1Love righteousness, all you who judge the earth. Think of the Lord with a good mind, and seek him with an undivided heart, 2 because he is found by those who don’t put him to the test, and shows himself to those who trust him. 3 For crooked thoughts separate a person from God, and his power, when it is put to the test, convicts the foolish; 4 because wisdom will not enter a soul that plots evil, or dwell in a body enslaved by sin.[1] 5 For a holy spirit of discipline will flee deceit, and will depart from thoughts that are without understanding, and will be put to shame when unrighteousness comes in.[2] 6 For wisdom is a spirit who loves humanity, and she will not hold a blasphemer guiltless for what his lips say, because God is witness of his kidneys*, a true overseer of his heart, and a hearer of his tongue.[3] 7 Because the spirit of the Lord has filled the world, and that which holds all things together knows what is said,[4] 8 no one who speaks unrighteous things will go unnoticed, and Justice, when it convicts, will not pass him by. 9 For the plans of the ungodly person will be searched out, and the report of his words will come to the Lord to convict him of his lawless deeds;[5] 10 because a jealous ear hears everything, and the sound of grumbling is not hidden. 11 So beware of pointless grumbling, and keep your tongue from slander, because no secret word goes out without effect, and a lying mouth destroys a soul.[6] 12 Don’t court death by the error of your life, and don’t bring destruction on yourselves by the works of your hands; 13 because God didn’t make death, and he takes no delight when the living perish.[7] 14 For he created all things so that they might have being, and the generative powers of the world are wholesome. There is no poison of destruction in them, and Hades has no royal rule on earth;[8] 15 for righteousness is immortal, 16 but ungodly people summon death with their hands and their words. Thinking him a friend, they wasted away and made a covenant with him, because they deserve to share his lot.[9]
2For they said to themselves, reasoning badly, “Our life is short and sorrowful. There is no cure when a person comes to the end, and no one is known to have been released from Hades.[10] 2 We were born by mere chance, and after this we will be as though we had never been, because the breath in our nostrils is smoke, and reason is a spark kindled by the beating of our heart; 3 when it goes out, the body will be turned to ashes, and the spirit will be scattered like thin air. 4 Our name will be forgotten in time. No one will remember our works. Our life will pass away like the traces of a cloud, and will be scattered like a mist chased by the rays of the sun and overcome by its heat.[11] 5 For our allotted time is the passing of a shadow, and there is no putting off our end, because it is sealed fast, and no one turns it back. 6 “Come then, let’s enjoy the good things that exist. Let’s use creation eagerly, as we did in our youth.[12] 7 Let’s fill ourselves with costly wine and perfumes, and let no spring flower pass us by. 8 Let’s crown ourselves with rosebuds before they wither. 9 Let none of us miss his share in our proud revelry. Let’s leave reminders of our celebration everywhere, because this is our portion, and this is our lot.[13] 10 Let’s oppress the righteous poor man. Let’s not spare the widow, or respect the gray hair of the old. 11 But let our strength be our law of righteousness, because what is weak is proven useless. 12 But let’s lie in wait for the righteous man, because he is a nuisance to us. He opposes our works, reproaches us for sins against the law, and charges us with sins against our training.[14] 13 He professes to have knowledge of God, and calls himself a child of the Lord. 14 He has become a rebuke to our thoughts. 15 He is hard for us even to look at, because his life is unlike other people’s, and his ways are strange. 16 We are counted by him as something worthless, and he keeps away from our ways as from filth. He calls the end of the righteous happy. He boasts that God is his father.[15] 17 Let’s see if his words are true. Let’s test what will happen at the end of his life. 18 For if the righteous man is God’s son, he will uphold him and deliver him out of the hand of his adversaries.[16] 19 Let’s test him with insult and torture, so that we may find out how gentle he is and test his patience.[17] 20 Let’s condemn him to a shameful death, since by his own words he will be protected.” 21 So they reasoned, and they were led astray, because their wickedness blinded them, 22 and they didn’t know the mysteries of God. They didn’t hope for the wages of holiness, or recognize that there is a prize for blameless souls. 23 Because God created man for incorruption, and made him an image of his own eternity;[18] 24 but death entered the world through the devil’s envy, and those who belong to him experience it.[19]
3But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will touch them.[20] 2 In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died. Their departure was considered a disaster,[21] 3 and their journey away from us a ruin, but they are at peace.[22] 4 For even if in people’s eyes they are punished, their hope is full of immortality.[23] 5 After a little discipline, they will receive great good, because God tested them and found them worthy of himself.[24] 6 He tested them like gold in the furnace, and accepted them as a whole burnt offering.[25] 7 In the time of their visitation they will shine. They will dart about like sparks through stubble.[26] 8 They will judge nations and have authority over peoples, and the Lord will reign over them forever.[27] 9 Those who trust in him will understand truth, and the faithful will live with him in love, because grace and mercy are with his chosen ones. 10 But the ungodly will be punished as their reasoning deserves, those who neglected righteousness and turned away from the Lord; 11 for whoever despises wisdom and discipline is miserable. Their hope is empty, their labors are fruitless, and their works are useless.[28] 12 Their wives are foolish and their children are wicked. 13 Their descendants are cursed. For the undefiled barren woman is blessed, she who has not known an unlawful bed. She will have fruit when God examines souls.[29] 14 So is the eunuch who has done no lawless deed with his hands and has not plotted wicked things against the Lord; for he will be given a choice gift for his faithfulness, and a delightful inheritance in the Lord’s sanctuary. 15 For good labors have fruit of great renown. The root of understanding can’t fail. 16 But the children of adulterers will not reach maturity. The seed of an unlawful union will vanish. 17 Even if they live long, they will be thought of as nothing, and in the end their old age will be without honor. 18 If they die young, they will have no hope and no comfort on the day of judgment. 19 For the end of an unrighteous generation is always harsh.
