Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
In the preceding chapter he brought onto the stage the harlot woman, enticing and destroying all with her enticements, cosmetics, and deceits. Now, in order to call everyone away from her, in this chapter he brings onto the stage a woman, indeed a queen, and as it were a most chaste and most wise goddess, namely Wisdom herself, who as the rival and adversary of the harlot calls everyone from her to herself, promising them: first, that she will teach truth, justice, knowledge, the fear of God, prudence, and fortitude. Second, in verse 15, promising kingdom, riches, and glory: all of which she asserts are hers, and are given by her to her disciples. Third, in verse 22, rising higher, she asserts that she is coeternal with God, and that God through her created and arranged heaven and earth, and all things that are in them. Fourth, in verse 32, concluding, she exhorts all to hear her, and so to draw life and salvation from the Lord; for if they spurn her, she threatens eternal death and misery.
Vulgate Text: Proverbs 8:1-36
1. Does not wisdom cry aloud, and prudence give her voice? 2. On the highest and loftiest summits above the road, standing in the midst of the paths, 3. beside the gates of the city, at the very entrances she speaks, saying: 4. O men, to you I call, and my voice is to the sons of men. 5. Understand, little ones, shrewdness, and you fools, pay attention. 6. Hear, for I will speak of great things: and my lips shall be opened to proclaim right things. 7. My throat shall meditate on truth, and my lips shall detest wickedness. 8. All my words are just; there is nothing crooked or perverse in them; 9. they are right for those who understand, and just for those who find knowledge. 10. Receive my instruction, and not money; choose learning rather than gold. 11. For wisdom is better than all precious things: and nothing desirable can be compared to her. 12. I, wisdom, dwell in counsel, and I am present among learned thoughts. 13. The fear of the Lord hates evil: arrogance, and pride, and the evil way, and the double tongue I detest. 14. Counsel is mine, and equity; prudence is mine, fortitude is mine. 15. By me kings reign, and lawmakers decree just things: 16. by me princes command, and the powerful decree justice. 17. I love those who love me: and those who watch for me in the morning shall find me. 18. With me are riches and glory, proud wealth and justice. 19. For my fruit is better than gold and precious stone, and my produce than choice silver. 20. I walk in the ways of justice, in the midst of the paths of judgment, 21. that I may enrich those who love me, and fill their treasuries. 22. The Lord possessed me in the beginning of His ways, before He made anything from the beginning. 23. I was set up from eternity, and from of old before the earth was made. 24. The depths were not yet, and I was already conceived: the fountains of waters had not yet burst forth: 25. the mountains had not yet been established with their great mass: before the hills I was brought forth: 26. He had not yet made the earth, and the rivers, and the poles of the world. 27. When He prepared the heavens, I was present: when with a certain law and compass He enclosed the depths: 28. when He established the skies above, and balanced the fountains of waters: 29. when He set the sea its boundary, and placed a law upon the waters that they should not pass their limits: when He hung the foundations of the earth. 30. I was with Him arranging all things: and I was delighted every day, playing before Him at all times, 31. playing in the world: and my delight was to be with the sons of men. 32. Now therefore, children, hear me: Blessed are they who keep my ways. 33. Hear instruction, and be wise, and do not reject it. 34. Blessed is the man who hears me, and who watches daily at my gates, and waits at the posts of my doors. 35. He who shall find me shall find life, and shall draw salvation from the Lord: 36. but he who sins against me shall hurt his own soul. All who hate me love death.
First Part of the Chapter
Note first, that wisdom is here introduced by poetic and dramatic prosopopoeia as a person, who assumes the organs, gestures, voice, and speech of the human body. The same was done in chapter 1, and Sirach chapter 24, and Wisdom chapter 7. For thus a discourse is both more elegant and more effective, when wisdom herself, that is, honesty and virtue itself, displaying her beauty, fruits, and gifts, and inviting all to herself, is brought onto the stage, so that each one, seeing her and hearing her speak, enticed by her divine beauty and speech, may immediately follow her. So Gregory Nazianzen, oration 39.
Note second, that wisdom, or the virtue of prudence, in this place, as also everywhere in the wisdom books, is taken in general, insofar as it abstracts from, or is common to, both uncreated and created wisdom; that is, wisdom here signifies both created and uncreated, which in reality is the same as the Godhead and God, insofar as it communicates itself to created wisdom and to creatures. Whence some things are said here that more befit created wisdom, as what is said in verse 22 according to the Septuagint: The Lord created me in the beginning of His ways; other things more befit uncreated wisdom, as what is said in the same place: "I was set up from eternity before every creature." Hence St. Athanasius, Cyril, Hilary, and others, disputing against the Arians, take these in the literal sense of incarnate wisdom, that is, of Christ, and from them prove that Christ is God.
