Sirach 22
Good News Translation
Laziness and Foolishness
1-2 Lazy people are no better than dung; they are repulsive, and no one wants to get near them.
3 It is a disgrace to a father to have an undisciplined child, especially if it is a daughter. 4 A sensible daughter will get a husband, but a shameless daughter brings her father grief. 5 A girl with no sense of propriety will disgrace both her husband and her father; neither will have any respect for her.
6 Lecturing your children can sometimes be as out of place as singing to people in mourning, but a whipping is a wise choice of discipline at any time.
7 Trying to teach a fool is like gluing a broken pot back together, like waking someone out of a deep sleep. 8 Explaining something to a fool is like explaining it to a sleepy person; when you have finished, he'll say,
What was that again?[a]
11 We mourn for the dead because they have no access to light. We ought to mourn for fools, because they have no access to intelligence. In fact, we should go into deeper mourning for fools, because the life they lead is worse than death. The dead are at least at rest. 12 (A)For seven days we mourn the dead, but a foolish or ungodly person causes a lifetime of grief.
13 Don't visit stupid people or spend a lot of time talking with them. Avoid them; then they can't contaminate you, and you can live in peace without being troubled or worn down by their foolishness. 14 Such people are a heavier burden to bear than lead; and the only word that fits them is
fools. 15 It is easier to carry a load of sand, salt, and iron than to put up with a stupid person.
16 A wooden beam can be put into a building so firmly that an earthquake cannot shake it loose; a person can be trained to use reason and good sense so well that he keeps his head when a crisis comes. 17 A mind that thinks things through intelligently is like a firm wall, finely decorated. 18 Small stones on top of a wall[b] will not stay put when the wind blows, and a person whose stupid ideas have made him timid will not be able to stand up to frightening situations.
Friendship
19 If you stick something in your eye, tears will flow; and if you hurt a person deeply, you will discover his true feelings. 20 If you throw rocks at birds, you will scare them away; and if you insult a friend, you will break up the friendship. 21-22 Even if you have a violent argument with a friend, and speak sharply, all is not lost. You can still make up with him. But any friend will leave you if you insult him, if you are arrogant, if you reveal his secrets, or if you turn on him unexpectedly.
23 Gain the confidence of your neighbor if he is poor; then you can share his happiness if he becomes successful. Stand by him when he is in trouble if you want to share with him when better times come his way.
24 Fumes and smoke appear before the flames do; insults come before violence.
25 I will never be afraid to protect a friend, and I will never turn a friend away if he needs me. 26 If I suffer because of him, everyone who learns of it will be on guard against him.
A Prayer for Help against Sin
27 I wish that a guard could be placed at my mouth, that my lips could be wisely sealed. It would keep me from making mistakes and prevent me from destroying myself with my own tongue!
Footnotes
- Sirach 22:8 Some manuscripts add verses 9-10: Children who are brought up well do not show the humble origin of their parents. 10 Children who are not brought up well, who are arrogant and conceited, are a stain on the noblest family.
- Sirach 22:18 Small...wall; some manuscripts have A fence on top of a hill.
Sirach 22
Common English Bible
22 People who are afraid to act
are like filthy stones;
everyone will hiss at their dishonor.
2 People who are afraid to act
are like clumps of cow manure;
those who pick it up
will shake off their hand.
3 An uneducated son is a disgrace
to a father,
and a daughter’s birth is a liability.
4 A prudent daughter
will get a husband of her own,
and a daughter in disgrace
is a grief to her parents.
5 A disrespectful daughter
shames her father and her husband,
and both will despise her.
6 Ill-timed talk is like party music
during mourning,
but a whipping and discipline
are wisdom at any time.[a]
9 Whoever teaches a fool
is gluing together a broken pot
or waking up someone
out of a deep sleep.
10 Whoever talks with a fool
converses with someone who is drowsy;
when the conversation is over,
the fool will say, “What is it?
11 Weep for the dead,
for they have left the light behind;
and weep for fools,
for they have
left understanding behind.
Weep sweetly over the dead,
because they are at rest,
but the life of a fool is worse
than death.
12 Mourn for the dead for seven days,
but mourn for the foolish and the ungodly all the days of their lives.
13 Don’t talk a lot with fools,
and don’t go to the unintelligent.[b]
Be on guard against them
so that you don’t have trouble
and don’t get dirty
when they shake themselves off.
Stay away from them
and you will find rest,
and their senselessness
won’t make you weary.
14 What’s heavier than lead?
And what name does it have but “Fool”?
15 Sand, salt, and a lump of iron
are easier to bear
than an unintelligent person.
16 A wooden beam fastened into a building
won’t be loosened by an earthquake.
So a heart firmly set
on thoughtful counsel
won’t be afraid at any time.
17 A heart fixed on thoughtful understanding
is like an engraved ornament
on a smooth wall.
18 A protective barrier set on a high place
will never endure against the wind.
So a timid heart backed up
by a fool’s plan
will never endure against any fear.
