Tobit Chapter 13

*Tobit Exalts the Lord*
1. Then Tobit with exceeding joy wrote a prayer, saying:

2. "Blessed is God
Who lives unto the ages,
And blessed is His kingdom,
For He scourges, and is merciful;
He brings down into Hades,
And leads up.
There is no one who will escape His hand.+

3. Give thanks to Him before the nations,
O children of Israel,
For He scattered us among them.+

4. Make known His greatness there;
Exalt Him in the presence of the living,
For He is our Lord and God;
He is our Father unto all the ages.

5. He will scourge us for our wrongdoings,
But He will again have mercy
And gather us from all the nations,
Wherever you were dispersed among them.

6. If you return to Him with all your heart
And with all your soul,
To do the truth before Him,
Then He will turn to you
And not hide His presence from you.+

7. Behold for yourself what He will do for you,
And give thanks to Him fully with the organ of speech.
Bless the Lord of righteousness,
And exalt the King of the ages.

8. In the land of my captivity, I give thanks to Him,
And make known His might and majesty to a nation of sinners.
Be converted, you sinners,
And do righteousness before Him.
Who knows if He will desire you
And have mercy of you?

9. I exalt my God,
And my soul exalts the King of heaven
And will rejoice exceedingly in His majesty.

10. Let all speak of His majesty
And give thanks to Him in Jerusalem.
O Jerusalem, the holy city,
He will scourge you for the deeds of your sons,
But He will again show mercy to the sons of the righteous.

11. Give thanks to the Lord with goodness
And bless the King of the ages,
That His tabernacle may be restored again to you in joy.+

12. May He rejoice in you, the captives,
And may He love those who are distressed among you
Unto all generations forever.

13. Many Gentiles will come from afar
To the name of the Lord God,
Bearing gifts in their hands
And offerings to the King of heaven.
Generations of generations will offer You joyful worship.+

14. Cursed are all who hate You;
Blessed are all who love You forever.

15. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad for the children of the righteous,
For they will be gathered together
And will bless the Lord of the righteous.
Blessed are those who love You.
They will rejoice in Your peace.

16. Blessed are the many who grieved over all Your scourges,
For they will rejoice when they see all Your glory
And will rejoice forever.
Let my soul bless God the great King.

17. For Jerusalem will be built with sapphire and emerald,
And her walls with precious stones,
And her towers and battlements with pure gold.
The streets of Jerusalem will be paved with beryl, onyx, and stones from Ophir.+

18. All her streets will proclaim, 'Alleluia!'
And will give praise, saying,
'Blessed is God, who exalted you unto all the ages.'"

~~~
Notes:
+13:1 - As with many Old Testament prayers, the prayer of Tobit resembles many of the psalms.

+13:2 - Blessed is the kingdom is how we begin the Sunday worship of the Church.

+13:3 - The nations are the Gentile nations where God's children are scattered.

+13:6 - This promise is repeated to Israel throughout the Old Testament.

+13:11 - His tabernacle is the temple in Jerusalem.

+13:13 - The author of Tobit understands that one day many Gentiles will come to the King of heaven and that generations of generations of them will worship in what will be called the One Holy Church (see Jn 1:12).

+13: 17,18 - This passage also has in view the New Jerusalem (see Rev 21:1-3, 10, 11)