Bible passages

Sirach 8:10–19

Avoid risky disputes, obligations, and disclosures

Sirach 8:10–19 gives short warnings about situations that can trap, damage, or expose a person.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 9:1–9

Guard against jealousy and illicit desire

Sirach 9:1–9 gives a chain of warnings about jealousy and illicit desire. In short commands, it urges careful choices about relationships, where to look, where to go, and with whom to spend time.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 9:10–18

Choose wise companions and weigh public speech

Sirach 9:10–18 gives practical wisdom about friendship, influence, counsel, and speech. It moves from personal relationships to public behaviour, showing that the people we trust and the words we speak both carry serious consequences.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 10:1–5

Wise rule serves a people under God’s authority

Sirach 10:1–5 teaches that leadership matters greatly. This wisdom passage links good rule with understanding, warns about undisciplined rulers, and places human government under the Lord’s authority.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 10:6–18

Pride falls before mortality and divine reversal

Sirach 10:6–18 warns against anger, violence, and pride. It keeps bringing the reader back to a hard truth: human life is frail, but the Lord can bring down the proud and lift up the lowly.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 10:19–25

Reverence matters more than rank or wealth

This wisdom passage measures honour in a surprising way. It mentions family, rulers, rich and poor people, yet keeps returning to one standard: fearing the Lord matters more than status, wealth, or position.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 10:26–11:6

Judge worth beyond status, display, and appearance

This wisdom passage warns against boasting and against judging people by wealth, looks, clothes, or rank.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 11:7–9

Hear and investigate before judging

These sayings in Sirach teach careful listening, patient understanding, and wise restraint.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 11:10–19

Labor and accumulated wealth do not secure the future

Sirach 11:10–19 warns that restless effort and gathered wealth cannot guarantee safety or control.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 11:20–28

Remain faithful and judge a life by its end

Sirach 11:20–28 teaches patient faithfulness and careful judgement. It warns against being impressed by present success, crushed by present weakness, or too confident in present comfort.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 11:29–34

Beware a destructive guest

This wisdom passage warns against giving easy access to a deceitful person. It uses sharp comparisons to show how pride, blame and quarrels can enter a household and damage both reputation and family relationships.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 12:1–7

The teacher urges discernment in giving aid

Sirach 12:1–7 is wisdom about giving with care. The teacher does not praise thoughtless aid, but tells the reader to consider whom they are helping and what their help may support.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 12:8–18

An enemy’s friendliness may conceal betrayal

Sirach 12:8–18 warns that friendly behaviour can hide hostility. Through short sayings and strong comparisons, the passage teaches caution, especially because hardship can reveal both weak friendship and concealed enmity.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 13:1–14

Maintain caution around the rich and powerful

Sirach 13:1–13 warns readers to be cautious around proud, rich, and mighty people. Through sharp comparisons and direct advice, this wisdom passage shows how unequal power can expose a weaker person to harm.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 13:15–24

Wealth distorts solidarity and public judgment

Sirach 13:15–24 is a wisdom passage that observes how people group together and how wealth can twist friendship, respect and public judgement.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 13:25–14:2

A clear conscience and glad heart show themselves

These sayings in Sirach connect the inner life with what can be seen and heard. They move from the face, to wise sayings, to blessing for a person whose speech, conscience and hope are not burdened.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 14:3–19

Use possessions generously before life passes

Sirach 14:3–19 warns against clinging tightly to possessions. It contrasts the misery of the miser with the wise use of what a person has, especially while life is still available.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 14:20–15:10

Pursue wisdom and receive her nourishment

Sirach describes wisdom with pictures of searching, staying near, shelter and food. The passage teaches that wisdom is worth pursuing carefully, and it links that pursuit with fearing the Lord and possessing the law.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 15:11–20

Do not blame God for the choice to sin

Sirach 15:11–20 answers a serious excuse: blaming God for sin. This wisdom passage says God does not cause what he hates, and it calls readers to take responsibility for their choices.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 16:17–23

No one is lost from God’s sight in the vast creation

This wisdom passage warns against thinking anyone is too small or too hidden for the Lord to notice.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 16:24–17:14

Creation, human understanding, and the gift of covenant

This passage invites the reader to listen carefully as Sirach explains the Lord’s ordered creation, human limits, and the gifts given to people.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 17:15–23

God sees human conduct and remembers kindness

This wisdom passage says that God fully sees human conduct. It also says he especially remembers kindness, and that he will repay people afterwards.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 17:24–32

Return to God while life remains

Sirach 17:24–32 is a wisdom passage from the Catholic additional books. It urges people to turn back to God now, while they still live, and it ties repentance, prayer, thanksgiving, mercy, and human weakness closely together.

Catholic additional books

Sirach 18:1–14

Divine greatness meets human brevity with mercy

Sirach 18:1–14 sets God’s greatness beside the shortness of human life. It moves from what cannot be measured about the Lord to why his patience, mercy, correction and forgiveness matter for people.