Exposition on Proverbs · §11 · Evagrius Ponticus

Exegesis of Proverbs

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easily changeable

After saying, 'I am the life,' just as death is born from audacity, so life is born from meekness, for meekness stands in opposition to audacity. Fear casts down the slothful: fear casts down the slothful, meaning either the fear of the enemy or the fear of the Lord, which separates them from sloth through good works. And effeminate souls shall hunger: an effeminate person is one unable to teach another and desiring to learn from another.

He who does not discipline himself in his own works is a brother to him who wallows in himself: And Paul says, 'If therefore anyone cleanses himself, he will be a vessel useful to the master' (2 Tim 2:21). The name of the Lord is a strength of greatness: The name of the Lord signifies the knowledge of God; and the righteous run to Him through upright living, but through contemplation they are exalted.

Before crushing, the heart of a man is exalted: Just as crushing follows pride, so glory follows humility. He who answers a word before hearing, it is folly to him and a reproach: Use this saying for those who have not received knowledge from God, yet attempt to teach others. And David says, 'To hear the sound of your praise, and then to recount your wonders to others' (Ps 18:6): And again Solomon says, 'Yes, my eyes have seen' (Eccl 11:7).

Who will esteem a man of little soul? Just as our Lord is said to become a leopard rushing toward those who trample, and a stone of stumbling to those who disobey, so also the man of little soul is toward those who sin; yet one may call the evil man and all the demons 'little-souled' because they have fallen away from virtue and knowledge.

A man's dome expands him: The upright life is now called a man's dome, which provides for him and expands him and provides what is worthy of the fullness of God; which he calls the seat of the holy powers; for the mind is a seat, an excellent state, maintaining the one seated, difficult to move or immovable. A lot stops contention: Knowledge stops ignorance; for this is the lot of the rational nature.

Death and life are in the hands (LXX: hands) of the tongue: Here he says the soul is receptive to death and life, from which we fashion that which is within its own power. He who found a useful wife, found grace: He who...

