Sirach 28 He that seeketh vengeance, shall finde vengeance of the Lord, & he will surely keepe his sinnes.

Geneva⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹ He that seeketh vengeance, shall finde vengeance of the Lord, & he will surely keepe his sinnes. ² Forgiue thy neighbour the hurt that he hath done to thee, so shal thy sinnes be forgiuen thee also, when thou prayest. ³ Should a man beare hatred against man, and desire forgiuenesse of the Lord? ⁴ Hee will shew no mercy to a man, which is like him selfe: & will he aske forgiuenes of his own sinnes? ⁵ If he that is but flesh, nourish hatred & aske pardon of God, who will intreate for his sinnes? ⁶ Remember the ende, and let enimitie passe: imagine not death & destructio to another through anger, but perseuere in the commaundements. ⁷ Remember the commaundements: so shalt thou not be rigorous against thy neighbour: consider diligently the couenant of the most High, and forgiue his ignorance. ⁸ Beware of strife, and thou shalt make thy sinnes fewer: for an angry man kindleth strife. ⁹ And the sinfull man disquieteth friends, and bringeth in false accusations among them that be at peace. ¹⁰ As the matter of the fire is, so it burneth, & mans anger is according to his power: and according to his riches his anger increaseth, & the more vehement the anger is, the more is he inflamed. ¹¹ An hastie brawling kindleth a fire, and an hasty fighting sheadeth blood: a tongue that beareth false witnesse, bringeth death. ¹² If thou blowe the sparke, it shall burne: if thou spit vpon it, it shalbe quenched, & both these come out of the mouth. ¹³ Abhorre ye slanderer and double tongued: for such haue destroyed many that were at peace. ¹⁴ The double tongue hath disquieted many, and driuen them from nation to nation: strong cities hath it broken downe, and ouerthrowen the houses of great men: the strength of the people hath it brought downe, and bene the decay of mightie nations. ¹⁵ The double tongue hath cast out many vertuous women, and robbed them of their labours. ¹⁶ Who so hearkeneth vnto it, shall neuer finde rest, and neuer dwell quietly. ¹⁷ The stroke of the rodde maketh markes in the flesh, but the stroke of the tongue breaketh the bones. ¹⁸ There be many that haue perished by the edge of the sword, but not so many as haue fallen by the tongue. ¹⁹ Wel is him that is kept from an euil tongue, and commeth not in the anger thereof, which hath not drawen in that yoke, neither hath bene bound in the bandes thereof. ²⁰ For the yoke thereof is a yoke of yron, and the bandes of it are bandes of brasse. ²¹ The death thereof is an euill death: hell were better then such one. ²² It shall not haue rule ouer them that feare God, neither shall they bee burnt with the flame thereof. ²³ Such as forsake the Lorde, shall fall therein: and it shall burne them, and no man shalbe able to quenche it: it shall fall vpon them as a lyon, and deuoure them as a leopard. ²⁴ Hedge thy possession with thornes, & make doores and barres for thy mouth. ²⁵ Binde vp thy siluer and golde, and weigh thy wordes in a balance, and make a doore and a barre, and a sure bridle for thy mouth. ²⁶ Beware that thou slide not by it, and so fall before him that lyeth in wayte and thy fall be incurable, euen vnto death.