³²So from the beginning I have been convinced of all this

and have thought it out and left it in writing:

³³All the works of the Lord are good,

and he will supply every need in its time.

³⁴No one can say, “This is not as good as that,”

for everything proves good in its appointed time.

³⁵So now sing praise with all your heart and voice,

and bless the name of the Lord.