Sirach 22 A slothful man is compared to a stone that is defiled; And every one will hiss him out in his disgrace.

ERV⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹ A slothful man is compared to a stone that is defiled; And every one will hiss him out in his disgrace. ² A slothful man is compared to the filth of a dunghill: Every man that taketh it up will shake out his hand. ³ A father hath shame in having begotten an uninstructed [son;] And a [foolish] daughter is born to his loss. ⁴ A prudent daughter shall inherit a husband of her own; And she that bringeth shame is the grief of him that begat her. ⁵ She that is bold bringeth shame upon father and husband; And she shall be despised of them both. ⁶ Unseasonable discourse is [as] music in mourning; But stripes and correction are wisdom at every season. ⁷ He that teacheth a fool is [as] one that glueth a potsherd together; [Even as] one that waketh a sleeper out of a deep sleep. ⁸ He that discourseth to a fool is [as] one discoursing to a man that slumbereth; And at the end he will say, What is it? ⁹ ¹¹ Weep for the dead, for light hath failed [him;] And weep for a fool, for understanding hath failed [him:] Weep more sweetly for the dead, because he hath found rest; But the life of the fool is worse than death. ¹² Seven days are [the days of] mourning for the dead; But for a fool and an ungodly man, all the days of his life. ¹³ Talk not much with a foolish man, And go not to one that hath no understanding: Beware of him, lest thou have trouble; And [so] thou shalt not be defiled in his onslaught: Turn aside from him, and thou shalt find rest; And [so] thou shalt not be wearied in his madness. ¹⁴ What shall be heavier than lead? And what is the name thereof, but a fool? ¹⁵ Sand, and salt, and a mass of iron, is easier to bear, Than a man without understanding. ¹⁶ Timber girt and bound into a building shall not be loosed with shaking: So a heart established in due season on well advised counsel shall not be afraid. ¹⁷ A heart settled upon a thoughtful understanding Is as an ornament of plaister on a polished wall. ¹⁸ Pales set on a high place will not stand against the wind: So a fearful heart in the imagination of a fool will not stand against any fear. ¹⁹ He that pricketh the eye will make tears to fall; And he that pricketh the heart maketh it to shew feeling. ²⁰ Whoso casteth a stone at birds frayeth them away; And he that upbraideth a friend will dissolve friendship. ²¹ If thou hast drawn a sword against a friend, despair not; For there may be a returning. ²² If thou hast opened thy mouth against a friend, fear not; For there may be a reconciling; Except it be for upbraiding, and arrogance, and disclosing of a secret, and a treacherous blow: For these things every friend will flee. ²³ Gain trust with thy neighbour in his poverty, That in his prosperity thou mayest have gladness: Abide stedfast unto him in the time of his affliction, That thou mayest be heir with him in his inheritance. ²⁴ Before fire is the vapour and smoke of a furnace; So revilings before bloodshed. ²⁵ I will not be ashamed to shelter a friend; And I will not hide myself from his face: ²⁶ And if any evil happen unto me because of him, Every one that heareth it will beware of him. ²⁷ Who shall set a watch over my mouth, And a seal of shrewdness upon my lips, That I fall not from it, and that my tongue destroy me not?