Bonaventure

Prooemium commentarii in Ecclesiasten.

Introductio generalis.

1. Beatus vir, cuius est nomen Domini spes eius, et non respexit in vanitates et insanias falsas¹. Cum, sicut vult beatus Dionysius, bonum sit primum appetibile; bonum autem sit duplex, temporale scilicet et aeternum, iuxta illud secundae ad Corinthios quarto²: Quae videntur temporalia sunt, quae autem non videntur, aeterna: duplicem in nobis generat amorem sive appetitum, scilicet caritatis et libidinis, ut caritas sit amor rediens ad aeterna, libido ad terrena. Et quia convenientiam et differentiam appetituum sequitur convenientia et disconvenientia morum; et secundum convenientiam in legibus et moribus consistit unitas civitatis: ex hoc duplici amore duplex oritur civitas, civitas scilicet supernae Ierusalem et civitas Babylonis³. Primae fundamentum est caritas ordinata, secundae, libido perversa. Superna igitur civitas, quia fundata est in caritate, quae erigit ad aeterna, in aeternis quiescit et in eis beatitudinem ponit. Babylonis vero civitas, quae per libidinem deprimitur ad terrena, in his terrenis beatitudinem ponit. — Et sic relinquitur ex praedictis, quod sicut duplex est bonum, sic duplex est amor, sic duplex civitas, sic etiam beatitudo duplex, vera scilicet in aeternis, falsa in temporalibus et caducis; Psalmus⁴: Beatum dixerunt populum, cui haec sunt etc. — Et sicut amor caritatis et libidinis sic obviant sibi, ut simul esse non possint; sic hae duae beatitudines; Matthaei sexto: Nemo potest duobus dominis servire. Ideo, si quis vult esse beatus, necesse est, ut futura bona diligat et contemnat praesentia. Ideo Spiritus sanctus per Psalmistam virum beatum ab hoc duplici actu describit: a supernorum dilectione, quae faciunt beatum, cum dicit: Beatus vir, cuius est nomen Domini spes eius; et a terrenorum aspernatione, quae faciunt vanum, cum dicit: Et non respexit in vanitates et insanias falsas. Vere beatus vir, cuius est nomen Domini spes eius.

2. Solus autem Dominus beatificat, nec est aliud nomen sub caelo, quod beatificet. Solus enim Dominus est beatus per essentiam; primae ad Timotheum sexto⁵: Serves mandatum sine macula, irreprehensibile, usque in adventum Domini nostri Iesu Christi, quem suis temporibus ostendet beatus et solus potens Rex regum et Dominus dominantium. Illi ergo soli inest beatitudo et potentia per essentiam, beatitudo autem nostra est per participationem; secundum quod est per participationem, ortum habet ab illo quod est per essentiam: ergo beati sumus participantes fontem beatitudinis, qui est Deus. Ideo Apocalypsis decimo nono⁶: Beati, qui ad coenam nuptiarum Agni vocati sunt. Primo enim Deus per desponsationem beatitudinem communicat Agno, per consequens his qui ab Agno sunt vocati.

3. Solus etiam habet affluentiam; quia de Sapientia, quae Deus est, dicitur singulariter Proverbiorum tertio⁷: Pretiosior est cunctis opibus, et omnia, quae desiderantur, huic non valent comparari. p. 4 Longitudo dierum in dextera eius, et in sinistra illius divitiae et gloria. Beatitudo autem nostra est per bonorum omnium aggregationem: ergo in eo solo est, qui habet omnium affluentiam. Ideo infertur statim: Lignum vitae est his qui apprehenderint eam, et qui tenuerit eam, beatus; Sapientiae septimo: Venerunt mihi omnia bona pariter cum illa etc.

4. Solus habet intransmutabilitatis quietem, quia omnia variantur, sed ipse non variatur; Iacobi primo¹: Apud quem non est transmutatio nec vicissitudinis obumbratio. Beatitudo autem nostra est per bonorum congregatorum tranquillam possessionem, quia sine pace beatitudo esse non potest. Cum igitur in nullo sit perfecta tranquillitas nisi in Deo, non possumus ergo pacificari nec beatificari nisi in Deo; unde Apocalypsis decimo quarto²: Beati mortui, qui in Domino moriuntur. Amodo iam dicit Spiritus, ut requiescant a laboribus suis.

5. Solus etiam habet aeternitatis immortalitatem, sicut dicitur primae ad Timotheum ultimo³: Qui solus immortalitatem habet et lucem habitat inaccessibilem. Beatitudo autem nostra est per bonorum possessorum interminabilem durationem. Status enim, qui finiri potest, beatus non est, sed miseriae subiacet. Cum igitur interminabilitatem non possit quis habere nisi a fonte immortalitatis, in eo solo beatificatur; ideo dicitur in Psalmo⁴: Beati, qui habitant in domo tua, Domine; in saecula saeculorum laudabunt te, quia eorum erit laetitia sempiterna; Isaiae trigesimo quinto: Venient in Sion cum laude, et laetitia sempiterna super capita eorum; gaudium et laetitiam obtinebunt. — Beatus igitur vir, cuius est nomen Domini spes eius.

6. Sed non beatus, immo profecto vanus est qui sperat in mundo; respicit enim in vanitates et insanias falsas: ideo evanescit, secundum illud Ieremiae secundo⁵: Elongaverunt a me patres vestri et abierunt post vanitatem, et vani facti sunt; post vanitatem, id est post mundum. — Mundus enim cum suis vanus est, quia non praebet fulcimentum innitenti; unde Isaiae trigesimo: Aegyptus frustra et vane auxiliabitur, eo quod innitenti sibi fulcimentum non praebet. Est enim baculus arundineus, super quem si innixus fuerit homo, perforabit ambas manus; quia mundus et mundana omnia omnes in eis confidentes reddunt debiles et infirmos et ad omne opus bonum ineptos; ideo manus dicitur perforare. Ideo desperans Propheta⁶ de auxilio mundanorum petit a Domino: Da nobis auxilium de tribulatione, quia vana salus hominis.

