The book of Psalms is not the only official prayer book of the People of God in the Old Testament. Canticles, hymns, psalms, supplications, prayers and pleas to the Lord are scattered throughout the pages of the Bible in response to his word. In this way, the Bible reveals itself as a dialogue between God and humanity, a meeting that takes place under the seal of Godís word, his grace and his love.

This is the case with the petition that we just addressed to the “God of the universe” (verse 1). It is contained in the book of Sirach, the reflections, advice, and songs that this wise man gathered together, probably between 190-180 B.C., at the beginning of the epic of Israelís liberation under the guidance of the Maccabee brothers. In 138 B.C. the grandson of this wise man translated his grandfatherís work into Greek, as he himself tells us in the forward to this book, in order to make these teachings available to a wider circle of readers and disciples.

The book of Sirach is called Ecclesiasticus in the Christian tradition. Although it was not included in the Hebrew canon, this book, together with some others, have all the characteristics of the so-called veritas christiana. Thus, the values that this learned work set forth became part of Christian education in the patristic age, especially in monasteries, where it served as a kind of practical manual for how the disciples of Christ should conduct themselves.

Appeal for Salvation

The prayer found in chapter 36 of Sirach is included in a simplified form as a prayer during Morning Prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours, and develops along some thematic lines.

We find, first of all, a plea for God to intervene on Israel's behalf against the oppression of foreign nations. In the past, God revealed his holiness when he punished the faults of his people by delivering them into the hands of their enemies. Now, the believer asks God to show his greatness by suppressing the arrogant power of his oppressors and establishing a new era with messianic overtones.

This plea certainly reflects Israel's tradition of prayer and is actually reminiscent of other passages in the Bible. Certain verses might be considered as a model for prayer to be used in the time of persecution and oppression, as was the case when the author lived, under the rather harsh and severe dominion of foreign Syrian-Hellenic sovereigns.

God's Show of Power

The first part of this prayer begins with an ardent appeal to the Lord to have mercy and to come to the aid of his people (verse 1). Immediately, though, our attention is directed toward Godís action, which is exalted through a series of very evocative verbs: “Come to our aid. … Put all nations in dread of you. … Raise your hand. … Show your holiness. … Give new signs. … Work new wonders. … Show forth the splendor of your right hand and arm."

The God of the Bible is not indifferent to evil. Even though his ways are not our ways and his times and his plans are different from ours (Isaiah 55:8-9), he sides, nevertheless, with the victims and is portrayed as a harsh judge of the violent, the oppressors, and those who are victorious yet have no mercy.

In the Bible, the lament of those who suffer never ends in desperation, but is always open to hope.

However, his intervention does not seek destruction. By showing his power and his faithfulness in love, he can also stir the conscience of the evildoer so as to lead him to conversion. “Thus they will know, as we know, that there is no God but you” (verse 4).

Restoring God's People

The second part of the hymn begins on a more positive note. In fact, while the first part asks God to intervene against enemies, the second part no longer speaks of enemies but asks God to bless Israel and implores his mercy for his chosen people and for his holy city, Jerusalem.

The dream of the return of all the exiles, including those of the Northern Kingdom, becomes the focus of this prayer: “Gather all the tribes of Jacob, that they may inherit the land as of old” (verse 10). Thus, a request is made for the rebirth of all of Israel, as in those joyous times when it occupied the entire Promised Land.

In order to make the prayer more urgent, the writer emphasizes the relationship that binds God to Israel and Jerusalem. Israel is described as “called by your name,” the one “whom you named your firstborn"; Jerusalem is “your holy city … your dwelling place.” The expressed desire is that the relationship become even closer and thus more glorious: “Fill Zion with your majesty, your temple with your glory” (verse 13). By filling the Temple of Jerusalem with his majesty, the Lord, who will gather all nations to himself (Isaiah 2:2-4; Micah 4:1-3), will fill his people with his glory.

The Lord, Our Hope

In the Bible, the lament of those who suffer never ends in desperation, but is always open to hope. It is based on the certainty that the Lord will not abandon his children and will not let those whom he made fall from his hands.

The passage selected for the liturgy has stopped short of including an appropriate expression for when we pray. It asks God to “give evidence of your deeds of old” (verse 14). From all eternity God has a plan of love and salvation for all his creatures, who are called to become his people. It is a plan that St. Paul recognized as “revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit … according to the eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Ephesians 3:5-11).

(Zenit and Register translation)