BEGINNING with the generation first
2Of mortal men down to the very last
3I'll prophesy each thing: what erst has been,
4And what is now, and what shall yet befall
5The world through the impiety of men.
6First now God urges on me to relate
7Truly how into being came the world.
8And thou, shrewd mortal, prudently make known,
9Lest ever thou should'st my commands neglect,
10The King most high, who brought into existence
11The whole world, saying, "Let there be," and there was.
12For he the earth established, placing it
13Round about Tartarus, and he himself
14Gave the sweet light; he raised the heaven on high,
15Spread out the gleaming sea, and crowned the sky
16With an abundance of bright-shining stars,
17And decked the earth with plants, and mingled sea
18With rivers, and the air with zephyrs mixed
19And watery clouds; and then, another race
20Appointing, he gave fishes to the seas
21And birds unto the winds, and to the woods
22The beasts of shaggy neck, and snakes that crawl,
23And all things which now on the earth appear.
24These by his word he made, and every thing
25Was speedily and with precision done;
26For he was self-caused and from heaven looked down
27And finished was the world exceeding well.
28And then thereafter fashioned he again
29A living product, copying a new man
30From his own image, beautiful, divine,
31And bade him in ambrosial garden dwell,
32That labors beautiful might be his care.
33But in that fertile field of Paradise
34He longed for conversation, being alone,
35And prayed that he might see another form
36Such as he had. And forthwith, from man's side
37Taking a bone, God himself made fair Eve,
38A wedded spouse, and in that Paradise
39Gave her to dwell with him. And, when he gazed
40Upon her, on a sudden filled with joy
41Great admiration held his soul, he saw
42A pattern so exact; and with wise words
43Spontaneous flowing answered he in turn
44For God had care for all things. For the mind
45They darkened not with passion, nor concealed
46Their nakedness, but with hearts far from evil
47Even like wild beasts they walked with limbs exposed.
48And afterwards delivering them commands
49God showed them not to touch a certain tree;
50But the dread serpent drew them off by guile
51To go away unto the fate of death
52And to gain knowledge of both good and evil.
53But the wife then first traitress proved to God;
54She gave, and urged the unknowing man to sin.
55And he, persuaded by the woman's words,
56Forgot the immortal Maker utterly,
57And treated plain commandments with neglect.
58Therefore, instead of good, received they evil
59According to their deed. And then the leaves
60Of the sweet fig-tree piercing they made clothes
61And put them on each other, and concealed
62The sexual parts, because they were ashamed.
63But on them the Immortal set his wrath
64And cast them out of the immortal land.
65For their abiding now in mortal land
66Was brought to pass, since hearing they kept not
67The word of the immortal mighty God.
68And straightway they, upon the fruitful soil
69Forthgoing, with their tears and groans were wet;
70And to them then the immortal God himself
71A word more excellent spoke: "Multiply,
72Increase, work constantly upon the earth,
73That with the sweat of labor ye may have
74Sufficient food." Thus he spoke; and he made
75The author of deceit to press the ground
76On belly and on side, a crawling snake,
77Driving him out severely; and he sent
78Dire enmity between them and the one
79Is on the look-out to preserve his head,
80But man his heel; for death is neighbor near
81Of evil-plotting vipers and of men.
82And then indeed the race was multiplied
83As the Almighty himself gave command,
84And there grew up one people on another
85Innumerable. And houses they adorned
86Of all kinds and made cities and their walls
87Well and expertly; and to them was given
88A day of long time for a life much-loved;
89For they did not worn out with troubles die,
90But as subdued by sleep; most happy men
91Of great heart, whom the immortal Saviour loved,
92The King, God. But they also did transgress,
93Smitten with folly. For with impudence
94They mocked their fathers and their mothers scorned;
95Kinsmen they knew not, and they formed intrigues
96Against their brothers. And they were impure,
97Having defiled themselves with human gore,
98And they made wars. And then upon them came
99The last calamity sent forth from heaven,
100Which snatched the dreadful men away from life;
101And Hades then received them; it was called
102Hades since Adam, having tasted death,
103Went first and earth encompassed him around.
