4 Maccabees 1:1-3

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

(d) The following book appears in an appendix to the Greek Bible.

The Author’s Definition of His Task

1 The subject that I am about to discuss is most philosophical, that is, whether pious reason is sovereign over the passions. So it is right for me to advise you to pay earnest attention to philosophy.^{(A) 2} For the subject is essential to everyone who is seeking knowledge, and in addition it includes the praise of the highest virtue—I mean, of course, rational judgment. ³ If, then, it is evident that reason rules over those passions that hinder self-control, namely, gluttony and lust,^(B)