The Lazy Man

Quis est ille piger, de quod dicit: Propter frigus piger arare noluit, mendiabit ergo aestate, et non dabitur? Quid? Si piger tempore frigoris arare noluerit, nunquid, aestatis tempore, qui sibi aliquid tribuat invenire non poterit Saepe namque pigri, et frigoris et aestatis tempore inveniunt qui sibi tribuant eleemosynam fideles: sed piger in hoc loco illum significat qui propter desidiam et hujus mundi adversitatem, quae per frigus designatur, in Dei servitio negligit laborare, et idcirco in futuro die judicii mendicabit, quia non habebit opera bona pro quibus mereatur accipere beatitudinem, quoniam quidquid seminaverit homo, hoc et metet Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Proverbia, Caput XX Source: Migne PL 172.321c-d

Who is the lazy man, concerning whom it is said, 'The lazy man will not plough because it is cold, therefore he shall beg in summer and nothing shall be given to him.' 1 What? If the lazy man will not plough when it is cold, shall it be that he shall find no one to give him anything in the time of heat? Lazy men in the time of cold and in the time of heat often find faithful folk who will give alms to them, but the lazy man in this passage signifies him who because of sloth and the opposition of the world, which is designated as cold, neglects to labour in the service of God, and therefore he shall beg on the future day of judgment, because he shall not have any good works through which he might merit beatitude, because whatever a man sows, he reaps. 2 Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Proverbs, Chapter 20 1 Prov 20.4 2 Galat 6.8

Purchasing Glory

Quomodo intelligendum est quod ait: Malum est, malum est, dicit omnis emptor, et cum recesserit, tunc gloriabitur? Secundum litteram, solet emptor vituperare quod emere desiderat, et dicere: Malum est. malum est; verumtamen si bene emerit, cum recesserit gloriabitur. Spiritualiter autem quomodo intelligitur? Ille veraciter est emptor, qui sibi aeterna in coelis praemia comparare desiderat. Ipse nimirum emere studet terrenis coelestia, caducis mansura, temporalibus aeterna. Talis ergo emptor quidquid patitur in praesenti malum esse dicit, quia malum esse intelligit. Attamen quia omnia adversa pro Deo patienter sustinet, cum secesserit de mundo, tunc gloriabitur, quia perveniet ad beatitudinem. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Proverbia, Caput XX Source: Migne PL 172.322b

How should it be understood when it is said, 'Its bad, it's bad,' says every buyer, and when they go away then they glory? 1 According to the letter, a buyer is accustomed to deprecate what he desires to buy and say, 'It's bad, it's bad.' However if he buys well, when he goes away he glories. How is this to be understood spiritually? He is a true buyer who desires to acquire eternal riches for himself in heaven. He is keen to buy heavenly things over worldly things, mansions over ruins, eternal things over temporal things. Therefore such a buyer says it is bad because whatever he suffers in the present he understands it to be an evil. However because he patiently endures every adversity for God, when he goes from the world, then he glories, because he comes to beatitude. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Proverbs, Chapter 20 1 Prov 20.14

Bed And House

Ecce tu pulcher es, dilecte mi, et decorus. Lectulus noster floridus. Tigna domorum nostrarum cedrina, laquearia nostra cypressina. Tropologice. Fidelis anima est lectulus, in qua Christus per dilectionem habitat. Qui lectulus floret, dum anima se orando et legendo exercet. Lectulus etiam animae est bona conscientia, in qua, ut in lecto, secura quiescet anima. Qui lectus floret, dum aliis bonae vitae exemplum praebet. Ipsa est etiam domus Dei, in qua Christus habitat ut sponsus in thalamo. Cujus tigna sunt principales virtutes, scilicet prudentia, fortitudo, justitia, temperantia. Laquearia sunt obedientiae exempla, quae cedro vel cypresso comparantur, quia sicut hae arbores in ramis, sic in bones operibus multiplicantur. Vel domus animae est corpus, tigna ejus sunt quinque sensus, laquearia ejus corporis membra, quae, sunt cedrina et cypressina, dum militant ad nutum spiritus. Honorius Augustodunensis, Expositio in Cantica Canticorum, Caput I Source: Migne PL 172.381c

