The Wisdom of Solomon

6For wisdom is a kindly spirit,
but will not free blasphemers from the guilt of their words;
because God is witness of their inmost feelings,
and a true observer of their hearts, and a hearer of their tongues.
7Because the spirit of the Lord has filled the world,
and that which holds all things together knows what is said,
8therefore those who utter unrighteous things will not escape notice,
and justice, when it punishes, will not pass them by.
9For inquiry will be made into the counsels of the ungodly,
and a report of their words will come to the Lord,
to convict them of their lawless deeds;
10because a jealous ear hears all things,
and the sound of grumbling does not go unheard.
11Beware then of useless grumbling,
and keep your tongue from slander;
because no secret word is without result,
and a lying mouth destroys the soul.

12Do not invite death by the error of your life,
or bring on destruction by the works of your hands;
13because God did not make death,
and he does not delight in the death of the living.
14For he created all things so that they might exist;
the generative forces of the world are wholesome,
and there is no destructive poison in them,
and the dominion of Hades is not on earth.
15For righteousness is immortal.

Life as the Ungodly See It

2 For they reasoned unsoundly, saying to themselves,
"Short and sorrowful is our life,
and there is no remedy when a life comes to its end,
and no one has been known to return from Hades.
2For we were born by mere chance,
and hereafter we shall be as though we had never been,
for the breath in our nostrils is smoke,
and reason is a spark kindled by the beating of our hearts;
3when it is extinguished, the body will turn to ashes,
and the spirit will dissolve like empty air.
4Our name will be forgotten in time,
and no one will remember our works;
our life will pass away like the traces of a cloud,
and be scattered like mist
that is chased by the rays of the sun
and overcome by its heat.
5For our allotted time is the passing of a shadow,
and there is no return from our death,
because it is sealed up and no one turns back.

6"Come, therefore, let us enjoy the good things that exist,
and make use of the creation to the full as in youth.
7Let us take our fill of costly wine and perfumes,
and let no flower of spring pass us by.
8Let us crown ourselves with rosebuds before they wither.
9Let none of us fail to share in our revelry;
everywhere let us leave signs of enjoyment,
because this is our portion, and this our lot.
10Let us oppress the righteous poor man;
let us not spare the widow
or regard the gray hairs of the aged.
11But let our might be our law of right,
for what is weak proves itself to be useless.

12"Let us lie in wait for the righteous man,
because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions;
he reproaches us for sins against the law,
and accuses us of sins against our training.
13He professes to have knowledge of God,
and calls himself a child of the Lord.
14He became to us a reproof of our thoughts;
15the very sight of him is a burden to us,
because his manner of life is unlike that of others,
and his ways are strange.
16We are considered by him as something base,
and he avoids our ways as unclean;
he calls the last end of the righteous happy,
and boasts that God is his father.
17Let us see if his words are true,
and let us test what will happen at the end of his life;
18for if the righteous man is God's child, he will help him,
and will deliver him from the hand of his adversaries.
19Let us test him with insult and torture,
so that we may find out how gentle he is,
and make trial of his forbearance.
20Let us condemn him to a shameful death,
for, according to what he says, he will be protected."

Error of the Wicked

The Destiny of the Righteous

3 But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,
and no torment will ever touch them.
2In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died,
and their departure was thought to be a disaster,
3and their going from us to be their destruction;
but they are at peace.
4For though in the sight of others they were punished,
their hope is full of immortality.
5Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good,
because God tested them and found them worthy of himself;
6like gold in the furnace he tried them,
and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted them.
7In the time of their visitation they will shine forth,
and will run like sparks through the stubble.
8They will govern nations and rule over peoples,
and the Lord will reign over them forever.
9Those who trust in him will understand truth,
and the faithful will abide with him in love,
because grace and mercy are upon his holy ones,
and he watches over his elect

The Destiny of the Ungodly

On Childlessness

For blessed is the barren woman who is undefiled,
who has not entered into a sinful union;
she will have fruit when God examines souls.
14Blessed also is the eunuch whose hands have done no lawless deed,
and who has not devised wicked things against the Lord;
for special favor will be shown him for his faithfulness,
and a place of great delight in the temple of the Lord.
15For the fruit of good labors is renowned,
and the root of understanding does not fail.
16But children of adulterers will not come to maturity,
and the offspring of an unlawful union will perish.
17Even if they live long they will be held of no account,
and finally their old age will be without honor.
18If they die young, they will have no hope
and no consolation on the day of judgment.
19For the end of an unrighteous generation is grievous.

4 Better than this is childlessness with virtue,
for in the memory of virtue is immortality,
because it is known both by God and by mortals.
2When it is present, people imitate it,
and they long for it when it has gone;
throughout all time it marches, crowned in triumph,
victor in the contest for prizes that are undefiled.
3But the prolific brood of the ungodly will be of no use,
and none of their illegitimate seedlings will strike a deep root
or take a firm hold.
4For even if they put forth boughs for a while,
standing insecurely they will be shaken by the wind,
and by the violence of the winds they will be uprooted.
5The branches will be broken off before they come to maturity,
and their fruit will be useless,
not ripe enough to eat, and good for nothing.
6For children born of unlawful unions
are witnesses of evil against their parents when God examines them.
7But the righteous, though they die early, will be at rest.
8For old age is not honored for length of time,
or measured by number of years;
9but understanding is gray hair for anyone,
and a blameless life is ripe old age.

