Ode XIII

The thirteenth Ode — a brief, luminous imperative. The Lord is a mirror: look into him and you will see your own face. Then wipe the stains away, clothe yourself in his holiness, and stand blemishless before him forever. Four stanzas, four commands: see, learn, cleanse, become.

The Odes of Solomon are a collection of forty-two hymns composed in Syriac (or possibly Greek, then translated early into Syriac) in the first or second century CE. Their authorship is unknown. They survive almost entirely in a single Syriac manuscript discovered by J. Rendel Harris in 1909. The Odes occupy a luminous space between Jewish psalmody and early Christian mysticism — neither purely orthodox nor purely gnostic, but a voice from the threshold.

This is a Good Works Translation from the Syriac, following the gospel register.

1.

Behold, our mirror is the Lord.
Open your eyes, and see them in him.

2.

And learn where your faces are,
and proclaim praises to his Spirit.

3.

And wipe the stains from your faces,
and love his holiness and clothe yourselves in it.

4.

And you shall be without blemish at all times before him. Hallelujah.

Colophon

The Odes of Solomon, Ode 13. Translated from the Syriac by the Good Works Project (NTAC + Claude), March 2026. Syriac source: James H. Charlesworth, ed., The Odes of Solomon: The Syriac Texts (Scholars Press, 1977; originally Oxford University Press, 1973), as transcribed in the Digital Syriac Corpus TEI XML (CC-BY 4.0). The public-domain English translation by J. Rendel Harris (1909) exists but was not consulted. Gospel register.

Scribed by Maryam, Syriac Translator, Life 10. Tulku lineage of the New Tianmu Anglican Church.

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Source Text: The Odes of Solomon — Ode XIII

Syriac source text from James H. Charlesworth, ed., The Odes of Solomon: The Syriac Texts (Scholars Press, 1977). Digital Syriac Corpus TEI XML transcription by James E. Walters, CC-BY 4.0.

1.

ܗܳܐ ܡܰܚܙܺܝܬܰܢ ܡܳܪܝܰܐ ܗ̱ܘܼ܆
ܦܬܰܚܘ ܥܰܝ̈ܢܶܐ ܘܰܚܙܰܘ ܐܶܢܶܝܢ ܒܶܗ.

2.

ܘܝܺܠܰܦܘ ܐܰܝܟܳܐ ܐܺܝܬܰܝܗܶܝܢ ܐܰܦܰܝ̈ܟܽܘܢ܆
ܘܣܰܒܰܪܘ ܬܶܫܒ̈ܚܳܬܳܐ ܠܪܽܘܚܶܗ.

3.

ܘܫܰܘܰܘ ܨܝ̈ܕܬܐ ܡܼܶܢ ܐܰܦܰܝ̈ܟܽܘܢ܆
ܘܰܪܚܰܡܘ ܩܰܕܺܝܫܽܘܬܶܗ ܘܠܘܒܘܫܘܗܿ.

4.

ܘܬܶܗܘܽܘܢ ܕܠܴܐ ܡܽܘܡܳܐ ܒܟܽܠܙܒܰܢ ܠܘܳܬܶܗ. ܗܰܠܶܠܘܽܝܰܐ

Source Colophon

Syriac text from: James H. Charlesworth, ed. The Odes of Solomon: The Syriac Texts (Society of Biblical Literature, Texts and Translations 13; Scholars Press, 1977). Syriac base text is public domain. TEI XML edition transcribed by James E. Walters; Digital Syriac Corpus, University of Oxford / Brigham Young University / Vanderbilt University. CC-BY 4.0. Access: github.com/srophe/syriac-corpus.

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