The Vanity of Life and the Struggle of the Saints
Has it become a matter of worldly use so that you might appear righteous? He who spoke briefly is not contradicting this, saying: 'If I were impious, woe is me' (Job 3:3), but he wishes to demonstrate the bitterness of life, which a trivial man would not do; for there is pleasure in this living. Furthermore, he wants the cause to be shown clearly even to friends, through which he did not die at the same time as emerging from the womb; and it is clear that because it is destined to be, the aim is manliness.
The struggle after the flesh is also shown in another way, concerning which Paul writes: 'If we have hope in this life only, we are most to be pitied of all men' (1 Cor 15:32). And he perceives both the pleasant things of life and the bitter ones. For no one being released from the flesh finds pleasure in wealth, in debauchery, nor is he carried by the evil things. Having tested this life and the pleasant things in it—for he had been happy in many ways and was indeed rich and healthy—having fallen from these things into their opposites, and having become experienced in these things through works, having known their vanity, he instructs us not to have desire for them by saying: 'Why then did you bring me out from the womb and I did not die, my eye not having seen, so that I might not become as one who is not?' (Job 10:1).
The vanity of the combatants in this life, such as wealth, is shown from: 'Do not fear when a man becomes rich or when the glory of his house increases, for he will not receive all things in his dying' (Prov 23:17)—for all these things do not follow the one being released from them—'for the glory of his house will not descend together with him.' For in this living, such people have trusted only. And if the saints desire, like the blessed Paul, 'having a desire to depart and to be with Christ' (Phil 1:23), to be released from life, they nevertheless accept the judgment from God. Yet the saints, quite naturally, have a desire for the body to be outside. For it is not saints alone, but also those outside the proclamation.
while existing purely in essence
Greek
κεχρηματικέναι ἢ ἵνα ἀναφανῇς δίκαιος;" οὐκ ἀντιδοξῶν οὖν τοῦτο λέγει ὁ πρὸ βραχέος εἰπών· "ἐάν τε γὰρ ἀσεβὴς ὦ, οἴμμοι", ἀλλὰ τὸ πικρὸν τοῦ βίου δηλῶσαι βουλόμενος, ὅπερ οὐκ ἂν ποιήσειεν φαῦλος· ἥδεται 287 γὰρ ἐπὶ τῷ ζῆν τούτῳ. ἄλλως τε καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν δ»ε»ιχθῆναι βούλεται φανερῶς καὶ τοῖς φίλοις, δι' ἣν οὐκ ἀπέθανεν ἅμα τῷ ἐκ κοιλίας ἐξελθεῖν· δῆλον δέ, ὅτι διὰ τὸ μέλλειν εἶναι σκοπὸς ἀνδρ»ε»ίας. ὑποδείκνυται δὲ καὶ ἄλλως ἡ μετὰ σαρκὸς ἀγωγη´̣ σ̣ , περὶ ἧς γράφει Παῦλος· "εἰ ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ ζωῇ ἠλπικότες ἐσμὲν μόνον, ἐλεεινότεροι πάντων ἀνθρώπων ἐσμέν." καὶ τὰ ἡδέα τοῦ βίου καὶ τὰ π̣ικρὰ αἰσθάνεται. οὐδ̣εὶς γὰρ ἀπολ̣υ̣όμενος σαρκὸς ἥδεται ἐπὶ πλούτῳ, ἐπὶ ἀκολασίᾳ, οὐδὲ ἐπὶ τοῖς κακωτικοῖς ἀνιᾶται. πε»ι»ραθεὶ»ς» οὖν τῆς ζωῆς ταύτης καὶ τῶν ἐν αὐτῇ ἡδέων–εὐ´̣παι̣ς γὰρ καὶ πολύπαις