Sirak 49

¹Yoşiya’nın anısı, bir ıtriyatçının ustalığıyla hazırlanmış bir tütsü karışımı gibidir; her ağızda bal gibi tatlılaşacak ve şarap şölenindeki müzik gibi olacaktır.

²Kendisi, halkın tövbe edip dönmesinde doğru yola yönlendirildi ve yasa tanımazlığın iğrençliklerini ortadan kaldırdı.

³Yüreğini RAB’be yöneltti, yasa tanımazların hüküm sürdüğü günlerde dindarlığı egemen kıldı.

⁴Davut, Hizkiya ve Yoşiya dışında hepsi büyük bir sadakatsizlik gösterdi; çünkü Yüceler Yücesi’nin yasasını terk ettiler ve Yahuda kralları son buldu.

⁵Bu yüzden güçlerini başkalarına, onurlarını ise yabancı bir ulusa teslim ettiler.

⁶Kutsal tapınağın seçkin kentini ateşe verdiler ve Yeremya’nın aracılığıyla yollarını ıssız bıraktılar.

⁷Çünkü ona kötü davrandılar; oysa o, daha ana rahmindeyken kökünden sökmek, yıkmak, yok etmek, aynı şekilde inşa etmek ve dikmek için peygamber olarak kutsanmıştı.

⁸Hezekiel, Keruvlar arabası üzerinde kendisine gösterilen görkem görümünü gördü.

⁹Nitekim düşmanları fırtınalı yağmurda andı ve yolları doğru olanlara iyilik etti.

¹⁰On iki peygamberin kemikleri de bulundukları yerde yeniden filizlensin! Çünkü Yakup’u teselli ettiler ve onları güvenilir bir umutla kurtardılar.

¹¹Zerubbabel’i nasıl yüceltebiliriz? O ki sağ eldeki bir mühür yüzüğü gibiydi.

¹²Yehosadak oğlu Yeşu da öyleydi; onlar kendi günlerinde tapınağı inşa ettiler ve RAB için sonsuz görkeme hazırlanmış kutsal bir halkı yükselttiler.

¹³Nehemya’nın anısı da büyüktür; o ki bizim için yıkılmış surları yeniden ayağa kaldırdı, kapıları ve sürgüleri taktı, evlerimizin arsalarını yeniden inşa etti.

¹⁴Yeryüzünde Hanok gibi yaratılmış hiç kimse olmadı; çünkü o, yeryüzünden yukarı alındı.

¹⁵Yusuf gibi doğmuş bir adam da olmadı; kardeşlerinin önderi, halkın dayanağıydı ve kemikleri gözetildi.

¹⁶Şem ve Şet insanlar arasında onurlandırıldı; yaratılıştaki her canlı varlığın üzerinde ise Adem vardı.

¹ΜΝΗΜΟΣΥΝΟΝ ᾿Ιωσίου εἰς σύνθεσιν θυμιάματος ἐσκευασμένον ἔργῳ μυρεψοῦ· ἐν παντὶ στόματι ὡς μέλι γλυκανθήσεται καὶ ὡς μουσικὰ ἐν συμποσίῳ οἴνου.

²αὐτὸς κατηυθύνθη ἐν ἐπιστροφῇ λαοῦ καὶ ἐξῇρε βδελύγματα ἀνομίας·

³κατεύθυνε πρὸς Κύριον τὴν καρδίαν αὐτοῦ, ἐν ἡμέραις ἀνόμων κατίσχυσε τὴν εὐσέβειαν.—

⁴Πάρεξ Δαυὶδ καὶ ᾿Εζεκίου καὶ ᾿Ιωσίου, πάντες πλημμέλειαν ἐπλημμέλησαν· κατέλιπον γὰρ τὸν νόμον τοῦ ῾Υψίστου, οἱ βασιλεῖς ᾿Ιούδα ἐξέλιπον·

⁵ἔδωκαν γὰρ τὸ κέρας αὐτῶν ἑτέροις καὶ τὴν δόξαν αὐτῶν ἔθνει ἀλλοτρίῳ.

⁶ἐνεπύρισαν ἐκλεκτὴν πόλιν ἁγιάσματος καὶ ἠρήμωσαν τὰς ὁδοὺς αὐτῆς ἐν χειρὶ ῾Ιερεμίου·

⁷ἐκάκωσαν γὰρ αὐτόν, καὶ αὐτὸς ἐν μήτρᾳ ἡγιάσθη προφήτης ἐκριζοῦν καὶ κακοῦν καὶ ἀπολλύειν, ὡσαύτως οἰκοδομεῖν καὶ καταφυτεύειν.

