The Future of Bible Study Is Here.
Sirach 44:1–49:16
1 Let us now praise famous men,
and our fathers in their generations.
2 The Lord apportioned to them great glory,
his majesty from the beginning.
3 There were those who ruled in their kingdoms,
and were men renowned for their power,
giving counsel by their understanding,
and proclaiming prophecies;
4 leaders of the people in their deliberations
and in understanding of learning for the people,
wise in their words of instruction;
5 those who composed musical tunes,
and set forth verses in writing;
6 rich men furnished with resources,
living peaceably in their habitations—
7 all these were honored in their generations,
and were the glory of their times.
8 There are some of them who have left a name,
so that men declare their praise.
9 And there are some who have no memorial,
who have perished as though they had not lived;
they have become as though they had not been born,
and so have their children after them.
10 But these were men of mercy,
whose righteous deeds have not been forgotten;
11 their prosperity will remain with their descendants,
and their inheritance to their children’s children.
12 Their descendants stand by the covenants;
their children also, for their sake.
13 Their posterity will continue for ever,
and their glory will not be blotted out.
14 Their bodies were buried in peace,
and their name lives to all generations.
15 Peoples will declare their wisdom,
and the congregation proclaims their praise.
16 Enoch pleased the Lord, and was taken up;
he was an example of repentance to all generations.
17 Noah was found perfect and righteous;
in the time of wrath he was taken in exchange;
therefore a remnant was left to the earth
when the flood came.
18 Everlasting covenants were made with him
that all flesh should not be blotted out by a flood.
19 Abraham was the great father of a multitude of nations,
and no one has been found like him in glory;
20 he kept the law of the Most High,
and was taken into covenant with him;
he established the covenant in his flesh,
and when he was tested he was found faithful.
21 Therefore the Lord assured him by an oath
that the nations would be blessed through his posterity;
that he would multiply him like the dust of the earth,
and exalt his posterity like the stars,
and cause them to inherit from sea to sea
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
22 To Isaac also he gave the same assurance
for the sake of Abraham his father.
23 The blessing of all men and the covenant
he made to rest upon the head of Jacob;
he acknowledged him with his blessings,
and gave him his inheritance;
he determined his portions,
and distributed them among twelve tribes.
1 From his descendants the Lord brought forth a man of mercy,
who found favor in the sight of all flesh
and was beloved by God and man,
Moses, whose memory is blessed.
2 He made him equal in glory to the holy ones,
and made him great in the fears of his enemies.
3 By his words he caused signs to cease;
the Lord glorified him in the presence of kings.
He gave him commands for his people,
and showed him part of his glory.
4 He sanctified him through faithfulness and meekness;
he chose him out of all mankind.
and led him into the thick darkness,
and gave him the commandments face to face,
the law of life and knowledge,
to teach Jacob the covenant,
and Israel his judgments.
6 He exalted Aaron, the brother of Moses,
a holy man like him, of the tribe of Levi.
7 He made an everlasting covenant with him,
and gave him the priesthood of the people.
He blessed him with splendid vestments,
and put a glorious robe upon him.
8 He clothed him with superb perfection,
and strengthened him with the symbols of authority,
the linen breeches, the long robe, and the ephod.
9 And he encircled him with pomegranates,
with very many golden bells round about,
to send forth a sound as he walked,
to make their ringing heard in the temple
as a reminder to the sons of his people;
10 with a holy garment, of gold and blue
and purple, the work of an embroiderer;
with the oracle of judgment, Urim and Thummim;
11 with twisted scarlet, the work of a craftsman;
with precious stones engraved like signets,
in a setting of gold, the work of a jeweler,
for a reminder, in engraved letters,
according to the number of the tribes of Israel;
12 with a gold crown upon his turban,
inscribed like a signet with “Holiness,”
a distinction to be prized, the work of an expert,
the delight of the eyes, richly adorned.
13 Before his time there never were such beautiful things.
No outsider ever put them on,
but only his sons
and his descendants perpetually.
14 His sacrifices shall be wholly burned
twice every day continually.
and anointed him with holy oil;
it was an everlasting covenant for him
and for his descendants all the days of heaven,
to minister to the Lord and serve as priest
and bless his people in his name.
16 He chose him out of all the living
to offer sacrifice to the Lord,
incense and a pleasing odor as a memorial portion,
to make atonement for the people.
17 In his commandments he gave him
authority and statutes and judgments,
to teach Jacob the testimonies,
and to enlighten Israel with his law.