7. Vanus etiam, quia non praebet plenitudinem continenti; unde dicitur Ecclesiastae quinto⁷: Avarus non implebitur pecunia. Et ratio huius est, quia mundana omnia vana, et vana non implent; unde dicitur Ecclesiastici trigesimo quarto: Vana spes et mendacium viro insensato, quasi qui apprehendit umbram et sequitur ventum; sic qui attendit ad visa mendacia; unde sicut ventus non satiat ventrem, nec umbra replet; sic nec temporalia, quae sunt umbra aeternorum, ad quae anima est creata.

8. Vanus etiam, quia non dat quietem laboranti, et ideo qui pro mundanis laborat in vanum laborat; Ecclesiastae secundo⁸: Quid proderit homini de universo labore suo, quo laborat sub sole? Cuncti dies eius laboribus et aerumnis pleni sunt, nec per noctem mente requiescit; et hoc nonne vanitas est? quia laborat in vanum, quia non quiescit. Mundus iste non potest dare quietem, quia nec ipse permanet, immo semper circuit: ergo qui ei adhaerent necesse habent circuire. Ideo dicitur in Psalmo: In circuitu impii ambulant.

9. Vanus etiam, quia non praebet fructum diligenti; unde dicitur Ecclesiastae quinto⁹: Qui amat divitias fructum non capiet ex eis; et hoc ergo vanitas. Non capit fructum, immo magis damnum, quia lucrando mundum perdit Deum et perdit se ipsum; et secundum quod dicitur Matthaei decimo sexto: Quid prodest homini, si mundum universum lucretur, animae vero suae detrimentum patiatur?

10. Homo lucrando mundum patitur animae detrimentum. — Mundus enim praetendendo altitudinem erigit in superbiam, et per hoc hominem evanescere facit, iuxta illud Iob undecimo¹⁰: Vir vanus in superbiam erigitur, et quasi pullum onagri se liberum putat. Dum enim ad vana extenditur, in vanam superbiam elevatur, secundum quod dicitur Iob trigesimo: Elevasti me et quasi super ventum ponens elisisti valide. — Mundus etiam praetendendo dulcedinem inflammat ad luxuriam, sicut vinum sua dulcedine trahit ad gulam et per hoc ad luxuriam; unde tertii Esdrae tertio¹¹: Vinum, quod praevalet omnibus, qui bibunt illud, seducit mentem. Item regis et orphani p. 5 facit mentem vanam, et hoc inflammando ad luxuriam, iuxta illud ad Ephesios quinto: Nolite inebriari vino, in quo est luxuria. Ad hanc vanitatem mundus traxit Salomonem; Ecclesiastae secundo: Dixi: Vadam et affluam deliciis et fruar bonis; et vidi, quod hoc quoque esset vanitas. — Mundus etiam praetendendo sufficientiam trahit ad cupiditatem, et per hoc facit cor hominis vanum, iuxta illud Proverbiorum vigesimo primo¹: Qui congregat thesauros lingua mendacii vanus est, excors est. Non solum avaritia facit hominem vanum, immo etiam sine corde; dicitur enim Ecclesiastici decimo de avaro, qui proiecit intima sua; quia, secundum quod dicit Veritas Matthaei sexto, ubi est thesaurus tuus, ibi est et cor tuum; sed thesaurus est extra: ergo et cor extra. — Mundus etiam praetendendo sapientiam allicit ad curiositatem, et per hoc facit vanum; unde dicit Apostolus primae ad Corinthios tertio² et trahit ex Psalmo: Dominus scit cogitationes sapientium, quoniam vanae sunt; quia, secundum illud Ieremiae decimo, stultus factus est omnis homo a scientia sua. Haec enim est sapientia humana, quae non cognoscit utilia, sed mutabilia; et ideo Dominus eam fecit stultam, sicut dicitur primae ad Corinthios primo: Stultam fecit Deus sapientiam huius mundi. Sapientia stulta vana est, quia erronea; unde dicitur Ecclesiastici trigesimo quarto: Divinatio erroris et auguria mendacia et somnia malefacientium vanitas est.

11. Ab hac quadruplici vanitate cordis interiori quadrupliciter evanescit homo exterius. — Primo namque vanitas superbiae reddit infructuosum, iuxta illud Ecclesiastici sexto³: Non te extollas in cogitatione tua velut taurus, ne forte elidatur virtus tua, et relinquaris velut lignum aridum in eremo, et ita vanum quantum ad fructum boni operis; de quo Ieremiae decimo: Vana sunt opera eorum et risu digna, in die visitationis suae peribunt. — Vanitas avaritiae reddit negotiosum, et per hoc multis laboribus obnoxium; Ecclesiastae quarto⁴: Considerans reperi et aliam vanitatem sub sole: unus est et secundum non habet, et tamen laborare non cessat, nec satiantur oculi eius divitiis. Divitiae enim sunt dii alieni, de quibus Ieremiae decimo sexto: Servietis diis alienis, qui non dabunt vobis requiem die ac nocte. — Vanitas luxuriae reddit hominem compositum, quia luxuriosi se exterius consueverunt ornare; unde in persona eorum dicitur Sapientiae secundo⁵: Coronemus nos rosis, antequam marcescant; et hoc quidem vanitas, quia dicitur Proverbiorum ultimo: Fallax est gratia, et vana est pulcritudo; ideo vana, quia omnis gloria et pulcritudo carnis tanquam flos foeni. — Vanitas mundanae sapientiae reddit vaniloquum. Dum enim cor errat, os vana pronuntiat; primae ad Timotheum primo⁶: Finis praecepti est caritas de corde puro et conscientia bona et fide non ficta, a quibus quidam aberrantes conversi sunt in vaniloquium, non intelligentes neque quae loquuntur, neque de quibus affirmant. Et quia mundana sapientia sunt corrupti et decepti, alios volunt per vana verba seducere; unde ad Titum primo: Sunt multi inobedientes, vaniloqui et seductores, maxime qui de circumcisione sunt, quos oportet redargui. — Sic igitur a vanitate rerum exteriorum oritur vanitas cordium, et ab hac oritur vanitas exteriorum operum.

