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Wisdom, Perseverance and Humility Christian Reflections on Sirach 1–3 Jeremy Corley

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Wisdom, Perseverance and Humility Christian Reflections on Sirach 1–3 Jeremy Corley Louvain Studies 33 (2008) 273-286 doi: 10.2143/LS.33.3.2045801 © 2008 by Louvain Studies, all rights reserved Wisdom, Perseverance and Humility Christian Reflections on Sirach 1–3 Jeremy Corley Abstract. — Ben Sira inculcates three virtues that are still relevant for Christians today: openness to wisdom (Sir 1:1-10), acceptance of testing (2:1-18), and humil- ity of heart (3:17-24). Whereas human beings may search for wisdom, it is God who reveals it, though we can grasp only a small part of it. Those who seek God will face the hardship of testing, but all who persevere will be rewarded. Just as students need a receptive attitude to benefit from lessons, so those wanting to learn divine wisdom will need humility. Introduction The Wisdom of Ben Sira, also known by its Greek name of Sirach or its Latin title of Ecclesiasticus, gathers the teaching of a Jewish scribe two centuries before Jesus.1 It is likely that its author dedicated his life to education. In 51:23 he invites the unlearned to gain wisdom from him: “Draw near to me, you who are uneducated, and lodge in the house of instruction.” From the centrality of Jerusalem in his work (24:10-11; 36:18-19; 50:1-24) and from his detailed knowledge of ear- lier biblical books (especially in 44:1–50:24), we may deduce the pos- sibility that he was one of the “scribes of the temple” mentioned by Josephus (A.J. 12.3.3 §142).2 Ben Sira offers his fullest portrayal of the scribal profession in 39:1-11. This poem is preceded in 38:24-34 by a passage describing the hardships involved in several sorts of manual work. Sirach 38:24–39:11 is a rework- ing of a very ancient Egyptian tradition known as the Satire of the Trades.3 1. On the book see P. W. Skehan and A. A. Di Lella, The Wisdom of Ben Sira, Anchor Bible, 39 (New York: Doubleday, 1987); D. J. Harrington, Jesus Ben Sira of Jerusalem, Interfaces (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2005). The biblical quotations in this article are from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV). 2. Martin Hengel, Judaism and Hellenism, 2 vols. (London: SCM, 1974) 1: 133. 3. For a translation of the Egyptian text see J. B. Pritchard, Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1950) 432-434. 22389-09_Lou_Stud_08_3-4_06.indd389-09_Lou_Stud_08_3-4_06.indd 227373 110-02-20100-02-2010 14:44:1514:44:15 274 JEREMY CORLEY In the Egyptian text the teacher wishes to encourage his students to perse- vere in studying the difficult hieroglyphic system of writing, so he reminds them of the difficulties faced by blacksmiths, brick-makers, gardeners, and other manual workers. The teacher concludes: “Behold, there is no profes- sion free of a boss – except for the scribe … Behold, there is no scribe who lacks food.”4 While Ben Sira echoes this text by mentioning the hardships experienced by four kinds of manual worker (farmer, seal engraver, black- smith and potter), he recognizes that such occupations are necessary for society (38:32). Nevertheless, he praises the scribe in a passage that is often regarded as a self-portrait (39:1-11).5 Ben Sira pictures the scribe praying for understanding and having his prayer answered: “He sets his heart to rise early to seek the Lord who made him … If the great Lord is willing, he will be filled with the spirit of understanding” (39:5-6). Thereafter the scribe will pass on his knowledge to others: “He will show the wisdom of what he has learned” (39:8). Ben Sira’s portrait of the scribe may fittingly describe a scripture teacher today, particularly for one who has taught for forty years. Forty years is a significant length of time for an individual nowa- days, just as it was for the people of Israel. The Book of Deuteronomy recalls Israel’s forty-year journey through the desert: “Remember the long way that the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, in order to humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart” (Deut 8:2). The purpose of this arduous process was “in order to make you understand that one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD” (Deut 8:3). Obedience to this word will show forth the “wisdom” given to God’s people (Deut 4:6). These great Deuteronomic themes of wisdom, testing and humility also appear in the first three chapters of Ben Sira. Hence this fortieth anniversary tribute will consider three Ben Sira passages: Sir 1:1-10 on wisdom, 2:1-18 on perseverance during testing, and 3:17- 24 on humility.6 These passages illustrate major aspects of Ben Sira’s message which I believe have value for Christians today. 