He that toucheth pitch, shall be defiled with it: and he that hath fellowship with the proud, shall put on pride.

He shall take a burden upon him that hath fellowship with one more honourable than himself. And have no fellowship with one that is richer than thyself.

What agreement shall the earthen pot have with the kettle? for if they knock one against the other, it shall be broken.

The rich man hath done wrong, and yet he will fume: but the poor is wronged and must hold his peace.

If thou give, he will make use of thee: and if thou have nothing, he will forsake thee.

If thou have any thing, he will live with thee, and will make thee bare, and he will not be sorry for thee.

If he have need of thee he will deceive thee, and smiling upon thee will put thee in hope; he will speak thee fair, and will say: What wantest thou?

And he will shame thee by his meats, till he have drawn thee dry twice or thrice, and at last he will laugh at thee: and afterward when he seeth thee, he will forsake thee, and shake his head at thee.

Humble thyself to God, and wait for his hands.

Beware that thou be not deceived into folly, and be humbled.

Be not lowly in thy wisdom, lest being humbled thou be deceived into folly.

If thou be invited by one that is mightier, withdraw thyself: for so he will invite thee the more.

Be not troublesome to him, lest thou be put back: and keep not far from him, lest thou be forgotten.

Affect not to speak with him as an equal, and believe not his many words: for by much talk he will sift thee, and smiling will examine thee concerning thy secrets.

His cruel mind will lay up thy words: and he will not spare to do thee hurt, and to cast thee into prison.

Take heed to thyself, and attend diligently to what thou hearest: for thou walkest in danger of thy ruin.

When thou hearest those things, see as it were in sleep, and thou shalt awake.

Love God all thy life, and call upon him for thy salvation.

Every beast loveth its like: so also every man him that is nearest to himself.

All flesh shall consort with the like to itself, and every man shall associate himself to his like.

If the wolf shall at any time have fellowship with the lamb, so the sinner with the just.

What fellowship hath a holy man with a dog, or what part hath the rich with the poor?

The wild ass is the lion’s prey in the desert: so also the poor are devoured by the rich.

And as humility is an abomination to the proud: so also the rich man abhorreth the poor.

When a rich man is shaken, he is kept up by his friends: but when a poor man is fallen down, he is thrust away even by his acquaintance.

When a rich man hath been deceived, he hath many helpers: he hath spoken proud things, and they have justified him.

The poor man was deceived, and he is rebuked also: he hath spoken wisely, and could have no place.

The rich man spoke, and all held their peace, and what he said they extol even to the clouds.

The poor man spoke, and they say: Who is this? and if he stumble, they will overthrow him.

Riches are good to him that hath no sin in his conscience: and poverty is very wicked in the mouth of the ungodly.

The heart of a man changeth his countenance, either for good, or for evil.

The token of a good heart, and a good countenance thou shalt hardly find, and with labour.

Blessed is the man that hath not slipped by a word out of his mouth, and is not pricked with the remorse of sin.

Happy is he that hath had no sadness of his mind, and who is not fallen from his hope.

Riches are not comely for a covetous man and a niggard, and what should an envious man do with gold?

He that gathereth together by wronging his own soul, gathereth for others, and another will squander away his goods in rioting.

He that is evil to himself, to whom will he be good? and he shall not take pleasure in his goods.

There is none worse than he that envieth himself, and this is the reward of his wickedness:

And if he do good, he doth it ignorantly, and unwillingly: and at the last he discovereth his wickedness.

The eye of the envious is wicked: and he turneth away his face, and despiseth his own soul.

The eye of the covetous man is insatiable in his portion of iniquity: he will not be satisfied till he consume his own soul, drying it up.

An evil eye is towards evil things: and he shall not have his fill of bread, but shall be needy and pensive at his own table.

My son, if thou have any thing, do good to thyself, and offer to God worthy offerings.

Remember that death is not slow, and that the covenant of hell hath been shewn to thee: for the covenant of this world shall surely die.

Do good to thy friend before thou die, and according to thy ability, stretching out thy hand give to the poor.

Defraud not thyself of the good day, and let not the part of a good gift overpass thee.

Shalt thou not leave to others to divide by lot thy sorrows and labours?

Give and take, and justify thy soul.

Before thy death work justice: for in hell there is no finding food.

All flesh shall fade as grass, and as the leaf that springeth out on a green tree.

Some grow, and some fall off: so is the generation of flesh and blood, one cometh to an end, and another is born.

Every work that is corruptible shall fail in the end: and the worker thereof shall go with it.

And every excellent work shall be justified: and the worker thereof shall be honoured therein.

Blessed is the man that shall continue in wisdom, and that shall meditate in his justice, and in his mind shall think of the all seeing eye of God.

He that considereth her ways in his heart, and hath understanding in her secrets, who goeth after her as one that traceth, and stayeth in her ways.