104And therefore all men born upon the earth
105Are in abodes of Hades called to go.
106But even in Hades all these when they came
107Had honor, since they were the earliest race.
108But when Hades received these, secondly
109[Of the surviving and most righteous men]
110God formed another very subtile race
111That cared for lovely works, and noble toils,
112Distinguished reverence and solid wisdom;
113And they were trained in arts of every kind,
114Finding inventions by their lack of means.
115And one devised to till the land with plows,
116Another worked in wood, another cared
117For sailing, and another watched the stars
118And practiced augury with winged fowls;
119And use of drugs had interest for one,
120While for another magic had a charm;
121And others were in every other art
122Which men care for instructed, wide awake,
123Industrious, worthy of that eponym
124Because they had a sleepless mind within
125And a huge body; stout with mighty form
126They were; but, notwithstanding, down they went
127Into Tartarean chamber terrible,
128Kept in firm chains to pay full penalty
129In Gehenna of strong, furious, quenchless fire.
130And after these a third strong-minded race
131Appeared, a race of overbearing men
132And terrible, who wrought among themselves
133Many an evil. And fights, homicides,
134And battles did continually destroy
135Those men possessed of overweening heart,
136And from these afterward another race
137Proceeded, late-completed, youngest born,
138Blood-stained, perverse in counsel; of men these
139Were in the fourth race; much the blood they spilled,
140Nor feared they God nor had regard for men,
141For maddening wrath and sore impiety
142Were sent upon them. And wars, homicides,
143And battles sent some into Erebus,
144Since they were overweening impious men.
145But the rest did the heavenly God himself
146In anger afterwards change from his world,
147Casting them into mighty Tartarus
148Down under the foundation of the earth.
149And later yet another race much worse
150[Of men he made, to whom no good thereafter]
151The Immortal formed, since they wrought many evils.
152For they were much more violent than those,
153Giants perverse, foul language pouring out.
154Single among all men, most just and true,
155Was the most faithful Noah, full of care
156For noblest works. And to him God himself
157From heaven thus spoke: "Noah, be of good cheer
158In thyself and to all the people preach
159Repentance, so that they may all be saved.
160But if, with shameless soul, they heed me not
161The whole race I will utterly destroy
162With mighty floods of waters. Quickly now
163An undecaying house I bid thee frame
164Of planks strong and impervious to the wet.
165I will put understanding in thy heart,
166And subtile skill, and rule of measurement
167And order; and for all things will I care
168That thou be saved, and all who dwell with thee.
169And I am He who is, and in thy heart
170Do thou discern. I clothe me with the heaven,
171And cast the sea around me, and for me
172Earth is a footstool, and the air is poured
173Around my body; and on every side
174Around me runs the chorus of the stars.
175Nine letters have I; of four syllables
176I am; discern me. The first three have each
177Two letters, the remaining one the rest,
178And five are mates; and of the entire sum
179The hundreds are twice eight and thrice three tens
180Along with seven. Now, knowing who I am,
181Be thou not uninitiate in my lore."
182Thus he spoke; and great trembling seized on him
183At what he heard. And then, within his mind
184Having contrived each matter, he besought
185The people and began with words like these:
186"O men insatiate, smit with madness great,
187Whatever things ye practiced they shall not
188Escape God's notice; for he knows all things,
189Immortal Saviour overseeing all,
190Who bade me warn you, that ye perish not.
191Be sober, cut off badness, do not fight
192Perforce each other with blood-guilty heart,
193Nor irrigate much land with human gore.
194Revere, O mortals, the supremely great
195And fearless heavenly Creator, God
196Imperishable, whose dwelling is the sky;
197And do ye all entreat him--he is kind--
198For life of cities and of all the world,
199And of four-footed beasts and flying fowls;
200Entreat him to be gracious unto all.
