Sirach 33:18–38:23

In Part VI, Ben Sira addresses some topics that are unique to him and not discussed elsewhere in the Bible. The first is his concern for maintaining financial and material autonomy to avoid becoming dependent on others (33:18–23), along with his rather harsh view on disciplining slaves (33:24–31). His skepticism toward dreams (34:1–8) and his praise of travel as a means of growing in the fear of the Lord (34:9–17) are also topics unique to him. Ben Sira further expresses concern for true worship, achieved by offering worthy sacrifices (34:18–35:11) and humble prayers that prompt the Lord to act (35:12–20). An example of a rich prayer follows, in which Ben Sira pleads with God that he would deliver Israel from her foreign oppressors (36:1–17). He also offers unique advice on wisely choosing a wife, friends, and counselors in a world where not everyone can be trusted (36:18–37:15); discerning between true and false wisdom (37:16–26); exercising temperance in eating (37:27–31); honoring physicians (38:1–8); and dealing with sickness (38:9–15) and death (38:16–23).

Most other translations use different verse numbers for the remainder of this chapter: Sir 33:18–31 (RSV-2CE) is 33:19–33 in other versions (NRSV, ESV-CE, NABRE, NJB).

¹⁸Hear me, you who are great among the people,
and you leaders of the congregation, listen.

¹⁹To son or wife, to brother or friend,
do not give power over yourself, as long as you live;
and do not give your property to another,
lest you change your mind and must ask for it.
²⁰While you are still alive and have breath in you,
do not let any one take your place.
²¹For it is better that your children should ask from you
than that you should look to the hand of your sons.
²²Excel in all that you do;
bring no stain upon your honor.
²³At the time when you end the days of your life,
in the hour of death, distribute your inheritance.

²⁴Fodder and a stick and burdens for a donkey;
bread and discipline and work for a servant.
²⁵Set your slave to work, and you will find rest;
leave his hands idle, and he will seek liberty.
²⁶Yoke and thong will bow the neck,
and for a wicked servant there are racks and tortures.
²⁷Put him to work, that he may not be idle,
for idleness teaches much evil.
²⁸Set him to work, as is fitting for him,
and if he does not obey, make his chains heavy.
²⁹Do not act immoderately toward anybody,
and do nothing without discretion.

³⁰If you have a servant, let him be as yourself,
because you have bought him with blood.
³¹If you have a servant, treat him as a brother,
for as your own soul you will need him.
If you ill-treat him, and he leaves and runs away,
which way will you go to seek him?

OT: Exod 21:1–11; 23:12; Lev 25:39–51; Deut 15:12–18; 23:15–16
NT: 1 Cor 7:20–24; Eph 6:5–9; Col 3:22–4:1; Philem 10–18; 1 Pet 2:18–21
Catechism: slavery, 2414

[33:18–19]

Ben Sira advises people of prominence and leaders of the congregation—perhaps the religious or secular leaders of the Jewish community—to preserve their property and personal independence (33:18–23). It is unwise to hand over control prematurely, even to those closest to you, such as son or wife, brother or friend, giving them the power to administer your affairs or make decisions for you while you are still alive. Nor should you give your property or personal belongings to another, lest you later change your mind and need to reclaim them. Ben Sira is not advising against generosity but against prematurely bestowing assets in a way that would make one needlessly dependent on others.

[33:20–21]

The more prudent course of action while you are still alive is to not let any one take your place—that is, not let others control your life by allowing them to acquire your possessions. It is better that your children should ask for your assistance than that you become needy and reliant on your sons to provide for your needs, becoming financially dependent on them (2 Cor 12:14).

[33:22–23]

Excel in all that you do: the Hebrew and Syriac versions read, “Keep control over all your affairs” (NABRE), which better fits the context. Bring no stain upon your honor by becoming dependent on your children in your old age. Instead, wait until the end of the days of your life—that is, the hour of death—to distribute your inheritance to your heirs. This advice implies that written wills were not common in Israel in Ben Sira’s day, and that fathers typically distributed their inheritance orally when they were close to death.

[33:24]

Ben Sira’s instructions on the treatment of domestic servantsAlthough the RSV-2CE translates the Greek word oiketēs as (domestic) “servant,” the term refers not to a paid household worker, as in modern English, but to an unpaid and owned slave. reflect the harshness of a culture in which slavery was common. He advocates severity toward the lazy or wicked slave (33:24–28) and kindness toward the good slave (33:29–31). The comparison of a servant to a donkey illustrates the demeaning nature of human slavery, which the Old Testament regulated but still tolerated (see the Reflection and Application section below). Just as the donkey is fed with fodder, chastised with a stick, and given burdens to carry, the domestic servant is fed with bread, chastised with discipline, and given work to do (Prov 26:3).

[33:25–28]

Ben Sira advises a master to set his slave to work to avoid trouble and find rest, for if the servant remains idle, he will have the time and opportunity to seek liberty and escape. Just as a yoke and thong (or “harness”) will bow the neck of a beast of burden and keep it under control, a rebellious and wicked servant is disciplined through racks and tortures (or “stocks and chastisements”) (Luke 12:46). Although such practices are harsh and shocking by modern standards, Israelite law placed limits on the punishment of servants, prohibited their mistreatment, and protected their rights. A master who struck and killed his slave was to be punished; if he seriously injured the slave, the slave was to be freed (Exod 21:20, 26–27). Nevertheless, it was in the master’s best interest to put his domestic servant to work, that he may not be idle, as from the master’s perspective idleness teaches much evil—in other words, it gives the servant an opportunity to cause trouble. If the servant does not obey, the master is advised to make his chains heavy to prevent rebellion or escape.

[33:29–31]

However, a householder should avoid being excessively harsh toward his slaves. He must not act immoderately toward anybody—including his servants—and should exercise discretion and good judgment in all things. He should view a servant as himself, for he has bought him with blood—that is, with his own livelihood. Indeed, a master should treat his servant as a brother, for as his own soul he will need him and his faithful service (7:20–21). If the master were to ill-treat him, the domestic might escape, making it difficult to seek him and get him back. Although no master desired his slaves to escape, the †Torah forbids Israelites from returning runaway slaves to their former masters or oppressing them (Deut 23:15–16; Philem 10–18). This was unprecedented in the ancient world, where law codes often imposed harsh penalties—even death—on those who aided a slave’s escape.See Muhammad A. Dandamayev, “Slavery (Ancient Near East),” in Anchor Bible Dictionary, ed. David Noel Freedman (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 6:58–62. Code of Hammurabi, 15–16, in William W. Hallo and K. Lawson Younger, The Context of Scripture, vol. 2, Monumental Inscriptions from the Biblical World (Leiden: Brill, 2000), 338.

The modern reader might find it ironic that Ben Sira advocates for both the financial independence of congregational leaders and the harsh treatment of slaves within the same context. Ancient societies were not egalitarian, and most relied on slavery to function. Most slaves were prisoners of war, though some sold themselves into slavery to settle debts, became slaves as punishment for crimes, or were born into slavery. The Bible accepts slavery as part of the social order; yet it is also the primary human condition from which God delivers his people. Indeed, God’s liberation of the Israelites from Egyptian slavery became the paradigmatic model of his salvation (Exod 20:2). Paradoxically, the Lord refers to the Israelites whom he redeemed as “my slaves” (Lev 25:55), emphasizing that true freedom comes from serving him.
The institution of slavery, like other societal ills such as divorce, poverty, and war, has no place in God’s plan of salvation for humanity. Yet because of the hardness of the human heart (Matt 19:8), God tolerated some evils in Old Testament times, regulating them to reduce and ultimately eliminate them. This is why the Old Testament contains “matters imperfect and provisional” (Catechism 122) that would be later perfected in the fullness of God’s revelation in Christ.
Although the Old Testament does not condemn slavery, it provides regulations for the fair treatment of both Israelite and non-Israelite slaves (Exod 21:1–11; Lev 25:39–51). Slaves were permitted to share in the Passover meal (Exod 12:44) and participate in the religious life of their household (Deut 12:12, 18; 16:11, 14), and they were required to rest on the Sabbath (Exod 20:10; 23:12; Deut 5:14). Hebrew slaves were to be released after six years of service (Exod 21:2) and during the Year of Jubilee (Lev 25:40). These regulations for the just treatment of slaves—extraordinary for their time—represent the early recognition of slavery as an evil, a truth that the Church (and most modern societies) fully recognized much later, after centuries of reflection on biblical teaching.
The New Testament also takes the institution of slavery for granted. However, the trajectory of deliverance from slavery is evident in the ministry of Jesus, who came to “proclaim release to the captives” (Luke 4:18–19). While slaves are still instructed to obey

