Sirach 7

¹Do not choose to do evil, and evil will not take hold of you.

²Withdraw from the iniquitous, and evil will withdraw from you.

³Son, do not sow evil in the furrows of injustice, and you will not reap them sevenfold.

⁴Do not seek a role of leadership from the Lord, and do not seek a seat of honor from the king.

⁵You should not justify yourself before God, for he is the Knower of hearts. And by no means should you wish to seem wise before the king.

⁶Do not seek to become a judge, unless you have sufficient strength to shatter iniquities. Otherwise, you might fear the face of the powerful, and so establish a scandal within your integrity.

⁷You should not sin against the multitude of a city, nor should you cast yourself against the people.

⁸And you should not bind two sins together. For even in one sin, you will not go unpunished.

⁹Do not be cowardly in your soul.

¹⁰You should not be unwilling to beg, nor to give alms.

¹¹You should not say: “God will look with favor on the multitude of my gifts, and when I make an offering to the most high God, he will accept my gift.”

¹²You should not ridicule a man in bitterness of soul. For there is One who humbles and who exalts: the all-seeing God.

¹³Do not love a lie against your brother, nor should you act the same toward your friend.

¹⁴Do not be willing to devise a lie of any kind. For the practice of lying is not good.

¹⁵Do not choose to be verbose among a multitude of elders, and you should not repeat the words of your prayers.

¹⁶You should not hate laborious works, nor the rustic life created by the Most High.

¹⁷You should not consider yourself to be among the multitude of the undisciplined.

¹⁸Remember wrath. For it will not be delayed.

¹⁹Humble your spirit greatly. For the retribution against the flesh of the impious is with fire and worms.

²⁰Do not betray your friend for the sake of money, and you should not spurn your dearest brother for the sake of gold.

²¹Do not choose to depart from a good and understanding wife, whom you have been allotted in the fear of the Lord. For the grace of her modesty is above gold.

²²You should not harm the servant whose works are honest, nor the hired hand who entrusts his life to you.

²³Let an understanding servant be loved by you like your own soul. You should not cheat him out of freedom, nor abandon him to destitution.

²⁴Are cattle yours? Tend to them. And if they are useful, let them remain with you.

²⁵Are sons yours? Instruct them, and bow them down from their childhood.

²⁶Are daughters yours? Watch over their bodies. And you should not display a light-hearted attitude toward them.

²⁷Give your daughter in marriage, and give her to an understanding man, and you will be doing a great work.

²⁸If a wife in accord with your soul is yours, you should not reject her. But do not entrust yourself to her who is hateful.

²⁹With your whole heart, honor your father. And you should not forget the complaints of your mother.

³⁰Remember that you would not have been born except through them. And so, give back to them as they also have done for you.

³¹With all your soul, fear the Lord, and consider his priests to be holy.

³²With all your strength, love him who made you, and you should not abandon his ministers.

³³Honor God from your whole soul, and confer honor on the priests, and continue to purify yourself with your strength.

³⁴Give them their portion, just as it has been commanded of you, from the first-fruits and from the purifications. And for your ignorant offenses, purify yourself with a smaller offering.

³⁵You should offer to the Lord the gift of your strength, and the sacrifice of sanctification, and the first-fruits of what is holy.

³⁶And reach out your hand to the poor, so that your atonement and your blessing may be perfected.

³⁷A gift has grace in the sight of all the living, but you should not prohibit grace for the dead.

³⁸You should not fail to console those who are weeping, nor to walk with those who are mourning.

³⁹Do not let yourself be slow to visit the sick. For in this way, you will be confirmed in love.

⁴⁰In all your works, remember your very end, and so you will not sin, unto eternity.

Sirach 7

¹Do no evils, and no evils shall lay hold of thee.

²Depart from the unjust, and evils shall depart from thee.

³My son, sow not evils in the furrows of injustice, and thou shalt not reap them sevenfold.

⁴Seek not of the Lord a preeminence, nor of the king the seat of honour.

⁵Justify not thyself before God, for he knoweth the heart: and desire not to appear wise before the king.

⁶Seek not to be made a judge, unless thou have strength enough to extirpate iniquities: lest thou fear the person of the powerful, and lay a stumblingblock for thy integrity.

⁷Offend not against the multitude of a city, neither cast thyself in upon the people,

⁸Nor bind sin to sin: for even in one thou shalt not be unpunished.

⁹Be not fainthearted in thy mind:

¹⁰Neglect not to pray, and to give alms.

¹¹Say not: God will have respect to the multitude of my gifts, and when I offer to the most high God, he will accept my offerings.

¹²Laugh no man to scorn in the bitterness of his soul: for there is one that humbleth and exalteth, God who seeth all.

¹³Devise not a lie against thy brother: neither do the like against thy friend.

¹⁴Be not willing to make any manner of lie: for the custom thereof is not good.

¹⁵Be not full of words in a multitude of ancients, and repeat not the word in thy prayer.

¹⁶Hate not laborious works, nor husbandry ordained by the most High.

¹⁷Number not thyself among the multitude of the disorderly.

¹⁸Remember wrath, for it will not tarry long.

¹⁹Humble thy spirit very much: for the vengeance on the flesh of the ungodly is fire and worms.

²⁰Do not transgress against thy friend deferring money, nor despise thy dear brother for the sake of gold.

²¹Depart not from a wise and good wife, whom thou hast gotten in the fear of the Lord: for the grace of her modesty is above gold.

²²Hurt not the servant that worketh faithfully, nor the hired man that giveth thee his life.

²³Let a wise servant be dear to thee as thy own soul, defraud him not of liberty, nor leave him needy.

²⁴Hast thou cattle? have an eye to them: and if they be for thy profit, keep them with thee.

²⁵Hast thou children? instruct them, and bow down their neck from their childhood.

²⁶Hast thou daughters? have a care of their body, and shew not thy countenance gay towards them.

²⁷Marry thy daughter well, and thou shalt do a great work, and give her to a wise man.

²⁸If thou hast a wife according to thy soul, cast her not off: and to her that is hateful, trust not thyself. With thy whole heart,

²⁹Honour thy father, and forget not the groanings of thy mother:

³⁰Remember that thou hadst not been born but through them: and make a return to them as they have done for thee.

³¹With all thy soul fear the Lord, and reverence his priests.

³²With all thy strength love him that made thee: and forsake not his ministers.

³³Honour God with all thy soul and give honour to the priests, and purify thyself with thy arms.

³⁴Give them their portion, as it is commanded thee, of the firstfruits and of purifications: and for thy negligences purify thyself with a few.

³⁵Offer to the Lord the gift of thy shoulders, and the sacrifice of sanctification, and the firstfruits of the holy things:

³⁶And stretch out thy hand to the poor, that thy expiation and thy blessing may be perfected.

³⁷A gift hath grace in the sight of all the living, and restrain not grace from the dead.

³⁸Be not wanting in comforting them that weep, and walk with them that mourn.

³⁹Be not slow to visit the sick: for by these things thou shalt be confirmed in love.

⁴⁰In all thy works remember thy last end, and thou shalt never sin.