Sirach 44:1–50:29

Sirach 44:1–50:29

Chapter 44 marks the beginning of Book Three and the final major part of Sirach. Divine wisdom is not only manifest in the natural world; it is most visible in the heroic figures of biblical history. Following an introduction (44:1–15), Ben Sira praises Israel’s famous ancestors, beginning with an overview of the early patriarchs (44:16–23); then Moses, Aaron, and Phinehas (45:1–26); Joshua, Caleb, the Judges, and Samuel (46:1–20); Nathan and David (47:1–11); Solomon and the divided kingdom (47:12–25); the prophets Elijah and Elisha in the northern kingdom of Israel (48:1–16); Hezekiah and Isaiah in the southern kingdom of Judah (48:17–25); and finally King Josiah, the great prophets, and the postexilic heroes of Israel (49:1–16). This section presents the most extensive survey of salvation history found in Scripture.See also Jdt 5:5–21; Pss 78; 105; 106; 135; 136; Wis 10; 1 Macc 2:51–60; Acts 7:2–53. Ben Sira stresses the importance of remembering these pious men so that others may learn from their wisdom. He also highlights the significance of liturgical worship, as seen in Aaron’s prominent role and the detailed description of the ministry of Simeon the high priest (50:1–24), before concluding with a brief mention of Judah’s neighbors and an author’s postscript (50:25–29).

¹Let us now praise famous men,
and our fathers in their generations.
²The Lord apportioned to them great glory,
his majesty from the beginning.
³There were those who ruled in their kingdoms,
and were men renowned for their power,
giving counsel by their understanding,
and proclaiming prophecies;
⁴leaders of the people in their deliberations
and in understanding of learning for the people,
wise in their words of instruction;
⁵those who composed musical tunes,
and set forth verses in writing;
⁶rich men furnished with resources,
living peaceably in their habitations—
⁷all these were honored in their generations,
and were the glory of their times.
⁸There are some of them who have left a name,
so that men declare their praise.
⁹And there are some who have no memorial,
who have perished as though they had not lived;
they have become as though they had not been born,
and so have their children after them.
¹⁰But these were men of mercy,
whose righteous deeds have not been forgotten;
¹¹their prosperity will remain with their descendants,
and their inheritance to their children’s children.
¹²Their descendants stand by the covenants;
their children also, for their sake.
¹³Their posterity will continue for ever,
and their glory will not be blotted out.
¹⁴Their bodies were buried in peace,
and their name lives to all generations.
¹⁵Peoples will declare their wisdom,
and the congregation proclaims their praise.

OT: Job 21:8; Ps 112:6; Prov 10:7; Wis 8:13; Sir 39:8–11; 41:6–13 NT: Matt 26:13; Heb 11:1–40

Catechism: communion of saints, 946–59; memory of the saints, 1090

Lectionary: 44:1, 10–15: Sts. Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary

[44:1–2]

The Greek text adds the title “Hymn of the Fathers,” and the Hebrew, “Praise of the Fathers of Old.” Ben Sira sets out to praise famous men (Hebrew: “men of mercy” or “devout men,” compare 44:10)—that is, the heroes of the faith and fathers of generations past who left a lasting memory. As a reward for their faith and wisdom, the Lord apportioned to them his own glory and gave them a share in his majesty from the beginning of time.

[44:3–6]

Ben Sira lists twelve categories of heroes worthy of praise because they shared in God’s glory. Some ruled in their kingdoms, like David and Solomon (47:1–22), or were renowned for their power, such as Joshua, Caleb, the Judges, and Samuel (46:1–20). Others were counselors who gave advice by their understanding, like Nathan and Isaiah (47:1; 48:20–22), or seers who proclaimed prophecies, such as Elijah, Elisha, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the twelve minor prophets (48:1–16; 49:8–10). Still others were leaders of the people (Hebrew: “princes of nations”), like Joseph, Zerubbabel, and Nehemiah (49:11–15), or lawgivers who, in their deliberations and understanding of the people’s learning, provided guiding rules, like Moses (44:23–45:5). Some were ^†sages, wise in their words of instruction or “skilled in composition” and “speakers of proverbs in keeping their traditions” (Hebrew), like Solomon and Ben Sira himself. Others composed musical tunes, like David, or set forth verses in writing, such as Solomon and Hezekiah (Isa 38:9–20). Among these were rich men furnished with resources, such as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Sir 44:19–23), and those who lived peaceably in their habitations, like Job before and after his trials (Job 1:1–5; 42:10–17).

[44:7–9]

All these godly heroes were honored and given glory during their lifetimes. Some left a name and were remembered long after their deaths: their good reputation outlived them, and people continued to praise them in Ben Sira’s time and beyond (39:9–11; 41:12–13). Yet others have no memorial and were utterly forgotten, having perished as though they had neither lived nor been born (compare Job 10:19; Obad 16), along with their children. Ben Sira may be referring to holy men who, unfortunately, have remained unknown (Wis 3:1–3), or, perhaps more likely in light of Sir 41:6–13, to godless men who are rightly forgotten.

[44:10–13]

In contrast to the many saints and sinners whose memory has faded into oblivion, Ben Sira now recalls famous men of mercy (44:1), godly men whose righteous deeds were neither forgotten nor lost at their deaths but remain with their descendants as an inheritance for many generations to come (45:25–26; Job 21:8). Their godly legacy is preserved because their descendants still faithfully uphold God’s covenantsSee Sir 17:12; 24:23; 28:7; 39:8; 45:15, 24–25.,² honoring the memory of their ancestors. It is through this generational faithfulness that the posterity of these righteous heroes will continue for ever—in other words, they will always have living descendants—and their glory will never fade or be blotted out.

Sinners Are Forgotten
Rabanus Maurus reflects on how, in the end, the wicked will leave no lasting memory and will be entirely forgotten:

The godless and sinners were not worthy of memory, because if the Scripture says something of them, it does so not to praise them but to blame. In the psalm it is written of them, “The fortresses of the enemy have been pulled down forever, the memory of the city you destroyed has disappeared. Their memory has disappeared with a roar” [Ps 9:6]. At the end of the world, in fact, to the devil’s joy, those who it has been determined belong to his city will fall, and their memory will perish with a fantastic din when they go to eternal punishment.Rabanus Maurus, On Ecclesiasticus 10.1, in Sever J. Voicu, ed., Apocrypha, ACCS:OT 15 (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2010), 385.

[44:14–15]

The bodies of these heroes in the faith were given an honorable burial, so they rest in peace, and their name lives on in the memory of future generations, who remember them for ages to come (41:11–13; Ps 112:6; Wis 8:13). Peoples continue to declare their wisdom—as Ben Sira does here—and the congregation (Greek ekklēsia) of God’s people—first Israel and later the Church (ekklēsia)—proclaims their praise, just as it honors the scribe and sage (Sir 39:10).

¹⁶Enoch pleased the Lord, and was taken up;
he was an example of repentance to all generations.

¹⁷Noah was found perfect and righteous;
in the time of wrath he was taken in exchange;
therefore a remnant was left to the earth
when the flood came.

¹⁸Everlasting covenants were made with him
that all flesh should not be blotted out by a flood.

¹⁹Abraham was the great father of a multitude of nations,
and no one has been found like him in glory;
²⁰he kept the law of the Most High,
and was taken into covenant with him;
he established the covenant in his flesh,
and when he was tested he was found faithful.

²¹Therefore the Lord assured him by an oath
that the nations would be blessed through his posterity;
that he would multiply him like the dust of the earth,
and exalt his posterity like the stars,
and cause them to inherit from sea to sea
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
²²To Isaac also he gave the same assurance
for the sake of Abraham his father.

²³The blessing of all men and the covenant
he made to rest upon the head of Jacob;
he acknowledged him with his blessings,
and gave him his inheritance;
he determined his portions,
and distributed them among twelve tribes.

OT: Gen 5:24; 6–9; 12–22; 26–28; 49
NT: Matt 1:1–2; Acts 7:1–8; Rom 4:1–25; Gal 3:6–18; Heb 11:5–22; 2 Pet 2:5
Catechism: the covenants with Noah and Abraham, 56–61

[44:16]

Ben Sira praises the early patriarchs of the book of Genesis. Interestingly, he skips over Adam and begins his overview of salvation history with Enoch, who pleased the Lord (Hebrew: “walked with the Lord”) and was taken up to heaven (Gen 5:24; see Sir 49:14). While Genesis does not specify why God “took” Enoch, Ben Sira asserts that he was an example of repentance to all generations. This interpretation is a theological development, as there is no record in earlier texts of Enoch sinning and repenting. The Hebrew text of Sirach instead states that he was “a sign of knowledge to all generations.” According to other traditions, God took him to preserve him from evil (Wis 4:10–14; Heb 11:5).

[44:17–18]

Noah was the only one found perfect and righteous in his generation (Gen 6:9; 7:1; 2 Pet 2:5); in the time of wrath, when God destroyed the world with the flood because of the sins of humankind (Gen 6:11–13), he was taken in exchange (literally, “he became an exchange”) for the human race, or “renewed the race” (NABRE). Noah, his wife, their three sons, and their wives (Gen 7:13) constituted the surviving remnant left to repopulate the earth after the flood wiped out all living beings. The Lord made everlasting covenants with Noah (Hebrew: “by an eternal sign [God] sealed it with him”), promising that he would never again blot out all flesh by means of a flood. The sign of God’s pledge not to flood the earth again was the rainbow (Gen 9:12–17).

Enoch Walked with God
Drawing inspiration from the apocryphal Apocalypse of Peter (second century), Rabanus Maurus comments on the taking up of Enoch to heaven and anticipates his future return alongside Elijah at the end of the world. Rabanus is likely identifying Enoch and Elijah with the two witnesses who will be martyred by the antichrist according to the book of Revelation (Rev 11:3–11).

Enoch . . . walked with God and was taken up into paradise [Gen 5:24]. And in this way the splendor of the saints shines, because from the pains of this world they are taken up to the peace of the heavenly kingdom. It is believed that he will return together with Elijah at the end of the world, to counsel men and women so that they would turn from their sins to repentance. In this way, together with his companion, he will pay the debt of death in the persecution of the antichrist.Rabanus Maurus, On Ecclesiasticus 10.3 (Voicu, Apocrypha, 386).

a. Rabanus Maurus, On Ecclesiasticus 10.3 (Voicu, Apocrypha, 386).

[44:19–20]

Abraham was the great father of a multitude of nations (Gen 17:4–5), beginning with Israel; thus, he remains unsurpassed in glory (Hebrew: “he kept his glory without stain”). The assertion that he kept the law of the Most High seems anachronistic, since the ⁺Torah was given to Israel centuries after Abraham. Yet God says of Abraham in Gen 26:5 that he “kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.” On the basis of this verse, ancient Jewish commentaries hold that Abraham kept the law even before it had been revealed to Israel. Abraham also entered into a covenant with God, sealed in his flesh with the sign of circumcision (Gen 17:9–11). Yet it is when he was tested and proved himself willing to sacrifice his son Isaac that he was found faithful (Gen 22:1–19; 1 Macc 2:52; Heb 11:17).

