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ΣΟΦΙΑ ΣΑΛΩΜΩΝΟΣ | WISDOM OF SOLOMON - Brenton|RSV | Reference |
| 1 | Τοῖς δὲ ὁσίοις σου μέγιστον ἦν φῶς·
ὧν φωνὴν μὲν ἀκούοντες μορφὴν δὲ οὐχ ὁρῶντες,
ὅτι μὲν οὐ κἀκεῖνοι ἐπεπόνθεισαν, ἐμακάριζον,
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But for thy holy ones there was very great light.
Their enemies heard their voices but did not see their forms,
and counted them happy for not having suffered,
| Light shines on the Israelites. Wis.18.1-4 |
| 2 | ὅτι δ' οὐ βλάπτουσιν προηδικημένοι,
ηὐχαρίστουν καὶ τοῦ διενεχθῆναι χάριν ἐδέοντο.
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and were thankful that thy holy ones, though previously wronged, were doing them no injury;
and they begged their pardon for having been at variance with them.
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| 3 | ἀνθ' ὧν πυριφλεγῆ στῦλον ὁδηγὸν μὲν ἀγνώστου ὁδοιπορίας,
ἥλιον δὲ ἀβλαβῆ φιλοτίμου ξενιτείας παρέσχες.
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Therefore thou didst provide a flaming pillar of fire as a guide for thy people's unknown journey,
and a harmless sun for their glorious wandering.
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| 4 | ἄξιοι μὲν γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι στερηθῆναι φωτὸς καὶ φυλακισθῆναι σκότει,
οἱ κατακλείστους φυλάξαντες τοὺς υἱούς σου,
δι' ὧν ἤμελλεν τὸ ἄφθαρτον νόμου φῶς τῷ αἰῶνι δίδοσθαι.
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For their enemies deserved to be deprived of light and imprisoned in darkness,
those who had kept thy sons imprisoned,
through whom the imperishable light of the law was to be given to the world.
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| 5 | Βουλευσαμένους δ' αὐτοὺς τὰ τῶν ὁσίων ἀποκτεῖναι νήπια,
καὶ ἑνὸς ἐκτεθέντος τέκνου καὶ σωθέντος,
εἰς ἔλεγχον τὸ αὐτῶν ἀφείλω πλῆθος τέκνων,
καὶ ὁμοθυμαδὸν ἀπώλεσας ἐν ὕδατι σφοδρῷ.
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When they had resolved to kill the babes of thy holy ones,
and one child had been exposed and rescued,
thou didst in punishment take away a multitude of their children;
and thou didst destroy them all together by a mighty flood.
| Death of the Egyptian first-born. Wis.18.5-19 |
| 6 | ἐκείνη ἡ νὺξ προεγνώσθη πατράσιν ἡμῶν,
ἵνα ἀσφαλῶς εἰδότες οἷς ἐπίστευσαν ὅρκοις ἐπευθυμήσωσιν.
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That night was made known beforehand to our fathers,
so that they might rejoice in sure knowledge of the oaths in which they trusted.
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| 7 | προσεδέχθη ὑπὸ λαοῦ σου
σωτηρία μὲν δικαίων, ἐχθρῶν δὲ ἀπώλεια·
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The deliverance of the righteous and the destruction of their enemies were expected by thy people.
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| 8 | ᾧ γὰρ ἐτιμωρήσω τοὺς ὑπεναντίους,
τούτῳ ἡμᾶς προσκαλεσάμενος ἐδόξασας.
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For by the same means by which thou didst punish our enemies
thou didst call us to thyself and glorify us.
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| 9 | κρυφῇ γὰρ ἐθυσίαζον ὅσιοι παῖδες ἀγαθῶν,
καὶ τὸν τῆς θειότητος νόμον ἐν ὁμονοίᾳ διέθεντο,
τῶν αὐτῶν ὁμοίως καὶ ἀγαθῶν
καὶ κινδύνων μεταλήμψεσθαι τοὺς ἁγίους,
πατέρων ἤδη προαναμέλποντες αἴνους.
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For in secret the holy children of good men offered sacrifices,
and with one accord agreed to the divine law,
that the saints would share alike the same things,
both blessings and dangers;
and already they were singing the praises of the fathers.
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| 10 | ἀντήχει δ' ἀσύμφωνος ἐχθρῶν ἡ βοή,
καὶ οἰκτρὰ διεφέρετο φωνὴ θρηνουμένων παίδων·
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But the discordant cry of their enemies echoed back,
and their piteous lament for their children was spread abroad.
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| 11 | ὁμοίᾳ δὲ δίκῃ δοῦλος ἅμα δεσπότῃ κολασθεὶς,
καὶ δημότης βασιλεῖ τὰ αὐτὰ πάσχων,
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The slave was punished with the same penalty as the master,
and the common man suffered the same loss as the king;
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| 12 | ὁμοθυμαδὸν δὲ πάντες ἐν ἑνὶ ὀνόματι θανάτου
νεκροὺς εἶχον ἀναριθμήτους·
οὐδὲ γὰρ πρὸς τὸ θάψαι οἱ ζῶντες ἦσαν ἱκανοί,
ἐπεὶ πρὸς μίαν ῥοπὴν ἡ ἐντιμοτέρα γένεσις αὐτῶν διέφθαρτο.
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and they all together, by the one form of death, had corpses too many to count.