their masters (1 Cor 7:20–24; Eph 6:5–9; Col 3:22–4:1; 1 Pet 2:18–21), Paul urges Philemon to treat his fugitive slave Onesimus “no longer as a slave” but as “a beloved brother” (Philem 16). Thus, the gospel foreshadows a more egalitarian and just society in which slavery has no place. In Christ Jesus, there is “neither slave nor free” (Gal 3:28; Col 3:11), and the experience of Christian discipleship as a form of servitude to Christ becomes a privilege and honor (Matt 10:24–25; Mark 10:42–44; Luke 17:7–10; Rom 1:1).
On the basis of the seventh commandment, which prohibits stealing—including the “stealing” of humans (Exod 20:15)—the Church today categorically denounces the enslavement of human beings as a grave sin against their dignity and fundamental rights:

The seventh commandment forbids acts or enterprises that for any reason—selfish or ideological, commercial, or totalitarian—lead to the enslavement of human beings, to their being bought, sold and exchanged like merchandise, in disregard for their personal dignity. It is a sin against the dignity of persons and their fundamental rights to reduce them by violence to their productive value or to a source of profit. (Catechism 2414)

¹A man of no understanding has vain and false hopes,
and dreams give wings to fools.
²As one who catches at a shadow and pursues the wind,
so is he who gives heed to dreams.
³The vision of dreams is this against that,
the likeness of a face confronting a face.
⁴From an unclean thing what will be made clean?
And from something false what will be true?
⁵Divinations and omens and dreams are folly,
and like a woman with labor pains the mind has fancies.
⁶Unless they are sent from the Most High as a visitation,
do not give your mind to them.
⁷For dreams have deceived many,
and those who put their hope in them have failed.
⁸Without such deceptions the law will be fulfilled,

and wisdom is made perfect in truthful lips.\

⁹An educated man knows many things,
and one with much experience will speak with understanding.
¹⁰He that is inexperienced knows few things,
but he that has traveled acquires much cleverness.
¹¹I have seen many things in my travels,
and I understand more than I can express.
¹²I have often been in danger of death,
but have escaped because of these experiences.

¹³The spirit of those who fear the Lord will live,
for their hope is in him who saves them.
¹⁴He who fears the Lord will not be timid,
nor play the coward, for he is his hope.
¹⁵Blessed is the soul of the man who fears the Lord!
To whom does he look? And who is his support?
¹⁶The eyes of the Lord are upon those who love him,
a mighty protection and strong support,
a shelter from the hot wind and a shade from noonday sun,
a guard against stumbling and a defense against falling.
¹⁷He lifts up the soul and gives light to the eyes;
he grants healing, life, and blessing.

OT: Lev 19:26; Deut 18:10–14; Ps 112:1–9; Jer 23:25–27; 29:8–9

NT: Matt 1:20–24; 2:12–13, 19–22; Acts 16:16–18

Catechism: fallen angels, 391–95; divination, 2116

[34:1–3]

Although the Bible recounts several instances of God speaking through dreams, Ben Sira warns against trusting in dreams, divinations, and omens to determine the future or the will of God (34:1–8). A man of no understanding harbors vain and false hopes that are not grounded in reality and have no chance of coming to pass; dreams give wings to fools, as they are often the subconscious product of one’s own imagination. Trusting in dreams is as foolish as trying to grasp at a shadow or pursue the wind (Eccles 1:14; 2:17): such actions are the most futile of endeavors and amount to nothing more than chasing fantasies. The vision of dreams is this against that—the reflection of the dreamer’s own wishful thinking—as is the likeness of a face confronting a face in a mirror (Prov 27:19).

[34:4–5]

Just as an unclean thing can never make something else clean, and just as something false can never produce something true, a vivid dream does not create reality. Trusting in dreams is as foolish as trusting in divinations (attempts to gain supernatural knowledge or predict the future by occult means) and omens (which involve interpreting natural signs or events as predictors of future outcomes, such as finding meaning in the flight of birds). The Torah strictly prohibits such occult practices (Lev 19:26; Deut 18:10–14; Jer 29:8; Acts 16:16–18). Like a feverish woman in labor who suffers from illusions while giving birth, the mind has fancies that have nothing to do with reality and thus should not be trusted.

[34:6–7]

Ben Sira recognizes that some dreams may be sent from the Most High as a visitation—as seen throughout the Bible.Gen 28:10–17; 31:10–13; 37:5–10; 41:1–32; Dan 2:1–19, 27–45; Matt 1:20–24; 2:12–13, 19–22. Yet he does not provide any guidelines for discerning whether or not a dream comes from God, and his general rule of thumb remains: do not give your mind or pay attention to a dream unless there is compelling evidence that it was sent by God. For dreams have deceived many—as attested elsewhere in Scripture (Jer 23:25–27; 29:8–9)—and those who put their hope in them were bitterly disappointed when they realized they had been led astray by their own wishful thinking.

On Discerning Dreams
St. Gregory the Great identifies six sources of dreams. Drawing from Sirach’s warning, he advises exercising prudence and careful discernment before placing trust in them.

Know that the images that occur in dreams can be impressed on the soul in six different ways. Sometimes dreams are caused by bad digestion or by fasting, at times they are the fruit of an illusion, at other times of reflection and illusion together, at still other times of revelation, and, finally, at times of reflection and revelation together. Everyone experiences the first two types. The other four we find in the pages of sacred Scripture. If, in fact, dreams were not for the most part provoked by the hidden enemy through an illusion, the wise man would not have put us on guard, saying, “Dreams have led many into error, and those who put their hope in them have gone astray” (Sir 34:7). . . . Clearly, precisely because dreams have such different characteristics and origins, the more difficult it is to discern what their source is, the less should one be inclined to put faith in them. The saints, however, by a special sensibility they possess, are able to distinguish between illusions and revelations and to penetrate the meaning of the words and images in visions. Thus they know either what they have received from the good spirit or what illusion they have been victimized by. But if a soul is not prudent regarding dreams, it will find itself lost in a forest of vanity through the work of the deceiving spirit, whose art it is at times to predict many true things, so as to then imprison the soul in the snare of a single lie.Gregory the Great, Dialogues 4.50, in Sever J. Voicu, ed., Apocrypha, ACCS:OT 15 (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2010), 341–42.

[34:8]

Without the deceptions of fleeting dreams that arise from the subconscious, the law will be fulfilled through conscious and intentional obedience to the Lord’s commandments, for wisdom is made perfect in truthful lips that speak honestly. Wisdom is attained not by relying on dreams but by faithfully adhering to the Torah and speaking truthfully.

[34:9-10]

Another way of gaining experience and wisdom is through travel (34:9–12). Unlike the dreamer, an educated or well-traveled person knows many things, and one with much experience, having acquired broad insights from many people on his journeys, will speak with understanding and wisdom. While an inexperienced person, being untried or untested, knows few things, one who has traveled, having had many opportunities to develop skill and resourcefulness, acquires much cleverness by putting that wisdom into practice.

[34:11–12]

Switching to the first person, Ben Sira includes a brief autobiographical note, explaining that the many things he has seen in his travels have broadened his perspective and given him a wealth of understanding, for which he is grateful. Though he often has found himself in danger of death, he believes he escaped partly due to the experiences he gained throughout his travels (51:13).

[34:13–15]

Ben Sira ultimately attributes his deliverance from danger not to his own cleverness but to the Lord, whom he fears. He describes the blessings of those who fear the Lord and trust in him (34:13–17). The spirit of those who fear the Lord will live, even when faced with life-threatening dangers, for their hope is firmly rooted not in elusive dreams (34:1) but in God, who saves them. One who fears the Lord is neither timid nor a coward but finds great courage in God and thus does not fear life’s perils, for the Lord is his hope (see the commentary on 2:15–18). For this reason, blessed is the soul of one who fears the Lord: this person steadfastly looks to God and relies on him as his only support. The fear of the Lord is not a servile fear but a deep reverence that elicits God’s blessings (Ps 112:1–9).