[44:21]

Because of Abraham’s faithfulness, the Lord assured him with a solemn, binding oath that he would bless all nations through his descendants (Gen 22:16–18). The Lord promised to multiply him like the dust of the earth (Gen 13:16), exalt his posterity like the stars (15:5), and cause his descendants, the children of Israel, to inherit the land of Canaan from sea to sea (perhaps the Red Sea to the Mediterranean), and from the River to the ends of the earth—a hyperbole possibly encompassing the area between the Euphrates and the Mediterranean coast (Exod 23:31; Deut 11:24; Josh 1:4).

[44:22–23]

To Abraham’s son Isaac also the Lord gave the same assurance (Gen 26:3–6, 24), promising to establish his universal blessing and covenant with Isaac’s son Jacob, whom God renamed “Israel” (32:28; 35:10)—even though Jacob deceived Isaac into giving him the blessing of the firstborn that belonged to his elder brother, Esau (27:1–29; 28:3–4, 13–15). Despite this, God gave him his inheritance, the land of Israel, which he divided into portions and distributed among his twelve sons, the fathers of the twelve tribes of Israel (Gen 35:22–26; 49:1–28).

¹From his descendants the Lord brought forth a man of mercy,
who found favor in the sight of all flesh
and was beloved by God and man,
Moses, whose memory is blessed.
²He made him equal in glory to the holy ones,
and made him great in the fears of his enemies.
³By his words he caused signs to cease;
the Lord glorified him in the presence of kings.
He gave him commands for his people,
and showed him part of his glory.
⁴He sanctified him through faithfulness and meekness;

he chose him out of all mankind.
⁵He made him hear his voice,
and led him into the thick darkness,
and gave him the commandments face to face,
the law of life and knowledge,
to teach Jacob the covenant,
and Israel his judgments.

OT: Exod 2; 7–12; 20; 33–34; Num 12
NT: Heb 3:1–6
Catechism: the Mosaic covenant, 62–63

[45:1]

Somewhat surprisingly, Ben Sira omits Joseph (Gen 37–50) and goes directly from Jacob to the book of Exodus, covering the figures of Moses (Sir 45:1–5), Aaron (45:6–22), and Phinehas (45:23–26). From Jacob’s descendants, the twelve tribes of Israel, the Lord brought forth a man of mercy (44:10), who found favor before all people—including Pharaoh’s daughter (Exod 2:5–10), Reuel and his daughters (2:16–22), and the Egyptians (11:3)—and was beloved by God (33:11; Num 12:7–8) and man. This man of mercy is, of course, Moses, who led the Israelites out of Egypt and whose memory is blessed in perpetuity (compare Sir 39:9; 44:10–15).

[45:2–3]

The Lord made Moses equal in glory to the holy ones—that is, the angels (42:17; Exod 34:29–30)—and fearsome to his enemies. By Moses’s words God swiftly unleashed the ten plagues upon the Egyptians (Exod 7–12; Deut 4:34; 26:8) and then caused the plagues to cease, thus glorifying Moses in the presence of kings—namely, Pharaoh (Exod 7:1–7). God gave him commands for his people—the ^†Decalogue and other precepts of the ^†Torah—and showed him part of his glory by allowing Moses to see his “back” (Exod 33:18–23; 34:5–8).

[45:4–5]

The Lord sanctified Moses and set him apart because of his faithfulness and meekness (Num 12:3–8; Heb 3:2, 5), choosing him out of all mankind (literally, “from all flesh”) to lead Israel out of Egypt and mediate God’s covenant with them. God allowed Moses to hear his voice at Mount Sinai (Exod 33:11; Deut 4:36), led him into the cloud and thick darkness of his presence (Exod 20:21; 24:18), and personally gave him the commandments, including the Decalogue (Exod 20; 32:15; Deut 6:1), as part of his divinely revealed word, the Torah, which imparts life and knowledge to those who observe it (Sir 17:11; Lev 18:5; Deut 30:15–16; Ezek 20:11). The purpose of the Sinai revelation was to teach Jacob—a synonym for Israel (Ps 147:19)—God’s covenant and judgments so they could live as his holy people.

Leaving Spiritual Egypt

Rabanus Maurus interprets the exodus from Egyptian slavery to the promised land †typologically as fulfilled in Christ and in the Christian life, leading from the slavery of sin to eternal life in heaven:

Under the guidance of Christ, the Law freed the faithful from the spiritual Egypt and from the power of the true pharaoh by the waters of baptism, so that in the desert of this world, instructed and taught by the divine precepts, they would reach the promised land, the heavenly homeland, where they will have every good thing in abundance and will enjoy eternal life.Rabanus Maurus, On Ecclesiasticus 10.8 (Voicu, Apocrypha, 388).

a. Rabanus Maurus, On Ecclesiasticus 10.8 (Voicu, Apocrypha, 388).

⁶He exalted Aaron, the brother of Moses,
a holy man like him, of the tribe of Levi.
⁷He made an everlasting covenant with him,
and gave him the priesthood of the people.
He blessed him with splendid vestments,
and put a glorious robe upon him.
⁸He clothed him with superb perfection,
and strengthened him with the symbols of authority,
the linen breeches, the long robe, and the ephod.
⁹And he encircled him with pomegranates,
with very many golden bells round about,
to send forth a sound as he walked,
to make their ringing heard in the temple
as a reminder to the sons of his people;
¹⁰with a holy garment, of gold and blue
and purple, the work of an embroiderer;
with the oracle of judgment, Urim and Thummim;
¹¹with twisted scarlet, the work of a craftsman;
with precious stones engraved like signets,
in a setting of gold, the work of a jeweler,
for a reminder, in engraved letters,
according to the number of the tribes of Israel;
¹²with a gold crown upon his turban,
inscribed like a signet with “Holiness,”
a distinction to be prized, the work of an expert,
the delight of the eyes, richly adorned.
¹³Before his time there never were such beautiful things.
No outsider ever put them on,
but only his sons
and his descendants perpetually.
¹⁴His sacrifices shall be wholly burned
twice every day continually.
¹⁵Moses ordained him,
and anointed him with holy oil;
it was an everlasting covenant for him
and for his descendants all the days of heaven,
to minister to the Lord and serve as priest
and bless his people in his name.
¹⁶He chose him out of all the living
to offer sacrifice to the Lord,
incense and a pleasing odor as a memorial portion,
to make atonement for the people.
¹⁷In his commandments he gave him
authority in statutes and judgments,
to teach Jacob the testimonies,
and to enlighten Israel with his law.
¹⁸Outsiders conspired against him,
and envied him in the wilderness,
Dathan and Abiram and their men
and the company of Korah, in wrath and anger.
¹⁹The Lord saw it and was not pleased,
and in the wrath of his anger they were destroyed;
he wrought wonders against them
to consume them in flaming fire.
²⁰He added glory to Aaron
and gave him a heritage;
he allotted to him the first of the first fruits,
he prepared bread of first fruits in abundance;
²¹for they eat the sacrifices to the Lord,
which he gave to him and his descendants.
²²But in the land of the people he has no inheritance,
and he has no portion among the people;
for the Lord himself is his portion and inheritance.
²³Phinehas the son of Eleazar is the third in glory,
for he was zealous in the fear of the Lord,
and stood fast, when the people turned away,
in the ready goodness of his soul,
and made atonement for Israel.
²⁴Therefore a covenant of peace was established with him,
that he should be leader of the sanctuary and of his people,
that he and his descendants should have
the dignity of the priesthood for ever.
²⁵A covenant was also established with David,
the son of Jesse, of the tribe of Judah:
the heritage of the king is from son to son only;
so the heritage of Aaron is for his descendants.
²⁶May the Lord grant you wisdom in your heart
to judge his people in righteousness,
so that their prosperity may not vanish,
and that their glory may endure throughout their generations.

OT: Exod 28–29; Num 16; 18; 25; Ps 106:30–31; 1 Macc 2:54

NT: Heb 5:1–6; 7:11

Catechism: Old Covenant priesthood, 1539–43

[45:6–7]

The Lord exalted Aaron, the brother of Moses—both of whom were sons of Amram and Jochebed (Exod 4:14; 6:20). Aaron was also a holy man, sanctified by virtue of his priesthood (Ps 106:16), of the tribe of Levi, the fourth son of Jacob (Gen 29:34; Exod 2:1–2; 4:14). God made an everlasting covenant with Aaron, granting him and his sons the priesthood, which would remain in his genealogical line (Exod 29:4–9, 44; 40:13–15). The Lord blessed Aaron with splendid priestly vestments and a glorious robe, which Ben Sira describes at length (Sir 45:8–13; Exod 28:1–4). Aaron’s prominence in this chapter highlights the importance of the priesthood for Ben Sira, given its central role in communicating God’s wisdom to Israel through the temple liturgy (Sir 24:10–12; 50:1–21).

[45:8–9]

The Lord clothed Aaron with superb perfection and beauty (50:11; Exod 28:2, 40), dignifying him with symbols of divine authority as represented by the priestly garments, which included the linen breeches or undergarments (Exod 28:42–43), the long blue robe (28:31–35), and the ephod—a decorative apron of gold, blue, purple, and scarlet yarns that the high priest wore over the robe (28:6–14). God encircled Aaron with decorative pomegranates knitted of blue, purple, and scarlet stuff (28:33), alternating with golden bells on the lower hem of the robe (28:34). These bells rang as the high priest walked around in the temple, reminding the assembly that he was ministering inside the sanctuary (28:35).

[45:10–11]

The holy garment, of gold and blue and purple likely refers to the embroidered ephod (Exod 28:6–14). The oracle of judgment is the breastpiece, made from a piece of square cloth (28:15–30), in which were kept the Urim and Thummim (literally, “the decider of truth”), small objects (perhaps similar to dice) used to determine God’s will (Sir 33:3; Num 27:21; 1 Sam 14:41). The breastpiece was made of twisted scarlet (Exod 28:15) and featured twelve precious stones engraved like signets, arranged in four rows of three in a setting of gold, representing the twelve tribes of Israel (28:17–21, 29).

Figure 11. The high priest ministering in the sanctuary [ArtMari / Shutterstock]

[45:12–13]

The high priest also wore a gold crown or plate upon his turban (Exod 28:36–38; 29:6), inscribed like a signet with a seal of “Holiness” (the inscription “holy to the Lord,” according to Exod 39:30). Wearing this crown was a distinction to be prized and a high honor for the high priest, whose beautiful ornament was a delight to the eyes of all who saw him. Ben Sira emphasizes that before Aaron’s time such beautiful things had never existed. Since the garments symbolized his role as mediator between God and the people, no outsider ever put them on; they were strictly reserved for Aaron’s sons and their descendants perpetually (Exod 29:29).