4It is better to be childless and have virtue, for there is immortality in the memory of virtue, because it is recognized both by God and by people. 2 When it is present, people imitate it, and they long for it when it has gone. Throughout all time it marches in a victor’s crown, having won the contest for prizes that are undefiled. 3 But the swarming brood of the ungodly will be of no use, and their illegitimate shoots won’t take deep root or gain a firm hold.[30] 4 For even if they put out branches and flourish for a while, standing insecurely, they will be shaken by the wind and uprooted by the force of the winds. 5 Their branches will be broken off before they mature. Their fruit will be useless, unripe for eating, and fit for nothing. 6 For children born of unlawful unions are witnesses of wickedness against their parents when they are examined. 7 But a righteous man, even if he dies before his time, will be at rest.[31] 8 For honorable old age doesn’t come from length of time, and it isn’t measured by number of years;[32] 9 but understanding is gray hair for people, and a spotless life is ripe old age.[33] 10 There was one who pleased God and was loved by him, and while he lived among sinners he was taken away.[34] 11 He was snatched away, so that evil would not change his understanding or deceit lead his soul astray. 12 For the bewitchment of wickedness obscures what is good, and the whirl of desire corrupts an innocent mind.[35] 13 Made perfect in a short time, he fulfilled long years; 14 for his soul pleased the Lord. So he hurried out of the midst of wickedness. 15 But the peoples saw and didn’t understand, and didn’t take this to heart: that grace and mercy are with his chosen, and that he visits his holy ones; 16 but the righteous man who has died will condemn the ungodly who are living, and youth that is quickly perfected will condemn the many years of the unrighteous man’s old age.[36] 17 For the ungodly will see the wise man’s end, and won’t understand what the Lord intended for him, and why he kept him safe. 18 They will see, and they will despise him, but the Lord will laugh them to scorn. After this they will become a dishonored corpse and an object of contempt among the dead forever;[37] 19 because he will dash them speechless to the ground and shake them from their foundations. They will be left utterly ruined. They will be in anguish, and their memory will perish. 20 They will come in cowardly fear when their sins are counted, and their lawless deeds will convict them to their face.
5Then the righteous man will stand with great boldness before those who afflicted him and those who made light of his labors. 2 When they see him, they will be shaken with terrible fear, and will be amazed at the wonder of his salvation. 3 They will say to one another in repentance, groaning in distress of spirit, “This is the one we once held in derision and made a byword of reproach. 4 We fools thought his life was madness, and his end without honor. 5 How has he been counted among the sons of God? How is his lot among the holy ones? 6 Truly we went astray from the way of truth. The light of righteousness didn’t shine for us, and the sun didn’t rise for us.[38] 7 We took our fill of the paths of lawlessness and destruction. We traveled through trackless deserts, but we didn’t know the Lord’s way. 8 What did our arrogance profit us? What good have riches and boasting brought us?[39] 9 All those things passed away like a shadow, like a rumor that rushes by, 10 like a ship passing through the surging water: when it has gone by, no trace of it can be found, no path of its keel in the waves. 11 Or like a bird flying through the air: no evidence of its passage is found, but the light air, lashed by the beat of its wings and split by the force of its rushing flight, is passed through, and afterward no sign of its coming remains. 12 Or like an arrow shot at a target: the air it parts closes up again at once, so that no one knows where it passed through. 13 So we also, as soon as we were born, ceased to be. We had no sign of virtue to show, but were used up in our wickedness.”[40] 14 Because the hope of the ungodly man is like chaff carried by the wind, and like foam driven away by a storm. It is scattered like smoke by the wind, and passes like the memory of a guest who stays only a day. 15 But the righteous live forever. Their reward is in the Lord, and their care is with the Most High.[41] 16 So they will receive the crown of royal dignity and the diadem of beauty from the Lord’s hand, because he will cover them with his right hand and shield them with his arm.[42] 17 He will take his zeal as full armor, and will arm the whole creation to punish his enemies.[43] 18 He will put on righteousness as a breastplate, and wear impartial judgment as a helmet.[44] 19 He will take holiness as an invincible shield. 20 He will sharpen stern wrath into a sword, and the world will join him in the fight against his frenzied enemies. 21 Well-aimed bolts of lightning will fly, and from the clouds, as from a well-drawn bow, they will leap to the target. 22 Hailstones full of wrath will be hurled as from a catapult. The water of the sea will rage against them, and rivers will sweep over them without mercy.[45] 23 A mighty wind will rise against them and blow them away like a storm. So lawlessness will lay waste the whole earth, and evildoing will overturn the thrones of rulers.
