Ben Sira 41:14-22
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
True and False Shame[a]
14b Hidden wisdom and concealed treasure,
of what value is either?
15 Better is the person who hides his folly
than the one who hides his wisdom.
14a My children, listen to instruction about shame;
16a judge of disgrace according to my rules,
16b Not every kind of shame is shameful,
nor is every kind of disgrace to be recognized.
17 Before father and mother be ashamed of immorality,
before prince and ruler, of falsehood;
18 Before master and mistress, of deceit;
before the public assembly, of crime;
Before associate and friend, of disloyalty,
19 and in the place where you settle, of theft.
Be ashamed of breaking an oath or a covenant,
and of stretching your elbow at dinner;
Of refusing to give when asked,
21 of rebuffing your own relatives;
Of defrauding another of his appointed share,
20a of failing to return a greeting;
21c Of gazing at a man’s wife,
20b of entertaining thoughts about another woman;(A)
22 Of trifling with a servant girl you have,
of violating her bed;
Of using harsh words with friends,
of following up your gifts with insults;(B)
Footnotes
- 41:14–42:8 Ben Sira illustrates the subject of true and false shame with numerous and detailed examples of wrongdoing (41:14–22) and virtue (42:1–8), following the norm of the commandments.
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