10There were some who pleased God and were loved by him,
and while living among sinners were taken up.
11They were caught up so that evil might not change their understanding
or guile deceive their souls.
12For the fascination of wickedness obscures what is good,
and roving desire perverts the innocent mind.
13Being perfected in a short time, they fulfilled long years;
14for their souls were pleasing to the Lord,
therefore he took them quickly from the midst of wickedness.
15Yet the peoples saw and did not understand,
or take such a thing to heart,
that God's grace and mercy are with his elect,
and that he watches over his holy ones.

The Triumph of the Righteous

16The righteous who have died will condemn the ungodly who are living,
and youth that is quickly perfected will condemn the prolonged old age of the unrighteous.
17For they will see the end of the wise,
and will not understand what the Lord purposed for them,
and for what he kept them safe.
18The unrighteous will see, and will have contempt for them,
but the Lord will laugh them to scorn.
After this they will become dishonored corpses,
and an outrage among the dead forever;
19because he will dash them speechless to the ground,
and shake them from the foundations;
they will be left utterly dry and barren,
and they will suffer anguish,
and the memory of them will perish.

The Final Judgment

5 Then the righteous will stand with great confidence
in the presence of those who have oppressed them
and those who make light of their labors.
2When the unrighteous see them, they will be shaken with dreadful fear,
and they will be amazed at the unexpected salvation of the righteous.
3They will speak to one another in repentance,
and in anguish of spirit they will groan, and say,
4"These are persons whom we once held in derision
and made a byword of reproach--fools that we were!
We thought that their lives were madness
and that their end was without honor.
5Why have they been numbered among the children of God?
And why is their lot among the saints?
6So it was we who strayed from the way of truth,
and the light of righteousness did not shine on us,
and the sun did not rise upon us.
7We took our fill of the paths of lawlessness and destruction,
and we journeyed through trackless deserts,
but the way of the Lord we have not known.
8What has our arrogance profited us?
And what good has our boasted wealth brought us?

9"All those things have vanished like a shadow,
and like a rumor that passes by;
10like a ship that sails through the billowy water,
and when it has passed no trace can be found,
no track of its keel in the waves;
11or as, when a bird flies through the air,
no evidence of its passage is found;
the light air, lashed by the beat of its pinions
and pierced by the force of its rushing flight,
is traversed by the movement of its wings,
and afterward no sign of its coming is found there;
12or as, when an arrow is shot at a target,
the air, thus divided, comes together at once,
so that no one knows its pathway.
13So we also, as soon as we were born, ceased to be,
and we had no sign of virtue to show,
but were consumed in our wickedness."
14Because the hope of the ungodly is like thistledown carried by the wind,
and like a light frost driven away by a storm;
it is dispersed like smoke before the wind,
and it passes like the remembrance of a guest who stays but a day.

The Reward of the Righteous

15But the righteous live forever,
and their reward is with the Lord;
the Most High takes care of them.
16Therefore they will receive a glorious crown
and a beautiful diadem from the hand of the Lord,
because with his right hand he will cover them,
and with his arm he will shield them.
17The Lord will take his zeal as his whole armor,
and will arm all creation to repel his enemies;
18he will put on righteousness as a breastplate,
and wear impartial justice as a helmet;
19he will take holiness as an invincible shield,
20and sharpen stern wrath for a sword,
and creation will join with him to fight against his frenzied foes.
21Shafts of lightning will fly with true aim,
and will leap from the clouds to the target, as from a well-drawn bow,
22and hailstones full of wrath will be hurled as from a catapult;
the water of the sea will rage against them,
and rivers will relentlessly overwhelm them;
23a mighty wind will rise against them,
and like a tempest it will winnow them away.
Lawlessness will lay waste the whole earth,
and evildoing will overturn the thrones of rulers.

Kings Should Seek Wisdom

6 Listen therefore, O kings, and understand;
learn, O judges of the ends of the earth.
2Give ear, you that rule over multitudes,
and boast of many nations.
3For your dominion was given you from the Lord,
and your sovereignty from the Most High;
he will search out your works and inquire into your plans.
4Because as servants of his kingdom you did not rule rightly,
or keep the law,
or walk according to the purpose of God,
5he will come upon you terribly and swiftly,
because severe judgment falls on those in high places.
6For the lowliest may be pardoned in mercy,
but the mighty will be mightily tested.
7For the Lord of all will not stand in awe of anyone,
or show deference to greatness;
because he himself made both small and great,
and he takes thought for all alike.
8But a strict inquiry is in store for the mighty.
9To you then, O monarchs, my words are directed,
so that you may learn wisdom and not transgress.
10For they will be made holy who observe holy things in holiness,
and those who have been taught them will find a defense.
11Therefore set your desire on my words;
long for them, and you will be instructed.

