BENEDICT DE SPINOZA: Theological-Political Treatise

Theological-Political Treatise
note that ‘life’ in the Hebrew certainly means true life, as is evident from
Deuteronomy 30.19. He therefore located the fruit of the understanding in
true life alone and punishment exclusively in the lack of it, and this agrees
completely with our fourth point above about the natural divine law. The
same wise man also plainly taught that this fountain of life, or the understanding
alone, prescribes laws to the wise, as we have often shown. He says
67 (13.14): ‘The law of the wise man’ (is) ‘the fount of life’, i.e., the understanding,
as is clear from the text just quoted. Furthermore, 3.13 expressly
teaches that understanding gives a person happiness and joy and confers
true peace of mind. For he says,‘blessed is the man who ¢nds knowledge,
and the son of man who acquires understanding’. The reason is (as verses
16 and 17 go on to say) because it ‘directly gives length of days 6 and indirectly
riches and honour; its ways’ (which are presumably revealed by
knowledge) ‘are pleasant, and all its paths are peace’. The wise alone
therefore in Solomon’s view live with a peaceful and stable purpose, not
like the impious whose minds £uctuate between di¡erent passions, and
therefore (as Isaiah 57.20 also says) possess neither peace nor calm.
Finally, in these ‘Proverbs’ of Solomon we should take special notice of
the second chapter, because its contents con¢rm our position as clearly
as can be.Verse 3 of this chapter begins: ‘For if you cry out for wisdom,
and raise your voice for understanding, etc., then you will understand
the fear of God, and you will ¢nd the knowledge of God’ (or rather ‘love’;
for the word Jadah signi¢es both these things); ‘for’ (note this well) ‘God
gives wisdom; from his mouth’ (£ow) ‘knowledge and prudence’. In these
words he very clearly indicates, ¢rstly, that wisdom or understanding
alone teaches us to fear God wisely, i.e., to worship him with a true worship.
Secondly, he teaches that wisdom and knowledge £ow from the
mouth of God and that God provides them; this is what we too showed
above ^ that our intellect and our knowledge depend upon the idea or
knowledge of God alone and take their origin from it and are perfected
by it.
He then goes on, in verse 9, to teach in the most explicit words that
this knowledge contains true morality and politics and that these are
derived from it: ‘then will you understand justice and judgment and
righteousness’ (and) ‘every good way’. Not content with this, he continues:
‘when knowledge shall enter into your heart, and wisdom 68 shall
6 Spinoza’s footnote: a Hebrew idiom, which merely signi¢es life.
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