By example of a watchman, 7. God chargeth the prophet to declare whatsoeuer dangers he seeth imminent to the people. 10. Sinners repenting shal be saued, and if the iust leaue their iustice they shal be damned 21. The promise made to Abraham maketh not the Iewes secure: 23. but for their enormious sinnes they shal be caried out captiues. 33. Then they shal know that the prophet said the truth.
1And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:Il Signore parlommi, dicendo:AND the word of our Lord was made to me, saying:Et factum est verbum Domini ad me, dicens: 2Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say to them: When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man, one of their meanest, and make him a watchman over them:Figliuolo dell'uomo, parla a' figliuoli del popol tuo, e dirai loro: Quand'io manderò la spada contro un paese, e il popolo di quel paese avrà scelto tra gli infimi suoi cittadini un uomo, e lo avrà posto per sua sentinella,Sonne of man, speake to the children of thy people, and thou shalt say to them: The land when I shal bring the sword in vpon it, and the people of the land take a man, one of their meanest, & make him a watchman ouer them:Fili hominis, loquere ad filios populi tui, et dices ad eos: Terra, cum induxero super eam gladium, et tulerit populus terræ virum unum de novissimis suis, et constituerit eum super se speculatorem: 3And he sees the sword coming upon the land, and sound the trumpet, and tell the people:E questi vedendo, che la spada viene verso il paese, darà fiato alla tromba, e faranne avvertito il popolo:and he shal see the sword coming vpon the land, and sound with the trumpet, & tel the people:et ille viderit gladium venientem super terram, et cecinerit buccina, et annuntiaverit populo: 4Then he that heareth the sound of the trumpet, whosoever he be, and doth not look to himself, if the sword come, and cut him off: his blood shall be upon his own head.Se colui, che ode il suon della tromba, chiunque egli sia, non avrà cura di se, e verrà la spada, e lo reciderà, il suo sangue sarà sulla testa di lui.and he that heareth the sound of the trumpet, whosoeuer he be, and doth not looke to himselfe, and the sword come, and take him: his bloud shal be vpon his head.audiens autem quisquis ille est sonitum buccinæ, et non se observaverit, veneritque gladius, et tulerit eum: sanguis ipsius super caput ejus erit. 5He heard the sound of the trumpet, and did not look to himself, his blood shall be upon him: but if he look to himself, he shall save his life.Egli ha sentito il suon della tromba, e non ha avuto cura di se; il suo sangue sarà sopra di lui: se poi si terrà in luogo sicuro, salverà la sua vita.He heard the sound of the trumpet, and did not looke to himself, his bloud shal be on himself: but if he shal looke to himself, he shal saue his life.Sonum buccinæ audivit, et non se observavit: sanguis ejus in ipso erit. Si autem se custodierit, animam suam salvabit. 6And if the watchman see the sword coming, and sound not the trumpet: and the people look not to themselves, and the sword come, and cut off a soul from among them: he indeed is taken away in his iniquity, but I will require his blood at the hand of the watchman.Che se la sentinella vedrà la spada, che viene, e non suonerà la tromba; e il popolo non si porrà in sicuro, e verrà la spada, e torrà loro un uomo; questi veramente per colpa sua è rapito; ma del sangue di lui domanderò conto alla sentinella.And if the watchman see the sword coming, and sound not with the trumpet: and the people looke not to them selues, and the sword come, and take a soule from among them: he certes is caught in his iniquitie, but his bloud I wil require of the hand of the watchman.Quod si speculator viderit gladium venientem, et non insonuerit buccina, et populus se non custodierit, veneritque gladius, et tulerit de eis animam: ille quidem in iniquitate sua captus est; sanguinem autem ejus de manu speculatoris requiram.
7So thou, O son of man, I have made thee a watchman to the house of Israel: therefore thou shalt hear the word from my mouth, and shalt tell it them from me.Or te, o figliuolo dell'uomo, ho io posto per sentinella alla casa d'Israele: e parole adunque, che tu ascolti dalla mia bocca, tu le annunzierai loro da parte miaAnd thou sonne of man, I haue made thee a watchman to the house of Israel: hearing therfore the word from my mouth, thou shalt tel them from me.Et tu, fili hominis, speculatorem dedi te domui Israël: audiens ergo ex ore meo sermonem, annuntiabis eis ex me. 8When I say to the wicked: O wicked man, thou shalt surely die: if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked man from his way: that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but I will require his blood at thy hand.Se quando io dico all'empio: empio di mala morte morrai: tu non avrai parlato all'empio, affinchè si ritiri dalla sua via; l'empio medesimo per l'iniquità sua morirà: ma del sangue di lui domanderò conto a te.If when I say to the impious: O thou impious, dying thou shalt dye: thou speake not that the impious may keepe himself from his way: the impious himself shal dye in his iniquitie, but his bloud I wil require at thy hand.Si me dicente ad impium: Impie, morte morieris: non fueris locutus ut se custodiat impius a via sua, ipse impius in iniquitate sua morietur; sanguinem autem ejus de manu tua requiram. 9But if thou tell the wicked man, that he may be converted from his ways, and he be not converted from his way he shall die in his iniquity: but thou hast delivered thy soul.Che se quando tu l'empio ammonisci, che si converta dalle sue vie, questi non si convertirà: egli morrà nella sua iniquità: ma tu hai liberata l'anima tua.But if thou telling the impious, that he conuert from his wayes, he conuert not from his way: he shal dye in his iniquitie: but thou hast deliuered thy soule.Si autem annuntiante te ad impium ut a viis suis convertatur, non fuerit conversus a via sua, ipse in iniquitate sua morietur, porro tu animam tuam liberasti. 10Thou therefore, O son of man, say to the house of Israel: Thus you have spoken, saying: Our iniquities, and our sins are upon us, and we pine away in them: how then can we live?Tu adunque, figliuolo dell'uomo, li alla casa d'Israele: Voi parlate, e dite così: Le iniquità nostre, e i nostri peccati stan sopra di noi, e in essi noi ci consumiamo: come adunque potremo aver vita?Thou therfore ô sonne of man say to the house of Israel: Thus you haue spoken, saying: Our iniquities, and our sinnes are vpon vs, & in them we fade away: how then can we liue?Tu ergo, fili hominis, dic ad domum Israël: Sic locuti estis, dicentes: Iniquitates nostræ et peccata nostra super nos sunt, et in ipsis nos tabescimus: quomodo ergo vivere poterimus ?
