Baruch 3

NEW JERUSALEM	Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
1 Almighty Lord, God of Israel, a soul in anguish, a troubled heart now cries to you:	1 "'O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, the soul in anguish and the wearied spirit cry out to thee.
2 Listen and have pity, Lord, for we have sinned before you.	2 Hear, O Lord, and have mercy, for we have sinned before thee.
3 You sit enthroned for ever, while we are perishing for ever.	3 For thou art enthroned for ever, and we are perishing for ever.
4 Almighty Lord, God of Israel, hear the prayer of the dead of Israel, of the children of those who havesinned against you and have not listened to the voice of the Lord their God; hence the disasters which dog us.	4 O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, hear now the prayer of the dead of Israel and of the sons of those who sinned before thee, who did not heed the voice of the Lord their God, so that calamities have clung to us.
5 Do not cal to mind the misdeeds of our ancestors, but remember instead your power and your name.	5 Remember not the iniquities of our fathers, but in this crisis remember thy power and thy name.
6 You are indeed the Lord our God and we wil praise you, Lord,	6 For thou art the Lord our God, and thee, O Lord, will we praise.
7 since you have put respect for you in our hearts to encourage us to cal on your name. We long topraise you in our exile, for we have rid our hearts of the wickedness of our ancestors who sinned against you.	7 For thou hast put the fear of thee in our hearts in order that we should call upon thy name; and we will praise thee in our exile, for we have put away from our hearts all the iniquity of our fathers who sinned before thee.
8 Look, today we are still in exile where you have scattered us as something contemptible, accursed,condemned, for al the misdeeds of our ancestors who had abandoned the Lord our God.	8 Behold, we are today in our exile where thou hast scattered us, to be reproached and cursed and punished for all the iniquities of our fathers who forsook the Lord our God.'"
9 Listen, Israel, to commands that bring life; hear, and learn what knowledge means.	9 Hear the commandments of life, O Israel; give ear, and learn wisdom!
10 Why, Israel, why are you in the country of your enemies, growing older and older in an alien land,	10 Why is it, O Israel, why is it that you are in the land of your enemies, that you are growing old in a foreign country, that you are defiled with the dead,
11 defiling yourselves with the dead, reckoned with those who go to Sheol?	11 that you are counted among those in Hades?
12 It is because you have forsaken the fountain of wisdom!	12 You have forsaken the fountain of wisdom.
13 Had you walked in the way of God, you would be living in peace for ever.	13 If you had walked in the way of God, you would be dwelling in peace for ever.
14 Learn where knowledge is, where strength, where understanding, and so learn where length of days is,where life, where the light of the eyes and where peace.	14 Learn where there is wisdom, where there is strength, where there is understanding, that you may at the same time discern where there is length of days, and life, where there is light for the eyes, and peace.
15 But who has found out where she lives, who has entered her treasure house?	15 Who has found her place? And who has entered her storehouses?
16 Where now are the leaders of the nations and those who ruled even the beasts of earth,	16 Where are the princes of the nations, and those who rule over the beasts on earth;
17 those who sported with the birds of heaven, those who accumulated silver and gold on which alpeople rely, and whose possessions had no end,	17 those who have sport with the birds of the air, and who hoard up silver and gold, in which men trust, and there is no end to their getting;
18 those who worked so carefully in silver -but of whose works no trace is to be found?	18 those who scheme to get silver, and are anxious, whose labors are beyond measure?
19 They have vanished, gone down to Sheol. Others have risen to their places,	19 They have vanished and gone down to Hades, and others have arisen in their place.
20 more recent generations have seen the day and peopled the earth in their turn, but the way ofknowledge they have not found;	20 Young men have seen the light of day, and have dwelt upon the earth; but they have not learned the way to knowledge, nor understood her paths, nor laid hold of her.
21 they have not recognised the paths she treads. Nor have their children had any grasp of her, remainingfar from her way.	21 Their sons have strayed far from her way.
22 Nothing has been heard of her in Canaan, nothing has been seen of her in Teman;	22 She has not been heard of in Canaan, nor seen in Teman;
23 the children of Hagar in search of worldly wisdom, the merchants of Midian and Teman, the tale-spinners and the philosophers have none of them found the way to wisdom or remembered the paths shetreads.	23 the sons of Hagar, who seek for understanding on the earth, the merchants of Merran and Teman, the story-tellers and the seekers for understanding, have not learned the way to wisdom, nor given thought to her paths.
24 How great, Israel, is the house of God, how wide his domain,	24 O Israel, how great is the house of God! And how vast the territory that he possesses!
25 immeasurably wide, infinitely lofty!	25 It is great and has no bounds; it is high and immeasurable.
26 In it were born the giants, famous from the beginning, immensely tal , expert in war;	26 The giants were born there, who were famous of old, great in stature, expert in war.
27 God's choice did not fall on these, he did not show them the way of knowledge;	27 God did not choose them, nor give them the way to knowledge;
28 they perished for lack of wisdom, perished by their own folly.	28 so they perished because they had no wisdom, they perished through their folly.
29 Who has ever climbed the sky and seized her to bring her down from the clouds?	29 Who has gone up into heaven, and taken her, and brought her down from the clouds?
30 Who has ever crossed the ocean and found her to bring her back in exchange for the finest gold?	30 Who has gone over the sea, and found her, and will buy her for pure gold?
31 No one can learn the way to her, no one can understand the path she treads.	31 No one knows the way to her, or is concerned about the path to her.
32 But the One who knows al discovers her, he has grasped her with his own intel ect, he has set theearth firm for evermore and filled it with four-footed beasts,	32 But he who knows all things knows her, he found her by his understanding. He who prepared the earth for all time filled it with four-footed creatures;
33 he sends the light -- and it goes, he recal s it -- and trembling it obeys;	33 he who sends forth the light, and it goes, called it, and it obeyed him in fear;
34 the stars shine joyful y at their posts;	34 the stars shone in their watches, and were glad; he called them, and they said, "Here we are!" They shone with gladness for him who made them.
35 when he cal s them, they answer, 'Here we are'; they shine to delight their Creator.	35 This is our God; no other can be compared to him!
36 It is he who is our God, no other can compare with him.	36 He found the whole way to knowledge, and gave her to Jacob his servant and to Israel whom he loved.
37 He has uncovered the whole way of knowledge and shown it to his servant Jacob, to Israel his wel -beloved;	37 Afterward she appeared upon earth and lived among men.
38 only then did she appear on earth and live among human beings.