Sirach 13–14

Caution Regarding Associates

¹³Whoever touches pitch gets dirty,

and whoever associates with the proud will become like them.^*

²Do not lift a weight too heavy for you

or associate with one mightier and richer than you.

How can the clay pot associate with the iron kettle?

The pot will strike against it and be smashed.

³A rich person does wrong and even adds insults;

a poor person suffers wrong and must add apologies.^*

⁴Rich people^a will exploit you^b if you can be of use to them,

but if you are in need they will abandon you.

⁵If you own something, they will live with you;

they will drain your resources without a qualm.

⁶When they need you, they will deceive you

and will smile at you and encourage you;

they will speak to you kindly and say, “What do you need?”

⁷They will embarrass you with their delicacies,

until they have drained you two or three times,

and finally they will laugh at you.

Should they see you afterwards, they will pass you by

and shake their heads at you.^*

⁸Take care not to be led astray

and humiliated when you are enjoying yourself.^c

⁹When the influential invite you, be reserved,

and they will invite you more insistently.

¹⁰Do not be forward, or you may be rebuffed;

do not stand aloof, or you will be forgotten.^*

¹¹Do not try to treat them as equals

or trust their lengthy conversations,

for they will test you by prolonged talk,

and while they smile they will be examining you.^*

¹²Cruel are those who do not keep your secrets;

they will not spare you harm or imprisonment.

¹³Be on your guard and very careful,

for you are walking about with your own downfall.^d

¹⁵Every creature loves its like

and every person a neighbor.^*

¹⁶All living beings associate with their own kind,

and people stick close to those like themselves.^*

¹⁷What does a wolf have in common with a lamb?

No more has a sinner with the devout.^*

¹⁸What peace is there between a hyena and a dog,

and what peace between the rich and the poor?

¹⁹Wild asses in the wilderness are the prey of lions;

likewise the poor are feeding grounds for the rich.^*

²⁰Humility is an abomination to the proud;

likewise the poor are an abomination to the rich.

²¹When the rich person totters, he is supported by friends,

but when the humble^e falls, he is pushed away by friends.^*

²²If the rich person slips, many come to the rescue;

he speaks unseemly words, but they justify him.

If the humble person slips, they even criticize him;

he talks sense but is not given a hearing.^*

²³The rich person speaks, and all are silent;

they extol to the clouds what he says.

The poor person speaks, and they say, “Who is this fellow?”

And should he stumble, they push him down.

²⁴Riches are good if they are free from sin;

poverty is evil only in the opinion of the ungodly.^*

²⁵The heart changes the countenance

either for good or for evil.^f*

²⁶The sign of a happy heart is a cheerful face,

but to devise proverbs requires strenuous thinking.^*

¹⁴Happy are those who do not blunder with their lips

and are not stricken with grief for sin.^*

²Happy are those whose hearts do not condemn them

and who have not given up their hope.^*

Responsible Use of Wealth

³Riches are inappropriate for the small-minded,

and of what use is wealth to misers?^*

⁴What they deny themselves they collect for others,

and others will live in luxury on their goods.^*

⁵If they are mean to themselves, to whom will they be generous?

They will not enjoy their own riches.

⁶No one is worse than those who are grudging to themselves;

this is the repayment for their meanness.

⁷If ever they do good, it is by mistake,^g

and in the end they reveal their meanness.

⁸Misers are evil people;

they turn away and disregard people.^*

⁹The eyes of the greedy are not satisfied with their share;

greedy injustice withers the soul.^*

¹⁰Misers begrudge bread,

and it is lacking at their tables.^*

¹¹My child, treat yourself well, according to your means,

and present worthy offerings to the Lord.^*

¹²Remember that death does not tarry,

and the decree^h of Hades has not been shown to you.

¹³Do good to friends before you die,

and reach out and give to them as much as you can.

¹⁴Do not deprive yourself of a day’s enjoyment;

do not let your share of desired good pass by you.^*

¹⁵Will you not leave the fruit of your labors to another,

and what you acquired by toil to be divided by lot?^*

¹⁶Give and take and indulge yourself,

because in Hades one cannot look for luxury.

¹⁷All living beings become old like a garment,

for the decreeⁱ from of old is, “You must die!”^*

¹⁸Like abundant leaves on a spreading tree

that sheds some and puts forth others,

so are the generations of flesh and blood:

one dies, and another is born.^*

¹⁹Every work decays and ceases to exist,

and the one who made it will pass away with it.

The Happiness of Seeking Wisdom

²⁰Happy are those who meditate on^j wisdom

and who reason intelligently,^*

²¹who reflect in their hearts on her ways

and ponder her secrets,^*

²²pursuing her like a hunter

and lying in wait on her paths;

²³who peer through her windows

and listen at her doors;^*

²⁴who camp near her house

and fasten their tent pegs to her walls;

²⁵who pitch their tents near her

and so occupy an excellent lodging place;

²⁶who place their children under her shelter

and lodge under her boughs;

²⁷who are sheltered by her from the heat

and dwell in the midst of her glory.^*