καὶ πλούσιος γεγένηται ὑγίειάν τε σώματος ἔσχεν–μεταπεσόντων τῶν πραγμάτων εἰς τὰ τούτων ἐναντία καὶ τούτων ἐν πείρᾳ γενα´̣μενος καὶ αὐτοῖς ἔργοις τὸ ματαῖον αὐτῶν ἐγνωκώς, παιδεύει καὶ ἡμᾶς μὴ πόθον ἔχειν πρὸς αὐτὰ διὰ τοῦ λέγειν· "ἵνα τί οὖν ἐκ κοιλίας με ἐξήγαγες καὶ οὐκ ἀπέθανον", ὀφθαλμοῦ με μὴ θεασαμένου, ἵν' ὡς μὴ ὢν γένωμαι. δ»ε»ίκνυται τὸ ματαῖον τῶν ἐν τῶι βίῳ τούτῳ περιμαχήτων οἷον πλούτου ἐκ τοῦ· "μὴ φοβοῦ, ὅταν πλουτήσῃ ἄνθρωπος ἢ ὅταν πληθυνθῇ ἡ δόξα τοῦ οἴκου 288 αὐτοῦ, ὅτι οὐκ ἐν τῷ ἀποθνήσκειν αὐτὸν λήμψεται τὰ πάντα"–οὐ γὰρ ἕπεται τῷ ἀπαλλαττομένῳ ταῦτα–"οὐ γὰρ συνκαταβήσεται αὐτῷ ἡ δόξα τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ." ἐν γὰρ τούτῳ τῷ ζῆν οἱ τοιοῦτοι μόνον πεποίθασιν. εἰ δὲ καὶ θέλουσιν οἱ ἅγιοι ὡς ὁ μακάριος Παῦλος "ἐπιθυμίαν ἔχων εἰς τὸ ἀναλῦσαι καὶ σὺν Χριστῷ εἶναι" ἀπαλλαγῆναι τοῦ βίου, ἀλλ' οὖν̣ ἐκδέχονται τὸ παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ κρίμα. ἔχουσι δὲ πόθον τοῦ ἔξω̣ εἶναι σώματος οἱ ἅγιοι προσφο´̣ρως. οὐ γὰρ ἅγιοι̣ μόνοι, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἱ ἔξω τοῦ κηρύγματος τῆς ἀληθείας περὶ τῆς ψυχῆς τῆς ἀνθρώπου ὡς ἀθανάτου ἐκ̣λαμβάνουσιν. καὶ δῆλόν γε τ̣ὸ τοιοῦτον ἐκ τῶν συμβαινόντων αὐτῇ· μετέχει γὰρ ἁγίου πνεύματος, γνῶσιν δέχεται τῆς τριάδος· ὁμοιοῦται γὰρ τῷ θεῷ κατὰ τὸ δυνατόν, ἅπερ αὐτῇ συμβαίνει ἁπλῇ κατ' οὐσίαν ὑπαρχούσῃ, ἐξ ὧν τὸ ἀθάνατον αὐτῆς κυροῦται. δῆλον δέ, ὅτι κρ»ε»ίττων τυγχάνουσα τοῦ σώματος, ὅτε ἀμίγως ἔχει πρὸς αὐτό, καθαρωτέραν καὶ εἰλικρινεστέραν ἔχει τὴν ἐνέργειαν. καὶ ἔστω παράδ»ε»ιγμα τούτου πρόχειρον εἰς παράστασιν τοῦ τὰ κρ»ε»ίττονα μειγνύμενα τοῖς ἐλάττοσιν ἐλαττοῦσθαι, οἷον τὸ μέλι μιγὲν ἀψινθίῳ ἐλαττοῦται καὶ οἶνος ὕδατι. συνεζεύχθη δὲ οὐ κατὰ Μανιχαῖον, ἀλλ' ἀκολου289 θήσασα ····· ·····α ἐν ἑτέροις λο······ ····· ·· συνῆψεν δὲ αὐτὴν ····· ····ως ὁ δημιουργὸς τῷ σώματι εἰς ἕνωσιν πρὸς αυ᾿̣τὴν πλασθέντι, ·· η῾̣ σύστασις τῆς ζ̣ω̣ῆς ····· ····· ·ηται. ἐβούλετο ····· ····· ··τα αἴτια τοῦ ······· ····· ··ι· ἐβούλετο δὲ μὴ ····· ··· πειραθῆναι, ἀλλ' ὡς ε̣····· ·····ῆναι· ἀγαθὸν γὰρ ι̣·· ὑπὲρ ἀμφοτέρους τὸ ἔκτρωμα· ου᾿̣ γὰρ ἂν ἀγαθὸν ἐλέγετο, εἰ μὴ ὑπὲρ ······. ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ τοῦ Ἰούδα λέγετ̣αι· "καλὸν ἦν αὐτῷ, εἰ οὐκ ἐγεννήθη." εἰ μὴ γὰρ αὐτῷ ········ ···· γεννηθῆναι ····· · οὐκ ἂν ἐκέκλ̣ητο. διὰ τί γὰρ ἐκ γαστρὸς εἰς μνῆμα οὐκ 71 ἀπηλλάγην; ἦ οὐκ ὀλίγος ἐστὶν ὁ χρόνος τοῦ βίου μου; τὸν τῆς ἀθανάτου ζωῆς χρόνον ἐννοῶν καὶ τοῦτον συνκρίνων τῇ παρούσῃ ζωῇ φησιν· οὐκ ὀλίγος ἐστὶν ὁ χρόνος τοῦ βίου μου, ὥστε βέλτιον̣ ἦν μὴ γεννηθῆναι; ταῦτα δὲ δ····· ···ν λέγει πα···ων····· ····ας μὴ ἐνδου̣··· αἰτια· τῆς ἐνταῦθα γενέσ̣εως. ἔασόν με ἀναπαύσασθαι μικρὸν πρὸ τοῦ με πορευθῆναι, ὅθεν οὐκ ἀναστρέφω. εὐχῆς τρόπῳ ταῦτα προφέρει. οὐ γὰρ αἱ ἐπικείμεναι ἀνίαι μικραὶ ἐτύγχανον οὐδ' ἀναισθήτως ἔφερεν τὰς ἀλγηδόνας. τοῦτο γὰρ οὐκ ἦν ἀνδρ_6_ε6ῖον, 290 εἰ οὐκ ᾐσθάνετο. διδάσκει δέ, ὅτι
About this text
Didymus the Blind on Job.
Original English Translation — new OET from PG Greek.
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.