"Faithful friends are a sturdy shelter:
whoever finds one has found a treasure.
Faithful friends are beyond price;
no amount can balance their worth.
Faithful friends are life-saving medicine;
and those who fear the Lord will find them.”
-Sirach 6:14-16 NRSV
As Sirach points out, it is very important to have good friends. There are many obvious reasons for this, but today this was made very clear to me when a good friend of mine presented me with three boxes of Bible commentaries that he had picked off the 25 cent rack at the local seminary. (The fact that these were only 25 cents is nuts, but I am not complaining one bit.)
whoever finds one has found a treasure.
Faithful friends are beyond price;
no amount can balance their worth.
Faithful friends are life-saving medicine;
and those who fear the Lord will find them.”
-Sirach 6:14-16 NRSV
As Sirach points out, it is very important to have good friends. There are many obvious reasons for this, but today this was made very clear to me when a good friend of mine presented me with three boxes of Bible commentaries that he had picked off the 25 cent rack at the local seminary. (The fact that these were only 25 cents is nuts, but I am not complaining one bit.)
I had been hoping for the last few months to fill in my Old Testament library of commentaries, which wasn't very comprehensive. Of course, commentaries are not cheap, so I have been slowly building over the past few months, mostly with used editions that I had come across. However, I never thought I would be so blessed to get this lot of commentaries all at once.
The three boxes of commentaries, many of which are lightly used, include amongst others:
JPS Torah Commentary (5 volumes)
Old Testament Library Series from Westminster (7 volumes)
Interpretation Commentary Series by John Knox Press (18 volumes)
Berit Olam (12 volumes)
Many thanks to my friend Matthew, whom I will be indebted to for a very long time.....but happily so!
This is just amazing! What seminary was this?
ReplyDeleteHmmmm...... I know you are in the area! ;)
ReplyDeleteSacred Heart Major Seminary actually in Detroit.
What a blessing to have such a friend watching out for you!!!
ReplyDeleteSharon in Texas
Timothy, at 25 cents, this is awesome. I had never seen any deals like this before. My sem library sells old hardcovers for $1.
ReplyDeleteKevin,
ReplyDeleteYeah, it is a crazy price for so many books. I noticed on the inside cover of the books that they had been donated a couple years back by a priest who was one of the Scripture professors. Perhaps they had multiple copies already and just wanted to get rid of them.
But where on earth are you going to put them?
ReplyDeleteAnon,
ReplyDeleteI'll find space, trust me! ;)
Is envy still a capital sin? Cause I am so envious!
ReplyDeleteHello! I also blogged about Sirach chapter 6 during July 2010; you have a blessing with the friend who shared the commentaries. The passage I posted on my blog
ReplyDeletehttp://faithfor2008.blogspot.com/
was the entire chapter of Ben Sira (also called Sirach or Ecclesiasticus) as translated by Edgar Goodspeed for his 1938 translation of the Deuterocanonical OT books.
Grace and peace, Tim Shaw
Niles, Michigan -- I am just a novice as far as blogging goes and I enjoyed reading your posts about Catholics and the Bible -- this week at St. Mary's College they had a dedication and Mass honoring the just gifted volumes of the illuminated Saint John's Bible.
Here's the translated part of Sirach chapter 6
ReplyDeleteA faithful friend is a strong protection; a man who has found one has found a treasure. A faithful friend is beyond price, and his value cannot be weighed. A faithful friend is a life-giving medicine, and those who fear the Lord will find it. The man who fears the Lord will make genuine friendships, for to him his neighbor is like himself.
___________________________________
forgot to cut and paste it just a minute ago
From Tim Shaw, Niles, Michigan
Tim,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by the blog. It is always nice to have a fellow Michigander in the Catholic blogosphere. I will certainly stop by yours in the coming days.
About 30 years ago a dear friend of my mom gave her the gift of an original, unique and custom piece of framed art consisting of caligraphied verses from Sirach with floral embelishment. The quote goes:
ReplyDelete"A faithful friend is beyond price;
No sum can balance his worth;
He who finds one finds a treasure."
Though apparently heavily edited, I find it a lovely and consoling sentiment and am happily reminded of the warmth of my cherished friendships.