Hearken, my people, to my law, incline your ear to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth in parables, I will proclaim the hymns from the beginning. I have heard and known, and our fathers have told us: not being hidden from their children to other generations, proclaiming the praises of the Lord and His powers, and His wonders that He had done. And he raised up a testimony in Jacob, and laid down a law in Israel: For the commandment of our fathers was that I should say unto my sons, that another generation shall know that he that is born sons, and shall arise and I will command my sons: let them put their trust in God, and not forget the works of God, and seek His commandments. May they not be like their fathers, a generation that is obstinate and bitter, a generation that has not straightened its heart and has not trusted its spirit with God. The sons of Ephraim drew bows and shot, returning on the day of battle, not keeping the covenant of God, and not wanting to walk in His law. And they forgot His good deeds, and His miracles, which He had shown them before their fathers, which He had done miracles in the land of Egypt, in the field of Taneos.
Open the sea and lead them through, imagine the waters like fur. And I will instruct the cloud during the days and all the night with the illumination of fire. He opened up a stone in the desert, and gave me drink as in the depths of the deep, and brought forth water from the stone, and brought down like rivers of water. And he added to sin against Him, causing Him grief in the abyss; and having tempted God in your hearts, question the food of your souls. And slandering God, and deciding: food, will God be able to prepare a meal in the desert? Smite the rock, and the waters flow, and the floods flood: can you provide food and bread, or prepare a meal for your people? For this reason the Lord heard and despised: and fire kindled in Jacob, and wrath arose against Israel, because they did not believe in God, and did not trust in His salvation. And the commandment was a cloud from above, and the doors of heaven were opened, and rain down manna for them to eat, and give them the bread of heaven. The angelic bread was eaten by man; I sent it to them until they were full. Raise up the south from heaven, and bring down the foliage with His power, and rain on it like the dust of flesh, and the birds of the sea like sand.
And he attacked in the middle of their camp, around their dwellings. And I ate and was filled with greens, and I brought their desire to them. Not being deprived of her desire: I still have meat in their mouth: and the wrath of God arose against her, and killed them in abundance, and the elect of Israel was commended. In all these things you have yet sinned, and have not believed His miracles. And their days perished in vanity, and their years in vain. Whenever I kill, then I seek Him, and turn and pray to God: and remember that God is their Helper, and God the Most High is their Deliverer. And they loved Him with their lips, and lied to Him with their tongue: but their heart was not right with Him, but they believed in His covenant. He is also generous, and will cleanse their sins, and will not corrupt them, and will increase to turn away His wrath, and will not kindle all His anger. And let me remember that for flesh is flesh, spirit walk and be not turned back. How did you grieve Him in the desert, anger Him in the dry land?
And having turned, and tempted God, and provoked the Holy One of Israel, and did not remember His hand on the day I delivered from the hand of the one who offends, just as He placed His signs and wonders in Egypt Yours on the waters of Taneos, and turn their rivers and their springs into blood, so that they do not drink. I sent flies and eaters to her, and I sent frogs and moles. And you will give their fruits to rust, and their labors to waste. Kill their grapes with hail, and their blueberries with glory, and deliver their livestock to the hail, and their property with fire. He sent upon her the wrath of His wrath, rage and wrath and sorrow, the message of fierce angels. Make the path of Your wrath, and do not spare their souls from death: You also imprison their cattle in death, and smite every firstborn in the land of Egypt, the beginning of all their labor in the villages of Ham. And I raised up my people like sheep, and I raised up my people like flocks in the wilderness, and I led them to trust, and they were not afraid, and their enemies covered the sea. And I brought into the mountain of My holiness, this mountain, which His right hand possessed.
And I drove out the tongues from before them, and gave them [land] by lot by lot, and settled the tribes of Israel in their villages. And you tempted and grieved the Most High God, and did not keep His testimonies, and turned away and rejected, like their fathers, turning into a perverted bow, and you angered Him in your hills and in their graven images provoked Him. God heard and despised and despised the land of Israel, and cast off the tabernacle of Shiloh, the village that had taken up residence among men. And you delivered their strength into captivity, and their kindness into the hands of enemies, and shut up your people in weapons, and despised your property. Their young men ate fire, and their virgins did not complain; Their priests fell with the sword, and their widows will not be mourned. And the Lord arose as he slept, as he was strong and noisy with wine, and struck back his enemies, and gave them eternal reproach. And I will cast away the village of Joseph, and will not choose the tribe of Ephraim, and will choose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which I will love, and will build my sanctuary like a unicorn, the foundation of the earth and forever.
