Catholic Evangelization Training Center
Training in the NEW Evangelization
Sirach Chapter 34-37
1 A man of no understanding has vain and false hopes, and dreams give wings to fools.
2 As one who catches at a shadow and pursues the wind, so is he who gives heed to dreams.
3 The vision of dreams is this against that, the likeness of a face confronting a face.
4 From an unclean thing what will be made clean? And from something false what will be true?
5 Divinations and omens and dreams are folly, and like a woman in travail the mind has fancies.
6 Unless they are sent from the Most High as a visitation, do not give your mind to them.
7 For dreams have deceived many, and those who put their hope in them have failed.
8 Without such deceptions the law will be fulfilled, and wisdom is made perfect in truthful lips.
9 An educated man knows many things, and one with much experience will speak with understanding.
10 He that is inexperienced knows few things, but he that has traveled acquires much cleverness.
11 I have seen many things in my travels, and I understand more than I can express.
12 I have often been in danger of death, but have escaped because of these experiences.
13 The spirit of those who fear the Lord will live, for their hope is in him who saves them.
14 He who fears the Lord will not be timid, nor play the coward, for he is his hope.
15 Blessed is the soul of the man who fears the Lord! To whom does he look? And who is his support?
16 The eyes of the Lord are upon those who love him, a mighty protection and strong support, a shelter from the hot wind and a shade from noonday sun, a guard against stumbling and a defense against falling.
17 He lifts up the soul and gives light to the eyes; he grants healing, life, and blessing.
18 If one sacrifices from what has been wrongfully obtained, the offering is blemished; the gifts of the lawless are not acceptable.
19 The Most High is not pleased with the offerings of the ungodly; and he is not propitiated for sins by a multitude of sacrifices.
20 Like one who kills a son before his father's eyes is the man who offers a sacrifice from the property of the poor.
21 The bread of the needy is the life of the poor; whoever deprives them of it is a man of blood.
22 To take away a neighbor's living is to murder him; to deprive an employee of his wages is to shed blood.
23 When one builds and another tears down, what do they gain but toil?
24 When one prays and another curses, to whose voice will the Lord listen?
25 If a man washes after touching a dead body, and touches it again, what has he gained by his washing?
26 So if a man fasts for his sins, and goes again and does the same things, who will listen to his prayer? And what has he gained by humbling himself?
1 He who keeps the law makes many offerings; he who heeds the commandments sacrifices a peace offering.
2 He who returns a kindness offers fine flour, and he who gives alms sacrifices a thank offering.
3 To keep from wickedness is pleasing to the Lord, and to forsake unrighteousness is atonement.
4 Do not appear before the Lord empty-handed,
5 for all these things are to be done because of the commandment.
6 The offering of a righteous man anoints the altar, and its pleasing odor rises before the Most High.
7 The sacrifice of a righteous man is acceptable, and the memory of it will not be forgotten.
8 Glorify the Lord generously, and do not stint the first fruits of your hands.
9 With every gift show a cheerful face, and dedicate your tithe with gladness.
10 Give to the Most High as he has given, and as generously as your hand has found.
11 For the Lord is the one who repays, and he will repay you sevenfold.
12 Do not offer him a bribe, for he will not accept it; and do not trust to an unrighteous sacrifice; for the Lord is the judge, and with him is no partiality.
13 He will not show partiality in the case of a poor man; and he will listen to the prayer of one who is wronged.
14 He will not ignore the supplication of the fatherless, nor the widow when she pours out her story.
15 Do not the tears of the widow run down her cheek as she cries out against him who has caused them to fall?
16 He whose service is pleasing to the Lord will be accepted, and his prayer will reach to the clouds.
17 The prayer of the humble pierces the clouds, and he will not be consoled until it reaches the Lord; he will not desist until the Most High visits him, and does justice for the righteous, and executes judgment.
18 And the Lord will not delay, neither will he be patient with them, till he crushes the loins of the unmerciful and repays vengeance on the nations; till he takes away the multitude of the insolent, and breaks the scepters of the unrighteous;
19 till he repays the man according to his deeds, and the works of men according to their devices; till he judges the case of his people and makes them rejoice in his mercy.
20 Mercy is as welcome when he afflicts them as clouds of rain in the time of drought.
1 Have mercy upon us, O Lord, the God of all, and look upon us,
2 and cause the fear of thee to fall upon all the nations.
3 Lift up thy hand against foreign nations and let them see thy might.
4 As in us thou hast been sanctified before them, so in them be thou magnified before us;
5 and let them know thee, as we have known that there is not God but thee, O Lord.
