28 Ecclesiasticus

1°35

INTRODUCTIO

N

TO

ECCLESIASTI

CUS

)

INT

RODUCTIONTO

ECCLESIASTICUS

'-----.)

This

book

forms

part

of

the

Greek

Bible

tho

ughitdoes

notappear

intheJewish

Canon;

itistherefore

one

ofthe

deuterocano

nicalbooksacceptedby the

Churc

h.

It

waswritteninHebrew;St

Jero

me

and

therabbis(who

quote

fromit)knewthebookinitsoriginallanguage.

About

two-thirds

of

thisHebrew textwasdiscoveredin1896infragments

of

severallatemanuscripts;these representarecensionwhichdiffersconsiderablyfromtheGreekandis

somewhat

corrupt.

TheChurchrecognisesthe

canonic

ityonly

of

theGreektext

and

fromthis

our

translationismade,

though

theHebrew

var

iantswillbefoundinthe

footnotes

.

The

Latin

titleEcclesiasticus

(tiber)

isrelativelyrecent(StCyprian);it

probab

lycalls

attent

iontothefact

that

the

Churc

h

adopted

itforherofficialusealthoughtheSynagoguedidnot.In

Gre

ek,cf.the

subscriptio

of51:30,the

book

wascalled'Wisdom

of

JesusBenSirach'andthe

author

isagainnamedin50:27.

Nowa

daysheisreferredtoasBenSiraorSiracides(followingthe

Greek

form:Sirach).Inaforeword,vv.1-34,theg

randson

oftheauthortellshowhe

trans

latedthe

book

whenhewentto

sett

leinEgyptinthe38thyear

of

KingEuergetes,v.27.This

can

onlybePtolemyVIIEuergetes(170-117B.C.),

and

the

date

corresponds

to132B.C.BenSirahimselfpres

umab

lylived

and

wroteaboutsixtyyearsbeforehis

grandso

n,therefore

about

190B.C.Apassage in

thebook

confirmsthisdate:BenSira'seulogy

of

theHighPriestSimon,50:1-21,isbasedonpersonalreminiscence.

This

wasSimonII,whodied

shor

tly

aft

er200B.C.AtthisperiodPalestinehadjustcomeunderthedominion

of

theSeleucids (198).Hellenisation,thatistosaythei

mitati

on

of

Greekm

ann

ers,wassupportedbyasection

of

therulingclass;andsoonafterwardsAntiochus Epiphanes(175-163)wastoattempttoimposeitbyforce.Againstthese dangerousinnovationsBenSiramarshalsalltheforces

of

tradition.Heis ascribeinwhomthe

pur

suit

of

wisdomisc

oupled

withzealfortheLaw.Heis devotedtotheTemplewithitsliturgyandhasahighregardforthepriestly office;

but

thesacredbooks,

too,

arehisspiritualnourishm

ent;

hehas

stud

iedthe

Prop

hetsand

abo

veallthewisdomwritings.Heinhisturn

underta

kestoteachwisdomtoallwho

are

eagerforit,33:18;50:27,cf.thetransla

tor'

sprologue,vv.7-14.Inform,thebookresemblesitspredecessorsandmodels.

Apar

tfromthe sectionhymningtheglory

of

God

innature,42:15

-43:

33,

and

inhistory, 44:1-50:29,withtheappendicesof,respectively,ahymnofthanksgiving, 51:1-12,andapoemonthequestforwisdom,51:13-30,thebookisno

more

logicallyputtogethert

han

ProverbsorEcclesiastes.

The

mostdiversetopics aredealtwith,innoorder

and

withsomerepetit

ion;

thetopicsarepresentedinsmall

groups

of

loosely

connect

edmaxims.Thedoctrine,

too,

istraditional.Thewi

sdom

whichBenSira

commend

s

come

sfromGod:itis

root

edinthefear

of

the

Lord

:itf

orm

sthey

outhful

characterandbringshappiness.Onhumandestiny

and

theproblem

of

retri

but

ionBenSirasharesthesameuncertaintyas

Job

andEcclesiastes.He believesinretribution,heisawareofthetragic

importanc

eoftheh

our

ofdeath,buthedoes

not

yetseehow

God

canrewardeverymanashisactivities deserve,cf.

