Wisdom 12

¹Ohow good and sweet is thy spirit o Lord in all!

²And therefore those that err, by parts thou doest chastise: and doest admonish, and speak to them, concerning the things wherein they sin: that leaving naughtiness, they may believe in thee o Lord.

³For those old inhabitants of thy holy land, whom thou didst abhor,

⁴because they did works odious to thee by sorceries, and unjust sacrifices,

⁵and the murderers of their own children without mercy, and eaters of men's bowels, and devourers of blood from the midst of thy sacrament,

⁶and the parents authors of aidless souls, thou wouldst destroy by the hands of our parents,

⁷that they might receive a peregrination worthy of the children of God, which is a land of all most dear to thee.

⁸But them also as men thou didst spare, and didst send forerunners of thine host, wasps, that by little and little they might destroy them.

⁹Not because thou wast unable in battle to subdue the impious to the just, or with cruel beasts, or with a sharp word to destroy them together:

¹⁰but judging by parts thou gavest place of repentance, being not ignorant, that the nation of them is wicked, and their malice natural & that their cogitation could not be changed for ever.

¹¹For it was a cursed seed from the beginning: neither fearing any, didst thou give pardon to their sins.

¹²For who shall say to thee: what hast thou done? Or who shall stand against thy judgement? Or who in thy sight shall come revenger of the wicked men? Or who shall impute it to thee, if the nations perish, which thou hast made?

¹³For there is no other God but thou, who hast care of all, that thou mayst shew that thou doest not give judgement unjustly.

¹⁴Neither king, nor tyrant in thy sight shall inquire of them, whom thou hast destroyed.

¹⁵For so much then as thou art just, thou doest dispose all things justly: thou also esteemest it disagreeable from thy power to condemn him, who ought not to be punished.

¹⁶For thy power is the beginning of justice: and for this that thou art Lord of all, thou makest thyself to spare all.

¹⁷For thou shewest power, which art not thought to be absolute in power, and thou convincest the boldness of them, that know thee not.

¹⁸But thou dominatour of power, judgest with tranquility, and with great reverence disposest of us: for it is in thy power when thou wilt, to be able.

¹⁹And thou hast taught thy people by such works, that they must be just and gentle, and hast made thy children of good hope: because judging thou givest in sins place of repentance.

²⁰For if thou didst punish the enemies of thy servants, and that deserved to die, with so great consideration, giving time and place, whereby they might be changed from their wickedness:

²¹with what diligence hast thou judged thy children, to whose parents thou gavest oaths and covenants of good promises?

²²Therefore when thou givest us discipline, thou scourgest our enemies very many ways, that judging we may think upon thy goodness: and when we are judged, we may hope for thy mercy.

²³Wherefore to them also, which in their life have lived foolishly & unjustly, thou hast given great torments by the same things, which they did worship.

²⁴For they wandered long in the way of error, esteeming for gods those things, that in beasts are superfluous, living after the manner of senseless infants.

²⁵For this cause thou hast given judgement on them as on senseless children to be in derision.

²⁶But they that were not amended by scorns and reprehensions, have tried the worthy judgment of God.

²⁷For in what things they suffering took indignation, by those whom they thought gods, when seeing they were destroyed in them, him, whom in time past they denied that they knew, they acknowledged the true God: for the which cause the end also of their condemnation shall come upon them.