Sirach 23
1 O Lord, Father and Governor of my
life, leave me not to their counsels, and let me not fall by them.
2 Who will set scourges over my
thoughts, and the discipline of wisdom over mine heart? that they spare me not
for mine ignorances, and it pass not by my sins:
3 lest mine ignorances increase, and
my sins abound to my destruction, and I fall before mine adversaries, and mine
enemy rejoice over me, whose hope is far from thy mercy.
4 O Lord, Father and God of my life,
give me not a proud look. 5 Turn away
concupiscence from me. 6 Let not the
greediness of the belly nor lust of the flesh take hold of me; and give me not
over into an impudent mind.
7 Hear, O ye children, the discipline
of the mouth: he that keepeth it shall never be taken in his lips.
8 The sinner shall be left in his
foolishness: both the evil speaker and the proud shall fall thereby.
9 Accustom not thy mouth to swearing;
neither use thyself to the naming of the Holy One.
10 For as a servant that is
continually beaten shall not be without a blue mark: so he that sweareth and
nameth God continually shall not be faultless.
11 A man that useth much swearing
shall be filled with iniquity, and the plague shall never depart from his
house: if he shall offend, his sin shall be upon him: and if he acknowledge
not his sin, he maketh a double offence: and if he swear in vain, he shall not
be innocent, but his house shall be full of calamities.
12 There is a word that is clothed
about with death: God grant that it be not found in the heritage of Jacob; for
all such things shall be far from the godly, and they shall not wallow in
their sins. 13 Use not thy mouth to
intemperate swearing, for therein is the word of sin.
14 Remember thy father and thy
mother, when thou sittest among great men. Be not forgetful before them, and
so thou by thy custom become a fool, and wish that thou hadst not been born,
and curse the day of thy nativity.
15 The man that is accustomed to
opprobrious words will never be reformed all the days of his life.
16 Two sorts of men multiply sin, and
the third will bring wrath: a hot mind is as a burning fire, it will never be
quenched till it be consumed: a fornicator in the body of his flesh will never
cease till he hath kindled a fire.
17 All bread is sweet to a
whoremonger, he will not leave off till he die.
18 A man that breaketh wedlock,
saying thus in his heart, Who seeth me? I am compassed about with darkness,
the walls cover me, and no body seeth me; what need I to fear? the most High
will not remember my sins: 19 such a
man only feareth the eyes of men, and knoweth not that the eyes of the Lord
are ten thousand times brighter than the sun, beholding all the ways of men,
and considering the most secret parts.
20 He knew all things ere ever they
were created; so also after they were perfected he looked upon them all.
21 This man shall be punished in the
streets of the city, and where he suspecteth not he shall be taken.
22 Thus shall it go also with the
wife that leaveth her husband, and bringeth in an heir by another.
23 For first, she hath disobeyed the
law of the most High; and secondly, she hath trespassed against her own
husband; and thirdly, she hath played the whore in adultery, and brought
children by another man. 24 She shall
be brought out into the congregation, and inquisition shall be made of her
children. 25 Her children shall not
take root, and her branches shall bring forth no fruit.
26 She shall leave her memory to be
cursed, and her reproach shall not be blotted out.
27 And they that remain shall know
that there is nothing better than the fear of the Lord, and that there is
nothing sweeter than to take heed unto the commandments of the Lord.