50 1 Was Simeon, the son of Jochananc the priestd a.

eIn whose timef the House was renovatedg e,

And in whose days the Temple was fortified;

2 h iIn whose days the wall was builti,

k(Having) lturrets for protectionl likem a king’s palacek;

3 mmIn whose time a reservoir was dug,

A water-cisternn olike the seao in its abundancemm.

4 pHe took thought for his people [to preserve them] qfrom robbersq,

And fortified his city against the enemyr p.

HB 5 How glorious was he swhen he looked forth from the Tentt s,

Andu when he came out from the sanctuary!

6 Like a morning-star vfrom between the cloudsv,

And like the full moon won the feast-daysw;

7 x yLike the sun shining upon the Temple of the Most Highz,

And like the rainbow a bbecoming visibleb in the clouda y;

8 cLike a flower on the branchesc in the days of dthe first-fruitsd,

eAnd as a lily by the water-brookse,

As the sproutf of Lebanon on summer days,

9 And gas the fire of incenseg in the censerh;

Like a golden vesseli kbeautifully wroughtl k,

Adorned with mall mannerm of precious stones;

10 Like a luxuriantn olive-tree ofull of berrieso,

And like an oleasterp qabounding in branchesq.

11 rWhen he put on his gloriouss robesr,

And clothed himself in perfectt splendour,

HB When he went up uto the altar of majestyu v,

xAnd made glorious the court of the sanctuaryx;

12 When he took the portionsy from zthe hand of his brethrenz,

While standing aby the blocks of wooda,

Around him the garlandb of his sonsc,

d eLike young cedar-treese in Lebanon;

And flike willows by the brookf did they surround himd,

13 hAll the sons of Aaron in their glory,

And the Lord’si fire-offeringk in their hands,

In the presence of the whole congregationl of Israel.

14 mUntil he had finished the service of the altarm

nAnd arranging the rows of wood of the Most Highn,

G 15 o(And) stretched forth his hand to the cup,

pAnd poured out of the blood of the grapep;

Yea, poured (it) out at the footq of the altar,

A sweet-smelling savour rto the Most High, the All-Kingr o.

HB 16 Then the sons of Aarons sounded

With the trumpets tof beaten workt;

Yea, they sounded and caused a mighty blast to be heard

uFor a remembrance before the Most Highu.

17 v(Then) all fleshw hasted togetherv

And fell upon their faces to the earth,

To worship xbefore ythe Most Highx,

zBefore the Holy One of Israelz y.

18 aAnd the sound of the song was hearda,

And bover the multitudeb cthey made sweet melodyc;

19 d eAnd all the people of the land criedd

In prayer before the Merciful,

fUntil he had finished gthe service of the altarg f,

hAnd His ordinances had brought him nigh unto Himh.

20 Then he descended, and lifted up his hands

Upon the whole congregation of Israeli,

kAnd the blessing of the Lord (was) upon his lipsk,

And he glorified himself with the name of the Lordl.

21 mAnd again they fell downm, (now) to receiven

oThe pardonp of God from himo e.

H 22 Now ppbless qthe God of allq pp,

rWho doeth wondrouslys on earthr,

Who exalteth mant from the womb,

And dealeth with him according to His willu.

23 May He grant you wisdomv of heart,

And may there be peace wamong youw.

24 May His mercy be established xwith Simeonx,

xx yAnd may He raise up for him the covenant of Phinehas;

May one never be cut off from himy;

zAnd as to his seedxx, (may it be) as the days of heavenz xx.

50:25, 26. Three Detested Nations (2 distichs).

25 For two nations doth my soul feel abhorrence,

(Yea), and (for) a third, which is not a people;

26 aThe inhabitants of Seirb anda Philistia,

And that foolish nation that dwelleth in Sichemc.

SUBSCRIPTION TO THE BOOK

50:27–29. The Concluding Words of Jeshua’, the son of Eleazar, the son of Sira (2 + 2 distichs).

27 dWise instruction and apt proverbse d

ee f gOf Jeshua’, ggthe son of Eleazargg, the son of Sirag,

HB h iWhich he declared in the explanation of his hearth,

And which he taught with understandingi ee.

28 Blessed is the manii who meditatethk on these thingsl,

mAnd he that layeth them up in his heart shall become wisem.

G 29 nFor if he do them, ohe shall be strong for all thingsn,

HB pFor the fear of the Lord is lifep o.

APPENDIX TO THE BOOK (51:1–30)

(a) 51:1–12. A Prayer

(= 2 + 2 + 2 + 3 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 3 distichs).