Greek

Οὗτός ἐστιν εὐμετάβολος, ὁ ῥᾳδίως ἀπὸ ἀρετῆς ἐπὶ κακίαν μεταβαλλόμενος. Λαμβάνων δῶρα ἐν κόλπῳ ἀσεβῆς: Ἐν καρδίᾳ νοήματα λαμβάνοντος ἄδικα οὐ κατευοδοῦνται ὁδοί· τὰ 97 γὰρ ἐμπαθῆ νοήματα ὠνόμασε δῶρα παρὰ τῶν δαιμόνων 11 ἡμῖν προσφερόμενα ἢ δῶρα ἐν κόλπῳ ἀσεβὴς λήψεται τοῦ ἐκκλῖναι ὁδοὺς κρίσεως. Υἱὸς δὲ φρόνιμος εὐφραίνει μητέρα αὐτοῦ: Ὁ μὲν φρόνιμος εὐφραίνει τὴν μητέρα, ὁ δὲ ἄφρων ὀδυνᾶται τὴν τεκοῦσαν αὐτόν. Οἱ δὲ ὀφθαλμοὶ τοῦ ἄφρονος ἐπ' ἄκρα γῆς: Καρδία δὲ ἄφρονος ἐν ἄκρᾳ κακίᾳ, καὶ ὀδύνη τῇ τεκούσῃ αὐτόν. Ὁ μὲν φρόνιμος υἱὸς καὶ τεκοῦσαν ἔχει καὶ μητέρα, ὁ δὲ ἄφρων υἱὸς μόνον τεκοῦσαν· ἡ γὰρ μήτηρ καὶ τεκοῦσά ἐστιν, ἡ δὲ τεκοῦσα οὐ πάντως ἐστὶν καὶ μήτηρ· ἐὰν γὰρ ἀποθάνῃ τὸ τεχθὲν ἐν κακίᾳ καὶ ἀγνωσίᾳ, τεκοῦσα μέν ἐστιν, μήτηρ δὲ οὐκ ἔστιν, ὅτι μηδὲ τοῦ τῆς υἱοθεσίας πνεύματος μετέσχηκε τὸ τεχθέν. ὡσαύτως δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν αἰσθητῶν μητέρων νοηθήσεται, καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ θανάτου τοῦ αἰσθητοῦ· τὴν γὰρ μητέρα ἐροῦμεν καὶ τεκοῦσαν, τὴν δὲ τεκοῦσαν οὐκέτι μητέρα τοῦ παιδίου ἀποθανόντος. Ζημιοῦν ἄνδρα δίκαιον οὐ καλόν: Οὐ γὰρ ζητοῦσι τὰ ἡμῶν ἀλλ' ἡμᾶς. Ὃς φείδεται ῥῆμα προέσθαι σκληρὸν ἐπιστήμων: Τὸν λογισμὸν τὸν κινοῦντα θυμὸν ὠνόμασεν ῥῆμα σκληρόν· ἢ τὸν λόγον τὸν κινοῦντα τοῦ πλησίον αὐτοῦ θυμὸν ὠνόμασεν ῥῆμα σκληρόν. Ἀνοήτῳ ἐπερωτήσαντι σοφίαν σοφία λογισθήσεται: Εἰ οὗτος ἐρωτᾷ περὶ σοφίας ὁ βουλόμενός τι περὶ σοφίας μαθεῖν, οὗτος σιωπᾷ ἀπὸ σοφίας, ὁ μηθὲν θέλων γνῶναι περὶ σοφίας διὸ καὶ φρονιμώτερος λέγεται εἶναι ὁ πρότερος τοῦ δευτέρου. Προφάσεις ζητεῖ ἀνὴρ βουλόμενος χωρίζεσθαι: Προφάσεις λέγει τὰς ἁμαρτίας· Τοῦ προφασίζεσθαι γάρ φησιν προφάσεις ἐν ἁμαρτίαις· φίλους δὲ πάντας τοὺς ἁγίους τοὺς οἷς δι' ἀρετῆς συνήπτετο. Οὐ χρείαν ἔχει σοφίας ἐνδεὴς φρενῶν: Ἠγάπησεν γὰρ τὸ σκότος μᾶλλον ἢ τὸ φῶς. Θαυμάσαι (cod. ᾶ) πρόσωπον ἀσεβοῦς οὐ καλόν: Ὁ τὴν ἐνυπάρχουσαν κακίαν τῷ διαβόλῳ ἀποδεχόμενος καὶ κατ' αὐτὴν ἐνεργῶν, οὗτος θαυμάζει τὸ πρόσωπον τοῦ ἀσεβοῦς. 