CHAPTER 23
We finally get it – “Do not” #100! Here it is: “Do not accustom your mouth to oaths or habitually
utter the Holy Name.” Actually, that Do
Not serves as the opening on a section about how taking the Lord’s name in vain
is a gateway drunk, “Just as a servant constantly under scrutiny will not be
without bruises, so one who swears continually by the Holy Name will never
remain free from sin.”
“Do not” tally: 2.
So that’s 101 and counting.
Aside from cussing out the Lord, we’re also told to avoid
“sins of the flesh.” Both men and women
are warned against, but he really goes off about women preserving their sexual
modesty. Yeah, you’d expect that,
wouldn’t you?
CHAPTER 24
No “Do nots” here.
They would be out of place, actually.
In a major change of pace, this chapter is on what Ben Sira likes
instead of what he dislikes. Yes,
that’s right – it’s an entire chapter singing the praises of wisdom.
In praising it, Ben Sira nearly makes it a physical
object. It’s the line of communication
between God and man. It’s the essence
of God that resides in the ark in the holy tabernacle.
Nice line: “The first human being never finished
comprehending me, nor will the last succeed in fathoming her.” I hope that’s not an excuse for writing so
many of these damn wisdom books. Wisdom
may be beyond us, but describing it all starts to sound the same after a
while. And that while was a book or two
ago.
CHAPTER 25
Again, no “Do not” statements here.
Our author is still in one of his rare good moods. In fact, he decides to list nine people who
come to his mind as blessed. It’s nice
to see him in such a chipper, positive mood. His nine are: 1) a man who finds
joy in his children (aww, how sweet), 2) a man who lives to see the downfall of
his enemies, and --- wait, wait – what?
WHAT? Did I read that right?
“the one who lives to see the downfall of his enemies.” Yup, that’s what it says. Holy moly!
The Bible is literally telling us to take joy in our enemies’ problems. Mind you, this is the opposite of the
message in other parts of the Bible.
And it sounds so … wildly inappropriate. That doesn’t sound like the Bible. That sounds like the dialogue to Conan the Barbarian. Actually it is: Gut talking to Conan: “Conan! What is best in life?” Conan: “To
crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their
women.” Other guy: “That is good! That
is good.”
And here it is in the Bible.
Anyhow, the others are more mundane: 3) a man with a
sensible wife, 4) “the one who dose not plow with an ox and a donkey
combined.” That’s got to be a euphemism
for something. Yeah, the footnotes say
it’s about someone with two wives who are very different. Huh.
It’s been so long since the historical section, I forgot they practiced
polygamy. I wonder when they switched
to monogamy?
The rest: 5) someone who doesn’t “sin with the tongue.” After the last chapters, I think this means
gossip and taking the Lord’s name in vain, 6) not serving an inferior. (That sounds bad to our democratic ears, but
have you ever worked for someone you think isn’t as good as you? It can be a
chore). 7) someone with a good friend,
8) someone who finds wisdom, and 9) someone who fears God.
That’s a nice list – but with one really wild one in
there.
We’re then given an extended section on bad women. We get a classic bit of Catholic theology
thrown in, too: “With a woman sin had a beginning, and because of her we all
die.” Eve. Here we see the beginning of blaming Eve for everything.
CHAPTER 26
We get a big on a good wife here. It’s rather telling about Ben Sira’s approach that he had an
extended section on bad women at the end of last chapter, and then when we get
a part on good women, it lasts just four chapters. And then he goes back to bad women. It isn’t so much that he’s negative toward women, it’s that he’s
negative toward anyone. He’s drawn to
the negatives through all of this.
Oh, and he’s apparently a leg man: “golden columns on silver
bases – so her shapely legs and steady feet.”
He ends the chapter by moving onto friendship, and Ben Sira
being Ben Sira he’s talking about the dangers of blown friendships, saying, “To
things bring grief to my heart, and a third arouses my anger: The wealthy
reduced to want, and the intelligent held in contempt.” (Note: there is no third item; that’s just a
stylistic thing in some of the wisdom books).
So, the wealthy cast down and the intelligent held in
contempt? We’ve heard things like this
throughout the book. I really get the
feeling we’re learning about Ben Sira’s personal life when he says those are
his main concerns. Maybe he was born
with wealth and blew it? Maybe he knows
the Torah but doesn’t know how to conduct practical economic affairs, and
people mocked him? I’m guessing, but I
can see it.
CHAPTER 27
Hey – a “do not!”
Remember when I was sick of seeing these things all the time? Now they are so rare I’m happy to see
them. Just one “do not” – but that’s
still better than most of these chapters. 102 and counting. Keep in mind, after 11 chapters we had 85,
so it’s been about one per chapter since then.
We get some talk about wealth and friendship: “For the sake
of profit many sin, and the struggle for wealth blinds the eyes.” Yes, it does. Then he notes how it ends friendships. Is that what happened to you, Ben Sira?
I like this line: “Birds nest with their own kind, and
honesty comes to those who work at it.”
There is more denouncing of the stupid – he really needs to
lay off on that. (But with 25 chapters
more to go, I doubt he will).
How about this section: “Whoever has shifty eyes plots mischief
and those who know him will keep their distance. In your presence he uses honeyed talk, and admires your
words. But later he changes his tone
and twists the words to your ruin. I
have hated many things, but not as much as him.”
