Sirach 15–16

15For he that feareth the Lord doeth this,

And he that taketh hold of the Law findeth her.

And she will meet him as a mother,

And as a youthful wife will she receive him;

And she will feed him with the bread of understanding,

And will give him the waters of knowledge to drink.

And he that stayeth upon her will not fall,

Nor shall he that trusteth in her be ashamed;

And she will exalt him above his neighbour,

And will open his mouth in the midst of the assembly.

Joy and gladness shall he find,

And she will make him inherit an everlasting name.

Ungodly men shall not obtain her,

And the arrogant shall not look upon her.

Far from the mockers is she,

And liars do not think of her.

Praise is not seemly in the mouth of the wicked,

For it hath not been apportioned to him by God.

In the mouth of the wise praise is uttered,

And he who is mighty with her shall teach her.

Say not: ‘From God is my transgression,’

For that which He hateth made He not.

Say not: ‘⁽It is⁽ He that made me to stumble,’

For there is no need of evil men.

Evil and abomination doth the Lord hate,

And He doth not let it come nigh to them that fear Him.

God created man from the beginning,

And placed him in the hand of his Yeṣer.

If thou ⁽so⁽ desirest, thou canst keep the commandment,

And ⁽it is⁽ wisdom to do His good pleasure.

Poured out before thee ⁽are⁽ fire and water,

Stretch forth thine hand unto that which thou desirest.

Life and death ⁽are⁽ before man,

That which he desireth shall be given to him.

Sufficient is the wisdom of the Lord,

⁽He is⁽ mighty in power, and seeth all things.

And the eyes of God behold his works,

And He knoweth every deed of man.

He commanded no man to sin,

Nor gave strength to men of lies.

16Desire not the sight of unprofitable sons,

And delight not in corrupt children;

Yea, and if they are fruitful, exult not because of them

If they have no fear of the Lord.

Trust not thou in their life,

Nor rely on their end;

For better is one than a thousand,

And to die childless than ⁽to have⁽ a presumptuous posterity.

From one that feareth the Lord a city is peopled,

But through a race of treacherous men it is desolated.

Many things like these mine eye hath seen,

And mightier things than these mine ear hath heard.

In the assembly of the wicked a fire is kindled,

And in an apostate nation doth wrath burn.

He forgave not the princes of old,

Who revolted in their might.

He spared not the place where Lot sojourned,

Who were arrogant in their pride;

Nor did He spare the nation accursed,

Dispossessed because of their sin.

Thus ⁽did it happen⁽ to the six hundred thousand footmen,

Who were destroyed in the arrogancy of their heart.

Yea, and if there be one who is stiff-necked,

A marvel it would be were he not punished.

For mercy and wrath are with Him,

He forgiveth and pardoneth, but upon the wicked He causeth His wrath to rest.

As great as His mercy ⁽is⁽, so is His chastisement:

⁽Each⁽ man doth He judge according to his works.

The sinner shall not escape with his spoil,

And He will not suffer the desire of the righteous to fail for ever.

Every one that doeth righteousness shall receive his reward,

And every man shall find ⁽his reward⁽ before Him, according to his works.

^[The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh who knew Him not,

Whose works were manifest under the heavens;

His mercies are seen by all His creation,

And His light and His darkness hath He apportioned unto the children of men.^[

Say not: ‘I am hidden from God,

And in the height who will remember me?

I shall not be noticed among so illustrious a people,

And what is my soul among the mass of the spirits of all the children of men?’

Behold the heavens and the heavens of the heavens,

And the deep, and the earth;

When He treadeth upon them they stand firm,

And when He visiteth them they tremble.

Yea, the bottoms of the mountains, and the foundations of the world,

When He looketh upon them they tremble greatly.

‘In truth, unto me He will not have respect;

And as for my ways, who will mark them?

If I sin, no eye beholdeth it,

Or if I deal untruly in all secrecy, who will know it?

My righteous dealing, who declareth it?

And what hope ⁽is there⁽? for the decree is distant *.’

They that lack understanding think these things,

And the man of folly thinketh this.

Hearken ye unto me, and receive my wisdom,

And set your heart upon my words.

I will pour out my spirit by weight,

And by measure will I declare my knowledge.

When God created His works from the beginning,

After making them He assigned them ⁽their⁽ portions.

He set in order His works for ever,

And their authority unto their generations.

They hunger not, neither are they weak,

And they cease not from their works.

Not one thrusteth aside his neighbour,

They never disobey His word.

And after this the Lord looked upon the earth,

And filled it with His good things.

With every living thing He filled the earth;

And into it is their return.