Raphael maketh himself known.
Old Tobias and his sonne offer the half of al the goodes which they had newly receiued to Raphael, for his wages. 6. VVho then declareth to them that he was sent from God to helpe them, 15. and that he is an Angel, •0. He parteth • way, and they render thankes to God.
1Then Tobias called to him his son and said to him: What can we give to this holy man, that is come with thee?Allora Tobia chiamò a se il suo figliuolo, e gli disse: Che possiam noi dare a quest'uomo santo, che è venuto con te?THEN Tobias called to him his sonne, and sayd to him: What may we geue to this holie man, that is come with thee.Tunc vocavit ad se Tobias filium suum, dixitque ei: Quid possumus dare viro isti sancto, qui venit tecum ? 2Tobias answering, said to his father: Father, what wages shall we give him? or what can be worthy of his benefits?E Tobia rispose, e disse a suo padre: Padre, qual ricompensa gli darem noi? o che vi sarà egli, che possa agguagliare i suoi benefizi?Tobias answering, sayd to his father: Father what reward shal we geue him? or what can be worthie of his benefittes.Respondens Tobias, dixit patri suo: Pater, quam mercedem dabimus ei ? aut quid dignum poterit esse beneficiis ejus ? 3He conducted me and brought me safe again, he received the money of Gabelus, he caused me to have my wife, and he chased from her the evil spirit, he gave joy to her parents, myself he delivered from being devoured by the fish, thee also he hath made to see the light of heaven, and we are filled with all good things through him. What can we give him sufficient for these things?Egli mi ha condotto, e rimenato in sanità, egli ha riscosso il denaro da Gabelo, egli mi ha fatto avere la moglie, e ha tenuto lungi da lei il Demonio, ha consolati i genitori di lei, me stesso egli salvò, che non fossi divorato dal pesce; a te pure ha dato di vedere la luce del cielo, e di ogni sorta di beni siamo stati ricolmati per mezzo di lui: che potrem noi dargli, che sia proporzionato a tanto bene?He hath led me and brought me agayne safe, he receiued the money of Gabelus, he caused me to haue my wife, and the euil spirit he chased from her, he made ioy vnto her parentes, my self he deliuered from being deuoured of the fish, thee also he hath made to see the light of heauen, and we are replenished with al good things by him. What can we geue him worthie for these things?Me duxit et reduxit sanum, pecuniam a Gabelo ipse recepit, uxorem ipse me habere fecit, et dæmonium ab ea ipse compescuit: gaudium parentibus ejus fecit, meipsum a devoratione piscis eripuit, te quoque videre fecit lumen cæli, et bonis omnibus per eum repleti sumus. Quid illi ad hæc poterimus dignum dare ? 4But I beseech thee, my father, to desire him, that he would vouchsafe to accept of one half of all things that have been brought.Ma io ti prego, padre mio, che lo preghi se mai si degnasse di prendersi la metà di tutto quello, che si è portato.But I beseech thee my father, that thou desire him, if perhaps he wil voutsafe to take vnto him the one halfe of al thinges, which are brought.Sed peto te, pater mi, ut roges eum, si forte dignabitur medietatem de omnibus quæ allata sunt, sibi assumere.
5So the father and the son calling him, took him aside: and began to desire him that he would vouchsafe to accept of half of all things that they had brought,Così il padre, e il figliuolo lo chiamarono, e presolo a parte cominciarono a pregarlo, che si degnasse di accettare la metà di tutto quello, che avean portato.And they calling him, to wit the father and the sonne, tooke him aside: & began to desire him that he would voutsafe to accept the halfe part of al thinges, that they had brought.Et vocantes eum, pater scilicet et filius, tulerunt eum in partem: et rogare cœperunt ut dignaretur dimidiam partem omnium quæ attulerant acceptam habere. 6Then he said to them secretly, Bless ye the God of heaven, give glory to him in the sight of all that live, because he hath shewn his mercy to you.Allora egli disse loro in segreto: Benedite Dio del cielo, e date a lui laude dinanzi a tutti i viventi, per chè egli ha usato con voi di Sua misericordia.Then he sayd to them secretely: Blesse ye the God of heauen, and before al that liue confesse to him, because he hath done mercie with you.Tunc dixit eis occulte: Benedicite Deum cæli, et coram omnibus viventibus confitemini ei, quia fecit vobiscum misericordiam suam. 7For it is good to hide the secret of a king: but honourable to reveal and confess the works of God.Imperocchè egli è ben fatto di tener nascosi i segreti dei re, ma è cosa lodevole di rivelare, e annunziare le opere di Dio.For to hide the secrete of a king is good: but to reueale & confesse the workes of God is an honorable thing.Etenim sacramentum regis abscondere bonum est: opera autem Dei revelare et confiteri honorificum est. 8Prayer is good with fasting and alms more than to lay up treasures of gold.Buona cosa ell'è l'orazione col digiuno, e colla limosina, più che il mettere a parte tesori di oro:Prayer is good with fasting and almes, rather then to lay vp treasures of gold:Bona est oratio cum jejunio, et eleemosyna magis quam thesauros auri recondere: 9For alms delivereth from death, and the same is that which purgeth away sins, and maketh to find mercy and life everlasting.Perocchè la limosina libera dalla morte, ed ella e che purga i peccati, e fa trovare la misericordia, e la vita eterna.because almes deliuereth from death, and that is it which purgeth sinnes, and maketh to finde mercie and life euerlasting.quoniam eleemosyna a morte liberat, et ipsa est quæ purgat peccata, et facit invenire misericordiam et viam æternam. 10But they that commit sin and iniquity, are enemies to their own soul.Ma quei che commettono il peccato, e l'iniquità, sono nemici dell'anima propria.But they that committe sinne and iniquitie, are enemies to their owne soule.Qui autem faciunt peccatum et iniquitatem, hostes sunt animæ suæ.
