Ecclesiasticus / Sirach - The Old Testament

¹ My child, if you aspire to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for an ordeal.

² Be sincere of heart, be steadfast, and do not be alarmed when disaster comes.

³ Cling to him and do not leave him, so that you may be honoured at the end of your days.

⁴ Whatever happens to you, accept it, and in the uncertainties of your humble state, be patient,

⁵ since gold is tested in the fire, and the chosen in the furnace of humiliation.

⁶ Trust him and he will uphold you, follow a straight path and hope in him.

⁷ You who fear the Lord, wait for his mercy; do not turn aside, for fear you fall.

⁸ You who fear the Lord, trust him, and you will not be robbed of your reward.

⁹ You who fear the Lord, hope for those good gifts of his, everlasting joy and mercy.

¹⁰ Look at the generations of old and see: whoever trusted in the Lord and was put to shame? Or whoever, steadfastly fearing him, was forsaken? Or whoever called to him and was ignored?

¹¹ For the Lord is compassionate and merciful, he forgives sins and saves in the time of distress.

¹² Woe to faint hearts and listless hands, and to the sinner who treads two paths.

¹³ Woe to the listless heart that has no faith, for such will have no protection.

¹⁴ Woe to you who have lost the strength to endure; what will you do at the Lord's visitation?

¹⁵ Those who fear the Lord do not disdain his words, and those who love him keep his ways.

¹⁶ Those who fear the Lord do their best to please him, and those who love him will find satisfaction in the Law.

¹⁷ Those who fear the Lord keep their hearts prepared and humble themselves in his presence.

¹⁸ Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, not into any human clutches; for as his majesty is, so too is his mercy.