Behold you are beautiful, my beloved, and fair. Our bed is flourishing. The beams of our houses are of cedar, our rafters of cypress. 1 Tropologically the faithful soul is a bed in which Christ dwells through love. The bed flourishes when a soul exerts itself in prayer and reading. And the bed of the soul is a good conscience, in which, as in a bed, the soul rests securely. That bed flourishes when it gives an example of the good life to others. This is indeed the house of God, in which Christ dwells as the bridegroom in the chamber. The beams are the principle virtues, that is, prudence, fortitude, justice and temperance. The rafters are examples of obedience, which are compared to cedar and cypress because as those trees have their branches so good works are multiplied. Or the house of the soul is the body, and its beams are the five senses, and the rafters are the members of the body which are as cedar and cypress when they strive at the command of the spirit. Honorius of Autun, Commentary on The Song of Songs, Chapter 1 1 Song 1.15-16

Draw Me After You

Oleum effusum nomen tuum; ideo adolescentulae dilexerunt te. Trahe me, post te curremus in odorem unguentorum tuorum. Allegorice: Adolesentulae sunt quasi novellae, quia baptisma et gratiam Spiritus sancti renovatae. Dicit ergo Ecclesia sponso, id est Chriso: Trahe me post te. Per gratiam imitandum dicunt adolescentulae, id est Ecclesiae ejus filiae, Curremus, et nos fide et dilectione, in odore unguentorum tuorum, id est in consideratione miraculorum tuorum vel in fama operum tuorum, vel in fide aeternorum bonorum. Tropologice: fidelis anima, bonum volens, et per se non valens, clamat Christo: Trahe me post te. Hoc est, da gratiam ut post tua vestigia ad te, qui es via, veritas et vita. Nullus enim homo ad poenitentiam convertitur, nisi per gratiam trahatur. Anagogice: Ecclesia peregrinans, superna appetens, et per se assequi non valens, clamat: Trahe me post te. De hoc mundo ad coelestem gloriam, ut te in illa face ad faciem videam, quia nullus per se ad illam pervenitre poterit, nisi gratia et dextera Dei illum traxerit. Honorius Augustodunensis, Expositio in Cantica Canticorum, Caput I Source: Migne PL 172.365d-366a

Your name is oil poured out, therefore the young maidens love you. Draw me, after you we shall run, in the fragrance of your ointments. 1 Allegorically the young maids are the new plantings who have been renewed through baptism and the grace of the Holy Spirit. Therefore the Church says to the bridegroom, that is, Christ, 'Draw me, after you...' Through grace they are portrayed as young maids, that is, the daughters of His Church. 'We shall run,' even us in faith and love, '...in the fragrance of your ointments,' that is, in the remembrance of your miracles and in the fame of your works, and in the faith of eternal goods. Tropologically the faithful soul, wishing for the good and unable to come to it itself, cries out to Christ, 'Draw me, after you...' That is, give me grace so that in your footsteps I might come to you, who are the way and the truth and the life. 2 For no man turns to penance unless he is drawn by grace. Anagogically the pilgrim Church, desiring heavenly things, and by itself unable to attain it, cries out, 'Draw me, after you...' From this world to heavenly glory, so that I might see you face to face, 3 because no one is able to come there by himself, unless grace and the right hand of God should draw him. Honorius of Autun, Commentary on The Song of Songs, Chapter 1 1 Song 1.2-3 2 Jn 14.6 3 1 Cor 13.12

Belonging And Obedience

Dilectus meus mihi, et ego illi, qui pascitur inter lilia, donec aspiret dies, et inclinentur umbrae. Dilectus meus mihi haec locutus est, et ego illi, subaudis obediam, qui pascitur inter lilia, hoc est delectatur in operibus eorum qui sunt candidi in virtutibus, qui sunt decus aliorum, ut lilium spinarum. Et tandiu in his pascitur, et tandiu obediam alios docendo, donec aspiret dies, id est donec scientia aeternae claritatis adveniat, ubi omnes verum lumen videant, et donec inclinentur umbrae, id est donec ignorantia praesentis vitae pertranseat. Honorius Augustodunensis, Expositio in Cantica Canticorum, Caput II Source: Migne PL 172.394c-d

