Coll. 7
by St. Bonaventure
Source text: Public Domain Mark 1.0. English translation/apparatus/encoding: CC BY-NC 4.0, Wroot Press.
https://bonaventure.wrootpress.com/browse/13/d/7/q/bon-praec-c7
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### Summarium

*Introduction,* 1. — *Repetition,* 2. — *Part I. On the eighth precept. The threefold lie: officious, jesting, pernicious,* 3. 4. — *The eight kinds of lying,* 5. — *Part II. On the ninth and tenth precept. A twofold concupiscence is forbidden, namely the interior unlawful act of the concupiscence of the flesh and of the eyes,* 6. — *Repetition and confirmation of the preceding collations,* 7-9. — *Part III. On the ten plagues of the Egyptians and the ten condescensions of Christ. Wisdom is learned through scourges; the ten plagues,* 10. — *These answer to the transgressions of the ten commandments,* 11-14. — *Christ alone frees us from these through ten condescensions,* 15-17. — *An admonition, that the passover be kept with Christ.*

1. *Thou shalt not speak false testimony against thy neighbour. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's goods. Neither shalt thou desire his wife*. — *Consider, that I have set before thy sight life and good, and on the other hand death and evil, that thou mayest love the Lord thy God and walk in his ways and keep his commandments.* In the beginning let us ask God, etc.

2. In Deuteronomy Moses speaks of the ten commandments, which the eternal God set forth through his own mouth, that the Jews might not despise them; and he shows that in the observance of the commandments is life and good, and in their transgression, death and evil. — I was saying elsewhere, that the first distinction of the commandments is according to the twofold part of justice, which orders us to God and to our neighbour, and according to this two tables were given to Moses. In the first are contained the commandments by which we are ordered to God, and they are three. In the second are contained the commandments by which we are ordered to our neighbour, and they are seven, of which one is affirmative, and six others negative. Of the affirmative and the three negative it has been spoken.

3. There follows now concerning the others, of which the first is: *Thou shalt not speak false testimony against thy neighbour.* Here is forbidden the lie that is harmful to one's neighbour. And according to the general intelligence, here is forbidden every pernicious lie; and it is given to be understood, that every lie is evil. Augustine distinguishes and says, that there is the officious lie, the jesting lie, the pernicious lie. The officious lie is called that which harms no one and profits someone. The jesting lie is that which is done not from the will to harm, but from the pleasure of lying, and sometimes it harms, but does not profit. The pernicious lie is that which is done with the intention of lying, and this, that it may harm; and it profits no one, but harms all. And Augustine says, that « in the first lie the fault is least, in the second middling, in the third grave ».

4. The officious lie is done in three ways: either for defending someone's temporal thing, or for guarding life, or for preserving chastity. The jesting lie is done in two ways: either from the mere pleasure of lying, or of pleasing. But the pernicious lie is done in three ways: either in the doctrine of religion against sacred Scripture, or in the imposition of a false crime; and in these two ways it profits no one, but harms all. In a third way the pernicious lie is done in someone's cause; and thus it profits one and harms another.

5. Thus, then, it is clear that there are eight kinds of lying. And Augustine says, that God can make it

that theft is not a sin; but he cannot make it that lying is not a sin. And this is on account of the nobility of truth; because a lie is a false utterance of the voice with the intention of deceiving, and God cannot depart from truth, because he is truth itself; but with theft he can well dispense, that it not be a sin. Whence it is most necessary for man that he keep faith and have truth in speech, because Seneca says: « He who loses faith has nothing further to lose ». — It is now clear concerning that commandment: *Thou shalt not speak false testimony against thy neighbour.*

6. Afterward he joins two commandments together: *Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's goods, neither shalt thou desire his wife*; in which he forbids a twofold concupiscence, namely of the *eyes* and of the *flesh*, which are the tinder of all evils and the root of all sins; because, when the concupiscible power is infected and corrupted, it corrupts all the other powers of the soul. In the preceding commandments: *Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not speak false testimony,* every unlawful *exterior* act that is done against one's neighbour is forbidden. In these two: *Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's goods, neither shalt thou desire his wife,* an *interior* unlawful act is forbidden, and here is forbidden the concupiscence of the eyes or cupidity, which is the root of all evils; there is also forbidden the concupiscence of the flesh, which is the tinder of all sins. Through this twofold concupiscence there comes about a transfusion of all evils and sins; and therefore the divine law forbids it, and in this it forbids all evils and all sins. This is the fever with which all the sons of Adam are feverish, and which begets all evils.

