Category Archives: Sirach

1 Watching for wealth consumes the flesh, and thinking about it takes away sleep. 2 Anticipation in thought distracts the mind, and a grievous infirmity makes the soul sober. 3 The rich man has labored in gathering wealth, and in his rest, he will be filled with his goods. 4 The poor man has labored […]

1 Have they appointed you as a leader? Do not be willing to be extolled. Be among them as one of them. 2 Have concern for them, and in this way sit down with them, and when you have explained all your concerns, sit back. 3 Then you may rejoice because of them, and you […]

1 No evils will befall one who fears the Lord. Instead, God will preserve him during temptation and will free him from evils. 2 A wise man does not hate the commandments and the justices, and so he will not be thrown about violently, like a ship in a storm. 3 A man of understanding […]

1 The hopes of a senseless man are empty and false; and dreams extol the imprudent. 2 Like one who chases a shadow and pursues the wind, so also is one who pays attention to lying visions. 3 In the vision of dreams, one thing represents another, as when a mask is before the face […]

1 Whoever observes the law multiplies oblations. 2 It is a salutary sacrifice to attend to the commandments and to withdraw from all iniquity. 3 And to depart from injustice is to offer a propitiatory sacrifice for injustices and a supplication for sins. 4 Whoever gives thanks, offers a gift of fine flour, and whoever […]

1 O God of all, take pity on us, and look with favor on us, and show us the light of your compassion. 2 And send your fear upon the Gentiles, who have not sought you, so that they may acknowledge that there is no God except you, and so that they may declare your […]

1 Every friend will say: “I also am a close friend.” But there is a friend who is a friend in name only. Is this not a grief even unto death? 2 But a companion and friend may turn into an enemy. 3 O wicked presumption! From what were you created that you would cover […]

1 Honor the physician because of necessity, and because the Most High created him. 2 For all healing is from God, and so he will receive gifts from the King. 3 The expertise of the physician will lift up his head, and in the sight of great men, he will be praised. 4 The Most […]

1 A wise man will seek the wisdom of all the ancients, and he will be occupied in the prophets. 2 He will preserve the words of renowned men, and he will enter with them into the subtleties of parables. 3 He will search for the hidden meanings of proverbs, and he will become familiar […]

1 A great occupation was created for all men, and a heavy yoke is upon the sons of Adam, from the day of their departure from their mother’s womb, even until the day of their burial into the mother of all: 2 their thoughts, and the fears of their heart, their imagined expectations, and the […]