Yeah, there are a lot of themes here that tell us about
him. He’s horrified by the wealthy who
have become poor and the wise who are scorned.
He things you should test your friends and that true friends are
rare. Now this. Beware the flattering con man who sweet
talks you into dropping your guard – and then strikes. “I have hated many things, but not as much
as him.” I thing I may have found out
how he lost his money and became mocked.
It’s the line about his hate that really serves as the linchpin
here. (Also, what does that mean for
his earlier statement in Chapter 25 that one of the lives to see the downfall
of his enemies is one of the truly happy?
Yea, Ben Sira might be wise, but he’s been burning from his disgrace for
years and hasn’t really let it go.
And “I have hated many things” is a troubling sentence. You wouldn’t expect that in the wisdom
books.
CHAPTER 28
This chapter has a very different feel. Ben Sira begins by telling us how we
shouldn’t hold grudges, “The vengeful will face the Lord’s vengeance, indeed he
remembers their sins in detail. Forgive
your neighbor the wrong done to you, then when you pray, your own sins will be
forgiven.” That actually contradicts a
lot of the previous points he’s made in recent chapters. But I’ll accept it, because it’s a nice
thought.
CHAPTER 29
There is a lot here about difficulties in handling and
getting loans. Again, there is so much
material here on financial matters, that I have to assume Ben Sira lost his
money or something. He probably feels
duped by a so-called friend or stabbed in the back by a business
associate.
It seems like a funny thing to put in a holy book, but then
again a book about life and what it all means should give you some sort of
guide on how to handle yourself with others, and financial interactions are
always part of that.
“Do not” tally: 1.
It’s the first one sense Chapter 23.
We’re up to 102 and counting.
CHAPTER 30
Now from money to raising children. First a quick note: just last chapter I
defended the interest in financial matters in Ben Sira because that’s always an
important part of life. Well, with this
chapter’s early focus on child rearing I realize we haven’t seen too much on
that. We’ve seen plenty on financial
matters but not much on child raising. That just reinforces my sense of what
Ben Sira’s main interests are and how his life story impacted how he approached
this work.
Anyhow, his views on child rearing would likely caused him
to be visited by the child services department, as he openly proclaims: “Bow
down his head in his youth, beat his sides while he is still young. And later: “Make heavy his yoke.” Yeah, that won’t fly. He thinks he need to discipline your son to
make him a man and to make him learn responsibility.
He shifts gears at the end of the chapter, and has a
delightful section on health and cheerfulness.
In short, he urges everyone to have a positive attitude, as that can
help your health. Oh, and health is extremely
important. That is some really sound
advice – though a bit surprising from a man whose views often seem more
negative than positive.
In fact, at one point it sounds like he’s advocating
euthanasia, as he proclaims, “Better is death than a wretched life, everlasting
sleep than constant illness.” In fact,
that is an advocacy of euthanasia, if he means it to be so or not.
But instead, he starts hammering home his message of good
cheer: “Do not give in to sadness, or torment yourself deliberately. Gladness of heart is the very life of a
person and cheerfulness prolongs his days.”
Those are quite literally words to live by. He then makes the reverse point: “For grief has killed many, and
nothing is to be gained from resentment.
Envy and anger shorten one’s days.”
Again, he speaks truth here people.
“Do not” tally: two.
That puts us at 104 in all.
CHAPTER 31
Once again, we have a Ben Sira chapter focusing on the
subject of material wealth. This time,
his concern is people who are so anxious over acquiring more money and having
money that they never enjoy life. They
are always in the pursuit, and never in the pause. Basically, he wants people to stop and smell the roses. Yup, it’s
good advice. And yes – it sure applies
to modern day life as well.
Then, in a better of an oddity, he has an entire section
called “Table Etiquette.” Yes, the
Bible really does have a Miss Manners section, and it’s the second half of
Chapter 31 in the Book of Ben Sira.
To be fair, a lot of it goes beyond just basic table
etiquette. In fact, some of the best
points in the Bible get made in this section, most notably: “In whatever you
do, be moderate, and no sickness will befall you.” That is some serious words of wisdom. Who knew that a damn good life philosophy would be found in a
portion called “Table Etiquette”?
Oh, and in some really good news for many people, the Bible
explicitly endorses drinking booze.
Here’s the full quote: “Wine is very life to anyone if taken in
moderation. Does anyone really live who
lacks the wine which from the beginning was created for joy? Joy of heart, good cheer, and delight is
wine ought, drunk at the proper time.”
So there you go.
Again, the key word is moderation – but if you’re being reasonable about
it – enjoy!
CHAPTER 32
This chapter is primarily more table manners, and while they
generally aren’t that interesting, it does cause me to partially revisit my
earlier assumptions about what sort of person Ben Sira was. Earlier I thought he might be an introvert
more at home with the Torah than in social interaction. While he may be an introvert, he does have
some idea how to handle social interactions.
Actually, all his focus on money and business indicates that as well.
This book has unexpectedly grown on me some. It isn’t a highlight of the Bible, but it
isn’t a lowlight, either. It’s much
better than the Book of Wisdom (another one of them books only found in the
Catholic Bible).
Oh, and then he moves on to other material, and gives us
this gem: “Do nothing without deliberation, then once you have acted, have no
regrets.” Again, sound wisdom indeed.
Oh, and we finally get a few more “do nots” thrown at us.
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