6Listen, then, you kings, and understand. Learn, you judges of the ends of the earth. 2 Pay attention, you who rule over multitudes and take pride in crowds of nations, 3 because your dominion was given to you by the Lord, and your sovereignty by the Most High. He will examine your works and search out your plans,[46] 4 because as servants of his kingdom you didn’t judge rightly, or keep the law, or walk according to God’s purpose. 5 He will come on you swiftly and fearsomely, because stern judgment comes on those in high places. 6 For the humble may be pardoned out of mercy, but mighty men will be mightily tested. 7 For the Lord of all will not shrink back from anyone or show regard for greatness, because he himself made both small and great, and he cares for all alike; 8 but a strict inquiry awaits the powerful. 9 So my words are for you, princes, so that you may learn wisdom and not fall away. 10 For those who keep holy things in holiness will be made holy, and those who have been taught them will find a defense. 11 So set your desire on my words. Long for them, and you will be instructed. 12 Wisdom is radiant and never fades. She is easily seen by those who love her, and found by those who seek her.[47] 13 She is quick to make herself known to those who desire her. 14 Whoever rises early to seek her won’t have to work hard, for he will find her sitting at his gates. 15 For to think about her is perfect understanding, and whoever stays awake for her will soon be free from care, 16 because she goes around looking for those who are worthy of her. She appears to them kindly on their paths, and meets them in every thought. 17 For her true beginning is desire for instruction, and care for instruction is love,[48] 18 and love is the keeping of her laws. Paying attention to her laws is the assurance of immortality,[49] 19 and immortality brings one close to God. 20 So the desire for wisdom brings one to a kingdom.[50] 21 So if you delight in thrones and scepters, you rulers of the peoples, honor wisdom, so that you may reign forever. 22 I will tell you what wisdom is and how she came to be, and I won’t hide mysteries from you. I will trace her from her first beginning, bring the knowledge of her into clear light, and I will not pass over the truth. 23 I won’t travel in the company of consuming envy, because envy has nothing in common with wisdom. 24 A multitude of wise people is the salvation of the world, and an understanding king brings stability to his people.[51] 25 So be instructed by my words, and you will benefit.
7I too am mortal, like everyone else, a descendant of the first-formed man, born of the earth.[52] 2 In my mother’s womb I was molded into flesh over ten months, compacted in blood from the seed of a man and the pleasure of marriage. 3 When I was born, I too drew in the common air and fell on the kindred earth, and my first sound was the same cry as everyone’s. 4 I was nursed with care in swaddling clothes. 5 For no king had a different beginning, 6 but everyone has one entrance into life and a common departure. 7 So I prayed, and understanding was given to me. I asked, and a spirit of wisdom came to me.[53] 8 I preferred her to scepters and thrones, and I counted riches as nothing compared with her. 9 I didn’t compare any priceless gem to her, because all gold in her presence is a little sand, and silver will be counted as clay before her. 10 I loved her more than health and beauty, and I chose to have her rather than light, because her brightness never sleeps. 11 All good things came to me along with her, and countless riches are in her hands.[54] 12 I rejoiced in them all because wisdom leads them, though I didn’t know that she was their mother. 13 What I learned without deceit, I share without envy. I don’t hide her riches. 14 For she is an unfailing treasure for people, and those who use it gain friendship with God, commended to him by the gifts that come from instruction. 15 May God grant me to speak with judgment, and to think thoughts worthy of what has been given to me, because he is the guide even of wisdom and the one who corrects the wise. 16 For both we and our words are in his hand, as well as all understanding and skill in crafts. 17 For he himself gave me unerring knowledge of the things that are, to know the structure of the universe and the workings of the elements;[55] 18 the beginning, end, and middle of times; the turns of the solstices and the changes of the seasons; 19 the cycles of years and the positions of the stars; 20 the natures of living creatures and the tempers of wild animals; the force of winds and the thoughts of people; the varieties of plants and the powers of roots. 21 I learned all things, both hidden and visible, 22 for wisdom, the craftsman of all things, taught me. In her is a spirit that is quick to understand, holy, unique, manifold, subtle, freely moving, clear in speech, unpolluted, distinct, invulnerable, loving what is good, keen, unhindered,[56] 23 kind, loving toward people, steadfast, sure, free from care, all-powerful, overseeing all, and penetrating all spirits that are quick to understand, pure, and most subtle.[57] 24 For wisdom moves more easily than any motion; she pervades and penetrates all things because of her purity.[58] 25 For she is a breath of the power of God, and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty. So nothing defiled can find its way into her.[59] 26 For she is a reflection of everlasting light, a spotless mirror of the working of God, and an image of his goodness.[60] 27 Though she is one, she can do all things. Remaining in herself, she renews all things. From generation to generation she enters holy souls and makes them friends of God and prophets.[61] 28 For God loves nothing as much as the one who dwells with wisdom. 29 For she is more beautiful than the sun, and above every constellation of the stars. She is better than light.[62] 30 For night takes the place of daylight, but evil does not prevail against wisdom.[63]
8But she reaches from one end to the other with full strength, and orders all things well.[64] 2 I loved her and sought her from my youth. I wanted to take her as my bride, and I fell in love with her beauty.[65] 3 She shows her noble birth by living with God, and the Lord of all loves her. 4 For she is initiated into the knowledge of God, and she chooses his works. 5 If riches are a desirable possession in life, what is richer than wisdom, who makes all things? 6 And if understanding is at work, who more than wisdom is the craftsman of what exists? 7 If anyone loves righteousness, her labors are virtues, for she teaches self-control and understanding, righteousness and courage. Nothing in life is more useful for people than these.[66] 8 If anyone longs for wide experience, she knows the things of old and infers the things to come. She understands the subtleties of speech and the meaning of riddles. She foresees signs and wonders, and the outcome of seasons and times.[67] 9 So I decided to bring her to live with me, knowing that she would give me good counsel and encourage me in cares and grief. 10 Because of her I will have glory among the crowds, and honor in the sight of elders, though I am young. 11 I will be found sharp in judgment, and I will be admired in the presence of rulers. 12 When I am silent, they will wait for me. When I speak, they will pay attention. If I talk at length, they will put their hands over their mouths.[68] 13 Because of her I will have immortality, and leave behind an eternal memory to those who come after me.[69] 14 I will govern peoples. Nations will be subjected to me. 15 Dreaded monarchs will be afraid when they hear of me. Among the people I will show myself good, and in war courageous. 16 When I come into my house, I will find rest with her, for there is no bitterness in her company and no pain in living with her, but gladness and joy. 17 When I thought these things over and considered in my heart that there is immortality in being akin to wisdom, 18 and good delight in her friendship, and unfailing wealth in the labors of her hands, and understanding in her company, and great renown in sharing her words, I went around seeking how to take her for myself. 19 I was a gifted child, and a good soul fell to my lot. 20 Or rather, being good, I came into an undefiled body. 21 But I saw that I could not possess wisdom unless God gave her to me, and it was itself a sign of understanding to know whose gift she was. So I pleaded with the Lord and begged him, and with my whole heart I said:[70]
