2 Esdras 5:21–6:35

²¹And after seven days so it was, that the thoughts of my heart were very grievous unto me again, ²²And my soul recovered the spirit of understanding, and I began to talk with the most High again, ²³And said, O Lord that bearest rule, of every wood of the earth, and of all the trees thereof, thou hast chosen thee one only vine: ²⁴And of all lands of the whole world thou hast chosen thee one pit: and of all the flowers thereof one lily: ²⁵And of all the depths of the sea thou hast filled thee one river: and of all builded cities thou hast hallowed Sion unto thyself: ²⁶And of all the fowls that are created thou hast named thee one dove: and of all the cattle that are made thou hast provided thee one sheep: ²⁷And among all the multitudes of people thou hast gotten thee one people: and unto this people, whom thou lovedst, thou gavest a law that is approved of all. ²⁸And now, O Lord, why hast thou given this one people over unto many? and upon the one root hast thou prepared others, and why hast thou scattered thy only one people among many? ²⁹And they which did gainsay thy promises, and believed not thy covenants, have trodden them down. ³⁰If thou didst so much hate thy people, yet shouldest thou punish them with thine own hands.

³¹Now when I had spoken these words, the angel that came to me the night afore was sent unto me, ³²And said unto me, Hear me, and I will instruct thee; hearken to the thing that I say, and I shall tell thee more.

³³And I said, Speak on, my Lord. Then said he unto me, Thou art sore troubled in mind for Israel’s sake: lovest thou that people better than he that made them?

³⁴And I said, No, Lord: but of very grief have I spoken: for my reins pain me every hour, while I labour to comprehend the way of the most High, and to seek out part of his judgment.

³⁵And he said unto me, Thou canst not. And I said, Wherefore, Lord? whereunto was I born then? or why was not my mother’s womb then my grave, that I might not have seen the travail of Jacob, and the wearisome toil of the stock of Israel?

³⁶And he said unto me, Number me the things that are not yet come, gather me together the drops that are scattered abroad, make me the flowers green again that are withered, ³⁷Open me the places that are closed, and bring me forth the winds that in them are shut up, shew me the image of a voice: and then I will declare to thee the thing that thou labourest to know.

³⁸And I said, O Lord that bearest rule, who may know these things, but he that hath not his dwelling with men? ³⁹As for me, I am unwise: how may I then speak of these things whereof thou askest me?

⁴⁰Then said he unto me, Like as thou canst do none of these things that I have spoken of, even so canst thou not find out my judgment, or in the end the love that I have promised unto my people.

⁴¹And I said, Behold, O Lord, yet art thou nigh unto them that be reserved till the end: and what shall they do that have been before me, or we [that be now], or they that shall come after us?

⁴²And he said unto me, I will liken my judgment unto a ring: like as there is no slackness of the last, even so there is no swiftness of the first.

⁴³So I answered and said, Couldest thou not make those that have been made, and be now, and that are for to come, at once; that thou mightest shew thy judgment the sooner?

⁴⁴Then answered he me, and said, The creature may not haste above the maker; neither may the world hold them at once that shall be created therein.

⁴⁵And I said, As thou hast said unto thy servant, that thou, which givest life to all, hast given life at once to the creature that thou hast created, and the creature bare it: even so it might now also bear them that now be present at once.

⁴⁶And he said unto me, Ask the womb of a woman, and say unto her, If thou bringest forth children, why dost thou it not together, but one after another? pray her therefore to bring forth ten children at once.

⁴⁷And I said, She cannot: but must do it by distance of time.

⁴⁸Then said he unto me, Even so have I given the womb of the earth to those that be sown in it in their times. ⁴⁹For like as a young child may not bring forth the things that belong to the aged, even so have I disposed the world which I created.

⁵⁰And I asked, and said, Seeing thou hast now given me the way, I will proceed to speak before thee: for our mother, of whom thou hast told me that she is young, draweth now nigh unto age.

⁵¹He answered me, and said, Ask a woman that beareth children, and she shall tell thee. ⁵²Say unto her, Wherefore are unto they whom thou hast now brought forth like those that were before, but less of stature? ⁵³And she shall answer thee, They that be born in the the strength of youth are of one fashion, and they that are born in the time of age, when the womb faileth, are otherwise. ⁵⁴Consider thou therefore also, how that ye are less of stature than those that were before you. ⁵⁵And so are they that come after you less than ye, as the creatures which now begin to be old, and have passed over the strength of youth.

