Глава 14

Tobit's dying will 1–4. In view of the destruction of Nineveh foreseen by Tobit, he convinces Tobias to move from Nineveh to Media for safety. 5–8. Prediction of the restoration of the temple and the conversion of the pagans to the religion of Jehovah. 9–11. An exhortation to justice and mercy and the testament of Tobit regarding burial. 12–15. The death of Tobit and his wife, the removal of Tobias to his father-in-law - Raguel; death of both. Tob.14:1 And Tobit finished his praise. Comrade 14:2 He was eighty-eight years old when he lost his sight, and after eight years he received his sight. And he did alms, and continued to be reverent before the Lord God and glorify Him. Comrade 14:3 Finally he became very old, and called his son and his six sons, and said to him: my son, take your sons; Now I am old and at the end of my life. Comrade 14:4 Go to Media, my son, for I am sure that Nineveh will be ruined, as the prophet Jonah said; and in Media it will be calmer for the time being. Our brothers who are in our own land will be scattered from this good land; Jerusalem will be a desert, and the house of God in it will be burned and will remain empty for a time. 2–4. In determining the number of years of Tobit's life, large differences are noticeable between different texts of the book of Tobit; the same must be said about other chronological dates of the book of Tobit according to various texts. Thus, according to the accepted Greek text (v. 2), Tobit lost his sight at the age of 58, according to the Alexandrian list (and Slavic translation) - at the age of 88, and regained his sight 8 years after that; the total number of years of Tobit's life in the accepted text is determined (see 11) at 158 ​​years (according to codes 44, 55, 106 in Golmes - 150 years). On the contrary, according to Sinaisk. list LXX and according to Vet. Lat. – 112 years, and according to Vulg. and Sirsk. t. - 102 years, and in determining the particular eras of Tobit’s life in these texts, in turn, there are large differences (for example, according to the Vulgate v. 1-3, Tobit became blind at 56 years old, recovered after 4 years, then 60 years old, lived after that 42 years, died 102 years old, etc.). These differences owe their origin to erroneous reading or omission of some letters that served as numbers, and deliberate changes on the part of translators and reference workers in order to harmonize individual chronological indications with each other (see Prof. Drozdov, pp. 148–149). As a result, using the book of Tobit in order to establish the date of modern historical events, for example, the destruction of Nineveh (v. 4), is extremely difficult (cf. M. Simashkevich (now Bishop Mitrofan). The Prophecy of Nahum about Nineveh. An exegetical study with an outline of the history of the Assyrian state and a historical-critical solution to the question of the origin of the Book of the Prophet Nahum. St. Petersburg, 1875, pp. 338–339). The prophecy of the coming destruction of Nineveh (v. 4) is attributed in the accepted Greek text to the prophet Jonah. But since Jonah’s prophecy about the destruction of Nineveh (Jonah III:4) as a result of the repentance of its inhabitants (ibid., v. 5–10) was not fulfilled during the time of the prophet Jonah, and there is no reason to recognize the fulfillment of this prophecy as not canceled, but only postponed for a certain time, then it should be considered more correct to read the Sinai list, according to which this prophecy is attributed to the prophet Nahum, whose prophetic book is, indeed, mainly devoted to the prediction of the destruction of Nineveh and all of Assyria (see, for example, Nahum. III:7; Zeph. II:13–15). In the Vulgate the name of the prophet is not given, but a general reference is made to the inevitability, immutability of the (prophetic) word of God: non enim excidit verbum Domini. Comrade 14:5 But again God will have mercy on them and return them to the land; and the house of God will be built, not like the first, until the times of the age are fulfilled. And after that they will return from captivity and build Jerusalem magnificently, and the house of God will be restored in it for all generations of the century, a majestic building, as the prophets spoke about it. Tov.14:6 And all the nations will be converted and will truly revere the Lord God and will overthrow their idols; Tov.14:7 and all nations will bless the Lord. And His people will glorify God, and the Lord will exalt His people; and all who truly and righteously love the Lord God will rejoice in showing mercy to our brothers. 4b-7. Likewise, Tobit bases his faith in the impending temporary desolation of Jerusalem and in its subsequent restoration, as well as in the conversion of the peoples to Jehovah (cf. XIII:9-18) on the broadcasts of the prophets relating to this subject (see, for example, Is. III: 8, LX ch.: Zeph. II: 11; Zech. VIII: 8, XIII: 2). Comrade 14:8 So, my son, come out of Nineveh, for what the prophet Jonah said will certainly be fulfilled. Comrade 14:9 Keep the law and commandments, and be merciful and just, so that it may go well with you. Comrade 14:10 Bury me decently, and your mother with me, and then do not stay in Nineveh. - My son, look what Haman did to Ahiahar, who raised him: how he brought him from the light into darkness, and how he was rewarded. Ahiakhar was saved, and he received a worthy retribution - he descended into darkness. Manasseh gave alms and was saved from the death snare that was laid out for him; Haman fell into the net and died. Comrade 14:11 So, children, know what almsgiving does and how justice saves. - When he said this, his soul left him on his bed; He was one hundred and fifty-eight years old, and his son buried him with honor. 