Sirach 20

¹ There is a reproof which is not timely; and there is a man who keeps silent but is wise.

² How much better it is to reprove than to stay angry! And the one who confesses his fault will be kept from loss.

³ .

⁴ Like a eunuch's desire to violate a maiden is a man who executes judgments by violence.

⁵ There is one who by keeping silent is found wise, while another is detested for being too talkative.

⁶ There is one who keeps silent because he has no answer, while another keeps silent because he knows when to speak.

⁷ A wise man will be silent until the right moment, but a braggart and fool goes beyond the right moment.

⁸ Whoever uses too many words will be loathed, and whoever usurps the right to speak will be hated.

⁹ There may be good fortune for a man in adversity, and a windfall may result in a loss.

¹⁰ There is a gift that profits you nothing, and there is a gift that brings a double return.

¹¹ There are losses because of glory, and there are men who have raised their heads from humble circumstances.

¹² There is a man who buys much for a little, but pays for it seven times over.

¹³ The wise man makes himself beloved through his words, but the courtesies of fools are wasted.

¹⁴ A fool's gift will profit you nothing, for he has many eyes instead of one.

¹⁵ He gives little and upbraids much, he opens his mouth like a herald; today he lends and tomorrow he asks it back; such a one is a hateful man.

¹⁶ A fool will say, "I have no friend, and there is no gratitude for my good deeds; those who eat my bread speak unkindly."

¹⁷ How many will ridicule him, and how often!

¹⁸ A slip on the pavement is better than a slip of the tongue; so the downfall of the wicked will occur speedily.

¹⁹ An ungracious man is like a story told at the wrong time, which is continually on the lips of the ignorant.

²⁰ A proverb from a fool's lips will be rejected, for he does not tell it at its proper time.

²¹ A man may be prevented from sinning by his poverty, so when he rests he feels no remorse.

²² A man may lose his life through shame, or lose it because of his foolish look.

²³ A man may for shame make promises to a friend, and needlessly make him an enemy.

²⁴ A lie is an ugly blot on a man; it is continually on the lips of the ignorant.

²⁵ A thief is preferable to a habitual liar, but the lot of both is ruin.

²⁶ The disposition of a liar brings disgrace, and his shame is ever with him.

²⁷ He who speaks wisely will advance himself, and a sensible man will please great men.

²⁸ Whoever cultivates the soil will heap up his harvest, and whoever pleases great men will atone for injustice.

²⁹ Presents and gifts blind the eyes of the wise; like a muzzle on the mouth they avert reproofs.

³⁰ Hidden wisdom and unseen treasure, what advantage is there in either of them?

³¹ Better is the man who hides his folly than the man who hides his wisdom.