Sirach 2:1-11
Common English Bible
Trusting in God
2 My child, if you come to serve the Lord,
prepare yourself for testing.
2 Set your heart straight, be steadfast,
and don’t act hastily in a time of distress.
3 Hold fast to God
and don’t keep your distance from him,
so that you may find strength
at your end.
4 Accept whatever happens to you,
and be patient
when you suffer humiliation,
5 because gold is tested with fire,
and acceptable people are tested
in the furnace of humiliation.[a]
6 Trust him, and he will help you;
make your ways straight,
and hope in him.
7 You who fear the Lord, wait for his mercy,
and don’t turn aside
or else you might fall.
8 You who fear the Lord, trust him,
and you won’t lose your reward.
9 You who fear the Lord,
hope for good things,
for unending joy and mercy.[b]
10 Look at the people
from long ago and see:
Who trusted in the Lord
and was put to shame?
Or who remained firm in godly fear
and was left behind?
Or who called upon the Lord, and the Lord
overlooked him?
11 After all, the Lord is compassionate
and merciful;
he forgives sins and rescues people
in a time of hardship.
Footnotes
- Sirach 2:5 b adds to 2:5 In sickness and in poverty trust in him.
- Sirach 2:9 LXXb adds to 2:9 God repays with a gift of unending joy.
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