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Wisdom 8

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1 διατείνει δὲ ἀπὸ πέρατος ἐπὶ πέρας εὐρώστως καὶ διοικεῖ τὰ πάντα χρηστῶς

1 She reaches, therefore, from end to end mightily, and orders all things sweetly.

1 Attingit ergo a fine usque ad finem fortiter, et disponit omnia suaviter.

2 ταύτην ἐφίλησα καὶ ἐξεζήτησα ἐκ νεότητός μου καὶ ἐζήτησα νύμφην ἀγαγέσθαι ἐμαυτῷ καὶ ἐραστὴς ἐγενόμην τοῦ κάλλους αὐτῆς 3 εὐγένειαν δοξάζει συμβίωσιν θεοῦ ἔχουσα καὶ ὁ πάντων δεσπότης ἠγάπησεν αὐτήν 4 μύστις γάρ ἐστιν τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπιστήμης καὶ αἱρετὶς τῶν ἔργων αὐτοῦ 5 εἰ δὲ πλοῦτός ἐστιν ἐπιθυμητὸν κτῆμα ἐν βίῳ τί σοφίας πλουσιώτερον τῆς τὰ πάντα ἐργαζομένης 6 εἰ δὲ φρόνησις ἐργάζεται τίς αὐτῆς τῶν ὄντων μᾶλλόν ἐστιν τεχνῖτις 7 καὶ εἰ δικαιοσύνην ἀγαπᾷ τις οἱ πόνοι ταύτης εἰσὶν ἀρεταί σωφροσύνην γὰρ καὶ φρόνησιν ἐκδιδάσκει δικαιοσύνην καὶ ἀνδρείαν ὧν χρησιμώτερον οὐδέν ἐστιν ἐν βίῳ ἀνθρώποις 8 εἰ δὲ καὶ πολυπειρίαν ποθεῖ τις οἶδεν τὰ ἀρχαῖα καὶ τὰ μέλλοντα εἰκάζει ἐπίσταται στροφὰς λόγων καὶ λύσεις αἰνιγμάτων σημεῖα καὶ τέρατα προγινώσκει καὶ ἐκβάσεις καιρῶν καὶ χρόνων 9 ἔκρινα τοίνυν ταύτην ἀγαγέσθαι πρὸς συμβίωσιν εἰδὼς ὅτι ἔσται μοι σύμβουλος ἀγαθῶν καὶ παραίνεσις φροντίδων καὶ λύπης 10 ἕξω δι' αὐτὴν δόξαν ἐν ὄχλοις καὶ τιμὴν παρὰ πρεσβυτέροις ὁ νέος 11 ὀξὺς εὑρεθήσομαι ἐν κρίσει καὶ ἐν ὄψει δυναστῶν θαυμασθήσομαι 12 σιγῶντά με περιμενοῦσιν καὶ φθεγγομένῳ προσέξουσιν καὶ λαλοῦντος ἐπὶ πλεῖον χεῖρα ἐπιθήσουσιν ἐπὶ στόμα αὐτῶν 13 ἕξω δι' αὐτὴν ἀθανασίαν καὶ μνήμην αἰώνιον τοῖς μετ' ἐμὲ ἀπολείψω 14 διοικήσω λαούς καὶ ἔθνη ὑποταγήσεταί μοι 15 φοβηθήσονταί με ἀκούσαντες τύραννοι φρικτοί ἐν πλήθει φανοῦμαι ἀγαθὸς καὶ ἐν πολέμῳ ἀνδρεῖος 16 εἰσελθὼν εἰς τὸν οἶκόν μου προσαναπαύσομαι αὐτῇ οὐ γὰρ ἔχει πικρίαν ἡ συναναστροφὴ αὐτῆς οὐδὲ ὀδύνην ἡ συμβίωσις αὐτῆς ἀλλὰ εὐφροσύνην καὶ χαράν 17 ταῦτα λογισάμενος ἐν ἐμαυτῷ καὶ φροντίσας ἐν καρδίᾳ μου ὅτι ἀθανασία ἐστὶν ἐν συγγενείᾳ σοφίας 18 καὶ ἐν φιλίᾳ αὐτῆς τέρψις ἀγαθὴ καὶ ἐν πόνοις χειρῶν αὐτῆς πλοῦτος ἀνεκλιπὴς καὶ ἐν συγγυμνασίᾳ ὁμιλίας αὐτῆς φρόνησις καὶ εὔκλεια ἐν κοινωνίᾳ λόγων αὐτῆς περιῄειν ζητῶν ὅπως λάβω αὐτὴν εἰς ἐμαυτόν 19 παῖς δὲ ἤμην εὐφυὴς ψυχῆς τε ἔλαχον ἀγαθῆς 20 μᾶλλον δὲ ἀγαθὸς ὢν ἦλθον εἰς σῶμα ἀμίαντον 21 γνοὺς δὲ ὅτι οὐκ ἄλλως ἔσομαι ἐγκρατής ἐὰν μὴ ὁ θεὸς δῷ καὶ τοῦτο δ' ἦν φρονήσεως τὸ εἰδέναι τίνος ἡ χάρις ἐνέτυχον τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ ἐδεήθην αὐτοῦ καὶ εἶπον ἐξ ὅλης τῆς καρδίας μου

