Sirach 24

1 Ἡ σοφία αἰνέσει ψυχὴν αὐτῆς, καὶ ἐν μέσῳ λαοῦ αὐτῆς καυχήσεται.

2 Ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ ὑψίστου στόμα αὐτῆς ἀνοίξει, καὶ ἔναντι δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ καυχήσεται.

3 Ἐγὼ ἀπὸ στόματος ὑψίστου ἐξῆλθον, καὶ ὡς ὁμίχλη κατεκάλυψα γῆν.

4 Ἐγὼ ἐν ὑψηλοῖς κατεσκήνωσα, καὶ ὁ θρόνος μου ἐν στύλῳ νεφέλης.

5 Γῦρον οὐρανοῦ ἐκύκλωσα μόνη, καὶ ἐν βάθει ἀβύσσων περιεπάτησα.

6 Ἐν κύμασι θαλάσσης καὶ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ, καὶ ἐν παντὶ λαῷ καὶ ἔθνει ἐκτησάμην.

7 Μετὰ τούτων πάντων ἀνάπαυσιν ἐζήτησα, καὶ ἐν κληρονομίᾳ τίνος αὐλισθήσομαι.

8 Τότε ἐνετείλατό μοι ὁ κτίστης ἁπάντων, καὶ ὁ κτίσας με κατέπαυσε τὴν σκηνήν μου, καὶ εἶπεν, ἐν Ἰακὼβ κατασκήνωσον, καὶ ἐν Ἰσραὴλ κατακληρονομήθητι.

9 Πρὸ τοῦ αἰῶνος ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς ἔκτισέ με, καὶ ἕως αἰῶνος οὐ μὴ ἐκλίπω.

10 Ἐν σκηνῇ ἁγίᾳ ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ ἐλειτούργησα, καὶ οὕτως ἐν Σιὼν ἐστηρίχθην.

11 Ἐν πόλει ἠγαπημένῃ ὁμοίως με κατέπαυσε, καὶ ἐν Ἰερουσαλὴμ ἡ ἐξουσία μου.

12 Καὶ ἐῤῥίζωσα ἐν λαῷ δεδοξασμένῳ, ἐν μερίδι Κυρίου κληρονομίας αὐτοῦ.

13 Ὡς κέδρος ἀνυψώθην ἐν Λιβάνῳ, καὶ ὡς κυπάρισσος ἐν ὄρεσιν Ἀερμών.

14 Ὡς φοῖνιξ ἀνυψώθην ἐν αἰγιαλοῖς, καὶ ὡς φυτὰ ῥόδου ἐν Ἱεριχῶ· ὡς ἐλαία εὐπρεπὴς ἐν πεδίῳ, καὶ ἀνυψώθην ὡς πλάτανος.

15 Ὡς κιννάμωμον καὶ ἀσπάλαθος ἀρωμάτων δέδωκα ὀσμὴν, καὶ ὡς σμύρνα ἐκλεκτὴ διέδωκα εὐωδίαν· ὡς χαλβάνη καὶ ὄνυξ καὶ στακτὴ, καὶ ὡς λιβάνου ἀτμὶς ἐν σκηνῇ.

16 Ἐγὼ ὡς τερέμινθος ἐξέτεινα κλάδους μου, καὶ οἱ κλάδοι μου κλάδοι δόξης καὶ χάριτος.

17 Ἐγὼ ὡς ἄμπελος βλαστήσασα χάριν, καὶ τὰ ἄνθη μου καρπὸς δόξης καὶ πλούτου.

19 Προσέλθετε πρὸς μὲ οἱ ἐπιθυμοῦντές μου, καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν γεννημάτων μου ἐμπλήσθητε.

20 Τὸ γὰρ μνημόσυνόν μου ὑπὲρ μέλι γλυκύ, καὶ ἡ κληρονομία μου ὑπὲρ μέλιτος κηροῦ.

21 Οἱ ἐσθίοντές με ἔτι πεινάσουσι, καὶ οἱ πίνοντές με ἔτι διψήσουσιν.

22 Ὁ ὑπακούων μου οὐκ αἰσχυνθήσεται, καὶ οἱ ἐργαζόμενοι ἐν ἐμοὶ οὐχ ἁμαρτήσουσι.

23 Ταῦτα πάντα βίβλος διαθήκης Θεοῦ ὑψίστου, νόμον ὃν ἐνετείλατο Μωυσῆς, κληρονομίαν συναγωγαῖς Ἰακώβ.