9“God of my ancestors and Lord of mercy, who made all things by your word, 2 and by your wisdom formed man to rule over the creatures you made, 3 and to govern the world in holiness and righteousness, and to pass judgment with an upright soul, 4 give me wisdom, who sits beside you on your throne, and don’t reject me from among your servants,[71] 5 because I am your servant and the son of your maidservant, a weak man with a short life, with little power to understand judgment and laws. 6 For even if someone is perfect among the sons of men, without the wisdom that comes from you he will be counted as nothing.[72] 7 You chose me to be king of your people and judge of your sons and daughters. 8 You told me to build a sanctuary on your holy mountain, and an altar in the city where you live, a copy of the holy tent you prepared from the beginning.[73] 9 Wisdom is with you, and she knows your works and was present when you made the world. She understands what is pleasing in your eyes and what is right according to your commandments.[74] 10 Send her from the holy heavens, and dispatch her from the throne of your glory, so that she may be with me and work beside me, and I may learn what pleases you. 11 For she knows and understands all things. She will guide me prudently in what I do, and guard me in her glory. 12 Then my works will be acceptable. I will judge your people righteously, and I will be worthy of my father’s throne. 13 For what person can know the counsel of God? Or who can conceive what the Lord wills?[75] 14 For the thoughts of mortals are timid, and our plans are likely to fail.[76] 15 For a perishable body weighs down the soul, and the earthly tent burdens a mind full of cares.[77] 16 We can hardly guess at the things on earth, and we find what is close at hand only with effort; but who has traced out the things in the heavens?[78] 17 Who has come to know your counsel, unless you gave wisdom and sent your holy spirit from on high? 18 It was in this way that the ways of those on earth were corrected, and people were taught what pleases you. They were saved through wisdom.”
10Wisdom watched over the first-formed father of the world, who was created alone, and rescued him from his own transgression, 2 and gave him strength to rule over all things. 3 But when an unrighteous man turned away from her in his anger, he perished in the rage with which he murdered his brother. 4 When the earth was flooded because of him, wisdom saved it again, steering the righteous man on a humble piece of wood.[79] 5 And when the nations had joined together in wickedness and been thrown into confusion, wisdom recognized the righteous man and kept him blameless before God, and kept him strong in spite of his tender feelings for his child.[80] 6 While the ungodly were perishing, wisdom rescued a righteous man as he fled from the fire that came down on the five cities.[81] 7 A smoking wasteland still testifies to their wickedness, along with plants whose fruit never ripens, and a pillar of salt standing as a memorial to an unbelieving soul.[82] 8 For because they passed wisdom by, they not only lost the ability to recognize what is good, but also left behind for the living a monument to their folly, so that their failures could never go unnoticed; 9 but wisdom rescued those who served her from troubles. 10 When a righteous man fled from his brother’s anger, wisdom guided him on straight paths. She showed him God’s kingdom and gave him knowledge of holy things. She gave him success in his toil and multiplied the fruit of his labor.[83] 11 When others in their greed treated him harshly, she stood by him and made him rich. 12 She protected him from enemies and kept him safe from those who lay in wait. In his hard struggle she acted as judge, so that he might learn that godliness is stronger than anything.[84] 13 When a righteous man was sold, wisdom didn’t abandon him but rescued him from sin. She went down with him into the dungeon, 14 and did not leave him in chains until she brought him the scepter of a kingdom and authority over those who had tyrannized him. She also proved his accusers to be liars, and gave him eternal glory. 15 Wisdom rescued a holy people and a blameless race from a nation of oppressors. 16 She entered the soul of a servant of the Lord, and stood up to fearsome kings with wonders and signs.[85] 17 She paid holy people the wages of their labors. She guided them on a marvelous journey, and became a shelter for them by day and a starry flame by night.[86] 18 She brought them across the Red Sea and led them through deep water, 19 but she drowned their enemies and cast them up from the depths of the sea. 20 So the righteous plundered the ungodly, and they sang to your holy name, O Lord, and praised with one voice your hand that fought for them,[87] 21 because wisdom opened the mouths of the mute and made the tongues of infants speak clearly.[88]
11Wisdom made their works prosper by the hand of a holy prophet. 2 They traveled through an uninhabited desert and pitched their tents in trackless places. 3 They stood against their enemies and fought off their foes. 4 When they were thirsty, they called on you, and water was given to them out of the flinty rock, and relief for their thirst from the hard stone. 5 For the very things by which their enemies were punished became the means of help for them in their need. 6 When their enemies were troubled by a river’s ever-flowing spring turned to clotted blood, 7 as a rebuke for the decree to kill the babies, you gave them abundant water beyond all hope, 8 showing by the thirst they had suffered how you punished their adversaries. 9 For when they were tested, though disciplined in mercy, they learned how the ungodly were tormented when judged in anger. 10 For you tested your people like a father warning them, but you examined the others like a stern king condemning them. 11 Whether they were far away or near, they were equally distressed, 12 for a double grief seized them, and groaning at the memory of what had happened. 13 For when they heard that their own punishments had benefited the others, they recognized the Lord. 14 They stopped mocking the one who had long before been thrown out and exposed. At the end of these events they marveled at him, having suffered a thirst unlike that of the righteous. 15 In return for the foolish reasonings of their wickedness, which led them astray to worship irrational reptiles and worthless vermin, you sent on them a multitude of irrational creatures to punish them,[89] 16 so that they might learn that a person is punished by the very things he sins by.[90] 17 For your all-powerful hand, which created the world out of formless matter, did not lack the means to send on them a multitude of bears or fierce lions,[91] 18 or newly created, unknown wild beasts full of rage, breathing out fiery breath, or puffing out smoke, or flashing terrible sparks from their eyes, 19 which could not only destroy them by their attack but kill them by the mere terror of their appearance. 20 Even without these they could have fallen by a single breath, pursued by Justice and scattered by the breath of your power. But you arranged all things by measure, number, and weight.[92] 21 For great strength is always yours. Who can withstand the might of your arm? 22 Because the whole world before you is like a grain on a scale, like a drop of morning dew that falls on the earth. 23 But you have mercy on all people, because you can do all things, and you overlook people’s sins so that they may repent.[93] 24 For you love all things that exist, and hate none of the things you have made, for you would never have formed anything if you had hated it.[94] 25 How could anything have lasted if you had not willed it? Or how could anything not called into being by you have been preserved? 26 But you spare all things, because they are yours, Sovereign Lord, you who love the living.