2 Her have I loved, and have sought her out from my youth, and have desired to take for my spouse, and I became a lover of her beauty. 3 She glorifies her nobility by being conversant with God: yea, and the Lord of all things has loved her. 4 For it is she that teaches the knowledge of God and is the chooser of his works. 5 And if riches be desired in life, what is richer than wisdom, which makes all things? 6 And if sense do work: who is a more artful worker than she of those things that are? 7 And if a man love justice: her labours have great virtues: for she teaches temperance, and prudence, and justice, and fortitude, which are such things as men can have nothing more profitable in life. 8 And if a man desire much knowledge: she knows things past, and judges of things to come: she knows the subtilties of speeches, and the solutions of arguments: she knows signs and wonders before they be done, and the events of times and ages. 9 I purposed, therefore, to take her to me to live with me: knowing that she will communicate to me of her good things, and will be a comfort in my cares and grief. 10 For her sake I shall have glory among the multitude, and honour with the ancients, though I be young: 11 And I shall be found of a quick conceit in judgment, and shall be admired in the sight of the mighty, and the faces of princes shall wonder at me. 12 They shall wait for me when I hold my peace, and they shall look upon me when I speak; and if I talk much, they shall lay their hands on their mouth. 13 Moreover, by the means of her I shall have immortality: and shall leave behind me an everlasting memory to them that come after me. 14 I shall set the people in order: and nations shall be subject to me. 15 Terrible kings hearing, shall be afraid of me: among the multitude I shall be found good, and valiant in war. 16 When I go into my house, I shall repose myself with her: for her conversation has no bitterness, nor her company any tediousness, but joy and gladness. 17 Thinking these things with myself, and pondering them in my heart, that to be allied to wisdom is immortality, 18 and that there is great delight in her friendship, and inexhaustible riches in the works of her hands, and in the exercise of conference with her, wisdom, and glory in the communication of her words: I went about seeking, that I might take her to myself. 19 And I was a witty child, and had received a good soul. 20 And whereas I was more good, I came to a body undefiled. 21 And as I knew that I could not otherwise be continent, except God gave it, and this also was a point of wisdom, to know whose gift it was, I went to the Lord, and besought him, and said with my whole heart:

2 Hanc amavi, et exquisivi a juventute mea, et quæsivi sponsam mihi eam assumere, et amator factus sum formæ illius. 3 Generositatem illius glorificat, contubernium habens Dei; sed et omnium Dominus dilexit illam. 4 Doctrix enim est disciplinæ Dei, et electrix operum illius. 5 Et si divitiæ appetuntur in vita, quid sapientia locupletius quæ operatur omnia? 6 Si autem sensus operatur, quis horum quæ sunt magis quam illa est artifex? 7 Et si justitiam quis diligit, labores hujus magnas habent virtutes : sobrietatem enim et prudentiam docet, et justitiam, et virtutem, quibus utilius nihil est in vita hominibus. 8 Et si multitudinem scientiæ desiderat quis, scit præterita, et de futuris æstimat; scit versutias sermonum, et dissolutiones argumentorum; signa et monstra scit antequam fiant, et eventus temporum et sæculorum. 9 Proposui ergo hanc adducere mihi ad convivendum, sciens quoniam mecum communicabit de bonis, et erit allocutio cogitationis et tædii mei. 10 Habebo propter hanc claritatem ad turbas, et honorem apud seniores juvenis; 11 et acutus inveniar in judicio, et in conspectu potentium admirabilis ero, et facies principum mirabuntur me : 12 tacentem me sustinebunt, et loquentem me respicient, et sermocinante me plura, manus ori suo imponent. 13 Præterea habebo per hanc immortalitatem, et memoriam æternam his qui post me futuri sunt relinquam. 14 Disponam populos, et nationes mihi erunt subditæ : 15 timebunt me audientes reges horrendi. In multitudine videbor bonus, et in bello fortis. 16 Intrans in domum meam, conquiescam cum illa : non enim habet amaritudinem conversatio illius, nec tædium convictus illius, sed lætitiam et gaudium. 17 Hæc cogitans apud me et commemorans in corde meo, quoniam immortalitas est in cognatione sapientiæ, 18 et in amicitia illius delectatio bona, et in operibus manuum illius honestas sine defectione, et in certamine loquelæ illius sapientia, et præclaritas in communicatione sermonum ipsius : circuibam quærens, ut mihi illam assumerem. 19 Puer autem eram ingeniosus, et sortitus sum animam bonam. 20 Et cum essem magis bonus, veni ad corpus incoinquinatum. 21 Et ut scivi quoniam aliter non possem esse continens, nisi Deus det; et hoc ipsum erat sapientiæ, scire cujus esset hoc donum : adii Dominum, et deprecatus sum illum, et dixi ex totis præcordiis meis :