Although the comprehension of the truth in itself is far from us now due to the weakness of the flesh, it is nevertheless possible, as the same Ecclesiastes said, know the madness of the wicked(Eccl. 7:25), and, having found this, say, what's worse than death (Eccl. 7:26). That is why I know how and can achieve this, I wrote, knowing also that for the faithful, the condemnation of wickedness is already sufficient knowledge of piety. For although it is impossible to comprehend that God is, it can be said that He is not.

Message to the monks.

St. Kirill of Alexandria

and I found that woman is more bitter than death, because she is a snare, and her heart is a snare, her hands are fetters; the good before God will be saved from it, and the sinner will be caught by it

And it seems to me that Solomon, being very wise, applied the role of any of the heresies to the wicked woman. Afterwards he said about her that one should refuse a woman and avoid her, because she is a snare, and her heart is a snare, her hands are fetters; the good before God will be saved from it, and the sinner will be caught by it (Eccl. 7:26).

Letters.

St. Ambrose of Milan

and I found that woman is more bitter than death, because she is a snare, and her heart is a snare, her hands are fetters; the good before God will be saved from it, and the sinner will be caught by it

…woman is bitterer than death (Eccl. 7:26-27), - not because death is bitter, but because it is bitter to the wicked. But life is worse than death. For it is more difficult to live for sin than to die in sin, for the wicked, while he lives, increases sin, and when he dies, he ceases to sin.

About the good of death.

Sschmch. Clement of Rome

and I found that woman is more bitter than death, because she is a snare, and her heart is a snare, her hands are fetters; the good before God will be saved from it, and the sinner will be caught by it

Learn, man: if such men perished through women, then what is your righteousness or what kind of rank are you among the saints if you communicate with wives and virgins night and day, in much madness, without the fear of God? No, brothers, let's not communicate like that, but let's remember the word that speaks about a woman: ...her heart is a snare, her hands are fetters; the good before God will be saved from it, and the sinner will be caught by it (Eccl. 7:26). Let us beware, lest we, the sanctified, live with a mature daughter: for such fellowship with the servant of God is unkind and unrighteous.

Messages about virginity.

Blzh. Hieronymus of Stridonsky

and I found that woman is more bitter than death, because she is a snare, and her heart is a snare, her hands are fetters; the good before God will be saved from it, and the sinner will be caught by it

Didim Slepets

and I found that woman is more bitter than death, because she is a snare, and her heart is a snare, her hands are fetters; the good before God will be saved from it, and the sinner will be caught by it

Repeatedly, truly, in God's instructions, thoughts and attitudes are called wives of those who have them, both in a praiseworthy and in a blameworthy sense, as it is said: Wisdom gives a husband understanding(Prov. 10:23; LXX), and Your wife is like a fruitful vine in your house; your sons are like olive branches(Ps. 127:3) . From this wife come male offspring, with whom fire and light are nourished, for the blessing on them gives nourishment to fire and light. In a negative sense it says: Do not listen to an evil woman, for honey drips from the lips of a harlot's wife, who delights your throat for a while, but later you will find it bitterer than gall.(Prov. 5:3-4) .<…>If you accept this in a [figurative] understanding, then an evil, unclean, cunningly woven thought containing false teaching is a temptation, that is, a fallen woman.

Andrew writes: “And I found that a woman is more bitter than death, because she is a net, and her heart is a snare, her hands are shackles. A good man before God will be saved from her, and a sinner will be caught by her. Women are probably not pleased to know that that they are bitterer than death... can you explain?”

Hello Andrei!

If we look at what Ecclesiastes wrote about before this, we will see that he was thinking about wisdom and stupidity: “I have turned my heart to learn, to search and to find wisdom and understanding, and to know the wickedness of stupidity, ignorance and madness...” ( )

And then we read the verse you quoted: “And I found that woman is more bitter than death, because she is a snare, and her heart is a snare, her hands are fetters; good before God will be saved from it, and the sinner will be caught by it."
()

Notice that the good before God will be saved, but the sinner will be caught by it. According to the context of this chapter and the Bible as a whole, it is logical to assume that this is about an extramarital affair between a man and a woman.

