Wisdom 7

¹I too am a mortal, the same as all the rest,[#Wis 10:1; Gn 2:7; Jb 10:9–12; 33:6; 1 Cor 15:47–49.]

and a descendant of the first one formed of earth.

And in my mother’s womb I was molded into flesh

²in a ten-month period—body and blood,[#: ten lunar months.]

from the seed of a man, and the pleasure that accompanies marriage.

³And I too, when born, inhaled the common air,

and fell upon the kindred earth;

wailing, I uttered that first sound common to all.

⁴In swaddling clothes and with constant care I was nurtured.

⁵For no king has any different origin or birth;

⁶one is the entry into life for all,

and in one same way they leave it.

⁷Therefore I prayed, and prudence was given me;

I pleaded and the spirit of Wisdom came to me.

⁸I preferred her to scepter and throne,[#Wis 8:5; 1 Kgs 10:21; Jb 28:15–19; Prv 3:14–16; 8:10, 18–19.]

And deemed riches nothing in comparison with her,

⁹nor did I liken any priceless gem to her;

Because all gold, in view of her, is a bit of sand,

and before her, silver is to be accounted mire.

¹⁰Beyond health and beauty I loved her,

And I chose to have her rather than the light,

because her radiance never ceases.

¹¹Yet all good things together came to me with her,[#Prv 8:21.]

and countless riches at her hands;

¹²I rejoiced in them all, because Wisdom is their leader,

though I had not known that she is their mother.

¹³Sincerely I learned about her, and ungrudgingly do I share—

her riches I do not hide away;

¹⁴For she is an unfailing treasure;

those who gain this treasure win the friendship of God,

being commended by the gifts that come from her discipline.

¹⁵Now God grant I speak suitably

and value these endowments at their worth:

For he is the guide of Wisdom

and the director of the wise.

¹⁶For both we and our words are in his hand,

as well as all prudence and knowledge of crafts.

¹⁷For he gave me sound knowledge of what exists,[#7:17–22a] Wisdom teaches not only righteousness and friendship with God but also sound knowledge of the world, the universe, plants, animals and human beings. See also 1 Kgs 5:9–14; these specialties reflect Hellenistic culture.]

that I might know the structure of the universe and the force of its elements,

¹⁸The beginning and the end and the midpoint of times,

the changes in the sun’s course and the variations of the seasons,

¹⁹Cycles of years, positions of stars,

²⁰natures of living things, tempers of beasts,

Powers of the winds and thoughts of human beings,

uses of plants and virtues of roots—

²¹Whatever is hidden or plain I learned,

²²for Wisdom, the artisan of all, taught me.[#Wis 14:2; Prv 8:30.]

For in her is a spirit

intelligent, holy, unique,

Manifold, subtle, agile,

clear, unstained, certain,

Never harmful, loving the good, keen,

²³unhampered, beneficent, kindly,

Firm, secure, tranquil,

all-powerful, all-seeing,

And pervading all spirits,

though they be intelligent, pure and very subtle.

²⁴For Wisdom is mobile beyond all motion,

and she penetrates and pervades all things by reason of her purity.

²⁵For she is a breath of the might of God[#Five strong metaphors underline the origins and closeness of Wisdom with God. See the use of this language in Heb 1:3; Col 1:15.]

and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty;

therefore nothing defiled can enter into her.

²⁶For she is the reflection of eternal light,

the spotless mirror of the power of God,

the image of his goodness.

²⁷Although she is one, she can do all things,

and she renews everything while herself perduring;

Passing into holy souls from age to age,

she produces friends of God and prophets.

²⁸For God loves nothing so much as the one who dwells with Wisdom.

²⁹For she is fairer than the sun[#Sg 6:3, 9.]

and surpasses every constellation of the stars.

Compared to light, she is found more radiant;

³⁰though night supplants light,

wickedness does not prevail over Wisdom.