Ψετ.15. ἀντὶ τοῦ λέγειν ὑμᾶς: “A classical writer would rather have said δέον λέγειν or οἵτινες βέλτιον ἂν εἶπον ” (Μαγοτ). ---ἐὰν ὁ κύριος θε- λήσῃ: Cf. Berachoth, 17a, “It is re- vealed and known before Thee that our will is to do Thy will” (quoted by Taylor,
464
macs ἐὰν ὁ Κύριος Ἢ θελήσῃ, καὶ ζήσομεν 2 καὶ Σ ποιήσομεν ὁ τοῦτο ἢ ο ἐκεῖνο 16. νῦν δὲ καυχᾶσθε ἐν ταῖς " ἁλαζονίαις Ἰ ὑμῶν: πᾶσα ὃ D Ἐυτασὶ “καύχησις τοιαύτη πονηρά ἐστιν. 17. Ρ εἰδότι οὖν ὃ καλὸν ποιεῖν Tina καὶ μὴ ποιοῦντι,} ἁμαρτία αὐτῷ 11 ἐστιν.» 11, 16
οἵ Όος.ν. 6; cf. 2 Cor. vii. 4.
1θελη BP, 69, a, d, Tregms, WH.
Ξζησωμεν KL, curss., Cyr., ΤΗΙ., Oec.; pr. si Vulg. (om. 5 Vulga). 3Om. Vulg., Pesh., Sah., Copt., Arm., Aeth, Cyr.
4 ποιησωμεν ΚΙ.» curss., ΤΗΙ., Occ. Skatakavxacde NY, 7. Samaca N.
op. cit., p. 29); of. John vii. 17, ἐάν τις θέλῃ τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ ποιεῖν, γνώσεται - In the Hebrew commentary on ἃ curious little work called The Book of the Alphabet of Ben Sira there occur the
words OY) WI ON? te, “If the Name (= God) wills”; and it is said that this formula should never be omitted when a man is about to undertake any- thing. This passage occurs in the com- ment on the eleventh proverb of the “ Alphabet,” which runs: “The bride enters the bridal chamber and, neverthe- less, knows not what will befall her”. The formula, “If the Name wills,” is, according to Ginsberg, of Mohammedan origin, “for the use of formulas was in- troduced to the Jews by the Moham- medans”. The formula is, of course, not Ben Sira’s, as it forms no part of the work ascribed to him; the commentary in which it occurs belongs to about the
ear 1000 probably (see Fewish Encycl., ii. 678 f.). Cf., further, Acts xviii. 21, τοῦ θεοῦ θέλοντος, I Cor. iv. 19, ἐὰν 6 κύριος θελήσῃ ; and in Pirge Aboth, ii. 4 occur the words of Rabban Gamliel (middle of third century a.D.), “Do His will as if it were thy will, that He may do thy will as if it were His will. Αππ thy will before His will, that He may annul the will of others before thy will” νο --καὶ ζήσομεν nat... both life and action depend upon God’s will.
Ver. 16. νῦν δὲ: “but now,” 2.6., as things are; cf. 1 Cor. xiv. 6, νῦν δὲ, ἀδελφοί, ἐὰν ἔλθω... ---καυχᾶσθε ἐν ταῖς ἀλαζονίαις ὑμῶν: those vauntings were, of course, not on account of following out their own will in despite of the divine will, but because of the thoughtlessness which did not take God’s will into account, and therefore boasted of the ability of following one’s own
9 Scientibus autem 77.
5 Totum comma deest 5.
Tadafoveracs B*K, Treg., Weiss ; superbia 77.
10 Facientibus 77. 11 115 F bent. Both are bad, but conscious op- position to the will of God would, of the two, be worse. ᾿᾽Αλαζονίαις comes from ἀλαζών which is literally a ‘‘ wan- derer,” then it comes to mean one who makes pretensions. Cf. Prov. xxvii. 1, μὴ καυχῶ τὰ εἰς αὔριον, οὐ yap γινώσκεις τί τέξεται 4 ἐπιοῦσα: the word occurs only here and in 1 John ii. 16 (ἣ ἀλαζονεία τοῦ βίου) in the Ν.Τ.--πᾶσα καύχη- σις ToLavTy...: boasting ofthis kind must be evil because it forgets God, and unduly exalts self.
Ver. 17. Although this verse may be regarded as standing independent of what has preceded, and as being in the form of a more or less inexact quotation, it is quite permissible to take it with what has gone before. Those to whom the words have been addressed had, to some extent, erred through thoughtlessness; now that things have been made quite plain to them, they are in a position to know how to act; if, therefore, in spite of knowing now how to act aright, the proper course is neglected, then it is sinful. This seems to be the point of the words of this verse.—T he words are perhaps an echo οἱ Luke xii. 47, ἐκεῖνος δὲ ὁ δοῦλος ὁ γνοὺς τὸ θέλημα τοῦ κυρίου αὐτοῦ καὶ μὴ ἕτοι- Sige: ἢ ποιήσας πρὸς τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