Tobit 12
Tobit and his son Tobias discuss what to give to the holy man who accompanied Tobias on his journey, but the man, who is revealed to be the Angel Raphael, refuses their offer and instead tells them to bless God and reveal His works. Raphael explains that he was sent by God to cure Tobit and free Sarah from the demon, and that he was with them by God's will. After revealing his true identity, Raphael disappears from their sight, and Tobit and Tobias spend three hours prostrate on the ground, blessing God and describing His wonders.
1Then Tobit called his son to him, and he said to him, "What are we able to give to this holy man, who accompanied you?2Tobias, answering, said to his father: "Father, what wages shall we give him? And what could be worthy of his benefits3He led me and he brought me back safely. He received the money from Gabael. He caused me to have my wife. And he confined the demon away from her. He caused joy to her parents. Myself, he rescued from being devoured by the fish. As for you, he also caused you to see the light of heaven. And so, we have been filled with all good things through him. What could we possibly give to him that would be worthy of these things4But I implore you, my father, to ask him if he would perhaps deign to take for himself half of all the things that have been brought.5And calling him, the father especially, and the son, they took him aside. And they began to petition him, so that he would deign to accept ownership of one half part of all things that they had brought6Then he said to them privately: "Bless the God of heaven, and confess to him in the sight of all who live, for he has acted in his mercy toward you7For it is good to conceal the secret of a king, just as it is also honorable to reveal and to confess the works of God8Prayer with fasting is good, and almsgiving is better than hiding away gold in storage9For almsgiving delivers from death, and the same is what purges sins and makes one able to find mercy and everlasting life10But those who commit sin and iniquity are enemies to their own soul11Therefore, I reveal the truth to you, and I will not hide the explanation from you12When you prayed with tears, and buried the dead, and left behind your dinner, and hid the dead by day in your house, and buried them by night: I offered your prayer to the Lord13And because you were acceptable to God, it was necessary for you to be tested by trials14And now, the Lord has sent me to cure you, and to free Sarah, your son’s wife, from the demon15For I am the Angel Raphael, one of seven, who stand before the Lord.16And when they had heard these things, they were troubled, and being seized with fear, they fell upon the ground on their face17And the Angel said to them: "Peace be to you. Fear not18For when I was with you, I was there by the will of God. Bless him, and sing to him19Indeed, I seemed to eat and drink with you, but I make use of an invisible food and drink, which cannot be seen by men20Therefore, it is time that I return to him who sent me. But as for you, bless God, and describe all his wonders.21And when he had said these things, he was taken from their sight, and they were not able to see him any longer22Then, lying prostrate for three hours upon their face, they blessed God. And rising up, they described all his wonders
Share this chapter