Introduction

toWisdomBooks.Onthenatureofdivinewisdom, 24:1-22,he

elaborate

sthenotionsofProverbs

andJob

,cf.IntroductiontoWi

sdom

Books.ButBenSira'soriginal

contr

ibutionistoidentifywisdomwiththeLaw ofMoses,24:23-24(thewisdompoeminBaruch3:9

-4

:4doesthesame). Unlikehispredecessors,heintegrateswisdomwiththeobservance

of

theLaw.Further,heidentifiesobservance

of

theLawwithapunctiliousperformance ofreligiousduties,35:1-10;heisafirmsupporter

of

liturgicalworship. Incontrastwithearliersages,BenSirameditatesonthehistoryofsalvation, 44:1-49:16.Hereviewsthegreatpersonalities

of

theOldTestamentfromEnoch toNehemiah.Onthreeofthem,Solomon(eventhoughhewasthemodelof sages),Rehoboam

and

Jero

boam,hisverdictisassevereasthatpassedby deuteronomichistorians,andlikethemhecondemnsallthekings

enbloc

exceptDavid,HezekiahandJosiah.Buthedwellsprincipallyonthesaintlyfigures oftheOldTestamentandonthew

ond

ersGodworkedthroughthem.Hetells howGodmadeacoven

ant

with

Noa

h,Abr

aha

m,Jacob,Moses,

Aaron

,PhinehasandDavid,embracingthewholenationbutespeciallyensuringlasting privilegestocertainfamilies,andthepriestlyfamiliesinparticular.

For

the

author

holdsthedeepestrespectforthepries

thood

:

Aaron

andPhinehastake leadingplacesinhisgallery

of

ancestors,

and

hiseulogyconcludeswithal

ong

andenthusiastictributetoSimonthereigninghighpriest.Helooksbackon the

dep

artedglorieswithacertainsadness,ashethinksofthepresent,

and

hepraysashethinksof

judge

sandprophets'thattheirbonesmayfloweragain fromthe

tomb',

46:12;49:10,andthattheymayhavesuccessors.Hewroteon theeve

of

theMaccabaeanrevolt;hemayperhapshavelivedtoseeitend

and

tothinkthathisprayerhadbeenheard.

Though

inthishistory

of

salvationBenSiragives

pro

minencetothedoctrine

of

thecovenant,itisfairly

correct

tosaythathedoesnotlookforwardto amessianicdeliverance.

True,

inhis

prayer

of36:1-17hereminds

Godof

hispromises,begginghimto

take

pityonZionandreassemblethetribes

of

Jacob,

but

ifthisismessianismitisveryvague.

From

start

tofinishtheteaching

of

thesages,beingconcerned.withtheproblems

of

theindividual,remainsclearly distinguishedfromthepreachingofthe

prop

hets,

though

sometimesriotfar removed.BenSiraisthelast

canonic

alrepresentative

of

JewishwisdominPalestine.Heisanoutstandingexample

of

those

hasidim

(the

'de

vout')

of

Juda

ism,cf.IM2:42

+,

whowere

soon

todefendtheirfaithagainstthepersecutions

of

AntiochusEpiphanes,

and

preservelittleislandsoffaithinIsrael,inwhich theteaching

of

Christ

cou

ldlater

takeroo

t.

Though

Ecclesiasticuswas

not

acceptedintotheHebrewCanon,itisfrequentiy

quoted

intherabbinicalwritings;intheNew

Testament,

theEpistle

of

St

James

borrows

many

expressionsfromit,anditis,nexttothePsalms,the

Old

Testament

book

mostfrequently

quoted

intheChristianliturgy.

o

w

/°3

7

ECCLE

SI

AST

ICUS

1:24

8

9

10

For

whomhastherootofwisdomeverbeenuncovered? Herresourcefulways,whoknowsthem?' Oneonlyiswise,terribleindeed, seatedonhisthrone,-theLord

.'