[45:14–15]

As for the high priest’s liturgical functions, his sacrifices were to be wholly burned twice every day continually—one lamb in the morning and one in the evening (Exod 29:38–42; Num 28:3–8). Moses instituted the priestly ministry when he ordained Aaron and anointed him with holy oil (Lev 8:12), establishing the everlasting covenant of the priesthood to last all the days of heaven—that is, as long as creation endures (Sir 45:7; Deut 11:21; Ps 89:29)—to minister to the Lord on behalf of Israel (Exod 28:41) and bless his people in his name with the solemn priestly blessing (Num 6:23–27).

The Garments of the High Priest
Although Ben Sira does not explain the symbolism of the high priest’s garments, other †Second Temple texts from the two centuries after him shed light on what he likely intended. The Wisdom of Solomon asserts that upon Aaron’s robe “the whole world was depicted” (Wis 18:24), suggesting that, for the Jews of that period, the high priest represented not only Israel but all of humanity and indeed the entire world before God. The Jewish philosopher Philo (ca. 20 BC–AD 50) depicts in detail the cosmic symbolism of the high priest’s garments:

[117] Such was the vesture of the high priest. But I must not leave untold its meaning and that of its parts. We have in it as a whole and in its parts a typical representation of the world and its particular parts. . . . [131] In setting a turban on the priest’s head, instead of a diadem, he expresses his judgement that he who is consecrated to God is superior when he acts as a priest to all others, not only the ordinary laymen, but even kings. . . . [133] Thus is the high priest arrayed when he sets forth to his holy duties, in order that when he enters to offer the ancestral prayers and sacrifices there may enter with him the whole universe, as signified in the types of it which he brings upon his person, the long robe a copy of the air, the pomegranate of water, the flower trimming of earth, the scarlet of fire, the ephod of heaven, the circular emeralds on the shoulder-tops with the six engravings in each of the two hemispheres which they resemble in form, the twelve stones on the breast in four rows of threes of the zodiac, the reason-seat of that Reason which holds together and administers all things. [134] For he who has been consecrated to the Father of the world must needs have that Father’s Son [i.e., the world] with all His fullness of excellence to plead his cause, that sins may be remembered no more and good gifts showered in rich abundance. [135] . . . For, as he wears a vesture which represents the world, his first duty is to carry the pattern enshrined in his heart, and so be in a sense transformed from a man into the nature of the world; and . . . be himself a little world, a microcosm.Philo, On the Life of Moses 2.117, 131–35, in Philo, trans. F. H. Colson and G. H. Whitaker, vol. 6, Loeb Classical Library 289 (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1935), 506–16. See also Josephus, Antiquities 3.7.7.

[45:16–17]

The Lord chose Aaron, despite his flaws, from the entire human race to offer him sacrifice, the priests’ primary role (Lev 1–7), with incense as a symbol of prayer. The grain offering consumed by fire, together with the incense, produced a pleasing odor as a memorial portion that would symbolically “remind” the Lord of his people (Sir 35:7; Lev 2:2, 9, 16). The primary purpose of the sacrifices was to make atonement and obtain the forgiveness of sins for the people (Lev 4:20, 31; 16:32–34). In his commandments the Lord also gave Aaron and the priests authority in statutes and judgments: they were entrusted with the task of teaching God’s testimonies, enlightening Israel with his law, making judicial decisions in upholding its observance (Lev 10:11; Deut 17:10–12; 21:5). The authority that God granted to the Aaronic priests prefigures the authority that Jesus would later give to his apostles (Matt 16:18–19; 18:18).

[45:18–19]

Aaron’s priestly authority did not remain unchallenged. Outsiders, not from his lineage and ineligible to be priests, conspired against him and sought to seize his priestly authority when they envied him in the wilderness (Num 16:1–35). Dathan and Abiram, along with their men from the tribe of Reuben, joined forces with the company of Korah—a Levite, but not a descendant of Aaron (Num 16:1)—to rise up against Aaron in wrath and anger. This rebellion against the priesthood greatly displeased the Lord, who in the wrath of his anger put an end to it by causing the earth to open up and swallow the rebels (Num 16:31–33); he wrought wonders against the other 250 men who had joined the rebellion by consuming them in flaming fire (Num 16:35).

[45:20–21]

After Korah’s rebellion, the Lord added glory to Aaron and gave him a heritage by increasing his priestly rights, privileges, and responsibilities (Num 18:1–7). He reserved the best portion of the first fruits, the first part of the harvest, for the priests (Num 18:11–13), and prepared bread of first fruits in abundance—possibly the bread of the presence that was kept in the sanctuary and eaten by the priests (Lev 24:5–9). The priests also ate part of the sacrifices offered to the Lord, which were reserved for Aaron and his descendants (Num 18:8–10).

[45:22] Yet priestly privileges came at a cost. In the land of Israel the priest or Levite had no inheritance or portion of territory among the people like the other tribes, for the Lord himself was their portion and inheritance. Serving God in his sanctuary was considered a higher privilege than owning land (Num 18:20; Deut 18:1; Josh 13:14).

[45:23–24]

Phinehas the son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron (Exod 6:25) is the third in glory after Moses and Aaron, for he was zealous in the fear of the Lord. Phinehas stood fast in faithfulness when the people turned away in rebellion at Shittim and committed sexual sin with the daughters of Moab (Num 25:1–5). With courageous resolve, he made atonement for Israel, opposing evil by killing an Israelite idolater and fornicator, along with his Midianite concubine, thereby averting God’s wrath and halting a devastating plague. As a reward for his zeal, God established a covenant of peace with him, the “covenant of the perpetual priesthood” originally given to Aaron, appointing him leader of the sanctuary and of his people, and granting him and his descendants the dignity of the high priesthood for ever (Sir 45:7; Num 25:1–13; Ps 106:30–31; 1 Macc 2:54).

[45:25–26]

Just as the royal covenant with David is a hereditary covenant, where kingship is passed down through David’s genealogical line from son to son only (2 Sam 7:11–16; 2 Chron 13:5; Ps 89:3–4), so the heritage of Aaron, the priesthood, is reserved for his descendants. Ben Sira concludes this section with a short prayer of blessing addressed to the priests of his own day. The first sentence appears only in the Hebrew: “And now bless the Lord who has crowned you with glory” (NRSV, ESV-CE, NABRE). Ben Sira prays that the Lord grant the priests wisdom to judge his people in righteousness, as stipulated by the law, so that their prosperity may not vanish, and their success, honor, and glory may endure for all generations to come (50:1–24).

Zeal against the Flesh

Rabanus Maurus interprets Phinehas’s godly zeal as a type of the zeal and intolerance of evil that Christians should demonstrate in combating the disordered desires of their flesh. If they do this successfully, they will share in Christ’s eternal priesthood and kingdom:

Whoever, moved by godly zeal, makes an effort to suppress the impulses of his flesh or reproves and restrains those under him, so as to not let them deviate from the truth out of lust and sexual desire, will have the dignity of the eternal priesthood in the church of God, which rightly belongs to that priest of whom it is written, “Like Melchizedek, you are a priest forever” [Ps 110:4]. He will possess, with him, the eternal kingdom in heavenly light.Rabanus Maurus, On Ecclesiasticus 10.10 (Voicu, Apocrypha, 391).

¹Joshua the son of Nun was mighty in war,
and was the successor of Moses in prophesying.
He became, in accordance with his name,
a great savior of God’s elect,
to take vengeance on the enemies that rose against them,
so that he might give Israel its inheritance.
²How glorious he was when he lifted his hands
and stretched out his sword against the cities!
³Who before him ever stood so firm?
For he waged the wars of the Lord.
⁴Was not the sun held back by his hand?
And did not one day become as long as two?
⁵He called upon the Most High, the Mighty One,
when enemies pressed him on every side,
⁶and the great Lord answered him
with hailstones of mighty power.
He hurled down war upon that nation,

and at the descent of Beth-horon he destroyed those who resisted,
so that the nations might know his armament,
that he was fighting in the sight of the Lord;
for he wholly followed the Mighty One.
⁷And in the days of Moses he did a loyal deed,
he and Caleb the son of Jephunneh:
they withstood the congregation,
restrained the people from sin,
and stilled their wicked murmuring.
⁸And these two alone were preserved
out of six hundred thousand people on foot,
to bring them into their inheritance,
into a land flowing with milk and honey.
⁹And the Lord gave Caleb strength,
which remained with him to old age,
so that he went up to the hill country,
and his children obtained it for an inheritance;
¹⁰so that all the sons of Israel might see
that it is good to follow the Lord.

¹¹The judges also, with their respective names,
those whose hearts did not fall into idolatry
and who did not turn away from the Lord—
may their memory be blessed!
¹²May their bones revive from where they lie,
and may the name of those who have been honored
live again in their sons!

¹³Samuel, beloved by his Lord,
a prophet of the Lord, established the kingdom
and anointed rulers over his people.
¹⁴By the law of the Lord he judged the congregation,
and the Lord watched over Jacob.
¹⁵By his faithfulness he was proved to be a prophet,
and by his words he became known as a trustworthy seer.
¹⁶He called upon the Lord, the Mighty One,
when his enemies pressed him on every side,
and he offered in sacrifice a sucking lamb.
¹⁷Then the Lord thundered from heaven,
and made his voice heard with a mighty sound;
¹⁸and he wiped out the leaders of the people of Tyre
and all the rulers of the Philistines.
¹⁹Before the time of his eternal sleep,
Samuel called men to witness before the Lord and his anointed:
“I have not taken any one’s property,
not so much as a pair of shoes.”
And no man accused him.
²⁰Even after he had fallen asleep he prophesied
and revealed to the king his death,
and lifted up his voice out of the earth in prophecy,
to blot out the wickedness of the people.

OT: Num 13–14; Josh 8; 10; 14:6–15; Judg 1–16; 1 Sam 7–12; 28
NT: Acts 3:24; Heb 11:32–34
Catechism: fortitude, 1808

[46:1]

Joshua the son of Nun, also called Hoshea, was from the tribe of Ephraim (Exod 17:9–13; Num 13:8). He was mighty in war as he led the Israelites in the conquest of the promised land. As Moses’s successor (Hebrew: “aide”) in prophesying (Exod 24:13; 33:11), he came to be recognized as a prophet like his mentor. The book of Joshua is the first of the “former prophets” in the Jewish canon of Scripture. True to his name—Joshua means “the Lord saves”—he became a great savior of God’s elect, the people of Israel, by defeating their enemies, the Amorites (Josh 10:6–14), and giving Israel its inheritance, the land of Canaan (Deut 1:38; 3:28; Josh 11:23).

[46:2–3]

Joshua was glorious when he lifted his hands as a signal for his army to attack the city of Ai (Josh 8:18–19, 26), and when he brandished his sword against the Canaanite cities that the Israelites conquered. No one could withstand him (Josh 1:5), for he waged the wars of the Lord—the true commander-in-chief who led Israel into battle (Josh 1:5; 10:14).