My beloved is mine and I am his, he who feeds among the lilies, until the day breaks and the shadows decline... 1 'My beloved is mine,' she says, 'and I am his,' meaning I shall be obedient to him, 'who feeds among the lilies,' which is to delight in the works of those who are bright with virtue, who are as worthy among others as 'a lily among thorns.' 2 And on these he shall feed, and my obedience shall teach others, 'until the day breaks,' that is, until the knowledge of eternal brightness comes, when all shall see the true light, and until 'the shadows decline,' which is when the ignorance of the present life passes by. Honorius of Autun, Commentary on The Song of Songs, Chapter 2 1 Song 2.16-17 2 Song 2.2

The King And The Cellar

Introduxit me rex in cellaria sua... Secundum allegoraim autem Ecclesia a Christo per gratiam in sacram Scripturam tracta dicit: Introduxit me rex in cellaria sua. Cellaria, in quibus varii potus servantur, sunt libri sacrae Scripturae, de quibus variae sententiae sitientibs justitia propinantur. Cum enim lectio de Joseph legitur, quasi poculum contra adulterium porrigitur; cum vero Judith Scriptura recitatur, quasi castitatis propinatur. In haec cellaria Christus sponsam introduxit, quando sensum ei aperuit, ut intelligeret Scripturas. Christus autem proprie rex dicitur secundum carnem, qua humano generi a Patre praeficiutr, ut scriptum est: Ego autem constitutus sum rex ab eo. Et item ad Pilatum: Tu dicis: Quia rex sum ego. Item: Data est mihi omnis potestas in caelo et in terra. Et iterum: Ipse est qui constitutus est a Dei judex vivorum et mortuorum. Hic solus potest introducere in Scripturam, qui solus potuit septem signacula libri solvere, quae erant ejus incarnatio, nativitas, passio, inferni spoliatio, resurrectio, ascensio, futurum judicium. Honorius Augustodunensis, Expositio in Cantica Canticorum, Caput I Source: Migne PL 172.366d-367a

The King brought me into his cellar.. 1 According to the allegorical sense, 'the king brought me into his cellar,' speaks of the Church that has been drawn into Sacred Scripture by the grace of Christ. The cellar, in which various drinks are kept, are the books of Sacred Scripture and by the drinking of the various passages those who drink are brought closer to righteousness. For when they read of Joseph, it is as they take a drink against adultery, and when Judith is recited it is as if they are brought near to chastity. Into this cellar Christ has brought the bride when He opens her mind so that she might understand the Scriptures. And Christ is called king according to the flesh since He has been set over the human race by the Father, and thus it is written: 'I have established a king for them.' 2 And again to Pilate: 'You say that I am a king.' 3 Again, 'All power is given to me in heaven and earth.' 4 And again: 'He has been established by God as the judge of the living and the dead.' 5 He alone brings us into the Scriptures, He alone is the one who is able to unseal the seven seals of the book, 6 which were His Incarnation, His Nativity, His Passion, His Despoiling of Hell, His Resurrection, His Ascension, and Final Judgement. Honorius of Autun, Commentary on The Song of Songs, Chapter 1 1 Song 1.2 2 Ps 2.6 3 Jn 18.37 4 Mt 28.18 5 Acts 10.42 6 Apoc 5

Watching One's Step

Quid est quod ait Custodi pedem tuum ingrediens domum Dei.? Nunquid offensione lapidum monet custodiri pedem, quando ingredimur domum Dei, id est ecclesiam Dei? Quamvis semper honeste et cum timore ac silentio debeamus ingredi domum Dei, tamen non pedem corporis docet custodiendum, sed pedem animae, id est ingressum corporis, ut in conspectu Dei mundas preces effundamus. Et est sensus: Quando ingrederis domum Dei, videlicet ecclesiam, custodi pedem tuum, id est, ingressum mentis tuae, ne offendas in cogitationibus malis, ut oratio tua pura dirigitur ad Deum. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Ecclesiasten, Caput IV Source: Migne PL 172.340b-c

