Wisdom of Ben Sira 48:1-11
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 48
In the Northern Kingdom: Elijah and Elisha[a]
1 Then arose like a fire the prophet Elijah,
whose words were like a flaming torch.
2 He brought a famine on the people,
and by his zeal he decimated their number.
3 By the word of the Lord he shut up the heavens
and three times he called down fire from the skies.
4 How glorious you were, Elijah, in your miracles!
Whose glory is equal to yours?
5 You raised a corpse from death
and from the netherworld, by the word of the Most High.
6 You dragged down kings to their destruction,
and also nobles from their sickbeds.
7 You heard a rebuke at Sinai
and avenging judgments at Horeb.
8 You anointed kings to effect retribution
and prophets to succeed you.
9 You were taken up to the heavens in a whirlwind of fire,
in a chariot drawn by fiery horses.
10 It is written that you are destined at the appointed time
to allay the wrath of God before it erupts in fury,
to turn the hearts of parents back to their children
and to restore the tribes of Jacob.
11 Blessed is he who will see you
and those who have fallen asleep in love,
for we also shall certainly live.[b]
Footnotes
- Wisdom of Ben Sira 48:1 In accord with a belief widely held in Israel, Elijah was to come at the time of the Messiah; verse 11 seems to refer to it (see Mal 3:23; Mt 17:10-13). The word of the Prophets was not enough to maintain the fidelity of the northern kingdom, which will fall in 721 B.C. Only the little kingdom of Judah will subsist while waiting to experience exile.
- Wisdom of Ben Sira 48:11 Text is uncertain. In our arrangement, the author states that those who will see Elijah when he returns, as well as those who have fallen asleep in love, will live forever. The defective Hebrew text alludes only to Elijah’s disappearance (2 Ki 2:10).
