Book of sirach

FROM WIKI

The Book of Sirach (/ˈsaɪræk/, Hebrew: ספר בן-סירא, romanized: Sēper ben-Sîrāʾ), also known as The Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach[1] or Ecclesiasticus (/ɪˌkliːziˈæstɪkəs/, and abbreviated Ecclus.),[2] is a Jewish work, originally written in Biblical Hebrew. The longest extant wisdom book from antiquity,[1][3] it consists of ethical teachings, written approximately between 196 and 175 BCE by Yeshua ben Eleazar ben Sira (Ben Sira), a Hellenistic Jewish scribe of the Second Temple period.[1][4]

Ben Sira's grandson translated the text into Koine Greek and added a prologue sometime around 117 BCE.[3] Although the Book of Sirach is not included in the Hebrew Bible, this prologue is generally considered to be the earliest witness to a tripartite canon of the books of the Old Testament,[5] and thus the date of the text is the subject of intense scrutiny by biblical scholars. The ability to precisely date the composition of Sirach within a few years provides great insight into the historical development and evolution of the Jewish canon.