12For your incorruptible spirit is in all things.[95] 2 So you correct little by little those who go astray, and you warn them by reminding them of the ways they sin, so that they may turn from their wickedness and believe in you, O Lord. 3 For the ancient inhabitants of your holy land,[96] 4 whom you hated because they practiced vile sorceries and unholy rites,[97] 5 the merciless slaughter of children, and banquets of human flesh and blood, 6 partners in an unholy fellowship, parents who murdered their own helpless children, these you decided to destroy by the hands of our ancestors,[98] 7 so that the land which in your sight is most precious of all might receive a worthy colony of God’s servants. 8 Yet even these you spared, since they were human, and sent hornets ahead of your army to destroy them little by little.[99] 9 Not that you were unable to hand the ungodly over to the righteous in battle, or to wipe them out at once with terrible beasts or a harsh word, 10 but by judging them little by little you gave them a chance to repent, knowing well that their origins were evil, their wickedness inborn, and that their way of thinking would never change.[100] 11 For they were a cursed race from the beginning. And it was not out of fear of anyone that you left them unpunished for their sins.[101] 12 For who will say, “What have you done?” Or who will resist your judgment? Who will bring a charge against you for the nations that perished, which you made? Or who will come and stand before you to avenge unrighteous people?[102] 13 For there is no god besides you who cares for all, to whom you must prove that you have not judged unjustly.[103] 14 No king or ruler can confront you about those you have punished. 15 Being righteous, you rule all things righteously, and you consider it foreign to your power to condemn anyone who does not deserve punishment. 16 For your strength is the source of righteousness, and because you are Lord of all, you spare all. 17 For when people doubt that you are complete in power, you show your strength, and you put to shame the boldness of those who know it. 18 But you, who are sovereign in strength, judge with gentleness, and govern us with great forbearance, for you have power to act whenever you choose. 19 By such works you taught your people that the righteous must be kind, and you gave your sons good hope, because you grant repentance for sins. 20 For if you punished the enemies of your servants, who deserved death, with such great care and leniency, giving them time and opportunity to turn from their wickedness,[104] 21 with what great care you have judged your sons, to whose ancestors you gave oaths and covenants full of good promises! 22 So while you discipline us, you scourge our enemies ten thousand times more, so that when we judge we may think about your goodness, and when we are judged we may look for mercy.[105] 23 So you also tormented the unrighteous, who lived foolish lives, through their own abominations. 24 For they went far astray on the paths of error, taking as gods animals that even their enemies held in contempt, deceived like foolish infants. 25 So, as to children without reason, you sent your judgment to mock them. 26 But those who would not be corrected by mild rebukes will experience the judgment of God they deserve. 27 For through the sufferings that angered them, when they were punished by the very creatures they thought were gods, they saw and recognized as the true God the one they had refused to know. So the final condemnation came upon them.
13For all people who had no knowledge of God were foolish by nature. From the good things that are seen they could not come to know the one who exists, and they didn’t recognize the craftsman from his works.[106] 2 Instead they thought that fire, or wind, or swift air, or the circling stars, or raging water, or the lights of heaven were the gods that rule the world. 3 If they took these things to be gods because they delighted in their beauty, let them know how much better their Lord is than these, for the first author of beauty created them. 4 And if they were amazed at their power and working, let them understand from these how much more powerful is the one who formed them. 5 For from the greatness and beauty of created things, people come to a corresponding perception of their Maker.[107] 6 Yet these people deserve little blame, for perhaps they go astray while seeking God and wanting to find him. 7 For they search diligently while living among his works, and they trust what they see, because the things they look at are beautiful. 8 Yet even they are not to be excused. 9 For if they were able to know so much that they could explore the world, how did they not find the Lord of all this sooner?[108] 10 But miserable are those whose hopes rest on dead things, who have called the works of human hands gods: gold and silver crafted with skill, likenesses of animals, or a useless stone, the work of an ancient hand. 11 A woodcutter may saw down a tree that is easy to handle, skillfully strip off all its bark, and with good workmanship make a useful vessel for everyday life. 12 He burns the scraps from his work to cook his food, and eats his fill. 13 Then he takes a leftover scrap that is good for nothing, a crooked piece of wood full of knots, and carves it carefully in his spare time, shaping it with the skill of his leisure. He shapes it into the image of a man,[109] 14 or makes it like some worthless animal, smearing it with red paint, coloring its surface red, and covering every flaw in it.[110] 15 He makes a fitting niche for it, sets it in a wall, and fastens it with iron. 16 He takes care that it won’t fall, knowing that it can’t help itself, for it is only an image and needs help. 17 When he prays about his possessions, his marriage, and his children, he is not ashamed to speak to a lifeless thing. 18 For health he calls on what is weak. For life he begs what is dead. For help he appeals to what has no experience. For a good journey he asks what can’t take a single step. 19 And for gain in business and success in his work, he asks for strength from something whose hands have no strength.