[46:4–6]

Ben Sira marvels at the miracle when the sun stood still at Joshua’s command, so that one day became as long as two, enabling the Israelites to defeat the Amorite kings at Gibeon (Josh 10:6–14). Joshua called upon the Most High when his enemies threatened him on every side, and the great Lord delivered Israel by hurling devastating hailstones upon the Amorites. This occurred at the descent of Beth-horon—twin cities (Lower and Upper Beth-horon) between the territories of Ephraim and Benjamin, about twelve miles northeast of Jerusalem (Josh 10:11; 16:3, 5). There Joshua destroyed Israel’s foes, so that the nations might know his armament—that is, the source of his military strength, that he was waging war on behalf of the Lord. Joshua’s obedience was the key to his victory, for he wholly followed the Mighty One.

[46:7]

Returning to the wilderness period in the days of Moses, Joshua did a loyal deed, along with Caleb the son of Jephunneh from the tribe of Judah (Num 13:6), as two of the twelve spies whom Moses sent to scout the land of Canaan. When the people murmured and rebelled, Joshua and Caleb alone supported Moses in the plan to conquer the promised land: they withstood the congregation when everyone wanted to go back to Egypt, restrained the people from sin by exhorting them to trust in God, thereby averting his wrath (Hebrew, NABRE), and stilled their wicked murmuring against Moses and Aaron (Num 13:30–14:10).

[46:8]

Because of their faithfulness and courage, these two alone, Joshua and Caleb, were spared among the six hundred thousand people who wandered through the wilderness on foot for nearly forty years (16:10; Num 11:21; 14:30; 26:65). They alone, as members of the first generation, survived the wanderings and were led by God into their promised inheritance, the prosperous land of Canaan, flowing with milk and honey (Exod 3:8; Deut 6:3).

[46:9–10]

Pleased with his servant, the Lord gave Caleb strength even into old age. At eighty-five (Josh 14:6–11), Caleb conquered the hill country populated by the Anakim (Josh 14:12), and his descendants possessed it as an inheritance long after his death (Num 14:24; Josh 14:9, 13–15). The Lord made Caleb prosper so that all the sons of Israel would recognize in Caleb’s enduring inheritance that it is good to obey, trust, and follow the Lord.

[46:11–12]

The judges who led Israel after the conquest, such as Othniel, Ehud, Deborah, Barak, Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson, were key political and military leaders from the death of Joshua until the time of Samuel. However, Ben Sira acknowledges that several of them were not exemplary models of faith. He prays for those who did not succumb to idolatry or abandon the Lord, asking that their memory be blessed and that they may always be remembered and honored (35:7; 39:9). In a rare Old Testament allusion to the resurrection of the dead, Ben Sira wishes that their bones might revive from where they lie (49:10; Ezek 37:1–14) and that the name and memory of those honored in their lifetimes might live again in their sons (Sir 44:10–15; Tob 4:12).

[46:13]

Samuel is a transitional figure marking the shift between the judges and the founding of the Israelite kingdom. He was beloved by his Lord for his irreproachable character and recognized as a prophet both during his lifetime (1 Sam 3:19–20) and after his death (2 Chron 35:18; Acts 3:24; 13:20). He established the kingdom and anointed Israel’s first two kings, Saul (1 Sam 9:27–10:1) and David (16:3). This verse differs notably in the Hebrew, which emphasizes Samuel’s unique consecration to God even before his birth: “Beloved of his people and dear to his Maker, pledged in a vow from his mother’s womb, a Nazirite of the Lord in the prophetic office, was Samuel, judge and officiating priest. By the word of God he established the kingdom and anointed princes over the people” (compare NABRE).

[46:14–15]

In contrast to the often questionable leadership of many judges, Samuel ruled by the law of the Lord, calling the people to return to God and his commandments (1 Sam 7:3–6), thereby securing the Lord’s protection over Jacob (Israel). By his faithfulness he earned an excellent reputation among the people as a prophet (1 Sam 9:6), and by the integrity of his words people recognized him as a trustworthy seer, whose visions were dependable (1 Sam 9:9, 11, 18–19).

[46:16–18]

Samuel was a powerful intercessor: like Joshua (46:5), he prayed to the mighty Lord when his enemies, the Philistines, pressed him on every side at Mizpah, and he offered a young lamb as a whole burnt offering (1 Sam 7:5–9) to God. In response, the Lord heard his prayer, thundered from heaven with a mighty voice, and routed the leaders of the people of Tyre (Hebrew: “the leaders of the enemy”The Hebrew text is probably more accurate, given that Tyre is not mentioned in 1 Sam 7:7–14. The Hebrew words for “Tyre” and “enemy” are very close.) and the rulers of the Philistines (1 Sam 7:10–14).

[46:19–20]

Before the time of his eternal sleep, near the end of his life, Samuel called a representative group of the people of Israel to testify before the Lord and his anointed, King Saul, that he had not taken any one’s property during his time as judge of Israel. Aware of his irreproachable conduct, no man accused him of any wrongdoing (1 Sam 12:1–5). Even after his death Samuel prophesied when King Saul—in violation of the Torah’s prohibition against necromancy (Deut 18:9–14)—consulted him via the medium of Endor (1 Sam 28:3–19), revealing to the king that he would die the very next day. Samuel spoke prophetically after his death to blot out the wickedness of the people, perhaps in the sense that Saul’s death and Israel’s defeat on Mount Gilboa (1 Sam 31:1–6) atoned for their disobedience and sins.

Ben Sira’s survey of the conquest period under Joshua’s leadership highlights the value of fortitude (also called courage, strength, or might). Fortitude is “the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good” (Catechism 1808). It is an essential virtue in situations of war, where soldiers, facing an enemy, risk serious injury or death. Without fortitude, an army would be doomed to defeat.
While many people today rarely, if ever, find themselves in such life-threatening situations, they are no less in need of fortitude, for it is the virtue that “strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome obstacles in the moral life.” In a world filled with pressures tempting us to compromise with sin, Christians must exercise fortitude not only to follow God’s commandments steadfastly but also to fearlessly resist evil in word and deed, even when this draws mockery or persecution. Fortitude “enables one to conquer fear, even fear of death, and to face trials and persecutions,” even disposing one “to renounce and sacrifice his life in defense of a just cause” (Catechism 1808).
The Israelites’ refusal to conquer the promised land, coupled with their desire to return to Egypt, stemmed not only from unbelief but also from a lack of fortitude, or cowardice (Num 13:25–14:10). Cowardice is not the same as fear. A coward is dominated and paralyzed by fear, allowing it to drive his actions and leading him to avoid difficulties at all costs. While there is much to fear in life—such as the prospect of losing one’s health, job, financial security, a loved one, or many other things—a courageous person keeps fear in check and has the strength of character to take risks in pursuit of a higher good, serving God and neighbor.
While fortitude is an †acquired virtue that grows through practice (i.e., a person who repeats small acts of courage eventually becomes a courageous person), it is also one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. This gift is a grace that perfects the virtue of fortitude in the soul (Isa 11:1–2; Catechism 1831), helping people to remain steadfast in the face of dangers while instilling in them a confident hope for eternal life.Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae II-II q. 139 a. 1. Therefore, we should both practice the virtue of fortitude and also pray that God may grant us this great gift.

¹And after him Nathan rose up
to prophesy in the days of David.
²As the fat is selected from the peace offering,
so David was selected from the sons of Israel.
³He played with lions as with young goats,
and with bears as with lambs of the flock.
⁴In his youth did he not kill a giant,
and take away reproach from the people,
when he lifted his hand with a stone in the sling
and struck down the boasting of Goliath?
⁵For he appealed to the Lord, the Most High,
and he gave him strength in his right hand
to slay a man mighty in war,
to exalt the power of his people.
⁶So they glorified him for his ten thousands,
and praised him for the blessings of the Lord,
when the glorious diadem was bestowed upon him.
⁷For he wiped out his enemies on every side,
and annihilated his adversaries the Philistines;
he crushed their power even to this day.
⁸In all that he did he gave thanks
to the Holy One, the Most High, with ascriptions of glory;
he sang praise with all his heart,
and he loved his Maker.
⁹He placed singers before the altar,
to make sweet melody with their voices.
¹⁰He gave beauty to the feasts,
and arranged their times throughout the year,
while they praised God’s holy name,

and the sanctuary resounded from early morning.
¹¹The Lord took away his sins,
and exalted his power for ever;
he gave him the covenant of kings
and a throne of glory in Israel.

OT: 1 Sam 16–17; 2 Sam 5–8; 11–12; 1 Chron 15:16; 16:4–6
NT: Matt 1:1; 17; 21:9; Luke 1:31–32; Rom 1:3
Catechism: Jesus, son of David, 437, 439, 559; David’s envy and repentance, 2538; David’s prayer, 2579

[47:1–2]

After Samuel, Nathan rose up to prophesy in the days of David. By proceeding from Samuel to Nathan, Ben Sira emphasizes the succession of prophets in Israel. Nathan announced God’s covenant with David (2 Sam 7:4–17), rebuked him for his adultery with Bathsheba (2 Sam 12:1–15), and oversaw Solomon’s accession to the throne (1 Kings 1:8–45). As the fat portions—considered the best, richest parts—were selected from the peace offering to be burned on the altar (Lev 3:3–5), so David was selected from the sons of Israel to be God’s “choice portion” for royalty (1 Sam 16:4–13).

[47:3–5]

David demonstrated his courage and strength when he played with lions as with young goats, and with bears as with lambs—not literally, but he fought and killed them to protect his flock (1 Sam 17:34–36). Most notably, in his youth he killed the Philistine giant Goliath, removing the reproach and shame that Goliath had brought upon Israel when he defied their army (17:26). By hurling a stone with his sling and striking Goliath on the forehead, David silenced his boasting and restored honor to Israel (17:49–50). David defeated Goliath not by his own strength but by his faith in God (17:37, 45–47): because he called upon the Lord, he received the strength needed to slay a man mighty in war (17:33) and exalt the power of his people by securing victory for them.

[47:6–7]

After David’s victory over Goliath, the young Israelite women glorified him for his ten thousands of slain enemies and praised him for the Lord’s blessings (1 Sam 18:6–7) when the glorious diadem—the royal crown—was bestowed upon him and he became king. During his reign, David defeated his enemies on every side, winning military victories against the Philistines (2 Sam 5:17–25; 8:1; 21:15–22), as well as against the Moabites, Syrians, Edomites, and Ammonites (2 Sam 8:2–14; 10:1–19). He crushed their power so thoroughly that the Philistines had virtually disappeared by Ben Sira’s time.

