Lecture 1 — The success of the sinner is shortlived

^20:1^ Then Sophar the Naamathite answered and said:

^20:2^ Therefore my various thoughts succeed each other and my mind is disturbed about various things.

^20:3^ I will hear the teachings by which you argue with me and the spirit of my understanding will answer me.

^20:4^ I know this from the beginning when man was placed on earth,

^20:5^ that the praise of the wicked is short-lived and the joy of the hypocrite is a speck.

^20:6^ If his pride should ascend up to heaven and his head should touch the clouds,

^20:7^ he will be lost in the end like dung and those who saw him will say: Where is he now?

^20:8^ And like a dream flying away, he will not be found; he will pass away like a vision in the night.

^20:9^ The eye which saw him will see no more, nor will his place behold him anymore.

^20:10^ His children are wasted by extreme poverty and his hands will cause him pain.

^20:11^ His bones will be full of the vices of his youth and they will sleep with him in the dust.

^20:12^ Since wickedness was truly sweet in his mouth, he hid it under his tongue.

^20:13^ He saves it and does not leave it, and he will keep it secret in his throat.

298. Then Sophar the Naamathite answered and said: Therefore my various thoughts succeed each other. After Sophar heard the opinion of Job about the hope of the future life, he seems to acquiesce, and so after this second answer he contradicted nothing in the third one. But there was still something in his heart which did not permit him to give ground completely from his former opinion. For he thought that although rewards and punishments happen in the future life for merits, as Job reasoned, nevertheless, it still seemed to him that the prosperities and adversities of this life are given to men by God as sanctions for the virtuous and sinners. So, as though convinced in part and yet holding his first opinion in part, he says, therefore, namely, because of the words which you say about the future life, my various thoughts succeed each other. He then says that these various thoughts should not be understood to belong to the same opinion, like when someone carefully thinks out various arguments for the same conclusion, and my mind is disturbed about these various things, for I am led now to one opinion and now to the other, by the force of the arguments which can be induced for both, as though I am incapable of resolving the contradictions. For he thought that he should not reject the opinion of Job about the hope of the future life, and so he says, I will hear the teachings by which you argue with me, in believing what you have said about the future resurrection, but I still do not dismiss my first opinion totally. He expresses this, saying, and the spirit of my understanding will answer me, for my intellect still knows what I should answer to your opinion.

299. It seemed most certain to him and proved by experience that although the evil enjoy some prosperity, still, it is brief and quickly destroyed in this life, either by a premature death or by some ensuing adversity. He expresses this, saying, I know this, looking, from the beginning when man was placed upon the earth, as though to say, from the beginning of the human race, the praise of the wicked is shortlived. For they are sometimes praised for a little while because of some signs and beginnings of goodness which appear in them. But those are immediately darkened by the evil works which appear in them, and so the joy they have from the favor they take from false pretenses passes away in a short time.

So he says, and the joy of the hypocrites is like a speck, passing away in a moment, because afterwards they are known by their fruits, as Matthew says (Matt 7:16). It sometimes happens that, from that favor which he enjoyed for a short time from false pretense, he was lifted up to some high rank, and so as a consequence he shows that this also will not endure long for him, saying, if his pride should ascend up to heaven, for because of this high state which he has attained, he ascends to such great pride that he does not think himself fallen as the earth, but immovable as the heavens. And his head would touch the clouds, so that it is like he is advanced beyond the common state of man; he will be lost in the end like dung. This will happen either from a premature death, by which he rendered a human corpse to be abominable like dung, as Jeremiah says, the dead man falls like dung upon the face of the earth (Jer 9:22), or by the fact that his evil will be disclosed to all and he will be reputed vile by all, as Scripture says, every woman who fornicates will be tread under foot like dung on the road (Sir 9:10). When his pride is taken away, wonder will arise in the hearts of men about such sudden loss, and the reverence which he enjoyed will end for him. So he says, and those who saw him will say: where is he now? either in wonder or contempt.

300. To show that his defeat is irreparable, he then says, and like a dream flying away he will not be found, for as a bird flying away easily disappears from the eyes of men, so also dreams easily disappear from human knowledge. As little or no trace remains of it, nor does there exist any proof which could be given if it is lost, his knowledge passes away irreparably.

He shows the cause of the irreparability in many ways.

First, on the part of the sinner himself who perishes, and so the text says, he will pass away like a vision in the night, which is an imaginary vision and does not endure, and so after he loses it, it cannot return. A vision during the day is of something permanent, which, if someone loses momentarily, he can bring back to sight. In the same way, as long as he remains a sinner, if adversity should come to him, he can hope for recovery. But when he passes out of this life, he cannot hope for any further recovery.

Second, he shows his fall to be irreparable on the part of other men when he then says, the eye which saw him will see no more: for those things which pass easily out of sight also pass easily out of mind, and so the dead whom we do not see any more are easily forgotten. As a result, they neither have honor in the memories of men nor do their friends care to give them further aid.

Third, he shows the cause of his inability to be restored because he cannot return to his former state, and so he says, nor will his place behold him any more. For man cannot return after death to the same mode of living. Not only will this be cast aside in his own person in his passing away, and be taken away from the eyes of men, never to be restored to his own place, but his sons will also be punished for his sin. So the text continues, his children are wasted by extreme poverty, by the just judgment of God, so that since he sinned to attain the riches for his sons, he is to be frustrated in this very hope when his sons are impoverished.

301. Then, as though agreeing with the opinion of Job, he then speaks also about the punishments of the future life, saying, and the works of his hands will cause him pain, because he will suffer pain in punishment for the sinful works he did. It is apparent that this retribution of pain must be understood to be after death, when the text adds, his bones will be full of the vices of his youth and they will sleep with him in the dust. For even after death, when his flesh will be dissipated into dust, and only his bones remain in the grave, he will suffer punishment for his sins; not only the ones he committed in old age, but also those he committed in his youth, when he was susceptible to sin. He shows the reason why he is also punished for sins after death, saying, since wickedness was truly sweet in his mouth, he hid it under his tongue. Here he uses the metaphor of a man eating delicious food who does not quickly swallow it, but keeps it in his mouth for a long time so that he may enjoy it longer. To develop this comparison he then says, he saves it, the evil or sin which he enjoys, and does not want to destroy it. He would destroy it by leaving it, and so the text continues, he does not leave it. He shows why he does not leave it, saying, and he will keep it hidden in his throat, for he will not show it to anyone, and because of this, no one will dissuade him from hidden sin nor will he apply any cure. This applies to those who confess their sins. The reason why the sins of a man are punished after death is because in life he did not want to leave them.