Wisdom that is hid, and treasure that is hoarded up, what profit is in them both?
All Commentaries on Wisdom of Sirach 20:30 Go To Wisdom of Sirach 20
Gregory The Dialogist
AD 604
Differently to be admonished are those who, though able to preach worthily, are afraid by reason of excessive humility and those whom imperfection or age forbids to preach and yet precipitancy impels. For those who, though able to preach with profit, still shrink back through excessive humility are to be admonished to gather from consideration of a lesser matter how faulty they are in a greater one. For, if they were to hide from their indigent neighbors money that they possessed themselves, they would undoubtedly show themselves to be promoters of their calamity. Let them perceive, then, in what guilt those are implicated who, in withholding the word of preaching from their sinning brethren, hide away the remedies of life from dying souls. Concerning this, a certain wise man also well says, "Wisdom that is hid and treasure that is unseen"what profit is in them both?" If a famine were wasting away the people, and they themselves kept hidden corn, undoubtedly they would be the authors of death. Let them consider therefore with what punishment they must be visited who, when souls are perishing from famine of the Word, do not supply the bread of grace that they have themselves received. Solomon also had something good to say about this: "He who hides corn shall be cursed among the people." For to hide corn is to retain for one"s self the words of sacred preaching. And everyone who does so is cursed among the people, because through his fault of silence only he is condemned in the punishment of the many whom he might have corrected.
