Odes of Solomon/Ode 12
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- And It Knows Neither Its Descent nor Its Course
- 1 He has filled me with utterances of truth,
- so that I could speak it.
- 2 And like the flowing of water,
- truth flowed from my mouth,
- and my lips declared its fruits.
- 3 And he caused his (or: truth’s) knowledge to abound in me,
- because the mouth of the Lord is the truthful utterance,
- and the opening of his light.
- 4 And the Most High gave the message to his ages,
- the interpreters of his splendor,
- and the narrators of his glory,
- and the praisers of his thought,
- and the proclaimers of his mind,
- and the explainers of his works.
- 5 For the utterance’s fluent eloquence is beyond expression,
- and like its expression, so are its swiftness and sharpness,
- and its course is endless.
- 6 And never does it fall, but it remains standing,
- and it knows neither its descent nor its course.
- 7 For like its work, so is its hope,
- for it is the light and the dawning of thought.
- 8 And by (the utterance) the ages spoke to one another,
- and those who were silent acquired speech.
- 9 And from it came love and harmony,
- and they spoke to each other the message they had.
- 10 And they were urged on by the utterance,
- and they knew him who had made them, because they were in harmony.
- 11 Because the mouth of the Most High spoke to them,
- and by it his interpretation flowed quickly.
- 12 For the Tabernacle of the utterance is the bar nasha,
- and (the utterance’s) truth is love.
- 13 Blessed are they who by means of it have understood everything,
- and have known the Lord in his truth.
- Hallelujah!