Following Solomon, Sirach in the whole of Ecclesiasticus chapter 24 introduces wisdom proclaiming similar, indeed the same things about herself: wherefore I have explained there most of the things that are said in this chapter.
Verse 1: Does Not Wisdom Cry Aloud?
DOES NOT WISDOM CRY ALOUD, AND PRUDENCE GIVE HER VOICE? — We heard something similar in chapter 1, verse 20: "Wisdom preaches outside, in the streets she gives her voice." The Syriac: therefore (namely to call you away from the harlot, whose rival she is) wisdom cries aloud, and prudence gives her voice.
It is remarkable that the Septuagint translates quite differently; for thus they have: "You will proclaim wisdom, so that prudence may obey you." This can be explained in four ways. First, as if to say: If you proclaim wisdom, and teach it to others by words and deeds, wisdom will obey you, will be present to you, will assist you. Second, if you proclaim wisdom and its precepts to your soul and mind with a loud voice like a herald, so that they may strike, rouse, and penetrate it, prudence in turn will obey you. Third, more plainly, if you proclaim and persuade wisdom to your soul, so that it obeys and gives itself to wisdom, wisdom in turn will give prudence its voice. Fourth, if you proclaim wisdom, that is, faith and virtue, with a great and Apostolic spirit as a herald of God, then prudence will give you its voice, that is, God will give you the spirit and speech of prudence.
Verse 2: On the Highest Summits
ON THE HIGHEST AND LOFTIEST SUMMITS ABOVE THE ROAD, STANDING IN THE MIDST OF THE PATHS. BESIDE THE GATES OF THE CITY, AT THE VERY ENTRANCES SHE SPEAKS — All these things signify in general that wisdom everywhere, both in lofty places and lowly, both in roads and crossroads and in the very gates of cities, publicly raises her voice to call all people to herself. In particular it signifies: first, that God from the highest summit of heaven proclaimed the laws and doctrines of His wisdom to men. Second, wisdom, that is, God, gave the law to Moses and the Hebrews on the summit of Mount Sinai. Third, wisdom preached continually in the temple, which was on Mount Zion, through the Priests and Scribes. There Christ and the Apostles also preached. Fourth, the Prophets, who preached the law of God, dwelt on mountains. Fifth, because in churches from elevated places, that is, from pulpits, preachers proclaim God's word and wisdom.
Mystically, the Church properly applies these things to the Blessed Virgin; hence this chapter is read in the lessons of the feast of the Blessed Virgin of the Snows, August 5, because the basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome was built on the summit of the Esquiline hill where snow miraculously fell in the summer, marking the site chosen by the Virgin herself for her church.
Verse 4: O Men, to You I Call
O MEN, TO YOU I CALL, AND MY VOICE IS TO THE SONS OF MEN. UNDERSTAND, LITTLE ONES, SHREWDNESS, AND YOU FOOLS, PAY ATTENTION — Mystically, Bede notes that wisdom, that is, virtue, demands men, not women, that is, not effeminate but virile spirits, who manfully fight against the flesh, the world, and the devil.
Verse 6: Hear, for I Will Speak of Great Things
HEAR, FOR I WILL SPEAK OF GREAT THINGS: AND MY LIPS SHALL BE OPENED TO PROCLAIM RIGHT THINGS — Wisdom wins attention for herself by promising that she will speak things that are great and right. Great, both because she treats of virtues and vices, rewards and punishments, glory and infamy, life and death, heaven and hell, and the highest questions of theology; and because she speaks of things proven and certain, divine and eternal. Right, because she proclaims nothing but truth, justice, and holiness.
Corresponding to Solomon is the voice of Christ, the true Solomon and incarnate Wisdom: "I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world," Matthew 13:35.
Mystically, the Blessed Virgin proclaimed great things when, having conceived the Word of God, she sang: "My soul magnifies the Lord; and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior," Luke 1:46.
Verse 7: My Throat Shall Meditate on Truth
MY THROAT SHALL MEDITATE ON TRUTH, AND MY LIPS SHALL DETEST WICKEDNESS. ALL MY WORDS ARE JUST; THEY ARE RIGHT FOR THOSE WHO UNDERSTAND — The sense is, as if to say: Listen to me most attentively, for I shall speak truth, not speculative and idle, but practical, which will make you good, upright, just, happy, and blessed.
AND MY LIPS SHALL DETEST WICKEDNESS — that is, impiety, as the Hebrew and Chaldean have. Impium here is not masculine but neuter gender, designating the thing, not the person.
