Read & explore together
Good gifts are surpassed by wisdom, counsel, and reverence
Sirach 40:18–27 sets good things side by side and then ranks them. It praises ordinary gifts, yet keeps pointing beyond them, ending with its fullest praise for the fear of the Lord.
Understanding the passage
Listening in context
This wisdom passage from Sirach, in the Catholic additional books, speaks in a chain of comparisons. It mentions work, treasure, family, joy, speech, food, friendship, almsgiving, wealth, counsel, and the fear of the Lord. The verses teach by weighing one good thing against another rather than by telling a story.
Sirach 40:18–27Main takeaway
Sirach 40:18–27 teaches that many gifts are good, but wisdom, counsel, generosity, and above all the fear of the Lord are presented as better.
Look closely at the words
Open a card to explore the full explanation and its Bible references.
01Sweet labour and the one who finds treasureThe passage opens with two linked ideas: a person who labours and is content has a sweet life, and then a person who finds treasure is said to be better than both.
Explanation
The passage opens with two linked ideas: a person who labours and is content has a sweet life, and then a person who finds treasure is said to be better than both. Sirach begins by training the reader to compare blessings carefully, not to deny one good gift, but to weigh it beside another.
02Name, joy, and the love of wisdomChildren and the building of a city are said to establish a name, yet a blameless wife is better than both.
Explanation
Children and the building of a city are said to establish a name, yet a blameless wife is better than both. Wine and music also bring joy to the heart, but the love of wisdom is better than both. Sirach values honour and gladness, while placing character and wisdom higher.
03Speech, food, and welcome companionshipPleasant instruments make lovely sound, but a pleasant tongue is better. Grace and beauty attract the eye, yet green shoots of grain are valued more.
Explanation
Pleasant instruments make lovely sound, but a pleasant tongue is better. Grace and beauty attract the eye, yet green shoots of grain are valued more. A friend and companion are welcome, and a wife with her husband is better than both. These comparisons move toward what nourishes life, peace, and steady companionship.
04Help in trouble and what stands above richesIn affliction, relatives and helpers matter, but almsgiving is said to rescue better. Gold and silver can make the foot stand sure, yet counsel is better.
Explanation
In affliction, relatives and helpers matter, but almsgiving is said to rescue better. Gold and silver can make the foot stand sure, yet counsel is better. The passage reaches its summit with the fear of the Lord, which lacks nothing, needs no further help, and is like a garden of blessing.
Questions to explore
Pause, look back at the verses and talk together.
01What pattern is repeated through most of these verses?
Trace how each line names something good first and then names something the passage says is better.
02Which comparisons suggest that usefulness and goodness can matter more than appearance or entertainment?
Look closely at the contrast between music and a pleasant tongue, and between grace and beauty and green shoots of grain.
03How does the ending describe the fear of the Lord?
Use the passage’s own descriptions about lacking nothing, not needing help, and being like a garden of blessing.
Read the Bible passage
World English Bible ClassicScripture quotation · Public domain
Sirach 40:18–27
18The life of one who labors and is content will be made sweet. He who finds a treasure is better than both.
19Children and the building of a city establish a name. A blameless wife is better than both.
20Wine and music rejoice the heart. The love of wisdom is better than both.
21The pipe and the lute make pleasant melody. A pleasant tongue is better than both.
22Your eye desires grace and beauty, but the green shoots of grain more than both.
23A friend and a companion is always welcome, and a wife with her husband is better than both.
24Relatives and helpers are for a time of affliction, but almsgiving rescues better than both.
25Gold and silver will make the foot stand sure, and counsel is esteemed better than both.
26Riches and strength will lift up the heart. The fear of the Lord is better than both. There is nothing lacking in the fear of the Lord. In it, there is no need to seek help.
27The fear of the Lord is like a garden of blessing and covers a man more than any glory.