[34:16–17]

Ben Sira employs familiar biblical metaphors to describe the Lord’s providence over those who fear him: his eyes are upon those who love him (15:19; Pss 33:18; 34:15); he is a mighty protection and strong support for his people (Pss 18:2–3; 61:3–4; 91:1–4; Prov 30:5). He is a shelter from the hot wind and a shade from noonday sun, which can quickly induce dehydration and sunstroke (Ps 121:5–6; Isa 4:6; 25:4–5). He is also a guard against stumbling and a defense against falling (Pss 91:11–12; 121:3). The Lord, moreover, lifts up the soul (Sir 40:26) and gives light to the eyes (Pss 13:3, 36:9; Prov 15:30), bestowing cheerfulness and happiness upon those who love and fear him, along with healing (Ps 30:2), life, and blessing (Pss 21:4; 36:9; 133:3)—the fullness of his gifts to humankind.

The modern decline of Christianity in Western nations has been accompanied by a resurgence of pagan and occult practices, which remain common throughout the world. Yet those who pride themselves on being “spiritual but not religious” often overlook the fact that Satan and his demons are also “spiritual but not religious” (Catechism 391–95). The Church continues to forbid occult practices for the same reasons that the Torah does: these practices not only constitute an attempt at “playing God” by seeking supernatural knowledge of the future, but also they open the door to deceptive and dangerous demonic activity that leads the soul away from God and his salvation:

All forms of divination are to be rejected: recourse to Satan or demons, conjuring up the dead or other practices falsely supposed to “unveil” the future (Deut 18:10; Jer 29:8). Consulting horoscopes, astrology, palm reading, interpretation of omens and lots, the phenomena of clairvoyance, and recourse to mediums all conceal a desire for power over time, history, and, in the last analysis, other human beings, as well as a wish to conciliate hidden powers. They contradict the honor, respect, and loving fear that we owe to God alone. (Catechism 2116)

¹⁸If one sacrifices from what has been wrongfully obtained, the offering is blemished;
the gifts of the lawless are not acceptable.

¹⁹The Most High is not pleased with the offerings of the ungodly;
and he is not propitiated for sins by a multitude of sacrifices.

²⁰Like one who kills a son before his father’s eyes
is the man who offers a sacrifice from the property of the poor.
²¹The bread of the needy is the life of the poor;
whoever deprives them of it is a man of blood.
²²To take away a neighbor’s living is to murder him;
to deprive an employee of his wages is to shed blood.

²³When one builds and another tears down,
what do they gain but toil?
²⁴When one prays and another curses,
to whose voice will the Lord listen?
²⁵If a man washes after touching a dead body, and touches it again,
what has he gained by his washing?
²⁶So if a man fasts for his sins,
and goes again and does the same things,
who will listen to his prayer?
And what has he gained by humbling himself?

^35:1He who keeps the law makes many offerings;
he who heeds the commandments sacrifices a peace offering.
²He who returns a kindness offers fine flour,
and he who gives alms sacrifices a thank offering.
³To keep from wickedness is pleasing to the Lord,
and to forsake unrighteousness is atonement.
⁴Do not appear before the Lord empty-handed,
⁵for all these things are to be done because of the commandment.
⁶The offering of a righteous man anoints the altar,
and its pleasing odor rises before the Most High.
⁷The sacrifice of a righteous man is acceptable,
and the memory of it will not be forgotten.
⁸Glorify the Lord generously,
and do not stint the first fruits of your hands.
⁹With every gift show a cheerful face,
and dedicate your tithe with gladness.
¹⁰Give to the Most High as he has given,
and as generously as your hand has found.
¹¹For the Lord is the one who repays,
and he will repay you sevenfold.

¹²Do not offer him a bribe, for he will not accept it;
and do not trust to an unrighteous sacrifice;
for the Lord is the judge,
and with him is no partiality.
¹³He will not show partiality in the case of a poor man;
and he will listen to the prayer of one who is wronged.
¹⁴He will not ignore the supplication of the fatherless,
nor the widow when she pours out her story.
¹⁵Do not the tears of the widow run down her cheek
as she cries out against him who has caused them to fall?
¹⁶He whose service is pleasing to the Lord will be accepted,
and his prayer will reach to the clouds.
¹⁷The prayer of the humble pierces the clouds,
and he will not be consoled until it reaches the Lord;
he will not desist until the Most High visits him,
and the just judge executes judgment.
¹⁸And the Lord will not delay,
neither will he be patient with them,
till he crushes the loins of the unmerciful
and repays vengeance on the nations;
till he takes away the multitude of the insolent,
and breaks the scepters of the unrighteous;
¹⁹till he repays man according to his deeds,
and the works of men according to their devices;
till he judges the case of his people
and makes them rejoice in his mercy.
²⁰Mercy is as welcome when he afflicts them
as clouds of rain in the time of drought.

OT: 1 Sam 15:22; Pss 34:6; 50:8–15; Isa 1:11–13; Jer 14:12; Amos 5:21–24
NT: Luke 1:71–75; Acts 10:34; Rom 2:11 Catechism: true worship and the virtue of religion, 2095–105

Lectionary: 35:12–14, 16–17: 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)

[34:18–19]

In Ben Sira’s day, Jewish worship was centered on the offering of sacrifices in the Jerusalem temple. Like the prophets who preceded him, he criticizes those who offer sacrifices with an improper inner disposition or a disregard for social justice (34:18–26). Such offerings are empty rituals that the Lord does not accept (1 Sam 15:22; Isa 1:11–13; Hosea 6:6; Amos 5:21–24). If one sacrifices an animal that was stolen or otherwise wrongfully obtained, the offering is blemished—rendered as if it were physically defective—and thus unfit for sacrifice (Lev 22:18–25; Deut 15:21; Mal 1:8). The gifts of the lawless—those who disregard either the ritual or moral precepts of the Torah—are not acceptable to God the Most High (Prov 15:8; 21:27). He is not propitiated for sins (i.e., he does not forgive sins) simply by receiving a multitude of sacrifices. The proper disposition of the offerer is more important than the number of sacrifices offered (Sir 5:6; 7:9; Ps 50:8–15; Catechism 2100).

[34:20–22]

Like one who kills a son before his father’s eyes—a shocking comparison alluding to the fate of King Zedekiah in 2 Kings 25:6–7—is the individual who offers a sacrifice stolen from the poor. Such an offering is an abomination to the Lord because it deprives the poor of their livelihood—and God is, after all, the Father of the poor and needy (Ps 68:5). The bread of the needy is not a luxury but the very life of the poor, essential for their survival. Therefore, whoever deprives them of their sustenance by stealing from them is a man of blood—that is, a murderer. The same applies to taking away a neighbor’s livelihood or depriving an employee of his wages (Sir 4:1–6; Lev 19:13; Deut 24:14–15; James 5:4).

[34:23–26]

Three pairs of opposite actions underline the principle that a good act is canceled out by its opposite: When one builds and another tears down, the one who builds has labored in vain and accomplished nothing. When one prays and another curses, two contradictory petitions rise to the Lord. If someone washes after touching a dead body (a source of ritual impurity, Num 19:11–12) but then touches it again, he becomes ritually unclean again. Similarly, if a man fasts for his sins but then repeats the same offenses, the penitential act becomes worthless, and God will not listen to his prayer. He has gained nothing by humbling himself, for God does not listen to the prayers of those who fail to repent and turn from their sins (Isa 58:3–7; Jer 14:12).

[35:1]

In contrast to the hypocritical behavior depicted above, Ben Sira now describes the kind of worship that is acceptable to God (35:1–11). He who keeps the law makes many offerings—which can be interpreted in two ways: (1) One who keeps the law and heeds the commandments will offer the many sacrifices that the law prescribes, including the peace offering that expresses fellowship with God (Lev 3:1–17). (2) Keeping the ethical commandments of the law is the spiritual equivalent of offering many sacrifices, including the peace offering. The concept of spiritual sacrifice gained importance during the exile, when the temple was temporarily absent, and later when many were too distant to worship there. This concept becomes central in the New Testament (Rom 12:1–2; Heb 13:16; 1 Pet 2:5). Verses 2–3 seem to favor the second interpretation, while verses 4–11 appear to support the first.

