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Ben Sira 21
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Ben Sira 21
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 21
Dangers from Sin[a]
1 My child, if you have sinned, do so no more,
and for your past sins pray to be forgiven.
2 Flee from sin as from a serpent
that will bite you if you go near it;
Its teeth, lion’s teeth,
destroying human lives.
3 All lawlessness is like a two-edged sword;
when it cuts, there is no healing.(A)
4 Panic and pride wipe out wealth;
so too the house of the proud is uprooted.
5 Prayer from the lips of the poor is heard at once,
and justice is quickly granted them.
6 Whoever hates correction walks the sinner’s path,(B)
but whoever fears the Lord repents in his heart.
7 Glib speakers are widely known,
but when they slip the sensible perceive it.
8 Those who build their houses with someone else’s money
are like those who collect stones for their funeral mounds.
9 A band of criminals is like a bundle of tow;
they will end in a flaming fire.(C)
10 The path of sinners is smooth stones,
but its end is the pit of Sheol.[b]
The Wise and Foolish: A Contrast[c]
11 Those who keep the Law control their thoughts;
perfect fear of the Lord is wisdom.
12 One who is not clever can never be taught,
but there is a cleverness filled with bitterness.
13 The knowledge of the wise wells up like a flood,
and their counsel like a living spring.(D)
14 A fool’s mind is like a broken jar:
it cannot hold any knowledge at all.
15 When the intelligent hear a wise saying,
they praise it and add to it.
The wanton hear it with distaste
and cast it behind their back.
16 A fool’s chatter is like a load on a journey,
but delight is to be found on the lips of the intelligent.
17 The views of the prudent are sought in an assembly,
and their words are taken to heart.
18 Like a house in ruins is wisdom to a fool;
to the stupid, knowledge is incomprehensible chatter.
19 To the senseless, education is fetters on the feet,
like manacles on the right hand.
20 Fools raise their voice in laughter,
but the prudent at most smile quietly.(E)
21 Like a gold ornament is education to the wise,
like a bracelet on the right arm.
22 A fool steps boldly into a house,
while the well-bred are slow to make an entrance.(F)
23 A boor peeps through the doorway of a house,
but the educated stay outside.
24 It is rude for one to listen at a door;
the discreet person would be overwhelmed by the disgrace.
25 The lips of the arrogant talk of what is not their concern,
but the discreet carefully weigh their words.
26 The mind of fools is in their mouths,
but the mouth of the wise is in their mind.[d]
27 When the godless curse their adversary,[e]
they really curse themselves.
28 Slanderers sully themselves,
and are hated by their neighbors.
Footnotes
- 21:1–10 Under various figures, the consequences of sin are described as destructive of wealth, and even of life, deserving of death (vv. 2–4, 6a, 8–10). Fear of the Lord motivates repentance (vv. 5, 6b).
- 21:10 The path of sinners…Sheol: Ben Sira refers to the death that awaits unrepentant sinners; see notes on 11:26–28; 17:24–32.
- 21:11–28 The mind of the wise is a fountain of knowledge (vv. 13, 15); their will is trained to keep the Law (v. 11); their words are gracious, valued, carefully weighed, sincere (vv. 16–17, 25–26); their conduct is respectful, cultured and restrained (vv. 20, 22–24). The mind of the foolish is devoid of knowledge and impenetrable to it (vv. 12, 14, 18–19); their will rejects it (v. 15); their talk is burdensome (v. 16), their laughter unrestrained (v. 20), their conversation shallow and meddlesome (vv. 25–26); their conduct is bold and rude (vv. 22–24); their abuse of others redounds on themselves (vv. 27–28).
- 21:26 A clever play on words.
- 21:27 Curse their adversary: the curse of the godless often recoils on their own head; cf. Gn 27:29; Nm 24:9.
Sirach 21
Good News Translation
Sirach 21
Good News Translation
Sin
21 My child, have you sinned? Don't do it again, and pray for forgiveness for what you have already done. 2 Avoid sin as if it were a snake. If you get too near, it will sink its teeth into your soul like a lion, and destroy you. 3 Every lawless act leaves an incurable wound, like one left by a double-edged sword.
4 If a person is insolent and arrogant, he may lose everything he has.
5 (A)When poor people pray, God hears them and quickly answers their prayers.
6 If you refuse to accept correction, you are committing a sin; and if you fear the Lord, you will make a sincere change in your ways.
7 Someone may be famous as a good speaker, but when he is wrong, a sensible person will detect it.
8 Anyone who borrows money to build a house is just collecting stones for his own tomb.[a]
9 A group of people who have no respect for the Law is like a pile of kindling; they will meet a fiery end. 10 The road that sinners walk is smooth and paved, but it leads to the world of the dead.
Wisdom and Foolishness
11 Whoever wants to keep the Law must learn what the Law means. If you fear the Lord in every sense of the term, you will have wisdom. 12 You have to be intelligent to learn anything; but there is such a thing as just pretending to be intelligent, which only makes people bitter. 13 A wise person's knowledge is like a river that never runs dry, like an everflowing stream of good advice.
14 A fool, on the other hand, has a mind like a jar with a hole in it; anything he learns is soon lost.
15 When an educated person hears something that shows insight, it stimulates his mind and leads him on to other ideas. But when someone who is satisfied with ignorance hears it, he won't like it, and will forget it as soon as he can. 16 Listening to a foolish person talk is like traveling with a heavy load on your back, but it is a pleasure to hear what intelligent people have to say. 17 The assembly will be eager to hear from an intelligent person and will take his opinion seriously.
18 To an ignorant person, wisdom is as useless as a house gone to ruin. He has never even thought about the things he is so sure of. 19 To a person without any sense, an education is like handcuffs, 20-21 but to a sensible person, it is like gold bracelets. An intelligent person will smile quietly while a fool roars with laughter. 22-23 A stupid person will peep into someone's house through the door and then march right in, but someone with experience and good manners will have enough respect to wait outside. 24 Eavesdropping at doors is bad manners, and anyone with a sense of decency would be ashamed to do it.
25 Presumptuous people talk about things that are none of their business,[b] but the wise will consider the consequences of what they say. 26 Fools say whatever comes to mind; wise people think before they speak.
27 When a wicked person curses his enemy[c] he is cursing himself.
28 A gossip ruins his own character, and everyone in the neighborhood hates him.
Footnotes
- Sirach 21:8 his own tomb; some manuscripts have the winter.
- Sirach 21:25 Probable text Presumptuous...business; Greek The lips of strangers speak of these things.
- Sirach 21:27 his enemy; or Satan.
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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