9. THEY ARE RIGHT FOR THOSE WHO UNDERSTAND, AND JUST FOR THOSE WHO FIND KNOWLEDGE — as if to say: My words, which are right and just in themselves, are recognized as such by the understanding and the learned; but the foolish and wicked do not perceive their righteousness, and therefore despise and reject them.
Verse 10: Receive My Instruction, Not Money
RECEIVE MY INSTRUCTION, AND NOT MONEY; CHOOSE LEARNING RATHER THAN GOLD. FOR WISDOM IS BETTER THAN ALL PRECIOUS THINGS — In Hebrew, and knowledge rather than choice gold. The sense is: Prefer my instruction to money and gold; for wisdom far surpasses all riches, gems, and precious things, and nothing desirable can be compared to her.
Our Pineda, book IV on the Affairs of Solomon, chapter 18, acutely notes that gold is here called in Hebrew charuts, that is, "cut" or "incised," because coined gold is stamped and cut. And just as gold must be cut and incised to be of value, so wisdom requires the cutting and incising of vices and bad habits, through mortification and discipline, to shine forth in its full value.
Verse 12: I, Wisdom, Dwell in Counsel
I, WISDOM, DWELL IN COUNSEL, AND I AM PRESENT AMONG LEARNED THOUGHTS — Wisdom has commended herself thus far and excited desire for herself in her hearers; now to those who desire her she shows her place and dwelling. The sense is: Whoever desires me and seeks the place of my dwelling, let him go to the house of prudence, or of shrewd and wise counsel: for there he will find me. I dwell with the prudent, for prudence is nothing other than applied wisdom.
Corresponding to Solomon is the saying of Christ: "Where two or three are gathered in My name, there am I in their midst," Matthew 18:20.
Mystically, these things aptly befit the Blessed Virgin. First, because she presides in Councils and pious congregations, and in the Sodalities of the Blessed Virgin.
Verse 13: The Fear of the Lord Hates Evil
THE FEAR OF THE LORD HATES EVIL: ARROGANCE, AND PRIDE, AND THE EVIL WAY, AND THE DOUBLE TONGUE I DETEST — The fear of the Lord — that is, the wisdom that flows from it and is its companion — hates evil, and especially arrogance, pride, the evil way, and the double tongue. Wisdom therefore teaches that these four things are especially hateful to God and to wise men.
Here is relevant the fable of the man and the Satyr in Aesop. A certain man, when he had formed a partnership with a Satyr, was eating with him. When it was cold, the man blew on his hands to warm them; and when the porridge was hot, he blew on it to cool it. The Satyr, seeing this, dissolved the partnership, saying: "I will not associate with a man who blows hot and cold from the same mouth." So God detests the double-tongued, who bless and curse with the same mouth.
Corresponding to Solomon is that saying of Christ: "Learn from Me, for I am meek and humble of heart, and you will find rest for your souls," Matthew 11:29.
Mystically, the Blessed Virgin, full of the fear and love of God, hates evil, but especially detests arrogance and pride, because she herself is the most humble of all creatures. St. Ambrose says: "About to give birth to the humble and meek one, she had to display humility herself."
Verse 14: Counsel Is Mine, and Equity
COUNSEL IS MINE, AND EQUITY; PRUDENCE IS MINE, FORTITUDE IS MINE — Wisdom returns to what she said in verse 12: "I, wisdom, dwell in counsel," because she is counsel itself, equity itself, prudence itself, and fortitude itself. In her are found all virtues, and from her they are communicated to all who love and seek her.
Mystically, our Canisius, and from him Salazar: "Three things belong to the Blessed Virgin which foolish Greeks attributed to their Minerva (goddess of wisdom): namely counsel, equity, and fortitude."
Second Part of the Chapter: Wisdom Promises Riches, Glory, and Justice, and Invites All to Herself
Verse 15: By Me Kings Reign
BY ME KINGS REIGN, AND LAWMAKERS DECREE JUST THINGS. BY ME PRINCES COMMAND, AND THE POWERFUL DECREE JUSTICE — Wisdom here arrogates to herself the right over kingdoms and empires, over kings, princes, and all magistrates, and derives this right from the fact that she gives them the wisdom and prudence by which they rule justly.
Therefore by wisdom kings and princes reign: first, because all receive their rule and authority from the first and uncreated wisdom, that is, from God. Second, because wisdom illuminates and directs kings to rule regally, that is, wisely, justly, and holily, not tyrannically. Wherefore from this maxim of Solomon, St. Thomas teaches that every law of kings and princes is derived from the eternal law of God.
Third, because wise men are usually chosen and raised to the helm of the republic: for wisdom here designates not only Ethics but also Politics and the art of governing.
Tropologically, the author of the Greek Catena says: Kings are the saints, who through wisdom rule over the wicked affections and perturbations of their souls.
