BIBLE STUDY: November 6th

Antiphon:

Cf.
"Ego ex ore Altíssimi prodívi" [Sirach (Ecclesiaticus) 24:5 (3)]^*
"From the mouth of the Most High I came forth"
and
Attíngit ergo a fine usque ad finem fórtiter et dispónit ómnia suáviter. [Wisdom 8:1]
Indeed, she reaches from end to end mightily and governs all things well.

^*'Ecclesiasticus' is an alternative name for the book called Sirach. In the Vulgate the quote comes from verse 5; in the Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) and most English versions, it is verse 3.

The Meeting

The meeting opened with prayer.
 

Inroduction
An outline of the sessions was given (see 'Bible Study welcome Page') and we spent some time considering what we mean by the 'Wisdom literature' of the Old Testament and which books belonged to that category. We saw that they were: Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs (Song of Solomon), Wisdom, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus). We saw that all the books are written in verse, using parallelism typical of Hebrew poetry (i.e. balanced and symmetrical phrases).

One of our members read out a short summary he had found of what these books contained (click here for another brief summary). We noted that Wisdom was a late book, written in Greek in the 1st century B.C. and was eventually excluded from the Jewish canon of Scripture. Also Sirach, although originally written in Hebrew, was also excluded, probably because it had been extensively used by the early Church in presenting moral teaching to catechumens and to the faithful. Because these two books were excluded from the Jewish canon at the Jewish Council of Jamnia around 90 A.D., these books have also been excluded from the Protestant canon of the Old Testament.
 

Sirach 24:1-3
We first briefly considered the passage from which "you came forth from the mouth of the most high" is taken:

We observed that what comes forth from a person's mouth are words and we were reminded of the opening verse of St John's Gospel. The Holy Wisdom (hagía Sophía) that comes forth from the mouth of the Most High is fully realized in Christ, the eternal Word who, from the beginning, was with God, and was God (John 1:1).
 

Wisdom 7:22 to 8:16
We took this longer passage in four sections:

1. Wisdom 7:22-26
   

   22

   For in her is a spirit intelligent, holy, unique, Manifold, subtle, agile, clear, unstained, certain, Not baneful, loving the good, keen, unhampered, beneficent,

   23

   kindly, Firm, secure, tranquil, all-powerful, all-seeing, And pervading all spirits, though they be intelligent, pure and very subtle.

   24

   For Wisdom is mobile beyond all motion, and she penetrates and pervades all things by reason of her purity.

   25

   For she is an aura of the might of God and a pure effusion of the glory of the Almighty; therefore nought that is sullied enters into her.

   26

   For she is the refulgence of eternal light, the spotless mirror of the power of God, the image of his goodness.

   It was noted that all the epithets of Wisdom in verses 22, 23 & 24 could equally well apply to God Himself. Thus we saw again that Wisdom is fully to be found in Christ, "God from God, true God from true God". One of our members said that in the Knox translation verse 25 began "steam that ascends from the fervour of divine activity". It was noted that the Greek had 'atmís' which does indeed mean 'steam' or 'vapour' and that 'the fervour of divine activity' probably conveyed better the meaning of the Greek, which is dynamic. The Greek 'atmís' means pure vapour, not smoke; the purity of what flows from the dynamic activity of God is emphasized. It was also noted that the word translate 'image' is the same word as 'icon' in Greek. We recalled Christ's words: "He who has seen me has seen the Father" (John 14:9): Christ, the Holy Wisdom, is the 'icon of the Father'

2. Wisdom 7:27-8:1

   27

   And she, who is one, can do all things, and renews everything while herself perduring; And passing into holy souls from age to age, she produces friends of God and prophets.

   28

   For there is nought God loves, be it not one who dwells with Wisdom.

   29

   For she is fairer than the sun and surpasses every constellation of the stars. Compared to light, she takes precedence;

   30

   for that, indeed, night supplants, but wickedness prevails not over Wisdom.

   1

   Indeed, she reaches from end to end mightily and governs all things well.

   We recalled that in the opening chapter of his Gospel, John says the eternal Word is the "true light ... coming into the world" (John 1:9) and that "the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it" (John 1:5, cf. verse 30 above).

   We did not like those English translations that had 'from one end of the earth to the other' or ''from one end of the world to the other' as there is no word in the Greek for 'earth' or 'world'. The Greek says that Wisdom "reaches from end to end" (diateínei dè apò pératos eis péras); we considered that this was unconditional and universal. It was suggested also that 'from end to end' did not only refer to space but also to time and, indeed, the Greek can well mean this. We recalled how Christ described himself to John when he appeared to him in a vision on Patmos: "I am the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end" (Revelation 1:8). We understood from verse 1 above that Christ, eternal Word and Holy Wisdom of God, fills the whole universe from the beginning of time until its end.

3. Wisdom 8:2-8

   2

   Her I loved and sought after from my youth; I sought to take her for my bride and was enamored of her beauty.

   3

   She adds to nobility the splendor of companionship with God; even the LORD of all loved her.

   4

   For she is instructress in the understanding of God, the selector of his works.

   5

   And if riches be a desirable possession in life, what is more rich than Wisdom, who produces all things?

   6

   And if prudence renders service, who in the world is a better craftsman than she?

   7

   Or if one loves justice, the fruits of her works are virtues; For she teaches moderation and prudence, justice and fortitude, and nothing in life is more useful for men than these.

   8

   Or again, if one yearns for copious learning, she knows the things of old, and infers those yet to come. She understands the turns of phrases and the solutions of riddles; signs and wonders she knows in advance and the outcome of times and ages.

   We saw again in verse 8 the universality of Wisdom, especially as regards time, and we were reminded again of Christ as 'alpha and omega'. We saw in this passage that the Divine Word and Holy Wisdom is to be desired above all things; that with Christ is the fullness of everything that is good and pertains to God.

4. Wisdom 8:9-16

   9

   So I determined to take her to live with me, knowing that she would be my counselor while all was well, and my comfort in care and grief.

   10

   For her sake I should have glory among the masses, and esteem from the elders, though I be but a youth.

   11

   I should become keen in judgment, and should be a marvel before rulers.

   12

   They would abide my silence and attend my utterance; and as I spoke on further, they would place their hands upon their mouths.

   13

   For her sake I should have immortality and leave to those after me an everlasting memory.

   14

   I should govern peoples, and nations would be my subjects-

   15

   terrible princes, hearing of me, would be afraid; in the assembly I should appear noble, and in war courageous.

   16

   Within my dwelling, I should take my repose beside her; For association with her involves no bitterness and living with her no grief, but rather joy and gladness.

   As time was pressing we had little time to consider these verses. We were aware that the writer was ascribing these words to Solomon. This was typical of the old Jewish way of looking at history. Solomon was a 'good king', therefore he must have had Wisdom; so the words are put into Solomon's mouth. But we as Christians have a far more perfect revelation of Divine Wisdom in the person of Christ and we should strive to know him and imitate him.

 
For next week
Those present were reminded that next week shall consider Exodus, chapter 3, in relation to the 'O Adonái' antiphon (see 'November 13th: O Adonái' in the menu bar). The "homework" is to find out the significance of the title "Adonái".
 

Conclusion
We finished the meeting by praying the 'O Sapiéntia' Antiphon and calling on the intercession of Our Lady, the Seat of Wisdom.

Most of the scripture texts on this page are taken from the New American Bible with Revised New Testament and Revised Psalms © 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C.