Sirach · Catholic Public Domain Version
Sirach 43 Catholic Public Domain Version
Notes on this text (3)
- Esther and Daniel are the Vulgate books (Esther 1–16 with the Greek additions as chapters 10:4–16; Daniel 1–14 with the Song of the Three, Susanna and Bel). Baruch 6 is the Letter of Jeremiah.
- The translator's footnotes, cross-references, chapter summaries and book introductions in the CrossWire module are not shown.
- No imprimatur; single translator.
Sirach is not in RV1909.
1 The firmament on high is his beauty; it is the beauty of heaven in a vision of glory.
·
2 The sun, at its appearance, announces its journey; it is an instrument of wonder, a work of the Most High.
·
3 At midday, it scorches the earth. And in the presence of its heat, who would be able to endure? It is like the custodian of a furnace in its works of heat.
·
4 In three ways, the sun acts: scorching the mountains, emitting fiery rays, and shining with its beams that can blind the eyes.
·
5 Great is the Lord who made it, and at his word, it hurries on its journey.
·
6 And the moon, in all its phases, serves to mark the seasons and to be a sign of the times.
·
7 From the moon is the sign of a feast day; it is a light which diminishes at its consummation.
·
8 A month is named according to its phases, increasing wonderfully at its culmination.
·
9 It is an instrument of the armies on high, shining gloriously in the firmament of heaven.
·
10 The glory of the stars is the beauty of heaven; the Lord illuminates the world from on high.
·
11 At the words of the Holy One, they stand for judgment, and they will never fail in their vigilance.
·
12 Consider the rainbow, and bless the One who made it; it is very beautiful in its splendor.
·
13 It encompasses the heavens with the circle of its glory; the hands of the Most High made it appear.
·
14 By his order, he hastens the snow, and he spurs on the lightning to express his judgment.
·
15 In like manner, his storehouses are opened, and the clouds fly out like birds.
·
16 By his greatness, he has positioned the clouds, and the hailstones have been broken.
·
17 At his glance, the mountains will be shaken, and by his will, the south wind will blow.
·
18 The voice of his thunder will reverberate through the earth, by a storm from the north, and by a gathering of the whirlwind.
·
19 And like the birds landing in a flock upon the earth, he sends down the snow; and its descent is like the arrival of a swarm of locusts.
·
20 The eye is in wonder at the beauty of its whiteness, and the heart is astonished at its falling.
·
21 He will pour out frost like salt upon the earth. And when it freezes, it will become like the tops of thistles.
·
22 The cold north wind blows, and the water freezes into crystals; it will rest upon every gathering of water, and it will clothe the water like a breastplate.
·
23 And it will devour the mountains, and burn the wilderness, and extinguish the greenery, like a fire.
·
24 Relief for all is in the hurried arrival of a cloud. And the lowly dew will arrive to meet the heat and overpower it.
·
25 At his word, the wind grows quiet, and by his thought, he appeases the abyss, for the Lord has planted islands in it.
·
26 Let those who navigate the sea describe its perils. And when we have heard it with our ears, we will wonder.
·
27 There are illustrious and wondrous works: the various kinds of wild animals, and all manner of cattle, and the great creatures of the sea.
·
28 Through him, the end of their journey is confirmed, and by his word, all things fit together.
·
29 We can say much, and yet still lack for words. But the consummation of our words is this: He is in all things.
·
30 What would we be able to do to glorify him? For the Almighty himself is above all his own works.
·
31 The Lord is terrible, and exceedingly great, and his power is wonderful.
·
32 Glorify the Lord as much as you are able, yet still he will far exceed this. For his magnificence is beyond wonder.
·
33 Bless the Lord and exalt him, as much as you are able. But he is beyond all praise.
·
34 When you exalt him, use all your ability, and do not cease in this labor. For you can never comprehend him.
·
35 Who will see him and explain? And who will magnify him, as he is from the beginning?
·
36 There are many things, hidden from us, which are greater than these things. For we have seen but a few of his works.
·
37 But the Lord has made all things, and he has given wisdom to those who act with piety.
·
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
… powerless to express in words our gratitude for the benefits which we are actually receiving; for He "passes all understanding," and convicts speech of its natural inability even to approach His dignity in the least degree; as it is written in the Book of Wisdom, "Exalt Him as much as you can, for even yet will He far exceed; and …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 8 (1895)