14Again, someone preparing to sail and about to travel over raging waves calls on a piece of wood more fragile than the ship that carries him.[111] 2 For the desire for profit designed that ship, and wisdom was the craftsman who built it. 3 But your providence, Father, steers it, because you have given a way even in the sea and a safe path through the waves, 4 showing that you can save from every danger, so that even someone without skill can put to sea. 5 You want the works of your wisdom not to be idle, so people trust their lives even to a tiny piece of wood, and crossing the surf on a raft they come safely to land. 6 For in the beginning too, when the proud giants were perishing, the hope of the world took refuge on a raft, and, steered by your hand, left behind for the ages the seed of a new race.[112] 7 For blessed is the wood through which righteousness comes; 8 but the idol made by hands is cursed, both it and the one who made it, because he made it, and the perishable thing was called a god. 9 For both the ungodly man and his ungodliness are equally hateful to God; 10 for the deed will be punished together with the one who committed it. 11 So there will also be a visitation on the idols of the nations, because though made from what God created, they became an abomination, stumbling blocks for human souls and a trap for the feet of the foolish. 12 For the devising of idols was the beginning of sexual immorality, and their invention the corruption of life.[113] 13 For they did not exist from the beginning, and they will not exist forever. 14 They entered the world through human vanity, and so a quick end has been planned for them. 15 For a father consumed by untimely grief made an image of his child who had been suddenly taken from him, and he now honored as a god what had once been a dead human being, and handed down secret rites and ceremonies to those under him. 16 Then, as time went on, the ungodly custom grew strong and was kept as a law, and carved images were worshiped at the command of rulers. 17 When people could not honor rulers in person because they lived far away, they imagined how they looked from a distance and made a visible image of the king they honored, so that by their zeal they might flatter the absent one as though he were present. 18 But the ambition of the craftsman spurred even those who did not know the king to raise their worship still higher; 19 For he, perhaps wanting to please his ruler, used his skill to make the likeness more beautiful than life, 20 and the crowd, drawn by the charm of his work, now took as an object of worship the one whom shortly before they had honored as a man. 21 This became a trap for human life, because people, enslaved either to misfortune or to tyranny, gave to stones and wood the name that should not be shared.[114] 22 Then it was not enough for them to go astray in the knowledge of God, but living in a great war of ignorance, they call such great evils peace.[115] 23 For whether they slaughter children in solemn rites, or celebrate secret mysteries, or hold wild revels of strange customs, 24 they no longer guard either life or the purity of marriage, but one kills another by treachery or wounds him by adultery. 25 Everything is a confused mass of blood and murder, theft and deceit, corruption, faithlessness, riot, perjury, 26 confusion about what is good, forgetting of favors, ingratitude, defiling of souls, sexual perversion, disorder in marriage, adultery, and debauchery.[116] 27 For the worship of idols not to be named is the beginning, cause, and end of every evil. 28 For their worshipers either rejoice to the point of madness, or prophesy lies, or live unrighteously, or readily commit perjury. 29 Putting their trust in lifeless idols, they swear wicked oaths and expect to come to no harm. 30 But just punishment will overtake them on both counts: because they thought wrongly about God by devoting themselves to idols, and because in deceit they swore unrighteously, despising holiness. 31 For it is not the power of the things they swear by, but the just penalty for those who sin, that always follows the transgression of the unrighteous.
15But you, our God, are gracious and true, patient, and you order all things in mercy.[117] 2 For even if we sin, we are yours, because we know your power; but we will not sin, because we know that we are counted as yours. 3 For to know you is perfect righteousness, and to know your dominion is the root of immortality.[118] 4 For we were not led astray by any evil invention of human skill, or by the fruitless labor of painters, a figure stained with various colors, 5 the sight of which arouses desire in fools, so that they long for the lifeless form of a dead image. 6 Lovers of evil, and deserving of such hopes, are those who make them, desire them, and worship them. 7 For a potter, kneading soft clay, works hard to mold each article for our use. Out of the same clay he shapes both the vessels that serve clean purposes and those that serve the opposite, all in the same way. The potter is the judge of what each one will be used for.[119] 8 Then, working to a bad end, he molds a futile god from the same clay, though he himself was made of earth a little while before, and after a short time goes back to the earth he was taken from, when the soul lent to him is demanded back. 9 Yet his concern is not that he will grow weak, or that his life is short, but he competes with goldsmiths and silversmiths, imitates bronze workers, and takes pride in molding counterfeit gods. 10 His heart is ashes, his hope is worth less than dirt, and his life is of less value than clay, 11 because he did not know the one who formed him, who breathed into him an active soul and a living spirit. 12 But he considered our life a game, and our existence a market for profit, for he says one must make money any way one can, even by evil. 13 For this man, more than all others, knows that he sins when he makes fragile vessels and carved images out of earthy material. 14 But the enemies who oppressed your people are the most foolish of all, and more wretched than a baby, 15 because they thought all the idols of the nations were gods, which have neither eyes to see with, nor nostrils to draw breath, nor ears to hear, nor fingers to touch, and their feet are useless for walking.[120] 16 For a man made them, and one whose own spirit is borrowed formed them; no human being can form a god like himself. 17 Being mortal, he makes a dead thing with lawless hands; for he is better than the things he worships, since he had life, but they never did. 18 They even worship the most hateful animals, which are worse than all others in their lack of sense, 19 and they are not beautiful to look at, as other creatures can be, so that anyone would desire them; they have missed both the praise of God and his blessing.
