m Gk by weight
n Heb: Gk judged
o Or elements
16.1–23 A set of three arguments for the certainty of divine recompense: that the large number of the ungodly does not count (vv. 1–4); that history provides examples of the destruction of sinners (vv. 5–14); and that the Lord sees everything (vv. 17–23).
16.1–4 A challenge to the traditional view that many children are a blessing: this is not so if they are worthless or ungodly. To Sirach one’s good memory after death, especially through one’s children, constitutes immortality; see 39.9.
16.3 This radical view of the acceptability of childlessness is an indication of social distress. It is repeated in Wis 4.1–3.
16.4 The importance of one intelligent person for the well-being of a city recurs as a theme in the writings of Philo of Alexandria; cf. Eccl 9.15. Filled with people may be an allusion to Abraham’s blessing (Gen 17.5–6; 22.17–18). He was considered a wise man in such legendary accounts as Philo’s De Abrahamo. Desolate may be an allusion to the Sodomites (Gen 18.16–32).
16.5–14 A series of examples from the epic history of Israel prepares for a programmatic statement about the Lord’s mercy and wrath (vv. 11–12).
16.6 An assembly of sinners, an allusion to the rebellion of Korah’s company (Num 16); cf. Num 11.1–3; see Sir 45.18–19.
16.7 Giants. See Gen 6.1–4; the legend of the fall of the Watchers in 1 Enoch 6–16.
16.8 The neighbors of Lot alludes to Gen 19; cf. Ezek 16.49–50.
16.9 Doomed nation may be an allusion to the Canaanites.
16.10 An allusion to Israel in the wilderness (Ex 12.37); cf. Sir 46.8.
16.12 The Hebrew word for chastisement also means “punishment.” The Greek term is elengchos, “conviction,” in the sense of instructional correction. At a somewhat later time chastisement for the godly was distinguished from punishment for the ungodly, as in the Wisdom of Solomon. The mention of mercy in vv. 11–12 and the shift to a consideration of rewards and punishments according to one’s deeds in this section as a whole may have called for a Greek term other than “punishment” and probably lie behind the additions in some manuscripts to v. 10 that emphasize chastising and discipline (text note d). Cf. 18.13.
16.17–23 The theme of hidden wisdom is used ironically to characterize the speech of the foolish person who draws the wrong conclusion from the inscrutability of God’s ways.
16.18 Visitation, an important concept for Jewish theodicies of the time. It refers to a time when God “visits” the earth and looks upon it to render judgment. See 18.20. Cf. Ps 104.32; Wis 3.7; 14.11.
16.24–18.14 A long didactic poem on the Lord’s creation with a focus upon the creation of human beings, their capacity to know and keep the law, and their ability to repent should they fall into sin.
16.24–30 An account of creation emphasizing the stability, order, and “obedience” of God’s works; see 42.15–25. Cf. Gen 1.1–31; Ps 104.
16.29 Good things, an allusion to the repeated statement in Gen 1 that “God saw that it was good.” To affirm that God’s creation is good was a characteristic of the wisdom tradition. Cf. Wis 1.14. Among the Greeks, and especially with the Stoics, good things was a common technical term for beneficial goods and human values.
16.30 Must return. Cf. Gen 3.19.
SIRACH 17
1The Lord created human beings out of earth,
and makes them return to it again.
2He gave them a fixed number of days,
but granted them authority over everything on the earth.a
3He endowed them with strength like his own,b
and made them in his own image.
4He put the fear of themc in all living beings,
and gave them dominion over beasts and birds.d
6Discretion and tongue and eyes,
ears and a mind for thinking he gave them.
7He filled them with knowledge and understanding,
and showed them good and evil.
8He put the fear of him intoe their hearts
to show them the majesty of his works.f
10And they will praise his holy name,
9to proclaim the grandeur of his works.
11He bestowed knowledge upon them,
and allotted to them the law of life.g
12He established with them an eternal covenant,
and revealed to them his decrees.
13Their eyes saw his glorious majesty,
and their ears heard the glory of his voice.
14He said to them, “Beware of all evil.”
And he gave commandment to each of them concerning the neighbor.
15Their ways are always known to him;
they will not be hid from his eyes.h
17He appointed a ruler for every nation,
but Israel is the Lord’s own portion.i
19All their works are as clear as the sun before him,
and his eyes are ever upon their ways.
20Their iniquities are not hidden from him,
and all their sins are before the Lord.j
22One’s almsgiving is like a signet ring with the Lord,k
and he will keep a person’s kindness like the apple of his eye.l
23Afterward he will rise up and repay them,
and he will bring their recompense on their heads.
24Yet to those who repent he grants a return,
and he encourages those who are losing hope.
A Call to Repentance
25Turn back to the Lord and forsake your sins;
pray in his presence and lessen your offense.
26Return to the Most High and turn away from iniquity,m
and hate intensely what he abhors.
27Who will sing praises to the Most High in Hades
in place of the living who give thanks?