11I discover then the truth unto you, and I will not hide the secret from you.Io pertanto manifesto a voi la verità, e non terrò ascoso a voi questo misterio.I open therfore vnto you the truth, and I wil not hide from you the secrete word.Manifesto ergo vobis veritatem, et non abscondam a vobis occultum sermonem. 12When thou didst pray with tears, and didst bury the dead, and didst leave thy dinner, and hide the dead by day in thy house, and bury them by night, I offered thy prayer to the Lord.Quando tu facevi orazione con lacrime, e seppellivi i morti, e lasciavi il tuo pranzo, e nascondevi di giorno i morti in casa tua, e di notte tempo li seppellivi, io presentai al Signore la tua orazione.When thou didst pray with teares, and didst burie the dead and leaft thy dinner, and didest hide the dead by day in thy house, and by night didst burie them, I offered thy prayer to our Lord.Quando orabas cum lacrimis, et sepeliebas mortuos, et derelinquebas prandium tuum, et mortuos abscondebas per diem in domo tua, et nocte sepeliebas eos, ego obtuli orationem tuam Domino. 13And because thou wast acceptable to God, it was necessary that temptation should prove thee.E perchè tu eri caro a Dio, fu necessario, che la tentazione ti provasse.And because thou wast acceptable to God, it was necessarie that tentation should proue thee.Et quia acceptus eras Deo, necesse fuit ut tentatio probaret te. 14And now the Lord hath sent me to heal thee, and to deliver Sara thy son’s wife from the devil.E adesso il Signore mi ha mandato a guarirti, e a liberare dal Demonio Sara moglie di tuo figliuolo.And now our Lord sent me to cure thee, and to deliuer Sara thy sonnes wife from the diuel.Et nunc misit me Dominus ut curarem te, et Saram uxorem filii tui a dæmonio liberarem. 15For I am the angel Raphael, one of the seven, who stand before the Lord.Perocchè io sono l'Angelo Raphaele, uno dei sette, che stiamo dinanzi al Signore.For I am Raphael an Angel, one of the seuen, which assist before our Lord.Ego enim sum Raphaël angelus, unus ex septem qui adstamus ante Dominum. 16And when they had heard these things, they were troubled, and being seized with fear they fell upon the ground on their face.Udite tali cose, si conturbarono, e caddero tremanti boccone per terra.And when they had heard these thinges, they were trubled, & trembling fel vpon the ground on their face.Cumque hæc audissent, turbati sunt, et trementes ceciderunt super terram in faciem suam. 17And the angel said to them: Peace be to you, fear not.E l'Angelo disse loro: La pace con voi, non temete:And the Angel sayd to them: Peace be to you, feare not.Dixitque eis angelus: Pax vobis: nolite timere.
18For when I was with you, I was there by the will of God: bless ye him, and sing praises to him.Perocchè quando io era con voi, io ci era per volere di Dio: benedite lui, e cantate sue lodi.For when I was with you, by the wil of God I was so: blesse ye him, and sing to him.Etenim cum essem vobiscum, per voluntatem Dei eram: ipsum benedicite, et cantate illi. 19I seemed indeed to eat and to drink with you but I use an invisible meat and drink, which cannot be seen by men.Sembrava veramente che io mangiassi, e bevessi con voi; ma io mi servo di cibo invisibile, e di bevanda, che non può essere veduta dagli uomini.I seemed indeede to eate with you, and to drinke: but I vse an inuisible meate and drinke, which can not be seene of men.Videbar quidem vobiscum manducare et bibere: sed ego cibo invisibili, et potu qui ab hominibus videri non potest, utor. 20It is time therefore that I return to him that sent me: but bless ye God, and publish all his wonderful works.Or egli è tempo ch'io torni a lui, che mi mandò: e voi benedite Dio, e raccontate tutte le sue meraviglie.It is time therfore that I returne to him, that sent me: but blesse ye God, and tel al his maruelous workes.Tempus est ergo ut revertar ad eum qui me misit: vos autem benedicite Deum, et narrate omnia mirabilia ejus. 21And when he had said these things, he was taken from their sight, and they could see him no more.E detto questo, sparì dagli occhi loro, e non poterono più vederlo.And when he had sayd these things, he was taken from their sight, and they could see him no more.Et cum hæc dixisset, ab aspectu eorum ablatus est, et ultra eum videre non potuerunt. 22Then they lying prostrate for three hours upon their face, blessed God, and rising up, they told all his wonderful works.Allora prostrati per tre ore bocconi per terra, benedissero Dio, e alzati che furono, raccontarono tutte queste sue meraviglie.Then prostrate for three houres vpon their face, they blessed God: and rysing vp they told al his maruelous workes.Tunc prostrati per horas tres in faciem, benedixerunt Deum: et exsurgentes narraverunt omnia mirabilia ejus.
12:1
Year of the World 3299.
Haydock
What. Greek, Hebrew and Syriac (Calmet), "See thou give the man who has come with thee his hire, and something must be added to it;" (Haydock) as he had promised (chap. 7:19.) a drachm a day, (Calmet) and more if they returned safe. (Haydock)
12:2
Said. Greek, "Father, I shall not be hurt if I give him half of what I have brought, since he has conducted me safe back to thee, and has healed my wife, and brought my money, and likewise has cured thee. And the old man said, he justly deserves it. And he called the angel, and said to him, Take half of what you have brought, and depart in health. Then," ver. 6.
12:6
Said. Greek, "Calling the two, in private, he said to them."
