Ecclesiasticus 4
4
1My son, defraud not the poor of his living, and make not the needy eyes to wait long. 2Make not an hungry soul sorrowful; neither provoke a man in his distress. 3#Prov 3.28. Add not more trouble to an heart that is vexed; and defer not to give to him that is in need. 4#Tob 4.7; Matt 5.42. Reject not the supplication of the afflicted; neither turn away thy face from a poor man. 5Turn not away thine eye from the needy, and give him none occasion to curse thee: 6#Exod 22.23,24; Deut 15.9; Job 34.28. for if he curse thee in the bitterness of his soul, his prayer shall be heard of him that made him. 7Get thyself the love of the congregation, and bow thy head to a great man. 8Let it not grieve thee to bow down thine ear to the poor, and give him a friendly answer with meekness. 9#Job 29.12. Deliver him that suffereth wrong from the hand of the oppressor; and be not fainthearted when thou sittest in judgment. 10#Job 29.16; 31.18; Jas 1.27; Luke 6.35. Be as a father unto the fatherless, and instead of an husband unto their mother: so shalt thou be as the son of the most High, and he shall love thee more than thy mother doth.
The Benefits of Wisdom
11Wisdom exalteth her children, and layeth hold of them that seek her. 12#Prov 3.18; Prov 8.17. He that loveth her loveth life; and they that seek to her early shall be filled with joy. 13He that holdeth her fast shall inherit glory; and wheresoever she entereth, the Lord will bless. 14#Wis 7.28; John 14.21. They that serve her shall minister to the Holy One: and them that love her the Lord doth love. 15#Dan 7.22; Wis 3.8; 1 Cor 6.2. Whoso giveth ear unto her shall judge the nations: and he that attendeth unto her shall dwell securely. 16If a man commit himself unto her, he shall inherit her; and his generation shall hold her in possession. 17For at the first she will walk with him by crooked ways, and bring fear and dread upon him, and torment him with her discipline, until she may trust his soul, and try him by her laws. 18#Job 11.6; Dan 2.21,22. Then will she return the straight way unto him, and comfort him, and show him her secrets. 19But if he go wrong, she will forsake him, and give him over to his own ruin.
Sinful and Rightful Shame
20Observe the opportunity, and beware of evil; and be not ashamed when it concerneth thy soul. 21#1 Cor 7.10. For there is a shame that bringeth sin; and there is a shame which is glory and grace. 22Accept no person against thy soul, and let not the reverence of any man cause thee to fall. 23And refrain not to speak, when there is occasion to do good, and hide not thy wisdom in her beauty. 24For by speech wisdom shall be known: and learning by the word of the tongue. 25In no wise speak against the truth; but be abashed of the error of thine ignorance. 26#Prov 28.13; Jas 5.16. Be not ashamed to confess thy sins; and force not the course of the river. 27Make not thyself an underling to a foolish man; neither accept the person of the mighty. 28Strive for the truth unto death, and the Lord shall fight for thee. 29Be not hasty in thy tongue, and in thy deeds slack and remiss. 30Be not as a lion in thy house, nor frantic among thy servants. 31#Matt 10.8. Let not thine hand be stretched out to receive, and shut when thou shouldest repay.
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Ecclesiasticus 4: KJVAAE
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King James Version 1611, spelling, punctuation and text formatting modernized by ABS in 1962; typesetting © 2010 American Bible Society.