Preserving friendship
19 Whoever pricks an eye
will make tears flow,
and whoever pricks a heart
reveals its feelings.
20 Whoever throws a stone at birds
scares them off,
and whoever insults a friend
breaks up a friendship.
21 If you draw a sword on a friend,
don’t despair,
because there can be a way back.
22 If you speak harshly to a friend,
don’t be concerned,
because there can be reconciliation.
But in the case of reproach, arrogance,
the revealing of a secret,
or a treacherous blow,
any friend will flee.
23 Gain your neighbors’ trust
while they are poor,
so that when they are prosperous,
you will be filled along with them.
In a time of distress remain with them
so that when they inherit,
you will be a joint heir.[c]
24 Before there’s a fire,
a furnace has vapor and smoke;
so before bloodshed there are insults.
25 I won’t be ashamed to shelter friends,
and I won’t hide from them.
26 And if something bad happens to me
because of them,
everyone who hears of it
will be on guard against them.
Prayer for protection from sinning
27 Who will put a guard on my mouth
and an effective seal upon my lips
so that I don’t fall
because of my speech
and so that my tongue
doesn’t destroy me?
Footnotes
- Sirach 22:6 LXXb adds 22:7–8 Children who are brought up to live a good life mask the lowly birth of their parents. Children who take pride in contempt and lack of education pollute the honorable name of their own family.
- Sirach 22:13 LXXb adds When people are senseless, they will bring everything of yours to nothing.
- Sirach 22:23 LXXb adds One shouldn’t always despise appearances, nor are the rich admirable when they have no sense.
Sirach 22
New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
The Idler
22 The idler is like a filthy stone,
and every one hisses at his disgrace.
2 The idler is like the filth of dunghills;
anyone that picks it up will shake it off his hand.
Degenerate Children
3 It is a disgrace to be the father of an undisciplined son,
and the birth of a daughter is a loss.
4 A sensible daughter obtains a husband of her own,
but one who acts shamefully is a grief to her father.
5 An impudent daughter disgraces father and husband,
and is despised by both.
6 Like music in time of mourning is ill-timed conversation,
but a thrashing and discipline are at all times wisdom.[a]
Wisdom and Folly
9 Whoever teaches a fool is like one who glues potsherds together,
or who rouses a sleeper from deep slumber.
10 Whoever tells a story to a fool tells it to a drowsy man;
and at the end he will say, “What is it?”
11 Weep for the dead, for he has left the light behind;
and weep for the fool, for he has left intelligence behind.
Weep less bitterly for the dead, for he is at rest;
but the life of the fool is worse than death.
12 Mourning for the dead lasts seven days,
but for the foolish or the ungodly it lasts all the days of their lives.
13 Do not talk much with a senseless person
or visit an unintelligent person.[b]
Stay clear of him, or you may have trouble,
and be spattered when he shakes himself off.
Avoid him and you will find rest,
and you will never be wearied by his lack of sense.
14 What is heavier than lead?
And what is its name except “Fool”?
15 Sand, salt, and a piece of iron
are easier to bear than a stupid person.
16 A wooden beam firmly bonded into a building
is not loosened by an earthquake;
so the mind firmly resolved after due reflection
will not be afraid in a crisis.
17 A mind settled on an intelligent thought
is like stucco decoration that makes a wall smooth.
18 Fences[c] set on a high place
will not stand firm against the wind;
so a timid mind with a fool’s resolve
will not stand firm against any fear.
The Preservation of Friendship
19 One who pricks the eye brings tears,
and one who pricks the heart makes clear its feelings.
20 One who throws a stone at birds scares them away,
and one who reviles a friend destroys a friendship.
21 Even if you draw your sword against a friend,
do not despair, for there is a way back.
22 If you open your mouth against your friend,
do not worry, for reconciliation is possible.
But as for reviling, arrogance, disclosure of secrets, or a treacherous blow—
in these cases any friend will take to flight.
23 Gain the trust of your neighbor in his poverty,
so that you may rejoice with him in his prosperity.
Stand by him in time of distress,
so that you may share with him in his inheritance.[d]
24 The vapor and smoke of the furnace precede the fire;
so insults precede bloodshed.
25 I am not ashamed to shelter a friend,
and I will not hide from him.
26 But if harm should come to me because of him,
whoever hears of it will beware of him.
A Prayer for Help against Sinning
27 Who will set a guard over my mouth,
and an effective seal upon my lips,
so that I may not fall because of them,
and my tongue may not destroy me?
Footnotes
- Sirach 22:6 Other ancient authorities add 7 Children who are brought up in a good life, conceal the lowly birth of their parents. 8 Children who are disdainfully and boorishly haughty stain the nobility of their kindred.
- Sirach 22:13 Other ancient authorities add For being without sense he will despise everything about you
- Sirach 22:18 Other ancient authorities read Pebbles
- Sirach 22:23 Other ancient authorities add For one should not always despise restricted circumstances, or admire a rich person who is stupid.
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.