Why is it he says, 'Watch your step when you enter the house of God'? 1 Does he warn us to keep our step from the stone of offence, 2 when we enter the house of God, which is the Church of God? Although we should always enter into the house of God uprightly and with fear and in silence, however he does not teach us here to watch the step of the body, but of the soul, that is, that having entered in the body we may pour forth pure prayers to God. This is his meaning: when you enter the house of God, that is, the Church, watch your step, that is, with the entry of your mind, do not give offence with evil thoughts, so that you may direct your pure prayer to God. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Ecclesiastes, Chapter 4 1 Eccl 4.17 2 Isaiah 8.14, Rom 9.33, 1 Pet 2.8

The Words Of The Wise

Quare verba sapientium stimulis et clavis assimilantur? Sic enim dicit Salomon: Verba sapientium sicut stimuli, et quasi clavi in altum defixi? Aptissime verba sapientium, stimuis et clavis comparantur, qui peccatorum culpas nesciunt palpare, sed pungere. Qui enim sunt veraciter sapients, eorum procul dubio verba clavi sunt et stimuli, qui peccatores non blandimentis fovent, sed aspera increpatione redarguut, et secretas eorum conscientias quasi pungendo, ad lamenta et ad laborem excitant ut corrigantur. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Ecclesiasten, Caput XII Source: Migne PL 172.345b-c

Why are the words of the wise compared to nails and goads, so that Solomon says, 'The words of the wise are like goads, and as nails hammered deeply within.'? 1 Most aptly are the words of the wise compared to goads and nails because they do not know how to indulge the faults of sinners, but they strike them. Without doubt the words of those who are truly wise are nails and goads, since they do not delight sinners with pleasant speech, but bitterly dispute with them, and as if striking the secrets of their conscience, they drive them to laments and toil so that they might improve themselves. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Ecclesiastes, Chapter 12 1 Eccl 12.11

The Falling Tree

Quid est ait, Si ceciderit lignum ad austrum, aut ad aquilonem, in quocunque loco ceciderit ibi erit? Nunquid lignum quod cadit contra aquilonem aut meridiem, ibi erit? Nonne saepe movetur in alias mundi partes? Nulli hoc dubium est, sed haec sententia spirituliter debet intelligi. Per lignum homo designatur quoniam unusquisuqe quasi lignum est in silva generis humani. Per aquilonem, qui est frigidus ventus, designatur inferni supplicium, et est sensus: Ubicunque homo sibi locum et futuram sedem praeparaverit, ibi erit cum mortuus fuerit, hoc est, si bene vivendo sibi praeparaverit ad austrum,cum ceciderit, id est cum mortuus fuerit, in requie paradasi et gloria regni coelestis permanebit in aeternum; sin male vivendo sibi locum ad boream praeparaverit, inferni poenas in saecula saeculorum habebit. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Ecclesiasten, Caput XI Source: Migne PL 172.345b-c

Why is it said, 'If a tree falls to the south or to the north, in whatever place it falls there it shall be.'? 1 Shall a tree that falls to the north or to the south be there? Is it not often moved to some other place in the world? Let there be no doubt but that this should be understood spiritually. By the tree man is designated, because each one is like a tree in the forest of the human race. By the north wind, which is a cold wind, the punishment of hell is signified, and the meaning is that wherever a man has prepared as a future place and seat for himself, there he shall be when he is dead. Thus if he lives well he shall have prepared a place for himself to the south when he falls, that is, when he is dead, and he shall dwell forever in the rest of paradise and in the glory of the heavenly kingdom, but if he lives wickedly he shall have prepared himself a place to the north, and he shall dwell amid the punishments of hell forever. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Ecclesiastes, Chapter 11 1 Eccl 11.3

Adversity And Wisdom

Quid est quod dicit: Calumnia conturbat sapientem, et perdit robur cordis ejus? Qui enim vere sapiens est, nulla turbatur calumnia, nec dejicitur adversitate. Sapiens in hoc loco non ille intelligens est qui perfectus et consummatus est in sapientia, sed qui jam coepit abere sapientiam, et tamen non est perfectus. Talem sapientiam calumnia hominum sive adversitas aliqua facile conturbat, et perdit vigorem ac fortiudinem animae illius quia, cum patienter non sustinet adversa, vexatur impatientia. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Ecclesiasten, Caput VII Source: Migne PL 172.341c