28From the dead, as from one who does not exist, thanksgiving has ceased;
those who are alive and well sing the Lord’s praises.
29How great is the mercy of the Lord,
and his forgiveness for those who return to him!
30For not everything is within human capability,
since human beings are not immortal.
31What is brighter than the sun? Yet it can be eclipsed.
So flesh and blood devise evil.
32He marshals the host of the height of heaven;
but all human beings are dust and ashes.
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a Lat: Gk it
b Lat: Gk proper to them
c Syr: Gk him
d Other ancient authorities add as verse 5, They obtained the use of the five faculties of the Lord; as sixth he distributed to them the gift of mind, and as seventh, reason, the interpreter of one’s faculties.
e Other ancient authorities read He set his eye upon
f Other ancient authorities add and he gave them to boast of his marvels forever
g Other ancient authorities add so that they may know that they who are alive now are mortal
h Other ancient authorities add 16Their ways from youth tend toward evil, and they are unable to make for themselves hearts of flesh in place of their stony hearts. 17For in the division of the nations of the whole earth, he appointed
i Other ancient authorities add as verse 18, whom, being his firstborn, he brings up with discipline, and allotting to him the light of his love, he does not neglect him.
j Other ancient authorities add as verse 21, But the Lord, who is gracious and knows how they are formed, has neither left them nor abandoned them, but has spared them.
k Gk him
l Other ancient authorities add apportioning repentance to his sons and daughters
m Other ancient authorities add for he will lead you out of darkness to the light of health.
17.1–24 A poem in praise of the Lord for the creation of humankind. This is an early interpretation of the Genesis account.
17.1 Out of earth. Cf. G
en 2.7.
17.2 For a fixed number of days, see 18.9; cf. Gen 6.3; Ps 90.10.
17.3 His own image. Cf. Gen 1.26–27.
17.4 Dominion. Cf. Gen 1.28. Ben Sira combines the two accounts of the creation of humankind (Gen 1.26–27; 2.7) and interprets the image of God as authority (v. 2), strength (v. 3), and dominion (v. 4), thus developing a hierarchy of power: God, humans, living beings. Cf. 10.4 (God, rulers, people); 3.2 (God, fathers, children). In Philo’s works and later literature a distinction between the two creation accounts led to elaborate, speculative anthropologies. Cf. 1 Cor 15.45–49.
17.6 This list of faculties for perception is similar to that common to the Stoic tradition. See the addition in v. 5, (text note k), which is clearly a reference to Stoic psychologies; the “five faculties” were sight, touch, smell, hearing, and taste. Discretion probably translates yetser (the Hebrew text is missing at this point); see note on 15.14.
17.7 Showed them good and evil. Cf. Gen 2.17; 3.5, 22. Sirach overlooks the transgression in the Genesis story that led to this knowledge. But cf. 25.24.
17.11 The law of life, Mosaic law, which is included in the endowments that God “allotted” to humankind, thus collapsing the time between creation and Sinai.
17.13 Their eyes saw. Cf. Ex 19.16–19; 24.15–17.
17.14 Commandment, the duties to one’s neighbors outlined in the Ten Commandments (Ex 20.13–17; Deut 5.17–21).
17.17 For Israel as the Lord’s own portion, see Deut 32.8–9.
17.22 Signet ring. Cf. 49.11; Jer 22.24; Hag 2.23. Apple of his eye. Cf. Deut 32.10.
17.24 A return to those who repent accords with the tradition of Deuteronomy and the prophets.
17.25–32 One should repent in order to sing praises to the Most High.
17.27 Sing praises, for Ben Sira, humanity’s highest achievement. See 15.9–10; 17.10; 18.4–7; 39.8, 15, 35; 43.28–30; 51.1, 22; cf. the same theme in Psalms; Wis 10.20–21; 18.1.
17.30 A clear statement of Ben Sira’s position against the Greek idea of immortality, an idea that was later found attractive by Jewish thinkers. See the addition to Sirach in 19.19 (text note e on Ecclesiasticus, or the Wisdom of Jesus Son of Sirach); cf. Wis 8.13.
17.32 Dust and ashes, an allusion to the makeup of humans at creation. See Gen 2.7, 3.19.
SIRACH 18
The Majesty of God
1He who lives forever created the whole universe;
2the Lord alone is just.a
4To none has he given power to proclaim his works;
and who can search out his mighty deeds?
5Who can measure his majestic power?
And who can fully recount his mercies?
6It is not possible to diminish or increase them,
nor is it possible to fathom the wonders of the Lord.
7When human beings have finished, they are just beginning,
and when they stop, they are still perplexed.
8What are human beings, and of what use are they?
What is good in them, and what is evil?
9The number of days in their life is great if they reach one hundred years.b
10Like a drop of water from the sea and a grain of sand,
so are a few years among the days of eternity.
11That is why the Lord is patient with them
and pours out his mercy upon them.
12He sees and recognizes that their end is miserable;
therefore he grants them forgiveness all the more.