11Say to them: As I live, saith the Lord God, I desire not the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way, and live. Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways: and why will you die, O house of Israel?Dì ad essi: Io giuro, dice il Signore Dio: io non voglio la morte dell'empio, ma che l'empio dalla sua via si converta, e viva. Convertitevi, convertitevi dalle pessime vie vostre; e perchè morrete voi, casa d'Israele?Say to them: Liue I, sayeth our Lord God: I wil not the death of the impious, but that the impious conuert from his way, and liue. Conuert, conuert ye from your most euil wayes: and why wil you dye ô house of Israel?Dic ad eos: Vivo ego, dicit Dominus Deus, nolo mortem impii, sed ut convertatur impius a via sua, et vivat. Convertimini, convertimini a viis vestris pessimis, et quare moriemini, domus Israël ? 12Thou therefore, O son of man, say to the children of thy people: The justice of the just shall not deliver him, in what day soever he shall sin: and the wickedness of the wicked shall not hurt him, in what day soever he shall turn from his wickedness: and the just shall not be able to live in his justice, in what day soever he shall sin.Tu adunque, figliuolo dell'uomo, dì a' figliuoli del popol tuo: La giustizia del giusto noi potrà liberare qualunque volta ei peccherà; e l'empietà dell'empio non nuocerà a lui qualunque volta ei si converta dalla sua empietà: e il giusto non potrà vivere nella sua giustizia ogni volta, ch'ei peccherà.Thou therfore sonne of man say to the children of thy people: The iustice of the iust shal not deliuer him, in what day soeuer he shal sinne: and the impietie of the impious shal not hurt him, in what day soeuer he shal conuert from his impietie: and the iust can not liue in his iustice, in what day soeuer he shal sinne.Tu itaque, fili hominis, dic ad filios populi tui: Justitia justi non liberabit eum, in quacumque die peccaverit, et impietas impii non nocebit ei, in quacumque die conversus fuerit ab impietate sua: et justus non poterit vivere in justitia sua, in quacumque die peccaverit. 13Yea, if I shall say to the just that he shall surely live, and he, trusting in his justice, commit iniquity: all his justices shall be forgotten, and in his iniquity, which he hath committed, in the same shall he die.Anche quando io avrò detto al giusto, ch'egli avrà vera vita, se egli confidato nella sua giustizia commette iniquità, tutte le sue buone opere saran poste in obblio, e nella iniquità medesima, ch'egli ha commesso, morrà.Yea if I shal say to the iust that liuing he shal liue, and he trusting in his iustice doe iniquitie: al his iustices shal be forgotten, and in his iniquitie, which he hath wrought, in the same shal he dye.Etiamsi dixero justo quod vita vivat, et confisus in justitia sua fecerit iniquitatem, omnes justitiæ ejus oblivioni tradentur, et in iniquitate sua quam operatus est, in ipsa morietur. 14And if I shall say to the wicked: Thou shalt surely die: and he do penance for his sin, and do judgment and justice,Che se io avrò detto all'empio: Tu morrai di mala morte, ed egli farà penitenza del suo peccato, e farà opere rette, e giuste,And if I shal say to the impious: Dying thou shalt dye: and he do penance from his sinne & do iudgement and iustice,Si autem dixero impio: Morte morieris: et egerit pœnitentiam a peccato suo, feceritque judicium et justitiam, 15And if that wicked man restore the pledge, and render what he had robbed, and walk in the commandments of life, and do no unjust thing: he shall surely live, and shall not die.Se quest'empio restituirà il pegno, e renderà quel, che ha rapito, camminerà nei comandamenti di vita, e nulla farà d'ingiusto, egli avrà vera vita, e non morrà.and the same impious restore pledge, and render robberie, walke in the commandments of life, and doe not anie vniust thing: liuing he shal liue, & shal not dye.et pignus restituerit ille impius, rapinamque reddiderit, in mandatis vitæ ambulaverit, nec fecerit quidquam injustum: vita vivet, et non morietur.
16None of his sins, which he hath committed, shall be imputed to him: he hath done judgment and justice, he shall surely live.Tutti i peccati, ch'egli ha fatti, non gli saranno imputati: ha fatte opere rette, e giuste, avrà vera vita.Al his sinnes, which he hath sinned, shal not be imputed to him he hath done iudgement and iustice, liuing he shal liue.Omnia peccata ejus quæ peccavit, non imputabuntur ei: judicium et justitiam fecit: vita vivet. 17And the children of thy people have said: The way of the Lord is not equitable: whereas their own way is unjust.Ma i figli del popol tuo han detto: Non è retta la via del Signore, quando la via loro è ingiusta.And the children of thy people, haue said: The way of our Lord is nor of equal weight, & their owne way is vniust.Et dixerunt filii populi tui: Non est æqui ponderis via Domini: et ipsorum via injusta est. 18For when the just shall depart from his justice, and commit iniquities, he shall die in them.Imperocché quando il giusto si allontanerà dalla giustizia, e farà opere d'ingiustizia, da queste avrà morteFor when the iust shal depart frō his iustice, and doe iniquities, he shal dye in them.Cum enim recesserit justus a justitia sua, feceritque iniquitates, morietur in eis. 19And when the wicked shall depart from his wickedness, and shall do judgments, and justice, he shall live in them.E quando l'empio abbandonerà la sua empietà, e farà opere rette, e giuste, da queste avrà vita.And when the impious shal depart from his impictie, and shal doe iudgements, and iustice: he shal liue in them.Et cum recesserit impius ab impietate sua, feceritque judicium et justitiam, vivet in eis. 20And you say: The way of the Lord is not right, I will judge every one of you according to his ways, O house of Israel.E voi dite: Non è retta la via del Signore. Ciascheduno di voi giudicherò io secondo le opere sue, o casa d'Israele.And you say: The way of our Lord is not right, euery one according to his wayes wil I iudge of you, ô house of Israel.Et dicitis: Non est recta via Domini. Unumquemque juxta vias suas judicabo de vobis, domus Israël. 21And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, in the fifth day of the month, that there came to me one that was fled from Jerusalem, saying: The city is laid waste.E nell'anno duodecimo di nostra trasmigrazione, il decimo mese, ai cinque del mese, venne a me uno fuggito da Gerusalemme, che dissemi: La città è stata distrutta.And it came to passe in the twelfth yeare, in the tenth moneth, in the fifth of the moneth of our transmigration, there came to me one that was fled from Ierusalem, saying: The citie is made waste.Et factum est in duodecimo anno, in decimo mense, in quinta mensis transmigrationis nostræ, venit ad me qui fugerat de Jerusalem, dicens: Vastata est civitas.
22And the hand of the Lord had been upon me in the evening, before he that was fled came: and he opened my mouth till he came to me in the morning, and my mouth being opened, I was silent no more.Or la mano del Signore si era fatta sentire a me la sera, prima che giungesse colui, che era fuggito; e il Signore aprì la mia bocca, e aperta la mia bocca io non istetti più in silenzio, fino a tanto che giunse colui a me la mattina.And the hand of our Lord had bene made to me in the euening, before he came that was fled: and he opened my mouth til he came to me in the morning, and my mouth being opened I was silent no more.Manus autem Domini facta fuerat ad me vespere, antequam veniret qui fugerat: aperuitque os meum donec veniret ad me mane: et aperto ore meo, non silui amplius. 23And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:E il Signore parlommi, dicendo:And the word of our Lord was made to me, saying:Et factum est verbum Domini ad me, dicens: 24Son of man, they that dwell in these ruinous places in the land of Israel, speak, saying: Abraham was one, and he inherited the land, but we are many, the land is given us in possession.Figliuolo dell'uomo, quegli, che dimoran tra quelle rovine, sopra la terra d'Israele van, dicendo: Un solo uomo era Abramo, ed ei ebbe in retaggio questa terra: or noi siamo molti, a noi è stato dato il dominio di questa terra.Sonne of man: They that dwel in these ruinous places, vpon the ground of Israel, speaking doe say: Abraham was one, and by inheritance he possessed the land: but we be manie, the land is geuen vs in possession.Fili hominis, qui habitant in ruinosis his super humum Israël, loquentes aiunt: Unus erat Abraham, et hæreditate possedit terram: nos autem multi sumus: nobis data est terra in possessionem. 25Therefore say to them: Thus saith the Lord God: You that eat with the blood and lift up your eyes to your uncleannesses, and that shed blood: shall you possess the land by inheritance?Per questo tu dirai loro: Queste cose dice il Signore Dio: Voi mangiate carni col sangue, e gli occhi vostri alzate agl'immondi vostri idoli, e spargete il sangue umano; sarete voi forse eredi, e possessori di questa terra?Therfore thou shalt say to them: Thus saith our Lord God: Ye that eate in bloud, & lift vp your eyes to your vncleanes, & shed bloud: what shal you possesse the land by inheritance?Idcirco dices ad eos: Hæc dicit Dominus Deus: Qui in sanguine comeditis, et oculos vestros levatis ad immunditias vestras, et sanguinem funditis, numquid terram hæreditate possidebitis ? 26You stood on your swords, you have committed abominations, and every one hath defiled his neighbour’s wife; and shall you possess the land by inheritance?Avete avuto sempre la spada alla mano, avete fatte cose abbominevoli, ognun di voi ha sedotta la moglie del suo prossimo, e voi sarete eredi, e possessori di questa terra?You stood on your swords, you haue done abominations, and euerie one hath polluted his neighbours wife: and you wil possesse the land by inheritance?stetistis in gladiis vestris, fecistis abominationes, et unusquisque uxorem proximi sui polluit: et terram hæreditate possidebitis ?