12. Secundum hoc igitur colligitur, quod triplex est vanitas, scilicet mutabilitatis, iniquitatis et poenalitatis, et secundum quod dicit Hugo de sancto Victore⁷, « prima est naturalis et apta, secunda culpabilis, quia perversa, tertia poenalis et misera »; et habet una ortum ab alia, ut visum est. Qui igitur vult recedere a vanitate miseriae deserat vanitatem culpae, et qui hanc vult deserere non respiciat ad vanitatem mutabilis naturae, sed speret et adhaereat divinae, et sic beatus erit. Beatus igitur vir, cuius est nomen Domini spes eius.

13. Quoniam igitur sapientis est viam docere ad veniendum in beatitudinem, hoc fuit praecipuum et operae pretium sapienti Salomoni; sed quia, ut patet ex dictis, ad beatitudinem acquirendam necesse est, aeterna diligi et praesentia despici, et ulterius scire in medio pravae nationis debite conversari⁸; ideo tres libros edidit, Proverbiorum scilicet, in quibus docet filium sapienter in hoc saeculo conversari; Ecclesiasten, in quo docet praesentia contemnere; et Cantica canticorum, in quibus docet caelestia diligere, maxime ipsum Sponsum.

De quadruplici causa huius libri.

14. Sic igitur patet, quis sit finis libri Ecclesiastes. Et quoniam « finis imponit necessitatem his quae sunt ad finem⁹ »; cum finis sit contemptus p. 6 praesentium, de eis tractat, non ea ratione, qua attrahunt, sed ea ratione qua contemnuntur: attrahunt sub specie boni, sed contemnuntur sub specie vani. Ideo sequitur ex hoc, quod materia huius libri sunt rerum praesentium vanitates, sive ipsae res, secundum quod vanae, ut melius dicatur, quia vanitatem quasi passionem probat in rebus, primo proponens, secundo probans, tertio concludens. Unde procedit persuadendo et probando illam, scilicet triplicem vanitatem, quae supra dicta est¹, scilicet naturae, culpae et miseriae. — Et ex hoc patet modus agendi sive forma. Habet enim modum agendi singularem inter alios libros; procedit enim ut concionator, diversorum sententias proponendo, modo sapientis, modo stulti, ut ex plurium sententiis una clarescat veritas in animis auditorum. — Ex praedictis concluditur, quis debuit esse efficiens. In isto enim libro docentur contemni voluptates, divitiae, honores et curiositates tanquam vanitates. Et quia non creditur de contemptu talium nisi experto — non enim creditur pauperi, qui non habuit divitias, de ipsarum contemptu, quia non est expertus, et ideo non recognoscit² — oportuit, quod esset talis, qui omnium haberet experientiam horum, scilicet qui esset potens, dives, luxuriosus et curiosus sive sapiens. Nullum alium legimus nec audivimus in tanta excellentia haec habuisse, sicut habuit Salomon; ideo ipse prae ceteris fuit talis libri convenientior auctor. — Patet igitur, quae sit huius libri causa materialis, formalis, efficiens et finalis.

Sed iuxta has quatuor causas quatuor particulae possunt quaeri.

Quaestio I. De fine libri Ecclesiastes.

Primo de fine. Dicitur enim, quod finis libri est contemptus mundi. Quod autem sic sit determinatus,

1. probatur per illud quod dicitur Iacobi quarto³: Amicitia huius mundi inimica est Deo; sed omne, quod Deo est inimicum, bonum est contemnere.

2. Item, primae Ioannis secundo⁴: Nolite diligere mundum, neque ea quae in mundo sunt.

Sed contra: 1. Laus operis redundat in artificem⁵, ergo et contemptus operis redundat in eundem, ergo qui contemnit mundum contemnit Deum: aut igitur iste mundus non est factus a Deo, aut non est contemnendus.

2. Item, Proverbiorum decimo sexto⁶: Universa propter semetipsum operatus est Dominus, ergo omnia ordinantur ad Deum; sed quod ordinatur in finem non est contemnendum, sed accipiendum et amandum: ergo mundus iste, et ea quae sunt in eo, sunt amanda.

Respondeo: dicendum, quod, sicut vult Augustinus et Hugo⁷, mundus iste est quasi quidam anulus datus a sponso ipsi animae; sponsa autem dupliciter potest diligere anulum a sponso sibi collatum, amore scilicet casto et adulterino. Amor castus est, quo diligit anulum in memoriam sponsi et propter amorem sponsi; adulterinus, quo diligit anulum plus quam sponsum; et hoc non potest sponsus non habere pro malo. Sicut enim duplex est amor, ita duplex odium vel contemptus, quia « quoties dicitur unum oppositorum, et reliquum⁸ ». Contemptus anuli, quasi sit parvum et vile donum, redundat in sponsum; sed contemptus anuli, quasi nihil reputetur comparatione amoris sponsi, iste est ad gloriam sponsi; et de hoc contemptu dicitur Cantici ultimo⁹: Si dederit homo omnem substantiam domus suae pro dilectione, quasi nihil despiciet eam. De hoc contemptu est hic sermo; et sic patent obiecta.

Quaestio II. De materia eiusdem.

Postmodum quaeritur de materia, et dicitur, quod hic agitur de vanitate.

Sed contra: 1. Omnis scientia est de bono et vero¹⁰; sed vanum privat bonitatem et veritatem: ergo de ipso non est scientia.

2. Praeterea videtur, quod in rebus non sit vanitas, quia dicitur Genesis primo¹¹: Vidit Deus cuncta, quae fecerat, et erant valde bona: ergo si omnia sunt valde bona, nihil est vanum.

3. Praeterea, vanum est et frustra, quod non est ordinatum in finem, sicut, si aliquis se balnearet, ut sol deficeret, in vanum operaretur, quia hoc non est ordinabile in illud; sed omnes creaturae tendunt ad summum bonum suo modo, ut dicit Dionysius¹², p. 7 et Boethius, quod omnia bonum exoptant, et etiam Philosophus: ergo nihil in rebus omnibus reperitur vanum.

4. Praeterea, si vanum reperitur, et scientia ista est fundata super illud tanquam super subiectum; et quod fundatum est super vanum vanum est: ergo haec scientia vana est.