Description of Wisdom

17The beginning of wisdom is the most sincere desire for instruction,
and concern for instruction is love of her,
18and love of her is the keeping of her laws,
and giving heed to her laws is assurance of immortality,
19and immortality brings one near to God;
20so the desire for wisdom leads to a kingdom.

21Therefore if you delight in thrones and scepters, O monarchs over the peoples,
honor wisdom, so that you may reign forever.
22I will tell you what wisdom is and how she came to be,
and I will hide no secrets from you,
but I will trace her course from the beginning of creation,
and make knowledge of her clear,
and I will not pass by the truth;
23nor will I travel in the company of sickly envy,
for envy does not associate with wisdom.
24The multitude of the wise is the salvation of the world,
and a sensible king is the stability of any people.
25Therefore be instructed by my words, and you will profit.

Solomon Like Other Mortals

Solomon's Respect for Wisdom

7Therefore I prayed, and understanding was given me;
I called on God, and the spirit of wisdom came to me.
8I preferred her to scepters and thrones,
and I accounted wealth as nothing in comparison with her.
9Neither did I liken to her any priceless gem,
because all gold is but a little sand in her sight,
and silver will be accounted as clay before her.
10I loved her more than health and beauty,
and I chose to have her rather than light,
because her radiance never ceases.
11All good things came to me along with her,
and in her hands uncounted wealth.
12I rejoiced in them all, because wisdom leads them;
but I did not know that she was their mother.
13I learned without guile and I impart without grudging;
I do not hide her wealth,
14for it is an unfailing treasure for mortals;
those who get it obtain friendship with God,
commended for the gifts that come from instruction.

Solomon Prays for Wisdom

15May God grant me to speak with judgment,
and to have thoughts worthy of what I have received;
for he is the guide even of wisdom
and the corrector of the wise.
16For both we and our words are in his hand,
as are all understanding and skill in crafts.
17For it is he who gave me unerring knowledge of what exists,
to know the structure of the world and the activity of the elements;
18the beginning and end and middle of times,
the alternations of the solstices and the changes of the seasons,
19the cycles of the year and the constellations of the stars,
20the natures of animals and the tempers of wild animals,
the powers of spirits and the thoughts of human beings,
the varieties of plants and the virtues of roots;
21I learned both what is secret and what is manifest,
22for wisdom, the fashioner of all things, taught me.

The Nature of Wisdom

There is in her a spirit that is intelligent, holy,
unique, manifold, subtle,
mobile, clear, unpolluted,
distinct, invulnerable, loving the good, keen,
irresistible,
23 beneficent, humane,
steadfast, sure, free from anxiety,
all-powerful, overseeing all,
and penetrating through all spirits
that are intelligent, pure, and altogether subtle.
24For wisdom is more mobile than any motion;
because of her pureness she pervades and penetrates all things.
25For she is a breath of the power of God,
and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty;
therefore nothing defiled gains entrance into her.
26For she is a reflection of eternal light,
a spotless mirror of the working of God,
and an image of his goodness.
27Although she is but one, she can do all things,
and while remaining in herself, she renews all things;
in every generation she passes into holy souls
and makes them friends of God, and prophets;
28for God loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom.
29She is more beautiful than the sun,
and excels every constellation of the stars.
Compared with the light she is found to be superior,
30for it is succeeded by the night,
but against wisdom evil does not prevail.

8 She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,
and she orders all things well.

Solomon's Love for Wisdom

2I loved her and sought her from my youth;
I desired to take her for my bride,
and became enamored of her beauty.
3She glorifies her noble birth by living with God,
and the Lord of all loves her.
4For she is an initiate in the knowledge of God,
and an associate in his works.
5If riches are a desirable possession in life,
what is richer than wisdom, the active cause of all things?
6And if understanding is effective,
who more than she is fashioner of what exists?
7And if anyone loves righteousness,
her labors are virtues;
for she teaches self-control and prudence,
justice and courage;
nothing in life is more profitable for mortals than these.
8And if anyone longs for wide experience,
she knows the things of old, and infers the things to come;
she understands turns of speech and the solutions of riddles;
she has foreknowledge of signs and wonders
and of the outcome of seasons and times.

Wisdom Indispensable to Rulers

9Therefore I determined to take her to live with me,
knowing that she would give me good counsel
and encouragement in cares and grief.
10Because of her I shall have glory among the multitudes
and honor in the presence of the elders, though I am young.
11I shall be found keen in judgment,
and in the sight of rulers I shall be admired.
12When I am silent they will wait for me,
and when I speak they will give heed;
if I speak at greater length,
they will put their hands on their mouths.
13Because of her I shall have immortality,
and leave an everlasting remembrance to those who come after me.
14I shall govern peoples,
and nations will be subject to me;
15dread monarchs will be afraid of me when they hear of me;
among the people I shall show myself capable, and courageous in war.
16When I enter my house, I shall find rest with her;
for companionship with her has no bitterness,
and life with her has no pain, but gladness and joy.
17When I considered these things inwardly,
and pondered in my heart
that in kinship with wisdom there is immortality,
18and in friendship with her, pure delight,
and in the labors of her hands, unfailing wealth,
and in the experience of her company, understanding,
and renown in sharing her words,
I went about seeking how to get her for myself.
19As a child I was naturally gifted,
and a good soul fell to my lot;
20or rather, being good, I entered an undefiled body.
21But I perceived that I would not possess wisdom unless God gave her to me--
and it was a mark of insight to know whose gift she was--
so I appealed to the Lord and implored him,
and with my whole heart I said:

