Глава 11

1–3. Preparing to meet with parents. 4–9. The joyful meeting of Tobit and Anna with their son. 10–14. Tobit's epiphany. 15–18. Tobit's meeting of Sarah and a new seven-day wedding celebration in Nineveh. Tob.11:1 And Raphael said to Tobiah: You know, brother, in what condition you left your father; Comrade 11:2 Let us go ahead before your wife and prepare the room; Comrade 11:3 And you take the bile of the fish in your hand. And off we went; The dog also ran after them. 1–3. In Codex Sinaiticus LXX Art. 1 the area to which the travelers approached - Raphael and Tobit with Sarah on the way to Nineveh is named: εις Κασερείν, ή έστιν κατέναντι Νινευή, no other list - εις Καισαρειαν. But, of course, one cannot see here any of the Caesareas, which appeared only during the time of Roman rule. Likewise, about what was stated in the Vulgate Art. 1 the name Charan cannot be seen in the Mesopotamian city of Harran, known from the history of Abraham (Gen. XI:31, sn. Interpretations. Bible vol. I), to the southeast. from the city of Edessa, which later became part of the kingdom of Assyria (2 Kings XIX:12; Interpretation of the Bible, vol. II), since the last Harran lay in the north-west of Mesopotamia, next. to the west of the river Tiger, while the area mentioned in the book. Tobit (XI: 1), lay in any case to the east of the Tigris (Nineveh itself lay on the eastern bank of the Tigris, and Ecbatana and the Median Ragi were even further to the east). Without a doubt, this refers to some area unknown to the translators of the book (maybe Kisiri near the canal of the Kosera River - Husur, see Prof. Drozdov, pp. 507–508). Comrade 11:4 Meanwhile Anna sat looking out for her son on the road, Comrade 11:5 And when she saw him coming, she said to his father, “Behold, your son is coming, and the man who went with him.” Tob.11:6 Raphael said: I know, Tobiah, that your father’s eyes will be opened; Comrade 11:7 You just anoint his eyes with bile, and he, feeling the acridity, will wipe them, and the eyesores will fall away, and he will see you. Comrade 11:8 Anna ran up, threw herself on her son’s neck and said to him: I saw you, my child, now I want to die. And they both cried. Tob.11:9 And Tobit went to the door and stumbled, but his son hastened to him and supported his father, Comrade 11:10 And he put gall into the eyes of his father, and said: Be of good cheer, my father! Comrade 11:11 His eyes were stuck, and he wiped them, 6–7. 9–11. Bile, which was supposed to serve as a healing agent for Tobit’s eyesight (cf. VI: 9), could have been preserved by Tobiah either in the form of a powder, in which form, presumably, he used the heart and liver of fish for smoking (VI: 7; VIII: 2–3), or in the form of an ointment, with the addition of some other substances. The very possibility of the healing effect of bile on vision, regardless of the gracious, miraculous nature of Tobit’s insight, can be confirmed by data from ancient and modern medicine (see Prof. Drozdov, pp. 353–360). Comrade 11:12 and the eyesores were removed from the edges of his eyes. Seeing his son, he fell on his neck Tov.11:13 and he wept and said: Blessed are You, O God, and blessed is Your name forever, and blessed are all Your holy Angels! Comrade 11:14 Because You punished and had mercy on me. Behold, I see Tobiah my son. - And his son entered joyfully and told his father about the wonderful things that had happened to him in Media. Tob.11:15 And Tobit went out to meet his daughter-in-law at the gates of Nineveh, rejoicing and blessing God. Those who saw him coming were amazed at how he regained his sight. Tob.11:16 And Tobit confessed before them that God had mercy on him. When Tobit approached Sarah his daughter-in-law, he blessed her and said: Hello, my daughter! Blessed be God, who brought you to us, and blessed be your father and your mother! All his brothers in Nineveh also rejoiced. 13–16. The gratitude and laudatory confession to God offered by Tobit has a sublimely pious, truly theocratic tone and character. With a strong faith in God the Provider, here (v. 13) the faith of the Old Testament righteous man is expressed in the Angels and their prayerful glorification, in connection, probably, with the thought or for now premonition of the good deed of Tobiah on the part of the Angel Raphael. Tov.11:17 And Ahiachar and Naswas his nephew came, 17. Together with Ahikar, who was discussed in I: 21–22, someone is mentioned here Νασβάς (according to the Sinai code. Ναβάδ), without a doubt, the same person with Ναδάβ art. 10, ch. XIV, - nephew of Ahikar. Tob.11:18 and joyfully celebrated the marriage of Tobiah for seven days.