Sirach · King James Version (with Apocrypha)
Sirach 43 King James Version (with Apocrypha)
Sirach is not in RV1909.
1 The pride of the height, the clear firmament, the beauty of heaven, with his glorious shew;
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2 The sun when it appeareth, declaring at his rising a marvellous instrument, the work of the most High:
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3 At noon it parcheth the country, and who can abide the burning heat thereof?
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4 A man blowing a furnace is in works of heat, but the sun burneth the mountains three times more; breathing out fiery vapours, and sending forth bright beams, it dimmeth the eyes.
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5 Great is the Lord that made it; and at his commandment runneth hastily.
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6 He made the moon also to serve in her season for a declaration of times, and a sign of the world.
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7 From the moon is the sign of feasts, a light that decreaseth in her perfection.
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8 The month is called after her name, increasing wonderfully in her changing, being an instrument of the armies above, shining in the firmament of heaven;
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9 The beauty of heaven, the glory of the stars, an ornament giving light in the highest places of the Lord.
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10 At the commandment of the Holy One they will stand in their order, and never faint in their watches.
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11 Look upon the rainbow, and praise him that made it; very beautiful it is in the brightness thereof.
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12 It compasseth the heaven about with a glorious circle, and the hands of the most High have bended it.
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13 By his commandment he maketh the snow to fall aplace, and sendeth swiftly the lightnings of his judgment.
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14 Through this the treasures are opened: and clouds fly forth as fowls.
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15 By his great power he maketh the clouds firm, and the hailstones are broken small.
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16 At his sight the mountains are shaken, and at his will the south wind bloweth.
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17 The noise of the thunder maketh the earth to tremble: so doth the northern storm and the whirlwind: as birds flying he scattereth the snow, and the falling down thereof is as the lighting of grasshoppers:
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18 The eye marvelleth at the beauty of the whiteness thereof, and the heart is astonished at the raining of it.
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19 The hoarfrost also as salt he poureth on the earth, and being congealed, it lieth on the top of sharp stakes.
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20 When the cold north wind bloweth, and the water is congealed into ice, it abideth upon every gathering together of water, and clotheth the water as with a breastplate.
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21 It devoureth the mountains, and burneth the wilderness, and consumeth the grass as fire.
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22 A present remedy of all is a mist coming speedily, a dew coming after heat refresheth.
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23 By his counsel he appeaseth the deep, and planteth islands therein.
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24 They that sail on the sea tell of the danger thereof; and when we hear it with our ears, we marvel thereat.
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25 For therein be strange and wondrous works, variety of all kinds of beasts and whales created.
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26 By him the end of them hath prosperous success, and by his word all things consist.
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27 We may speak much, and yet come short: wherefore in sum, he is all.
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28 How shall we be able to magnify him? for he is great above all his works.
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29 The Lord is terrible and very great, and marvellous is his power.
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30 When ye glorify the Lord, exalt him as much as ye can; for even yet will he far exceed: and when ye exalt him, put forth all your strength, and be not weary; for ye can never go far enough.
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31 Who hath seen him, that he might tell us? and who can magnify him as he is?
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32 There are yet hid greater things than these be, for we have seen but a few of his works.
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33 For the Lord hath made all things; and to the godly hath he given wisdom.
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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)