[47:8–9]

In all his memorable deeds David gave thanks and glory to God. He sang praise with all his heart, as attested in the many psalms he authored, and loved his Maker wholeheartedly, fulfilling the great commandment of the †Shema (Deut 6:4–5). He placed musicians and singers before the altar of sacrifices to sing sweet melody to the Lord. David reformed and expanded Israel’s liturgical worship by appointing the Levites as singers and musicians in the tabernacle service, which would later be succeeded by the temple of Solomon (1 Chron 15:16; 16:4–6).

[47:10]

Through his liturgical reforms and institution of liturgical praise (1 Chron 23:30–32), David added great beauty to the Israelite feasts, solemnizing these sacred times throughout the year as stipulated by the †Torah (Lev 23). As long as the Levites praised God’s holy name, the sanctuary resounded with singing, giving glory to God from early morning until evening (Ps 57:8).

[47:11]

Because David humbly repented, the Lord took away his sins, most notably his adultery with Bathsheba and the ensuing murder of her husband Uriah (2 Sam 11:1–17; 12:13). Despite his faults, God exalted David’s power by perpetuating the royal covenant with his descendants, establishing a throne of glory in Israel and ensuring that his royal dynasty would endure forever (2 Sam 7:12–16; Ps 89:28–29).

¹²After him rose up a wise son
who fared amply because of him;
¹³Solomon reigned in days of peace,
and God gave him rest on every side,
that he might build a house for his name
and prepare a sanctuary to stand for ever.
¹⁴How wise you became in your youth!
You overflowed like a river with understanding.
¹⁵Your soul covered the earth,
and you filled it with parables and riddles.
¹⁶Your name reached to far-off islands,
and you were loved for your peace.
¹⁷For your songs and proverbs and parables,
and for your interpretations, the countries marveled at you.
¹⁸In the name of the Lord God,
who is called the God of Israel,
you gathered gold like tin
and amassed silver like lead.
¹⁹But you laid your loins beside women,
and through your body you were brought into subjection.
²⁰You put stain upon your honor,
and defiled your posterity,
so that you brought wrath upon your children
and they were grieved at your folly,
²¹so that the sovereignty was divided
and a disobedient kingdom arose out of Ephraim.
²²But the Lord will never give up his mercy,
nor cause any of his works to perish;

he will never blot out the descendants of his chosen one,
nor destroy the posterity of him who loved him;
so he gave a remnant to Jacob,
and to David a root of his stock.

²³Solomon rested with his fathers,
and left behind him one of his sons,
ample in folly and lacking in understanding,
Rehoboam, whose policy caused the people to revolt.
Also Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin
and gave to Ephraim a sinful way.
²⁴Their sins became exceedingly many,
so as to remove them from their land.
²⁵For they sought out every sort of wickedness,
till vengeance came upon them.

OT: Deut 17:17; 1 Kings 3–6; 10–12; 2 Kings 17; Ps 89:29–38
NT: Matt 1:6–7; 12:42; Acts 7:47–49
Catechism: Jesus, greater than Solomon, 590; the temple of Solomon, 2580

[47:12–13]

After David came a wise son (1 Kings 5:7) who lived in security and prosperity on account of David’s merits (11:12–13, 32–36). Solomon—whose name means “his peace”—reigned during a time of unprecedented peace, stability, and prosperity in Israel, as God gave him rest from his enemies on every side (4:20–21; 5:4). This enabled Solomon to build a house for the Lord’s name—the Jerusalem temple (5:5; 6:1–38) or sanctuary (1 Chron 22:19)—which was hoped to endure for ever. Ancient Jews viewed the temple as a microcosm that sustained the existence of the world (Ps 78:69).See the commentary on Sir 50:1–21 below.

[47:14–17]

Ben Sira addresses Solomon in the second person: How wise you became in your youth, at the beginning of your reign (1 Kings 3:9–12; 4:29–34; 10:1–8). Solomon overflowed like a river with understanding, reflecting wisdom herself (Sir 24:30–31; 39:22). His soul or understanding covered the earth, and his influence was far-reaching thanks to his many deep parables and riddles (1 Kings 4:32). Solomon’s fame extended even to far-off islands, making him renowned everywhere (10:1–13), and he was loved for his peace—a pun on Solomon’s name, alluding to his peaceful reign. His songs, proverbs, and parables were known far and wide (4:32), and his interpretations of wisdom sayings (10:1–3) earned him the admiration of many nations (4:34).

[47:18–19]

In the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, Solomon became so rich that he gathered gold and silver as abundantly as cheap, ordinary metals like tin and lead (1 Kings 10:14–17; 27). Amassing such excessive wealth, however, violated the law of the king, which prohibited multiplying wives, silver, and gold (Deut 17:17). Even more gravely, Solomon abandoned himself to women, becoming notorious for having seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines (1 Kings 11:1–8). Through the misuse of his body and sexuality, he was brought into subjection to his passions (Prov 31:3).

[47:20–21]

By violating the law of the king (Deut 17:17), Solomon not only dishonored himself but also defiled his posterity, bringing divine wrath and punishment upon his children, who suffered much trouble because of his folly. Due to his sins, Israel’s sovereignty was divided, with the kingdom split in two (1 Kings 12:16–20). A disobedient kingdom arose when the ten northern tribes—led by Ephraim—rebelled against Solomon’s son Rehoboam, seceded from Judah, and formed the kingdom of Israel. This division began a long decline that ultimately ended with the exile of both kingdoms.

[47:22]

Despite Solomon’s sins, the Lord pledged by covenant to never withdraw his mercy from his people, nor let any of his works or promises fail, nor blot out the descendants of his chosen one, David, who loved him. Because of David’s faithfulness, the Lord provided a faithful remnant to Jacob (Israel) even amid the nation’s decline, and to David a root and lineage through which the Davidic line would endure forever (2 Sam 7:14–16; 1 Kings 11:13, 39; Ps 89:29–38).

[47:23]

Solomon died and rested with his fathers (1 Kings 11:43), leaving behind him one of his sons to rule after him—a son who, in contrast to his father, was foolish and imprudent. This was Rehoboam, who by harshly increasing the yoke of servitude upon the ten northern tribes caused the people to revolt. In response, Jeroboam the son of Nebat led the northern tribes in their split from Judah (1 Kings 12:1–19) and then led Israel to sin by erecting two idolatrous golden calves in Bethel and Dan (14:16).

[47:24–25]

Over the next few centuries, Israel’s sins multiplied exceedingly, until the Lord removed them from their land when the Assyrians deported the northern kingdom in 722 BC (2 Kings 17:20–23). Without restraint, they pursued every sort of wickedness (1 Kings 21:20, 25; 2 Kings 17:17), until divine vengeance came upon them. This fulfilled the warnings of the ^†Torah, which stated that the Lord would send Israel into exile if they persisted in rebelling against him (Deut 28:15–68; 2 Kings 17:20–23).

¹Then the prophet Elijah arose like a fire,
and his word burned like a torch.
²He brought a famine upon them,
and by his zeal he made them few in number.
³By the word of the Lord he shut up the heavens,
and also three times brought down fire.
⁴How glorious you were, O Elijah, in your wondrous deeds!

And who has the right to boast which you have?
⁵You who raised a corpse from death
and from Hades, by the word of the Most High;
⁶who brought kings down to destruction,
and famous men from their beds,
and easily destroyed their dominion;
⁷who heard rebuke at Sinai
and judgments of vengeance at Horeb;
⁸who anointed kings to inflict retribution,
and prophets to succeed you.
⁹You who were taken up by a whirlwind of fire,
in a chariot with horses of fire;
¹⁰you who are ready at the appointed time, it is written,
to calm the wrath of God before it breaks out in fury,
to turn the heart of the father to the son,
and to restore the tribes of Jacob.
¹¹Blessed are those who saw you,
and those who have fallen asleep in your love;
for we also shall surely live,
but our name, after death, will not be such.

¹²It was Elijah who was covered by the whirlwind,
and Elisha was filled with his spirit;
in all his days he did not tremble before any ruler,
and no one brought him into subjection.
¹³Nothing was too hard for him,
and when he was dead his body prophesied.
¹⁴As in his life he did wonders,
so in death his deeds were marvelous.

¹⁵For all this the people did not repent,
and they did not forsake their sins,
till they were carried away captive from their land
and were scattered over all the earth;
the people were left very few in number,
but with rulers from the house of David.
¹⁶Some of them did what was pleasing to God,
but others multiplied sins.

OT: 1 Kings 17–19; 2 Kings 1–2; 13:14–21; Mal 4:5–6

NT: Matt 11:10–14; 17:10–13; Luke 1:17; James 5:17

Catechism: John the Baptist as Elijah, 718–19; Elijah’s prayer, 2582–83, 2684

[48:1–2]

Elijah the Tishbite, who prophesied in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reigns of Kings Ahab and Ahaziah (1 Kings 17–21; 2 Kings 1–2), arose like a fire, and his word burned like a torch—an allusion to his calling down fire from heaven (1 Kings 18:38; 2 Kings 1:10, 12), which foreshadows the fire of the Holy Spirit (Catechism 696). The power of his words was manifest when he brought a drought and famine upon the northern kingdom of Israel during King Ahab’s reign (1 Kings 17); by his zeal (19:10, 14) he made the people few in number, presumably because many perished in the famine, as God had warned in the law of Moses (Deut 28:38–42, 62).

[48:3–4]

By the word of the Lord—that is, by God’s authority—Elijah shut up the heavens so that no rain fell on the land for three years (1 Kings 17:1; James 5:17). He also brought down fire from heaven, once to consume his burnt offering (1 Kings 18:38) and twice to burn up King Ahaziah’s soldiers (2 Kings 1:10, 12). As with Solomon (Sir 47:14), Ben Sira addresses Elijah in the second person: How glorious you were, O Elijah, in your wondrous deeds and marvelous miracles! No one else has the right to boast as he does, for aside from his disciple Elisha, Elijah has no equal in the Old Testament in terms of performing miracles.

[48:5–6] Elijah even raised a corpse—the son of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:17–22)—from death and from ^†Hades, the realm of the dead (17:27; 21:10), by the word and power of the Most High God. Elijah also brought kings down to destruction when he prophesied that all the descendants of King Ahab would be annihilated (1 Kings 19:17; 21:19–24), and famous men from their beds, such as King Ahaziah, who died in his bed following an injury (2 Kings 1:1–17). The ^†Vulgate adds that Elijah easily destroyed their dominion by bringing Ahab’s dynastic line to an end.

[48:7–8]

According to Ben Sira, when Elijah fled from Queen Jezebel, he heard God’s rebuke for his faintheartedness at Sinai, where he had become discouraged, and judgments of vengeance at Horeb against the followers of Baal (1 Kings 19:8–18). Sinai and Horeb are synonyms for the mountain of God where Israel received the ^†Torah (Exod 3:1; 19:11). There, God also commissioned Elijah to anoint kings—Hazael of Syria and Jehu of Israel—to inflict retribution upon Ahab and destroy his line. He was also directed to anoint prophets (Hebrew: “a prophet”) to succeed him (1 Kings 19:15–17)—namely, Elisha (19:19–21).

