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Ecclesiasticus
Chapter 2
God's servants must look for temptations: and must arm themselves with patience and confidence in God.
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Son, when thou comest to the service of God, stand in justice and in fear, and prepare thy soul for temptation. |
2 |
Humble thy heart, and endure: incline thy ear, and receive the words of understanding: and make not haste in the time of clouds. |
3 |
Wait on God with patience: join thyself to God, and endure, that thy life may be increased in the latter end. |
4 |
Take all that shall be brought upon thee: and in thy sorrow endure, and in thy humiliation keep patience. |
5 |
For gold and silver are tried in the fire, but acceptable men in the furnace of humiliation. |
6 |
Believe God, and he will recover thee: and direct thy way, and trust in him. Keep his fear, and grow old therein. |
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Ye that fear the Lord, wait for his mercy: and go not aside from him lest ye fall. |
8 |
Ye that fear the Lord, believe him: and your reward shall not be made void. |
9 |
Ye that fear the Lord hope in him, and mercy shall come to you for your delight. |
10 |
Ye that fear the Lord, love him, and your hearts shall be enlightened. |
11 |
My children behold the generations of men: and know ye that no one hath hoped in the Lord, and hath been confounded. |
12 |
For who hath continued in his commandment, and hath been forsaken? or who hath called upon him, and he despised him? |
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For God is compassionate and merciful, and will forgive sins in the day of tribulation: and he is a protector to all that seek him in truth. |
14 |
Woe to them that are of a double heart and to wicked lips, and to the hands that do evil, and to the sinner that goeth on the earth two ways. |
15 |
Woe to them that are fainthearted, who believe not God: and therefore they shall not be protected by him. |
16 |
Woe to them that have lost patience, and that have forsaken the right ways, and have gone aside into crooked ways. |
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And what will they do, when the Lord shall begin to examine? |
18 |
They that fear the Lord, will not be incredulous to his word: and they that love him, will keep his way. |
19 |
They that fear the Lord, will seek after the things that are well pleasing to him: and they that love him, shall be filled with his law. |
20 |
They that fear the Lord, will prepare their hearts, and in his sight will sanctify their souls, |
21 |
They that fear the Lord, keep his commandments, and will have patience even until his visitation, |
22 |
Saying: If we do not penance, we shall fall into the hands of the Lord, and not into the hands of men. |
23 |
For according to his greatness, so also is his mercy with him. |
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