Book of Sirach
The Book of Sirach (/ˈsaɪræk/, Hebrew: ספר בן-סירא, romanized: Sēper ben-Sîrāʾ), also known as The Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach[1] or Ecclesiasticus (/ɪˌkliːziˈæstɪkəs/, and abbreviated Ecclus.),[2] is a Jewish work, originally written in Biblical Hebrew. The longest extant wisdom book from antiquity,[1][3] it consists of ethical teachings, written approximately between 196 and 175 BCE by Yeshua ben Eleazar ben Sira (Ben Sira), a Hellenistic Jewish scribe of the Second Temple period.[1][4]
"Ecclesiasticus" redirects here. Not to be confused with Ecclesiastes.Ben Sira's grandson translated the text into Koine Greek and added a prologue sometime around 117 BCE.[3] Although the Book of Sirach is not included in the Hebrew Bible, this prologue is generally considered to be the earliest witness to a tripartite canon of the books of the Old Testament,[5] and thus the date of the text is the subject of intense scrutiny by biblical scholars. The ability to precisely date the composition of Sirach within a few years provides great insight into the historical development and evolution of the Jewish canon.
Alternative titles[edit]
The Koine Greek translation was accepted in the Septuagint under the (abbreviated) name of the author: Sirakh (Σιραχ). Some Greek manuscripts give as the title the "Wisdom of Iēsous Son of Sirakh" or in short the "Wisdom of Sirakh". The Old Latin Bible was based on the Septuagint, and simply transliterated the Greek title into Latin letters: Sirach. In the Latin Vulgate, the book is called Sapientia Jesu Filii Sirach ("The Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach").
The Greek Church Fathers also called it the "All-Virtuous Wisdom", while the Latin Church Fathers, beginning with Cyprian,[8] termed it Ecclesiasticus because it was frequently read in churches, leading the Latin Church Fathers to call it Liber Ecclesiasticus ("Church Book"). Similarly, the New Latin Vulgate and many modern English translations of the Apocrypha use the title Ecclesiasticus, literally "of the Church" because of its frequent use in Christian teaching and worship.
Note: verse numbers may vary slightly between versions.
