Екклезиастик (Книга Премудрости Иисуса, сына Сирахова), Глава 10, стих 9. Толкования стиха

WE CAN KNOW GOD. AUGUSTINE: “No one knows the things of a person except the spirit of man which is in him.” And yet, there is something of a person that “the spirit . . . in him” does not know. But you, Lord, who made him, you fully know him. I indeed, though in your sight I despise myself and consider “myself but dust and ashes”—I still know something concerning you that I do not know about myself. Most assuredly, “we see through a glass dimly,” “not yet face to face.” As long as I am absent from you, I am more present with myself than with you. CONFESSIONS 10.5.7.

THE HUMBLE AND THE ARROGANT. AUGUSTINE: I am afraid that the reason why the soul went forth away from God is that it was proud. In fact, I have no doubt about it. For it is written, “Pride is the beginning of all sin,” and “the beginning of human pride is a falling away from God.” It is written, it is firm and sure, it is true. And so, what is said of proud mortal humanity, clad in the tattered rags of the flesh, weighed down with the weight of a corruptible body, and all the while extolling himself, and forgetting the very skin he is clothed with—what, I ask, do the Scriptures say to him? “Why is dust and ashes proud?” Why proud! Let the Scriptures tell why. “Because in his life he put forth his inmost parts.” What does “put forth” mean except that he “threw it far away”? In other words, to send them out. For to enter within is to long after the inmost parts; to put forth the inmost parts is to send them out. The proud man gets rid of the inmost parts, the humble man earnestly desires the inmost parts. If we are cast out by pride, let us return by humility. TRACTATES ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 25.15.

Иисус Сирахов показывает, как глуп порок гордости. Человек есть прах и пепел, и скоро опять распадется в прах и пыль. Как можно ему обращаться презрительно с своими братиями, которые имеют одну с ним природу, и считать себя превознесенным над ними, как какое нибудь божество!

ADMONITIONS TO THE HUMBLE AND THE PROUD. GREGORY THE GREAT: The humble and the proud are admonished differently. For the humble, it is to be insinuated how true that excellence is that they hold in hoping for it. For the proud, it is to be intimated how that temporal glory is as nothing, that even when they embrace it they are not holding it. Let the humble hear how eternal the things are that they long for, how transitory the things are that they despise. Let the proud hear how transitory the things are that they court and how eternal the things are that they lose. Let the humble hear from the authoritative voice of the Truth, “Everyone who humbles himself shall be exalted.” Let the proud hear, “Everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled.” Let the humble hear, “Humility goes before glory”; let the proud hear, “The spirit is exalted before a fall.” Let the humble hear, “To whom shall I have respect, but to one who is humble and quiet and trembles at my words?” Let the proud hear, “Why are earth and ashes proud?” Let the humble hear, “God respects the humble.” Let the proud hear, “And the proud he knows from afar.” Let the humble hear, “That the Son of man came not to be ministered to but to minister.” Let the proud hear that “the beginning of all sin is pride.” Let the humble hear that “our Redeemer humbled himself, being made obedient even to death.” Let the proud hear what is written concerning their head: “He is king over all the children of pride.” The pride, therefore, of the devil became the occasion of our perdition, and the humility of God has been found as the argument for our redemption. For our enemy, who is among the created beings, desired to appear exalted above all things. But our Redeemer, remaining great above all things, decided instead to become little among all things. Let the humble, then, be told that when they abase themselves, they ascend to the likeness of God. Let the proud be told that when they exalt themselves, they fall into imitation of the apostate angel. PASTORAL RULE 3.17.

Указав па то, что от мудрости правителя зависит благоденствие народа, ввереннаго ему Господом, и указав на ничтожество человека, созданнаго из праха,—премудрый сильно возстает против гордости и говорит, что Господь за гордость низвергает самых сильных владык (22. 23. 10, 2 —21). И потому почтенны бывают не властители, не богачи, а боящиеся Господа (22—27). Тоже бывает и в жизни: умному рабу служат свободные, трудящийся не нуждается, бедный почитается за ум, а богатый за богатство; но лишившись его, лишается и почтения (28—34). Поэтому о человеке нужно судить не по внешнему виду, а по его делам, и опять, судить не по отзывам других, а по собственному усмотрению (11,1—9)

PRIDE, THE DEVIL’S SIN. ORIGEN: Pride, haughtiness and arrogance are the sins of the devil, and for these faults you must leave heaven for earth. Thus, “God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble.” And “How can he make dust and ashes proud?” so that one becomes arrogant, forgetting what he will become, in which fragile casing he is contained, in which excrements he drowns and which garbage he continuously emits from his flesh? What do the Scriptures say? “How can he make dust and ashes proud?” And again: “During life, one ruins one’s own entrails.” Pride is the greatest of all sins and the principal fault of the devil. When sometimes the Scriptures list the sins of the devil, you will discover that these come forth from the source of pride. Indeed, it says, “I will act in strength, and in the wisdom of my understanding I will remove the boundaries of nations and will spoil their strength. And I will shake the inhabited cities: and I will take with my hand all the world as a nest: and I will even take them as eggs that have been left.” Observe how arrogant and haughty his words are and how he does not take anything into account. So are all those who are puffed up by boasting and by pride. Wealth, prestige and earthly glory are bait for pride. HOMILIES ON EZEKIEL 9.2.

Отсюда обличается гордость бесовская тех господ, князей и вельмож, которые слуг своих и крестьян за подстилку для ног считают, и чуть ли не ниже псов своих, – и тех богатых людей, которые нищих и убогих презирают. Что гордится земля и пепел (Сир. 10:9). Что грешник грешника презирает? Что бедный бедным гнушается? Все люди равны, хотя и не равное у всех счастье в мире сем. Князья, вельможи, господа и славные! Посмотрите на гробы предков ваших, и сами признаете истину ту, что все люди, как славные, так и по происхождению низкие, – равны. Свойство души благородной – бедному и грешному соболезновать и сострадать, а не презирать и не гнушаться им.

IN GOD WE CAN DO WHAT IS GOOD. FULGENTIUS OF RUSPE: We should not think of God as the author of good works as if only at the dawn of creation he provided human nature the possibility of doing good in such a way that, after his help was taken away, human nature on its own could want or do anything good on its own. In reality, on its own initiative, human nature could not have realized such a possibility, not even in the first man even while he was still not yet wounded by sin. Therefore, how can human nature restore its own health without the aid of a physician since, while it was healthy, it could not even succeed in safeguarding its health then? Therefore, earth and ash should not get puffed up because it has abandoned its most visceral thoughts in this life; nor should the wounded act as if he were healthy because he thinks he has healed that part of himself. Rather, he should reflect with the humility of a wounded heart on the putridness of his wounds so that, proclaiming with the prophet, “My wounds grow foul and fester because of my foolishness,” he can obtain healing not because of his own merit but because of the free gift of divine mercy. In fact, what does a person possess that he has not already received? But if he has received it, then why does he glory in himself as if he had not received it? LETTERS 4.2.3-4.