| 1 My child, if you aspire to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for an ordeal. |
| 2 Be sincere of heart, be steadfast, and do not be alarmed when disaster comes. |
| 3 Cling to him and do not leave him, so that you may be honoured at the end of your days. |
| 4 Whatever happens to you, accept it, and in the uncertainties of your humble state, be patient, |
| 5 since gold is tested in the fire, and the chosen in the furnace of humiliation. |
| 6 Trust him and he wil uphold you, fol ow a straight path and hope in him. |
| 7 You who fear the Lord, wait for his mercy; do not turn aside, for fear you fal . |
| 8 You who fear the Lord, trust him, and you will not be robbed of your reward. |
| 9 You who fear the Lord, hope for those good gifts of his, everlasting joy and mercy. |
| 10 Look at the generations of old and see: whoever trusted in the Lord and was put to shame? Orwhoever, steadfastly fearing him, was forsaken? Or whoever cal ed to him and was ignored? |
| 11 For the Lord is compassionate and merciful, he forgives sins and saves in the time of distress. |
| 12 Woe to faint hearts and listless hands, and to the sinner who treads two paths. |
| 13 Woe to the listless heart that has no faith, for such will have no protection. |
| 14 Woe to you who have lost the strength to endure; what will you do at the Lord's visitation? |
| 15 Those who fear the Lord do not disdain his words, and those who love him keep his ways. |
| 16 Those who fear the Lord do their best to please him, and those who love him wil find satisfaction in theLaw. |
| 17 Those who fear the Lord keep their hearts prepared and humble themselves in his presence. |
| 18 Let us fal into the hands of the Lord, not into any human clutches; for as his majesty is, so too is hismercy. |