HOLY BIBLE: Wisdom 13 (original) (raw)

1 μάταιοι μὲν γὰρ πάντες ἄνθρωποι φύσει οἷς παρῆν θεοῦ ἀγνωσία καὶ ἐκ τῶν ὁρωμένων ἀγαθῶν οὐκ ἴσχυσαν εἰδέναι τὸν ὄντα οὔτε τοῖς ἔργοις προσέχοντες ἐπέγνωσαν τὸν τεχνίτην 2 ἀλ{L'} ἢ πῦρ ἢ πνεῦμα ἢ ταχινὸν ἀέρα ἢ κύκλον ἄστρων ἢ βίαιον ὕδωρ ἢ φωστῆρας οὐρανοῦ πρυτάνεις κόσμου θεοὺς ἐνόμισαν 3 ὧν εἰ μὲν τῇ καλλονῇ τερπόμενοι ταῦτα θεοὺς ὑπελάμβανον γνώτωσαν πόσῳ τούτων ὁ δεσπότης ἐστὶ βελτίων ὁ γὰρ τοῦ κάλλους γενεσιάρχης ἔκτισεν αὐτά 4 εἰ δὲ δύναμιν καὶ ἐνέργειαν ἐκπλαγέντες νοησάτωσαν ἀ{P'} αὐτῶν πόσῳ ὁ κατασκευάσας αὐτὰ δυνατώτερός ἐστιν 5 ἐκ γὰρ μεγέθους καὶ καλλονῆς κτισμάτων ἀναλόγως ὁ γενεσιουργὸς αὐτῶν θεωρεῖται

1 What folly it argues in man’s nature, this ignorance of God! So much good seen, and he, who is existent Good,[1] not known! Should they not learn to recognise the Artificer by the contemplation of his works? 2 Instead, they have pointed us to fire, or wind, or to the nimble air, wheeling stars, or tempestuous waves, or sun and moon, and made gods of them, to rule the world! 3 Perhaps the beauty of such things bewitched them into mistaking it for divinity? Ay, but what of him who is Master of them all; what excellence must be his, the Author of all beauty, that could make them! 4 Or was it power, and power’s exercise, that awoke their wonderment? Why then, how many times greater must he be, who contrived it! 5 Such great beauty[2] even creatures have, reason is well able to contemplate the Source from which these perfections came.

1

Vani autem sunt omnes homines
in quibus non subest scientia Dei;
et de his quæ videntur bona,
non potuerunt intelligere eum qui est,
neque operibus attendentes agnoverunt quis esset artifex:

2
sed aut ignem, aut spiritum, aut citatum aërem,
aut gyrum stellarum, aut nimiam aquam, aut solem et lunam,
rectores orbis terrarum deos putaverunt. 3
Quorum si specie delectati, deos putaverunt,
sciant quanto his dominator eorum speciosior est:
speciei enim generator hæc omnia constituit. 4
Aut si virtutem et opera eorum mirati sunt,
intelligant ab illis quoniam qui hæc fecit fortior est illis: 5
a magnitudine enim speciei et creaturæ
cognoscibiliter poterit creator horum videri.