Be not wise in your own eyes, fear the LORD and turn away from
evil [PROV 3:7]
Envy not the lawless man and choose none of his ways [PROV
3:31]
With closest custody, guard your heart, for in it are the
sources of life. [PROV 4:23]
Let your eyes look straight ahead and your glance be directly
forward. [PROV 4:25]
Survey the path for your feet, and let all your ways be sure. [PROV
4:26]
Turn neither to right nor to left, keep your foot far from
evil. [PROV 4:27]
Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor's house, lest he have
more than enough of you, and hate you. [PROV 25:17]
Let another praise you - not your own mouth; Someone else - not
your own lips. [PROV 27:2]
When you make a vow to God, delay not its fulfillment. For God
has no pleasure in fools; fulfill what you have vowed. You had
better not make a vow than make it and not fulfill it. Let not
your utterances make you guilty, and say not before his
representative, "It was a mistake," lest God be angered
by such words and destroy the works of your hands. [ECCL 5:3-5]
Do not give heed to every word that is spoken lest you hear
your servant speaking ill of you, for you know in your heart that
you have many times spoken ill of others. [ECCL 7:21-22]
Rejoice, O young man, while you are young and let your heart be
glad in the days of your youth. Follow the ways of your heart, the
vision of your eyes; Yet understand that as regards all this God
will bring you to judgment. Ward off grief from your heart and put
away trouble from your presence, though the dawn of youth is
fleeting. [ECCL 11:9-10]
Be still before the LORD; wait for God. Do not be provoked by
the prosperous, nor by malicious schemers. [PS 37:7]
Exalt not yourself lest you fall and bring upon you dishonor;
For then the LORD will reveal your secrets and publicly cast you
down [SIRACH 1:27-28]
My son, when you come to serve the LORD, prepare yourself for
trials. Be sincere of heart and steadfast, undisturbed in time of
adversity. Cling to him, forsake him not; thus will your future be
great. Accept whatever befalls you, in crushing misfortune be
patient; For in fire gold is tested, and worthy men in the
crucible of humiliation. [SIRACH 2:1-5]
What is committed to you, attend to; for what is hidden is not
your concern. [SIRACH 3:21]
With what is too much for you meddle not, when shown things
beyond human understanding. [SIRACH 3:22]
Deliver the oppressed from the hand of the oppressor; let not
justice be repugnant to you. [SIRACH 4:9]
Use your time well; guard yourself from evil, and bring upon
yourself no shame. [SIRACH 4:20]
Show no favoritism to your own discredit; let no one intimidate
you to your own downfall. [SIRACH 4:22]
Be not ashamed to acknowledge your guilt, but of your ignorance
rather be ashamed. [SIRACH 4:26]
Even to the death fight for truth, and the LORD your God will
battle for you. [SIRACH 4:28]
Be not surly in your speech, nor lazy and slack in your deeds.
[SIRACH 4:29]
Be not a lion at home, nor sly and suspicious at work. [SIRACH
4:30]
Delay not your conversion to the LORD, put it not off from day
to day [SIRACH 5:8]
Rely not upon deceitful wealth, for it will be no help on the
day of wrath. [SIRACH 5:10]
Be consistent in your thoughts; steadfast be your words. [SIRACH
5:12]
Fall not into the grip of desire, lest, like fire, it consume
your strength; Your leaves it will eat, your fruits destroy, and
you will be left a dry tree, For contumacious desire destroys its
owner and makes him the sport of his enemies. [SIRACH 6:2-4]
Be eager to hear every godly discourse; let no wise saying
escape you. [SIRACH 6:35]
Sow not in the furrows of injustice, lest you harvest it
sevenfold. [SIRACH 7:3]
Seek not from the LORD authority, nor from the king a place of
honor. [SIRACH 7:4]
Parade not your justice before the Lord, and before the king
flaunt not your wisdom. [SIRACH 7:5]
Seek not to become a judge if you have not strength to root out
crime, Or you will show favor to the ruler and mar your integrity.
