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CHAPTER 17
1 God formed man of earth; and after his image he made man.
2 And again he turned man into that image; and after himself he clothed him with virtue.
3 He gave to him the number of days, and time; and he gave to him power of those things that be on earth.
4 He setted [or put] the dread of man [up] on all flesh, and he was lord of beasts and of flying birds [or fowls].
5 He formed of man an help like him; [He formed of him help like to himself;]
6 he gave to them counsel, and tongue, and eyes, and ears, and heart to think out things; and he filled them with teaching of understanding.
7 He made to them the knowing of spirit, he filled the heart of them with wit; and he showed to them evils and goods.
8 He setted the eye of them on the hearts of them, to show to them the great things of his works, that they praise altogether the name of hal-lowing;
9 and to have glory in his marvels, that they tell out the great things of his works.
10 (This verse is omitted in the original text.)
11 He added to them teaching [or discipline]; and he inherited them with the law of life.
12 He ordained an everlasting testa-ment with them; and he showed to them his rightfulness [or rightwise-ness], and dooms.
13 And the eyes of them saw the great things of his honour, and the ears of them heard the honour of voice;
14 and he said to them, Take heed to you from all wicked thing. And he commanded to them, to each man of his neighbour.
15 The ways of them be ever before him; those [or they] be not hid from his eyes.
16 (This verse is omitted in the original text.)
17 On each folk he made sovereign a governor; and Israel was made the open part of God.
18 (This verse is omitted in the original text.)
19 And all the works of them be as the sun in the sight of God; and his eyes behold without ceasing in the ways of them.
20 Testaments were not hid from the wickedness of them; and all the wickednesses of them were in the sight of God.
21 (This verse is omitted in the original text.)
22 The alms of a man is as a bag [or a little sack] with him, and it shall keep the grace of a man as the apple of the eye;
23 and afterward man shall rise again, and it shall yield to them a yielding, to each man into the head of them; and shall turn into the lower parts of earth.
24 Forsooth it gave to men repenting the way of rightfulness, and confirm-ed men failing to suffer, and ordained to them the part of truth. [To men doing penance forsooth he gave the way of rightwiseness, and confirmed men failing to suffer, and ordained to them the lot of truth.]
25 Turn thou to the Lord, and forsake thy sins; pray thou before the face of the Lord, and make thou less hurtings [or the occasions of guilts].
26 Turn thou again to the Lord, and turn thou away from thine unrightful-ness [or unrightwiseness], and hate thou greatly cursing, that is, cursed sin.
27 And know thou the rightfulnesses [or rightwisenesses], and dooms of God; and stand thou in the part of good purpose, and of prayer of the highest God. Go thou into the parts of the holy world, with men living [or with men alive], and giving acknowl-edging to God.
28 Dwell thou not in the error of wicked men. Acknowledge thou be-fore death; acknowledging perisheth from a dead man, as nothing [or Before death acknowledge; from the dead as nought perisheth confession]. Living thou shalt acknowledge, living and whole thou shalt acknowledge, and shalt praise God; and thou shalt have glory in the merciful doings of him.
29 The mercy of God is full great, and his help to them that convert to him. [How great the mercy of God, and the mitigation, or help, of him to men converting to him.]
30 For why not all things may be in men; for why the son of man is not undeadly, and malices pleased into vanity [or into vanity of malice they pleased].
31 What is clearer [or more clear] than the sun? and this shall fail; either what is worse than that, that flesh and blood thought out? and of this he shall be reproved.
32 He beholdeth the virtue of [the] highness of heaven; and all men be earth and ashes.

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© 2001,2010,2011,2012,2013,2015 Terry Noble