201For when the whole unbounded world of men
202Shall be destroyed by waters loud ye'll raise
203A fearful cry. And suddenly for you
204The air shall be disordered, and from heaven
205The fury of the mighty God shall come
206Upon you. And it certainly shall be
207That the immortal Saviour against men
208Will send wrath if ye do not placate God
209And from this time repent; and nothing more
210Fretful and evil lawlessly shall ye
211One to another do, but let there be
212A guarding of one's self by holy life."
213But when they heard him each turned up his nose,
214Calling him mad, a frenzy-smitten man.
215And then again did Noah sound this strain:
216"O men exceeding wretched, base in heart,
217Unstable, leaving modesty behind
218And loving shamelessness, rapacious lords,
219Fierce sinners, false, insatiate, mischievous,
220In nothing true, stealthy adulterers,
221Flippant in language, pouring forth foul words,
222The wrath of God most high not fearing, kept
223To the fifth generation to atone!
224In no way do ye wail, harsh men, but laugh;
225Sardonic smile shall ye laugh, when shall come
226That which I speak--God's dire incoming flood,
227When Eve's polluted race, in the great earth
228Blooming perennial in impervious stem,
229Shall, root and branch, in one night disappear,
230And cities, men and all, shall the Earth-shaker
231From the depths scatter and their walls destroy.
232And then the whole world of unnumbered men
233Shall die. But how shall I weep, how lament
234In wooden house, how mingle tears with waves?
235For, if this water bidden of God shall come,
236Earth shall float, hills float, and even sky shall float;
237Everything shall be water, and all things
238Shall be destroyed by waters. And the winds
239Shall stand still, and a second age shall come.
240O Phrygia, thou shalt from the water's crest
241First rise up, and thou first another race
242Of men shalt nourish, once again anew
243Beginning; and thou shalt be nurse for all."
244But when now to the lawless generation
245He had thus vainly spoken, the Most High
246Appeared, and once more cried aloud and said:
247"The time is now come, Noah, to proclaim
248Each thing, even all which I that day to thee
249Did promise and confirm, and to complete,
250Because of a people disobedient,
251Throughout the boundless world even all the things
252Which generations of a former time
253Did practice, evil things innumerable.
254But do thou quickly enter with thy sons
255And the wives. Call as many as I bid,
256Of tribes of beasts and creeping things and birds,
257And in as many as I ordain for life
258Will I then put a willingness to go."
259Thus spoke he; forth went (Noah) and aloud
260Cried out and called. And then wife, sons and brides,
261Entered the house of wood; then also went
262The other things, as many as God willed
263To shut in. But when fitting bolt was put
264About the lid, and in its polished place
265Was fitted sideways, then was brought to pass
266Forthwith the purpose of the God of heaven.
267And he massed clouds, and bid the sun's bright disk,
268And moon, and stars, and circle of the heaven,
269Obscuring all things round; he thundered loud,
270Terror of mortals, sending lightnings forth;
271And all the winds together were aroused,
272And all the veins of water were unloosed
273By opening of great cataracts from heaven,
274And from earth's caverns and the tireless deep
275Appeared the myriad waters, and the whole
276Illimitable earth was covered o'er.
277But on the water swam that wondrous house;
278And torn by many furious waves, and struck
279By force of winds, it rushed on fearfully;
280But with its keel it cut the mass of foam
281While the loud-babbling waters dashed around.
282But when God deluged all the world with rains
283Then also Noah took thought to observe
284By counsels of the Immortal; for he now
285Had had enough of Nereus. And straightway
286The house he opened from the polished wall,
287That crosswise was bound fast with skillful stays.
288And looking out upon the mighty mass
289Of boundless waters Noah on all sides--
290And 'twas his fortune with his eyes to see!--
291Fear possessed and shook mightily his heart.