Allegorically, through incarnate wisdom, that is, through Christ, even as man, kings and princes exercise authority. For Christ the Lord, not only as God but also as man, had and has absolute and direct dominion, not only over the Church, but over all kingdoms, empires, and the whole world.
From Christ this right of reigning and commanding was shared by the Blessed Virgin as His mother. For the mother of a king must be a queen.
Narses, the renowned military commander of the Emperor Justinian, who totally routed the most fierce Goths, attributed all his victories to the Blessed Virgin. Christians wrested the Holy Land from the infidels under the leadership of the Virgin. In the year 1571, under Pius V, the illustrious naval victory was won over the Turks through the help of the Virgin, who is venerated with the title of St. Mary of Victory.
Verse 17: I Love Those Who Love Me
I LOVE THOSE WHO LOVE ME: AND THOSE WHO WATCH FOR ME IN THE MORNING SHALL FIND ME — Wisdom has promised her followers many and great things, indeed kingdoms and empires, and has kindled desire for herself; now she shows the way by which she may be obtained, namely through love. "Those who watch for me in the morning" — that is, early, maturely, timely, namely from the first age, from childhood, from the tender years — "shall find me."
If these words are taken of uncreated or incarnate wisdom, that is, of God or of Christ, it is clear that she loves those who love her. Corresponding to Solomon is that saying of Christ, John 14: "He who loves Me will be loved by My Father; and I will love him, and will manifest Myself to him."
Mystically, the Blessed Virgin loves those who love her, but with a far greater love: first, because her charity is most ardent; second, because she is the mother of Christ, and therefore loves supremely those whom Christ loved supremely; third, because one and the same habit of charity loves God and neighbor; fourth, because Christ placed the Mother of God in charge of the Church and the faithful.
Verse 18: With Me Are Riches and Glory
WITH ME ARE RICHES AND GLORY, PROUD WEALTH AND JUSTICE — Wisdom said in verse 16 that kingdoms, principalities, and the government of the world are hers; now she likewise says that riches, glory, and justice are hers. That wisdom prepares glory and stable and durable wealth is clear from experience, by which we see prudent and diligent men succeed in their undertakings and accumulate wealth.
Christ promised spiritual riches and eternal glory in heaven, although He not rarely adds earthly glory and riches as well. An example is the author Solomon himself, who through wisdom became the greatest, wealthiest, most glorious, and most just of all kings.
Note: Glory is the inseparable companion and attendant of wisdom, that is, of virtue. For glory, says Cicero, "is the illustrious and widespread fame of great services rendered to the republic or to one's own people."
Mystically, glory among pure creatures is, as it were, the special dowry of the Blessed Virgin, because she, as she is full of grace, so she is full of glory.
Verse 19: My Fruit Is Better Than Gold
MY FRUIT IS BETTER THAN GOLD AND PRECIOUS STONE, AND MY PRODUCE THAN CHOICE SILVER — The sense is: Lest from what I said — "With me are riches and glory" — you think these are only mine to give to whomever I wish, and that they do not redound to my followers, know that I freely and abundantly communicate all these good things to those who love and seek me. For my fruit is better than gold.
Mystically, the fruit of the Blessed Virgin is Christ, more precious than all gold and precious stone. Whence Elizabeth said of Him, indeed the Holy Spirit dictated: "Blessed is the fruit of your womb."
Verse 20: I Walk in the Ways of Justice
I WALK IN THE WAYS OF JUSTICE, IN THE MIDST OF THE PATHS OF JUDGMENT, THAT I MAY ENRICH THOSE WHO LOVE ME, AND FILL THEIR TREASURIES — The latter hemistich explains the former, as is customary. Therefore "I walk in the ways of justice" is the same as "in the midst of the paths of judgment." The sense is: I, wisdom, am occupied in ways, that is, in just actions, namely honest, upright, and holy ones, which stand in the middle between the two extremes of excess and defect, that I may enrich those who love me with true and substantial goods, and fill their treasuries with spiritual and eternal riches.
In Hebrew: that I may cause those who love me to inherit ies, that is, being, or that which is, namely solid and permanent substance; because whatever is besides wisdom and virtue is not a true thing, but only an apparent one and a phantom.
Third Part of the Chapter: Wisdom, Rising Higher, Commends Herself by Asserting That She Is Coeternal with God, and That God through Her Created and Arranged Heaven and Earth
Verse 22: The Lord Possessed Me in the Beginning
THE LORD POSSESSED ME IN THE BEGINNING OF HIS WAYS, BEFORE HE MADE ANYTHING FROM THE BEGINNING — For "possessed me," the Hebrew is kanani, that is, He possessed or acquired me; here, however, you may better translate it as He possessed me, because wisdom was always with God, and God always possessed it.
