en_wyc2014 - Sir 7 - Ozzuu Bible

¹ A good name is better than precious ointments (A good name, or a good reputation, is better than expensive perfume); and the day of death is better than the day of birth.

² It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to the house of a feast; for in that house the end of all men is warned (of), and a man living thinketh, what is to coming (for in that house the end of all people is warned of, and the living should think of what is to come).

³ Ire is better than laughing; for the soul of a trespasser is amended by the heaviness of (his) cheer.

⁴ The heart of wise men is where sorrow is; and the heart of fools is where folly gladness is.

⁵ It is better to be reproved of a wise man, than to be deceived by the flattering of fools; (It is better to be rebuked by a wise person, than to be deceived by the flattery of fools;)

⁶ for as the sound of thorns burning under a pot, so is the laughing of a fool. But also this is vanity. (for the sound of thorns burning under a pot, is like the laughter of a fool. But this is also empty and futile.)

⁷ False challenge troubleth a wise man, and it shall lose the strength of his heart. (Untrue words, that is, lies and slander, trouble a wise person, and they shall destroy the strength of his heart, that is, his resolve, or his determination.)

⁸ Forsooth the end of prayer is better than the beginning. A patient man is better than a proud man.

⁹ Be thou not swift to be wroth; for ire resteth in the bosom of a fool. (Do not thou be quick to get angry; for anger lieth in the heart of a fool.)

¹⁰ Say thou not, What guessest thou is the cause, that the former times were better than be now? for why such asking is fond (for such questioning is foolish).

¹¹ Forsooth wisdom with riches is more profitable, and profiteth more to men seeing the sun. (For wisdom is more profitable than riches, and profiteth all who see the sun.)

¹² For as wisdom defendeth, so money defendeth; but learning and wisdom have this moreover, that those give life to them that have them. (For like wisdom defendeth, so money defendeth; but learning and wisdom have this as well, that they give life to those who have them.)

¹³ Behold thou the works of God, and see that no man may amend him, whom God hath despised.

¹⁴ In a good day use thou (thy) goods, and before eschew thou an evil day (On a good day, enjoy thy good things, but shun thou them on an evil day); for God made so this day as that day, (so) that a man find not just complainings against him.

¹⁵ Also I saw these things in the days of my nativity;[1] a just man perisheth in his rightfulness, and a wicked man liveth much time in his malice. (And I have seen these things since the day of my birth/in my empty and futile days; a righteous person perisheth in his righteousness, and a wicked person liveth a great deal of time in his malice.)

¹⁶ Do not thou be just over much, neither understand thou more than is needful; lest thou be astonied. (Do not thou be too good, nor understand thou more than is useful; lest thou be regarded with contempt, or with derision.)

¹⁷ Do thou not wickedly much (Do not thou do many wicked things), and do not thou be a fool; lest thou die in a time not thine.

¹⁸ It is good, that thou sustain a just man; but also withdraw thou not thine hand from him; for he that dreadeth God, is not negligent of anything. (It is good that thou sustain the one, but also do not thou withdraw thy hand from the other; for he who feareth God, is not negligent of anything.)

¹⁹ Wisdom hath strengthened a wise man, over ten princes of a city. (Wisdom can strengthen the wise, more than ten leaders of a city.)

²⁰ Forsooth no just man there is in [the] earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not. (But there is no righteous person in the earth who only, or who always, doeth good, and never sinneth.)

²¹ But also give thou not thine heart to all (the) words, that be said; lest peradventure thou hear thy servant cursing thee;

²² for thy conscience knoweth, that also thou hast cursed oft other men. (for thy conscience knoweth that thou also hast often cursed other people.)

²³ I assayed all things in wisdom; I said, I shall be made wise, and it went away further from me (I said, I shall be made wise, but it went farther away from me),

²⁴ much more than it was; and the depth is low, who shall find it? (much more than it was before; and to such a depth, yea, so low down, that who shall ever be able to find it?)

²⁵ I compassed all things with my soul (I put my mind upon everything, yea), to know, and to behold, and (to) seek (out) wisdom, and reason, and to know the wickedness of a fool, and the error of unprudent men.

²⁶ And I found a woman bitterer than death, the which is (like) the snare of hunters, and her heart is (like) a net, and her hands be (like) bonds; he that pleaseth God shall escape her, but he that is a sinner, shall be taken of her. (And I found a woman more bitter than death, who is like a hunter’s snare, and her heart is like a net, and her hands be like bonds; he who pleaseth God shall escape her, but he who is a sinner shall be caught by her.)

²⁷ Lo! I found this, said Ecclesiastes, (concerning) one (thing) and (an)other, that I should find (the) reason,

²⁸ which my soul seeketh yet; and (other things) I found not. I found one man of a thousand; and I found not a woman of all. (which my soul yet seeketh; but other things I did not find. I found one man out of a thousand; but I did not find one woman out of all of them.)

²⁹ I found this only, that God made a man rightful [that God made man right]; and (then) he meddled himself with questions without number. (I found only this, that God made a person upright, or clear-headed; but then he mixed himself in/mixed himself up with too many questions.)

¹ Do not thou do evils, and those shall not take thee. [Do thou not do evils, and they shall not catch thee.]

² Depart thou from wickedness, and evils shall fail from thee. [Go away from the wicked, and there shall fail evils from thee.]

³ Sow thou not evils in the furrows of unrightfulness, and thou shalt not reap those in sevenfold. [Sow thou not evils in furrows of unrightwiseness, and thou shalt not reap them into the seventhfold.]

⁴ Do not thou seek of a man (the) leading, neither of a king the chair of honour. [Do not thou seek of a man the dignity of a leader, nor of a king the chair of worship.]