[35:2–3]

One who returns a kindness to others acts as though he offers fine flour—that is, a cereal or grain offering—to the Lord (Lev 2:1–16), and one who gives alms is like one who sacrifices a thank offering—a type of peace offering presented in gratitude to God (Lev 7:12–15). Thus, acts of kindness and almsgiving are equivalent to bringing freewill offerings to God in the temple. The opportunity to offer such spiritual sacrifices would have been significant for Jews living in Alexandria in Ben Sira’s time, for whom travel to the temple in Jerusalem was either difficult or impossible. Likewise, refraining from wickedness by avoiding sins in the first place is as pleasing to the Lord as sacrifices, and forsaking unrighteousness altogether is better than seeking atonement and forgiveness later by presenting sin offerings to God (5:5; 17:29).

[35:4–5]

Although Ben Sira emphasizes the spiritual significance of the temple sacrifices, he does not lessen the obligation of his fellow Jews to perform the rites of worship prescribed in the Torah. They should not appear before the Lord in the temple empty-handed, without any sacrifice to offer (7:31; Exod 23:15; 34:20; Deut 16:16), for all these things—the sacrifices—are to be offered in obedience to the commandment—that is, the whole body of legislation concerning the private sacrifices that Israelites were to offer in the temple (Lev 1–7).

[35:6–7]

The offering of a just person anoints (literally, “greases”) the altar with the fat dripping from the burning animals, and its pleasing odor rises before the Most High—a common expression describing sacrifices acceptable to the Lord (Lev 1:9, 13). The memory of such a sacrifice—referring to the memorial portion of the cereal offering that was mixed with oil and frankincense and burned on the altar (Lev 2:1–2)—is lasting, for it will not be forgotten by God.

[35:8–11]

Ben Sira exhorts the righteous to glorify the Lord generously (literally, “with a good eye”; compare Prov 22:9) with sacrifices and not to withhold the first fruits or freewill offerings that they are to bring to the Lord (Deut 26:2; Prov 3:9). A gift is most pleasing to God when offered with a cheerful face (2 Cor 9:7), and a tithe—10 percent of one’s harvest or income (Deut 12:6; 14:23; Tob 1:6–7)—when given with gladness. Each person is to give back to God as he has given, and as generously as he is able, as a token of appreciation for God’s bountiful blessings. Indeed, the Lord can repay sevenfold or more those who generously and joyfully offer him worthy gifts (Prov 19:17).

[35:12–13]

God is perfectly just to all, and especially the humble (35:12–20). He cannot be “bought off” with a bribe, nor is his justice compromised by an unrighteous sacrifice, as a corrupt judge is swayed by dishonest gifts; the Lord is a righteous judge who shows no partiality. He does not show favoritism when rendering judgment (Deut 10:17; 2 Chron 19:7; Acts 10:34; Rom 2:11), not even by favoring or discriminating against a poor man (Lev 19:15). Yet he listens attentively to the prayer of one who is wronged or oppressed (Ps 34:6).

[35:14–15]

God does not ignore the supplication of the fatherless or the complaint of the widow: this divine concern for orphans and widows is often emphasized in the Torah (Exod 22:22–23; Deut 10:17–18; 24:17). Presumably, the two mourn the loss of the same man—their father and husband. The Lord sees the widow’s tears and hears her cries against him who has caused them—perhaps the man who killed her husband, or possibly even God himself.

[35:16–17]

He whose service is pleasing to the Lord—likely a faithful Jew representing the people of Israel, oppressed by their enemies (35:18–19)—is accepted with favor by God, and his prayer (36:1–17), because it is offered in humility, pierces the clouds and reaches the Lord in heaven. The just Israelite steadfastly perseveres in prayer: he does not rest until the Most High answers, visits him, and executes judgment by punishing Israel’s foes and oppressors. While Ben Sira may be referring specifically to the †Seleucids in the early second century BC, the principle of persevering in prayer applies to all generations (Luke 18:1–8).

[35:18–20]

Ben Sira assures his readers that the Lord will not delay in answering the just person’s prayer: he will show no forbearance to the nations that oppress Israel (Luke 1:71–75; 18:7–8) but will crush the loins of the unmerciful (compare Deut 33:11), enact vengeance on the wicked nations, annihilate the multitude of the insolent who persecuted his people, and shatter the scepters of the unrighteous, thereby ending their domination over others. In the end, God repays all nations according to their words and deeds; he will judge the case of his people Israel with favor, so that they will rejoice in his mercy (Hebrew: “in his salvation”; Isa 25:9). The revelation of the Lord’s just judgment and mercy will be as welcome in times of affliction as clouds of rain in a devastating drought (Ps 72:6; Prov 16:15; Isa 45:8).

Today, one hears constant clamors for justice coming from various social movements advocating for equality between groups on the basis of race, gender, or socioeconomic classes. Yet most social justice activists overlook a central aspect of justice: the virtue of religion. If justice “consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor,” then the virtue of religion focuses on the first part of this definition—justice toward God (Catechism 1807). Modern social justice activists might be surprised to learn that it is impossible to be a truly just person without giving God his due through the virtue of religion.

The word “religion” derives from the Latin religare (“to bind together”) and points to the relational bond between man and God established through proper divine worship.Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae II-II q. 81 a. 1. This bond is grounded in the first commandment of the †Decalogue—“You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve” (Matt 4:10; Exod 20:2–5; Deut 6:4–5, 13–14)—and in the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love (Catechism 2083–94). The virtue of religion includes acts of devotion (giving oneself steadily to the service of God), adoration (acknowledging and worshiping God alone), prayer (lifting up the mind to God with praise, thanksgiving, intercession, and petition), sacrifice, oblations, and tithes (offering one’s possessions to God and his Church), and promises and vows (dedicating oneself or some good work to God).Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae II-II q. 82–91; Catechism 2095–103.

Perhaps most counterintuitive for people living in a postmodern, pluralistic world is the fact that the virtue of religion cannot be properly practiced in all religions without distinction. In the Old Testament, the prophets viewed the worship of Baal not as a valid “alternative spirituality” but as a grave apostasy from the true worship owed to the God of Israel (1 Kings 18:20–40). Today, offering God genuine worship can occur only within the bounds of the truth that he revealed to humanity through Christ and the Church he founded. Thus, Christians are to “awaken in each man the love of the true and the good” by making known “the worship of the one true religion which subsists in the Catholic and apostolic Church” (Catechism 2105).

¹Have mercy upon us, O Lord, the God of all, and look upon us,
and show us the light of your mercy;
²send fear of you upon the nations.
³Lift up your hand against foreign nations
and let them see your might.
⁴As in us you have been sanctified before them,
so in them may you be magnified before us;
⁵and let them know you, as we have known
that there is no God but you, O Lord.
⁶Show signs anew, and work further wonders;
make your hand and your right arm glorious.
⁷Rouse your anger and pour out your wrath;
destroy the adversary and wipe out the enemy.
⁸Hasten the day, and remember the appointed time,
and let people recount your mighty deeds.
⁹Let him who survives be consumed in the fiery wrath,
and may those who harm your people meet destruction.
¹⁰Crush the heads of the rulers of the enemy,
who say, “There is no one but ourselves.”
¹¹Gather all the tribes of Jacob,
and give them their inheritance, as at the beginning.
¹²Have mercy, O Lord, upon the people called by your name,
upon Israel, whom you have likened to a first-born son.
¹³Have pity on the city of your sanctuary,

Jerusalem, the place of your rest.
¹⁴Fill Zion with the celebration of your wondrous deeds,
and your temple with your glory.
¹⁵Bear witness to those whom you created in the beginning,
and fulfil the prophecies spoken in your name.
¹⁶Reward those who wait for you,
and let your prophets be found trustworthy.
¹⁷Listen, O Lord, to the prayer of your servants,
according to the blessing of Aaron for your people,
and direct us in the way of righteousness,
and all who are on the earth will know
that you are the Lord, the God of the ages.

