2913 verses about Truth

which I have not showed to all men, but to you, and a few like you. Then answered I and said,

Notwithstanding the law perishes not, but remains in its honor.

And I said, Because you have forsaken me: yet I did according to your words, and went into the field, and, behold, I have seen, and yet see, that which I am not able to express.

Or is my sense deceived, or my soul in a dream?

And you have judged the earth, but not with truth.

For you have afflicted the meek, you have hurt the peaceful, you have hated those who speak truth, you have loved liars, and destroyed the dwellings of those who brought forth fruit, and cast down the walls of such as did you no harm.

Behold, this have you done to me, in that you search out the ways of the Most High.

But it was not expounded to him, as I now expound it to you or have expounded it.

And the lion, whom you saw rising up out of the wood, and roaring, and speaking to the eagle, and rebuking her for her unrighteousness, and all her words which you have heard;

and you only have been meet to know the secret of the Most High.

Therefore write all these things that you have seen in a book, and put them in a secret place:

For of all the prophets you only are left us, as a cluster of the vintage, and as a lamp in a dark place, and as a haven for a ship saved from the tempest.

The interpretation of the vision shall I tell you, and I will also open to you the things whereof you have made mention.

And he said to me, like as one can neither seek out nor know what is in the deep of the sea, even so can no man upon earth see my Son, or those that be with him, but in the time of his day.

For you have forsaken your own ways, and applied your diligence to mine, and have sought out my law.

These words shall you publish openly, and these shall you hide.

For the truth shall withdraw itself further off, and leasing be hard at hand: for now hastens the eagle to come, which you saw in vision.

For your law is burned, therefore no man knows the things that are done of you, or the works that shall be done.

and my mouth was opened, and shut no more.

And it came to pass, when the forty days were fulfilled, that the Most High spoke to me, saying, The first that you have written publish openly, and let the worthy and unworthy read it:

but keep the seventy last, that you may deliver them to such as be wise among your people:

for in them is the spring of understanding, the fountain of wisdom, and the stream of knowledge.

and cause you them to be written in paper: for they are faithful and true.

Behold, the word of the Lord, receive it: disbelieve not the things whereof the Lord speaks.

Just as a right honest and virtuous woman hates a harlot,

so shall righteousness hate iniquity, when she decketh herself, and shall accuse her to her face, when he comes that shall defend him that diligently searcheth out every sin upon earth.

Let not the sinner say that he has not sinned: for he shall burn coals of fire upon his head, which says, I have not sinned before God and his glory.

yes, the spirit of God Almighty. He who made all things, and searcheth out hidden things in hidden places,

surely he knows your imagination, and what you⌃ think in your hearts. Woe to those who sin, and would fain hide their sin!

Reasoning is, then, intellect accompanied by a life of rectitude, putting foremost the consideration of wisdom.

And wisdom is a knowledge of divine and human things, and of their causes.

For he said that he had sinned, so as to be consequently worthy of death; and that if he were saved, he would celebrate to all men the blessedness of the holy place.

And when many had been seized, a foremost man of the assembly, a Hebrew, by name Eleazar, a priest by family, by profession a lawyer, and advanced in years, and for this reason known to many of the king’s followers, was brought near to him.

I would counsel you, old man, before your tortures begin, to taste the swine’s flesh, and save your life; for I feel respect for your age and hoary head, which since you have had so long, you appear to me to be no philosopher in retaining the superstition of the Jews.

And you will be acting, I think, still more senselessly, if you follow vain conceits about the truth.

Will you not awake from your trifling philosophy? and give up the folly of your notions; and, regaining understanding worthy of your age, search into the truth of an expedient course?

We, O Antiochus, who are persuaded that we live under a divine law, consider no compulsion to be so forcible as obedience to that law;

wherefore we consider that we ought not in any point to transgress the law.

And indeed, were our law (as you suppose) not truly divine, and if we wrongly think it divine, we should have no right even in that case to destroy our sense of religion.

But you deride our philosophy, as though we lived irrationally in it.

nor will I transgress the sacred oaths of my forefathers to keep the law.

I am not so old, and void of manliness, but that my rational powers are youthful in defence of my religion.

I will not belie you, O law, my instructor! or forsake you, O beloved self-control!

I will not put you to shame, O philosopher Reason; or deny you, O honored priesthood, and science of the law.

For over the ungodly you shall tyrannize; but you shall not lord it over my thoughts about religion, either by your arguments, or through deeds.