The Bible does not condemn communication between a man and a woman, and subsequent intimate relationships, but, on the contrary, even encourages them, but only if intimacy is present in the family between a legitimate husband and wife. The Lord Himself created intimate relationships. And the same Ecclesiastes (King Solomon) in the book of Proverbs writes the following:

18. May your source be blessed; And take comfort in the wife of your youth,
19.: Let her breasts intoxicate you at all times, enjoy her love constantly.
()

Notice what beautiful metaphors Solomon calls his faithful wife - kindly doe and beautiful chamois

And a woman who seduces a man outside of marriage is called more bitter than death, since she herself commits sin and leads a man to eternal destruction, being an instrument in the hands of Satan. And people who have intimate relationships outside of marriage should repent and turn to God, who is ready to forgive and accept him into his heavenly family.

Sincerely,
Vitaly

Read more on the topic “Sex, erotica and intimacy”:

The less a woman loves a man, the more he has to pay for her love.

Don't lose yourself just because you found someone.

I think about death more than other people, it's probably because I love life more than they do.

A woman should belong to the man who will save her from problems.

The bird of happiness is not at all against pecking the grains from your hand. She doesn't need to be caught. It’s enough just not to drive her away.

A woman is an emotional being. She will always be with someone who puts her in a good mood, puts a smile on her face and gives her a feeling of happiness.

I was told that in order for her to fall in love, I had to make her laugh.
But every time she laughed, I fell in love.

Enjoy life, it is too short to waste it on grudges. Let go of everything you cannot change and move forward with a calm heart.

Life will fly by in an instant,
Appreciate it, draw pleasure from it.
As you spend it, so it will pass,
Don't forget: she is your creation.

Whatever you give a woman, she will give you more. If you give yourself to her, she will give you a baby. You build her a house - she will give you comfort in it. You provide her with food and she will give you a delicious dinner. You give her a smile - she will give you her heart.

We look down on people who stand out from the general rut: like, look what an eccentric. And they giggle at the same time. There were almost jokes told about Yuri Moroz, who taught in his “School of Business” how to create a business from scratch, without start-up capital. Nobody laughs today. The death of one of the active participants in the seminar at the SSD, Yulia Kryakova, does not fit into the framework of the humorous genre.

Success Menu

Back in the summer, almost immediately after the death of the 28-year-old woman, we met with the doctor who was the first to examine the body.

They brought her to us, and therefore I can tell you about what I saw with my own eyes,” said the head physician of the Sheltozero district hospital, Lyudmila Semenova. - The woman did not look exhausted.

This note is important because Julia did not eat anything for two months. Many people went hungry at the School of Their Own Business because they believed that it strengthened character and helped to form a strong personality. In a recent interview, Yuri Moroz was asked the question: “How is your lifestyle, all kinds of fasting and cleansing related to business?”

Let’s put it this way: I also brainwash people into thinking that they need to breathe clean air, drink clean spring water and also be closer to nature,” answered the creator of the “School of Your Business.” Later, Moroz insisted that for participants in his seminars, fasting is not a mandatory procedure. - Kryakova starved of her own free will. Julia's fasting period lasted, in my opinion, sixty days. I don't remember exactly... Every person has the right to go hungry, drink alcohol or hold press conferences, like me. How can I stop a person from doing what he wants? Look at me. You can see for yourself that I am far from starving.

However, witnesses - Kryakova's fellow students at Yuri Moroz's seminar, which took place in the village of Matveeva Selga - told investigators of the Prionezh prosecutor's office that they were repeatedly and quite persistently asked to starve.

Scary diary

Muscovite Alexandra Epishova, one of the leaders of the All-Russian Anti-SHSD society, which loudly declared itself after the sensational death of Yulia Kryakova, states:

- “SSD” undertakes to solve any human problems, and, as you know, everyone has them, and many are willing to pay for their solution. No one knows in advance how the training will take place, what tasks will have to be completed: come and find out. And a rapid and powerful process of changing consciousness begins.

Probably the best confirmation of the above is the diary of the deceased Yulia. He was included in the materials of the inspection conducted by the Prionezh Prosecutor's Office. There are terrible notes in a thin notebook. They are terrible both because of their naivety, which should not be characteristic of an almost thirty-year-old woman, and because of the death of the person who wrote them. The only goal is to become a real woman, which is almost automatically associated with the postulate: the body is smarter than the head, the body knows more than the mind. The cherished words “real woman” are underlined and circled several times.