Why is it that he says, 'Calumny troubles a wise man and drains the strength of his heart'? 1 Since he who is truly wise is not troubled by calumny, nor is he dejected by adversity. The wise man in this passage should not be understood as one who is perfect and flawless in wisdom, but as he who has just begun to acquire wisdom and is not yet perfect. Such wisdom is easily troubled by the calumny of men and adversity, and it drains the vigour and fortitude of that soul, because when the soul cannot patiently endure adverse things, it is distressed with impatience. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Ecclesiastes, Chapter 7 1 Eccl 7.8

The Boy And The King

Quis est ille: Puer pauper et sapiens, qui melior est rege sene et stulto? Dominus noster Jesus Christus, qui puer dictus est propter innocentiam et simplicitatem, quia peccatum non fecit, nec inventus est dolus in ore ejus. Iste puer cum esset dives factus est pauper pro nostra salute. Iste veraciter est sapiens, quia in ipso habitat omnis plenitudo divinitatis corporaliter. Quis est ille rex senex et stultus? Diabolus, qui pene ab ipso mundi exordio regnavit in genere humano, et ideo senex vocatur, et vere stultus est rex, quia qunato plures decipit, tanto sibi poenam accumulat. In regno quippe hujus regis senis et stulti, id est, diaboli, natus est puer optimus, Dominus videlicet Jesus Christus, qui factus est Rex regum, et Domnius dominantium. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Ecclesiasten, Caput IV Source: Migne PL 172.340a-b

Why is it said: 'A boy who is poor and wise is better than a king who is old and foolish' ? 1 Our Lord Jesus Christ is called a boy on account of innocence and simplicity, because He did not commit sin, nor was cunning to be found in His mouth. 2 This boy when He was rich was made poor for our salvation. He is the one who truly is wise, because in Him all the fullness of divinity dwells bodily. 3 Who is the old and foolish king? The devil, who indeed has ruled over the human race from the beginning of this world, and therefore is named old, and certainly he is a foolish king because the more he deceives, the more he heaps up punishment for himself. In the kingdom of this old and foolish king the best of boys is born, obviously our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the King of kings, and the Lord of lords. 4 Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Ecclesiastes, Chapter 4 1 Eccl 4.13 2 1 Pet 2.22 3 Colos 2.19 4 Apoc 17.14, 19,16

Understanding And Teaching

Quid est quod ait: Appone cor ad doctrinam meam.? Et paulo post subjungit: Ecce descripsi eam tripliciter, in cogitationibus et scientia ut ostenderem tibi firmitatem et eloquia veritatis? Quomodo descripsit tripliciter doctrinam et scientiam? Aut quid est cor apponere ad doctrinam? Cor apponere est intelligere doctrinam sanctam et justam. Tripliciter vero descripsit suam doctrinam, quia unicuique praecepit ut eam studeat implere cogitatione, locutione, et opere. De quibus terminis dicit: Ne transgrediaris terminos antiquos, quos posuerunt patres tui? Terminos antiquos dicit terminos veritatis et fidei, quos habuerunt ab initio catholici doctores. Hoc ergo praecipit, ut sacrae fidei veritatem et evangelicae doctinae nemo aliter suscipiat, quam a sanctis Patribus est tradita, sive hoc praecipit, ut eloquia sacrarum Scipturarum nemo aliter interpretetur, nisi juxta uniuscujusque scribentis vel docentis sancti Spiritus veritatem et intentionem. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Proverbia, Caput XXII Source: Migne PL 172.324a-b

Why does he say. 'Apply your heart to my teaching.' ? And a little after, 'Behold, I have described it in three ways, in thought and in knowledge, that I might show to you the firmness and elegance of truth.' ? 1 How has he described teaching and knowledge in three ways? Or what is it to apply the heart to teaching? To apply the heart is to understand holy and righteous teaching. But he describes his teaching in three ways, because he commands each one of us to strive to fulfill it in thought and speech and deed. Of what boundaries does he speak of with: 'Do not pass beyond the ancient boundaries that your fathers have established.' 2 He calls the ancient boundaries the boundaries of truth and faith that the catholic teachers had from the beginning. This, therefore, he commands, that no one should take up the truth of the holy faith and the teaching of the Gospel in any other way than according to the tradition of the Holy Fathers, or that no one should interpret the words of Holy Scripture in any other way but writing and teaching according to the truth and intention of the Holy Spirit. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Proverbs, Chapter 22 1 Prov 22.17, 20-21 2 Prov 22.28

