Sirach 9

Sirach 9

Advice concerning Women

¹Do not be jealous of the wife whom you embrace,[#Deut 13.6]

or you will teach her an evil lesson to your own hurt.

²Do not give yourself to a woman[#Prov 31.3]

and let her trample down your strength.

³Do not go near a loose woman,[#Prov 7.10, 23; #9.3 Heb strange woman]

or you may fall into her snares.

⁴Do not dally with a female singer,

or you may be caught in her activities.

⁵Do not look intently at a virgin,[#Deut 22.29; Job 31.1]

or you may stumble and incur penalties for her.

⁶Do not give yourself to prostitutes,[#Prov 6.26; 29.3]

or you may lose your inheritance.

⁷Do not look around in the streets of a city[#Prov 7.8, 12]

or wander about in its deserted sections.

⁸Turn away your eyes from a shapely woman,[#2 Sam 11.2; Job 31.9, 12; Sir 25.21]

and do not gaze at beauty belonging to another;

many have been seduced by a woman’s beauty,

and by it passion is kindled like a fire.

⁹Never dine with another man’s wife[#Sir 41.21; #9.9 Heb: Gk sit down]

or revel with her at wine,

or your heart may turn aside to her,

and in blood you may plunge into destruction.

Choice of Friends

¹⁰Do not abandon old friends,[#Prov 27.10; Lk 5.39]

for new ones cannot equal them.

A new friend is like new wine;

when it has aged, you will drink it with pleasure.

¹¹Do not envy the notoriety of sinners,[#Ps 37.1]

for you do not know what their end will be like.

¹²Do not delight in what pleases the ungodly;[#Prov 11.21; #9.12 Gk: Heb the success of the arrogant]

remember that they will not be held guiltless until Hades.

¹³Keep far from those who have power to kill,

and you will not be haunted by the fear of death.

But if you approach them, make no misstep,

or they may rob you of your life.

Know that you are stepping among snares

and that you are walking on the city battlements.

¹⁴As much as you can, aim to know your neighbors,[#Tob 4.18]

and consult with the wise.

¹⁵Let your conversation be with intelligent people,[#Ps 1.2; Sir 27.12]

and let all your discussion be about the law of the Most High.

¹⁶Let the righteous be your dinner companions,[#Sir 1.11, 12; 10.22]

and let your boast be in the fear of the Lord.

Concerning Rulers

¹⁷A work is praised for the skill of the artisan,

so a people’s leader is proved wise by his words.

¹⁸The loud of mouth are feared in their city,[#Prov 18.7; Sir 8.3]

and the one who is reckless in speech is hated.