Hehimselfhascreatedher,'lookedonherandassessedher,

and

pouredher

out

onallhisworks tobewithall

mankind

ashisgift,

and

heconveyedhertothosewholovehim.

Jb28:12-23 Ws11:20Jb28:27 J

I3

:1-2

Ac

2

:17f.JJ

002:26

TR

ANSLA

TOR

'S

FOREW

ORD"

I.

COLLECTIONS

OFSAYINGS

ECCLESIASTICUS

0'4

;6

Pr1:7+

Ws7:11 Jb28;271;12Pr3;2Pr8;18-19 Pr29;22

001

2:131:20;11:27

Pr4:10

9:16

e.

Add

.

v,

7'Tow

hom

hasthe

knowledge

of

wisdom

beenmanifested?And

who

has

u

nderstood

theabu

nda

nceofher

ways?'

f.

The

authoremphasisestheun

iqueness

andsub

limityof

God

.W

isdo

misan

anrtbute

of

God,

thehallmark.ofhis

crea

tion,the

gift

of

God

to

man;

thoughfrequentlypersonifiedin

wisdo

mliterature,Pr8:22+,hereitisacreated

thing

and

cannot

beidentifiedwith

God.

g.VuIK.

adds

'intheHolySp

irit'

.h.The'fearoftheLord'in

the

wisdom

books

nolongerimplies

phys

icalfearin

presence

of

God's

terrifyingpower

butrat

herreverenceand

devotedobed

ience.I.Syr.'et

ern

allife'. l.

Add.

v.2l'Thefearofthe

Lordtakes

sin

away

,hewho

pers

everes

tur

ns

away

anger".k.

Textcore.:

'Unjustragecannot

be

justified'G

reek

.intheheavens;herwaysarethe

eternal

laws'

.

F

a.

ThisforewordbytheGreek.translatorisnot

stric

tlyapartofSi

and

isnotusuallyco

nsidered

canonical.

b.Thet

hree-par

tdivis

ion

ofthe

Hebr.

Bible.

cr.

1M12:9+

andListof

Contents.

Soalso

vv,

8-10.

24-25.c.

Proba

bly

Ptole

myVII

EuergetesPhysko

n(170-117),Thedatewouldt

herefore

be132

B.C.

d.

Lit.

'a

copy'

(var,

'op

po

rtu

nity').Presu

mably

thereferenceis

1O

aCOpyoftheGreekBibleorof

a

collectionofwisdombookswhichthe

tra

ns

lator

wantedtocompletebyaddinghisRrandfather'swork.

I

a.Thisfirstchapterisa

series

ofva

riat

ionsonthethemesenunciatedatthebeg

inning

ofProb.Theterm'Lord'

tKyriosl

in

LXX

usually

r e

n ~ e

~ s

'Ya

hwe

h',

theineffablename

of

God

.BenSiras

translato

rusesitrepeatedly,eventotranslateother divineappellations. c.'thedepthoftheabyss",Lar.,cf.Syr.;'the

abyss

andw

isdom

'Greek. d.

Add

.

v,

5

'Wis

do

m's

so

urce

isthe

word

of

God

Patienceandself-controlTherage

of

thewickedmanc

anno

tjustifyhim," fortheweightofhisrageishisdownfall. Thepatientmanwillholdouttillthetimecomes, buthisjoywillbreakoutintheend. Hewillhidehiswordstillthetimecomes, andstoriesofhisdiscernmentwillbeonmanylips. ThefearofGod"

The

fearofthe

Lord

isgloryandpride, and

hap

pinessandacrownofjoyfulness. ThefearoftheLordwillgladdentheheart givinghappiness

and

joyandlonglife.' WithhimwhofearstheLorditwillbewellatthelast, andhewillbeblessedonthedayofhisdeath. Tofearthe

