Bonaventure, on Eccl 9:10

“Whatsoever thy hand is able to do, do it earnestly: for neither work, nor reason, nor wisdom, nor knowledge shall be in hell, whither thou art hastening.”

“And because no other reward is to be expected, man ought to take from this as much as he can. Thus he says: "Whatever your hand is able to do, work at it earnestly," that is, while you have time, do not wait for the future. And therefore it is added: "For neither work," in things to be done; "nor reason," in things to be deliberated; "nor knowledge," in things to be known; "nor wisdom," in things to be loved, "shall be in the netherworld, to which you hasten": these things are not there, because, as is said in Job 10, "that land is dark and covered with the shadow of death, where no order exists, but everlasting horror dwells." Thither sinners hasten, and all before the coming of Christ with respect to limbo. Job 17: "All my things shall descend into the deepest hell." Thither sinners hasten, drawing nearer day by day. Deuteronomy 32: "The day of destruction is near." Spiritually, then as regards the active, he says: "Whatever your hand is able to do, do it earnestly." To work earnestly is to work swiftly, against negligence: Ecclesiasticus 31: "In all your works be swift, and no infirmity shall befall you"; fervently, Proverbs 18: "He who is soft and slack in his work is the brother of him who destroys his own works"; continuously, so that one does not grow lukewarm: Ecclesiasticus 27: "If you do not hold yourself earnestly in the fear of the Lord, your house will quickly be overthrown"; perseveringly: 2 Timothy 2: "He who strives in the contest will not be crowned unless he has strived lawfully," that is, perseveringly. And the reason is added why one must earnestly do good works in the present: because the time of merit is brief; whence: "In the underworld there is no work," for exercising oneself in piety: John 9: "I must work while it is day." And therefore it is said in the last chapter of Galatians: "Let us do good while we have time, to all, but especially to the household of the faith." "There is no reason," for inquiring and discerning what is good, what is evil: Job 12: "They shall grope as in darkness and not in light, and he shall make them stagger like drunkards"; Isaiah 19: "And the Lord has mingled in their midst a spirit of dizziness." "There is no wisdom and knowledge": knowledge, namely for contemplating God in his works, nor wisdom, for contemplating him in himself: concerning these, Isaiah 33: "The riches of salvation are wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is his treasure."”

Imported from an open dataset — not yet checked against the printed edition.

This page is the stable address of one quotation — verbatim, dated, attributed, with its edition. Cite it freely.