Wisdom, the Sun of Righteousness, and the Shadow of Silver
Speaking truthfully, we somewhat accuse ourselves that before this we were explaining well and we were approaching ourselves; we feared God. May it not be such a thing, he says, since the days to come are to be enlightened. But what of the one not knowing? He says this to himself, wondering, 'Why has this happened to me, that previously the days were good?' (Ps 90:16) because he did not inquire about this in wisdom. The inquiry was in wisdom: 'Why, that I have received this?' I have become better than myself; they received something greater instead of something lesser. This, therefore, is praise, being the same as 'I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call' (Phil 3:14), in greater days toward the promises, 'that your latter end may be a good land, and you shall be long of life on the earth' (Gen 28:14).
These days must be interpreted thus: 'This is your life and this is the length of your days: to love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your strength, and with all your soul' (Deut 6:5). This is the life of the ages, the length. He says this to the one being introduced here. Good wisdom with inheritance and abundance for those who look upon the sun. He says this: if this has become something improving the soul, approaching being in wisdom, it is good, if it possesses the inheritance. And I say: 'No one, he says, says Lord Jesus except in the Holy Spirit' (1 Cor 12:3), even though many call him Lord, but not truly, not in truth. For he says to them: 'Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say? Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven' (Matt 7:21). This, therefore, is the one truly saying Lord Jesus through the participation of the Holy Spirit. The one having been persuaded of wisdom according to the Holy Spirit makes the wisdom of Jesus. And this one truly says Lord Jesus. Just as 'no one says Lord Jesus except in the Holy Spirit,' so no one is good in wisdom not having its inheritance.
an inheritance, which he receives as he happens to come to it. For they are wise in appearance only until they speak, but not until they act. The wisdom that follows inheritance is not that which is being made, and it carries the divine promise of becoming possessed by the wise. And there is abundance for those contemplating the sun.
Gapped text...inheritance. Something more happens to those contemplating the sun, this sensible sun. We do not see the sun as other men do, but they receive a vision of greatness and beauty and knowledge, and from knowledge they become again able to understand who the sun of righteousness (Malachi 4:2) is. And it is possible for those contemplating the sun to receive something more of the sun of righteousness itself. This sun is the same as wisdom. For wisdom is in its shadow as the shadow of silver. That shadow of wisdom is that of the world.
And so that the geometric lines may be used by me as a scientific theorem, the shadows of knowledge are those lines. For those sensory contemplations lead toward knowledge. And regarding a shadow, he does not speak of a representation composed from a body having this form, but of the precedence of the icon. And the shadow of an icon is a certain enigmatic sketching.
Therefore, he who is about to take silver receives a shadow; I do not say a sensible thing, but the logos. For often this is also demonstrated, that silver is praiseworthy and refined according to the immediate context and the thing called 'the tongue of the righteous' (Malachi 4:2). For when it is said, 'refined silver, the tongue of the righteous' (Malachi 4:2), he calls the tongue of the righteous his silver. When Gapped text...and energy... Gapped text...silver... Otherwise, those having refined silver are called 'silver,' so he says, 'call them tested silver.'
