Sirach 29

NEW JERUSALEM	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 Making your neighbour a loan is an act of mercy, to lend him a helping hand is to keep thecommandments.	1 He shows mercy who lends to his neighbor, for he keeps the commandments by strengthening him.
2 Lend to your neighbour in his time of need, and in your turn repay your neighbour on time.	2 Lend to your neighbor in his time of need, and receive it again from your neighbor in his time.
3 Be as good as your word and keep faith with him, and you wil find your needs met every time.	3 Keep your word, and act faithfully with him, and then you will find whatever you need in every time.
4 Many treat a loan as a windfal , and embarrass those who have come to their rescue.	4 Many have treated a loan like found money, and they offered trouble to those who helped them.
5 Until he gets something, a man wil kiss his neighbour's hand, and refer diffidently to his wealth; butwhen the loan fal s due, he puts this off, he repays with offhand words, and pleads the inconvenience of the time.	5 Until they receive, they kiss the hands of the giver, and they humble their voice in promises.
6 Even if he can be made to pay, his creditor wil recover barely half, and consider even that a windfal .But otherwise he wil be cheated of his money, and undeservedly gain himself an enemy; the man wil pay himback in curses and abuse, and with insults instead of honour.	6 But at the time of repayment, they will ask for more time, and they will speak annoying and complaining words, and they will make excuses for the time.
7 Many, not out of malice, refuse to lend; they are merely anxious not to be cheated for nothing.	7 Then, if he is able to repay, he will turn away. He will pay barely one half, and he will consider it as if he had found it.
8 Nevertheless, be patient with those who are badly off, do not keep them waiting on your generosity.	8 But if not, then he will defraud him of his money, and he will have him as an enemy without cause.
9 In obedience to the commandment, help the poor; do not turn the poor away empty-handed in theirneed.	9 And he will repay him with accusations and curses, and he will repay him with contempt, instead of with honor and kindness.
10 Spend your money on your brother or your friend, do not leave it under a stone to rust away.	10 Many have refused to lend, not because of wickedness, but because they were afraid to be defrauded without cause.
11 Use your wealth as the Most High has decreed; you will find that more profitable than gold.	11 Yet truly, be more steadfast toward the humble, and you should not delay in acts of mercy toward them.
12 Stock your store-rooms with almsgiving; this will save you from al misfortune.	12 Assist the poor because of the commandment. And you should not send him away empty because of his dire need.
13 Better than sturdy shield or weighty spear, this will fight for you against the enemy.	13 Lose your money to your brother and your friend. For you should not hide it under a stone to be lost.
14 A good man wil go surety for his neighbour; only a shameless wretch would desert him.	14 Let your treasure be in the precepts of the Most High, and it will benefit you more than gold.
15 Do not forget the favour your guarantor has done you; he has given his life for you.	15 Store your alms in the hearts of the poor, and it will obtain help for you against all evil.
16 A sinner is careless of his guarantor's prosperity, the ungrateful forgets his deliverer.	16 Better than the shield or the lance of a powerful man,
17 Going surety has ruined many who were prosperous, tossing them about in a heavy sea.	17 it will fight for you against your enemy.
18 It has driven the powerful from home to wander among foreign nations.	18 A good man offers credit for the sake of his neighbor. But one who abandons him to himself will perish in shame.
19 A wicked man in a hurry to stand guarantor in the hope of profit, is hurrying to be sentenced.	19 You should not forget the kindness of your benefactor. For he has offered his life on your behalf.
20 Come to your neighbour's help as far as you can, but take care not to fall into the same plight.	20 The sinner and the unclean flee from such promises.
21 The first thing in life is water, and bread, and clothing, and a house for the sake of privacy.	21 A sinner attributes to himself the goods of his loan. And an ungrateful mind will abandon the one who has freed him.
22 Better the life of the poor under a roof of planks, than lavish fare in somebody else's house.	22 A man offers credit to his neighbor. But when he will have lost respect, he will abandon him.
23 Whether you have little or much, be content with it, and you wil not hear your household complaining.	23 A wicked promise has destroyed many who had good intentions, and has tossed them like a wave on the ocean.
24 It is a miserable life, going from house to house; wherever you stay, you dare not open your mouth,	24 It has caused powerful men to travel around, and they have wandered amid foreign nations.
25 you do not belong, you receive no thanks for the drink you pour out and hear embittering words intothe bargain:	25 A sinner transgressing the commandment of the Lord will fall into a wicked promise. And he who undertakes many things will fall into judgment.
26 'Come along, stranger, lay the table, what have you got ready? give me something to eat!'	26 Help your neighbor to recover according to your ability, but attend to yourself, lest you also fall.
27 'Go away, stranger, make room for someone important; my brother is coming to stay, I need thehouse.'	27 The primary need in a man’s life is water and bread, and clothing, and a house to protect modesty.
28 It is hard for the reasonable to be begrudged hospitality to be shamed like a debtor.	28 A pauper’s food under a roof of boards is better than a splendid feast on a sojourn away from home.
	29 Let yourself be pleased with little instead of much, and you will not hear the reproach of being away from home.
	30 It is a wicked life to go from house to house as a guest. For wherever he is a guest, he will not act confidently, nor open his mouth.
	31 He will entertain, and feed, and give drink to the ungrateful, and beyond this, he will listen to bitter words:
	32 “Go, my guest, and set the table, and let others eat from what you have in your hand.”
	33 “Depart from the honored face of my friends. For it has become necessary for my house to host my brother instead.”
	34 These things are grievous to a man having understanding: to take advantage of a household, and to reproach a lender.