16So they were deservedly punished by creatures like those they worshiped, and tormented by a swarm of vermin. 2 Instead of this punishment, you did good to your people and prepared quails for them to eat, a rare delicacy to satisfy their appetite, 3 so that your enemies, when they wanted food, would lose even their natural appetite because of the disgusting creatures sent among them, while your people, after going without for a short time, would even share in delicacies.[121] 4 For it was necessary that inescapable want should come on those oppressors, while these were only shown how their enemies were being tormented. 5 For even when the terrible rage of wild beasts came on your people, and they were dying from the bites of twisting serpents, your anger did not continue to the end; 6 they were troubled for a short time as a warning, and they had a sign of salvation to remind them of the command of your law. 7 For whoever turned toward it was saved, not by what he saw, but by you, the Savior of all. 8 And in this you persuaded our enemies that you are the one who rescues from every evil.[122] 9 The bites of locusts and flies killed them, and no remedy was found to save their lives, because they deserved to be punished by such creatures.[123] 10 But not even the fangs of venomous serpents overcame your children, for your mercy came to their aid and healed them. 11 They were bitten to remind them of your words, and were quickly saved, so that they would not fall into deep forgetfulness and become cut off from your kindness. 12 For it was neither herb nor ointment that cured them, but your word, O Lord, which heals all people. 13 For you have authority over life and death; you lead down to the gates of Hades and bring back up again.[124] 14 A person may kill by his wickedness, but he cannot bring back the spirit that has left or free the soul that has been taken. 15 But no one can escape your hand; 16 for the ungodly, who refused to know you, were whipped by the strength of your arm, pursued by strange rains and hail and relentless storms, and utterly consumed by fire.[125] 17 And most amazing of all, in the water that puts out everything, the fire burned even hotter, for the world fights on behalf of the righteous. 18 At one time the flame was held back so that it would not burn up the creatures sent against the ungodly, but so that they themselves would see and know that they were pursued by the judgment of God.[126] 19 At another time, even in the middle of water, it burned more fiercely than fire, to destroy the crops of an unrighteous land. 20 Instead of these things, you gave your people the food of angels to eat, and from heaven you supplied them, without their labor, with bread ready to eat, rich in every delight and suited to every taste.[127] 21 For your sustenance showed your sweetness toward your children, and the bread, serving the desire of whoever ate it, changed itself to whatever each person wanted.[128] 22 Snow and ice endured fire and did not melt, so that people would know that fire was destroying the crops of their enemies, blazing in the hail and flashing in the rain;[129] 23 and that this same fire, so that the righteous might be fed, even forgot its own power.[130] 24 For creation, serving you its Maker, strains its strength to punish the unrighteous, and in kindness relaxes it for those who trust in you.[131] 25 So at that time too, changing into every form, it served your all-nourishing generosity according to the desire of those in need, 26 so that your children, whom you loved, O Lord, might learn that it is not the growing of crops that nourishes a man, but your word that preserves those who trust in you.[132] 27 For what fire did not destroy melted away when simply warmed by a faint ray of the sun, 28 so that it would be known that we must rise before the sun to thank you, and pray to you as the light dawns; 29 for the hope of the ungrateful will melt like winter frost and run off like useless water.[133]
17For your judgments are great and hard to explain; that is why undisciplined souls went astray. 2 For when lawless people thought they had a holy nation in their power, they themselves lay as prisoners of darkness, bound in the chains of a long night, shut in under their roofs, exiled from eternal providence.[134] 3 While they thought they were hidden in their secret sins, they were scattered behind a dark curtain of forgetfulness, struck with terrible dread, and deeply troubled by visions. 4 Not even the inner rooms that held them protected them from fear, but terrifying sounds echoed around them, and gloomy phantoms with grim faces appeared. 5 No power of fire could give light, and not even the brightest flames of the stars could light up that dreadful night; 6 only a faint, self-kindled fire, full of fear, flashed before them. In their terror they thought the things they saw were worse than that sight they could not look at. 7 The tricks of their magic arts failed, and their boasted wisdom was shamefully exposed. 8 For those who promised to drive away fears and troubles from a sick soul were themselves sick with ridiculous fear. 9 For even if nothing alarming frightened them, yet, scared by creeping vermin and hissing serpents, 10 they died trembling with fear, refusing even to look at the air, which could not be avoided on any side. 11 For wickedness is cowardly, condemned by its own witness, and, pressed hard by conscience, it always imagines the worst. 12 For fear is nothing but giving up the help that reason offers; 13 and the weaker the hope of help from within, the more one dwells on not knowing the cause of the torment. 14 But through that night, which was truly powerless and had come on them from the depths of powerless Hades, they all slept the same sleep, 15 and were now haunted by monstrous phantoms, now paralyzed by the failing of their souls, for sudden and unexpected fear came over them. 16 So whoever was there collapsed where he was, and was held captive, shut up in a prison without iron bars. 17 For whether he was a farmer, or a shepherd, or a laborer working in the wilderness, he was caught and had to endure that inescapable fate, for they were all bound with one chain of darkness. 18 Whether it was a whistling wind, or the melodious sound of birds in the spreading branches, or the steady rush of water running hard, 19 or the harsh crash of falling rocks, or the unseen running of leaping animals, or the roar of wild beasts, or an echo thrown back from the hollows of the mountains, all these things paralyzed them with terror. 20 For the whole world was lit with bright light and went about its work unhindered, 21 while over them alone was spread a heavy night, an image of the darkness that would later receive them; but they were heavier to themselves than the darkness.
