Bellarmine · De Controversiis · On the Word of God · Book I: On the Canonical Books
Chapter 14: On Ecclesiasticus
Our translation, from the Latin of the Opera Omnia (Paris: Vivès, 1870–74), vol. I, De Verbo Dei, Book I: On the Canonical Books of Scripture. The Latin source text is public domain; this English rendering is released with the site. Scripture quotations follow Bellarmine's Vulgate citations, rendered in Douay-Rheims wording where he quotes exactly. Click “Show the Latin” for the original (raw OCR of the scan; scanning errors remain — the scan itself is the authority).
The book of Ecclesiasticus, because from it many dogmas of faith are luculently proved, Calvin vehemently hates: “Whence,” he says in the Antidote, “would they better draw the dregs?” and yet he has nothing which he may object to it. We, on the contrary, can confirm the authority of that book by many testimonies of the ancients. Clement of Alexandria, book 7 of the Stromata, near the end, citing chapter 4 of Ecclesiasticus, thus says: “But following the Scriptures, let us confirm what has been said.” St. Cyprian, book 3, epistle 9, citing chapter 7: “But Solomon also, established in the Holy Spirit, testifies and teaches.” Epiphanius, in the heresy of the Anomoeans, numbers among the sacred and divine books the Wisdom of Solomon and of the son of Sirach, that is, Ecclesiasticus. From which we understand that the same Epiphanius, when in the book On Measures and Weights he says that these books are not received, spoke of the opinion of the Jews. Blessed Ambrose, book 4 On the Faith, chapter 4, named the words of Ecclesiasticus out of chapter 24 divine oracles. Blessed Augustine, in the book to Orosius against the Priscillianists: “The divine Scripture cries,” he says, Seek not the things that are too high for thee; which is a sentence of our Ecclesiasticus. Finally Clement and Cyprian in the places cited, Sixtus II in the epistle to Gratus, Damasus in the epistle to the Bishops of Italy, Basil book 4 against Eunomius, Ambrose on chapter 7 of the first to the Corinthians, Jerome on chapter 10 of Ecclesiastes, and Gregory book 10 of the Morals chapter 14, not only cite this book, but even attribute it to Solomon; and it was never doubted that the books of Solomon are to be held canonical and divine. But Epiphanius, in the heresy of the Anomoeans, and some others, will have the author of this book to be Jesus Sirach. I answer that it could easily have been that Jesus Sirach reduced into one volume the sentences of Solomon diligently collected by himself, so that either may be called the author.
Show the Latin (Vives edition, OCR)
CAPUT XIV. De Ecclesiastico. Librum Ecclesiastici, quod ex eo multa dogmata Fidei luculenter probentur, vehe¬ menter Calvinus odit : « Unde, inquit in An¬ tidoto, melius faecem haurirent ? » nec tamen habet aliquid , quod ei objiciat. Nos autem contra, multis Veterum testimoniis aucto¬ ritatem ejus libri confirmare possumus. Cle¬ mens Alexandrinus libr. VII Stromatum prope extremo , citans cap. IV. Ecclesiastici sic ait : « Sequentes autem Scripturas con¬ firmemus quod dictum est.» Sanctus Cypria¬ nus lib* III. epist. 9. citans cap. VII. « Sed et Salomon, inquit, in Spiritu sancto consti¬ tutus testatur, et docet. » Epiphanius in hae¬ res. Anomseorum numerat inter sacros ac divinos libros Sapientiam Salomonis , et filii Sirach, id est, Ecclesiasticum. Ex quo intel- ligimus, eumdem Epiphanium , cum in lib. de mens, ponder. dicit , hos libros non esse receptos, de sententia Judaeorum esse locu¬ tum. B. Ambrosius lib. IV. de Fide cap. 4. verba Ecclesiastici ex cap. XXIV. divina ora¬ cula nominavit. Beatus Augustinus in libr. ad Orosium contra Priscillianistas : « Cla¬ mat, inquit , Scriptura divina » : Altiora te ne queesieris , quse sententia Ecclesiastici no¬ stri est. Denique Clemens , et Cyprianus lo¬ cis citatis, Sixtus II. in epist. ad Gratum, Damasus in epist. ad Episcopos Italiae, Basi¬ bus libr. IV In Eunomium, Ambrosius in cap. VII. prioris ad Corinth. Hieron. in cap. X. Ecclesiasticae, et Gregor, lib. X. Moralium cap. 14, hunc librum non solum citant, sed etiam Salomoni attribuunt : nun¬ quam autem dubium fuit , quin Salomonis libri canonici ac divini habendi essent. At Epiphanius in haeresi Anomaeorum , et alii nonnulli auctorem librii hujus Jesum Sirach esse volunt. Respondeo, facile potuisse fieri, ut Jesus Sirach sententias Salomonis a se diligenter collectas in unum volumen rede¬ gerit, ita uterque auctor dici poterit.