The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English (43 page)

Hymn 18
(formerly
14
)

I [thank Thee, O Lord,
for] Thou hast placed me beside a fountain of streams
in an arid land,
and close to a spring of waters
in a dry land,
and beside a watered garden
[in a wilderness].

 

[For Thou didst set] a plantation
of cypress, pine, and cedar for Thy glory,
trees of life beside a mysterious fountain
hidden among the trees by the water,
and they put out a shoot
of the everlasting Plant.
But before they did so, they took root
and sent out their roots to the watercourse
that its stem might be open to the living waters
and be one with the everlasting spring.

 

And all [the beasts] of the forest
fed on its leafy boughs;
its stem was trodden by all who passed on the way
and its branches by all the birds.
And all the [trees] by the water rose above it
for they grew in their plantation;
but they sent out no root to the watercourse.

 

And the bud of the shoot of holiness
of the Plant of truth
was hidden and was not esteemed;
and being unperceived,
its mystery was sealed.
Thou didst hedge in its fruit, [O God],
with the mystery of mighty Heroes
and of spirits of holiness
and of the whirling flame of fire.

 

No [man shall approach] the well-spring of life
or drink the waters of holiness
with the everlasting trees,
or bear fruit with [the Plant] of heaven,
who seeing has not discerned,
and considering has not believed
in the fountain of life,
who has turned [his hand against] the everlasting [bud].

 

And I was despised by tumultuous rivers
for they cast up their slime upon me.

 

But Thou, O my God, hast put into my mouth
as it were rain for all [those who thirst]
and a fount of living waters which shall not fail.
When they are opened they shall not run dry;
they shall be a torrent [overflowing its banks]
and like the [bottom]less seas.
They shall suddenly gush forth
which were hidden in secret,
[and shall be like the waters of the Flood
to every tree], both the green and the barren;
to every beast and bird [they shall be an abyss.
The trees shall sink like] lead in the mighty waters,
fire [shall burn among them]
and they shall be dried up;
but the fruitful Plant
[by the] everlasting [spring
shall be] an Eden of glory
[bearing] fruits [of life].

 

By my hand Thou hast opened for them
a well-spring and ditches,
[that all their channels] may be laid out
according to a certain measuring-cord,
and the planting of their trees
according to the plumb-line of the sun,
that [their boughs may become
a beautiful] Branch of glory.

 

When I lift my hand to dig its ditches
its roots shall run deep into hardest rock
and its stem ... in the earth;
in the season of heat it shall keep its strength.
But if I take away my hand
it shall be like a thistle [in the wilderness];
its stem shall be like nettles in a salty land,
and thistles and thorns shall grow from its ditches,
and brambles and briars.
Its border [trees] shall be like the wild grapevine
whose foliage withers before the heat,
and its stem shall not be open to [the spring].

 

[Behold, I am] carried away with the sick;
[I am acquainted] with scourges.
I am forsaken in [my sorrow] ...
and without any strength.
For my sore breaks out in bitter pains
and in incurable sickness impossible to stay;
[my heart laments] within me
as in those who go down to Hell.
My spirit is imprisoned with the dead
for [my life] has reached the Pit;
my soul languishes [within me]
day and night without rest.

 

My wound breaks out like burning fire
shut up in [my bones],
whose flames devour me for days on end,
diminishing my strength for times on end
and destroying my flesh for seasons on end.
The pains fly out [towards me]
and my soul within me languishes even to death.
My strength has gone from my body
and my heart runs out like water;
my flesh is dissolved like wax
and the strength of my loins is turned to fear.

 

My arm is torn from its socket
[and I can] lift my hand [no more];

 

My [foot] is held by fetters
and my knees slide like water;
I can no longer walk.
I cannot step forward lightly,
[for my legs and arms] are bound by shackles
which cause me to stumble.
The tongue has gone back which Thou didst make
marvellously mighty within my mouth;
it can no longer give voice.
[I have no word] for my disciples
to revive the spirit of those who stumble
and to speak words of support to the weary.
My circumcised lips are dumb.
XVII
(formerly
IX
)
[For] the throes of death [encompass me]
and Hell is upon my bed;
my couch utters a lamentation
[and my pallet] the sound of a complaint.
My eyes are like fire in the furnace
and my tears like rivers of water;
my eyes grow dim with waiting,
[for my salvation] is far from me
and my life is apart from me.

