Catholic Public Domain Version

Sirach 26:16-27 Catholic Public Domain Version (CPDV)

16. The grace of an attentive wife will delight her husband, and will fatten his bones.

17. Her discipline is a gift from God.

18. Such is an understanding and quiet wife. For there is no substitution for a well-instructed soul.

19. A holy and contrite wife is grace upon grace.

20. And no amount of money is equal to the value of a soul with self-restraint.

21. Like the sun rising over the world in the high places of God, so the beauty of a good wife is the adornment of her house.

22. Like a lamp shining atop a holy lampstand, so is the beauty of a face in the mature stage of life.

23. Like golden pillars upon bases of silver, so are the firm feet of a mature wife upon the soles of her feet.

24. Like everlasting foundations upon a solid rock, so are the commandments of God in the heart of a holy wife.

25. By two things, my heart is greatly saddened, and at a third, anger overwhelms me:

26. a man of war failing because of dire need, and an understanding man treated with contempt,

27. and anyone who crosses over from justice to sin. God has prepared such a one for the spear.