For the living were not sufficient even to bury them,
since in one instant their most valued children had been destroyed.
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| 13 | πάντα γὰρ ἀπιστοῦντες διὰ τὰς φαρμακείας,
ἐπὶ τῷ τῶν πρωτοτόκων ὀλέθρῳ ὡμολόγησαν θεοῦ υἱὸν λαὸν εἶναι.
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For though they had disbelieved everything because of their magic arts,
yet, when their first-born were destroyed,
they acknowledged thy people to be God's son.
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| 14 | ἡσύχου γὰρ σιγῆς περιεχούσης τὰ πάντα
καὶ νυκτὸς ἐν ἰδίῳ τάχει μεσαζούσης τὰ πάντα,
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For while gentle silence enveloped all things,
and night in its swift course was now half gone,
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| 15 | ὁ παντοδύναμός σου λόγος ἀπ' οὐρανῶν ἐκ θρόνων βασιλείων ἀπότομος πολεμιστὴς εἰς μέσον τῆς ὀλεθρίας ἥλατο γῆς·
ξίφος ὀξὺ τὴν ἀνυπόκριτον ἐπιταγήν σου φέρων,
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thy all-powerful word leaped from heaven, from the royal throne,
into the midst of the land that was doomed,
a stern warrior | |
| 16 | καὶ στὰς ἐπλήρωσεν τὰ πάντα θανάτου·
καὶ οὐρανοῦ μὲν ἥπτετο, βεβήκει δ' ἐπὶ γῆς.
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carrying the sharp sword of thy authentic command,
and stood and filled all things with death,
and touched heaven while standing on the earth.
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| 17 | τότε παραχρῆμα φαντασίαι μὲν ὀνείρων
δεινῶν ἐξετάραξαν αὐτούς,
φόβοι δὲ ἐπέστησαν ἀδόκητοι,
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Then at once apparitions in dreadful dreams greatly troubled them,
and unexpected fears assailed them;
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| 18 | καὶ ἄλλος ἀλλαχῇ ῥιφεὶς ἡμίθνητος
δι' ἣν ἔθνῃσκον αἰτίαν ἐνεφάνιζεν·
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and one here and another there,
hurled down half dead,
made known why they were dying;
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| 19 | οἱ γὰρ ὄνειροι θορυβήσαντες αὐτοὺς τοῦτο προεμήνυσαν,
ἵνα μὴ ἀγνοοῦντες δι' ὃ κακῶς πάσχουσιν ἀπόλωνται.
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for the dreams which disturbed them forewarned them of this,
so that they might not perish without knowing why they suffered.
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| 20 | Ἥψατο δὲ καὶ δικαίων πεῖρα θανάτου,
καὶ θραῦσις ἐν ἐρήμῳ ἐγένετο πλήθους.
ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐπὶ πολὺ ἔμεινεν ἡ ὀργή·
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The experience of death touched also the righteous,
and a plague came upon the multitude in the desert,
but the wrath did not long continue.
| Aaron's saving prayer. Wis.18.20-25 |
| 21 | σπεύσας γὰρ ἀνὴρ ἄμεμπτος προεμάχησεν,
τὸ τῆς ἰδίας λειτουργίας ὅπλον
προσευχὴν καὶ θυμιάματος ἐξιλασμὸν κομίσας·
ἀντέστη τῷ θυμῷ καὶ πέρας ἐπέθηκε τῇ συμφορᾷ,
δεικνὺς ὅτι σός ἐστιν θεράπων·
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For a blameless man was quick to act as their champion;
he brought forward the shield of his ministry,
prayer and propitiation by incense;
he withstood the anger and put an end to the disaster,
showing that he was thy servant.
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| 22 | ἐνίκησεν δὲ τὸν χόλον οὐκ ἰσχύι τοῦ σώματος, οὐχ ὅπλων ἐνεργείᾳ,
ἀλλὰ λόγῳ τὸν κολάζοντα ὑπέταξεν,
ὅρκους πατέρων καὶ διαθήκας ὑπομνήσας.
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He conquered the wrath not by strength of body,
and not by force of arms,
but by his word he subdued the punisher,
appealing to the oaths and covenants given to our fathers.
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| 23 | σωρηδὸν γὰρ ἤδη πεπτωκότων ἐπ' ἀλλήλων νεκρῶν,
μεταξὺ στὰς ἀνέκοψε τὴν ὀργὴν
καὶ διέσχισεν τὴν πρὸς τοὺς ζῶντας ὁδόν.
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For when the dead had already fallen on one another in heaps,
he intervened and held back the wrath,
and cut off its way to the living.
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| 24 | ἐπὶ γὰρ ποδήρους ἐνδύματος ἦν ὅλος ὁ κόσμος,
καὶ πατέρων δόξαι ἐπὶ τετραστίχου λίθων γλυφῆς,
καὶ μεγαλωσύνη σου ἐπὶ διαδήματος κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ.
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For upon his long robe the whole world was depicted,
and the glories of the fathers were engraved on the four rows of stones,
and thy majesty on the diadem upon his head.
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| 25 | τούτοις εἶξεν ὁ ὀλεθρεύων, ταῦτα δὲ ἐφοβήθη·
ἦν γὰρ μόνη ἡ πεῖρα τῆς ὀργῆς ἱκανή.
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To these the destroyer yielded, these he feared;
for merely to test the wrath was enough. | |
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