Respondeo: ad intelligentiam praedictorum uno modo potest dici sic, quod vanum dicitur dupliciter: uno modo simpliciter, et sic privat verum et bonum, et tale non est in universo. Est alio modo vanum per comparationem ad terminum initialem, quia de nihilo; et sic non repugnat bono, immo unum et idem est bonum et vanum: sed bonum, quia a bono et ad bonum; vanum, quia de nihilo et sibi relictum tendit ad nihil; et talis vanitas habet bonitatem sub scientia, et ideo de tali potest esse scientia et doctrina. — Et per hoc solvi potest ad omnia obiecta, quia procedunt, ac si essent de vano simpliciter.

Sed haec solutio non solvit, quia non agit Ecclesiastes de rebus, secundum quod ex nihilo sunt, immo secundum quod ab hominibus appetuntur; et praeterea agit de vanitate culpae, quae privatio est: ideo oportet aliter dicere.

Respondendum igitur aliter et dicendum, quod sicut verum dicitur tribus modis, ita et vanum sibi oppositum, per regulam supra¹ dictam. Uno modo dicitur verum, secundum quod convertitur cum ente, et sic dicitur, quod omne ens est verum; et sic vanum vero oppositum dicitur non-ens, sicut dicimus, quod chimaera est non-ens. — Alio modo dicitur verum, secundum quod ultra entitatem addit ordinem ad operationem et finem, sicut dicitur verum vinum, quod habet veram operationem vini, sic homo verus, qui habet operationem debitam homini², et haec est operatio virtutis; et sic vanum dicitur per privationem ordinationis in finem, et sic peccata omnia et abusiones vanae sunt. — Alio modo dicitur verum, secundum quod addit supra esse impermixtionem ad non-esse, quod nullo modo habet potentiam ad illud; et sic dicitur habere verum esse, quod habet esse immutabile; et hoc modo vanum oppositum vero est illud quod est mutabile et transmutabile. Et sic omnis creatura vana est, quia subiecta vanitati³, id est mutabilitati.

Sic igitur dicto vano tripliciter: uno modo per privationem esse simpliciter, alio modo per privationem esse ordinati, tertio modo per privationem esse intransmutabilis; de primo nullo modo est scientia nec doctrina, nisi forte habeat esse in causa et secundum illud cognosci et edoceri; et sic non est vanum; sed secundum quod vanum est, nec per se nec per accidens est de eo scientia⁴. — De secundo modo non est scientia per se, sed per accidens. Sicut enim medicina est scientia sani et aegri, sani quidem per se, aegri vero per accidens, ut vult Philosophus⁵; sic de culpa vel peccato est theorica, sed ratione virtutis. — De tertio modo, scilicet de mutabilitate creaturae, scientia est per se, sicut patet de motu solis et orbium et aliarum rerum. — In hoc igitur libro agitur de vanitate mutabilitatis sive naturae, quia est pulcra et apta, et de vanitate culpae; de alia vanitate, scilicet privationis omnimodae, non agitur, quia de illa non est scientia neque doctrina.

1. Quod ergo primo obiicitur, quod omnis scientia est de bono et vero; verum est per se, sed de vano etiam potest esse ratione veri; et qui cognoscit principia vera, et falsa cognoscit; et similiter est de aegro et sano, similiter et in proposito⁶.

2. 3. 4. Quod obiicitur, quod creaturae non sunt vanae, quia valde bonae et in finem ordinatae; solvendum, quod non dicuntur vanae per defectum boni vel ordinis, sed per defectum esse incommutabilis; et sic omnis creatura vana, nec est ita vana, quin habeat veritatem et bonitatem⁷; et ideo scientia et doctrina de ipsa est vera.

Quaestio III. De modo agendi in eodem.

Item, quaeritur de modo agendi; dictum est enim, quod agit et loquitur in personis diversis, scilicet fatui et sapientis.

Sed: 1. Sicut dicitur Ecclesiastici vigesimo⁸, ex ore fatui reprobabitur parabola: ergo et sententia dicta in persona fatui non est attendenda: ergo si sententia librorum sacrorum est attendenda, non debet loqui in persona fatui.

2. Item, quae dicit in persona fatui et carnalis sunt reprobanda; sed nescitur, quando loquitur, p. 8 utrum hoc dicat in persona propria, vel aliena: ergo nescitur, quid in hoc libro tenendum, quid reprobandum: ergo haec scientia¹ via est ad errorem. Sed libri canonici debent purgare errorem: ergo liber iste tollendus est de canone.

Respondeo: dicendum, quod loqui aliquid in persona fatui vel carnalis est dupliciter: vel ut approbet, vel ut reprobet et vanum esse ostendat. Primo modo non convenit scientiae veritatis; secundo modo convenit, sicut si aliquis vellet errorem reprobare et prius illum explicaret, postmodum destrueret. Et hoc modo loquitur, non primo; et ideo non est reprobandus, immo commendandus, quia reprobat reprobanda.

2. Quod obiicitur, quia nescitur, quando loquitur in persona sua; dicendum, quod disputationis altera pars non potest sciri, quousque veniatur ad sententiam et ad determinationem, quia in solutione scitur, quid eligatur et quid reprobetur. Sic dico, quod Ecclesiastes procedit quasi disputando usque ad finem libri et in fine² dat sententiam, cum dicit: Finem loquendi omnes pariter audiamus: Deum time, et scito, quod pro omni errato adducet te Deus in iudicium. In quo verbo damnat omnes sententias fatuorum, carnalium et mundanorum. Unde quod illi sententiae concordat in propria persona dicit, quod vero discordat, in persona aliorum: et ideo non potest sciri liber iste, nisi audiatur totus.

Quaestio IV. De causa efficiente eiusdem.

Potest etiam quaeri ultimo de efficiente; et dictum est, quod efficiens fuit Salomon. Quod autem non conveniat, talem esse auctorem, videtur:

1. Quia ipse fuit peccator et carnalis; sed quando carnalis praedicat spiritualitatem, potius scandalizat quam aedificet: ergo liber iste potius est ad generandum scandalum quam aedificationem.

2. Item, in Psalmo³ dicitur: Peccatori autem dixit Deus: Quare tu enarras iustitias meas? Ergo si Salomon peccator erat, ergo peccabat divinam iustitiam enarrando.