 

But behold,
from desolation to ruin,
and from the pain to the sore,
and from the travail to the throes,
my soul meditates on Thy marvellous works.
In Thy mercies Thou hast not cast me aside;
season by season, my soul shall delight
in the abundance of mercy.
I will reply to him who slanders me
and I will rebuke my oppressor;
I will declare his sentence unjust
and declare Thy judgement righteous.

 

For I know by Thy truth,
and I choose Thy judgement upon me:
I delight in my scourges
for I hope for Thy loving-kindness.
Thou hast put a supplication
in the mouth of Thy servant
and Thou hast not threatened my life
nor rejected my peace.
Thou hast not failed my expectation,
but hast upheld my spirit in face of the scourge.

 

For it is Thou who hast founded my spirit
and Thou knowest my intent;
in my distress Thou hast comforted me.
I delight in forgiveness,
and am consoled for the former transgression;
for I know there is hope in Thy grace
and expectation in Thy great power.
For no man can be just in Thy judgement
or [righteous in] Thy trial.
Though one man be more just than another,
one person [more] wise [than another],
one mortal more glorious
than another creature [of clay],
yet is there no power to compare with Thy might.
There is no [bound] to Thy glory,
and to Thy wisdom, no measure;
[to Thy truth] there is no ...
and all who forsake it ...

 

and my oppressor shall [not] prevail against me.
I will be a stumbling-block to [those who swallow me up,
and a snare to] all those who battle against me;
[I will be for my enemies a] cause of shame,
and a cause of disgrace
to those who murmur against me.
For Thou, O my God ...
Thou wilt plead my cause;
for it is according to the mystery of Thy wisdom
that Thou hast rebuked me.

 

Thou wilt conceal the truth until [its] time,
[and righteousness] until its appointed moment.
Thy rebuke shall become my joy and gladness,
and my scourges shall turn to [eternal] healing
and everlasting [peace].
The scorn of my enemies shall become a crown of glory,
and my stumbling (shall change) to everlasting might.

 

For in Thy ...
and my light shall shine forth in Thy glory.
For as a light from out of the darkness,
so wilt Thou enlighten me.
[Thou wilt bring healing to] my wound,
and marvellous might in place of my stumbling,
and everlasting space to my straitened soul.
For Thou art my refuge, my high mountain,
my stout rock and my fortress;
in Thee will I shelter
from all the [designs of ungodliness,
for Thou wilt succour me] with eternal deliverance.

 

For Thou hast known me from (the time of) my father,
[and hast chosen me] from the womb.
[From the belly of] my mother
Thou hast dealt kindly with me,
and from the breast of her who conceived me
have Thy mercies been with me.
[Thy grace was with me] in the lap of her who reared me,
and from my youth Thou hast illumined me
with the wisdom of Thy judgement.

 

Thou hast upheld me with certain truth;
Thou hast delighted me with Thy Holy Spirit
and [hast opened my heart] till this day.
Thy just rebuke accompanies my [faults]
and Thy safeguarding peace delivers my soul.
The abundance of (Thy) forgiveness is with my steps
and infinite mercy accompanies Thy judgement of me.

 

Until I am old Thou wilt care for me;
for my father knew me not
and my mother abandoned me to Thee.
For Thou art a father
to all [the sons] of Thy truth,
and as a woman who tenderly loves her babe,
so dost Thou rejoice in them;
and as a foster-father bearing a child in his lap
so carest Thou for all Thy creatures.

Hymn 19
(formerly
15
)

[I thank Thee, O Lord]
XVIII
(formerly
X
)
... and nothing exists except by Thy will;
none can consider [Thy deep secrets]
or contemplate Thy [mysteries].

 

What then is man that is earth,
that is shaped [from clay] and returns to the dust,
that Thou shouldst give him to understand such marvels
and make known to him the counsel of [Thy truth]?

 

Clay and dust that I am,
what can I devise unless Thou wish it,
and what contrive unless Thou desire it?
What strength shall I have
unless Thou keep me upright,
and how shall I understand
unless by (the spirit) which Thou hast shaped for me?
What can I say unless Thou open my mouth
and how can I answer unless Thou enlighten me?
Behold, Thou art Prince of gods
and King of majesties,
Lord of all spirits,
and Ruler of all creatures;
nothing is done without Thee,
and nothing is known without Thy will.

