3 Esdras 3

¹King Darius made a great supper to all his domestical servants, and to all the magistrates of Media and Persia,

²and to all that wear purple, and to the Prætors, and Consuls, and Lieutenants under him from India unto Æthiopia, an hundred twenty seven provinces.

³And when they had eaten and drunken, and returned full, then Darius went up into his chamber, and slept, and awaked.

⁴Then those three young men keepers of his body, which guarded the king's body, said one to another:

⁵Let every one of us say a word that may excel: & whose word soever shall appear wiser than the others, to him will king Darius give great gifts,

⁶to be covered with purple, & to drink in gold, and to sleep upon gold, & a chariot with a bridle of gold, & a bonnet of silk, and a chain about his neck:

⁷and he

⁸Then every one writing his word signed it, and they put it under the pillow of Darius the king,

⁹and they said: When the king shall rise, we will give him our writings: and which soever of the three the king shall judge, and the magistrates of Persia, that his word is the wiser, to him shall the victory be given as is written.

¹⁰One wrote: Wine is strong.

¹¹Another wrote, A king is stronger.

¹²The third wrote, Women are more strong: but above all things truth overcometh.

¹³And when the king was risen, they took their writings, and gave him, and he read.

¹⁴And sending he called all the Magistrates of the Persians, and the Medes, and them that wear purple, and the Prætors, and the Overseers;

¹⁵and they sat in the Councel: and the writings were read before them.

¹⁶And he said: Call the young men, & they shall declare their own words. And they were called, and went in.

¹⁷And he said to them: Declare unto us concerning these things which are written. And the first began, he that had spoken of the strength of wine,

¹⁸and said: O ye men, how doth wine prevail over all men that drink! It seduceth the mind.

¹⁹And also the mind of king and orphan it maketh vain. Also of the bondman and the free, of the rich man and the poor,

²⁰and every mind it turneth into security and pleasantness, and it remembereth not any sorrow and duty,

²¹and all hearts it maketh honest, and it remembereth not king, nor magistrate, and it maketh a man speak all things by talents.

²²And when they have drunk, they remember not friendship, nor brotherhood: yea and not long after they take swords.

²³And when they are recovered and risen from the wine, they remember not what they have done.

²⁴O ye men, doth not wine excel? Who thinketh to do so? And having said this, he held his peace.