Souls And Enrichment

Quid est quod ait: Anima quae benedicit, impinguabitur: et quae inebriat, ipsa quoque inerbriatur? Plures namque sunt qui inebriant alios, sed ipsi non inebriantur; non dicit hoc corporali ebrietate, sed de spiritali: Anima ergo quae benedicit, impinguabitur, quia quicunque exterius praedicando benedicit, spiritalem pinguedinem accipit, id est spiritali gratia augetur et crescit. Similiter qui sacro eloquio mentes subditorum studet inebriare, inebriabitur et ipse, quia sancti Spiritus gratia repletur. Quare non dixit, homo, sed, anima quae benedicit, impinguabitur? In Scripturis divinis saepius poni solet pars pro toto, id est anima pro toto homine. Totum vero ponitur etiam pro parte, ut illud: Tulerunt Dominum meum. Dominum dixit, pro corpore Domini. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Proverbia, Caput XI Source: Migne PL 172.318c

Why is it said: 'The soul which blesses shall be enriched, and that which intoxicates shall also be made drunk?' 1 For there are many who intoxicate others, but they are not intoxicated. This does speak of corporeal ebriety but of spiritual matters. Therefore the soul which blesses shall be enriched because whoever it blesses outside in preaching, it receives spiritual enrichment, that is, an increase and growth of spiritual grace. Similarly he who strives to intoxicate the minds of those who hear with sacred speech, even he shall be made drunk, because he is filled with the grace of the Holy Spirit. Why did it not say 'a man' but 'a soul' which blesses is enriched? It is often the habit of Divine Scripture to give a part for the whole, that is, the soul for the whole man. But the whole may also be given for a part, as in 'They have taken my Lord away,' 2 for she says 'The Lord' for the body of the Lord. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Proverbs, Chapter 11 1 Prov 11.25 2 Jn 20.13

Wisdom And Counsel

Quid est: Ne innitaris sapientiae tuae?Quis enim innititur sapientiae suae? Ille qui sua sapientia, aut suis viribus confidit se posse implere divina mandata Ecce iterum dicit: Ne sis sapiens apud temetispsum. Quis enim sapiens apud semetipsum? Ille certe qui se prae caeteris extollit, quasi doctior, et jactat de his quae ex dictis Patrum recete cognoscere et intelligere potuit. Quae est vera sapientia? Dominum timere, et recedere a malo. Unde scis quod haec sit vera sapientia hominis? Quia in libro Job scriptum est: Ecce timor Domini, ipse est sapientia; et recedere a malo, intelligentia. Quis est homo ille de quo Salomon ait: Beatus homo invenit sapientiam? Qui doctrinam veritatis, id est Evangelli, aure corporis simul et cordis percipit, et in Scripturis sacris Domini voluntatem studet cognoscere. Quando affluit prudentia? Quando cum magno amore et sui cordis delectatione audit praecepta divina, et opere studet implere. Quid est quod ait: Viae ejus viae pulchrae et omnes semitae illius pacificae? Quae sunt istae semitae, aut quae sunt hae viae ipsius? Viae sapientiae sunt actiones Domini, quas gessit in carne, sive doctinae ipsius quae continentur in libris Evangeliorum; quae viae pulchrae sunt, quia divinae. Semitae sapientiae sunt mandata et praecepta Domini: quae semitae recte dicuntur pacificae, quia omnia praecepta Domini ad pacem aeternam perducunt. De qua lege, aut de quo consilio dicit Salomon, cum ait: Custodi legem meam atque consilium meum? De lege et consilio sapientiae Domini nostri Jesu Christi, quae est lex sapientiae, quae dicit: Si vis in gredi ad vitam, serva mandata: id est Non occides, Non moechaberis, Non furtum facies etc. Quid est quod ait: Abominatio Domini est omnis illusor? Quis est illusor? Qui verba Dei, quae cognoscit, implere contemnit. Illusor est haereticus, qui verba Dei perverse intelligendo et docendo corrumpit. Et ille est illusor, qui magna Dei promissa quasi parva despicit, et poenam aeternae damnationis quasi tolerabilem spernit. Iterum: Illusor est, qui suos proximos simplices et pauperes insultando contemnit. Omnes hos tales abominatur Dominus, et cum simplicibus est sermocinatio eius, quia illos gratia coelestis sapientiae illuminat, qui se nihil duplicitatis habent. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Proverbia, Caput III Source: Migne PL 172.319a-b