You ask: Which wisdom is meant here? The Rabbis ineptly understand the law of Moses. But I respond: First, with Tertullian: Uncreated essential wisdom is meant, which is common to the entire Holy Trinity. Second, it can be taken as uncreated notional or personal wisdom, namely the Son of God, who is the begotten Wisdom and Word of the Father.
St. Epiphanius, heresy 73, against the Semi-Arians: "Since wisdom said: 'He created me the beginning of His ways,' do not think of creation, but of the eternal begetting of the Son from the Father."
You will say: How can it be said of the Son of God: "The Lord created me"? The Arians concluded from this that the Son of God is not God but a creature. St. Basil, St. Epiphanius, and St. Jerome respond: first, that the Septuagint's ektise does not only mean "created" but also "founded, made, worked." Second, that the Hebrew kanani properly means "possessed me," not "created me." Third, that these words may refer to the human nature of Christ, which was indeed created. Fourth, the Hebrew resit signifies not only "beginning" but also "principality" and primacy.
Hence St. Cyril, St. Athanasius, and others wisely observe that it does not say absolutely: "The Lord created me the beginning," but "the beginning of His ways," that is, Christ is the principle and exemplar of all God's works.
Fifth, many Fathers hold that what is noted here is the generation of the Son of God, not the divine and eternal one, but the human and temporal one, namely the Incarnation. St. Epiphanius, heresy 69: "The Lord created me, that is, He built me in the womb of Mary, the beginning of His ways for His works."
Third, wisdom can here be taken as created and participated: for God possessed this from eternity, because from eternity He willed and decreed to communicate it to creatures.
Fourth, incarnate wisdom, which is Christ the man, can be understood here. For Him God created and produced in time according to His decree, as the beginning and principle of all His works.
Mystically, the Lord created and possessed the Blessed Virgin, as the mother of Christ, as the beginning of His ways, that is, of His works; for she was the first and most excellent of all God's works. Therefore the Blessed Virgin was predestined from eternity to be the beginning, that is, the first, the chief, and the lady of all God's works.
Verse 23: I Was Set Up from Eternity
I WAS SET UP FROM ETERNITY, AND FROM OF OLD BEFORE THE EARTH WAS MADE — The Hebrew nasach properly signifies to pour out, to pour forth, to offer libation: for in a libation oil or wine was poured out upon the victim. Therefore "I was set up" signifies: first, that wisdom was ordained and constituted by God as the princess of all things to be created. Second, that she was poured forth, that is, communicated and diffused, by God to all creatures. Third, that she was consecrated and offered as a libation, that is, dedicated to the service and glory of God.
Many take "set up" as "predestined," and explain it as: I was predestined from eternity. The Septuagint translate: "I was founded"; for what is ordained is also founded and firmly established.
Mystically, apply all these things to the Blessed Virgin. For she was ordained from eternity, because she is a magnificent work and divine fabric, founded from eternity in the mind and predestination of God. She was the most ordained and therefore the most holy in all her thoughts, words, and actions. She is called "an army set in battle array," Canticles 6:9, because she marshals the array of the Saints for conquering the devil, the world, and the flesh.
Verse 24: Before the Depths, I Was Conceived
24. THE DEPTHS DID NOT YET EXIST, AND I WAS ALREADY CONCEIVED (Pagninus and the Tigurine: "formed") (the Septuagint: "before He made the depths"; the Arabic: "before He made the depths." By "depths" understand the immense abysses and profundities of the waters created at the beginning of the world, of which I spoke on Genesis 1:2). THE SPRINGS OF WATERS HAD NOT YET BURST FORTH. — In Hebrew: "when there were no springs heavy" or "pregnant with waters"; Pagninus: "the springs weighted with waters did not yet exist"; for springs seem, as it were, pregnant and heavy with waters, to bring them forth and pour them out. The Septuagint: "before the springs of waters came forth" (the Arabic: "were sent forth"); the Chaldean: "before there were springs, masses of waters"; Vatablus: "the springs did not yet overflow with waters."
25. THE MOUNTAINS HAD NOT YET SETTLED WITH THEIR HEAVY MASS. — In Hebrew: "before the mountains were immersed, sunk, fixed"; Pagninus: "founded"; the Tigurine: "before the mountains were plunged," namely into the waters of the primeval abyss, Genesis 1:2. Or rather, "were plunged and fixed into the earth," says Vatablus. For the roots of the mountains seem to be immersed and fixed in the earth, just as the foundations of houses and temples are sunk into the earth, that is, deeply fixed into it, and in it are founded and made solid.
