1 For the ungodly said, reasoning with themselves, but not aright, Our life is short and tedious, and in the death of a man there is no remedy: neither was there any man known to have returned from the grave. 2 For we are born at all adventure: and we shall be hereafter as though we had never been: for the breath in our nostrils is as smoke, and a little spark in the moving of our heart: 3 Which being extinguished, our body shall be turned into ashes, and our spirit shall vanish as the soft air, 4 And our name shall be forgotten in time, and no man shall have our works in remembrance, and our life shall pass away as the trace of a cloud, and shall be dispersed as a mist, that is driven away with the beams of the sun, and overcome with the heat thereof. 5 For our time is a very shadow that passeth away; and after our end there is no returning: for it is fast sealed, so that no man cometh again. 6 Come on therefore, let us enjoy the good things that are present: and let us speedily use the creatures like as in youth. 7 Let us fill ourselves with costly wine and ointments: and let no flower of the spring pass by us: 8 Let us crown ourselves with rosebuds, before they be withered: 9 Let none of us go without his part of our voluptuousness: let us leave tokens of our joyfulness in every place: for this is our portion, and our lot is this. 10 Let us oppress the poor righteous man, let us not spare the widow, nor reverence the ancient gray hairs of the aged. 11 Let our strength be the law of justice: for that which is feeble is found to be nothing worth. 12 Therefore let us lie in wait for the righteous; because he is not for our turn, and he is clean contrary to our doings: he upbraideth us with our offending the law, and objecteth to our infamy the transgressings of our education. 13 He professeth to have the knowledge of God: and he calleth himself the child of the Lord. 14 He was made to reprove our thoughts. 15 He is grievous unto us even to behold: for his life is not like other men's, his ways are of another fashion. 16 We are esteemed of him as counterfeits: he abstaineth from our ways as from filthiness: he pronounceth the end of the just to be blessed, and maketh his boast that God is his father. 17 Let us see if his words be true: and let us prove what shall happen in the end of him. 18 For if the just man be the son of God, he will help him, and deliver him from the hand of his enemies. 19 Let us examine him with despitefulness and torture, that we may know his meekness, and prove his patience. 20 Let us condemn him with a shameful death: for by his own saying he shall be respected. 21 Such things they did imagine, and were deceived: for their own wickedness hath blinded them. 22 As for the mysteries of God, they kn ew them not: neither hoped they for the wages of righteousness, nor discerned a reward for blameless souls. 23 For God created man to be immortal, and made him to be an image of his own eternity. 24 Nevertheless through envy of the devil came death into the world: and they that do hold of his side do find it. |
