Do not say,“ Why is it that the former days were better than these?” For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this.

不要说：先前的日子强过如今的日子，是什么缘故呢？你这样问，不是出于智慧。

不要说：为什么先前的日子强过现今的日子呢？你这样问不是出于智慧。

不要说：为什么先前的日子强过现今的日子呢？你这样问不是出于智慧。

不要问为什么过去比现在好，因为这样问不明智。

你不要说：“为什么从前的日子胜过现在的呢？”你这样问，不是出于智慧。

不要说：“为什么先前的日子好过现在的日子呢？”因为你这样问不是出于智慧。

不要說：先前的日子強過如今的日子，是甚麼緣故呢？你這樣問，不是出於智慧。

不要說：為甚麼先前的日子強過現今的日子呢？你這樣問不是出於智慧。

不要說：為甚麼先前的日子強過現今的日子呢？你這樣問不是出於智慧。

不要問為什麼過去比現在好，因為這樣問不明智。

你不要說：“為甚麼從前的日子勝過現在的呢？”你這樣問，不是出於智慧。

你不要說：『為甚麼先前的日子比如今這些日子好呢？』因為你問到這事、並不是出於智慧。

不要說：「為什麼先前的日子好過現在的日子呢？」因為你這樣問不是出於智慧。

勿謂今不如古何耶、詢此、乃不智也、

勿是古非今、而尚論其事、此非智者所為也。

爾勿問云、緣何今日不如昔日、爾如是問、則非出於智慧、

Do not say,“ Why were the old days better than these?” For it is not wise to ask such questions.

Don’t say,“ Why were things better in the good old days?” It isn’t wise to ask that kind of question.

Say not,“ Why were the former days better than these?” For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.

Don’t long for“ the good old days.” This is not wise.

Don’t say,“ Why were the former days better than these?” since it is not wise of you to ask this.

Do not say,“ Why were the former days better than these?” For you do not inquire wisely concerning this.

Say not thou, What is the cause that the former days were better than these? for thou dost not inquire wisely concerning this.

Don’t say,“ Why were the former days better than these?” since it is not wise of you to ask this.

Say not thou, What is[ the cause] that the former days were better than these? for thou dost not enquire wisely concerning this.

Do not say,“ Why were the old days better than these days?” for it is not wise to ask that.

Don’t say,“ Why were the former days better than these?” For you do not ask wisely about this.

Then Gideon said to him,“ O my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying,‘ Did the Lord not bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to Midian.”

But we will certainly carry out every word that has proceeded from our mouths, by burning sacrifices to the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, just as we ourselves, our forefathers, our kings, and our leaders did in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; for then we had plenty of food and were well off and saw no misfortune.But since we stopped burning sacrifices to the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have lacked everything, and have met our end by the sword and by famine.”“ And,” said the women,“ when we were burning sacrifices to the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, was it without our husbands that we made for her sacrificial cakes in her image, and poured out drink offerings to her?”

Claiming to be wise, they became fools,and they exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible mankind, of birds, four footed animals, and crawling creatures.Therefore God gave them up to vile impurity in the lusts of their hearts, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them.For they exchanged the truth of God for falsehood, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged natural relations for that which is contrary to nature,and likewise the men, too, abandoned natural relations with women and burned in their desire toward one another, males with males committing shameful acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error.And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a depraved mind, to do those things that are not proper,people having been filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, and evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malice; they are gossips,slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,without understanding, untrustworthy, unfeeling, and unmerciful;and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also approve of those who practice them.

What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin;as it is written:“ There is no righteous person, not even one;There is no one who understands, There is no one who seeks out God;They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, There is not even one.”“ Their throat is an open grave, With their tongues they keep deceiving,”“ The venom of asps is under their lips”;“ Their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness”;“ Their feet are swift to shed blood,Destruction and misery are in their paths,And they have not known the way of peace.”“ There is no fear of God before their eyes.”Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God;

The Lord has looked down from heaven upon the sons of mankind To see if there are any who understand, Who seek God.They have all turned aside, together they are corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one.

This is what the Lord says:“ Where is the certificate of divorce By which I have sent your mother away? Or to whom of My creditors did I sell you? Behold, you were sold for your wrongdoings, And for your wrongful acts your mother was sent away.

Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence.And God looked on the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for humanity had corrupted its way upon the earth.