Solomon's Prayer for Wisdom

9 "O God of my ancestors and Lord of mercy,
who have made all things by your word,
2and by your wisdom have formed humankind
to have dominion over the creatures you have made,
3and rule the world in holiness and righteousness,
and pronounce judgment in uprightness of soul,
4give me the wisdom that sits by your throne,
and do not reject me from among your servants.
5For I am your servant the son of your serving girl,
a man who is weak and short-lived,
with little understanding of judgment and laws;
6for even one who is perfect among human beings
will be regarded as nothing without the wisdom that comes from you.
7You have chosen me to be king of your people
and to be judge over your sons and daughters.
8You have given command to build a temple on your holy mountain,
and an altar in the city of your habitation,
a copy of the holy tent that you prepared from the beginning.
9With you is wisdom, she who knows your works
and was present when you made the world;
she understands what is pleasing in your sight
and what is right according to your commandments.
10Send her forth from the holy heavens,
and from the throne of your glory send her,
that she may labor at my side,
and that I may learn what is pleasing to you.
11For she knows and understands all things,
and she will guide me wisely in my actions
and guard me with her glory.
12Then my works will be acceptable,
and I shall judge your people justly,
and shall be worthy of the throne of my father.
13For who can learn the counsel of God?
Or who can discern what the Lord wills?
14For the reasoning of mortals is worthless,
and our designs are likely to fail;
15for a perishable body weighs down the soul,
and this earthy tent burdens the thoughtful mind.
16We can hardly guess at what is on earth,
and what is at hand we find with labor;
but who has traced out what is in the heavens?
17Who has learned your counsel,
unless you have given wisdom
and sent your holy spirit from on high?
18And thus the paths of those on earth were set right,
and people were taught what pleases you,
and were saved by wisdom."

Solomon's Prayer for Wisdom

12 For your immortal spirit is in all things.
2Therefore you correct little by little those who trespass,
and you remind and warn them of the things through which they sin,
so that they may be freed from wickedness and put their trust in you, O Lord.

The Sins of the Canaanites

3Those who lived long ago in your holy land
4you hated for their detestable practices,
their works of sorcery and unholy rites,
5their merciless slaughter of children,
and their sacrificial feasting on human flesh and blood.
These initiates from the midst of a heathen cult,
6these parents who murder helpless lives,
you willed to destroy by the hands of our ancestors,
7so that the land most precious of all to you
might receive a worthy colony of the servants of God.
8But even these you spared, since they were but mortals,
and sent wasps as forerunners of your army
to destroy them little by little,
9though you were not unable to give the ungodly into the hands of the righteous in battle,
or to destroy them at one blow by dread wild animals or your stern word.
10But judging them little by little you gave them an opportunity to repent,
though you were not unaware that their origin was evil
and their wickedness inborn,
and that their way of thinking would never change.
11For they were an accursed race from the beginning,
and it was not through fear of anyone that you left them unpunished for their sins.

God Is Sovereign

12For who will say, "What have you done?"
or will resist your judgment?
Who will accuse you for the destruction of nations that you made?
Or who will come before you to plead as an advocate for the unrighteous?
13For neither is there any god besides you, whose care is for all people,
to whom you should prove that you have not judged unjustly;
14nor can any king or monarch confront you about those whom you have punished.
15You are righteous and you rule all things righteously,
deeming it alien to your power
to condemn anyone who does not deserve to be punished.
16For your strength is the source of righteousness,
and your sovereignty over all causes you to spare all.
17For you show your strength when people doubt the completeness of your power,
and you rebuke any insolence among those who know it.
18Although you are sovereign in strength, you judge with mildness,
and with great forbearance you govern us;
for you have power to act whenever you choose.

God's Lessons for Israel

19Through such works you have taught your people
that the righteous must be kind,
and you have filled your children with good hope,
because you give repentance for sins.
20For if you punished with such great care and indulgence
the enemies of your servants and those deserving of death,
granting them time and opportunity to give up their wickedness,
21with what strictness you have judged your children,
to whose ancestors you gave oaths and covenants full of good promises!
22So while chastening us you scourge our enemies ten thousand times more,
so that, when we judge, we may meditate upon your goodness,
and when we are judged, we may expect mercy.

The Punishment of the Egyptians

23Therefore those who lived unrighteously, in a life of folly,
you tormented through their own abominations.
24For they went far astray on the paths of error,
accepting as gods those animals that even their enemies despised;
they were deceived like foolish infants.
25Therefore, as though to children who cannot reason,
you sent your judgment to mock them.
26But those who have not heeded the warning of mild rebukes
will experience the deserved judgment of God.
27For when in their suffering they became incensed
at those creatures that they had thought to be gods, being punished by means of them,
they saw and recognized as the true God the one whom they had before refused to know.
Therefore the utmost condemnation came upon them.