[48:9–10]

At the end of his life, Elijah did not die but was taken up to heaven by a whirlwind of fire, in a chariot with horses of fire after passing on the mantle of prophecy to Elisha (2 Kings 2:1–12). Elijah was expected to be ready at the appointed time, on the “great and awesome day of the Lord,” as written in Mal 4:5–6, to return as the Messiah’s forerunner who would calm the wrath of God before it breaks out in fury on the day of judgment. Malachi prophesied that the Messiah’s forerunner would turn the heart of the father to the son, bringing reconciliation within the family (compare Matt 11:10–14; 17:10–13; Luke 1:17), and restore the tribes of Jacob through a new ingathering of Israel (Isa 49:6).

[48:11]

Ben Sira declares blessed those who saw Elijah in his lifetime—or perhaps those who will live to see him return (the Hebrew reads: “Blessed is the one who shall have seen you before he dies!”; NABRE). Blessed also are those who have fallen asleep—that is, those who have died—in his love, perhaps through experiencing Elijah’s miracles that revealed God’s mercy. The last part of the verse is obscure: the assertion that we also shall surely live may express a faint hope for life after death.

[48:12]

When Elijah was enveloped by the whirlwind and taken up to heaven (48:9), Elisha, Elijah’s successor (1 Kings 19:16–21), was filled with a double portion of his spirit (2 Kings 2:9–12), so that he “performed twice as many signs, and marvels with every utterance of his mouth.”Hebrew and Syriac, NRSV, ESV-CE, NABRE. During his lifetime, under the reigns of Jehoram, Jehu, Jehoahaz, and Jehoash over the northern kingdom, Elisha did not tremble before any ruler but fearlessly opposed those godless kings, and no one brought him into subjection or intimidated him (2 Kings 2–13).

[48:13–14]

Nothing was too hard for him—as it is said of God (Gen 18:14)—and even after his death his body prophesied. Not that his corpse spoke, but it exercised prophetic healing powers: when a dead man was cast into Elisha’s grave, the man was restored to life (2 Kings 13:21). Both in life and death, Elisha performed extraordinary miracles, manifesting God’s power, which continued to work through him.

[48:15–16]

Despite the powerful miracles and ministry of Elijah and Elisha, the people of the northern kingdom of Israel did not repent of their sins but continued on the path of spiritual and moral decline until they were carried away captive by the Assyrians in 722 BC and scattered among foreign nations, as foretold in the Torah (Lev 26:33–35; Deut 4:25–27; 28:63–68). The people in the southern kingdom who were not deported—primarily the tribe of “Judah” (Hebrew, NABRE)—were left very few in number in the land, yet retained legitimate rulers from the house of David. In contrast to the rival dynasties in the northern kingdom, the royal Davidic line was preserved in the southern kingdom of Judah. Though some of the kings of Judah, such as Asa (1 Kings 15:11), Jehoshaphat (22:43), Joash (2 Kings 12:2–3), Azariah (15:3), Hezekiah (18:3), and Josiah (22:2), did what was pleasing to God, most of the others multiplied sins and were as wicked as the kings of the northern kingdom.

¹⁷Hezekiah fortified his city,
and brought water into the midst of it;
he tunneled the sheer rock with iron
and built pools for water.
¹⁸In his days Sennacherib came up,
and sent the Rabshakeh;
he lifted up his hand against Zion
and made great boasts in his arrogance.
¹⁹Then their hearts were shaken and their hands trembled,
and they were in anguish, like women with labor pains.
²⁰But they called upon the Lord who is merciful,
spreading forth their hands toward him;
and the Holy One quickly heard them from heaven,
and delivered them by the hand of Isaiah.
²¹The Lord struck the camp of the Assyrians,
and his angel wiped them out.
²²For Hezekiah did what was pleasing to the Lord,
and he held strongly to the ways of David his father,
which Isaiah the prophet commanded,
who was great and faithful in his vision.
²³In his days the sun went backward,
and he lengthened the life of the king.
²⁴By the spirit of might he saw the last things,
and comforted those who mourned in Zion.
²⁵He revealed what was to occur to the end of time, and the hidden things before they came to pass.

OT: 2 Kings 18–20; 2 Chron 32; Isa 36–38; 40–48
NT: Matt 3:3; 4:14; 8:17; 12:17–21; Acts 8:26–35
Catechism: Isaiah’s prophecies, 497, 712–14, 1502

[48:17]

Hezekiah, one of the best kings of Judah (reigned ca. 715–687 BC), rebuilt and expanded the walls of Jerusalem to defend it from the Assyrian invaders (2 Chron 32:5, 30). The fact that he fortified (or “strengthened”) his city is a Hebrew pun on Hezekiah’s name, which means “the Lord strengthened.” Hezekiah brought water into Jerusalem by boring a tunnel from the Gihon spring to the Pool of Siloam, where his workmen tunneled the sheer rock with iron and built pools for water (2 Kings 20:20; 2 Chron 32:30; Isa 22:9–11). This underground water channel is still known today as “Hezekiah’s Tunnel.”

[48:18–19]

During Hezekiah’s rule, Sennacherib, the king of Assyria (reigned ca. 705–681 BC), invaded Judah, captured forty-six cities, and came up to besiege Jerusalem (2 Kings 18:13–37; 2 Chron 32:1–23; Isa 36:1–22). He sent the Rabshakeh—his commander or high official—who threatened to attack Zion (Jerusalem) and arrogantly blasphemed God while defying Hezekiah’s spokesmen (2 Kings 18:17–35; Isa 36:7–20). Facing the Assyrian threat, the terrified Jerusalemites trembled in fear of being overrun by the invaders and were in anguish, like women with labor pains (compare 2 Kings 19:3; Isa 37:3).

[48:20–21]

While in the original narrative King Hezekiah personally prays for deliverance (2 Kings 19:14–19; Isa 37:15–20), Ben Sira extends this prayer to the entire people, who called upon the merciful Lord while raising their hands toward him. Moved by this humble supplication, the Holy One promptly delivered them through the ministry of the prophet Isaiah, who reassured the people that God would protect Jerusalem (2 Kings 19:20–34; Isa 37:21–35). The Lord indeed acted according to Isaiah’s words and struck the camp of the Assyrians by sending his angel to slay them, killing 185,000 soldiers that night (2 Kings 19:35).

Figure 12. Hezekiah’s Tunnel in Jerusalem [Barbara Ash / Shutterstock]

[48:22–23]

Hezekiah’s piety was the decisive factor in the routing of the Assyrians: he did what was pleasing to the Lord, faithfully following the ways of David, his ancestor, who despite his flaws was viewed as the ideal king (2 Kings 18:3–6; 20:3). Hezekiah’s devotion was guided by Isaiah the prophet, who commanded the king to place his trust in the Lord, and whose prophetic vision proved true with the retreat of the Assyrians (2 Kings 19:1–7). During Isaiah’s lifetime, the sun went backward when Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death; the Lord heard his prayer and lengthened his life by fifteen years (2 Kings 20:1–11; Isa 38:1–8).

[48:24–25]

By his powerful spirit—that is, by a special inspiration—Isaiah prophetically saw the last things—future events—and comforted those who mourned in Zion. The second part of the book of Isaiah is sometimes known as the “Book of the Consolation of Zion,” in which the prophet comforts an exiled and afflicted Jerusalem (Isa 40:1–2). Isaiah revealed what was to occur to the end of time, including Israel’s ingathering from exile (40:3–11), the name of Cyrus as the Lord’s anointed one (44:28; 45:1; compare Ezra 1:1–8), and the rebuilding of Jerusalem (Isa 44:26–28; 62:6–7). Due to the accuracy of these prophecies, which had been fulfilled by Ben Sira’s time, many modern biblical scholars believe that the book of Isaiah is the product of multiple authors and was not completed until sometime after the Babylonian exile. Ben Sira, however, believes that Isaiah foresaw hidden things in the distant future by divine inspiration, long before they came to pass, implying that he regards the entire book of Isaiah as the work of the eighth-century prophet.

¹The memory of Josiah is like a blending of incense
prepared by the art of the perfumer;
it is sweet as honey to every mouth,
and like music at a banquet of wine.
²He was led aright in converting the people,
and took away the abominations of iniquity.
³He set his heart upon the Lord;
in the days of wicked men he strengthened godliness.

⁴Except David and Hezekiah and Josiah
they all sinned greatly,
for they forsook the law of the Most High;
the kings of Judah came to an end;
⁵for they gave their power to others,
and their glory to a foreign nation,
⁶who set fire to the chosen city of the sanctuary,
and made her streets desolate,
according to the word of Jeremiah.
⁷For they had afflicted him;
yet he had been consecrated in the womb as prophet,
to pluck up and afflict and destroy,
and likewise to build and to plant.

⁸It was Ezekiel who saw the vision of glory
which God showed him above the chariot of the cherubim.
⁹For God remembered his enemies with storm,
and did good to those who directed their ways rightly.

¹⁰May the bones of the twelve prophets
revive from where they lie,
for they comforted the people of Jacob
and delivered them with confident hope.

¹¹How shall we magnify Zerubbabel?
He was like a signet on the right hand,
¹²and so was Jeshua the son of Jozadak;
in their days they built the house

and raised a temple holy to the Lord,
prepared for everlasting glory.
¹³The memory of Nehemiah also is lasting;
he raised for us the walls that had fallen,
and set up the gates and bars
and rebuilt our ruined houses.

¹⁴No one like Enoch has been created on earth,
for he was taken up from the earth.
¹⁵And no man like Joseph has been born,
and his bones are cared for.
¹⁶Shem and Seth were honored among men,
and Adam above every living being in the creation.

OT: 2 Kings 22–25; Neh 2:1–7:3; Jer 1:10; 38:3–6; Ezek 1; Hag 2:6–9

NT: Matt 1:11–13; Heb 11:5

Catechism: Jeremiah, 220; kingdom and exile, 709–10

[49:1]

The memory of Josiah—the best and last of the good kings of Judah (reigned ca. 640–609 BC; 2 Kings 22:1–2)—is like blended incense (Sir 24:15; 45:16) prepared by a skilled perfumer for sacred use in the temple liturgy (Exod 30:7–9, 34–38). Josiah’s righteousness is remembered as being sweet as honey (Sir 24:20) and pleasant like music at a banquet of wine (40:20). Although Josiah was not a priest, his righteous rule is described in priestly terms (Exod 25:6), with the same language used elsewhere to describe wisdom.

[49:2–3]

Josiah did what was right in converting the people back to God (Hebrew: “he grieved over our betrayals,” NABRE). After the book of the law was found in the temple and read to him, Josiah tore his clothes in repentance and horror at how severely it had been neglected (2 Kings 22:11–13). He then launched a religious reform (ca. 622 BC), removing the abominations of iniquity—the pagan idols scattered throughout the land (2 Kings 23:1–20). Josiah earnestly set his heart upon the Lord (2 Kings 23:3, 25), and in those lawless times he strengthened godliness by his virtuous life. Although Josiah’s reform turned out to be too little, too late in a time of sharp moral and spiritual decline, he was able to postpone God’s judgment upon Judah until after his death (2 Kings 22:18–20).