BEFORE THE HILLS I WAS BROUGHT FORTH. — The Hebrew is חוללתי cholalti, which our Vulgate translates as "I was conceived"; Vatablus: "I was formed"; Aquila and Theodotion: "I burst forth through birth"; Symmachus: "I was shaped as if by the work of a midwife"; the Septuagint: "before all the hills He begets me"; St. Cyprian: "He begot me." So also St. Augustine, book On the Trinity, chapter 12: "Before all the hills," he says, "He begot me," that is, "before all the heights of creatures."
She explains what she said in verse 22: "The Lord possessed me in the beginning of His ways, etc. From eternity I was ordained," by saying that before the depths, before the springs, mountains, and hills, that is, before the creation of the world, she was conceived and formed by God from eternity. It is a litotes; for she says less but signifies more: for it signifies that wisdom was so in the mind of God from eternity that she gave Him the idea of the depths, springs, mountains, hills, and of all things to be created in time, and in time directed God's creation toward wisely creating and forming them. For the reason she says: "The depths, springs, and mountains did not yet exist" is because they were created through wisdom and could not have been created without her.
Wisdom is here understood as essential, common to the whole Holy Trinity. For this was conceived in the mind of God from eternity, and through it God created all things in time. It can also be taken as notional, namely the Word or Son of God; for He was begotten by the Father, and through Him likewise the ages were made, Hebrews 1:2.
So of the eternal generation of the Son, the following understand this passage: St. Cyril, St. Hilary, St. Epiphanius, St. Fulgentius, and others writing against the Arians, whom I cited at verse 22; so that the meaning is, as if to say: "The depths did not yet exist, and I was already conceived," namely by the Father through His intellect, and because that conception was always most perfect and complete, being indivisible and all at once, He adds: "Before all the hills I was brought forth." For it is a conception in the same divine nature, and therefore a generation and a birth, says St. Thomas, I part, Question 27, article 1, ad 2. Hence Mercurius Trismegistus, speaking of the divine generation of the Word: "That God, Intelligence, since He had the power of both male and female, and was life and light, begot the Word, that is, another mind, the artificer," etc. And the Poets imagined that Minerva, the goddess of wisdom, was born from the brain of Jupiter, to signify that wisdom and the Word begotten by the Father alone is His primary idea, according to which He designed all things.
Finally, incarnate wisdom could be understood here, namely Christ the man, but then "I was conceived" and "I was brought forth" must be taken not really but mentally, that is, in the mind and predestination of God. So Hugo.
The word "I was brought forth" signifies first, that wisdom, as it were, from eternity stimulated God to bring forth and create things in time. For thus a woman when she is in labor is stimulated to bring forth her child. Second, that wisdom and her works are arduous and laborious things, which in themselves require a travailing, that is, long meditation, effort, and work, although to God they are plain and easy because of His infinite power, by which in a single moment by His command and nod He created heaven and earth. And for this reason God undertook and completed the creation of things through the first six days of the world, to signify how arduous and difficult this undertaking was in itself, although to Him as omnipotent it was most easy. Third, "I was brought forth" signifies that the mind of God, pregnant and heavy, as it were, with wisdom from eternity, brought it forth in time, namely when He created and, as it were, gave birth to its works, namely heaven and earth. Fourth, "I was brought forth" is the same as "I was being born and was delivered in birth, I was being begotten and had been begotten." For the Hebrew cholalti, which is of past tense, signifies both. It signifies therefore that in God, to beget and to have begotten are the same, to be begotten and to have been begotten are the same. Hence the Son in the same instant of eternity both is always being begotten and has been begotten, is always being born and has been born. For in divine and eternal things, to become and to have become are the same; for eternity is, as it were, an indivisible point, always enduring one and the same, and therefore without any change of itself coexists with past, present, and future time. For since these successively coexist with the same ever-abiding and constant instant of eternity, according to them the Father is said to have begotten, to beget, and to be always about to beget the Son, although properly He only always begets the Son, and the Son is always begotten by Him. So clearly teaches St. Hilary, book VII On the Trinity, past the middle; more clearly St. Augustine on Psalm 2; most clearly Origen, homily 6 on Jeremiah: "The Son," he says, "continually receives His being and flows from the Father, as splendor from the sun." Hence he adds tropologically: "We too, who are brothers of Christ, are always being begotten by God through each understanding, through each work and holy word, if we receive His seed, that is, His grace, and cooperate with it."