The Foolishness of Nature Worship

13 For all people who were ignorant of God were foolish by nature;
and they were unable from the good things that are seen to know the one who exists,
nor did they recognize the artisan while paying heed to his works;
2but they supposed that either fire or wind or swift air,
or the circle of the stars, or turbulent water,
or the luminaries of heaven were the gods that rule the world.
3If through delight in the beauty of these things people assumed them to be gods,
let them know how much better than these is their Lord,
for the author of beauty created them.
4And if people were amazed at their power and working,
let them perceive from them
how much more powerful is the one who formed them.
5For from the greatness and beauty of created things
comes a corresponding perception of their Creator.
6Yet these people are little to be blamed,
for perhaps they go astray
while seeking God and desiring to find him.
7For while they live among his works, they keep searching,
and they trust in what they see, because the things that are seen are beautiful.
8Yet again, not even they are to be excused;
9for if they had the power to know so much
that they could investigate the world,
how did they fail to find sooner the Lord of these things?

The Foolishness of Idolatry

10But miserable, with their hopes set on dead things, are those
who give the name "gods" to the works of human hands,
gold and silver fashioned with skill,
and likenesses of animals,
or a useless stone, the work of an ancient hand.
11A skilled woodcutter may saw down a tree easy to handle
and skillfully strip off all its bark,
and then with pleasing workmanship
make a useful vessel that serves life's needs,
12and burn the cast-off pieces of his work
to prepare his food, and eat his fill.
13But a cast-off piece from among them, useful for nothing,
a stick crooked and full of knots,
he takes and carves with care in his leisure,
and shapes it with skill gained in idleness;
he forms it in the likeness of a human being,
14or makes it like some worthless animal,
giving it a coat of red paint and coloring its surface red
and covering every blemish in it with paint;
15then he makes a suitable niche for it,
and sets it in the wall, and fastens it there with iron.
16He takes thought for it, so that it may not fall,
because he knows that it cannot help itself,
for it is only an image and has need of help.
17When he prays about possessions and his marriage and children,
he is not ashamed to address a lifeless thing.
18For health he appeals to a thing that is weak;
for life he prays to a thing that is dead;
for aid he entreats a thing that is utterly inexperienced;
for a prosperous journey, a thing that cannot take a step;
19for moneymaking and work and success with his hands
he asks strength of a thing whose hands have no strength.

Folly of a Navigator Praying to an Idol

14 Again, one preparing to sail and about to voyage over raging waves
calls upon a piece of wood more fragile than the ship that carries him.
2For it was desire for gain that planned that vessel,
and wisdom was the artisan who built it;
3but it is your providence, O Father, that steers its course,
because you have given it a path in the sea,
and a safe way through the waves,
4showing that you can save from every danger,
so that even a person who lacks skill may put to sea.
5It is your will that works of your wisdom should not be without effect;
therefore people trust their lives even to the smallest piece of wood,
and passing through the billows on a raft they come safely to land.
6For even in the beginning, when arrogant giants were perishing,
the hope of the world took refuge on a raft,
and guided by your hand left to the world the seed of a new generation.
7For blessed is the wood by which righteousness comes.

8But the idol made with hands is accursed, and so is the one who made it--
he for having made it, and the perishable thing because it was named a god.
9For equally hateful to God are the ungodly and their ungodliness;
10for what was done will be punished together with the one who did it.
11Therefore there will be a visitation also upon the heathen idols,
because, though part of what God created, they became an abomination,
snares for human souls
and a trap for the feet of the foolish.

The Origin and Evils of Idolatry

15For a father, consumed with grief at an untimely bereavement,
made an image of his child, who had been suddenly taken from him;
he now honored as a god what was once a dead human being,
and handed on to his dependents secret rites and initiations.
16Then the ungodly custom, grown strong with time, was kept as a law,
and at the command of monarchs carved images were worshiped.
17When people could not honor monarchs in their presence, since they lived at a distance,
they imagined their appearance far away,
and made a visible image of the king whom they honored,
so that by their zeal they might flatter the absent one as though present.

18Then the ambition of the artisan impelled
even those who did not know the king to intensify their worship.
19For he, perhaps wishing to please his ruler,
skillfully forced the likeness to take more beautiful form,
20and the multitude, attracted by the charm of his work,
now regarded as an object of worship the one whom shortly before they had honored as a human being.
21And this became a hidden trap for humankind,
because people, in bondage to misfortune or to royal authority,
bestowed on objects of stone or wood the name that ought not to be shared.

22Then it was not enough for them to err about the knowledge of God,
but though living in great strife due to ignorance,
they call such great evils peace.
23For whether they kill children in their initiations, or celebrate secret mysteries,
or hold frenzied revels with strange customs,
24they no longer keep either their lives or their marriages pure,
but they either treacherously kill one another, or grieve one another by adultery,
25and all is a raging riot of blood and murder, theft and deceit, corruption, faithlessness, tumult, perjury,
26confusion over what is good, forgetfulness of favors,
defiling of souls, sexual perversion,
disorder in marriages, adultery, and debauchery.
27For the worship of idols not to be named
is the beginning and cause and end of every evil.
28For their worshipers either rave in exultation,
or prophesy lies, or live unrighteously, or readily commit perjury;
29for because they trust in lifeless idols
they swear wicked oaths and expect to suffer no harm.
30But just penalties will overtake them on two counts:
because they thought wrongly about God in devoting themselves to idols,
and because in deceit they swore unrighteously through contempt for holiness.
31For it is not the power of the things by which people swear,
but the just penalty for those who sin,
that always pursues the transgression of the unrighteous.

