15 Sand, salt, and a mass of iron is easier to bear than a man without understanding. (WEB) 16 Timber girded and bound into a building will not be released with shaking. So a heart established in due season on well advised counsel will not be afraid. (WEB) 17 A heart settled upon a thoughtful understanding is as an ornament of plaster on a polished wall. (WEB)
Sirach 22:15–17
Semantically similar passages
Sirach 33:4–6
4 Prepare your speech, and so you will be heard. Bind up instruction, and make your answer. (WEB) 5 The heart of a fool is like a cartwheel. His thoughts are like a rolling axle. (WEB) 6 A stallion horse is like a mocking friend. He neighs under every one who sits upon him. (WEB)
Proverbs 27:2–4
2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth— a stranger, and not your own lips. 3 A stone is heavy and sand is a burden, but aggravation from a fool outweighs them both. 4 Wrath is cruel and anger is like a flood, but who can withstand jealousy?
Proverbs 14:32–34
32 The wicked man is thrown down by his own sin, but the righteous man has a refuge even in death. 33 Wisdom rests in the heart of the discerning; even among fools she is known. 34 Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.
Proverbs 20:4–6
4 The slacker does not plow in season; at harvest time he looks, but nothing is there. 5 The intentions of a man’s heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out. 6 Many a man proclaims his loving devotion, but who can find a trustworthy man?
Sirach 21:13–15
13 The knowledge of a wise man will be made to abound as a flood, and his counsel as a fountain of life. (WEB) 14 The inward parts of a fool are like a broken vessel. He will hold no knowledge. (WEB) 15 If a man of knowledge hears a wise word, he will commend it and add to it. The… (WEB)
Sirach 27:4–6
4 In the shaking of a sieve, the refuse remains, so does the filth of man in his thoughts. (WEB) 5 The furnace tests the potter’s vessels; so the test of a person is in his thoughts. (WEB) 6 The fruit of a tree discloses its cultivation, so is the utterance of the thought of a p… (WEB)
Proverbs 18:1–3
1 He who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound judgment. 2 A fool does not delight in understanding, but only in airing his opinions. 3 With a wicked man comes contempt as well, and shame is accompanied by disgrace.
Sirach 21:18–20
18 As a house that is destroyed, so is wisdom to a fool. The knowledge of an unwise man is talk without sense. (WEB) 19 Instruction is as fetters on the feet of an unwise man, and as manacles on the right hand. (WEB) 20 A fool lifts up his voice with laughter, but a clever man smil… (WEB)
Search the collection All books and codes Translations and sources