OT: 1 Kings 8:60; Isa 2:12–17; 11:11–12; Ezek 36:8–11; 39:27–29; Zech 14:9
NT: Luke 1:46–55, 68–79
Catechism: Christ will come again as judge, 668–82; deliver us from evil, 2850–54

[36:1–3]

Having expressed confidence that God will answer the just person’s petition, Ben Sira now prays in the first-person plural (we, us, our) on Israel’s behalf. He implores: Have mercy upon us (Hebrew: “Save us”), O Lord, the God of all creation, and look upon us—your people Israel, whom you love—and reveal the light of your mercy by delivering us from our enemies and sending the fear of you upon hostile nations (the Latin adds: “that have not sought you”) (compare 1 Chron 14:17). In the Old Testament, while the expression “the nations” (Hebrew goyim; Greek ethnē) can be a neutral term describing the peoples of the earth (Pss 67:4; 117:1), it can also carry a pejorative sense, denoting the pagan rivals and enemies of Israel (2 Kings 16:3; Ps 2:1). Ben Sira petitions the Lord to lift up his hand in judgment and strike these wicked foreign nations—likely the Greek †Seleucids, who occupied the land of Israel at that time—so that they might see God’s power and might.

[36:4–5]

Just as the Lord was sanctified in Israel before the nations, revealing his justice and mercy by punishing his people for their sins, sending them into exile, subjecting them to foreign domination, and then returning them to the land (Ezek 20:41; 28:25; 39:27), so Ben Sira prays that God be magnified by judging the nations before Israel (Ezek 38:21–23). This is so that the nations may come to know the Lord as the one true God, just as Israel has come to know that there is no God but him (Exod 6:7; 1 Kings 8:60; Isa 45:14; Zech 14:9).

[36:6–7]

Ben Sira asks the Lord to perform new signs and wonders like those he manifested when he delivered Israel from Egypt (Exod 7:3), and to make his hand and right arm glorious by displaying his power to the nations that do not know him (Exod 15:6; Ps 98:1; Isa 63:12). One senses that Ben Sira has specific enemies in mind when he petitions God to pour out his wrath (Isa 42:13) and destroy the adversary and enemy of Israel—presumably referring again to the reigning and increasingly hostile Seleucids.

[36:8–10]

Ben Sira continues to pray: Hasten the day of the Lord (Hebrew: “Hasten the end” of the present age), the appointed time when God will execute his final judgment on the heathen nations and usher in the messianic age (Isa 2:12–17; Obad 15; Zeph 1:7–18), so that people may recount his mighty deeds throughout the world (Pss 75:1–2; 145:12). Ben Sira desires that any evildoer who survives the natural catastrophes, famines, or wars likely to accompany the day of judgment be consumed supernaturally in God’s fiery wrath, and that those who harm God’s people, Israel, be utterly destroyed. His request that God would crush the heads of the rulers of the enemy likely refers again to the Seleucids (with a possible allusion to Gen 3:15 or Num 24:17), who arrogantly say, “There is no one but ourselves” ruling in power over others (Isa 47:8–10; Dan 11:18; Zeph 2:15). Significantly, less than two centuries after these words were written, God did in fact usher in the messianic age with the birth of Jesus. New signs and wonders marked his first coming, although the definitive judgment of evildoers awaits Jesus’s second coming.

[36:11]

Even though many Jews had returned to Judea from the Babylonian exile, many more remained scattered in foreign lands in Ben Sira’s time. In light of this, he prays: Gather all the tribes of Jacob—that is, the whole people of Israel—and give them their inheritance, the land of Israel, as it was at the beginning, when the twelve tribes conquered the land under Joshua and later subdued it under King David (2 Sam 7:1). God’s promise to gather the tribes of Israel back to their land is one of the most frequently mentioned prophecies in the Bible.E.g., Isa 11:11–12; 27:13; Jer 3:18; 30:3; 31:8–10; Ezek 36:8–11; 39:25–27; Amos 9:14. Ben Sira’s prayer also shows that Jews of the †Second Temple period did not consider the prophetic promises to be fulfilled by the partial return of exiles from Babylon.

[36:12–13]

Ben Sira then asks that the Lord show mercy upon the people called by his name, for it is God himself (Hebrew: “El”) who renamed Jacob as Israel (Gen 32:28; 35:10; Jer 14:9). By calling his people by his name, the Lord adopted Israel as his first-born son (Exod 4:22; Wis 18:13; Hosea 11:1), establishing a uniquely intimate relationship with them (Catechism 441). Acknowledging Israel’s special status, Ben Sira also pleads with the Lord to have pity on the city of his sanctuary (or “holy city”), Jerusalem, the dwelling place of God’s rest and presence (Deut 12:10–11; 1 Kings 8:13; Ps 132:8).

[36:14–16]

Ben Sira not only asks God to spare Jerusalem but also requests that the Lord fill Zion with the celebration of his wondrous deeds (Hebrew: “with your majesty”), and the temple with his glory—as he did at the earlier dedications of the tabernacle and temple (Exod 40:34–35; 1 Kings 8:11; Hag 2:7). Ben Sira further prays that God would bear witness to Israel, his firstborn, whom he created in the beginning of his redemptive work (Hebrew: “the first of your works”), and fulfil the prophecies (Hebrew: “establish the vision”) foretelling God’s future victory over Israel’s enemies. He expresses that it would be just for God to reward those who patiently wait for him to fulfill his promises, so that his prophets may be found trustworthy as their words come to pass.

[36:17]

Ben Sira concludes his prayer with a final appeal: Listen, O Lord, to the prayer of your servants, the faithful remnant of Israel (compare 1 Kings 8:30; Dan 9:17), according to the blessing of Aaron that bestowed God’s grace and peace upon the nation (Num 6:22–27). By guiding Israel in the way of righteousness, the Lord will reveal his glory and power, so that all peoples of the earth will know that he is the Lord, the God of the ages or “eternal God” (Gen 21:33; Isa 40:28).

Although Ben Sira’s prayer reflects a specific historical context—Israel’s call for God’s deliverance from the increasing oppression of the Seleucids in the early second century BC—it can also be read and prayed ^†typologically by Christians today as a call for God’s deliverance from evil. In fact, the Church includes this prayer as part of Morning Prayer (Mondays, Week II). The oppression of God’s people is not limited to Ben Sira’s time. Christians must continually struggle against spiritual, social, cultural, and political forces hostile to the gospel and to Christ’s reign. In the midst of this battle, Christians can pray Ben Sira’s words as a call for the day of the Lord, when Christ’s reign will be “fulfilled ‘with power and great glory’ by the king’s return to earth” (Catechism 671; see Luke 21:27; compare Matt 25:31). In the present time, still marked by distress and the trial of evil, Ben Sira’s prayer remains a fitting precursor to the ancient Christian prayer Marana tha—“Our Lord, come!” (1 Cor 16:22; see Catechism 672–73).

¹⁸The stomach will take any food,
yet one food is better than another.
¹⁹As the palate tastes the kinds of game,

so an intelligent mind detects false words.
²⁰A perverse mind will cause grief,
but a man of experience will pay him back.
²¹A woman will accept any man,
but one daughter is better than another.
²²A woman’s beauty gladdens the countenance,
and surpasses every human desire.
²³If kindness and humility mark her speech,
her husband is not like other men.
²⁴He who acquires a wife gets his best possession,
a helper fit for him and a pillar of support.
²⁵Where there is no fence, the property will be plundered;
and where there is no wife, a man will wander about and sigh.
²⁶For who will trust a nimble robber
that skips from city to city?
So who will trust a man that has no home,
and lodges wherever night finds him?

^37:1Every friend will say, “I too am a friend”;
but some friends are friends only in name.
²Is it not a grief to the death
when a companion and friend turns to enmity?
³O evil imagination, why were you formed
to cover the land with deceit?
⁴Some companions rejoice in the happiness of a friend,
but in time of trouble are against him.
⁵Some companions help a friend for their stomachs’ sake,
and in the face of battle take up the shield.
⁶Do not forget a friend in your heart,
and be not unmindful of him in your wealth.