12:7
Haydock
Hide. Greek, "To bless God, and to extol his name, exposing with honour the words of God, and delay not to confess unto him. For," etc. (Haydock)
Haydock
The Old Vulgate greatly abridges the remainder of this book, having only, "Then Raphael having called the two Tobies, said to them, Since thou hast not delayed to arise, and to leave thy meals to bury the dead, I have been sent to try thee to heal thee, and to deliver thy daughter-in-law. I am Raphael, one of the angels who assist and appear before the brightness of God. Hereupon the two Tobies were startled, and fell prostrate on the ground, and were seized with fear. And Raphael said, Fear not, Peace be with you. Bless the Lord all the days of your life, and sing his praises. You thought that I eat when I was at table with you. But you saw with your eyes; (Haydock; only a vision, Calmet) wherefore bless the Lord upon the earth, and praise his goodness. As for me, I return to him who sent me. Write down all that has happened. The angel having spoken thus to Tobias, the latter wrote this prayer as a monument of his joy, and said, Blessed be the Lord, who is great in eternity, because his reign endures for ever. It is He who strikes, and who shews mercy, who conducts to the grave, and who, by his majesty, rescues from the greatest miseries; and no one can withdraw himself from his hands. End of Tobias the just." (Haydock)
Calmet
King. Secrecy is the soul of human councils, to prevent an enemy from thwarting our designs: but nothing can withstand the divine power. It is therefore proper to testify our gratitude for favours received, as the ancient saints have done by their canticles. (Calmet)
12:8
Haydock
Alms. Greek adds, "and justice. Better is a little with justice, than much with iniquity." (Haydock)
Fasting and alms are like the wings of prayer. (Worthington) See Tobias 4:11.
12:9
Calmet
Everlasting. This word is not found in Greek, though sufficiently implied; as liberality does not always secure a person's life, or temporal happiness. (Calmet)
Greek, "Those who perform alms-deeds and justice, shall be filled with life. But sinners are enemies," etc.
12:10
12:11
Haydock
1:Greek, "I will not hide from you any word or thing. I said then, It is good to conceal the mystery of the king, but glorious to manifest the works of God. And now, when thou and thy daughter-in-law, Sarra, did pray, I brought forward the memorial of your prayer before the holy one." (Haydock)
Worthington
The angels are represented as God's ministers, offering our prayers to him, Apocalypse 8:3. (Calmet) (St. Augustine) (Worthington)
Plutarch
Philo styles them ambassadors. Socrates says, "every demon (or good spirit) is between God and mortals." (Plutarch)
Calmet
Inter homines caelicolasque, vectores hinc precum, inde donorum. (Apuleius de Deo Socrat.) (Calmet)
Haydock
Greek continues, "and when thou didst bury the dead, in like manner, I was present with thee; when thou didst not delay to rise and leave thy dinner, that going thou mightest cover the dead; in thy good work, thou wast not hidden from me: but I was with thee. And," etc., ver. 14. (Haydock)
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Thee. This rule is invariable, that the good may advance in virtue, and set a pattern to the world, (Hebrews 2:18., and 12:6., and Acts 14:21.; Calmet) and cancel their smallest faults.
12:14
Haydock
From the devil, is not in Greek. (Haydock)
Worthington
In this history, as well as in other parts of Scripture, we have convincing proofs of the good which each one receives from his angel guardian, and from the other blessed spirits. See St. Luke xv., and xvi.; St. Chrysostom in col. hom. 3.; St. Augustine, City of God 11:31., etc. (Worthington)
12:15
Raphael. We know also the names of Michael and Gabriel. All others are apocryphal; such as Uriel, Saltiel, Jeadriel Barachiel, etc.
Calmet
Seven. This number is clearly specified by St. John, Apocalypse 1:4. A mass in their honour was approved by Pius 4:It is supposed that the seven deacons in the Church of Rome, and of Jerusalem, were instituted in imitation of them. The kings, Assuerus, etc., had seven chief officers, Esther 1:10. (Calmet)
Lord, ready to fulfil his orders, as innumerable other angels, of inferior degree, are likewise. (Menochius) (Daniel 7:10.)
Calmet
These were the princes of the heavenly court. St. Jerome (contra Jovin.) admits only seven orders of angels. (Calmet)
Haydock
Greek, "I am Raphael, one of the seven holy angels who offer up the prayers of the saints, and go out before the glory of the Holy One. And they were both troubled," etc., (Haydock) at so unusual a thing, (Menochius) and filled with reverential awe. (Haydock)
They might also suspect that death would shortly follow. (Calmet) (Genesis 16:13.)
12:17
Be. Greek, "shall be with you. But praise God: for I came not of my own accord, but by the will of our God. Wherefore praise him for ever."
12:19
Haydock
1:Greek, "I appeared to you all the days; yet I did not eat nor drink. But you beheld a vision." (Haydock)
Calmet
Having an aerial body, he made the provisions disappear, as the sun melts snow, Genesis 18:9. (Calmet)
Menochius
He might swallow, though he had no need of meat, (St. Augustine, City of God 13:22.) or digestion, (Grotius) so as to convert it into his substance. (Menochius)
Calmet
Men. I constantly enjoy the beatific vision, Matthew 18:10. (Calmet)
12:20
Haydock
It. Greek, "And now confess to God, because I ascend to him who sent me. Write ye all these occurrences in a book. And they arose, and beheld him no longer; and they proclaimed the great and wonderful works of God, and how the angel of the Lord had appeared to them." (Haydock)
Haydock
Almost all interpreters infer from this injunction, (Calmet) that the work before us was originally composed by these holy men. (Haydock)
12:3
Concordance 1 2. 3 4. 5 6 7
Concordance 1 2. 3 4. 5 6 7
Concordance 1 2. 3 4. 5 6 7
Concordance 1 2. 3 4. 5 6 7
Concordance 1 2. 3 4. 5 6 7
Concordance 1 2. 3 4. 5 6 7
Gratful Tobias recounteth seuen benefites receiued by the companion of his iourney, & that they haue receiued (not manie but) al good things by him.
12:8
Fasting and almes are as two wingues with which prayer flyeth into heauen.