3. Praeterea, bonus auctor facit fidem, unde habet robur locus ab auctoritate⁴, ergo malus auctor nullam fidem; sed libri sacrae Scripturae sunt ad generandam fidem: ergo etc.

Ad hoc respondendum, quod, sicut dicit Hieronymus⁵, ut tradunt Hebraei, liber iste Salomonis fuit poenitentiam agentis; et quia non abiicit Deus poenitentes, sed potius acceptat, secundum hoc non erat Salomon in statu reprehensibili, quando hunc librum scripsit.

Aliter responderi potest, quod Spiritus sanctus non tantum loquitur vera et bona per bonos, immo etiam per malos; unde ipse Dominus in Evangelio⁶ dicit: Quae dicunt facite, quae autem faciunt nolite facere; unde et per Balaam expressissime prophetavit, sic et per Salomonem etiam carnalem multa bona dixit.

2. Quod ergo obiicitur, quod ipse peccabat; respondendum, quod sibi erat donum sapientiae commissum specialissime inter alios; et quia tenebatur talentum Domini non abscondere⁷, debebat docere populum Domini et verbo et scripto, maxime cum esset ad eius regimen institutus. Unde non peccabat in hoc, quod docebat, sed in hoc, quod non debite se disponebat.

3. Quod obiicitur, quod non est credendum libro, cum auctor non sit dignus fide; respondeo: sicut credimus Prophetis, quod non per se, sed per Spiritum sanctum locuti sunt; sic et in omnibus libris Scripturae, quod Spiritu sancto dictante sunt editi; unde bonitas personae non facit ad maiorem vel minorem fidem, hoc supponendo, quod fuerit per Spiritum locutus. Et quia constat nobis, Salomonem spiritu sapientiae fuisse repletum, sicut patet ex tertii Regum tertio⁸; ideo Ecclesia indubitanter recipit libros eius.

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Prooemium of the commentary on Ecclesiastes.

General introduction.

1. Blessed is the man whose trust is in the name of the Lord, and who hath not had regard to vanities and lying follies¹. Since, as blessed Dionysius holds, the good is the first object of appetite; and since the good is twofold, namely temporal and eternal, according to that word of the second [epistle] to the Corinthians, the fourth chapter²: The things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal: it generates in us a twofold love or appetite, namely of charity and of lust, so that charity is the love returning to eternal things, lust to earthly things. And because upon the agreement and difference of appetites there follows the agreement and disagreement of manners; and because the unity of a city consists in agreement in laws and manners: from this twofold love there arises a twofold city, namely the city of the heavenly Jerusalem and the city of Babylon³. The foundation of the first is ordered charity, of the second, perverse lust. The heavenly city, therefore, because it is founded in charity, which raises to eternal things, rests in eternal things and places its beatitude in them. But the city of Babylon, which through lust is pressed down to earthly things, places its beatitude in these earthly things. — And so it follows from what has been said, that as the good is twofold, so love is twofold, so the city is twofold, so also beatitude is twofold, namely true in eternal things, false in temporal and perishable ones; the Psalm⁴: They have called the people blessed that hath these things etc. — And as the love of charity and of lust so stand against each other that they cannot exist together, so do these two beatitudes; Matthew, the sixth chapter: No man can serve two masters. Therefore, if anyone wishes to be blessed, it is necessary that he love future goods and despise present ones. Therefore the Holy Spirit through the Psalmist describes the blessed man from this twofold act: from the love of things above, which make a man blessed, when he says: Blessed is the man whose trust is in the name of the Lord; and from the scorning of earthly things, which make a man vain, when he says: And who hath not had regard to vanities and lying follies. Truly blessed is the man whose trust is in the name of the Lord.

2. But the Lord alone makes blessed, nor is there any other name under heaven that makes blessed. For the Lord alone is blessed by essence; the first [epistle] to Timothy, the sixth chapter⁵: Keep the commandment without spot, blameless, unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, which in his times he shall shew who is the Blessed and only Mighty, the King of kings and Lord of lords. In him alone, therefore, are beatitude and power by essence, but our beatitude is by participation; and according as a thing is by participation, it has its origin from that which is by essence: therefore we are blessed by participating in the fount of beatitude, which is God. Therefore the Apocalypse, the nineteenth chapter⁶: Blessed are they that are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb. For first God by espousal communicates beatitude to the Lamb, and consequently to those who are called by the Lamb.

3. He alone also has affluence; because of Wisdom, which is God, it is said in a singular way in Proverbs, the third chapter⁷: She is more precious than all riches, and all the things that are desired are not to be compared with her. p. 4 Length of days is in her right hand, and in her left hand riches and glory. But our beatitude is by the gathering together of all goods: therefore it is in him alone who has the affluence of all things. Therefore it is at once inferred: She is a tree of life to them that lay hold on her, and he that shall retain her is blessed; Wisdom, the seventh chapter: Now all good things came to me together with her etc.

4. He alone has the rest of unchangeableness, because all things vary, but he varies not; James, the first chapter¹: With whom there is no change nor shadow of alteration. But our beatitude is by the tranquil possession of goods gathered together, because without peace there can be no beatitude. Since therefore there is perfect tranquillity in nothing save in God, we cannot then be pacified nor beatified save in God; whence the Apocalypse, the fourteenth chapter²: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord. From henceforth now, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours.

5. He alone also has the immortality of eternity, as is said in the first [epistle] to Timothy, the last chapter³: Who only hath immortality and inhabiteth light inaccessible. But our beatitude is by the interminable duration of the goods possessed. For a state which can be ended is not blessed, but lies open to misery. Since therefore no one can have interminability save from the fount of immortality, in him alone is he beatified; therefore it is said in the Psalm⁴: Blessed are they that dwell in thy house, O Lord; they shall praise thee for ever and ever, because theirs will be everlasting joy; Isaias, the thirty-fifth chapter: They shall come into Sion with praise, and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness. — Blessed therefore is the man whose trust is in the name of the Lord.