9–11. Tobit's dying instructions to his son, contained here, briefly repeat the instructions given by Tobit to Tobias before the latter's departure to Raga Media (chap. IV) about alms, v. 9 and 11, n. IV:7–11; 16–17; about the burial of Tobit with his wife v. 10, n. IV:3–4. The commandment of mercy and almsgiving is illustrated in v. 10 with a reference to some episode with the famous Ahikar (I:22; II:10; XI:17). The meaning of this episode is clear: Ahikar’s mercy saved him from death at the hands of some ungrateful and treacherous pet of his, who was in Sinaisk. sp. LXX and in Vet. Lat. called Nadav, which is obviously the same as the name of Naswas, the nephew of Ahikar - in XI:17. But in the accepted Greek in the text, this episode is obscured and complicated, firstly, by the fact that instead of Nadab, a certain Haman (or Adam) is named, probably due to the confusion of this episode with the story of Mordecai and Haman in the book of Esther; secondly, in addition, a new case is given of the salvation of Manasseh, an unknown person (some old interpreters arbitrarily saw in him the husband of Judith, see Judith. VIII: 2) from the snares of Haman. Comrade 14:12 When Anna died, he buried her with his father. After that, Tobias with his wife and his children went to Ecbatana to Raguel, his father-in-law, Tov.14:13 and reached an honest old age, and decently buried his father-in-law and mother-in-law, and received as an inheritance the property of them and Tobit, his father. Comrade 14:14 And he died one hundred and twenty-seven years old in Ecbatana of Media. 11b-14. Tobias exactly fulfills his father’s will: he moves to Ecbatana not before the death of his mother Anna, whom, according to his father’s will (v. 10, fn. IV: 3–4), he buried along with Tobit. The years of Tobias’ life (v. 14) are shown differently in different texts of the book of Tobit: in the accepted Greek. text – 127 years, according to other lists – 107 years; into code. Sinaisk and in Vet. Lat – 117 years, in Vulgate – 99 years. In the Vulgate about Tobias it is added that he saw his descendants from the fifth generation, and that all his relatives and descendants were distinguished by piety (Viditque quintam generationem filios filiorum suorum... Omnis autem cognatio ejus et omnis generatio ejus in bona vita, et in sancta conversatione permansit, ita, ut accepti essent tam Deo, quam hominibus et cunctis habitantibus in terra). Comrade 14:15 But before he died, he heard about the destruction of Nineveh, which was captured by Nebuchadnezzar and Asuir, and before his death he rejoiced over Nineveh. 15. After his resettlement to Ecbatany, probably shortly before his death, Tobias heard about the destruction of Nineveh - perhaps from Assyrian captives brought to Ecbatany by the Median king. Destroyer of Nineveh according to Sinai. code. book of Tobit (v. 15) appears to be Ahiachar - A χιάχαρος, ό βασιλεύς της Μήδειας (no Vet. Lat. Achicar, rex Medorum): here the name Ahiachar, or Ahikar, repeatedly found in the book of Tobit (even in itself, Chapter XIV, Art. 10), appeared as a result of confusion with the consonant name of the Median king Cyaxares, Κυαξάρής, whom Herodotus speaks of as the conqueror of Assyria (Histor. I, 106). The reports of other ancient historians (Abadan, Alexander Polyhistor, Ctesias) about the participation of the Babylonians, led by Nabopolassar, in the destruction of Nineveh, can be fully consistent with these data - the book of Tobit (according to the code. Sinai) and the history of Herodotus (see Prof. Drozdov, pp. 516–525). Mainly, the evidence of the book of Tobit (and Herodotus) is confirmed recently, in 1894, by the open inscription of the Babylonian king Nabonidus, according to which “the king of Manda,” i.e. Medes, is an assistant to Nabopolassar, and the very destruction of Assyria is attributed to the Medes alone. The same inscription indicates the chronological date of the destruction of Assyria and Nineveh - 54 years before the restoration of the church of the god Sin in the city of Harran in 553, i.e. the destruction of Nineveh followed in 606 BC - a date that can now be considered generally accepted (see ibid., pp. 525–527). In the accepted Greek text of the book. Tobit (v. 15) the name of Cyaxares is replaced by the name of the conqueror Nebuchadnezzar, who has become known to every Jew since the Babylonian captivity, and the name of the country - Assyria (A σσυρίας or A σσυρ) was unsuccessfully turned into the name of a person - the supposed second conqueror - Assuir (' Ασυήρος or: according to code. 23, 58, 64, 106, 243, 246, 249, compl. Thus, the book of Tobit, beginning with the story of the resettlement of the inhabitants of the kingdom of Israel to Assyria and, in particular, to Nineveh (I: 1-8), ends with evidence of the destruction of both this world monarchy and its famous capital (XIV: 15). Such is the sacred, biblical pragmatism of the historical fate of Assyria - the people who were the “rod of wrath” of God (Isa. X: 5) to punish Israel! Professor of the Kyiv Theological Academy, Master of Theology priest A. A. Glagolev.