12:12
12. I offered thy prayer to our Lord.] Here the Angel Raphael reporteth certaine good offices, which he had done for Tobias. He did other like for his Offices of Angels towardes men. sonne, and for Raguel, and his daughter, which are likewise recorded in this booke. And the whole world, especially Gods seruantos, receiue continual great benefites by holie Angeles, as partly may be gathered in this holie historie, and more els where. For first the office of Angeles is, to assist, or be alwayes Readic to helpe al. readie, as most diligent seruitoures of God, expecting what his diuine goodnes wil appoint them, whither to goe, and what to doe for the benefite of men: as holie Raphael was sent, when yong Tobias wanted a guide. Secondly, Angels Offer mens prayers and good workes. Ayde the godlie. offer the prayers of the faithful, or as the Greke text •eadeth, v. 15 Angels present the prayers of Sainctes, that is, of godlie men and wemen to God: so Raphael testifieth here him self, that he offered Tobias prayers to our Lord. Thirdly, Angeles ayde and assist those that loue puritie of life, sincere seruice of God, hate vice, embrace vertue, & do workes of mercie; so Raphael assisted Tobias, when he traueled to butie the dead, fleing from the kings furie, and hiding himself, ch •. v. 21. 23. Fourthly Angels exhort to good workes, as in this 12. Exhort to good. Instruct. chapter. v. 6 8 9 10 18 Fiftly they suggest ••d instruct what to do, ch 6. v. 4. 5. Raph••• •••ght yong Tobias to •ake the fish, v•b wel him, reserue partes therof, 〈…〉 〈◊〉 aduised him to lodge at Raguels house, to demand Sara to wife, and v. 16. 17. instructed him, against whom diuels haue powre. Sixthly, they Expel euil spirites. Deliuer from euils and dangers. Procure temporal commodities for the soules good. expel diuels from persons, and places, ch. 8. v. 3. Raphael tooke and bound the diuel Asmodeus in the desert of hiegher Egypt. Seuenthly, they deliuer men from dangers and euiles, c. 6. v. 3 as when the great fish assaulted Tobias, and Sara from molestation, and slaunder, and old Tobias from blindnes. chap. 3. v. 10. ch. 11. v. 8. ch. 12. v. 14. Eightly. VVhen it redoundeth to the honour and more seruice of God, and good of the soule, Angeles procure riches, and worldly commodities, ch. 12. v. 3. Yong Tobias gratfully confessed the great benefites receiued by his guide, concluding generally, by him vve are replenished (sayth he) vvith al good thinges. Ninthly, Good Angels also proue men, for their more merite, so the Angel witnesseth ch. 12. v. 13. Because thou vvast acceptable to God, it vvas necessarie, that tentation should proue thee. Tenthly, and finally (for we Proue the good by trib⸢e⸣ lations. remite the reader to larger documentes of others) after proofe of patience, fortitude, and other vertues, holie Angeles comforte good men; so Raphael encoraged old Tobias, saying, ch. 5. v. 13. his blindenes should shortly be cured, ch. 12. v. 12. shewed him how gratful his prayers with teares and woorkes of mercie were in Gods fight. He comforted Raguel and his familie by bringing Comforte the patient and a• vertuous. yong Tobias to their house, ch. 7. v. •. Much more, ch. 8. v. 16. both them and al Tobias his familie, by driuing away the diuel; and lastly by reuealing himselfe vnto them. So holie Angeles, especially the proper gardian patrones of euerie one, are alwayes readie to helpe men; guard them, exhort them to good, do instruct them, do expel euil spirites, and deliuer men from many euils Angeles guardians haue special care of soules committed to their charge. & dangers, do procure them temporal commodities, proue their vertues, offer their prayers and good workes, assist them al their liues, and at their deathes, then also bring their soules to the Iudgement seate, and (if they die in good state) to eternal ioy and glorie, wherof the ancient fathers writinges are ful. S. Gregorie the great in his Dialogue, li. 4. c. 58. S. Athanasius li. de communi essentia. S. Chrisostom. ho. 3. in Epist. ad Colloss. li. 6. de Sacerdotio. Gregorius Turonen. li. de gloria Martyrum, & Confessorum. S. Augustin Epist. ad probam. c. 9. Epist. 68. ad fratres in eremo. li. 11. c. 31. ciuit. & octoginta trium. qq. q. 79. Our Sauiour himself testifieth that Angels reioyce at the conuersion of a sinner. Luc. 15. and therfore, they know and haue care of mens states in this life, and finally Angeles caried the soule of poore Lazarus into Abrahams bosome. Luc. 16.
O how swete (or excellent) a thing is it (saith S. Augustin ser. 3. de Natiuit.) when Angeles guardianes of our life offer our vowes (or resolution to flee vices and embrace vertues) before the sight of Gods Maiesty?
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Origen † AD 254 Origen Against Celsus 5.19
… “It is good to keep close the secret of a king, but honourable to reveal the works of God,”
Origen † AD 254 Origen Against Celsus 5.29
… “Moreover, the nations in their wicked conspiracy being confounded, she found out the righteous, and preserved him blameless unto God, and kept him strong in his tender compassion towards his son.” But on these subjects much, and that of a mystical kind, might be said; in keeping with which is the following: “It is good to keep close the secret of a king,”
St Dionysius of Alexandria † AD 265 Containing Epistles, or Fragments of Epistles 10.4
4. I fear that I run the risk of being charged with great folly and senselessness, placed as I am under the necessity of giving a narrative of the wonderful dispensation of God’s providence in our case. Since, however, as one says, it is good to keep close the secret of a king, but it is honourable to reveal the works of God,
Eusebius of Caesarea † AD 339 The Church History of Eusebius 7.11.2
2. “Truly I am in danger of falling into great folly and stupidity through being forced to relate the wonderful providence of God toward us. But since it is said that ‘it is good to keep close the secret of a king, but it is honorable to reveal the works of God,’
St Athanasius of Alexandria † AD 373 Defence Against the Arians (Apologia Contra Arianos) 1.11
… However, they attribute the origin of the offence to him; although it ought not to be imputed even to Macarius who is clear of it. And they are not ashamed to parade the sacred mysteries before Catechumens, and worse than that, even before heathens : whereas, they ought to attend to what is written, ‘It is good to keep close the secret of a king
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St Cyprian of Carthage † AD 258 On Works and Alms 5
… Raphael the angel also witnesses the like, and exhorts that alms should be freely and liberally bestowed, saying, “Prayer is good, with fasting and alms; because alms doth deliver from death, and it purgeth away sins.”