13The compassion of human beings is for their neighbors,
but the compassion of the Lord is for every living thing.
He rebukes and trains and teaches them,
and turns them back, as a shepherd his flock.
14He has compassion on those who accept his discipline
and who are eager for his precepts.
15My child, do not mix reproach with your good deeds,
or spoil your gift by harsh words.
16Does not the dew give relief from the scorching heat?
So a word is better than a gift.
17Indeed, does not a word surpass a good gift?
Both are to be found in a gracious person.
18A fool is ungracious and abusive,
and the gift of a grudging giver makes the eyes dim.
The Need of Refliction and Self-control
19Before you speak, learn;
and before you fall ill, take care of your health.
20Before judgment comes, examine yourself;
and at the time of scrutiny you will find forgiveness.
21Before falling ill, humble yourself;
and when you have sinned, repent.
22Let nothing hinder you from paying a vow promptly,
and do not wait until death to be released from it.
23Before making a vow, prepare yourself;
do not be like one who puts the Lord to the test.
24Think of his wrath on the day of death,
and of the moment of vengeance when he turns away his face.
25In the time of plenty think of the time of hunger;
in days of wealth think of poverty and need.
26From morning to evening conditions change;
all things move swiftly before the Lord.
27One who is wise is cautious in everything;
when sin is all around, one guards against wrongdoing.
28Every intelligent person knows wisdom,
and praises the one who finds her.
29Those who are skilled in words become wise themselves,
and pour forth apt proverbs.c
SELF-CONTROLd
30Do not follow your base desires,
but restrain your appetites.
31If you allow your soul to take pleasure in base desire,
it will make you the laughingstock of your enemies.
32Do not revel in great luxury,
or you may become impoverished by its expense.
33Do not become a beggar by feasting with borrowed money,
when you have nothing in your purse.e
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a Other ancient authorities add and there is no other beside him; 3he steers the world with the span of his hand, and all things obey his will; for he is king of all things by his power, separating among them the holy things from the profane.
b Other ancient authorities add but the death of each one is beyond the calculation of all
c Other ancient authorities add Better is confidence in the one Lord than clinging with a dead heart to a dead one.
d This heading is included in the Gk text.
e Other ancient authorities add for you will be plotting against your own life
18.1–14 An assurance of God’s mercy. The frailty of humans, demonstrated by their inability to understand fully and to praise God’s creation (vv. 2–7), their inability to understand themselves (v. 8), and by mortality (vv. 9–10), is the reason for God’s mercy and compassion (vv. 11–12). Ben Sira emphasizes the contrast of human beings’ fleeting existence and God’s compassion for them.
18.8 The rhetorical questions are reminiscent of Ps 8.
18.13 That the Lord turns them back by rebuke, training, and teaching contrasts with the exercise of his punishment upon sinners. As a shepherd draws upon a common image for kings and gods. Cf. Isa 40.11; Ezek 34.23.
18.15–19.17 Practical advice on almsgiving (18.15–18), self-criticism (18.19–21), vows (18.22–23), eventualities (18.24–29), desires (18.30–19.3), and gossip (19.4–17), with the topic of speech sprinkled throughout.
18.23 The standard example of putting the Lord to the test was the story of the murmuring of the people in the wilderness (Ex 17.1–7; Deut 6.16).
18.27 Cautious in everything, a succinct statement of Ben Sira’s ethic of caution. See 8.1–19.
SIRACH 19
1The one who does thisa will not become rich;
one who despises small things will fail lit
tle by little.
2Wine and women lead intelligent men astray,
and the man who consorts with prostitutes is reckless.
3Decay and worms will take possession of him,
and the reckless person will be snatched away.
Against Loose Talk
4One who trusts others too quickly has a shallow mind,
and one who sins does wrong to himself.
5One who rejoices in wickednessb will be condemned,c
6but one who hates gossip has less evil.
7Never repeat a conversation,
and you will lose nothing at all.
8With friend or foe do not report it,
and unless it would be a sin for you, do not reveal it;
9for someone may have heard you and watched you,
and in time will hate you.
10Have you heard something? Let it die with you.
Be brave, it will not make you burst!
11Having heard something, the fool suffers birth pangs
like a woman in labor with a child.
12Like an arrow stuck in a person’s thigh,
so is gossip inside a fool.
13Question a friend; perhaps he did not do it;
or if he did, so that he may not do it again.
14Question a neighbor; perhaps he did not say it;
or if he said it, so that he may not repeat it.
15Question a friend, for often it is slander;
so do not believe everything you hear.
16A person may make a slip without intending it.
Who has not sinned with his tongue?
17Question your neighbor before you threaten him;
and let the law of the Most High take its course.d
True and False Wisdom
20The whole of wisdom is fear of the Lord,
and in all wisdom there is the fulfillment of the law.e
22The knowledge of wickedness is not wisdom,
nor is there prudence in the counsel of sinners.
HarperCollins Study Bible Page 371