Chapter 33 [XXIX.]—Not Every Sin is Pride. How Pride is the Commencement of Every Sin.

“But how,” asks he, “shall we separate pride itself from sin?” Now, why does he raise such a question, when it is manifest that even pride itself is a sin? “To sin,” says he, “is quite as much to be proud, as to be proud is to sin; for only ask what every sin is, and see whether you can find any sin without the designation of pride.” Then he thus pursues this opinion, and endeavours to prove it thus: “Every sin,” says he, “if I mistake not, is a contempt of God, and every contempt of God is pride. For what is so proud as to despise God? All sin, then, is also pride, even as Scripture says, Pride is the beginning of all sin.”87    Ecclus. x. 13. Let him seek diligently, and he will find in the law that the sin of pride is quite distinguished from all other sins. For many sins are committed through pride; but yet not all things which are wrongly done are done proudly,—at any rate, not by the ignorant, not by the infirm, and not, generally speaking, by the weeping and sorrowful. And indeed pride, although it be in itself a great sin, is of such sort in itself alone apart from others, that, as I have already remarked, it for the most part follows after and steals with more rapid foot, not so much upon sins as upon things which are actually well done. However, that which he has understood in another sense, is after all most truly said: “Pride is the commencement of all sin;” because it was this which overthrew the devil, from whom arose the origin of sin; and afterwards, when his malice and envy pursued man, who was yet standing in his uprightness, it subverted him in the same way in which he himself fell. For the serpent, in fact, only sought for the door of pride whereby to enter when he said, “Ye shall be as gods.”88    Gen. iii. 5. Truly then is it said, “Pride is the commencement of all sin;”89    Ecclus. x. 13. and, “The beginning of pride is when a man departeth from God.”90    Ecclus. x. 12.

CAPUT XXIX.

33. Non omne peccatum superbia est. Superbia quomodo omnis peccati initium. Quonam modo, inquit, superbiam ipsam a peccato separabimus? Quid enim hoc urget, cum manifestum sit etiam ipsam esse peccatum? Tam peccare, inquit, superbire est, quam superbire peccare. Nam quaere quid sit quodcumque peccatum, et vide si invenies aliquod sine superbiae appellatione peccatum. Hanc autem sententiam sic exsequitur, et sic probare conatur: Omne, inquit, peccatum, nisi fallor, Dei contemptus est: et omnis Dei contemptus superbia est. Quid enim tam superbum, quam Deum contemnere? Omne ergo peccatum et superbia est, etiam Scriptura dicente, «Initium omnis peccati superbia est.» Quaerat diligenter, et inveniet in lege multum discretum esse a caeteris peccatis peccatum superbiae. Multa enim peccata per superbiam committuntur, sed neque omnia superbe fiunt, quae perperam fiunt; certe a nescientibus, certe ab infirmis, certe plerumque a flentibus et gementibus. Et quidem superbia, cum magnum sit ipsa peccatum, ita sine aliis per se ipsa est, ut etiam plerumque, ut dixi, non in peccatis, sed in ipsis recte factis pede celeriore superveniat et obrepat. Sed ideo verissime dictum est, quod iste aliter intellexit, Initium omnis peccati superbia: quoniam diabolum, a quo exstitit origo peccati, ipsa dejecit, et subsequente invidentia hominem stantem, unde ipse cecidit, inde subvertit. Nam utique jactantiae januam, qua intraret, serpens ille quaesivit, quando ait, Eritis sicut dii (Gen. III, 5). Ideo dictum est, Initium omnis peccati superbia; et, Initium superbiae hominis apostatare a Deo (Eccli. X, 15, 14).