Hence St. Thomas, book IV Against the Gentiles, chapter 11, teaches that in bodily birth, because it happens with motion and succession, there is first conception; second, travailing; third, birth; fourth, the presence of what is born to the one giving birth: but in God, who lacks motion and succession, the birth from eternity was full and perfect, and therefore there was simultaneously the conception, travailing, birth, and presence of the Word to the Father giving birth, that is, begetting; and to signify this, Solomon, after saying: "Before all the hills I was brought forth," lest anyone think the travailing preceded the birth, immediately added: "When He prepared the heavens, I was present," as if to say: From eternity I was being brought forth, but fully and perfectly, so that in the same instant I perfectly existed and was present to the Father begetting, with Him devising the heavens and the whole universe.
Mystically apply these things to the Blessed Virgin. Hence the Church reads this as the Epistle in the Mass of her Conception and Nativity. For the conception and nativity of the Mother of God was the beginning of God's works concerning the redemption of mankind, in which the great mystery of piety, namely the incarnation of the Word, was soon to be accomplished and celebrated. For she is the bridal chamber and the throne of our true Solomon, in which God willed to show His omnipotence and magnificence: "And that great work of the great Deity." Therefore He made the Blessed Virgin in her conception and birth nobler and more beautiful than all the Angels, even the Seraphim; indeed He made her the idea of perfection, virtue, and holiness, so that she would be the exemplar of beauty and grace for both Angels and men, and indeed for all creatures; indeed He made her the image of divinity, in which God would express and represent to the world, more than in any other pure creature, His wisdom, love, virtues, and all the beauty that was possible. She therefore is the ocean of beauty, the fountain of paradise, the temple and sanctuary of God, the "abyss of humility, grace, and wisdom," as St. Ildephonsus and St. Bernard call her, indeed an "abyss of miracles," says Damascene, oration 1 On the Nativity.
She likewise before all the hills was a mountain on the summit of mountains, because "to attain to the conception of the Word, she raised the summit of her merits above all the choirs of Angels up to the throne of the Deity," says St. Gregory on 1 Kings, chapter 1. For this reason before the hills and mountains she was conceived from eternity in the mind and predestination of God, which from that time travailed with her, as it were, eager to bring her forth and give birth to her, and therefore at the time He had decreed, He brought her forth and gave her birth.
For the Blessed Virgin was predestined by God from eternity, not only to be holy, but to be the mother of the Saints, indeed the idea of holiness, so that according to her He might form the remaining holy Apostles, Martyrs, Virgins, and Confessors. For she has purer virginity than other virgins possess; greater knowledge than Doctors possess; stronger patience than Martyrs; clearer prophetic light than Prophets; more ardent zeal than Apostles; and finally, holiness greater than any Saint has ever had. "You have as many gifts, O Virgin, as there are stars in heaven." "To others," say St. Ildephonsus and St. Bernard, "grace is given in parts, but to Mary the entire fullness of graces." When therefore we celebrate the conception and nativity of the Virgin, we celebrate our own as well: for in her, as in a mother, we children were conceived and born.
Moreover, the Blessed Virgin was conceived fifteen years before the birth and nativity of Christ; for she bore Christ at the age of 15. Therefore since Christ was born in the year 42 of Augustus Caesar, if you count back 15 years of the Virgin, you will arrive at the year 27 of Augustus; in that year therefore the Blessed Virgin was conceived, the same year in which Augustus Caesar, as Josephus narrates in book I of the Wars, chapters 15 and 16, by divine instinct, though unaware of the mystery, contrary to custom went to Syria to inspect the province, honored Herod king of Judea with great honors, and exalted him by placing him in charge of new provinces: and Herod in thanksgiving built a magnificent city, which he called Caesarea after Caesar, and indeed near the sources of the Jordan erected a notable temple of white marble for Caesar. Namely because in Syria and Judea the Virgin was then being conceived, who, purer than a spring and whiter than marble, was the temple of God and His living possession, to whom therefore Augustus by coming to Syria paid honor and, as it were, resigned his dominion and empire.
Verse 26: He Had Not Yet Made the Earth
HE HAD NOT YET MADE THE EARTH, AND THE RIVERS, AND THE POLES OF THE WORLD — In Hebrew: "He had not yet made the earth, and the streets (or the things that are outside), and the head of the dust of the world." The Hebrews think that three elements are indicated here: by "earth" the globe of the earth; by "the things that are outside," the air; by "the head of the dust of the earth," fire.
Our Vulgate most aptly takes chutsot, that is, "streets" or "the things that are outside," as "rivers," because rivers are like flat streets on the land, which always flow with the same even course and placid tenor. For it cannot be about the streets of cities here, since at the beginning of the world there were no cities.
By "the poles of the world" our Vulgate aptly translates what the Hebrew calls "the head of the dust of the earth." For the poles contain the friable and loose dust of the earth lest it scatter. Better to take it with our Salazar as the center of the earth: for to this, as to a head, all lines are drawn back from the circumference of the earth through its middle. The center properly contains and restrains the dust of the earth, so that it does not slip away, according to Job 38:4: "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?"