292And then the air became a little calm,
293Since it was weary wetting all the world
294Many days; parting, then, it brought to light
295How pale and blood-red was the mighty sky
296And sun's bright disk awearied; scarcely held
297Noah his courage. And then forth afar
298Sent he a dove alone, that he might learn
299If yet firm land appeared. But with tired wing,
300Flying round all things, she again returned;
301For not yet had the water ebbed away;
302For it was deeply filling every place.
303But after resting quietly for days
304He sent the dove once more, to learn if yet
305Had ceased the many waters. And she flew
306And flew on, and went o'er the earth and, resting
307Her body lightly on the humid ground,
308Again to Noah back she came and bore
309An olive branch--of tidings a great sign.
310Courage now filled them all, and great delight,
311Because they hoped to look upon the land.
312But then thereafter yet another bird,
313Of black wing, sent he forth as hastily;
314Which, trusting to its wings, flow willingly,
315And coming to the land continued there.
316And Noah knew the land was nearer now.
317But when on dashing waves the craft divine
318Had here and there o'er ocean's billows swum,
319It was made fast upon the narrow strand.
320There is in Phrygia on the dark mainland
321A steep, tall mountain; Ararat its name,
322Because upon it all were to be saved
323From death, and there was great desire of heart;
324Thence streams of the great river Marsyas spring.
325There on a lofty peak the ark abode
326When the waters ceased, and then again from heaven
327The voice divine of the great God this word
328Proclaimed: "O Noah, guarded, faithful, just,
329Come boldly forth, with thy sons and thy wife
330And the three brides, and fill ye all the earth,
331Increasing, multiplying, rendering justice
332To one another through all generations,
333Until to judgment every race of men
334Shall come; for judgment shall be unto all."
335Thus spoke the voice divine. Then from his couch
336Noah, encouraged, hastened on the land,
337And with him went his sons and wife and brides,
338And creeping things, and birds and quadrupeds,
339And all things else went from the wooden house
340Into one place. And then went Noah forth
341As eighth, most just of men, when on the waters
342He had made full twice twenty days and one
343Because of counsels of the mighty God.
344Then a new stock of life again arose,
345Golden first, which indeed was sixth, and best,
346From the time when the first-formed man appeared;
347Heavenly its name, because all things to God
348Shall be a care. O first race of sixth age!
349O mighty joy which I thereafter shared,
350When I escaped sheer ruin, by the waves
351Much tossed, with husband and with brothers-in-law,
352Stepfather and stepmother, and with wives
353Of husband's brothers suffering terribly.
354Fitting things now will I sing: There shall be
355On the fig-tree a many-colored flower,
356And afterward the royal power and sway
357Shall Cronos have. For three kings of great soul,
358Men most just, shall distribute portions then,
359And many a year rule, rendering what is just
360To men who care for toil and deeds of love.
361And earth shall glory in her many fruits
362Self-growing, yielding much corn for the race.
363And the foster-fathers, ageless all their days,
364Shall from diseases chill and dreadful be
365Far aloof; they shall die as fallen on sleep,
366And unto Acheron in the abodes
367Of Hades they shall go away, and there
368Shall they have honor, since they were a race
369Of blessed ones, fortunate heroes, whom
370The Lord of Sabaoth gave a noble mind,
371And with whom always he his counsels shared.
372But blessed shall they be even when they go
373In Hades. And then afterward again
374Oppressive, strong, another second race
375Of earth-born men, the Titans. All excel
376In figure, stature, growth; and there shall be
377One language, as of old from the first race
378God in their breasts implanted. But even these,
379Having a haughty heart and rushing on
380To ruin, shall at last resolve to fight
381Against the starry heaven. And then the stream
382Of the great ocean shall upon them pour
383Its raging waters. But the mighty Lord
384Of Sabaoth though enraged shall check his wrath,
385Because he promised that again no flood
386Should be brought upon men of evil soul.