⁷Every counselor praises counsel,
but some give counsel in their own interest.
⁸Be wary of a counselor,

and learn first what is his interest—
for he will take thought for himself—
lest he cast the lot against you
⁹and tell you, “Your way is good,”
and then stand aloof to see what will happen to you.
¹⁰Do not consult with one who looks at you suspiciously;
hide your counsel from those who are jealous of you.
¹¹Do not consult with a woman about her rival
or with a coward about war,
with a merchant about barter
or with a buyer about selling,
with a grudging man about gratitude
or with a merciless man about kindness,
with an idler about any work
or with a man hired for a year about completing his work,
with a lazy servant about a big task—
pay no attention to these in any matter of counsel.
¹²But stay constantly with a godly man
whom you know to be a keeper of the commandments,
whose soul is in accord with your soul,
and who will sorrow with you if you fail.
¹³And establish the counsel of your own heart,
for no one is more faithful to you than it is.
¹⁴For a man’s soul sometimes keeps him better informed
than seven watchmen sitting high on a watchtower.
¹⁵And besides all this pray to the Most High
that he may direct your way in truth.

OT: Gen 2:18, 20; Prov 18:22; Sir 6:5–17; 12:8–18; 26:1–4
NT: Rom 12:2; 16:1–19; Phil 1:9–10; 2:3–4; 3:17–19
Catechism: choosing wisely in accord with conscience, 1786–89, 1954

[36:18–20] Some things—and people—are better than others; wisdom lies in discerning between them and choosing what is good. There is a parallel between the discernment of the senses and that of the intellect: just as one food is better than another, and the palate tastes the difference between good and bad game, so an intelligent mind detects falsehood from truth in speech. While a perverse mind (or “deceitful heart”) causes grief and trouble to others through lies, a person of experience knows how to counter and repay such mischief. This counsel on wise discernment is next applied to choosing a wife (36:21–26), friends (37:1–6), and advisers (37:7–15).

[36:21]

Returning to the topic of women (25:13–26:18), Ben Sira emphasizes the blessing of finding a good wife (Prov 18:22). In Ben Sira’s time, a woman typically had little or no say in choosing a husband, and so would accept any man. In contrast, a man who could choose whom to marry was advised to select his wife wisely, as one daughter could differ greatly from another, not only in beauty but, more importantly, in character and virtues.

[36:22–24]

A woman’s beauty gladdens a man’s face and brings him delight, for it surpasses every human desire. Yet, while men typically seek women of exceptional beauty (26:16), a man who marries a woman known for her kindness and humility is more fortunate than others (compare Prov 15:4). Indeed, a man who finds a good wife obtains his best possession and a great blessing (Sir 26:1–4), for she will be a helper fit for him—echoing the language of Eve’s creation (Gen 2:18, 20)—and a pillar of support through both the joys and trials of life.

[36:25–26]

Without a protective fence to guard it from intruders, a property will be plundered (Hebrew: “the vineyard is laid waste”; Prov 24:30–31; Isa 5:5). Likewise, where there is no wife—who serves as a protective presence around her husband—a man will wander aimlessly and sigh in despair. The Hebrew text describes the man without a wife as “a fugitive and a wanderer” (NRSV)—reflecting the sad state of Cain after he murdered Abel (Gen 4:12, 14). Within this Old Testament context, Ben Sira implies that the unmarried man, like Cain, lives in a type of exile, as vulnerable as an unfenced vineyard. Just as no one trusts a nimble robber who moves from city to city, so people do not trust an unmarried man who has no home (literally, “no nest”) and, wandering restlessly from place to place, lodges wherever night finds him (see Prov 27:8).

[37:1–3]

Ben Sira returns to one of his favorite topics—friendship—and the need to discern true from false friends (37:1–6; see 6:5–17; 12:8–18; 22:19–26). Though every companion may claim, “I too am a friend,” not all are sincere: some are friends only in name and seek their own gain (Prov 20:6). It is particularly painful—a grief to the death—when a former companion and friend turns into an enemy (Sir 22:19–26; 27:16–21). Ben Sira personifies and rhetorically addresses the evil inclination present in every human heart that leads to such betrayals: O evil imagination, why were you formed to cover the land with deceit and harm so many friendships (Pss 41:9; 55:12–14)?On the evil inclination, see the commentary on 15:14 and the sidebar “The Good and Evil Inclinations” (p. 141).

[37:4–6]

Some companions rejoice in the happiness of a friend only to benefit themselves (Hebrew: “A harmful friend will look to your table”), eager to share in good times and enjoy hospitality, but in time of trouble they turn against him or stand aloof, indifferent to the friend’s plight (6:8–12). These fair-weather companions only help a friend for their stomachs’ sake, hoping to get invited to good meals. The Hebrew reads instead: “A good friend will fight against the foe” (NABRE). In the face of battle the true friend will take up the shield to defend his companions from attacks (Ps 35:2). Thus, the wise person is advised to not forget a true friend in his heart (Hebrew: “in battle”), and to remember him in wealth by rewarding him generously for his loyalty.

[37:7–9] It is also a mark of wisdom to avoid bad advisers (37:7–11) and to choose good ones (37:12–15). While every counselor praises his own counsel, some have only their own interest and advantage in mind. Thus, be wary of a counselor, and before listening to him, first consider his motives and what he stands to gain from his own advice—for an unscrupulous counselor will think of himself first and may even plot against you, acting in his favor rather than yours. He may even recommend a bad course of action, saying, “Your way is good,” only to stand aloof as misfortunes befall you to his own advantage.

[37:10–11]

It is also unwise to seek advice from one who looks at you suspiciously and does not trust you; hide your counsel and plans from those who are jealous of you, lest they give you harmful advice. Ben Sira lists nine types of people from whom one should not seek counsel, either because they have a vested interest in their own advice or because they are of dubious character and would likely give harmful guidance regarding the matter at hand.

[37:12]

One should seek advice from a godly man (10:19–20), one who conscientiously keeps the commandments, for if he is faithful to the law, he will likely be faithful to you as well. If this person’s soul is in accord with your soul—that is, he is like-minded with you—he will rejoice with you in your success and sorrow with you if you fail.

[37:13–15]

Nevertheless, before accepting the advice of others, it is best to establish the counsel of your own heart—in other words, rely on your own judgment—for if you fear the Lord, no one is more faithful to you than your own heart’s counsel. No one looks after your own interests more than you do, and your own deliberations may often provide the best guidance (1:11–13; 6:32–37). Your own soul and conscience are often more reliable than seven watchmen sitting high on a watchtower, counselors observing all around them but not having your best interest in mind. Above all, whether you seek the advice of others or rely on your own judgment, pray to the Most High for his guidance, that he may direct your way in truth and keep you on the right path (Prov 16:9).

Like Ben Sira, traditional Judaism holds marriage in high regard. On the basis of God’s order of creation, in which he created woman as man’s helper because it is “not good that the man should be alone” (Gen 2:18), and so the two could be joined as “one flesh” to “be fruitful and multiply” (1:27–28; 2:24), the †Talmud considers marriage so essential to a man’s well-being that it asserts hyperbolically: “Any man who has no wife lives without joy, blessing, goodness,” and “Any man who has no wife is no man.”Babylonian Talmud, Yebamot 62b, in Jacob Neusner, The Babylonian Talmud: A Translation and Commentary (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2011), 8:324–25.

Christian tradition likewise asserts the goodness of marriage as established by God for “the well-being of the individual person and of both human and Christian society” (Catechism 1603). Yet Christ, by choosing to remain celibate, gave a new meaning to celibacy: those who freely forsake the good of marriage “for the sake of the kingdom of heaven,” dedicating their lives entirely to the Lord and to the service of the Church, become a radiant sign of Christ’s reign on earth (Matt 19:12; 1 Cor 7:8, 25–38; Catechism 1579, 1618–20, 2231).