18But your holy ones had great light. Their enemies heard their voices but could not see them, and counted them happy because they had not suffered, 2 and they were thankful that the holy ones, though wronged before, did them no harm, and begged their pardon for having been their enemies. 3 So you gave them a blazing pillar of fire as a guide for their unknown journey, and a harmless sun for their glorious exile. 4 For the Egyptians deserved to be robbed of light and imprisoned in darkness, since they had imprisoned your children, through whom the incorruptible light of the law was to be given to the world.[135] 5 When they had plotted to kill the babies of the holy ones, and a single child had been abandoned and saved to convict them, you took away their many children and destroyed their whole army together in a mighty flood.[136] 6 That night was made known beforehand to our ancestors, so that, knowing for certain what oaths they had trusted, they might be encouraged. 7 Your people expected the salvation of the righteous and the destruction of their enemies. 8 For by the same means by which you punished our adversaries, you called us to yourself and glorified us. 9 For the holy children of good people offered sacrifices in secret, and with one mind they agreed to the divine law, that the holy ones would share alike in the same blessings and dangers, while the ancestors were already singing the songs of praise. 10 But the clashing cry of their enemies echoed back, and the pitiful sound of mourning for children spread abroad. 11 Slave and master were punished with the same penalty, and the common man suffered the same as the king. 12 All of them together, by one kind of death, had countless dead. The living were not even enough to bury them, because in a single moment their most treasured offspring were destroyed.[137] 13 For though they had disbelieved everything because of their sorceries, when the firstborn were destroyed they confessed that this people was God’s children. 14 For while gentle silence enveloped all things, and night in its swift course was half gone,[138] 15 your all-powerful word leaped from heaven, from the royal throne, a fierce warrior, into the middle of the doomed land,[139] 16 carrying your genuine command as a sharp sword. It stood and filled all things with death, and it touched the sky while standing on the earth. 17 Then at once dreadful dreams terrified them, and unexpected fears fell on them. 18 One here, another there, thrown down half dead, each made known why he was dying; 19 for the dreams that disturbed them had warned them of this, so that they would not die without knowing why they suffered. 20 The righteous also tasted death, and a great number were struck down in the wilderness, but the wrath did not last long.[140] 21 For a blameless man hurried to defend them, bringing the weapon of his own priestly service, prayer and the atoning offering of incense. He stood against the anger and put an end to the disaster, showing that he was your servant. 22 He overcame the destroyer, not by bodily strength or force of weapons, but by his word he subdued the punisher, recalling the oaths and covenants made with the ancestors.[141] 23 For when the dead had already fallen in heaps on one another, he stepped in, held back the wrath, and cut off its path to the living. 24 For the whole world was depicted on his long robe, the glories of the ancestors were engraved on the four rows of precious stones, and your majesty was on the diadem on his head.[142] 25 The destroyer gave way to these and was afraid, for a mere taste of the wrath was enough.
19But the ungodly were assailed to the end by merciless anger, for God knew in advance what they would do, 2 that although they had let your people go and eagerly sent them on their way, they would change their minds and pursue them. 3 For while they were still mourning and lamenting at the graves of their dead, they made another foolish decision, and pursued as runaways those they had begged to leave and had driven out. 4 For the fate they deserved drew them to this end and made them forget what had happened, so that they might complete the punishment their torments still lacked, 5 and so that your people might make an extraordinary journey, while they themselves met a strange death. 6 For the whole creation, each part in its own kind, was made new again, obeying your commands, so that your servants might be kept unharmed. 7 The cloud was seen overshadowing the camp, and dry land rising out of what had been water, an unobstructed road out of the Red Sea, and a green plain out of the violent surge,[143] 8 by which they crossed over as a whole nation, sheltered by your hand, after seeing amazing wonders. 9 For they ranged like horses and leaped like lambs, praising you, O Lord, who rescued them. 10 For they still remembered what had happened during their stay in a foreign land, how instead of producing cattle the land brought forth gnats, and instead of fish the river spewed out a swarm of frogs. 11 Later they also saw a new kind of bird, when desire led them to ask for luxurious food; 12 for, to satisfy them, quails came up from the sea. 13 Punishments came on the sinners, not without warning signs given beforehand by violent thunder, for they suffered justly for their own wickedness, since their hatred of strangers was truly bitter. 14 Others had refused to receive strangers when they arrived, but these made slaves of guests who had done them good. 15 And not only that, but punishment of some kind will come on the former for receiving foreigners as enemies; 16 but these first welcomed with feasting, and then oppressed with terrible labor, people who had already shared the same rights with them. 17 They were also struck with blindness, like those at the door of the righteous man, when, surrounded by gaping darkness, each looked for the way through his own door. 18 For the elements change places with one another, as on a harp the notes vary the rhythm while the tone stays the same, as can be clearly seen from looking at what happened. 19 For land animals turned into water creatures, and swimming creatures moved onto the land. 20 Fire kept its full power in water, and water forgot its power to put out fire. 21 In turn, flames did not burn the flesh of fragile creatures walking among them, or melt the icy, easily melted grains of heavenly food. 22 For in all things, O Lord, you magnified your people and glorified them, and you did not think lightly of them, but stood by their side in every time and place.