Let not us who are children of Abraham be so evil advised as by giving way to make use of an unbecoming pretense;

for it were irrational, if having lived up to old age in all truth, and having scrupulously guarded our character for it, we should now turn back,

Thus speaking, the holy man departed, noble in his torments, and even to the agonies of death resisted in his reasoning for the sake of the law.

Ridiculous would it be were it not so; and I prove that reasoning has not only mastered pains, but that it is also superior to the pleasures, and withstands them.

You, father, have gloriously established our right government by your endurance; and making of much account our service past, prevented its destruction, and, by your deeds, have made credible the words of philosophy.

Now they having listened to these words of persuasion, and seeing the fearful instruments, not only were not afraid, but even answered the arguments of the tyrant, and through their good reasoning destroyed his power.

Why delay you, O tyrant? for we are readier to die than to transgress the injunctions of our fathers.

And we should be disgracing our fathers if we did not obey the law, and take knowledge for our guide.

O tyrant, counsellor of law-breaking, do not, hating us as you do, pity us more than we pity ourselves.

O most accursed tyrant, and enemy of heavenly justice, and cruel-hearted, I am no murderer, nor sacrilegious man, whom you thus ill-usest; but a defender of the Divine law.

For through all my torments I will convince you that the children of the Hebrews are alone unconquered in behalf of virtue.

How sweet is every form of death for the religion of our fathers! and he said to the tyrant,

A great favor you bestow upon us, O tyrant, by enabling us to manifest our adherence to the law by means of nobler sufferings.

For religious understanding, O tyrant, is unconquered.

For is not your inability to overrule our reasoning, and to compel us to eat the unclean, your destruction?

For the guards not of a tyrant but of a divine law are our defenders: through this we keep our reasoning unconquered.

But you shall groan according to your deserts for having slain without cause the champions of virtue.

If then, the seven kindred despised troubles even to death, it is confessed on all sides that righteous reasoning is absolute master over the passions.

O holy seven of harmonious kindred! for as the seven days of creation, about religion,

For they were both just and temperate, and manly, and high-minded, and fond of their kindred, and so fond of their mother that even to death they obeyed her by observing the law.

For it was truly a divine contest which was carried through by them.

Then Herod secretly called the wise men, and learned from them exactly what time the star appeared.

Don’t think to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I tell you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.

He opened his mouth and taught them, saying,

Neither do you light a lamp, and put it under a measuring basket, but on a stand; and it shines to all who are in the house.

“Don’t think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I didn’t come to destroy, but to fulfill.

For most certainly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not even one smallest letter or one tiny pen stroke shall in any way pass away from the law, until all things are accomplished.

“Again you have heard that it was said to them of old time, ‘You shall not make false vows, but shall perform to the Lord your vows,’ Numbers 30:2; Deuteronomy 23:21; Ecclesiastes 5:4

but I tell you, don’t swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is the throne of God;

nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.

Neither shall you swear by your head, for you can’t make one hair white or black.

But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes’ and your ‘No’ be ‘No.’ Whatever is more than these is of the evil one.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’

“The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light.

But if your eye is evil, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but don’t consider the beam that is in your own eye?

Or how will you tell your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye;’ and behold, the beam is in your own eye?

You hypocrite! First remove the beam out of your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck out of your brother’s eye.

“Don’t give that which is holy to the dogs, neither throw your pearls before the pigs, lest perhaps they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves.

By their fruits you will know them. Do you gather grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles?

Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

Many will tell me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many mighty works?’

“Everyone therefore who hears these words of mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, who built his house on a rock.

Everyone who hears these words of mine, and doesn’t do them will be like a foolish man, who built his house on the sand.

for he taught them with authority, and not like the scribes.

Neither do people put new wine into old wine skins, or else the skins would burst, and the wine be spilled, and the skins ruined. No, they put new wine into fresh wine skins, and both are preserved.”

Therefore don’t be afraid of them, for there is nothing covered that will not be revealed; and hidden that will not be known.

What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in the ear, proclaim on the housetops.

Everyone therefore who confesses me before men, him I will also confess before my Father who is in heaven.

But whoever denies me before men, him I will also deny before my Father who is in heaven.

“Don’t think that I came to send peace on the earth. I didn’t come to send peace, but a sword.

But why did you go out? To see a prophet? Yes, I tell you, and much more than a prophet.

At that time, Jesus answered, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you hid these things from the wise and understanding, and revealed them to infants.

Yes, Father, for so it was well-pleasing in your sight.