Sirach 16

Wycliffe Bible

16 For he coveteth not the multitude of sons unfaithful and unprofitable. [Forsooth he coveteth not the multitude of unfaithful sons and unprofitable.]

² Be thou not glad in wicked sons, if they be multiplied; neither delight thou on (or in) them, if the dread of God is not in them. [Make thou not merry in unpious sons, if they be multiplied; nor delight thou upon them, if there is not the dread of God in them.]

³ Believe thou not to the life of them, and behold thou not into the travails of them. For why better is one dreading God, than a thousand wicked sons. And it is more profitable to die without sons, than to leave wicked sons. [Not give thou faith to the life of them, and not behold thou into the travails of them. Better is forsooth one dreading God, than a thousand unpious sons. And profitable it is to die without sons, than to leave unpious sons.]

⁴ A country shall be inhabited of (or by) one witty man; and it shall be made (a) desert of (or by) three wicked men. [Of one well feeling man shall be inhabited the city; and of three unpious it shall be forsaken.]

⁵ Mine eye saw many other things [or Many other things mine eye saw], and mine ear heard stronger things than these.

⁶ Fire shall burn on high in the synagogue of sinners, and ire shall burn on high in a folk unbelieveful. [In the synagogue of sinning men fire shall out-burn, and in the unbelieveful folk of kind wrath shall wax full out tend(ed).]

⁷ Eld [or Old] giants that were destroyed, trusting on their virtue (or in their own strength), prayed not for their sins;

⁸ and God spared not the pilgrimage of them, that is, their life, which is a pilgrimage on earth, but he killed them, and cursed them, for the pride of their word. [and he spared not to the pilgrimaging of them, but he smote them, and cursed them, for the pride of them.]

⁹ He had not mercy on them, and he lost [or destroying] all the folk enhancing (or exalting) themselves in their sins.

¹⁰ And as he killed six hundred thousand of footmen, that were gathered together in the hardness of their heart(s), that is, rebelty (or in rebellion) against God;

¹¹ and if one had been hard-nolled, (it is a) wonder if he had been guiltless (or without guilt). For why mercy and ire is with him; prayer is mighty, and shedding out ire. [and if one were reared up the noll, (it is a) wonder if he had been harmless (or without harm). Mercy forsooth and wrath is with him; mighty is the full out orison, and pouring out wrath.]

¹² By his mercy, so is the chastising of each man; he is deemed by his works. [After his mercy, so the chastising of him; he deemeth a man after his works.]

¹³ A sinner in (or with) (his) raven shall not escape; and the sufferance of him that doeth mercy shall not tarry. [The sinner shall not escape out into raven; and the suffering of the doing mercy shall not tarry behind.]

¹⁴ All mercy shall make (a) place to (or for) each man, after the merit of his works, and after the understanding of his pilgrimage. [Each mercy shall make (a) place to (or for) each one, after the desert (or the deserving) of his works, and after the understanding of the pilgrimaging of him.]

¹⁵ (This verse is omitted in the original text.)

¹⁶ (This verse is omitted in the original text.)

¹⁷ Say thou not, I shall be hid from God; and from the highest, that is, heaven, who shall have mind on me? Say thou not, I shall not be known in (such) a great (number of) people; for why which (or what) is my soul in so great a (number of) creature(s)? [or what forsooth is my soul in so great a (number of) creature(s) without measure?]

¹⁸ Lo! heaven, and the heavens of heavens, the great ocean, and all (the) earth, and those things that be in those, shall be moved in his sight; [Lo! heaven, and heavens of heavens, the sea, or (the) deepness, and all the earth, and that in them be, in the sight of him shall be moved (al)together;]

¹⁹ (the) mountains (al)together, and (the) little hills, and the foundaments (or the foundations) of (the) earth; and when God beholdeth those, those shall be shaken (al)together with trembling. [mountains (al)together, and hills, and the foundaments of the earth; and when God shall behold them, by trembling they shall be smitten together.]

²⁰ And in all these things the heart is unwise, and (or but) each heart is understood of (or by) him. And who understandeth his ways? [And in all these things mis-feeling, or unwitty, is the heart, and each heart is understood of him. And the ways of him who understandeth?]

²¹ and a tempest, which the eye of man saw not? For why full many works of him be in hid things,

²² but who shall tell out the works of his rightfulness, either [or] who shall suffer (them)? For why the testament is far from some men; and the asking of men is in the ending.

²³ He that is made little in heart, thinketh (upon) vain things; and a man unprudent and a fool thinketh (upon) fond things. [Who is less(en)ed in heart, thinketh idle things; and the unprudent man and erring thinketh follies.]

²⁴ Son, hear thou me, and learn thou teaching [or discipline] of wit, and give thou attention to my words in thine heart;

²⁵ and I shall say teaching in equity, and I shall seek to tell out wisdom. And give thou attention to my words in thine heart; and I say in equity of spirit the virtues, which God hath set on his works at the beginning [or that God put into his works from the beginning], and in truth I tell out the cunning (or the knowing) of him.

²⁶ In the doom of God be his works from the beginning; and in the ordinance of those, he parted the parts of those, and he parted the beginnings of those in his folks. [In the doom of God his works from the beginning; and from the ordaining of those men he severed the parts of them, and the beginnings of them in their folks of kind/in his folks of kind.]

²⁷ He adorned without end the works of them; they hungered not, neither travailed, and they ceased not of their works.

²⁸ Each shall not make strait [or anguish] the next to him, till into without end. Be thou not unbelieveful to the word of him.

²⁹ After these things God beheld into the earth, and filled it with his goods (or with his good things).

³⁰ Forsooth the soul of each living thing told before his face; and that soul is again the turning again of those things.