Sirach 14

Wycliffe Bible

14 Blessed is the man, that stood not by the word of his mouth, and was not pricked in (or with) the sorrow of trespass. [Blessful the man, that is not slide in word from his mouth, and is not pricked in sorrowy sloth of guilt.]

² He is blessed, that hath not sorrow of (or in) his soul, and falleth not down from his hope. [Happy, or blessed, that had not sorrowy sloth of his inwit, and falleth not away from his hope.]

³ Chattel, that is, riches, is without reason to a covetous man, and hard niggard (or stingy or miserly); and whereto is gold to an envious man? [To the covetous man, and hard, without reason is substance; and to an envious man, whereto gold?]

⁴ He that gathereth of his will unjustly, gathereth to (or for) other men; and another man shall make waste [or do lechery] in (or with) his goods.

⁵ To what other man shall he be good, which is wicked to himself? and he shall not be merry in his goods. [Who to himself is shrewd (or depraved), to what other shall he be good? and he shall not be merry in his goods.]

⁶ Nothing is worse, than he that hath envy to himself; and this is the yielding of his malice. [Nothing is worse, than he that envieth to himself; and this is the yielding of his malice.]

⁷ And if he doeth good, he doeth (it) unwittingly, and not willfully (or willingly); and at the last he showeth his malice.

⁸ The eye of an envious man is wicked, and turning away the face, and despising his soul.

⁹ The eye of the covetous man is never filled; he shall not be filled into the part of wickedness, till he perform unrightfulness, and make dry his soul. [Unfillable the eye of the covetous; into the part of wickedness he shall not be filled, to the time that he fully end unrightwiseness, making dry his soul.]

¹⁰ An evil eye to evils, and the needy man shall not be filled of (or with) bread; and he shall be in sorrow on (or at) his table. [The evil eye to evils, and needy shall not be filled with bread; and in sorrow sloth he shall be upon his board.]

¹¹ Son, if thou hast, do well with thyself, and offer thou worthy offerings to God. [Son, if thou hast, well do with thee, and offer to God worthy offerings.]

¹² Be thou mindful that death shall not tarry, and the testament of hells [or of hell], that is, the ordinance of God, of the death of each man, which is showed to thee; for why the testament of this world shall die by death.

¹³ Before (thy) death do thou good to (or for) thy friend, and by thy mights stretch thou forth, and give to a poor man. [Before death well do to thy friend, and after thy strengths putting out, give to the poor.]

¹⁴ Be thou not deceived [or beguiled] of (or from) a good day, and a little part of a good day pass not thee (unfulfilled or unappreciated).

¹⁵ Whether thou shalt not leave to other men thy sorrows, and [thy] travails?

¹⁶ In the parting of lot give thou, and take, and justify thy soul.

¹⁷ Before thy death work thou rightfulness; for at hells (or in the grave), it is not to find meat. [Before thy death work rightwiseness; for to find meat is not with (or in) hell.]

¹⁸ Each man shall wax eld [or old] as hay, and as a leaf bringing fruit in a green tree. Others be (en)gendered, and others be cast [or fall] down; so the generation of flesh and blood, another is ended, and another is born.

¹⁹ Each corruptible work shall fail in the end; and he that worketh it, shall go with it. And all chosen work shall be justified; and he that worketh it, shall be honoured in (or by) it. [Each corruptible work in the end shall fail; and he that worketh it, shall go with it. And each chosen work shall be justified; and he that worketh it, shall be worshipped in it.]

²⁰ Blessed is the man, that shall dwell in wisdom, and that shall bethink in rightfulness, and shall think in wit (about) the beholding of God. [Blessful the man, that shall dwell in wisdom, and that in rightwiseness sweetly shall think, and in wit shall think the looking about of God.]

²¹ Which [or Who] thinketh out, either findeth out, the ways of him in his heart, and shall be understanding in the hid things of him;

²² going as a searcher after it, and standing in the ways of it. [going after it as ensearcher, and in the ways of it being still.]

²³ Which beholdeth by the windows thereof, and heareth in (or at) the gates thereof; [Who beholdeth by the windows of it, and in the gates of it is hearing;]

²⁴ which resteth nigh the house thereof, and setteth a stake in the walls thereof. [who resteth beside the house of it, and in the walls of it pitcheth a pale.]

²⁵ He shall set his little house at the hands of him, and goods (or good things) shall rest in his little house, by (the) (en)during of the world; [He shall ordain his little house at the hands of it (or of him), and there shall rest in the little houses of him goods, by angels (en)during;]

²⁶ he shall set his sons under the covering thereof, and he shall dwell under the boughs thereof; [he shall set his sons under the roof of it, and under the branches of it he shall dwell;]

²⁷ he shall be covered under the covering thereof from heat, and he shall rest in the glory thereof. [he shall be defended under the roof of it from burning heat, and in the glory of it he shall rest.]