6. But he is not blessed, but rather assuredly vain, who hopes in the world; for he has regard to vanities and lying follies: therefore he becomes vain, according to that word of Jeremias, the second chapter⁵: Your fathers have gone far from me and have walked after vanity and are become vain; after vanity, that is, after the world. — For the world with what is its own is vain, because it does not afford a support to him that leans upon it; whence Isaias, the thirtieth chapter: Egypt shall help in vain and to no purpose, in that it affords no support to him that leans upon it. For it is a staff of reed, upon which if a man lean, it will pierce both his hands; because the world and all worldly things render all who trust in them weak and infirm and unfit for every good work; therefore it is said to pierce the hands. Therefore the Prophet⁶, despairing of the help of worldly men, asks of the Lord: Give us help from trouble, for vain is the help of man.

7. He is vain also, because he does not afford fullness to him that contains him; whence it is said in Ecclesiastes, the fifth chapter⁷: A covetous man shall not be satisfied with money. And the reason of this is that all worldly things are vain, and vain things do not fill; whence it is said in Ecclesiasticus, the thirty-fourth chapter: Vain hope and lying is for a senseless man, as one that catcheth at a shadow and followeth after the wind; so is he that giveth heed to lying visions; whence, as the wind does not satisfy the belly, nor a shadow fill it, so neither do temporal things, which are the shadow of eternal things, for which the soul is created.

8. He is vain also, because he does not give rest to him that labours, and therefore he who labours for worldly things labours in vain; Ecclesiastes, the second chapter⁸: What profit shall a man have of all his labour, wherewith he laboureth under the sun? All his days are full of sorrows and miseries, neither doth his mind rest in the night; and is not this vanity? — because he labours in vain, because he does not rest. This world cannot give rest, because it does not itself remain, but rather is ever going round: therefore they who cleave to it must needs go round. Therefore it is said in the Psalm: The wicked walk round about.

9. He is vain also, because he does not afford fruit to him that loves him; whence it is said in Ecclesiastes, the fifth chapter⁹: He that loveth riches shall reap no fruit from them; this also therefore is vanity. He reaps no fruit, but rather loss, because by gaining the world he loses God and loses himself; and according to what is said in Matthew, the sixteenth chapter: What doth it profit a man, if he gain the whole world, and suffer the loss of his own soul?

10. Man, by gaining the world, suffers the loss of his soul. — For the world, by holding out height, raises up into pride, and through this makes a man become vain, according to that word of Job, the eleventh chapter¹⁰: A vain man is lifted up into pride, and thinketh himself born free like a wild ass's colt. For while he is stretched out to vain things, he is lifted up into vain pride, according to what is said in Job, the thirtieth chapter: Thou hast lifted me up, and set me as it were upon the wind, and thou hast mightily dashed me. — The world also, by holding out sweetness, inflames to luxury, as wine by its sweetness draws to gluttony and through this to luxury; whence third Esdras, the third chapter¹¹: Wine, which prevaileth over all who drink it, leadeth the mind astray. Likewise it maketh the mind of the king and of the orphan p. 5 vain, and this by inflaming to luxury, according to that word to the Ephesians, the fifth chapter: Be not drunk with wine, wherein is luxury. To this vanity the world drew Solomon; Ecclesiastes, the second chapter: I said: I will go and abound with delights and enjoy good things; and I saw that this also was vanity. — The world also, by holding out sufficiency, draws to cupidity, and through this makes the heart of man vain, according to that word of Proverbs, the twenty-first chapter¹: He that gathereth treasures by a lying tongue is vain and foolish. Not only does avarice make a man vain, but even without a heart; for it is said in Ecclesiasticus, the tenth chapter, of the covetous man that he hath cast away his own bowels; because, according to what the Truth says in Matthew, the sixth chapter, where thy treasure is, there is thy heart also; but the treasure is outside: therefore the heart also is outside. — The world also, by holding out wisdom, allures to curiosity, and through this makes a man vain; whence the Apostle says in the first [epistle] to the Corinthians, the third chapter², drawing it from the Psalm: The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain; because, according to that word of Jeremias, the tenth chapter, every man is become a fool for knowledge. For this is human wisdom, which knows not useful things but changeable ones; and therefore the Lord has made it foolish, as is said in the first [epistle] to the Corinthians, the first chapter: God hath made foolish the wisdom of this world. Foolish wisdom is vain, because erroneous; whence it is said in Ecclesiasticus, the thirty-fourth chapter: The divination of error and lying omens and the dreams of evildoers are vanity.

11. From this fourfold inward vanity of the heart a man becomes vain outwardly in four ways. — For first the vanity of pride renders him unfruitful, according to that word of Ecclesiasticus, the sixth chapter³: Extol not thyself in thy thought like a bull, lest perhaps thy strength be quashed, and thou be left as a dry tree in the wilderness, and so vain as regards the fruit of good work; whereof Jeremias, the tenth chapter: Their works are vain and worthy to be laughed at; in the time of their visitation they shall perish. — The vanity of avarice renders him busy, and through this liable to many labours; Ecclesiastes, the fourth chapter⁴: Considering I found also another vanity under the sun: there is but one, and he hath not a second, and yet he ceaseth not to labour, neither are his eyes satisfied with riches. For riches are strange gods, of which Jeremias, the sixteenth chapter: You shall serve strange gods, who will not give you rest day and night. — The vanity of luxury renders a man decked out, because the luxurious are wont to adorn themselves outwardly; whence in their person it is said in Wisdom, the second chapter⁵: Let us crown ourselves with roses before they be withered; and this indeed is vanity, because it is said in Proverbs, the last chapter: Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain; therefore vain, because all the glory and beauty of flesh is as the flower of the field. — The vanity of worldly wisdom renders a man a vain talker. For while the heart errs, the mouth utters vain things; the first [epistle] to Timothy, the first chapter⁶: The end of the precept is charity from a pure heart and a good conscience and an unfeigned faith, from which things some, going astray, are turned aside unto vain babbling, understanding neither the things they say nor whereof they affirm. And because they are corrupted and deceived by worldly wisdom, they wish to seduce others by vain words; whence to Titus, the first chapter: There are many disobedient, vain talkers and seducers, especially they who are of the circumcision, who must be reproved. — So therefore from the vanity of outward things arises the vanity of hearts, and from this arises the vanity of outward works.

