Various Sins

21 Have you sinned, my child? Do so no more,

but ask forgiveness for your past sins.

2 Flee from sin as from a snake;

for if you approach sin, it will bite you.

Its teeth are lion’s teeth,

and can destroy human lives.

3 All lawlessness is like a two-edged sword;

there is no healing for the wound it inflicts.

4 Panic and insolence will waste away riches;

thus the house of the proud will be laid waste.a

5 The prayer of the poor goes from their lips to the ears of God,b

and his judgment comes speedily.

6 Those who hate reproof walk in the sinner’s steps,

but those who fear the Lord repent in their heart.

7 The mighty in speech are widely known;

when they slip, the sensible person knows it.

8 Whoever builds his house with other people’s money

is like one who gathers stones for his burial mound.c

9 An assembly of the wicked is like a bundle of tow,

and their end is a blazing fire.

10 The way of sinners is paved with smooth stones,

but at its end is the pit of Hades.