BENEDICT DE SPINOZA: Theological-Political Treatise

On ceremonies and narratives
people to hear the divine law from him. First he excludes all kinds of
sacri¢ces and feast-days, and then proclaims the law itself (verses 16
and 17), summing it up in these few points: purity of mind, a disposition
or habit of virtue or good actions, and giving help to the poor. Equally
lucid is the testimony of verses 7^9 of Psalm 40, where the Psalmist says
to God: ‘Sacri¢ce and o¡ering you did not wish, you have opened 1 your 70
ears to me, you have not sought a holocaust and an o¡ering for sin;
I have sought to carry out your will, O God; for your law is in my
entrails’. Thus he applies the term ‘law of God’ only to what is inscribed
in the entrails or heart, and excludes ceremonies from it; for ceremonies
are good only by convention and not by nature, and therefore are not
inscribed in the heart. Other passages in Scripture testify to the same
thing, but it is enough to refer to these two.
[3] It is also evident from Scripture itself that ceremonies contribute
nothing to happiness, but are only relevant to the temporal prosperity of
the state. Scripture promises nothing but material pleasures and advantages
in return for ceremonies, whereas it promises happiness only for
obedience to the universal divine law. In the Five Books which are commonly
called the books of Moses, nothing is promised, as we noted
above, other than this worldly well-being which is honour or fame, victory,
wealth, pleasure and health. Although these Five Books contain
much about morality as well as ceremonies, morality is not to be found
there as moral teachings universal to all men, but only as instructions
uniquely adjusted to the understanding and character of the Hebrew
nation, and therefore relevant to the prosperity of their state alone. For
example, it is not as a teacher or a prophet that Moses requires the Jews
not to kill or steal; he decrees it as a legislator and prince. For he does
not ground his teachings on reason, but rather attaches a penalty to his
commands, and punishment can and should vary according to the character
of each nation, as experience has taught well enough.
Equally, the commandment not to commit adultery relates only to the
interest of the commonwealth and the state. If he had wanted to give moral
instruction that would relate not only to the needs of the state but also the
peace of mind and true happiness of each individual, then he would condemn
not only the external act but also the consent of the mind itself, as
1 Spinoza’s footnote: This is an expression that signi¢es perception.
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