1 εἶπον γὰρ ἐν ἑαυτοῖς λογισάμενοι οὐκ ὀρθῶς ὀλίγος ἐστὶν καὶ λυπηρὸς ὁ βίος ἡμῶν καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἴασις ἐν τελευτῇ ἀνθρώπου καὶ οὐκ ἐγνώσθη ὁ ἀναλύσας ἐξ ᾅδου 2 ὅτι αὐτοσχεδίως ἐγενήθημεν καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο ἐσόμεθα ὡς οὐχ ὑπάρξαντες ὅτι καπνὸς ἡ πνοὴ ἐν ῥισὶν ἡμῶν καὶ ὁ λόγος σπινθὴρ ἐν κινήσει καρδίας ἡμῶν 3 οὗ σβεσθέντος τέφρα ἀποβήσεται τὸ σῶμα καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα διαχυθήσεται ὡς χαῦνος ἀήρ 4 καὶ τὸ ὄνομα ἡμῶν ἐπιλησθήσεται ἐν χρόνῳ καὶ οὐθεὶς μνημονεύσει τῶν ἔργων ἡμῶν καὶ παρελεύσεται ὁ βίος ἡμῶν ὡς ἴχνη νεφέλης καὶ ὡς ὁμίχλη διασκεδασθήσεται διωχθεῖσα ὑπὸ ἀκτίνων ἡλίου καὶ ὑπὸ θερμότητος αὐτοῦ βαρυνθεῖσα 5 σκιᾶς γὰρ πάροδος ὁ καιρὸς ἡμῶν καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἀναποδισμὸς τῆς τελευτῆς ἡμῶν ὅτι κατεσφραγίσθη καὶ οὐδεὶς ἀναστρέφει 6 δεῦτε οὖν καὶ ἀπολαύσωμεν τῶν ὄντων ἀγαθῶν καὶ χρησώμεθα τῇ κτίσει ὡς ἐν νεότητι σπουδαίως 7 οἴνου πολυτελοῦς καὶ μύρων πλησθῶμεν καὶ μὴ παροδευσάτω ἡμᾶς ἄνθος ἔαρος 8 στεψώμεθα ῥόδων κάλυξιν πρὶν ἢ μαρανθῆναι 9 μηδεὶς ἡμῶν ἄμοιρος ἔστω τῆς ἡμετέρας ἀγερωχίας πανταχῇ καταλίπωμεν σύμβολα τῆς εὐφροσύνης ὅτι αὕτη ἡ μερὶς ἡμῶν καὶ ὁ κλῆρος οὗτος 10 καταδυναστεύσωμεν πένητα δίκαιον μὴ φεισώμεθα χήρας μηδὲ πρεσβύτου ἐντραπῶμεν πολιὰς πολυχρονίους 11 ἔστω δὲ ἡμῶν ἡ ἰσχὺς νόμος τῆς δικαιοσύνης τὸ γὰρ ἀσθενὲς ἄχρηστον ἐλέγχεται 12 ἐνεδρεύσωμεν τὸν δίκαιον ὅτι δύσχρηστος ἡμῖν ἐστιν καὶ ἐναντιοῦται τοῖς ἔργοις ἡμῶν καὶ ὀνειδίζει ἡμῖν ἁμαρτήματα νόμου καὶ ἐπιφημίζει ἡμῖν ἁμαρτήματα παιδείας ἡμῶν 13 ἐπαγγέλλεται γνῶσιν ἔχειν θεοῦ καὶ παῖδα κυρίου ἑαυτὸν ὀνομάζει 14 ἐγένετο ἡμῖν εἰς ἔλεγχον ἐννοιῶν ἡμῶν βαρύς ἐστιν ἡμῖν καὶ βλεπόμενος 15 ὅτι ἀνόμοιος τοῖς ἄλλοις ὁ βίος αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐξηλλαγμέναι αἱ τρίβοι αὐτοῦ 16 εἰς κίβδηλον ἐλογίσθημεν αὐτῷ καὶ ἀπέχεται τῶν ὁδῶν ἡμῶν ὡς ἀπὸ ἀκαθαρσιῶν μακαρίζει ἔσχατα δικαίων καὶ ἀλαζονεύεται πατέρα θεόν 17 ἴδωμεν εἰ οἱ λόγοι αὐτοῦ ἀληθεῖς καὶ πειράσωμεν τὰ ἐν ἐκβάσει αὐτοῦ 18 εἰ γάρ ἐστιν ὁ δίκαιος υἱὸς θεοῦ ἀντιλήμψεται αὐτοῦ καὶ ῥύσεται αὐτὸν ἐκ χειρὸς ἀνθεστηκότων 19 ὕβρει καὶ βασάνῳ ἐτάσωμεν αὐτόν ἵνα γνῶμεν τὴν ἐπιείκειαν αὐτοῦ καὶ δοκιμάσωμεν τὴν ἀνεξικακίαν αὐτοῦ 20 θανάτῳ ἀσχήμονι καταδικάσωμεν αὐτόν ἔσται γὰρ αὐτοῦ ἐπισκοπὴ ἐκ λόγων αὐτοῦ 21 ταῦτα ἐλογίσαντο καὶ ἐπλανήθησαν ἀπετύφλωσεν γὰρ αὐτοὺς ἡ κακία αὐτῶν 22 καὶ οὐκ ἔγνωσαν μυστήρια θεοῦ οὐδὲ μισθὸν ἤλπισαν ὁσιότητος οὐδὲ ἔκριναν γέρας ψυχῶν ἀμώμων 23 ὅτι ὁ θεὸς ἔκτισεν τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἐπ᾽ ἀφθαρσίᾳ καὶ εἰκόνα τῆς ἰδίας ἀϊδιότητος ἐποίησεν αὐτόν 24 φθόνῳ δὲ διαβόλου θάνατος εἰσῆλθεν εἰς τὸν κόσμον πειράζουσιν δὲ αὐτὸν οἱ τῆς ἐκείνου μερίδος ὄντες |
1 [Dixerunt enim cogitantes apud se non recte: 2 Quia ex nihilo nati sumus, 3 qua extincta, cinis erit corpus nostrum, 4 Et nomen nostrum oblivionem accipiet per tempus, 5 Umbræ enim transitus est tempus nostrum, 6 Venite ergo, et fruamur bonis quæ sunt, 7 Vino pretioso et unguentis nos impleamus, 8 Coronemus nos rosis antequam marcescant; 9 nemo nostrum exsors sit luxuriæ nostræ. 10 Opprimamus pauperem justum, et non parcamus viduæ, 11 sit autem fortitudo nostra lex justitiæ; 12 Circumveniamus ergo justum, quoniam inutilis est nobis, 13 Promittit se scientiam Dei habere, 14 Factus est nobis in traductionem cogitationum nostrarum. 15 Gravis est nobis etiam ad videndum, 16 Tamquam nugaces æstimati sumus ab illo, 17 Videamus ergo si sermones illius veri sint, 18 Si enim est verus filius Dei, suscipiet illum, 19 Contumelia et tormento interrogemus eum, 20 Morte turpissima condemnemus eum; 21 Hæc cogitaverunt, et erraverunt: 22 Et nescierunt sacramenta Dei: 23 Quoniam Deus creavit hominem inexterminabilem, 24 Invidia autem diaboli mors introivit in orbem terrarum: 25 imitantur autem illum qui sunt ex parte illius.] |