Sirach 41:1–9
1O death, how bitter is the memory of you to a man who is at peace in his possessions, to the man who has nothing to distract him and has prosperity in all things, and who still has strength to enjoy food!↗
2O death, your sentence is acceptable to a man who is needy and who fails in strength, who is in extreme old age, is distracted about all things, is perverse, and has lost patience!↗
3Don’t be afraid of the sentence of death. Remember those who have been before you and who come after. This is the sentence from the Lord over all flesh.↗
4And why do you refuse when it is the good pleasure of the Most High? Whether life lasts ten, or a hundred, or a thousand years, there is no inquiry about life in Hades.↗
5The children of sinners are abominable children and they frequent the dwellings of the ungodly.↗
6The inheritance of sinners’ children will perish and with their posterity will be a perpetual disgrace.↗
7Children will complain of an ungodly father, because they suffer disgrace because of him.↗
8Woe to you, ungodly men, who have forsaken the law of the Most High God!↗
9If you are born, you will be born to a curse. If you die, a curse will be your portion.↗
Source: World English Bible (Catholic), public domain. Text is taken directly from the source. Headings are editorial, not biblical verses.
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