Sirach, Chapter 22
1
The slothful man is like a filthy stone, And every one flees from its stench.
2
A slothful man is like the filth of a dunghill, Everyone who takes it up shakes it out of his hand.
3
Shame [there is] to the father who begets an uninstructed [son], And a daughter is born to his loss.
4
A prudent daughter is an inheritance to her husband, But she who brings shame is a grief to him who begat her.
5
She who is bold brings shame on her father and husband, And she is despised by both.
6
[As] music in time of mourning, [so is] unseasonable talk; But stripes and correction are at all times wisdom.
7
He who teaches a fool is [as] one who glues together a potsherd, [Or as] one who awakens a sleeper out of a deep sleep.
8
He who discourses to a fool is as one discoursing to him who slumbers, And at the end he says, "What is it?"
11
Mourn for the dead, for [his] light has failed, And mourn for a fool, for understanding has failed [him]. Weep gently for the dead, for he has found rest; But the life of a fool is worse than death.
12
The mourning for the dead is for seven days, But the mourning for a fool is for all the days of his life.
13
Do not talk much with a foolish man, And do not go on the road with a pig, Beware of him lest you have trouble, And you become defiled when he shakes himself; Turn from him and you will find rest, And [so] you will not be wearied with his folly.
14
What is heavier than lead, And what is its name but "Fool"?
15
Sand and salt and a weight of iron Are easier to bear than a senseless man.
16
[As] timber firmly fixed into the wall Is not loosened by an earthquake, So a heart established on well-advised counsel Will not be fearful in time [of danger].
17
A heart fixed on thoughtful understanding Is as an ornament graven on a polished wall.
18
Small stones lying upon a high place Will not remain against the wind, So will the fearsome heart [full of] foolish imagination Be unable to withstand any terror.
19
A wound in the eye makes tears flow, And a wound in the heart severs friendship.
20
He who throws stones at birds scares them away, And he who reproaches a friend dissolves friendship.
21
Even if you draw the sword against a friend, Do not despair, for there is a way out.
22
If you open your mouth against a friend, Do not fear, for there is a [way of] reconciliation; But reproach, arrogance, betrayal of a secret, and a deceitful blow, In these every friend will depart.
23
Support your neighbor in poverty, That in his prosperity you may rejoice; Remain steadfast to him in time of [his] affliction, That you may be heir with him in his inheritance.
24
Before the fire is the vapor of the furnace and smoke, So revilings before bloodshed.
25
Do not be ashamed of a friend who becomes poor, And do not hide yourself from his face;
26
And if evil happens to him through you, Whoever hears it will beware of you.
27
O that one would set a watch over my mouth, And a seal of shrewdness upon my lips, That I do not fall by means of them, And that my tongue does not destroy me.
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