98 Τὸ δὲ στόμα αὐτοῦ τὸ θρασὺ θάνατον ἐπικαλεῖται: Εἰ ὁ θάνατος γεννᾶται ἀπὸ θρασύτητος, ὁ δὲ θάνατος χωρίζει ψυχὴν ἀπὸ τῆς ὄντως ζωῆς, ἡ θρασύτης ἡμᾶς ἀποχωρίζει ἀπὸ τοῦ εἰπόντος· Ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ζωή, καὶ ὥσπερ ἐκ τῆς θρασύτητος γεννᾶται ὁ θάνατος, οὕτως ἐκ τῆς πραΰτητος ἡ ζωή· ἀντίκειται γὰρ πρὸς τὴν θρασύτητα ἡ πραΰτης. Ὀκνηρὸν καταβάλλει φόβος: Ὀκνηροὺς καταβάλλει φόβος, ἤτοι ὁ ἐχθρὸς φόβος, ἢ ὁ τοῦ κυρίου, χωρίζων αὐτοὺς τοῦ ὄκνου διὰ ἔργων ἀγαθῶν. Ψυχαὶ δὲ ἀνδρογύνων πεινάσουσιν: Ἀνδρόγυνός ἐστιν ὁ μήτε διδάσκειν ἄλλον δυνάμενος μήτε μανθάνειν ὑφ' ἑτέρου βουλόμενος. Ὁ μὴ ἰώμενος ἑαυτὸν ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις ἐαυτοῦ ἀδελφός ἐστιν τοῦ λυμαινομένου ἑαυτόν: Καὶ ὁ Παῦλος φησίν· Ἐὰν οὖν τις ἐκκαθάρῃ ἑαυτόν, ἔσται σκεῦος χρήσιμον τῷ δεσπότῃ. Ἐκ μεγαλωσύνης ἰσχύος ὄνομα κυρίου: Τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ κυρίου τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ γνῶσιν σημαίνει· καὶ διὰ μὲν τοῦ ὀρθοῦ βίου προστρέχουσιν αὐτῷ οἱ δίκαιοι, διὰ δὲ τῆς θεωρίας ὑψοῦνται. Πρὸ συντριβῆς ὑψοῦται καρδία ἀνδρός: Ὥσπερ τῇ ὑπερηφανίᾳ ἕπεται συντριβή, οὕτως τῇ ταπεινώσει δόξα. Ὃς ἀποκρίνεται λόγον πρὶν ἀκοῦσαι, ἀφροσύνη ἐστὶν αὐτῷ καὶ ὄνειδος: Χρηστέον τούτῳ τῷ ῥητῷ πρὸς τοὺς μὴ λαβόντας μὲν γνῶσιν παρὰ θεοῦ, διδάσκειν δὲ ἄλλους ἐπιχειροῦντας. καὶ ὁ ∆αυὶδ φησίν· Τοῦ ἀκοῦσαι φωνὴν αἰνέσεώς σου, καὶ τότε διηγήσασθαι καὶ ἄλλοις τὰ θαυμάσιά σου. καὶ πάλιν ὁ Σολομὼν φησίν· Ἃ εἶδον οἱ ὀφθαλμοί σου, λέγε. Ὀλιγόψυχον δὲ ἄνδρα τίς ὑποίσει: Ὥσπερ ὁ κύριος ἡμῶν πάρδαλις ἀπορουμένη λέγεται γίνεσθαι πρὸς τοὺς πλημμελοῦντας, καὶ πέτρα σκανδάλου πρὸς τοὺς ἀπειθοῦντας, οὕτω καὶ ὀλιγόψυχος ἐπὶ τοῖς ἁμαρτάνουσιν· δύναται δὲ ὀλιγόψυχον λέγειν καὶ τὸν πονηρὸν καὶ πάντας δαίμονας ἀρετῆς ἐκπεπτωκότας καὶ γνώσεως. ∆όμα ἀνθρώπου ἐμπλατύνει αὐτόν: Τὸν βίον τὸν ὀρθὸν νῦν εἶπεν δόμα ἀνθρώπου, ὅστις αὐτὸν παρέχει καὶ πλατύνει καὶ παρέχει τοῦ πληρώματος ἄξιον τοῦ θεοῦ· ὅπερ καθέδραν τῶν ἁγίων δυνάμεων ὀνομάζει· νοῦ γὰρ καθέδρα ἐστὶν ἕξις ἀρίστη, δυσκίνητον ἢ ἀκίνητον διατηροῦσα τὸν καθεζόμενον. Ἀντιλογίαν παύει κλῆρος: Ἄνοιαν παύει γνῶσις· αὕτη γάρ ἐστιν ὁ 12 κλῆρος τῆς φύσεως τῆς λογικῆς. 99 Θάνατος καὶ ζωὴ ἐν χερσὶ (LXX χειρὶ) γλώσσης: Ἐνταῦθα λέγει τὴν ψυχὴν εἶναι θανάτου καὶ ζωῆς δεκτικήν, ἀφ' ὧν τὸ αὐτεξούσιον αὐτῆς γεγονέναι κατασκευάζομεν. Ὃς εὗρεν γυναῖκα χρηστήν, εὗρεν χάριτας: Ὃς