[SIRACH 7:6]
Be not impatient in prayers, and neglect not the giving of
alms. [SIRACH 7:10]
Delight not in telling lie after lie, for it never results in
good. [SIRACH 7:13]
Hate not laborious tasks, nor farming, which was ordained by
the Most High. [SIRACH 7:15]
Do not esteem yourself better than your fellows; remember, his
wrath will not delay. [SIRACH 7:16]
Honor God and respect the priest; give him his portion as you
have been commanded: First fruits and contributions, due
sacrifices and holy offerings. [SIRACH 7:31]
Reject not the tradition of old men which they have learned
from their fathers; From it you will obtain the knowledge how to
answer in time of need. [SIRACH 8:9]
Lend not to one more powerful than yourself; and whatever you
lend, count it as lost. [SIRACH 8:12]
Go not surety beyond your means; think any pledge a debt you
must pay. [SIRACH 8:13]
Before a stranger do nothing that should be kept secret, for
you know not what it will engender. [SIRACH 8:18]
Avert your eyes from a comely woman; gaze not upon the beauty
of another's wife - Through woman's beauty many perish, for lust
for it burns like fire. [SIRACH 9:8]
Rejoice not at a proud man's success; remember he will not
reach death unpunished. [SIRACH 9:12]
Say not: "What do I need? What further pleasure can be
mine?" Say not: "I am independent. What harm can come to
me now?" The day of prosperity makes one forget adversity;
the day of adversity makes one forget prosperity. A moment's
affliction brings forgetfulness of past delights; when a man dies,
his life is revealed. [SIRACH 11:23-27]
Call no man happy before his death, for by how he ends, a man
is known. [SIRACH 11:28]
Bear no burden too heavy for you; go with no one greater or
wealthier than yourself. How can the earthen pot go with the metal
cauldron? When they knock together, the pot will be smashed
[SIRACH
13:2]
Before making a vow have the means to fulfill it; be not one
who tries the LORD. [SIRACH 18:23]
Go not after your lusts, but keep your desires in check. Have
no joy in the pleasures of a moment which bring on poverty
redoubled [SIRACH 18:30, 32]
Think of the commandments, hate not your neighbor; of the Most
High's covenant, and overlook faults. [SIRACH 28:7]
Be it little or much, be content with what you have, and pay no
heed to him who would disparage your home; A miserable life it is
to go from house to house, for as a guest you dare not open your
mouth. [SIRACH 29:23-24]
Do not give in to sadness, torment not yourself with brooding;
Gladness of heart is the very life of man, cheerfulness prolongs
his days. [SIRACH 30:21-22]
Distract yourself, renew your courage, drive resentment far
away from you; For worry has brought death to many, nor is there
aught to be gained from resentment. [SIRACH 30:23]
Let not wine-drinking be the proof of your strength, for wine
has been the ruin of many. [SIRACH 31:25]
When it is time to leave, tarry not; be off for home! There
take your ease [SIRACH 32:11]
Do nothing without counsel, and then you need have no regrets.
[SIRACH 32:19]
Go not on a way that is set with snares, and let not the same
thing trip you twice. [SIRACH 32:20]
While breath of life is still in you, let no man have dominion
over you. Give not to another your wealth, lest then you have to
plead with him; Far better that your children plead with you than
that you should look to their generosity. Keep control over all
your affairs; let no one tarnish your glory. [SIRACH 33:21-23]
Force him to work that he be not idle, for idleness is an apt
teacher of mischief. [SIRACH 33:28]
My son, while you are well, govern your appetite so that you
allow it not what is bad for you; For not every food is good for
everyone, nor is everything suited to every taste. Be not drawn
after every enjoyment, neither become a glutton for choice foods,
For sickness comes with overeating, and gluttony brings on
biliousness. Through lack of self-control many have died, but the
abstemious man prolongs his life. [SIRACH 37:26-30]
Flee wickedness; let your hands be just, cleanse your heart of
every sin [SIRACH 38:10]
Man's body is a fleeting thing, but a virtuous name will never
be annihilated. Have a care for your name, for it will stand by
you better than precious treasures in the thousands; The boon of
life is for limited days, but a good name, for days without
number. [SIRACH 41:11-13]
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