CHAPTER 16
and were tormented by a swarm of insects.a
with a novel dish, the delight they craved,
by providing quail for their food,b
should lose their appetite even for necessities,
since the creatures sent to plague them were so loathsome,
While these, after a brief period of privation,
partook of a novel dish.c
but these needed only to be shown how their enemies were being tormented.d
and they were dying from the bite of crooked serpents,
your anger endured not to the end.
though they had a sign* of salvation, to remind them of the precept of your law.
not by what was seen,
but by you, the savior of all.
that you are the one who delivers from all evil.f
and no remedy was found to save their lives
because they deserved to be punished by such means;g
for your mercy came forth and healed them.h
and swiftly they were saved,
Lest they should fall into deep forgetfulness
and become unresponsive to your beneficence.i
but your all-healing word, O LORD!j
you lead down to the gates of Hades and lead back.
but they cannot bring back the departed spirit,
or release the soul that death has confined.
Third Example: A Rain of Manna for Israel Instead of the Plague of Storms
were punished by the might of your arm,
Were pursued by unusual rains and hailstorms and unremitting downpours,
and were consumed by fire.l
the fire grew more active;
For the universe fights on behalf of the righteous.m
so that the beasts that were sent upon the wicked might not be burnt up,
but that these might see and know that they were struck by the judgment of God;
so as to consume the produce of the wicked land.
and furnished them bread from heaven, ready to hand, untoiled-for,
endowed with all delights and conforming to every taste.o
and serving the desire of the one who received it,
was changed to whatever flavor each one wished.p
so that they might know that their enemies’ fruits
Were consumed by a fire that blazed in the hail
and flashed lightning in the rain.q
forgot even its proper strength;r
grows tense for punishment against the wicked,
but is relaxed in benefit for those who trust in you.s
it was serving your all-nourishing bounty
according to what they needed and desired;
that it is not the various kinds of fruits that nourish,
but your word that preserves those who believe you!t
melted when merely warmed by a momentary sunbeam;u
and turn to you at daybreak.v
and runs off like useless water.w
* [16:1] They: the Egyptian idolaters, who are punished according to the principle laid down in 11:5, 15–16.
* [16:6] Sign: the brazen serpent, as related in Numbers 21, but the author deliberately avoids any misunderstanding by addressing the Lord as responsible for the healing, since he is “the savior of all” (v. 7; see also vv. 12 and 26 for the role of the “word” of God).
* [16:13–14] The author recognizes the power of the Lord over life and death, as expressed in 1 Sm 2:6; Tb 13:2. The traditional imagery of Sheol (gates and confinement) colors the passage.
* [16:20] Food of angels: the famous phrase (cf. the hymn “Panis Angelicus”) is taken from Ps 78:24 as rendered by the Septuagint. The “bread from heaven” (cf. Ex 16:4; Ps 105:40) with its marvelous “sweetness” becomes a type of the “bread come down from heaven” in Jn 6:32–51, and plays a large role in later Christian devotion.
* [16:22] Snow and ice: the manna; cf. v. 27; 19:21.
a. [16:1] Wis 11:15–16; 12:23, 27; Ex 7:27; 8:12, 17.
b. [16:2] Wis 11:13; 19:11–12; Ex 16:13; Nm 11:31–32; Ps 105:40.
c. [16:3] Wis 11:15; Ex 8:10; 16:3.
e. [16:5–6] Nm 21:4–9; Dt 32:24; Jer 8:17 LXX.
f. [16:8] Gn 48:16; 2 Mc 1:24–25.
g. [16:9] Ex 8:16–28; 10:4–19; Ps 78:45–46; 105:31, 34; Rev 9:1–11.
k. [16:13–15] Dt 32:39; 1 Sm 2:6; Tb 13:2; 2 Mc 6:26; 7:23; Ps 78:34, 39; Eccl 8:8; Dn 5:19.
l. [16:16] Wis 11:21; 12:27; Ex 5:2; 9:29–34.
m. [16:17] Wis 10:20; 19:20; Ex 9:23–28; 2 Mc 8:36; 14:34.
o. [16:20] Ex 16:4; Nm 11:8; Ps 78:24–25; Jn 6:31.
q. [16:22] Ex 9:25–31; 10:12; Ps 148:8.
s. [16:24] Wis 5:17, 20; 19:6; Sir 39:25–27.
w. [16:29] Wis 5:14; 2 Sm 14:14.
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