Sirach 27

Sirach 27

¹Many have committed sin for gain,[#Prov 23.4; Sir 7.18; 1 Tim 6.9, 10; #27.1 Other ancient authorities read a trifle]

and those who seek to get rich will avert their eyes.

²As a stake is driven firmly into a fissure between stones,[#Sir 26.29]

so sin is wedged in between selling and buying.

³If a person is not steadfast in the fear of the Lord,[#Ezek 33.13]

his house will be quickly overthrown.

Tests in Life

⁴When a sieve is shaken, the refuse appears;

so does a person’s waste when he speaks.

⁵The kiln tests the potter’s vessels,[#Prov 17.3; 27.21]

and the test of a person is in his conversation.

⁶Its fruit discloses the cultivation of a tree;[#Mt 7.16, 17; 12.33, 34; Lk 6.45]

so does speech the thoughts of the human mind.

⁷Do not praise anyone before he speaks,

for this is the way people are tested.

Reward and Retribution

⁸If you pursue justice, you will attain it[#Ex 28.2; Job 29.14; Sir 45.8]

and wear it like a glorious robe.

⁹Birds roost with their own kind,[#Sir 13.16]

so honesty comes home to those who practice it.

¹⁰A lion lies in wait for prey;[#v 28 ; Sir 28.23]

so does sin for evildoers.

Varieties of Speech

¹¹The conversation of the godly is always wise,

but the fool changes like the moon.

¹²Among stupid people limit your time,[#Sir 9.15]

but among thoughtful people linger on.

¹³The talk of fools is offensive,[#Eccl 7.5, 6]

and their laughter is wantonly sinful.

¹⁴Their cursing and swearing make one’s hair stand on end,[#Sir 23.9]

and their quarrels make others stop their ears.

¹⁵The strife of the proud leads to bloodshed,

and their abuse is grievous to hear.

Betraying Secrets

¹⁶Whoever betrays secrets destroys confidence[#Sir 22.22]

and will never find a congenial friend.

¹⁷Love your friends and keep faith with them,[#Sir 22.22]

but if you betray their secrets, do not follow after them.

¹⁸For as a person destroys an enemy,[#27.18 Other ancient authorities read corpse]

so you have destroyed the friendship of your neighbor.

¹⁹And as you allow a bird to escape from your hand,[#Ps 91.3; 124.7]

so you have let your neighbor go and will not catch him again.

²⁰Do not go after him, for he is too far off[#Prov 6.5]

and has escaped like a gazelle from a snare.

²¹For a wound may be bandaged,[#Sir 22.22]

and there is reconciliation after abuse,

but whoever has betrayed secrets is without hope.

Hypocrisy and Retribution

²²Whoever winks the eye plots harm,[#Prov 6.13, 14; 10.10]

and those who know such a one will keep their distance.

²³In your presence their mouths are all sweetness,[#Ps 28.3; 55.21]

and they admire your words,

but later they will twist their speech

and with your own words they will cause a scandal.

²⁴I have hated many things but them above all;[#Ps 12.2, 3]

even the Lord hates them.

²⁵Those who throw a stone straight up throw it on their own heads,

and a treacherous blow opens up many wounds.

²⁶Whoever digs a pit will fall into it,[#Ps 7.15; 9.15; 35.8]

and whoever sets a snare will be caught in it.

²⁷If people do evil, it will roll back upon them,

and they will not know where it came from.

²⁸Mockery and abuse issue from the proud,[#v 10 ; Sir 28.23]

but vengeance lies in wait for them like a lion.

²⁹Those who rejoice in the fall of the godly will be caught in a snare,[#Ps 112.10]

and pain will consume them before their death.

Anger and Vengeance

³⁰Anger and wrath, these also are abominations,

yet a sinner holds on to them.