27Say thou thus to them: Thus saith the Lord God: As I live, they that dwell in the ruinous places, shall fall by the sword: and he that is in the field, shall be given to the beasts to be devoured: and they that are in holds, and caves, shall die of the pestilence.Tu dirai loro così: Il Signore Dio così parla: Io giuro, che coloro, i quali abitano tralle rovine, periranno di spada, e que', che sono alla campagna, saran dati a divorare alle fiere, e que', che stanno ne' luoghi forti, e nelle caverne, moranno di peste.Thus thou shalt say to them: Thus saith our Lord God: Liue I, that they which dwel in the ruinous places, shal fal by the sword: and he that is in the filde, shal be deliuered to beastes to be deuoured: and they that are in holdes, and caues, shal dye of the pestilence.Hæc dices ad eos: Sic dicit Dominus Deus: Vivo ego, quia qui in ruinosis habitant, gladio cadent: et qui in agro est, bestiis tradetur ad devorandum: qui autem in præsidiis et speluncis sunt, peste morientur. 28And I will make the land a wilderness, and a desert, and the proud strength thereof shall fail, and the mountains of Israel shall be desolate, because there is none to pass by them,E ridurrò questa terra in una solitudine, e in un deserto, e la superba sua possanza verrà meno; e i monti d'Israele saran desolati, talmente che nissuno fia, che vi passi.And I wil geue the land into a wildernes, & into a desert, and the proude strength therof shal faile, and the mountaines of Israel shal be desolate, because there is none to passe by them.Et dabo terram in solitudinem et in desertum, et deficiet superba fortitudo ejus: et desolabuntur montes Israël, eo quod nullus sit qui per eos transeat: 29And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall have made their land waste and desolate, for all their abominations which they have committed.E conosceranno, ch'io sono il Signore, quando la terra loro avrò ridotta in solitudine, e in deserto a motivo di tutte le abbominazioni, ch'essi han no commesse:And they shal know that I am the Lord, when I shal geue their land desolate and desert for al their abominations, which they haue wrought.et scient quia ego Dominus, cum dedero terram eorum desolatam et desertam, propter universas abominationes suas quas operati sunt. 30And thou son of man: the children of thy people, that talk of thee by the walls, and in the doors of the houses, and speak one to another each man to his neighbour, saying: Come, and let us hear what is the word that cometh forth from the Lord.Ma quanto a te, o figliuolo dell'uomo, i figliuoli del popol tuo parlano di te lungo le mura, e sulle porte delle case, e dicono l'uno all'altro, il vicino al vicino: Venite, andiamo a sentire qual sia la parola, che viene dal Signore.And thou sonne of man: the children of thy people, which speake of thee by the walles, and in the doores of houses, and one saith to an other, a man to his neighbour, speaking: Come, and let vs heare what is the word that procedeth from our Lord.Et tu, fili hominis, filii populi tui, qui loquuntur de te juxta muros et in ostiis domorum, et dicunt unus ad alterum, vir ad proximum suum, loquentes: Venite, et audiamus quis sit sermo egrediens a Domino.
31And they come to thee, as if people were coming in, and my people sit before thee: and hear thy words, and do them not: for they turn them into a song of their mouth, and their heart goeth after their covetousness.E vengono a te, come se venisse un popolo, e si pone a sedere dinanzi a te il popol mio, e ascoltan le tue parole, ma non le mettono in pratica, perchè essi le cambiano in cantico da cantare colla loro bocca, e il loro cuore va dietro alla loro avarizia.And they come to thee, as if a people should goe in, and my people sitte before thee: and they heare thy wordes, and doe them not: because they turne them into a song of their mouth, and their hart foloweth their auarice.Et veniunt ad te, quasi si ingrediatur populus, et sedent coram te populus meus: et audiunt sermones tuos, et non faciunt eos: quia in canticum oris sui vertunt illos, et avaritiam suam sequitur cor eorum. 32And thou art to them as a musical song which is sung with a sweet and agreeable voice: and they hear thy words, and do them not.E tu sei per essi come un cantico in musica cantato da voce dolce, e soave, ed eglino ascoltan le tue parole, e non le mettono in pratica.And thou art vnto them as a musical song which is sung with swete and pleasant sound: and they heare thy wordes, and doe them not.Et es eis quasi carmen musicum, quod suavi dulcique sono canitur: et audiunt verba tua, et non faciunt ea. 33And when that which was foretold shall come to pass, for behold it is coming, then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them.Ma quando avverrà quel, che è stato predetto (ed ecco, che è avvenuto), allora conosceranno, che tra di loro è stato un Profeta.And when it shal come to passe which was told before (for behold it cometh) then shal they know that there was a propher among them.Et cum venerit quod prædictum est (ecce enim venit), tunc scient quod prophetes fuerit inter eos.
33:2
Take. Before (chap. 3:17.) God made the choice, (Calmet) as he does here, ver. 7. He confirms the authority of those who are appointed to govern.
Calmet
Meanest. Literally, "last," (Haydock) which seems to denote such as are chosen without regard to their dignity or obscurity in life, Genesis 47:2., and 3 Kings 12:31. (Calmet)
Worthington
Pastors are not excused from admonishing the people for fear of danger or despair of reclaiming them, as each one is bound to do his duty. (St. Jerome) (Worthington)
33:6
Haydock
Iniquity, not regarding the admonitions of his pastor; (chap. 3:18.; Calmet) or rather of conscience, when the guide proves faithless and silent, as in this instance. (Haydock)
St. Augustine
The people were persuaded that none suffered except for some fault, ver. 10.; Jeremias 31:30., Daniel 13:52., and Genesis 44:16. The author of the Book of Job takes great pains to remove this mistake. God sometimes sends crosses for a trial, (Calmet) and to increase the merit of his servants; though it be very true, (Haydock) "no one is miserable except he deserve it." (St. Augustine)
33:8
St. Jerome
Surely die a temporal, (Theodoret) or rather an eternal death. (St. Jerome)
33:10
St. Jerome
Live? They suppose their case to be desperate, as their fathers had sinned, Ezechiel 18. The prophet shews that none are punished except for their own faults, (Calmet) and that "each one has free-will to be saved or to be lost." (St. Jerome)
33:11
Calmet
Desire. The sinner's damnation is not an object of God's pleasure, Ezechiel 18:23. (Calmet)
Worthington
He has an antecedent will to save all. He knocks at the door of our heart, (Apocalypse 3:20.) and if man do what depends on him, nothing will be wanting on the part of God. (St. Thomas Aquinas, [Summa Theologiae] 1:2. q. 109. and 112.) (Worthington)
33:12
33:17
Equitable; as we are much more inclined to vice than to virtue. This argumentation is inconclusive, as God owes nothing to man; and what good the latter does, is an effect of his grace. The propensity to evil is no excuse, as man is still free. He is judged according to the dispositions in which he is found at the hour of death; yet we must not infer, that those who have spent their lives in sinning will be no worse treated than the person who dies guilty of a single crime.
33:21
Year of the World 3417, Year before Christ 587.
Sanctius
Twelfth. Roman Septuagint, "tenth." Syriac, "eleventh year,...in the twelfth month;" which Theodoret thinks more probable, as the city was taken in the ninth of the fourth month of that year. Yet even so, it is strange that the news should not arrive before. Some think (Calmet) that the messenger came also to announce what happened after the death of Godolias. (Sanctius)
Haydock
Captivity. Here it is evident that the prophet dates from that event, Ezechiel 1., etc. (Haydock)
Worthington
As he prophesied on the very day when the city was besieged, (chap. 24:2.) so (chap. 24:26.) he foretold that one should come three years after to inform him of the capture. (Worthington)
Haydock
Then the people would believe him, (ibid. Ezechiel 24:27.) Calmet) and he would open his mouth boldly, ver. 22. (Haydock)
33:24
Calmet
Places. He has answered those who despaired, ver. 10. Now he turns to the presumptuous, who expected to be treated like Abraham, though they did not imitate his virtues. (Calmet)
They perhaps entertained these sentiments before the death of Godolias, thinking to establish themselves in the land. Afterwards the prophet Jeremias could not prevail on them to remain, though God promised them security.
33:25
Haydock
To them. Grabe marks to ver. 27., Thus saith, etc., as wanting in the Septuagint, though not in the Alexandrian copy. St. Jerome reckons eight verses or lines omitted. (Haydock)
The Complutensian and Theodoret read them with some variations.
The blood. It must be carefully extracted, Genesis 9:4., and Leviticus 7:26.
Uncleannesses; idols, in which you trust.
