eat up your strength.
For a wild passion destroys its possessor,
And makes him the laughing-stock of his enemies.

[Sidenote: B. Sir. 6:5-8]
Well ordered speech makes friends,
And a gracious tongue wins kindly greetings.
Let those who are friendly toward you be many,
But your confidant one of a thousand.
If you would get a friend, get him by testing,
And do not give him your confidence too quickly.
For there is many a fair-weather friend,
But he does not remain in the day of need.

[Sidenote: B. Sir. 6:14-16]
A faithful friend is a strong defence,
And he who finds him finds a treasure.
There is nothing equal to a faithful friend,
And his worth is beyond price.
A faithful friend is a source of life,
And he who fears the Lord finds him.
He who fears the Lord directs his friendship aright,
For as he is, so is his friend.

[Sidenote: B. Sir. 7:12, 13]
Devise not a lie against your brother,
Nor do the like to a friend or associate.
Never take pleasure in speaking a falsehood.
For its outcome is not good.

[Sidenote: B. Sir. 7:20, 21]
Do not treat badly a servant who serves you faithfully,
Nor a hired servant who gives to you his best.
Love a sensible servant as your own self,
Defraud him not of liberty.

[Sidenote: B. Sir. 7:22, 23]
Honor your father with your whole heart,
And forget not the pangs of your mother.
Remember that of them you were born,
And now you can recompense them for what they have done for you.

[Sidenote: B. Sir. 7:29, 30]
Fear the Lord with all your soul,
And regard his priests with reverence.
Love your Creator with all your strength,
And do not neglect his ministers.

I. Date and Character of Jesus, the Son of Sirach. Out of the large
number of anonymous books that come from the Persian and Greek periods one
stands forth unique. It is the Wisdom of Ben Sira. With the exception of
the Psalter and Isaiah, it is the largest book that has come to us from
ancient Israel. Fortunately, its date and authorship may be determined
with reasonable certainty. In the prologue to the Greek translation, its
translator describes himself as the grandson of Jesus, the son of Sirach,
and states that he went to Egypt in 132 B.C. Hence it is probable that his
grandfather wrote some time during the early part of the second century
B.C. The appreciative description of Simon the high priest in the fiftieth
chapter of Ben Sira indicates that its author was a contemporary as well
as an admirer of that famous