After 20 days of fasting, Yulia writes in a changed handwriting that she still has many problems that have not been solved. Among the unresolved ones is the never-acquired ability to attract men, express one’s opinion and the treasured sixty-odd kilograms. Shortly before her death, the woman weighed 80 kilos; in two months of complete abstinence from food, she lost 20. The women who came with her, according to their testimony, tried to persuade the unfortunate woman to stop starving.

Yulia looked bad, there was a feeling that she was very weak, say witnesses. “She had black lips, a gray face, she could not move, she could only sit or lie, she was constantly sick, she spoke slowly.

Alas, fellow seminarians dosed out their humanity sparingly and after the fact: NO ONE went to see a doctor! Tell me, is this normal? Lyudmila Semenova, who accepted the woman’s corpse, told us:

“The woman obviously died not five minutes before she was brought to us.” I say this because those who brought her claimed: “When we put her in the car, she was alive.” But there were already cadaveric spots on the deceased’s back. I very much doubt that at the beginning of the trip, and I know that along the way the car got stuck and was even pushed, that is, it took a lot of time, the woman was alive. I asked those who brought her: “You must have noticed some kind of clinic the day before: the woman could have complained of pain or been lethargic?” They told me that they had not noticed anything like that. I am a doctor with many years of experience, so I know: it is unlikely that an ailment, whatever it may be, goes away without external manifestations.

Hunger is not a crime

The Prionezhsky prosecutor's office, despite all the visible signs of abnormality of the incident, still refused to initiate a criminal case into the death.

Prosecutor Dmitry Egorov commented on this as follows:

The fast was voluntary.

The supervisory authorities, who most carefully collected all conceivable evidence of what happened, cannot be accused of incompetence. There are no fasting specialists in Karelia. Regarding diets - please, but any diet involves limiting food, and not completely abstaining from it. It was not possible to establish a criminal cause of death based on the results of the autopsy. Forensic expert with 14 years of experience of the first category, Sergei Lysenko, during a month of research, did not find anything except degenerative changes in tissues. And the fact that a woman allegedly found herself under the influence of a psychologically stronger person is not a crime on the part of the latter. Just remember the sessions of Kashpirovsky or Longo. There are a lot of emergencies with people after them, but zero cases.

I don't use anything other than logic. I write books, conduct seminars - that's what I do. I’m not Kashpirovsky, I don’t give instructions! - said Yuri Moroz at the Prionezhsky prosecutor's office.

Law enforcement agencies continue to study the activities of the creator of the “School of Your Own Business.” The scale of money circulation around Moroz is impressive. It is on them that the Prionezhsky District Prosecutor's Office is now working. Interesting facts emerge! As a rule, former comrades of Moroz talk about them.

Four years ago, the founder of SSD publicly burned his declaration near the tax office. He motivated this unusual act by the need for personal freedom. And like a real showman, he notified journalists about the unusual act in advance. Moroz continued to follow his principles. At the very least, he assured all interested authorities that he lived almost in the Holy Spirit. However, Vladimir Sarnatsky, a former associate of the creator of SSD, officially notified investigators that only according to his most conservative estimates, the amount of tax hidden by Moroz from the money he received was half a million rubles.

There is also a financial nuance in the death of Yulia Kryakova. According to eyewitnesses and relatives, before moving from St. Petersburg to Karelia, Yulia received a large loan from the bank - 5 million rubles. No money was found on her at the time of her death. And other seminarians, it turns out, did not come to Moroz “empty”: some disposed of their property in unconventional ways, some paid for seminars in cash.

Now all the revealed facts are being checked,” says prosecutor Dmitry Egorov. - There are also stories from people about signs of the creation of a totalitarian sect by Moroz, calling for the overthrow of the existing system. If we manage to prove this, there will be a high-profile court case. But first we need to measure it a hundred times, so now it’s too early to talk about opening a case.

Yuri Moroz himself, at a press conference he gave to reporters a week after Yulia’s death, was quite frank:

You'll see, in ten years I will be running the country! Everything will be the way I want to do it. I run this country because I spread ideas. Grandfather Lenin also said that power is in the hands of those who have ideas.

