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Sirach / Chapter 3

Sirach 3

34 verses • Latin Vulgate (Jerome)

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

Ben Sira teaches on the duties of children toward their parents, grounding filial honor in the commandment of Moses. Honoring one's father atones for sin; caring for one's mother stores up treasure. The second half turns to humility, warning against pride and curiosity about things beyond one's capacity. Almsgiving is commended as atonement for sin.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

The chapter elevates parental honor to near-sacramental status, claiming it atones for sin (v. 3) and functions like a treasury of merit. This became foundational for Catholic moral theology on the fourth commandment. The warning against intellectual overreach (vv. 21-24) was frequently cited in medieval debates over the limits of theological speculation.

Translation Friction

The claim that honoring parents atones for sin sits in tension with prophetic and Pauline theology that grounds atonement in divine initiative alone. Ben Sira reflects a pre-Christian wisdom theology where righteous deeds have expiatory power. The Vulgate text of this chapter also shows significant divergence from the Greek in verse order.

Connections

Exodus 20:12 (honor your father and mother); Deuteronomy 5:16 (promise of long life); Ephesians 6:1-3 (Paul cites the commandment); Proverbs 23:22 (do not despise your mother when she is old); Tobit 4:3-4 (duty to bury parents).

Sirach 3:1

Filii sapientiae ecclesia iustorum et natio illorum oboedientia et dilectio.

The sons of wisdom are the assembly of the righteous, and their offspring are obedience and love.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

ecclesia iustorum
"the assembly of the righteous"

Ecclesia here means gathered community; in the Vulgate it carries no specifically Christian ecclesiological connotation.

Translator Notes

  1. The chapter opens by defining the community of the wise as those characterized by obedience and love -- the twin virtues that govern what follows.
Sirach 3:2

Iudicium patris audite filii et sic facite ut salvi sitis.

Hear the judgment of your father, my sons, and act accordingly, that you may be saved.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

iudicium
"judgment"

In the wisdom context, iudicium is a considered ruling or teaching that carries the weight of tested experience.

Translator Notes

  1. 'Iudicium' here means authoritative instruction or ruling, not condemnation.
Sirach 3:3

Deus enim honoravit patrem in filiis et iudicium matris exquirens firmavit in filios.

For God honored the father through his children, and upheld the mother's authority over her sons.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. God himself established parental authority; therefore to dishonor parents is to defy a divine ordinance.
Sirach 3:4

Qui diligit Deum exorabit pro peccatis et continebit se ab illis et in oratione dierum exaudietur.

Whoever loves God will pray for the forgiveness of sins and will refrain from them, and will be heard in the prayer of each day.

Sirach 3:5

Et sicut qui thesaurizat ita et qui honorificat matrem suam.

And as one who stores up treasure, so is the one who honors his mother.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

thesaurizat
"stores up treasure"

The same verb Jesus uses in Matthew 6:19-20 when contrasting earthly and heavenly treasure.

Translator Notes

  1. Honoring one's mother is compared to accumulating wealth -- a striking economic metaphor for a moral duty.
Sirach 3:6

Qui honorat patrem suum iucundabitur in filiis et in die orationis suae exaudietur.

Whoever honors his father will have joy in his own children, and in the day of his prayer he will be heard.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The reciprocity principle: honor given to parents returns as blessing through one's own children.
Sirach 3:7

Qui honorat patrem suum vita vivet longiore et qui obaudit patri refrigerabit matrem.

Whoever honors his father will live a longer life, and whoever obeys his father brings comfort to his mother.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

refrigerabit
"brings comfort to"

Literally 'will refresh' or 'cool'; the image is of relief from heat or burden.

Translator Notes

  1. The promise of long life echoes Exodus 20:12 directly.
Sirach 3:8

Qui timet Dominum honorat parentes et quasi dominis serviet his qui se genuerunt.

Whoever fears the Lord honors his parents, and will serve those who gave him life as though serving masters.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The analogy of parents as masters elevates filial duty to the level of service owed to a lord -- radical in its demand.
Sirach 3:9

In opere et sermone et omni patientia honora patrem tuum.