¹⁶Reason is the beginning of every work,
and counsel precedes every undertaking.
¹⁷As a clue to changes of heart
¹⁸four turns of fortune appear,
good and evil, life and death;
and it is the tongue that continually rules them.
¹⁹A man may be shrewd and the teacher of many,
and yet be unprofitable to himself.
²⁰A man skilled in words may be hated;
he will be destitute of all food,
²¹for grace was not given him by the Lord,
since he is lacking in all wisdom.
²²A man may be wise to his own advantage,
and the fruits of his understanding may be trustworthy on his lips.
²³A wise man will instruct his own people,
and the fruits of his understanding will be trustworthy.
²⁴A wise man will have praise heaped upon him,
and all who see him will call him happy.
²⁵The life of a man is numbered by days,
but the days of Israel are without number.
²⁶He who is wise among his people will inherit confidence,
and his name will live for ever.

²⁷My son, test your soul while you live;
see what is bad for it and do not give it that.
²⁸For not everything is good for every one,
and not every person enjoys everything.
²⁹Do not have an insatiable appetite for any luxury,
and do not give yourself up to food;
³⁰for overeating brings sickness,
and gluttony leads to nausea.
³¹Many have died of gluttony,
but he who is careful to avoid it prolongs his life.

OT: Deut 30:19; Prov 3:1–2,16–18; 4:10,22; 9:11; 18:21
NT: 1 Cor 6:12; 10:23
Catechism: natural law as God’s wisdom, 1954; temperance, 1809; gluttony, 1866

[37:16–18]

This section contrasts true and false wisdom (37:16–26). Reason (Greek logos) is the beginning of every work and successful human endeavor, and counsel obtained from good advisers (37:7–15) should precede every undertaking. The next statement, unclear in Greek (“As a clue to changes of heart four turns of fortune appear”), makes more sense in the Hebrew: “The root of all conduct is the heart; it sprouts four branches” (see also NRSV, NABRE). All human conduct originates in the heart or mind; it is a ground where conflicting ideas can diverge into four directions, which are really just two distinct paths: good, which leads to life, or evil, which leads to death (33:14; Deut 30:19). Yet it is ultimately not one’s thoughts but what the tongue utters that continually rules and directs the course of one’s existence toward either life or death (Prov 18:21).

[37:19–21]

Some teachers are more effective than others. One may be shrewd and clever at teaching others, yet unprofitable to himself and unable to manage his own affairs wisely because he does not practice what he teaches. A skillful and eloquent speaker may even be hated if he causes offense; struggling to make a living, he will find it difficult to even put food on his table. God withheld from him the winning grace to speak with tact and sensitivity to an audience because he failed to pursue and attain wisdom (1 Cor 1:17–2:5).

[37:22–24]

By contrast, one who is wise to his own advantage not only instructs his own people but also knows how to benefit from his own wisdom (Prov 12:14). Since he practices what he preaches, others consider the fruits of his understanding to be trustworthy (or “praiseworthy”) and reliable. A wise person who manages well his own affairs draws respect and praise from others, who, impressed by his accomplishments, call him happy or blessed (Greek makarizō). Ben Sira is speaking from a natural perspective, according to which living wisely and virtuously leads to a relatively peaceful and happy life. In the Gospels, Jesus points to a deeper and more lasting happiness, calling “happy” or “blessed” (Greek makarios) those who follow him on the path of the Beatitudes (Matt 5:3–12).

[37:25–26]

In contrast to the limited life of a man, which is numbered by days, the lifespan of Israel is beyond counting because God has promised the nation a long and enduring history (Jer 31:35–37). Still, even a wise individual, though mortal, can inherit confidence or “honor.” One who has established a lasting reputation will not be soon forgotten: his name will live and be remembered for ever (Sir 39:9; 41:13; 44:13–14).

[37:27–28]

Ben Sira now exhorts the reader to exercise temperance when eating (see Catechism 1809; the Reflection and Application section for 22:27–23:28 [p. 191]): My son, test your soul (or, more fittingly, “govern your appetite,” NABRE) while you live, learning from your own experience to stay healthy. Consider what is bad for you, and do not allow yourself to eat unhealthy foods or to overeat (31:12–24). Not every kind of food is good for every one, just as not every person enjoys the same food (36:18; 1 Cor 6:12; 10:23).

[37:29–31]

Temperance calls for restraining one’s appetites concerning both the quality and quantity of food. One should refrain from having an insatiable appetite for fine delicacies, and from indulging in food without moderation (31:17). Gluttonous overeating can lead to obesity and sickness such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and other chronic diseases. Indeed, it can even lead to an early death (Prov 5:23). That many have died of gluttony should serve as a warning to the reader: he who is careful to avoid it and eats with moderation prolongs his life. This counsel demonstrates how applied practical wisdom is truly a source of health and longevity (Sir 1:18; Prov 3:1–2, 16–18; 4:10, 22).

¹Honor the physician with the honor due him, according to your need of him,
for the Lord created him;
²for healing comes from the Most High,
and he will receive a gift from the king.
³The skill of the physician lifts up his head,
and in the presence of great men he is admired.
⁴The Lord created medicines from the earth,
and a sensible man will not despise them.
⁵Was not water made sweet with a tree

in order that his power might be known?
⁶And he gave skill to men
that he might be glorified in his marvelous works.
⁷By them he heals and takes away pain;
⁸the pharmacist makes of them a compound.
His works will never be finished;
and from him health is upon the face of the earth.

⁹My son, when you are sick do not be negligent,
but pray to the Lord, and he will heal you.
¹⁰Give up your faults and direct your hands aright,
and cleanse your heart from all sin.
¹¹Offer a sweet-smelling sacrifice, and a memorial portion of fine flour,
and pour oil on your offering, as much as you can afford.
¹²And give the physician his place, for the Lord created him;
let him not leave you, for there is need of him.
¹³There is a time when success lies in the hands of physicians,
¹⁴for they too will pray to the Lord
that he should grant them success in diagnosis
and in healing, for the sake of preserving life.
¹⁵He who sins before his Maker,
may he fall into the care of a physician.

¹⁶My son, let your tears fall for the dead,
and as one who is suffering grievously begin the lament.
Lay out his body with the honor due him,
and do not neglect his burial.
¹⁷Let your weeping be bitter and your wailing fervent;
observe the mourning according to his merit,
for one day, or two, to avoid criticism;
then be comforted for your sorrow.
¹⁸For sorrow results in death,
and sorrow of heart saps one’s strength.
¹⁹In calamity sorrow continues,
and the life of the poor man weighs down his heart.
²⁰Do not give your heart to sorrow;
drive it away, remembering the end of life.
²¹Do not forget, there is no coming back;
you do the dead no good, and you injure yourself.
²²“Remember my doom, for yours is like it:
yesterday it was mine, and today it is yours.”
²³When the dead is at rest, let his remembrance cease,
and be comforted for him when his spirit has departed.

OT: Exod 15:26; 2 Chron 16:12; Ps 24:3–4; Prov 3:7–8; Isa 38:1–5; Hosea 6:1

NT: Matt 4:24; 5:4; 24:50; 25:13; Mark 5:38; James 5:14–15

Catechism: no more mourning, 1044; Anointing of the Sick, 1499–532; the Beatitudes, 1716; the passions, 1762–70

[38:1–3]

From the health hazards of gluttony, Ben Sira turns to the topics of physicians and illness (38:1–15). His respect for doctors is ahead of his time. The Old Testament sees sickness as a consequence of the fall and sometimes as a punishment for sin (Deut 28:21–22), suggesting that one should turn not to doctors but to God to find healing (2 Chron 16:12; Prov 3:7–8; 4:20–22; Isa 38:1–5). Ben Sira’s view is consistent with his approach to practical wisdom, holding that God normally works for the good of man through human agency. Thus, the wise person should honor the physician with due honor (or “for his service,” NRSV), because everyone occasionally gets sick and has need of him. Going to a doctor does not slight God’s providence, for the Lord created physicians and gave them the skill to heal. This healing is not of their own doing but comes from the Most High (compare Exod 15:26). A doctor is even appreciated by the ruling powers, and he may well receive a gift from the king as a reward for his work. The God-given skill of the physician lifts up his head—that is, his expertise makes him distinguished and earns him respect from the community—so that he is admired even by powerful people (Prov 22:29).