He who looketh in at her windows, and hearkeneth at her door.

He that lodgeth near her house, and fastening a pin in her walls shall set up his tent high unto her, where good things shall rest in his lodging for ever.

He shall set his children under her shelter, and shall lodge under her branches:

He shall be protected under her covering from the heat, and shall rest in her glory.

He that feareth God, will do good: and he that possesseth justice, shall lay hold on her,

And she will meet him as an honourable mother, and will receive him as a wife married of a virgin.

With the bread of life and understanding, she shall feed him, and give him the water of wholesome wisdom to drink: and she shall be made strong in him, and he shall not be moved.

And she shall hold him fast, and he shall not be confounded: and she shall exalt him among his neighbours.

And in the midst of the church she shall open his mouth, and shall fill him with the spirit of wisdom and understanding, and shall clothe him with a robe of glory.

She shall heap upon him a treasure of joy and gladness, and shall cause him to inherit an everlasting name.

But foolish men shall not obtain her, and wise men shall meet her, foolish men shall not see her: for she is far from pride and deceit.

Lying men shall be mindful of her: but men that speak truth shall be found with her, and shall advance, even till they come to the sight of God.

Praise is not seemly in the mouth of a sinner:

For wisdom came forth from God: for praise shall be with the wisdom of God, and shall abound in a faithful mouth, and the sovereign Lord will give praise unto it.

Say not: It is through God, that she is not with me: for do not thou the things that he hateth.

Say not: He hath caused me to err: for he hath no need of wicked men.

The Lord hateth all abomination of error, and they that fear him shall not love it.

God made man from the beginning, and left him in the hand of his own counsel.

He added his commandments and precepts.

If thou wilt keep the commandments and perform acceptable fidelity for ever, they shall preserve thee.

He hath set water and fire before thee: stretch forth thy hand to which thou wilt.

Before man is life and death, good and evil, that which he shall choose shall be given him:

For the wisdom of God is great, and he is strong in power, seeing all men without ceasing.

The eyes of the Lord are towards them that fear him, and he knoweth al the work of man.

He hath commanded no man to do wickedly, and he hath given no man license to sin;

For he desireth not a multitude of faithless and unprofitable children.

Rejoice not in ungodly children, if they be multiplied: neither be delighted in them, if the fear of God be not with them.

Trust not to their life, and respect not their labours.

For better is one that feareth God, than a thousand ungodly children.

And it is better to die without children, than to leave ungodly children.

By one that is wise a country shall be inhabited, the tribe of the ungodly shall become desolate.

Many such things hath my eyes seen, and greater things than these my ear hath heard.

In the congregation of sinners a fire shall be kindled, and in an unbelieving nation wrath shall flame out.

The ancient giants did not obtain pardon for their sins, who were destroyed trusting to their own strength:

And he spared not the place where Lot sojourned, but abhorred them for the pride of their word.

He had not pity on them, destroying the whole nation that extolled themselves in their sins.

So did he with the six hundred thousand footmen, who were gathered together in the hardness of their heart: and if one had been stiffnecked, it is a wonder if he had escaped unpunished:

For mercy and wrath are with him. He is mighty to forgive, and to pour out indignation:

According as his mercy is, so his correction judgeth a man according to his works.

The sinner shall not escape in his rapines, and the patience of him that sheweth mercy shall not be put off.

All mercy shall make a place for every man according to the merit of his works, and according to the wisdom of his sojournment.

Say not: I shall be hidden from God, and who shall remember me from on high?

In such a multitude I shall not be known: for what is my soul in such an immense creation?

Behold the heaven, and the heavens of heavens, the deep, and all the earth, and the things that are in them, shall be moved in his sight,

The mountains also, and the hills, and the foundations of the earth: when God shall look upon them, they shall be shaken with trembling.

And in all these things the heart is senseless: and every heart is understood by him.

And his ways who shall understand, and the storm, which no eye of man shall see?

For many of his works are hidden, but the works of his justice who shall declare? or who shall endure? for the testament is far from some, and the examination of all is in the end.

He that wanteth understanding thinketh vain things, and the foolish, and erring man, thinketh foolish things.

Hearken to me, my son, and learn the discipline of understanding, and attend to my words in thy heart.

And I will shew forth good doctrine in equity, and will seek to declare wisdom: and attend to my words in thy heart, whilst with equity of spirit I tell thee the virtues that God hath put upon his works from the beginning, and I shew forth in truth his knowledge.

The works of God are done in judgment from the beginning, and from the making of them he distinguished their parts, and their beginnings in their generations.

He beautified their works for ever, they have neither hungered, nor laboured, and they have not ceased from their works.

Nor shall any of them straiten his neighbour at any time.

Be not thou incredulous to his word.

After this God looked upon the earth, and filled it with his goods.

The soul of every living thing hath shewn forth before the face thereof, and into it they return again.