Hymn to the ancestors
1 Now allow us to praise famous people and our ancestors, generation by generation.
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The Lord created great glory, his majesty from eternity.
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They ruled in their kingdoms, and made a name with their power, some giving counsel by their intelligence; some making pronouncements in prophecies;
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some leading the people by their deliberations, and by their understanding of the people's learning, giving wise words in their instruction;
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others devising musical melodies, and composing poems;
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rich people endowed with strength, living in peace in their dwellings—
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all of these were honored in their generation, a source of pride in their time.
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Some of them left behind a name so that their praises might be told.
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For some there is no memory, and they perished as though they hadn't existed. These have become as though they hadn't been born, they and even their children after them.
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But these were compassionate people whose righteous deeds haven't been forgotten.
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This will persist with their children; their descendants will be a good legacy.
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Their descendants stand by the covenants, and their children also, for their sake.
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Their descendants will last forever, and their glory will never be erased.
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Their bodies were buried in peace, but their name lives for generations.
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The people will tell of their wisdom, and the congregation will proclaim their praise.
Enoch
16 Enoch pleased the Lord and was transferred, an example of a changed heart and mind for generations.
Noah
17 Noah was found perfect and righteous; in a time of anger, he was selected in exchange for the ungodly. Because of him, a few survivors remained on the earth when the flood happened.
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Eternal covenants were made with him so that all living things would not be wiped out by a flood again.
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
19 Abraham was the great father of a multitude of nations, and there was no smudge on his glory.
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He kept the laws of the Most High, and he entered into a covenant with him. He established a covenant in his flesh, and when he was tested, he proved faithful.
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Therefore, the Lord certified for Abraham with a solemn pledge that he would bless nations through his descendants, that he would make him increase like the dust of the earth, exalt his descendants like the stars, and give them an inheritance from sea to sea and from the river to the end of the earth.
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He made the same commitment to Isaac because of Abraham his father. He made a blessing for all humanity and a covenant
to rest on Jacob's head. The Lord acknowledged him with his blessings; he gave him an inheritance, divided his shares, and allotted them among the twelve tribes.
Moses
23 The Lord brought forward out of Jacob a man of mercy, who found favor with all living beings,