St Ambrose of Milan † AD 397 Selections from the Letters of St. Ambrose 63.16
… Finally, Moses received the Law when he was fasting; and so Peter when fasting was taught the grace of the New Testament. Daniel too by virtue of his fast stopped the mouths of the lions and saw the events of future times. And what safety can there be for us unless we wash away our sins by fasting, since Scripture says that fasting and alms do away sin?
St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 Letters of St. Augustin 130.31
… and I need, incomparably more than Peter and Paul did, the help of the prayers of the brethren. Emulate each other in prayer with a holy rivalry, with one heart, for you wrestle not against each other, but against the devil, who is the common enemy of all the saints. “By fasting, by vigils, and all mortification of the body, prayer is greatly helped.”
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St Polycarp † AD 155 Epistle to the Philippians 10
… When you can do good, defer it not, because “alms delivers from death.”
St John Chrysostom † AD 407 Homilies on Philippians 4
… xvi. 4 .) And in every place, turn where you will, ye see him anxious about this very thing. And again, “And let our people also learn to maintain good works.” ( Tit. iii. 14 .) And again, “These things are good and profitable unto men.” ( Tit. iii. 8 .) Listen to a certain other one who saith, “Alms do deliver from death” (
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St Cyprian of Carthage † AD 258 On the Mortality 10
… And God again hath sent me to heal thee and Sara thy daughter-in-law. For I am Raphael, one of the seven holy angels, who are present, and go in and out before the glory of God.”
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Tertullian † AD 220 On Prayer 16
… If, on the one hand, it is irreverent to sit under the eye, and over against the eye, of him whom you most of all revere and venerate; how much more, on the other hand, is that deed most irreligious under the eye of the living God, while the angel of prayer is still standing by
St Cyprian of Carthage † AD 258 On the Lord's Prayer 33
… And when thou didst bury the dead in simplicity, and because thou didst not delay to rise up and to leave thy dinner, but didst go out and cover the dead, I was sent to prove thee; and again God has sent me to heal thee, and Sarah thy daughter-in-law. For I am Raphael, one of the seven holy angels which stand and go in and out before the glory of God.”
St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 Letters of St. Augustin 130.18
… God, that these beings may in some way present them to God, and consult Him concerning them, and may bring to us, either manifestly or secretly, that which, hearkening to His commandment, they may have learned to be His will, and which must be fulfilled by them according to that which they have there learned to be their duty; for the angel said to Tobias:
St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 City of God 1.13
… and they themselves, while yet alive, gave commandment to their sons about the burial, and, on occasion, even about the removal of their bodies to some favorite place. And Tobit, according to the angel’s testimony, is commended, and is said to have pleased God by burying the dead.
12:16
St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 Letters of St. Augustin 158.6
… This is not, however, an unanswerable objection, for the angels, who are like our souls invisible, have at times desired to appear in bodily forms and be seen, and (whatever might be the form of body worthy to be assumed by these spirits) they have appeared, for example, to Abraham and to Tobias.
12:19
St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 City of God 13.22
… For neither are we to suppose, when men receive them as guests, that the angels eat only in appearance, though to any who did not know them to be angels they might seem to eat from the same necessity as ourselves. So these words spoken in the Book of Tobit, “You saw me eat, but you saw it but in vision;”
12:3
Verse 3. HE LED ME AND BROUGHT ME BACK SAFE. — Tobias here recounts seven great benefits of Raphael. The first is, that he led him into Media and brought him back unharmed. The second, that he procured for him a good and rich wife, namely Sarah. The third, that he drove Asmodeus from him and Sarah. The fourth, that he brought joy to the parents both of Tobias and of Sarah. The fifth, that he snatched him from being devoured by the fish. The sixth, that he restored sight to his blind father. The seventh, that he enriched him with all corporal and spiritual goods. The same guardian Angel performs for any man, whose person and office Raphael here took upon himself and represented, as Serarius shows at length here from the Meditations of Fr. Vincent Bruni, question XX.
12:5
5. THEY TOOK HIM ASIDE, — that is, they called him back separately into a more secret part of the house, that they might deal with him more secretly, freely and confidently. Thus Lyran. Whence Raphael being set apart "said to them secretly," as follows: for he wished to be set apart, that separately he might reveal himself and the secrets of God to them.
