Tobias (Tobit) 4

¹Therefore when Tobias thought that his prayer was heard that he might die, he called to him Tobias his son.

²And said to him: Hear, my son, the words of my mouth, and lay them as a foundation in thy heart.

³When God shall take my soul, thou shalt bury my body: and thou shalt honour thy mother all the days of her life.

⁴For thou must be mindful what and how great perils she suffered for thee in her womb.

⁵And when she also shall have ended the time of her life bury her by me.

⁶And all the days of thy life have God in thy mind. And take heed thou never consent to sin, nor transgress the commandments of the Lord our God.

⁷Give alms out of thy substance, and turn not away thy face from any poor person: for so it shall come to pass that the face of the Lord shall not be turned from thee.

⁸According to thy ability be merciful.

⁹If thou have much give abundantly: if thou have little, take care even so to bestow willingly a little.

¹⁰For thus thou storest up to thyself a good reward for the day of necessity.

¹¹For alms deliver from all sin, and from death, and will not suffer the soul to go into darkness.

¹²Alms shall be a great confidence before the most high God, to all them that give it.

¹³Take heed to keep thyself, my son, from all fornication: and beside thy wife never endure to know a crime.

¹⁴Never suffer pride to reign in thy mind, or in thy words: for from it all perdition took its beginning.

¹⁵If any man hath done any work for thee, immediately pay him his hire: and let not the wages of thy hired servant stay with thee at all.

¹⁶See thou never do to another what thou wouldst hate to have done to thee by another.

¹⁷Eat thy bread with the hungry and the needy: and with thy garments cover the naked.

¹⁸Lay out thy bread and thy wine upon the burial of a just man: and do not eat and drink thereof with the wicked.

¹⁹Seek counsel always of a wise man.

²⁰Bless God at all times: and desire of him to direct thy ways, and that all thy counsels may abide in him.

²¹I tell thee also, my son, that I lent ten talents of silver, while thou wast yet a child, to Gabelus, in Rages a city of the Medes, and I have a note of his hand with me.

²²Now therefore inquire how thou mayst go to him, and receive of him the foresaid sum of money, and restore to him the note of his hand.

²³Fear not, my son: we lead indeed a poor life; but we shall have many good things, if we fear God, and depart from all sin, and do that which is good.