Benefits of Worshiping the True God

15 But you, our God, are kind and true,
patient, and ruling all things in mercy.
2For even if we sin we are yours, knowing your power;
but we will not sin, because we know that you acknowledge us as yours.
3For to know you is complete righteousness,
and to know your power is the root of immortality.
4For neither has the evil intent of human art misled us,
nor the fruitless toil of painters,
a figure stained with varied colors,
5whose appearance arouses yearning in fools,
so that they desire the lifeless form of a dead image.
6Lovers of evil things and fit for such objects of hope
are those who either make or desire or worship them.

The Foolishness of Worshiping Clay Idols

7A potter kneads the soft earth
and laboriously molds each vessel for our service,
fashioning out of the same clay
both the vessels that serve clean uses
and those for contrary uses, making all alike;
but which shall be the use of each of them
the worker in clay decides.
8With misspent toil, these workers form a futile god from the same clay--
these mortals who were made of earth a short time before
and after a little while go to the earth from which all mortals are taken,
when the time comes to return the souls that were borrowed.
9But the workers are not concerned that mortals are destined to die
or that their life is brief,
but they compete with workers in gold and silver,
and imitate workers in copper;
and they count it a glorious thing to mold counterfeit gods.
10Their heart is ashes, their hope is cheaper than dirt,
and their lives are of less worth than clay,
11because they failed to know the one who formed them
and inspired them with active souls
and breathed a living spirit into them.
12But they considered our existence an idle game,
and life a festival held for profit,
for they say one must get money however one can, even by base means.
13For these persons, more than all others, know that they sin
when they make from earthy matter fragile vessels and carved images.

14But most foolish, and more miserable than an infant,
are all the enemies who oppressed your people.
15For they thought that all their heathen idols were gods,
though these have neither the use of their eyes to see with,
nor nostrils with which to draw breath,
nor ears with which to hear,
nor fingers to feel with,
and their feet are of no use for walking.
16For a human being made them,
and one whose spirit is borrowed formed them;
for none can form gods that are like themselves.
17People are mortal, and what they make with lawless hands is dead;
for they are better than the objects they worship,
since they have life, but the idols never had.

Serpents in the Desert

16 Therefore those people were deservedly punished through such creatures,
and were tormented by a multitude of animals.
2Instead of this punishment you showed kindness to your people,
and you prepared quails to eat,
a delicacy to satisfy the desire of appetite;
3in order that those people, when they desired food,
might lose the least remnant of appetite
because of the odious creatures sent to them,
while your people, after suffering want a short time,
might partake of delicacies.
4For it was necessary that upon those oppressors inescapable want should come,
while to these others it was merely shown how their enemies were being tormented.

5For when the terrible rage of wild animals came upon your people
and they were being destroyed by the bites of writhing serpents,
your wrath did not continue to the end;
6they were troubled for a little while as a warning,
and received a symbol of deliverance to remind them of your law's command.

7For the one who turned toward it was saved, not by the thing that was beheld,
but by you, the Savior of all.
8And by this also you convinced our enemies
that it is you who deliver from every evil.
9For they were killed by the bites of locusts and flies,
and no healing was found for them,
because they deserved to be punished by such things.
10But your children were not conquered even by the fangs of venomous serpents,
for your mercy came to their help and healed them.
11To remind them of your oracles they were bitten,
and then were quickly delivered,
so that they would not fall into deep forgetfulness
and become unresponsive to your kindness.
12For neither herb nor poultice cured them,
but it was your word, O Lord, that heals all people.
13For you have power over life and death;
you lead mortals down to the gates of Hades and back again.
14A person in wickedness kills another,
but cannot bring back the departed spirit,
or set free the imprisoned soul.

Disastrous Storms Strike Egypt

15To escape from your hand is impossible;
16for the ungodly, refusing to know you,
were flogged by the strength of your arm,
pursued by unusual rains and hail and relentless storms,
and utterly consumed by fire.
17For--most incredible of all--in water, which quenches all things,
the fire had still greater effect,
for the universe defends the righteous.
18At one time the flame was restrained,
so that it might not consume the creatures sent against the ungodly,
but that seeing this they might know
that they were being pursued by the judgment of God;
19and at another time even in the midst of water it burned more intensely than fire,
to destroy the crops of the unrighteous land.

The Israelites Receive Manna

20Instead of these things you gave your people food of angels,
and without their toil you supplied them from heaven with bread ready to eat,
providing every pleasure and suited to every taste.
21For your sustenance manifested your sweetness toward your children;
and the bread, ministering to the desire of the one who took it,
was changed to suit everyone's liking.
22Snow and ice withstood fire without melting,
so that they might know that the crops of their enemies
were being destroyed by the fire that blazed in the hail
and flashed in the showers of rain;
23whereas the fire, in order that the righteous might be fed,
even forgot its native power.