In deed and in word and in all patience, honor your father.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Honor is expressed in three dimensions: action, speech, and long-suffering endurance -- especially relevant when parents become difficult in old age.
Sirach 3:10

Ut superveniat tibi benedictio ab eo et benedictio illius in novissimo maneat.

So that his blessing may come upon you, and his blessing may remain with you to the end.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

benedictio
"blessing"

Parental blessing carries real theological weight in the Israelite tradition; cf. the patriarchal blessings of Genesis.

Sirach 3:11

Benedictio patris firmat domos filiorum maledictio autem matris eradicat fundamenta.

A father's blessing establishes the houses of his children, but a mother's curse uproots their foundations.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The parallel is deliberately asymmetric -- father's blessing builds, mother's curse destroys -- to underscore the peril of dishonoring either parent.
Sirach 3:12

Ne glorieris in contumelia patris tui non enim est tibi gloria eius confusio.

Do not glory in your father's dishonor, for your father's shame is no glory to you.

Sirach 3:13

Gloria enim hominis ex honore patris sui et dedecus filii pater sine honore.

For a man's glory comes from his father's honor, and a father without honor is a disgrace to his son.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. In an honor-shame culture, family reputation is indivisible; one member's dishonor taints all.
Sirach 3:14

Fili suscipe senectam patris tui et non contristes eum in vita illius.

My son, support your father in his old age, and do not grieve him during his life.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

senectam
"old age"

Senecta emphasizes the frailty and vulnerability of advanced age.

Translator Notes

  1. The shift to caring for elderly parents was especially poignant in the ancient world, where no institutional care existed.
Sirach 3:15

Et si defecerit sensu veniam da et ne spernas eum in tua virtute.

And if his mind fails, show understanding, and do not despise him in the strength of your own vigor.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

defecerit sensu
"his mind fails"

A delicate description of cognitive decline in old age; sensus encompasses both perception and judgment.

Translator Notes

  1. One of the most humane verses in the wisdom literature: when a parent's mental faculties decline, the child must respond with compassion rather than contempt.
Sirach 3:16

Eleemosyna enim patris non erit in oblivione pro peccatis enim matris restituetur tibi bonum.

For kindness to a father will not be forgotten; as recompense for the sins of your mother, good will be repaid to you.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

eleemosyna
"kindness"

Eleemosyna encompasses both charitable giving and merciful deeds; it is broader than modern 'almsgiving.'

Translator Notes

  1. 'Sins of your mother' is ambiguous -- it may mean 'in atonement for sins' generally, or care given despite a mother's failings.
Sirach 3:17

Et in iustitia aedificabitur tibi et in die tribulationis commemorabitur tui et sicut in sereno glacies solventur peccata tua.

And in righteousness it will be built up for you; and in the day of tribulation you will be remembered, and like ice in fair weather your sins will melt away.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The simile of sins melting like ice in sunshine is vivid and original to Sirach.
Sirach 3:18

Quam malae famae est qui derelinquit patrem et est maledictus a Deo qui exasperat matrem.

How evil is the reputation of the one who abandons his father! And cursed by God is the one who provokes his mother.

Sirach 3:19

Fili in mansuetudine opera tua perfice et super hominum gloriam diligeris.

My son, carry out your tasks in gentleness, and you will be loved beyond the fame of men.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

mansuetudine
"gentleness"

Mansuetudo is the virtue of controlled strength; it characterizes one who has power but exercises restraint.

Translator Notes

  1. The chapter pivots from filial duty to humility as a general virtue.
Sirach 3:20

Quanto magnus es humilia te in omnibus et coram Deo invenies gratiam.

The greater you are, humble yourself in all things, and you will find favor before God.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

gratiam
"favor"

Gratia here means divine favor or approval, not yet the developed theological concept of grace.

Translator Notes

  1. A principle Jesus echoes directly: 'Whoever exalts himself will be humbled' (Matthew 23:12).
Sirach 3:21

Quoniam magna potentia Dei solius et ab humilibus honoratur.

For great is the power of God alone, and he is honored by the humble.

Sirach 3:22

Altiora te ne quaesieris et fortiora te ne scrutatus fueris sed quae praecepit tibi Deus illa cogita semper et in pluribus operibus eius ne fueris curiosus.