She mentions mountains, hills, rivers, the abyss, and springs, because all these are stable. Hence springs are called perennial, because by their perennial flow they represent eternity, as if to say: Wisdom is more stable, more ancient, and more eternal than mountains, sea, and springs.
Verse 27: When He Prepared the Heavens, I Was Present
WHEN HE PREPARED THE HEAVENS, I WAS PRESENT; WHEN WITH A CERTAIN LAW AND COMPASS HE ENCLOSED THE DEPTHS — The Septuagint: "When He was preparing the heavens, I was present with Him." In Hebrew: "In His preparing the heavens, there I was; in His inscribing a circle upon the face of the abyss."
Various interpreters explain "the depths" in different ways. First, some take it as the center of the earth. Second, Cajetan takes it as the heavens themselves. Third, others take it as the seas. Fourth, Jansenius takes it as the air and all elements beneath the celestial spheres.
Verse 28: When He Established the Skies Above
WHEN HE ESTABLISHED THE SKIES ABOVE, AND BALANCED THE FOUNTAINS OF WATERS: WHEN HE SET THE SEA ITS BOUNDARY, AND PLACED A LAW UPON THE WATERS THAT THEY SHOULD NOT PASS THEIR LIMITS: WHEN HE HUNG THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE EARTH — Wisdom continues to enumerate the works of creation at which she was present and which she co-authored with God. She establishes her antiquity and dignity by showing that she preceded and presided over all of creation — the skies, the fountains, the seas, and the very foundations of the earth.
Verse 30: I Was with Him Arranging All Things
I WAS WITH HIM ARRANGING ALL THINGS: AND I WAS DELIGHTED EVERY DAY, PLAYING BEFORE HIM AT ALL TIMES, PLAYING IN THE WORLD: AND MY DELIGHT WAS TO BE WITH THE SONS OF MEN — Wisdom was present with God not merely as a spectator but as an active co-worker, arranging and disposing all things with order, beauty, and harmony. The word "playing" signifies the ease and delight with which wisdom operates: for what to others seems laborious and difficult, to wisdom is play and delight. And her special delight was to be with the sons of men — that is, to communicate herself to human beings, to dwell with them, to illuminate their minds, and to guide their actions.
This verse is most beautifully fulfilled in the Incarnation of the Word, through which the eternal Wisdom of God took human nature and dwelt among men, delighting to be with the sons of men in the most intimate way possible — by becoming one of them.
Fourth Part of the Chapter: The Exhortation
Verse 32: Now Therefore, Children, Hear Me
NOW THEREFORE, CHILDREN, HEAR ME: BLESSED ARE THEY WHO KEEP MY WAYS. HEAR INSTRUCTION, AND BE WISE, AND DO NOT REJECT IT. BLESSED IS THE MAN WHO HEARS ME, AND WHO WATCHES DAILY AT MY GATES. HE WHO SHALL FIND ME SHALL FIND LIFE, AND SHALL DRAW SALVATION FROM THE LORD: BUT HE WHO SINS AGAINST ME SHALL HURT HIS OWN SOUL. ALL WHO HATE ME LOVE DEATH — Wisdom concludes with a solemn exhortation and a double pronouncement: a blessing upon those who hear and follow her, and a curse upon those who reject and hate her. "Blessed is the man who hears me" — not merely with the ears of the body, but with the ears of the heart, that is, who obeys and practices what wisdom teaches. "And who watches daily at my gates" — that is, who diligently and perseveringly seeks wisdom, not occasionally and halfheartedly, but every day, with constant vigilance and eager desire, waiting at the very doors of wisdom's house, as a faithful servant waits at the door of his master.
"He who shall find me shall find life" — both temporal life, long and happy, and eternal life, blessed and glorious. "And shall draw salvation from the Lord" — for wisdom leads to God, who is the fountain of all salvation and beatitude.
"But he who sins against me shall hurt his own soul" — for in sinning against wisdom, that is, against virtue and God, a person does not harm wisdom or God, who are impassible and immutable, but harms only himself, wounding and destroying his own soul. "All who hate me love death" — for to hate wisdom is to love folly, vice, and sin, which are spiritual death; and spiritual death leads to eternal death in hell. This is the most terrible warning of all: that those who reject wisdom do not merely suffer death passively, but actively choose and love it, embracing the very thing that destroys them.
Mystically, these words apply to the Blessed Virgin, the Seat of Wisdom. He who finds her finds life, because she leads all who are devoted to her to her Son, who is "the Way, the Truth, and the Life," John 14:6. And he who sins against her, that is, who neglects her veneration and invocation, deprives himself of the most powerful patronage before God, and thus injures his own soul.