⁸᾿Ιεζεκιὴλ ὃς εἶδεν ὅρασιν δόξης, ἣν ὑπέδειξεν αὐτῷ ἐπὶ ἅρματος Χερουβίμ·

⁹καὶ γὰρ ἐμνήσθη τῶν ἐχθρῶν ἐν ὄμβρῳ καὶ ἀγαθῶσαι τοὺς εὐθύνοντας ὁδούς.

¹⁰καὶ τῶν δώδεκα προφητῶν τὰ ὀστᾶ ἀναθάλοι ἐκ τοῦ τόπου αὐτῶν· παρεκάλεσε δὲ τὸν ᾿Ιακὼβ καὶ ἐλυτρώσατο αὐτοὺς ἐν πίστει ἐλπίδος. -

¹¹Πῶς μεγαλύνωμεν τὸν Ζοροβάβελ; καὶ αὐτὸς ὡς σφραγὶς ἐπὶ δεξιᾶς χειρός,

¹²οὕτως ᾿Ιησοῦς υἱὸς ᾿Ιωσεδέκ, οἳ ἐν ἡμέραις αὐτῶν ᾠκοδόμησαν οἶκον καὶ ἀνύψωσαν λαὸν ἅγιον Κυρίῳ ἡτοιμασμένον εἰς δόξαν αἰῶνος.

¹³καὶ Νεεμίου ἐπὶ πολὺ τὸ μνημόσυνον τοῦ ἐγείραντος ἡμῖν τείχη πεπτωκότα καὶ στήσαντος πύλας καὶ μοχλοὺς καὶ ἀνεγείραντος τὰ οἰκόπεδα ἡμῶν. -

¹⁴Οὐδὲ εἷς ἐκτίσθη οἷος ᾿Ενὼχ τοιοῦτος ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς· καὶ γὰρ αὐτὸς ἀνελήφθη ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς.

¹⁵οὐδὲ ὡς ᾿Ιωσὴφ ἐγεννήθη ἀνὴρ ἡγούμενος ἀδελφῶν, στήριγμα λαοῦ, καὶ τὰ ὀστᾶ αὐτοῦ ἐπεσκέπησαν.

¹⁶Σὴμ καὶ Σὴθ ἐν ἀνθρώποις ἐδοξάσθησαν καὶ ὑπὲρ πᾶν ζῷον ἐν τῇ κτίσει ᾿Αδάμ.

¹The remembrance of Josias is like the composition of the perfume that is made by the art of the apothecary: it is sweet as honey in all mouths, and as musick at a banquet of wine.

²He behaved himself uprightly in the conversion of the people, and took away the abominations of iniquity.

³He directed his heart unto the Lord, and in the time of the ungodly he established the worship of God.

⁴All, except David and Ezekias and Josias, were defective: for they forsook the law of the most High, even the kings of Juda failed.

⁵Therefore he gave their power unto others, and their glory to a strange nation.

⁶They burnt the chosen city of the sanctuary, and made the streets desolate, according to the prophecy of Jeremias.

⁷For they entreated him evil, who nevertheless was a prophet, sanctified in his mother’s womb, that he might root out, and afflict, and destroy; and that he might build up also, and plant.

⁸It was Ezekiel who saw the glorious vision, which was shewed him upon the chariot of the cherubims.

⁹For he made mention of the enemies under the figure of the rain, and directed them that went right.

¹⁰And of the twelve prophets let the memorial be blessed, and let their bones flourish again out of their place: for they comforted Jacob, and delivered them by assured hope.

¹¹How shall we magnify Zorobabel? even he was as a signet on the right hand:

¹²So was Jesus the son of Josedec: who in their time builded the house, and set up an holy temple to the Lord, which was prepared for everlasting glory.

¹³And among the elect was Neemias, whose renown is great, who raised up for us the walls that were fallen, and set up the gates and the bars, and raised up our ruins again.

¹⁴But upon the earth was no man created like Enoch; for he was taken from the earth.

¹⁵Neither was there a young man born like Joseph, a governor of his brethren, a stay of the people, whose bones were regarded of the Lord.

¹⁶Sem and Seth were in great honour among men, and so was Adam above every living thing in creation.