Tobit, now old, sends Tobias to a distant land
1 The same day Tobit remembered the money which he had deposited with Gabael at Rages in Me dia, and he said to himself:
2 “I have ask ed for death, had I better not call Tobias and tell him about this money before I die?”
3 He called Tobias and said to him: “My son, when I die, see to my burial. Look after your mother. Honor her all the days of your life. Do what pleases her and do not cause her any pain.
4 Remember, my son, that she suffered much pain on your account when you were in her womb. When she dies, bury her next to me, in the same tomb.
5 Al ways remember the Lord our God. Do not consent to sin or go against his commandments. Act justly all the days of your life, and do not walk in the paths of wrongdoing,
6 for, if you act up rightly, you will be successful in all you do.
7 Give alms from what you have to those who act justly and do good. Do not be grudging when you give alms. Do not turn away your face from anyone who is poor so that God may not turn away his face from you.
8 Give alms in proportion to the amount you have; if you have little, do not be afraid to give alms according to the little you have.
9 In this way you are storing up treasure against the day of tribulation, be cause
10 almsgiving frees us from death and keeps us from wandering in the darkness.
11 For, in fact, almsgiving is, for the one who practices it, a precious treasure in the eyes of God.
12 Keep yourself, my son, from all unlawful sexual relations and, above all, take a wife from the tribe of your fathers. Do not take a foreign wom an, one who does not belong to the tribe of our fathers, because we are child ren of the prophets. Remember, my son, that in former times our fathers, Noah, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob took wives from among their relatives so that they might be blessed in their children and that their race might possess the land.
13 Love your relatives and do not despise the sons and daughters of your people to the point where you would take a foreign woman as your wife. Pride brings about ruin and your complete downfall; in laziness are found extreme humiliation and indigence; laziness is the mother of want, hunger, famine.
14 Do not keep back overnight the wages of any man who has worked for you but give them as soon as possible. If you serve God, you will be rewarded.
Take care in all your actions and be have correctly in all you do.
15 Do not do to another what you would hate done to yourself. Do not drink wine to the point of drunkenness; do not let drunkenness be a life-long companion.
16 Give your bread to those who are hungry and your clothes to those who are naked; give alms of every thing you have over.
17 Scatter your bread on the tombs of the just; do not give it to those who are sinners.
18 Take counsel of those who are wise and do not despise any useful advice.
19 In all circumstances bless the Lord and ask him to make your ways upright; and to make your plans and projects succeed because not every nation has true wisdom. It is the Lord who gives everything and he humbles those whom he wishes. My son, remember my advice and do not let it be erased from your heart.
20 I also wish to mention the ten talents of silver which I placed on deposit with Gabael, son of Gabria, at Rages in Media.
21 Do not fear, my son, because we have become poor. If you fear God, if you abstain from all sin and if you do what is pleasing in God’s sight – in this way you will have great wealth.”
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Comments Tobit, Chapter 4
• 4.1 At the moment when the young Tobit sets out in his journey, his father transmits to him all his wisdom. Honesty, of course, in all sectors of life, knowing that God is just and that he never forgets to reward those who serve him – Tobit speaks from a long experience of life and an awareness of the providence of God.
There follows an invitation to give “alms,” a word which seems old-fashioned but which simply means sharing. However poor the Jewish people may have been, giving the tenth part of their incomes seemed quite normal.
Then comes the command of marrying a girl of his race and his religion. Of course we find there the Jewish consciousness of being a race which must stand apart from others by faithfulness to its mission. For Christians also, marriage cannot only be the access to shared love but should always serve a mission.