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SIRACH (BOOK OF)
SIRACH (BOOK OF)
2. Among former descriptions of its contents see especially T. K. Cheyne, Job and Solomon, or Tlie Wisdom of the OT, 1887, pp. 179-198, 247 (ch. i. : Tlie wise man turned Scribe — Siracli's moral teach- ing ; ch. ii. : his place in the movement of thought) ; then the Introduction of Edersheim, and now the article of C. H. Toy (Eticyc. Bibl. 11U4-1179).
3. In its form and substance the book is a fine example of Hebrew ^otmaA-literature, with its liglits and shadows. It is no longer the propliet that speaks in it, neither the prophetic speaker of earlier times, nor even the prophetic writer like Ezekiel or jMalachi ; nor is it a j>uet like the author of Job ; on the other hand, the liahbi of the Tal- mud has not yet taken their place ; there is scarcely a trace of Haggadah and Halachah in the book. The author is full of respect for the religious literature of the past ; he knows himself to be an epigone, but nevertheless he dares to give some- thing of his own. He does not preach as yet from given texts (."3'^ 'I awaked up last of all, as one that gathereth after the grape-gatherers ; by the blessing of the Lord I profited (got ahead) and filled my winepress like a gatherer of grapes ' ; cf. also the Prologue). What he has to give is Hokmah, Wisdom, an outcome of that Divine Wisdom which is from the Lord, and is with Him for ever, but given by Him to them that fear Him, especially among His chosen people Israel (17''''' 24"^-). But the author does not dwell long in those lofty regions, but turns himself to the wisdom of daily life, gi^ang counsels for all kinds of emergencies, and communicating his observations on men and women, rich and poor, high and low.
4. The book has not received, apparently, its final shape ; its contents at least are so varied and loosely arranged that it is difficult to give a table of contcrts.
See tile hea.lln^, which are partially preserved in the book itself, in tlie Cireek text from IS^'^ onwards (tyxpixTeiot ^J'^x''^ >
•iO^ ripi Tixva/t ; 16*1^1 ^paiu^r^t ; 44' fltcrf^, Cu.vo; ; 51* llpe^tuxit
'lr,ff*uvi6v ^upax)j the capitulations placed before the bnok in ancient Greek and Latin texts ; tlie Synopsia of pseudo-Chry- sostom ; the headiji);:s of the AV, which are dropped instead of revised in the RV ; careful superscriptions in thc-tJernum trans- lation of Ryssel ; the attempts in the Couim. to find out a plan of the book.
But it would be a pleasant task to give more than a sketch of its moral and religious teachings.
(a) The author's idea of God shows an interest- ing combination of Jewish i>iety and Greek philo- sophy, the former decidedly predominating. What Edersheim considered, on account of its jiantheistie ring, as a bold later addition of the younger Siracide, namely 43" ' We may speak much and yet come short : wherefore in sum he is all ' (ri irai/ i(mv airrds), is found in |i|, and means nothing more than that God is to be found in all His work ; it does not deny His unit}' or [lersonality, which isemplias- ized by the new readin<; in |^ 42-' ' he is one from everlasting' (efs instead of las or lis or 6s). God is the absolute Lord, the righteous judge, the wise ruler, rich in forbearance, though the full concep- tion of Divine fatherhood finds no expression (18'»f-).
(6) Of artgels and demons there is scarcely any mention, quite in agreement with the Sadducean stanilpoint ; the central idea is the personified Wisdom, which is seen in nature and history, especially in the history of Israel, first of all in the Law. The prominence given to the Law, both its moral and ritual jiarts, is one of the features which distinguish lien Sira from Proverbs, leading over to the later Kabbinism. But from the latter our autlior is far removed, especially in his attitude towards the heathen world. He does not despise it, like the Pharisees, nor does be expect any
special manifestation of Jahweh for the benefit of His people or the conversion of the nations. Aa regards the individual, he speaks neither of the resurrection of the body nor of the immortality of the soul— dSafoffia occurs only in the glossed text ly'** yvuiffis ivToKCiv Kvpiou TraiSeia i'u>/}s, ol 0^ TroiOufTei Ta dpeara adri^ dOavaaias ohdpov Kapirouvrtu ; see on this point especially Schlatter, pp. 110, 170; — of death and Sheol be thinks like the psalmists.
5. A much larger space is taken up in the book by the ethical ami social teachings. Through their pointed form many of lien Sira's sayings have remained popular. Mucli, of course, is to be taken cnm grano salts ; to guard against mis- understanding, the glosses liave been added in MSS like 248, 253. The author is ' generally acute, sometimes a little cynical, never pessimistic' (Toy, I.e. 1178). Most unfavourable is his judg- ment on the female sex (25''"'-) ; friendly is that on physicians (ch. 38) ; he does not despise wine and music. A great rdle is played by money matters and trade ; but almsgiving is the chief part of righteousness, and readiness to forgive is a primary condition of obtaining Divine forgiveness. In some of his precepts he comes near to those of the gospel ; the Golden Rule, however, does not occur. No wonder that this book was used in the Church, especially for instruction of the young, almost like a catechism of morals and religion (Soth Can. Apost.), and that Augustine embodied so many of its sayings in his Speculum. In modern times one of the few attempts made in England to employ its teaching for religious instruction is the small selection published by E. J. Edwards, Sclwol Lessons from Ecclcsiasticus (1853). It is to be hoped that, when the critical questions about the book are settled, it may gain in popularity.