4. Pritchard, Ancient Near Eastern Texts, 434. 5. Skehan and Di Lella, The Wisdom of Ben Sira, 11-12. On Sir 38:24–39:11 see D. J. Harrington, “The Wisdom of the Scribe according to Ben Sira,” Ideal Figures in Ancient Judaism, ed. J. J. Collins and G. W. E. Nickelsburg (Chico, CA: Scholars Press, 1980) 181-188; J. Marböck, “Sir. 38,24–39,11: Der schriftgelehrte Weise: Ein Beitrag zu Gestalt und Werk Ben Siras,” La Sagesse de l’Ancien Testament, ed. M. Gilbert, Bibliotheca Ephemeridum Theologicarum Lovaniensium, 51 (Louvain: Leuven University Press, 1979) 293-316; M. W. Duggan, “Ezra, Scribe and Priest, and the Concerns of Ben Sira,” Inter- textual Studies in Ben Sira and Tobit, ed. J. Corley and V. Skemp, CBQ Monograph Series, 38 (Washington, DC: Catholic Biblical Association of America, 2005) 201-210. 6. On the spirituality of Ben Sira see K. M. O’Connor, The Wisdom Literature, Message of Biblical Spirituality, 5 (Wilmington, DE: Glazier, 1988) 134-159. 22389-09_Lou_Stud_08_3-4_06.indd389-09_Lou_Stud_08_3-4_06.indd 227474 110-02-20100-02-2010 14:44:1514:44:15 WISDOM, PERSEVERANCE AND HOMILITY 275 1. Wisdom (Sirach 1:1-10) Ben Sira’s students in Jerusalem lived in a culture where Greek ways of thinking were overtaking the traditional Jewish outlook. In this soci- ety the search for wisdom undertaken by Greek philosophical thinkers was becoming increasingly popular. Hellenic civilization prided itself on its abundance of philosophers, including Socrates (469-399 B.C.), Plato (ca. 427-348 B.C.), and Aristotle (384-322 B.C.). In Ben Sira’s own day, the closest major centre of Greek learning was Alexandria, with its vast library of literary, philosophical and scientific manuscripts, while other cities were centres of Stoic philosophy. Great scientific advances had recently been made by scientists like Archimedes (ca. 287-212 B.C.), Euclid (ca. 325-265 B.C.) and Eratosthenes (ca. 275-194 B.C.). In such a context, it was easy for Ben Sira’s students to be overawed by non-Israelite learning. To be sure, Ben Sira is no xenophobe, and he admits the value of some Hellenistic practices.7 Like Greek sages, he does not discount the value of travelling abroad to gain a wider understanding (Sir 34:9-13), since he acknowledges that all wisdom comes from God (1:1). Nevertheless, he asserts that the highest wisdom resides in Israelite tradition and is embodied in the Torah (1:9-10; 19:20; 24:23). Hence, at the opening of his book (1:1-10), he places a poem stressing the divine origin of wisdom.8 The sage begins by acknowledging that all wisdom comes from the one God worshipped by the Israelites (1:1). Following the Shema (Deut 6:4), Ben Sira states very clearly that Yahweh is one (Sir 1:8), in contrast to the multiplicity of Greek gods and goddesses (such as Apollo, Athena, Poseidon, and Aphrodite). The sage wants his students to remain faithful to the one true God, amid the competing claims of other religious systems. In today’s world, where many are proposing New Age religion, Christians are called to remain faithful to the one Creator God. Ben Sira then asserts the limits of human knowledge (1:2-3). Whereas Greek scientific enquiry sought to uncover the mysteries of the universe, Ben Sira claims that human knowledge inevitably has its limits. In Jewish tradition, the grains of sand on the seashore were proverbially beyond counting (Gen 32:12). Likewise, no human being can work out 7. For instance, echoes of Hellenistic culture appear in his treatment of banquets and symposia (Sir 31:12–32:13); cf. J. J. Collins, Jewish Wisdom in the Hellenistic Age (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 1997) 32-33. There are also parallels to Greek discussions of friendship (Sir 6:5-17; 37:1-6); cf. J. Corley, Ben Sira’s Teaching on Friendship, Brown Judaic Studies, 316 (Providence, RI: Brown University, 2002) 7-10. 22389-09_Lou_Stud_08_3-4_06.indd389-09_Lou_Stud_08_3-4_06.indd 227575 110-02-20100-02-2010 14:44:1514:44:15 276 JEREMY CORLEY the number of raindrops (Job 38:37). Whereas Greeks had developed better methods of calculating time, no one on earth can measure the days of eternity. Similarly, while Greek scientists were attempting to calculate the moon’s distance from the earth (Aristarchus of Samos) or the size of the earth (Archimedes and Eratosthenes), Ben Sira was content for these things to remain mysteries known only to God. He was happy for Isa 40:12 to remain a rhetorical question: “Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand and marked off the heavens with a span, enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance?” For the sage, there was enough to ponder in the revealed word of God (Sir 3:23).
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