And he chose David as his servant, and received him from the flocks of sheep. From the milkmen he will feed his servant Jacob and Israel his inheritance. And in the kindness of my heart, and in my understanding, I directed my hand to eat. Hearken, O My people, to My law; incline your ear to the words of My mouth! I will open My mouth in parables, I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world. What we have heard and known, what our fathers told us, will not be hidden from their descendants; I will proclaim the glory of the Lord, His power and the wonders He has done. He gave revelation to Jacob, He laid down the law for Israel, commanding our fathers to pass it on to their sons, so that the descendants, the sons not yet born, would know it, and they would grow up, and they would also tell it to their sons. May they place their trust in God and not forget the deeds of God, may they fulfill His commandments! Let them not, like their fathers, be of a stubborn and daring generation, a generation that did not keep the truth in its heart and was not faithful to God in its spirit.
The sons of Ephraim, who strain their bows and shoot, fled on the day of battle; They did not keep the covenant of God, they did not want to keep His law; And they forgot His good deeds and His miracles that He showed them. The wonders that He performed before their fathers in the land of Egypt, in the field of Thaneos; He opened the sea and led them through as if on dry land; stopped the waters, collecting them as if in bottles; And His cloud led them by day, and a pillar of fire led them all night. He broke up a stone in the desert and gave them something to drink, as if from a great abyss; And he brought forth water from the stone, and brought forth streams of water. But they continued to sin before Him, insulted the Almighty in the waterless desert; And they tempted God in their hearts, asking for food that was pleasing to them. And they slandered God and said: “Can God give us a meal in the desert? Although Moses struck the stone, and the waters flowed and the streams overflowed, how can God give bread? Or will He give a meal to His people?” The Lord heard and looked upon them, and wrath was kindled against Jacob, wrath was poured out on Israel; For they did not believe in God and did not expect salvation from Him.
And He commanded the clouds from above, and He opened the gates of heaven; And he sent manna to them abundantly, like rain, for food, and he gave them the bread of heaven. Man ate the angel's bread; they were satisfied with food. The Lord lifted up the south wind, and brought with His power the southwest wind; And abundantly, like rain, he sent them meat food, like the sand of the sea, and feathered birds. And they fell in the midst of their camp, around their tents. And the people ate and were satisfied, He fulfilled their desire; They got what they wanted; but there was still food in their mouths, when the wrath of God broke out upon them, and killed many of them, and the Lord overthrew the nobles of Israel. But they continued to sin and did not believe in His miracles; Their days disappeared in vanity, and their years quickly passed. When He killed them, then they looked for Him, turned to God and cried out to Him in the morning. And they remembered that God is the Giver of help, the Almighty is their Savior. And they spoke of love for Him with their lips, and with their tongues they lied to Him. But their heart was not truthful before Him, and they were not faithful to His covenant.
But He was merciful, cleansed them from their sins and did not destroy them, many times He turned away His wrath from them, moderating the flame of His anger. And He remembered that they were only flesh, that the soul would come out of them and not return. How many times did they insult Him in the desert, provoke His wrath in the waterless land! Now they turned to God, now they tested Him, they insulted the Holy One of Israel; And they forgot the work of His hands, which was done in the day when He delivered them from the hand of the oppressor; How He showed His signs in Egypt and His wonders in the field of Thaneos; He turned the rivers of the Egyptians and their springs into blood, depriving them of drink. He sent dog flies against the Egyptians, and they stung them; he sent toads, and they harmed them. And he gave their fruits over to the poisonous dew, and their fields to the locusts. He struck down their grapes with hail, and their fig trees with frost; He destroyed their livestock with hail, and their property with fire. He brought down His wrath, rage, wrath and sorrow on them, sending down terrible angels to the earth. He paved the way for His anger and did not spare their souls, and brought pestilence on their flocks; And he struck down the firstborn of every living thing in the land of Egypt, the firstfruits of human labor in the villages of Ham.
And he raised up his people like sheep, and led them like a flock in the wilderness; And he guided them reliably, and they were not afraid, but the sea covered their enemies. And He brought them up to the mountain of His holiness, to the mountain that His right hand had acquired. And he drove out the nations from before Israel, and distributed their land to him by lot, demarcating it, and settling the tribes of Israel in their dwellings. But they tempted and insulted the Most High God and did not keep His revelations; And they turned away, retreated from God, like their fathers; became worthless, like a cracked onion. And they angered Him on the hills, worshiping idols, and insulted Him. God heard, and looked in anger, and He humiliated Israel; And He rejected the tabernacle of Shiloh, the habitation where He dwelt among the people; And he gave their strength into captivity, and their beauty into the hands of their enemies; And He put His people to the sword, and despised His inheritance. Their young men were destroyed by fire, their virgins perished and were not mourned; Their priests fell by the sword, and there was no one to mourn the widows.
But the Lord arose, as if from sleep, like a ruler, noisy with wine; And he turned back his enemies, and gave them over to everlasting reproach; And he rejected the habitation of Joseph, and did not choose the tribe of Ephraim; He chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, His beloved. And He made His sanctuary impregnable, like the den of a unicorn; founded it on earth forever. And He chose David His servant, and took him from the sheep pastures; From the flocks of sheep he took him to feed Jacob his servant, and Israel his heritage; And David shepherded them in the gentleness of his heart and wisely guided them with his hand.