Susanna

Septuaginta. The Old Testament in Greek According to the Septuagint. Volume 3: Hosea-4 Maccabees, Psalms of Solomon, Enoch, The Odes. Swete, Henry Barclay, editor. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1905

Open Greek and Latin · CC BY-SA 4.0

Cloned and adapted by Humanitext, with ongoing edits.

This work, an addition to the Book of Daniel in the Apocrypha, tells the story of Susanna, a beautiful and pious woman who faces an unjust trial and is saved by divine intervention. Set in Babylon, the narrative begins when two corrupt elders lust after Susanna and attempt to force her into adultery. When she resolutely refuses to compromise her faith, the resentful elders falsely accuse her of infidelity with a young man, leading to her being sentenced to death. In her desperate hour, Susanna prays to God for justice, and God answers by stirring up the holy spirit of a young boy named Daniel. Daniel conducts a separate interrogation of the two elders, exposing the contradiction in their testimonies regarding the tree under which they claimed to see the act. Ultimately, Susanna's innocence is vindicated, the wicked elders are executed, and justice and faith in God are triumphantly restored.