2 Esdras 3:1–5:20

¹In the thirtieth year after the ruin of the city I was in Babylon, and lay troubled upon my bed, and my thoughts came up over my heart: ²For I saw the desolation of Sion, and the wealth of them that dwelt at Babylon. ³And my spirit was sore moved, so that I began to speak words full of fear to the most High, and said, ⁴O Lord, who bearest rule, thou spakest at the beginning, when thou didst plant the earth, and that thyself alone, and commandedst the people, ⁵And gavest a body unto Adam without soul, which was the workmanship of thine hands, and didst breathe into him the breath of life, and he was made living before thee. ⁶And thou leadest him into paradise, which thy right hand had planted, before ever the earth came forward. ⁷And unto him thou gavest commandment to love thy way: which he transgressed, and immediately thou appointedst death in him and in his generations, of whom came nations, tribes, people, and kindreds, out of number. ⁸And every people walked after their own will, and did wonderful things before thee, and despised thy commandments. ⁹And again in process of time thou broughtest the flood upon those that dwelt in the world, and destroyedst them. ¹⁰And it came to pass in every of them, that as death was to Adam, so was the flood to these. ¹¹Nevertheless one of them thou leftest, namely, Noah with his household, of whom came all righteous men.

¹²And it happened, that when they that dwelt upon the earth began to multiply, and had gotten them many children, and were a great people, they began again to be more ungodly than the first. ¹³Now when they lived so wickedly before thee, thou didst choose thee a man from among them, whose name was Abraham. ¹⁴Him thou lovedst, and unto him only thou shewedst thy will: ¹⁵And madest an everlasting covenant with him, promising him that thou wouldest never forsake his seed. ¹⁶And unto him thou gavest Isaac, and unto Isaac also thou gavest Jacob and Esau. As for Jacob, thou didst choose him to thee, and put by Esau: and so Jacob became a great multitude. ¹⁷And it came to pass, that when thou leddest his seed out of Egypt, thou broughtest them up to the mount Sinai. ¹⁸And bowing the heavens, thou didst set fast the earth, movedst the whole world, and madest the depths to tremble, and troubledst the men of that age. ¹⁹And thy glory went through four gates, of fire, and of earthquake, and of wind, and of cold; that thou mightest give the law unto the seed of Jacob, and diligence unto the generation of Israel.

²⁰And yet tookest thou not away from them a wicked heart, that thy law might bring forth fruit in them. ²¹For the first Adam bearing a wicked heart transgressed, and was overcome; and so be all they that are born of him. ²²Thus infirmity was made permanent; and the law (also) in the heart of the people with the malignity of the root; so that the good departed away, and the evil abode still. ²³So the times passed away, and the years were brought to an end: then didst thou raise thee up a servant, called David: ²⁴Whom thou commandedst to build a city unto thy name, and to offer incense and oblations unto thee therein. ²⁵When this was done many years, then they that inhabited the city forsook thee, ²⁶And in all things did even as Adam and all his generations had done: for they also had a wicked heart: ²⁷And so thou gavest thy city over into the hands of thine enemies.

²⁸Are their deeds then any better that inhabit Babylon, that they should therefore have the dominion over Sion? ²⁹For when I came thither, and had seen impieties without number, then my soul saw many evildoers in this thirtieth year, so that my heart failed me. ³⁰For I have seen how thou sufferest them sinning, and hast spared wicked doers: and hast destroyed thy people, and hast preserved thine enemies, and hast not signified it. ³¹I do not remember how this way may be left: Are they then of Babylon better than they of Sion? ³²Or is there any other people that knoweth thee beside Israel? or what generation hath so believed thy covenants as Jacob? ³³And yet their reward appeareth not, and their labour hath no fruit: for I have gone here and there through the heathen, and I see that they flow in wealth, and think not upon thy commandments. ³⁴Weigh thou therefore our wickedness now in the balance, and their also that dwell the world; and so shall thy name no where be found but in Israel. ³⁵Or when was it that they which dwell upon the earth have not sinned in thy sight? or what people have so kept thy commandments? ³⁶Thou shalt find that Israel by name hath kept thy precepts; but not the heathen.

Chapter 4

¹And the angel that was sent unto me, whose name was Uriel, gave me an answer, ²And said, Thy heart hath gone to far in this world, and thinkest thou to comprehend the way of the most High? ³Then said I, Yea, my lord. And he answered me, and said, I am sent to shew thee three ways, and to set forth three similitudes before thee: ⁴Whereof if thou canst declare me one, I will shew thee also the way that thou desirest to see, and I shall shew thee from whence the wicked heart cometh.