33:26
Swords, thinking to live thereby, (Genesis 27:40.) and to be secure. But I will disarm you. The pestilence shall find out those in the rocks, ver. 27.
33:30
Calmet
Walls, the resort of idle people. (Calmet)
33:31
Calmet
In to a religious meeting. (Chaldean) Perhaps they came on the sabbath to his house. Yet they made a just and song of his instructions. (Calmet)
Haydock
They heard them with pleasure, but did not reform their lives. (Haydock)
33:33
Calmet
Coming. The desolation of Jerusalem, (Haydock) and what I have foretold, hath already taken place; or, the news will presently arrive: as it did the following morning, ver. 21. (Calmet)
33:2
Pastors are not excused, omitting to admonish their flocke either for feare of danger, or for despare of the sinners amendment.
33:6
For euerie one shal be iudged as he discargeth or neglecteth his owne office. S. Iere.
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Gods absolute or consequent wil is alvvayes fulfilled: but not his conditional or an ecedent. As is noted ch. 18. v. 23.
God being alwayes ready to shew mercie, knocking at the dore of our hart Apoc. 3. v. 20. it is of mens owne vvilfulnes that they are not sa•e•: according to that general Axiome. Man doing that in him •••th God •• not vvanting of his part to saue al. S. Tho 1. 2. q. 109. a. 6. & q. 112. a. 3.
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As he prophecied ch. 24. v. 2 the very day vvhen the siege begane: so he foreshewed also. v. 26. that one flying avvay should tel of the taking and spoyling of the citie three yeares after.
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Teodoreto di Cirro † 458 d.C. Letters of the Blessed Theodoret, Bishop of Cyprus 78
… Nothing will so vex him as to see them fighting and smiting again. Our Lord is full of loving-kindness. He re ceives the repentance of sinners. Let us hear His own words: “As I live saith the Lord I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live.”
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san Gregorio Nazianzeno † 389 d.C. Select Orations of Saint Gregory Nazianzen 2.64
… for it is better to pass them by, together with the Lord’s righteous sentence and declaration concerning them, that wickedness came from Babylon from ancient judges, who seemed to govern the people; how are we affected by Ezekiel, the beholder and expositor of the mighty mysteries and visions? By his injunction to the watchmen
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san Gregorio Nazianzeno † 389 d.C. Select Orations of Saint Gregory Nazianzen 16.17
… Let us not wait to be convicted by others, let us be our own examiners. An important medicine for evil is confession, and care to avoid stumbling. I will be first to do so, as I have made my report to my people from on high, and performed the duty of a watcher. For I did not conceal the coming of the sword that I might save my own soul
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san Giovanni Crisostomo † 407 d.C. Treatise Concerning the Christian Priesthood 6.1
… And therefore his chastisement is inevitable, though he that perishes happen to be but one. “For if when the sword comes, the watchman does not sound the trumpet to the people, nor give them a sign, and the sword come and take any man away, he indeed is taken away on account of his iniquity, but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hands.”
sant'Agostino d'Ippona † 430 d.C. City of God 1.9
… For so long as they live, it remains uncertain whether they may not come to a better mind. These selfish persons have more cause to fear than those to whom it was said through the prophet, “He is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand.”
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sant'Agostino d'Ippona † 430 d.C. Sermons on Selected Lessons of the New Testament 87.15
… that wicked man indeed shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand.”
Anonymous The Teaching of the Apostles 5
5. The apostles further appointed: Let there be elders and deacons, like the Levites; and subdeacons, like those who carried the vessels of the court of the sanctuary of the Lord; and an overseer,
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san Giovanni Crisostomo † 407 d.C. The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom 78
6. These things I say to you that receive, and to you that minister. For it is necessary to address myself to you also, that you may with much care distribute the gifts there. There is no small punishment for you, if being conscious of any wickedness in any man, you allow him to partake of this table. “His blood shall be required at your hands.”
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san Girolamo † 420 d.C. The Letters of St. Jerome 122.1
… Thus ye speak, saying, If our transgressions and our sins be upon us, and we pine away in them, how should we then live? Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live,” and again, “turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?”
Anonymous A Treatise Against the Heretic Novatian by an Anonymous Bishop 10
… Say unto them, I live, saith the Lord: for I do not desire the death of the sinner; but I desire that the sinner should turn from his evil way, and live: therefore return ye from your evil way: why do ye give yourselves over to death, O house of Israel?”
Pseudo-Cyprian Exhortation to Repentance 1
Also in the same: “And thou, son of man, say unto the house of Israel, Even as ye have spoken, saying, Our errors and our iniquities are in us, and we waste away in them, and how shall we live? Say unto them, I live, saith the Lord: if I will the death of a sinner, only let him turn from his way, and he shall live.”
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papa san Clemente I † 99 d.C. The First Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians 8
The ministers of the grace of God have, by the Holy Spirit, spoken of repentance; and the Lord of all things has himself declared with an oath regarding it, “As I live, saith the Lord, I desire not the death of the sinner, but rather his repentance;”
sant'Ignazio di Antiochia † 108 d.C. Epistle to the Philadelphians: Shorter and Longer Versions 11
… And I myself give thanks to God for you, because ye have received them: and the Lord will also receive you. But may those that dishonoured them be forgiven through the grace of Jesus Christ, “who wisheth not the death of the sinner, but his repentance.”
san Giustino † 165 d.C. Dialogue with Trypho 47
… For the goodness and the loving-kindness of God, and His boundless riches, hold righteous and sinless the man who, as Ezekiel
Tertulliano † 220 d.C. The Five Books Against Marcion 2.13
… a father in His mercy, a master in His discipline; a father in the mildness of His power, a master in its severity; a father who must be loved with dutiful affection, a master who must needs be feared; be loved, because He prefers mercy to sacrifice; be feared because He dislikes sin; be loved, because He prefers the sinner’s repentance to his death;
Tertulliano † 220 d.C. The Five Books Against Marcion 4.10
… and how Jonathan the son of Saul blotted out by his deprecation the guilt of a violated fast. Why should I recount the frequent restoration of the nation itself after the forgiveness of their sins?—by that God, indeed, who will have mercy rather than sacrifice, and a sinner’s repentance rather than his death.
Tertulliano † 220 d.C. The Five Books Against Marcion 5.11
… How inflexible was He at the tears of Hezekiah! How ready to forgive Ahab, the husband of Jezebel, the blood of Naboth, when he deprecated His anger. How prompt in pardoning David on his confession of his sin —preferring, indeed, the sinner’s repentance to his death, of course because of His gracious attribute of mercy.
Tertulliano † 220 d.C. Scorpiace 1
… Once for all Christ died for us, once for all He was slain that we might not be slain. If He demands the like from me in return, does He also look for salvation from my death by violence? Or does God importune for the blood of men, especially if He refuses that of bulls and he-goats? Assuredly He had rather have the repentance than the death of the sinner.
Tertulliano † 220 d.C. On Repentance 4
To all sins, then, committed whether by flesh or spirit, whether by deed or will, the same God who has destined penalty by means of judgment, has withal engaged to grant pardon by means of repentance, saying to the people, “Repent thee, and I will save thee;” and again, “I live, saith the Lord, and I will (have) repentance rather than death.”