12:7
7. FOR IT IS GOOD TO HIDE THE SECRET OF THE KING: BUT THE WORKS OF GOD TO REVEAL AND CONFESS (to praise, celebrate and give thanks), IS HONORABLE. — "Secret," in Greek μυστήριον, that is, a mystery or secret of the king to conceal is good; because upon secrecy depends the happy execution of a matter, according to that saying of Gellius, book X, chapter XXV: "Silence of counsels is a treasure:" Excellent is the virtue to maintain silence about matters. Tiberius Caesar, when asked why he did not share his counsels with friends, replied: The mind of a prince ought to be known to none, or to very few; because many are full of leaks, and the secrets which they have heard, they blurt out, so that it is necessary for the Prince to be endangered or betrayed. Thus Dionysius concerning Tiberius. Antigonus, king of Macedonia, to his son Philip asking: "When shall we move the camp? What," said he, "are you afraid lest you alone should not hear the trumpet?" Thus Plutarch in the Apophthegms of Kings. Metellus Macedonius to a certain friend asking: "What had he determined to undertake in his mind? I would," said he, "take off my tunic, if I thought my counsel would know it." Thus Pliny, chapter LXI, On Illustrious Men. BUT THE WORKS OF GOD TO REVEAL AND CONFESS IS HONORABLE, — so that others hearing them may recognize, revere, worship and adore the clemency, wisdom and magnificence of God. Whence St. Severus, Bishop of Minorca, in his epistle On the Conversion of the Jews: "Since," he says, "the Angel Raphael admonishes that it is honorable to reveal and confess the works of God, assuredly it is dangerous to be silent or to hide the works of Christ." Stephen the Pontiff in Regino, in the year of the Lord 753: "Just as," he says, "no one ought to boast of his own merits; so neither ought the works of God, which are done in him through his saints without his merits, to be kept silent, but to be preached, as the Angel admonishes Tobias."
12:8
8. PRAYER (BETTER) IS GOOD WITH FASTING AND ALMSGIVING, THAN TO LAY UP TREASURES OF GOLD. — The Greek texts also add: It is good to have little with justice, than much with injustice. Hence the Fathers and Theologians teach that there are three kinds of good works, namely prayer, fasting and almsgiving, to which as it were to heads all other things are reduced. For prayer pays the debt to God, fasting to oneself, almsgiving to one's neighbor. Again, prayer alone is weak, but becomes strong and efficacious, if it is armed with two wings, by which it may fly up to heaven to God, namely fasting and almsgiving. Hear St. Cyprian, treatise On Works and Almsgiving. In Solomon we read: "Hide alms in the heart of the poor, and it shall pray for thee from all evil." And again: "He that stoppeth his ears, that he may not hear the weak, and he himself shall cry, and there shall be none to hear him. For neither shall he be able to merit the mercy of the Lord, who shall not himself have been merciful, nor shall he obtain anything from divine piety in prayers, who shall not have been kind to the prayer of the poor. Which the Holy Spirit also declares and proves in the Psalms, saying: Blessed is he that understandeth concerning the needy and the poor; the Lord will deliver him in the evil day. Mindful of these precepts, Daniel, when King Nabuchodonosor was troubled by an adverse dream and was anxious to avert evils, gave a remedy to obtain divine aid, saying: Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to thee, and redeem thy sins with alms, and thy iniquities with the mercies of the poor, and God will be patient with thy sins. The king not obeying, suffered the adversities which he had seen and the calamities; which he could have avoided and escaped, if he had redeemed his sins with alms." The same thing is confirmed, citing the present passage: "Raphael also the Angel testifies the same, and to exhort that almsgiving be done willingly and generously, he says: Prayer is good with fasting and almsgiving; because almsgiving delivers from death, and it itself purges sins. He shows that our prayers and fastings can do less, unless they are helped by almsgiving. Prayers alone avail little for obtaining, unless they are strengthened by the addition of deeds and works. The Angel reveals and makes manifest, and confirms that our petitions are made efficacious by almsgiving, that life is redeemed from dangers by almsgiving, that souls are freed from death by almsgiving."
12:13
13. AND BECAUSE THOU WAST ACCEPTABLE TO GOD, IT WAS NECESSARY THAT TEMPTATION SHOULD PROVE THEE. — For temptation and tribulation prove, preserve, increase, and perfect patience and virtue. For he is unworthy of God's grace and friendship who refuses to suffer adversities for Him, and serves Him only in prosperity. Hence by the external law of God that saying of the Apostle is sanctioned: "All who will live piously in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution," II Tim. III, 12. See the sayings of James I, 1 et seq. and Eccles. III. Seneca saw this in shadow, in his book On Providence, where he assigns various and grave reasons why God sends afflictions upon good men, and among other things gives these golden sayings, as it were gems, cap. I: "God does not keep a good man in luxury: He tests him, hardens him, prepares him for Himself," cap. II: "Just as the great force of Mediterranean fountains does not change the taste of the sea, nor even diminish it; so the assault of adverse things does not turn the mind of a strong man. He remains in his state, and whatever happens, he draws into his own color. For he is more powerful than all external things; nor do I say he does not feel them, but he conquers; and otherwise quiet and calm, he rises up against what befalls him. He considers all adversities as exercises." And soon after: "Athletes rejoice when they contend with the strongest, are beaten and harassed. Virtue languishes without an adversary. Unscathed happiness bears no blow. God, the greatest lover of the good, who wishes them to be as excellent and outstanding as possible, assigns them fortune with which to exercise themselves. Behold a pair worthy of God, a strong man matched with evil fortune, especially if he has also provoked it. I do not see, I say, what Jupiter has more beautiful on earth, if he will turn his mind to it, than to behold Cato; now with his forces broken more than once, standing nevertheless among the ruins of the state, upright." Cap. III: "Nothing is more unfortunate than he to whom nothing adverse ever happens. He seemed unworthy, by whom fortune would ever be conquered, which shuns the most cowardly, as if to say, Why should I take this one as my adversary? He will immediately lay down his arms. Fire tests Mutius, poverty Fabricius, exile Rutilius, torture Regulus, poison Socrates, death Cato. Great example fortune does not find unless it is evil. Mutius is unfortunate because his right hand presses the fires of the enemy; and does he himself exact the penalties of his error from himself? because he puts to flight with his burned hand the king whom he could not with armed hand?" And below: "Prosperity falls to the common people and base natures; and to put the calamities and terrors of mortals under the yoke is the proper work of a great man. Calamity is the occasion of virtue: great men sometimes rejoice in adverse things, just as brave soldiers in the triumph of war. Virtue is eager for danger. Understand the helmsman in the storm, the soldier in battle. I am forced to nothing, I suffer nothing unwillingly, nor do I serve God, but I assent. Why do the good suffer hardships, so that they may teach others to suffer. They were born as an example. To others I have given false goods, and deceived empty minds as it were with a long and deceptive dream. I adorned them with gold, silver and ivory, within there is nothing good. To you I have given certain goods, lasting; the more anyone has turned them about and examined them from all sides, the more he will see better, greater things, which I have permitted you to despise when feared, to disdain when desired. Not to need happiness, that is your happiness." And finally concluding, he says: "Bear bravely, that is, whereby you may go before God. He is beyond the suffering of evils, you are above suffering. Despise poverty. No one lives so poor as he was born. Despise pain, because it will either be resolved or it will resolve you. Despise death; it either ends or transfers you. Despise fortune; I have given it no weapon with which to strike the mind."