[38:4–6] The Lord created medicines from the earth—plants and herbs with healing properties—as part of his wise design of creation, and a sensible, prudent person will not despise them but will honor God by making good use of them. Ben Sira recalls the incident during the exodus when God made bitter water sweet after Moses threw a tree into it, demonstrating his power in the created things of the world so that it might be known in Israel (Exod 15:23–25). Likewise, he gave medical skill to human beings so they might recognize him and glorify him in his marvelous works of healing (Sir 17:9) through the agency of physicians and medicine (2 Kings 20:7).

[38:7–8]

By those medicines, the physician heals and takes away pain, in collaboration with the pharmacist, who makes of them a compound. Thus God’s works of healing—here naturally through the agency of doctors and supernaturally through miracles—continue in every generation and will not end as long as this world endures. Since God is the author of life, he also bestows health (Greek: “peace”) upon the face of the earth.

[38:9–10]

And yet, one who is sick should not rely exclusively on the skill of the physician (compare 2 Chron 16:12) nor be negligent in relation to God, who gives life and health. His first recourse should be to pray to the Lord with faith that he will heal him (Sir 38:2; Exod 15:26; Hosea 6:1). The exhortation to renounce one’s faults implies a correlation between physical and spiritual health, even though both the Old and New Testaments recognize that sickness is not always a consequence of personal sin (Job 2:7; Isa 38; John 9:1–3). Nevertheless, since illness can be a chastisement that God sometimes inflicts on people for wrongdoing (Deut 29:21–29; Ps 32), the sick person should examine his conscience, direct his hands aright toward good deeds, and cleanse his heart from all sin by repentance (Ps 24:3–4; Prov 3:7–8).

[38:11–12]

To emphasize his prayer for healing, Ben Sira advises his Jewish reader to offer a sweet- smelling sacrifice—the grain offering that included a memorial portion of fine flour offered with oil and frankincense as a gift to God (Lev 2:1–3). Pouring abundant oil on the offering (literally, “make your offering fat”) is a sign of devotion. Ben Sira’s advice implies that prayer, repentance, and devotion to God have an impact on one’s health. This view is confirmed in the New Testament, although there it is the sick person, not a sacrifice, that is anointed (James 5:14–16; Catechism 1499, 1508). Seeking healing from God does not mean neglecting natural means of healing. Rather, it is appropriate to seek out the physician, for the Lord created him (see Sir 38:1), and the sick have need of him.

[38:13–15]

Sometimes, success in one’s recovery and continued good health lies in the hands of physicians, not only because of their skills but because they too, being aware that they have received these skills from God, the author of life (38:2), will pray that he grants them success in diagnosis and in healing the sick, thus preserving life. Ben Sira assumes that the physicians of his day are theists who humbly turn to God for help—an assumption we can no longer always make today. Nevertheless, whether or not they are aware of it, physicians are agents of God’s healing, appointed for the good of humanity. As for the person who sins before his Maker, Ben Sira agrees with the divine decree (Deut 28:58–61): such a person may fall ill and require the care of a physician, perhaps so that his affliction might lead him to repentance and conversion (compare 1 Cor 5:5).

[38:16]

Ben Sira turns to the topic of mourning the dead (38:16–23). One who has suffered loss should let tears fall for the dead, for it is proper to mourn the deceased. One who is suffering grievously over the loss of a loved one should begin the lament—the traditional Jewish lamentation for the dead, which was sometimes accompanied by the loud wailing of professional mourning men and women (2 Sam 1:17; Jer 7:29; 9:17–18; Mark 5:38). Relatives of the deceased should lay out and prepare his body for burial with due honor and proper ceremony. Honorably burying the dead is a sacred duty in both Judaism and Christianity (Tob 1:17–18; 4:3–4).

[38:17]

In Middle Eastern cultures, both ancient and modern, people do not suppress their emotions at the death of a loved one. In this context, it is appropriate for mourners to express their pain freely and loudly with bitter weeping and fervent wailing while also beating their chests (Isa 22:4; Jer 16:7; Zech 12:10). They are expected to observe the mourning period according to the deceased person’s merit for an appropriate length of time—typically at least one or two days of weeping and wailing to avoid criticism, lest they appear insensitive. But then the mourners are to be comforted for their sorrow by pulling themselves together and controlling their emotions. Though the formal period of mourning in Judaism lasts seven days (Sir 22:12; Job 2:13), mourners should regain their composure after the initial days of mourning. According to the Talmud, “Three days are for weeping, seven for lamenting, thirty for not getting a haircut and not wearing meticulously groomed clothing.”Babylonian Talmud, Moed Qatan 27b (Neusner, Babylonian Talmud, 7c:149).

[38:18–19]

Excessive sorrow can afflict the soul to such an extent that it can result in the mourner’s death, for sorrow of heart saps one’s physical and emotional strength. The Talmud concurs, stating that “whoever grieves excessively for his deceased will weep for yet another death”—that is, potentially his own.Babylonian Talmud, Moed Qatan 27b (Neusner, Babylonian Talmud, 7c:149). In calamity sorrow continues: the Greek is unclear; some manuscripts read instead, “When a [deceased] person is carried away [for burial], sorrow is over” (NABRE; compare NRSV). Yet the life of the poor, afflicted man who remains trapped in prolonged grief needlessly weighs down his heart (also obscure in the Greek).

[38:20–21]

Because mourning can be so harmful to the soul, mourners should not wholly give their heart to sorrow. Even when there are good reasons to express sorrow, at some point mourners must drive it away, as it is pointless and harmful to waste all of one’s energy mourning. The mourner must remember the end of life: life is short, and we must make the best of it while we can. There is obviously no coming back from death to this life here on earth (Wis 2:1). Those who mourn excessively do no good to the dead and will only injure themselves.

[38:22–23]

In the Greek text, Ben Sira imagines the dead man speaking to the mourner in the first person, reminding him that they share a common fate: “Remember my doom, for yours is like it—you too will die; yesterday this fate was mine, and today it is yoursThe Hebrew text is in the third person, continuing the thought of the narrator (“Remember his doom . . .”) (see also ESV-CE, NABRE)..“¹² Remain alert and sober, therefore, because you do not know when it will be your turn. Once the deceased is at rest, the mourners should “let him go” and allow his remembrance to fade after a reasonable period of mourning. One should not sink into depression or isolate oneself but be comforted by others when the deceased’s spirit has departed. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus promises that those who mourn shall be comforted (Matt 5:4).

On Sorrow and Grief
Although Ben Sira warns against excessive display of sorrow, he in no way disparages grief when shown in the right context and appropriate measure. Church Father St. Paulinus of Nola (355–431) recalls the heroes of Scripture who shed tears over the dead: Abraham wept over Sarah’s passing (Gen 23:2) and showed care by purchasing a burial site for her (23:9). Jacob honored his beloved Rachel by setting up a pillar on her grave (35:19–20). Joseph shed pious tears for his deceased father, Jacob (50:1). David lamented and drenched his bed with tears almost every night (Ps 6:6–7). Tobit was praised for burying a poor man instead of attending to his own needs (Tob 12:12–13). Even Jesus wept for his friend Lazarus (John 11:35), assuming our human condition “to the point of shedding tears for the dead and acting like a weak human person toward him whom he was going to raise by divine power.” In his humanity, “the merciful and compassionate Lord also grieved over the condition of the human race, and in those tears with which he grieved our sins, he also cleansed them.”Paulinus of Nola, Letter 13 to Pammachius (Voicu, Apocrypha, 359–60).

Sorrow is a passion, a natural emotional reaction to a present hardship (such as the death of a loved one); in itself, it is neither morally good nor evil. Yet like the other passions, it takes on a moral quality insofar as it engages the reason and the will (Catechism 1762–70; see the Reflection and Application section for 30:14–31:11 [pp. 242–43]). If guided by the reason and will (e.g., by moderating the intensity and duration of one’s sorrow in proportion to its cause), sorrow can become virtuous. Sorrow can, for instance, make a person more compassionate, patient, and kind. Yet if not governed by reason and will, sorrow can give rise to vices, making a person bitter, apathetic, or self-centered. Though Christians should not suppress their emotions, they should remain aware that in our fallen world, our emotions are often wounded, disordered, and prone to mislead. It is the disciple’s task and responsibility to wisely govern their emotions, always directing them toward the good (Catechism 1768).