25 Ὁ πιμπλῶν ὡς Φεισὼν σοφίαν, καὶ ὡς Τίγρις ἐν ἡμέραις νέων·

26 ὁ ἀναπληρῶν ὡς Εὐφράτης σύνεσιν, καὶ ὡς Ἰορδάνης ἐν ἡμέραις θερισμοῦ·

27 ὁ ἐκφαίνων ὡς φῶς παιδείαν, ὡς Γηὼν ἐν ἡμέραις τρυγητοῦ.

28 Οὐ συνετέλεσεν ὁ πρῶτος γνῶναι αὐτὴν, καὶ οὕτως ὁ ἔσχατος οὐκ ἐξιχνίασεν αὐτήν·

29 Ἀπὸ γὰρ θαλάσσης ἐπληθύνθη διανόημα αὐτῆς, καὶ ἡ βουλὴ αὐτῆς ἀπὸ ἀβύσσου μεγάλης.

30 Κᾀγὼ ὡς διώρυξ ἀπὸ ποταμοῦ, καὶ ὡς ὑδραγωγὸς ἐξῆλθον εἰς παράδεισον.

31 Εἶπα, ποτιῶ μου τὸν κῆπον, καὶ μεθύσω μου τὴν πρασιάν· καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐγένετό μοι ἡ διώρυξ εἰς ποταμὸν, καὶ ὁ ποταμός μου ἐγένετο εἰς θάλασσαν.

32 Ἔτι παιδείαν ὡς ὄρθρον φωτιῶ, καὶ ἐκφανῶ αὐτὰ ἕως εἰς μακράν.

33 Ἔτι διδασκαλίαν ὡς προφητείαν ἐκχεῶ, καὶ καταλείψω αὐτὴν εἰς γενεὰς αἰώνων.

34 Ἴδετε ὅτι οὐκ ἐμοὶ μόνῳ ἐκοπίασα, ἀλλὰ πᾶσι τοῖς ἐκζητοῦσιν αὐτήν.

1 Wisdom shall praise herself, and shall glory in the midst of her people.

2 In the congregation of the most High shall she open her mouth, and triumph before his power.

3 I came out of the mouth of the most High, and covered the earth as a cloud.

4 I dwelt in high places, and my throne is in a cloudy pillar.

5 I alone compassed the circuit of heaven, and walked in the bottom of the deep.

6 In the waves of the sea, and in all the earth, and in every people and nation, I got a possession.

7 With all these I sought rest: and in whose inheritance shall I abide?

8 So the Creator of all things gave me a commandment, and he that made me caused my tabernacle to rest, and said, Let thy dwelling be in Jacob, and thine inheritance in Israel.

9 He created me from the beginning before the world, and I shall never fail.

10 In the holy tabernacle I served before him; and so was I established in Sion.

11 Likewise in the beloved city he gave me rest, and in Jerusalem was my power.

12 And I took root in an honourable people, even in the portion of the Lord's inheritance.

13 I was exalted like a cedar in Libanus, and as a cypress tree upon the mountains of Hermon.

14 I was exalted like a palm tree on the sea shore, and as a rose plant in Jericho, as a fair olive tree in a plain, and grew up as a plane tree.

15 I gave a sweet smell like cinnamon and aspalathus, and I yielded a pleasant odour like the best myrrh, as galbanum, and onyx, and sweet storax, and as the fume of frankincense in the tabernacle.

16 As the turpentine tree I stretched out my branches, and my branches are the branches of honour and grace.

17 As the vine brought I forth pleasant savour, and my flowers are the fruit of honour and riches.

19 Come unto me, all ye that be desirous of me, and fill yourselves with my fruits.

20 For my memorial is sweeter than honey, and mine inheritance than the honeycomb.

21 They that eat me shall yet be hungry, and they that drink me shall yet be thirsty.

22 He that obeyeth me shall never be confounded, and they that work by me shall not do amiss.

23 All these things are the book of the covenant of the most high God, even the law which Moses commanded for an heritage unto the congregations of Jacob.

25 He filleth all things with his wisdom, as Phison and as Tigris in the time of the new fruits.

26 He maketh the understanding to abound like Euphrates, and as Jordan in the time of the harvest.

27 He maketh the doctrine of knowledge appear as the light, and as Geon in the time of vintage.

28 The first man knew her not perfectly: no more shall the last find her out.

29 For her thoughts are more than the sea, and her counsels profounder than the great deep.

30 I also came out as a brook from a river, and as a conduit into a garden.

31 I said, I will water my best garden, and will water abundantly my garden bed: and, lo, my brook became a river, and my river became a sea.

32 I will yet make doctrine to shine as the morning, and will send forth her light afar off.

33 I will yet pour out doctrine as prophecy, and leave it to all ages for ever.

34 Behold that I have not laboured for myself only, but for all them that seek wisdom.