Font Size
Wisdom of Ben Sira 41:1-4
New Catholic Bible
Wisdom of Ben Sira 41:1-4
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 41
Do Not Fear Death’s Sentence[a]
1 O death, how bitter is the thought of you
to someone who lives at ease among his possessions,
who is free from worries and prosperous in all things
and still healthy enough to enjoy food.
2 O death, how welcome is your sentence
to someone in want whose strength is failing,
worn out with age and burdened by endless anxiety,
resentful and no longer blessed with patience.
3 Do not fear death’s sentence;
remember it embraces those who preceded you and those who will come after.
4 This is God’s sentence on all flesh,
so why do you reject the pleasure of the Most High?
Whether one’s life lasts ten years, or a hundred, or a thousand,
no questions will be asked about it in the netherworld.
Footnotes
- Wisdom of Ben Sira 41:1 Willingly or unwillingly, sooner or later, everybody is subject to the law of death. The author, who does not yet have any clear experience of eternal life, humbly accepts this reality of the human condition.