Lord

isthebeginningofwisdom, shewascreatedwiththef

aithf

ulintheirmothers'

womb;

shehasmadeanestamongmen,anage-oldfoundation, andtotheiroffspringshewillclingfaithfully. Tofearthe

Lord

istheperfectionofwisdom; sheintoxicatesthemwithherfruits; shefillstheirwholehousewiththeirhear

t's

desire,

and

theirstor

eroom

swithherproduce. ThefearoftheLordisthecrownofwisd

om;

itmakespeaceandhealthtoflourish. TheLordhaslookedonherandassessedher, hehasshowereddownlearninganddiscernment,

and

exaltedtherenownofthosewhoholdherclose. Tofearthe

Lord

istherootofwisdom, andher

branc

hesarelonglife.'

232924

30

19

23

24

22

2820

25

182216

20

17

21151914161312

1l

35

1415

16.17

18192021228.910.1112

Themysteryofwisdom"AllwisdomisfromtheLord,

I>

anditishisownforever. Thesandoftheseaandtheraindrops,

and

thedaysofeternity,whocanassessthem?

The

heightofthesky

and

thebreadthoftheearth,

and

thedepthofthe

abyss,'

whocan

probe

them?Beforeallotherthingswisdomwascreated, shrewdunderstandingiseverlasting."

Manyand

wonderfularethegiftswehavebeengrantedbymeansofthe

1

LawandtheProphets-andtheothers

that

followedthem,

b

'aneducationin

j

wisdomonwhichIsraelisindeedtobecomplimented.•Butitisnotenough

4

merelyforthosewhoreadthescripturestobelearnedinthem;-studentsshould

5

alsobeabletobeofusetopeopleoutside

«

bywhattheysayandwrite.-Soit

~

was

that

mygrandfatherJesus,havingdevotedhimselfmoreandmoretoreadingtheLaw-andthe

Prophets

and

-theothervolumesofthefathers,-andhaving gainedabilityenoughinthesematters,

'was

brought

to

thepoint

of

himselfwritingdownsomeofthethingsthathaveabearingoneducationinwisdom, in

orderthat

thosestudiouslyinclined

and

withobligationsinthesem

atte

rs

13

mightmakeallthemoreprogressinlivingaccordingtotheLaw. Youarethereforeasked

-to

readthisb

ook

-withgoodwillandattention andtoshowindulgence-inthoseplaceswhere,notwithstandingourefforts ati

nterp

retation,wemayseem

-to

havefailedtogiveanadequaterendering

of

thisorthatexpression;-thefactisthatyoucannotfindanequivalent•for thingsoriginallywritteninHebrewwhenyoucometotranslatetheminto an

other

language;

-what

ismore,-youwillfindonexaminationthattheLaw

~

i

itself,theProphets-andtheotherbooks-differconsiderablyintranslation

~

fromwhatappearsintheoriginaltext.

It

wasinthethirty-eighthyearofthelateKingEuergetes,s-whenaftermy

U

arrivalinEgyptIhad

alre

adyspentsometimethere,-thatIfoundawork"

29

of

more

than

common

instructionalworth,-whichconvincedmeoftheurgency

30

ofapplyingmyselfinmy

turn

withpainsanddiligencetothetranslationofthe bookthatfollows;-andIspentmuchtimeandlearningonit-inthecourse

of

H

thisperiod,

-to

completetheWorkandtopublishthebook-forthebenefit

U

especiallyofthosewho,

dom

iciledabroad,wishtostudyhowtofitthemselves

and

theirmannersforlivingaccordingtotheLaw.

24:8.9Pr8;22Ba3;2022Pr2;6

1

s8;21;9;4Pr30:4

;

2

HumilityMyson,begentleincarryingoutyourbusiness, andyouwillbebetterlovedthanalavishgiver

.'

