Sirach 28 — ASVBT

28Verse 1He that taketh vengeance shall find vengeance from the Lord;
And he will surely make firm his sins.
^{Verse 2}Forgive thy neighbor the hurt that he hath done thee;
And then thy sins shall be pardoned when thou prayest.
^{Verse 3}Man cherisheth anger against man;
And doth he seek healing from the Lord?
^{Verse 4}Upon a man like himself he hath no mercy;
And doth he make supplication for his own sins?
^{Verse 5}He being himself flesh nourisheth wrath:
Who shall make atonement for his sins?
^{Verse 6}Remember thy last end, and cease from enmity:
Remember corruption and death, and abide in the commandments.
^{Verse 7}Remember the commandments, and be not wroth with thy neighbor;
And remember the covenant of the Highest, and wink at ignorance.^{Verse 8}Abstain from strife, and thou shalt diminish thy sins:
For a passionate man will kindle strife;
^{Verse 9}And a man that is a sinner will trouble friends,
And will make debate among them that are at peace.
^{Verse 10}As is the fuel of the fire, so will it burn;
And as the stoutness of the strife is, so will it burn:
As is the strength of the man, so will be his wrath;
And as is his wealth, so will he exalt his anger.
^{Verse 11}A contention begun in haste kindleth a fire;
And a hasty fighting sheddeth blood.
^{Verse 12}If thou blow a spark, it shall burn;
And if thou spit upon it, it shall be quenched:
And both these shall come out of thy mouth.^{Verse 13}Curse the whisperer and double-tongued:
For he hath destroyed many that were at peace.
^{Verse 14}A third person’s tongue hath shaken many,
And dispersed them from nation to nation;
And it hath pulled down strong cities,
And overthrown the houses of great men.
^{Verse 15}A third person’s tongue hath cast out brave women,
And deprived them of their labors.
^{Verse 16}He that hearkeneth unto it shall not find rest,
Nor shall he dwell quietly.
^{Verse 17}The stroke of a whip maketh a mark in the flesh;
But the stroke of a tongue will break bones.
^{Verse 18}Many have fallen by the edge of the sword:
Yet not so many as they that have fallen because of the tongue.
^{Verse 19}Happy is he that is sheltered from it,
That hath not passed through the wrath thereof;
That hath not drawn its yoke,
And hath not been bound with its bands.
^{Verse 20}For the yoke thereof is a yoke of iron,
And the bands thereof are bands of brass.
^{Verse 21}The death thereof is an evil death;
And Hades were better than it.
^{Verse 22}It shall not have rule over godly men;
And they shall not be burned in its flame.
^{Verse 23}They that forsake the Lord shall fall into it;
And it shall burn among them, and shall not be quenched:
It shall be sent forth upon them as a lion;
And as a leopard it shall destroy them.
^{Verse 24}Look that thou hedge thy possession about with thorns;
Bind up thy silver and thy gold;
^{Verse 25}And make a balance and a weight for thy words;
And make a door and a bar for thy mouth.
^{Verse 26}Take heed lest thou slip therein;
Lest thou fall before one that lieth in wait.