The Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach, or Ecclesiasticus 20:14 Commento

The gift of a fool is useless, since the doctrine of heretics benefits no one. “It is as though he had seven eyes,” because the intentions of his will are contaminated by various perversities, always ready to do harm. The number seven, which is identified with perfection by the divine charisms that the prophet Isaiah lists as gifts of the Holy Spirit, can, conversely, sometimes indicate the fullness of wickedness, as in that Gospel passage where the Savior tells about the unclean spirit that for a time abandons a person. “When the unclean spirit leaves the person, it roams through arid places in search of repose, and, finding none, it says, ‘I will return to my house where I left.’ Returning, he finds it swept and clean. Then he goes and brings with him seven other spirits worse than himself, and they enter and dwell there, and the last condition of that person is worse than the first.”