Tertulliano † 220 d.C. On Modesty 18
What if, even here, you should conceive to reply that communion is indeed denied to sinners, very especially such as had been “polluted by the flesh,” but (only) for the present; to be restored, to wit, as the result of penitential suing: in accordance with that clemency of God which prefers a sinner’s repentance to his death?
san Tascio Cecilio Cipriano † 258 d.C. On the Lapsed 36
… “When you turn and lament, then shall you be saved, and shall know where you have been.” And again: “I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord, but that he should return and live.”
san Tascio Cecilio Cipriano † 258 d.C. Three Books of Testimonies Against the Jews 3.115
In the fifth Psalm: “But in the grave who will confess unto Thee?” Also in the twenty-ninth Psalm: “Shall the dust make confession to Thee?” Also elsewhere that confession is to be made: “I would rather have the repentance of the sinner than his death.”
san Dionigi di Alessandria † 265 d.C. Containing Epistles, or Fragments of Epistles 3.10
… And as they saw that the conversion and repentance of such might be acceptable to Him who desires not at all the death of the sinner,
Eusebio di Cesarea † 339 d.C. The Church History of Eusebius 5.1.46
46. For through their influence many who had denied were restored, and re-begotten, and rekindled with life, and learned to confess. And being made alive and strengthened, they went to the judgment seat to be again interrogated by the governor; God, who desires not the death of the sinner,
san Giovanni Crisostomo † 407 d.C. The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom on the Epistle to the Hebrews 18
… v. 11 ), he then says, “I will that the younger women marry, bear children.” ( 1 Tim. v. 14 .) So in this place also it was not His leading will that the sacrifices should be offered. For, as He says, “I wish not the death of the sinner, as that he should turn unto [Me] and live” (
san Girolamo † 420 d.C. The Letters of St. Jerome 11
… It was the Saviour’s mission to call sinners and not the righteous; for, as He said Himself, “they that be whole need not a physician.” He wills the repentance of a sinner rather than his death,
san Girolamo † 420 d.C. The Letters of St. Jerome 122.1
… and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord.” Wherefore in a subsequent passage he says: “As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked: but that the wicked turn from his way and live.”
san Girolamo † 420 d.C. The Letters of St. Jerome 147.3
… It is still more wicked to carry them out; yet in My mercy and kindness I have permitted even this. But should the sinful thought have become the sinful deed? Should men in their pride have trampled thus on my tenderness? Nevertheless “I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live;”
sant'Agostino d'Ippona † 430 d.C. Concerning the Nature of Good, Against the Manichæans 48
O great is Thy patience, Lord, full of compassion and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy, and true; who makest Thy sun to rise upon the good and the evil, and who sendest rain upon the just and the unjust; who willest not the death of the sinner, so much as that he return and live;
sant'Agostino d'Ippona † 430 d.C. Sermons on Selected Lessons of the New Testament 21.37
… speaking, not in the Prophets, but in His Only Son (since for our sakes He was pleased that He should be the Son of Man, that He might speak to us in Him), yet shall he be forgiven when in repentance he shall have recourse to the goodness of God, who forasmuch as He “willeth not the death of the wicked, but rather that he should turn from his way and live,”
sant'Agostino d'Ippona † 430 d.C. Expositions on the Book of Psalms 145.7
… there was given the spirit of justification; there was given charity and love, wherein thou mayest do all good works; and beyond this, He will give thee also life everlasting, and fellowship with the angels: all of His mercy.…Hear the Scripture: “I will not the death of a sinner, but rather that he should turn, and live.”
Giovanni Cassiano † 435 d.C. The Conferences of John Cassian 13.7
… “Neither will God have a soul to perish, but recalleth,” meaning that he that is cast off should not altogether perish. For He is true, and lieth not when He lays down with an oath: “As I live, saith the Lord God, for I will not the death of a sinner, but that he should turn from his way and live.”
Pseudo-Irenaeus Pseud-Irenæus 1
… and they learned to confess. And being now restored to life, and having their spirits braced, they went up to the judgment-seat to be again questioned by the governor, while that God who wishes not the death of the sinner,
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Origene † 254 d.C. Origen's Commentary on Matthew 13.29
… and, since he could not perish, he could say, “Who shall separate us from the love,” etc. But he who wishes to maintain this last exposition will say that the soul even of the just man is changeable, as Ezekiel also testifies, saying, that the righteous man may abandon the commandments of God, so that his former righteousness is not reckoned unto him;
san Tascio Cecilio Cipriano † 258 d.C. On the Advantage of Patience 13
… and the things that are past perish, while those which have begun cease to be perfect; as it is written, “The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in whatever day he shall transgress;”
san Tascio Cecilio Cipriano † 258 d.C. Exhortation to Martyrdom, Addressed to Fortunatus 8
In the book of Chronicles: “The Lord is with you so long as ye also are with Him; but if ye forsake Him, He will forsake you.” In Ezekiel also: “The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in what day soever he may transgress.”
san Girolamo † 420 d.C. The Letters of St. Jerome 54.6
… Paul began badly but ended well. The start of Judas wins praise; his end is condemned because of his treachery. Read Ezekiel, “The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression; as for the wickedness of the wicked he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness.”
san Girolamo † 420 d.C. The Letters of St. Jerome 122.3
Hear the words of Ezekiel: “as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness; neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousness in the day that he sinneth.”
Anonymous A Treatise Against the Heretic Novatian by an Anonymous Bishop 13
… But if he had read that “the righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day on which he shall have erred, and the wickedness of the wicked shall not harm him from the day in which he shall have been converted,”
Anonymous A Treatise on Re-Baptism by an Anonymous Writer 13
13. For any one of us will hold it necessary, that whatever is the last thing to be found in a man in this respect, is that whereby he must be judged, all those things which he has previously done being wiped away and obliterated.
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Giovanni Cassiano † 435 d.C. The Conferences of John Cassian 17.25
… Thou shalt surely die; and if he repent of his sin and do judgment and righteousness, and if that wicked man restore the pledge and render what he hath robbed, and walk in the commandments of life, and do no righteous thing, he shall surely live, he shall not die. None of his sins which he hath committed shall be imputed unto him.”
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Giovanni Cassiano † 435 d.C. The Conferences of John Cassian 17.25
… But if one says that God revoked that severe sentence in consideration of their penitence, according to what he says by Ezekiel: “If I say to the wicked, Thou shalt surely die: and he becomes penitent for his sin, and doeth judgment and justice, he shall surely live, he shall not die;”
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2. AD FILIOS POPULI TUI, — ad Judæos populares tuos, q. d. Hactenus contra gentes jussi te vaticinari, nunc redi ad tuos, eisque quasi speculator scelera, ob eaque clades imminentes speculare, et annuntia. TERRA. — Est hebraismus. Sensus est, q. d. Cum super terram gladium induxero. Hebræi enim ponunt antecedens cum relativo.