⁵And I said, Tell on, my lord. Then said he unto me, Go thy way, weigh me the weight of the fire, or measure me the blast of the wind, or call me again the day that is past.

⁶Then answered I and said, What man is able to do that, that thou shouldest ask such things of me?

⁷And he said unto me, If I should ask thee how great dwellings are in the midst of the sea, or how many springs are in the beginning of the deep, or how many springs are above the firmament, or which are the outgoings of paradise: ⁸Peradventure thou wouldest say unto me, I never went down into the deep, nor as yet into hell, neither did I ever climb up into heaven. ⁹Nevertheless now have I asked thee but only of the fire and wind, and of the day wherethrough thou hast passed, and of things from which thou canst not be separated, and yet canst thou give me no answer of them. ¹⁰He said moreover unto me, Thine own things, and such as are grown up with thee, canst thou not know; ¹¹How should thy vessel then be able to comprehend the way of the Highest, and, the world being now outwardly corrupted to understand the corruption that is evident in my sight? ¹²Then said I unto him, It were better that we were not at all, than that we should live still in wickedness, and to suffer, and not to know wherefore.

¹³He answered me, and said, I went into a forest into a plain, and the trees took counsel, ¹⁴And said, Come, let us go and make war against the sea that it may depart away before us, and that we may make us more woods. ¹⁵The floods of the sea also in like manner took counsel, and said, Come, let us go up and subdue the woods of the plain, that there also we may make us another country. ¹⁶The thought of the wood was in vain, for the fire came and consumed it. ¹⁷The thought of the floods of the sea came likewise to nought, for the sand stood up and stopped them. ¹⁸If thou wert judge now betwixt these two, whom wouldest thou begin to justify? or whom wouldest thou condemn?

¹⁹I answered and said, Verily it is a foolish thought that they both have devised, for the ground is given unto the wood, and the sea also hath his place to bear his floods.

²⁰Then answered he me, and said, Thou hast given a right judgment, but why judgest thou not thyself also? ²¹For like as the ground is given unto the wood, and the sea to his floods: even so they that dwell upon the earth may understand nothing but that which is upon the earth: and he that dwelleth above the heavens may only understand the things that are above the height of the heavens.

²²Then answered I and said, I beseech thee, O Lord, let me have understanding: ²³For it was not my mind to be curious of the high things, but of such as pass by us daily, namely, wherefore Israel is given up as a reproach to the heathen, and for what cause the people whom thou hast loved is given over unto ungodly nations, and why the law of our forefathers is brought to nought, and the written covenants come to none effect, ²⁴And we pass away out of the world as grasshoppers, and our life is astonishment and fear, and we are not worthy to obtain mercy. ²⁵What will he then do unto his name whereby we are called? of these things have I asked.

²⁶Then answered he me, and said, The more thou searchest, the more thou shalt marvel; for the world hasteth fast to pass away, ²⁷And cannot comprehend the things that are promised to the righteous in time to come: for this world is full of unrighteousness and infirmities. ²⁸But as concerning the things whereof thou askest me, I will tell thee; for the evil is sown, but the destruction thereof is not yet come. ²⁹If therefore that which is sown be not turned upside down, and if the place where the evil is sown pass not away, then cannot it come that is sown with good. ³⁰For the grain of evil seed hath been sown in the heart of Adam from the beginning, and how much ungodliness hath it brought up unto this time? and how much shall it yet bring forth until the time of threshing come? ³¹Ponder now by thyself, how great fruit of wickedness the grain of evil seed hath brought forth. ³²And when the ears shall be cut down, which are without number, how great a floor shall they fill?

³³Then I answered and said, How, and when shall these things come to pass? wherefore are our years few and evil? ³⁴And he answered me, saying, Do not thou hasten above the most Highest: for thy haste is in vain to be above him, for thou hast much exceeded. ³⁵Did not the souls also of the righteous ask question of these things in their chambers, saying, How long shall I hope on this fashion? when cometh the fruit of the floor of our reward? ³⁶And unto these things Uriel the archangel gave them answer, and said, Even when the number of seeds is filled in you: for he hath weighed the world in the balance. ³⁷By measure hath he measured the times, and by number hath…