Sirach 13:1–14:27

¹He that toucheth pitch shall be defiled therewith; and he that hath fellowship with a proud man shall be like unto him. ²Burden not thyself above thy power while thou livest; and have no fellowship with one that is mightier and richer than thyself: for how agree the kettle and the earthen pot together? for if the one be smitten against the other, it shall be broken. ³The rich man hath done wrong, and yet he threateneth withal: the poor is wronged, and he must intreat also. ⁴If thou be for his profit, he will use thee: but if thou have nothing, he will forsake thee. ⁵If thou have any thing, he will live with thee: yea, he will make thee bare, and will not be sorry for it. ⁶If he have need of thee, he will deceive thee, and smile upon thee, and put thee in hope; he will speak thee fair, and say, What wantest thou? ⁷And he will shame thee by his meats, until he have drawn thee dry twice or thrice, and at the last he will laugh thee to scorn: afterward, when he seeth thee, he will forsake thee, and shake his head at thee.

⁸Beware that thou be not deceived, and brought down in thy jollity. ⁹If thou be invited of a mighty man, withdraw thyself, and so much the more will he invite thee. ¹⁰Press thou not upon him, lest thou be put back; stand not far off, lest thou be forgotten. ¹¹Affect not to be made equal unto him in talk, and believe not his many words: for with much communication will he tempt thee, and smiling upon thee will get out thy secrets: ¹²But cruelly he will lay up thy words, and will not spare to do thee hurt, and to put thee in prison. ¹³Observe, and take good heed, for thou walkest in peril of thy overthrowing: when thou hearest these things, awake in thy sleep. ¹⁴Love the Lord all thy life, and call upon him for thy salvation.

¹⁵Every beast loveth his like, and every man loveth his neighbor. ¹⁶All flesh consorteth according to kind, and a man will cleave to his like. ¹⁷What fellowship hath the wolf with the lamb? so the sinner with the godly. ¹⁸What agreement is there between the hyena and a dog? and what peace between the rich and the poor? ¹⁹As the wild ass is the lion’s prey in the wilderness: so the rich eat up the poor. ²⁰As the proud hate humility: so doth the rich abhor the poor.

²¹A rich man beginning to fall is held up of his friends: but a poor man being down is thrust also away by his friends. ²²When a rich man is fallen, he hath many helpers: he speaketh things not to be spoken, and yet men justify him: the poor man slipped, and yet they rebuked him too; he spake wisely, and could have no place. ²³When a rich man speaketh, every man holdeth his tongue, and, look, what he saith, they extol it to the clouds: but if the poor man speak, they say, What fellow is this? and if he stumble, they will help to overthrow him.

²⁴Riches are good unto him that hath no sin, and poverty is evil in the mouth of the ungodly. ²⁵The heart of a man changeth his countenance, whether it be for good or evil: and a merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance. ²⁶A cheerful countenance is a token of a heart that is in prosperity; and the finding out of parables is a wearisome labour of the mind.

Chapter 14

¹Blessed is the man that hath not slipped with his mouth, and is not pricked with the multitude of sins. ²Blessed is he whose conscience hath not condemned him, and who is not fallen from his hope in the Lord.

³Riches are not comely for a niggard: and what should an envious man do with money? ⁴He that gathereth by defrauding his own soul gathereth for others, that shall spend his goods riotously. ⁵He that is evil to himself, to whom will he be good? he shall not take pleasure in his goods. ⁶There is none worse than he that envieth himself; and this is a recompence of his wickedness. ⁷And if he doeth good, he doeth it unwillingly; and at the last he will declare his wickedness. ⁸The envious man hath a wicked eye; he turneth away his face, and despiseth men. ⁹A covetous man’s eye is not satisfied with his portion; and the iniquity of the wicked drieth up his soul. ¹⁰A wicked eye envieth [his] bread, and he is a niggard at his table.

¹¹My son, according to thy ability do good to thyself, and give the Lord his due offering. ¹²Remember that death will not be long in coming, and that the covenant of the grave is not shewed unto thee. ¹³Do good unto thy friend before thou die, and according to thy ability stretch out thy hand and give to him. ¹⁴Defraud not thyself of the good day, and let not the part of a good desire overpass thee. ¹⁵Shalt thou not leave thy travails unto another? and thy labours to be divided by lot? ¹⁶Give, and take, and sanctify thy soul; for there is no seeking of dainties in the grave. ¹⁷All flesh waxeth old as a garment: for the covenant from the beginning is, Thou shalt die the death. ¹⁸As of the green leaves on a thick tree, some fall, and some grow; so is the generation of flesh and blood, one cometh to an end, and another is born. ¹⁹Every work rotteth and consumeth away, and the worker thereof shall go withal.

²⁰Blessed is the man that doth meditate good things in wisdom, and that reasoneth of holy things by his understanding. ²¹He that considereth her ways in his heart shall also have understanding in her secrets. ²²Go after her as one that traceth, and lie in wait in her ways. ²³He that prieth in at her windows shall also hearken at her doors. ²⁴He that doth lodge near her house shall also fasten a pin in her walls. ²⁵He shall pitch his tent nigh unto her, and shall lodge in a lodging where good things are. ²⁶He shall set his children under her shelter, and shall lodge under her branches. ²⁷By her he shall be covered from heat, and in her glory shall he dwell.