King James Version · Under the Greeks
Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 30
Touch any underlined name to see who or where it is.
1He that loveth his son causeth him oft to feel the , that he may have joy of him in the end. 2He that chastiseth his son shall have joy in him, and shall rejoice of him among his acquaintance. 3He that teacheth his son grieveth : and before his friends he shall rejoice of him. 4Though his , yet he is as though he were not : for he hath left one behind him that is like himself. 5While he lived, he saw and rejoiced in him: and when he , he was not sorrowful. 6He left behind him an against his , and one that shall requite kindness to his friends. 7He that maketh too much of his son shall bind up his wounds; and his bowels will be troubled at every cry. 8An horse not broken becometh headstrong: and a child left to himself will be wilful. 9Cocker thy child, and he shall make thee afraid: play with him, and he will bring thee to heaviness. 10Laugh not with him, lest thou have sorrow with him, and lest thou gnash thy teeth in the end. 11Give him no in his youth, and wink not at his follies. 12 his neck while he is young, and beat him on the sides while he is a child, lest he wax , and be unto thee, and so bring sorrow to thine . 13 thy son, and hold him to labour, lest his lewd behaviour be an offence unto thee. 14Better is , being sound and strong of constitution, than a rich man that is afflicted in his body. 15Health and good estate of body are above all gold, and a strong body above infinite wealth. 16There is no riches above a sound body, and no joy above the joy of . 17 is better than a bitter life or continual sickness. 18Delicates poured upon a shut up are as messes of meat set upon a . 19What good doeth the unto an idol? for neither can it eat nor smell: so is he that is persecuted of . 20He seeth with his eyes and groaneth, as an that embraceth a virgin and sigheth. 21Give not over thy to heaviness, and afflict not thyself in thine own . 22The gladness of is the life of man, and the joyfulness of a man prolongeth his days. 23Love thine own , and comfort thy , remove sorrow far from thee: for sorrow hath killed many, and there is no profit therein. 24Envy and shorten the life, and carefulness bringeth age before the time. 25A cheerful and good will have a care of his meat and diet.
The 1611 translation, public domain. Its original printing included the Apocrypha, which is why the deuterocanonical books can be read here. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · Under the Greeks, 332 BC to 63 BC ›
Alexander's conquest and the kingdoms of his successors. Greek language and custom press in everywhere, and the crisis under Antiochus IV provokes the Maccabean revolt.
- The successors
- Alexander dies at thirty-two and his generals carve up the empire. Judea sits on the border between the Ptolemies in Egypt and the Seleucids in Syria, and is fought over by both for a century and a half, which is the ordinary condition of the corridor.
- Hellenism
- Not just conquest but a culture: the gymnasium, the theatre, Greek names, Greek dress, Greek as the language of anyone with ambitions. Some Jews embraced it, some resisted it, and the argument between them is the real subject of the Maccabean books. In Alexandria the Hebrew scriptures are translated into Greek, producing the Septuagint, which is the Bible most New Testament writers quote.
- The crisis
- Antiochus IV bans the practice of Judaism, plunders the temple, and sets up a pagan altar in it in 167 BC. The revolt under the Maccabees wins, the temple is rededicated in 164 BC, which is the origin of Hanukkah, and Judea has about eighty years of independence under the Hasmoneans before Rome arrives.
- Further afield
- Rome fights Carthage three times and ends up master of the Mediterranean. Euclid writes the Elements and Archimedes does his work at Syracuse. In China the Qin unify the country in 221 BC and the Han follow, opening what becomes the Silk Road.
All of Sirach (Ecclesiasticus)