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3. GLADIUM, — id est hostes. Nota metaphoram, vel allegoriam. Sensus enim est, q. d. Sicut tempore belli solet in urbe ex novissimis, id est infimis et plebeiis, constitui speculator, qui cives admoneat de hostium adventu; qui si idipsum non fecerit, illi mors et cædes civium imputabitur: sin ipse buccinando præmoneat, et aliquis ab hoste sibi non caveat, sanguis ejus super ipsum erit, id est ipse sibi est causa mortis, ipse suam mortem imputet sibi: ita speculator spiritualis, id est Propheta et prædicator (qualis ego sum, non ex plebeio et infimo; sed ex nobili, puta ex sacerdotali, genere a Deo electus et constitutus, ut libentius et attentius a vobis audiar), si minas Dei, ac pœnas præsentes et futuras peccatoribus non denuntiet, ipsi peccatorum mors imputabitur: sin denuntiet, et aliquis non caveat sibi, sua mors et perditio eidem imputabitur. Unde S. Clemens, lib. II Constit. Apost. cap. vi, docet Episcopum debere prædicare Evangelium. Hoc est enim tuba qua canit: «Gladius, inquit, judicium est, tuba vero sacrum Evangelium; speculator autem Episcopus, qui præest judicio et Ecclesiæ, quem oportet prædicando testari et affirmare de judicio. Si enim non denuntiatum et testatum populo erit, peccatum ignorantium ascribetur vobis.» Hinc moraliter S. Bernardus: «Sollicitudo, ait, officium Prælati est, non celsitudo.» Et Chrysostomus in epist. ad Hebr.: «Miror, ait, si quem ex his qui obtinent principatum, contigerit salvari in tanta eorum desidia, et in tot Dei adversus eos comminationibus.» Præclare S. Gregorius, homil. 17 in Evangel.: «Vos estis sal terræ. Quasi ergo inter bruta animalia petra salis debet esse sacerdos in populis. Curare namque sacerdotem necesse est, quæ singulis dicat, unumquemque qualiter admoneat, ut quisquis sacerdoti jungitur, quasi ex salis tactu æternæ vitæ sapore condiatur. Sed tunc vere aliis recta prædicamus, si dicta rebus ostendimus, si nos ipsi divino amore compungimur, et humanæ vitæ, quæ sine culpa transiri nequaquam potest, quotidianis lacrymis maculas lavamus. Tunc autem de nobis vere compungimur, si studiose patrum præcedentium facta pensamus, ut ex conspectu illorum gloriæ, in nobis nostris oculis nostra vita sordescat.» Et infra, gemens queritur, seque cum cæteris accusans, ait: «Ad exteriora negotia delapsi sumus, et aliud ex honore suscipimus, aliud ex officio exhibitionis exhibemus. Ministerium prædicationis relinquimus, et ad pœnam nostram, ut video, Episcopi vocamur, qui honoris nomen, non virtutem tenemus. Hi qui nobis commissi sunt quotidie per multas nequitias pereunt, et eos ad interiora tendere negligenter videmus. Sed quomodo nos vitam corrigere valemus alienam, qui negligimus nostram? Curis enim sæcularibus intenti, tanto insensibiliores intus efficimur, quanto ad ea quæ foris sunt studiosiores videmur. Unde bene Ecclesia de membris suis infirmantibus dicit: Posuerunt me custodem in vineis, vineam meam non custodivi. Vineæ quippe nostræ actiones sunt, quas usu quotidiani laboris excolimus. Nullum, puto, fratres charissimi, ab aliis majus præjudicium, quam a sacerdotibus tolerat Deus, quando eos quos ad aliorum correctionem posuit, dare de se exempla pravitatis cernit; quando ipsi peccamus, qui compescere peccata debuimus. Nulla animarum lucra quærimus, ad nostra quotidie studia vacamus, terrena concupiscimus, humanam gloriam intenta mente captamus. Et cum sanctitatis accipimus, et terrenis actibus implicamur. Impletum est in nobis: Et erit sicut populus, sic sacerdos. Sacerdos enim non distat a populo, quando nullo merito vitæ suæ vulgum transcendit actionem. Imploremus Jeremiæ lacrymas, consideret mortem nostram, et dejicerans dicat: Quomodo obscuratum est aurum, mutatus est color optimus, dispersi sunt lapides sanctuarii in capite omnium platearum?» Subdit deinde hac de causa Deo vindice a barbaris eversa esse templa et monasteria, depolitas urbes, agros vastatos. Ac rursum exhortans, ait: «Pensemus ergo qui unquam per linguam nostram conversi, qui de perverso suo opere nostra increpatione correpti, pœnitentiam egerunt, quis luxuriam ex nostra eruditione deseruit, quis avaritiam, quis superbiam declinavit? Pensemus quod lucrum Deo fecimus, nos qui accepto talento, ab eo ad negotium missi sumus; etergo dicit: Negotiamini dum venio. Quale ei animarum lucrum de nostra negotiatione monstrabi- mus? Ponamus ante oculos nostros illum tremendum districtionis diem, quo judex veniet, et rationem cum servis suis quibus talenta sua credidit ponet. Ecce in majestate terribili, inter Angelorum atque Archangelorum choros videbitur. Ibi Petrus cum Judæa conversa, quam post se traxit, apparebit. Ibi Paulus conversum, ut ita dixerim, mundum ducens. Ibi Andreas post se Achaiam, ibi Joannes Asiam, Thomas Indiam, in conspectu sui judicis conversam ducet. Ibi omnes Dominici gregis arietes cum animarum lucris apparebunt, qui sanctis suis prædicationibus Deo post se subditum gregem trahunt. Cum igitur tot pastores cum gregibus suis ante æterni Pastoris oculos venerint, nos miseri quid dicturi sumus, qui ad Dominum nostrum post negotium vacui redimus; qui pastorum nomen habuimus, et oves quas ex nutrimento nostro debemus ostendere, non habemus? Ingrediuntur electi, sacerdotum manibus expiati, cœlestem patriam: et sacerdotes ipsi per vitam improbam ad inferni supplicia festinant. Cui ergo rei, cui similes dixerim sacerdotes malos, nisi aquæ baptismatis, quæ peccata baptizatorum diluens illos ad regnum cœleste mittit, et ipsa postea in cloacas descendit?» Hæc et plura Gregorius lectu dignissima, et factu necessaria.
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5. Sanguis ejus in ipso erit, — id est ipse causa erit suæ mortis, nec in alium eam poterit conferre (1).
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6. ANIMAM (id est hominem. Est synecdoche, q. d. Si aliquem ex eis hostis occiderit), ILLE QUIDEM IN INIQUITATE (id est ob iniquitatem et scelera sua, punietur et morietur; quia Deus hostes non immittit nisi ob peccata populi; tamen) SANGUINEM EJUS DE MANU SPECULATORIS REQUIRAM, — id est puniam speculatorem ut homicidam; quia mortem alterius imminentem, quam prædicere, quemque præmonere debebat, prædicendo et præmonendo, quantum in se erat, non impedivit.
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7. SPECULATOREM DEDI TE, — o Ezechiel! Accommodat thesin ad hypothesin, ut et Ezechiel Judæis prophetet, et Judæi eum audiant, eique credant. S. Clemens, lib. II Constit. Apost. cap. vi, ex doctrina S. Petri et Apostolorum ita sancit de Episcopo: «Vos Episcopos speculatores populi esse oportet, quod vos quoque speculatorem habeatis Christum. Et vos igitur estote boni speculatores populi Dei. Ait enim Dominus unicuique nostrum per Ezechielem: Fili hominis, speculatorem dedi te domui Israel,» etc. Audi S. Prosperum, lib. I De Vita contemplat. cap. xx: «Speculatorem dedi te, hoc, inquit, est dicere, si ei peccata sua non annuntiaveris, si eum non argueris, ut ab impietate sua convertatur et vivat: et te, quia non increpasti; et ipsum, qui te tacente, peccavit, flammis perennibus perdam. Quis tam saxeus, tam ferreus erit, quem sententia ipsa non percellat?» Et S. Augustinus, homil. 7, inter 50: «Si diligenter, ait, attenditis, omnes sacerdotes in grandi periculo esse cognoscetis. Ipsis enim contestatur Spiritus Sanctus dicens, Isaiæ LVIII: Clama, ne cesses. Et Ezech. XXXIII: Si non annuntiaveris iniquo iniquitatem suam, sanguinem ejus de manu tua requiram. Et Apostolus, Hebr. XIII: Ipsi pervigilant tanquam rationem reddituri pro animabus vestris.» Si quisque pro se vix poterit rationem reddere in die judicii, quid faciet pastor, a quo omnium subditorum animas requiret Deus? Egregie quoque Origenes, homil. 