על הבריחה והמציאה ד׳On Flight and Finding 4
א׳
1[23] Hatred, then, was the cause of the flight that has been spoken of, but fear of that of which I am about to speak. For we read as follows: “Rebecca said to Jacob, ‘Lo, Esau thy brother threatens to kill thee. Now therefore, child, listen to my voice and arise and flee to Laban my brother to Haran, and live with him for some days, until the wrath and anger of thy brother turn away, and he forget the things which thou hast done to him: and I will send and fetch thee thence’ ” (Gen. 27:42–45).
ב׳
2[24] For there is reason to fear lest the worse part of the soul set an ambush and lie in wait, or even openly arm, and then overthrow and cast down the better part. And this is excellent advice given by Rebecca, that is, by judicious Patience.
ג׳
3[25] Whenever, she says, you see the base one flowing in full current against virtue, and taking much account of things which it ought to disregard, of wealth, fame, pleasure, when he extols injustice as the author of each of these, and points out that it is mostly wrongdoers who attain to fame and to abundance of gold and silver, do not take at once the opposite direction, and practise penury and humility and a strict and unsocial mode of life; for in this way you will rouse your adversary’s spirit and stimulate a more dangerous foe to the contest against you.
ד׳
4[26] Consider, then, by what course of action you are to escape his machinations. Adapt yourself, not to his pursuits and practices, but to the objects which serve to create them —honours, offices, silver, gold, possessions, different forms and colours, beautiful objects. And whenever you meet with these, do as a good artist does, and engrave upon the material substances a form as good as possible, and thus accomplish a work which may win men’s praise.
ה׳
5[27] You know well how, when an unskilled man takes charge of a vessel that is quite capable of making a safe voyage, he upsets it, whereas a skilled helmsman often saves one which is sinking; and how sick folk, under the care of inexperienced attendants, fall into a dangerous condition of body, while those who meet with experienced attendants recover even from dangerous diseases. I need not labour the point. It is invariably the case that what is done with skill shews up and convicts what is done without it, and true praise accorded to the one is sure condemnation of the other.