Afterlife of the Righteous

1st Century

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Wisdom literature often presents a world in which the righteous are ultimately rewarded and the wicked punished. The reward for the righteous after death is evocatively presented in these verses of the Hellenistic Wisdom of Solomon, composed after the Roman conquest of Alexandria in 30 BCE. On this theme, see also Heavenly Judgment.

1But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,
and no torment will ever touch them.
2In the eyes of the foolish they seem to have died,
and their departure was thought to be a disaster,
3and their going from us to be their destruction;
but they are at peace.
4For though in the sight of others they were punished,
their hope is full of immortality.
5Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good,
because God tested them and found them worthy of himself;
6like gold in the furnace he tried them,
and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted them.
7In the time of their visitation they will shine forth,
and will run like sparks through the stubble.
8They will govern nations and rule over peoples,
and the Lord will reign over them forever.
9Those who trust in him will understand truth,
and the faithful will abide with him in love,
because grace and mercy are upon his holy ones,
and he watches over his elect.

Translation from the New Revised Standard Version.

Credits

New Revised Standard Version Bible copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 2: Emerging Judaism.

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Wisdom literature often presents a world in which the righteous are ultimately rewarded and the wicked punished. The reward for the righteous after death is evocatively presented in these verses of the Hellenistic Wisdom of Solomon, composed after the Roman conquest of Alexandria in 30 BCE. On this theme, see also Heavenly Judgment.

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Biblical and Hellenistic Wisdom

4th Century BCE–1st Century CE
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Ancient Jewish Wisdom Teachings

4th Century BCE–6th Century CE
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Jewish Daily Life in Roman-Era Palestine

1st Century BCE–6th Century CE

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