Single lesson
Sirach 13: Maintain caution around the rich and powerful
Sirach 13:1–14; Sirach 13:15–24
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. This lesson also brings together Wealth distorts solidarity and public judgment.
Before you teach
In this wisdom passage from the Catholic additional books, the speaker moves from images about influence and strength to a description of how the rich may treat the poor. The passage then gives practical counsel about invitations, speech, trust, and danger in such relationships.
Explain the central teaching of Sirach 13: Maintain caution around the rich and powerful, using two details from the reading. This passage teaches that where power is unequal, wisdom acts carefully and does not trust appearances too quickly. Sirach 13:15–24 warns that social status and wealth can distort human relationships and public judgement, while also saying poverty is not evil in itself.
Welcome: Sirach 13: Maintain caution around the rich and powerful
5 minIntroduce “Maintain caution around the rich and powerful”, “Wealth distorts solidarity and public judgment” and locate Sirach 13:1–14; Sirach 13:15–24. This passage teaches that where power is unequal, wisdom acts carefully and does not trust appearances too quickly. Invite each learner to name a detail or question they will listen for.
Sirach 13:1, Sirach 13:7, Sirach 13:13
Read and explain the passage
12 minMaintain caution around the rich and powerful (Sirach 13:1–14): The opening compares proud company to touching pitch. Pitch defiles, and fellowship with a proud man makes a person become like him. The warning is not only about what the proud man does, but about how close association can shape the one who joins him.
Wealth distorts solidarity and public judgment (Sirach 13:15–24): The passage begins with two matching observations: living creatures love or associate with their own kind, and people stick with those like themselves. This is presented as a pattern Sirach sees in life. It prepares for the harder examples that follow about who is welcomed and who is kept at a distance.
Read the selected verses together, pausing at “Maintain caution around the rich and powerful”, “Wealth distorts solidarity and public judgment”. Use the source reading below and check the explanation against the words of the passage.
Sirach 13:1, Sirach 13:15, Sirach 13:16
Discuss the details and their meaning
8 minUse the three questions below. Begin with “What do the pictures of pitch and the earthen pot add to the warning?” and allow time to find the supporting verses. Sirach 13:15–24 warns that social status and wealth can distort human relationships and public judgement, while also saying poverty is not evil in itself. Ask learners to explain which details support their answer and to identify a question they would like to explore further.
Sirach 13:1, Sirach 13:2, Sirach 13:3, Sirach 13:4, Sirach 13:6, Sirach 13:7, Sirach 13:24
Make and respond: Wisdom comparison cards
12 minWork on “Sirach 13: Maintain caution around the rich and powerful: Wisdom comparison cards”. Follow the materials and steps below, using “Maintain caution around the rich and powerful”, “Wealth distorts solidarity and public judgment” as reading headings. Each learner should include at least two accurate details and their verse references. Share one observation from the finished sheet and explain how it connects with the central teaching.
Sirach 13:1, Sirach 13:12, Sirach 13:24
Closing: return to Wealth distorts solidarity and public judgment
3 minRevisit Sirach 13:15–24. Invite a learner to summarise what the group has learned about Wealth distorts solidarity and public judgment and another to support the summary with a verse. Give learners a moment to complete their response sheet. They can share a question or, if appropriate for the group, join the optional prayer.
Sirach 13:15, Sirach 13:20, Sirach 13:24
Questions to explore
What do the pictures of pitch and the earthen pot add to the warning?
Notice that one image shows influence that rubs off, while the other shows what happens when unequal strength meets force.
Sirach 13:1, Sirach 13:2
How does the passage describe the changing treatment of a poor person by the rich?
Follow the verbs: threatens, exploits, forsakes, deceives, shames, and laughs to scorn.
Sirach 13:3, Sirach 13:4, Sirach 13:6, Sirach 13:7
What does verse 24 add so we do not misunderstand the whole passage?
It makes an important distinction: riches are discussed morally in relation to sin, and poverty is said to be evil only in the opinion of the ungodly.
