Sirach 31 - Common English Bible (CEB)

On wealth

31 Sleeplessness over wealth
makes the body waste away,
and anxiety about wealth
keeps sleep away.
² Worrying will keep you awake,
and serious illness
will chase sleep away.
³ Rich people have worked
to accumulate money,
and when they rest,
they fill themselves with their luxuries.
⁴ Poor people have worked
to eke out a living,
and when they rest,
they become needy again.

⁵ Whoever loves gold won’t be declared just,
and whoever pursues profits
will be led astray by them.
⁶ Many have been ruined because of gold,
and their destruction has met them head-on.^[a]
7 It’s a stumbling block for those
who are possessed by it,
and it will take
every senseless person captive.
⁸ Happy are the rich
who are without blame
and who don’t follow after gold.
⁹ Who are they,
so that we might praise them?
They have done wonders
among the people.
¹⁰ Who has been tested by wealth^[b]
and been found perfect?
For them it will be a reason to boast.
Who had the power to sin and didn’t,
and could do evil but didn’t?
¹¹ The possessions of such people
will be secure,
and the congregation will tell
of their acts of charity.

Behavior at meals

¹² Have you been seated
at a magnificent table?
Don’t be greedy as you sit there,
and don’t say,
“Look how much food there is!”
¹³ Remember, a greedy eye is a bad thing.
What has been created more greedy
than the eye?
For this reason, every face sheds tears.
¹⁴ Don’t reach out your hand
for whatever you see,
and don’t crowd your dinner companion by reaching into the same bowl.
¹⁵ Put yourself in your companion’s place,
and be considerate in everything.
¹⁶ Eat what’s put in front of you
like a normal human being,^[c]
and don’t chew rudely,
or you will be hated.
¹⁷ Be the first to stop,
to show your good breeding,
and don’t be gluttonous;
otherwise, you will offend.
¹⁸ If you have been seated
with a lot of people,
don’t help yourself before they do.

¹⁹ A little food is more than enough
for well-educated people!
They won’t gasp for breath
when they lie down to sleep.
²⁰ Healthy sleep depends
on not stuffing yourself.
Such people arise early and feel good.^[d]
The gluttons suffer the pains of insomnia, nausea, and colic.
²¹ If you’ve overstuffed yourself,
get up, vomit far away,
and you will feel better.
²² Listen to me, my child,
and don’t show me contempt,
and in the end you will understand
what I’m saying;
be careful^[e] in everything you do,
and you will never fall sick.
²³ People will bless those
who are generous with bread;
they give reliable testimony
to the excellence of such people.
²⁴ The city will murmur about those
who are stingy with bread,
giving accurate witness
to the wickedness of such people.

²⁵ Don’t demonstrate your bravado
in wine drinking,
because wine has destroyed many.
²⁶ A furnace tests the hardening of steel
when it’s dipped,^[f]
so wine tests the heart
when the arrogant quarrel.
²⁷ If taken in moderation,
wine makes people’s lives better.
What’s life to those who
don’t have wine?
It was created from the beginning
to bring merriment.
²⁸ The right amount of wine
consumed at the right time
makes for a joyful heart
and a light spirit.
²⁹ Too much wine drunk
in the midst of strife and conflict
makes for a bitter spirit.
³⁰ Getting drunk causes fools to lose
their temper and do themselves harm,
reducing their strength,
and adding injuries as well.
³¹ Don’t correct your neighbors
at a wine banquet,
and don’t show them contempt
when they are partying;
don’t say any reproachful word
to them,
and don’t trouble them
with any demands.

Footnotes

1. Sirach 31:6 Heb and who have trusted in jewels.
2. Sirach 31:10 Gk it
3. Sirach 31:16 Heb like a well-mannered person
4. Sirach 31:20 LXX and their spirit with them
5. Sirach 31:22 Heb moderate
6. Sirach 31:26 Heb tests the work of the smith