King James Version · Under the Greeks
Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 51
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1I will thank thee, O and King, and thee, O my : I do give unto thy name: 2For thou art my defender and helper, and has preserved my body from , and from the snare of the slanderous , and from that forge lies, and has been mine helper against mine : 3And hast me, according to of they and greatness of thy name, from the teeth of them that were ready to devour me, and out of the hands of such as sought after my life, and from the manifold afflictions which I had; 4From the choking of on every side, and from the midst of the which I kindled not; 5From the depth of the belly of hell, from an , and from lying words. 6By an accusation to the king from an unrighteous drew near even unto , my life was near to the hell beneath. 7They compassed me on every side, and there was no man to help me: I looked for the succour of men, but there was none. 8Then thought I upon thy mercy, O , and upon thy acts of old, how thou deliverest such as wait for thee, and savest them out of the hands of the . 9Then lifted I up my supplications from the earth, and for from . 10I called upon , of my , that he would not leave me in the days of my trouble, and in the time of the proud, when there was no help. 11I will thy name continually, and will sing with ; and so my was heard: 12For thou savedst me from , and deliveredst me from the evil time: therefore will I give thanks, and thee, and they name, O . 13When I was yet young, or ever I went abroad, I openly in my . 14I for her before , and will seek her out even to the end. 15Even from the flower till the grape was ripe hath delighted in her: my foot went the right way, from my youth up sought I after her. 16I mine ear a little, and received her, and gat much learning. 17I profited therein, therefore will I ascribe unto him that giveth me . 18For I purposed to do after her, and earnestly I followed that which is good; so shall I not be confounded. 19 hath wrestled with her, and in my doings I was exact: I stretched forth my hands to the above, and bewailed my ignorances of her. 20I directed unto her, and I found her in pureness: I have had joined with her , therefore shall I not be forsaken. 21 was troubled in seeking her: therefore have I gotten a good possession. 22 hath given me a for my reward, and I will him therewith. 23Draw near unto me, ye unlearned, and in the house of learning. 24Wherefore are ye slow, and what say ye to these things, seeing your are very thirsty? 25I opened my , and said, Buy her for yourselves without money. 26Put your neck under the , and let your receive : she is hard at hand to find. 27Behold with your eyes, how that I have but little labour, and have gotten unto me much rest. 28Get learning with a great sum of money, and get much gold by her. 29Let your rejoice in his mercy, and be not of his . 30Work your work betimes, and in his time he will give you your reward.
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)