12:15
15. FOR I AM RAPHAEL THE ANGEL, ONE OF THE SEVEN WHO STAND BEFORE THE LORD. — From this it is evident that Raphael is one of the first Angels, who as it were as princes of the heavenly court stand nearest to God, concerning whom I have treated at length in the Apocalypse, chapter I, verse 4. The Greek texts add: I am one of the seven who offer the prayers of the saints, and walk before the majesty of the Holy One. To these therefore is entrusted the care of the human race. Others object: one of the seven, that is, one of many. To stand before the Lord signifies many things, as Andreas Victor rightly observes, in his work On the Custody of Angels, page 43. First, Angels stand when they speak with God, asking for divine light, that they may know what is His will in any matter to be done. Second, Angels stand while they offer to God pious works, sacrifices, alms, and human prayers. Third, they stand when they are prepared to obey the divine will, like soldiers ready and prepared for war, if war is to be waged by divine command, and like servants prepared to perform duties at whatever command of God. Fourth, they stand before God the Judge, pleading the causes of men against the accusations of demons, and awaiting sentence. Fifth, they stand while they praise God, as Isaiah in chapter VI saw Seraphim standing, praising God with wonderful voices: Holy, Holy, etc. Sixth, to stand is to behold the divine countenance, and from thence to draw the waters of supreme happiness, which occurs either in the empyrean heaven, where the divine throne shines in a peculiar and singular manner, or in any other places whatsoever in which God is: and thus wherever good Angels may be, they always stand before God; because they always enjoy God. Hence it comes to pass that they are said to depart and return; because sent to ministries they indeed depart from the empyrean seats; but they do not lose supreme happiness, and they return thither at God's command. Seventh, to stand, strictly and properly, pertains to those Angels who are not usually sent to external ministries; but contemplating in God the reasons of things to be done, they teach and illuminate the inferior Angels who are to execute those duties; whence Angels are distinguished into those who assist and those who minister. The Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, and Dominions assist; the five other orders minister, and concerning these, treating elsewhere, we have proved that they are also sometimes sent. Hence Raphael says he stands before God. For to stand before God signifies not merely to be in the heavens, which is common to all Angels, but indicates a certain principality in ministry, as Toletus says in chapter I of Luke.
12:16
16. AND WHEN THEY HAD HEARD THIS, THEY WERE TROUBLED, AND TREMBLING FELL UPON THE EARTH ON THEIR FACES — out of reverence and sacred awe. For, as St. Antony used to say: "Fear is often inspired not so much by dread of mind as by the sight of great things."
12:17
17. AND THE ANGEL SAID TO THEM: PEACE BE UNTO YOU, FEAR NOT. — Hence the Fathers teach that the sign of an angelic apparition is, if first horror is struck, then consolation and joy are brought forth; for the demon does the contrary. Hear Bede in chapter I of Luke: "As it is the nature of human frailty to be troubled by the vision of a spiritual creature, so it is the nature of angelic benignity to soothe at once with gentleness those mortals whom it perceives to be afraid at its sight; but on the contrary it is the nature of demonic savagery to shake with ever greater horror those whom it has felt to be terrified by its presence." And St. Antony, as testified by St. Athanasius in his Life: "When a good Angel appears to good men, he says, even if at first he strikes fear by his unusual appearance, in the end he leaves consolation and tranquility of mind." And again: "The appearance of the holy Angels is lovable and tranquil; because they do not contend, nor cry out, nor is any voice of theirs heard. But proceeding silently and gently, they pour joy, exultation, and confidence into the hearts, since the Lord is with them, who is the source and origin of joy. Then our mind is not troubled, but is illuminated gently and peacefully by the light of Angels; then the soul, burning with eagerness for heavenly rewards, if it could, would break forth from the dwelling of the human body, and freed from mortal members, hastens to depart with those whom it sees to heaven; such is their benignity, that if anyone, according to the condition of human frailty, has been terrified within by their brightness, he straightway removes all fear, if only from his heart;" then he gives these contrary signs of the appearance of demons: "but the faces of the worst are fierce, the sounds horrible, the thoughts foul, the clapping and movements of undisciplined youths or robbers, from which straightway fear of the soul and stupor of the senses are struck, hatred of Christians, sadness and weariness of monks, remembrance of their own, fear of death, desire of wickedness, weariness of virtue, dullness of heart. If therefore after fear conceived in horror there shall follow joy, and confidence toward God, and ineffable charity, let us know that help has come, because the security of the soul is the sign of present majesty."
12:19
Vers. 19. I SEEMED INDEED TO EAT WITH YOU. — For truly Raphael did not eat; because eating is a vital action, by which the soul vitally chews food in the mouth, and vitally transfers it from the mouth into the stomach, so that it may be digested by it. But Raphael, since he did not inform the assumed body, did not vitally transfer food into it, but injected food into it as into a certain sack, which he then resolved into vapor and air. BUT I USE AN INVISIBLE FOOD, etc., — namely God, and the vision and enjoyment of God is the food of Angels, by which they delight and are blessed continually.
