Wisdom 13:1-9
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 13
Digression on False Worship
A. Nature Worship[a]
1 Foolish by nature were all who were in ignorance of God,
and who from the good things seen did not succeed in knowing the one who is,[b]
and from studying the works did not discern the artisan;(A)
2 Instead either fire, or wind, or the swift air,
or the circuit of the stars, or the mighty water,
or the luminaries of heaven, the governors[c] of the world, they considered gods.(B)
3 Now if out of joy in their beauty they thought them gods,
let them know how far more excellent is the Lord than these;
for the original source of beauty fashioned them.(C)
4 Or if they were struck by their might and energy,
let them realize from these things how much more powerful is the one who made them.(D)
5 For from the greatness and the beauty of created things
their original author, by analogy, is seen.
6 But yet, for these the blame is less;[d]
For they have gone astray perhaps,
though they seek God and wish to find him.
7 For they search busily among his works,
but are distracted by what they see, because the things seen are fair.
8 But again, not even these are pardonable.
9 For if they so far succeeded in knowledge
that they could speculate about the world,
how did they not more quickly find its Lord?
Footnotes
- 13:1–9 The author holds a relatively benign view of the efforts of the philosophers to come to know God from various natural phenomena. This is not a question of proving the existence of God in scholastic style. The author thinks that the beauty and might of the world should have pointed by analogy (v. 5) to the Maker. Instead, those “in ignorance of God” remained fixed on the elements (v. 2, three named, along with the stars). His Greek counterparts are not totally blameless; they should have gone further and acknowledged the creator of nature’s wonders (vv. 4–5). Cf. Rom 1:18–23; Acts 17:27–28.
- 13:1 One who is: this follows the Greek translation of the sacred name for God in Hebrew; cf. Ex 3:14.
- 13:2 Governors: the sun and moon (cf. Gn 1:16).
- 13:6 The blame is less: the greater blame is incurred by those mentioned in v. 10; 15:14–16.
Isaiah 5:21
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
21 Ah! Those who are wise in their own eyes,
prudent in their own view!(A)
Jeremiah 10:14
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
14 Everyone is too stupid to know;
every artisan is put to shame by his idol:
He has molded a fraud,
without breath of life.(A)
Acts 17:29-30
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
29 Since therefore we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the divinity is like an image fashioned from gold, silver, or stone by human art and imagination.(A) 30 God has overlooked the times of ignorance, but now he demands that all people everywhere repent
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1 Corinthians 1:19-21
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
19 For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the learning of the learned I will set aside.”(A)
20 Where is the wise one? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made the wisdom of the world foolish?(B) 21 [a]For since in the wisdom of God the world did not come to know God through wisdom, it was the will of God through the foolishness of the proclamation to save those who have faith.
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- 1:21–25 True wisdom and power are to be found paradoxically where one would least expect them, in the place of their apparent negation. To human eyes the crucified Christ symbolizes impotence and absurdity.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.