Sirach · Revised Version with Apocrypha
Sirach 38 Revised Version with Apocrypha
1 Honour a physician according to thy need [of him ] with the honours due unto him: For verily the Lord hath created him.
1 Honor a physician according to your need with the honors due to him, for truly the Lord has created him.
2 For from the Most High cometh healing; And from the king he shall receive a gift.
2 For healing comes from the Most High, and he shall receive a gift from the king.
3 The skill of the physician shall lift up his head; And in the sight of great men he shall be admired.
3 The skill of the physician will lift up his head. He will be admired in the sight of great men.
4 The Lord created medicines out of the earth; And a prudent man will have no disgust at them.
4 The Lord created medicines out of the earth. A prudent man will not despise them.
5 Was not water made sweet with wood, That the virtue thereof might be known?
5 Wasn’t water made sweet with wood, that its power might be known?
6 And he gave men skill, That they might be glorified in his marvellous works.
6 He gave men skill that he might be glorified in his marvelous works.
7 With them doth he heal [a man, ] And taketh away his pain.
7 With them he heals and takes away pain.
8 With these will the apothecary make a confection; And his works shall not be brought to an end; And from him is peace upon the face of the earth.
8 With these, the pharmacist makes a mixture. God’s works won’t be brought to an end. From him, peace is upon the face of the earth.
9 My son, in thy sickness be not negligent; But pray unto the Lord, and he shall heal thee.
9 My son, in your sickness don’t be negligent, but pray to the Lord, and he will heal you.
10 Put away wrong doing, and order thine hands aright, And cleanse thy heart from all manner of sin.
10 Put away wrong doing, and direct your hands in righteousness. Cleanse your heart from all sin.
11 Give a sweet savour, and a memorial of fine flour; And make fat thine offering, as one that is not.
11 Give a sweet savor and a memorial of fine flour, and pour oil on your offering, according to your means.
12 Then give place to the physician, for verily the Lord hath created him; And let him not go from thee, for thou hast need of him.
12 Then give place to the physician, for truly the Lord has created him. Don’t let him leave you, for you need him.
13 There is a time when in their very hands is the issue for good.
13 There is a time when recovery is in their hands.
14 For they also shall beseech the Lord, That he may prosper them in [giving ] relief and in healing for the maintenance of life.
14 For they also shall ask the Lord to prosper them in diagnosis and in healing for the maintenance of life.
15 He that sinneth before his Maker, Let him fall into the hands of the physician.
15 He who sins before his Maker, let him fall into the hands of the physician.
16 My son, let thy tears fall over the dead, And as one that suffereth grievously begin lamentation; And wind up his body according to his due, And neglect not his burial.
16 My son, let your tears fall over the dead, and as one who suffers grievously, begin lamentation. Wind up his body with due honor. Don’t neglect his burial.
17 Make bitter weeping, and make passionate wailing, And let thy mourning be according to his desert, For one day or two, lest thou be evil spoken of: And so be comforted for thy sorrow.
17 Make bitter weeping and make passionate wailing. Let your mourning be according to his merit, for one day or two, lest you be spoken evil of; and so be comforted for your sorrow.
18 For of sorrow cometh death, And sorrow of heart will bow down the strength.
18 For from sorrow comes death. Sorrow of heart saps one’s strength.
19 In calamity sorrow also remaineth: And the poor man’s life is grievous to the heart.
19 In calamity, sorrow also remains. A poor man’s life is grievous to the heart.
20 Give not thy heart unto sorrow: Put it away, remembering the last end:
20 Don’t give your heart to sorrow. Put it away, remembering the end.
21 Forget it not, for there is no returning again: Him thou shalt not profit, and thou wilt hurt thyself.
21 Don’t forget it, for there is no returning again. You do him no good, and you would harm yourself.
22 Remember the sentence upon him; for so also shall thine be; Yesterday for me, and today for thee.
22 Remember his end, for so also will yours be: yesterday for him, and today for you.
23 When the dead is at rest, let his remembrance rest; And be comforted for him, when his spirit departeth from him.
23 When the dead is at rest, let his remembrance rest. Be comforted for him when his spirit departs from him.
24 The wisdom of the scribe cometh by opportunity of leisure; And he that hath little business shall become wise.
24 The wisdom of the scribe comes by the opportunity of leisure. He who has little business can become wise.
25 How shall he become wise that holdeth the plough, That glorieth in the shaft of the goad, That driveth oxen, and is occupied in their labours, And whose discourse is of the stock of bulls?
25 How could he become wise who holds the plow, who glories in the shaft of the goad, who drives oxen and is occupied in their labors, and who mostly talks about bulls?
26 He will set his heart upon turning his furrows; And his wakefulness is to give his heifers their fodder.
26 He will set his heart upon turning his furrows. His lack of sleep is to give his heifers their fodder.
27 So is every artificer and workmaster, That passeth his time by night as by day; They that cut gravings of signets, And his diligence is to make great variety; He will set his heart to preserve likeness in his portraiture, And will be wakeful to finish his work.
27 So is every craftsman and master artisan who passes his time by night as by day, those who cut engravings of signets. His diligence is to make great variety. He sets his heart to preserve likeness in his portraiture, and is careful to finish his work.
28 So is the smith sitting by the anvil, And considering the unwrought iron: The vapour of the fire will waste his flesh; And in the heat of the furnace will he wrestle [with his work: ] The noise of the hammer will be ever in his ear, And his eyes are upon the pattern of the vessel; He will set his heart upon perfecting his works, And he will be wakeful to adorn them perfectly.
28 So too is the smith sitting by the anvil and considering the unwrought iron. The smoke of the fire will waste his flesh. He toils in the heat of the furnace. The noise of the hammer deafens his ear. His eyes are upon the pattern of the object. He will set his heart upon perfecting his works. He will be careful to adorn them perfectly.
29 So is the potter sitting at his work, And turning the wheel about with his feet, Who is alway anxiously set at his work, And all his handywork is by number;
29 So is the potter sitting at his work and turning the wheel around with his feet, who is always anxiously set at his work. He produces his handiwork in quantity.
30 He will fashion the clay with his arm, And will bend its strength in front of his feet; He will apply his heart to finish the glazing; And he will be wakeful to make clean the furnace.
30 He will fashion the clay with his arm and will bend its strength in front of his feet. He will apply his heart to finish the glazing. He will be careful to clean the kiln.
31 All these put their trust in their hands; And each becometh wise in his own work.
31 All these put their trust in their hands. Each becomes skillful in his own work.
32 Without these shall not a city be inhabited, And men shall not sojourn nor walk up and down [therein. ]
32 Without these no city would be inhabited. Men wouldn’t reside as foreigners or walk up and down there.
33 They shall not be sought for in the council of the people, And in the assembly they shall not mount on high; They shall not sit on the seat of the judge, And they shall not understand the covenant of judgement: Neither shall they declare instruction and judgement; And where parables are they shall not be found.
33 They won’t be sought for in the council of the people. They won’t mount on high in the assembly. They won’t sit on the seat of the judge. They won’t understand the covenant of judgment. Neither will they declare instruction and judgment. They won’t be found where parables are.
34 But they will maintain the fabric of the world; And in the handywork of their craft is their prayer.
34 But they will maintain the fabric of the age. Their prayer is in the handiwork of their craft.
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
"I sleep, and my heart waketh." I am still, and see that Thou art the Lord: for "the wisdom of the scribe cometh by opportunity of leisure; and he that hath little business shall become wise." "I sleep, and my heart waketh:" I rest from troublesome business, and my mind turns its attention to divine concerns (or communications).
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 7 (1888)