[49:4–6]

While 1–2 Kings evaluates several kings of Judah positively (see the commentary on 48:15–16), Ben Sira’s judgment is more severe: he views only David, Hezekiah, and Josiah as righteous kings; all others sinned greatly because they either neglected or abandoned the law of the Most High, the standard by which Israel’s loyalty to God was judged (Deut 28). Because of their transgressions, the kings of Judah and the Davidic line came to an end. This was due to their own actions, as they gave their power to others by pursuing political alliances with them, and their glory to a foreign nation, Babylon. Ultimately, King Nebuchadnezzar’s army set fire to Jerusalem, the chosen city and home of the sanctuary, exiled the people to Babylonia (2 Kings 25:8–12), and made her streets desolate, according to the word of Jeremiah—the last great prophet of Judah, who ministered from around 627 to 586 BC and tirelessly warned the last kings of the impending destruction (Jer 36:29–31; 37:8–10; 38:3).

Ezekiel Points to Christ

For Rabanus Maurus, Ezekiel’s prophetic ministry during the Babylonian captivity foreshadowed Christ’s own ministry, through which he offered humanity release from the captivity of sin.

Ezekiel, whose name is translated “confirmed by God” and who, in Babylon, predicted to the sinful masses the coming imprisonment, though promising forgiveness of sins to those who would turn and do penance, points in a mysterious way to the Lord and Savior, who is the power and wisdom of God and was called by the prophet the arm of the Lord. He has visited us, we who were in the prison of this world, foretelling future punishments for sinners and promising eternal healing to those who were repentant.Rabanus Maurus, On Ecclesiasticus 10.23 (Voicu, Apocrypha, 406).

[49:7]

The kings, nobles, and people of Judah not only rejected Jeremiah’s message; they also persecuted and afflicted him (Jer 20:7–10; 37:13–16; 38:4–6). God had anticipated this, for he had already consecrated Jeremiah in the womb as prophet even before he was born, to pluck up and afflict and destroy by warning Judah of the coming judgment and exile, but also to build and to plant by promising the future restoration of the nation (Jer 1:10).

[49:8–9]

Ezekiel, the third major writing prophet of the Old Testament (after Isaiah and Jeremiah), ministered during the Babylonian exile from 593 to 571 BC. God revealed to him a vision of glory—an awesome manifestation of the divine presence above the chariot of the cherubim (Ezek 1:4–28) that had previously rested in the temple’s holy of holies (1 Chron 28:18). God remembered Ezekiel’s enemies by punishing them with storm. This could be an allusion to Gog and Magog, symbolic names for Israel’s foes destined to be destroyed by God’s sovereign power at the end of history (Ezek 38–39). Yet God also did good to the righteous. The Hebrew of verse 9 reads: “He also referred to Job, who always persevered in the right path” (NABRE; see Ezek 14:14, 20Compare NRSV. This variant reading likely derives from the fact that the Hebrew words for “enemy” and “Job” are very similar.).

[49:10]

The twelve minor prophets—Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi—are preserved as a single book in the Hebrew canon. Ben Sira prays that their bones may revive from where they lie, expressing hope for the resurrection of the dead (46:12; Ezek 37:1–14). During their lifetimes, these prophets encouraged and exhorted the people of Jacob (Israel and Judah), warning them of the coming judgment and calling them to repent and return to the Lord. Even after disaster struck, the prophets continued to instill hope by assuring the people that the Lord had not abandoned them and would, in the future, restore them from exile.

[49:11–12]

Zerubbabel, a descendant of David, was one of the leaders who returned to Judea after the Babylonian exile. He became the governor of Judea under Darius I of Persia (Ezra 2:2; Hag 1:1). Ben Sira praises him for being like a signet on the right hand, referring to God’s promise to restore to Zerubbabel the royal position that King Jeconiah (Jehoiachin) had lost before the exile (Jer 22:24; Hag 2:23). Jeshua the son of Jozadak was the high priest in Jerusalem at the time of the return from exile (Ezra 2:2). In their days, encouraged by the prophets Haggai and Zechariah (see Ezra 3:2; 5:1–2), Zerubbabel and Jeshua built the house—the second temple—which, like the temple of Solomon, became holy to the Lord and destined for everlasting glory. Haggai had prophesied that the second temple would surpass the first in glory (Hag 2:6–9).

[49:13]

The memory of Nehemiah—another major leader of the Jewish restoration after the exile (Neh 2:1–11)—also is lasting, as he was the chief architect of Jerusalem’s reconstruction. He rebuilt the city walls that had fallen during the Babylonian conquest, restored the city’s defensive gates and bars, and rebuilt the people’s ruined houses despite facing considerable opposition (Neh 2:17–7:3).

[49:14]

Ben Sira concludes his praise of Israel’s ancestors by returning to a few of the oldest patriarchs, working his way back to Adam. No one like Enoch has been created (Hebrew: “few like Enoch”), because God took him up from the earth to heaven before he died (44:16; Gen 5:24; Heb 11:5). The Hebrew “few” implies that at least another person, probably Elijah, was also taken up to heaven.

[49:15–16]

While Ben Sira skipped over Joseph in his survey of the early patriarchs, he briefly mentions him here. Like Enoch, Joseph was unique in that his bones were cared for by God (Hebrew: “his body was visited”), who ensured that they would be transported from Egypt back to the land of Israel for burial (Gen 50:25; Exod 13:19; Josh 24:32). Shem—the son of Noah (Gen 5:32; 6:10), survivor of the flood (9:18), and father of the Semitic people (10:22–31)—and Seth—the third son of Adam and Eve (4:25)—were particularly honored, and Adam above every other living being, as he is the father of humanity. The Hebrew reads: “but beyond that of any living being was the splendor [tipheret] of Adam” (NABRE), linking Adam to Simon, who is called the “pride [tipheret] of his people” in the following verse.

¹The leader of his brethren and the pride of his people
was Simon the high priest, son of Onias,
who in his life repaired the house,
and in his time fortified the temple.
²He laid the foundations for the high double walls,
the high retaining walls for the temple enclosure.
³In his days a cistern for water was quarried out,
a reservoir like the sea in circumference.
⁴He considered how to save his people from ruin,
and fortified the city to withstand a siege.
⁵How glorious he was when the people gathered round him
as he came out of the inner sanctuary!
⁶Like the morning star among the clouds,
like the moon when it is full;
⁷like the sun shining upon the temple of the Most High,
and like the rainbow gleaming in glorious clouds;
⁸like roses in the days of the first fruits,
like lilies by a spring of water,
like a green shoot on Lebanon on a summer day;
⁹like fire and incense in the censer,
like a vessel of hammered gold
adorned with all kinds of precious stones;
¹⁰like an olive tree putting forth its fruit,
and like a cypress towering in the clouds.
¹¹When he put on his glorious robe
and clothed himself with superb perfection
and went up to the holy altar,
he made the court of the sanctuary glorious.
¹²And when he received the portions from the hands of the priests,
as he stood by the hearth of the altar
with a garland of brethren around him,
he was like a young cedar on Lebanon;
and they surrounded him like the trunks of palm trees,
¹³all the sons of Aaron in their splendor
with the Lord’s offering in their hands,
before the whole congregation of Israel.
¹⁴Finishing the service at the altars,
and arranging the offering to the Most High, the Almighty,
¹⁵he reached out his hand to the cup
and poured a libation of the blood of the grape;
he poured it out at the foot of the altar,
a pleasing odor to the Most High, the King of all.
¹⁶Then the sons of Aaron shouted,
they sounded the trumpets of hammered work,
they made a great noise to be heard
for remembrance before the Most High.
¹⁷Then all the people together made haste
and fell to the ground upon their faces
to worship their Lord,
the Almighty, God Most High.
¹⁸And the singers praised him with their voices
in sweet and full-toned melody.
¹⁹And the people besought the Lord Most High
in prayer before him who is merciful,
till the order of worship of the Lord was ended;
so they completed his service.
²⁰Then Simon came down, and lifted up his hands
over the whole congregation of the sons of Israel,
to pronounce the blessing of the Lord with his lips,
and to glory in his name;
²¹and they bowed down in worship a second time,
to receive the blessing from the Most High.

²²And now bless the God of all,
who in every way does great things;
who exalts our days from birth,
and deals with us according to his mercy.
²³May he give us gladness of heart,
and grant that peace may be in our days in Israel,
as in the days of old,
²⁴that Israel may believe that the God of mercy is with us
to deliver us in our days!

**OT:**Gen 1:1–2:3; Exod 28:2–43; 29:38–42; Lev 16; Num 6:22–27; Sir 24
NT: Heb 8–9
Catechism: Old Covenant priesthood fulfilled in Christ’s priesthood, 1539–45
Lectionary: 50:22–24: thanksgiving to God

[50:1]

The praise of Israel’s ancestors culminates with a contemporary of Ben Sira who was the leader of his brethren—that is, of his fellow priests—and the pride or “splendor” (Hebrew tipheret) of his people—echoing the primeval “splendor” of Adam mentioned in the previous verse (49:16). This man is Simon son of Onias (Hebrew: “son of Yohanan” or “son of John”; see John 21:15–17), who served as high priest in Jerusalem from 219 to 196 BC. The many allusions to creation that follow suggest that Simon stands as a new Adam, representing not only Israel but all humanity. The phrase in his life (Hebrew: “in his generation”) hints that Simon was no longer alive at the time of writing; yet Ben Sira’s vivid description of his ministry indicates that he is recounting personal memories. Simon repaired the house of the Lord and fortified the temple (50:2–4). Since the temple was viewed as a type of microcosm in ancient Judaism,Philo, for example, says, “The highest, and in the truest sense the holy, temple of God is, as we must believe, the whole universe” (On the Special Laws 1.66, in Philo, On the Decalogue; On the Special Laws, Books 1–3, trans. F. H. Colson, vol. 7, Loeb Classical Library 320 [Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1937], 137). On the temple as microcosm, see André Villeneuve, Divine Marriage from Eden to the End of Days: Communion with God as Nuptial Mystery in the Story of Salvation (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2021), 64–69. Ben Sira seems to depict Simon’s actions in the following verses as a “creation of the universe” in miniature, using hints and references to the Genesis account of creation.