7. It is now clear that there are ten commandments of the sacred decalogue. In the first three is commanded the right ordering to God, in the fourth the right ordering and beneficence to parents, in the six others is commanded the right ordering and innocence toward one's neighbour.

8. Let us resume these commandments, which are: *Thou shalt not have strange gods before me. Thou shalt not take the name of thy God in vain,* etc. We must understand that although some are called *affirmative* commandments and some *negative,* all nevertheless contain affirmation and negation in themselves. When God forbids something in some commandment, he commands its contrary; and conversely, when he commands something, he forbids its contrary. This is clear. For in the first commandment is commanded humble adoration of the divine majesty, and idolatry is forbidden. In the second is commanded faithful assertion of the divine truth, and perjury is forbidden. In the third is commanded devout love of the divine goodness, and irreverence is forbidden. In the fourth is commanded piety toward parents, and dishonour is forbidden. In the fifth is commanded gentleness, and anger is forbidden. In the sixth is commanded chastity, and adultery is forbidden. In the seventh is commanded generosity, and theft is forbidden. In the eighth is commanded truth, and lying is forbidden. In the ninth is commanded liberality of heart, and covetousness of a temporal thing is forbidden. In the tenth is commanded chastity of mind, and concupiscence of the flesh is forbidden.

9. See, that all the commandments contain in themselves affirmation and negation, and that in every commandment there is life and good, death and evil. In the observance of the commandments there is life and good, and in transgression there is death and evil. And from the observance of the law follows *blessing,* and from transgression, *cursing.* — From the observance of the law, indeed, a man becomes reverent, faithful, devout, pious, gentle, chaste, generous, truthful, content with his own or liberal of heart, and unpolluted in mind. On the contrary, from the transgression of the law a man becomes idolatrous, blasphemous, irreverent, impious, a murderer, an adulterer, a thief, a liar, covetous and carnal. Therefore the transgressor of the law and its observer are more distant from each other than hell from paradise, since the one is in the centre, the other in the circumference; nor can the God of heaven do otherwise, since he is just and *cannot deny himself*.

10. See now, that men do not learn wisdom except through scourges, and therefore the Lord sent ten scourges, that is, plagues, upon the land of Egypt. — The first was of blood; the second, of frogs; the third, a multitude of gnats; the fourth, a multitude of biting flies; the fifth, of the death of cattle and beasts of burden; the sixth, of boils or swelling sores; the seventh, of the destruction of temporal goods by hail; the eighth, of locusts; the ninth, of darkness; the tenth, of the death of the firstborn. — Now see how the Holy Spirit scourged the Egyptians and was leading them by the hand to the observance of the commandments, and most fittingly leads us by the hand.

11. There are ten transgressions of the law, and according to this there were ten plagues corresponding to them.

— The first was of blood, by which the *idolaters* were struck, because the Psalm says of them: *They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and of their daughters, which they sacrificed to the idols of Chanaan.*
The second plague was of frogs, by which the *blasphemers* and *perjurers* were struck, who are compared to frogs. For the frog is a clamorous animal and consumes itself by its own croaking. Similarly does a man, when he loses the stability of truth.
The third was the plague of gnats, by which the *irreverent* were struck, who did not keep the day of the Sabbath, which is the day of devotion. Gnats are small flies and disturb and vex men greatly. Similarly the irreverent are disturbed. In this sign the magicians of Pharaoh failed, as a sign, that we cannot escape the restlessness of our thoughts except through devotion. It is read of blessed Gregory, that he scarcely had one thought of earthly things the whole day.