387But when the great high-thundering God shall cause
388The boundless swelling of the many waters--
389With their waves hither and thither rising high--
390To cease from wrath, and into other depths
391Of sea their measure lessen, setting bounds
392By harbors and rough headlands round the land;
393Then also shall a child of the great God
394Come, clothed in flesh, to men, and fashioned like
395To mortals in the earth; and he doth hear
396Four vowels, and two consonants in him
397Are twice announced; the whole sum I will name:
398For eight ones, and as many tens on these,
399And yet eight hundred will reveal the name
400To men insatiate; and do thou discern
401In thine own understanding that the Christ
402Is child of the immortal God most high.
403And he shall fulfill God's law, not destroy,
404Bearing his very image, and all things
405Shall he teach. Unto him shall priests convey
406And offer gold, and myrrh, and frankincense;
407For all these things he'll also bring to pass.
408But when a voice shall through the desert land
409Come bearing tidings to men, and to all
410Shall call to make straight paths, and from the heart
411Cast wickedness out and illuminate
412With water all the bodies of mankind,
413That being born again they may no more
414From what is righteous go at all astray--
415And one of barbarous mind, by dances bound,
416Cutting that (voice) off shall bestow reward--
417Then on a sudden there shall be a sign
418To mortals, when, watched over, there shall come
419Out of the land of Egypt a fair stone;
420And on it shall the Hebrew people stumble;
421But by his guiding nations shall be brought
422Together; for the God who rules on high
423They also shall know through him, and the way
424In common light. For unto chosen men
425Will he show life eternal, but the fire
426Will be for ages on the lawless bring.
427And then shall he the sickly heal, and all
428Who are blameworthy who shall trust in him..
429And then the blind shall see, the lame shall walk,
430The deaf shall hearken, and the dumb shall speak.
431Demons shall he drive out, and of the dead
432There shall be an uprising; on the waves
433Shall he walk; also in a desert place
434Shall he five thousand satisfy with food
435From five loaves and a fish out of the sea,
436And with the remnants of them, for the hope
437Of peoples, shall he fill twelve baskets full.
438And then shall Israel, drunken, not discern,
439Nor shall they hear, oppressed with feeble cars.
440But when the maddening wrath of the Most High
441Shall come upon the Hebrews, and take faith
442Away from them, because they slew the Son
443Of the heavenly God; then also with foul lips
444Shall Israel give him cuffs and spittle drugged.
445And gall for food and vinegar unmixed
446For drink will they, with evil madness smitten
447In bosom and in heart, give impiously,
448Not seeing with their eyes, more blind than moles,
449More terrible than crawling poisonous beasts,
450Fast bound by heavy sleep. But when his hands
451He shall spread forth and measure out all things,
452And bear the crown of thorns, and they shall pierce
453His side with reeds, for which dark monstrous night
454Shall be for three hours in the midst of day,
455Then also shall the temple of Solomon
456Bring to an end a mighty sign for men,
457When he shall to the house of Hades go
458Proclaiming resurrection to the dead.
459But when in three days he shall come again
460Unto the light, and show his form to men
461And teach all things, ascending in the clouds
462Unto the house of heaven shall he go
463Leaving the world a Gospel convenant.
464And in his name shall blossom a new shoot
465From nations that are guided by the law
466Of the Mighty One. But also after this
467There shall be wise guides, and then afterward
468There shall be a cessation of the prophets.
469After that, when the Hebrew people reap
470Their evil harvest, shall a Roman king
471Much gold and silver utterly destroy.
472And afterward shall other royal powers
473Continuously arise as kingdoms perish,
474And they will oppress mortals. But great fall
475Shall be for those men, when they shall begin
476Unrighteous arrogance. But when the temple
477Of Solomon in the holy land shall fall,
478Cast down by barbarous men in brazen mail,
479And from the land the Hebrews shall be driven
480Wandering and wasted, and among the wheat
481They shall much darnel mingle, there shall be
482Evil contention among, all mankind;
483And the cities suffering outrage shall bewail
484Each other, in their breasts receiving wrath
485Of the great God, since they wrought evil work.