The plea of a wise man for Israel: Have mercy upon us, O God of all, and put all the nations in fear of you. Ben Sira 36:1-2

The Book of Ben Sira is a sapiential book whose author lived during the Hellenistic era when the Greek culture was imposed in the Middle East, and the author with the intention to help the God-fearing Jews to live according to the precepts of the law of Moses wrote his book dedicated in particular to the study of the wisdom that is born from the gift of the fear of God (constancy, firmness, devotion).
The book deals with a series of topics without a pre-established order, especially giving highly practical advice for everyday life. But the wise man also gave space in his book for the plea and the prayer.
This is why in his writings he also left a prayer for the glory of Israel, most likely this text has its origins in the time of the exile in Babylon and was added later to the book.
The writing begins by begging God for the manifestation of his sovereignty and power to all the kingdoms of the world, so that his providential plan may be carried out, and justice may be done to those who fear him from the heart:
"Have mercy upon us, O God of all,
and put all the nations in fear of you.
Lift up your hand against foreign nations
and let them see your might.
As you have used us to show your holiness to them,
so use them to show your glory to us" Ben Sira 36:1-4.
Then the prayer continues requesting with wisdom the renewal of the pact with God, because the Lord is faithful and wise, and because a great good can often be obtained from an evil.
But then the text makes a change and requests the fulfillment of the prophecies announced from ancient times by prophets such as Hosea and Isaiah:
"Give evidence of your deeds of old;
fulfill the prophecies spoken in your name.
Reward those who have hoped in you,
and let your prophets be proved true" Ben Sira 36:20-21.
And so, the prayer ends by invoking God, the source of all the blessings for man:
"Hear the prayer of your servants,
according to your good will toward your people.
Thus all the ends of the earth will know
that you are the eternal god" Ben Sira 36:22.

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