1 He who fears the Lord will do this. He who has possession of the law will obtain her. 2 She will meet him like a mother, and receive him like a wife married in her virginity. 3 She will feed him with bread of understanding and give him water of wisdom to drink. 4 He will be stayed upon her, and will not be moved. He will rely upon her, and will not be confounded. 5 She will exalt him above his neighbors. She will open his mouth in the midst of the congregation. 6 He will inherit joy, a crown of gladness, and an everlasting name. 7 Foolish men will not obtain her. Sinners will not see her. 8 She is far from pride. Liars will not remember her. 9 Praise is not attractive in the mouth of a sinner; for it was not sent to him from the Lord. 10 For praise will be spoken in wisdom; The Lord will prosper it. 11 Don’t say, “It is through the Lord that I fell away;” for you shall not do the things that he hates. 12 Don’t say, “It is he that caused me to err;” for he has no need of a sinful man. 13 The Lord hates every abomination; and those who fear him don’t love them. 14 He himself made man from the beginning and left him in the hand of his own counsel. 15 If you choose, you can keep the commandments. To be faithful is a matter of your choice. 16 He has set fire and water before you. You will stretch forth your hand to whichever you desire. 17 Before man is life and death. Whichever he likes, it will be given to him. 18 For the wisdom of the Lord is great. He is mighty in power, and sees all things. 19 His eyes are upon those who fear him. He knows every act of man. 20 He has not commanded any man to be ungodly. He has not given any man license to sin.
Sirach · World English Bible (Classic, with Deuterocanon)
Sirach 15 World English Bible (Classic, with Deuterocanon)
Notes on this text (1)
- "World English Bible" is a trademark of eBible.org; the text is shown unaltered.
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).
For the covenant from the beginning is, Thou shall die the death." Now, as the law was more plainly given afterward, and the apostle says, "Where no law is, there is no prevarication," on what supposition is what is said in the psalm true, "I accounted all the sinners of the earth prevaricators," except that all who are held liable …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 2 (1887)
In another place it is said, "Praise is not seemly in the mouth of a sinner." If then in the mouth of a sinner praise is not seemly, neither is it pleasant, for that only is pleasant which is seemly....For praise may be pleasant to a man, when he heareth one praising with neat and clever sentiments, and with a …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 8 (1888)