| Revision as of 22:19, 14 May 2003 edit129.187.254.14 (talk) church not clergy← Previous edit | Revision as of 19:56, 18 May 2003 edit undo129.187.254.12 (talk) deNext edit → | ||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| ] | |||
| '''Sirach''' (also called '''Ben Sirach''' or '''Ecclesiasticus'''), book written (circa 180 BCE) in ] by a ] living in ], '''Jesus ben Sirach''', and translated into ] by his grandson. | '''Sirach''' (also called '''Ben Sirach''' or '''Ecclesiasticus'''), book written (circa 180 BCE) in ] by a ] living in ], '''Jesus ben Sirach''', and translated into ] by his grandson. | ||
Revision as of 19:56, 18 May 2003
Sirach (also called Ben Sirach or Ecclesiasticus), book written (circa 180 BCE) in Hebrew by a Jew living in Egypt, Jesus ben Sirach, and translated into Greek by his grandson.
The Greek translation contains a preface written by Ben Sirach's grandson. It was called Ecclesiasticus because it was frequently read in churches, and was thus called liber ecclesiasticus (Latin and latinised Greek for 'church book'). Today it is more frequently known as Ben Sirach or simply Sirach.
Although it was not accepted into the Jewish canon, Sirach is quoted infrequently in the Talmud, giving it some semi-canonical status. It is included in the Septuagint and is accepted as part of the biblical canon by Catholics and Eastern Orthodox, but not by Protestants.
Only the Greek translation survives in full, although fragments of the original Hebrew text have been discovered.