12. According to this, therefore, it is gathered that vanity is threefold, namely of mutability, of iniquity and of penalty, and according to what Hugh of Saint Victor says⁷, « the first is natural and fitting, the second culpable, because perverse, the third penal and wretched »; and one has its origin from another, as has been seen. He therefore who wishes to withdraw from the vanity of misery should forsake the vanity of fault, and he who wishes to forsake this should not look to the vanity of changeable nature, but should hope in and cleave to the divine, and so he will be blessed. Blessed therefore is the man whose trust is in the name of the Lord.

13. Since therefore it belongs to the wise man to teach the way of coming into beatitude, this was the chief thing and worth the labour for the wise Solomon; but because, as is clear from what has been said, for the acquiring of beatitude it is necessary that eternal things be loved and present things despised, and further that one know how to converse fittingly in the midst of a depraved nation⁸; therefore he published three books, namely Proverbs, in which he teaches the son to converse wisely in this world; Ecclesiastes, in which he teaches to despise present things; and the Canticle of Canticles, in which he teaches to love heavenly things, and above all the Bridegroom himself.

On the fourfold cause of this book.

14. So therefore it is clear what the end of the book of Ecclesiastes is. And since « the end imposes necessity on the things which are for the end⁹ »; the end being the contempt p. 6 of present things, he treats of them, not under the aspect by which they attract, but under the aspect by which they are despised: they attract under the appearance of good, but they are despised under the appearance of the vain. Therefore it follows from this that the matter of this book is the vanities of present things, or the things themselves in so far as they are vain, that it may be better put, because he proves vanity as a kind of property in things, first proposing, secondly proving, thirdly concluding. Whence he proceeds by persuading and proving it, namely the threefold vanity which has been spoken of above¹, namely of nature, of fault and of misery. — And from this the manner of proceeding, or form, is clear. For it has a manner of proceeding singular among the other books; for he proceeds as a preacher, setting out the opinions of divers men, now of a wise man, now of a fool, so that from the opinions of many one truth may shine out in the minds of the hearers. — From what has been said it is concluded who ought to have been the efficient cause. For in this book it is taught that pleasures, riches, honours and curiosities are to be despised as vanities. And because no one is believed about the contempt of such things unless he has had experience — for a poor man who has not had riches is not believed about the contempt of them, because he has not had experience, and therefore does not recognize them² — it was fitting that he should be such a one as had experience of all these things, namely one who was powerful, rich, luxurious and curious or wise. We read of no other, nor have we heard of one, who had these things in such excellence as Solomon had them; therefore he above all others was the more fitting author of such a book. — It is clear therefore what the material, formal, efficient and final cause of this book is.

But alongside these four causes four particular questions may be asked.

Question I. On the end of the book of Ecclesiastes.

First concerning the end. For it is said that the end of the book is the contempt of the world. That it is so determined,

1. is proved by that which is said in James, the fourth chapter³: The friendship of this world is an enemy of God; but everything which is an enemy to God, it is good to despise.

2. Likewise, the first [epistle] of John, the second chapter⁴: Love not the world, nor the things which are in the world.

Sed contra: 1. The praise of the work redounds to the craftsman⁵; therefore the contempt of the work also redounds to the same; therefore he who despises the world despises God: either therefore this world was not made by God, or it is not to be despised.

2. Likewise, Proverbs, the sixteenth chapter⁶: The Lord hath made all things for himself; therefore all things are ordered to God; but that which is ordered to an end is not to be despised, but to be accepted and loved: therefore this world, and the things which are in it, are to be loved.

I respond: it must be said that, as Augustine and Hugh hold⁷, this world is as it were a certain ring given by the bridegroom to the soul herself; and the bride can love in two ways the ring bestowed upon her by the bridegroom, namely with a chaste love and with an adulterous one. Love is chaste by which she loves the ring in memory of the bridegroom and for love of the bridegroom; adulterous, by which she loves the ring more than the bridegroom; and this the bridegroom cannot but take ill. For as love is twofold, so is hatred or contempt twofold, because « as often as one of a pair of opposites is spoken of, so also is the other⁸ ». Contempt of the ring, as though it were a small and worthless gift, redounds to the bridegroom; but contempt of the ring, as though it were reckoned nothing in comparison with the love of the bridegroom, that is to the glory of the bridegroom; and of this contempt it is said in the Canticle, the last chapter⁹: If a man should give all the substance of his house for love, he shall despise it as nothing. Of this contempt the discourse here is; and thus the objections are clear.

Question II. On the matter of the same.

Afterwards it is asked concerning the matter, and it is said that here the subject treated is vanity.

Sed contra: 1. Every science is of the good and the true¹⁰; but the vain takes away goodness and truth: therefore of it there is no science.

2. Moreover, it seems that there is no vanity in things, because it is said in Genesis, the first chapter¹¹: God saw all the things that he had made, and they were very good: therefore if all things are very good, nothing is vain.

3. Moreover, that is vain and to no purpose which is not ordered to an end, as, if someone were to bathe himself in order that the sun might fail, he would work in vain, because this is not orderable to that; but all creatures tend to the highest good in their own way, as Dionysius says¹², p. 7 and Boethius, that all things desire the good, and also the Philosopher: therefore nothing among all things is found to be vain.

4. Moreover, if the vain is found, this science too is founded upon it as upon its subject; and what is founded upon the vain is vain: therefore this science is vain.

I respond: for the understanding of the foregoing it can be said in one way thus, that the vain is spoken of in two ways: in one way simply, and so it takes away the true and the good, and such a thing is not in the universe. There is another way in which a thing is vain by comparison with its initial term, because it is from nothing; and in this way it is not repugnant to the good, but rather one and the same thing is good and vain: good, because from good and to good; vain, because from nothing and, left to itself, tending to nothing; and such vanity has goodness under science, and therefore of such a thing there can be science and doctrine^tr.. — And by this an answer can be given to all the objections, because they proceed as though they were about the vain taken simply.

But this solution does not solve, because Ecclesiastes does not treat of things according as they are from nothing, but rather according as they are desired by men; and moreover he treats of the vanity of fault, which is a privation: therefore it must be said otherwise.