7 in Josue: «Tu, inquit, qui Ecclesiæ præsides, corporis Christi es oculus: vide ergo ut omnia circumspicias, omnia circumlustres, etiam ventura prædicas. Pastor es, vides oviculas Domini ignaras periculi ferri ad præcipitia, et per prærupta pendere, nec occurris? non revocas? non saltem voce cohibes, et correptionis clamore deterres? sic memor es Dominici sacramenti, ut, cum ille derelictis nonaginta novem in cœlestibus, propter unam oviculam, quæ erraverat in terras descenderit, et inventam vectaverit humeris suis ad cœlum, nos in nullo prorsus in curandis oviculis magistri pastoris sequamur exemplum?» Rursum S. Bernardus in Sententiis: «Pastorum est, inquit, vigilare super gregem propter tria necessaria: videlicet, ad disciplinam, ad custodiam, ad preces. Ad disciplinam, propter morum correctionem, ne grex commissus propria molestia deficiat. Ad custodiam, propter diabolicam suggestionem, ne hostili seducatur calliditate. Ad preces, propter tentationum instantiam, ne vincatur a pusillanimitate. In disciplina rigor est justitiæ, in custodia spiritus consilii, in prece affectus compassionis.» Hinc secundo, disce hic quam Deus velit principes et prælatos sollicite monere et libere redarguere peccantes: ni enim id faciant, eis mortem intentat. Quocirca Nehemias, cap. v, audiens clamorem populi propter gravamina, quæ patiebatur a divitibus, increpavit optimates et magistratus. Idem fecit pro eo quod multi portando onera, diem sabbati profanabant. Daniel discrete, sed libere arguit regem Baltasar exemplo patris sui. Rex eum patienter audivit: imo licet ei Daniel exitium intentaret, magnifice tamen eum honoravit, Daniel v. S. Joannes Baptista miro fervore corripuit pharisæos, dicens: «Progenies viperarum, quis demonstravit vobis fugere a ventura ira?» Matth. cap. III. S. Stephanus in concilio Judæos acriter reprehendit, dicens: «Dura cervice et incircumcisi corde et auribus, vos semper Spiritui Sancto resistitis: sicut patres vestri, ita et vos,» Actor. VII. S. Paulus intuens Elymam magum, qui nitebatur avertere Paulum proconsulem a fide, dixit illi: «O plene omni dolo, et omni fallacia, fili diaboli, et inimice omnis justitiæ, non desinis subvertere vias Domini rectas.» S. Macedonius Anachoreta jussit judices Imperatoris ex equo descendere, ac renuntiare Imperatori: sciret se esse hominem, ac ejusdem naturæ cum aliis; quare non tam crudeliter curaret e medio tolli homines, qui sunt vivæ et spirantes Dei imagines, præsertim cum ipse Imperator tam ægre tulerit conjugis suæ imaginem æneam contumelia affici, ut propterea tot homines trucidare velit. Ita Theodoretus in ejus Vita, et Baronius, anno Christi 388. Isaacius monachus Valentem Imperatorem proficiscentem ad bellum libere redarguit, eique interitum prædixit. Cumque Valens eum capi et custodiri juberet, donec a bello victor rediret, dixit Isaacius: «Eneca etiam, inquit, si mendacia deprehenderis verba mea.» Et vere: nam Valens a Gothis victus in casa ab eis combustus est: atque Isaacius absens in carcere suis nuntiavit diem et horam necis ejus; quin et nidore assarum carnium ejus repletus est. Ita Nicephorus, lib. XI, cap. L. S. Amandus Episcopus, Romæ in ecclesia S. Petri pernoctans, vidit S. Petrum, qui ei jussit ut ad Dagobertum regem Francorum pergeret, eumque de suis peccatis corriperet, quod et fecit, ideoque regia extrusus est. Sed tandem resipiscenti Dagoberto Amandus gratus fuit. Ita habet ejus Vita. Verum advertat Prælatus, et monitor, quod correctio non debeat esse nimis severa et ultrix; sed mansueta, et talis, ut ex charitate proficisci videatur; alioqui noxia est. Nota est visio S. Carpi anno Domini 59, qui in nimis indignans in Gentiles, quod fidelem quemdam a fide averterant, optansque eos ad tartara detrudi, vidit Christum eis manum porrigentem, ac dicentem Carpo: «Percute adversum me: paratus enim sum iterum pro salvandis hominibus pati: tu autem inspice an tibi utile sit, hanc in gehenna mansionem præferre Dei et angelorum consortio.» Rem fuse narrat S. Dionysius, epist. ad Demophilum. Cum Ameras Tharsi, dux Saracenorum, contra Romanos cum exercitu profectus esset, atque in Herculis vicum milites deprædatum misisset, quidam presbyter Themel nomine, sacrificium incruentum peragens, ut agnovit Saracenorum irruptionem, relicto sacrificandi munere, ita ut erat indutus, manibus gestans Ecclesiæ mysterium, sic eos qui invaserant propulsavit, et multos vulneravit; non paucos interfecit, reliquis in fugam versis. Cum vero Episcopus idcirco ei sacris interdiceret, interdicti relaxationem petiit: postquam non impetravit, ad Agarenos se contulit, et christianam fidem ejuravit, atque cum ipsis egressus non solum Cappadociam, et finitima loca vexavit, sed etiam usque ad Asiam, quæ minor dicitur, pervenit: et quanta detrimenta intulerit, nec scribere quidem nobis fas est, inquit Curopalates, et ex eo Baronius, anno Christi 957. Quanto præstitisset Episcopum leniter cum eo egisse, vel pœnitenti et petenti interdictum relaxasse?
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10. PECCATA NOSTRA SUPER NOS SUNT, — nos gravant, et ducunt ad mortem.
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11. NOLO MORTEM IMPII. — «Nolo,» scilicet antecedenter, et quantum est ex parte mea: quia, ut sequitur, volo ut convertatur impius a via sua, et vivat; ideoque te, Ezechiel, aliosque Prophetas et prædicatores ad eos mitto, eisque sub pœna mortis præcipio, ut eos moneant, arguant, ac ad pœnitentiam invitent. Atque sicut exterius per prædicatores, ita et interius per sanctos gratiæ impulsus, perque terrores et consolationes, quos eis immitto, ad eamdem illos invito. Sine his enim frustranea et inanis foret omnis exterior prædicatio. Quod si tot modis a me excitati, ipsi aures obturent, et converti nolint: tunc ego consequenter volam et decernam eorum mortem, quasi meritum eorum supplicium, quo cæteri terreantur. Non ergo per Deum, sed per peccatores stat, quod ipsi in peccatis maneant, pereant et damnentur. Hoc est quod ait Sapiens Eccli. xv, 11: «Non dicas: Per Deum abest; quæ enim odit ne feceris.» Vide dicta cap. XVIII, vers. 23 (1). Respondent Deus (vers. 11) non velle se mortem, sed ut revertatur et vivat. Et apostrophen facit ad desperantes, «convertimini,» etc. Atque ut ostendat qui sunt impii ad quos loquitur, sequens sermo demonstrat (vers. 11): «quare moriemini, domus Israel?» Atque succurrere volens Dominus, «illis qui spe periclitantur dicit Eccli. V: Ne tardes converti ad Dominum, neque differas de die in diem: subito enim veniet ira illius, et in tempore vindictæ disperdet te. Illis qui desperatione periclitantur quid dicit? In quacumque die impius conversus fuerit, omnes iniquitates ejus obliviscar. Propter illos ergo, qui desperatione periclitantur, proposuit indulgentiæ portum: propter illos, qui spe periclitantur, et dilationibus illuduntur, fecit diem mortis incertum. Quando veniat ultimus dies, nescis. Ingratus es, si eum exspectas, quia hodiernum habes in quo corrigaris.»
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12. IMPIETAS IMPII NON NOCEBIT EI, IN QUACUMQUE DIE CONVERSUS FUERIT AB IMPIETATE SUA. — Prudenter S. Augustinus, tract. 33 in Joannem, in hominum vitia invehens, tom. IX: «Homines, ait, periclitantur, et sperando, et desperando. Sperando, dum dicunt: Bonus est Deus, faciam quod mihi placet, quod libet: desperando,» dum ob gravia peccata quæ fecerunt, «dicunt: Jam damnandi sumus, quare non quod volumus facimus? Metuendum est ne te occidat spes, et, cum multum speraveris de misericordia incidas in judicium. Metuendum est rursus ne te occidat desperatio,» etc. Hinc
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13. ETIAM SI DIXERO JUSTO QUOD VITA VIVAT, — scilicet, si permanserit in justitia sua.
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14. FECERIT JUDICIUM ET JUSTITIAM, — innocenter et juste vixerit.
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15. MANDATIS VITÆ, — quæ ducunt ad vitam præsentem et æternam.
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17. ET DIXERUNT, etc. NON EST ÆQUI PONDERIS, — id est æqua; Septuaginta, recta, id est non est æquo pondere rationis et justitiæ librata, q. d. Non æque, non recte nobiscum, puta cum piis et impiis, agit Deus. Vide dicta cap. XVIII, sub finem. Et (id est cum) ipsorum via injusta — iniqua, prava et detorta sit.
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18. IN EIS, — propter eas.
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21. ET FACTUM EST IN DUODECIMO ANNO, etc., TRANSMIGRATIONIS NOSTRÆ. — Hinc patet Ezechielem annos suos consignare per æram transmigrationis Jechoniæ, uti sæpe superius dixi. VENIT AD ME QUI FUGERAT, — expugnata jam urbe Jerusalem; uti prædixerat illi Deus, cap. XXIV, vers. 23. Expugnata enim fuit Jerusalem anno undecimo, mense quarto, die quinta, Jerem. cap. XXXIX, vers. 2; facile ergo spatio sesquianni potuit Ezechiel in Babylone accipere nuntium de ejus expugnatione: imo potius mirum est, quod non citius eum acceperit. Verum in tanta vastitate, et paucitate eorum qui cladem Hierosolymæ effugerant, atque in tanta locorum intercapedine, id mirandum non est, cum quisque de se et vita sollicitus, parum de clade hac in Babylone nuntianda cogitaret.