Thegreateryouare,themoreyoushouldbehavehumbly, andthenyouwillfindfavourwiththeLord;' forgreat

thou

ghthepoweroftheLordis, heacceptsthehomageofthehumble.

h

Pr17:6 Pr3:34

ze

2

:3+

M(

15:4-6Pr19:26 Ex21:17+ Pr19:26; 30:17Pr3:34MI20:26-28

Ph

2:5-8 Go27:27f:48:15-20: 49:3-27

Dt

33:1-252S24:14

Mt2

1:28-31Ex20:12+Ep6:1-3Dt5:163

a,

Co

rr.followingHebr.:

Greek

'hewhos

hows

obed

ience

to

the

Lord

setshismotheratease'.

Add

v.

7a'HewhofearstheL

ord

respectshisfa

ther'

.

b,

Greek

lit.

'as

masters',probably

a

mistaken interpretationofthe

Hebr.

word

Adonai.

c.Hebr.

'A

father'sblessingplants,am

oth

er'scurse

up

rootsw

hat

isplanted'. d.Corr.:

Gr

eek'(in

add

ition)

to

thedi

sgrac

e'.e.Hebr.'Tocurseone's

mother

isto

infuriat

eone'screator'.

f.

'lavish'

Hebr.

:

'be

loved'Greek.g,

Add

.v.19'Manyarethe

arr

o

gant

andrenowned,butthe

humble

arethoseto

whom

hereveals his

secre

ts'.

h.Theversecalls

att

entionto

God'scond

escensioninwelcoming[he

hom

ageofthelowly.Hebr. 'forgreatisthemercyof

God

:hemakeshissecrets knownto

the

humble',cf.Pr3:32:Ps25:14.

EC

CLESIASTICUS

LetusfallintothehandsoftheLord,notintothehandsofmen; forashismajestyis,sotooishismercy. towardsparentsChildren,listentomeyourfather, dowhatItellyou,andsobesafe; fortheLordhonoursthefatherinhischildren, andupholdstherightsofam

oth

eroverhersons. Whoeverrespectshisfatheris

ato

ningforhissins, hewhohonourshismotherislikesomeoneamassingafortune. Whoeverrespectshisfatherwillbeh

app

ywithchildrenofhisown, heshallbeheardonthedaywhenheprays. Longlifecomestohimwhohon

our

shisfather,hewhosetshismotherateaseisshowingobediencetotheLord.

a

HeserveshisparentsashedoeshisLord.

b

Respectyourfatherindeedaswellasword, sothatblessingmaycomeonyoufromhim; sinceafather'sblessingmakesthehousesofhischildrenfirm, whilea

mother

'scursetearsuptheirfoundations.' Donotmakeaboastofdisgraceovertakingyourfather, yourfather'sdisgracereflectsnohonouronyou;" foraman'shonourderivesfromtherespectshowntohisfather, andamotherheldindishonourisareproachtoherchildren. Myson,supportyourfatherinhisoldage, donotgrievehimduringhislife. Evenifhismindshouldfail.showhimsympathy, donotdespisehiminyourhealthandstrength; forkindnesstoafathershallnotbeforgotten butwillserveasrep

arat

ionforyoursins. Inthedaysofyourafflictionitwillberememberedofyou, likefrostinsunshine,yoursinswillmeltaway. Themanwhodesertshisfatherisnobetterthanablasphemer, andwhoeverangershis

mother

isaccursedoftheLord.'

I.ForBenSirawi

sdo

mand

obse

rvanceofthe Lawgotogether,19:20.Cr.

0012

:13.Here,wisdom istherewardofobservance. m.

Lit.

'beforemen'

some

MSS

and

versions.

2

a.

A

favourite

a.T.

