Font Size
Wisdom of Ben Sira 43:6-8
New Catholic Bible
Wisdom of Ben Sira 43:6-8
New Catholic Bible
The Moon, Queen of Feasts and Seasons[a]
6 He also created the moon that marks the changing seasons,
governing the divisions of time, their everlasting sign.
7 From the moon we are able to calculate when feast days are to be observed;
its light wanes when its course has been completed.[b]
8 “Month” derives its name from the moon;[c]
it waxes wondrously as its phases change.
It is a beacon to the hosts on high,
shining in the vault of the heavens.
Footnotes
- Wisdom of Ben Sira 43:6 The Israelites established their calendar starting from the observation of the lunar system. The unfolding of the days and the years flows from the regularity that the moon seems to possess in their eyes.
- Wisdom of Ben Sira 43:7 The full moon marked the beginning of the two greatest Jewish feasts (Passover and Tabernacles) and lasted eight days.
- Wisdom of Ben Sira 43:8 “Month” derives its name from the moon: Hebrew reads: “As its name suggests, each month the moon renews itself.”