12. The fourth plague was of the dog-fly, by which the *impious* were struck, who have with them dog-flies, that is, carnal affections.
The fifth plague was of the death of the beasts of burden, by which the *murderers* were struck; because everyone who kills with the sword is guilty of death. Such men die as beasts of burden, because they are not worthy of divine protection nor of human; because he who kills another destroys himself, and does not perceive his own brutality.
The sixth plague was of swelling sores, by which the *adulterers* are struck, who have swelling sores, that is, infected flesh. Sores are born of a humour producing itching, and when a man scratches himself, afterward he suffers. Similarly, he who indulges in lust is first delighted, and afterward suffers.

13. The seventh plague was of the destruction of temporal goods, by which the *thieves* are struck, because he is worthy to lose his own who takes another's. This was the plague of hail, which destroyed everything. It is a wonder, that he who fornicates, if he repents, can be reconciled to God; but he who seizes another's goods cannot be reconciled to God, unless he restore what is another's.
The eighth plague was of locusts devouring every green herb, by which the *liars* are struck, who trample truth with their teeth and lips; the Psalm: *Their heart is vain, their throat is an open sepulchre, with their tongues they dealt deceitfully.*
The ninth plague was of darkness, by which the *covetous* and the *avaricious* are struck, because nothing blinds a man so much as covetousness. Whence the Prophet: *Gifts and presents blind the eyes of the prudent, and change the words of the just;* Solomon: *Nothing is more wicked than the covetous man. For he has even his own soul for sale, since in his life he has cast away his inmost things.*

14. The tenth plague was of the death of the firstborn, by which the *carnal* are struck, as Esau. For the Apostle says: *Lest there be any fornicator, as Esau, who for one mess sold his first birthright.* Carnal concupiscence has taken from us noble generation, by which we would all be born innocent and heirs of paradise, and it causes us to be born in death and guilt and the loss of our birthright. This was figured in Reuben, who lost the right of the firstborn, because he went up to his father's bed and defiled his couch; and Joseph, on account of his chastity, was made prince of his brothers. — It is now clear, how the transgressors of the law are struck by these plagues.

15. But who will free us from these plagues? Certainly he alone, who came, that he might free us, namely Christ, who made ten condescensions against the ten plagues. This is figured in the Book of Kings, where it is said, that the sun went back ten degrees; by which are signified the ten condescensions which the Lord made for man's sake.

16. The first was even unto our flesh. — The second was even unto our mortality. — The third, unto our need, because he suffered hunger, thirst and cold. — The fourth was unto our poverty, because *he was made poor*, having no place, to which he might turn aside. — The fifth, unto our temptation, when he permitted himself to be tempted; and in this he bore our infirmity; the Apostle: *We have not a High Priest who cannot have compassion on our infirmities, but tempted in all things.* — The sixth, unto the weariness and labour of our body. — The seventh, unto our anxiety; whence: *Jesus began to fear and to be heavy, and said: My soul is sorrowful even unto death*. — The eighth was unto the cross, and this was wondrous. — The ninth was unto death. — The tenth was unto the prison of hell.

17. These are the ten condescensions, by which God condescended to man. But why did he descend to the prison of hell? Certainly, that in the blood of the testament he might bring forth the fettered out of the pit, sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death.

Christ, by the blood of the new testament, freed us and led us out of death into life, and out of darkness into light.

18. We must, therefore, ourselves also rise again to a new life, that, just as *Christ rose again from the dead, so we also may walk in newness of life*. Christ freed us at this time from the hand of Pharaoh and brought us into the land of promise; and as a sign of this the passover is now eaten, because we are now freed. We too must make the passage and begin a new life and not return into Egypt. Let no one be a false traitor. Three things are necessary for anyone doing penance, namely that sin displease him, and that he be prepared to guard himself from sin with the help of God and the Holy Spirit, and that he be willing to make satisfaction according to his ability, and that he resolve never to repeat the sin. And this is the sum of what has been said; we must always be conformed to Christ and be refreshed together with him, that we may come to the eternal refreshment, which may he grant us, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

**HERE END THE COLLATIONS ON THE TEN COMMANDMENTS.**

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