Wife

The Prionezhsky prosecutor is confident that everyone who, after the shocking death of Yulia Kryakova, began to give frank testimony, was able to get out of the influence of Yuri Moroz.

The main thing was to look at what was happening with sober eyes, explains Dmitry Egorov. - We really hope that there will be more such people. And we really count on the truth that they can tell. Although I personally have no doubt that many of them will still be processed by Moroz and others like him. This citizen will certainly spend his money on the most expensive lawyers and generally take all conceivable and unimaginable measures to protect himself.

In the meantime, Moroz's seminars still attract people. They are ready to pay and refer others to a person who supposedly knows the secret of success. They are not embarrassed by the fact that even the closest people - his wife and children, who apparently know the real face of the guru - recently left Moroz.

From life

“This way I forget about adult problems.” A 24-year-old girl wears a diaper and sucks on a pacifier: why are she and her friends pretending to be children?

The St. Petersburg director is trying to sue the daughter of the TV series star. He claims that his ex-actress wife acted in porn and is not involved with the child.

A 55-year-old Russian woman spent a day in the open sea on an inflatable mattress: her relatives raised the alarm when she did not return to the hotel

The son of Casanova from “Street of Broken Lanterns” has become the most sought-after male model. A young man lives in Paris with his wife

1–23. Moral instructions of Ecclesiastes. 24–29. The depravity of women.

. A good name is better than an expensive suit, and the day of death is better than the day of birth.

. It is better to go to a house of mourning for the dead than to go to a house of feasting; For this is the end of every man, and the living will add This to your heart.

. Lamentation is better than laughter; because with a sad face the heart becomes better.

. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, and the heart of fools is in the house of joy.

. It is better to listen to the reproof of a wise man than to listen to the songs of fools;

. because the laughter of fools is the same as the crackling of thorn brush under a cauldron. And this is vanity!

Until the 7th chapter, the attitude towards life that Ecclesiastes taught, the “better” that he found in life, was indicated by him briefly and generally. Due to this, his instructions could give rise to a too one-sided understanding. It might seem (and this happened more than once) that Ecclesiastes invites us to an Epicurean enjoyment of life, to extract from it all kinds of pleasures, especially sensual ones. His “eat, drink, be merry” could be understood as a call to unbridled fun at life’s feast, as an invitation to take as much pleasure as possible from life, without being embarrassed by the thought of an unknown future. Chapter seven removes any possibility of such misinterpretation and establishes the true meaning of the instructions of Ecclesiastes.

By inspiring “having fun,” he did not mean that frivolous, vulgar fun among worldly amusements and entertainment, which leaves behind a feeling of emptiness and moral dissatisfaction, but a bright, festive mood, which in everything that happens sees the manifestation of the Divine Mind and, therefore, knows how to to extract moments of pure, serene joy even from the most suffering, whether it be someone else's or your own. Inner experience taught Ecclesiastes that the contemplation of human suffering and even death evokes in the soul that special fullness of moral feeling, which creates a more lasting happiness than all vulgar entertainment, as short-lived as the crackling of thorn brush (v. 6). A person then learns to understand the true meaning of life, to come to terms with evil, not to be afraid of death, to remain serenely joyful under all circumstances of life. In view of this, Ecclesiastes advises to prefer the day of death to the day of birth, the house of mourning to the house of feasting, lamentation to laughter, the reproof of the wise to the songs of fools. " A sad face makes the heart feel better”, more precisely from Hebrew: it becomes more fun, happier (cf. ; ; ).

. By oppressing others, the wise become foolish, and gifts spoil the heart.

"And gifts spoil the heart". Of course, mainly gifts to officials.

. The end of a thing is better than the beginning; patient is better than arrogant.

. Do not be hasty in your spirit to anger, because anger nests in the hearts of fools.

. Do not say: “Why were the former days better than these?” for it is not out of wisdom that you ask this.

Ecclesiastes warns against that gloomy and impatient discontent that tries to find the bad in everything.

