Ben Sira - chapter 27

27: 1-30 (Translated by Edgar Goodspeed)
Many sin for the sake of gain, and the man who is intent on increasing what he has, has to shut his eyes.  A peg will stick between the joints of stones, and between buying and selling, sin is ground out.  Unless a man earnestly holds on to the fear of the Lord, his house will soon be overturned.  When a sieve is shaken, the refuse remains in it; so when a man reasons, his filth remains.  The furnace tests the potter's dishes, and the test of a person is in his reasoning/conversation.  Its fruit shows how the tree has been cultivated; so does the expression of the person's speech/thought.  Do not praise a man, before you hear him reason, for that is the way men are tested.  If you pursue what is right, you will overtake it, and put it on like a splendid robe.  Birds roost with their own kind, and truth comes back to those who practice it.  The lion lies in wait for his prey, and so does sin for those who do wrong.  The discourse/conversation of the godly is always wise, but the fool changes like the moon.  Among unintelligent people watch your opportunity to leave, but among thoughtful people stay on.  The discourse of fools is offensive, and their laughter is wanton sinfulness.  A profane man's talk makes your hair stand on end, and their quarreling makes you stop your ears.  When arrogant men quarrel, there is bloodshed.  And their abuse of one another is dreadful to hear.  The one who tells secrets destroys confidence, and will not find a friend to his mind.  If you love your friend, keep faith with him, but if you tell his secrets, do not pursue him.  For sure as a man loses the dead, you have lost your neighbor's friendship, and as you have let a bird out of your hand, you have let your neighbor out, and you will never catch him.  Do not go after him, for he is far away, and has made his escape like a gazelle from a trap.  For you can bind up a wound, and be reconciled after abuse, but for the man who tells secrets there is no hope.  A man who winks his eye plots mischief, and no one can keep it from him.  Face to face with you he speaks sweetly, and will show respect for what you say; but afterward he will twist his lips, and make a stumbling block of your words.  I have hated many things, but nothing like him, and the Lord hates him too.  The man who throws a stone into the air is throwing it on his own head, and treacherous blow wounds both.  The man who digs a hole will fall into it, and the man who sets a trap will be caught in it.  If a man does wicked things, they will roll on him, and he will not know where they come from.  Mockery and abuse overtake arrogant men, and vengeance lies in wait for them like a lion.  Those who enjoy the downfall of the godly will be caught in a trap, and pain will consume them before they die.  Wrath and anger are also detestable, and the sinful man clings to them.