Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), Chapter 51

¹I will thank thee, O Lord and King, and praise thee, O God my Saviour: I do give praise unto thy name: ²For thou art my defender and helper, and has preserved my body from destruction, and from the snare of the slanderous tongue, and from the lips that forge lies, and has been mine helper against mine adversaries: ³And hast delivered me, according to the multitude of thy mercies and greatness of thy name, from the teeth of them that were ready to devour me, and out of the hands of such as sought after my life, and from the manifold afflictions which I had; ⁴From the choking of fire on every side, and from the midst of the fire which I kindled not; ⁵From the depth of the belly of hell, from an unclean tongue, and from lying words. ⁶By an accusation to the king from an unrighteous tongue my soul drew near even unto death, my life was near to the hell beneath. ⁷They compassed me on every side, and there was no man to help me: I looked for the succour of men, but there was none. ⁸Then thought I upon thy mercy, O Lord, and upon thy acts of old, how thou deliverest such as wait for thee, and savest them out of the hands of the enemies.

⁹Then lifted I up my supplications from the earth, and prayed for deliverance from death. ¹⁰I called upon the Lord, the Father of my Lord, that he would not leave me in the days of my trouble, and in the time of the proud, when there was no help. ¹¹I will praise thy name continually, and will sing praises with thanksgiving; and so my prayer was heard: ¹²For thou savedst me from destruction, and deliveredst me from the evil time: therefore will I give thanks, and praise thee, and bless they name, O Lord. ¹³When I was yet young, or ever I went abroad, I desired wisdom openly in my prayer. ¹⁴I prayed for her before the temple, and will seek her out even to the end. ¹⁵Even from the flower till the grape was ripe hath my heart delighted in her: my foot went the right way, from my youth up sought I after her. ¹⁶I bowed down mine ear a little, and received her, and gat much learning.

¹⁷I profited therein, therefore will I ascribe glory unto him that giveth me wisdom. ¹⁸For I purposed to do after her, and earnestly I followed that which is good; so shall I not be confounded. ¹⁹My soul hath wrestled with her, and in my doings I was exact: I stretched forth my hands to the heaven above, and bewailed my ignorances of her. ²⁰I directed my soul unto her, and I found her in pureness: I have had my heart joined with her from the beginning, therefore shall I not be foresaken. ²¹My heart was troubled in seeking her: therefore have I gotten a good possession. ²²The Lord hath given me a tongue for my reward, and I will praise him therewith. ²³Draw near unto me, ye unlearned, and dwell in the house of learning. ²⁴Wherefore are ye slow, and what say ye to these things, seeing your souls are very thirsty?

²⁵I opened my mouth, and said, Buy her for yourselves without money. ²⁶Put your neck under the yoke, and let your soul receive instruction: she is hard at hand to find. ²⁷Behold with your eyes, how that I have but little labour, and have gotten unto me much rest. ²⁸Get learning with a great sum of money, and get much gold by her. ²⁹Let your soul rejoice in his mercy, and be not ashamed of his praise. ³⁰Work your work betimes, and in his time he will give you your reward.