Sirach 10:12-18

Common English Bible

¹² Human arrogance begins when people rebel against the Lord,
    and their hearts rebel
    against the one who made them.
¹³ The beginning of arrogance is sin,
        and those who cling to it
        will pour out blasphemy.
    For this reason
    the Lord brings calamities upon them,
        and he ruins them completely.
¹⁴ The Lord destroyed the thrones of rulers,
    and he raised up the gentle
    in their place.
¹⁵ The Lord plucked up the roots of nations,
    and he planted the humble
    in their place.
¹⁶ The Lord ruined the lands of the nations,
    and he leveled them
    to their very foundations.
¹⁷ He removed some people
and destroyed them,
    and he erased their memory
    from the earth.
¹⁸ Humans were not created to be arrogant,
    nor were those born of women
    made to indulge in anger.