(heme.particularlyinthePs. b.Theauthorisseemingly

com

mendingresistance underpersecution:hecondemnsevenanOutward showofsurrender,vv,12b,I5,cf.2M6:21-28. c.F

ollow

ing

Svr.:

Greek

'to

thelistlessheartsince

it

hasnotrust'. d.BenSir-adoesnot

oppose

loveto

obed

ience:heidentifiesthem.Loveisunselfish:

reward

isnoprimarymonve.Theattitudeischaracteristicof BenSirabutisf

oun

delsewhereinJewishsources. Cf.forex

ampl

e

Ptrt:eAboth,

1:3:

'00

notbelikeslaveswhoservetheirmasterforthe.sakeofreward.Belike slaveswhoservetheirmasterwithoutlookingfor

rewar

d.'

18

20

11

17

19

1°39

18

22b2J

Duties

3

4

45567b

8b

89

/()

9

II

10

12

II

JJ

12

14

13

15

14

17

IS

16

18

27

343528

36

11

II

JJ

25

31

31263330

38

10

II

3929

37

40

12

/4

14

1617

IS

/8

13

/5

16

19

17

1011

10

38

:25

ECCLESIASTIC

US

Wisdomand

~ t n e s s

Inwisdom'streasuriestherearelearnedsayings, butreverencefor

Go

disloathsometothesinner. Ifyoudesirewisdom,keepthe

commandments,'

andtheLordwillconveyhertoyou.

For

wisdomandinstructionmeanthefearoftheLord,

and

whatpleaseshimisfaithfulness

and

gentleness.DonotbeunsubmissivetothefearoftheLord,donotpractiseitwithadoubleheart. Donotacta

par

tinpublic,

m

and

keepawatchover

your

lips.Donotraiseyourselfup,incaseyoufall andbringdisgraceonyourself, fortheLordwouldthenreveal

your

secretsandhumiliateyoubeforethewhole

communi

tyfornothavingattainedthefearoftheLord,

and

forhavingaheartfullofdeceit.ThefearofGodintimeofordeal" Myson,ifyouaspiretoservetheLord, preparey

our

selfforanordeal.Besincereofheart,

be

steadfast,

and

donotbe

alar

medwhendisastercomes. Clingtohim

and

donotleavehim,sothatyoumaybehonouredattheendofyourdays. Whateverhappenstoyou,acceptit, andintheuncertaintiesof

your

humblestate,bepatient, sincegoldistestedinthefire, andchosenmeninthefurnace

of

humiliation.Trusthimandhewillupholdyou, followastraightpathandhopeinhim. YouwhofeartheLord,waitforhismercy; donot

turn

asideincaseyoufall. YouwhofeartheLord,trusthim,

and

youwillnotbebaulked

of

your

reward.Youwhofearthe

Lord

hopeforgoodthings,foreverlastinghappiness

and

mercy.

Look

atthegenerations

of

oldandsee: whoever

trusted

intheLord

and

wasputtoshame?Orwhoeverfearedhimsteadfastly

and

wasleftforsaken? Orwhoevercalledouttohim,andwasignored? FortheLordiscompassionate

and

merciful,heforgivessins,

and

savesindaysofdistress. Woetofainthearts

and

listlesshands,

b

andtothesinnerwhotreadstwopaths. Woetothelistlessheart

that

hasno

faith,'

forsuchwillhavenoprotection. Woetoyouwhohavelostthewillto

endure

;whatwillyoudoattheLo

rd's

visitation?ThosewhofeartheLorddonotdis

dain

hiswords,andthosewholovehimkeephisways.Thosewhofearthe

Lord

dotheirbesttopleasehim, andthosewholovehimfindsatisfactioninhisLa

w."

Thosewhofe

ar

the

Lord

keeptheirhe

art

spreparedandhumblethemselvesinhispresence.

Pr15

:B

Pr5:142

:12;

5:9

Jm

3:6-S

Jo

14:15.

21.23

3b4:7Ps22:4-5Ps37:25

Ex

34:6-7Ps145:Sf

Jm

1:2-4Rv2:10

II

1

P4

:12Rv3:21Rm5:3

Jm

1:2-4Pr3:5-6

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