Sirach 11

NEW JERUSALEM	VULGATA
1 Wisdom enables the poor to stand erect, and gives to the poor a place with the great.	1 Sapientia humiliati exaltabit caput illius, et in medio magnatorum consedere illum faciet.
2 Do not praise anyone for good looks, nor dislike anyone for mere appearance.	2 Non laudes virum in specie sua, neque spernas hominem in visu suo.
3 Smal among winged creatures is the bee but her produce is the sweetest of the sweet.	3 Brevis in volatilibus est apis, et initium dulcoris habet fructus illius.
4 Do not grow proud when people honour you; for the works of the Lord are wonderful but hidden fromhuman beings.	4 In vestitu ne glorieris umquam, nec in die honoris tui extollaris : quoniam mirabilia opera Altissimi solius, et gloriosa, et absconsa, et invisa opera illius.
5 Many monarchs have been made to sit on the ground, and the person nobody thought of has worn thecrown.	5 Multi tyranni sederunt in throno : et insuspicabilis portavit diadema.
6 Many influential people have been utterly disgraced, and prominent people have fal en into the power ofothers.	6 Multi potentes oppressi sunt valide, et gloriosi traditi sunt in manus alterorum.
7 Do not find fault before making thorough enquiry; first reflect, then give a reprimand.	7 Priusquam interroges, ne vituperes quemquam : et cum interrogaveris, corripe juste.
8 Listen before you answer, and do not interrupt a speech before it is finished.	8 Priusquam audias, ne respondeas verbum : et in medio sermonum ne adjicias loqui.
9 Do not wrangle about something that does not concern you, do not interfere in the quarrels of sinners.	9 De ea re quæ te non molestat, ne certeris : et in judicio peccantium ne consistas.
10 My child, do not take on a great amount of business; if you multiply your interests, you are bound to suffer for it; hurry as fast as you can, yet you wil never arrive, nor wil you escape by running away.	10 Fili, ne in multis sint actus tui : et si dives fueris, non eris immunis a delicto. Si enim secutus fueris, non apprehendes : et non effugies, si præcucurreris.
11 Some people work very hard at top speed, only to find themselves fal ing further behind.	11 Est homo laborans et festinans, et dolens : impius, et tanto magis non abundabit.
12 Or there is the slow kind of person, needing help, poor in possessions and rich in poverty; and theLord turns a favourable eye on him, lifts him out of his wretched condition,	12 Est homo marcidus egens recuperatione, plus deficiens virtute, et abundans paupertate :
13 and enables him to hold his head high, thus causing general astonishment.	13 et oculus Dei respexit illum in bono, et erexit eum ab humilitate ipsius, et exaltavit caput ejus : et mirati sunt in illo multi, et honoraverunt Deum.
14 Good and bad, life and death, poverty and wealth, al come from the Lord.	14 Bona et mala, vita et mors, paupertas et honestas, a Deo sunt :
15	15 sapientia, et disciplina, et scientia legis, apud Deum : dilectio, et viæ bonorum, apud ipsum.
16	16 Error et tenebræ peccatoribus concreata sunt : qui autem exsultant in malis consenescunt in malo.
17 To the devout the Lord's gift remains constant, and his favour will be there to lead them for ever.	17 Datio Dei permanet justis, et profectus illius successus habebit in æternum.
18 Others grow rich by pinching and scraping, and here is the reward they receive for it:	18 Est qui locupletatur parce agendo, et hæc est pars mercedis illius.
19 although they say, 'Now I can sit back and enjoy the benefit of what I have got,' they do not know howlong this wil last; they will have to leave their goods to others and die.	19 In eo quod dicit : Inveni requiem mihi, et nunc manducabo de bonis meis solus :
20 Stick to your job, work hard at it and grow old at your work.	20 et nescit quod tempus præteriet, et mors appropinquet, et relinquat omnia aliis, et morietur.
21 Do not admire the achievements of sinners, trust the Lord and mind your own business; since it is atrifle in the eyes of the Lord, in a moment, suddenly to make the poor rich.	21 Sta in testamento tuo, et in illo colloquere, et in opere mandatorum tuorum veterasce.
22 The blessing of the Lord is the reward of the devout, in a moment God brings his blessing to flower.	22 Ne manseris in operibus peccatorum : confide autem in Deo, et mane in loco tuo.
23 Do not say, 'What are my needs, how much shal I have in the future?'	23 Facile est enim in oculis Dei subito honestare pauperem.
24 And do not say, 'I am self-sufficient, what disaster can affect me now?'	24 Benedictio Dei in mercedem justi festinat, et in hora veloci processus illius fructificat.
25 In prosperous times, disasters are forgotten and in times of disaster, no one remembers prosperity.	25 Ne dicas : Quid est mihi opus ? et quæ erunt mihi ex hoc bona ?
26 Yet it is a trifle for the Lord on the day someone dies to repay him as his conduct deserves.	26 Ne dicas : Sufficiens mihi sum : et quid ex hoc pessimabor ?
27 A moment's adversity, and pleasures are forgotten; in a person's last hour his deeds wil standrevealed.	27 In die bonorum ne immemor sis malorum, et in die malorum ne immemor sis bonorum :
28 Cal no one fortunate before his death; it is by his end that someone wil be known.	28 quoniam facile est coram Deo in die obitus retribuere unicuique secundum vias suas.
29 Do not bring everyone home with you, for many are the traps of the crafty.	29 Malitia horæ oblivionem facit luxuriæ magnæ, et in fine hominis denudatio operum illius.
30 Like a captive partridge in a cage, so is the heart of the proud: like a spy he watches for your downfal ,	30 Ante mortem ne laudes hominem quemquam : quoniam in filiis suis agnoscitur vir.
31 ever on the look-out, turning good into bad and finding fault with what is praiseworthy.	31 Non omnem hominem inducas in domum tuam : multæ enim sunt insidiæ dolosi.
32 A hearthful of glowing coals starts from a single spark, and the sinner lurks for the chance to spilblood.	32 Sicut enim eructant præcordia f?tentium, et sicut perdix inducitur in caveam, et ut caprea in laqueum : sic et cor superborum, et sicut prospector videns casum proximi sui.
33 Beware of a scoundrel and his evil contrivances, in case he puts a smear on you for ever.	33 Bona enim in mala convertens insidiatur, et in electis imponet maculam.
34 Give a home to a stranger and he wil start trouble and estrange you from your own family.	34 A scintilla una augetur ignis, et ab uno doloso augetur sanguis : homo vero peccator sanguini insidiatur.
	35 Attende tibi a pestifero, fabricat enim mala, ne inducat super te subsannationem in perpetuum.
	36 Admitte ad te alienigenam : et subvertet te in turbine, et abalienabit te a tuis propriis.