[50:2]

Simon laid the foundations for the high double walls (literally, the “double heights”), the high retaining walls for the temple enclosure. This verse is unclear in both Greek and Hebrew. While we do not know precisely which walls Ben Sira refers to, we do know that, by the first century BC, the Greek term for “retaining walls” (analemma) had taken on “a certain technical sense as a model or map of the cosmos, particularly the firmament.”Crispin Fletcher-Louis, “The Cosmology of P and Theological Anthropology in the Wisdom of Jesus Ben Sira,” in Of Scribes and Sages: Studies in Early Jewish Interpretation and Transmission of Scripture, ed. Craig A. Evans (London: T&T Clark, 2004), 35. Theologically, the temple served as the earthly counterpart of God’s heavenly dwelling. On the second day of creation, God created the firmament, which separated the heavens from the earth (Gen 1:6–8), yet Ben Sira here depicts the temple as uniting them (see Ps 78:69).

[50:3–4]

In Simon’s days a cistern was dug to supply water to the temple precincts, a reservoir like the sea—alluding to the bronze basin in the temple’s courtyard called “the molten sea,” which was used for the ritual washing of the priests (1 Kings 7:23–26). This also evokes God’s creation of the sea on the third day (Gen 1:9–10). Simon took steps to protect and save his people from ruin, defending them against brigands and plunderers; he also fortified the city and its walls so it could withstand an enemy siege.

[50:5]

Ben Sira describes the high priest’s ministry, possibly on Yom Kippur, the annual Day of Atonement, when he went into the holy of holies with the blood of sacrificial animals to atone for Israel’s sins (Lev 16). Some think that the liturgy of the daily whole burnt offering is in view (Exod 29:38–42). Ben Sira’s use of language from the poem on wisdom (Sir 24:1–34) suggests that he views the high priest as an embodiment of wisdom. Simon was glorious, like wisdom (6:31; 24:16–17), when he came out of the inner sanctuary (literally, “of the house of the veil”)—either the inner veil as he exited the holy of holies on Yom Kippur, or the outer veil as he exited the temple building during the daily sacrifice.

[50:6–7]

The glorious appearance of Simon, like the morning star, the moon, and the sun, recalls the fourth day of creation, when God set the astral bodies to rule the day and night from the heavens (43:1–12; Gen 1:14–19). The rainbow gleaming in glorious clouds evokes God’s covenant with Noah (Gen 9:13–16) and Ezekiel’s vision of the divine glory (Ezek 1:28).

[50:8–10]

Ben Sira’s depiction of the fruitful, life-giving ministry of the high priest, using imagery of roses, lilies, and a green shoot on Lebanon, recalls his depiction of wisdom in similar terms (24:13–17; 39:13–14), as well as God’s creation of vegetation on the third day (Gen 1:11–12). The fire and incense in the censer carried by the priest, like a vessel of hammered gold adorned with precious stones, also evokes wisdom, which is portrayed as an offering of incense and as more precious than gold and precious stones (Sir 45:11; Job 28:16–19). The incense filling the sky may allude to the birds that filled the sky on the fifth day of creation (Gen 1:20–23), and the comparison of Simon to a fruitful olive tree and a towering cypress echoes the earlier description of wisdom (Sir 24:13–14).

[50:11]

Clothed in his glorious robe, with superb perfection (45:6–12; Exod 28:2–43)—for in his time the vestments of the high priest were believed to symbolize and represent the whole world (Wis 18:24)See the sidebar “The Garments of the High Priest,” p. 328; Philo, On the Life of Moses 2.109–35; Josephus, Antiquities 3.7.7.—Simon went up to the holy altar where the sacrifices were burned (Exod 27:1–2; 2 Chron 4:1). There, he made the court of the sanctuary surrounding the bronze altar (2 Chron 4:9) glorious by his very presence.

[50:12–13]

When Simon received the portions of the sacrifices from the priests (Exod 29:17–18; Lev 1:6–8), standing by the hearth of the altar where the fire burned, with his fellow priests circling him like a garland, he again embodies wisdom, like a young cedar on Lebanon, with the others surrounding him like the trunks of palm trees (Sir 24:13–14). The priests, the sons of Aaron in their splendid garments, carried the Lord’s offering before the gathered assembly, whom they represented. Ben Sira seems to depict Simon as a new Adam, clothed with “garments of glory” and restoring the image of God and the authority over every living creature given to Adam on the sixth day of creation (Gen 1:26–31).

[50:14–15]

As he completed the sacrificial service at the altars and arranged the pieces of the animal offering on the fire to be consumed for the Lord, the high priest reached for a cup that an assistant handed to him and poured a libation of wine as a drink offering (39:26) at the foot of the altar, as commanded by the Torah (Num 15:5–7; 28:6–8). The fact that this was a pleasing odor to the Most High indicates that God, the King of all, had favorably received the offering.

[50:16–17]

At the conclusion of the service, the sons of Aaron (the priests) shouted and sounded the silver trumpets, as was customary on such solemn occasions, making a great noise for remembrance before the Most High. Having offered their sacrifice, with the resounding conclusion of the liturgical service, they solemnly called for his attention, as it were (Num 10:1–10). Then all the people prostrated themselves to join the high priest and worship their Lord, the Almighty, God Most High, who had so generously displayed his glory to Israel through the ministry of the high priest.

[50:18–19]

Ben Sira portrays Israel at the high point of the temple liturgy: the singers praised God in sweet and full-toned melody, as they had in the days of Hezekiah (47:9; 2 Chron 29:25–30), and offered their prayers (Hebrew: “shouted for joy”) before the Lord Most High, the merciful one—a term reflecting a fundamental aspect of God’s character (Exod 34:6; Deut 4:31; 2 Chron 30:9). This continued until the order (Greek kosmos) of worship of the Lord was ended (synteleō); and thus they completed (teleiō) his service. The use of the Greek word kosmos, meaning both “world” and “order,” and the repetition of the verb “to end” (synteleō or teleiō) echo the completion of creation in Genesis, when the heavens and the earth were “finished” (synteleō) and God “finished” (synteleō) his work (Gen 2:1–2). This confirms that Ben Sira is portraying Simon’s liturgical ministry as the completion of God’s creative work.

Figure 13. Priestly blessing [James (Jacques Joseph) Tissot / Public domain / The Jewish Museum]

[50:20–21]

Then Simon came down from the altar of sacrifice and lifted up his hands over the whole congregation of Israel, just as Aaron did when he was inaugurated as priest (Lev 9:22–23), to pronounce the Lord’s priestly blessing (Num 6:22–27) and glory in his name. On the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), the high priest would pronounce the ineffable name of God, YHWH (Exod 3:14), after sprinkling the mercy seat in the holy of holies with the sacrificial blood (Catechism 433). As Simon spoke, the people prostrated themselves a second time, to receive the blessing from the Most High. The †Mishnah records a similar ancient account of the priestly blessing on Yom Kippur: “And when the priests and the people who were standing in the courtyard heard the fully pronounced Name [of the Lord] come from the mouth of the High Priest they would kneel, prostrate themselves, fall on their faces, and call out: Blessed be the Name of His glorious kingdom for ever and ever.”Mishnah, Yoma 6:2. The Mishnah: A New Integrated Translation and Commentary, https://www.echok.com/mishnah/moed2/Yoma/6.pdf. Simon’s solemn blessing, concluding the liturgical service, also evokes God’s blessing of the seventh day at the conclusion of creation (Gen 2:3).

[50:22]

Ben Sira now invites his readers to bless the God of all in response to the great things he has done throughout the history of salvation, from Adam to Simon. The Lord is the one who exalts our days from birth, and deals with us according to the same mercy he revealed in the history of Israel (Hebrew: “who fosters growth from the womb, fashioning it according to his will,” NABRE).

[50:23–24]

Ben Sira blesses his readers, asking the Lord to grant them gladness of heart and peace upon Israel, as in the days of old—likely referring to the “golden age” of Solomon’s reign, when Israel was a strong, independent nation. The RSV-2CE then follows the Vulgate, where Ben Sira prays that Israel may believe that the God of mercy is with us to deliver us in our days! The Greek is similar: “May he entrust to us his mercy, and may he deliver us in our days!” (NRSV; compare ESV-CE). Yet the Hebrew is quite different: “May his goodness toward Simeon last forever; may he fulfill for him the covenant with Phinehas so that it may not be abrogated for him or his descendants while the heavens last” (NABRE).

The difference is easily explained: After Ben Sira wrote his original Hebrew text, the “covenant of Phinehas” (45:24) and the high priestly succession ended in Simon’s family when his son Onias III was assassinated and his grandson Onias IV fled to Egypt. When Ben Sira’s grandson translated the text into Greek (later followed by the Latin), he adapted it to better reflect the situation of his own day by removing the reference to Simon’s priestly line.

²⁵With two nations my soul is vexed,
and the third is no nation:
²⁶Those who live on Mount Seir, and the Philistines,
and the foolish people that dwell in Shechem.

²⁷Instruction in understanding and knowledge
I have written in this book,
Jesus the son of Sirach, son of Eleazar, of Jerusalem,
who out of his heart poured forth wisdom.
²⁸Blessed is he who concerns himself with these things,
and he who lays them to heart will become wise.
²⁹For if he does them, he will be strong for all things,
for the light of the Lord is his path.

OT: 2 Kings 17:24–41; Obadiah

NT: John 4:4–10

Catechism: participating in divine wisdom, 1950–54

[50:25–26] Ben Sira concludes with a numerical saying expressing disdain for three nations. Those who live on Mount Seir, south of the Dead Sea, are the Edomites—descendants of Esau and longtime rivals of Israel (Ezek 25:12–14; 35:1–15; Obad 1–4). The Philistines, subdued by David long ago, still symbolize the pagan Hellenizers who threatened the Jewish faith in Ben Sira’s day. The foolish people that dwell in Shechem are the Samaritans, whose origins trace back to the Assyrian conquest of the northern kingdom of Israel (2 Kings 17:24–41). The Samaritans opposed the reconstruction of the Jerusalem temple and established a rival temple on Mount Gerizim, overlooking Shechem—an act the Jews viewed as illegitimate and invalid (see John 4:20). They later allied themselves with the Seleucids against the Jews. Ben Sira likely includes these two verses to dismiss the religions of these nations as false counterparts to Simon’s ministry.

[50:27]

Ben Sira’s postscript summarizes the goal of his work: to communicate instruction in understanding and knowledge to all. He adds his author’s signature: Jesus the son of Sirach, son of Eleazar, of Jerusalem (Hebrew: “Simon the son of Yeshua [Jesus] the son of Eleazar the son of Sira”; see “Title, Author, Date” in the introduction, pp. 17–19), who out of his heart poured forth wisdom. From his own pursuit of wisdom, Ben Sira has become a source of wisdom for others (16:25; 18:29).

[50:28–29]

Ben Sira concludes with a benediction: Blessed is he who concerns himself with all the things he has taught throughout the book. One who meditates on these teachings and takes them to heart will become wise. The key to wisdom, however, is not only contemplating Ben Sira’s teachings but also putting them into practice: one who does so will be strong in every situation, for the light of the Lord is his path. The Hebrew reads: “for the fear of the Lord is life.” Many scholars believe that the book originally ended here and that the last chapter was added later.