24For creation, serving you who made it,
exerts itself to punish the unrighteous,
and in kindness relaxes on behalf of those who trust in you.
25Therefore at that time also, changed into all forms,
it served your all-nourishing bounty,
according to the desire of those who had need,
26so that your children, whom you loved, O Lord, might learn
that it is not the production of crops that feeds humankind
but that your word sustains those who trust in you.
27For what was not destroyed by fire
was melted when simply warmed by a fleeting ray of the sun,
28to make it known that one must rise before the sun to give you thanks,
and must pray to you at the dawning of the light;
29for the hope of an ungrateful person will melt like wintry frost,
and flow away like waste water.

Terror Strikes the Egyptians at Night

17 Great are your judgments and hard to describe;
therefore uninstructed souls have gone astray.
2For when lawless people supposed that they held the holy nation in their power,
they themselves lay as captives of darkness and prisoners of long night,
shut in under their roofs, exiles from eternal providence.
3For thinking that in their secret sins they were unobserved
behind a dark curtain of forgetfulness,
they were scattered, terribly alarmed,
and appalled by specters.
4For not even the inner chamber that held them protected them from fear,
but terrifying sounds rang out around them,
and dismal phantoms with gloomy faces appeared.
5And no power of fire was able to give light,
nor did the brilliant flames of the stars
avail to illumine that hateful night.
6Nothing was shining through to them
except a dreadful, self-kindled fire,
and in terror they deemed the things that they saw
to be worse than that unseen appearance.
7The delusions of their magic art lay humbled,
and their boasted wisdom was scornfully rebuked.
8For those who promised to drive off the fears and disorders of a sick soul
were sick themselves with ridiculous fear.
9For even if nothing disturbing frightened them,
yet, scared by the passing of wild animals and the hissing of snakes
10they perished in trembling fear,
refusing to look even at the air, though it nowhere could be avoided.
11For wickedness is a cowardly thing, condemned by its own testimony;
distressed by conscience, it has always exaggerated the difficulties.
12For fear is nothing but a giving up of the helps that come from reason;
13and hope, defeated by this inward weakness,
prefers ignorance of what causes the torment.
14But throughout the night, which was really powerless
and which came upon them from the recesses of powerless Hades,
they all slept the same sleep,
15and now were driven by monstrous specters,
and now were paralyzed by their souls' surrender;
for sudden and unexpected fear overwhelmed them.
16And whoever was there fell down,
and thus was kept shut up in a prison not made of iron;
17for whether they were farmers or shepherds
or workers who toiled in the wilderness,
they were seized, and endured the inescapable fate;
for with one chain of darkness they all were bound.
18Whether there came a whistling wind,
or a melodious sound of birds in wide-spreading branches,
or the rhythm of violently rushing water,
19or the harsh crash of rocks hurled down,
or the unseen running of leaping animals,
or the sound of the most savage roaring beasts,
or an echo thrown back from a hollow of the mountains,
it paralyzed them with terror.
20For the whole world was illumined with brilliant light,
and went about its work unhindered,
21while over those people alone heavy night was spread,
an image of the darkness that was destined to receive them;
but still heavier than darkness were they to themselves.

Light Shines on the Israelites

18 But for your holy ones there was very great light.
Their enemies heard their voices but did not see their forms,
and counted them happy for not having suffered,
2and were thankful that your holy ones, though previously wronged, were doing them no injury;
and they begged their pardon for having been at variance with them.
3Therefore you provided a flaming pillar of fire
as a guide for your people's unknown journey,
and a harmless sun for their glorious wandering.
4For their enemies deserved to be deprived of light and imprisoned in darkness,
those who had kept your children imprisoned,
through whom the imperishable light of the law was to be given to the world.

The Death of the Egyptian Firstborn

5When they had resolved to kill the infants of your holy ones,
and one child had been abandoned and rescued,
you in punishment took away a multitude of their children;
and you destroyed them all together by a mighty flood.
6That night was made known beforehand to our ancestors,
so that they might rejoice in sure knowledge of the oaths in which they trusted.
7The deliverance of the righteous and the destruction of their enemies
were expected by your people.
8For by the same means by which you punished our enemies
you called us to yourself and glorified us.
9For in secret the holy children of good people offered sacrifices,
and with one accord agreed to the divine law,
so that the saints would share alike the same things,
both blessings and dangers;
and already they were singing the praises of the ancestors.
10But the discordant cry of their enemies echoed back,
and their piteous lament for their children was spread abroad.
11The slave was punished with the same penalty as the master,
and the commoner suffered the same loss as the king;
12and they all together, by the one form of death,
had corpses too many to count.
For the living were not sufficient even to bury them,
since in one instant their most valued children had been destroyed.
13For though they had disbelieved everything because of their magic arts,
yet, when their firstborn were destroyed, they acknowledged your people to be God's child.
14For while gentle silence enveloped all things,
and night in its swift course was now half gone,
15your all-powerful word leaped from heaven, from the royal throne,
into the midst of the land that was doomed,
a stern warrior
16carrying the sharp sword of your authentic command,
and stood and filled all things with death,
and touched heaven while standing on the earth.
17Then at once apparitions in dreadful dreams greatly troubled them,
and unexpected fears assailed them;
18and one here and another there, hurled down half dead,
made known why they were dying;
19for the dreams that disturbed them forewarned them of this,
so that they might not perish without knowing why they suffered.

