Sirach 20

Revised Standard Version

20 There is a reproof which is not timely;
    and there is a man who keeps silent but is wise.
² How much better it is to reprove than to stay angry!
    And the one who confesses his fault will be kept from loss.^[a]
4 Like a eunuch’s desire to violate a maiden
    is a man who executes judgments by violence.
⁵ There is one who by keeping silent is found wise,
    while another is detested for being too talkative.
⁶ There is one who keeps silent because he has no answer,
    while another keeps silent because he knows when to speak.
⁷ A wise man will be silent until the right moment,
    but a braggart and fool goes beyond the right moment.
⁸ Whoever uses too many words will be loathed,
    and whoever usurps the right to speak will be hated.

⁹ There may be good fortune for a man in adversity,
    and a windfall may result in a loss.
¹⁰ There is a gift that profits you nothing,
    and there is a gift that brings a double return.
¹¹ There are losses because of glory,
    and there are men who have raised their heads from humble circumstances.
¹² There is a man who buys much for a little,
    but pays for it seven times over.
¹³ The wise man makes himself beloved through his words,
    but the courtesies of fools are wasted.
¹⁴ A fool’s gift will profit you nothing,
    for he has many eyes instead of one.
¹⁵ He gives little and upbraids much,
    he opens his mouth like a herald;
today he lends and tomorrow he asks it back;
    such a one is a hateful man.
¹⁶ A fool will say, “I have no friend,
    and there is no gratitude for my good deeds;
    those who eat my bread speak unkindly.”
¹⁷ How many will ridicule him, and how often!

¹⁸ A slip on the pavement is better than a slip of the tongue;
    so the downfall of the wicked will occur speedily.
¹⁹ An ungracious man is like a story told at the wrong time,
    which is continually on the lips of the ignorant.
²⁰ A proverb from a fool’s lips will be rejected,
    for he does not tell it at its proper time.

²⁴ A lie is an ugly blot on a man;
    it is continually on the lips of the ignorant.
²⁵ A thief is preferable to a habitual liar,
    but the lot of both is ruin.
²⁶ The disposition of a liar brings disgrace,
    and his shame is ever with him.

²⁷ He who speaks wisely will advance himself,
    and a sensible man will please great men.
²⁸ Whoever cultivates the soil will heap up his harvest,
    and whoever pleases great men will atone for injustice.
²⁹ Presents and gifts blind the eyes of the wise;
    like a muzzle on the mouth they avert reproofs.
³⁰ Hidden wisdom and unseen treasure,
    what advantage is there in either of them?
³¹ Better is the man who hides his folly
    than the man who hides his wisdom.^[b]