Do not seek what is too high for you, and do not search into what is beyond your strength; but what God has commanded you, think on that always, and in the multitude of his works do not be curious.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

curiosus
"curious"

Curiositas in the patristic and medieval tradition was a vice: inappropriate or presumptuous inquiry into things better left to God.

Translator Notes

  1. This verse became a watchword against speculative theology in the Middle Ages. Thomas Aquinas and others cited it to establish limits on human inquiry into divine mysteries.
Sirach 3:23

Non est enim tibi necessarium ea quae abscondita sunt videre oculis tuis.

For it is not necessary for you to see with your own eyes those things that are hidden.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The hidden things belong to God (cf. Deuteronomy 29:29); human wisdom operates within revealed boundaries.
Sirach 3:24

In supervacuis rebus noli scrutari multipliciter et in pluribus operibus eius non eris curiosus.

Do not scrutinize needless things repeatedly, and in many of his works do not be inquisitive.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

supervacuis
"needless"

Supervacuus means beyond what is required or useful; unnecessary intellectual pursuit.

Translator Notes

  1. Reinforces verse 22 with a near-verbatim repetition, a rhetorical technique of emphasis common in Sirach.
Sirach 3:25

Plurima enim super sensum hominum ostensa sunt tibi.

For many things have been shown to you that surpass human understanding.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The paradox: revelation exceeds comprehension. What God has shown is already more than the mind can master; do not chase after more.
Sirach 3:26

Multos quoque supplantavit suspicio illorum et in vanitate detinuit sensus illorum.

Presumption has overthrown many, and vain suspicion has held their minds captive.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

suspicio
"presumption"

Suspicio here means overreaching conjecture or ungrounded speculation, not mere suspicion.

Sirach 3:27

Cor durum habebit male in novissimo et qui amat periculum in illo peribit.

A hard heart will come to grief at the last, and whoever loves danger will perish in it.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

cor durum
"a hard heart"

The hardened heart is unteachable and unrepentant; it is the opposite of the humble heart commended in verse 20.

Sirach 3:28

Cor ingrediens duas vias non habebit successus et pravus corde in illis scandalizabitur.

A heart that walks two paths will not succeed, and the one perverse of heart will stumble on them.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Returns to the 'two paths' motif of 2:15; indecision and moral duplicity lead to ruin.
Sirach 3:29

Cor nequam gravabitur in doloribus et peccator adiciet ad peccandum.

A wicked heart will be burdened with sorrows, and the sinner will add sin to sin.

Sirach 3:30

Synagogae superborum non erit sanitas plantatio enim peccati radicabitur in illis et non intellegetur.

There will be no healing for the assembly of the proud, for the root of sin is planted in them and they do not perceive it.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. Pride is compared to a deeply rooted plant that grows unnoticed -- a subtle agricultural metaphor for how arrogance takes hold.
Sirach 3:31

Cor sapientis intellegitur in sapientia et auris bona audiet cum omni concupiscentia sapientiam.

The heart of the wise is discerned through wisdom, and a good ear will hear wisdom with all desire.

Sirach 3:32

Sapiens cor et intellegibile abstinebit se a peccatis et in operibus iustitiae successus habebit.

A wise and understanding heart will abstain from sins, and will have success in works of righteousness.

Sirach 3:33

Ignem ardentem exstinguit aqua et eleemosyna resistit peccatis.

Water quenches a blazing fire, and almsgiving atones for sins.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

eleemosyna
"almsgiving"

Here used in its specific sense of charitable giving to the poor, with expiatory efficacy.

Translator Notes

  1. The expiatory power of almsgiving (eleemosyna) is a major theme in Tobit (4:10, 12:9) and throughout the deuterocanonical literature. This verse was central to Catholic teaching on works of mercy.
Sirach 3:34

Et Deus prospector est eius qui reddit gratiam meminit in posterum et in tempore casus sui inveniet firmamentum.

And God, who looks upon the one who repays kindness, remembers him in the future, and in the time of his falling he will find support.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

prospector
"who looks upon"

God is the attentive observer who sees and records acts of generosity.

Translator Notes

  1. The chapter closes by assuring that acts of charity create a kind of moral capital that God remembers and honors in the giver's hour of need.
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