Threat of Annihilation in the Desert

20The experience of death touched also the righteous,
and a plague came upon the multitude in the desert,
but the wrath did not long continue.
21For a blameless man was quick to act as their champion;
he brought forward the shield of his ministry,
prayer and propitiation by incense;
he withstood the anger and put an end to the disaster,
showing that he was your servant.
22He conquered the wrath not by strength of body,
not by force of arms,
but by his word he subdued the avenger,
appealing to the oaths and covenants given to our ancestors.
23For when the dead had already fallen on one another in heaps,
he intervened and held back the wrath,
and cut off its way to the living.
24For on his long robe the whole world was depicted,
and the glories of the ancestors were engraved on the four rows of stones,
and your majesty was on the diadem upon his head.
25To these the destroyer yielded, these he feared;
for merely to test the wrath was enough.

The Red Sea

19 But the ungodly were assailed to the end by pitiless anger,
for God knew in advance even their future actions:
2how, though they themselves had permitted your people to depart
and hastily sent them out,
they would change their minds and pursue them.
3For while they were still engaged in mourning,
and were lamenting at the graves of their dead,
they reached another foolish decision,
and pursued as fugitives those whom they had begged and compelled to leave.
4For the fate they deserved drew them on to this end,
and made them forget what had happened,
in order that they might fill up the punishment that their torments still lacked,
5and that your people might experience an incredible journey,
but they themselves might meet a strange death.

God Guides and Protects His People

6For the whole creation in its nature was fashioned anew,
complying with your commands,
so that your children might be kept unharmed.
7The cloud was seen overshadowing the camp,
and dry land emerging where water had stood before,
an unhindered way out of the Red Sea,
and a grassy plain out of the raging waves,
8where those protected by your hand passed through as one nation,
after gazing on marvelous wonders.
9For they ranged like horses,
and leaped like lambs,
praising you, O Lord, who delivered them.
10For they still recalled the events of their sojourn,
how instead of producing animals the earth brought forth gnats,
and instead of fish the river spewed out vast numbers of frogs.
11Afterward they saw also a new kind of birds,
when desire led them to ask for luxurious food;
12for, to give them relief, quails came up from the sea.

The Punishment of the Egyptians

13The punishments did not come upon the sinners
without prior signs in the violence of thunder,
for they justly suffered because of their wicked acts;
for they practiced a more bitter hatred of strangers.
14Others had refused to receive strangers when they came to them,
but these made slaves of guests who were their benefactors.
15And not only so--but, while punishment of some sort will come upon the former
for having received strangers with hostility,
16the latter, having first received them with festal celebrations,
afterward afflicted with terrible sufferings
those who had already shared the same rights.
17They were stricken also with loss of sight--
just as were those at the door of the righteous man--
when, surrounded by yawning darkness,
all of them tried to find the way through their own doors.

A New Harmony in Nature

18For the elements changed places with one another,
as on a harp the notes vary the nature of the rhythm,
while each note remains the same.
This may be clearly inferred from the sight of what took place.
19For land animals were transformed into water creatures,
and creatures that swim moved over to the land.
20Fire even in water retained its normal power,
and water forgot its fire-quenching nature.
21Flames, on the contrary, failed to consume
the flesh of perishable creatures that walked among them,
nor did they melt the crystalline, quick-melting kind of heavenly food.

Exhortation to Uprightness

Life as the Ungodly See It

Error of the Wicked

The Destiny of the Righteous

The Destiny of the Ungodly

On Childlessness

The Triumph of the Righteous

The Final Judgment

The Reward of the Righteous

Kings Should Seek Wisdom

Description of Wisdom

Solomon Like Other Mortals

Solomon's Respect for Wisdom

Solomon Prays for Wisdom

The Nature of Wisdom

8 She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other, and she orders all things well.

Solomon's Love for Wisdom

Wisdom Indispensable to Rulers

Solomon's Prayer for Wisdom

Solomon's Prayer for Wisdom

The Sins of the Canaanites

God Is Sovereign

God's Lessons for Israel

The Punishment of the Egyptians

The Foolishness of Nature Worship

The Foolishness of Idolatry

Folly of a Navigator Praying to an Idol

The Origin and Evils of Idolatry

Benefits of Worshiping the True God

The Foolishness of Worshiping Clay Idols

Serpents in the Desert

Disastrous Storms Strike Egypt

The Israelites Receive Manna

Terror Strikes the Egyptians at Night

Light Shines on the Israelites

The Death of the Egyptian Firstborn

Threat of Annihilation in the Desert

The Red Sea

God Guides and Protects His People

The Punishment of the Egyptians

A New Harmony in Nature

Conclusion

8 She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,
and she orders all things well.