St. John Chrysostom: Commentary on the Sages: Commentary on Job

by Robert C. Hill

Two volumes of Chrysostom's commentaries on the Sages. Volume One includes the commentary on Job. Volume Two includes the commentary on Proverbs and the commentary on Ecclesiastes. "The Fathers, especially of the East, did not leave us many commentaries on the Wisdom Books of the Old Testament, even though frequently citing the figure of Job and Solomon's proverbs in their other works. This neglect may perhaps be accounted for by a reluctance to see the sages as recipients of inspiration in the same fashion as psalmists and prophets, Wisdom often seeming to be the fruit of human experience. It is therefore doubly gratifying that recent scholarship has unearthed commentaries on the text of Job, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes by the celebrated preacher of Antioch, John Chrysostom. Not only do these texts complete the already huge corpus of his works, but they reveal the response of a Greek Father to this distinctive sapiential material, which the ancients found challenging, sometimes pragmatic, sometimes quaint. We may debate the Fathers' degree of appreciation of biblical Wisdom; but, as Chrysostom says of Proverbs, "it makes no trifling contribution to our moral life." Volume One includes the commentary on Job. "

238 pages, Paperback

First published February 26, 2007

Reviews

[Ted · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like Chrysostom's commentaries generally, this was my least favorite of what I've read from the saint. These are not fully developed sermons but perhaps notes he was gathering in preparation for a sermon series. Few gems or insights. Chrysostom sees Job as a stoic saint who tolerates suffering well but he does not quite see the story as the great moral dilemma of why the righteous suffer or a view into the mystery of God and the world.