Judith 11:17-23: a reflection

17For your servant is religious, and serves the God of heaven day and night. Now, my lord, I will stay with you; and your servant will go out by night into the valley. I will pray to God, and he will tell me when they have committed their sins. 18Then I will come and tell you. Then you can go out with all your army, and there will be none of them that will resist you. 19And I will lead you through the midst of Judea, until you come to Jerusalem. I will set your throne in the midst of it. You will drive them as sheep that have no shepherd, and a dog will not so much as open his mouth before you; for these things were told me according to my foreknowledge, and were declared to me, and I was sent to tell you.” 20Her words were pleasing in the sight of Holofernes and of all his servants. They marveled at her wisdom, and said, 21“There is not such a woman from one end of the earth to the other, for beauty of face and wisdom of words.” 22Holofernes said to her, “God did well to send you before the people, that might would be in our hands, and destruction among those who slighted my lord. 23And now you are beautiful in your countenance, and wise in your words. If you will do as you have spoken, your God will be my God, and you will dwell in the palace of King Nebuchadnezzar, and will be renowned through the whole earth.”

In the account of Judith, we see the enemy general Holofernes taken in by flattering words and a fair appearance. When Judith speaks to him with wisdom and beauty, his servants marvel and declare there is no such woman in all the earth for beauty of face and wisdom of words; and Holofernes, pleased and flattered, drops his guard, drawn in by what delights him. His judgment, which should have been wary of an enemy in his camp, is clouded by flattery and by the pleasure of a beautiful face and pleasing words. The proud general, so sure of his might, is undone in part by his own vulnerability to being flattered and charmed, taken in by appearances and words that please him. What clouds his judgment is not weakness of arms but susceptibility to flattery.

Notice how Holofernes is taken in: by flattery and by a pleasing appearance. He is a man of great might, sure of himself; yet his judgment is clouded, his guard dropped, by words that flatter him and a face that pleases him. He hears what delights him, and it disarms his wariness. The susceptibility to flattery, the being charmed by pleasing appearances, is a vulnerability that even the mighty share; it clouds judgment and drops the guard. Holofernes should have been wary; instead he was pleased, flattered, taken in. Being swayed by flattery and appearances, hearing what pleases us and letting it cloud our judgment, is a danger that pride makes worse, for the proud are often most susceptible to those who tell them what they want to hear. Flattery undid what force could not.

That is worth taking to heart, for we must beware of being swayed by flattery and appearances, which cloud our judgment. We can be taken in, as Holofernes was, by flattering words and pleasing appearances, hearing what delights us and letting it drop our guard and cloud our judgment; and the more sure of ourselves we are, the more susceptible we may be to those who tell us what we want to hear. Flattery and fair appearances can disarm the wariness that truth would keep. Do not let flattery and pleasing appearances cloud your judgment and drop your guard, as they disarmed Holofernes; be wary of those who tell you only what you want to hear. Beware of being swayed by flattery and fair appearances, which cloud judgment and drop the guard, as Holofernes was taken in by pleasing words and a beautiful face; for susceptibility to flattery is a vulnerability that pride makes worse, and hearing only what delights us can disarm the wariness that truth requires, so that we do well to be wary of those who tell us what we want to hear.

Lord, in the account of Judith, we see the enemy general Holofernes taken in by flattering words and a fair appearance. When Judith speaks to him with wisdom and beauty, his servants marvel and declare there is no such woman in all the earth for beauty of face and wisdom of words; and Holofernes, pleased and flattered, drops his guard, drawn in by what delights him. His judgment, which should have been wary of an enemy in his camp, is clouded by flattery and by the pleasure of a beautiful face and pleasing words. The proud general, so sure of his might, is undone in part by his own vulnerability to being flattered and charmed. Show me how Holofernes is taken in: by flattery and by a pleasing appearance. He is a man of great might, sure of himself; yet his judgment is clouded, his guard dropped, by words that flatter him and a face that pleases him. He hears what delights him, and it disarms his wariness. The susceptibility to flattery is a vulnerability that even the mighty share; it clouds judgment and drops the guard. Being swayed by flattery and appearances is a danger that pride makes worse, for the proud are often most susceptible to those who tell them what they want to hear. Take that to my heart, for I must beware of being swayed by flattery and appearances, which cloud my judgment. I can be taken in, as Holofernes was, by flattering words and pleasing appearances, hearing what delights me and letting it drop my guard; and the more sure of myself I am, the more susceptible I may be to those who tell me what I want to hear. Keep me from letting flattery and pleasing appearances cloud my judgment, Lord, as they disarmed Holofernes; make me wary of those who tell me only what I want to hear.