18 Outsiders conspired against him,
and envied him in the wilderness,
Dathan and Abiram and their men
and the company of Korah, in wrath and anger.
19 The Lord saw it and was not pleased,
and in the wrath of his anger they were destroyed;
he wrought wonders against them
to consume them in flaming fire.
and gave him a heritage;
he allotted to him the first of the first fruits,
he prepared bread of first fruits in abundance;
21 for they eat the sacrifices to the Lord,
which he gave to him and his descendants.
22 But in the land of the people he has no inheritance,
and he has no portion among the people;
for the Lord himself is his portion and inheritance.
23 Phinehas the son of Eleazar is the third in glory,
for he was zealous in the fear of the Lord,
and stood fast, when the people turned away,
in the ready goodness of his soul,
and made atonement for Israel.
24 Therefore a covenant of peace was established with him,
that he should be leader of the sanctuary and of his people,
that he and his descendants should have
the dignity of the priesthood for ever.
25 A covenant was also established with David,
the son of Jesse, of the tribe of Judah:
the heritage of the king is from son to son only;
so the heritage of Aaron is for his descendants.
26 May the Lord grant you wisdom in your heart
to judge his people in righteousness,
so that their prosperity may not vanish,
and that their glory may endure throughout their generations.
1 Joshua the son of Nun was mighty in war,
and was the successor of Moses in prophesying.
He became, in accordance with his name,
a great savior of God’s elect,
to take vengeance on the enemies that rose against them,
so that he might give Israel its inheritance.
2 How glorious he was when he lifted his hands
and stretched out his sword against the cities!
3 Who before him ever stood so firm?
For he waged the wars of the Lord.
4 Was not the sun held back by his hand?
And did not one day become as long as two?
5 He called upon the Most High, the Mighty One,
when enemies pressed him on every side,
6 and the great Lord answered him
with hailstones of mighty power.
He hurled down war upon that nation,
and at the descent of Beth-horon he destroyed those who resisted,
so that the nations might know his armament,
that he was fighting in the sight of the Lord;
for he wholly followed the Mighty One.
7 And in the days of Moses he did a loyal deed,
he and Caleb the son of Jephunneh:
they withstood the congregation,
restrained the people from sin,
and stilled their wicked murmuring.
8 And these two alone were preserved
out of six hundred thousand people on foot,
to bring them into their inheritance,
into a land flowing with milk and honey.
9 And the Lord gave Caleb strength,
which remained with him to old age,
so that he went up to the hill country,
and his children obtained it for an inheritance;
10 so that all the sons of Israel might see
that it is good to follow the Lord.
11 The judges also, with their respective names,
those whose hearts did not fall into idolatry
and who did not turn away from the Lord—
may their memory be blessed!
12 May their bones revive from where they lie,
and may the name of those who have been honored
live again in their sons!
13 Samuel, beloved by his Lord,
a prophet of the Lord, established the kingdom
and anointed rulers over his people.
14 By the law of the Lord he judged the congregation,
and the Lord watched over Jacob.
15 By his faithfulness he was proved to be a prophet,
and by his words he became known as a trustworthy seer.
16 He called upon the Lord, the Mighty One,
when his enemies pressed him on every side,
and he offered in sacrifice a sucking lamb.
17 Then the Lord thundered from heaven,
and made his voice heard with a mighty sound;
18 and he wiped out the leaders of the people of Tyre
and all the rulers of the Philistines.
19 Before the time of his eternal sleep,
Samuel called men to witness before the Lord and his anointed:
“I have not taken any one’s property,
not so much as a pair of shoes.”
And no man accused him.
20 Even after he had fallen asleep he prophesied
and revealed to the king his death,
and lifted up his voice out of the earth in prophecy,
to blot out the wickedness of the people.
1 And after him Nathan rose up
to prophesy in the days of David.
2 As the fat is selected from the peace offering,
so David was selected from the sons of Israel.
3 He played with lions as with young goats,
and with bears as with lambs of the flock.
4 In his youth did he not kill a giant,
and take away reproach from the people,
when he lifted his hand with a stone in the sling
and struck down the boasting of Goliath?
5 For he appealed to the Lord, the Most High,
and he gave him strength in his right hand
to slay a man mighty …
A service of Logos Bible Software
Sign Up to Use Our
Free Bible Study Tools
|
By registering for an account, you agree to Logos’ Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
|