Greek
ἀληθεύοντες̣· τρόπον δέ τινα κατηγοροῦμεν ἑαυτῶν ὅτι πρὸ τούτου εὖ διήγουμεν κ̣α̣ι`̣ προσ̣είχαμεν ἑαυτοῖς· τὸν θεὸν ἐφοβούμεθα. μὴ γένοιτο, λέγει, τοιοῦτόν τι, ἐπεὶ φωτιστέον τὰς μετὰ ἡμέρας. ἐπερ· ὁ μὴ εἰδώς; τοῦτο ὅτι "τί μοι ἐγένετο̣ ὅτι α̣ι῾̣ πρὸ τούτου μὲν ἡμέραι ἀγαθαὶ ἦσαν" ἐπαπορῶν πρὸς ἑαυτὸν τοῦτο λέγει. ὅτι οὐκ ἐν σοφίᾳ ἐπερωτήσας περὶ τούτου. ἐν σοφίᾳ ἦν ἐπερώτησις· τί, ὅτι προσέλαβον τοῦτο; κρείττων ἐμαυ τοῦ γέγονα, ἔλαβον ἀντὶ ἐλατ̣τ̣όνω̣ν μείζω. τοῦτο οὖν ἔπαινός ἐστιν ταὐτὸν ὂν τῷ "κατὰ σκοπὸν διώκ̣ω̣ εἰς τ̣ὸ β̣ραβεῖον τῆς ἄνω κλήσεως", ἐν μείζοσιν ἡμέραις πρὸς ταῖς ἐπαγγελίαις "ἐπ̣ι`̣ γ̣η῀̣ς̣ α᾿̣γαθῆς γέ νῃται"· καὶ μακροχρόνιος ἔσῃ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς". ἑρμηνεῦσαι δεῖ οὕτως τὰς ἡμέρας ταύτας· "αὕτη ἡ ζωή σου κ̣αὶ α̣ὕτη ἡ μακρότης τῶν ἡμερ̣ῶν σου· ἀγαπᾶν κύριον τὸν θεόν σου ἐξ ὅλης καρδίας̣ σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης δυνάμεως 208 σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης ψυχῆς̣". αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ ζωὴ αἰὼν ἡμερῶν, ἡ μακρότης. τῷ εἰσαγομένῳ ὧδε λέγει. ἀγ̣αθὴ σοφία μετὰ κληροδοσίας καὶ περισσεία τοῖς θε ωροῦσιν τὸν ἥλιον. τοῦτο λέγει ὅτ̣ι, εἰ γέγονεν αὕτη βελτιοῦσα τὴν ψυχήν, ἡ εἰς τὸ σοφὸν εἶναι ἐπερχομε´̣ν̣η, ἀγαθή ἐστιν, ἐὰν ἔχῃ τὴν κληροδοσίαν. καὶ λέγω· "οὐδείς, φησίν, λέγει κύριον Ἰησοῦν εἰ μὴ ἐν πνεύματι̣ ἁγίῳ", καίτοι πολλοὶ λε´̣γ̣ουσιν αὐτὸν κύριον, ἀλλ' οὐ πραγματικῶς, οὐκ ἀλ̣η θ̣ω῀̣ς. λέγει γοῦν πρὸς αὐτούς· "τί με λέγετε κύριε, κύριε, καὶ οὐ ποιεῖτε ἃ λέγω; οὐ π̣ᾶς ὁ λέγων με κύριε, κύριε εἰσελεύσεται εἰς τὴν βασιλεί αν τῶν οὐρανῶν, ἀλλ' ὁ ποιῶν τὸ θέλημα τοῦ πατρός μου τοῦ ἐν τοῖς οὐ ρανοῖς". οὗτος οὖν ἐστιν ὁ ἀληθῶς λ̣έγων κύριον Ἰησοῦν μετουσίᾳ τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος. ὁ κατὰ πνεῦμα ἅγιον πεποιωμένος σοφία̣ν̣ Ἰησοῦ ποιεῖ. καὶ οὗτος ἀληθῶς λέγει κύριον Ἰησοῦν. ὥσπερ οὖν "οὐδεὶς λέγει κύριον Ἰησοῦν εἰ μὴ ε᾿̣ν πνεύματι ἁγίῳ", οὕτως οὐδείς ἐστιν ἀγα θὸς ἐν σοφίᾳ μὴ ἔχων αὐτῆς τὴν κληροδοσίαν, ὁ ὡς ἔτυχεν αὐτὴν μετ ερχόμενος. εἰσὶν γὰρ τῷ δοκεῖν φρόνιμοι μέχρι τοῦ εἰπεῖν, οὐ μέχρι τοῦ πρᾶξαι. ἡ μετὰ κληροδοσίας σοφία οὐ῀̣ν̣ ἐστιν ἡ ποι̣ο̣υ̣μένη̣ κα̣ι`̣ η῾̣ φέρουσα τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν τὴν θ̣ε̣ι´̣αν τοῦ ὑπαρχ̣θ̣ῆναι τῷ σ̣οφῷ. καὶ περισσεία τοῖς θεωροῦσιν τὸν ἥλιον. ε᾿̣κ̣ ······· ηλ̣···ο̣υ̣···· κ̣ληροδοσίαν. περισσόν τι γίνεται αὐτοῖς θεωροῦσιν τὸν ἥλιον, τοῦτον τὸν αἰσθητὸν ἥλιον. οὐχ οὕτως ὁρῶσιν τὸν ἥλιον ὡς οἱ ἄλλοι ἄνθρωποι, ἀλλὰ "ἐκ μεγέθο̣υ̣ς̣ καὶ καλλ̣ο̣ν̣η῀̣ς̣" φαντα σίαν λαμβάνουσιν καὶ γνῶσιν καὶ γίνονται ἐκ τῆς γνώσεως π̣α´̣λ̣ιν ε̣ἰς τὸ συνιέναι, τίς ὁ τῆς δικαιοσύνης ἡ´̣λ̣ιός ἐστιν. δυνατο`̣ν δὲ καὶ τοῖς θε ωροῦσιν τὸν ἥλιον αὐτὸν τὸν τῆς δικαιοσύνης λαβεῖν τι πλέον. ταὐτὸν δέ ἐστιν̣ τῇ σ̣οφίᾳ οὗτος ὁ 21 ἥλιος. ὅτι ἐν σκιᾷ αὐτῆς ἡ σοφία ὡς σκιὰ τοῦ ἀργ̣υ̣ρ̣ίου̣. ἡ σκιὰ τῆς σοφίας ἐκείνη ἐστὶν ἡ τοῦ κόσμου. καὶ ἵνα καὶ θεωρήματι ε᾿̣πιστ̣η̣μονικῷ χρήσωμαι, ἡ σκιὰ τῆς ἐπιστήμης τῆς γεωμετρικῆς αἱ κα̣τ̣α̣ γραφαί εἰσιν. χειραγωγοῦσιν γ̣ὰρ εἰς τὴν ἐπιστήμην αἱ θεωρίαι ἐκ̣εῖναι α̣ἱ αι᾿̣σθητικαί. σκιὰν δὲ ἐν τούτοις λέγει οὐ γραφὴν ἀποτελουμένην ἀπὸ σ̣ώματ̣ος τοῦ 209 ὧδε ἔχοντος, ἀλλὰ τὴν πρὸ τύπων τ̣ῆς εἰκόνος. ἡ σκιὰ δὲ εἰκόνος σκια γραφία τι´̣ς ἐστιν ᾐνιγμένη. ὁ μέλλων οὖν ἀναλαμβάνειν ἀρ̣γύριον δέχετ̣αι σκιάν· ου᾿̣ αἰσθητὸν λέγω, ἀλ̣λ̣ὰ τὸν λόγον. πολλαχοῦ γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο ἀποδείκνυται, ὅτι ἐπαινε̣τ̣όν ἐστιν ἀργύριον καὶ ψεκτὸν κατὰ τὸ πρόχειρον καὶ τὴν "γλῶσσαν δικαίου" λεγο´̣μενον. ὁ´̣ταν γὰρ λέγηται· "ἄργυρος πεπυρωμένος γλῶσσα δικαίου", λέγει τὴν δικαίου̣ γλῶσσαν αὐτοῦ ἄργυρον. ὅταν γὰρ ···ηση καὶ ἐνέργειαν ····· ····· ····· ·····τ̣εζεον τα̣······ησαιω ····λ̣ην λαβεῖν τὸ π̣νεῦ μα ····· ····· ····· ····· ··· ἀ´̣ργυρον ····· ·· ἄλλως δε`̣ οἱ ἔχοντες ἀργύριον ψεκτῶς λέγονται· "ἀρ̣γύριον" ο̣ὖν, φησίν, "ἀποδεδοκιμα̣σμένον καλέσατε αυ᾿̣τούς,
About this text
Didymus the Blind on Ecclesiastes.
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG (Khazarzar) (Greek)
This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.