12:20
Vers. 20. AND RECOUNT ALL HIS WONDERFUL WORKS. — The Greek has: Write all things that were done in a book; whence it is clear that Tobias, obedient to Raphael, wrote this history, and is the author of this book, as the Greek texts have, in the following chapter. The Hebrew texts have more fully: Now therefore, he says, write for yourselves all these words in a book, and it shall be for a testimony between you and your God all the days of your life. And let this word be for a sign, and for a testimony in every generation and generation. And you bless the Lord, and confess the memory of his holiness. And now let me go, and I will return to God, who sent me to you.
12:21
21. AND WHEN HE HAD SAID THESE THINGS, HE WAS TAKEN FROM THEIR SIGHT, — by laying aside the body he had assumed, and by rarefaction resolving it into air, or vapor, from which condensed he had formed it, as the Scholastics teach with St. Thomas, in the First Part, Question LI.
Machine translation from the Latin, not reviewed.
12:6
… gall (ibid. 11:4-17). To the old Tobit, who did not know how to reward the supposed Azariah, son of Ananiah, R. makes himself known and then disappears, after having shown the duty to praise and bless God and the moral value of fasting and almsgiving (ibid. 12:6-14).
12:8
II. DIVORCE IN THE BIBLE. - Fasting is praised and even commanded in the Old Testament (Tob. 12:8; II Kings 12:16; Judg. 8:6; Joel 2:12; Esth. 14:2; II Macc. 12:12).
12:9
… Tob. 4:7-12; Ps. 40:1-4; it proclaims blessed the one who comes to the aid of the poor (cf., for example, Ps. 111:5-9; Prov. 14:21; 22:9); it affirms that almsgiving obtains all graces, not excluding the remission of sins (cf., for example, Tob. 4:7-9; 12:9; Sir. 3:33; 7:36; Dan. 4:24); it is preferable to fasts and even to sacrifices themselves (cf., for example, Is. 1:11-17; 58:5-7). Indeed the Old Testament also establishes certain …
1. The Old Testament. - Traces of the solution are already contained in it. To escape from sin, first of all observance of the Law is necessary, recommended by God himself or by Moses and the Prophets in God's name (cf. Deut. 4:1 ff.; 6:4 ff.; 12:28 ff.; Lev. 18:5; Ezek. 18:5 ff.; cf. Tob. 12:9). At the same time, trust in the God who saves is required, as the Psalms especially inculcate, and above all faith in God and in the One whom God will send to his people as Messiah-Savior …
The book of T. is not included in the Jewish canon; Protestants relegate it among the "apocrypha." But the Catholic Church, both Latin and Eastern, always venerated it from the beginning as inspired (Polycarp, Ad Phil., 10:2 cites Tob. 4:10; 12:9; Hermas, Pastor, mand. …
12:12
Already Scripture shows explicit cases of intercession by angels (Zach. 1:12; Job 5:1; 33:23 ff.) and by saints (II Mach. 15:11-16) and shows us how they take an interest in the destinies of the Kingdom of God on earth (Apoc. passim, e.g., 6:10) and offer the prayers of men to God (Tob. 12:12; Apoc. 5:8; 8:3). The matter is then perfectly logical in the whole of the Christian Revelation, according to which the blessed know our prayers and our needs; a fact of which in the …
12:13
… due to dogmatic motives, just as later Jub. 48:25 will transform Ex. 4:24. For Tobit father and son and for Sarah the infestation of Asmodeus brings many sorrows, but "the trial of temptation is necessary" and Raphael comes to free them from the demon (Tob. 12:13-14). Primitively S. is not a perverse angel; through later contamination the angels who executed God's plagues were identified with the demons, beings evil by nature (J. Bonsirven, p. 239).
12:15
… Nor is it certain on the other hand that the number seven in the Old Testament (Tob. 12, 15) is to be considered as a real number and not rather as an expression of an indeterminate quantity, as happens in other biblical passages. …
… In Daniel there is mention of angelic "princes", among whom Michael and Gabriel are named (8:10; 9:21; 10:13). In Tob. 12:15 a third is mentioned, Raphael, as "one of the seven who stand before the Lord" (cf. Apoc. 1:4; 4:5). In the Greek version of Dan. 12:1, Michael is called ἀρχάγγελος; the …
… (v.) and the Ophāmim (Enoch 61:10) or "Wheels" (Ez. 1:15-21; 10:9-17) that surround the throne of God (cf. Apoc. 4:6-8). St. Victorinus of Pettau (4th cent.) identifies the archangels with the "seven spirits who stand before the throne of God" and cites Tob. 12:15; Apoc. 1:4 (In Apoc., 8, ed. Haussleiter). …
"one of the seven angels who stand before God and have access to the majesty of the Lord" in Tob. 12:15 (cf. Rev. 8:2). Only in non-biblical texts is R. called "archangel," a name reserved in the Bible for St. Michael.
12:22
Outside the psalms, it occurs in the Bible only in Tob. 12, 22 and Apoc. 19, 1-6. However cf. I Par. 16, 36, where it would seem that it was David who introduced into the liturgy the twofold acclamation: Amen, Alleluia. - v. AMEN; HALLEL.
12:32
… gift, to the "acknowledgment" of his benevolence, to an affection of "gratitude" on the part of the recipient, ready to express his thanksgiving and effectively to testify to his gratitude, that is, the will to render the benefactor a gratuitous homage (Tob. 12:32-33; Mt. 25:40; 18:32-33).
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · Vulgata Clementina · original Douay-Rheims (Douay 1609-10), transcription by EEBO-TCP (CC0) · La Sacra Bibbia, tradotta dalla Volgata da Antonio Martini (1769-1781) (LaParola (laparola.net), Martini OSIS text, Public domain (LaParola's electronic edition marks it 'Dominio pubblico')). Public domain.