He [i.e. Jehovah] shall take His jealousy as complete armour, And shall make the whole creation His weapons of vengeance on His enemies ...; this is all described with great vividness in the verses which follow. It seems as though the author were acquainted with more than one Jewish eschatological scheme, and utilized them, but without realizing that they were inconsistent with each other. See further above, section (_e_), on the doctrine of the Messiah. According to this book, then, there is no Intermediate state; if one can speak of a Resurrection at all it is only in reference to the soul; as the soul is immortal both the righteous and the ungodly live hereafter; the righteous in bliss the ungodly in torment of a purely spiritual kind (see iv. 19, v. 2, xvii. 21); it is not said where the scene of the Judgement is. The writer, it will thus be seen, departs widely from Palestinian Jewish belief on this subject, but he is not ignorant of it; though a Jew, his Hellenistic caste of mind makes it impossible for him to accept the Jewish position. (_g_) _The Doctrine of Angels._ The nature of the contents of Ecclesiasticus is such that one does not look for much reference to angels; nevertheless, in two passages there is a distinct mention of them, viz. xlii. 16 (17): God’s holy ones have not the power To recount His wondrous works of might; Though God hath given strength to His hosts To endure in the presence of His glory (so the Hebrew). The meaning of the passage is that even the “holy ones” (i.e. angels, as in Deut. xxxiii. 1. [but see Driver’s _Deuteronomy_, p. 392], Job v. 1, Ps. lxxxix. 7, and often in the apocalyptic books) are unable to recount God’s marvellous works though, by means of special strength given to them, they stand in His very presence. The other passage is xliii. 26: Through Him His angel prospereth, And at His word what He wills is done.