Sirach 20:1-8
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Silence and Speech
20 There is a rebuke that is untimely,
and there is the person who is wise enough to keep silent.(A)
2 How much better it is to rebuke than to fume!(B)
3 And the one who admits his fault will be kept from ridicule.(C)
4 Like a eunuch lusting to violate a young woman
is the person who makes decisions under compulsion.(D)
5 Some people keep silent and are found[a] to be wise,
while others are detested for being talkative.(E)
6 Some people keep silent because they have nothing to say,
while others keep silent because they know when to speak.(F)
7 The wise remain silent until the right moment,
but the arrogant and the fool miss the right moment.(G)
8 Whoever talks too much is detested,
and whoever pretends to authority is hated.[b](H)
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.