Sirach 13

NEW JERUSALEM	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 Whoever touches pitch will be defiled, and anyone who associates with the proud wil come to be likethem.	1 Whoever touches pitch will be contaminated by it. And whoever associates with the arrogant will be clothed by arrogance.
2 Do not try to carry a burden too heavy for you, do not associate with someone more powerful andwealthy than yourself. Why put the clay pot next to the iron cauldron? It wil only break when they bang againsteach other.	2 Whoever associates with those more honorable than himself sets a burden on himself. And so, you should have no fellowship with someone who is wealthier than you.
3 The rich does wrong and takes a high line; the poor is wronged and has to beg for pardon.	3 What will the cooking pot have in common with the earthen vessel? And when they collide with one another, one will be broken.
4 If you are useful the rich will exploit you, if you go bankrupt he wil desert you.	4 The rich man has suffered no injustice, and yet he fumes. But the poor man, though he has been wounded, will remain silent.
5 Are you well off? - he wil live with you, he will clean you out without a single qualm.	5 If you are generous, he will take you up; and when you have nothing, he will cast you aside.
6 Does he need you? - he will hoodwink you, smile at you and raise your hopes; he wil speak politely toyou and say, 'Is there anything you need?'	6 If you possess, he will feast with you, and he will empty you, and he will not grieve over you.
7 He will make you feel smal at his dinner parties and, having cleaned you out two or three times over,wil end by laughing at you. Afterwards, when he sees you, he will avoid you and shake his head about you.	7 If he has need of you, he will deceive you; and while smiling, he will give you hope. He will converse with you pleasantly, and he will say: “What is it that you need?”
8 Take care you are not hoodwinked and thus humiliated through your own stupidity.	8 And he will impress you with his foods, until he has drained you two or three times, and in the very end, he will ridicule you. And afterward, when he sees you, he will abandon you, and he will shake his head at you.
9 When an influential person invites you, show reluctance, and he will press his invitation all the more.	9 Humble yourself before God, and wait for his hands.
10 Do not thrust yourself forward, in case you are pushed aside, but do not stand aloof, or you will beoverlooked.	10 Be careful. Otherwise, having been seduced into foolishness, you will be humiliated.
11 Do not affect to treat him as an equal, do not trust his flow of words; since all this talking is expresslymeant to test you, under cover of geniality he wil be weighing you up.	11 Do not choose to be low in your wisdom, otherwise, having been brought low, you will be seduced into foolishness.
12 Pitiless is anyone who retails gossip; he wil not spare you either blows or chains.	12 If you are invited by someone who is more powerful than you, you should decline. Otherwise, he will invite you all the more.
13 Be wary, take very great care, because you are walking with your own downfal .	13 You cannot be rude to him, lest you be pushed away. And you cannot stray far from him, lest you be forgotten.
14	14 You cannot hold a discussion with him as with an equal. You should not trust his many words. For by much talking, he will probe you, and while smiling, he will question you about your secrets.
15 Every living thing loves its own sort, and every man his fel ow.	15 His cruel mind will store up your words; and he will not spare you from affliction, nor from prison.
16 Every creature mixes with its kind, and human beings stick to their own sort.	16 Be cautious of yourself, and attend diligently to what you are hearing. For you are walking toward your own destruction.
17 How can wolf and lamb agree? - Just so with sinner and devout.	17 Yet truly, while listening to these things, consider it as if it were a dream, and you will awaken.
18 What peace can there be between hyena and dog? And what peace between rich and poor?	18 Love God for your entire life, and call upon him for your salvation.
19 Wild desert donkeys are the prey of lions; so too, the poor is the quarry of the rich.	19 Every animal loves its own kind; so also every man loves those closest to himself.
20 The proud thinks humility abhorrent; so too, the rich abominates the poor.	20 All flesh will join with whatever is similar to itself, and every man will associate with whomever is similar to himself.
21 When the rich stumbles he is supported by friends; when the poor fal s, his friends push him away.	21 If a wolf would at any time have fellowship with a lamb, so also would a sinner have fellowship with the just.
22 When the rich slips, there are many hands to catch him, if he talks nonsense he is congratulated. Thepoor slips, and is blamed for it, he may talk good sense, but no room is made for him.	22 What fellowship does a holy man have with a dog? Or what portion do the wealthy have with the poor?
23 The rich speaks and everyone stops talking, and then they praise his discourse to the skies. The poorspeaks and people say, 'Who is this?' and if he stumbles, they trip him up yet more.	23 In the desert, the wild donkey is the prey of the lion. So also are the poor the pasture of the rich.
24 Wealth is good where there is no sin, poverty is evil, the godless say.	24 And just as humility is an abomination to the arrogant, so also does the rich man abhor the poor man.
25 The heart moulds a person's expression whether for better or worse.	25 When a wealthy man has been shaken, he is strengthened by his friends. But when a lowly man has fallen, he is expelled even by those who know him well.
26 Happy heart, cheerful expression; but wearisome work, inventing proverbs.	26 When a rich man has been deceived, many will help him recover; he has spoken arrogantly, and yet they justify him.
	27 When a poor man has been deceived, in addition he is rebuked; he has spoken with understanding, and no place is given to him.
	28 The rich man has spoken, and all remain silent, and they repeat his words, even to the clouds.
	29 The poor man has spoken, and they say: “Who is this?” And if he stumbles, they will overthrow him.
	30 Substance is good for him who has no sin on his conscience. And poverty is called very wicked by the mouth of the impious.
	31 The heart of a man changes his face, either for better or for worse.
	32 You will find, with difficulty and much labor, the sign of a good heart and a good face.