6 Show signs anew, and work further wonders; make thy hand and thy right arm glorious.
7 Rouse thy anger and pour out thy wrath; destroy the adversary and wipe out the enemy.
8 Hasten the day, and remember the appointed time, and let people recount thy mighty deeds.
9 Let him who survives be consumed in the fiery wrath, and may those who harm thy people meet destruction.
10 Crush the heads of the rulers of the enemy, who say, "There is no one but ourselves."
11 Gather all the tribes of Jacob, and give them their inheritance, as at the beginning.
12 Have mercy, O Lord, upon the people called by thy name, upon Israel, whom thou hast likened to a first-born son.
13 Have pity on the city of thy sanctuary, Jerusalem, the place of thy rest.
14 Fill Zion with the celebration of thy wondrous deeds, and thy temple with thy glory.
15 Bear witness to those whom thou didst create in the beginning, and fulfil the prophecies spoken in thy name.
16 Reward those who wait for thee, and let thy prophets be found trustworthy.
17 Hearken, O Lord, to the prayer of thy servants, according to the blessing of Aaron for thy people, and all who are on the earth will know that thou art the Lord, the God of the ages.
18 The stomach will take any food, yet one food is better than another.
19 As the palate tastes the kinds of game, so an intelligent mind detects false words.
20 A perverse mind will cause grief, but a man of experience will pay him back.
21 A woman will accept any man, but one daughter is better than another.
22 A woman's beauty gladdens the countenance, and surpasses every human desire.
23 If kindness and humility mark her speech, her husband is not like other men.
24 He who acquires a wife gets his best possession, a helper fit for him and a pillar of support.
25 Where there is no fence, the property will be plundered; and where there is no wife, a man will wander about and sigh.
26 For who will trust a nimble robber that skips from city to city? So who will trust a man that has no home, and lodges wherever night finds him?
1 Every friend will say, "I too am a friend"; but some friends are friends only in name.
2 Is it not a grief to the death when a companion and friend turns to enmity?
3 O evil imagination, why were you formed to cover the land with deceit?
4 Some companions rejoice in the happiness of a friend, but in time of trouble are against him.
5 Some companions help a friend for their stomach's sake, and in the face of battle take up the shield.
6 Do not forget a friend in your heart, and be not unmindful of him in your wealth.
7 Every counselor praises counsel, but some give counsel in their own interest.
8 Be wary of a counselor, and learn first what is his interest -- for he will take thought for himself -- lest he cast the lot against you
9 and tell you, "Your way is good," and then stand aloof to see what will happen to you.
10 Do not consult the one who looks at you suspiciously; hide your counsel from those who are jealous of you.
11 Do not consult with a woman about her rival or with a coward about war, with a merchant about barter or with a buyer about selling, with a grudging man about gratitude or with a merciless man about kindness, with an idler about any work or with a man hired for a year about completing his work, with a lazy servant about a big task -- pay no attention to these in any matter of counsel.
12 But stay constantly with a godly man whom you know to be a keeper of the commandments, whose soul is in accord with your soul, and who will sorrow with you if you fail.
13 And establish the counsel of your own heart, for no one is more faithful to you than it is.
14 For a man's soul sometimes keeps him better informed than seven watchmen sitting high on a watchtower.
15 And besides all this pray to the Most High that he may direct your way in truth.
16 Reason is the beginning of every work, and counsel precedes every undertaking.
17 As a clue to changes of heart
18 four turns of fortune appear, good and evil, life and death; and it is the tongue that continually rules them.
19 A man may be shrewd and the teacher of many, and yet be unprofitable to himself.
20 A man skilled in words may be hated; he will be destitute of all food,
21 for grace was not given him by the Lord, since he is lacking in all wisdom.
22 A man may be wise to his own advantage, and the fruits of his understanding may be trustworthy on his lips.
23 A wise man will instruct his own people, and the fruits of his understanding will be trustworthy.
24 A wise man will have praise heaped upon him, and all who see him will call him happy.
25 The life of a man is numbered by days, but the days of Israel are without number.
26 He who is wise among his people will inherit confidence, and his name will live for ever.
27 My son, test your soul while you live; see what is bad for it and do not give it that.
28 For not everything is good for every one, and not every person enjoys everything.
29 Do not have an insatiable appetite for any luxury, and do not give yourself up to food;
30 for overeating brings sickness, and gluttony leads to nausea.
31 Many have died of gluttony, but he who is careful to avoid it prolongs his life.