What is 'Do not depend on your own wisdom?' 1 Who depends on his own wisdom? He who is confident that his own wisdom or ability is able to fulfill the Divine commandments. Behold, again he says, 'Do not be wise in your own eyes.' 2 Who is wise in his own eyes? Certainly he who exalts himself over others as one who is more learned, and who boasts about those things rightly said by the fathers which he knows and understands. What is true wisdom? To be in awe of the Lord, and to withdraw from evil. How do you know that this is the true wisdom of man? Because in the book of Job it is written: 'Behold the awe of the Lord, this is wisdom, and to withdraw from evil is understanding.' 3 Who is that man of whom Solomon says: 'Blessed is the man who finds wisdom.' ? 4 He who receives the teaching of truth, that is, the Gospels, both in the ear of the body and in the heart, and is eager to know the meaning of the Holy Scriptures of the Lord. When does 'prudence flourish' ? 4 When with great love and joy in his heart a man hears the Divine commands, and he is zealous to fulfill their works. Why is it said: 'Her ways are the ways of beauty and all her paths are peace?' 5 What are these paths, or what are these ways? The ways of wisdom are the deeds of the Lord which He performed in the flesh, or His teachings which are containted in the books of the Evangelists, which ways are beautiful because they are Divine. The paths of wisdom are the commands and precepts of the Lord, which paths are rightly named peaceful, because every command of the Lord leads to eternal peace. About what law or about what counsel does Solomon speak when he says, 'Keep my law and my counsel.' ? 6 About the law and counsel of the wisdom of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is the law of wisdom, and which says: 'If you wish to enter into the way, keep the commandments; that is, do not kill, do not commit adultery, do not steal etc.' 7 What is 'An abomination to the Lord is everyone who mocks.' Who is a mocker? 8 He is one who knows the words of God and scorns the fulfillment of them. The mocker is the heretic who corrupts the the words of God by a perverse understanding and teaching. And he is a mocker who looks down on the great promises of God as trivial things and the punishment of eternal damnation as something tolerable. Again, he is a mocker who with insults scorns his simple neighbours and the poor. All such men are an abomination to the Lord, 'and His conversation is with the simple,' 8 because the latter are illuminated with the grace of heavenly wisdom in which there is no deceit. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Proverbs, Chapter 3 1 Prov 3.5 2 Prov 3.7 3 Job 27.28 4 Prov 3.13 5 Prov 3.17 6 Prov 3.21 7 Mt 19.17 8 Prov 3.32

Possession And The Winds

Quid est quod ait: Qui conturbat domum suam, possidebit ventos? quomodo potest aliquis possidere ventos? Domum in hoc loco mentem appellat, id est qua unusquisque veluti in domo habitat per cogitationes, ventos, immundos spiritus vocat. Qui ergo domum, id est mentem, malis et noxiis cogitationibus perturbare non timet, iste nimirum possidebit ventos, quia per malas cogitationes viam facit daemonibus, ut ingrediantur et inhabitent in ipso. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Proverbia, Caput XI Source: Migne PL 172.319a-b

Why is it said: 'He who troubles his own house, shall possess the winds?' 1 How can someone possess the winds? In this passage he calls the mind the house, that is, that in which everyone dwells with his thoughts, as in a house. The winds are unclean spirits. Therefore he who does not fear to trouble his house, that is, his mind, with wicked and vile thoughts, he certainly possesses the winds, because by wicked thoughts he makes a way for demons, so that they enter in and dwell in him. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Proverbs, Chapter 11 1 Prov 11.29

