THE 3rd DAY - BOOK OF WISDOM.
Ch. 7, v. 7-14: v. 21-24.
And so I (Solomon) prayed, and understanding was given to me.
I entreated, and the Spirit of Wisdom came to me.
I esteemed Her more than sceptres and thrones,
Compared with Her I held riches as nothing.
I reckoned no priceless stone to be Her peer.
For compared with Her all gold is as dust,
And beside Her silver ranks as mud.
More than health and beauty did I love Her,
Preferred Her to the light,
since Her radians never dims.
In Her company greater good came my way,
Because immeasurable riches lie in Her hands3.
I enjoyed all this since Wisdom brought it with Her,
Without knowing as yet that She was their Mother.
In sincerity I learned to know Her,
And without envy I pass Her on.
For She is to men an inexhaustible treasure
And those who acquire it gain God’s friendship
As they become pleasing to Him by the gifts of Her virtue.
Hidden or visible, I have come to the knowledge of everything,
Instructed by Wisdom who designed it all.
For within Her is a Spirit intelligent, holy,
Unique, manifold, subtle,
Active, incisive, unsullied,
Lucid, invulnerable, benevolent, sharp,
Irresistible, beneficent, loving to man,
Steadfast, dependable, unperturbed,
All-powerful, all-surveying4, penetrating all other spirits,
No matter how intelligent, pure and most subtle they might be.
For Wisdom is quicker than anything that moves:
She pervades and permeates all things through the power of Her purity.
HAIL MARY
(3) The Son of God Himself, the Eternal Wisdom.
(4) As came to light at the wedding feast of Cana, e.g.