Judge none blessed before his death: for a man shall be known in his children.
All Commentaries on Wisdom of Sirach 11:28 Go To Wisdom of Sirach 11
John of Damascus
AD 749
Death, previously abhorred and hated, is now the object of praise and declared blessed. What at one time procured pain and sadness, tears and melancholy, now appears as a source of joy and feasting. All the servants of God enjoy a blessed death because the end of their lives bears the security of being welcomed by God. In fact, they become perfect, and this perfection renders them blessed, giving them the solidity of virtue, as the oracle affirms, "Do not judge a person blessed before his death."