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22. MANUS DOMINI (id est virtus, efficacia et operatio Domini) afflaverat me pridie spiritu prophetico, ut aperte prædicarem in Babylone excidium Jerusalem nuper factum, et non silerem quod postridie nuntius adveniens reipsa completum, et verum esse nuntiavit. Hoc enim est, quod ait: APERUITQUE (Dominus) OS MEUM, — id est dedit mihi loquendi libertatem et audaciam.
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23. IN SANGUINE, — cum sanguine comeditis carnem. Sanguinis enim esus lege vetitus erat, Levit. XIX, 26. Alii exponunt, q. d. Qui inter comedendum de sanguine proximi fundendo cogitatis: aut, postquam sanguinem innocentem fudistis, cruentis adhuc manibus cibum securi sumitis, quasi nihil mali fecissetis. Ita Maldonatus. OCULOS LEVATIS AD IMMUNDITIAS VESTRAS, — cum amore, reverentia, spe, veneratione, affectu, desiderio respicitis ad idola vestra. Levare ergo oculos ad idola, symbolum erat et signum adorationis eorum. Ita Chaldæus, Vatablus et alii. Vel proprie, q. d. Respicitis ad libidines et turpitudines vestras.
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24. IN RUINOSIS HIS, — in ruinis Jerusalem et Judææ a Chaldæis eversæ, q. d. Hi relicti a Chaldæis in Judæa cum dolere deberent, gaudent, quod pauci ipsi totam Judæam sint possessuri, dicuntque id non esse mirum, eo quod uni Abrahæ Deus illam promiserit: illi autem pro Abrahamo sint multi. Judæis tibiam Ezechielis et Prophetarum respuentibus, hamum Chaldæorum immisit, quo capti et necati sunt. Hinc Themistocles in regendo duo adhibenda esse numina dicebat, πείθω καὶ βίαν, ut qui illius suavitatem contempserint, hujus stimulos sentiant. Id declararat apologus (nostro huic antistrophus et dissimiliter similis) Phædri, lib. III, cap. XV, de cicada, quæ rogata a noctua ut taceret, nec somnum impediret, cum illa nollet, invitata a noctua ad Palladis nectar, ut sitim canendo contractam exstingueret, veniens ab ea occisa est. «Sic viva quod negarat, tribuit mortua.» Ita impii qui viventes noluerunt obsequi Deo et Prophetis, moriendo obsequentur. Canunt illi suas cantilenas lascivi, silere nolunt, jubente Deo, qui proinde morte eos puniens silentium eis indicit. Tales et hodie sunt multi, qui prurientes auribus conciones serias et efficaces fastidiunt, elegantes et curiosas sectantur; similes Atheniensibus tempore S. Pauli, qui ad nihil aliud vacabant, nisi ut aliquid novi dicerent, vel audirent, Actor. XVII. Verum Dei præco propterea animum non despondeat, nec a concione cesset, nec rursum modum concionis mutet, ut eorum auribus se accommodet easque scalpat; sed perstet in suo munere, gradu et spiritu, nec dubitet Deum copiosum ex hoc labore et ministerio fructum esse collecturum. Et esto paucos converteret, tamen nec concio fructu, nec ipse mercede sua condigna frustrabitur. Unius enim animæ conversio et salus, condignum omnis laboris est pretium. Refert Cicero, lib. De Claris Orat., Antimachum nobilem poetam, cum convocatis auditoribus, legeret eis suum carmen, eumque loquentem omnes præter unum Platonem reliquissent, dixisse: «Legam nihilominus, Plato enim unus mihi instar est omnium.»
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26. STETISTIS IN GLADIIS, — cum gladiis vestris, quasi parati ex habitu et consuetudine occidere innocentes. Ita R. David. Vel, stetistis innixi gladiis vestris, quasi iis confisi, ac dicentes: «Manus nostra excelsa, et non Dominus fecit hæc omnia.» Unde Chaldæus vertit: Stetistis in fortitudine vestra.
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27. QUI IN RUINOSIS (in ruinis Jerusalem) HABITANT. GLADIO CADENT. — Godolias enim cum suis occisus est ab Ismaele, et post eum alii multi a Chaldæis. EO QUOD (ita ut) NULLUS SIT.
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30. QUI LOQUUNTUR DE TE, — qui obloquantur, et irrident te, uti otiosi et sanniones in foro facere solent.
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31. QUASI SI INGREDIATUR POPULUS, — id est sicut solet populus ingredi, scilicet confertim, et multi simul. Ita Septuaginta. IN CANTICUM, — id est rident, contemnunt, vertunt in jocum et canticum tuas minas et conciones.
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32. ET ES EIS QUASI CARMEN MUSICUM, — q. d. Audiunt te voluptatis et recreationis ergo, non doctrinæ, ut vitam corrigant, quasi audirent te scite pulsantem instrumentum musicum, solo concentu delectati. Septuaginta, et es eis quasi vox psalterii; Chaldæus, quasi canticum organorum; Vatablus, velut canticum amorum, vel amatorium: canticum, id est canens amatoria, q. d. Tu es illis ludibrio, rident te, quasi histrio eorum esses. Sic Quintilianus, lib. I, cap. x, ait: «Assignare carmen allectationi, et carmen componere ad lyram.» Hinc et proverbium: «Musice vivit,» id est otiose et voluptuarie vivit: sed horum musica fit «Bœotica cantilena,» id est per luctum et funebre carmen convertitur, dum extrema gaudii luctus occupat, et sanniones sentiunt minas Dei, quas ante riserant. Narrat Herodotus, lib. II, Cyrum, cum Iones pacis conditiones quas prius repudiarant, ab eo reposcerent, dixisse eis apologum tibicinis, qui ad alliciendos pisces tibia cecinerat, sed cum nihil proficeret, sagenam misit in mare, multosque pertraxit: quos cum palpitantes intueretur: «Temperate, ait, jam a saltationibus, quia, me canente, noluistis saltare.» Ita Deus,
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… Ezechiele riceve sempre nella ricorrenza della n. la parola di Jahweh (Ez. 26, 1; 29, 17; 31, 1; 33, 1).
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… santificazione (cf. 1ª prop. di Giansenio, condannata da Innocenzo X.: Denz-U, 1092). È certo anche che Dio elargisce la G. ai peccatori perché si convertano: «Vivo ego, dicit Dominus, nolo mortem impii, sed ut convertatur impius a via sua et vivat» (Ez. 33, 11). Né restano privi del beneficio della G. gl'infedeli sia positivi (che rigettarono la fede con il peccato) sia negativi (che non hanno la fede perché non conoscono la Rivelazione …
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… 87, a. 4); d) colui che è in Grazia di Dio può essere assolto da alcuni peccati veniali senza la remissione degli altri peccati veniali; e) i peccati cancellati nel Sacramento della P. non rivivono a causa di susseguente peccato (cf. Is. 1, 18; 43, 25; Ez. 33, 12-16; Conc. …
… Il fatto della r. dei m. è oggi comunemente ammesso, perché fondato, almeno implicitamente, su testi della Scrittura (Ez. 18, 21; 33, 12; Joel. 2, 18; Gal. 3, 4; Hebr. 6, 10; soprattutto la parabola del figliolo prodigo [Lc. 15, 11-32], che viene ristabilito in tutti i suoi precedenti diritti) e in affermazioni esplicite …
ÁGRAPHON (GRECO: «COSA NON SCRITTA»; PLURALE AGRAPHA)
… accompagnato da I Thes. 5, 21; Giustino, C. Triph. 47, 6, attribuisce a Gesù il detto: «Nello stato in cui vi sorprenderò vi giudicherò»; ma delle altre venti citazioni di questa frase, nessuna l'attribuisce a Gesù, molte al «profeta» (cioè a Ez. 18, 24-30; 33, 12-16, 20). Nel codice D (cf. A. Merk, Novum Test. gr., 4ª ed., Roma 1942, pp. 69, 212) la frase di Gesù al trasgressore del sabato (al posto di Lc. 6, 5) dev'essere una trovata posteriore …
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · Vulgata Clementina · Douay-Rheims originale (Douai 1609-10), trascrizione 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')). Pubblico dominio.