Sirach 13:24
Make, think or respond
Sirach 13: Maintain caution around the rich and powerful: Wisdom comparison cards
What you’ll need
- plain paper or card
- pencils or pens
- a Bible or the source reading on this page
Try it together
- Fold a sheet into three panels or draw three columns. Label them “What the passage commends”, “What it warns against”, “The reason or outcome stated”.
- Read Sirach 13:1–14; Sirach 13:15–24. Use “Maintain caution around the rich and powerful”, “Wealth distorts solidarity and public judgment” as your reading headings and add a short quotation or detail with its verse reference to each panel.
- Compare your notes with a partner. Check that every quotation is accurate and every conclusion has support in the passage.
- Write a proposed everyday example beside one teaching. Label it as your example and explain which words in the text guided it.
The finished sheet keeps the details of Sirach 13: Maintain caution around the rich and powerful connected to their Bible references and gives the group a way to explain what they noticed.
Adapt for your group
- For learners who need more support, prepare the reading headings “Maintain caution around the rich and powerful”, “Wealth distorts solidarity and public judgment” and let them match short quotations to the correct heading.
- For confident readers, compare two sections of Sirach 13:1–14; Sirach 13:15–24. Ask for a written explanation with two supporting references and one question that the text leaves open.
An optional closing prayer
“God, help us listen carefully as we read Sirach 13:1–14; Sirach 13:15–24. Help us understand what we have read, ask thoughtful questions and respond with care for others. Amen.”
Read the Bible passage World English Bible Classic
Sirach 13
1 He who touches pitch will be defiled. He who has fellowship with a proud man will become like him.
2 Don’t take up a burden above your strength. Have no fellowship with one who is mightier and richer than yourself. What fellowship would the earthen pot have with the kettle? The kettle will strike, and the pot will be dashed in pieces.
3 The rich man does a wrong and threatens. The poor is wronged and apologizes.
4 If you are profitable, he will exploit you. If you are in need, he will forsake you.
5 If you own something, he will live with you. He will drain your resources and will not be sorry.
6 Does he need you? Then he will deceive you, smile at you, and give you hope. He will speak kindly to you and say, “What do you need?”
7 He will shame you by his delicacies until he has made you bare twice or thrice, and in the end he will laugh you to scorn. Afterward he will see you, will forsake you, and shake his head at you.
8 Beware that you are not deceived and brought low in your enjoyment.
9 If a mighty man invites you, be reserved, and he will invite you more.
10 Don’t press him, lest you be thrust back. Don’t stand far off, lest you be forgotten.
11 Don’t try to speak with him as an equal, and don’t believe his many words; for he will test you with much talk, and will examine you in a smiling manner.
12 He who doesn’t keep secrets to himself is unmerciful. He won’t hesitate to harm and to bind.
13 Keep them to yourself and be careful, for you walk in danger of falling.
15 Every living creature loves its own kind, and every man loves his neighbor.
16 All flesh associates with their own kind. A man will stick to people like himself.
17 What fellowship would the wolf have with the lamb? So is the sinner to the godly.
18 What peace is there between a hyena and a dog? What peace is there between a rich man and the poor?
19 Wild donkeys are the prey of lions in the wilderness; likewise poor men are feeding grounds for the rich.
20 Lowliness is an abomination to a proud man; likewise a poor man is an abomination to the rich.
21 When a rich man is shaken, he is supported by his friends, but when the humble is down, he is pushed away even by his friends.
22 When a rich man falls, there are many helpers. He speaks things not to be spoken, and men justify him. A humble man falls, and men rebuke him. He utters wisdom, and is not listened to.
23 A rich man speaks, and all keep silence. They extol what he says to the clouds. A poor man speaks, and they say, “Who is this?” If he stumbles, they will help to overthrow him.
24 Riches are good if they have no sin. Poverty is evil only in the opinion of the ungodly.
World English Bible Classic. Public domain.
Source passages
Some verse numbers are represented by textual notes in World English Bible Classic. The reading below follows the text printed in the main passage.