Глава 8

1–8. The expulsion of the demon (Asmodeus) and the mutual prayer of the newlyweds - Tobias and Sarah. 9–14. Raguel prepares a grave for his son-in-law. 15–21. Raguel thanks the Lord for the salvation of the newlyweds and their two-week wedding celebration. Tob.8:1 When they had finished supper, they brought Tobiah to her. Comrade 8:2 And as he walked, he remembered the words of Raphael, and took an incense burner, and put in the heart and liver of a fish, and smoked. Comrade 8:3 The demon, sensing this smell, fled to the upper countries of Egypt, and an Angel bound him. 1–3. Sarah's deliverance from the evil spirit, of course, cannot be attributed to the physical properties of the heart and liver of the fish or to the smoking itself or the smell emanating from the burning of these parts: this kind of material means could not have a direct effect on the disembodied spirit - Asmodeus. The meaning of this testimony, v. 1–3, about Sarah's deliverance from Asmodeus, the simple fact is that this deliverance was miraculous and mediated by some material means. In this regard, this miracle does not contradict the nature of other biblical miracles, which are usually associated with external actions and with material means (see, for example, Numbers XXI: 8–9; cf. Commentaries. Bibl. vol. I or 2 Kings II: 19, 22 and Commentaries Bibl. vol. II). Likewise, thought, art. 3, about the removal of Asmodeus to Upper Egypt, i.e. into the desert, and the binding of him by an Angel (Raphael) can be brought into agreement with biblical angelology and demonology, since the desert was in the minds of the Jews the dwelling of evil spirits (Lev. 16:9–10, 17:7, 13:21, 34:18; cf. Matt. 12:43), as well as the concept of “binding,” i.e. to deprive the possibility of action is more than once used by sacred writers in relation to evil spirits (Matthew XII:29; 2 Pet. II:4; Jude 1:6 v.), and in the Apocalypse the binding of Satan for 1000 years is assigned to the Angel who has the key to the abyss (Rev. XX:1-3, cf. XII:9) (see A. Glagolev, Old Economy. Bibl., doctrine of angels, p. 591,695). Tob.8:4 When they were left alone in the room, Tobiah got out of bed and said: Get up, sister, and let us pray that the Lord will have mercy on us. Tob.8:5 And Tobias began to say: Blessed are You, God of our fathers, and blessed is Your holy and glorious name forever! May the heavens and all Your creations bless You! Tov.8:6 You created Adam and gave him Eve as a helper, and his wife as a support. From them came the human race. You said: it is not good for man to be alone; let us create a helper like him. Tov.8:7 And now, Lord, I take this sister of mine not to satisfy lust, but truly as a wife: deign to have mercy on me and let me grow old with her! Tov.8:8 And she said with him: Amen. 4–8. The smoking of fish with the heart and liver (v. 2) was only a symbol of the subsequent prayer of Tobiah with Sarah (cf. Ps. 140:2; Rev. 8:4). This prayer is remarkable as one of the few examples of Old Testament prayer preserved in the Bible, and is imprinted with the pure biblical spirit, containing: a) theocratic confession of faith in God (v. 5; fn. Exod. III: 14-15 v.) b) biblical teaching about the creation of man and the origin of the entire human race (v. 6a, fn. Gen. I-II ) and c) the biblical teaching about the essence and tasks of true marriage (vv. 6b-7, sn. Gen. II: 23–24). Comrade 8:9 And both slept peacefully that night. Meanwhile Raguel got up and went and dug a grave, Comrade 8:10 saying: Has not this one also died? Tov.8:11 And Raguel came to his house Comrade 8:12 And he said to Edna his wife: Send one of the maids to see if he is alive; if not, we will bury him and no one will know. Comrade 8:13 The maid opened the door, entered and saw that they were both sleeping. Comrade 8:14 And she went out and told them that he was alive. 9–14. In the actions and orders of Raguel in relation to both his former sons-in-law and Tobias, some researchers (for example, Zechler) saw signs of unnatural composure, strange inconsistency, etc. But this objection clearly suffers from subjectivity and has no support in the text of the book itself. Tov.8:15 And Reuel blessed God, saying: Blessed are You, O God, with every pure and holy blessing! May Your saints bless You, and all Your creatures, and all Your angels, and all Your elect, may they bless You forever! 15. Unlike the accepted Greek text, in which the doxology is attributed to Raguel alone, in other Greek codes it is attributed to Raguel jointly with Sarah. Comrade 8:16 Blessed are You, that You have made me glad, and that it did not happen to me as I thought, but has dealt with us according to Your great mercy! Comrade 8:17 Blessed are You for having mercy on your two only begotten sons! Complete, Lord, mercy on them: let them end their lives in health, with joy and mercy! Comrade 8:18 And he ordered his servants to bury the grave. Tov.8:19 And he made a wedding feast for them for fourteen days. Tov.8:20 And Raguel said to him with an oath before the days of the wedding feast were fulfilled: Do not go away until these fourteen days of the wedding feast are fulfilled; 19–20. 14 days or two weeks of a marriage celebration is a period twice as long as the usual duration of this celebration in the ancient and modern East (Gen. XXIX:27-28; Judges XIV:17; in present-day Syria, according to Wetzstein, the marriage celebration also lasts 7 days: - “royal week” of the newlyweds). Comrade 8:21 and then, taking half of the estate, go safely to your father: you will receive the rest when I and my wife die.