⁵⁶Then said I, Lord, I beseech thee, if I have found favour in thy sight, shew thy servant by whom thou visitest thy creature.

Chapter 6

¹And he said unto me, In the beginning, when the earth was made, before the borders of the world stood, or ever the winds blew, ²Before it thundered and lightened, or ever the foundations of paradise were laid, ³Before the fair flowers were seen, or ever the moveable powers were established, before the innumerable multitude of angels were gathered together, ⁴Or ever the heights of the air were lifted up, before the measures of the firmament were named, or ever the chimneys in Sion were hot, ⁵And ere the present years were sought out, and or ever the inventions of them that now sin were turned, before they were sealed that have gathered faith for a treasure: ⁶Then did I consider these things, and they all were made through me alone, and through none other: by me also they shall be ended, and by none other.

⁷Then answered I and said, What shall be the parting asunder of the times? or when shall be the end of the first, and the beginning of it that followeth?

⁸And he said unto me, From Abraham unto Isaac, when Jacob and Esau were born of him, Jacob’s hand held first the heel of Esau. ⁹For Esau is the end of the world, and Jacob is the beginning of it that followeth. ¹⁰The hand of man is betwixt the heel and the hand: other question, Esdras, ask thou not.

¹¹I answered then and said, O Lord that bearest rule, if I have found favour in thy sight, ¹²I beseech thee, shew thy servant the end of thy tokens, whereof thou shewedst me part the last night.

¹³So he answered and said unto me, Stand up upon thy feet, and hear a mighty sounding voice. ¹⁴And it shall be as it were a great motion; but the place where thou standest shall not be moved. ¹⁵And therefore when it speaketh be not afraid: for the word is of the end, and the foundation of the earth is understood. ¹⁶And why? because the speech of these things trembleth and is moved: for it knoweth that the end of these things must be changed.

¹⁷And it happened, that when I had heard it I stood up upon my feet, and hearkened, and, behold, there was a voice that spake, and the sound of it was like the sound of many waters. ¹⁸And it said, Behold, the days come, that I will begin to draw nigh, and to visit them that dwell upon the earth, ¹⁹And will begin to make inquisition of them, what they be that have hurt unjustly with their unrighteousness, and when the affliction of Sion shall be fulfilled; ²⁰And when the world, that shall begin to vanish away, shall be finished, then will I shew these tokens: the books shall be opened before the firmament, and they shall see all together: ²¹And the children of a year old shall speak with their voices, the women with child shall bring forth untimely children of three or four months old, and they shall live, and be raised up. ²²And suddenly shall the sown places appear unsown, the full storehouses shall suddenly be found empty: ²³And the trumpet shall give a sound, which when every man heareth, they shall be suddenly afraid. ²⁴At that time shall friends fight one against another like enemies, and the earth shall stand in fear with those that dwell therein, the springs of the fountains shall stand still, and in three hours they shall not run.

²⁵Whosoever remaineth from all these that I have told thee shall escape, and see my salvation, and the end of your world. ²⁶And the men that are received shall see it, who have not tasted death from their birth: and the heart of the inhabitants shall be changed, and turned into another meaning. ²⁷For evil shall be put out, and deceit shall be quenched. ²⁸As for faith, it shall flourish, corruption shall be overcome, and the truth, which hath been so long without fruit, shall be declared.

²⁹And when he talked with me, behold, I looked by little and little upon him before whom I stood. ³⁰And these words said he unto me; I am come to shew thee the time of the night to come. ³¹If thou wilt pray yet more, and fast seven days again, I shall tell thee greater things by day than I have heard. ³²For thy voice is heard before the most High: for the Mighty hath seen thy righteous dealing, he hath seen also thy chastity, which thou hast had ever since thy youth. ³³And therefore hath he sent me to shew thee all these things, and to say unto thee, Be of good comfort, and fear not. ³⁴And hasten not with the times that are past, to think vain things, that thou mayest not hasten from the latter times.

³⁵And it came to pass after this, that I wept again, and fasted seven days in like manner, that I might fulfil the three weeks which he told me.