The Golden Ring

Quomodo intelligendum est quod ait Circulus aureus in naribus suis, mulier pulchra et fatua? Hoc est, si circulum aureum in naribus porci infixeris, ille dum pergit terram vertere ac fodere naso, immergit circulum aureum in volutabrum luti, et tunc perdit circulis aureus decorem quem habuit. Similiter ergo mulier fatua, si habet pulchritudinem vultus, vel si accipiat ornamenta inaurium, monilium simul et vestimentorim, sordidat pulchritudinem vultus, et amittit decorem, si se coeno libidinis coinquinare diligit, et adulteriis corrumpit. Spiritualiter autem quomodo intelligenda est haec sententia? Quicunque sacras Scripturas intente meditatur, et jugiter perscrutatur divina eloquia, accipit ornamentum scientiae; quod si male vivendo corrumpit, et destruit quod intelligit, circumulum aureum habet in naribus, sed more suis terram fodiendo coinquinat et luto immergit, quia ornatum per quem notitiam Scripturarum accepit, immunda actione sordidavit. Talis anima, pulchra mulier et fatua est; pulchra quidem per scientiam; sed dedita carnalibus delectationibus, fatua est per actionem. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Proverbia, Caput XI Source: Migne PL 172.318a-b

How should it be understood when it is said, 'A golden ring in the nose is a woman who is beautiful and foolish.' 1 That is, if you attach a golden ring to the snout of a pig, when he goes off to turn up the earth and dig in it with his snout, he covers the golden ring with the filth of the mud, and so he ruins the beauty of the golden ring which he has. Similar, therefore, is a foolish woman, if she has a beautiful appearance, or if she receives gilded ornaments, and likewise necklaces and clothes, and she defiles the beauty of her appearance and casts down the charm of them, delighting to foul herself in feasts of lust and to corrupt it with adulteries. But spiritually how should this be understood? Whoever meditates intently on the Scriptures and with it studies the divine words, he receives the ornament of knowledge, which if he corrupts with bad living, so he ruins what he understands. He has the golden ring in the nose, but his conduct befouls it with his digging in the earth and covering it in mud, whence the ornament which he received by his knowledge of the Scriptures is spoiled by unclean action. Such a soul is a beautiful and foolish woman, certainly beautiful by knowledge, but given over to carnal delights it is made foolish by action. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Proverbs, Chapter 11 1 Prov 11.22

The Lazy Man

Quid est quod ait: Vult piger et non vult? Si ergo vult, quomodo non vult? Per pigrum ille designatur qui se non vult exercere in bonis operibus. Vult ergo piger regnare, et non vult laborare pro Deo; vult pervenire ad beatitudinem, et non vult Christi praecepta implere, ut beatitudinem mereatur obtinere. De hoc enim Jacobus dicit: Vir duplex animo, inconstans est in omnibus viis suis. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Proverbia, Caput XIII Source: Migne PL 172.319d

Why is it said, 'The lazy man wishes and does not wish.' 1 If he wishes, how does he not wish? By the lazy man is designated one who is unwilling to exert himself in good works. Thus the lazy man wishes to reign and yet he does not wish to labour for God. He wishes to come to blessedness, and yet he does not wish to fulfill the commandments of Christ that he might merit the reward of blessedness. Concerning which James says: 'A man of twofold soul, inconstant in all his ways.' 2 Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Proverbs, Chapter 13 1 Prov 13.4 2 Jam 1.8

Binding And Writing

Quid est quod Solomon dicit de lege sua: Liga eam in digitis tuis, scribe illam in tabulis cordis tui? Quis enim legem in digitis ligare potest? aut si fecerit, quae erit utilitas? In digitis, hoc est in actibus. Legem in digitis ligat quicunque eam bonis operibus implet et ornat; in tabulis cordis, hoc est in latitudine cogitationis. Scribit ergo legem in tabulis cordis sui, qui eam cum gaudio suscipit, et memoriae commendat. Honorius Augustodunensis, Quaestiones Et Ad Easdem Responsiones In Duos Salomonis Libros, In Proverbia, Caput VII Source: Migne PL 172.316a-b

Why does Solomon say concerning the law: 'Bind it on your fingers and write it on the tablets of your heart.' 1 For who is able to bind the law to his fingers? Or if someone could do it, what use would it be? 'On the fingers' means in deeds. He binds the law on the fingers who fulfills and adorns the law with good works. 'On the tablets of the heart,' means in the breadth of one's thoughts. Therefore he writes the law on the tablets of his heart, who receives it with joy and commends it to memory. Honorius of Autun, Questions and Answers on Two Books of Solomon, On Proverbs, Chapter 7 1 Prov 7.3