 

Beside Thee there is nothing,
and nothing can compare with Thee in strength;
in the presence of Thy glory there is nothing,
and Thy might is without price.

 

Who among Thy great and marvellous creatures
can stand in the presence of Thy glory?
How then can he who returns to his dust?
For Thy glory's sake alone hast Thou made all these things.

Hymn 20
(formerly
16
)

Blessed art Thou, O Lord,
God of mercy [and abundant] grace,
for Thou hast made known [Thy wisdom to me
that I should recount] Thy marvellous deeds,
keeping silence neither by day nor [by night]!

 

[For I have trusted] in Thy grace.
In Thy great goodness,
and in [the multitude of Thy mercies]
For I have leaned on Thy truth
[And unless] Thou rebuke,
there is no stumbling;
unless Thou foreknow it,
[there is no] scourge;
[nothing is done without] Thy [will].

 

[I will cling to Thy ways]
according to my knowledge [of Thy] truth;
contemplating Thy glory
I will recount Thy wonderful works,
and understanding [Thy goodness
I will lean on the] multitude of Thy mercies
and hope for Thy forgiveness.

 

For Thou Thyself hast shaped [my spirit]
and established me [according to Thy will];
and Thou hast not placed my support in gain,
[nor does] my [heart delight in riches];
Thou hast given me no fleshly refuge.
The might of warriors [rests] on abundant delights,
[and on plenty of corn] and wine and oil;
they pride themselves in possessions and wealth.
[But the righteous is like a] green [tree]
beside streams of water,
bringing forth leaves and multiplying its branches;
for [Thou hast chosen them
from among the children of] men
that they may all grow fat from the land.

 

Thou wilt give to the children of Thy truth
[unending joy and] everlasting [gladness],
and according to the measure of their knowledge,
so shall they be honoured one more than another.

 

And likewise for the son of man ...
Thou wilt increase his portion
in the knowledge of Thy truth,
and according to the measure of his knowledge,
so shall he be honoured ...
[For the soul] of Thy servant has loathed [riches] and gain,
and he has not [desired] exquisite delights.
My heart rejoices in Thy Covenant
and Thy truth delights my soul.
I shall flower [like the lily]
and my heart shall be open to the everlasting fountain;
my support shall be in the might from on high.
But...
and withers like a flower before [the heat].
My heart is stricken with terror,
and my loins with trembling;
my groaning goes down to the Abyss,
and is shut up in the chambers of Hell.
I am greatly afraid when I hear of Thy judgement
of the mighty Heroes,
and of Thy trial of the host
of Thy Holy Ones
XIX
(formerly
XI
)

Hymn 21
(formerly
17
)

I thank Thee, my God,
for Thou hast dealt wondrously to dust,
and mightily towards a creature of clay!
I thank Thee, I thank Thee!

 

What am I, that Thou shouldst [teach] me
the counsel of Thy truth,
and give me understanding
of Thy marvellous works;
that Thou shouldst lay hymns of thanksgiving
within my mouth
and [praise] upon my tongue,
and that of my circumcised lips
(Thou shouldst make) a seat of rejoicing?

 

I will sing Thy mercies,
and on Thy might I will meditate all day long.
I will bless Thy Name evermore.
I will declare Thy glory in the midst of the sons of men
and my soul shall delight in Thy great goodness.

 

I know that Thy word is truth,
and that righteousness is in Thy hand;
that all knowledge is in Thy purpose,
and that all power is in Thy might,
and that every glory is Thine.
In Thy wrath are all chastisements,
but in Thy goodness is much forgiveness
and Thy mercy is towards the sons of Thy goodwill.
For Thou hast made known to them
the counsel of Thy truth,
and hast taught them Thy marvellous mysteries.

 

For the sake of Thy glory
Thou hast purified man of sin
that he may be made holy for Thee,
with no abominable uncleanness
and no guilty wickedness;
that he may be one [with] the children of Thy truth
and partake of the lot of Thy Holy Ones;
that bodies gnawed by worms may be raised from the dust
to the counsel [of Thy truth],
and that the perverse spirit (may be lifted)
to the understanding [which comes from Thee];
that he may stand before Thee
with the everlasting host
and with [Thy] spirits [of holiness],
to be renewed together with all the living
and to rejoice together with them that know.