Ecclesiasticus 10

1A wise judge shall judge his people, and the government of a prudent man shall be steady.● 2As the judge of the people is himself, so also are his ministers: and what manner of man the ruler of a city is, such also are they that dwell therein.● 3An unwise king shall be the ruin of his people: and cities shall be inhabited through the prudence of the rulers.● 4The power of the earth is in the hand of God, and in his time he will raise up a profitable ruler over it.● 5The prosperity of man is in the hand of God, and upon the person of the scribe he shall lay his honour.● 6Remember not any injury done thee by thy neighbour, and do thou nothing by deeds of injury.● 7Pride is hateful before God and men: and all iniquity of nations is execrable.● 8A kingdom is translated from one people to another, because of injustices, and wrongs, and injuries, and divers deceits.● 9But nothing is more wicked than the covetous man. Why is earth, and ashes proud?● 10There is not a more wicked thing than to love money: for such a one setteth even his own soul to sale: because while he liveth he hath cast away his bowels.● 11All power is of short life. A long sickness is troublesome to the physician.● 12The physician cutteth off a short sickness: so also a king is to day, and to morrow he shall die.● 13For when a man shall die, he shall inherit serpents, and beasts, and worms.● 14The beginning of the pride of man, is to fall off from God:● 15Because his heart is departed from him that made him: for pride is the beginning of all sin: he that holdeth it, shall be filled with maledictions, and it shall ruin him in the end.● 16Therefore hath the Lord disgraced the assemblies of the wicked, and hath utterly destroyed them.● 17God hath overturned the thrones of proud princes, and hath set up the meek in their stead.● 18God hath made the roots of proud nations to wither, and hath planted the humble of these nations.● 19The Lord hath overthrown the lands of the Gentiles, and hath destroyed them even to the foundation.● 20He hath made some of them to wither away, and hath destroyed them, and hath made the memory of them to cease from the earth.● 21God hath abolished the memory of the proud, and hath preserved the memory of them that are humble in mind.● 22Pride was not made for men: nor wrath for the race of women.● 23That seed of men shall be honoured, which feareth God: but that seed shall be dishonoured, which transgresseth the commandments of the Lord.● 24In the midst of brethren their chief is honourable: so shall they that fear the Lord, be in his eyes.● 25The fear of God is the glory of the rich, and of the honourable, and of the poor.● 26Despise not a just man that is poor, and do not magnify a sinful man that is rich.● 27The great man, and the judge, and the mighty is in honour: and there is none greater than he that feareth God.● 28They that are free shall serve a servant that is wise: and a man that is prudent and well instructed will not murmur when he is reproved; and he that is ignorant, shall not be honoured.● 29Extol not thyself in doing thy work, and linger not in the time of distress;● 30Better is he that laboureth, and aboundeth in all things, than he that boasteth himself and wanteth bread.● 31My son, keep thy soul in meekness, and give it honour according to its desert.● 32Who will justify him that sinneth against his own soul? and who will honour him that dishonoureth his own soul?● 33The poor man is glorified by his discipline and fear, and there is a man that is honoured for his wealth.● 34But he that is glorified in poverty, how much more in wealth? and he that is glorified in wealth, let him fear poverty.●