. Wisdom with inheritance is good, and especially for those who see the sun:

"Wisdom is good with inheritance, and especially for those who see the sun". The particle מך here, as in, means “exactly like”, “similarly”. Therefore, it can be translated: wisdom is good as an inheritance, and more preferable (inheritance) for those who see the sun, that is, for people.

. because under her shadow same as under the shadow of silver; but the superiority of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who possess it.

The advantage of wisdom is that it gives life - not only true moral life, but also physical life, since it turns a person away from passions that destroy the body.

. Look at the working of God: for who can make straight what He has made crooked?

. In days of prosperity, take advantage of the good, and in days of misfortune, reflect: He did both so that man could not say anything against Him.

"Couldn't say anything against Him". ויכצא (as in) means: after him. It should be translated: could not say after himself. For this purpose, he sends prosperity and misfortune to a person so that he does not know the future and feels constant dependence on God.

. I have seen enough of everything in my vain days: the righteous perish in his righteousness; the wicked live long in his wickedness.

. Don't be too strict, and don't pretend to be too wise; why would you ruin yourself?

"Don't be too strict", literally: don't be too righteous. In these words, some saw the expression of the Stoic principle of living in accordance with nature and the Stoic concept of virtue as the art of μεσος ἔχειν - keeping to the middle. In fact, continuing to develop his previous thought about the rational enjoyment of life, Ecclesiastes here warns only against excessive pedantry and narrow rigorism, which, due to perverse moral concepts, strives to expel from life all innocent joys, completely permitted pleasures.

. Do not indulge in sin, and do not be mad: why should you die at the wrong time?

However, in the pursuit of happiness, a person should not cross the boundaries of what is permitted, since everyone accelerates not only moral, but also physical death.

. It’s good if you stick to one and don’t take your hands off the other; because whoever fears God will escape all this.

A wise person will be able to find the middle and avoid the extremes of soulless rigorism and moral laxity, using life wisely and remaining righteous. Some interpreters find here hints of Pharisaic rigorism and the licentiousness of the Sadducees.

. Wisdom makes a wise man stronger than the ten rulers who are in the city.

. There is no righteous man on earth who does good and does not sin;

. therefore, do not pay attention to every word that is spoken, lest you hear your servant when he curses you;

. for your heart knows many cases when you yourself have slandered others.

. I have experienced all this through wisdom; I said: “I will be wise”; but wisdom is far from me.

Solomon expressed the same thought in his prayer - precisely in the words: " for there is no man who does not sin" (). This idea is easily connected with the subsequent verses, which instill condescension towards people; but its connection with the previous one is not clear. Meanwhile, the 20th verse begins with the particle יכ (ki), which indicates that this verse contains the rationale for the previous thought. The train of thought is probably this: it is necessary to take care of acquiring wisdom, which protects a person from excessive severity and from moral laxity, since there is no person on earth who would do and not sin.

. Far is what was, and deep - deep: who will comprehend it?

. I have turned my heart to know, to explore and seek wisdom and understanding, and to know the wickedness of stupidity, ignorance and madness, -

It would be more correct to translate the beginning of the verse as follows: “far is what exists, and deep, deep,” that is, everything that exists is far and deep from human knowledge, “ the things that God does" (). Wed. .

. and I found that woman is more bitter than death, because she is a snare, and her heart is a snare, her hands are fetters; the good before God will be saved from it, and the sinner will be caught by it.

Delving deeper into the cause of sin, misfortune, madness, Ecclesiastes finds that it is partly in a woman. A woman is a net and a snare for a weak person.

. This is what I found, said Ecclesiastes, testing one thing after another.

. What else has my soul sought and I have not found? “I found one man out of a thousand, but I didn’t find a woman among all of them.”

From here Ecclesiastes concludes that a woman in general is morally more depraved and depraved than a man. The condemnation of women in Ecclesiastes is not unconditional. In another place () he considers life with his wife one of the benefits available to man.

. Only this I found, that I created man right, and people indulged in many thoughts.

Ecclesiastes warns of a possible wrong conclusion from his previous reasoning. God, who created man upright, is not the culprit of the moral depravity of people in general and women in particular. created man upright, that is, morally healthy, capable of following the right path and not sinning. " And people went into many thoughts", literally: inventions, wisdom (Cf.: " and he made in Jerusalem artfully devised machines".).