⁵ Justify thou not thee (or thyself) before God, for he is the knower of the heart; and do not thou desire to be seen wise with the king.

⁶ Do not thou seek to be made a judge, no but thou mayest break wickednesses by (thy) virtue; lest thou dread the face of a mighty man, and set slander (or a cause of stumbling) in thy swiftness. [Do thou not seek to be made a doomsman, but if thou be able by virtue (to) break wickednesses; lest peradventure thou out dread the face of the mighty, and put a cause of stumbling in thine hither and thither deliberateness.]

⁷ Do not thou sin in (or against) the multitude of a city, neither send thee (or thyself) (down) into the people; [Sin thou not in the multitude of the city, nor put thee into the people;]

⁸ neither bind thou [to] double sins, for thou shalt not be guiltless in one.

⁹ Do not thou be a coward in thy soul, to pray; and despise thou not to do alms-[deeds].

¹⁰ Say thou not, God shall behold in the multitude of my gifts; and when I shall offer to God alder-highest [or to the highest God], he shall take my gifts.

¹¹ Scorn thou not a man in the bitterness of (his) soul; for why God is the beholder, that maketh meek, and enhanceth (or exalteth). [Scorn thou not a man in the bitterness of soul; God forsooth the looker about is, that enhanceth and meeketh.]

¹² Do not thou love a leasing (or a lie) against thy brother; neither do thou in like manner against a friend.

¹³ Do not thou desire to lie any leasing (or any lie); for why the continuance thereof is not good. [Do thou not desire to lie each leasing; the busyness forsooth of them is not good.]

¹⁴ Do not thou be a jangler [or full of words] in the multitude of priests; and rehearse thou not a word in thy prayer.

¹⁵ Hate thou not travailous works, and earth-tithing, made of (or from) the Highest. [Hate thou not travailous works, and churlish doing formed of the Highest.]

¹⁶ Areckon thou not thee in the multitude of unlearned men. Have thou mind on ire, for it shall not tarry. [Not account thou thee in the multitude of men without discipline. Have mind of wrath, for it shall not tarry.]

¹⁷ Make thou meek greatly thy spirit, for why the vengeance of the flesh of an unpious man is fire, and worm(s). [Meek greatly thy spirit, for vengeance of the flesh of the unpious, fire and worm.]

¹⁸ Do not thou trespass against thy friend delaying money; neither despise thou a full dearworth(y) brother for gold.

¹⁹ Do not thou depart [or go away] from a wise woman, and good, whom thou hast gotten in the dread of the Lord; for why the grace of her shamefastness is above gold.

²⁰ Hurt thou not a servant working in truth, neither [or nor] an hired man giving his life.

²¹ A witty, (or a witting, or a knowing) servant be dearworthy to thee as thy (own) soul; defraud thou not him of freedom, neither forsake thou him (when) needy. [A well feeling servant be to thee loved as thy soul; beguile thou not him from freedom, nor forsake thou him helpless.]

²² Beasts be to thee? take thou heed to those; and if those be profitable, dwell those still at thee. [Beasts be to thee? take thou heed to them; and if they be profitable, abide they still with thee.]

²³ Sons be to thee? teach thou them, and bow thou them under chastising from their childhood. [Sons be to thee? teach them, and bow them from the childhood of them.]

²⁴ Daughters be to thee? keep thou the body of them, and show thou not (a) glad face to them. [Daughters be to thee? keep the body of them, and show thou not thy face glad to them.]

²⁵ Give thy daughter to marriage, and thou doest a great work; and give thou her to a wise man.

²⁶ If a woman is to thee after thy soul, cast her not away; and (or but) betake thou not thee in all thine heart to an hateful woman.

²⁷ Honour thy father; and forget thou not the wailings of thy mother.

²⁸ Have thou mind that thou haddest not been, no but by them, and yield thou to them as they did to thee. [Have mind for but by them thou haddest not been, and yield to them (by) what manner and they to thee.]

²⁹ In all thy soul dread thou God, and hallow thou his priests.

³⁰ In all thy virtue (or strength) love thou him that made thee; and forsake thou not his ministers [or (his) servants].

³¹ Honour thou God of (or with) all thy soul; and honour thou priests, and cleanse thee with (thine) arms, that is, by offerings gotten with thy travail. Give thou to them the part of the first fruits, and of purging, as also it is commanded to thee; and of thy negligence purge thou thee with few men. Thou shalt offer to the Lord the gift of thine arms, and the sacrifice of hallowing, the beginnings, that is, the first fruits and dimes (or tithes), of holy men. [Worship thou God of all thy soul; and worship priests, and purge thee forth with arms. Give to them part, as and commandment is to thee, of first fruits, and of purging; and of thy negligence purge thee with few. The gift of thine arms, and the sacrifice of hallowing, thou shalt offer to the Lord, the beginnings of holy things.]

³² And (ad)dress (or direct) thine hand to a poor man, (so) that thy mercy and (thy) blessing be performed. [And to the poor put forth thine hand, that pleasing be performed, and thy blessing.]

³³ Grace is given in the sight of each that liveth; and forbid thou not grace to a dead man. [Grace of gift in the sight of all living; and to the dead hinder or prohibit thou not grace.]

³⁴ Fail thou not in (or to do) comfort to them that weep; and go thou with them that mourn. [Fail thou not to weeping men to be in comforting; and with wailing men go thou.]

³⁵ Be thou not slow to visit a sick man [or the sick]; for by these things thou shalt be made steadfast in love.

³⁶ In all thy works have thou mind on thy last things; and thou shalt not do sin without end. [In all thy works have in mind thy last things; and without end thou shalt not sin.]