Sirach 19

¹⁹The one who does this^v will not become rich;

one who despises small things will fail little by little.^*

²Wine and women lead intelligent men astray,

and the man who consorts with prostitutes is reckless.^*

³Decay and worms will take possession of him,

and the reckless person will be snatched away.^*

Against Loose Talk

⁴One who trusts quickly has a shallow mind,

and one who sins does wrong to himself.

⁵One who rejoices in wickedness^w will be condemned,^x

⁶but one who hates discussion lacks understanding.^*

⁷Never repeat a conversation,

and you will lose nothing at all.

⁸With friend or foe do not report it,

and unless it would be a sin for you do not reveal it,

⁹for someone may have heard you and watched you

and in time will hate you.

¹⁰Have you heard something? Let it die with you.

Be brave; it will not make you burst!^*

¹¹Having heard something, the fool suffers birth pangs

like a woman in labor with a child.

¹²Like an arrow stuck in a person’s thigh,

so is gossip in the belly of a fool.^*

¹³Question a friend; perhaps he did not do it;

or if he did, so that he may not do it again.^*

¹⁴Question a neighbor; perhaps he did not say it;

or if he said it, so that he may not repeat it.

¹⁵Question a friend, for often it is slander;

so do not believe every word.

¹⁶A person may make a slip without intending it.

Who has not sinned with his tongue?^*

¹⁷Question your neighbor before you threaten him,

and make room for the law of the Most High.^y*

True and False Wisdom

²⁰The whole of wisdom is fear of the Lord,

and in all wisdom there is the fulfillment of the law.^z*

²²The knowledge of wickedness is not wisdom,

nor is there prudence in the counsel of sinners.^*

²³There is a cleverness that is detestable,

and there is a fool who merely lacks wisdom.

²⁴Better are the God-fearing who lack understanding

than the highly intelligent who transgress the law.^*

²⁵There is a cleverness that is exact but unjust,

and there are people who abuse favors to gain a verdict.^a

²⁶There are villains bowed down in mourning,

but inwardly they are full of deceit.^*

²⁷They hide their faces and pretend not to hear,

but when no one notices, they will take advantage of you.

²⁸Even if lack of strength keeps them from sinning,

they will nevertheless do evil when they find the opportunity.

²⁹People will be known by their appearances,

and sensible people will be known when first met face to face.^*

³⁰People’s attire and hearty laughter

and the way they walk proclaim things about them.^*