It must therefore be answered otherwise, and it must be said that as the true is spoken of in three ways, so also is the vain which is opposed to it, by the rule stated above¹. In one way a thing is said to be true according as it is convertible with being, and so it is said that every being is true; and so the vain opposed to the true is called non-being, as we say that the chimaera is non-being. — In another way a thing is said to be true according as beyond entity it adds an order to operation and to an end, as true wine is said of what has the true operation of wine, so a true man of him who has the operation due to man², and this is the operation of virtue; and so the vain is spoken of by the privation of ordering to an end, and so all sins and abuses are vain. — In another way a thing is said to be true according as it adds over and above being an unmixedness with non-being, in that it has in no way a potency to it; and so that is said to have true being which has immutable being; and in this way the vain opposed to the true is that which is mutable and changeable. And so every creature is vain, because subject to vanity³, that is, to mutability.

Since therefore the vain is spoken of in three ways: in one way by the privation of being simply, in another way by the privation of being ordered, in a third way by the privation of being unchangeable; of the first there is in no way science nor doctrine, unless perhaps it have being in its cause and according to that be known and taught; and so it is not vain; but according as it is vain, neither per se nor per accidens is there science of it⁴. — Of the second way there is not science per se, but per accidens. For as medicine is the science of the healthy and the sick, of the healthy indeed per se, but of the sick per accidens, as the Philosopher holds⁵; so of fault or sin there is a theoretical science, but by reason of virtue. — Of the third way, namely of the mutability of the creature, there is science per se, as is clear of the motion of the sun and of the spheres and of other things. — In this book, therefore, the subject treated is the vanity of mutability or of nature, because it is fair and fitting, and the vanity of fault; of the other vanity, namely of utter privation, the subject is not treated, because of it there is neither science nor doctrine.

1. As to what is objected first, that every science is of the good and the true; it is true per se, but of the vain there can also be science by reason of the true; and he who knows true principles knows false ones also; and it is likewise with the sick and the healthy, and likewise in the matter proposed⁶.

2. 3. 4. As to what is objected, that creatures are not vain, because they are very good and ordered to an end; it must be solved that they are not called vain through a defect of good or of order, but through a defect of unchangeable being; and so every creature is vain, nor is it so vain but that it has truth and goodness⁷; and therefore the science and doctrine concerning it is true.

Question III. On the manner of proceeding in the same.

Likewise, it is asked concerning the manner of proceeding; for it has been said that he acts and speaks in divers persons, namely of a fool and of a wise man.

Sed: 1. As is said in Ecclesiasticus, the twentieth chapter⁸, a parable coming out of a fool's mouth shall be rejected: therefore an opinion stated in the person of a fool is not to be heeded: therefore if the opinion of the sacred books is to be heeded, he ought not to speak in the person of a fool.

2. Likewise, the things which he says in the person of a fool and of a carnal man are to be rejected; but it is not known when he speaks, p. 8 whether he says this in his own person or in another's: therefore it is not known what is to be held in this book and what rejected: therefore this science¹ is a way to error. But the canonical books ought to purge error: therefore this book is to be taken away from the canon.

I respond: it must be said that to say something in the person of a fool or of a carnal man is done in two ways: either to approve it, or to reject it and to show it to be vain. In the first way it does not befit the science of truth; in the second way it does befit it, as if someone wished to reject an error and first set it out and afterwards destroyed it. And in this way he speaks, not in the first; and therefore he is not to be reproved but rather commended, because he rejects things that are to be rejected.

2. As to what is objected, that it is not known when he speaks in his own person; it must be said that the other side of a disputation cannot be known until one comes to the opinion and to the determination, because in the solution it is known what is chosen and what rejected. So I say that Ecclesiastes proceeds as if disputing right up to the end of the book, and at the end² gives the opinion, when he says: Let us all hear together the conclusion of the discourse: Fear God, and know that for every error God will bring thee into judgement. In which word he condemns all the opinions of the foolish, the carnal and the worldly. Whence what agrees with that opinion he says in his own person, but what disagrees, in the person of others: and therefore this book cannot be known unless it be heard entire.

Question IV. On the efficient cause of the same.

It can also be asked, lastly, concerning the efficient cause; and it has been said that the efficient cause was Solomon. But that it is not fitting that such a one should be the author, seems so:

1. Because he himself was a sinner and carnal; but when a carnal man preaches spirituality, he rather scandalizes than edifies: therefore this book is rather apt to generate scandal than edification.

2. Likewise, in the Psalm³ it is said: But to the sinner God hath said: Why dost thou declare my justices? Therefore if Solomon was a sinner, then he sinned in declaring the divine justice.

3. Moreover, a good author produces faith, whence the argument from authority⁴ has its force; therefore a bad author produces no faith; but the books of sacred Scripture are for generating faith: therefore etc.

To this it must be answered that, as Jerome says⁵, according to what the Hebrews hand down, this book was Solomon's while he was doing penance; and because God does not cast away the penitent but rather accepts them, according to this Solomon was not in a reprehensible state when he wrote this book.

Another answer can be given: that the Holy Spirit speaks true and good things not only through the good, but even through the wicked; whence the Lord himself in the Gospel⁶ says: What they say, do ye; but what they do, do ye not; whence he prophesied most expressly through Balaam also, and so through Solomon, carnal though he was, he said many good things.

2. As to what is objected, therefore, that he himself sinned; it must be answered that the gift of wisdom had been committed to him most especially among others; and because he was bound not to hide the talent of the Lord⁷, he had to teach the people of the Lord both by word and by writing, especially since he had been appointed to their government. Whence he did not sin in this, that he taught, but in this, that he did not dispose himself as he ought.

3. As to what is objected, that the book is not to be believed, since the author is not worthy of faith; I respond: as we believe the Prophets, that they spoke not of themselves but through the Holy Spirit, so also in all the books of Scripture, that they were published at the dictation of the Holy Spirit; whence the goodness of the person makes for no greater or lesser faith, supposing this, that he spoke through the Spirit. And because it is established for us that Solomon was filled with the spirit of wisdom, as is clear from third Kings, the third chapter⁸; therefore the Church without hesitation receives his books.

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